And Then There Was You (Chris Evans AU)

June (4 Years Later)

  A typical summer, Florida afternoon storm comes rolling through. The skies change from bright shining sun to dismal grey clouds as a roll of thunder sounds, rattling the house. 

  "Juni Girl!" I call out from the back porch, watching as she pokes her head out of the window of her playhouse. "You and Dodger come inside now."

  "But, daddy!" she pouts and whines.  I shake my  head back at her, giving her the look.  "No buts Juniper Loralei Evans! Get that tooshie in this house before the sky falls."

  Her eyes become concerned, her head turning up towards the darkening sky as she walks through the door of her house. "The sky not fall, daddy. Rain fall, not sky." 

I chuckle as I clap my hands together to grab the dog's attention. "Let's go, bubba." He uses his nose to nudge against my daughter's hip, trying to get her to move closer to the house. "It's gonna rain cats and dogs and you two are gonna be a mess!"

  My child's inquisitive brain doesn't stop running rampant as she begins to ask Dodger about whether or not he'd like to have a waterfall of cars or dogs pour over his head. I lean my shoulder against the sliding glass door watching the exchange, holding a smile across my lips as I think about the precious moments I've had with my girl since the day she was born. 

  I think to those days in the NICU, wondering, praying for the day that she'd be able to breathe on her own, or take a bottle by herself. To that first night spent at home when I was too terrified to leave her alone in her crib that I rocked her all night long, holding her snuggled against my chest. Her first birthday when more cake ended up her nose than in her mouth as she gave the family a single tooth grin.  Or her first steps that she took, her little legs leading her over to where I'd had our lei's from Hawaii framed for our first anniversary.  The first time she whispered out the word 'mama' while I showed her photos as I worked on her baby book. 

  I'm so lost in my thoughts that I miss the fact that the sky has opened up and drenched both Juniper and Dodger, not noticing it until the squeals of her childlike laughter and his howling brings me back to the present. "Get up here!" I call out to the two.  

  Juniper slips and falls, landing on her bottom. I half expect to hear her cry as I start to move towards her, only to stop when her face turns up to the sky and she laughs again. Her smile matching that of her mother's when she'd be watching a football game. She cackles at me, waving me over as I step off the back porch, the rain immediately drenching me.

  "I a mess!" 

  "You certainly are,  Juni Girl." I scoop her up into my arms and listen to her laugh at the sky as we make our way back into the house. "Dodgie, stay!" she yells at the dog as he tries to come in behind us. 

  "Ya gotta stay out here and dry off, bud." I slide the door closed, setting my girl back on her feet. "But for you, little miss, bath time."

  Her eyes open wider in excitement. "Bubbles?"

  I give a nod, "Bubbles."

  "Stowy?"

  "After bath, Juni Girl. Let's go, chop, chop!" Her little legs carry her down the hall, past her room and into the bathroom. 

   "All done!" she waves her hands in front of me as I zip up her sleeper.  "Stowy now?"

  I give her a sweet grin as I take in the tiny features of her face. "Story now. Go climb in the bed."  She takes off running, bypassing her room, heading straight for my own. "Wrong bed, Juniper!" She shakes her head no, giggling as she wiggles her way under my covers. "You're lucky I love you." I climb in next to her, remaining on top of the covers. "Which story do you want tonight?"

  "My favewit," she smiles, snuggling up against my arm. I sigh, remembering the day when Daphne would tell me that 'it felt like home' to be in my arms.

  "Again?" I ask, teasingly.

  "Again!"

  I take a deep breath and release a long sigh. "It's my favorite too, ya know. Let's see. How does it begin?"

  "An accident. The pawamedic met the teacha."

  I act as though I remember now. "That's right! There once was a woman named Daphne. She was on her way to work one day when she was in a terrible accident."

  "But her pince save her."

  I smile at the memory of that day. "A paramedic came up on the scene, on his trusty ambulance steed," she giggles at the imagery. "And he helped save her life. They didn't know at the time how much their lives would change. But do you know, there paths would eventually cross again?"

  "At school."  

  "You're right. They met again at school and recognized one another strictly by her last name and his voice.  The medic asked the teacher out to dinner that night, but-"

  "She say no."

  I nod. "She said no. But, he took her to breakfast the next day. Do you know that they were inseparable after that?" She shook her head. "They were. He would take her on dates and she introduced him to her family. They even went on a trip together to the mountains and that's when he knew that she was going to be his wife one day."

  "The wing?"

  "The ring came a little later, around Christmas. She said yes and they began planning their lives together."

  "Build a kingdom?"

  "They built a kingdom together and were married." I pause, my voice beginning to catch in my throat.

  Juniper turns to look at me, placing her small hand on my cheek, the bristles of my beard tickling her palm. "Why sad, daddy?"

  "Not sad, baby girl. So, they were married and wanted to build a family together and have a princess of their own."

  Her little eyes watch me as they become heavier, rarely does she last to this point of the story. "What happen?" her sweet voice asks.

  "Well," Daphne's voice comes from the doorway of our bedroom, "And then there was you."

~The End~