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"Shh, Firefly," Johnny whispers soothingly, bouncing our baby girl gently in his arms with his back to me. He hasn't noticed that I leaned against the doorframe of our still fairly new house in the suburbs, watching him cradle his mini me with that gentle smile reserved just for her. She already has him wrapped around her finger, and she's only six months old. It's still surprising to me that Johnny loves to flaunt her but also keeps her protected from the constant media and danger that comes from being related to a Storm.
She's so much like him; dark brown hair that has little curls like mine, his blue eyes- even his fiery temper, which taught us that she has Johnny's fire powers and absolutely no control over them. She's always getting into something and breaking the rules, and though I wish she would listen for five minutes, I wouldn't change anything.
"Please," Johnny whines. "I have to go back to bed so Mommy doesn't wake up."
I smile a little, slowly creeping up behind him. Skye sees me over her Daddy's shoulder, but it does nothing to stop her tears. I finally taser his sides, and he jumps, trying not to curse as he whips around to glare at my laughter.
"You little sneak," He murmurs, glaring at me as Skye giggles. "How long have you been standing there?"
"Long enough," I kiss Skye's forehead, smiling at her. "What happened?"
"Nightmare," He frowns at her worriedly, showing an adorable protective side that I love to see. "It's my fault; I was watching a bike show and didn't notice when she woke up."
"Johnny," I hiss angrily.
"It was an accident!" He says, quickly defensive.
We've talked about this a thousand times; sometimes the bike shows are violent and disturbing because of injuries, and the last thing Skye needs to see is something that scary. I hate not watching them as much as he does, but I read about them instead; He tries to watch them when she's taking a nap.
I sigh irritably, taking her from his arms and cradling her against my chest. "You go ahead and go back to sleep; I've got her."
He sighs wearily. "I'm really tired of you acting like everything's my fault."
Due to exhaustion or the stress of trying to be a good parent, I bristle. "Maybe you should start acting like a better parent." Johnny tenses, but I press on, on too much of a roll to notice. "You know those shows are too much for her! Why would you even try to watch them when she could wake up at any time!"
Skye whimpers, and I start bouncing her gently, pressing my lips to her temple.
"You miss them just as much as I do." He says coldly. "What's wrong with trying to enjoy myself?"
"I read them," I snap. "And if being a parent isn't enough for you, fine. We'll go." I turn and snag her diaper bag, shoving past him. It's warm enough to go without a jacket, so I slip on some flip flops and snag the keys, moving towards the front door.
"Kitten?" Johnny asks, a small shred of panic in his voice.
"Not now," I say coldly, slamming the door behind me. I rush towards the door and buckle Skye into her carseat, her eyes watching me sadly and making my chest ache, but I need time to calm down before I do something I'll regret.
"Kitten!" Johnny yells, and I shut the door and turn to see Johnny running outside, leaving the door open and not even bothering to put on shoes. "Baby, wait-"
I quickly rush into the car and shut the door, pressing the lock seconds before Johnny yanks on the door handle. I press the key into the ignition and back up, both thankful and heartbroken when he steps back and just watches me, his eyes never leaving my face. The sadness in his eyes guts me, especially when I blink tears down my face at how I managed to upset him, and I quickly pull away, driving around the neighboring block a few times.
The phone rings, and without looking I pick it up. "Hello?"
"Kitten, baby, I am so sorry." Johnny says instantly. "I swear I'll-"
I quickly hang up, feeling new tears in my eyes as I slowly turn down our street. When I turn the car off I see the door open, but he doesn't move as I step out and lift Skye out of her carseat and onto my hip, slowly making my way to where Johnny is waiting in the doorway.
I take a deep breath, stopping in front of him and not looking up at him. "I'm sorry," I whisper, feeling tears in my eyes. "It's my fault."
He wraps his arms around my back, carefully putting an arm around Skye as well, and gently tugs me against him, burying his face in my hair as his arms tighten a fraction. "It's my fault," He whispers. "You're right; I should be more careful around her."
"I didn't have to yell," I argue, trying to step back, but he doesn't let me.
"Then we both messed up." He says firmly.
"Let's just take it as a big mess up and start over. Ok?"
I sigh wearily. "Fine."
"That's my girl," He whispers, smiling as he kisses my forehead. "I love you, kitten."
"I love you too," I whisper, burying my face in his chest. We stand there for a long time, feeling our baby grip our shirts and my hair, and we just breathe.