• A Hundred Directions •

[Caleb Sebastien Turner]

Caleb understood where Ayden was coming from when she was feeling like there was no escape from this life they had together now. He loved Ayden dearly and the twins had his wrapped around their teeny tiny fingers but sometimes he wondered what life would be like if none of that had happened. If he and Ayden only stayed friends and roommates and nothing more became of them. They would still be in that apartment, hanging out and watching movies while throwing popcorn at each other. He’d probably have a girlfriend he met at work and Ayden would have some boyfriend she’d met in class, whom she bonded with over their mutual love of music. When those thoughts got too far away from him, Caleb shook his head and looked at what surrounded him; what he did have in his life. He had two beautiful, healthy babies at home, probably sleeping or laughing at the faces their uncle Max made them. And he had a stunning wife by his side. He loved that they hadn’t changed even though they now had kids and wedding bands. They were still sarcastic, snarky and teased each other constantly. If that had stopped, Cal didn’t know what they would be like.

She also wasn’t the only one to complain about being asked how ‘married life’ was like. He was asked in a teasing manner more than once and usually by the group at Gotham how his life was. And honestly, he couldn’t answer with anything less than an ‘it’s going great’ and how much he loved Ayden and the twins. He loved spending time with his family, going for walks on the days when he didn’t have work at Gotham or at the fashion house. Weekend days were his own to do as he pleased and it was then that he got to spend the most time with his family.

Cal grinned knowing she wouldn’t get out of the car for anything less than a bed in a private cabin. “Of course your highness,” he said, teasingly as he leaned over for a quick but heated kiss just a little taste of what was to come for the weekend ahead. He tossed her wallet back to her though before unbuckling his seatbelt. “Contrary to popular belief, I do have cash on me,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Maybe I should ask for your phone instead. Don’t call Max,” he warned, grinning as he got out of the car and shut the door behind him. Inside he gave his name and was rewarded with the order ready and waiting. He handed over the proper bills before taking the bag and exiting the restaurant. He slid into his seat before handing over the bag to Ayden and buckling up again. “What did Max have to say?” he asked, knowing Ayden called anyway as if he hadn’t said a word about not calling. Starting the car again, Cal pulled out on the street and continued through, turning down the proper street for the awaiting cabin. Five minutes later, he was pulling down the tree line dirt road to the little cabin by the lake. “We’re here,” he said, cutting the engine.

Tags || Little Fire!
Words || 534
Clothes || Vacation, baby!
Music || Hell on the Heart -- Eric Church
Notes || <3 <3 <3

[Ayden Karissa Turner]

Ayden had been the typical picture of a new mom since the birth of the twins. She walked around in sweats and tank tops, pulled her hair out from the babies' screaming, and carried a diaper bag the size of New York wherever she went. Her makeup hadn't been touched since graduation, and the clothes Cal slaved over had been packed away since the about the same time; she wasn't the giddy college kid anymore. It was strange, even for her, to be cooking and cleaning and playing housewife, but she sort of liked it. She wouldn't be content forever without doing something else on the side, but it was kind of nice to have a simple life for just a little while. Especially after the months leading up to the end of her college life, this break was needed; the bonus one with Cal was icing on the cake.

She kissed him back, pulling away before things could get too heated in front of the takeout place. "Save it for later," she laughed, pecking his lips and letting him get out of the car. Ayden rolled her eyes at the phone comment, waiting for him to get through the glass doors before hitting the speed-dial for their brownstone. She sighed with relief as Max picked up, already prepared with an update for the worrisome mommy. She took a deep breath and asked a few more questions, scolded him for threatening to bring the kids to a club, and hung up, being forced to promise not to call again until tomorrow morning, at least. Ayden quickly tucked her phone away again as Cal appeared and dumped the takeout bag in her lap. "The twins're fine; Cass fell asleep right after we left, but Adrian was still up and crying for food," she said with a laugh. "I could hear him screaming in the background," she frowned a bit, biting her lip. It hurt not to be there to cuddle her baby, especially when he cried like that. "Is it bad that I miss them already?"

Ayden was unbuckled and out of the car as soon as Cal cut the engine, the takeout bag in one hand and her purse in the other. She waited for him to come around, grabbing his hand and reaching up to steal another one of those passionate kisses. "Let the fun begin," she grinned, pulling him towards the door.

• • •

TAG: The Darling Hubby!
LOCATION: On the road!
WORDS: 434!
MUSIC: Just Want to be with You from HSM3
OUTFIT: HOT MAMA!
NOTES: <3 <3 <3

[Caleb Sebastien Turner]

“There will be plenty for later,” he whispered but still got out of the car and went into the restaurant despite really wanting to just get to the cabin as fast as his lead foot would take them. Cal couldn’t see Ayden from the counter, but he knew without a doubt that she was on the phone with Max, checking on the kids. They weren’t even an hour outside of New York City, but it was too far for the first time parents. Cal wanted to know how they were, too. He loved the little babies, but he also wanted to treat Ayden to a weekend without having to get up in the middle of the night to feed a couple hungry mouths and change diapers. He wanted this weekend to be able her and getting her to relax and put away all the thoughts on the laundry, bottle washing and cleaning that needed to be done around the house when they got back. He would help, he always did, but Ayden got most of it all tossed onto her plate with him working two jobs. “No, I miss them, too. But you need a break and I want to give it to you. They’ll be fine, Max has them! I’m sure as soon as Cass wakes up, he’s going to dress them up in their cutest outfits and take them out to pick up women,” Cal said sounding as calm and casual about it all; as if he were perfectly okay with that.

Cal unbuckled his seatbelt once they were at the cabin, slammed the door once he was out, went around back to grab the bags from the trunk and met Ayden on her side. Cal had wanted to go on a honeymoon, away from the babies so they had nothing to worry about other than what to eat or when to head out to the lake. The bags could have stayed in the car a little longer, but by the time they really needed them, Cal wouldn’t have been so inclined to get them. So it was better to toss them over his shoulders now. He only had one free hand which slipped perfectly into Ayden’s. “Three days alone, heaven,” he said grinning, willingly following his wife to the door. He dropped the bags next to the door so he could unlock the door and lift Ayden up into her arms, chuckling. “I never got the chance to carry you across the threshold at the apartment, or the house, so…” he said, nuzzling her neck as he used his foot to open the door and step through the door. “Ta-da,” he said, pressing a quick kiss to the tip of her nose before setting her down on her feet again so he could grab the bags and shut the door. “So, what do you think?” he asked, turning back around.

Tags || Little Fire!
Words || 483
Clothes || Vacation, baby!
Music || Hell on the Heart -- Eric Church
Notes || <3 <3 <3

[Ayden Karissa Turner]

Ayden had never expected their marriage to be "normal." They weren't normal, so how was their relationship supposed to be? And what really defined how "normal" a love was? What she and Cal had together was special. It was layered from years of friendship and inside jokes; inter-woven pasts and hardships that the other had helped through. They were inseparable, which made their marriage stronger than any of those people who went the traditional route with their romance. Sure, there hadn't been a honeymoon, or even a real wedding for that matter, but, none of those things made you married; not even rings or legal papers did that. And, with how perfectly odd the couple was, a normal wedding wouldn't have even half covered them.

She grinned as Cal came and grabbed her hand, lacing her fingers between his stronger ones. She leaned her head against his shoulder as they walked up to the cabin, enjoying the romantic little gesture. A small thing like holding hands felt so different now than it had only a year ago; everything was different between them, and in so short amount of time. Ayden squeezed his hand as they neared the stoop, reaching up to kiss his cheek. She blinked at him in confusion as he set the bags down, laughing and dropping her purse and the food onto the pile of luggage. She clung tight to his chest, turning his face down to hers so she could give him a proper kiss before he set her down. "It's perfect," she said, letting him gather the bags. Ayden browsed the little cabin, smiling as she saw the big, cozy bed, a place they'd no doubt be spending a lot of time in. Forcing her mind to safer topics, she went and plucked the food out of the bags. "I don't know about you, but I'm starving. Picnic in front of the fire place?" she smiled up at him, pecking his lips again. This weekend was going to be great.

• • •

TAG: The Darling Hubby!
LOCATION: On the road!
WORDS: 402!
MUSIC: Just Want to be with You from HSM3
OUTFIT: HOT MAMA!
NOTES: <3 <3 <3

[Caleb Sebastien Turner]

Normalcy for Ayden and Caleb wasn’t curling up on the couch any more with some movie playing in the background, while they talked about silly things and ate popcorn. Now it was diapers, babies and bottles, cleaning up messes and only when all of that was done could they fall onto the couch and catch a few quiet moments before it all started again. Sure, they had Max’s help with the twins but Cal didn’t expect him to throw out his life to be around for Cass and Adrian. He’d mentioned meeting a woman at the park when he’d taken the twins’ out. And Cal didn’t want to stand in the way of whatever might come from that meeting. And Max wouldn’t be around forever to help out with the babies; which was why Cal had planned this weekend, while they could get away. Cal had been planning for a while, but he’d questioned moving it another week if Max had plans through this weekend, but since he hadn’t, Cal kept the cottage for the intended three days.

They had never had the big white wedding, or the proper honeymoon, though neither of those things were Cal and Ayden. Still, he wanted to give Ayden some time away from the city, some time without thinking or worrying about anything more pressing than if they should go for a dip in the lake or a walk through the surrounding woods. They hadn’t gone the traditional route for anything and then they jumped right into the next step and the next step so quickly, it was a wonder they had their feet under them! Everything with them went so fast, friends, more than, engaged, married and babies all so quickly. Inside the cabin, Cal set the bags down off to the side and out of the way. They could worry about putting their things away in proper places when they’d settled and got something more than coffee into their stomachs. “Sounds perfect,” he said, stealing another kiss. Their marriage was far from perfect, but it was perfect for them and that was exactly how Cal liked it. “I’ll start the fire, you get the food out. The cupboards are stocked with dishes and the like,” he added, going over to the fireplace and getting to work on that. It took him a couple minutes to get the fire going but once it was going steady, he replaced the guard and set the poker back on the rack. There was a small open hut against the side of the cottage that kept the extra wood out of the weather and elements. “Did you order extra egg rolls?” He asked, settling down on the floor next to his wife, peeking through the tops of the containers they’d just picked up.

Tags || Little Fire!
Words || 466
Clothes || Vacation, baby!
Music || Hell on the Heart -- Eric Church
Notes || <3 <3 <3

[Ayden Karissa Turner]

There hadn't been a lot of time for reality to sink in, especially not with how quickly they were moving through the typical steps of life. Ayden still caught herself sometimes, freezing as she stared at the ring on her left hand or at the kids who were looking more like her and Cal every day. It was a lot to process, and a lot more than most 23 year olds had to deal with. She couldn't believe she was married and a mom, two things the rebellious her from high school wouldn't have ever planned on. According to that girl, she should've been on some professional basketball team, or at least performing regularly somewhere on her beloved piano. But, she shouldn't have been playing housewife; that had never been on the cards until things had changed between her and Cal.

Ayden loved her babies though, and she loved Caleb more than even she realized. She was happy with the road they'd chosen to travel together, even if it did get hard at points. Personally, she tried her hardest to behave and not start fights when she was in a bad mood. It was hard with her temper and the exhaustion those twins put her through, but she didn't want to end up like her parents. If anything did happen between the couple, she didn't want it to be her fault; she didn't want the blame again for ruining a relationship.

She smiled against his lips, reluctantly moving away from him to go grab plates and forks. Ayden pulled everything out of the cupboard and carried it back out to the living room, setting them on the couch so she could throw a few blankets on the floor. She cuddled into Cal, digging into their miniature feast. "Of course," she smirked, pecking his lips and popping open a container to reveal the egg rolls. She grabbed a different white box, stabbing away at it with her fork. Smiling up at him, she added, "I love you. And thank you... for this." Ayden kissed him very gently, grinning happily against his warm lips.

• • •

TAG: The Darling Hubby!
LOCATION: On the road!
WORDS: 405!
MUSIC: Just Want to be with You from HSM3
OUTFIT: HOT MAMA!
NOTES: <3 <3 <3

[Caleb Sebastien Turner]

Cal knew he and Ayden shouldn’t have been married or parents. They were only twenty-three; there was still plenty of time ahead of them for those things. But Fate threw them a curveball and led them to where they are. And Caleb wouldn’t take a single second of that back even if he had the choice to. He loved Ayden, was so happy he’d finally told her and she loved him back. He loved those adorable little babies back home that looked more and more like their mommy every single day. He loved coming home to find Ayden asleep in the rocking chair in the twins’ room while they napped in their cribs. Soon he knew, they wouldn’t be in those tiny beds any more. Too soon there would be walking, talking, boys and girls. Soon those little babies would be grown and Cal would be wondering where the time went and reminiscing about when they were just small babies he could hold in his arms.

For as long as Cal could remember, he only wanted Ayden’s happiness, no matter the cost to himself. He could have lived with watching her grow old with another man. He loved her that much. But he loved even more that she’d chosen him in the end that she wanted to spend those years going grey and watching her babies grow up with him. And it was because Fate had tossed them so much, so young that he wanted to do little things like this with her while they had the chances. Max wouldn’t be around forever, and sooner than Cal would like, the twins’ would have their own opinions and voices and would want to go on trips to. So they wouldn’t be romantic trips just for mommy and daddy but family trips. Cal was excited for those, he would admit it. He wanted to take the kids and their beautiful mother all over the world. He wanted to show them the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben, all sorts of things. And that was why he worked as hard as he did. All he needed was a few more months working for the fashion house and he would have made enough contacts to start his own label that was Cal’s whole plan. Meet enough people, have enough contacts in place and the rest would be history. He would have enough then, to put a few pieces into New York’s Fashion Week, and eventually he would have enough of his own money to surprise his family with little things, short trips and the like.

This little cabin wasn’t much, but it was enough for them; for now. It was three days alone, away from the city; just Cal, just Ayden and just a small cabin in the woods. He wanted to curl up in front of the fire with Ayden in his arms and let the moment take them where it wanted. “You’re a Goddess,” he said, indulging in another longer kiss before grabbing an egg roll from the container and tearing into it. Cal wrapped his free arm around Ayden, leaning into the light kiss. “Anything for you, Little Fire. Always,” He replied against his wife’s lips.

Tags || Little Fire!
Words || 533
Clothes || Vacation, baby!
Music || Hell on the Heart -- Eric Church
Notes || <3 <3 <3

[Ayden Karissa Turner]

Ayden was enjoying the perks of motherhood, even if there were a lot of disadvantages that came along with it. She loved her little babies more than life itself, and it was amazing how deep that love really ran. It broke her heart to hear them cry, and she couldn't keep from smiling whenever they did. She was already imagining their futures, how they'd look in a few years' time, and where their lives would lead them. That maternal spark was burning brightly inside of her now, though she'd denied even having one for most of her life. It shone through daily now, and she was the typical Mama Bear when it came to protecting her children. When they started dating and going to school, there was no doubt in her mind that she'd be fighting battles to keep them as safe, innocent, and perfect as they were; she'd do anything to rescue them from being hurt.

Ayden easily popped food into her mouth, savoring the taste of the Chinese food as she cuddled with her husband. She leaned against his side as she ate, enjoying the warmth radiating from his body. "We should go swimming in the lake later," she smiled up at him, reaching up to brush her lips against his. "I packed that bikini from our Polar Bear plunge last year," she said, smirking suggestively before pulling away to grab an egg roll from a carton. She nibbled on the egg roll and snuggled back up against him, her head on his shoulder as she looked at the fire blazing away in front of them. Ayden wished they got more time like this, where it was just the two of them without any interruptions or distractions. With how busy they had been lately, it felt like they barely even got to see each other, and, when they did, it was only for a few moments in which they usually both checked to make sure the other was still breathing.

• • •

TAG: The Darling Hubby!
LOCATION: On the road!
WORDS: 402!
MUSIC: Just Want to be with You from HSM3
OUTFIT: HOT MAMA!
NOTES: <3 <3 <3

[Caleb Sebastien Turner]

It wasn’t hard to look in on the babies while they were sleeping and think that they wouldn’t be that small forever. All too soon they would be worrying about school and daycare, sports and lessons. Too much would be going on but Cal couldn’t say he was concerned. They were both healthy and happy for the most part. He was hoping that soon enough he would be quitting his position at the fashion house to start his own. There would be a lot of time spent in his studio upstairs but at least he would be home more and he could take some time out of that schedule to play with his babies. He wanted to be there when they started walking, talking. He wanted to be around to take spontaneous trips to the park and the playground.

It had actually been a while since Cal had gotten Chinese food. There was decent café just down the street from the fashion house that made a very good BLT. And it wasn’t ridiculously overpriced because the place was small and perfectly located to have all sorts of good business. He went almost daily while he was at work with some friends from the house. So with all those healthy choices in his diet, having this terrible food was wonderful. He tore into the egg roll he’d snatched up, and moved to the peppercorn beef and broccoli, sans broccoli. “We could do that,” he said setting aside the food in his hands to wrap both his arms around Ayden’s waist, sinking a little further into the kiss. “Oh, that’s harsh. You say that, and then you act like nothing? Killer,” he said, sounding hurt but he did nothing more than bring his wife’s legs across his and go back to his personal favourite.

She was so beautiful, and he couldn’t help but feel a little shocked that they were together. It had always been a dream of his, but one that he never thought would come true. Even after she had the twins and thought she was a little pudgy with the baby fat, she was still the most beautiful woman in the world to him. When he was feeling full and Ayden was only picking, pretending to eat, Cal turned to her, trailing feather light kisses from her shoulder to her ear. “So, do you want to go freeze in lake water?” He asked, continuing his assault down her jawline to her lips. “Or we could walk around the forest and come back and test out how firm that bed is,” he continued, grinning against his wife’s lips. “Choice is yours, little fire.”

Tags || Little Fire!
Words || 443
Clothes || Vacation, baby!
Music || Hell on the Heart -- Eric Church
Notes || <3 <3 <3

[Ayden Karissa Turner]

Ayden spent a good portion of her time with Max and the twins these days. It was part of the break from life that the pregnancy had awarded her, and she was kind of enjoying not having to get fancied up every morning. Her days consisted of spoiling the babies and messing around with the manny who was just as joking and playful as she was. She missed Cal a lot though, especially when one of the twins did something adorable or a moment arose to bring up an inside joke from years ago. It felt odd not to have him sneaking up behind her, or tickling her sides when she was trying to be productive for once. Max wasn't his replacement, despite what she'd heard a few people say; no one would ever be able to replace Cal in her heart or life. Max was just there to help out, which Ayden was very thankful for, but she did wish it could be Cal. He had to work though, and, soon, hopefully she'd have to, too; it was just part of life.

She giggled against his lips, turning her body to deepen the kiss more. Little things like this, those were what she missed when she was home by herself. Ayden ran her fingers down his cheek and kept her lips moving against his warm ones. "Oh, the bikini is nothing. I've got much nicer things packed in my bag," she smirked back at him, relaxing into him again and going back to eating.

Ayden felt better when Cal was around. He made her feel lighter and happier, and just more like herself. There was nothing to be afraid of when he was with her, and one kiss to the forehead always proved how much love was present between them. Nothing could break her when she had him to act as a buffer, and that let her act more like the real Ayden instead of what everyone wanted her to be. The perfect mom, the great musician, the tidy housewife; none of that was expected of her when she had her husband by her side. She could be whoever she wanted, and she knew he'd accept it; he'd love her just for being her.

"Please," she said with a roll of her eyes, "the bed's getting tested with whatever we do." Ayden kissed his lips again before untangling herself from him and standing. Out of habit, she collected up the plates and containers and went to put them away, not even realizing that she was taking of the housewife duties she was supposed to be taking a break from.

• • •

TAG: The Darling Hubby!
LOCATION: On the road!
WORDS: 462!
MUSIC: Just Want to be with You from HSM3
OUTFIT: HOT MAMA!
NOTES: <3 <3 <3

[Caleb Sebastien Turner]

Cal didn’t like that he didn’t get to spend as much time with his wife and babies as he would have liked. In his opinion, he didn’t spend nearly enough time with them, but he tried and took every opportunity afforded to him to see them. He couldn’t cut any hours at either job, not right now while the babies were still young. They had money, enough for a cushion but Cal also knew how much Ayden hated feeling like she owed anyone anything. And with Gramps technically owning the house they currently lived in, he wanted to make enough money to buy him out completely. As it was, he was never there, and even when he did go to New York for business he stayed at a hotel, claiming all the noise he was making would wake the babies and his grandbabies didn’t deserve that. Though, which pair he was talking about was anybody’s guess. Soon enough he would be free of the fashion house he was interning at and finally starting up his own in the spare room he’d turned into a studio. It wasn’t much but he had to start somewhere and this was his start in New York.

“You’re making it very difficult to think up reasons to leave this cabin for any reason this weekend,” he whispered against his beautiful wife’s lips. He missed little things like this. It was hard not to when he spent so much time away from Ayden. He only had her and the twins in mind whenever he left the house. Soon, he would be with them, soon he would have his own line and he could be around the three loves of his life all the time; everything was soon but it wasn’t soon enough. When Ayden pulled away, even to just finish eating Cal felt like she was too far away. “Pure evil behind that cute smile,” he said, huskily, nipping playfully at her shoulder.

Ayden brought out the best in Cal. He knew he could be a bit of a shut in, especially when he was working on something. But Ayden never let him hide away for long before she was in his face, distracting him and pulling him away from what was in front of him to take her to a movie or a walk through the park with Kimmie. “Then why not just skip over everything else and go straight to bed,” he teased, though he was interested in seeing where exactly they would be staying for the next three or so days. He had been up once before to collect the keys and pay for the place for their stay but he hadn’t gotten a chance to see much more than the cabin itself and the little dock on the lake behind it. [color=40bd6f“Hey,”

[/color] he said, getting to his feet and coming up behind her. “Give me those,” he added, taking them from her without waiting for her response. “Go get your suit on while I deal with this. We’ll go swimming,” he continued, moving around her to take the dishes from her hands and move right over to the sink to fix away with them. Once they were cleaned and put away, he grabbed his own bags from where they’d been dropped and dug through until he found his suit and quickly changed into it.
[/blockquote][/blockquote][/justify]

Tags || Little Fire!
Words || 562
Clothes || Vacation, baby!
Music || Hell on the Heart -- Eric Church
Notes || <3 <3 <3[/size]