Crossroads

I danced around the nursery holding Raven and Rook on each shoulder while I sang to my iPod which was playing in the corner.

Burn baby burn
She’s a witch, She’s a witch and I’m a heretic
So, learn baby, learn
She’s a witch, she’s a witch and I’m a heretic so learn
Oh Abigail how could you do this to us?
You were a product of lust
And now the rope on my neck stopped all the blood to my head
So now Salem please save me!

“Are you seriously singing a song that has the words ‘burn baby burn’ while you hold your children?” Joanna asked as she walked into the nursery.

“They don’t seem to mind.” I replied.

“Yeah well they’re 6 weeks old. They smile at everything!” Joanna laughed as she took Rook from me, cradling him against her chest.

We had been in Vegas since a week after the twins had been born. Matt was on tour again so I had Rook all by myself. Max was a big help even if Rook wasn’t his he took care of him just as well as he did Raven. However Max and I were looking for a place in LA so that Matt could see Rook more often.

Joanna was two weeks away from her due date and at the moment she was staying at Max and I’s place. She and Craig had gotten into a huge fight the night after we’d all gotten back when he’d left her to go get drunk and stoned with his friend TJ who was the newest bassist for Escape The Fate.
Recently Max and the other guys had come to the conclusion that their musical tastes had gone two different ways. Max had decided to leave the band and was working on making a new one at the moment. However it was slow going what with the babies here.

I had met TJ in the past and he was a pretty cool guy. The only problem was that he and Craig were bad influences on one another. TJ was heavily into partying seeing as he didn’t have a kid or a girl and was a master at sweet talking Craig into coming out with him.
Craig had come over a few times to check on Joanna and Harper but had yet to succeed in bringing her home. I didn’t blame her. Stress wasn’t something that you wanted to deal with when you were that pregnant.

Until she decided to head home she was sleeping in Max and I’s room. Since the twins woke up early I was bunking in their room on a twin bed while Max had the couch. Joanna had tried to talk us into letting her sleep on the couch but we had refused.

“Ew. I think that Rook needs a change.” Joanna said wrinkling her nose.

She walked over and laid Rook on the changing table and began to undo his onesie. She changed his diaper and we carried them to the living room where Max was messing with his guitar.

I sat Raven in her swing while Joanna put Rook in his. We started them up and sat back on the couch.

“How’s the music coming baby?” I asked looking at my husband.

Oh did I mention that? Before we’d left LA we had made a trip to the court house and gotten married. It wasn’t the wedding I’d always dreamed up when I was a little girl but it was just as nice. I wore a simple white dress and Max wore black button down shirt and all of our friends had been there. We decided we’d have a bigger one after the twins were bigger.

“It’s coming. I can’t concentrate though.” He replied.

“Why not?” I asked.

“I’d rather be with you and the twins than doing this.” he said motioning to his guitar.

“Hey be happy. I’d kill to be able to play again. Sadly my spawn won’t allow me to.” Joanna sighed.

“Don’t worry Harper will be here and you’ll be able to hold your guitar again.” I smiled.

“Yeah I know. However I want to know what we’re doing about dinner. I’m fucking hungry and so is the kid.” Joanna replied.

“Pizza sound good to anyone else?” Max asked.

“Baby says…yes.” Joanna replied.

“Awesome. I’ll go call it in.” Max said and pulled out his phone.

While he ordered the Pizzas I grabbed the remote and turned on the TV, linking up to Netflix. Scrolling through the shows I finally settled on Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers The Movie.

“Again?” Joanna asked looking at me.

“Of course! How could you get any better?” I asked.

Joanna opened her mouth but thought better of it and settled into to watch the show. However halfway through the show she grimaced.

“I think Harper wants to be a Power Ranger. She’s using my spleen for a punching bag. For the sake of my internal organs can we watch something else?” she asked.

I laughed, “Sure. How does Transformers sound?” I asked scrolling through the movies.

“Much better than Power Rangers. If this kid can turn into a giant robot then she can damage my organs all she wants.” Joanna laughed.

Soon the pizza arrived and we dug in. Three movies later the coffee table was littered with the remains of two large pizzas with sausage and pepperoni and a half dozen empty soda cans.

“Babe you wanna help me put the twins down? It’s getting late.” I replied.

“Sure thing.” Max said.

I grabbed Rook and he grabbed Raven leaving Joanna in charge of the remote. Max got the bath ready while I undressed them. Once they water was ready I handed Rook to Max who he washed then handed back to me wrapped in a hooded towel while taking Raven.

An hour later both twins were clean and I was sitting on the floor feeding the both of them, a bottle in each hand and Max played something soft on his guitar.

“Hey guys…I’m going to turn in early. That pizza wasn’t such a good idea. I have heartburn. I’m burping up flavors I don’t remember eating.” Joanna said making a face.

“Okay. Night hon.” I said and she headed to bed.

After the twins had eaten Max and I put them in their cribs and headed to bed. I changed into a pair of short shorts and my favorite Slipknot t-shirt before crawling under the covers. Soon I fell into a light sleep.

About 2 in the morning I woke to Rook crying softly. Getting up I picked him up out of his crib before carrying him out of the nursery, clipping the baby monitor to my pants so I could hear if Raven started in which she would soon.

“It’s okay little man. Mommy is making you a bottle.” I soothed as I walked into the kitchen and retrieved a bottle of milk from the fridge popping it in the microwave.

I had opted to pump milk instead because it made it easier to feed two babies at once. When the milk was heated I tested it on my wrist quickly and deemed it okay before popping the top in his mouth.
He began to hungrily drink and I danced around the kitchen humming ‘Northern Downpour’ by Panic! At The Disco to him softly. The sound of footsteps approached the kitchen and a moment later Max poked his head in.

“Need any help babe?” he asked.

“Nah…I got this one. But can you take this so you know when Raven wakes up?” I asked poking my hip out so he could get the monitor.

“Sure thing.” he said and grabbed it before heading back to the living room.

With both of us home all the time we had gotten into a routine. When one of us had one baby the other had it’s twin. Our doctor commended us on the good job we were doing.

After a few moments I realized that I had forgotten a burp cloth. Walking out of the kitchen I passed Max who was holding a fussing Raven in one arm. I made my way into the nursery only to find that we were out of fresh burp cloths.

“Max? Do we have anymore burp cloths?” I asked poking my head into the kitchen.

“I think Joanna got bored and decided to fold some clothes this afternoon. Pretty sure that the basket is still in the bedroom.” he replied.

“Thanks babe. I’ll grab you one too.” I said and headed to the bedroom.

As quietly as I could I opened the door and found the basket. Sitting on top were the burp cloths. I grabbed two and began to tip toe across the room when Joanna sat up.

“What’s going on?” she yawned looking at me.

“Oh we ran out of burp cloths and Max told me there were some in here.” I replied holding up the small towels.

“Gotcha and…wait…what the hell?”

“What?” I asked.

Joanna reached over and flipped on the light before tossing back the covers. A large wet circle stained the bed.

“I swear to god I did NOT pee all over your bed.” Joanna said looking at me with wide eyes.

“Well if you did it’s not the end of the world. I did it a lot while pregnant. We have a rubber liner just for that purpose. Let me burp Rook and I’ll help you change the sheets out. You go change into some dry clothes.” I said and headed to the kitchen.

“What’s going on?” Max asked.

“Long story.” I replied and put Rook up to my shoulder and patted him until he let out a little burp.

“I have to go help Joanna with something. Can you finish feeding Rook too? We can put them in their
bouncy chairs and you can two hand it.” I said.

“Sure.” Max said.

We settled the babies and I headed to the bedroom, grabbing fresh sheets from the closet on the way.

“Alright let’s-” but I stopped as I saw Joanna grasping the footboard of the bed, her knuckles white.

“Oh my god are you okay?” I asked walking over.

She shook her head and held up a hand. A moment later her face relaxed and she took a deep breath.

“Lucy…I think I’m in labor.” she said.

“Are you sure?”

She nodded, “Yeah. I-shit!” she hissed and leaned over, holding her stomach.

“Those are coming fast. C’mon we’d better get you changed. MAX!” I yelled.

“What?” he yelled from the living room.

“When you finish feeding the twins can you kindly call Craig and tell him that his wife is in labor?” I
asked.

“WHAT?!” Max yelled.

“Yeah her water broke and she’s having pretty bad contractions!” I replied and helped Joanna to the
bed.

I found her a pair of loose shorts and a shirt, handing them to her before hurrying to check in with Max.

“Did you get a hold of Craig?” I asked.

“Yeah he’s going to meet us at the hosptial.” he replied.

“Alright. Do you think Robert and Jessica will take the twins?” I asked.

“Probably.” Max nodded.

“Okay call them. I’m going to check on Joanna.” I replied.

Joanna was dressed when I walked into the room. I threw on a pair of jeans over my shorts and helped her put on shoes before stuffing my feet into a pair of flats. After grabbing her bag I helped Joanna to her feet and we headed out.

By the time we got to the living room Robert and his girlfriend Jessica had arrived.

“Okay there are bottles in the fridge but they just ate so they’ll probably go back to sleep soon. Their schedule is taped to the fridge. Fresh diapers are under the changing table and you both have our cell numbers. Oh and you’re both amazing friends.” I said as I helped Joanna sit down for a moment.

“Don’t even worry about it dude. We love the little monsters.” Robert smiled.

“Still thank you both.” I replied.

“How are you doing Joanna?” Jessica asked leaning over the back of the couch.

“As well as a woman about to shove a kid out of her crotch can feel.” Joanna grimaced.

“Alright kid lets get you to the car. Maxy come help me.” Robert said and together they hauled Joanna off the couch and towards the door.

I kissed both babies goodbye and thanked Jessica again before following them. Soon we were on our way.

“Ow! Fuck!” Joanna groaned as the contractions got stronger.

“You’ll be fine. When you get to the hospital you get to have all the drugs you want.” I said leaning forward from the backseat.

“Thank god!” Joanna said.

I laughed and grabbed her hand as another contraction hit.

“Ow. If you damage my hands beyond repair you can explain to our fans why we don’t have a bass player anymore.” I said.

“Oh shut up!” Joanna growled and squeezed her eyes shut as another contraction wrapped her body.

The contractions were coming fast but Max was faster and before I realized it we were pulling up to the hospital.

***Joanna's POV***
I gripped the railings of the terribly uncomfortable hospital bed as another contraction hit. I don’t understand how women could do this more than once. If I lived through this (not that I thought I’d actually die) I would not plan to do this again. I was hooked up to monitors and all the beeping was driving me insane. All I could think about was the beautiful feeling I would hopefully be experiencing soon with an IV from an epidural drug.

I’ve been in labor for 3 and a half hours now and my husband still hadn’t showed up. However Caleb had called saying he and Rob were on their way. Lucy and Max were troopers. They listened to and dismissed all the insults and screaming that flew out of my mouth. Finally the nurse came in.

“Okay Mrs. Mabbitt, let’s see how dilated you are.” she said as she walked to the foot of the bed. The last time she came in, I was a mere 4 centimeters.

I sat back and let her check. Normally this would have made me uncomfortable, but with everything going on, I couldn’t give a shit less.

“Oh my, 9 centimeters. You’re progressing extremely quickly. You can start pushing soon.” She smiled.

“Great.” I sighed, “When can I get an epidural?”

She frowned slightly, “Well with how fast your progressing, I don’t think the doctor would want you to get the epidural.”

My eyes grew wide and I immediately grew enraged. “Are you fuckin kidding me woman?!” I yelled.

“Joanna…” Lucy started as she approached me with her hand out.

“NO!” I exclaimed causing her to jump back. “I want to stop being in pain!”

The nurse gave me a sympathetic look, “Mrs. Mabbitt, I am sorry but the doctor wouldn’t advise it.”

I groaned and flung my head back as another contraction hit. I began to scream again. “WHERE THE
FUCK IS MY HUSBAND?!”

Lucy began to pull out her phone and head for the hall, “I’ll check.” I let out another groan before the contraction passed.

I looked over at Max who looked sympathetic. “You have no idea how easy you have it Green.”

He let out a small chuckle and walked over placing a hand on my shoulder giving a gentle squeeze, “I know Jo, and I’m sorry for that.”

I yawned and stretched slightly before resting my hands on my stomach, “I’m so tired.”

Lucy walked back in and cocked her head to the side, “Maybe you should try taking a nap.”

I nodded, “Craig answer?”

She looked down at the floor before shaking her head, “Nope. I’m hoping that means he’s on the way though.”

I sighed before rolling onto my side, “I’m gunna try to nap. He better be here when I wake up.” I said before dozing off.

I woke up sometime later when I heard someone speaking harshly. I rolled over with a yawn to see Lucy on her phone. “No TJ that’s bullshit!” she said.

“What’s going on?” I asked groggily.

She spun around with a startled expression and hung up the phone. “Nothing Jo. Everything’s fine.”

I raised an eyebrow at her, “You’re a terrible liar. What’s going on?”

She looked down at the floor. “No one knows where Craig is.”

I sighed and rolled my eyes and was about to start yelling when the nurse came back in. I looked over at the time and saw that it had been two hours since she was last here.

I rolled onto my back and let her do what she had to do. “Well Mrs. Mabbitt, you’re at 10.” She smiled.

“Thank god.” I sighed.

Lucy squealed, “Come on Harper!”

“I’ll go get the doctor and let her know its time.” She said before leaving the room.

I sat up slightly just as another contraction began to hit. I gripped the bar again and bit my lip trying to stifle a scream. Thankfully it worked, and a few moments later the doctor came in with two nurses with smiles on their faces. I wish I could smile, but at the same time I just wished those bastards would feel the pain I felt.

“So, you feel like pushing yet?” the doctor asked. I nodded in response.

After a painful forty minutes, painful for Lucy’s hand as well, Harper Sage Mabbitt let out her first of many cries and I was finally a mother. She was a healthy baby at 7 pounds 4 ounces and 18 inches long. She was an absolute angel and the moment she opened her eyes I couldn’t help but cry. She was the most beautiful thing to enter my world.

After a while the nurses took her away for a ‘brief’ time and my brothers came waltzing in with the cheesiest grin on their faces and a bouquet of flowers along with a teddy bear holding a balloon that
read ‘It’s a girl!’.

“Where’s my niece?!” Caleb exclaimed.

I let out a giggle and hugged him, “They took her to get cleaned up and checked out.”

He dramatically sighed as he stepped away so Rob could hug me. Rob handed me the bear and seemed a little uneasy. I took note of it and was about to ask until I felt pressure on my bladder.

“Oy, I gotta piss.” I announced. Lucy walked over with a laugh and helped me up and over to the bathroom. My legs felt like rubber, and this was by far the worse piss of my life. It hurt like hell and it reminded me further that I never wanted to give birth again. Finally done handling my business, I washed my hands so they could smell like a disgusting hospital too, and headed back to the room. The moment I stepped out into the room, I wanted to run back in.

“Craig?” I asked in disbelief. Then finally a strong, disgusting scent hit my nose, and I grew extremely
angry.

“Where’s Harper?” he slurred.

“Before I answer that, how about you answer a question for me. WHERE THE FUCK HAVE YOU BEEN?!” I screamed.

“Calm your fucking tits woman. Where’s my daughter?” he said waving a hand.

I walked up to him and, as if it were a reflex, slapped him across the face. “Get out.” I demanded.

“Whoa, that wasn’t really cool.” I heard to my left. I looked over and saw TJ, eyes red and glossy.

“GET OUT TJ!” I yelled.

Finally a nurse ran in frantically. “What’s going on in here?”

“I want him removed.” I said pointing at TJ. The nurse kindly removed him and I felt Caleb and Rob on either side of me, ready for whatever was about to happen.

“Where the fuck were you Craig? You should have been here! This wasn’t some band practice, this wasn’t some family gathering you could have bailed on, this was the birth of our daughter!” I exclaimed.

He just stared at me. I felt a tear stream down my cheek. “What happened to my husband, Craig? What happened to the man I married, because this, this is not the man I married. I don’t know who this is.”

He never replied. He began to space out, and I saw his face grow pale, his eyes began to look droopy, and I knew what was coming next. I moved, as quickly as my post-birth giving body would allow me to, and grabbed the garbage can beside Max and gave it to him. As soon as he grabbed it he began to vomit into it.

After a short moment, he finished and Max, Caleb and Rob dragged him out of the room. I let out a shaky sigh as I walked back over to the bed and sat down, holding my head in my hands. I began to cry and I felt Lucy sit beside me as she began to rub my back soothingly.

“How am I supposed to raise Harper with a father like that?” I asked in between sobs.

“It will get better hon, I’m sure Craig is just going through something. He’ll snap out of it.” she reassured me.

“I don’t know Lucy, I think it’s over. I can’t have Harper exposed to that shit. I refuse to let that happen.” I replied.

A moment later I heard footsteps enter the room and looked up expecting to see my brothers and Max, instead I saw Zacky and Matt. I felt my expression change and I figured it mirrored their shocked one. Lucy got up and walked over to Matt and gave him a hug. She looked over at me when they pulled away and motioned at Zacky who was still looking at me. She took Matt by the arm and led him out of the room mumbling something about Rook.

I held my arms out to Zacky, who didn’t even hesitate to walk over and pulled me into a hug. He held me tight and I began to sob harder than before. After I was able to collect myself a bit, he pulled away but still held onto me.

“What happened Joanna?” he asked.

I wiped a tear away before answering, “I think it’s over between Craig and I. He’s all fucked up and he wasn’t here when Harper was born. He was too busy drinking; I can’t raise Harper around that. I refuse to.”

He pulled me in for another hug and I gladly accepted it. “Don’t worry Jo, we’re all here for you. We’ll help you raise her, you know we’re one big family.”

I nodded into his shoulder, “Thank you Zee, I know you guys are there for me. You always have from day one. Even though we’ve had rough patches, I know you’re always there for me.”

He pulled away again and gave me a small smile. He quickly kissed my forehead which, I could not for life of me explain why, made me blush a little. Just as he was about to say something there was a knock at the door.

“Come in!” I called.

A nurse then walked in with Harper and a smile grew across my face.

She handed her to me and smiled at Zacky, “Well its nice the father showed up, you guys will make great parents.” She said before leaving the room.

I was so shocked by what she said that I couldn’t even correct her. Zacky let out a small laugh. I looked over at him and saw he was looking down at Harper. I smiled at him.

“Would you like to hold her?” I asked.

He nodded and held his hands out. I handed her to him and he held her like he held babies his whole life, it was effortless. He didn’t take her in an awkward fashion, which made me smile more.

“Zee? Would you want to be her god father?” I asked.

I saw the question took him by surprise, but he answered the question nonetheless, “Of course I would.”

I smiled at him and looked down at Harper, “She’s got the best family anyone could ever wish for.”