4 (jaylor) gleaming twilight and an infinite afterglow

chapter twenty eight.

Joe was awake, and Taylor was asleep beside him. He'd woken up because Thea had climbed into bed beside him, crying because she'd had a bad dream. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her gently.
"What happened?" He murmured softly as she buried her head into his chest.
"Someone came and hurt Mommy," He heard her whisper beside him. "And then they hurt you and Norey and Lucey."
Joe sighed, because he'd had this conversation with Taylor earlier today. Taylor was always so worried about something happening, and the fact that someone tried to break into one of their homes a couple of weeks ago, did not help at all.
"What did they do?" Joe asked, but he could tell that she was already starting to fall asleep again. He started to hum quietly, stroking her back and watching her eyes flutter closed.
Thea didn't reply, because she was already sound asleep by the time that Joe had waited long enough for her to answer.
His parents, and Patrick (of course), were arriving in the morning - which Joe was excited about. He felt like he hadn't seen them in so long - and they'd so far only seen videos, photos, and the occasional FaceTime of the twins. They hadn't told Thea that they were coming just yet, because she always got way too excited before they arrived, and ended up being too exhausted to enjoy their visit.

The early morning drifted away, and soon enough it was time for Joe to head to the airport. He left Thea lying in bed beside Taylor as he went to put some clothes on. Autumn was descending - the chill was in the air, and although he felt like it was one of the prettiest times of the year, he hated being cold.
"Are you leaving?" He heard Taylor whisper softly through the dark room. "Drive safe, okay? I'm sorry that you have to leave so early." Her arm was outstretched towards him, and he took it as he sat down to put his shoes on.
"It's alright. I'll pick up some breakfast on the way home." He brought her hand softly to his lips, and even through the dark, he could see her crescent moon smile.
"Nora slept well last night," Taylor yawned, because over the past couple of nights, they'd been having problems with Nora. Luca slept perfectly, waking up only for food, or if he needed to be changed, but Nora was going through a faze where she liked to be held. All of the time. Taylor and Joe both loved holding them, so they wouldn't complain, but both of them had tried and tried to get her to sleep. The routine that had worked so well when Thea was a newborn, just wasn't working. They tried to dim all of the lights in the house, tried to make it restful and obvious that it was bedtime, but Nora just fussed more. "I think I managed to get four hours of sleep?" She laughed and Joe smiled. Joe squeezed her hand, and stood back up.
"I'll see you when it's actually light outside," he chuckled. Taylor yawned, sitting up in bed. She was being careful not to wake Thea up. "I love you."
"I love you too," Taylor told him, gently leaning forward to kiss him. "Make sure you drive safe," she told him again. "I'll make sure the kids look their best - although I'm sure that Pat will have Thea traipsing around in the mud soon enough." She rolled her eyes, and Joe gave a quiet laugh. "I was thinking..." Taylor sighed as she climbed out of bed, pulling the covers over Thea. She walked into the bathroom, Joe following her. Taylor gently closed the door a little bit, and Joe wrapped his arms around her waist.
"You are so beautiful," he told her, his lips against her cheek. "The most beautiful person I have ever had the pleasure of laying eyes upon."
Taylor giggled against the tickle of his lips, and wrapped her arms around her neck. "You're pretty gorgeous yourself."
Joe raised his eyes at that - because he immediately knew the song reference. "What? I'm pretty proud of that song - even now. I've told you that story a billion times. It just makes me smile every time I bring it up." She leaned forward and kissed him. "You're the best dad in the world, you know that? I will never get tired of seeing Thea look up at you. She's - anyway. I'm getting distracted and you need to be leaving soon. I was thinking, Thea's starting ice skating next week - while your parents are here, let's go out with her and buy everything that she needs. She hasn't gotten to spend time with just the two of us since Luca and Nora were born, and I think it would be really nice for her." Taylor smiled. Her eyes sparkled, and Joe watched the way they still shined the way they did in that cafe all those long years ago. They still sparkled when she talked about things that she loved, and that made him happy. Seeing her happy, smiling, seeing her with Luca in her lap as she softly sung him to sleep... all of it was just proof of what an incredible woman she was. He nodded. "That sounds perfect." Joe pulled is phone from his pocket, and cursed under his breath. "Okay, I really have to leave now."
Taylor laughed, kissing him goodbye. "Alright. I'll let you go... this time." She gave him a sarcastic wink, and Joe shook his head, grinning. "Hey, next time you might not be so lucky!" She held her hands out and tickled him, and Joe laughed. "Remember, I still seem to be the psycho serial dater, even though we've been together for nearly ten years and we literally have three children." Taylor rolled her eyes. "So watch out, mister."
Joe pulled her in for a hug, before cupping her cheeks with a smile. "Just wait until we are married," he told her as he kissed the tip of her nose. "Then no one will be able to argue back. It looks like the psycho serial dater ended up with the heartbreak prince," Joe murmured, and Taylor gave a small smile, "but I wouldn't have it any other way. Keep me hostage forever, I won't fight. Literally. I will fight to stay. There's no getting rid of me now," he told her. "I'm here to stay, for infinity and even longer. Even when we're just stars that the poets have painted in the sky. Ours will be together, side by side. I'm sure of it."