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Early mornings had become a precious, sacred time where it could just be the two of them - no intrusions, no worries. The world beyond those four bedroom walls ceased to exist. All that mattered was the woman cuddled against his chest, safe in their bed.
Occasionally there were those delicious times when they could lazily explore each other, making love at their own pace, unworried about tiny intruders. More often than not, however, mornings were devoted to sleep rather than indulging in their desires. Parenthood was exhausting.
Even in childhood, Alan had always been a morning person. Being an early riser had helped during his time on digs, allowing him to get a large bulk of his work done before the sun rose high. Then a certain palaeobotanist stormed into his life, and he suddenly had a reason to linger in bed each day. His beloved was not a morning person and took every opportunity to try and convert him to her way of thinking.
It had only taken an island full of genetically modified monsters, a ring, and two kids to get there, but she had managed it.
I have defeated you, at last. A tired mutter against his chest one warm, cosy morning. My personal bed warmer.
Flatterer .
I try my best, honey. Now go back to sleep.
Something tickled his nose, but that wasn't what had woken him - he was used to Ellie's hair everywhere. A few seconds ticked by before he realised what was happening. Someone was awake down the hall, thudding something despite the early hour of the morning. He groaned and curled tighter around his wife. Why didn't kids ever sleep?
"Alan," her voice was rough from sleep, "Your son is awake."
He refused to open his eyes, burying his face in her soft hair. "Before dawn, he is your son."
"Good thing it's past dawn, then."
He cracked one eye and glanced at the window. Sure enough, sunlight crept around the edges of the curtains. He scowled and tried to hide again. Perhaps if he ignored it, they could all go back to sleep. Jack was a smart kid - he could keep himself entertained for an hour or two without burning the place to the ground. Even just a few minutes more would be enough.
"Oof!" A sharp elbow suddenly connected with his stomach. "Ellie!"
"Be grateful I didn't aim lower." He couldn't see her face, but he could hear the smirk in her words.
Alan shook his head and pushed himself out of bed.
"'It's your fault he likes mornings, Alan'." He muttered under his breath, recalling a conversation from a few years before. It took him a couple of seconds of searching their discarded clothes to find his pajama pants.
"Stop being such a grumpy old man." She had already slipped into the warm spot he had vacated and flopped onto her back to watch him.
"I am a grumpy old man." He pointed out, pulling up his pants.
"Yes," she beckoned him closer, and he came, crawling up the bed so that his body covered hers, "but you are my grumpy old man."
Her searing kiss was hardly encouraging him to leave. His breath hitched when the minx ran her fingers down his stomach, dipping beneath his waistband. "Ellie-"
"I suggest you hurry back, hmm?"
All he could do was nod in response, eyes closed. He willed his body not to react - not to rise to the teasing. Those clever fingers left his skin, and he took the chance to move before she could make things worse.
"You will be the death of me, y'know."
Her answering laughter was music to his ears. "Go! See what our little darlings are up to."
Grabbing a shirt, he reached for the door handle and then paused. At times, it was easy to forget just how close he had come to never having this domesticity in his life. God knows he didn't deserve to be this lucky. Hand resting on the door handle, he turned back to take in the view of his wife in their bed - naked, barely covered, still sleepy. The wave of emotions nearly knocked him off his feet.
"Alan?" He could hear the confusion in her voice. "You all right?"
"Perfect." He smiled. "Absolutely perfect. I love you."
"Love you, too."
He knew he had left her with more questions than answers, but sometimes a man just had to appreciate what he had in life. Even if one of the very things he had to appreciate had dragged him from the embrace of his naked wife at some ungodly hour in the morning.
Alan pulled the t-shirt over his head before he padded down the hallway, pausing at each door along the way. Whilst he trusted Jack more than he likely should a seven-year-old, the boy did have a habit of dragging his little sister into trouble. No more thudding sounds travelled through the home, but that didn't mean the little demons weren't up to something. He had learned quickly that quiet children often meant trouble.
No signs of life in either bedroom - great, he had to wrangle two kids before he could return to Ellie. No sounds of the television, either. Perhaps he could park them in front of some cartoons for thirty minutes? Maybe twenty, at a push.
"Jack? Megan?"
"Daddy!" A whirlwind of blonde hair barrelled into his legs the moment he stepped off the stairs. Alan laughed and scooped the girl into his arms, resting her on his hip.
"Good morning, sweetheart. Did your brother wake you up?"
"No! I woke him!" The adorable giggle softened the blow - his youngest was her Mother's daughter through and through.
"Do you have any idea of the time? It's way too early."
Alan carried his daughter through the house, stepping over an assortment of toys that had been firmly in the toybox when he went to bed. He found Jack in the kitchen, head in the fridge.
"Hey, what are you doing?" He grabbed the boy by the back of his pajama shirt and gave him a gentle tug.
"Looking for breakfast. We want pancakes."
"Pancakes!" Megan echoed.
Ellie had insisted on many occasions that Jack was his exact miniature - that was pretty much true. Except for one thing. The boy had his Mother's grin, and he had turned it on him.
"You do, huh? And were you going to make them?" He pulled the boy from the fridge and kicked the door closed.
"I've seen you do it."
"That might be true," He deposited Megan on a chair and pulled out another for Jack. "but what have we said about you guys and cooking?"
The boy hopped up on the chair and frowned at his father. "Pancakes are cooked?"
Alan laughed and ruffled his hair. "Yes, buddy, they're cooked. How about I do the cooking, and you guys help me mix the ingredients?"
A chorus of affirmation confirmed their plan. Foolishly, Alan hadn't anticipated that much could go wrong with cooking as a family. He even planned to bring some up to Ellie so she could have breakfast in bed, but only after he had enjoyed his breakfast.
All in all, things actually went better than one might imagine. Mixing the batter resulted in a minimal mess, and the mix made some beautiful-looking pancakes. Through majority vote, it was decided that Alan's perfectly round pancakes should be cut into dinosaur shapes using Jack's cookie cutters. He had ended up with two piles for serving - dinosaurs and offcuts. Boy, was Ellie in for a romantic treat that morning. Sex and dinosaur-shaped hole-filled pancakes.
He might have been bad at romantic stuff before, but this was getting a little ridiculous. He made a mental note to take book a romantic dinner soon - take her on a proper date.
"Don't forget to have some strawberries or bananas." He placed several small dinosaur cakes down in front of the pair.
Complete silence was rare in a house with two kids, so Alan had learned to relish every moment. Usually, if they were eating, they were quiet, and he could drink his coffee in peace. He had made a tray up for Ellie - complete with heart-shaped piles of chopped strawberries - and only had the tidying up left. That and getting the kids occupied for a while.
"So, I was thinking. Once you guys have finished, maybe you would like to watch some cartoons for a bit before mommy gets up?"
"Yay, cartoons!" Jack grinned around a mouthful of strawberries, and Megan clapped her sticky hands.
"Jack, take your sister to wash her hands while I tidy up. Good boy."
Hand in hand, the siblings disappeared into the bathroom under the stairs, leaving Alan to tidy up the mess. He'd been a father for years now, but it still amazed him just how messy kids could be. It was like a hurricane blasted through the house each time they did anything .
It was easy to wipe down the table and place the dishes in the sink, but he was somewhat stumped when he noticed some banana smeared on the chair leg. He knew better than to question his kids' superpowers by now, and just wiped it away with a sigh.
"Daddy, I can help." A little voice chirped at his hip. "Here!"
Out of nowhere, he was presented with a bag of flour.
An empty bag.
No. No, no, no. He took a moment to brace himself for what he was about to find, eyes closed, counting to three in his head. Reluctantly, Alan looked down at his daughter.
Shit .
The girl looked exactly as he had feared - covered head to toe in flour. Two brilliant blue eyes and a bright little smile peered out amongst the dusting. He gingerly took the paper and tossed it atop the table.
"Right, sweetie, we need to get you cleaned up. Preferably before mommy wakes up." He grimaced as he tried to shake the girl's pajamas free of excess. At least her hair was already down and easy to ruffle. Briefly, he considered just turning her upside down and shaking her off. He was sure Ellie would have something to say about that.
"Come on, bath time. Jack, buddy, you can go watch some cartoons." He patted the boy atop his head, transferring some of the mess into his blonde hair.
Megan only giggled as he carried her up the stairs towards the main bathroom, leaving little white handprints all over his dark shirt.
Within a few short minutes one naked, considerably less messy child was seated in the bathtub, playing with a rubber duck as Alan tried in vain to wash her hair without adding more water to his already soaking t-shirt.
They're noisy, they're messy-
And yet, he loved them. Every inch of them.
"Alan. Why is our daughter covered in flour?" He heaved a sigh at the sound of her voice. Of course, she would find them before he had a chance to finish cleaning up.
"There was an incident."
"I can see that Dr Grant - care to elaborate?"
"We made pancakes!" Megan chimed in, moving so the cup of warm water completely missed her head. Alan grumbled and tried again.
"Did you, sweetheart?" Ellie cooed, coming to crouch down beside them. "And did daddy decide you were one of the ingredients?"
The little girl giggled as Ellie reached over to tickle her. Alan paused in his attempts at washing the child's hair so he could watch his girls together. His heart was threatening to burst free from his chest.
"She was trying to help put things away." He explained softly. "You can imagine what happened."
"Yes, I can. What a mess you've made, honey. At least Daddy is here to clean you up."
It seemed Ellie had no intentions of helping him. She kissed Megan on the top of her head, then granted him the same treatment and wandered back towards the door. "I'll be downstairs when you're done."
Disappointment settled low in his gut. He would have to wait until that evening to have his wicked way with his wife. He was a grown man - he could wait without complaint. He hoped he could, anyway.
"I miss the time when they couldn't walk."
"Is that so?"
"Yeah. Much easier to deal with." He poured another cup of water over Megan's head, washing out the last of the flour. "You put them down somewhere, and they won't have gotten far by the time you come back. Good times."
Silence settled over the room as he towel dried his daughter's hair, making silly faces at her each time he paused rubbing. It was so quiet that he figured Ellie had left the room altogether. Until he heard the sound of a drawer opening and closing again.
"You miss those times, you said?"
"Huh?" He wrapped Megan up in the towel and scooped her out of the bath. "You all right, El?"
Her tone had shifted, and he couldn't help feeling concerned. Had he said something wrong? She didn't look upset, but her gaze was focused on the object in her hand. It was offered to him with a smile, chasing away some of his fears.
"Good thing they're coming back around, then."
At first, he raised an eyebrow, glancing at the object before taking it. He wasn't sure what he was looking at - some kind of plastic stick? Then it clicked. "Oh."
Oh.