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Title: Birthdays
With Marie
Author:
Terri
E-mail:
xgrrl26@yahoo.com
Rating:
PG
Disclaimer:
I don't own any of them except Sam and
Nat, and
they're mine for the duration :)
Archive:
WRFA, Dolphin Haven, Peep Hut anyone else,
please ask
and I'll happily provide :)
Feedback:
Please? With a big piece of
frosting-encrusted
birthday cake on top? Good, bad,
and ugly
welcome.
Summary:
Sequel to Getting Presents With Marie. The
twins' second
birthday is met with more than a little
trepidation
and there are a few birthday surprises in
the cards
for the Laughlins.
Comments:
I started writing this for the DDFH's
Birthday/Anniversary
theme week and was spurred on by
Peggy's
bunny about the twins switching presents (she
envisioned
a leather jacket and a tutu, but Logan and
Marie got
them slightly different ones). I also need
a foofy
interlude while I'm working on the next
Yellowstone,
which is taking *forever* darn it!
-------------------------------------------------
Dada?"
"Yeah?"
"I don't
want cake. I don't wanna party." Oh, man.
This again.
I get it, I really, really get why he
associates
birthday parties and cake with bad stuff,
but both
me and Marie have tried real hard to explain
to him that
the Brotherhood ain't gonna be crashin' no
parties
no more.
"I know,
Sam, but you gotta trust me. Everythin's
gonna be
OK this time. Me and your mom are gonna make
sure that
your second birthday party is better than
your first."
Look at him - rubbin' his chest where
the scar
is with this big frown on his face. That
just breaks
your heart. "Everythin'll be OK. OK?
Trust your
dad here."
"OK Dada."
He still ain't sure, I can tell. Hmph.
Dunno what
else to try to convince him. Me and Marie
have tried
explainin' it just 'bout every which way,
but I guess
he's just gonna hafta go through havin'
the birthday
and the party and the cake and seein'
that nothin'
bad is gonna happen this time around. "I
go pway
wif Blue."
"Woof!"
"OK, but
be careful if you're stayin' in the house."
Actually,
his sister's the one who needs that warnin'.
She broke
a lamp playin' with that dog already. At
least she's
playin' quiet now - paintin' or somethin'.
I'd bet
she's already got half the paint in her hair.
My little
artist.
"Hey, Logan
- can you give me a hand?" Whew. Marie's
back. I
always feel a little double-teamed when she
leaves me
alone with both of 'em. "I think this is
all of it
- can you grab a bag or two?" She did the
birthday
grocery thing herself this time. We decided
not to have
a big party, not to invite any strangers,
to have
it be just us and a little party. Thought
that'd probably
be easiest on the kids. After this
year, we
can go back to parties with people and
whatnot,
but they need to at least get one birthday
behind 'em
without too much commotion. Besides, it's
the big
number two and I'm kinda lookin' forward to it
bein' just
us. I'm not a big 'let's invite everyone
we know
over' kinda guy. Although it did come in
handy last
time. "I'm going to make a cake this time.
I got all
the stuff. I think we're ready. Are the
kids playing?"
"Yeah, Nat's
paintin' or somethin' and Sam's playin'
with the
dog in his room. He said he didn't wanna
have a party
again."
"Oh no.
I was really hoping our talks helped."
"I think
he's just gonna hafta go through and see for
himself
that it's OK. Probably gets that from his old
man." I
like teasin' her. I especially like teasin'
her when
I can smell that she's been thinkin' 'bout
me, been
wantin' me. Which is most of the time. Heh.
"Gee, you
think?" I like it even better when she
teases back.
"I got them the, uh p-r-e-s-e-n-t-s we
talked about."
"Ah, good."
A nice set of paints for 'em both God
knows Scooter
started somethin' with that paintin' kit
he gave
'em, especially with Nat and a doll for Nat
and a big-ass
dump truck for Sam. We didn't wanna go
overboard
on the toys 'cause well, for one, 'cause
the budget
is tighter since we got an additional
canine mouth
to feed but mostly 'cause we don't
wanna spoil
'em. We wanna teach 'em that, hey
whatcha
really need is your family, a little food,
warm place
to live, and that's about it. If they got
the basics,
they're doin' OK and everythin' else is
just icin'
on the cake. Besides, they got lotsa toys
a chest
fulla toys for each of 'em. This is just to
say, you
know, happy birthday, and so I can get to
play dump
trucks with my son. That's gonna be pretty
cool. We'll
make manly noises and scoot the truck all
over the
house. We'll put things in it then dump 'em
out. I dunno
if it's 'cause I don't remember havin'
toys or
probably never had none or what, but I'm
really lookin'
forward to playin' with him.
"And I even
got the d-o-l-l on sale."
"Good deal,
darlin'." My Marie, she's a helluva
shopper.
"We're pretty set, then?"
"Just have
to bake the cake, and we're good to go for
tomorrow.
We can take the rest of the night off."
And judgin'
by the way she's sayin' that she's got a
little more
than cake bakin' planned for me tonight.
Oh yeah,
darlin', I'm juts gonna wink atcha so you
know I'm
on to you. Makes you blush, every time, and
you know
what that does to me. "I did say we have to
bake the
cake first, Logan."
"Right.
Need any help there?" You know I love my
wife if
I'm volunteerin' for bakin' duty.
"Dada! Dada!!"
Shit. Shit, that's Sam. He never
hollers
for us at night. Somethin's wrong.
"Mph." Woke
Marie too. I don't smell anyone in the
house or
any animals or anythin'. Can't be that. I
don't hear
nothin' movin'. "Logan, is that "
"DAAAAADAAAAA!!!!!"
Christ! Gotta go get him. Now.
"Sam? Sam,
I'm here." Shit, somethin' is wrong.
He's sittin'
straight up in bed, screamin' and cryin'
up a storm.
Poor Nat she's just sittin' up in her
bed, all
freaked out. She don't know what's wrong
either.
"Daaaaadaaaaaa."
That's heartbreakin', right there,
those little
arms reachin' out to me and that pitiful
voice. "Dada,
pwease"
"I gotcha,
I gotcha." And Marie's goin' over to hold
Nat. We
got 'em covered. But what the hell is wrong?
He's never
had a nightmare or anythin' like this.
Shit, he
never even usedta cry that much as a baby
when he'd
wake up hungry. "What's wrong, what
happened?"
"Dada.."
Just hangin' onta me for dear life. Nat
and Marie
don't look like they have any more of a
clue. "Dada,
I don't wanna have a birfday. I don't
wanna, pwease!"
Oh Jesus. "Don't make me!" Whoa
he never
gets demandin' like that. Never.
"Sam, sugar,
it's OK, everything's OK. Nothing's
going to
happen tomorrow, I promise." Whew. Good,
come over
here, darlin' and gimme some backup. Sam
usually
likes to be held by her better anyhow. Maybe
she can
"NO! No,
mama!! Want dada!" Oh my God. Oh my God,
he's afraid
of her. He's afraid. He's scramblin'
back against
the headboard to get away from Marie.
Sweet Christ,
that's gonna break her heart, I just
know it.
"Sam." I
don't mean to get harsh with him, but I knew
that tone
would get his attention. "You don't have
anythin'
to be afraid of. You listen to your mom and
me. Everythin's
gonna be fine tomorrow. Now, you say
you're sorry
to your mom."
"No, Logan,
it's OK. Just let him let him do what
he needs
to. I understand why he's scared." She's
already
cryin' and I can just see it breakin' her up.
Dammit.
Dammit. "It's OK, Sam, I'll I'll go back
over on
Nat's bed, OK? I'll stay over here."
"Wot happenin'
mom?" And Nat she's just confused as
all hell.
It ain't in her to get all upset when
somethin'
like this happens, but I'm sure she's
feelin'
all unsettled.
"Sam's a
little afraid, honey, that's all. He
remembers
last year and he's afraid it'll happen
again."
"When you
got mad at us and went 'grrrr'?" You know,
no matter
how much you explain shit, it just don't
stick with
toddlers, they're too young. I shoulda
known this
would come back and bite us on the ass.
Fuckin'
Sabretooth. Fuckin' Brotherhood.
"I wasn't
mad at you, Nat, I'm never mad at you."
Marie's
losin' it now, she's not gonna be able to hold
back the
tears anymore. "I just I "
"We explained
this to ya when it happened." Can't get
mad at 'em
for not really understandin', can't get
upset that
they're still scared and that all the
reassurances
we've been givin' ain't sinkin' in. That
ain't their
fault. "Remember how I explained 'bout
your mom's
skin and how she got that guy in her head
for just
a second? Remember how we both toldya that
even though
it looked scary your mom would never,
ever, ever,
hurt ya? You don't hafta worry 'bout
that, not
at all."
"But wot
if it happens again?"
"It's not
gonna. You have your dad's word on that,
Nat."
"But wot
if you dunno if the growly mean people are
coming,
like they did last time?"
"It's our
birfday, dada." Now my heart's breakin'. I
don't think
I've ever heard four sorrier, sadder words
in my whole
life. Sam says 'em like it's some kinda
death sentence.
"Yeah, it
is your birthday. And that's a happy day.
I know the
first one went bad, but I swear to ya, all
the rest
of 'em will be good, I promise. How your
first birthday
went that's not how all birthdays go,
got it?
Tomorrow's gonna be just fine. You don't
hafta worry."
That didn't convince him, not one bit.
Shit, we're
never gonna be able to get him through the
day tomorrow,
never. I knew he was worried, but I
didn't see
all this comin'. He's gonna freak out if
we even
try to give him cake and presents. Dammit.
That's probably
the first damn thing they really
remember,
and it's a bad memory. They don't deserve
that.
"We fight
good, Sam. Don't worry." Nat, tryin' to
buck up
her little brother. "If the growly mean
people come,
we fight and we "
"No, darlin',
you don't fight. You let me and mom do
the fightin'
if somethin' ever happens. Nat, you two
are too
little, I toldya that. You gotta let us take
care of
things." My little artist and my little
ass-kicker.
Gotta curb that until she really can take
care of
herself.
"But mama
change. Mama growl. Mama feel bad."
"I know
it was scary, honey, but it was just for a
second and
now I'm just fine. I've been just fine for
a long time,
for almost a year now." God help her,
she's tryin'
to pull it together a little, tryin' to
give Sam
what he needs here.
"I dunno."
"I do know,
Sam. Mom's not gonna change, nobody's
gonna crash
the party, and we're all just gonna have a
fun birthday
together tomorrow. That's what's gonna
happen.
I promise." I really dunno what else to say
here. I
mean, I've tried every damn thing I can think
of to make
him go easier about all this. I'm outta
ideas.
"Sam, when
your dad promises, that's the way things
are." Look
at her, tryin' so hard to make him feel
better.
"Tomorrow, you just stick real close to your
dad, and
trust his promise, and you'll see, it will
all work
out OK." It's gotta be rippin' her to shreds
to say that,
to tell him not to stick with her.
"Mama.."
I think he's startin' to register that he
hurt her
by backin' away, by bein' scared. Him
gettin'
upset 'bout that is only bound to upset both
him and
Marie even more. Fuck. Do other parents
hafta deal
with this shit? You can tell he wantsta go
to her,
but he's still a little scared.
"It's OK,
Sam, it's OK. If you want to come over,
it's OK
and if you need to stay over there, that's OK
too." And
he's gonna stay on his bed. He's not gonna
go to Marie.
Fuck. "Come on, let's let's try to
get a little
more sleep before morning, OK? If you
need anything
or get scared, just call us."
"OK. Night,
mom!" Nat, bouncin' right back, like
usual. Hell,
she's probably gonna be dreamin' of
gougin'
out somebody's eye with her little paintbrush.
It's just
how she deals with it she thinks 'bout
how she
can fight, how she can kick ass in the
situation.
She got that from me, definitely. I just
wish her
brother had a little of it. Wish he wasn't
so scared.
I'd know how to deal with it if he was
more like
Nat.
"'Night,
mama." Now he's scared 'bout tomorrow and
he's scared
that he upset his mom. Well, he did. But
I know it
ain't his fault. Still fuckin' frustratin',
though.
"Good night.
I love you both very much." Marie, in a
soft little
whisper. Lotsa tears comin' out there.
God, what
a mess.
"Good night.
Get some sleep. Love ya." I just wish
I could
make everythin' all better for ya, Sam. I
wish I could
turn back time and hunt down all those
fuckers
before they ever knocked on our door. But I
can't. I
can't fix it for my son, for my family.
It's gonna
be a long night. And an even longer day
tomorrow.
"You wanna
cry some more?" I don't think all the
tears are
out yet, but she's tried to calm down and
say somethin'
three times now. I know she wantsta
talk it
all over, but I know my wife, and I know she's
gotta cry
it out first. "You just take your time,
darlin'.
We got plenty of time before mornin'."
"I
I "
"Take it
slow. I gotcha."
"Oh, Logan.."
Lots more tears. Knew they were in
there. Go
on, cry it out. "I I have to t-tell you
something."
"Uh, OK."
"I'm not
first anymore." What? She totally lost me
on that
one. Did I hear that right? "I can't be, not
anymore."
"Darlin',
what're you talkin' 'bout?"
"Remember
when I was pregnant and you said I was most
important
because we can always make more babies, but
we can't
make another me and how I came first? Well,
I can't
come first anymore." I'm still not quite
followin',
'cause if there's one thing that ain't
changin'
in my life, it's Marie bein' most important.
"When you
when you got that tone with Sam and said
for him
to apologize, you can't I know it was
because
you knew it upset me but you can't you can't
worry about
me being upset anymore, or at least not
first, not
over our kids. You have to put them first,
even when
they might they might do something to hurt
me, because
they're just kids and we're the grown ups
and they're
scared and we gave them such an awful
first birthday
and I don't blame them and I "
"Shhh. Hey.
Easy. Take it easy." Gettin' so worked
up, I'm
a little worried she might hyperventilate
here. She's
just gettin' more and more hyper as she
goes along.
"Baby, take it easy. I love the kids, you
know how
much I do. I love 'em like hell. But I hate
seein' you
hurtin'."
"I know,
Logan, but "
"Shhh. Darlin',
lemme finish. I know what you're
sayin' 'bout
them havin' to be first, and in some
ways, yeah,
I get that. Especially now, when they're
little
you're right, I snapped at Sam when I
shouldnta,
when I shoulda put him first. But darlin',
there's
some things you go first in and I dunno really
how to explain
it, but that's just how it is. If if
this here
woulda happened, if Sam woulda done
somethin'
to hurt you when he was older and he shoulda
damn well
known better, or if he did somethin' on
purpose,
well then he'd be in for an ass-kickin' from
me. I ain't
gonna raise kids who don't respect their
mom. But
I understand this he's scared and he's too
young to
think 'bout it logically, rationally. The
scared part
of him took over and he hurt ya without
meanin'
to. I get that. I just dunno how to fix it
for him,
how to make it all better. Darlin', you're
the expert
at that outta us two."
"I don't
know how to fix it either. I know I should.
I know that."
Shit, she took that comment the wrong
way.
"I didn't
mean it as a complaint, darlin', not at all.
I'm just
sayin' you're real good at that and I'm
outta my
depth here. I dunno what we're gonna do with
'em tomorrow."
"I don't
know either. Oh God, Logan, this is all
this all
came down on us because of me, because I
attracted
the Brotherhood and "
"Uh-uh.
No. Don't even think that way. Our kids are
hurtin'
'cause of a buncha dumb-ass, mean as hell,
worthless
bastards who thought attackin' babies was a
good idea.
No way is this on you, no way. Stop
thinkin'
that right now."
"O-OK. I
just I wish things were different." Me
too, darlin',
me too. But I guess we gotta play the
hand we're
holdin' now.
"We'll figure
somethin' out in the mornin'. Get some
sleep, OK?"
She might be able to sleep a little if I
hold her
and rub her back. No sleep for me, though.
Nope, I
gotta think of a way to get the family through
tomorrow.
I'm the man, and I'm gonna handle it. I
ain't gonna
put it on Marie, not now, not knowin' how
upset she
is. I'm the man, and I'll figure somethin'
out. I gotta.
Executive
decision number one everybody sleeps in.
It's gonna
be an emotional enough day without havin'
to deal
with big and little people short on sleep. I
slept in
until ten and I still got up first. It's
eleven now
and I can hear Nat movin' around in there.
She and
Sam'll be up and out here soon enough. Well,
good. Might
as well get this show on the road.
I did a
lotta thinkin' last night and I came up with a
coupla things.
Number one everybody sleeps in.
Number two
we're gonna have a good day today, even
if it kills
us all. It's the kids' second birthday,
dammit,
and we should all get to enjoy that day,
especially
them. Number three better sooner than
later. I
know they're scared 'bout the whole day, but
they're
especially scared of gettin' cake and
presents,
'cause that's when the Brotherhood barged in
last year.
That'll be the worst part seein' the
cake and
the presents and goin' through all that. So
guess what
we're havin' for breakfast? That's right,
cake. Better
sooner than later and once they see that
eatin' cake
and openin' birthday presents ain't gonna
necessarily
result in an attack then maybe there's a
chance of
them enjoyin' the rest of the day a little.
That's my
theory anyhow. Well, it's either gonna work
that way,
or make the whole damn day a thousand times
worse. We'll
see which one we're gonna be dealin'
with here.
"Hi dad."
Nat, sleepy but soundin' OK, trailin' Sam
behind her.
He still looks pretty damn wary.
"Mornin'.
Want breakfast?"
"Wait for
mama?" Well, that's promisin'. But I can
tell he's
doin' it in part to make up to me or Marie
or maybe
both. That was number four fix things with
Sam.
"Sure, we
can wait if you wanna." I heard her movin'
she'll
be out any minute. "And you know I wanted
to tell
ya that I'm sorry if I got a little upset last
night or
if I sounded mad. I wasn't mad, just
frustrated.
Mom knows you love her a lot, so nothin'
to worry
'bout, OK?" Big noddin' there. I think some
of that
got through. Well, so far, so good with the
big plan.
"Hey there,
guys. Did you sleep OK?" There's my
wife. Didn't
have time to consult her on the plan,
but she'll
catch on as soon as she sees the cake, I
bet.
"Yeah, mom
breakfast now?" Heh. Trust Nat to get
right to
it.
"Sure. I'll,
uh, get some "
"I got it
covered. You guys have a seat." Well, here
we go. Cake
time. I'm either a brilliant dad or a
total idiot.
"Thought we'd just have the birthday
cake, get
the day started right off." Oh-oh. Sam
froze in
his tracks and Marie's lookin' at me like
I've got
a screw or several loose. "Might as well,
huh? Gotta
have cake sometime on your birthday, why
not for
breakfast?"
There -
I think Marie's cluein' in. She's sittin'
down, anyhow.
"Good idea. I don't think I've ever
had cake
for breakfast. It'll be fun." Well, Marie's
vote seems
to be in the 'brilliant parent' category.
Let's see
how the kids vote. "Come on, let's sit
down."
Nat's goin'.
Good. But what's she oh, I get it
she's turnin'
her chair to face the door, just in
case. Yep,
that's my daughter, all right. Watches
her back.
Sam's still frozen in place, though. "We
got cake
for you too, Sam. Wanna join us?" I hope
that came
out as a question, not a command. By the
way Marie's
lookin' at me, it came out at least a
little OK.
"Dunno dada"
"OK. Well,
if you feel like it, we've got a place set
for ya.
We're gonna get started on breakfast here."
Two outta
three ain't bad. Hey wasn't there a song
like that
or
"Sit wif
you dada?"
"Sure."
I'll take it. If he's even willing to come
over and
eat the cake at all, I'll take it. "Come on
over." There
we go. All nice and safe in dad's lap.
Nothin'
to worry 'bout, son. "You want some of mine
or do you
want yours?" Come on, kid, just a little
bite, I
know you can do it.
"Dada's."
Good enough. Cake's cake, right?
"Here ya
go." I don't ever think I've had a more
tension-filled
breakfast. Bite. Chew. Swallow.
There. There
ya go, son. Cake. You ate your
birthday
cake and nothin' catastrophic happened. See?
"Want some
more?" Little nod. With his sweet tooth,
he'll be
eatin' my whole piece. But that's OK. He's
eatin' it.
He's doin' it. That's my son, he's a
brave kid.
And Nat's diggin' in too. Whew. That
worked out
OK. I'm actually not an idiot. "Good
cake, huh?"
"Yeah!"
Nat's still glancin' at the door but the
sugar rush
is slowly killin' off her worries. I never
thought
I'd be so thankful for their sweet tooth.
"Well, your
mom made it special for ya. Glad you like
it."
"Fanks mom."
Marie's smilin' and I can tell by her
scent that
she just let go, just relaxed. It's gonna
be OK, darlin'.
Sam's settlin' too. His little
body's meltin'
inta my lap. Yeah, this was a good
idea. Definitely.
Step number one, check. Now we
just gotta
live through presents and it's a done deal.
And I swear
to God, if Fate or Destiny or some other
fuckin'
higher force is even thinkin' 'bout
interruptin'
this day with some shit, I'll shove a
claw up
it's metaphorical ass. You leave my family
alone, ya
bastards.
Fate sure
has a goddamn funny sense of humor. Oh
sure, no
attacks, but this ain't turnin' out quite
like I planned,
either.
"You remember
how I said to put them first? Well,
this is
one of those times." I hear that amusement in
your voice,
darlin', and it ain't that I don't like
hearin'
it normally, but "Look at it this way at
least they
liked the presents."
"Yeah, darlin',
but the truck was for Sam and the doll
was for
Nat they weren't supposedta trade presents."
There goes
me playin' dump trucks with my son. I
can't even
play 'em with my daughter Nat decided the
dump truck
made a good wagon for her paint supplies.
And Sam's
decided that the doll's his new little
sister.
Great.
"Oh, it
doesn't mean anything that he likes the doll.
He's only
two, even if he is developing a lot quicker
than a normal
kid."
"It ain't
that." Heh. She's got my eyebrow thing
down pretty
good by now. "OK, maybe it's a little
that. It's
just that I wanted to play dump trucks
with him,
you know, do manly bonding kinda stuff. He
he ain't
got too much of me in there, darlin', and
sometimes
I wish he did, I wish I understood him
better or
somethin'. Nat, I can deal with, I can
understand
she gets pissed, not upset. She's a
fighter,
not a brooder."
"Sam's a
fighter too, when push comes to shove. He's
already
got the scars to prove it. It's just not his
first option,
his response of choice." Smart woman,
my wife.
She always puts things in perspective. "And
I'd say
that you understand him pretty well. You
pushed him
just enough and supported him just enough
this morning
and now, look he's playing with toys on
his birthday
instead of cowering in terror like he was
last night.
Sam, he's a lot like me, I know, but,
Logan, you've
always understood me pretty darn well."
Did I say
smart? I meant brilliant. She does know
how to make
everythin' make sense.
"Yeah, you're
right. We got good kids."
"We do."
There goes Sam, talkin' up a storm to the
doll and
hey he's talkin' up a storm to it. He
never talks
that much 'round us. Hmmm.
"Hey, Marie
- you see that? See how he's chatterin'
away to
the doll?"
"Yeah. He
is." Damn, I am on a hot streak today. I
never usually
catch on to them doin' somethin' new
before Marie.
"Logan, I wonder I know we don't
really know
if he has powers or what, but but if he
did, if
he can sense people like we think, maybe
that's why
he's talking more to the doll. Maybe he
needs to,
because he can't feel anything from her.
Maybe that's
why his speech and language is a little
behind Nat's.
Maybe he doesn't need them, doesn't
rely on
them to understand us."
"That makes
a helluva lotta sense, darlin'."
"And on
your birfday, we get cake. For bweakfoost.
But only
on birfdays." Wouldya look at that, he's
explainin'
the house rules to his new 'little sister.'
"Mama is
warm and Dada is hot. Mama is soft and Dada
is stwong.
Mama is quiet inside and Dada hums. Mama
scawed me
once when she went away, but it's OK now."
Holy freakin'
hell, that's the most complete sentences
I've ever
heard outta the guy. And all that I hum
and Marie's
quiet inside - I bet he does have powers.
I bet he
can feel us. We're gonna hafta get Jeannie
up here
one day and do some tests or somethin'. And
Marie 'going
away' when Sabretooth took her over for a
second -
shit, no wonder he was scared shitless if he
lost whatever
connection he has with her. He probably
depended
on havin' that his whole little life, havin'
Marie's
feelin's toward him be warm and lovin' and
then
bam, Sabretooth's in there. Holy shit. "Mama
and Dada
love us. Dada pwomised the birfday would be
OK and it
is." You know, I never thought I'd be so
damn thrilled
that my son was playin' with dolls. Who
knew all
that was in there?
"Oh, Logan."
Marie's been eavesdroppin' on him too.
"I think
we're right. I think we're right about his
powers."
"Yeah."
But what does Nat have, then? Shouldn't hers
be comin'
out too? Or don't it work that way? They
were fraternal
twins different eggs. "We should
find out
what's up. We should call Jeannie."
Noddin'.
"But not today, OK? Let's deal with it
tomorrow.
Today, let's just enjoy their birthday."
"Yeah."
We sure as hell earned it. Marie's right.
Let's just
enjoy their second birthday. They've
earned it
too.
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