Meanwhile

Luke's not sure if they feel bad for him, or if Gibson and Katie are just exceptionally nice people. But either way, his brother and his girlfriend have told him that he can stay with them for a few days if he needs to, while he looks for an apartment.

Although he finds their offer to be extremely generous, he really hopes that he doesn't have to take them up on it. It's tempting to just leave things until they get back to Boston, but it doesn't seem like a very responsible idea. He would have to find a place to put all of his stuff, which sounds like a nightmare, not to mention that leaving things until the last minute would just give his father more ammunition if he decided to go on a tear about Luke's not being ready for important independent responsibilities, of which having a child on your own is a huge one.

It is not easy to apartment hunt over the phone, though. He wishes that it was easy as signing up for a student apartment through campus housing was for Gibson and Katie. Unfortunately, there is no way that he could afford the type of apartment on campus that allows children. It kind of ticks him off that Bucky claims to have great support in place for young parents, but then charge them an arm and a leg for family housing. As it is, he's been searching for days, with no end in sight. His father is already grumbling about the fact that he wants his own apartment to begin with, so he has to be relatively stealthy when it comes to calling about apartments that are available for rent. Fortunately Doggett is occupied at work for hours of the day, so this really just means making sure that Monica doesn't overhear his phone conversations.

And, he doesn't dare complain about the difficulty to anyone. His parents would just demand to know more details than he is comfortable divulging. And, Gibson would simply give him a hard time, which he would of course sort of deserve.

At least he doesn't have to simply rely on newspapers, although they do get the Boston Globe delivered at home over the summer. These days he is able to look at ads online, and occasionally some of them even have pictures. But the pictures don't make things easier. Somehow, seeing the pictures makes him also see potential dangers everywhere for when the baby begins to walk. Jon-Jon is already becoming braver, and Monica is sure that he will take his first steps by the end of the month. Luke figures that his own little boy will take after him, at least athletically, and he'll only have a year before he has a mobile infant himself.

He's about to sigh and give up for the day when he notices that he still has the phone number for one person not crossed off on his list. Shrugging, he reaches for the phone, and firmly shut his bedroom door. He dials, and then as soon as the ring cuts off nervously asks, "Could I speak to Mister Sanchez, please?"

"Are you calling about the apartment for lease?" a mildly accented voice on the other end answers.

"Yes sir, I am." He remembers his manners after a moment. "My name is Luke Doggett, by the way."

"Okay, Luke. Are you a student?" Sanchez asks, and Luke wonders if he sounds young, or if every single person who is called about the apartment has been a student. He figures it could go either way.

"I'm going to be starting grad school," Luke tells him. "At the Buck Minister Fuller School of Design. I got my undergrad there too," he adds, wondering if he qualifies his babbling yet.

"Grad school, huh? I like you already," Mister Sanchez says kindly. "It would be nice to rent to a responsible young man."

This makes Luke cringe. "Um…"

"You don't feel that you are responsible?" Sanchez asks, sounding equal parts amused and suspicious.

"Look, I should probably be up front with you. I'm looking to rent an apartment for both myself, and the son that I will be having at the end of September. He's going to be coming home from the hospital with me, probably right around the end of September, as long as he's not overdue, or early, or anything."

Sanchez lets a pause stretch out between them for a moment before asking, "Just you and the baby?"

"Yeah. His mother isn't going to be in the picture. She's, um, going to be going to college in another state next semester. January." Luke feels that this explanation is completely inadequate, but he doesn't really feel like spilling his guts to a person that might or might not be willing to rent him an apartment.

"That sounds like a difficult situation," the potential landlord remarks.

"It has been so far, and I suppose it's only going to stay that way for a while," Luke says honestly, and then cringes when a sigh finally escapes him.

"Well, let me tell you about your new apartment," Sanchez surprises him by saying.

"You've decided to rent to me?" Luke asks incredulously.

"Pending a background check, and you actually wanting to rent for me, yes."

"Wow, that's awesome," Luke enthuses.

"I find that it's important to help people who are trying to do the right thing," Sanchez says. "And Luke, you strike me as the type of person who tries to do the right thing. I'm pretty sure you won't prove me wrong."

"I'll do my best," Luke promises, and then they begin to discuss the particulars of the rental situation.

It's after midnight and Scully hears the central air-conditioning click off. Despite being August it's not a particularly warm night. In the nursery, she is lowering her baby boy back into his crib now that he has an empty diaper and a full belly. Isaac's eyes are closed, and his lips still make a sucking motion in his sleep, which makes her smile fondly. He had fallen asleep nursing, and she thinks he is now dreaming about it.

"Momma?" a soft voice asks from the doorway.

Zoe's light brown hair is somewhat disheveled, and the sleepy look in her eyes suggests that something has woken her up. Somehow this makes Scully less nervous than if the child was having a sleepless night. This probably isn't surprising given that both Sammy and April had nightmares. At least Sammy eventually readjusted to Mulder being back in their lives rather than dead and buried, and April stopped having nightmares once Addy was found...

"What's up?" Scully asks when she notices Zoe's quizzical look. Given the dark places her thoughts just went, Zoe not reading minds is a pretty good thing too, she thinks.

To her faint surprise Zoe points at the rocking chair in Isaac's room. "Can we sit there?"

"Of course," Scully tells her.

Despite being on the small side for her age, Zoe is big enough that getting onto Scully's lap in the rocking chair is quite awkward. Her knees are pressed against the chair's right arm but she doesn't complain about it being uncomfortable.

Shrugging her own discomfort off, Scully looks down at her and asks, "Do you want to talk about something?" She must. It has been a long time since the little girl has last sought out the comfort of being rocked. Still, the last time that Brianna wanted to was even longer ago.

"Uh-huh," Zoe sighs and nods. "Mommy, is kindergarten going to be real different?"

"Well, I think it will be somewhat different than preschool," Scully allows. "You'll be learning new things, but you will have a lot of the same kids in your class."

"And no nap," Zoe says. It's hard to tell from her sleepy tone if she finds this a good or bad feature of kindergarten.

"That's true. And there will be a little less time to play."

"'cause we're learning."

"And because there isn't much playtime at all once you get to be in first grade next year." Scully looks down, waiting for a negative reaction. But it doesn't come. She can't decide if Zoe's too sleepy to care, or if her older siblings have already warned her about this. "They want you to get used to the change a little at a time."

"But are we going to be bored?" Zoe asks. She reaches over and runs her fingers along the arm rest.

"I don't know. What do you think could be boring?" Scully asks, tucking Zoe's arm back when her daughter reaching over her becomes too uncomfortable.

Zoe frowns thoughtfully. "The alphabet is boring now. Brianna and I know all of the letters. Daddy taught us a long time ago. So we have to listen to kids trying to figure it out. And Page says that a lot of kids start to learn how to read in kindergarten and first grade…"

Scully suddenly understands what her daughter is getting at. One of the drawbacks of the fact that the girls will be nearly six when they start kindergarten next month is that they already know how to read, so they won't be as actively engaged in trying to learn that as their classmates. Mulder has taught all of their children how to read between the ages of four and five, which hasn't been a problem so far considering how many of the kids have summer birthdays, and even April and William were still among the youngest kids in their grade so they weren't too far ahead of the others. She wouldn't actively seek out testing, but it wouldn't surprise her if her twin girls already read at a second or even third grade level.

"You know, I think that part might be boring," Scully admits, and Zoe looks surprised. "As you get older you're going to notice that people are good at different things. You and Brianna are already good at reading, but some of the kids in your class will probably be better at math than you are, or will learn spelling quicker, and maybe some of them will be better at art, or using scissors all by themselves. So, those kids will be bored when everybody else is learning how to do those things. We all have to learn to tolerate that other people learn at a different pace than we do. It's probably good for us to learn patience," she adds, thinking that patience is a big part of the Sunday school curriculum for kids ages four through eight at their church.

"Does it get different when you grow up?" Zoe asks earnestly.

"That depends a lot on what sort of job you get. There are some jobs where everybody has the same sort of skills as you do. Like when your daddy and I were in the FBI," she says, trying not to think too hard about various agents and law enforcement who had struck her as morons over the years. Theoretically they had had the same skill set as she did, minus her medical training of course. "But in other jobs there are so many different things to do that some of your coworkers know entirely different stuff than you do."

"Oh. I think I want a job where other people know the same stuff as me."

Scully pats her on the shoulder. "You have a long time to think about that sort of thing, but maybe you're right. Maybe that is the type of job that will make you the happiest."

The little brunette nods, and Scully pulls her head back quickly to avoid having her chin bumped into. "Do you think that people who make weddings all have the same sort of stuff they know?"

"You know, I have no idea," she says, trying not to smile. Apparently Zoe has realized already that there is no such thing as a professional tea party host, and has decided that weddings are similar enough.

"I'll ask somebody," Zoe says, yawning as she does.

Scully wonders who she thinks she can ask. "You look tired. I'm tired too. How about we go back to bed?"

"Yup, okay."

It Scully's first instinct to carry her back to her room, but Zoe hops off her lap, and heads for the door. She glances back at her sleeping baby son, and tries not to sigh. Having your child need you less as they get bigger is an adjustment too, but it's not something you really can talk to the kids about.

Zoe pauses at the threshold. "Good night, Mommy."

"Good night," Scully repeats, watching fondly as little girl scampers back to her room. Hopefully Zoe will get some sleep, and hopefully it's contagious.

Late August
The Doggett Home

As Doggett stares that the van that Gibson and Luke have rented to bring all of their possessions back to school, he's glad that they aren't flying home. There's barely enough room to see out the back window of the van, so he can't him even imagine how much the baggage fees would be if they tried to bring it all home with them on the plane.

Home. How has them going back to school morphed into going home, he wonders. This makes him think about Barbara and her parents again, something that he hasn't really thought much about since he brought the boys up to college for the first time.

Standing beside him, Reyes sighs. He glances at her and asks "what?"

She shrugs. "I was just thinking, do you think they're going to end up coming home once they're done grad school?" She frowns. "Or is Boston really their home?" she concludes, eerily echoing his recent thought.

Doggett snakes an arm around her waist. "Honestly, I don't know. On one hand it feels like you could start a videogame company anywhere in the country, but on the other I know that there are certain places that new videogame companies tend to flock to. Boston does seem to be one of the markets that's heating up in that direction."

Reyes wrinkles her nose. "I guess it's selfish to wish that they would decide to come home and make their lives here."

He raises an eyebrow. "Why would do you think that selfish?"

"I'm not even really their mother," she starts to say. "So it seems more than a little presumptuous to think that they should take my feelings into account when they make their plans for their whole lives."

"That's where you're wrong. You are their mother." His tone leaves no room for argument.

She tilts her head and kisses him on the cheek. "You're sweet."

As if to validate his statement, Hannah runs out saying, "Mom!"

Reyes catches the girl in a hug, marveling at how tiny she still is. Hannah is going into the seventh grade very shortly, but she's going to be one of the smallest girls in her class. "What?"

"Do you think we could go back to school shopping this afternoon?" Hannah asks. "For clothes, I mean."

Reyes gives Doggett a look, as if to ask him if he put her up to it. He shrugs. Maybe Hannah has decided that her stepmother needs a distraction after the boys leave, but he certainly didn't suggested himself.

Looking down at the girl, Reyes says, "Sure. We can hit up the mall."

"Great!"

Luke and Gibson come out, followed by Rebecca, who is chatting their ears off about something in some sort of cartoon. Doggett thinks he has seen that particular cartoon, but he's not entirely sure.

The boys come to an awkward stop before him. Gibson gives him a halfhearted smile before saying, "Well, I think we better hit the road."

"All right," Doggett says, although it doesn't exactly feel all right to him. Maybe Monica doesn't feel like she has the right to hope that they will come back when they start their official adult lives, but he does. And he's going to make sure he does his best to keep himself or her from feeling guilty for wanting them to come back to the DC area. "You've got your directions for both apartments?"

"Dad." Gibson rolls his eyes. "Even if you thought you couldn't trust Luke to think of that sort of detail, how could you think I wouldn't?"

Luke just mutters "nice," in a disgusted tone.

"You're right. You're right." Doggett does his best to smile at both of his sons. He really wishes that the two of them were sharing an apartment, but Luke had muttered something about needing space, and he interpreted that as wanting to be alone while he got over what he was going through, so he didn't push it. Deciding to be alone while depressed might not be the wisest of choices, but it was one he could relate to. When Barbara left, he had pretty much cut himself off from all of their friends, and even friends that he and she didn't have in common.

"Call us when you get there, okay?" Reyes asks. She then freezes when a noise came over the baby monitor, but Jon-Jon doesn't begin to cry, so maybe he just rolled over in his crib during his nap.

"Of course," Luke promises too quickly.

Doggett gives his older boy a sidelong look, wondering what's up with him. He's probably not going to get any answers, so he settles for hugging both boys and patting them on the back.

Hannah and Rebecca hug them too, although Doggett is pretty sure that Rebecca doesn't quite understand what's going on. Her brothers have spent almost all of her life living somewhere else, so the fact that it bothers the rest of them to see them leave doesn't really compute with her yet.

On the other hand, Hannah looks like she's close to tears, which is not unusual when it comes time for them to depart. Trying to look brave she says, "You're really going to Skype with me, right?" They had spent the better part of the afternoon before setting up Skype on both their own computers and hers.

"You bet," Luke promises, and his own voice is a little more ragged than it typically is when he's leaving for school.

"I will too, and if he slacks off on it, let me know, and I'll go bully him into remembering that he should," Gibson tells her.

Hannah smirks. "You couldn't bully anybody."

"I bet I could," Gibson says, straight-faced.

"He doesn't bully anyone?" Luke asks. "How do you think we got all of our projects done on time?" Luke pantomimes a whip being cracked.

"Nah. That's just being responsible," Hannah says dismissively.

"You tell yourself that," Luke says. "But if you ever have to work with him on a big project, I'm going to ask you what you think then."

"Drive carefully," Reyes says as they moved to get in the van.

Gibson waves cheerfully. "I can't drive the entire way, you know."

Doggett thinks he hears Luke call his brother a jerk, and it makes him smile in spite of himself. He doesn't like watching them leave, but he's always known that they have to. He just doesn't know why that doesn't make it easier to cope with.

Later That Evening

Dinner is over and David and Jared have just finished loading the dishwasher. Scully is enjoying a mug of iced tea, and she thinks that Mulder is drinking lemonade. For some reason, Page is sitting at the kitchen table too, though she no longer has her plate or a glass in front of her.

Since it's a warm dozy evening it takes her a moment to realize that Mulder has given her a pointed look and flicked his eyes towards their daughter. Stifling a yawn, Scully turns to her oldest and asks, "Something on your mind?"

It's not very surprising when Page heaves a sigh. "Oh, you know. School starts next week."

"It can be rough to go back," Scully says sympathetically, thinking about when her maternity leave will be over. Somehow, the thought of leaving Isaac with a nanny feels more difficult than it had with the older kids. Maybe it's because she's out of practice.

Page flips her hand in a halfhearted gesture. "Summer was long enough. I'm not too sad about it ending."

Mulder reaches over and puts his hand on Page's wrist, and the girl gives him a weak smile. "High school, huh?"

The teenager looks relieved that one of her parents is finally figuring out her problem. "It's just…"

He nods, looking like he knows what she's talking about. Scully wishes that she did. "I didn't know if I was ready, either. That's it, right? Big transition to high school and how it's going to be different."

"All I can keep thinking about is driver's ed," Page says. "I watch you and mom drive sometimes, and it just seems so hard. There's so much you have to do and pay attention to."

"That's not for a couple of years, though," Scully begins.

"I know, but it's like… Everything. Changing classes on different floors, my science class is going to have a lab, there are dances, you actually have to be good to get on the yearbook in high school, there are lockers." Page shrugs helplessly.

"Hey," Mulder says, pulling the girl into a hug. "All of that stuff is true, but it's not like you're going to have to deal with every one of those things on your first day of school. Right?"

The nod that Page gives in return is tiny, and her smile is doubtful. "Okay, not all on the first day, but pretty soon."

"You just have to take each of those things as they come," Mulder remarks. "Worrying about how they're going to go isn't going to make you happier. And it's not going to make you more prepared, either. All it's going to do is make you more worried and anxious."

Page frowns that her father. "You make it sound easier than it's going to be," she accuses faintly.

"No, your dad is right. It's going to be easier than you think it is. Well, most of it. I found driver's ed pretty hard myself, but maybe you won't. All you need to do on your first day is worry about your locker and finding the right classrooms. Then you can take each one of those other things as they come."

The girl looks a little less glum, but only a little. "What if boy doesn't ask me to the Halloween dance? Ariel is going to be a junior and she's been dating boys since about the first week of high school."

At the same time that Mulder says, "If a boy doesn't ask you to this one, someone probably will the next," Scully finds herself snapping, "Then maybe you won't end up like your oldest cousin."

Scully feels bad immediately, the second that she sees the shocked look on Mulder's face. She doesn't even dare to look at her daughter. "I'm sorry. That was totally out of line," she mumbles.

Page stands up. "And on that note, I think I'm going to go join the other kids in the living room and watch that movie."

Scully vaguely remember Sammy saying that he wanted to watch "Harry and the Hendersons," which is a favorite with the kids even though it annoys her. She watches her oldest girl walk away and is tempted to call her back, but doesn't.

Across from her, Mulder sighs. "Honestly, I don't think you're wrong. As glad as I am to have my sister back in my life, I'm also sort of glad that her kids haven't been a bigger influence on ours. Drew is a great little guy, but I have to say there are a lot of things my sister has done with her girls that I can never imagine allowing." He looks off, and eventually she realizes that he's looking out the window at a bird that is come to the feeder. "Is it wrong to look to a sibling's parenting as an object lesson about how not to raise teenage girls?"

"No," she says, but then pauses. For a moment she thinks about Missy, Emily and Addy, and how many questions Missy had had when she'd first brought Emily home. "But being a role model is hard work. Sometimes I worry that I'm being unfair to your sister, and that I should give her more credit than I do."

"Well, I guess we'll see in four years."

Puzzled she asks, "Why in four years?"

"If Ariel and Alyssa make it all the way through high school without getting pregnant too, I guess we can chalk it up to a one-off and Adrianna being her own not terribly responsible person." He does not look amused.

"And I guess we should look at Gibson and Jon-Jon too?" Scully asks, surprising herself that she feels somewhat defensive after his statement. "After all, if we're going to hold Samantha to that standard, I guess we should John and Monica as well."

"You're right," he agrees. "Hopefully it will turn out to be that Luke and Adrianna just are not the most responsible people, and not the product of questionable parenting. Too bad we can't tell until they're all adults."

Scully walks over and kisses him on the cheek. "And that, my dear, is something people have been realizing for thousands of years." He smirks broadly, and she is prompted to ask, "What?"

Shaking his head he says, "You don't want to know."

"No, you don't, Mister. Spit it out."

Still smiling in a naughty sort of way, he says, "You're more of a biblical scholar than I am. How old was Mary when the angel of the Lord visited her, again? I mean, that had to cause some tongues to wag back in the day."

She groans, and he laughs. "You're right, I didn't want to know."