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[16] So, She's Our Daughter Now?

I woke up the next morning with my head on my own pillow. I sat up a bit, and looked around the room. Bruce lay net to me, sleeping peacefully. I smiled and went to stand up, but couldn't. I moved the covers over, and saw Bruce's arm around my waist. I tried to pry his hand from my waist, but every time I tried, he would whimper or whine. In a sense, it was kind of cute. I finally gave up, lay back down, and snuggled back under the covers. I placed my head on Bruce's chest again, and his hand moved up to my back. I started feeling sleepy again, but I couldn't fall asleep again. I fought against my sleepiness, and I tried to get up once again.

"Bruce, come on. Let go..." I whispered. He mumbled something in his sleep, and I finally pried his hand from my body. I stood up, and Bruce started to mumble in his state of sleep. It got to the point where the sounds were almost echoing through the halls. I quickly walked to Bruce's side of the bed, sat down on the edge of the bed, and started running my fingers through his hair, much like you would do to a young child. I bent down and kissed his forehead, and he stopped with the noises. In fact, his eyes opened slowly. He smiled up at me, and he lifted his left hand up to my face.

"Morning beautiful." He whispered, making me smile.

"Good morning to you, too." I said softly. Bruce sleepily smiled at me before lightly gripping my arm with his right hand and pulling me on top of him. I giggled and put my head on his chest. I put my hands on his shoulders, and he wrapped his arms around my waist.

"Get used to this. I want to wake up every morning, just like this." He whispered before kissing the top of my head. I smiled and closed my eyes again. I felt Bruce run his fingers through m hair, and I sighed happily.

"You sleepy again?" He asked. 

"Only a little. What time is it?" I mumbled.

"Um, six thirty A.M. Go back to sleep if you're tired." Bruce said. I decided to take him up on that offer, and I felt my breathing obtain a slower pace. I could feel Bruce's hand rub my back, and I slowly drifted off to sleep once again.

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When I woke up again, I was alone in bed. I sat up a bit, stretched, and yawned. I rubbed my eyes and checked the time.

"Ten fifteen? Why would he let me sleep that late?" I wondered aloud.

"Because you were tired." Bruce's voice said as he entered the room. I rolled my eyes and brought myself into an Indian style way of sitting. He sat next to me, and I smiled at him. 

"Marie was all worried that you weren't going to play with her today. But, Tony took her mind off of it and said that they'd go for a walk." He said. Tony is so sweet to her. It amazes me, it really does. But, then again, we've all grown in the past week or so. 

"It's only been a week, hasn't it? All that stuff that happened to us? One week?" I mumbled. Bruce looked over at me and nodded.

"It's hard to believe, I know. But, we've made it this far." He said with a smile. I grinned back, kissed his cheek, and looked out the window. The view was so pretty, the way the sun shone off of the buildings made it look peaceful.

"Come on, time to get up." Bruce said, standing and gently gripping my arm to pull me up.

"I don't wanna." I whined teasingly. Bruce chuckled and pulled me up and out of bed with surprising strength. 

"Get out so I can shower and change." I said sweetly. He kissed my cheek and left the room silently. 

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When I stepped out of the bedroom about an hour later, I felt something latch onto my legs. I looked down and saw a laughing Marie hugging my legs.

"Run mommy! The monsters are coming!" She giggled. Sure enough, when I turned around, Tony and Bruce rounded the corner.

"Save me mommy!" She laughed. I bent down, picked her up, and laughed.

"Give us the kid Cynthia. Or we'll be forced to get you as well." Tony said in a joking tone.

"Well, when you put it like that, have fun catching us boys." I smirked, and took off down the hall. Marie laughed as I ran, and she kept a look out over my shoulder.

"They're coming mommy! They're right behind us!" She cried. Something triggered in my brain, an old dream. I was like my mother, holding a precious child as I ran from 'monsters'. I shook the idea from my head and tuned in on Marie's laughter, something my mother didn't have that night.

"Mommy, throw me onto the couch." Marie said as Bruce and Tony came closer.

"Why?" I asked her.

"Because..." She said. I just shook my head, went over to the couch, and set her down. Marie pulled me down next to her, and she hid her face in my lap. She was shaking with laughter as we hid from the boys, and so was I. Marie looked up at me, and I realized how pretty her eyes were. She had bright green emerald eyes that shone with happiness. I smiled and inched us down further as I heard footsteps echo in the hall.

"You go find your girlfriend, I'll go find the princess." Tony said. Huh, that won't be much trouble, considering the girlfriend and the princess are currently hiding on a goddamn couch. I closed my eyes for a second, and Marie squealed. My eyes shot open and I saw Marie in Tony's clutches. They were both laughing, and Tony ran away with her in his arms.

"Mommy! Run!" She laughed and squealed. I was about to jump up, but Bruce put his hands on the couch, on both sides of me. I couldn't help myself anymore. I started laughing, and I could hear Marie squealing.

"Uncle Tony! Stop tickling me!" she cried in laughter. Bruce chuckled and hovered over me.

"Some protector you are. Tony's tickling the life out of her right now."

"So I hear. She kept calling me mommy."

"She's called me daddy all day today."

"So, she's our daughter now?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"I think we're ready for that kind of responsibility now." He replied, shifting a little, which allowed me to sit up a bit more.

"Already? Maybe you're right." I said, thinking back to my mother. Was I really ready for this? I had no parents to ask for help. Neither did Bruce. I didn't want to hurt her, and I didn't want her to hate me.

"Cynthia? Look at me. It's going to be alright. I promise." Bruce whispered. I looked up at him, and he hugged me tightly.

"Come on, we have to save our new daughter."