Boy Next Door

Quinn's First Snowfall

Shawn slowly made his way up the stairs to the bedroom where he, Camila and Quinn were staying. His dad had just picked up him and Aaliyah from the hospital. His sister was now in the living room with their parents who were helping her get comfortable on the couch while he tiptoed up the stairs to greet his still sleeping wife and daughter. He carefully pushed the bedroom door open and smiled when he saw Camila asleep on her side of the bed and Quinn in the middle of the mattress cuddled up to her. He quietly closed the door behind him and kicked his shoes off before turning around to see his daughter, now sitting up with her brown curls messily tousled.

"Daddy?" her high-pitched voice squeaked as she rubbed her hand over her eye.

"Hi honey," he whispered in reply as he got in bed with the two of them and kissed the top of her head. She curled up against his chest and mumbled something that sounded vaguely like 'I missed you' but wasn't quite there yet. He smiled to himself. She still wasn't old enough to say many things clearly but she could mumble things that sounded close to the words she intended and they still had the same effect on his heart. His fingers played with the little ringlets on the top of her head as Camila stirred awake next to him.

"You're back," she yawned. "How's Aaliyah?"

"She's okay. Still in pretty good spirits. She's downstairs in the living room. Mom and dad thought it would be easier to get her set up down there instead of trying to get her up and down the stairs over and over again."

"Makes sense. Were you able to get any sleep at the hospital?"

"Not a ton, but enough. I might need to take a little nap later today." He leaned over and gave his wife a good morning kiss. He let his lips linger for a bit longer than usual before feeling a tiny foot kick him in the torso, followed by a squeaky giggle from the little girl that was still between them. He pulled away from Camila and stared down at their daughter. "You know, if you weren't so damn cute I'd be really annoyed right now." He gave both of his girls another quick kiss on the cheek before all three of them got out of bed and got ready for the day.

"Something smells delicious," Camila sang out as she made her way down the stairs with Quinn in her arms. 

"It's Christmas Eve!" Karen replied from the kitchen. "We've got traditions to uphold."

"Cinnamon rolls are my favorite tradition," Shawn hummed happily as he walked into the kitchen. He dipped his finger in the icing to steal a taste, only to be swiftly smacked on the hand by his mother. "Ow! That hurt!"

"Aw, did the little boy hurt his hand? You poor thing," Aaliyah said sarcastically, both her arm and leg in a cast. Shawn rolled his eyes and licked off the icing that he managed to sneak before being scolded by his mom.

"Mo-nee!" Quinn excitedly squealed as Camila carried her into the kitchen. It was her way of saying 'good morning'. Karen laughed and quickly put down the spatula she had been using to spread the icing on the rolls and walked over to greet her granddaughter. While his mom was distracted by his daughter, Shawn snuck over to grab another dip of icing. Karen turned back around just as he licked the sticky sweetness off the tip of his finger.

"Oh my god...you're so impatient!"

"You're taking too long!" he said in defense. Karen put her hand on her hips and gave him a look before going back over to pick up her spatula and finish up breakfast. They all sat around the table to eat breakfast; a wide spread of delicious food that Karen had spent nearly all morning making. Aaliyah struggled a bit considering her broken arm but she managed to do fairly well. Shawn couldn't help but laugh at his little sister as she struggled to successfully poke a blueberry with her fork.