Today, God's trying to test my patience and piss me off.

I just KNOW it.

The front yard and the street was filled with milling teenagers, and I got the feeling Zoe was the host.

"OOOH, someone's gonna get BUSTED…"

Damn right, Lulu…

Getting out and bringing Lulu with me, just in case spontaneous combustion was possible, I carried Peter while she took Tyler.

The house was even more packed than the yard, and I herded Lulu upstairs with our little brothers before scanning the room.

What I saw made my vision bleed red with rage.

My comics, the comics I had spent years collecting with dad, were being used as coasters.

COASTERS!

It's one thing to go into my room, but THIS is crossing a line no one has ever even touched before.

Storming into the living room, I ignored everyone going still at my presence and glared at Zoe and Scott accusingly.

At least Zoe seemed to understand why I was so pissed off…

"Cece, I tried to stop them-."

"Jeez, relax. They're just stupid kid's comics."

Wrong answer, Scott.

Before I even thought the move through, I had punched him in the face and watched Scott fall back holding his bleeding nose.

"CECE!" Zoe shouted disapprovingly, kneeling by her boyfriend's side.

I don't know what did it, if it was her sudden shift of sides or the disappointed look, but tears filled my eyes all the same.

Before they could fall, and I knew they would fall heavily, I grabbed my comics, ignoring the spilled drinks as I ran up the stairs and to my room.

Closing my door with a slam, I dropped them onto my desk and hugged my pillow.

I don't know how long I stayed like that, hugging my pillow and crying into the Bat Symbol on it, when someone knocked on the door.

Too choked up to even think of speaking, I grabbed my Joker plushie and chucked it at the door with a satisfying BANG.

"Cece? Cece, let me in…"

Rubbing my eyes and ignoring Wolfe, I picked up my favorite comic, an old issue of Batman that now sported a wrinkles and stains that had not been there before.

I didn't look up when the door opened, just stared at the cover.

"…You alright?" He tried awkwardly.

Shaking my head and trying to keep down a son, I refused to look up.

I think he was about to leave when something stopped him.

"You see this comic?"

God, was that my voice?

It sounded so weird, even to me…

"I got it three years ago…Dad gave it to me as an apology for leaving for so long…H-He said it was to remind me that he hadn't forgotten I was waiting for him…"

I had to stop, my voice was too weak from disuse for me not to.

"He never forgot about me…"

This time, I stopped because of the emotions clogging my throat, but I pushed on anyway…

"He told me to look out for them while he was gone, just before he left the last time…God, I'm doing a horrible job, aren't I?"

Sniffling, I raised my head when Wolfe put a hand on my shoulder.

"No, you're not."

For some reason, that lifted a weight off my chest, and I couldn't help smiling in thanks.

Awkward again, Wolfe nodded gruffly and stood.

"Come on, we're having a meeting downstairs."

Nodding as I regained control of my own voice, I put my comic back on the desk and stood up.

Following him out into the hallway, I spotted Zoe by the bathroom door and stopped, unwilling to go any closer.

"Thanks a lot, Lieutenant Loser." Zoe snapped, not noticing me as her irritation zeroed in on Wolfe.

"Now I'm gonna be the school joke! I don't even know what I'm gonna say to my friends!"

"You call those people your FRIENDS? They have no respect for you, they have no respect for your home, for your FAMILY. You have no respect for yourself!"

"I do TOO respect myself!" She countered, moving closer in her anger.

I stepped closer as well, muscles coiling at the tension filling the air.

"Company, downstairs."

The door opened to the bathroom, and Seth stepped out as Lulu walked up, probably having heard the raised voices.

"And that means you, too."

"You're not my dad." Zoe retorted lowly.

"In case you haven't noticed, this family is going through a really hard time, and YOU'RE just making everything a lot worse. You have no feelings. We hate you, and you hate us, so why don't you just leave us alone?"

"…Once your mother gets back, I'm GONE."

Have you ever felt the moment adrenaline hit your bloodstream?

That moment of perfect clarity when your body is deciding between fight or flight?

I've felt it enough times that it was like second nature, and the urge to either grab Wolfe's arm or yell at Zoe reared its head.

That's when the two ninja busted through the window at the end of hall.

Yeah, you read right.

NINJA.

One went straight for Zoe, who was the only other person closest to that part of the hallway, and every instinct in me roared.

Tackling the ninja in midair, we hit the ground rolling, and I broke away once my opponent hit the wall.

Zoe seemed stunned, and I growled while kicking the ninja in the chest.

"RUN!" I ordered, scrambling to my feet and grabbing her arm.

Pulling her along after Seth, I pushed her into her own room and looked back to see Wolfe fighting the two ninja off.

But my first priority was my family, just like his.

Turning sharply at Lulu's voice, I took her from Wolfe as he ran up, rushing into the room with her as he closed the door.

Checking over all five of my siblings, I grabbed a chair and propped it against the door.

"Are you guys alright?"

When I got no answer, I turned around to find everyone staring at me in surprise.

"What?"

That's when I realized I'd just talked.

They reacted first, pulling me into a group hug and talking all at once before I could get my bearings.

"Okay, now I can't breathe!" I complained, flailing in a most likely comical fashion.

Unfortunately, their joy at my old self's return was short-lived as the sound of fighting came through the door.

Pushing them further away from the entrance, I looked around for something I could use as a weapon if things went bad.

"Do you think he's alright?" Lulu worried, and I saw the same apprehension on everyone's faces.

"He's a Navy SEAL." Was all I said, and it was all I could think to say.

We had to trust that he was trained well enough for this job, because it was all we could do at this point.

A heavy silence fell over us as we waited for the outcome, and I couldn't believe I'd been able to stay quiet for so long.

A knock sounded, and every muscle in my body was on-edge.

"Kids, it's safe."

Brightening immediately, I pulled the chair away from under the knob and Zoe opened it in a flash.

Lulu barreled out to hug Wolfe around the waist, and I resisted doing the same.

"What was that? What did they want?" Seth wondered in a panic, holding Peter in his arms.

"What happened?" Zoe added, Tyler in her arms.

"Please don't leave us, Shane!" Lulu begged, not releasing her hold.

"They were after the program your father invented." Shane explained, pulling a disk out of his pocket.

"They were after this."

Everyone else gathered around a laptop to see what was on the disk, but I sat in an armchair with an ice pack instead.

Shoulder-tackling a ninja isn't as painless as it sounds.

"Alright, guys, lets hope this is it." Shane muttered, putting the disk in.

…

"They want our 'Ghost' movie? Haven't they ever heard of Blockbuster?" Lulu piped up.

"So…there really ARE people out to get us…" Zoe voiced, looking apologetic.

"Yes there are, Zoe. That's why I'm here."

Relaxing as the pain was chilled out of my shoulder, I leaned forward.

"I think we're gonna need a little more cooperation. From now on, you listen to me, and I'll listen to you, too. Deal?"

When they shook hands, I felt all the tension leave my body and grinned.

"So, who's up for some ice cream?"