You Are Loved, Baby.

"Oh, you're so cute. You're such a cute little boy!" I cooed as I dressed Blaik hours later after his bath. He smiled up at me, slobber dribbling down his chin. I wiped it away with my sleeve as I pulled him up into my arms. "Is someone hungry? Hm? Does someone want a bottle?" I grinned and carted him down to the kitchen.

I pulled a bottle of breast milk from the fridge and popped it in the microwave, then I went and put Blaik in his little high chair. He looked around curiously with his big brown eyes. His cheeks were rosy and round with slight dimples when ever he smiled. I absolutely adored him.

His dark hair fell in ringlets around his ears and he had a habit of tangling his own fingers in it while he slept. He had a bit of baby 'chunk' that left his arms and legs plump and round.

That morning we had sat on the floor as he played with random little toys. He kicked his feet and flexed his fingers, tangling them once more in his thick hair. After Blaik drank his bottle I put him down for a nap in his crib. I grabbed the receiving end of the baby monitor and wandered back down the stairs. I set the white monitor on the end table and flipped the t.v on. I flipped right to the local news and hoped for some news of the guys. Unfortunately after a half an hour not one word was said about Avenged Sevenfold or the up and coming marriage.

I must have fallen sleep because the next thing I knew the house phone was ringing loudly and the baby was crying. I glanced at the clock above the t.v and cursed under my breath. I raced into the kitchen and plucked the phone from the charger, "Hello?" I questioned.

"Mommy? Where are you?" my son questioned quickly, anxiously.

"Sorry, babes. I fell asleep. I'll be there in a minute," I told him, rushing up the stairs and into Blaik's room. I scooped the baby up into my arms and cradled the phone between my shoulder and ear as the baby cried in my arms.

"Uhh, Mommy. Don't worry about coming to get me..." Bronx trailed off, distractedly.

"What?" I asked, "Why the hell not?" I stopped moving, waiting for his reply. But he was silent, distracted. I heard him talking to someone in the background. My nervous rose goosebumps on my arms.

"Bronx!" I shouted, attempting to get his attention.

"What, Mommy?" he asked, not really listening.

I could hear my heartbeat in my ears. "Bronx, what is going on?"

"Nothing, Mommy." The phone clicked off and I was stunned silent by all the thoughts running through my head. He'd never hung up on me before - never done anything like this - and I could imagine someone luring him away.

"Damn it," I cursed, tossing the phone onto the rocking chair and bouncing the baby in my arms, desperate for him to quiet down. "I'm sorry, baby boy," I whispered, carrying him down the stairs quickly. I pulled my shoes on, grabbed my keys and hurried out the door. I strapped Blaik in quickly and hurried to the high school. When I got there I noticed Juliann standing around outside, awaiting my arrival.

When he saw me he rolled his eyes and hopped into the car. "Way to be super late, Nissa," he growled, slamming the door shut.

"Yeah, yeah. Lets go get Bronx, he's acting weird," I answered, not in the mood to put up with my younger brother. I drove out of the high school fast and pushed the speed limit as far as I could.

Juliann seemed to catch onto my urgency. "What do you mean Bronx is acting weird?" he asked, putting his feet up on the dashboard as his eyes met mine.

The thought of my son let me overlook Jules's feet on my car, but Juliann shifted anyway. "He called from school and told me not to come get him..." I trailed off, not able to come up with a good reason for why he would tell me that.

Juliann furrowed his eyebrows, frowning. "I have no idea, but there's no way I'm staying in the car."

I glared at the kid but ignored his comments. When we pulled up to the school I got out of the car, hoping he would do as I told him. "Stay here with the baby," I demanded, watching as he started to climb out anyway.

"Not going to happen," he answered.

"Juliann, this is not the time for you to act like this," I responded, "Please, just do what you're told for once."

Juliann shook his head. "Nope."

I sighed, giving in, and went to get the baby from his car seat. He was wide awake and babbling. I cradled him against my shoulder and began to hurry to the front door of the school. I entered the building with Juliann right behind me. When I neared Bronx's classroom I heard his voice and then the voices of others. I started to slow down as I neared the corner before his class. I recognized the sounds instantly.

"This can't be happening," I said, heart-pounding, eyes wide. I turned to my brother and shuffled my youngest son into his arms. "Juliann, just this once, do as you're told. Take Blaik and go back to the car."

He frowned, trying to peer around the corner, but blocked by Blaik's little body. "What, why?"

"Just do it," I answered, trying to turn him back towards the car, "Please."

Juliann shook his head, "Nissa just tell me what's going on," he demanded, taking a step towards the end of the hall again.

I reached out and grabbed onto his t'shirt. "Go to the car, Junior."

"No, tell me what's going on."

I sighed and stared at him, hoping he'd understand that I needed him to do this for me. His brown eyes searched stared at me, waiting for me to explain, and he frowned at the look on my face. "Nissa..." he murmured, "What's wrong?"

My knees quivered, my hands shook. Every beat of my heart felt like a timer, counting down the seconds until my new world would explode. My mind drew blank, my thoughts became scrambled, and half thought out. I bit my lip on instinct and even contemplated walking away right then -
Juliann asked me again.

I shook my head, biting down harder on my lip until I could taste the salty, copper-smelling blood as my tongue ran over the gash. I shook as I spoke, answering Junior's question and confirming my worst fear, "Brian's here..."