A/n: Here I am again! Sorry about the gap in updates. I'm busy and I keep getting smacked in the face with one medical problem after the next. First I can't sleep or eat for like a month, go to get blood taken, find I have an over active thyroid, now I'm on some medication. Then I get rushed to the ER with a mild concussion because a TV fell on my head and a week and a half later I'm still getting killer headaches. Plus I've been on vacation and trying to look for a job and I'm in a skit for VBS. I have practically every chapter written out in my head I just need to get them written down on the computer.
Emma sighed heavily as she shuffled into the doorway, kicking off her shoes, not even bothering to make sure that they were neat. She leaned up against the door and closed her eyes tightly.
She had just returned from her last therapy session. Emma hadn't gone to therapy in years but after her third (and last, she concluded to herself and Will) child she'd fallen into postpartum depression. She handled the births of her daughters very well but when her son arrived, combined with the stress of having two other young children to take care of and Will at work leaving her at home to fend for herself, she snapped.
Will had come home that day to the sound of screaming, the shrill cries of his few month old son and the softer cries of his three year old daughter. He had called out to his wife and he heard the patter of footsteps and Kathryn came running down the steps and launched herself into his arms, her sobbing intensifying. Will tried to ask the little girl what was wrong but she was too hysterical to answer. He found his way to the nursery where the screams of his son got even louder and he was met with the overpowering aroma of a dirty diaper. After he had cleaned Benjamin up and helped soothe his crying somewhat he went to look for their mother.
Emma was curled up in the fetal position on the floor in their bedroom, dressed only in a towel, her skin fire red and her whole body shaking. Her hands were clutched against her chest, her eyes wide and panicked but no matter how hard he tried to coax her out of it she wouldn't budge.
Not minutes later he got a call from Jen's school to say that Emma had not arrived to pick up from school and that she refused to get on the bus. Will quickly piled his other two children into his car, reluctantly leaving his wife where she was.
After he picked up his eldest daughter, he also reluctantly, drove his children to his parent's house. He had no warning to tell his mother not to drink because he was bringing the children over but he had no other choice. Kate had already witnessed Emma's meltdown and he wouldn't subject Jen to seeing her mother in that condition.
After dropping his confused and scared children off at his parents, he headed back to Emma and found her in the same place he had left her. He swiftly scooped her up into his arms, took the towel off of her and wrapped her instead in his bathrobe, tying it as tightly as he could around her frail body.
He drove her to the Emergency Room and once she noticed she was in the hospital, she started to go into one of the worst panic attacks Will had ever seen. She was screaming and crying and thrashing and not even Will's presence could calm her down. The nurses finally were able to sedate the hysterical woman and Will felt absolutely helpless.
After she woke up nearly twelve hours later, she was met with Will's worried, concerned and scared face and broke down into silent tears. The hospital's psychologist recommended that Emma goes into therapy for the postpartum depression. The idea wasn't very welcome to Emma but after a long talk with Will, she finally agreed.
She remained in therapy for the past year and had recovered from the depression so her therapist discharged her permanently, only following up once a year.
Emma was relieved to be released and to be back to her normal (as normal as she could be anyway) self.
She let a peaceful smile spread across her face when she heard giggles from her daughters and hearty laughter from her husband floating out of the kitchen. She hung her jacket up in the closet and headed towards the kitchen, anxious to see her family.
However, as she stepped into the doorway, her whole body tensed. Her entire kitchen, along with her daughters and husband were covered in white powder. Her eyes widened and her breath caught in her chest.
She opened her mouth to speak but no words would come out and she continued to stare in shocked silence at the disaster in her kitchen.
Will was the first one to notice Emma in the doorway and his smile fell at the look on her face. Catching their father's distraction, Jen and Kate turned and grinned at seeing their mother. "Mommy!" They both squealed and waved.
Emma was frozen to the spot, her eyes zeroing in on the mess covering her children.
"Mommy we're baking!" Four year old Kate exclaimed, pointing to the bowl on the counter.
"Um...girls?" Will gently placed his hands on both of their backs and they turned to face him. "We're done with all the ingredients okay? Why don't you go upstairs and take a bath okay?"
Jen furrowed her brow and turned to glance at her mother who still hadn't move and had a horrified look on her face. "Mommy?"
Kate followed her sisters look and she frowned. "Mommy?" She mirrored her sister's concern.
The youngest daughter started to step towards her mother and Emma visibly flinched. Kate stopped and her wide brown eyes filled with tears. "Mommy?" She squeaked.
Will quickly stepped in and wrapped his large arm around his small daughter. "Go upstairs with Jen." He whispered into her ear and Kate turned to look at him, her small pink lips puffing out in a pout. He kissed her forehead and grabbed the seven year old's hand slipping the two sisters hands together. He gave Jen a gentle pat on the butt and with another sad look towards their mother, scurried out of the room. Will waited until he heard their footsteps go up the stairs before he addressed Emma.
"Em..."
Emma lifted her hand to stop his words and her eyes fluttered closed. She heard a happy squeak from the other side of the room. Her eyes snapped open and she looked over and saw Ben in his high chair, the chair and his body also covered in the white flour. Her eyes widened and she quickly turned to glare at Will.
"You got it on the baby?" She hissed quietly, shuffling across the room quickly, lifting the messy child out of his chair. Ben kicked his legs in her arms and out stretched her hands towards his mother, grinning toothlessly.
"He saw us having fun. I just gave him a little to play with." Will explained calmly.
Emma whirled around to face him, her eyes narrowing. "Fun? Fun? The kitchen is destroyed Will!" She screeched.
He gave her an exasperated look. "It is not destroyed Emma. It's just a little flour we can easily just clean it up."
"Just a little flour?" She repeated and stormed over to him. "This is not just a little flour Will! Look around, does this look like a just a little flour to you?" She flew her free arm into the air.
"I was going to clean it up Em, its no big deal." Will had learned to be patient with Emma over the course of their marriage. She panicked about the littlest things sometimes and he knew that if he got angry with her it would only make the situation worse. He tried to keep that in mind.
Emma shifted Ben on her hip, ignoring that the baby was getting her yellow cardigan feathered with white flour and glared darkly at Will. "It is a big deal, Will. I just went through a year of intensive therapy so I could get back to normal and I come home to...to this. Will, what on Earth were you thinking?"
"I was thinking that the girls wanted to bake some cookies and it wouldn't hurt to let them have a little fun with it." Will replied.
"And you're idea of fun is destroying our kitchen?"
Will resisted the urge to roll his eyes and sighed. "It's just a little mess Emma. Our kitchen is not destroyed."
Emma clenched her jaw. "Don't get frustrated with me, Will. You are the one who created this...disaster."
"I was going to clean it up before you even got home. I didn't expect you to be home so early." Will replied, trying to keep his voice even.
She scoffed. "Oh so you thought that was a plausible solution? Clean the mess up before Emma even gets home? That way it never happened."
Will crossed his arms over chest, shaking his head. "I don't know what you want from me Emma. I planned to clean it up before you got home so you wouldn't have to come home to it, so you wouldn't have to deal with this."
"Well that didn't work out the way you hoped did it, Will?" She snapped.
"I'm going to clean it up, Emma."
"That's not the point Will!" She cried. "You know better than anyone how much I detest messes."
"You've gotten alot better at handling them, Em." He answered.
"I did until the whole post partum situation. I'm very sensitive right now Will, especially about messes and germs. It's like all those years that I spent with you and the progress I made didn't even happen. I'm back at square one Will. Just as bad as I was when I first started working at McKinley." She shook her head, giving him a frantic look. "What did you think would happen Will? That as soon as I got over my depression I'd be able to jump into a puddle of mud with no problem?"
"Of course not, Emma."
"So you expected me to be fine with coming home to not only my kitchen but my children covered head to toe in flour?" She fired back.
Will sighed heavily. "No, Emma but..."
"But what Will, but what? I don't want to hear your excuses." She placed her other hand around Ben and lifted her off of her hip and extended him out towards Will. "Take him and get him cleaned up and help the girls with their bath."
He stood staring at her for a good few seconds, unmoving before Emma rolled her eyes and thrust her son into his arms. "Just go Will."
Will wrapped one arm tightly around Ben, holding him to his side and extended his other arm towards Emma.
Emma glared at him and took a step back. "Don't you dare touch me." She hissed.
Will dropped his hand to his side and after a few moments of staring intensely into his wife's eyes, he walked out of the kitchen and headed up the stairs, leaving Emma alone in the mess of their kitchen.
Will trudged up the stairs and headed into the bathroom, where his two girls were seated quietly in a bathtub full of water, slowly washing themselves with a wash cloth. Both girls looked up sadly at their father as he entered.
"Daddy?" Jen whispered. "Did we do something wrong?"
"Are we in trouble?" Kate added fearfully.
Will's face softened as he knelt down in front of the tub. "Of course not sweetie. You girls did nothing wrong."
"But Mommy had that look on her face." Jen replied, her wet red hair sticking to her face and shoulders. "The one she gets when we did something wrong."
"She's not mad at you, I promise. I'm the one who was bad. I'm the one in trouble." He offered them a small smile to comfort them but the girls seemed skeptical.
Will let out a quiet sigh and rose to his feet, undressing Ben from his onesie and diaper and kneeling back in front of the tub. "Jen, can I trust you to hold on to Ben? I'll be back in a second."
Jen nodded quietly. "Yes Daddy." She held out her skinny arms and Will slipped Ben into the water, making sure Jen was holding onto him tightly before slipping out of the room.
From downstairs he could hear cabinets slamming and Emma's frustrated grunts. He wanted nothing more than to go down to her. He hated when Emma was angry with him and he hated when he was frustrated with Emma. His relationship with Emma was different than his relationship with Terri. With Terri, fighting had become a ritual, a part of their daily life together. It always frustrated him but he rarely ever wanted to go to her and ask her forgiveness. With Emma, it was different. They rarely ever fought and when they did, as soon as they parted to cool off, he found himself feeling guilty and wanting to apologize and make it better. But he knew that Emma needed her space for awhile and he would not be disturbing her until that kitchen was clean to her standards.
He quickly ran to the girl's room and grabbed two clean sets of clothes and grabbed something for Ben as well. He grabbed three towels from the hallway closet and then headed back into the bathroom, closing the door behind him.
The girls had not moved in the water but Ben was flailing his arms and legs happily, splashing water onto the walls, his elder sisters and the floor.
Jen, with one eye closed to avoid the splash of the water, turned to look at her father pleadingly. "Hold onto him for a little bit longer okay Jen?"
"Okay daddy." Jen sighed.
Will smiled slightly, turning to his youngest daughter. "You all clean Kate?"
Kate nodded wordlessly and lifted her arms up. Will removed her from the water and wrapped her up in a towel, ruffling her wet hair. It was something he'd do after every bath-time, he'd take the towel and cover her head, ruffling her wet hair in it and cause her to erupt in a fit of giggles every time.
What he was waiting and hoping for finally came to his ears in a quiet giggle. "Daddy!" Kate's muffled voice protested through the towel. He grinned and lowered the towel away from her face. Her red hair was tousled on top of her head and she was mock glaring at him.
He smiled and kissed her forehead, wiping the scowl away. Kate wrapped the warm towel around her wet body tightly and scurried off into the corner to wait.
Whilst his eldest daughter still held onto her baby brother, Will washed Benjamin as quickly as he could. Then he wrapped the small boy in a towel and pressed him against his chest, glancing down at Jen. "You can get out by yourself right?"
Jen nodded. "Yes, daddy."
He grabbed the towel off of the towel rack and handed it to her. Jen stood up and wrapped the towel around herself, stepping out of the bathtub.
Will retreated out of the bathroom to re-diaper Ben and then brought the boy back into the bathroom. He sat him down on the floor, giving him a rubber ducky toy to occupy himself with while Will helped get his girls dressed.
After they were all dressed, Will knelt down in front of them seriously. "I want you both to go to your rooms and play for a little while okay?"
Kate's brown eyes glistened with tears and before she could get a word out Will placed a finger to her lips. "You're not in trouble. I just need to clean my self up and you can't bother Mommy."
"She is mad at us." Kate whimpered against his finger. "She's mad cuz we made a mess with the flour."
Will pushed a strand of her wet hair behind her ear. "She's not mad at you sweetie, she's just busy right now."
"You promise?" The meek voice of his eldest reached his ears and he turned to look at her. Jen was usually the voice of strength when it came to trouble in the family. Kate looked up to her and Jen protected her. They were as close as two sisters could be. But Jen, in that moment, looked just as vulnerable as Kate and Will felt his stomach drop. He hated seeing that look on his children's faces. He hated to think that they could be scared about anything that he or Emma would do.
"I promise." He tapped her nose with his fingertip. He turned to lift Benjamin off the floor and stood up, holding his hand out towards his daughters. Jen held onto his wrist and Kate held onto his pointer finger and he led them out of the bathroom and towards their bedroom.
Jen and Kate both crawled onto Jen's pink and purple bed and cuddled up together quietly. He set Ben down on the carpet, bring over a few toys for him to play with. Ben happily picked up one of Jen's old stuffed animals and began swinging it through the air.
Will found amusement in the antics of his one year old. He didn't remember Jen or Kate being that enthusiastic. He glanced over towards Jen and Kate who were just watching their baby brother.
"You girls don't want to play?" He asked.
Both girls shook their heads and cuddled more into each other. He let out another sigh and he nodded. He knew the girls wouldn't be their playful selves until he and Emma made up.
"Alright, can you keep an eye on Benji for me?"
Both girls nodded and kept their eyes on Ben. Will placed his hand softly on top of Ben's head for a moment, glanced at his girls and then walked out of the bedroom, heading towards his own.
After he took a shower and cleaned up the bathroom, making it absolutely spotless so it looked like it hadn't been used in days, he went over to check on his children.
Ben had crawled across the room and was slapping his hands lightly against the toy chest. He turned his head to look at Will and squealed happily, increasing his hitting against the toy chest.
"What are you doing you silly?" He asked, scooping up the boy into his arms. Ben squealed again and kicked his legs happily, continuing his slapping game against Will's chest.
Over on the bed, Jen and Kate were still huddled up to each other, eying their father with blank expressions. He gave them a small smile, however the girls did not return it.
Ben suddenly yawned in his arms and rested his little head on Will's shoulders, his kicking and slapping ceasing.
He dropped a light kiss to his head and went to put him down in the nursery. Within minutes Ben was fast asleep. Will smiled adoringly down at his son, watching him sleep for a good five minutes.
He then braved a trip downstairs and peeked into the kitchen. The kitchen was completely free of all flour and the counters, cabinets and the table were shining in cleanliness. Emma was on the floor, scrubbing the tiles, her breathing erratic.
He contemplated calling out to her and offering help but he knew he'd only make it worse. Quietly, he made his way over to the living room, taking a spare pillow out of the hall closet and bringing it over to the couch. He wanted to give Emma her space and being in bed with a mad Emma was just as bas as not being in bed with her at all. So he opted for the not at all and made his makeshift bed on the couch. He laid longwise, looking at the ceiling, not daring to turn on the television for fear of angering Emma further.
After about a half an hour he heard Emma's foot steps in the hall and he sat up slowly. Emma was walking towards the hall closet and she put away all of her cleaning supplies and he couldn't help but frown at how worn down she looked.
Emma turned around to head back to the kitchen but paused at seeing Will on the couch. She seemed a little bit surprised to see him there and her eyes wandered over the bed he'd made for himself on the couch. Then her eyes narrowed and she huffed, walking away from him and disappearing out of his eye sight.
He faintly could hear the shower running upstairs and then the faint talking of her voice mixed with smaller voices. It calmed him to know that Emma was talking with their daughters and that they'd possibly feel better knowing that she wasn't mad at them.
Will heard the water running and knew Emma was helping the girls get ready for bed. It was only after he heard the door to the nursery, the girls room and finally their bedroom, close that he dared to turn on the television.
He knew that if he didn't, his mind would be racing and he would never be able to get a good nights rest. After about an hour of watching the news (which he didn't particularly find interesting but watched it because he missed his wife) he shut the TV off and dimmed the lights, flipping over to face the inside of the couch.
He was just beginning to doze off when he heard a quiet voice. "Will?"
Will blinked his eyes open and listened for the sound. Sure enough, seconds later it came again, slightly louder this time, "Will?"
He sat up, squinting his eyes and in the dim light he could make out the silhouette of Emma.
"Em?" He called into the darkness.
"Yeah." She mumbled in response and he watched her dark figure move into the room, flicking on the lights.
As her face clearly came into his view, he noticed how exhausted she looked and wondered why she was up and not asleep. He didn't say anything but his question spoke clear on his face.
She bowed her head, her hands twisting in front of her periwinkle nightgown. His favorite one. She slowly walked over to the couch and Will sat up all the way, moving his legs so she could sit down.
They both sat in silence for a long while, Emma looking down at the ground and Will staring at her in wonder.
Finally Emma looked up and glanced hesitantly at Will, "Um...I just...wanted to apologize."
"Apologize?" He questioned. "Em, you have nothing to apologize for."
"No, I do." She nodded. "I...totally over reacted about the kitchen."
"Emma you had every right to react the way you did." Will replied, inching his way over towards her.
"No," She shook her head in protest, meeting his eyes, "You were right Will."
"Right about what?" He shook his head in confusion.
She let out a breath. "Right that it was just a little mess. The kitchen wasn't destroyed, it wasn't a disaster. I just...completely over reacted about it and I don't know why."
Will, now sitting only inches away from her, slipped his hand into hers. "Em, I know why."
Emma raised an eyebrow in question and he elaborated. "Because you weren't ready for it. You were right Emma, you just went through a year of therapy to get over your postpartum depression. I should have been more thoughtful when agreeing to let the girls bake cookies. I should have known that letting them do what they want with the flour would upset you."
"And I shouldn't have let it upset me." Emma countered.
"It's perfectly normal that it did Em."
"Normal?" She squeaked. "It's not normal, Will ,to almost have a heart attack at seeing the kitchen like that. To get mad at you for something like having a little fun with our daughters.
"It's normal for you, Emma." He corrected, giving her hand a squeeze.
Emma sighed heavily and shook her head. "I don't want it to be Will. I want to be a normal human being. One who doesn't spend hours cleaning a little mess in the kitchen."
"It was more than just a little mess." Will admitted sheepishly.
Emma shook her head. "But it was just flour. It's a perfectly clean substance its not like it was mud or anything that would stain." Her eyes met his eyes again and she lifted a hand to the side of his face. "And you, you were so unbelievably patient with me. I know what its like to live with me. I know how upset I made my parents and siblings growing up. I know that my roommates in college couldn't stand me because of it but you...you just stand there and take my crap. I got angry at you before because I could tell you were getting frustrated with me but that was incredibly wrong of me. I frustrate everybody with my stupid cleaning habits..."
Will opened his mouth to protest but Emma held up a finger, "Out of everybody who has had to live me for more than a year you are the most cooperative, the most patient. Whenever I overreact like that you could lose your temper, you could yell at me like I yell at you, you could glare at me like I glare at you but you don't. I am so grateful for that Will and I feel so bad," She started to whimper, "Every time I lose my cool with you because you never lose your cool with me and I really deserve it sometimes. You're amazing, Will."
"I don't like fighting with you Em," he finally spoke, "Whenever we come out of an argument I feel so bad about myself."
"You shouldn't Will, most of them are my fault." She motioned towards the kitchen. "Like tonight's."
He shook his head. "No Em, I was just at fault as you were. I never should have allowed the mess to become that big. I never should have let the mess happen at all. I love you, Emma, so much and I'm willing to do anything to make you happy. I've lived with you for over ten years now, cleaning has become a daily part of my life. I will gladly go out of my way to clean up something or not make a mess of something because I know it'll make you happy. You're my wife Emma and you deserve to be comfortable in your own home and with your family."
A small smile tugged at Emma's lips as she looked adoringly into Will's eyes. "Why are you so good to me?"
"Because I love you." He replied simply and kissed her forehead. "Because you're my wife." He kissed the tip of her nose. "Because you're the most wonderful, amazing and beautiful woman I have ever known." He captured her lips in a kiss that she eagerly returned.
She trailed her fingers down his neck to come to rest on his chest. Slipping her other hand onto his chest, she pushed him onto his back, still locked in a deep kiss. Her hands found their way into his curls as his hands gripped her waist, pulling her flat on top of him. She let out a little squeak into his mouth but then smirked and pushed herself deeper into the kiss.
A low moan escaped Will's throat and she giggled, pecking his lips quickly once more and then sat up, straddling his waist. His eyelids fluttered open revealing his warm and inviting hazel eyes. She was amazed that after nearly ten years of marriage she would still swoon whenever he gave her that look. "Will Schuester..." She mused tracing his scruffy jaw line, "...why are you so damn irresistible?"
Will smirked up at her and winked. "I could ask you the same thing, Mrs. Schuester."
Always the same, Emma's cheeks flushed. Then she raised an eyebrow seductively, "What do you say we continue this in our bedroom?"
Will's eyebrows shot up and Emma grinned coyly. Will smirked and he his grip tightened around her waist. In one fluid motion, he launched himself up off the couch, slipping one arm under her legs and one arm around her back, she squealed as she landed bridal style in his arms. He grinned down at her and she buried her face into his shoulder as he hastily made his way out of the living room, switching the light off.
In the darkness of the Schuester household, Emma's light hearted giggles slowly disappeared, fading just like all memories of their quarrel.
A/N: I hoped you liked it! I don't think I'm very good at writing fights because I don't like when people fight. It makes me sad. So I hope I did a good job with it. Next chapter, we have some special guests! Anyone have any guesses? The first one to guess it right will get a special surprise!