Disclaimer: I don't own The Covenant.

Co-Author: SkyyRyder

A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! If you're a Gossip Girl fan, be sure to take a look at the new story Skyy and I are working on called 'Maneater'. We also have a new Reid/OC called 'Heartbreakers' out right now, so if you haven't looked at it yet, please do. Keep the reviews coming, they fuel our fire!

Fallen Now is Babylon the Great

Chapter 14: Quality Time

-Reid's POV-

"Hello?" Babylon called into the house in that sweet, sultry voice. No one answered as she tried to pry her keys unsuccessfully from the frozen lock. I shook my head and lightly brushed her hand aside, doing it with ease and handing the surprisingly nearly empty keyring back to her. Usually girls have more stuffed animals hanging from their rings than actual keys...

She smiled sheepishly and accepted the keys, stuffing them back into her purse. "Thanks."

"Where is everyone?" I wondered, shutting the door behind me after following her inside.

"Gen and Shena are still at the after school daycare program. The neighbor, Mrs. Conway, drops them off since she picks her daughter up from there anyway on her way home from work. She goes to church with us. It's really nice of her, helping my mother and me out like that. They should be home soon. My mother and Amma must've already left for the doctor's though." She neatly hung her schoolbag on a hook near the door, putting her uniform blazer and black peacoat on top of it.

I shrugged my jacket off and hung it beside her things, glad I had decided to change before we came here. "About that... is she okay? Why's she going to the doctor?"

Babylon's lower lip was sucked in and she began gnawing. "She's just been a little sick lately..." Her voice sounded worried, but I guess that's understandable. When you're old, getting a cold is a little more serious then it is when you're our age.

I decided to drop the subject, not feeling the need to pry. I actually didn't want to think about it anymore. I felt a little bad thinking about how she must be worrying about her grandma, especially since she clearly has a close relationship with her.

I don't like feeling guilty...

"I'm just going to go change quickly." I smirked at her announcement and the image of her shimmying out of the uniform skirt into her panties. White cotton boyshorts. I know because she had been a lucky victim of our favorite game last spring in the quad. I actually won that bet, but she was an easy guess. "Reid." Her voice scolded and I realized she caught me in my mini fantasy.

"What?" I asked, innocently enough, keeping the smirk present though. She didn't look mad, so I figured it was harmless. She gave me knowing eyes, clearly aware of my train of thought. "Sorry," I shrugged, not sounding or looking sorry one bit, but she just shook her head and trotted upstairs. Jeeze, I'm going to get chastised for just thinking about her naked? Shit, maybe this is going to be harder than I thought...

No. Don't think like that Garwin. Doubt won't get you anywhere in life. It's going to happen.

I spun around when the door opened and Babylon's two little sisters walked inside. "Hey!" I said enthusiastically. They're pretty cute kids. Shena's sure to be a bombshell like her sister; she looks just like her. And Gen's real cute; little button nose and shit.

"Reid!" Gen squealed excitedly. Not being shy at all the way her sister could be, she jumped up into my arms and I picked her up.

Shena waved outside to the car that honked their horn before closing the door behind her. "Hi Reid," she said shyly. I'm well aware this little girl has a crush on me, but who can blame her?

"Hey beautiful," I said with a smirk, making her blush. Too easy. Way too easy in this case.

"Hey guys, how was school?" Babylon asked, bounding down the stairs gracefully. My eyes mindlessly wandered to her jiggling chest. She had on an olive baby doll V-neck so I could see more of her cleavage than I could in her oxford. I like that shirt. My favorite color too.

Okay, I need to tear my eyes away before I have to take a cold shower or something...

Sun Garwin; it's like the sun. Just a peek, then look away.

"It stunk!" Gen announced loudly and I laughed. A girl after my own heart. Babylon rolled her eyes and tied her hair up into a sloppy bun.

"How about you Shena?" The mini B shrugged and sat on the couch.

"It was all right. I have some Social Studies homework to finish." Babylon nodded and smiled at her sister. I've never seen her look so comfortable before. She seemed almost normal, just like any other teenager. You'd never guess what a priss she was if you looked at her right now. She reminded me of Sarah a little bit and it was a good look for her.

"Okay, well why don't you finish that now while I get dinner ready? Gen, why don't you go color for a bit?" she suggested and I set Gen down so she could disappear upstairs.

I followed her into the kitchen, keeping my eyes on her swaying hips. There's no doubt in my mind that this chick has no idea how attractive she is. Which might consequently make her even sexier. Of course, she probably has no clue because she has never expensed sexuality in her life. It's hard to think about; a hot chick like her keeping it locked up for so long.

And just think. I was her first kiss. And I'm going to be her first everything else too. I smirked at the thought. "How do you feel about lasagna and salad?" she pondered out loud, looking through the refrigerator. The way she was bent over, opening the vegetable drawer at the bottom was giving me a very nice view.

Not jumping and ravishing her is going to be harder than I hoped.

"Sounds delicious to me. Need some help?" I've gotta keep up this nice guy act. This one might be a little dangerous though. The only things I know how to cook are Ramen noodles and Easy Mac.

"Oh, uh... sure. You can brown the meat," she told me, pulling a package of ground turkey out of the fridge and handing it to me.

"I can what the meat?" I asked, completely lost already. I guess I should've signed up for Home Ec. this year...

She gave me a sideways glance before shaking her head. "Never mind Reid. Here, you can make the salad," she decided, handing me a head of lettuce and taking the meat from me. "Don't forget to wash it."

Once she had the lasagna in the oven, she came and checked on my... not so great progress. Washing the veggies was easy as pie. I'm good at that one. But cutting, especially the lettuce, just was not working out well for me.

It looked like a salad exploded all over the counter.

And my t-shirt.

How the fuck did that happen?

"Wow Reid, why don't you go help Gen color?" she suggested, taking the knife out of my hands and trying to hide her smile. I scoffed and feigned offense.

"No thanks, I think I'll just hover over your shoulder while you cut the lettuce, great and powerful salad expert!" She laughed at me, showing off her perfect teeth. I ran my hand down her arm and pecked her on the cheek before opening up a cabinet and finding some dishes. "How about I set the table?" I suggested, grabbing a few plates.

"If you think you can handle that, sure," she joked as she chopped the lettuce, unfortunately much better than I had. Damn.

"You're so funny," I sneered sarcastically. I found the utensils and set six places at the table. That only held my attention for about ten minutes after I'd lined all the utensils up perfectly out of boredom.

I glanced over at the kitchen and saw Babylon was finished with her salad and was just leaning against the counter, patiently waiting for dinner to be finished. I decided now was a fine opportunity to spend some 'quality time' with her.

I walked back into the kitchen, stopping right in front of her and watching as she picked at her fingernails. Her head jerked up to look at me and she gave a nervous smile. "Hi Reid..." she mumbled, trying to break the intense stare I had her in.

"Hey gorgeous," I whispered, gently holding her chin and kissing her softly. She laughed a little, lightly, and moved her head back a bit. I wrapped my arms around the small of her back, clasping them and she rest her hands on my shoulders, leaning back a little to look at me. "Remember how much you hated me a few weeks ago?" I mused, finding it a little funny myself. Sucker.

"Well, once you stopped feeding me those terrible pick up lines and started acting like a gentleman, I saw the real you. Not the obnoxious front you put up in school." The real me. Right. Keep telling yourself that sweetheart. "Do those lines ever actually work? Because they're awful."

"You're standing here, aren't you?" I quipped back at her, leaning a little closer to her face.

"Right, because clearly, that's what attracted me to you." Her pretty eyes rolled and her fingers flexed a little on my shoulders before sliding down to rest on my biceps.

"Attracted to me? Are you having unholy thoughts B?" I saw her visibly shiver at my close proximity and suggestive manner, but she brushed it off just as easily. Too soon for being that bold I guess.

"Mmm, I don't think so." Her head tilted to the side a little and I heard the front door opening. Babylon pushed me back a little, squirming out of my grasp and rushing out to the front room. I followed her and easily took over for her and her mother as they tried to get Amma and her wheelchair into the house.

"Oh Reid, thank you," her mother said a little out of breath. She looked really tired.

"You see Jóhanna? All we need is a strong man around the house." Amma reached up and squeezed my bicep. "And Babylon sure can pick 'em. So handsome..." I smirked as Babylon looked mortified and her mom just rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Dinner should be done now mom. I made lasagna. Reid helped," Babylon shrugged, following her mother into the dining room. I offered my elbow to Amma as I noticed her trying to stand from her chair with a bit of a struggle. She gladly took it and I walked her into the room.

"Ah, helped. Is that what we're calling it these days, eh?" Amma suggested, winking. I stifled my laughter by pressing my gloved fist to my mouth and Babylon, if possible, looked even more horrified than before.

"Amma!" she scolded, looking at her wide-eyed.

"Oh stop it. I'm just kidding." I like this lady. She's a riot. She can make B blush better than I can!

I helped Amma sit in one of the chairs at the table and then wandered into the kitchen. "Let me take that," I offered, grabbing the hot casserole pan of lasagna from Baby's mom.

"Thank you Reid," she smiled happily.

"Go sit Mom. We can bring the food out." She listened to her oldest daughter and disappeared into the dining room, calling for her two younger girls.

When everything was finally at the table and everyone was settled, Amma made sure all the attention was on me. Which wasn't a bad thing, because I love attention. Oh, and of course, we all said grace before we ate.

"So Reid, where are you going to college?" the elderly woman asked before sipping on some tea. I grinned. Now's my chance to really impress them.

"Well, I got offered a few full swimming scholarships already. Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Duke, Brown. I'm probably gonna stay close to home though. I'll most likely end up wherever my friends decide to go. We've all been offered most of the same scholarships though, and we know Caleb won't want to leave his mom alone, so Harvard's looking good." I knew they knew who the guys were. They used to be familiar with the Ipswich high life before B's dad left.

"Well, good for you!" Amma said happily, clapping her hands together once. I glanced over at Babs and saw she looked impressed as well. "Babylon's gotten early acceptance into Harvard already, and she was offered three full scholarships based on her grades alone," the woman bragged about her grandaughter.

'Wow Reid... I didn't know you got scholarships from all those schools," she said in awe, blinking a few times. Sure, I don't have the highest GPA, but I'm one of the best swimmers in the state.

I just shrugged as if it were nothing. "Babylon, you better marry this boy," her Amma told her.

"Oh Mother, stop it! You're embarrassing her!" Her sisters giggled at her expense as Babylon covered her face while her grandmother cackled playfully.

Oh yeah, this family is in love.

With me.

-Babylon's POV-

"Dinner was great Babylon." Mother gave me a small smile before grabbing her purse and heading for the door. "Reid, it was a pleasure having you over, but I've got to run…"

"I appreciateyou having me over," Reid grinned at her. I seriously think I just melted. It was just difficult to believe all of this was real, that he was really like this. And now he's revealed all his school options, my first choice being one of them; Harvard.

My mother gave Shena and Gen both huge kisses on the cheeks before heading off to work. I smiled and watched Gen jump up and wrap her arms around Reid's waist. I covered my mouth with my hand and rubbed my lips trying to hide the smile on my face. He gave a crooked one in return and picked her up.

"Babylon, dear…" Amma's voice made me turn around and look at her getting up from the table. "Can you help me to my room?"

I nodded my head and hurried over to the table. Reid glanced at me, then back at my sisters. "How about we go pick out a movie?"

"Yeah!" Gen screeched happily.

I helped Amma into her wheelchair and pushed her towards her door. Reid grabbed on to my wrist and placed a kiss on my cheek before he grabbed Shena's hand and pulled her in to the other room. Amma gushed, speaking in her native tongue and I simply sighed.

I never realized how amazing he could be. I helped Amma in to her bed and she grabbed my face in her hands. A slow smile crept over her aged features and I let out a low laugh.

"He's a good boy," she stated tapping my cheek, the bracelets on her wrist jingling a bit with the movement. "I really like him," she added with a calm tone.

"I do too."

I hadn't meant to say it out loud, but I couldn't help myself. I was becoming more and more drawn to Reid Garwin by the day. There was something about him that just made me want to be around him, even when he was being a jerk.

Amma smiled at me and I kissed her cheek before leaving her room and closing the door behind me. Walking into the living room, I found Reid in front of the TV sifting through our DVD collection. A small smile formed on my face seeing him interact so animatedly with Shena and Gen.

Shena was half sitting on the couch, half leaning forward to nix all of Reid's ideas, and Gen was giggling every time Reid turned to look at her. He held up three choices and the girls each picked a different one. He craned his neck and looked at me, falling onto his back and holding up the three movies.

"Alright Baby, you choose." He gave me a boyish grin and I smirked shaking my head.

Toy Story, Shrek or Transformers.

I tilted my head to the side and contemplated my choice. "Hmmm, I'm partial to Toy Story but I haven't seen Shrek yet…" I grinned at my little sisters.

"I knew she'd pick mine," Imogen laughed and pointed at Reid. "I told you!"

Reid shrugged his shoulder and pulled himself off of the floor, scooping Gen in his arms. Licking my lips I glanced around. "You guys want some popcorn?" I asked.

"Yeah!" Gen exclaimed.

"Alright, I'll go make some. Why don't you start the movie?" I headed into the kitchen, pulling out a couple of bags of popcorn from the pantry. I put the first bag in and looked for a few bowls to use for them to eat out of. I bent over to look in the bottom cabinet and jumped at the feeling of hands on my hips, hitting my head in the process as I stood up.

I pressed my hand to the back of my head and looked at Reid with sad eyes. That really hurt!

"You okay Babs?" he asked trying to hide his laughter, his left hand shooting out and rubbing the back of my head in a concerned fashion. "I didn't mean to scare you;" he grinned, cocking his head to the side.

Does he have any idea how incredibly irresistible that is? Sighing I smiled at him and shook my head.

"Yes you did. You just feel bad now." I gave him a playful glare and turned back to the popcorn that was done in the microwave. I pulled it out and put in the second bag, those fingertips gripping my hips again.

Wow, I'm having thoughts that shouldn't be allowed. Oh my, he just pressed that amazing lean body up against mine. He shouldn't be doing that. This is definitely not appropriate.

I turned quickly in his grasp and looked up into those blue eyes, a glint of mischief beaming back at me. He gripped my hips a little tighter and leaned down, lowering those heavenly lips upon mine.

It was an innocent kiss, but I felt my body reacting to him. My hands gripped his elbows and I pressed my lips against his a little harder. The feeling of his tongue gliding over my bottom lip and the sound of the microwave beeping pulled me out of my naughty thoughts.

"Reid," I whispered breathless. He pushed my hair out of my eyes and smiled at me before pressing his lips to the tip of my nose.

I could hear muffled giggles from around the corner and glanced over his shoulder. Shena and Imogen were poking their curious little heads around the corner. Shena was blushing madly and Gen was giggling like a little mini-hyena. I cast them a stern look and both girls scurried out of view.

Reid chuckled and his hands roamed up from my hips to my waist, pulling me closer to him, if that were even possible. I felt my body shaking, but I didn't want him to let go.

Was that bad? I shouldn't want this kind of physical attention from anyone, especially not Reid Garwin. But I couldn't help it. He knew all the right things to say to make it seem like it was okay.

"You think I can take you out tomorrow night?" His voice was low, and eerily hot.

I wanted to scream yes at the top of my lungs, but I couldn't. I had dance practice after school and then I had to hurry halfway across town to get to work on time. I shook my head sadly and he lifted my chin with his index finger.

I feel like I'm in some alternate universe or a movie. I just can't believe how perfect he is. I never would have seen myself here with him like this in a million years, yet here I was, enjoying every second of it.

"Then I'll just have to take you out when you're not working." He gave me a reassuring smile.

I don't think I ever expected a guy to have this kind of effect on me. I could only nod as he helped me fill the bowls with popcorn and disappeared into the other room. I took a few deep breaths and walked into the living room after him.

Shena was giving me a sneaky little smirk and I shook my head. I couldn't believe they caught me kissing Reid. That was sort of embarrassing.

"Babylon and Reid sittin' in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G…" Gen sat next to Reid happily bobbing her head from side to side as she sang along. I was absolutely mortified.

Reid laughed and put his arm around Gen, pulling her into his side. "Where'd you learn that song?" he inquired.

Gen looked over at Shena who blushed wildly and shrugged her shoulders. I took a seat on the other side of Reid leaving a bit of room between the two of us. Reid pointed a finger at Shena and then at Gen.

"You two are not old enough to be kissing boys, understood?" he declared.

I stared at him and he smirked at me. Shena nodded and Gen gagged. "Boys are gross!" the youngest girl pointed out.

"I'm glad you think so," Reid laughed and she snuggled up under his arm comfortably. The two of them were sharing a bowl of popcorn.

"And at what age were you kissing girls?" I could barely contain my laughter as I asked. Though we were in separate classes, I vaguely remembered Reid in elementary school chasing girls around the playground and trying to kiss them during recess.

"That is confidential information," he informed with a wicked grin. He put his hands over Gen's ears. "And not for such young ears."

I laughed and settled in to the couch, finally turning my attention to the movie. It was cute, but before it hit the halfway mark Gen was dead asleep on Reid's lap, a smug look on his face as he gave me a sideways glance. He had put her to sleep by running his long, slender fingers through her hair..

A shiver ran down my spine just thinking about it.

Slipping further into the couch, I tried to pay attention to the movie, but all I really wanted was some alone time with Reid; call me selfish. Before the film was over, Shena's breathing was heavy and even, which was a sure sign that she was fast asleep. I turned the movie off and pulled Imogen in to my arms.

Reid smiled sitting up and glancing over at Shenandoah. I watched him carefully walk over to Shena and lift her up into his arms. We crept down the dark hallway and upstairs to the rooms.

We met in the hallway after tucking them in and he pulled me under his arm, placing a chaste kiss against my cheek. I could feel my cheeks warm with a blush and snuggled in closer to him. I loved the way he smelled.

"How about we adults watch a movie?" he offered.

I smiled and nodded my head; I don't think I could let him go if he wanted to leave. It just felt so nice being with him, just hanging out with no pressure of people gawking at us, or either of his friends egging us on.

I really felt like I could just be myself with him now.

We walked back downstairs together, Reid holding my hand and leading me into the other room. He decided to put Transformers in, telling me it was because Megan Fox was a fox. I laughed as he sat back down next to me, pulling me closer to him.

I couldn't deny him. I couldn't believe how nice it was wrapped in those lean, swimmer's arms. I rested easily, his arm draped around my shoulders, and his other hand was holding mine.

I think I could get use to this boyfriend thing.

It was close to the end of the movie when I felt Reid's nose nuzzle against my cheek. I turned my head slightly and his lips caught mine.

The electricity I felt couldn't be explained in mere words. I had never felt like this before, and never imagined feeling like this. It was like someone had just jump-started my entire body. I pulled away slightly shocked by the feelings deep in my stomach.

"What's wrong?" Reid's voice was low and husky, and his eyes were a bit hazy.

"N-nothing," I stammered a bit uneasy with the way my body was reacting to him.

"You're not scared, are you Babs?" he asked quietly, his lips trailing down my cheek to my jaw line.

Oh my goodness, I feel like I need to repent or something for the way I'm feeling. This is purely sinful.

"Reid, should we really be doing this?" I questioned quietly.

"We're just kissing, B…" He used one hand to rub circles on my hip, and the other combed through my hair. "I like kissing you." Reid rubbed his lips together. He was staring into my eyes, and it was making my entire body respond.

"I—I like kissing you too…" I managed to get out.

He brushed his hand over my cheek and leaned in, I met him half way this time, letting those angelic lips fall on mine again. He was a lot more experienced at this than I am, and I could tell. His hands cupped my face and his thumbs rubbed my cheeks as he slid his tongue on my bottom lip again. He was totally confident, and I was a quivering mess.

I curled my fingers around his triceps and opened my mouth just a little bit, nervous. I didn't want to be bad at this, he was used to girls that know what they're doing, and I don't. He pulled away for a second and I looked down.

He was disappointed, I just knew it.

"You've got to loosen up Baby…" he whispered, those long slender fingers wrapped around my arms and pushing me back into the couch. "Just do what feels natural," he instructed.

Natural? None of this was natural to me. I have never kissed a boy like this before.

I listened to him though, letting my lips match his, tasting him, letting my trembling fingers get lost in those blonde locks as he positioned himself almost on top of me. His hands began to roam over my body, the slight touch of his fingertips on my bare skin making me tremble.

I pulled away. "Reid…" I muttered, not wanting to disappoint him, but I couldn't let this get any further. "Taking it slow, remember?"

Reid smiled and pecked my lips, pulling me against his chest and nuzzling my neck, leaving a small heated kiss on the skin there. I laced my fingers through his and smiled. I could definitely get used to this, as sinful as it might be. I like it.