- New Found Glory, Kiss Me -

(A/N:
This is a punk/grungy cover of Kiss Me by Six Pence None the Richer.
The original is reallly sweet, but when Obstruction covers it, it needs to sound more like New Found Glory's version... maybe even tougher...)

- July 17th -

I was sat in Ethan's bed, sketchpad in hand sketching Ethan while he was playing his violin dressed only in his boxers.
Next to me were a few notebooks of ideas for song lyrics that Ethan had tried to find melodies for. At that moment though, he was deeply immersed in a classical piece.
The muscles of his underarm flexed with the bow and I was wondering if there was anything about him I didn't find beautiful. He caught me staring at him and smiled back at me.

"What's with the clever smile?" He asked.

"Do you know how beautiful you are?" I said before my brain had time to censor my mouth.

He lay down his violin and leaned over the sketchpad to kiss me when there was a knock on the door and Rose came in.

"I heard music and figured it was safe to enter," she smirked.

I was suddenly embarassingly aware of wearing Ethan's t-shirt and nothing else. I tugged it down and hoped her eagle eyes didn't look too closely towards the desk chair where my underwear had haphazardly landed some two hours earlier. My jeans were in a bundle on the floor and Ethan was in his boxers.
All evidence towards what we had been doing for most of the day.

"Mum!" Ethan whined.

"You are fourth in line to the Ryder throne, kiddo... trust me. I've seen it all before," Rose grinned.
The glint of mischief in her grey eyes was identical to her son's when he was in a silly mood.

I realised at that moment that Rose was quickly becoming one of my favourite people.

"Anyway... Dina is in labour and I've volunteered you to babysit Emma," Rose said and pointed to Ethan.

There was a moment before Ethan nodded with full enthusiasm.

"Awsome. Tell Dina we'll be there as soon as we..." he said and stopped before he could say 'get dressed' with a sudden blush.

"Contractions are not that urgent yet so I suggest you shower... Separately... before you go," Rose smirked before she left the room, closing the door behind her.

Ethan looked at me in embarrassment so I put my sketchpad in my bag and stood up in front of him. My arms lifted up and my hands combed through his hair, partly messing it up, partly getting it out of his eyes. I looked at the smile that had made these last weeks so much better than I had ever expected. My whole body felt alive at the thought of him and feeling his fingers stroke across my hip made me forget everything else.

"Okay... What showergel is yours?" I asked, tearing my mind from the well travelled dirt path it was on.

"Huh?" He asked.

I looked straight into those wonderful eyes that had my spine shivering.

"I don't wanna end up smelling like Mio," I grinned, fully aware that the man in front of me had more expensive taste than his brother.

Without warning he kissed me again and lifted me up, carrying me into the little bathroom between his and Mio's rooms. He quickly locked the door into Mio's room before turning back to me with a mischievous smirk.

"Oh... You're gonna smell like me," he growled into my ear as he walked us both into the shower and turned the water on.

We arrived at Dina and Chris' house some time later to find Dina calmly reading the newspaper, sitting at the breakfast bar. Chris came down the stairs carrying a bag just as Dina's face knit tight and she clutched the counter while breathing in huffs. He ran over to her rubbing her back in circles while mumbling calmly into her ear.

The connection between them was obvious as the contraction eased and she twisted up to give her husband a quick kiss.

"Don't let Hollywood fool you. It's not floods of water and sudden screaming. It sneaks up on you and attacks," Dina told me with an ironic smile.

"So how long between?" Ethan asked, surprising me with knowledge of birth processes.

"About eight minutes apart," Dina said calmly.

"Which means we should be going," Chris said.

Dina nodded and stood from the stool just as another rush of pain racked her body.

"Make that five minutes," she hissed.

"Right... we're going!" Chris said and kneeled in front of her to slip shoes on her feet.

"You know where everything is. Bedtime at seven. Please don't fill her up on sugar," Dina said as she was escorted out of the door.

The rest of the afternoon was spent with Emma. I loved how Ethan, without hesitation lay down on his front on the floor and begun playing with barbie dolls. He was making them walk and made up different voices for them, to Emma's delight.

He had brought his violin and was spending a lot of the afternoon patiently teaching Emma a basic little lullaby that she could play to the new baby.

"How do you even know what to teach her without the sheet music?" I asked.

"It's a basic Grieg. Not a complicated symphony," he shrugged.

Emma, however was lapping up the attention he was giving her and while I dedicated myself to cooking, I heard how her little fingers gradually managed to sqeak a melody from her mini-version of a violin. Occasionally I would hear Ethan whoop and cheer as she mastered a pure note. Somehow he never sounded impatient, and when her confidence failed, he managed to get her to try just one more time.

I was loading some spaghetti and meatballs onto the table when Ethan came into the kitchen with Emma on his shoulders.

"Was that you playing, Emma?" I asked.

"Yes. It was a lullaby for the baby," she nodded.

"That was so good I almost thought you had the radio on!" I smiled.

"It was me!" she cheereed as Ethan sat her in her seat.

"Wow. I guess that means you get dessert after dinner!" I said.

"Ice cream?" She asked.

"If we can find any, yes!" I said remembering Dina's parting words about sugar.

As we sat down to eat, I found myself studying Emma more closely.
I might as well admit it... I was wondering what a potential mix of Ethan and me would look like.
Her eyes were the same grey as Ethan and Dina's, but instead of the hypnotic brown in Ethan's eyes, she had the same blue as Chris embedded in the grey.
I met Ethan's eyes and was caught in the little smile on his face.

"Emma, you have such beautiful eyes," I said, turning back to the four year old.

"Selma calls them lazer eyes. I think it's more a case of diamonds," Ethan said and bopped a finger at Emma's nose.

She giggled.

"No silly! I have x-ray eyes. I can look through things and see what is hidden," Emma declared.

"Oh yeah?" I asked.

"What do you see?" Ethan asked.

"I see that Izzy is gonna watch TV with me!" Emma giggled.

"Okay... but only if you eat your dinner," I replied.

Emma and I ended up watching 'Beauty and the Beast' while Ethan did the dishes. He came into the TV area with two bowls of icecream for us.

"Aren't you gonna have some?" Emma asked.

"I'll have some of Izzy's," he said and sat next to me.

There were giggles from Emma as I fed Ethan with my spoon from my bowl.

"Izzy is feeding you. You are Izzy's baby," she laughed.

The mischief in Ethan's eyes was mesmerising. He leaned in and kissed me with his mouth still full of icecream. And of course I kissed him back.

"You are so silly," Emma giggled and crawled into my lap, where she stayed for the rest of the film, demonstrating that she didn't want to be left out.

Bathtime was another experience. It was complete news to me that a bathtub could be emptied through vigorous splashing alone. I watched the wide smile on Ethan's face as Emma went absolutely silly in the bath. Everything was soaked by the time she was finished, including Ethan. His shirt was stuck to him and his hair was hanging in wet strings.
I had managed to stay mostly out of it by the door, and held out the dry towel to them as Ethan lifted his niece out of the little water that remained in the actual tub. I dried the little girl while Ethan took his shirt off and went to borrow a dry one. I tried to not look at him but once an addict always an addict and my mouth curved into a small smile at the sight of bare skin.

Once Emma was in bed, Ethan and I were sat on the floor throwing lego and barbies into boxes. I suddenly became aware that he had stopped and sat up to look at him.
He was studying me carefully, looking on the verge of a blush. His grey eyes were pale but with the swirls bearing a green tint that usually meant he was having an inner debate.

"I know we're not that serious yet, but seeing Emma with you kinda got me thinking," he said.

I tilted my head slightly and threw another handful into the lego box.

"Me too," I admitted.

His face lit up.

"I mean. I can't see my future without kids. Just not for a few years," I said with a shrug.

The sudden crooked smile had my insides playing pinball.

"How many?" He asked, the swirls in his eyes larger and more golden.

"Two is probably more than enough work," I said thinking back to our busy afternoon.

The house was no longer as tidy as when we arrived and I knew the bathroom needed wiping down after the very energetic bath.

Ethan's face scrunced up as he crawled on all fours closer to me and stood up on his knees in front of me. I lifted myself into a similar position facing him. We were almost touching, but not quite.

"We'll figure it out," he said and put his arms around my waist.

The soft smile had me turning to mush again.

"You're gonna destroy me with those smiles of yours," I whispered and reached up a finger to trace his lips.

He lay his forehead on mine.

"I know we've been having lots and lots and lots of sex lately..." he said with a halfway naughty smile and his eyes holding mine captive.

"Lots and lots of earthshattering sex..." I agreed with a smile to match his.

"But we're more than that, Izzy. I love you so much. And I just want you to know that I want my future to be with you," he whispered.

"I love you too," I murmured back with my heart jumping around in a little dance.

"We just need to promise to tell each other what we're thinking so we don't mess up again. Cos I'm so scared of losing you again," he muttered.

"I can promise that," I nodded.

"I promise too," he said as he leaned in for a kiss.

"I really don't want to mess things up again," I smiled and tilted my face up to meet him.

Again, there was peace on earth. All my jigsaw puzzle pieces fell into place and everything in my life was perfect. It amazed me how his lips on mine could have such an effect on me. I gave a contented sigh into his kiss and felt him smile back. We had become completely addicted in such a short time it almost scared me. I felt my heartbeat, heavy and light at the same time. My head felt light and dizzy and drunk. With a smile, I thought about all the times I had sat in the band room, looking at him and wishing for a kiss just like this. The wishes were nowhere near reality. Every time we kissed it was a brand new experience. My fingers traced his cheeks and hair, just like I had dreamed of and again I had to remind myself that this was real. He pulled me just that fraction closer to him before we separated with matching silly smiles. My hands were still on his face, thumbs tracing the cheekbones. Fingertips feeling the roughness where hadn't shaved.

"So? Kids before we're 30?" He asked.

"Yup," I grinned.

"Because this... right here... is what I want, Izzy," he said and swiped his hand out to indicate the chaos of toys.

I looked around sceptically.

"And music?" I asked.

"We'll see where this contract takes us. But I've been thinking that if it's a dead end I might get a teaching degree and teach music instead," Ethan shrugged.

"Good plan. You'd be good at that. And... much more fun than economics," I agreed.

"Economics was a boring mistake," he said with distaste.

"It was a good mistake. It put us together," I grinned.

"That's true," he smiled back.

"Everything happens for a reason. I found you," I said.

"I've never been like this before," Ethan mumbled into my neck.

"Like what? All constantly horny?" I asked.
He drew back with a laugh.

"Well.. that too... but I meant that constant need to touch you," he chuckled.

"I'm right there with you," I said and ran my hands up along his arms before I stood up.

"I'll go wipe down the bathroom," I said and left him to tidy the legos. I had to laugh at the pout on his face, but figured if we split the jobs between us, there would be more time to cuddle up and watch a movie later.

"So, what's Dina and Chris's story?" I asked once we were settled in the sofa and the house was tidy. We had found 'The Blues Brothers' and were occasionally singing along with the movie, but mostly just cuddling.

"Oh... That's actually quite funny. Chris was Sean's best friend. Probably still is. And as they got to the end of their teens, Chris started staying over more often. He was in the house all the time. Mum and Dad were sure Sean was gay and that he had a thing going on with Chris, but decided to not make a big deal about it. Untill one morning, Mum went to wake Dina up and found Chris in her bed. Both naked, caught in the act so to speak," Ethan chuckled.

"That's what your mum meant when she said she's seen it all?" I asked and felt him nod as he laughed.

"Turned out they had been together for almost a year without Mum and Dad even knowing about it," Ethan giggled.

"A whole year?" I asked.

"Sean and Dina are so close in age. They have always just hung out with the same group of friends. So Dina hanging out with Sean's friends wasn't that new," Ethan shrugged.

"But Sean?" I asked.

"Oh... Sean was the enabler. They had been crushing on each other for years and Sean had enough of being in the middle, so he had basically put them in the same room and said 'now kiss dammit!' He covered for them and snuck Chris into Dina's room after dark," Ethan grinned.

"Awsome brother! But they obviously love each other very much," I said.

"Yeah. I don't think they ever even looked at anybody else. They had Emma while studying and got married the weekend after he got his engineering degree. Sean was Chris' best man," Ethan explained with a chuckle.

"And Dina is a nurse, right?" I asked.

"Yep. Chris did everything in his power to make sure she could complete her degree while Emma was a baby," he nodded.

"Like Sarah and Mark," I said a bit more quietly, thinking how Simon had grown up with both his parents.

"Yep," Ethan nodded thoughtfully.

We were quiet for a little while.

"You know... I don't understand your dad. If it was me I'd move heaven and earth to be with my kid," Ethan said quietly.

"I had a good childhood with my mum," I replied.

"I know... It's just that I see what my brother goes through and I wish I could help him," Ethan muttered.

"Mio knock someone up?" I asked.

"God no! Please don't give me nightmares!" Ethan laughed before going all serious.

"No. Sean. He was with one of Dina's friends around the time he went to university. She went to a different town to study and returned three years later with a little boy. Dina is convinced it is Sean's son, but the girl won't talk to Sean," Ethan said seriously.

"Why?" I asked.

"Heaven knows," Ethan shrugged.

"So what is Sean doing about it?" I asked.

"I don't know much about it. I mean... she pretty much broke his heart when she left and Sean never really got over her. He's trying to get her to talk to him, but she won't," Ethan said.

"There must be a reason tho?" I mused.

"There is. Something happened the summer before university, and she just cut contact. But Sean won't talk about it," he said.

I rested back on his arm around me and secretly prayed we'd never get to the point where we weren't talking. We'd been there and I did not want to go back to that. Ethan tightened his grip on me too and I had the sense that the same kind of thoughts were on his mind too.

I twisted my face up to look at him and caught him already looking at me.

"I wish Simon had brought you to that silly audition all those years ago," he whispered.

"No you don't. I was a dork," I replied.

"And I was the music geek with braces who hung out with a guy called Oddball and played Dungeons and Dragons. We only started the band because we got bored with fighting for the dungeon master job," he grinned.

"I fucking knew it!" I laughed.

"What?" Ethan asked.

"The first day, Simon was taking me into the band room... I was kinda hoping you'd be all nerdy so I wouldn't be such a misfit. I was imagining you playing D&D during breaks," I giggled.

"Good to know I met your expectations," he chuckled back.

"Did I meet yours?" I asked.

"Simon had described a tomboy. And then a goddess walked in," Ethan grinned.

"No... Seriously!" I scoffed.

"Honest truth! You had me from the first time you walked into the band room. I made some stupid excuse to talk to you. And touch you," he mumbled into my hair.

"The F-chord? Really?" I teased.

"Yeah. Your F-chord was perfect... And then there was that first gig. You took care of me despite your own nerves," he smiled.

"You were pitiful," I said, trying to process what he just said.

"I was hopelessly falling," he murmured into me.

I twisted into the cuddle so I could look at him with that gorgeous smile on his lips.

He just bent down to kiss me before I could say anything.

The movie was almost over when the house phone rang in the kitchen. Ethan got up and picked up.
There was a 'congratulations ' and a happy sound to his voice.

"That was Chris. They have a boy named Adam. Dina lost some blood so Chris is staying overnight with them so she won't be alone," Ethan smiled happily.

"Congratulations, Uncle," I replied.

"They want us to be godparents, so I guess that's a 'congratulations' back at ya, Auntie," Ethan grinned.

"I'm not Auntie!" I laughed.

"Emma said you were her Auntie Izzy when I tucked her in," he grinned.

"I guess that makes us official," I said.

"According to the contract, we're not, but I'd say we're pretty solid," Ethan nodded.

"That's Obstruction's contract... not ours. We just have to separate our job and personal lives," I replied.

"That's gonna be tricky," he smiled.

I nodded and wondered how this would happen and hoping it wouldn't change anything between us.