Slight Smut Warning
Chapter Six: Dare You To Move // Switchfoot
"Aunt Emma!" Six pairs of outstretched arms greeted the frazzled red head as she entered her parent's house two days before Christmas, carrying more bags and boxes then she should have.
"Hey kids," She set them down and was promptly attacked with a group hug, addressing her oldest niece who was no longer in a cast, she asked, "Natalie, where's grandma and grandpa?"
"They had to go into town," She whispered the reason, "Grandma burned dinner. They went to pick something up with Mommy and Daddy."
Slightly relieved that her sister and mother weren't home—she knew they would suspect something the moment they laid eyes on her—Emma turned to open the door for Will, who was carrying a large box of presents, "Uncle Will!" The kids released their favorite red-headed aunt and rushed to his side, "What's all that?" Matthew pointed to the box.
"Oh, I don't know. Maybe they're presents for kids who have been good...but I don't think that I'll find any here."
"Hey!" One of the twins objected, "I been real good this year, right Tyler? I even used the big boy potty for the first time!"
Upon hearing this, Emma froze in her steps. Oh, God, she thought, babies...poop. She looked at Kyle, who seemed proud of his accomplishment. But he was three. There was no way in hell she would be dealing with diapers for three years.
"Em?" Will questioned as he lifted JoJo and Kendal into monstrous embraces, "You okay?"
She swallowed hard, shaking her head, "Yeah, fine, fine...I'll uh...I'll be right back," Her yellow heals clicked on the way to the bathroom, where she closed the door and took a few deep breaths. This was the first she'd been around kids since she discovered her pregnancy, which had already been almost a week ago. She would be analyzing every bit of their behavior, even if she didn't want to. Composing herself, she walked out and nearly tripped into her brother's back.
He grabbed her by the arm with and said with a laugh, "Walk much?"
She smiled, "Hello to you too, Kev."
Kevin hadn't changed all that much from the days when their constant bickering had ended in a disastrous case of Mysophobia. His hair was more of a strawberry blonde then either Emma or her sister, Annie's. He stood at six foot four, towering over his little sister with strong arms and staring her down with bright brown eyes.
He pulled her close, "Ah, just kidding, sis. How the hell are you, Emmie?"
"Do you always swear in front of your one year old?" She asked as she looked down at her youngest nephew, who was currently drooling on the cute little Christmas sweater Emma's sister-in-law had knitted for him.
Kevin scuffed his foot against the ground, "Yeah...Leah's been on me about that," Emma looked around for his wife as he mentioned her name, "He said 'damn it' the other day while closing the door to his bedroom. I laughed...but she didn't find it all that humorous," He picked up his son, "Le's upstairs power napping. She's still a bit jet-lagged. Annie and Sam went with mom and dad to pick up some dinner."
Emma cringed, she hated eating food prepared by someone she didn't know, "D-do you know where they're getting it from?"
"Don't sweat it, we've got stuff left from lunch. Where's your husband?"
"Probably being attacked by your children."
The siblings shuffled into the living room where Will was already seen entertaining the kids by helping them build a tower "as tall as the Christmas tree!" as Matthew had exclaimed.
Kevin glanced at his sister and said quietly under his breath, "And when are you going to let that man be a father? He's better with my kid then I am," his eyes focused on Matthew handing Will a blue Lego, "Not that it's real hard to do."
Emma grimaced again, "I, uh..." She had never been so excited to see her sister as the front door swung open and the four missing adults entered with a box that looked suspiciously like it would contain buffalo wings. Leftovers it is, Emma mentally sighed.
"Yeay, my baby's home!" Emma's mother pulled her youngest daughter into an excited hug. Emma hoped she didn't notice her flinch at the word 'baby.'
"Uh, hey...mom."
Her sister peered over the couch and greeted Will and her children as they began to wash up for dinner.
"Momma, Uncle Will's going to play us Christmas songs later! You and Aunt Emma and Aunt Leah should sing for us!" Natalie bounced her way to the long kitchen table.
Annie's brown eyes fell upon Emma, and at once, Emma knew that her sister suspected something.
Being only a year apart, Emma and Annie had spent most of their childhood as each other's best friends, playing occasionally with their cousin Becky and a few neighborhood girls, but they were completely happy to dress up and play Barbies with just each other. They knew each other's secrets and wishes. Annie was the only one Emma had confided in when her feelings for Will began.
"Hey, Ems," Annie smiled softly, "Why don't...you come upstairs, just for a minute."
They picked up a few of her bags went up to the room that Emma had once called her own (where she and Will would be staying for the next three days) and sat on the bed, taking in the soft purple and green walls once more.
Annie closed the door and leaned against it, "So...how far along are you?"
"Oh my gosh, Annie..." Emma put her head in her hands, "How did...how—?"
"Remember when we used to tell people that we could read each others minds? Well, I can still read yours," She said with a wink as she moved to sit next to her sister, "Seriously, how far along? Probably not more then a few weeks...?"
"I—I'm not really sure. We...just found out, not even week ago. I haven't been to the doctor yet..."
Annie's hand rested on Emma's shoulder, "And...how are you feeling about it?"
"Oh God, Annie...I, I know there's apart of me that wants this so bad...I love Will so much and he's going to be the best dad...but I just...I'm going to really struggle through this. I can't eat anything without it coming back up and I keep crying all the time and freaking out over things that never used to bother me before...and I had a zit—"
Annie laughed a little, "Just wait until you start getting horney beyond all belief. Whew. I never saw Sam so sick of seeing me naked."
Emma blushed, "Oh, I don't think that's going to be a problem for us. Will...ah, never mind." Laughing again, the older girl touched her sister's hair, flipping the ends all in the same direction, "I...I'm just not sure what I'm more worried about; being pregnant or having the baby—I can't even handle myself, Ann, how am I supposed to be a good mother? It's going to grow up thinking that their mom is a paranoid schitzo. I'm going to be such a spaz and—"
"Okay, stop, stop, stop. Emma, oh, gosh, don't cry," She wiped the single tear that had fallen, as the door cracked open and Will slipped in.
"Hey, dinner's ready...everything alright up here?"
Annie smiled sadly, "Yeah. She's just...Ems, it's okay..."
Will sat on the other side of his wife, slipping his hand into hers and kissing her forehead as she attempted to pull herself together, "I'm not really ready to tell anyone else. I wasn't going to tell you either, Ann...but obviously that's...just please don't tell mom?"
"Okay," She stood before kissing Emma in the same place Will had, "I'll tell them you need a few minutes to settle in."
Emma breathed deeply as she watched Will lay down, "God, I'm tired."
She kicked off her shoes and crawled up next to him, "I'm sorry...for crying again. She just...read my damn mind and...got me all...emotional."
Will pulled her on top of him, "Don't apologize," He muttered as he began trailing kisses from her lips to her neck, not stopping as he unbuttoned her yellow cardigan which fell off her. His hands slipped up her shirt, making an agonizingly slow journey until he had one finger beneath each wire of her bra, followed by both hands squeezing each breast tightly. Emma's eyes fluttered open as she gasped in pain and pulled away, "Em? What's wrong?"
"I-ah," She blushed so furiously her face was redder then her hair, "I...think I'm just...they're kind of...a little...sore," Her face turned down to look at her chest. For the third time that day, she made an awkward face as Will tried to get her to make eye contact with him. As she attempted to stand up, he pulled her back onto his hips.
"Sorry, sweetheart...I'll just have to continue elsewhere." He kissed her neck again, causing her eyes to close once more as her knees gave out so she was lying completely on top of him.
Realizing how much more difficult it was to kiss her neck, he rolled them so he was on top, his hands resuming their work, only this time one slipped up her orange pleated skirt, roaming around her thighs.
She moaned softly as his fingers reached her most sensitive place, "Don't stop," She breathed while he continued to touch and tease. His other hand found it's place digging through her hair, brushing and pulling lightly, knowing she secretly liked the feeling, "Will, Please—"
Emma was cut off as his mouth moved from her collar bone to her lips, his tongue forcing it's way in, meeting hers, fighting for dominance as she tried to focus on winning the battle rather then the burning pleasure between her legs.
Mustering a great deal of strength, Emma pushed him roughly, somehow flipping them so she was on top once again. His hand left it's place under her skirt to begin it's course in taking the damn thing off, when a loud knocking on the door caused them both to stop promptly and sit up.
"Uncle Will and Aunt Emma, your food is getting cold!" Having a feeling Annie sent her oldest daughter to interrupt them on purpose—"a taste of what is to come," she would later say—Emma hastily finger combed her hair.
"Okay, Nat, we'll be out in a minute," Will said as he stood, taking Emma's sweater and slipping it back on her skinny arms. Hearing the pitter-patter of little feet running back down the stairs, Will huffed and kissed his wife's lips one last time, "We'll have to continue that later," He purred into them, guiding her up and out the door.
Emma's father was an intimidating man, Will had decided after their first meeting. He was a pastor at the local Protestant church, and while he wasn't 'high and mighty,' he still made Will uncomfortable at times, like he was sinning just by staring at his wife. His brown eyes had been unsettling during their first meeting...
"Emma!" Her mother happily greeted them at the door, hugging her daughter furiously, chastising her for not coming over on Christmas (Emma hadn't told her she was spending the day with a freshly divorced man and a pregnant teenager who wanted to celebrate Christmas at a house that wasn't Jewish) and reminding her it had been since the summer before last she had seen her "baby girl."
"I—uh, sorry, mom...anyway," She pulled Will in from awkwardly standing in the entrance, "This is Will."
Mrs. Pillsbury hugged him tightly as well, "Oh, it's so great to finally meet you! Emma's told me all about you, I just couldn't wait to finally see you for myself, oh, come in, come in!"
She'd nearly dragged them into the kitchen where she was making them lunch, "Em, you want a PP&J?"
"Of course," She smiled and sat on the bar-stool at the kitchen island, inviting Will to sit with her.
"What about you, Will? I've got lunch meat and tuna and chicken salad..."
"PP&J would be fantastic," He said as Emma gazed at him, recalling the first time he'd said the words.
"Where's dad?" She asked, nibbling on a carrot from a plate her mother placed in front of them.
"Oh, he's at church. Mrs. Norster's husband died earlier this week, you remember her, curly grey hair? Always wore a black fur coat? He's doing the funeral, he should be on his way." Mrs. Pillsbury set the sandwiches down and Will watched in amazement as Emma ate something that was prepared by some else, "So, Will, how's your glee club doing? From what I hear, you guys are terrific. I'd love to hear the kids preform sometime."
Will was happy to hear Emma's mother actually take an interest in something he cared about, "Well, we just had our big competition and came in second. The kids were a bit disappointed because we couldn't move on to the state competition, but we've got some show's lined up at various venues this spring so we've got plenty to be working on."
"Well that's great! Nothing wrong with second place, especially since it was your first year, right?" Will nodded, "What kind of songs are you going to be doing at these shows?"
"A little bit of everything, actually. Emma and I have been picking songs for the past few weeks. We've got some oldies, classic rock, pop, show tunes and the occasional R&B song for the kids, they love that stuff."
The sound of the garage door opening brought a sudden increase of blood flow for Will. He was nervous about meeting Emma's father. The man was a preacher, and here he was with the preacher's daughter, fresh off a divorce.
The door opened moments later and Emma stood and nearly jumped into her father's arms, "Hey Ladybug," He held her tight, "I missed you."
"I missed you, too, Daddy," She sighed deeply and buried her face in her chest, not caring that she was acting like a four-year-old in front of Will.
Will didn't think that at all, he smiled as he looked on at the father and daughter, hoping someday he would be able to experience that special bond as well.
Mr. Pillsbury pulled away and kissed Emma's forehead, spotting Will and smiling widely, "Will?"
"Yeah, hello, Pastor Pillsbury," He said, shaking the older man's hand.
Mr. Pillsbury shook his head, "You can call me Ed. It's almost time to retire anyway," He said as he kissed his wife quickly while Emma sat back down.
"Really?" Emma's eyes grew wide, "I can't imagine that. I thought you'd be preaching until...you know..."
"Till I kick the bucket?" He laughed, "No, no. I want a little time to live before I die, I guess. Hope the Good Man upstairs is okay with that. Then maybe I could come visit you one of these days, eh?"
She shrugged, hoping the day wouldn't be too soon. Her dad didn't know she only had a one-bedroom condominium. But he did know Will was already living with her.
Emma had finished eating and Mrs. Pillsbury wanted to show her the newly re-designed basement, leaving Will sitting awkwardly under the preacher's gaze as he settled into the stool his daughter had been sitting in previously, "Will? I just want to get a few things cleared up. I want to ask you a few questions, if that's okay?" Will nodded, knowing this was coming, "Obviously, I know about the divorce. I..." He paused, trying not to sound like he was interrogating his potential son-in-law, "Emma didn't say what the circumstances were."
Will laced his fingers together, "Well, my marriage was one of those things that I went into knowing it wasn't going to work...but I did anyway. Terri and I had been together for a real long time, and I just...everyone expected us to get married, so we did. I knew she was controlling and manipulative and an all around...lazy and unmotivated, but it always seemed like it would get better. It just...didn't." He let out a sad laugh, "The night that I left, she told me that the reason our marriage worked is because I didn't feel good about myself. She was always putting me down, and I always tried to convince myself she was just trying to make me a better person. She complained about everything I did, even if I liked it...I took over the school's Glee club in September and that's when things started turning for the worst. She told me she was pregnant and for the next three months, I gave her anything she wanted because she was having my baby. I let her chide me about the club and how it was stupid and I was dumb for doing it...and one day, I found out she was faking the pregnancy to get me to stay. And that was the last straw."
The pastor's eyes weren't looking at him as he told the story, "Did you try counseling?"
Will tapped his foot nervously, "I...no. I didn't want it. The problem was that..." He wasn't sure if he should give Ed the real reason why he didn't want things to work out with Terri. With a deep breath, he announced, "I found the love of my life after I was already married."
"Emma?"
Will swallowed hard and nodded, "Don't take it the wrong way—we weren't having an affair, she would never, I would never do that...but...we both had feelings for each other. And sometimes, I couldn't help myself from imagining how much happier I'd be if I was with Emma...we never acted on any of the feelings or desires...But I wanted the divorce. I wanted to be free of Terri, so I could love Emma. I know how horrible it sounds...but, I love her so much and...I know it's only been two months since the divorce was finalized and Emma tried to convince me I needed more time to be sure, but I love her and I know it, she's not the rebound or any of that horrible stuff. I truly, genuinely love her. I never felt the way I do when I'm with her when I was with Terri, never. She's such a great person, she's so honest and...God, I can't even put her into words. She's amazing. And I love her."
Ed put a hand on Will's shoulder, "Thank you."
As Will was about to ask what for, Emma and her mother returned, the younger red head wound her arms around his neck, kissing his cheek, "Dad? Were you threatening him?"
The pastor shook his head and kissed Emma's forehead again, "I've got a sermon to write. Why don't you get your things settled in?"
As Mr. Pillsbury made his way to exit the room, he caught Will's eye, smiled and nodded.
Kendal climbed into Will's lap while Tyler and Kyle drove cars over his shoes. Mr. Pillsbury watched the scene before him as Emma entered the room carrying Andrew and sat next to her husband.
"Since when did you start liking kids, Em?" Ed asked as she had placed a kiss on Andrew's nose.
"Oh...I don't...this summer I guess?" She said as she rubbed the baby's back.
"The Ladybug I knew would have rather spent her Christmas's alone then surrounded by seven screaming toddlers," He said quietly as he moved to sit with her, "Good job, Will—whatever you did."
He smirked as Kendal buried her face in his shirt collar, "Better get used to them now."
"Why is that?" The pastor asked, Emma's eyes grew wide as she attempted to subtly glare at her husband.
He shrugged, trying to keep his cool, "No reason."
"Certainly not because you knocked my youngest daughter up, right?"
Will would have normally laughed after hearing a man of God say something so bluntly, however Emma's horrified expression sort of ruined any chance at the situation becoming humorous.
"I—I...We just...I wasn't going to...Oh, God," She hid her face in her hands while Andrew flailed his arms in attempt to get some cuddling time back.
The rest of the adults in the room had silenced all conversation as their attention became fixed oat the sight of Emma attempting to keep her cool as her father revealed her pregnancy, "Were you planning on telling us?"
Leah moved forward to take Kendal and Andrew in her arms, quietly instructing Natalie to take her siblings and cousins to the basement to play.
Emma remained silent as Will's arm snaked around her. She removed her face from her arms and fanned it with her hand to keep the panic at bay. She was bound and determined not to cry again.
"I wasn't ready to talk about it," She finally choked, "I'm kind of...having a hard time dealing with it. How did you know?"
Ed looked at Annie and Leah, "Well, I've seen six pregnancies in the past five years, for starters. I know you don't have acid reflux, so the heartburn you had at dinner and the fact that you excused yourself to the bathroom ten minutes later didn't help to hide it," Emma sniffed, still trying to hold her tears back, "And...I know you, Ladybug. You're my baby girl. I know when something just isn't right."
Mrs. Pillsbury stood and kneeled in front of her daughter, "Emma?"
"I-I..." God, she was sick of stuttering and sputtering over this topic, "Damn it," She hissed, standing and storming up the stairs, closing her door and falling apart like she had done so many times before.
Will sighed, taking his turn to lean forward and put his head in his hands. He knew she was still upset, but...they were having a baby.
"Will?" Annie took her turn to stand and placed a hand on her brother-in-law's arm, "I...she's going to be fine."
"I know...this is probably the eightieth time this week we've been through this," He said as he rubbed his eyes, "She just needs some time alone to...go through things. She'll come down and hug it out in a few hours."
Kevin's arms were crossed, "How the hell did she get preggo? If I know my sister, there's no way you two were doin' it without protection."
"Yeah, well," Will huffed, "It's only ninety-nine percent effective. We're just the lucky one percent. Emma's okay though, really, she is. We've been over it. She's freaked out and terrified, but she does want a baby. We both do. It's going to be okay. I'm there for her, even if I don't always understand what she's feeling."
Mrs. Pillsbury sat where her daughter had been previously, taking her husband's hand, "How did she react when she found out?"
Another long sigh escaped Will's lips, "Um...she was pretty hysterical. Almost fainted. It took awhile, lots of tears and doubts."
The family asked him more questions before he had enough and excused himself to check on his wife.
He opened the door to see Emma staring out the window as she had done the day it all began, "Hey," He sat down, taking her hand.
A smile played on her lips as she squeezed it tight, "Can we skip the talking part and go straight to the crazy hot sex?"
Will laughed and picked her up, sitting her on the bed and undoing his belt, "Had enough talks and tears?"
"Yeah, I think so. I wasn't really that upset that they found out," She giggled, "I just didn't want to be bothered for the rest of the night."
Will's jaw dropped and before he could make a comment about him being stuck downstairs being interrogated for forty minutes, Emma took advantage his open mouth and kissed him hard, hands working a mile a minute to undo his fleece zipper and throw it to the floor, his hands kept up, working their way through her hair and down her body, taking off her clothing in the process, surprised to feel himself naked so quickly, she typically liked it slow and sensual, with him calmly taking the reigns. He moaned into another open mouth kiss as her hands moved further south, clutching him tightly and suddenly, teasing as he had done to her earlier.
He attempted to lay her down so he could get the show on the road, but Emma was in full swing as she forced his back to the sheets, hovering over him with a devilish smirk, "I'm in charge tonight," She whispered huskily, attacking his lips once more as he blinked in shock.
He wasn't sure whether it was the satisfaction of escaping her family or the pregnancy hormones that suddenly had her dominant, but Will found it incredibly sexy and inescapable as the night grew on. Emma was in full control the entire time. While it was exhilarating, she was exhausted far before they would have typically been done, but Will didn't mind as she finally rolled off him and onto her side, catching her breath.
"Emma," he took her hand, kissing her fingers as she struggled to stay awake, "You want to shower?" He asked, remembering the last time he let her fall asleep without doing so.
She shook her head and curled up next to him, still panting heavily, "Just...hold me..." He wrapped an arm around her, kissing her sweetly and calmly compared to their past few and pulled a sheet over them, should they have any early morning visitors, "Will? I love you, so, so much."
He kissed her again, one had stroking her cheek as her eyes closed slowly, "I love you, too, Em."
Will woke up the next morning to an empty bed, but hearing the sounds of Emma singing in the shower closest to her room brought a smile to his lips as he stretched.
"There's gotta be somebody for me out there!"
He sighed and pulled a blanket further around himself, "There is, Em...and he's cold."
The water turned off several minutes later, their door cracked as Emma tried to enter as quietly as she could.
"It's okay, I'm awake," He muttered as she turned on a light. She padded over, sitting on the side of the bed he was currently facing with a goofy grin on his face, "Good morning, sweetheart."
"Hi," Her nose brushed his as she bent to kiss him, "Miss me?"
"Yes," He muttered into her hair, breathing in her fresh vanilla-lavender shampoo, "Hey...last night? Emma, that was...amazing. I've never seen you so...on fire."
Emma blushed hotly, "I...I think that was mostly the hormones. I...I don't...ah...I like...um, I prefer you in charge."
Will laughed, "Come here," He moved over, allowing her to curl into his side again, kissing her slowly, the way she typically liked.
A knock at the door caused him to growl as Emma stood up and revealed her older brother who was awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck, "Hey, ah...breakfast is going to be ready in five minutes or so..."
"'Kay, thanks Kev." She slammed the door in his face, just because she could, turning to Will, she pulled the blankets off him and attempted to keep her eyes on his face, "Jump in the shower so we can eat? I'm feeling quite ravenous."
Ten minutes later they joined her family in the kitchen and acted as if nothing had happened the night previously. When the kids had all ran off to play, Ed took over one of his nephew's seats to be next to his daughter.
"Hey, Ladybug."
"Dad, it's okay. I'm sorry I got so upset last night," She speared a sausage and finally made eye contact with her father, "I should have told you. I'm just a little nervous about the whole thing."
Mrs. Pillsbury scoped more hash browns onto Emma's plate, "Well, what are you nervous about?"
Twitching slightly, tired of being asked, Emma sighed, "Just...the pregnancy and delivery and being a mom. But," She set a hand on Will's knee, "We're in this together. I'll be okay."
"Do you know yet if it's a boy or girl?" Leah asked from the other side of the table.
"We haven't been to the doctor yet."
Kevin raised an eyebrow, "What do you want to have?" Emma and Will both looked about ready to say something along the lines of 'it doesn't matter so long as it's healthy,' but her older brother snuck around it, "You know you have a preference. Everyone does. I wanted a boy when Matt was born, then I wanted another boy, but I got JoJo instead, which is fine of course," He added after a look from his wife, "You'll have reasons for wanting both."
"Well," Emma sighed, "I know girls are easier to toilet train," She mused, looking at Will.
"And you can put them in dance and voice lessons without having them teased," He said.
"So you want a girl?"
Emma shrugged, "I don't know. I really haven't given much thought to gender. I've been more concerned with where we're going to put it and how I'm going to learn to change a diaper without passing out."
Annie laughed, "You've got three candidates to practice on here."
Andrew toddled into the kitchen, standing close to Emma's chair, babbling away and making a motion to be picked up.
Kevin huffed, "Why does he like you so much?"
"Maybe it's because she doesn't swear at him," Leah chastised, causing the whole family to laugh, including Andrew who clapped his hands wildly.
Emma kissed the top of his head and finger combed his messy blonde hair, "But boys can be fun too. They're typically much more affectionate, right?"
"And they don't mouth off as much," Annie's husband chimed, "Watch." He stood and made his way to the living room and squatted in front of Natalie, "Hey, kiddo, can you please pick up the books you got out earlier?"
The five-year-old pouted, "Not now, Daddy! I'm playing!"
He moved over to Matthew, "Hey, bud. Can you pick up the books you guys got out this morning?"
"Okay," He said, dropping the monster truck he was holding and obliging.
Sam sat back down, satisfied with his experiment.
Mrs. Pillsbury cleared her throat and eyed her only son, "That's not always true. Some little boys like to cause a whole world of trouble and nearly give their mother and sister's heart attacks on a daily basis."
Kevin smirked, "I tried."
Will's arm found it's way around the back of Emma's chair as he contemplated. What did he want? Sure, he'd want a boy to play catch with, build towers and all sorts of manly excursions. But his mind wandered back to last year, when he thought he was having a girl. He could see himself sitting in the front row of her first ballet recital, brushing her long red hair and cuddling with his two favorite ladies in their new home.
Emma suddenly flinched and hissed as Andrew threw his head backwards into her chest. Will took the baby from her, asking if she was alright. Her hand rubbed the area under her neck, "Y-yeah, fine."
Leah winced, "That happens. It's really painful when their head meets your nose with that much force."
Suddenly, Natalie and Matthew entered with their arms crossed over their chests, "We never got a concert last night," The ring-leader said with her bottom lip out.
Will awed, "Sorry, sweetheart."
"Well? What are you waiting for? Let's go!" She said, skipping back to the living room.
Emma stood up and took Andrew back, "Guess you're up."
Once they had cleared the table, the family gathered on the couches and floor in front of Mr. and Mrs. Pillsbury's grand piano.
"Let's sing jingle bells!" Kyle shouted, jumping excitedly as Will's fingers graced the keyboard.
After ten or so carols, Natalie exclaimed, "Uncle Will? Can you sing us a song that isn't Christmas?"
"Like what?"
"Like something super cool on the guitar!"
Will wracked his head for a moment, trying to think of something that would please the little girl, finally he took the acoustic guitar that had once belonged to Kevin and strummed a few chords before jumping into the song; one that he and Emma had danced to at their wedding.
"Welcome to the planet, welcome to existence. Everyone's here, everyone's here. Everybody's watching you know, everybody waits for you now. What happens next? What happens next? I dare you to move, I dare you to move, I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor. I dare you to move, I dare you to move, like today never happened, today never happened before."
Emma felt her eyes glaze over as her hand traveled to her stomach, knowing Will had picked the song especially for her. The words struck a chord as she imagined holding a tiny white bundle of blankets for the first time with Will sitting next to her, welcoming their baby to the world.
"Where can you run to escape from yourself? Where you gonna go? Where you gonna go? Salvation is here...I dare you to move, I dare you to move, I dare you to lift yourself, to lift yourself up off the floor, I dare you to move, I dare you to move, like today never happened, today never happened, today never happened before."
He finished and Emma stood, taking his face in her hands and kissed him sweetly as their nieces and nephews clapped and shouted "Gross!"
Will really enjoyed Christmas with Emma's family.
There were no drunken fights, as there had always been at his house. There weren't gossiping sisters or screaming, annoying kids destroying the house. It was quiet, peaceful and brought him a sense of belonging.
The entire family took up two pews on Christmas Eve at Pastor Pillsbury's church; where Will could have sworn he made a subtle nudge at his pregnant daughter during the sermon. They sang Silent Night by candlelight as JoJo and Kendal brought the ceramic baby Jesus to the manger scene.
It was after eleven when the service ended, all the kids were tired and crabby as they were dressed in their new red and green pajamas and settled into their cozy make-shift beds in the basement.
While the rest of the adults had gone to bed after a few drinks and the disbursement of gifts beneath the tree, Emma was happy to sit on the floor, half on Will's lap in front of the fireplace.
"Merry Christmas, Em," He whispered as the grandfather clock in the corner struck twelve. She kissed him sweetly, laying her head on his shoulder while he rubbed his hand over her stomach. "Next year, we'll be sitting here with a baby." She felt a smile forming as he continued to make promises, "It'll be right here," He moved to her arm that was resting on his leg, "Sleeping, hopefully. Maybe eating," His hand traveled to skim gently across her chest, "We'll be watching him breathe, or kissing her tiny nose," Will did so to hers, "And once it's asleep, we'll place the baby in the crib...and then I'll kiss you," His lips captured hers, "Then I'll start taking off your clothes," Will's hand crept up her sweater, "And I'll touch you the way you like," He brushed below her bra, "And we'll make sweet Christmas love."
Emma's own hand grasped his knee tightly as he teased her tender breasts again, "Will," She gasped but was silenced with a kiss as he lowered her to the floor, continuing his reign of making her stomach flop, "Not in my parent's living room," She said softly, pushing him up and straddling him as they sat once more, staring at the open flames before them, "I'm really happy, though."
"Me too," He commented, hand moving from her front to her back, his rough fingertips playing a melody on her back.
"I-I'm excited for next Christmas. When...we'll be holding our baby close. You'll sing to her, right?"
"Always, and you'll..." Will paused as he recognized Emma had called their baby 'her,' discovering what Kevin had said to be true, "You'll dress her up?"
"Of course," Emma said as she also caught the gender they'd given their baby, "She's going to be the luckiest little girl with the greatest daddy a kid could as for."
Will pulled them up and took her hand, leading them to her room. He closed the door as she slid her sweater off, "Great mommy, too," He said quietly as she settled into another of his favorite nightgowns, which did nothing but cover her chest, the rest was white and sheer. Will began to grind lightly on her hips, "Really sexy mommy," He purred.
Emma pulled back, "How about we sleep? Wouldn't want to be awake when Santa comes," She said with a wink, pulling the blanket back and settling into the fresh sheets she had put on earlier.
"WAKE UP EVERYBODY, IT'S CHRISTMAS!"
Emma and Will woke to the noisy shouts and clatter of seven excited children running around below them, their parents attempting to calm their hyper behavior to no avail.
Their door was thrown open by the twins who began jumping on the bed with a chorus of, "Santa came, Aunt Emma and Uncle Will! Santa brought us presents, come on! Wake up, wake up!"
Knowing once more that this early gift of children was given by her sister, Emma sat up, careful to keep the blanket pulled around her as to not scar her nephews for life, "Okay, Kyle, Ty, we'll be down in a few minutes."
They ran off, slamming the door in excitement. Will rubbed his head and Emma laughed, "I think Annie's trying to give us a taste of what's to come," She said, kissing his cheek and trying to squeeze into her jeans for what would likely be the last time.
They arrived downstairs to all sorts of chaos, Mrs. Pillsbury greeted each of them with a kiss to the cheek, settling them into a chair, Emma on the edge, half on Will's lap, half on the armrest, "Okay, settle down, kids," She instructed as each child found a place on the carpet. Mr. and Mrs. Pillsbury began distributing presents to the kids first and after nearly an hour of squealing and hurried 'thank you's the children were off to the basement to play with their new toys as the adults began their turn.
Emma opened a bag from her mother and once again had to choke back her tears as she discovered the gown she had been christened in, along with her 'blankie' and green stuffed elephant that she'd taken everywhere until she was nearly ten.
"I didn't have time to run to the store, of course, but I thought you'd like to have them."
Emma dabbed at her eyes, "Thanks mom; it really means a lot."
Once they'd finished exchanging gifts, the whole family gathered for a quiet lunch before the Pillsbury's annual Christmas part which would include various members of the community and some distant relatives. All the new items were quickly stowed away to make room for the many guests that would soon be arriving.
Will zipped Emma into the same dress she'd worn to the dance and she adjusted his tie. He took her hand as they entered the part down the stairs, feeling like a king and queen as those who had already arrived welcomed them and Emma decided to keep a hush on the baby news, hating to be the center of attention.
They'd awkwardly discussed their careers and avoided any strange run-in's with people Emma would rather not speak to such as her crazy great-aunt who had spilled an entire bottle of red wine on the Pillsbury's white carpet three Christmas's ago after a drunken rage.
The night ended quickly, and Emma was thankful as the last set of couples began to say their goodbyes. Both of her parents slumped into the love seat, "Why didn't you tell anybody your happy news, baby girl?" Her mother asked when Emma came back from throughly scrubbing her hands after more handshakes then she would have liked.
Wincing, she sat next to Leah, who was rocking a half-asleep Andrew, "I didn't want people fawning over me. You know I don't really like these kind of things. I figured you'd tell them all anyway. Just let me know when you do, so I can unplug my phone for a few days."
Her brown eyes wandered to Will, who was dancing with Kendal and Natalie to 'Jingle Bell Rock,' which was still playing quietly from the speakers. Matthew, Tyler and Kyle were huddled in the corner with their new hand-held Leapster game systems.
With six out of seven kids accounted for, she spoke up, "Where's JoJo?"
Leah sat up in an instant, causing Andrew to whine, "Kev? Have you seen her?"
"I-uh..." He stood and began calling for her, "Jo?"
The family began searching high and low for the two-year-old. After nearly ten minutes, Leah began to panic, about ready to call the police when Will shouted from Emma's bedroom not to bother.
The adults scrambled upstairs, finding the little girl asleep in Emma's bed.
Leah placed a hand to her chest, gently shaking her daughter awake, "Joje?"
JoJo rubbed her eyes with her tiny fists, "Why's everyone lookin' at me?"
"Honey, we didn't know where you went! We were very worried. Why did you come up here?"
"Tired," She yawned, "Nobody was here."
Emma smiled at the little girl's innocence, adding another item to her mental maternity list of things she wasn't looking forward to: hide and go seek.
The following morning Emma had begun to pack their bags for their long ride home. When Will moved one of their duffles from inside Emma's former closet, a book fell from the wall it had been leaning against.
"What's this?" He asked, picking up the dusty green binder.
Emma turned and bit her bottom lip, "It's just um...old pictures. I mean, really, really old pictures."
"Mind if I look?"
She moved to sit on the edge of the bed, patting it for him to sit next to her, "No, but some of them are rather embarrassing..." She muttered as his fingers itched to open it.
The first photo in the album was of Emma at six months, looking beyond adorable in a fluffy white dress, clutching tightly to the stuffed elephant her mother had given her the day before. "Em, you're so cute," Will laughed as he turned the page, a picture of Emma on her first halloween in a ladybug costume, "Is that where your father got it from?" She nodded as they continued to discuss the circumstances surrounding the images, Will cooing over her adorable little self the entire time.
One of the last pictures was of Emma and Annie in pink tutus, standing in first position. "Wait a minute," Will looked at Emma's blushing face, "I thought you didn't know how to dance?"
"I don't. Uh, that was my first and only ballet recital. I was four. When the lights came on and I saw all the people in the audience, I froze. The music started and all the kids around me were dancing and I knew I had messed up. I ran off stage crying. That was the end of my dancing career."
"You looked happy about it."
"I was just happy to have a pink tutu and ballet slippers. I didn't know you were actually supposed to learn how to dance, let alone do it in front of people. Annie danced for a few years after that, but I was promptly removed from the class. I was much happier to take piano," She turned the page to a picture of her at the grand piano in the living room around six years old, "Which I could do in the safety of my own home. And my dad taught me, so I got to spend time with him. Annie got jealous and quit ballet so she could learn, too."
"Well, I have every intention of teaching our kid how to do both singing and dancing," He said while turning the page to a picture of Emma standing next to a cow seemingly thrilled to pieces.
"Oh, God. That's the dairy farm," Her eyes grew wide, "I can't believe we have pictures of that day."
"I'm assuming this was before Kevin ruined your life?"
"That's a safe bet."
A knock brought Emma out of her haze of bad memories, "It's me, Ems," Annie's muffled voice came from behind the door.
"Come on in, Ann," She replied, setting the open album on her neatly made bed.
Annie entered and caught sight of the picture they'd been discussing, "Hey, is this from the dairy farm incident?" Emma nodded, "I swear to God, Em, if I hadn't been at grandma's that day, I would have had my foot shoved so far up Kevin's ass—"
Emma smiled weekly, "It's okay, Annie. Did you need something?"
"I just wanted to give you this, grabbed it while we went out this morning," She said handing Emma a copy of What to Expect When You're Expecting, "It will be your bible for the next nine months."
"Oh, thanks, Ann!"
"You guys getting ready to head out?"
Emma sighed, "Yes, we want to be home by ten or so, we'll be leaving right after lunch."
Annie placed both hands on her sister's shoulders, "Listen, Ems, if you need advice about anything, please, please call me. I don't care if it's three in the morning and you're just having a hormonal breakdown. I'm here for you, okay? And if you need me there, I'll catch the soonest flight. I mean it, Emma."
Emma hugged her sister tight, "Thank you. You'll have to come over once we've got a house all cleaned up and ready."
Annie pulled away with a sad smile, leaving Will alone with his wife who flipped through the book with a dramatic sigh then turned back to packing.
The drive back from Virginia seemed ten times longer then it had taken to get there. Emma's nausea was back in full swing and she was all around miserable as Will switched from interstate to the next. He took her hand, rubbing his fingers along her knuckles while John Mayer played softly in the background.
"Will? On Christmas, we kept saying the baby was a 'she.' You wouldn't be disappointed if it wasn't, right?"
"Oh, God, no, Em. I don't care what your brother says, I honestly just want a healthy, happy baby. I'm not worried about gender. I would love a girl, because then I'd have two gorgeous ladies to dote on," She giggled, "But it'd be nice to have a boy to do guy stuff with."
She swallowed hard, "I thought about a lot of things while we were there. Noticed stuff about the kids, I mean."
"Like what?"
"Babies poop and it's disgusting. I really, really don't like the idea of cleaning up someone else's feces. And they throw up all the time. I swear, Andrew had one sippy cup of milk and I think more of it got on his and Kevin's shirt then actually went into his stomach. Plus, you have to feed them and the food is all over their faces and hair and clothes and walls..."
"What else did you notice, Em?"
She sighed, knowing he would pull good things out of her as he always did, "They're sweet and love unconditionally, no matter if you accidentally smash their head into the wall or sit them in time out. They like to hug and cuddle and kiss. They're fun to play with and love music, they like to dance and play pretend. They like to be read to and hear "I love you" over and over again."
"Do those things make up for what you said before?"
"Y-yes. They do. I'm not going to guarantee that I'll stay conscious the first time this baby throws up on me, but I can guarantee that I'm going to tell it that I love it no matter what they do. I'd love them even if they grow up to be a gang-banger or a circus clown or a democrat. Or if they get vomit on my coat." Will smiled at her priorities, knowing she would actually much rather have spit-up on a jacket then see their child walking on the Strip.
Several hours later, they were safe and home, Emma glad to be alone with Will once more.
Their fiery kissing had began the moment they'd dragged the last of their bags through the door and locked it securely. Her mouth was warm and Emma was thrilled to have her husband's full attention once more. No annoying brothers or sisters to pester them when they sent each other knowing looks, no nieces or nephew's to interrupt their love making.
Will stepped away and pulled her over to their room, where a small package lay wrapped on her pillow, "Oh, look, Santa must have left you something," He said with a smile.
She hit his chest playfully, "We said no presents!"
"Yeah, well...I couldn't help myself. Open it, sweetheart."
She obliged and gasped as she flicked the jewelry sized box open to reveal a silver chain with a diamond incrusted heart with a subtle, swirly silver music note in the center, "Will, it's beautiful..." He fumbled with the clasp and closed it, bringing her in front of the mirror to touch and adjust it. She resumed kissing him, happy to lift a leg around his hips, his hand gripping it firmly, his other hand unzipping her green skirt.
New Year's had rolled its way into the end of their final week of vacation, Emma was quite excited to spend it with her husband and the Glee kids at Rachel Berry's house. One could make the accusation that it would be a bit awkward, but Rachel had made plans to invite the group of teens over before her fathers decided they wanted to spend their evening in Times Square. She'd somehow convinced the two adults that it wouldn't be a Glee party without them; plus there would then be chaperones.
Quinn greeted them with happy hugs, tugging them in to say hello to the rest of the group.
They'd enjoyed several rounds of Rock Band, Apples to Apples and DDR, which the kids had convinced Emma to try only after she found a pair of clean socks to wear. Will had almost split his pants laughing at her uncoordinated attempts to beat Kurt. She'd nearly fallen at the end, he caught her into a giggling kiss.
They'd sang and danced; Will decided he'd much rather spend this holiday with these kids then his drunken college friends.
Around eleven forty-five, they'd gathered in front of Dick Clark's Rockin' New Year with the volume on mute, discussing resolutions they actually wanted to keep.
When it was Quinn's turn, she made eye-contact with Emma before saying, "I would like to finally resolve all the broken pieces of the mess I made last year."
Rachel elbowed Finn lightly, whispering something that sounded to Will like, "Please? She's waited long enough to hear it."
The quarterback stood and bent down in front of Quinn, "I resolve to forgive you, Quinn. For everything. It's going to take a little more time...for me to be really, really over it...but I'm done being mad at you."
Quinn let out a happy sob as she threw her arms around his shoulders, "Thank you, Finn. You have no idea how badly I needed to hear that."
"Mr. and Mrs. Schuester?" Artie smiled, "I believe you are the last to go."
"We," Will pulled Emma closer to him, "Are going to do our best to get through the next few months and be the best parents we can be to our first baby."
Commotion started as the girls began squealing and congratulating, the boys hollering remarks such as, "way to go Schuester!"
Their attention turned to the television several minutes later as the thirty second countdown to the New Year began. The kids screamed along with the TV, the ball dropped and everyone was kissing and hugging, shouting and happy that they'd survived another year in the crazy world they lived in.
Will smiled down at Emma who was sleepily resting her head on his shoulder, "Happy New Year, Em," His face met hers for a brief but sweet kiss.
Kind of lame. Probably dragged that out entirely to much.
Sorry for the OC's. I know, I know, no one likes a story devoted to the OC's, but it had to be done because Ryan Murphy hasn't given us enough information on Emma's family yet. And I believe her older brother would be quite the BAMF, typical PK if that's the profession Emma's father would hold. And Annie is not as in "Little Orphan," I just picked a name without thinking 'red head' or, clearly, the last chapter I wrote. Whatever. Let it be written (speaking of Figgins, did anyone buy the DVD? Watch the tour of McKinley thing in the bonus features; OMGWTFROFLMAO).
As for the smut, I simply could hold off no longer. If it was to your liking, let me know, but please also let me know if it was horrifying (by this I mean to much for the story, I know I've said they did the nasty before, but I never went this far into detail.) and I'll skip it in the future. I felt like I needed to balance the fluff out a bit. I didn't think it was too much, but hey—everybody's got an opinion and for this topic, I need yours!
Hey, some plot next chapter, like woah.
Hope you had a lovely holiday. Thank you, readers, for your time, and especially to the reviewers. I'm sick of being away from college and when I open my shiny MacBook to some lovely comments, it just makes it all a little bit better.