"Okay. Maybe seven thirty, then?"
"Done," Carlos sighed. "Oh, and the twins have been angels."
"Of music?" Catherine teased as she held the phone to her ear.
"We're getting there," Carlos chuckled. "Matt just came and got the twins, and I have to go take care of Amy. See you later."
"See ya," Catherine sighed, hanging up the call as Matt got in the car silently. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"Josh and Mari didn't come back last night."
"What?" Catherine frowned.
"Carlos just told me. They didn't come back," Matt said quietly.
"I'll call Mari later. I'm sure they're fine."
"Josh- he feels things differently than me," Matt sighed. "He takes things harder."
"If anyone can handle him, it's Mari," Catherine nodded. "She'll kept it under control."
"I'm just worried he'll try something stupid."
"Like?"
"Like...stuff he's tried before."
Catherine sighed. "Don't worry about him for now. Do we want to go get some coffee?"
"Alright," Matt sighed, clearly distracted.
Cath gently put a hand to his cheek. "He'll be fine."
"I can't lose him."
"You won't, Honey."
"I love you."
"I love you too. Now, do you want coffee or do you want to go home?"
"Home. If possible."
Catherine glanced over her shoulder at her sleeping children. "Yeah, we can go home."
"Yeah?"
Cath gave a quick nod and put the car in gear.
Ten minutes later, they arrived home.
"Why don't you go lay down?" Catherine frowned. "You seem tired."
"I need to call Josh."
"How about I call Mari and you sleep? You need your rest."
"I need to know he's okay."
"Okay," Catherine sighed. "Knock yourself out. I'm going to put the twins in their room."
"Alright."
—————
Josh stared blankly at the hotel wall.
"Hon, are you okay?" Mari asked softly.
"Hm?"
Mari touched a hand gently to his cheek. "Babe, talk to me."
Josh shuddered at her touch. "It's nothing."
"Josh, I can tell something's bothering you."
Josh's eyes flashed up dangerously, ones fire within. "It's just the way I feel right now. It'll pass."
Mari kissed his forehead gently. "Why don't you get some rest?"
Josh grabbed her wrist and looked up with her desperately. "I know the answer. I know it, but I have to ask- you have to let me ask."
"What is it, Honey?"
"Sit," Josh said firmly, his eyes like two pale pieces of unfeeling ice.
Mari complied. "What's your question?"
"I-I want another kid."
Mari smiled softly. "For real?"
Josh bit his lip. "Bad. I-I need to make this work while I have you, because if you're gone tomorrow, I'm gonna kick myself for the rest of forever."
Mari stood up and wrapped her arms around her husband's shoulders, pressing her lips hard into his.
—————
Matt called Josh for what felt like a the millionth time.
Josh finally picked up, asking, "What?!"
"I just wanted to check on you," Matt sighed.
"I'm fine. I was just...having a talk with Mari."
"Right. Um, listen- Josh, I want to- I want to help."
"I'm sorry, Matt. Can we discuss this later? I'm kinda busy," Josh said, winking at Mari.
"I just- I want to pay off Amelia's medical bills."
Josh grabbed tightly to the bed covers in surprise. "W-what?"
"I want to help out financially."
"Matt, that's too much. Plus, you have another one on the way."
"What?" Mari asked quietly, frowning at Josh. "What does he want?"
"He wants to pay Amy's medical bills," Josh whispered back.
Mari stared back with wide eyes. "What?"
"He wants to help us out."
Mari leaned over and whispered softly into the phone, "Matt, you don't have to do that."
"I want to," he sighed.
"Listen....Matt, that honestly means the world. Don't worry. I'm not going to do anything stupid. Alright?"
"Okay," Matt nodded. "I'll see you guys soon."
Josh hung up the phone and put a hand to his head. "What just happened?"
Mari smirked. "I think we were doing something like this," she chuckled, pressing her lips into his once more.
"Now, hold it!" Josh stammered, pushing her away. "I don't think either of us are thinking clearly. This is big, Mari. Like really big."
"I know exactly what I'm getting into," Mari nodded.
"No," Josh chuckled, "I don't think you do. We're talking about nine months of living torture followed by horrors beyond our imaginations."
"I'm the one getting pregnant," Mari chuckled. "I know what I'm doing."
"Really?" Josh asked, his voice going a higher. "Because I don't. Why don't we wait awhile longer?"
"Okay," Mari shrugged.
Josh stared at her dumbfounded. "Okay but...why is this suddenly so okay?"
"Because I was thinking, and maybe it wouldn't be so bad for Amy to have a sibling."
Josh gave a little frown. "I hadn't thought about that."
—————
Matt sat down on the couch, flipping through photos. He smiled softly as he found some old video below the opera house of he and Josh messing around. "Hey, Cath, do you have the picture of the twins in the matching onesies?"
"Yeah. Check my camera roll."
"Uriah was asking about them again," Matt smiled softly, reaching for Cath's phone.
"How's he doing, by the way?" Catherine asked from the kitchen.
"Hanging in there," Matt sighed, "best he can. At least I can help him a bit." He flipped back a few more photos in the camera roll.
"Did you find a replacement for Caroline yet?"
"Yeah, some girl named Jane." He flipped through more pictures before finding a video and pressed play with great curiosity.
Mel's voice came through the speaker saying, "It's Daddy's last time performing before he knows about you."
Matt went pale and his jaw dropped. He replayed the video.
"Hon," Catherine smiled, coming out of the kitchen, "we should- hey, what's wrong?"
"I gotta go," Matt said, throwing the phone aside and grabbing his jacket.
"Babe, what's going on?" Catherine asked with concern.
"I gotta go, alright?" Matt sighed, grabbing the keys.
"Slow down," Catherine sighed, grabbing his arm. "Talk to me."
Matt wrapped an arm around her and pulled her in close, his face hovering ever so slightly above hers as he spoke pointedly. "I can't."
Cath touched his cheek gently. "Did something happen?"
"Something's about to," Matt muttered. "Let me go, Cath."
"Hon...just- whatever you're doing...be careful, alright?"
Matt quickly brought his hand to her cheek and kissed her tenderly, fighting the urge to stay as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I'm always careful."
"I love you."
"I love you too."
—————
"Jack," Matt yelled, waving him over, "I need to talk to you. Now."
"Hey, Matt," Jack grinned. "What can I do for you?"
Matt grabbed him by his shirt collar. "When were you going to tell me?!"
"Tell you what?" Jack questioned in confusion.
"That I lost two that day," Matt said through gritted teeth.
Jack sighed. "You weren't supposed to know. Who told you?"
"No one told me. You know who told me, Jack?! Mel did. Now shut up and apologize."
"I'm sorry. I was protecting you. You had Cath and it didn't seem like the right time," Jack stammered.
"Thank you," Matt grumbled angrily.
"What are you going to do now?"
"Go home and be with my wife."
Jack nodded.
—————
"Where Daddy go?" Lotte frowned.
"I'm not sure," Catherine sighed. "It's impossible to keep track of your father."
"Where Honey?" Logan asked, flipping through the camera roll on his mother's phone.
Catherine scrolled for him and found the picture of Amy. "Right there."
"I want Daddy," Lotte pouted.
"Well, Daddy isn't here," Catherine sighed. "Go play in the living room or something."
Lotte's lower lip quivered terribly.
Catherine frowned and took her daughter in her arms. "It's alright, Sweetheart. Don't cry," she said softly. "Do you want me to play with you?"
"Nah," Matt chuckled, appearing around the corner. "She wants me."
Lotte squirmed to be let down. "Daddy!" She grinned, running to her father.
"I used to be special," Catherine pouted.
Logan wrapped his arms tightly around his mother's leg and grinned. "I love you."
"I love you too, Sweetheart," Cath chuckled.
"There's my little girl," Matt grinned, sweeping Lotte off her feet. "Ready? Secret handshake in three, two, one! Kazoom! Wow. That was amazing. I'm blown away."
Catherine and Logan looked at each other silently, both shaking their heads.
"They're just jealous," Matt whispered in his daughter's ear. "Don't let them tell you otherwise, buttercup."
Logan frowned. "Buttercup?"
"I don't know. He's your father," Catherine chuckled, lifting up her son.
"It my nickname," Lotte beamed proudly. "It mean he love me."
"What Chris call you?" Logan inquired with great interest.
"Major disappointment," Catherine grinned teasingly.
"Not funny. No negative talk," Matt said sternly.
"I'm not kidding," Catherine sighed. "He literally called me that for like a year."
Logan frowned. "M-mean."
Catherine nodded. "But not as mean as Christine pulling off Erik's mask in The Point of No Return."
"The little lying Delilah," Logan muttered. "She idiot to choose Raoul."
"Exactly. He didn't love her the way Erik did," Catherine reasoned. "Raoul and Christine didn't share the music, the passion."
"She liked him for his hair," Logan smirked.
"I give up," Matt moaned pitifully.
"P-probably best," Logan grinned.
"Hey, Matt? Can I talk to you for a minute?" Catherine sighed, setting Logan back down.
"Yeah, of course," Matt nodded.
Cath told the kids to go play in her other room before asking, "How come you ran off like that? What happened?"
"It's been handled. It's alright," Matt said firmly. "Has Logan been having trouble with his hearing aids again?"
Catherine put a hand to his cheek. "Hon, we can't keep stuff from each other. If there's something going on, I need to know."
"There's nothing going on. Don't worry. Has Logan been stuttering again?"
"Slightly, but I'm working on it with him," Catherine sighed."I fear for his future. I checked his hearing aids and they're fine. Unfortunately, that's yet another thing he got from me."
"From you?"
"I stuttered until I was nine."
"You don't know he got that from you," Matt frowned.
Catherine nodded. "I do. Every now and then, I'll try to talk too fast and...I don't know. I don't wanna talk about it."
"Alright," Matt nodded. He gave a loud laugh that seemed to rumble the apartment. "You sure he's not Josh's kid?"
Catherine looked up from her phone. "Hm?"
Mats gave a weak smile and raised an eyebrow. "I mean he's freakishly smart and splutters. Sure he's not Josh's kid?"
"He's my kid, after all. What else would you expect?" Cath muttered under her breath.
"What?" Matt frowned with a little laugh. "Cath, this isn't like it's your fault."
"It is," she sighed. "Carlos is taking me out golfing later. Wanna come?"
"You know how I am about golf. Cath, this isn't anyone's fault."
"So, no?" Catherine smirked. "You're not man enough to come? You afraid of being upstaged?"
"No. I just hate golf."
"Then come and watch. I was going to have Lexie watch the kids, anyway. Please," Catherine whined.
"Fine."
Catherine grinned. "Thank you."
"I'll watch. I won't play, though."
"That works," Cath shrugged.
—————
"Josh!" Mari yelled, bursting through the opera house doors. "Isaac?!"
"Over here, Babe," Josh called.
Mari carried Amy in her arms with a grin. "Josh, you will never believe what just happened."
"What?" Josh chuckled.
"I was feeding her, right? And she pointed right at your computer bag and said 'beh'," Mari grinned.
"Impressive," Josh nodded slowly.
"No, you don't get it," Mari exclaimed. "She said 'beh', which is like deh, which is like dad!"
Josh laughed softly. "Something like that."
"Deh," Amy cooed.
"See!" Mari shrieked. "I'm not crazy. I'm not."
"Hi, little girl," Josh cooed. "Hi."
Amy's eyes shot over, fully alert, towards her father. "Deh?"
"Yeah. I'm your daddy," Josh smiled.
"Deh," Amy babbled. "Deh. Dehd. Dead. Dead."
"Dad. Daddy," Josh cooed. "Say it."
"Dead!" Amy squealed, reaching her arms out for her father.
"Oh no," Josh thought to himself. "She's not thinking about-"
—————
One week prior.
Josh propped the small girl up on the cushion next to him, flipping the TV on. He reached for the Wii remote and began to play. "Ahh, no!" He winced. "Dead again. Dead, dead, dead. Man, I can't get passed this level!"
Amy's eyes watched him attentively.
—————
"I'm sure she's just misspeaking," Josh mumbled nervously, taking his daughter in his arms.
"Dead," Amy shrieked.
"Oh dear," Mari chuckled.
"I've got to work now, Hon. I'll be home in time to take her to Jack's, alright?"
"Alright," Mari nodded.
—————
"Nice, Cath," Carlos grinned.
"Thanks."
"Anybody bring water?" Matt yawned.
Catherine handed him a bottle. "Having fun?" She chuckled.
"I'm tired."
"We just have two more holes," Catherine smiled, kissing her husband's cheek and hopping out of the cart to take her next shot.
"How'd you even get into this stuff, anyway?"
Carlos chuckled. "She met a guy."
"Shut up," Catherine laughed.
"Ooh. A guy. Spill," Matt chuckled.
"It was tenth grade. There was this guy at my school who loved golf and he was really good. So, I begged Carlos to teach me. As it turned out, I was really good and kept it up even after I found out that the guy had a girlfriend," Catherine shrugged. "I knew I was crazy to think he would ever even look at me."
"Well, golf guys don't have great taste," Matt chuckled.
"I disagree," Catherine shrugged. "He was probably right to deny my existence."
"You deserved better, either way."
Cath chuckled. "Do you want to try to putt that in?"
"Not particularly," Matt chuckled.
"Come on," Catherine laughed.
"You'll laugh."
"No, I won't. I'll guide you."
"Fine," Matt gave in, hopping out of the cart.
Cath helped adjust his grip on the putter and stood behind him, wrapping her arms around his. "Try a bit softer," she instructed after he took his first practice swing. "It's five inches, not a mile."
"Okay," he nodded, trying again.
"That's perfect. Now step up to the ball."
Matt nodded again, complying and tapping the ball into the hole with the putter.
"That was great," Catherine grinned.
"Sure," Matt chuckled.
"It was!"
"You have to say that. You're my wife."
Catherine smiled and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I don't have to say it," she shrugged. "I mean it. That was good."
"Did you drink any water yet today?" Matt frowned.
"Yes," Catherine sighed.
"Alright. Just checking," Matt chuckled. "I have a theory you didn't drink enough water with the twins and that's why they're bright little terrors."
"How is that even related?" Cath frowned.
"I don't know. It's just a theory."
"I don't understand how your mind works sometimes," Catherine chuckled, kissing her husband gently