Ages:

Faith - 85
Delia - 55
Jim - 55
Melinda - 51
Ned - 29
Katie - 26
Aaron - 21
Mackenzie - 15
Lana - 8
Emma - 5
Asher - 3 months

Jim looked up from the paperwork he was trying to complete at the dining room table when he heard the front door slam. Lana and Emma were already home, so he could only assume that it was Mackenzie.

It was only a few moments later that his middle child came stomping into the living room. Mackenzie kicked her shoes off and left them in the middle of the floor. She yanked snow jacket off and threw it over a chair, and instead of just dropping her backpack on the floor, she practically threw it to the side. She kicked her bag for good measure and then plopped down on the couch with a huff.

Jim arched an eyebrow, closing his patient file as he leaned back into the chair. "Bad day, Kenz?"

The blonde crossed her arms over her chest and glared down at the floor. "No."

Obviously, that wasn't true.

Melinda absolutely hated when the kids left their things in the middle of the house, so she must have been in a really horrible mood. Jim studied his daughter for a moment and then went back to his paperwork. Knowing exactly how Mackenzie was, he knew that he had to sit there and wait. She was the only one of the Clancy children that usually wouldn't open up after the first question.

Mackenzie was more private and reserved than her siblings. It was probably because she was the middle child, so she had seen it all and was content to just go along with everything. Compared to Katie, she was definitely a little more easy-going, but if Mackenzie got mad, however, everyone had better watch out. It wasn't long before she began grumbling to her father.

At fifteen years old, she was still young enough to go to her father with her problems. All of his daughters would all be his little girls no matter how old they got. And with Katie married and now a mother, Jim was going to hold on to the fact that he still had Mackenzie at home for a couple of years.

"People are annoying," she snapped.

Jim set his papers aside and nodded his head in understanding, trying to hold back his laughter. Mackenzie was so much like Melinda at that moment; she often had days where she just didn't want to be around anyone and almost everyone but her family annoyed her.

"Mmhmm," he said.

"And I don't like them," she added.

"Why would you?" He shrugged, smiling at her.

The blonde looked up at him, her large blue eyes were fiery. She looked so much like her mother, her eyebrows scrunched together and mouth pursed. "Don't make fun of me, dad!"

Jim chuckled, standing up and coming around the other side of the table, pausing to drop a kiss on the top of his daughter's head as he sat down. "I'm not, sweetheart," he assured her.

"Whatever, dad." Mackenzie let out another huff jumped off the couch, obviously headed towards her room to lock herself in there before dinner.

Jim pointed to the collection of things she had left in the living room and added, "You should probably pick this stuff up before your mom gets home."

His daughter let out a frustrated noise, and Jim laughed. Still, she scooped up her things before she headed upstairs. Her bedroom door slammed behind her, and he laughed again.

Teenagers.

It was family dinner night that night. It was something that they tried to do every week since Aaron was born, and tonight the house was already filled with noise. Katie, Ned, and their son were the first to arrive, behind Jim's mother, and Katie was already complaining to Melinda and Delia about Asher being a biter and literally knawing her nipples off.

Jim took this time to slip upstairs and knock on Mackenzie's door. There were a few moments before she opened it, and she looked just as grumpy as she had when she arrived at home.

He arched his eyebrows and didn't bother to hide his amusement. "Feeling any better?" he asked.

The blonde scowled. "No."

Nudging his daughter towards the stairs, he said, "Oh. Well, get on downstairs. Everyone is here for dinner."

He had a feeling that gathering their rather large and loud family put Mackenzie in a better enough mood to smile at him. Naturally, Aaron never helped with the matter.

"Yo, Mack! Dad says that you're pissed off!" Aaron yelled as soon as he saw her.

Mackenzie rolled her eyes and stomped past him into the kitchen, where Melinda was busy putting the finishing touches on dinner. Katie quickly hit him over the head before she gave Asher to Ned and walked into the kitchen as well, leaving the boys in the foyer.

"She looks pissed." Ned gave his father-in-law a sympathetic look and sighed. "Like really pissed."

"She is," he confirmed. "I don't know why."

"Maybe she's PMSing!" Aaron suggested, shrugging.

With four sisters, the young man was very well acquainted with angry girls and their habits. Jim and Ned promptly burst into laughter at his son's declaration. He ruffled his son's hair and said, "You probably shouldn't ever say that ever again."

Ned nodded his head in agreement. "That might be one of wisest pieces of advice I've ever heard you give."

Ten minutes later, dinner was being served. When Jim caught sight of Mackenzie as she sat down, he saw that she was all smiling. It was almost as if she hadn't come stomping into the house only three and a half hours before. Jim wasn't surprised that all she had to do was spend some time with her older sister and mother to feel better.

Melinda took her seat next to Jim, leaning over to press a kiss to his cheek. He grinned at her and pulled her close to kiss her lips. "How's our daughter doing?" he asked.

"She's fine," Melinda assured him. "She just needed some advice from her big sister, that's all."

Katie and Mackenzie were at the other end of the table, both talking and waving their hands animatedly. It made Jim and Melinda smile, both happy to see Mackenzie in a better mood.