Blended

Chapter 16

********

Sunday, after the nap…

Junior got up out of her bed and walked to Brian and Justin's room. "Daddy… Dad," she called as she pushed on the door. The door didn't budge.

There was no answer from the sleeping men on the other side so she turned around and went back to her room. "Daddy and Dad are sleepin,'" she told Bear the fish.

The goldfish swam around the bowl, ignoring the small girl.

Junior walked up to her nightstand and reached her hand into the bowl. "You can come wif me. We are gonna get a snack," she said as she put the fish in her shirt pocket. "You can ride in my pocket. Daddy, Daddy said dat pockets are for holdin' stuff."

Junior walked down the stairs, stopping halfway to take her socks off. She walked into the kitchen and pulled the refrigerator door open. She pulled Bear from her pocket and sat him on the floor. "Do you want a snack too, Bear?" She asked the fish.

Bear did not move as he lay on the kitchen floor.

Junior pulled out the milk and sat it on the floor. She left the door open and walked over to the dishwasher, pulling it open. She stared at all the glasses and cups. "We have ta get a cup," Junior said as she pulled one of her plastic cups from the dishwasher.

She carried the cup over to the milk and sat it on the floor. "Okay, an now we have ta get some snack," she said as she walked around to the other side of the refrigerator where Brian and Justin had had a pantry built. She turned the knob and flung the door open, walking inside.

She grabbed a tube of Pringles and walked back over to her milk.

She sat on the floor and pulled her cup close. She picked up the milk and after three tries twisted the top off. She let it roll across the room as she started to pour the milk. She frowned as the cup quickly filled and then tipped over, sending the milk across the floor, carrying Bear along for the ride.

"Uh oh," she said as she looked at her jeans and the bottom of her shirt. She sat the milk down in front of her and wiped at a itch on her face with the back of her arm, smearing milk along her face. "Bear, you're 'spose ta drink da milk," she giggled as she watched her fish lying in the milk.

She opened her Pringles and started to eat them, until her soaked jeans became too uncomfortable.

She stood up walked over to Bear, picking him up. "Oh, you are sleepin', Bear," she said as she put her hand to her mouth. "Shh," she said quietly. She put Bear into the pocket of her jeans and pulled them off along with her shirt, balling them up.

She walked over to the bathroom and tossed her clothes in the hamper, closing the lid. "Okay Bear, you sleep," she said as she went back to the kitchen and finished eating her snack.

********

Justin was the first to wake up. He could hear Race and Pilot making noises through the monitor. He slipped from under Brian's arm and pulled some sweats on. "Okay, I'm coming," Justin said as he opened the door and walked down the hall into their bedroom.

"Hey," Justin said as he picked up Race and then Pilot.

He carried them over to their changing tables and laid them down, changing one and then the other before picking them up and walking out of their bedroom. He looked into Junior's room as he passed and frowned as he saw the empty bed. "Hmm," Justin said as he looked around the room.

He walked down the stairs, smiling when he saw the discarded socks. "Junior," he called as he walked into the living room. He stopped in his tracks and turned toward the kitchen. Junior was on the floor in the middle of her mess, drinking her milk. "Oh my God," Justin said as he looked at his daughter and then at the floor.

"Hi daddy," Junior said with a smile. "See, I got my snack all by myself."

"I see you got your snack all by yourself. You also made a very big mess," Justin said as he looked at her smiling face and went to lay the boys on the floor.

"I DO EVEN REALLY LIKE MILK, DADDY," she yelled happily. "I like choc'late milk really a lot."

"I know you like milk very much," Justin said as he put the boys on their blanket and walked back over to the kitchen.

"I like it like dis big, daddy," she said as she held out her arms as far as she could, "But, I don't even like balloknees," she stated with a frown.

"You eat grandma Jen's bologna sandwiches all the time," he told her. "Where are your clothes?" Justin asked as he shut the refrigerator door.

"I had ta take dem off cause da milk got all on dem," she said as Justin lifted her out of the middle of the lake of milk.

Junior moved her feet and looked down at the footprints she was making with the milk. Justin looked around as he picked up the cup, Pringle container and the now empty milk container. "I can see that, but where are they?"

"I put dem in da ham, in da ham…"

"In the hamper?" Justin asked as he looked at his daughter. Junior nodded quickly as she held onto the counter and started to jump up and down. Justin went and got the mop and cleaned up the milk. Junior held onto the handle, helping him clean up the mess.

"Okay," Justin said as he looked at his naked daughter, her underwear bunched around the top. He fixed her underwear as he went over to the twins and placed them in their playpens. "Let's go and put some clothes on you," Justin said as he lifted her off the ground and walked with her up the stairs, holding her out in front of him.

"I don't want ta wear clothes, daddy," Junior said as Justin stood her on the floor and pulled her drawer open. He pulled out a pair of sweats and a white undershirt.

"You have to wear clothes," Justin said as she held onto the top of his head and lifted her foot.

"Why?" She asked as she slipped her foot into the leg of her pants, first one and then the other. She let go of Justin's head and laughed as he tickled her.

"So you won't be naked and cold."

"I'm not even very cold," Junior told him as he slipped the shirt over her head. Junior giggled as he kept tickling her. He finally stopped when she started to cough. Justin stood up from her bed and turned to walk out of the room.

His eyes caught on the empty fishbowl and he looked at his daughter. "J, where's Bear?" Justin asked. Junior stood up on the bed and looked at the fishbowl before turning to look at her daddy.

"Daddy, Bear is sleepin'," she said as she sat on the bed and scooted down to the floor. Justin turned to look at her as she moved around her room. She grabbed her leapfrog and smiled up at Justin.

"Sleeping where?" Justin asked hesitantly. Junior turned the leapfrog on and lay on the floor.

"In da hampa," Junior said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. She kicked her feet back and forth. Justin took in a deep breath as he turned to leave her room.

"Hey," Brian said as he walked out of their bedroom, the top button of his jeans left unbuttoned.

"Hey," Justin answered as they walked down the stairs. Justin told Brian all about the mess that he found when he woke up. "So, she says that Bear is in the hamper, sleeping."

"Yeah, he's sleeping alright," Brian said as they walked into the bathroom. They went through all the clothes and Brian sighed, kicking the pile. "I didn't see anything," he said as Junior came walking down the stairs.

"Me either," Justin said as he tossed the clothes back into the hamper. Junior walked over to her brother's playpens and started to talk to them through the net.

"J," Brian said. She ran over and hugged Brian around the leg.

"Yes," she answered as he picked her up and sat her on the counter. She turned to look at herself in the mirror. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail and she twirled the end around her finger.

"You told daddy that Bear is sleeping, where is he?" Brian asked. She looked over at Brian with a smile on her face as she kicked her legs back and forth.

"He's in my pocket," she said proudly.

"You put him in your pocket?" Justin asked as he looked down at the small pair of jeans that he was holding in his hand. Junior nodded.

"Yes, 'cause, 'cause you said dat pockets was for holdin' stuff," she answered. Brian smirked as he looked at Justin.

"It's true, you did," Brian said as he leaned on the counter. Justin glared at Brian before closing his eyes and reaching into the front pocket of her jeans.

"Oh my God," Justin said as his fingers wrapped around the dead fish and he pulled it out of its denim resting place.

"See daddy, I told you dat Bear was sleepin'," Junior said as she saw her fish lying still in Justin's hand. Justin looked at Brian as Junior looked at her fish. Race and Pilot started to cry.

"I'll go see what's wrong," Justin said as he laid the fish on a piece of toilet paper and gave it to Brian.

Brian smirked at Justin as the blond smiled up at him. "Yeah, you do that," Brian said as he turned to look at Junior.

********

Just as Justin made sure that Race had a firm grip on his bottle there was a knock at the door. Justin pulled the door back and came face to face with his black shirt.

"See, I told you I'd bring it back," Molly said as she walked into the loft and tossed her things and the shirt onto the couch.

"Is it clean?" Justin asked.

Molly turned to him and smirked. "You did not specify that it had to be clean," she said with a smile as she walked into the kitchen. "Hey Race, hey Pilot," she said as she kissed both boys on the cheek. The two boys were in their high chairs, reclined back and happily drinking their bottles.

"I didn't know I had to," Justin said as he shut the door and walked back into the kitchen. "So, what brings you here?" Molly slipped her hands into her back pockets as she walked over and sat on one of the stools.

"Ugh, mom has a date tonight. I didn't want to be there incase they decide to fuck or something," she said. Justin grimaced at the thought of his mother having sex. "Where's my sexy brother-in-law?"

Justin told her all about what had happened. Molly laughed so hard she almost fell off her stool. "That sucks," she said finally. "Did you flush it down the toilet?"

Justin shrugged his shoulders. "I guess he is going to," Justin said as he stopped looking for something to cook.

"How is your art for the show coming?" Molly asked as she got up and took Race out of his high chair, sitting the finished bottle on the counter. Justin grabbed Pilot and followed her over to the sofa.

"I finished the last of it last night actually," Justin said as Molly reached for her other nephew. Justin gave her Pilot and sat next to her, watching them play. "I'm going to ship it out tomorrow and then that's it."

"Cool," Molly said. The two siblings sat on the sofa talking until they heard the toilet flush. Junior came running out of the bathroom and straight into Justin's arms. "Hey, J."

"Hi, Aunt Molly."

Brian walked out of the bathroom and over to the sofa. "Hey, Brian," Molly said with a small wave.

Brian kissed Molly on the top of the head as he sat down next to Justin, kissing the blond. "Daddy, we flush'd Bear down da toilet," she told Justin. "Dad, said dat fishes need water ta breeve."

"Did he?" Justin asked as he looked at Brian. Junior nodded.

"Bear couldn't breeve, so he died and we can't see him anymore," Junior said sadly as her head lay on Justin's chest and her fingers twisted the bottom of his shirt.

"That's very sad," Justin said. "How do you feel about it?" Junior sat up and looked at her daddy.

"Hungry," she said as she jumped up. "I have ta use da potty," she announced as she took off running to the bathroom.

"That was quick," Molly said as she pulled her hair out of Race's hand.

"She's only three," Justin said as Brian got up, grabbing the stack of papers that had been left on the table earlier.

********

"Shit," Brian said as he hung up the phone, again. Junior was upstairs with Molly helping her take a bath. "Your sister seems to enjoy this. Too bad we can't leave them with her," Brian suggested as he walked over to Justin and wrapped his arms around the blond, kissing his neck.

Justin leaned his head to the side, giving Brian more access as he spooned strained carrots into Pilot and Race's mouths. "Yeah, that's because she doesn't have to do it all the time," Justin said as Race stuck his hand in his mouth before Justin could catch it.

"Well, we're going to have to do something because all of the schools start at age two. We have to find a daycare for the boys to go to," Brian said as he moved from behind Justin and sat in the chair next to him.

"Do we really want to send them to daycare?" Justin asked as he thought about Junior's short time in daycare. Brian took one of the baby food jars and started to feed Pilot.

"We don't have too much of a choice. I can't take them to the office with me. You can't take them with you and everyone else we know works," Brian reasoned.

"You're right," Justin said as he spooned another mouthful of food into Race.

"The secretary just happened to be at 'The Learning Tree'. I made an appointment for us to see the school tomorrow," Brian said as he fed Pilot the carrots, frowning as Pilot spit some of it back out. "I don't blame you sonny boy. It looks like shit. I can only imagine how it tastes."

********

Monday, morning…

Justin and Brian walked through the halls behind Mrs. Leeren. "Do you have children from many different backgrounds enrolled?" Justin asked as they stopped in front of one of the classrooms.

The children inside were just getting themselves situated and their days started.

"Oh yes," Mrs. Leeren said. "Our student population is very diverse. We make it a priority and pride ourselves in that fact," she said as she escorted them into her office.

"You said there is a bus that would pick her up and drop her off, if we wanted?" Mrs. Leeren nodded.

"Oh yes, If you sign her name onto the pick up/drop off list then she will be added. We also work closely with the Allegheny school district, so that it is easier for the children to transition from preschool to Kindergarten."

Justin looked at Brian and raised his eyebrow, giving him a 'well, that's a plus' look. "If we decide to enroll her, how soon can she start?" Brian asked. Mrs. Leeren looked down at her paperwork and then back at the two men.

"To be honest we normally don't enroll children after the quarter has started, but seeing as though these are extenuating circumstances I think we can make an exception. If you want to enroll her you can take the necessary paperwork, fill it out and bring it back. If everything checks out I am sure we can have her started here by Wednesday at the latest."

"Do you think you could give us a minute?" Brian asked. Mrs. Leeren nodded her head and stood.

"Sure, take all the time you need. I'll come back in a few," she said as she left the office.

"So, what do you think?" Brian asked as he got up and walked around the office, looking at the diplomas and artwork. Justin looked out the window at the elaborate playground outside.

"I know this is the first place we've seen but I really like it here," Justin said as he looked at his watch. He had to meet the art movers at eleven.

"I have to admit, it does not make me want to puke," Brian stated as he turned to look at Justin.

"That's always a plus," Justin said with a laugh as he crossed his arms. "I think we should go for it." Mrs. Leeren knocked on the door and waited for the all clear.

"So, will you be needing the paperwork?" she asked.

********

"Did you have to fill out this much paperwork when Damien started school?" Justin asked Daphne. She leaned on the counter looking at the packet that Brian and Justin had gotten from The Learning Tree.

"Yeah, I did," Daphne said as she gave him the portfolio. Justin slipped it into his bag and waited for Tom to come back. "I was so happy when I finally got it finished."

Tom owned the Art Depot, a local small business that specialized in shipping, restoring and preserving art of any scale. Tom was the only person Justin trusted to handle his shipping.

"Here's your receipt, Justin," Tom said as he came from out of the back and handed the slip of paper to Justin.

"I need it there no later than Friday," Justin said as he looked at the older man. Tom smiled as he made sure everything was in the computer correctly.

"No problem," Tom said, "I'll have it there by tomorrow night."

"Thanks Tom, you're the best," Justin said as he left the Depot. "Well, that takes care of that."

"The only thing left to do now is go and become ridiculously famous," Daphne said with a laugh as she bumped Justin's shoulder with her own. She checked her watch, making sure she wasn't running late.

"Yeah, I wish," Justin said. Daphne rolled her eyes.

"Oh please, stop trying to be so nonchalant," Daphne told him as they reached the car. Justin unlocked the doors and they both got into the car. "You're going to be brilliant."

Justin drove down the street, stopping at a light and checking his schedule. "… So I told him that he could have him for the whole weekend," Daphne said with a sigh as she rolled her window down.

"And you are okay with that?" Justin asked as the light changed and he pressed the gas. Daphne looked over at him, her eyebrow raised into the air. "I take that as a 'no'," Justin said as he glanced over at his friend.

"He just better be there," Daphne said as her cell phone started to ring. She pulled out her cell phone and looked at the display. "See, speak of the devil," she said as she answered the phone.

"Well?" Justin asked as Daphne hung up the phone. She looked over at him and smiled.

"He just wanted to make sure I wanted him to meet me at the school," Daphne said with a smile. Justin knew how much she loved Cedric and he also knew how much Cedric loved Daphne.

"It's okay to love him, Daphne." She glanced out of the window and took in a deep breath. Justin turned into Daphne's driveway and turned the car off. She nodded as she opened the door and got out of the car.

"Who's watching the kids while you run all these errands?" Daphne asked, changing the subject. Daphne saw the smile spread across Justin's face as they entered the house.

"I dropped them off with Emmett."

"Oh. My. God, you didn't."

Justin nodded as he closed the door. "Yeah, I did," Justin said with a laugh, "he said they were going to have a day of beauty."

********

Tuesday…

"So, are you excited?" Lindsay asked as they watched one of the paintings being hung. Justin smiled as he told Marc to move the painting slightly to the right.

"How's that?" Marc asked as they shifted the painting over to the right.

"Yeah, that looks good," Justin said. "I was excited, now I'm just nervous as hell," he admitted. Marc and Allen finished hanging the painting and stepped down off their ladders.

"You shouldn't be. You are very talented."

"Thanks, but I'm still nervous," he said with a laugh.

"Well, what'd you think?" Allen asked as he adjusted his gloves. Marc stood next to them looking up at the painting.

"It looks amazing," Lindsay said and Justin quickly agreed.

"Yeah," Justin said. "Why don't you guys go ahead and hang the other ones. I'll be back to check on the progress."

"You got it," Marc said as they walked over to another large canvas and got ready to mount it on the wall. Lindsay and Justin watched for a few minutes before walking toward the E wing of the gallery.

********

"JUNIOR!" Molly yelled as she walked around the house. "Where are you, this is not funny." She looked in the kitchen and in all the bedrooms. There was a knock on the door as she passed by and she stopped to open it. "Brian… you're early," she said nervously.

"My meetings finished early," he said as he closed the door behind him. Molly walked slowly behind him, glancing all around for some sign of her niece.

"Oh."

Race and Pilot were on the floor on their stomachs, looking over at Brian. "Where's Junior?" Brian asked as he walked into the living room and picked the boys up off the floor. "Hey boys."

Molly placed her hands on her hips and smiled. "Funny you should ask that," she said. "We, umm, we were playing hide and go seek. Okay, it was more like me telling her to hide so I could finish my report, but then I realized that I hadn't seen her in a while so I went to 'seek' her and… Did you know she can hide really well?"

"Molly?" Brian said.

"Okay, I might have misplaced her," Molly admitted. Brian placed the boys back on the floor and looked at his sister-in-law.

"You lost her?"

"Misplaced," Molly corrected as she pointed at him. "I misplaced her. Lost would indicate that I have no idea where she is. Misplaced is more like umm, I can't remember where she is."

"They mean the same thing," Brian said as he walked into the kitchen and looked in the cabinets. "Did you look everywhere? Junior is very short for her age and can get into some pretty tight spaces."

Molly laughed as she bit back the comment that was about to escape her lips. Something told her it was not the right time to make sexual comments. "Yeah, I looked everywhere," she said as she tucked her long hair behind her ear.

Brian combed every inch of the house, pausing in front of the bathroom. "See, I told you I looked everywhere," Molly said.

Brian turned his head and looked into the bathroom. He switched on the light and walked inside, pulling back the shower curtain. Junior was lying curled up in a ball, sleeping soundly. "Man, it's a good thing I found her," Molly said with a sigh as Brian lifted her out of the tub.

"You, found her?" Brian asked as he adjusted his daughter on his shoulder and walked out of the bathroom.

"Fine," Molly said as she followed him down the stairs. "We, found her." Brian buckled the twins into their car seats and packed all their things back into their diaper bag. Junior stretched and yawned as Brian stood her on her feet and helped her slip into her jacket.

"Hi dad," she said sleepily as she tried to lean against his chest. Brian looked at his watch and kept her standing up.

"You have to be a big girl and walk to the car so I can carry your brothers," Brian said softly as he kissed her on the top of the head and stood up. It was almost six o'clock, if she slept now they'd never get her back to sleep.

Brian picked up the diaper bag and flung it over his shoulder. He picked up the two seats and walked toward the door. "Thanks for watching them Molly, even if you did lose one," Brian told her as he sat the two seats down and pulled out his wallet.

"Fuck you and you don't have to pay me," she said as Brian handed her some money. Brian looked over to where Junior was standing in the middle of the floor with her eyes closed swaying slightly.

"I know I don't. You can use it to pay your cell phone bill," Brian said with a smile. Molly had been on the phone with Hunter constantly since he'd left. She smiled as she took the money and stuffed it into her back pocket. "J… J!" Brian said louder.

Junior snapped her eyes open as she started walking forward towards his voice, dragging her bag behind her. "I am very sleepy," she said as Molly opened the door for Brian.

"I know you are. You'll be able to sleep really soon, okay?" Junior didn't answer as she followed Brian out of the house, slowing down to step down off the porch. "Say later to Aunt Molly."

Junior turned and waved slowly. "Later," she said as she followed Brian to the car.

********

"Tomorrow you are going to preschool," Brian said as he lay next to Junior in her bed, her head resting against his arm as he smoothed his hand over her back. "You are going to make lots of new friends and have a lot of fun."

"Yeah," she said as she finally drifted off to sleep.

********

"They're all asleep, finally," Brian said as he walked down the stairs.

"Good," Justin said, "You have to sign these too." Brian grabbed two beers out of the refrigerator and went to sit next to Justin. He handed Justin the beer and took the papers that Justin was holding out for him. "You do realize that tomorrow our daughter is going to school for the first time?"

"Yeah," Brian said as he signed his name to the paperwork. "And you realize that this school lets out at three o'clock in the afternoon, right?" Justin looked to where Brian was pointing and nodded.

"Okay, so we'll have to work out pick up and drop off schedules," Justin said as he took a drink of his beer. "I think I should drop her off and you should pick her up. I usually get most of my work in the afternoons and I know you like to schedule early meetings so I think that would work best. We can always switch when we need too."

Brian nodded his agreement. "I talked to Carl and Debbie," Brian said. "They said they don't mind watching the boys until we can find something else." Carl and Debbie were both retired and eager to have something to fill their days with again. They were not used to having free time.

"Good," Justin said as Brian signed the last of the papers and stood up, grabbing Justin's hand. Brian turned off the lights as he led Justin upstairs to their bedroom. "Aren't you tired?" Justin asked with a smile as they entered the bedroom.

Brian pulled him close and pressed their lips together, as he let Justin feel his hard cock. "What do you think?" He asked as he closed the door.

********

Wednesday…

"Junior, stop moving, please," Justin said as he brushed her hair. He was dressed and ready for work. Brian came down the stairs for the third time and drank the rest of his coffee.

"I AM stopped movin', daddy," she said as she looked down. Justin sighed and lifted her head, again. He parted her hair and pulled it into two ponytails. She had eaten her cereal and was all ready to go. Her lunch was sitting on the counter in her new ladybug shaped lunchbox next to her new book bag, both of which Justin had bought while he ran his errands with Daphne.

"Are you ready to go?" Brian asked as he put the boys in their jackets and placed them in their car seats. Justin finished her hair and let her go.

"YAY, I'M READY. I'M READY. I'M READY," she said as she ran over and grabbed her jacket off the back of the sofa. "I am VERY READY."

"We can see that and now the entire building knows it," Brian said with a laugh. Justin grabbed his portfolio, keys, phone and Race. Brian grabbed his portfolio and Pilot. "Okay, let's go or you're going to be late." Brian closed the door and locked it as Junior ran into the lift.

"Dad, did you know dat budderflies have got wings?" Junior asked as they walked to their cars. Justin pressed his door release button and opened the back door. He placed Race and his portfolio into the car.

"I know," Brian said with mock enthusiasm. "We read that book every night. How could I not know?" Justin laughed as he took Pilot from Brian and snapped his seat into the base. Brian walked over to his car and opened the door. Justin turned around just as Junior was reaching into the curb water to pick up a worm.

"Junior, NO!" Justin said as her fingers touched the water. She looked up at Justin as he lifted her from the curb and placed her in the car. "That water is dirty."

"I wanna touch dat worm," she said as Justin helped her out of her book bag and into her booster seat. She pulled her feet up and started to mess with her shoelaces. Justin stopped her and tied her shoelace back up.

"Try to stay clean, at least until you have been into the building," Justin pleaded as he kissed her on the cheek. Brian honked his horn as he waited in his car.

"Okay," she said exhaustedly. Race and Pilot watched their sister as Justin closed the door and climbed into the front seat. They pulled away from the curb and started the morning drive to 'The Learning Tree'.

Justin called into work and listened to his messages as they drove along. Vanessa had called to confirm the delivery of his paintings and Jared Harring, the manager of a very prominent artist, had called about a possible showing. "DADDY!" Junior yelled out of the blue.

Justin looked at her in the rearview mirror before quickly placing his eyes back on the road. "J, what have we told you about screaming in the car?"

"No screamin'," she said as she unzipped her jacket. Justin heard the zipper as he tossed his phone into the passenger seat.

"Keep that jacket on," he said as they made a left.

"But I am very, very HOT," Junior said. Justin rolled his eyes as he looked in the rearview mirror.

"You're not hot," Justin said.

"But I really am," she said. "Are we gonna color?" Junior asked as she pulled at the laces of her shoe. "I do like ta color."

"I don't know, I'm sure they'll have lots of fun things to do," Justin said as he drove along. Junior unlaced her shoe completely and grabbed the two strings in her hand, trying to tie them back together. She wound her hands around and around, creating a knot.

"Are they gonna have choc'late milk?"

"I don't know, you'll have to wait and see," Justin said as Race started to cry. He reached back and found the discarded pacifier and searched for Race's mouth. "Shh, its okay buddy," Justin soothed as he patted Race's chest and made the turn into 'The Learning Tree's' parking lot.

Justin pulled into the parking space next to Brian's SUV and turned off his engine. Little kids and their parents were filtering into the building. "We're here," Brian said as he opened the back door and started to unbuckle her from her seat. Junior looked at the building through the car's tinted window.

Justin lifted Pilot's car seat out of its base as Brian tied Junior's shoe and helped her put her book bag on her back. He gave her the lunchbox and helped her out of the car. She walked over to Justin and held onto his free hand. Brian grabbed Race and closed the door. "Do you have the papers?" Brian asked.

"Yeah," Justin said as they walked into the building. Junior looked all around as they walked through the halls.

"HI," a little brown haired boy said with a wave as he walked past. Junior smiled at him and let go of Justin's hand so that she could wave back.

"HI," she said as they turned into the office and the door closed behind them. Justin sat Pilot on the floor and leaned on the counter.

"Good morning, how may I help you?" Ms. Stevens, the secretary, asked. Little boys and girls were filtering in and out of the office with notes and papers. Junior went and sat in one of the chairs next to a little brown skinned girl with jet black hair.

"We're enrolling our daughter. This is the paperwork we were supposed to bring back," Justin said as he handed her the portfolio. She took the folder and looked through the papers making sure everything was in order. Brian sat Race's car seat on the floor and glanced at his daughter who was talking to the little girl.

********

"My name's Alissa, what's yours?" The little girl asked as she sat in the chair, her little shoes dangling high about the ground and her small hands pushing the front of her skirt further down between her legs.

"I'm Junior; dis is my first time here. Is it your first time here too?" Junior asked as she started to wave her lunchbox up and down. She kicked her legs back and forth, her white Pumas a blur as they moved through the air.

"Yeah," Alissa said as she twisted in the chair. "Is dat your mommy and your daddy over dere?" Junior looked to where Alissa's small hand was pointing and smiled as she dropped her lunchbox.

"No, dat's my daddy and my dad," Junior said as she got out of the chair and picked up her lunchbox off the floor.

"How come you don't have no mommy?" Alissa asked as she wiped at her nose with the side of her hand. Junior shrugged.

"Cause… Do you like choc'late milk?" Junior asked with a smile. Alissa shifted in her seat and moved closer to Junior.

"Choc'late milk is my mostest favorite," Alissa said with a bright smile as her parents came out of Mrs. Leeren's office. Mr. and Mrs. Tate spoke to Brian and Justin before walking over to get Alissa. "Mommy, daddy, I got a new fren. Dis is Junior."

"Well, hello Junior, you are a very pretty little girl," Mrs. Tate said with a smile as Mr. Tate smiled and waved.

"Thank you," Junior said as Alissa got up and went with her parents out of the office. Junior watched her new friend as she disappeared around the corner.

********

"Okay, everything looks to be in order. Junior is going to be in Mr. Jones' class, room 5. You just take a right when you leave out of the office. The teacher in the hall will help you if you have trouble finding it."

"Thanks," Justin said as he and Brian picked up the boys' seats and walked out into the hall.

They counted the doors down to number five.

Junior stood on her tiptoes trying to see into the window. Brian pulled the door open and walked in behind Junior as she looked around. Chris Jones walked over to Brian and Justin with a smile on his face as he shook both of their hands.

"Good morning. It's nice to meet you, my name's Chris Jones," he said as he shook their hands.

"Brian Kinney and Justin Taylor," Brian said as he motioned to Justin. Justin smiled and gave the teacher a nice smile. Junior stood as close to Brian's leg as she could as the tall dirty blond bent down to talk to her.

"You must be Junior," Mr. Jones said as he held out his hand. Junior looked up at Brian and then at Justin before putting her hand in his. "My name is Mr. Jones and I am going to be your teacher," he said clearly.

"Hi," Junior said quietly as her eyes landed on Alissa sitting over by the window. "DAT'S MY FRIEND," she said happily as she looked at Mr. Jones. He turned to look at where she was pointing and smiled.

"It is?" He asked. Junior nodded as she stood on the sides of her shoes.

"I like her."

"Well, why don't you go over and say hello. I am sure she'd like to have you sit next to her and I can show you where your things are going to go, okay," he said. Brian and Justin watched as their little girl walked away from them. "Well, it seems as if she's found a friend."

"Yeah," Brian said as Pilot made his presence known. Brian placed his pacifier back in his mouth and looked at his watch. Justin watched his little girl walk away without as much as a sideways glance.

"I think she'll do fine," Mr. Jones said. "Not too many young ones are able to just walk away." Justin nodded his head as a little freckled faced boy ran up to them, pulling on Mr. Jones' pants leg.

"Misser Jones, Summer hit'd me," the little boy said.

"It was very nice meeting you, but I guess I better get to work," he said as he took Matthew's hand and went to find Summer. "Summer, we don't hit, do we?" Brian and Justin heard him ask the small girl as they walked out of the door.

********

"How'd it go?" Debbie asked as Justin carried the twins and their bag into the house, closing the door with his foot. He walked over to the living room and sat the boy's car seats down, unbuckling them.

"Great, she didn't seem to have a hard time at all," Justin said with a smile as he sat their bag on the sofa. "Hey Carl," Justin said as the retired detective came in the back door.

"Well, she always was a tough little shit. Just like her fathers," Debbie said with a proud smile as she kissed Justin on the cheek, wiping her lipstick off as she moved away. Carl walked over and lifted the two giggling boys into his arms as he sat down on the sofa.

"Yeah," Justin agreed as he walked toward the door with Debbie right on his heels. "They ate at around seven this morning and I changed them and…"

"I think we can handle it, Sunshine," she said as she pushed him out the door.

"I know, thanks Deb. Bye," he said. Carl and Debbie said their goodbyes before shutting the door. Justin looked at his watched just as his phone started to ring.

"Hey Lindsay... okay... well, give me a few minutes. I'll be right there," he said as he got in the car, started the engine and headed to the gallery.

********

Junior sat in her seat next to Alissa, twirling her hair around her finger.

She swung her legs back and forth, creating a soft whooshing sound as the material of her cargos rubbed together. "Okay, let's all move to the carpet and take a seat," Mr. Jones said as all the kids got out of their seats and filtered over to the carpet in front of the bulletin board.

"You can sit next to me," a little blond named Mitch said to the two friends as he sat on the carpet, close to the front.

"Okay," the two girls said as they sat down. Junior folded her legs in front of her and looked up at the brightly colored bulletin board. A multi-colored caterpillar stretched the length of the bulletin board, down the side and across the small bookshelves. Each part of the caterpillar's body was labeled with a number.

"My name's Mitch," he said as he sneezed, covering his mouth with his hand. "What's yours?" He asked.

"My name's Alissa and dis is Junior." Mitch smiled at the two pretty girls before reaching over and touching Junior's face.

"You got sumpin' on you," he said as he pulled it off her face and wiped it on the floor. Mr. Jones walked over to the side of the board, a long stick with a little chick on the end held firmly in his hand.

"We have two news friends in the class. Alissa and Junior," he said to the children as they all sat watching him. Tiffany, his teacher's assistant, was busy setting up their desks for their coloring activity. "Everyone say hello to Alissa and Junior."

"HELLO," they yelled.

"Junior, why don't you come on up here and help us say our numbers," he said as she stood up and walked over to him. He gave her the stick and helped her stand to the side of the board so that everyone could see. "Do you know your numbers?" he asked the smiling girl.

"Yes, I know a lots of numbers," she stated happily as she twirled the stick in her hand. Mr. Jones stopped her movements and pointed to the caterpillar's head.

"We don't swing the stick. It is for pointing, right?" he asked. They all shouted 'yes' as they nodded their heads.

"This is our counting caterpillar, every morning we count our numbers and our letters," he said to the class and mostly to Junior and Alissa. "Today is going to be your turn. You see the name next to the numbers one, two and three?" He asked as he pointed over to the side of the bulletin board where names were placed next to their assigned tasks.

"Yes," Junior said as she shifted back and forth from one foot to the other. Justin had showed her numerous times how to spell her name. She was still working on it.

"Your name is next to 'numbers' today, so you get to count the numbers. Come and pick a number and let's see how high we have to count today," he said as he picked the jar filled with numbered ping pong balls up off the shelf and held it while Junior picked. "Do you know that number?"

Junior thought about it for a while, pulling her bottom lip into her mouth before she answered. "Umm, FIVE," she said loudly as she smiled at Mr. Jones.

"You are right, show it to the class." Junior sat the pointing stick between her legs and held the small white ball in between her fingers. "Tell them what number it is."

"It's a five," she said as she looked up at the ball. The stick moved from between her legs and she looked down, dropping the small white ball. "Uh OH," she said as she hopped over to the ball and picked it up.

"You have to say it loud enough for everyone to hear you," Mr. Jones said as she picked up the stick and held it tightly in her hand.

"IT'S A FIVE!" she shouted with a giggle. Mr. Jones laughed as all the kids giggled. Tiffany laughed as she finished setting up their activity and went to get their other surprise ready.

"Very good," he said. "Now, you can put the ball in the red bucket." Junior ran over to the two buckets, one red and one yellow. She hesitated for a minute before placing the ball in the right bucket and walking back over to Mr. Jones.

"I did put it in da red one," she said happily.

"Yes you did. Okay, now, lets count our numbers up to number five," he said as he helped her point the stick.

********

"Brian, the boards for Spa Essentials are ready and waiting for your approval. Brandon Gleason called. He wants to meet with you about possibly doing a campaign. Oh, and Michael called. He was very excited," Cynthia said as she handed the messages to Brian.

"Call Mr. Gleason back and schedule a meeting. Tell Joel down in the art department to get the boards up here ASAP… and get me a cup of coffee," he said as he sat down at his desk and pulled the phone close.

"You got it," Cynthia said as she walked toward the door. "Oh, by the way, how was the first day?" Brian pressed the button for the speakerphone and dialed the number.

"Great, she was a natural," he said.

"Just like her father," Cynthia said with a smile. Brian looked at her and raised his eyebrow as she walked out of the office.

"Hello," Michael said into the phone. Brian picked the phone up and held it to his ear.

"Mikey, you called?" Brian asked with a smirk as he looked at the proofs that had been left on his desk. Cynthia walked in with his cup of coffee and the boards, leaving after setting them up.

"Yeah, I called," Michael said excitedly.

"Our application got approved. We just found out today," he said as Ben walked out of the kitchen.

Michael grabbed a picture of the brother and sister, that they'd just been informed were all theirs, off of the coffee table. Their names were Tyler and Emily. Tyler was eight and Emily was three and a half.

"Congratulations Mikey," Brian said as Michael filled him in on everything, word for word. They didn't hang up until Cynthia came in announcing that is was time for his meeting.

********

"WE HAVE A BUNNY!" Junior screamed as she ran to Brian. Brian moved from in front of the door so that the other parents could come in.

"Really?" Junior pointed at the large rabbit cage in the back of the class. "Did you have fun?" Brian asked.

"His name is Pez. Dat's a candy, dad. Did you know dat?" She asked excitedly as she pulled Brian over to the rabbit cage, ignoring his question. "He is very, very soft."

"I'll take your word for it," Brian said with a frown as he watched the dwarf rabbit hop around the cage, pausing to chew on pieces of hay. Brian stood up straight as Junior smiled up at him. "How'd she do today?" Brian asked as Mr. Jones walked up to them. Junior walked away to talk to Alissa as her mom helped her into her jacket.

"She fit right in. She is very smart as well as very assertive," he said with a smile. Brian nodded. He knew his daughter was not as soft as some of the other little girls. They talked for a while longer before Mr. Jones went to talk to Summer's dad.

"You ready to go? We have to go and get your brothers," Brian said as they walked over to her cubby to get her things.

********

"Where's daddy?" Junior asked as she sat on the floor pulling her shoes and socks off. Brian sat the twins' seats down and walked over to the desk, depositing his wallet, keys and phone.

"He's on his way home, remember?" Brian asked as he walked over and took Race and Pilot out of their seats and onto the blanket on the floor. Junior had talked to Justin on the phone and told him all about her day and the pet rabbit.

"I want him to be home right now," she said, dragging out the last word as she pulled her book bag off. Brian smiled as he gave each of the boys a teething ring. Pilot giggled as he looked up at his dad. Race was too busy gnawing on the toy to pay attention to anything else.

"I know," Brian said as he walked into the kitchen. "Bring your lunchbox in here," he told her. Junior walked over and tossed her lunchbox onto the counter. Brian handed her a cup of juice and a cookie.

"Thank you," she said as she took the cookie and the juice. Brian left her in the kitchen and went to change his clothes. Brian walked into his room and peeled off his clothes. He slipped into a comfortable pair of jeans and a white tee shirt.

"WE HAVE A BUNNY!" Brian heard her say as he walked down the stairs. Justin tossed his things on the couch and listened as she told him everything that he'd already heard on the phone.

"Hey," Brian said as he wrapped his arms around Justin and kissed the back of his neck. Junior lay down in between her brothers and told them all about the bunny too. "I think she is obsessed with the bunny." Justin turned in his arms and placed a heated kiss on Brian's lips.

"She's just excited. She's never seen a bunny up close before," Justin said softly as his lips lingered on Brian's. "I'm going to order a pizza," Justin said as he moved away from Brian, his hard cock brushing against Brian's thigh.

Brian and Justin spent the rest of the night playing with their kids. Justin gave Junior a bath while Brian got Race and Pilot ready for bed. He could hear all the train and airplane noises he heard Brian make down the hall.

"Go to sleep," Justin said as he watched Junior squirming on her bed. "I mean it." Justin closed the door, just slightly.

"But, I'm not even really sleepy," She said loudly as she wiggled in her bed. Justin ignored her and walked down the hall into their bedroom. Race and Pilot were sound asleep.

Justin walked over to the bed and collapsed face down on the covers. "This is it. I'm going to die," Justin said into the sheets.

"Hopefully not on the bed."

"Fuck you."

Justin sighed deeply as he felt the mattress shift with Brian's added weight. Brian straddled Justin's legs and nudged his hips with his knee. Justin smiled sleepily and turned over. "Mr. Kinney, are you trying to seduce me?" Justin asked; his voice low and dripping with lust.

"Trying?" Brian asked as he leaned down and captured Justin's lips in his. Justin moaned into the kiss as he felt Brian's fingers on the button of his jeans. He gasped as Brian deepened the kiss, pressing kisses down his exposed neck.

They made quick work of their clothes as Brian moved back, leaning against the headboard.

Justin moaned as Brian continued to suck on the flesh of his neck as the brunet reached over and pulled a condom and the lube out of the jar on the nightstand.

"Hurry up," Justin said as he bit down gently on Brian's earlobe, sucking the tender flesh into his mouth. Brian quickly rolled the condom, coating his hard cock in lube. Justin took a deep breath as he lowered himself onto the stiff member. Brian bit down on Justin's shoulder as he fucked himself, moaning as Brian thrust into him.

Time rolled by until Justin felt himself starting to fall over the edge. He held on tightly as Brian milked his orgasm from his body.

He clamped down on Brian and pulled him over the edge with him. They both struggled to catch their breath as Brian moved their heads and pushed his tongue into Justin's waiting mouth. He pulled out of Justin and got rid of the condom. They lay together, tangled in each other and too tired to make it to the shower.

"We need to get cleaned up," Brian said as his fingers trailed through Justin's hair. Justin sighed as he leaned into Brian's neck.

"Too tired," Justin breathed. They settled into a quiet comfort as they finally started to drift off to sleep.

"DADDY, DADDY. I AM VERY, VERY HOT! I AM," Junior shouted as she kicked off her covers and got up out of her bed. She went to her door and pulled it open. She peeked down the hall and moved the hair out of her face. "DADDY, DADDY!"

"Get back in the bed," Justin said calmly and loud enough for her to hear him. Junior took in a deep breath and got ready to yell again. "J, go and…."

"Junior, go to sleep, now," Brian said evenly.

She looked at their door and huffed as she walked back to her bed and climbed up. "I am very really hot," she said quietly. She sat in the middle of the bed and wiggled until she was out of her pajama shorts and the shirt. She held on tight to her teddy bear as she eventually fell asleep, her clothes tossed to the side and her face buried in her bear's fur.

"You think she's sleep?" Justin asked as Brian got up out of the bed and headed to the bathroom.

"Does it matter? She's quiet," Brian answered as Justin got up to follow him.

********

Friday afternoon, two weeks later…

"Hey."

"Fucking shit, Molly," Riah said as she walked out of her Advanced Physics class. They'd been best friends since freshman year of high school. "You scared me," she said as she adjusted the strap to her bag and pulled a cigarette from out of her jacket pocket.

Molly walked with her friend across the campus of Carnegie Mellon.

"Sorry, so, Riah," Molly said as she wrapped her arm around her best friend's shoulders, her bag hitting against Riah's hip, "how would you like to accompany me on a little trip?" Riah looked over at Molly as they reached an abandoned bench and sat down.

"When did he call?" Riah asked with a laugh as she took a deep pull off of the cigarette and passed it to Molly.

"About an hour ago, right before I walked into chem. Lab," Molly said as she blew the smoke from her lungs and looked across the campus. "You have no idea how hard it was to sit through lab. I am so fucking excited."

"Why? It's not like he's in the same state or anything." Molly smiled at her friend as she passed the cigarette back.

"I know, but, they are in New York. They're only going to be there for three days. So…" Molly said as she smiled brightly.

"So you want to go?"

"We can leave now and be back by Monday," Molly said as she wrapped her hand around Riah's arm, her blue fingernail polish shining in the sun. "Come on, come on."

"Fine," Riah said as they got up. "You're buying me lunch."

********

"Okay, and now I want ta put da white. Can I put da white, daddy?" Junior asked as she scratched her arm, spreading the washable paint across her smooth skin. Justin laughed as he pulled up the sleeves on his own shirt.

"You can put any color that you want. It's your picture," Justin said as he opened the jar of white and poured some onto the paint pallet. Junior eagerly dipped her brush into the paint as Justin twisted the jar closed.

"What are you going to paint?" Justin asked with a smile as the sun filtered into his studio. Race and Pilot were taking a nap while Brian finished some things for Kinnetik that needed to be done before they left.

"I'm gonna paint a snowman and lots and lots of snow," she said, "wif a big sun."

"If you paint a big sun then the snowman and all the snow is going to melt," Justin informed her.

"Why?" she asked as she started on her snowman, covering the oversized sheet of paper with giant swirls of white, tainted with red from her previous endeavor. Justin watched her paint as he sat back in his chair.

"The sun is very hot and the snow is very cold, " he told her. Junior bit her lip as she thought about what Justin was saying, her three year old brain wrapping around the information.

"I will even give da sun some water," she said matter-of-factly as she went back to her painting. Justin laughed at her reasoning as he went to make sure he had packed everything.

********

"Riah, I am not listening to that CD again," Molly said as they drove along. Riah popped the gum in her mouth and held the CD out of Molly's reach.

"Too bad, I have first pick on CD's for the next two hours," Riah said as she lit the cigarette that was dangling from her fingers. Molly sighed as Riah slid the CD into the player.

"You are so lucky there are only two hours left on this trip," Molly said with a laugh as Riah blew out a long stream of smoke and turned the volume up.

"So, how big is his dick? Riah asked. "I mean, I assume that it is a pretty good size for you to want to go all the way to New York just to get laid."

"I'm not telling you," Molly said with a smile, "and we are going to New York because I miss my boyfriend and I would like to see him." Riah started to laugh as she looked over at her friend.

"You are so full of shit."

"Okay, I might be a little horny," Molly admitted.

********

"Is gramma comin'?" Junior asked as she sat in the tub. Brian cleaned all the paint off of her and washed her hair. He made sure all of the soap and shampoo was rinsed off of her before standing her up and wrapping the towel around her and he lifted her out of the tub.

"In more ways than one from what I hear," Brian said as he dried her off. She sneezed in his face as he wiped the water off of hers. "Thank you."

"Mr. Duck is gonna go down da hole," she said as she leaned over the edge of the tub, watching as the water swirled out of the tub. "Look it's gonna go down da hole," she pointed.

"Mr. Duck is too big to go down the hole," Brian said as he looked at the duck. Junior coughed as he dried her hair.

"Look, it's gonna go down da hole. Look dad, look," she said as she tried to move to pick up the duck. Brian leaned over and got the duck out of the tub and sat it on the edge. Junior watched the duck as Brian finished drying her off.

"There see, now he's all safe."

Brian walked with her out of her bathroom and helped her into her pajamas after putting some lotion on her. He listened as she went on and on about all the things she did in school and all about the fun she had with Alissa on the playground. "Planes can fly?" she asked as Brian slipped the shirt over her head.

"Yeah," Brian said as she rode around the room on her skateboard. Brian hated her skateboard, mostly for the fact that it scratched the floor. Every time he put it away she seemed to find it.

"I do even like planes," she said as she scratched her arm and rubbed her eye. "Dad, can I…." She trailed off as she heard the door open and close.

********

"They've all eaten dinner already," Justin said. Jennifer followed her son into the kitchen, sitting her bag next to the center island. Jennifer smiled at her son's nervousness. His and Brian's bags were packed and sitting by the door. Their flight was due to leave in four hours. "The twins are in their playpens. They're asleep already and…."

"Justin, I think I am capable of watching my grandchildren. It's not like it's my first time with kids," she said. Justin smiled at his mom as he slid his phone into his pocket. Brian, having taken many business trips, was completely ready to go. Justin on the other hand, was a nervous wreck.

"GRAMMA," Junior squealed as she ran down the stairs and over to Jennifer. Jennifer bent down and wrapped her arms around the giggling girl. "Mr. Duck almost went down da hole," she said. Jennifer looked at Brian who was walking toward her with a smirk on his face.

"Who?"

"Her rubber duck," Justin explained. Brian looked at his watch and ran his hand along Justin's back.

"We have to leave now if we want to be there with time to… check out the bathroom," Brian said with a raised eyebrow. Justin walked over to the twins' playpens and kissed them both on the cheek. He walked over to the door and bent down so that he was level with Junior.

"I don't even want you to go on da plane," she said as tears welled in her eyes and fell down her cheeks. Justin hugged her close and gave her kisses.

"I know, but it's only for a few days and then we'll be back, okay?" Justin said. Junior cried harder as Justin kissed her one last time and pulled away from her. He took a deep breath and walked over to his mom, giving her a hug.

"She'll be fine," Jennifer said. "Time you leave she'll be fine." Justin nodded as he went to pick up his bags.

"Dad, don't leave," she said as the tears flowed from her eyes. Brian hugged her and gave her a kiss before handing her over to Jennifer. They made sure that Jennifer had their phone numbers before finally leaving. Justin fought the urge to cry as he heard Junior's screams through the door as the lift started its dissent.

Junior leaned against the door with tears falling from her eyes as she listened to the lift go down. Jennifer walked over to her granddaughter and wrapped her in a hug. "What do you say we go and watch Snow White?" Junior slowly nodded her head as she let Jennifer walk her over to the sofa.

Snow White was her favorite.

********

"Holy shit, look at this place," Justin said as they walked into the hotel room. Brian tipped the bellboy after he placed the bags in the room. Justin walked into the bathroom and then over to the large window. Brian threw his wallet, phone and sunglasses on the dresser. "The view is amazing."

"You picked it out," Brian said as he walked over to the window and looked down. Justin smirked as he shrugged out of his jacket.

"Correction, I picked out a hotel and then you changed the hotel. So, technically you picked the hotel," Justin stated as Brian moved to stand behind him, his agile fingers unbuttoning Justin's shirt. Justin smirked as the shirt dropped to the floor.

"And it's a hell of an improvement," Brian said as he ran his hands down Justin's chest and down to the button of his jeans, "if, I don't say so myself." Justin was about to say something when he felt Brian's heated fingers wrap around his cock.

"I'm nervous as hell," Justin admitted as he turned around and pressed his lips to Brian's as they moved back toward the bed.

"Mmm," Brian said as he collapsed on top of Justin, running his hands down Justin's smooth chest.

"They say that exercise is good for getting rid of tension," Justin moaned as Brian started to slowly move his hand. Brian quickly removed his clothes and Justin's before pulling a condom out of the pocket of his discarded jeans.

"We'll have to test that theory."

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