Family Photo Day
Thank you Becky for beta-ing this story for me, and thank you Leanne for this amazing cover!!
Sang's POV:
"Mommy!" Isis, our four year old daughter, wailed in the room. "I don't wanna wear this. Flowers are stupid." She was doing everything she could to remove the halo of flowers her father, North, had put into her dark hair. She pouted her tiny lips and scowled at me.
It was time for our annual family photo. This was becoming an Olympic sport, but I insisted upon it every year. "You look so pretty with the flowers though, and that's what you picked out yesterday."
"Flowers are for girls." She crossed her arms in defiance.
Oh, she was so much like her father. I had laughed so hard the day we found out we were having a girl. I thought for sure North was going to pass out. And when she was born, he had wanted to bubble wrap everything. Eventually North had learned that it was okay for his little baby girl to fall down. "Baby girl, why don't you go talk this over with your Papa?" She took off down the hallway with the halo of flowers flopping around, halfway pinned to her head.
Okay, I'm ready. Who's next? I went in and checked on the twins, Gabrielle and Sebastian, in my suite. They were still brand new at one week old. Another birthday to add to September. You would think that the boys getting me knocked up in December had become a contest. Well, at least for our family. For Kayli and her family, it was January and May. I heard a crash in a room further down the hall. Next crisis.
I left them, and headed towards the squabble. I stood in the doorway watching our five and six year old boys, Xavier and Alexander, laying on the floor, along with our nine year old daughter, Emily. Emily had her arms hooked under Alexander's underarms tugging, while Xavier was pulling on his feet.
"Well, Daddy shays dat I will gwow up bigger den you one day. I am jush a bit deewayed." Alexander was pretty small for his age, and had a speech impediment. He was so darn cute though with his little glasses, brownish-blonde hair, and short stature. No one could deny him much. Did I mention he was a cello prodigy?
"Alexander, you say that all the time. We have been tugging for months and you haven't grown at all." Xavier had stopped pulling for a moment. Xavier, at five, looked about seven. He also had brownish-blonde hair, and beautiful hazel eyes. Then he got freckles. We don't know from where, but they were wonderful to count.
"Let's measure him again. He screamed a little, maybe his bones grew. I can ask my daddy if he has some bone growing medicine." As soon as Emily got up, she saw me standing in the doorway. That halted her movement. "Hi, Mommy."
"Hello, Doctor Evil." She insisted on being called that. "What dastardly deeds have you three been up to? You are supposed to be getting ready for the family photo." She gave me a quick hug and left the room in search for her father and bone growing medicine. Emily was a beautiful blue-eyed, blonde haired genius. Just like her dad. Sean had created a monster of the best kind.
Alexander, mine and Owen's child, shook his feet free from Xavier's hold and stood up. "I'm all dreshed." He spoke slowly. "Jusht a wittle shtuff to wipe off." He pushed his glasses up his nose and stood against the doorframe. "Can you meashure me, Mommy?"
"Yeah! Measure him. He's got to get bigger than me some day. Right?" Xavier, Silas's son, was so supportive of his older brother. Being the only three boys, let me correct that, four boys now, they were inseparable. The only girl allowed in their clubhouse was Emily. That was only because she was Doctor Evil.
"Come on over here, big boy. Let's see if you have grown any." I grabbed a pen and ruler from the desk and went to where the boys anxiously waited. "Ah, ah, ah. Feet flat on the ground." So many marks on the wall from the boys growing. "Oh! What's this? You did grow a little." I might have fudged the mark a tiny bit, but that's what moms do, I've learned.
"Wet me shee, Mommy!" Alexander held on to the side of his glasses with one hand and stood on his tippy toes so he could get a good and proper look at the new mark. "Wow. I'm going to show Daddy whight now!"
"Wait for me!" Xavier was right on his heels.
I sat down on one of the beds while I counted in my head everyone I had at least seen that was dressed for pictures. Eight. Where were my husbands?
"You look like you're in deep thought, 10."
"I didn't even hear you come in. Trying to keep everyone straight. You guys have been missing today. It seems to be a running theme every year on this day." I raised my eyebrows at him, but he knew exactly what to do, and wrapped his arm around me. I leaned into him, so comfortably. "I love you, 52."
"I love you too, ten. What do you need me to do?" Kota, had come so far since the war. He very rarely had boughts with his PTSD thanks to anxiety medication, therapy, and training hard. He volunteered at the Veteran's hospital every week with anything they needed, no questions asked. Then here I was asking him to help with something so mundane.
"Only if you want to, but help me make sure everyone is dressed and ready. You take care of the guys, I'll get the kids." I stood and kissed him.
As I was leaving the room, I was gathered in a warm embrace. "Thank you."
I looked up at him, searching his eyes. "For what?"
"For being everything I knew you would be. For being an incredible mother. For giving me those beautiful twins, and Violet. For running away on that rainy night..."
I put my finger to his lips. "Kota. I love you. You're welcome. I would go through everything again." He started to talk, but I kept my finger firmly on his lips. "Everything. Now, let's get to work."
I went through the upper floor searching for any more of the children. I found Cadence, mine and Nathan's ten year old, as well as Cherie, mine and Victor's twelve year old. They were lying across one of the beds in their room reading a magazine and giggling. Cadence was a fierce redhead, with freckles and green eyes, where Cherie was a stunning brunette with her father's fire eyes and fine porcelain skin.
"Should I be worried?" I asked. This made them jump, sit up quickly, and hide the magazine under them.
"Mom! Don't sneak up on us like that!" Cadence's freckled face flushed.
"Mom, seriously. You're going to give us a heart attack one day. You're so quiet."
"No, only Doctor Evil could do that. Hand it over." I said, walking over to where they sat close together. I put my hand out and waited. They looked at each other, gave a huge sigh, and relinquished the magazine. "Where did you guys get this? Never mind. I know where you got it. We will talk at the family meeting tonight. Finish getting ready." I left the room in search of North. He was in some major trouble with me right now.
While looking through the house for North, I came across Violet, mine and Kota's oldest at fourteen years old. She was beautiful with brown hair and green eyes, and freckles again. Where are all these freckles coming from? Averie was sitting with her, who was mine and Luke's two year old. Violet was seated in the not-so-formal-anymore living room, with Averie standing between her legs, brushing her hair. Violet had just put a big white bow in Averie's hair when they spotted me.
"Mommy!" Averie ran over to me. "Kisses, Mommy." I scooped her up and nuzzled her nose.
"Hi, pumpkin. How are you?"
"Look. I'm pretty." Averie reached both of her arms above her head searching her blonde locks for the white bow.
"You are pretty. Sissy did a very good job. Be a good little ninja, and find Daddy for Mommy." I sat her down and she was off. "Thank you, Violet. I have found everyone except for your dads and Phoenix. Do you know where he might be?"
"He was out back laying on the trampoline last I saw him." She stood to give me a hug, which I welcomed.
"Go tell everyone to start gathering out front. I will go and find Phoenix." She left to head upstairs while I headed through the house and out the back door.
There on the trampoline, lying with his hands behind his head and his ankles crossed, was Phoenix. My oldest child. He had just turned fifteen years old last week. I had a moment, so I sat on the swing on the back porch and started rocking.
"Oy, Trouble! Imagine seeing you here."
"Hi, Meanie. I didn't think I would get to talk to you before pictures."
"I wouldn't miss them for the world. Our boy is growing fast."
"Yes. Yes he is. He looks so much like you did at that age."
"Don't cry. I can't take it! You know I can't stand that fu*king beautiful lip quivering."
"I know. I just wish you could be here to be in the family photos like you used to."
"I'll be there. You know I will. It's time, Trouble. Go wake our boy up from his daydreaming."
"I love you, Meanie."
"I love you too, Trouble."
I stood from the rocking chair as quietly as I could. Phoenix may be deaf, but his instincts were spot on. It's one of the things that separated him from the others in the Academy. And in a very good way. We were always trying to trip him up, but it never faltered. I slipped my shoes off and left them on the porch. Carefully, I inched my way towards the trampoline. I was within twenty feet when Phoenix sat up.
"Nice try, Mom," he signed to me.
"I think that's the closest I have gotten to you in a while. You look nice. It's time for us to take the photo," I signed back to him.
"Okay," he said.
We walked side by side in comfortable silence around to the front of the house. When we got there, everyone was waiting, including the missing husbands.
"Pookie! Nice of you to show up. We've been waiting forever." Sean came at me for a hug.
"Hmm, that's funny. I have been looking for you all morning myself. Did Doctor Evil find you?"
"Yes she did. I was supposed to locate bone growing medicine. I told her it was in the milk. She walked off mumbling something about Frankenstein having all of the good equipment." He and I both laughed at that.
I eyed North standing and talking to Silas. I zeroed in on him and started walking. When I approached him, he reached out to hug me. I pushed my finger right into his chest. "You are in some big trouble, mister. Do you wanna know what I found two of our daughters reading?"
"Their homework I hope."
"No. You told me you threw out all of those old vintage Penthouse magazines a couple years ago. Our ten and twelve year old girls were reading that." I was angry. A very angry momma bear right before a happy family photo.
"I did! I threw them all out. Every last one. Ask Silas. He was with me. Weren't you, bro?"
"North threw them all out. They were put in the recycling bin out on the curb." Silas motioned in North's defence.
"We will discuss this at the family meeting tonight." I walked away to get back in my happy place.
"Calm down, Trouble," Gabriel said in my head.
"I'm trying." And I walked over to the photographer. "Hi, Frank. Thank you for coming out again this year."
"No problem, Mrs. Lee. Same thing as usual?" Frank was such a wonderful and loving man. He had been doing the Academy photos for as long as I had known, and the boys say even longer. He was getting up there in age, but I wouldn't use anyone else until I absolutely had to.
"Yes. Individuals, and then a group, and then two collage photos; one of the kids and one of the adults."
"Yes ma'am." Frank headed off to ready his camera and tripod, and I went back to our large family.
"All right. It's show time!" Everyone looked up and came towards me.
As they approached, Xavier came at me with something huddled, like a football, in his arms. "What have you got there?"
"I found her crying. Can I keep her? Please?" Xavier, just like his father the gentle giant, always trying to protect things. He was holding a kitten.
"Well, what if she has a mommy, and her mommy comes back looking for her?"
"We looked." Oh, he was giving me those big sad eyes.
"Thash wight, Mommy. We looked everwywhere." Alexander chimed in.
"Okay, but only until the mommy comes back to find her."
"She's going to be in my picture with me," Xavier claimed.
"Watsh her name?"
"Sailboat." He put his chin up proudly.
"You can't name a cat Sailboat," Emily said.
"Can too!"
"Can not!"
"Both of you, stop. He can name her whatever he wants. Time for pictures." Finally we were ready.