Chapter 15:

Hey guys! I hope that you enjoy this chapter as well. Please review. This chapter is dedicated to PellyChelly94 thanks girl for the encouragement!

Chapter 16:

Everything

Madeline kept her parents active throughout her entire first night home. Between feedings, wet diapers, stinky diapers, and needing comfort, Haley was damn grateful that Nathan was there. Even though she recently worked with infants daily, it had been a good four years since she'd been up in the middle of the night for feedings and diapers changes.

Maddie was a pretty quiet baby, and he wondered if she'd be anything like Jason. His little boy was quiet as a baby, but once he got to his fifth month or so, he demanded attention. He was a mommy and daddy's boy depending on his mood, and Nathan blamed Haley for his mixed emotions saying he got them from her wacky family. She never argued against it; it was true. Right now they all agreed that Madeline was a baby that would keep you on your toes no matter what. She was quiet, but could demand attention and get her parents attention easily.

Haley walked into the nursery and lazily smiled at the precious scene that she saw. Her husband was swaying back and forth while their daughter was curled up against his chest. This Years Love was playing as it always did, and she wasn't surprised to see that it lulled her baby to sleep. She'd lull herself to sleep with the song throughout her pregnancy and even before it. She slowly walked towards him rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"So this is the girl that stole you from me? I was wondering who all my attention went to. Is she awake?" she said placing her hand on the child's back.

"Nope, she's been out for a few minutes. I just wanted to hold her for a while." He said nearly blushing. He actually had a little girl.

"You should come back to bed and hold me; I'm kind of getting lonely.

Nodding his head, he wrapped his daughter back up tightly, and laid her in the crib; him and Haley kissing her goodnight once again. They had both agreed that she would sleep in her crib until Nathan left, that way they could have a bit of privacy and not wake the baby.

Climbing in the bed, Haley was pleased to feel herself surrounded by her husband's arms and body. Pulling her closer to him, Nathan kissed her cheek and snuggled closer to her warm body.

It was about ten in the morning when Haley decided not to go back to sleep after tending to Madeline. Sniffing the air, she was surprised to smell breakfast being cooked, when she knew her husband was still in bed after being up with their daughter most of the night. Finally reaching the kitchen, she saw Brooke in her only cooking fashion; iPod on hip, earphones in, spatula in hand, and bubbly brunette dancing around.

When Haley made it over to her, she pulled one of her earphones out, and greeted her sister with an exhausted, grateful smile.

"Hey, thanks for making breakfast" she said pulling her into a hug. She felt like she hadn't seen her at all in the last week; cause she hadn't.

"No thanks necessary" she said pulling back and looking at her. "You know it's not fair how awesome you look after having a baby only two weeks ago. Are you sure you were even pregnant? I know you didn't want everyone to see her before Nate, and trust me, I completely agree with you, but he's here now, and has seen her, yet you still haven't let me even see my god-daughter"

"Don't be so dramatic Brooke, you know anytime you want to have her at three am you can." She said laughing at the usual pout that she wore. "I'll get her after I get Nathan up, but there is something I have to tell you"

She stood there biting her lip when Brooke raised a single eyebrow at her. "And what would that be"

"You're not her god-mother"

Mouth agape, eyes wide, and for once at a lost for words, Brooke didn't speak for a minute. "What?"

"Well you're Jay's godmother; you already got one of my spawns." She said trying to lighten the mood.

"Who's her god-mother?" she said slitting her eyes towards her best friend.

"Well Nathan and I had already talked about it, and after asking her, she said yes" after receiving another quirking eyebrow, she continued. "I want Peyton to be her god-mom"

"Fine" she said absently "I got Jay anyway" she raised her chin confidence.

"Whatever, you're still gonna love her just as much, seriously Brooke, just wait till you see her"

"Well then go get her" she said impatiently.

"I just got her back down, just wait until I wake Nathan first. Besides, I saw her sign in sheet, you were at the hospital this week visiting her" she said smirking. She knew she couldn't withhold her daughter from Brooke, and purposely put her on the allowed visitors list. When she went to the hospital, she wasn't surprised at all to find Brooke and Lucas' signatures a few times.

"I'm not really sure what you're talking about... we umm just wanted to make sure she was alright. You know what who cares, she's my niece, and I can check on her if I want to" she said all in one breath.

"Thanks Brooke, I'm really glad you went up to visit her. She'll need her aunt Brooke around as much as possible"

She sent her a wink, and walked over to the cabinet to get a small saucer out. She took one of the warm biscuits Brooke had made, spread her husbands' favorite raspberry jelly on it, and walked back into the room. Once on the bed, she sat on her knees in front of Nathan and placed the warm food at his mouth. Feeling something on him, he moved his head away before letting it rest back at it's original spot, only to feel the tickles again.

Finally opening his eyes, he rolled his eyes at the sight of his angelic looking wife staring down at him, wide eyed and all smiles. His early riser loved playing morning games with him. After bending down to kiss his lips, she sat back and took a bite of the flaky breakfast food.

"Mmmm, bite" she said after relishing in its' goodness.

She put the biscuit to his mouth and he bit into it, then leaned up and returned her kiss.

"Yum" he said honestly referring to his wife's lips. "You shouldn't have cooked, I want to you to rest as much as possible; especially while I'm here"

"Oh, I did get rest, Brooke's in there cooking for us"

"Oh, where are Peyton and Jake?"

"At the office. They're getting started on the work in the new office and everything. And I think Jake's gonna do a bit of recording so he can spend some time at the office with Peyton. So they'll be gone some of the day from now on"

"But Brooke will be over some right? And Tonya when she can" he had to make sure someone would be there to help Haley, especially after recovering from her cesarean. He took her hand and pulled her hand down to his mouth, eating the last bite of her biscuit.

"Good" he said when she nodded her head. "I don't want you to have to do everything alone while I'm not here and mom was gonna come down for a week, but since Dad got sick, she doesn't want to chance it with Maddie."

"Speaking of you being here, when do you have to leave?"

"You're not gonna let this go are you?" he climbed out of bed, and put on his sweat pants and a tee shirt.

She sat down on the bed with her legs dangling off the side; feet barely skimming the floor. "I'm sorry, I just wanna know how long until I have to let you leave us again"

He came over to stand over her and placed both hands on her shoulders, softly messaging them. "Tomorrow night"

"Did you tell them you just had a baby, that just spent two weeks in the freaking NICU? That soon?" she moved his hands from her shoulders, and stood up only to bury her face under his chin.

"But I'll be back Friday night. Remember Hales, every weekend" he didn't want to upset her, and hoped the news would make lighten her mood back up.

Stretching her legs up until she was at eye level with him, she leaned her forehead closer to his, "well you gotta explain that to Madeline, you know how she is. She won't take no for an answer"

"I wish it were her I had to convince; Jay's not gonna like it"

"He's not" they both agreed, "come on, let's get him up, I'm starving"

"Alright, you go ahead, and I'll bring in Jay. First I gotta drain the sea monster" he said with a serious face.

"Too much Dogdeball babe" she said rolling her eyes at her husbands' new favorite movie. She moved to climb off the bed, and winced in pain.

"You okay?" he said in the doorway of the bathroom.

"Yea, just cramps. I guess the drugs they had me on had to fully wear off sooner or later."

"You want something for it?" he'd seen the incision last night, and could tell that it had to hurt.

"I'll take something once I have something on my stomach."

He went in to use the bathroom, and when he came back, he saw Haley curled up on the bed, clutching her stomach.

"What's wrong? What can I do" he went over to rub her back. He found out before, that all you can really do is ask what to do.

"God it hurts Nathan. Can you get the heating pad from the closet?"

Once he retrieved it, he helped her sit up, and placed the warming pad under before standing back up.

"I'll be right back, just relax" he kissed her lips then left the room.

When he went out to the kitchen, he saw Brooke putting the food into Tupperware and loading the pans and dishes into the washer.

"Hey you" he said pulling her in a tight hug. "Thanks so much for taking care of Hales and Jay while I'm away, you and Luke. Haley isn't feeling good, the cut from her c-section is starting to hurt, so I'm just gonna bring her a small plate so she's able to take some medicine"

"Ok, you want me to wake Jay up and feed him?"

"Yea, thanks."

"Well what about Madeline? Your wife won't let me see her"

He laughed knowing that as soon as she got her hands on his daughter she would be spoiled rotten. "Haley just put her down, but if she gets fussy, you can get her."

He walked back into his room and sat on the edge of the bed next to Haley.

"Eat some of this, and then I'll get you some medicine"

Helping her sit up again, he started to hand over the plate until he saw she didn't look in the least interested, so he decided to humor her and feed her himself. She was content with just opening her mouth and chewing, and happily took the medicine once she was done.

"You rest up, I'll be back" he said smoothing her hair form her forehead.

"Where are you going" she said grabbing his hand when he began to pull away.

"Say good morning to Jay. Brooke got him up and is feeding him.

"Alright, give him a kiss for me"

Walking back into the kitchen he laughed at Jay bobbing his head to the music like his aunt had been moments ago.

"Hey buddy"

He picked the small boy up and kissed his cheek. His little guy was all smiles with jelly covering his little lips. He knew he wasn't much of a breakfast person if it wasn't cereal so he knew that he wouldn't be eating much more than he already had. Looking at the small Bob the Builder plate, he saw that he'd polished his eggs off, and had eaten most of his biscuit. Taking the plate to the sink, he rinsed it off before grabbing a wipe from the counter and wiped Jay's hands and mouth before putting him down.

"Where's mommy?" his big eyes searched his fathers curiously.

Nathan had been waiting for that question, and was actually looking to distract him. As much as he loved his dad, the small child had gotten used to just his mommy for the last few months.

"She's lying down for a little while, but she did want me to give you a big kiss from her" after he kissed the small cheek, he pulled back and saw the sad look on his face.

"What's wrong Jay"

"nuffing" he said sniffing.

"No, don't lie to me. Tell me what's wrong"

"I want mommy" Nathan's heart broke at the small tears that escaped his eyes.

"Come on man, you know you don't' have to cry for that. You can see mommy anytime, so no more crying okay"

He walked back into the room and saw Haley lying in bed asleep. Nathan sat the boy down on the bed, and he just sat there. Looking up at his daddy, he gave out the puppy eyes and pouty lip.

"Just give mommy a kiss and we can wake her up in a little while. She's just tired buddy"

After giving his mommy a peck on the cheek, he was scooped up and taken into his own room.

"So", he started. Jay he was sitting up against Jay's bed, while the boy still pouted next to him. "You wanna play?"

"No"

"Yea you do, come on. I'm gonna beat you up, you better fight back"

Reaching over, he poked him in the stomach, making the boy move away. He grabbed one of the pillows off the bed, and hit him with it. After a few more times of hitting him, Jay's shell dissolved away, and he pounced on Nathan.

Nathan had missed wrestling with his son, and he knew how to bring out the feisty side of him. They rolled around on the floor wrestling with Jay making fight noises, that Nathan could only laugh at. Every time Jay would punch him, he's make a sound that resembled a bomb exploding.

They went on playing for a little more then decided to put on a new movie Jay had gotten. While Jay chose the movie, Nathan got a bag of hot cheetos and a bottle of water for them to snack on, and sat down on the floor. Deciding to get comfortable, Jay settled himself on Nathan's lap, and watched as the movie started.

Haley woke up a few hours later and went into feed Madeline. While burping her, she walked down the hall and saw her little boy asleep on her big boy when she passed Jay's room. After quietly closing the door, she walked down the hall into the living room and found Brooke lounging on the couch watching tv.

"Can I finally see her" Brooke asked holding her arms out already.

"Just let me nurse her on the other side and you can burp her and take her"

Other than Nathan, Brooke was the only person she felt completely comfortable with nursing around. When they'd had Jay and Drew, and were still nursing, they of course shared everything and helped each other out and encouraged the other as much as possible. Needless to say, this would not be the first time that Haley nursed around her without covering up.

"So, I know that Peyton and Jake are here to help you, and we're around too, but tell me what you're thinking with Nate still not being home? Honestly Hales, this is me." she said after washing her hands and grabbing a fresh receiving blanket from the nursery.

"Well, to be honest, it really sucks, especially now with Peyton and Jake at the studio most of the day. I'm not sure how I'll be able to do it alone with taking Jay to school three days a week, nursing and recovering from the c-section. I mean it wasn't until today that I really felt the brunt of the pain from it and it was nearly paralyzing. I guess I'm just feeling a little alone.. like a single parent even more now."

"Hales, you know we're here too. I'll get Jay for school on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, then we can take turns cooking dinner, and I can work from here on some days on my sketches. We can even alternate picking the boys up, so you can get out of the house sometimes. Haley, it's just like when you had Jay, you are never alone because I'm always here for you"

Haley looked up from her daughter, where her eyes had been glued, and sent Brooke a teary smile. "Thank you best friend"

After a few more minutes Haley pulled her bra back up, and handed the baby to her aunt. Brooke happily started to burp the baby, while Haley fixed her shirt and stood up.

"Hey, where you off to?" She rubbed circular motions over the baby's' back excited for her to burp so she could smother her in kisses and hugs, this being her first time holding her.

"I'm gonna go try and wash up before the boys wake up. Maybe even catch up on some sleep. Let me know if you need me to take her, but you two need to do some bonding" she said winking at the brunette before handing her the burping cloth.

There were only a few people that Haley would allow full access to her newborn daughter, and Brooke was second on that list.

It was just over two hours later when Nathan started up a movie in Jay's room before walking out, and closing the door half way. Hearing a familiar noise down the hall, he walked into the bedroom he shared with his wife and saw her sitting up on their bed with her breast pump on her chest.

"Hey sleepyhead" Haley's greeting was a horse one as her husband leaned down, giving her a soft kiss.

He smiled at her before taking the bottle she was handing to him and screwing on one of the new disposable tops they'd gotten from the hospital. "So we already sent her back huh? I didn't like her that much anyway" he said referring to his daughter not being in her crib, or bassinette.

"Watch it Scott, she's kinda grown on me. Can't believe I got all of that from both sides" she looked at the bottle he held that a full five ounces of her milk.

"You smell nice" he ignored her statement and frowned at the warm bottle and the milk that was already separating inside the bottle.

"I had a bath while you and Jay were asleep you coward" she smirked at him. Her husband had a fear of breast milk, and she constantly teased him for it. Jay had been home from the hospital only three days when Nathan drank some of her milk that Lucas "poured" for him. It had been comical watching him spit the milk out and bitch about it for days.

"Okay, jokes aside, where's my baby?" he wasn't necessarily worried, but he missed his little girl already and just wanted to hold her.

"I'm gonna get a little more sleep. Maddie's in the living room with Brooke. You can tell her to go home.."

"Yea and get slapped or chewed out?"

"She's harmless when it comes to holding a newborn baby" she joked knowing how it was the complete opposite. "I'll text her tomorrow, but you can feed Mad's and spend some time with her"

Nodding his head, Nathan walked out closing the door behind him. Walking into the living room, he smiled when he saw Brooke rocking back and forth while his daughter squirmed and let out tiny cat-like cries. Before his next step, she let out a louder cry that didn't stop right away like the previous one.

His heart broke, like really broke hearing that sound. Not his baby girl, not ever.

Walking up to Brooke he ignored her and completely focused on Madeline. "No, no, no baby. Come here Maddie-Bear, daddy's right here, you're okay." He slowly scooped her from his sister in laws arms, and turned away from her once he lifted her to his chest. "You hungry baby. You need some food huh, daddy's got it. It's nasty milk that came from mommy, but at least it makes you grow up and be healthy just like your big brother." He walked back into the nursery and sat in the rocking chair, before grabbing a burping cloth and feeding her.

"You can do it Bear" he cooed encouraging her to suck at the nipple that was at her lips. "Just like mommy taught you… that a girl Bear" He smiled and kissed her face when she started eating.

He'd be lying if he didn't say it scared him a little to be holding her. His son was never this small, but as scary as it was holding her, he knew he'd protect his tiny bundle with his life and always handle her with such care. It was a few minutes later when he checked the bottle and brought her up to his chest to burp her.

"You got something in there for me Bear? You know your mom burps a lot, kind of like a guy when she has one of daddy's beers, but don't tell her I said that. She's too much of a lady to admit that.

Hearing her begin to whine a little, he pulled her back in his arms and got her started again. She'd barely eaten one ounce, but he praised her nonetheless. He was completely smitten with her.

It was Sunday afternoon and Haley was waiting for Nathan to come into the kitchen with Madeline while she filled the long green baby tub with warm water. Brooke and Lucas were coming over soon and Brooke would stay the night to help Haley out since Nathan had to return to base that night.

"So let's just make this quick, I really don't think she's gonna enjoy this Hales." Nathan stood beside her with a naked Madeline swaddled in a receiving blanket.

"Nate, she's gonna be freaked out just like Jay was. It's normal and you know it, but this is a new way I heard turns out really well. The blanket will keep her warm in the water and we can just pull out each limb to wash and then re-swaddle once we're done. It's easy babe, trust me. Can you check the water for me?"

After nodding, he stopped Haley from lowering her into the cushioned tub. "Let me do it, let me see her, you wash, I'll hold her up" He as freaking out completely. He didn't like the idea of giving her a bath this soon. Yea she was technically two and a half weeks old, but to him, she was barely a day old.

He lowered her into the water and her tiny blue eyes grew wide before she started squirming and letting out her cat cries. "No no no, Hales she's not ready, not yet" he tried to stop her from pulling one of Maddie's small arms out of the blanket.

"Nathan, it's okay for her a cry a little, I'll be fast" she couldn't lie and say she wasn't completely in love with her husband right now. His concern for their daughter was very precious but it gave her a worried glance into their future. She'd be spoiled as hell.

He lasted as long as he could, but once he noticed her volume rising, and saw her tiny face turn pink, he had enough. "Not gonna happen Hales, she hates this!" He reached for the fluffy towel that lay across his shoulder before scooping her up in his arms and wrapping her in it. "I can't do this Haley, help me get her changed okay?" he walked back to the nursery, peeking back to make sure that Haley was following him.

"We should just stick with sponge baths for a while. I don't think her body's ready for that yet Hales, I mean she's so small. It's just a bad idea." He dried off her bottom and put a fresh diaper on her before he started to dress her in a one piece sleeper dress. He looked over to Haley to find her biting her bottom lip and her arms folded across her chest.

"What?" he asked once he had her dress and re-swaddled in a fresh blanket.

"I'm in big trouble already aren't I? I mean she started whining during her very first bath and you pull her out and basically give her, her way. We gotta get you a new pair huh baby?" she smirked at him, glancing down at the front of his shorts before walking out of the room.

"Hey! I still have my balls Haley James! Hell I'll show you my balls if you want." he yelled out at her. Looking down at his now calm daughter he smiled, "Daddy won't let that mean mommy put you in that cold water anymore Bear"

After cleaning up Maddie's short-lived bath, Haley started on some homemade mashed potatoes, and checked on the roast that was nearly done cooking in the crockpot. She knew Brooke would be bringing the salad when they arrived and wanted to make sure everything else was ready.

Two knocks were heard on the front door, before Brooke, Lucas and Drew let themselves into the house and were greeted by Haley.

"Hey Hales, you look beautiful" Lucas said being the first to hug her.

"Sure I do Luke. Hey little man" She glanced down at Drew who'd taken a seat near the front door before yanking his shoes off and putting them in the small basket in the coat closet.

"Hi Naley, where's your baby? Mommy said we could see her today" He was eager to see the baby. He'd never been around a baby before.

"She's with Uncle Nathan, but they'll be out in a second. Go tell Jay you're here."

He ran back into the room and Haley and Brooke set up things for dinner. Lucas went over to the sink and started washing his hands when his wife sent him a glare.

"You're giving me that look again" he squinted.

"We already talked about this Lucas, and you promised so stop washing your stupid hands" she pouted.

"Okay" Haley looked between the two of them confused. "What's going on with you two?" she really hoped they weren't going through anything serious.

"Nothing, it's.." Brooke began before Lucas interrupted.

"Oh, my wife here is just trying to hog my niece that's all. She tried to convince me to play with Jay so that she could hold Madeline first."

Haley looked at Brooke with wide eyes and a playful, yet shocked appearance. "Brooke! You got to spend hours with her just yesterday, let Luke see her first."

They both knew she took to ignoring them and was also completely embarrassed by the situation. She really couldn't help herself. "Well if someone wasn't denying me the possibility of having my own daughter soon, I wouldn't have to be this way." The look she shot Lucas wasn't playful at all, but a serious one.

"Okay" Haley drew out "Well forget Brooke, you guys should be worried about Nathan letting you hold her."

"Oh Gosh, is he already protective of her?" Lucas laughed.

"I don't think there's a word invented for his bond with that little girl. As his wife and her mother I'm completely in love with watching them and their little moments, but, he refuses to let me really bathe her because she started whining. Jay's only asked once, but Nathan refused since he's been at preschool all week and he wants to be sure Jay didn't pick anything up. He's completely spoiling her already. That might sound normal, but you have to see it to get what I mean. He was never like this with Jay; it was me who went crazy about every little thing."

They all turned their heads when they heard Nathan walk into the living room holding Maddie against his chest.

"What happened to her other clothes? Did she pee through?" Haley asked walking closer.

"No, I just changed her. This is the outfit I brought home with me, do you like it? The other one was really plain but these colors are pretty on her" He looked at Lucas who was holding back a laugh, and then to Brooke and Haley to see them doing the same thing.

He hadn't realized that while he was talking Haley tried to take Maddie from his arms but had no such luck. He maneuvered any and every way to keep her from taking the child from his gentle grasp.

"Babe, you're doing it again, Let Luke see her" she scolded him.

He glanced up at Lucas, then down at his hands. "Did you wash your hands? And Hales, where's your boppy, Luke should use it. But she did just fall back asleep, I'd hate to wake her"

"I think I can manage without her boppy Nate, but thanks. If it makes you feel any better, I'll sit down first."

Nathan walked over to Lucas and gently placed the sleeping baby in his arms before sitting directly beside him on the couch.

Haley stared at Nathan and before she could make a joke, she saw something flash in his eyes that had her worried.

Fear

Lucas marveled at his niece all the while Nathan's eyes never left his daughter and his body stayed tense. Haley stood up from her seat and walked over to Nathan, holding her hand out to him. "Come here a second." She saw the questioning look he gave her, and nodded towards their bedroom. "Just come on"

When they made it back into their bedroom, Haley put her hands around his neck keeping his eyes glued to hers. "She's fine Nathan… what's going on, you're worrying me. At first I thought it was cute, I mean, I think you've made sure she's gonna be a daddy's girl, but babe, I think it's more than that."

Haley stayed standing when Nathan let go of her and went to sit on the floor, leaning against their bed. He stared at the unlit fireplace that sat in their room and kept his head in his hands while trying to explain what he was feeling.

"I don't want to miss anything and I already feel like I'm gonna miss everything Hales. Already. I just feel like the clocks ticking away. I…. I leave in like three hours. That's all I have left with her and it's killing me. By the time I see Madeline for the fifth time, she'll already be a whole month old." His eyes filled with tears but he didn't care how broken he looked. It was exactly how he felt. "I was thinking last night about going back today, and started looking through all my paperwork and contracts just to see what my punishment would be if I didn't show up"

"Nathan, you cannot go AWOL. You know that's not a good idea, in fact it's stupid" she knelt down beside him and pried his hands away from blocking her view of his eyes.

"Hey, look at me" prying his hands away from his face, she wiped away the one tear he let escape. Her husband was not one to cry, so she knew this was tearing him apart. "Madeline is your daughter. She's your Bear." She watched him crack a smile. In one day it looked as if Maddie Bear was simplifying to Bear. "She is two weeks old, and already knows exactly who you are. Baby she knows your voice, your touch, she loves sleeping on her daddy's chest already and every time she's gonna see you will be a special day for her just as much as it will be for you. You won't miss anything Nathan. And she'll be safe, I promise you." Although her husband never uttered a word about it, she knew he was scared of just not being around in general. "She will be just fine and surrounded by people who love her. I promise you."

He leaned his head closer to her and kissed the corner of her mouth before hugging her tightly. "I know you'll take such perfect care of her, I'm just really gonna miss her."

Pushing away from him, she looked down at her shirt and frowned.

"Now that, I won't miss" he laughed at the dark, wet spots that were forming on the tank top she wore.

"Shit! Shut up jerk, these feed your precious Bear you know.

Getting out and leaving the room, he had no shame in walking over to Lucas and giving him a stern look. "I leave in about three hours, and won't see my kids for five days. Me and Jay are going out for ice cream after dinner, so until then, she doesn't leave my arms." He scooped Maddie into his arms the same time that Lucas nodded his head, not really caring whether he agreed or not.

He did however sit directly next to his brother. "So what's with the whole Bear name" Lucas asked. "Check this out" He started to unwrap the blanket she was in and showed him her little toes and legs. "I wanted to call her chicken because these legs are so tiny, but I plan on her filling out. You remember how pudgy Jay was don't you? She's gonna be like a little Bear you watch."

Both Scott families ate dinner and when Nathan and Jay returned home from getting their ice cream, Haley was alone in the living room nursing Madeline while Brooke, Lucas and Drew got their shoes and coats on preparing to leave.

"Hey guys" Haley smiled when Jay climbed on the couch next to her and kissed her face.

"Hey Jay, come here a second" he lifted him off the couch "let's go wash your hands, so you can hold your baby sister. That sound like a good idea?"

"Really" he asked excitedly "I can hold her now"

After confirming it would be happening, he took him to the kitchen sink and helped him wash up really well before sitting him on the couch in between himself and Haley. Laying the blanket across his chest and putting the boppy around his small waist, Nathan laid Madeline in her big brothers arms. He beamed up at Haley, his eyes as bright as her own.

"She's so cute mommy! I love her a lot. I'm her big brother and I have to make sure she's okay just like daddy told me" he looked over to his dad for confirmation and smirked when he nodded his head once.

"Brooke, before you leave, can you take a picture? I want Nathan to have a picture of us all before he's gone." Brooke grabbed Haley's, Nathan's and her own iPhone and snapped pictures of the family.

It was a short while later when Nathan looked up from his seat on the couch at Haley. She was leaning against the wall just watching him with a soft, watery smile.

Her heart warmed as she watched him holding Maddie with Jay snuggled into his side also. They were reading Jay's favorite bedtime story, God Gave Me You. Since Brooke handed her back the IPhone, she hadn't stopped snapping pictures of her family and took a few shots of the scene before her.

"Babe, it's time" She picked up the small suitcase she'd just finished packing and walked it to the garage to load it in the truck.

Everything felt as if it were moving in slow motion to Nathan. Hugging Jay didn't seem real. The little boy was sad and it showed. The pout he wore was more welcome than the tears he was expecting. Jay hugged his neck fiercely before planting a loud, wet kiss on Nathan's lips then wiggled out of his arms. Both Haley and Nathan heard the un-paused game come back alive in the living room just seconds later.

When Haley handed Maddie to Nathan, he brought her up to his shoulder and snuggled her in the crook of his neck, inhaling the scent he'd come to love so much. Her face was smothered with kisses, her feather-like hair was patted and her tiny legs were rubbed just so he could feel her soft skin. "Daddy loves you Bear" he whispered to her more than once.

"There's something about seeing you with her that makes me love you even more and I have no idea how that's even possible. We're all going to miss you Nathan Scott." Pushing up on her toes, she kissed him goodbye.

Just as his car pulled out of the driveway, Madeline began crying. "I know. Mommy misses Daddy already too."

Ok... How was it.. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, wanted to get a peek in at their little weekend home and to see some Maddie and Nathan moments. Tried to not write a sappy Nathan, but the Army can do that to you, so tried to balance it out well enough. Wasn't exactly what I wanted it to be, but good enough Pay attention to next chapter, you'll probably be confused a little, but don't worry. And I know there hasn't been much Brucas really at all, but I will try to put them in. I just don't really have too much of a reason too, but I'll find one. Thanks for the reviews. Jen