Bobby sat on the balcony of his and Julie's apartment with Dax and Cindy. The twins were tucked into their stroller and he rocked it back and forth gently with his foot, school books resting in his lap.
He squinted in the sun, then pushed the books aside and leant forward to peer at his daughters.
"Hey guys," he said softly. He reached out to tuck them in again, before resting his chin on the edge of the pram and just watching his children, absently content.
"I know I haven't spent too much time with you guys, and I'm sorry about that... I guess I was just scared."
Bobby smiled sadly.
"I don't want to be a bad father, and I'm scared you'll think I am. I'm scared that I won't be good enough for you guys, that I'll let you down and you'll end up hating me."
He paused.
"Or you'll resent me, because you felt like you didn't come first or something. Because that's how I feel with my dad. And I know I'm not my dad, I know I'm different to him, but that's right now. What if later on, I turn into him?"
Bobby touched Dax's nose gently, eliciting a gurgle from his baby girl.
"I've never had to be the grown up, and now that I am, it's scary. And I know how selfish that sounds, like I want to be a kid forever and never take responsibility for anything but I'm trying, I really am. You guys depend on me... and that's new to me, no one has ever needed me the way you two do. And it terrifies me. What if I fail you?"
He took a deep breath.
"You know when you guys first came back, I couldn't look at you. I was so terrified of falling in love with you guys and then letting you down... so scared that I couldn't look at you for a week. Keep that on the downlow, your mom has no idea about my freak out."
Bobby turned around to make sure they were still alone and no one was listening.
"It's just that... for as long as I can remember, I've just been a screw up. And a joker. I've never taken anything too seriously... I never even took myself seriously. And I just don't want you guys to feel like that. I want the best for both of you, I want you guys to find who you are and just be that person, because I spent so much time hiding who I really was. I'm going to work so hard for you guys, so you can have anything you want, so you can do anything you want and so you can be whoever you're meant to be."
Bobby looked over the balcony at the horizon, the sun setting and turning the sky an assortment of colours, pink, red, yellow, all mixed into one, blending together like someone had spilled paint across the sky.
"There will be people who discriminate against you, people who call you names, people who try and hurt you, and I wish more than anything that I could change that. I don't want you to grow up the way I did, with the taunts and the insults just because you're special. But one thing you can count on is me and your mom. We won't turn our backs on you, no matter what happens. So never be afraid to come to us with anything, because it doesn't matter what you tell us, we're still gonna be here at the end of it."
He rubbed at his eyes absently, leaning back in his chair.
"But I love you both. And I won't let you down. I promise."
Bobby stood and took the twins back inside, careful not to disrupt them while they slept peacefully. He took them into the nursery and lifted them one by one, tucking them into their cribs, before sneaking out and heading back outside to gather his school work.
"Hey J?" he called, walking into the kitchen and opening the fridge door. "We're out of milk and bread, I'm gonna duck out and get some, you want me to bring back dinner?"
Julie
"Umm, yeah sure," Julie said agreeably.
She glanced up at the clock.
"Wow," she said. "Is it that time already?"
She looked ruefully at her computer.
Bobby
Bobby scratched his head and stretched, wandering into Julie's office.
"Yeah, was getting a bit peckish myself. Anything you want in particular, or should I surprise you?"
He leant over and kissed her head.
Julie
"Mmm... I love surprises," Julie said.
She turned her head to look up at him, and smiled.
"I love you."
Bobby
"I love you too, J."
Bobby saluted at her and then headed for the door.
"You realise that me surprising you will probably be something terribly unhealthy."
Julie
Julie giggled and followed him to the door.
"Yay," she said. "It'll be a change from all the healthy stuff I've been eating lately."
Bobby
Bobby chuckled and grabbed a jacket from the back of a chair as he passed it.
"K, I'll be back soon. If I'm still not back in 3 hours, assume I found a strip club and have hooked up with a stripper," he joked.
Julie
Julie giggled.
"Okay," she said. "I'll take that as my cue to hire that gigalo I've heard so much about lately."
She gave him a wink.
Bobby
Bobby laughed and opened the door.
"Have fun, J. I'll be back soon."
He left and headed for the car.
Julie
Julie closed the door behind him. She paused, considered for a moment, and then headed to the nusery to check up on the kids. Her entrance was greeted by B'Elanna and Tom, who were waking up even as she arrived. She took them out of their respective cribs and into the lounge room where their play things were - so not to distrub the other babies.
She disappeared into her office long enough to save what she was doing, and grab the notes she was working on for another computer game she was designing.
Bobby
Bobby got out of the car at the store and went in to buy milk and bread. After a few minutes, where he bought much more than that, he left and put the groceries into the car and headed for the Mexican take out place.
Some time later, he arrived back at the apartment with the food and the groceries.
"Hey J, I'm home."
Julie
Julie looked up and smiled.
"Hey," she said. "Oooh, Mexican. Yummmy. Hmm... either you bought a lot of milk and bread, or you got extra groceries."
Bobby
"I got like baby food and some fruit and vegetables and some junk food."
Bobby grinned and started unpacking the groceries.
"It'll save us having to keep dashing out when things are low."
Julie
Julie nodded.
"Sounds like a plan."
She put down her notebook, and cleared a spot on the coffee table.
"B'E and Tom love that box," she grinned, nodding at a cardboard box nearby that some of the merchandise that she and Annika ordered had come in.
Bobby
Bobby chuckled and opened the bag of Mexican food.
"I was thinking of taking Dax and Cindy out tomorrow," he said, bending to get plates from the cupboard.
Julie
Julie smiled.
"Okay, cool," she said. "Where were you going to go?"
She looked through the Mexican food to see what Bobby had ordered.
Bobby
"Maybe to the park or something," Bobby shrugged, pulling out an enchilada.
"Take them for a walk, a bit of a drive. Maybe to see old Hanky."
Julie
Julie nodded.
"Cool," she said. "Sounds like fun. Getting those father-daughter relationships developed early. Y'know, so that when they're older they can wrap their daddy around their little finger."
She winked at him and pulled out an enchilada as well and started munching away. She was definitely looking forward to when all the children were older.
Bobby
Bobby chuckled.
"I think they're getting pretty good at that already and they can't even speak."
He bit into his enchilada and chewed thoughtfully, and swallowed. He got up and went over to the fridge and pulled out drinks for them.
Julie
Julie grinned.
"Thanks," she said. "Speaking of which, did you get much studying done? Or were you too busy catering to their whims?"
Bobby
Bobby rubbed the back of his neck.
"A bit, I'd like to get in at least another hour before I go to bed tonight."
He paused.
"I just sounded remarkably like a student. The world is ending!"
Julie
Julie giggled.
"Yeah, for once you're actually studying and not copying someone else's homework, or getting someone else to do yours for you."
Bobby
Bobby grinned and ate some more of his enchilada.
"So, how's your work going?"
Julie
"Oh, marvellous," Julie beamed. "We've already made just as much profit as we did last month, and this month isn't even over yet. Annika seems to think that things are starting to settle down a bit though. But that's okay. The deal I have going with Cliff is great - he and Binar program so fast, I tell you, I'm envious. If they can finish this game, and another one I'm working on, then I think that'll be the time to start the whole subscription Annika and I have been talking about - y'know, a monthly fee that gets you access to play all the games online. I'm so excited."
Bobby
Bobby nodded.
"You know, you should set up a bigger office."
He chewed thoughtfully and then swallowed.
Julie
Julie finished eating her bite and shrugged.
"Well, it's only me and Annika here, and she has her own computer, so I think we're right for a while. Cliff and Binar are in Tulsa, so office space here is less of an issue. But you're right... with all the merc coming in and out, we should probably get more space."
Bobby
"Yeah, I just thought that would be better for you guys... I don't know. I'm hungry."
Bobby took a sip of his drink, and leant back in his chair.
"I'm gonna intern at an accounting practice, dad set it up for me, family friends. I gots the connections."
Julie
"Oooh, cool," Julie nodded.
She reached for her own drink, then paused while taking it to her lips.
"Your parents still under the delusion that you can stop being a mutant, huh?"
Bobby
"Pretty much."
Bobby laughed.
"They think if I get really involved in being 'normal', that I'll forget how to use my powers or they'll just go away or something."
Julie
Julie giggled.
"Ahh... denial. Gotta love it."
She sipped her drink, then put it back down and had another bite out of her enchilada.
Bobby
"So... we should probably send out wedding invites and everything, hey?"
Bobby finished his dinner and burped quietly.
"Mmmm."
Julie
"Yeah, that's probably an idea," Julie agreed. "Is your family coming? Have they opted to go for a plane rather than a teleporter?"
She winked at him mischeviously, attempting to ignore the old childhood desire to have her own mother at her wedding. Well, that would never happen now.
Bobby
"No, even though they're happy I'm marrying a human, they're not happy that I've invited mutants."
Bobby shrugged.
"You win some, you lose some. What about your parents?"
Julie
"You kidding? I haven't heard from them since they disowned me."
She took the last bite of her enchilada and swallowed.
"No, wait, I take that back. The last I heard from them was when they sent me half of my stuff - and no doubt threw away or sold the other half for their own fiendish desires."
Bobby
"I could go and freeze them, if you like."
Bobby rubbed her shoulder.
Julie
"As tempting as that idea is, it would only add to the world's small opinion of mutants," Julie replied, then grinned. "Besides, father-dear wrote me out of the Will, so it's not like I'd inherit anything."
Bobby
Bobby put his arms around Julie's neck and ate a bite of her food.
"Well... I think I'm in my parents will only if I give up on the mutant thing."
Julie
Julie giggled.
"Cheeky," she accused. "Hey, I wonder what they'll think if they find out their precious grandchildren are mutants?"
Bobby
Bobby made a face.
"They won't want to see them. I, was a freak of nature, having my powers manifest was something they could pretend didn't happen... the fact our kids are born with powers? Forget it."
Julie
Julie shook her head.
"Human parents. Who's needs 'em? Bunch of bigotted jerks," she said decisively.
Bobby
Bobby chuckled.
"It's human nature to reject what they don't understand," he said, shrugging. "I learned long ago to forgive my family for their shortcomings... they can't help but react the way they have, and who knows, maybe I would've done the same thing."
Julie
"Hmm..." Julie seemed to mull this over. "I think someone should pass a law demanding that everyone watch Star Trek, Dark Angel, Mutant X and all those other shows I watch which have granted me immunity to such ideas. Then they will understand that mutants are cool."
Bobby
Bobby scratched the back of his head.
"Well, I mean with guys like Magneto doing what he does, you can't always blame the way we're perceived."
Julie
"Well, true. It's always the minority which give the majority a bad name," Julie nodded. "The media doesn't help though - they like bad news better than good news, and they prefer to twist stories to their way of thinking."
Bobby
"That reminds me of a song..."
Bobby mused for a second.
"I have to go to the mansion later, to get another check up with Hanky."
Julie
"Okay," Julie nodded. "What song?"
She reached for her drink and took a sip.
Bobby
Bobby made a face.
"I don't remember. It just sounded kinda familiar."
He scrunched up the bag that had held the food.
Julie
"Oh okay," Julie replied.
She helped him pack up the leftovers and rubbish. Upon entry to the kitchen, Julie took out some ice cream for dessert, and the two enjoyed a quiet evening together, half a dozen children under 1 aside.