24 Floors.

5 Months Later.

"Jack, I swear to God if you don't stop fucking around with those damn baby shoes I'll dye your hair in your sleep." Alex growled from behind the cart, not even needing to look up from his shopping list to know his(new) husband was holding five pairs of baby shoes on his ten fingers. This happened every time we went down the baby aisle at the store, which, in recent weeks had been quite often. Alex promised this was the last time for awhile, he just wanted to get a few last minute things before we locked ourselves in the house to finish cleaning and child-proofing.

No one had really heard much from All Time Low since the incident with my mom. Jack and I had made a video a few weeks after my mom was sentenced to a three month term in prison basically letting the fans know everything was okay and that Jack had full custody of me now until next August, when I turned 18 and everything would need to be renegotiated. That, and the fact that it was about time for the guys to start making a new album, let us go radio silent minus the occasional studio posts and drunken Jack tweets. No one outside of our friends and families knew the main reason we were avoiding drawing attention to ourselves. We weren't allowed to make the announcement public until everything was official for confidentiality purposes, and we didn't want anyone connecting the dots until we were ready to break the news. It wouldn't be long, now, anyways. My new sibling would be born in a matter of days, and I couldn't wait to see Alex and Jack's names on the birth certificate.

About a month ago, not long after they got home from their honeymoon - they figured since they had time, why not get married? - the couple came to a decision on my suggestion. They looked into adopting again and the same woman who helped them before had them matched to a healthy, 8 months pregnant woman. We didn't know anything about her or her background, but Alex was so ecstatic that neither Jack nor I could bear to burst his bubble. Honestly, we were willing to take anything we could get, as long as Alex was happy with it. We didn't know the gender, but that didn't stop Alex in recruiting Zack to paint Julia's old room half pink and half blue. Even though the room had never been occupied, everyone came to the mutual decision to redecorate the entire room, in theme with our "fresh start." However, the main accented piece of the new baby's room was a thick black frame on the wall holding the prints of the lost child.

"You wouldn't dare. Besides, Jayden would stop you, right?" He looked at me expectantly, wiggling his shoe fingers.

"I would, but I stopped going into your room while you guys were in there last month." That had been a sight I never needed to see again. For some reason, I didn't think Jack would be a bottom. Or into BDSM.

He scoffed and rolled his eyes. "You should probably get used to this anyways, babe. I mean, our house is full of them."

"You never do this at the house, though." Alex grumbled, still not looking over as he picked up a few jars of baby food, throwing them in the cart on top of the box of diapers. The kid hadn't even been inside our house yet and I could already go the rest of my life without seeing another diaper. "Anyways, I think we're done here. Let's check out and go home."

Jack was pulling off the last pair of baby shoes, complaining how Alex never let him have fun - and Alex responding childishly with "that's not what you said last night" - when our names were called from the end of the aisle. Jack and I recognized the two calling us instantly despite only seeing them once before, but Alex's eyes blew wide with panic.

"Oh my god, what are we going to tell them? Fuck, we're so fucked. Maybe we can pay them off to stay quiet for the next week?" He started rambling as they approached us. It was clear to all of us they were fans, but Jack and I breathed a sigh of reliefs that it was these two. Maybe our judges of character were skewed, but I think we could trust them to keep our secret for at least the next week.

Jack opened his arms and walked toward them with a bright smile. "It's so good to see you guys again! I thought you lived north of here, though!" He pulled them into a hug.

"Jack, what the hell are you talking about? You know them?" Alex crossed his arms, calming down considerably, but still skeptical. I decided to pull him away from his anxiety.

"Yeah, we met them on tour. The tall one is Hailey, and the short one is Hannah...holy shit, you're pregnant?!" As Jack pulled away from them, Hannah drew her arms around her bulging abdomen.

She blushed and looked at her stomach adoringly. "Yeah, I'm a little more than seven months along. We actually found out the night after we met you guys. And to answer your question, we live in Baltimore, but we travel a lot for concerts." Though her shy demeanor hadn't changed much, her voice was stronger, more confident. Hailey appeared to be just as she was six months ago.

"How old are you guys?" Jack questioned. I was thinking the same thing myself. I had thought they were around my age, but seeing as there was no way they could be pregnant without outside help, this had to have been planned. There was no way teenagers would plan this, let alone parents would let them.

"I'm 23, Hans is 21. We're young, maybe, but we've both always wanted kids and we've got the money to support them." Hailey shrugged before looking at me for the first time. Her lazy smile grew. "Jay, you look great! That lipstick is totally your color."

This had been one of my first times going out in public wearing makeup. I had been trying it out around the house and I was starting to be confident enough in my skills to wear it while we ran errands. No one I knew besides Jack and Alex had seen me in it yet; not even Rian or Zack. I knew they would be cool with it, but I still hadn't found the right way to break it to them. "Thanks."

She bit her lip before responding. "Although, I don't know that blue eyeshadow is the best choice..." My face fell, and she was quick to continue before Jack and Alex attacked. "Don't feel bad about it! Blue isn't anyone's color, I swear. Here, come with me. We'll be right back. And you two," She pointed at my guardians. "I want to know why you have a cart full of baby stuff when I come back." Grabbing my wrist, she dragged me away from the other three and into the next aisle, where the makeup was. She looked among the products. "What kind of stuff do you have already?"

"Just, like...the basics, I guess. Lipstick, eye shadow, eye liner, and mascara." I was too nervous to venture into the world of foundations and blushes just yet. I didn't want to look orange or unnatural, and I knew I would if I chose the wrong thing.

Hailey eyed me carefully. "You want to change that?" I nodded eagerly, and she grinned and went to work.

Our hands were full by the time we returned to the baby aisle, the three others eyes going wide as they took in our loot. We dumped it in the cart, and I looked at Alex warily. "She wouldn't let me walk away without all of this."

He shook his head, amused. "I'm not saying anything. I'm just ready to see you trying to figure out how all of this works."

I shot Jack a look of pain. "Please tell me another one of your roleplay things involved makeup."

My dad held his hands up and backed away. "You're on your own, kid."

Hailey just laughed. "You'll be fine, Jayden. I gave you my number, you can just call if you need help. And I mean, there's also Youtube at your disposal. But, back to the important question," she turned to the guys. "Which one of you is expecting?"

Jack and Alex cocked their heads in confusion while I rolled my eyes, letting out a soft chuckle. "This isn't an m-preg fanfic, Hail."

The boys' confusion turned into shock, and the rest of us lost it. "We're adopting." Jack said, trying to calm us down.

Hannah's laughs were the first ones to die off, mostly because her baby moved and she had to rush off to the bathroom. Hailey and I chilled out not long after, but leftover smirks still rested between our cheeks. "So, my favorite band is adding a new addition to the family?" She clarified. When we all nodded, she rushed to hug all of us. "Oh my gosh, I can't wait until everyone finds out! That's insane! Do you know if it's a boy or girl yet? When are they due? Wait, are you guys even married? Will you get married?"

"Whoa, whoa, calm down." Alex smiled as she pulled him in close. "No one can know about this yet, so I think we should talk about this somewhere else, somewhere more private." He sighed, looking at Jack and I. "You trust them, right?"

"I don't think they'll tell anyone anything." Jack nodded, and I agreed.

"Okay. Maybe you could come to our house for dinner? I'm attempting to teach Jack to cook, so I can't guarantee how quality the meal will be, or that you won't die from it, but we can talk about this there, where there's not other fans lurking around the aisles."

Hailey's face glowed bright and she nodded immediately. "Is that even a question? This has been my dream for like, ten years! Hannah's only been into you for about five years, but she loves you just as much and no matter how bad the food, at this point in her pregnancy, she wouldn't turn down free food."

By the end of the evening, I could tell Alex absolutely loved both girls. They talked about everything that had happened since the last tour, starting with more details about what happened with me and my mom - which, due to her crazy hormone levels, had Hannah in tears and insisting on a group hug - and continuing with the marriage and briefly touching on the subject of Julia so they could understand why the boys seemingly out of the blue decided to adopt a baby. "This is so exciting!" Hannah squealed, grabbing Hailey's hand. "We'll have a baby, our favorite band will have a baby, we'll have new music from said favorite band..."

I casted a sideways glance at Jack and Alex. "Maybe the two babies will make good friends."

The girls jaws dropped. "Are...are you being serious?" Hailey asked.

My guardians looked between each other in a debate, before Jack gave in with a shrug, leaving the decision to Alex. He glared at me briefly, giving me a "way to go" face, before smiling at the girls. "Yeah, he's serious. You guys are nice enough and I'm sure it will be nice for both of them to have a friend. Do you know if you're having a boy or girl yet?"

Hailey looked down and smiled, trying to hide her excitement while Hannah answered. "Yeah, we're having a boy."

"Have you thought of names yet?" I piped up again.

Hannah was suddenly just as interested in the dining room table as her girlfriend, this time from embarrassment. "We've been going between a few, but we have it narrowed down to two, I think." We looked at them expectantly, and she sighed before answering. "Don't laugh. We're thinking of either Zachary or Michael."

"Why would we lau-...ah." Jack trailed off as he saw the Pierce the Veil bracelet Hannah twiddled with on her arm. They didn't laugh, opting to go silent instead, which was probably just as bad for the girls.

I couldn't help rolling my eyes at them before I started damage control. "There's no reason to be embarrassed about that. My middle name is Zachary, and I think my birth mom was the ultimate All Time Low fan. Trust me, you can't get creepier than her." I shivered at the thought.

"Exactly." Jack thawed out. "Sorry, we were just surprised. There really is no reason to be embarrassed. I'm sure both guys would be totally honored to know you're naming their kid after them. Don't mind us, we're just as stupid in real life as you believe we are." Alex didn't say anything, but he nodded along.

"R-Right." Hailey stuttered. "What about you guys? Got any names picked?"

Now Alex was the one to speak up, smiling proudly. "We don't know the sex of the baby yet, but if it's a girl, Justice. If it's a boy, Abel. I chose them, and Jack and Jay loved them." He gushed. Jack and I exchanged a glance. We both were kind of hoping for a girl, but if we got a boy, we were going to try to renegotiate the name with Alex. We hadn't said anything because we didn't want to rock the boat if we didn't have to, but the name didn't sit well with either of us, for whatever reason. When we talked to Rian about it, he was quick to express that his opinion differed with ours and telling him now would be much better than bringing it up just before he signed the birth certificate. But by now, we had already procrastinated it to almost that point, so what was the harm in waiting an extra few days?

For a while, the topic focused on our upcoming children. The girls gave us what they considered to be "womanly advice" and offered to babysit while we went on tour. We showed them the room and they showed us the pictures they had posted on Facebook of their newly finished room, as well.

"Jayden," Hannah whispered after some time as to not distract everyone from their conversation. "Can you show me to the bathroom?"

"Yeah, of course." We got up and I led her upstairs to the master bathroom. I had my own, but you had to go through my room to get there, and anyways, Jack and Alex's was much nicer. Jack and I might have been slobs, but Alex was kind of a neat freak and kept Jack in line.

"Thanks." She gave me a wave before disappearing behind the bathroom door bringing my attention to her arm.

How had I forgotten?

I had planned on going back down and letting her find her way back to us, but now I waited for her. I had to check. I had to ask.

Hannah seemed to be just as surprised as I was that I waited for her. "What's up?" She crossed her arms over her stomach.

"How are you doing, Hannah?" I asked slowly.

"Um, fine, I think? Why?" She watched me cautiously, curiously.

"I um, just, the last time I saw you, you weren't doing so great..." I didn't know how to say it without blurting it out, so I gestured to her arms instead.

"Oh, that." She looked me in the eyes. "I haven't...hurt myself...in about a month. Hailey has been great at helping me, and I don't want our child to see fresh marks and think it's okay to do it to themselves. I'm trying to stop for them. It's hard, and right now every day is a challenge, but I know this guy is worth it." She looked at her abdomen adoringly, cradling it gently.

I pulled her into a hug. "I'm really, really glad to hear that, Hannah. You know me and Jack and Alex will all help you out, too. You can call us any time, now, and you know where we live, so it shouldn't be too hard to get ahold of us. Besides, I think we'll be seeing a lot more of each other, if I have anything to say about it."

She squeezed me back. "Thanks, Jayden. I appreciate it." She pulled away a little, expression serious. "And you?" I raised my eyebrow. "You don't have to pretend. It takes one to know one. I saw the way you were fidgeting with your rubber band while we ate."

I bit my lip. "I'm alright. You're doing better than me right now, but Jack enrolled me in gender therapy and I think it's helping a bit. It's just comforting, you know? I don't want to stop, really. And I only use the rubber band, so it's not like it leaves scars. I mean, I'm sure I'll stop eventually, but not yet."

She nodded, obviously displeased but unsure of what she could do. "Okay. Just know that the same courtesy is extended to you. If you need anything, I'm just a phone call away."

"Oh my fucking god, are you serious?" A shout echoed around the house, Alex's voice in a panic. "Okay, okay, we'll be right there! Yeah, of course we have a name! We'll let you know once we get there!" And only a second later: "Jayden! While you're up there, grab the baby bag! It's time to go to the hospital! Fuck, we have to call the guys and our parents and oh my gosh, should we tweet something?" Alex's words bled together so quickly that I could barely make out his words. You would think he was the one in labor.

Hannah and I exchanged wide-eyed glances before I rushed to the baby's room and Hannah waddled down the stairs as fast as she could. "So she's in labor?" I asked ask I reached the bottom of the stairs.

"No, she came in on an ambulance and delivered almost right away. A baby girl, Jack! We have a baby girl!" He grabbed his husband's biceps and kissed him. Tears of happiness ran down his face and he was too excited to even take the time to wipe them away. "Hannah, Hailey, it was nice having you guys over, but we gotta go."

They were throwing on their coats as fast as possible, trying not to slow us down. "We understand. Good luck guys! You're going to be great parents, and Jayden will be a great sibling."

We jumped in Jack's car, who insisted on driving because Alex was too distracted to do so. I sat in the back next to the child seat we had only installed yesterday. Oh my god, I was about to become a big sibling. These were my last few minutes of being an only child. It was a bittersweet moment; looking between Alex and Jack, I couldn't help but share their excitement for a new body in the house, a new human to love. However, maybe I was a little too old to think like this, but the thought still occurred to me that this baby would take over our lives. I had only just gotten a good relationship with my father less than a year ago, and I didn't want to lose it to some child that would have their whole life with him. They wouldn't lose the first 16 years - they wouldn't lose the important childhood bonding and the memories created there.

I was quiet as we rushed to the maternity ward of the hospital. The nurse sat us down and told us she would make sure everything was ready for us before leading us back. Alex took the time to run to the bathroom; we all knew the second he got that baby in his arms he wouldn't let go until he was forced to.

Jack and I took seats in the slightly larger than average plastic waiting room chairs. "You ready for this?" Jack asked me. He looked like a nervous father in every way at that moment.

"I don't know, are you?" I avoided the question. I thought I was ready, but now that this was facing me head on, I realized that no, I was actually the farthest from ready.

He laughed nervously. "I think so, but I guess I'm really worried."

"About what?"

"Well, for one, Alex. If anything goes wrong, it's going to crush him. I don't think it will though, and if it does, we'll take it as it comes. I know both of us are willing to do whatever it takes to keep her healthy. Also, I'm worried about you; or, more specifically, us. I don't want you to think I'm going to drop you for this baby. I mean, yeah, I'm gonna spend a lot of time with her, especially at first, but you're still my kid, too. I still love you just as much and I still want to be with you every step of the way. It'll just take some work, at first."

I leaned against him, and he wrapped me in a hug. "We really are a lot alike. I've been stressing about that the entire trip here. I didn't actually think about this until then."

I felt him smile against the back of my head. "Just promise me that you'll come to me when you're upset, still. Even if I'm the one doing the upsetting, I need to know so I can try to change it, alright?"

I mimicked his actions as I saw Alex come out of the bathroom and the same nurse we talked to earlier appear. "Got it."

"Barakat?" The nurse called just as Alex reached us. After a lot of thinking and discussion, Alex decided to legally change his last name to Barakat, but publicly, he would still go by Gaskarth.

Jack and I stood up. He kept an arm around me, and the other one went to Alex's hand. "You ready to meet Justice, loves?" Jack asked. I blushed at his pet name and elbowed him in the side, which he ignored. My dad was so embarrassing sometimes.

Alex, however, just grinned back. "Let's go meet Justice, loves."