So Damn Domestic

The Following Morning. FPOV


I woke up about half an hour ago. That sucked like a mother fucker. My head hurts so fuckin bad. I can’t believe I passed out, but I does make sense. I’m just not used to that much alcohol in so little time. When I woke up I thought I was drugged or something but nope. Apparently after I passed out the stripper and the bartender checked my licence and got my address and after the bartender closed up the place she drove me home. Trust me when I say B isn’t happy with me right now. She hasn’t even looked at me yet. She didn’t even put me in bed, she just tossed me on the couch. So not only does my head feel like it’s being split down the middle but my back hurts ‘cause our couch sucks.


Fuck Why did we have to get the loudest phone ever? My head is gonna fuckin explode if that nosie doesn’t stop. I yell out for Buffy to answer it, but it just keeps on ringing, and ringing, and ringing. What the hell happened to our answering machine? I bet B turned it off. Five fuckin bucks says she turned it off. So scream out for Mattie to get the phone, but still the torture doesn’t stop. So I get up and drag myself from the bed all way across the fucking room to the dresser because Buffy ‘forgot’ to put the phone back in the cradle when she got done talking to Giles.


“Hello.” Ok, I was going for anger and hatred, but it came out more ‘please stop hurting me’ in a very Bambi voice. And of course this asshole is not only asking for Buffy but there is so much fuckin background noise that he has to yell to talk over I want to stab myself in the head just to make the pain stop. “Hold on a sec.” I put the phone down and gently rub my forehead with the palm of my hand. “BUFFY PHONE ” I scream it as loud as I can at the moment. If my throat wasn’t so dry it would have been louder but whatever. She yells back from the kitchen so I hang up the cordless and put it back on the dresser.


I really need some fuckin water. I drag my feet down the hall and walk into the kitchen where B is in a panic. Great, now what’s going on? Why does our life have to be so dramatic? Why can’t we just have a quiet normal life? Oh right, we’re slayers. I forgot there is no quiet and normal when you’re a mystical being put on this earth to do nothing more but kill demons and die. I pour myself a cup of coffee and thank God it’s still warm. I hate it when I pour some coffee and then take a sip and its cold. That’s so fuckin gross. Anyone agree with me?


I watch Buffy hang up the phone and then start dialing a number. Great, who is she calling now? Giles, great, I wonder if this is supernatural ‘cause I am in no shape to fight a demon right now. Kennedy a skilled slayer who loves to kill demons, he should have her do it. She’s younger and full of energy and all that shit. I’m old and battling a demon of my own. The demon of hangovers. I sit down at the table and take a sip of my coffee and it feels really fuckin good going down. I kinda want it to be an Irish coffee, make the pain go away a little faster, but this is good enough. And now B’s getting upset. This day is going to be so great, and yes I’m being very sarcastic.


“Well find her Giles, she should be there, we should all be there. I’m going to call the airport and get a flight out there, do you think you can rent a couple of hotel rooms? Thanks Giles, and hurry.” She hangs up the phone and runs off to the bedroom. So we’re going somewhere. Hmm, I wonder where we’re going. Then she runs back into the kitchen a different shirt halfway over her head and she’s not wearing any pants. At least I’m staying calm and collected. “Dawn went into labor yesterday, and had the babies late last night. We need to get there, now ” she yells and runs off again. Well, this is something to panic over. I get up as fast as I can and walk to the bedroom. B’s already got one bag packed and working on another. Well, when she wants something done fast she’ll really commit.


“I’ll pack our stuff, go gets the kids’ stuff ready.” Okie-dokie. I walk into Mattie’s room and pull his duffle bag out of the closet and start packing. I put in some pants, some shirts, socks, underwear, extra pair of shoes, and some of his favorite toys ‘cause he’ll probably get bored. Then I go into Addy’s room and start packing her duffle bag. Why does she have so many dresses? I just noticed that this kid only has two pairs of jeans, two shorts, and a pair of capris. So I pack all those and only three dresses and I’m going to buy my baby girl some more jeans and t-shirts when we get to Redding ‘cause this is sad. A little girl shouldn’t be forced to be a doll. They should get to wear some jeans and get dirty just like the boys.


Now that the two easy ones are done I’ll start packing for the baby. There is going to be so much stuff. I don’t think I’m going to be able to get it all in one car. I just got the best idea ever. I walk into my bedroom where Buffy is still runnin around like a chicken with its head cut off, and I sit down on the end of the bed. She doesn’t notice me at first which is kinda nice ‘cause it gives me a little more time to think about how I’m going to word this. It is a sensitive subject and if I say it wrong she’ll freak out. But I think she’s too concerned about Dawn to really care right now. She just wants to get out of here and I’m going to use that to my advantage. Trust me, advantage will be taken.


“Hey baby,” I say and she looks at me through the mirror and starts putting on some eyeshadow. I’m not even going to comment. “Getting the kids ready is going to take a while, why don’t you catch the earliest flight you can get and we’ll catch the next one. Dawn probably needs you right now, we shouldn’t keep her waiting too long.” She stops what she’s doing and gives me a look like ‘why didn’t I think of that?’ She nods her head and puts on some mascara. Ok, she’s going to see her sister in a hospital, what’s with the makeup?


“That would be great, Faith. It’ll give me some time to get a hotel room ready before you get there with the kids. Thank you, baby,” she says and now she’s getting tears in her eyes. And I know exactly what this is about. I walk up to her and wrap my arms around her from behind. I look at her face through the mirror but she’s avoiding eye contact. She thinks she has to be so strong, like Superwoman or something. Is she ever going to just let her guard down and let me take care of her?


“Baby, Dawn is going to be fine. She went to the same hospital where you had Mattie, so we know it’s good, and she was prepared for this. She read all kinds of books and watched all the gross videos. She had Kyle with her, and yeah he’s a pansy but you known he would never let anything bad happen to her.” I kiss her neck and she leans into me a little bit, and she feels calmer. Not just physically but emotionally too. And I know this ‘cause of our slayer connection. She was really freaking out there for a few minutes, but she’s going to be fine. I let go of her and she sniffles and fixes her hair a little bit.


“I’ll call the airline, get you a ticket, ok? And don’t worry, we’ll be there as soon as we can.” I know she’s going to be fine. She just needs to see her sister. I grab the phone and go into the kitchen. I grab the phone book and call the airline and reserve her a seat on the earliest flight to Redding and it won’t be hard for her to rent a car. Her flight leaves in an hour so she’s going to have to hurry. I hang up the phone and call the neighbor girl and ask her to watch the kids for us. I might as well drop Buffy off at the airport. No need to pay for leaving two cars in the airport parking lot. That can get a little expensive.


I get dressed and put on some shoes and wait for her to say goodbye to the kids. Mattie’s a little pissed because he really wants to go and see Dawn’s babies, but he’s going to have to wait. Addy throws a little tantrum because she’s a drama queen but B calms her down. Then she gives a kiss to Joey and we’re off. The ride to their airport is almost silent except for the radio. I can’t stand silence, never have been able to and never will. When we get to the airport I help her with her bags and it’s fuckin crazy here. I never have been able to figure out why the airport is always so crowded all the time. I wanna stop everyone and ask ‘em where they’re going but that would be a little crazy.


“I’ll see you later,” I say and give her a kiss. She kisses me back with a little more vigor so I guess she is going to miss me. I wrap my arms around her and hug her tight. I’m going to miss her too. Even if we’re not on the best of terms right now we still love each other, and it’s going to suck being away from her. She hugs me back, and we just hold each other for a minute or two until the woman on the intercom announces Buffy’s flight is ready for boarding or whatever. We let go of each other and I kiss her again. It doesn’t last very long and she seems distracted. Probably worried about Brat or something.


“I love you,” she says and gives me a little peck on the lips. Then her expressions hardens a little bit. What the fuck? “And just because this came up don’t think you’re off the hook. We still have to talk about you getting drunk at that strip club last night.” I nod my head a little and put on my best pout. Now she looks even more irritated. I tell her I love her and she softens a little bit. “I love you too.” I give her another kiss and the woman on the intercom announces Buffy’s flight again and she has to leave.


“I love you,” I tell her one last time and she says it back and then she leaves. I watch her go through the security check and then she disappears in the massive amount of people. Why do there have to be so many people? I sigh loudly and walk off towards the exit. I need to get home, I told Emma I wouldn’t be gone long. I’ve already been gone for forty-five minutes. It doesn’t sound like much but she’s dealing with my kids. I just hope she isn’t tied up and gaged when I get home. What I really hope is that me and B will be able to get along while we’re in Redding. I messed up my going to that strip club but it’s not like I got any lap dances or anything. I got drunk and passed out, which is exactly what I planned on doing.


Now that B isn’t here and can’t tell what I’m thinking just by looking at me, I gotta admit those where some fine lookin girls in that club. Maybe B will take me there for my birthday. We’ve always joked about it, but maybe she’ll finally give in to it. It’s not like she won’t enjoy herself. So maybe if I play my cards just right we’ll be able to ditch the kids with Emma and go have some ‘grown up fun’. We really need some of that in our relationship again. I think not going out and having fun is starting to drive us crazy. Here’s hopin.


BPOV


I can’t believe my sister went into labor yesterday and she didn’t have someone call me. Did something go wrong? Did she have an emergency c-section and she didn’t have enough time to call me? There are just so many things I want to know. And I will get to ask all of the questions running through my head in a little over an hour. I’m halfway there right now, but I still have to rent a car and drive to the hospital and that’s going to take some time. What I really want to know is why didn’t Kyle call us? I know he didn’t forget because he has the best memory of any I’ve ever known. But then again his fiancé has never gone into labor before. It’s a very hectic thing, and remembering to call someone doesn’t seem as important as being with the woman you love while she’s having your baby, or in this case, babies.


Helping my sister is a big distraction that I’m so glad to have. I told Faith before I left that we’d have a big talk about last night, but I don’t want to talk about it. I don’t want to hear what she did with those other women. It’s one thing to be mad at me and go off and get drunk, but at a strip club? I guess it makes a little sense. She was really mad when she left, so the alcohol probably wasn’t enough to make her forget about the fight. She probably needed some bimbo’s breasts in her face and a perfect body grinding against her. That doesn’t make it ok though. I’m pissed that she went there, and I’m pissed that she got so wasted one of the girls had to drop her off because she passed out by the bar.


I look down at my rings, and smile a little as the diamond sparkles in the light. I’ve known for a while that our marriage is in trouble. They say the first year is the hardest and it has been hard. Getting married and dealing with the ‘it’s official, we’re forever’, and then raising a family at the same time, especially a little baby, it’s just really hard. Our level of intimacy has gone way down. We don’t make love as often as I’d like to. It’s not like I’m never in the mood, I have been a lot lately because of the lack of slaying, but something always comes up that stops us. Either one of the kids wakes up, or she remembers that she has an early class and can’t because she’ll be too tired in the morning.


And it isn’t just making love. We never spend any time together anymore. She’s either at school or training with Matthew, and I’m always busy taking care of Joseph and cleaning up the house and running errands. We used to at least talk a little before we went to bed. We’d make out for a little while even if it went nowhere it was still nice. Now all we do is say goodnight and lay next to each other. We don’t talk, or kiss, or cuddle or any of the things we used to do. It’s almost like we’re still together just because we’re so used to it, not because we need each other, or want to be around each other.


Ok, I can’t think about this anymore, it’s getting too depressing. I need to focus on Dawn. She’s going to need a lot of help these next couple of days. Well, more like months, but there’s only so much I can do. We can’t just pack up our lives and move back to California. I wish I could live closer to my sister though. I really want her to move to Nevada, but I’m afraid she’ll get mad if I suggest it. I’m afraid she’ll take it the wrong way. She might think I just want to keep an eye on Kyle or that I don’t think she can handle herself. She can handle herself, she has been able to for a long time, but I miss her, and I want to see her on a regular basis. Not just when something big happens in our lives.


I listen as the piolet announces that we need to buckle our safety belts and secure the food trays, or whatever. I buckle up and try to ignore the person next to me. Don’t you hate it when you have to sit next to a chatty person and you can’t just tell them to shut up because that would be rude? Yeah, so do I. He’s been talking non-stop about his dog or something ever since we took off and I haven’t paid attention to a single word of it. It might be a little rude, but I’m too busy worry about my sister over here. I mean, she just had two babies, she’s got to be tired and sore and in pain, and all that other ‘I just had a baby’ stuff.


Kyle is probably really happy though. I guess he’s wanted kids for a long time now, but Dawn was never quite ready. They’re going to be great parents. They love each other so much, and they’re great with Matthew. At least they always were, they haven’t babysat him in a long time. He really misses them, especially Kyle. I never have been able to figure out why Matthew thinks Kyle is so cool. Maybe because he’s a demon? I don’t know, and right now I don’t really care. I just want to see my sister and make sure that she’s ok. The after effects of childbirth are different for everyone. Look at me, with Matthew I was so happy, but with Joseph I was insane. Dawn could be feeling anything at this point and I want to be there to help her out.


The plane lands and when the flight attendants say it’s ok to leave everyone gets up and exits the plane. I ignore everyone around me because the only thing I can think of right now is getting to Dawn, and making sure she’s ok. I just need to get to Dawn. I pick up my luggage which doesn’t take very long, surprisingly. I only packed two bags because I have no idea how long I’m going to be here. I rent a car at the desk and I’m so glad it doesn’t take a long time. I run outside and put my bags in the trunk and take off towards the hospital. I know which one she’s at so it won’t take as long tracking her down. I just need to find out what room she’s in. I hope they’ll let me see her without a problem. What if something happened and she had to have a surgery and she’s unconscious or something?


Alright, Buffy, don’t start thinking like that now. She’s fine, the doctor said she’s recovering just fine. He answered all of my questions and she’s ok, the babies are ok. He said that she seems a little depressed and hasn’t said a word since she gave birth, which is a little weird. I mean, Dawn talks almost as much as Willow just slower so you can understand her a little better. So why isn’t she talking to anyone? She was so happy about the pregnancy, when she wasn’t panicking and calling me nine times a day. And now that I’m thinking about it, the doctor never mentioned if anyone was with her or not. I forgot to ask because I just assumed that Kyle was there, but what if he wasn’t? Don’t be stupid Buffy, he’s a demon who can teleport. Nothing would stop him from being there to see the birth of his babies.


I pull into the hospital parking lot and shut off the engine and then run for the huge doors. I run up to the desk and ask where Dawn Summers is and the nurse says I have to go up to the fourth floor. Why is nobody in a hospital helpful to the visitors? Ok, so it was a little helpful knowing what floor she’s on, but I already knew the fourth floor is the maternity floor. I had Matthew here, and Faith had Addison here, so yeah I’m very familiar with this floor. So I go up to the nurses’ station on this floor and ask where Dawn Summers is and finally I get an answer. She’s in room 213, down the all and it’s the fourth door on the left. So I bolt down the hall, and on my way there I can hear the painful screams of other women giving birth to their babies. Oh, the memories those screams bring up. Like how Faith did nothing but curse like a sailor on leave. Ok, Buffy, focus.


I’m about to just burst into the room but what I see makes me stop cold. I see Dawn lying in the bed with the covers pulled up to her chin. She’s lying on her side and it sounds like she’s crying. On the right side of the bed, well my right her left, are two plastic basinet things that the nurses put the babies in. There are two of them, so both of the babies are ok otherwise they wouldn’t be in here. I can’t see what’s inside of them but I can hear the babies cooing and making all kinds of noises. And Dawn has her back to them. She’s lying in that hospital bed lying with her back to her babies and she’s crying. Ok, what the fuck happened? Where’s Kyle? Why isn’t he in here? And as curious as I am to look inside the basinets I have to go to my sister’s side first.


I slowly walk into the room and make my way towards her bed. The room is almost completely quiet except for her cries, and the babies’ grunts and snorts. Newborns are a lot louder then people realize. Anyway, I stand by her bed and gently reach my hand out and brush some of the hair away from her face. She jumps a little bit and looks up at me. Her eyes and nose are so red, how long as she been crying? She scoots away from me a little bit and I don’t get it at first, does she not want me near her? Does she want to be left alone? But then she pulls back the covers a little bit and I understand.


I slip off my shoes and crawl under the covers with her. I wrap my arms around her and she leans against me. The bottom of my chin is pressed against the top of her head, her arms are wrapped around me in a death lock, and she’s crying harder now. She’s coughing a lot too. I do what I can to comfort her. I gently stroke her hair and making some soft shushing sounds but it isn’t helping. I think she just needs to cry right now. I want to ask about a million questions, but I can’t. I can’t start bothering her with questions right now when she’s so broken. But I don’t get it, why is she broken? Why isn’t Kyle here? I can think of a few reasons why and all of them are going to result in a painful beating by me and probably the rest of the scooby gang, and Faith.


A nurse walks into the room and checks on the babies and says she’ll be back later to check on Dawn. I guess she realizes we need some time. Some doctors wouldn’t have left. They would have given her the exam no matter what kind of emotional state she’s in. And you know I wouldn’t let that happen. They’d probably try to throw me out of here or something. But that isn’t going to happen. I have no idea how long she’s been crying but she’s starting to calm down a little. I can feel her body shaking all over, and she’s coughing a lot more, but her sobs aren’t as loud. I think she’s starting to fall asleep. A few more minutes pass and the only thing left from her is a barely there tremor as she sleeps very unsoundly. She’s not going to get any rest and she’s going to be tired as hell when she wakes up.


I’ll wait a little while before I start asking questions. So Kyle just couldn’t stand the thought of fatherhood anymore? Or he couldn’t stand to be around Dawn? I know she can be a bitch, even when she’s not pregnant, so maybe he just couldn’t take it anymore. Still, that’s no excuse to run off on your pregnant fiancé. If I ever find him I’m going to beat him senseless. There won’t be any mercy as far as I’m concerned. I mean, you don’t just run off on my sister. I’d be just as angry if he were human, this has nothing to do with the fact that he’s a demon.


I close my eyes and listen to the sound of my sister’s breathing, and the sound of her babies’ grunts and sorts, and little whines. I’m surprised a nurse hasn’t taken them away to be fed or something. I’m sure they’re hungry by now. Then again I don’t know when they were fed last so it could be a while. And I must have been more tired then I thought because I can feel unconsciousness taking me over, and I’m not doing anything to stop it. I just hope my sister is going to be ok. From what I understand she was so happy before whatever happened to ruin that. It shouldn’t have happened. Bad things shouldn’t happen to happy people. Happy people should have happy things happen to them. Ok, did that even makes sense? I am way too tired to be thinking right now. I’m going to sleep.


FPOV


I just got here at Redding about fifteen minutes ago. I’m still waiting for my luggage. Well, our luggage I should say. I convinced my dad to watch Joey for me until we get back. It would just be a lot easier if he stayed in Nevada with him. Traveling with Mattie and Addy is hard enough, add a little baby to that and it’s damn near impossible. And these two have been fighting for a while now and I’m not doing a damn thing to stop it. It’s not like they’re being loud, they just can’t agree on whatever it is they’re arguing about. And I know the only reason the fight isn’t getting loud is because Mattie isn’t paying attention to it. He’s too excited about being in Redding again to really care. He just wants to see Kyle again, and he wants to stop by the old house to see what it looks like now.


“Mama, will you hold me?” Addy asks in her baby-ish voice. Takes after Buffy on that one. I look down at her and she looks really tired. She isn’t used to flying and jet lag must be a bitch when you’re a little kid. So I bend down and pick her up and her head is instantly against my shoulder. I hate that this is taking so fucking long. Dawn’s like family to me, and I really want to see how she’s doing. I’m not as worried as Buffy was but I’m still freakin out a little bit. I want to make sure she’s ok and everything. I want to make sure that the babies are ok. Delivering twins can be a tricky thing. At least that’s what Buffy told me. I guess she kind of freaked out and went on the internet and researched it or something, and she told me some of the horror stories she read.


What I’m really hoping for is a non-pissed at me Buffy. I screwed up a little by going to that strip club but it’s not like I was getting lap dances left and right or anything. I sat at the bar and drunk myself stupid and then passed out. Nothing more, nothing less. Sure Jack and Coke took me home and that must’ve been wicked awkward for Buffy and she must’ve been pissed, but I’m not the bad guy here. And she’s a fuckin liar if she says she’s never been curious about what that strip club was like. She’s been to one before for her bachelorette party, and I went to one too. I can’t remember which one I went to because I did get pretty wasted, but I was still there. And I did get lap dances and one of the girls wanted to take me home with her. Ok, that’s not the point. The point she’s being a little hypocritical.


Finally our stupid luggage is here. I put Addy down and grab the bags and Mattie helps me. I’m glad I grabbed one of the cart things that you put your bags on ‘cause there’s a lot more here then I remember. Two bags for me, one for Mattie, two for Addy and her car seat. How much stuff do we need? We’re only going to be gone for a couple of days. But whatever. I put our bags on the cart thing and try to push it over to the desk at the car rental section of the airport and keep an eye on the kids at the same time. Luckily Mattie is super protective of Addy and he holds onto her hand and makes sure to stay right by my side.


The protectiveness comes partly from his slayer side. He’s protective of her because she’s vulnerable and doesn’t understand as much about the world as he does. But I think it mostly has to do with being her big brother. He doesn’t want anything bad to happen to her and he’s so fuckin cautious around strangers. He’s a friendly kid, don’t get me wrong, but he doesn’t let a stranger get too close to Addy without me jumping in and saying something. A good example is when we were at the mall and there was this guy selling balloons and I bought one for both Mattie and Addy, and Mattie let the guy tie the end of the string around his wrist, but when the vender tried to hold onto Addy’s wrist so he could pull it up a little higher Mattie almost hit the guy. I’m glad he’s so damn protective of her. It’ll make things easier when she starts dating, which won’t be until she’s thirty-five.


It takes a few minutes for me to get a car rented ‘cause there was a pretty long line. I tell the woman behind the desk what I’d like to have and luckily they still have a couple. A sedan is the best choice even if I don’t like them. I’m more the sports car kinda girl. But whatever. It has four doors and it’s big enough to comfortably seat five people and that’s all that matters right now. So I walk out where our car is, put our bags in the trunk, hook up Addy’s car seat, and get her in that, and argue with Mattie for five minutes over why he can’t sit in the front seat, and then we’re off. Even if he is a slayer he’s still a kid and death by air bag is not something that’s going to be happening to him, even if he is pissy at me because he has to sit in the back.


Giles already reserved everyone a hotel room so that’s where we’re going first. He even got adjoining rooms so me and B can have our room, and Mattie and Addy can share one. The door separating the rooms will probably stay open though, just ‘cause B will worry about the kids and all that other stuff. Addy might freak out a little bit and want to sleep in our bed with us, but there’s nothing new about that. That’s another thing that me and B fight over. Addy has her own room, she isn’t a little baby, she can sleep in her own bed, but Buffy just doesn’t get that. So whenever Addy wants to sleep in our bed B doesn’t stop her. A couple of nights I actually stormed out of the room and slept on the couch, but Addy got really upset and I don’t want her thinkin I’m mad at her when I’m mad at her mom.


I call Buffy’s cell phone but it’s turned off so she’s probably still at the hospital. I wanna go there and check up on Brat, but I don’t wanna take the kids with me and I can’t just leave ‘em here. I don’t wanna take ‘em with me just in case there is something wrong. They shouldn’t be surprised by it ‘cause they’ll just get really upset. Me or B should be the ones to tell them if something bad happened ‘cause we can at least answer some of their questions and lie to them so they won’t know exactly how bad it is. Hey, we’re moms protecting our kids from pain is just what we do. Especially when they’re this little and they won’t understand about stuff. There’s a knock at the door so I get up and answer it. I smile a little when I see Willow standing on the other side and there’s some brunette standing behind her.


“Hey Faith, when did you get here?” she asks and I can’t help but notice something weird about her. Oh my God, she’s fucking glowing. Not literally but close enough. I tell her about twenty minutes ago, and she starts talking about her flight and how much it sucked because of the weather. I just nod my head a little bit and I get a devilish smile when I see something on her neck. I look back at the other woman and she’s standing pretty close to Willow here, and if I’m not mistaken she has a hand on Willow’s lower back. Well, this is going to be fun.


“So, Willow, we haven’t talked in a while.” I glance back at the other woman and then back into Willow’s eyes and she looks a little panicked because of the smile on my face. “Did you get yourself a little ‘pussy, Willow’?” Her blush is so fuckin bright if I put the end of a light bulb against her cheek it would probably light up. The woman behind her laughs a little and Red whips around to glare at her and then she turns back to me and starts stuttering so bad I can’t understand a word of it. Then she gives up on whatever it was she was trying to say and goes for a different approach.


“Faith, this is Sky, Sky this is Faith. Please excuse her rude behavior, she isn’t used to talking to strangers.” I just give her a little smile and roll my eyes a little bit. I shake hands with Sky and then let them in. And then the questions start. “So, how’s Dawn? Have you seen her yet? What do the babies look like? Did she have boys or girls, or a boy and a girl? She never did tell us what the babies are. Did she get an ultrasound to find out or did she want to be surprised?” I was going to say something to get Red to shut up ‘cause I can’t answer any of her questions ‘til she stops asking them. But I don’t have to. Sky reaches over and gently rubs Willow’s back and Red stops talking. She looks a little embarrassed and gives me an apologetic look. “Sorry, I’m just really excited.” I smile and sit down on the end of the bed.


“Nah, I haven’t seen ‘em yet. We just got here and Addy’s sleepin in the other room. I was gonna see if Giles would watch ‘em so I can go check up on her, and B. Buffy was freakin out this morning when she left. When did you guys get here?” I ask and Red says about fifteen minutes ago. Damn, that’s not long enough for a quicky, I was gonna tease her a little, but whatever. I’ll tease her tomorrow. Sky offers to watch the kids but I don’t jump at the opportunity. I mean, I don’t even know this chick, I don’t want to leave her alone with my kids. Then again we didn’t know Emma when she first babysat them when we went to that stupid party at the Morrison’s house. I look over at Willow and she nods her head a little bit.


“Alright. They might be gettin hungry so just order some room service. And don’t let ‘em have too much sugar, ok? Get ‘em some burgers or whatever and then some cookies, like two ro three each, but no more then that.” She nods her head and tries to tell me that everything will be fine, but I don’t fully believe her. “And, don’t take ‘em anywhere, just have ‘em stay in the room. If they get bored there’s some toys in their bags, and some games and stuff.” I show her where the bags are and walk into the other room where the kids are. Mattie’s sitting on his bed playing with his Gameboy and Addy’s still sleepin on her bed. I sit down next to Mattie and he pauses the game and looks up at me.


“I’m gonna go see what’s takin your mom so long to get back.” He’s pissed off now because he really wants to go to the hospital and meet his cousins, and make sure Dawn’s ok, and visit with Kyle. He goes to say something but I interrupt him. “I promise I’ll take you there tomorrow, but Dawn needs some more rest first, ok?” He tenses up ‘cause he’s bottling in all his anger. We’re going to have to spar later on so he can get all that out. “I’ll be back as soon as I can. Sky is going to keep an eye on you guys, so listen to her, and help her keep an eye on Addy, and make sure she doesn’t freak out if she wakes up before I get back ok?” If Addy wakes up and me and B are still gone she might panic. The only babysitters she’s ever had are Emma, and my dad.


I give him a kiss goodbye and give Addy a little kiss on the forehead. She moves around a little bit and her dark, curly hair gets a little more tangled but that’s fine. She doesn’t wake up, thank God, or she’d throw a hissy fit ‘cause I’m not taking her with me. I say one last goodbye to Mattie and he starts playing his game again. I wish he wasn’t so mad, but I wanna get the scoop on what’s goin on with Dawn, and the only way to do that is by going to the hospital. I give Sky a little warning ‘cause a vague disclaimer is nobody’s friend. I tell her if anything bad happens to my kids that she could have prevented I’ll beat her to death by my bare hands. Red gets a little snippy with me but I don’t care. She nags me the entire way to the hospital and thank it’s only a five minute drive. I think about kissing the pavement when I get out but that’d be a little crazy. And crazy just isn’t something that I am...anymore.


BPOV


I slowly start to wake up and something feels different. It takes me a few seconds to remember that I fell asleep in Dawn’s hospital bed and she’s the one I’m holding in my arms. For a second I was about to panic, but everything is fine now. With me at least. I open my eyes a little and see that Dawn’s still asleep. There’s a nurse sitting in the corner of the room feeding one of the babies with a bottle. I can’t see the baby because he, or she is wrapped up head to toe in blankets. Now that Dawn’s sleeping and fine for the moment I really want to know what my little nieces or nephews, or niece and nephew looks like. Why did Dawn want to be surprised by the genders? Things would be so much simpler.


“Has anyone else showed up?” I ask the nurse and she tells me no. I guess they’re still on their way. I look over at the clock. I’ve only been asleep for about an hour. At least I think it’s about an hour. I don’t know. I wish I knew, but I’m not going to worry too much about it. I smile a little bit when the baby the nurse is holding starts making some whiney noises and she starts whispering to...them. I don’t want to say ‘it’ but I don’t know if he or she is a boy or a girl. At least not yet. Now that I’m starting to wake up my curiosity is starting to grow. “Was there anyone with her during the delivery? Other then the doctor and nurses I mean.” The nurse gets a sad look on her face and it’s freaking me out a little bit.


“No. She kept calling out a man’s name, I can’t remember what it was. And she didn’t want anyone to call any family or friends. She’s been...quiet, mostly. I don’t think she’s held either one of them yet. Are you family?” I nod my head and tell her ‘older sister’, and she smiles a little. I look down at Dawn and gently rub her cheek but I pull my hand away when she starts to move around. “You can hold him if you want.” She had a boy? “I need to burp him first.” She smiles at me again and puts the baby over her shoulder and starts patting him on the back. I still haven’t been able to see what he looks like and I’m dieing to know. I want to know what my little nephew looks like. I wonder if he has horns, or little bumps where the horns will grow in. I wonder if the doctors are worried about it and want to run tests and stuff. Doctors can be very nosey and don’t know when to back off sometimes.


I wait for her to finish burping him and that little boy is really loud. She wipes up some spit up with the rag she had put over her shoulder and then she stands up and walks over to me. I sit up a little straighter and I’m careful not to wake Dawn up. I want her to sleep as long as she can. She’s going to need her energy. Anyway, the nurse hands me the little bundle who’s looking around, and he looks a little confused. I thank her and she sits back down in the corner of the room. I look at the tiny little boy in my arms and there’s something wrong. Ok, so nothing’s wrong with him, he looks healthy and all his body parts are in the right place, but there’s something off.


So here are my observations so far: there’s no little bumps where his horns should grow in, his skin isn’t pale with little flecks of blue like Kyle’s. There are no pointy ears, or strange colored eyes, and he certainly doesn’t look like Dawn. Well, his nose is a little pudgy like hers but he could have gotten it from his father. Who I am now starting to very much doubt is Kyle. So here is what this little boy does have: dark curly hair, dark almond shaped eyes, Dawn’s pudgy nose, and dark skin. I’m sure it’s pretty safe to say that this little boy’s father is African-American. I look over at Dawn with a little frown on my face. When did she cheat on Kyle? Well, that’s obvious, about nine months ago.


Why didn’t she tell me she cheated on Kyle? We’re sisters, we’re supposed to be able to talk about anything. I talk to her about my problems...sometimes. I mean, when something big happens, yeah I tell her, and this is something big, so why didn’t she tell me? And when did she tell Kyle that she cheated? It’s pretty obvious that it’s the reason he’s not here, but the nurse said she was alone, so he didn’t find out when the first baby was born. So when did she tell him? Too many questions, and no answers, that’s what I got right now. I’m extremely tempted to wake Dawn up and start an interrogation but I can’t do that. She just gave birth to two babies, her fiancé has most likely left her so she has a lot to deal with. The last thing she needs is me waking her up and badgering her with questions. So I’ll just wait until she wakes up on her own.


I do have to admit that my nephew is a little cutie with is little afro and gorgeous dark eyes. I wonder if she named them yet. I look down at the little bracelet and there’s no name on it, just a serial number or something. I’ll take that as a no. I look back at that cute little face and he’s staring at me with a little frown. I make a funny face at him and now he’s looking at me like I’m a freak. I lean down and give him a little kiss on the tip of his nose and he screeches a little. Jeez, this kid sure does have a set of lungs on him.


“Don’t screech at your aunt Buffy, it isn’t nice,” I tell him and give him another little kiss. He’s so small, probably less then five pounds. I look up when I hear someone knock on the door a little and I see Faith and Willow. I smile at them and they walk in. “Dawn’s still asleep, but this little guy isn’t.” I look down at him again and he’s still staring at me. I’m used to it though, all little babies stare, it’s just what they do. They stand next to me and look down at the little baby in my arms and one of the gasps, probably Willow, and one of them chuckles a little bit, most definitely Faith.


“I’m goin to go ahead and point out the obvious: that kid isn’t Kyle’s,” Faith says and I feel her gently rub my back. I know she’s smiling. I don’t know how I know, I just do. I can feel her smile. Faith has a very soft spot for black babies, and I’m willing to bet a hundred bucks she’ll try to take one of Dawn’s home with us. “Damn, he sure is a little cutie. Where’s the other one?” It takes her about four point three seconds to spot the basinet and she rushes around to the other side of the bed and looks into it. She gets a huge smile on her face and gently reaches down and picks up the little baby. The baby starts crying and Dawn starts to wake up. I give Faith a panicked look but there’s not much she can do.


“Buffy?” she asks and she sounds really tired. She groans and rolls over onto her back. She slowly opens her eyes and looks over towards the noise. “Faith, what are you doing here?” She sits up and she looks panicked and a little mad. “What are you doing? Put him down.” So they’re both boys, huh? Wait, why is she getting so mad? “Give him to me,” she says a little forcefully and the realization hits me like a punch to the face. Her maternal instincts are kicking in and she’s getting protective. Faith hands her the baby, and she pouts a little because she doesn’t get to hold him. I smile at her and mouth ‘haha’. She sticks her tongue out at me and I roll my eyes. We smile at each other, and look into each other’s eyes. Then we’re pulled back into reality by Dawn.


“Enough with the cuteness, I don’t think I can handle it today.” She sighs and adjusts the bed so it’s slanted and she leans against the pillows. I look at the little baby she’s holding and he looks almost exactly like the one I’m holding. I say almost because his eyes aren’t as big, but other then that they look exactly alike. “I’m tired, do you think you can come back later?” Faith looks a little disappointed, but she’ll be ok. She’ll be pouting when I get to the hotel room though. I go to stand up but Dawn grabs onto my arm. “Could you stay? Please.” I look into her big blue eyes that are so full of sadness and I nod my head yes.


“Of course sweetheart. I’ll stay as long as you need me.” Willow and Faith say goodbye and Faith gives my shoulder a little squeeze before she leaves. She would have kissed me but it would upset Dawn, and that’s the last thing we want to do at this point. I readjust myself so I’m mimicking her position and she sighs. She leans her head up against my shoulder and I smile a very small smile. “Dawnie, please be honest with me, ok?” She sighs because she knows what’s coming, but she lets out a little ‘yes’ anyway. “Who’s the father?” She sighs again and doesn’t say anything. “Dawn, please, tell me. You know you can talk to me about anything. I’m not going to judge you, you know that. So please, tell me what’s been going. Why did you sleep with someone else?” She sighs again and sits up straight.


“Michael Yates. That name sound familiar to you?” she asks and goes quiet again. It does sound vaguely familiar. Michael Yates...isn’t that the guy Dawn dated in high school? It is. She was crazy about him, I remember that. They dated for a really long time. She gave her virginity to him. Other then me hating him for being my sister’s first, he’s a pretty good guy. We got along as much as me and my sister’s boyfriend can get along. For a while I wanted to kill him because of the ‘them having sex’ thing, but other then that I never had any problems with him. I was actually kind of sad to see them break up because he treated her like a princess.


“Michael Yates, the guy you dated in high school?” I ask and she nods her head. Ok, so I was right. But they broke up so long ago, and he moved away so when did they see each other again? “Ok, sweetheart I’m going to need a little more then that. When did you see him again, and why did you sleep with him?” My voice is soft and gentle. I don’t want her to feel threatened or anything, but she is getting a little irritated. I haven’t been asking her too much, not as much as I want to ask. I’m limiting myself so I won’t cause her to have another break down. This talk is going good so far, lets keep it that way.


“He came back to Redding about ten months ago. He didn’t move here for anything, he was just visiting some of his family. He stopped by one day just to see what I was up to. Kyle was gone, visiting his family for a couple of days, and I never thought this would happen, so I didn’t think it would be a problem letting Michael in. We started talking, just saying what we’ve been up to over the years.” I can’t believe she invited him in. I mean, I trust my sister and she usually uses good judgment, but when it comes to matters of the heart she can be really dumb sometimes.


“I told him I have...had a fiancé, and he was happy for me. We were standing at the door before he was going to leave, and he gave me a little kiss on the cheek and I looked into his eyes and I could feel everything I felt for him before. And I just stopped thinking. I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him and...well I don’t really have to explain the rest.” She gently caresses the cheek of the little baby in her arms. She sighs and rests her head on my shoulder again. “I didn’t even think about using protection. I didn’t think at all about anything, not until after he left.” Ok, it’s time for another question. And yes this one is important.


“Does he know?” She sits up straight again and looks at me like I’m on crack. “Dawn, you have to tell him. These babies are his, he has a right to know that he’s the father.” She sighs again and closes her head. She rests her head on the pillow behind her and the baby in her arms starts to move around a little. “I think he’s getting hungry.” The nurse gets up, I totally forgot she was there, and she leaves the room. “You’re not going to breast feed?” She shakes her head no, and she still hasn’t opened her eyes. “Ok, seriously now, Dawn, are you going to tell him?” I shouldn’t be pressuring her like this, but he’s a father now and he has the right to know that these beautiful little babies are his. I’m sure he’d want to know.


“I don’t think so. I don’t need anything from him, I have enough money saved in the bank to support all three of us, and I already paid the daycare through next year so that’s taken care of, and when I go back to work I won’t have to worry about dipping into my savings to pay for stuff. And he lives all the way in L.A., and I’m not going to move all the way down there, and I don’t think he’ll want to move up here, so what’s the point?” The point his he’s the father and he has the right to know. I need to try and give her some perspective even if it doesn’t work, I have to at least try.


“Look I’m not trying to make you do something you don’t want to do, but think about them.” I look from one baby to the other and she finally opens her eyes and does the same. Hopefully I’m making some progress. “Think about when they’re six or seven and they want to know who their daddy is and why they’ve never met him. How are you going to explain it to them? And just because you’re financially fit it doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the right to know that he’s a father. He may way to be a part of their lives. If he offers you money you don’t have to accept it, but it might make things a little easier for you if he does move up here to be closer to them.” I stop talking and let out a little sigh. I’ve said all I can. She either tells him or she doesn’t, there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m not going to go behind her back and tell him.


“It’s just too much, Buffy. It’s all just too much. I have to learn how to be a mom and take care of two babies, and deal with the fact that Kyle is gone, probably for good. I have to learn how to take care of myself on my own again, and it’s just too much for me to think about right now.” Ok, ok, I get it. I guess I’ll just ask an easier question. I give her a little kiss on the side of her head and gently caress her cheek to help calm her down a little. The nurse comes back into the room with a bottle and hands it to Dawn. She sits up a little straighter and just before the baby starts to cry she puts the bottle up to his lips and he opens his mouth and starts to drink like there’s no tomorrow.


“What are you going to name them?” I ask and she sighs again. Only this time she gets a little smile on her face. I guess she’s been thinking about it. I look down at the little boy in my arms and smile a little when I see he’s asleep, and he’s sucking his thumb. These are two of the cutest little babies I’ve ever seen. Right under Matthew, Addison, and Joseph. So I’m bias, sue me.


“I haven’t thought of middle names yet, but this one,” she says and looks at the little boy in her arms. “Is going to be Alex, and that one,” she looks over at the boy I’m holding. I still can’t believe I’m an aunt. I am going to spoil these kids rotten, you have no idea. “Is going to be Nick. I might have to keep those wristbands on them for a while though. They look exactly alike and I don’t want to get them mixed up or anything.” I smile and give her another little kiss on the side of the head. “I don’t know what I’m going to do. How am I supposed to take care of them by myself? I’ve never even babysat your kids by myself.” There’s a simple solution that I’ve wanted to suggest for a long time, but I’ve been holding back. I might as well go ahead and say it since she asked.


“There’s a house for sale about three houses down from me. I’m sure if we talk to Giles he’ll buy it for you. You can move there and I’ll help you. And before you protest it won’t be a hassle. I’m not working, Matthew’s in school, and Addison has daycare. That just leaves me with Joseph. You can stay with us until the house goes out of escrow and you can move in, or I can stay with you. Escrow usually lasts about a month and there are plenty of people who help Faith out with the kids while I’m gone. You’re not alone in this Dawn, you have a lot of people who will drop everything they’re doing to help you, so please don’t be afraid to ask for it.” She looks into my eyes and nods her head a little bit, but she doesn’t say anything. She has a lot of thinking she has to do, so I guess she better start doing it. I hope she doesn’t need any help ‘cause I might be too busy just look at this gorgeous little nephew of mine.