Together Burning Bright

“In the end…as you fade in to the night…” Dess sang lowly as she looked at herself in the mirror before her. She was applying a thin layer of red lipstick-Andy was making her go out tonight and Dess was instructed to dress nicely. As she stared at herself in the mirror, Odessa smiled as she heard a soft giggle coming from her right.


Arabella-four months old and giggling-was sitting in her swing, the sun shining down on her light blonde head and keeping the baby warm. It was August-the guys were almost finished with the record and to celebrate-and take advantage of the free babysitting-Andy was taking Dess out for the night. She was worried though-the guys had never been alone with the baby before and she wasn’t sure how they would handle it. Arabella or Aria for short was a handful and she was only four months.

Now the baby was sleeping through the night, which meant she was awake most hours of the day and very active. She wiggled around any time she was held and insisted on holding her own bottle as Andy or Dess fed her. As Dess looked down at her daughter, the small girl looked back-those blue eyes determined and soon her face scrunched up and she began to cry. Dess sighed-she didn’t want to leave her baby girl, but Andy was insisting that they get out of the house. She hadn’t left since coming home from the hospital, except for doctor’s appointments and to go to the store. This would be the first time Dess would leave her baby at home and she was terrified.


“…who will tell…the story of your life…” Dess was singing lowly in the baby’s ear and soon enough the girl calmed. It was strange-she didn’t like nursery rhymes much, but sing anything that Andy wrote and the small girl would calm down almost instantly. Dess rocked the baby back and forth, her black and purple dress swaying with her motions and her blonde hair was in Aria’s fist immediately.

“There…that’s better.” Dess said as she moved around the room, sitting on the bed as she slipped her purple pumps on her feet, but remained sitting.

“No more fussing…no more, no more.” Dess held the baby out, her hands underneath the girl’s small arms as her tiny feet rested on Dess’ knees. She opened her eyes really wide and Aria instantly giggled and laughed loudly. God Dess loved that sound…it was perfect.

“Who’s a happy girl? Who’s happy? You are! You are!” Dess said as she moved in, placing her lips against the tiny girl’s cheek and she softly blew air out. The baby gave another squeal and then Dess noticed that the small girl became captivated by something to her right.


Dess looked over her shoulder and as she did she felt her heart stop in her chest. Andy was standing in their doorway; one hip leaned up against the frame as his black jacket covered arms were crossed over his chest. His black hair was falling in his eyes and he had the biggest smirk on his face. Dess smiled at him as she rose, pulling Aria towards her chest as she sauntered over towards him. They said nothing to one another as Andy held out his hands for his daughter and Dess passed her over.

Andy loved this child-more than any of his records or even his fans…more than Dess herself. He would watch her sleep, for hours, until finally Dess assured him that she wasn’t going anywhere. He loved giving her baths, laughing as the small girl squealed and laughed when he would cover his face in bubbles or quack her rubber ducky. He was smitten and Dess loved watching the two of them.

They were so alike-both determined, quick to anger and God did the girl have a set of lungs on her. As Andy rocked Aria back and forth, his lips close to her tiny ear, Dess left the two of them as she tried to finish getting ready. Looking at herself in the mirror, she smiled-her eyes were bright and rested, thank God Arabella was sleeping through the night. She had gotten back down to her pre-baby weight and was able to keep it all off. As she finished up her eyeliner, capping the tube and slipping it back in to her makeup bag, Dess caught site of her husband and their daughter in the reflection of her mirror.

Andy was whispering lowly to the girl, making her giggle and throw her tiny fists in to the air and Dess felt herself melt slightly. They were two peas in a pod and she knew that Andy was trying desperately to get the girl to talk to him-too early for that sort of thing, but it was fun watching Andy try. He often took the girl in to the studio with him-the guys adored her and all had little nicknames for her, but one was finally beginning to stick the more and more vocal Arabella became. Sighing, knowing that it was time to go, Dess turned around and pressed her hands against the flouncy skirt of her dress as she walked towards Andy.


“I think I’m ready.” Dess said as she held out her arms and Andy reluctantly placed the small girl into her mother’s arms. Dess looked down into those beautiful, wide blue eyes and she felt the tears start up. She couldn’t do it-she couldn’t leave this precious thing at home.

“Come on babe…we’re going to be late.” Andy had a hand on her shoulder and he was slowly ushering her out of the room. Dess just pressed Arabella up against her shoulder and smiled as the girl cooed and laughed-probably at Andy who was trailing behind them.

“I just don’t know if this is a good idea. May-maybe we should wait a while longer.” Dess said as they both began to walk down the stairs, her heels clicking against the wood and Andy could only laugh.

“Like how long Dess?” He asked as they reached the bottom of the stairs and Dess turned to face him. She had Aria up by her face, they were cheek to cheek and Andy sighed happily-his two girls were utterly wonderful and perfect.

“I dunno…maybe when she’s fifteen and doesn’t want to be seen with us anymore…” Dess laughed and Andy only shook his head as he pressed a hand to the small of her back and they walked in to the kitchen. Crow and Dove were both sleeping in the den, Winnie sharing his bed with the cats and Dess only smiled-her first little family.

“She’ll be fine babe.” Andy said as he walked into the kitchen with Dess lagging behind. She could hear loud laughter coming from the next room and she cringed as she entered the doorway and looked around.


The guys were spread all over the couches and the floor, their attention solely on the video game that was playing on the screen. Could these guys really handle babysitting a four month old? They could hardly take care of themselves, let alone a helpless child and as Dess stood there she felt more and more insecure. What if something happened? What if Arabella got hurt? It seemed like the baby was feeding off of her negative vibes because soon enough the room was filled with shrill wailing and all of the guys turned to face her. Dess blushed-okay so the nickname that CC gave Arabella was appropriate and fit perfectly, but she was never going to admit it.

Hells Bells certainly fit as a nickname for this screaming child.


“See! We haven’t even left and already she’s crying!” Dess said as the guys all laughed at her and Andy approached the hesitant mother of his child. Dess was shaking and Andy only hoped he could get her out to the restaurant where they would have a nice dinner with some wine and then make it to the theater in time.

“Come here baby girl…come to Uncle Ashley.” Ashley was reaching out for Aria and Dess carefully passed her over. Andy quickly wrapped an arm around her shoulders, kissing the top of her head as Dess continued to shake beneath him.

“O-oh…okay. Well um, you guys have my number and Andy’s. My mother’s number is on the fridge, so is the number for the poison center and the fire department…” Andy was pushing her towards the door and the guys all laughed at the nervous mother as they followed behind the couple and listened as Dess kept talking.

“She really likes her swing and if she gets fussy then you can always sing to her. OH! She loves anything by Black Veil Brides-In The End and Carolyn specifically. She also likes Motley Crue, but only the early stuff. Um-don’t try and feed her anything…there’s plenty of bottles in the fridge and they just need to be warmed up. You can try and give her a bath if she needs it, otherwise I’ll probably just do it tonight when we get home. Am I forgetting anything?” Dess and Andy had made it to the door and Andy was smirking, holding in his laughter as he reached for Dess’ small purse and his car keys.

“Just your sanity. We’re going to be fine Dess!” Ashley said and at that moment Arabella laughed loudly and then reached out a tiny fist to sucker punch Ash right in the chin.

“Oh! Okay! Well mommy loves you and she will be back soon…please call me if you need anyth-“Andy had pushed Dess out the door just then, winking at the guys as he pulled it shut behind them.


The guys all laughed as they listened to Dess-they could still hear her calling out instructions through the door and they all sighed in relief as they heard the car start and then drive off. Ashley was still holding on to Aria, her tiny blue eyes taking him in and the bassist only smirked and stuck his tongue out at her. She giggled, rubbing her tiny fists together as she gave him a toothless grin. God he loved this child-she was so joyful and filled with life and energy. As they all walked back towards the den, Ashley held the baby to his chest and thought things over.

They would be leaving soon-the record was almost finished and ready to be sent off for the printing process. They were all really proud of this record-it was something that they had never tried before and they were all worried that it would be a flop. As the guys all settled back down, CC and Jake taking one another on in the game, Ashley sat down on the couch and held Aria in his arms. He looked down at the small girl and was amazed by how much she looked like Andy.

Those blue eyes-so filled with determination and she got that furrowed brow look when she was trying to concentrate. Her lips, when not held in a lopsided smirk, were usually smiling or frowning. She had his nose, his smallish ears and she most definitely had his lungs. But Ash, as he looked down at her and watched her eyes drift closed, could see some of Dess in this little cherub. Her fine blonde hair, the color of the sun and that adorable dimple that showed up whenever she laughed or giggled. It was hard to tell now, but Ashley was pretty sure this little girl was going to be just like Andy-determined and a pain in the ass.


“Dude!” CC called out and Ashley’s head snapped up as he looked down towards the guys. They had paused the game and CC and Jake were both looking at one another with scrunched scowls on their faces.

“It wasn’t me!” Jake laughed and both the drummer and guitarist looked towards Jinxx. The other guitarist had been sitting quietly on the loveseat, Winnie in his lap as he read something on his Kindle. Jinxx looked up and then sniffed the air.

“That was not me…I swear.” The three guys laughed, but Ashley wasn’t laughing. He was looking down at Aria and her tiny face. She was gumming on a lip-such an Andy trait-and soon enough she began to wail. Ashley was pretty sure he knew where the smell was coming from and he knew it wasn’t any of the grown-ups in the room.

“Oh Hells Bells! What’s wrong?” CC asked as he got up and approached the tiny girl, but then took a healthy step back. It smelled rotten around the bassist and the baby and all of the guys suddenly realized something very crucial…

None of them knew how to change a diaper.

“What should we do?” Jake asked as he stood up and stood beside CC. Jinxx joined them and Ashley stood, holding his breath the best that he could as the air around him began to smell putrid.

“I mean we have to change her…lets go upstairs. I know that’s where they keep all of her diapers and stuff.” Ashley suggested as he held the screaming baby to his chest and made a quick exit.


The guys were hot on his heels and as Ash climbed the stairs he tried everything to get the girl to stop screaming. He sang-lowly and quickly…nothing. He made funny faces…that only made her cry more. Finally he reached the top of the steps and Ashley almost ran full force down the hall and thankfully he was able to flick the light on with his elbow as he entered the room. The light was bright and Ashley was already squinting from the smell and it got even worse as he pulled down Arabella’s light yellow onesie and undid the straps on her diaper.


“Good lord what is that?” CC asked from over his shoulder and Ashley just shook his head. How could something so small produce so much of something that smelled worse than death?

“I-I don’t know. C-can someone plug my nose while I attempt to do this?” Ashley said and quickly Jake obliged and had his fingers clamped on either side of Ashley’s nose.

“God! What do they feed you child?!” Jinxx asked from Ashley’s left and Aria just giggled and kicked her chubby feet out, getting her mess everywhere. Ashley groaned as he reached for more wipes and then realized that he couldn’t find them. Fuck…

“Don’t make her laugh! God it’s everywhere…someone help me please…” Ashley begged and CC only laughed as he rushed off. Soon water could be heard coming from the hall bathroom and Ashley sighed-of course it would come to this…


The guys quickly got the baby to the bathroom-Ashley getting her clothes all the way off and holding her out at arms length. CC had tested the water, making sure it wasn’t too hot and Ash quickly got in the tub-his clothes be damned-and began to gently scrub at the baby’s soft skin. Jinxx and Jake entertained her with a rubber ducky puppet show on the side of the tub while Ashley tried to get every piece of stink from her delicate little body. Arabella was fine through the whole ordeal, laughing and cooing while the guys worked their asses off. How in the Hell did Dess do this every day?

They all worked to get the baby cleaned, changed and back into her clothes. After an hour and a half, they were all downstairs on the floor and couches while Arabella snoozed in her swing. There was a moment around hour three where she woke up and was practically inconsolable-not even singing was helping. Finally CC sat right in front of her and made funny faces while the girl laughed and giggled herself to sleep.

No wonder Dess was so tired all of the time. One by one the guys all nodded off, CC being the last one as his head came to rest on the edge of Aria’s swing and the girl twined her fingers in his long black hair while she slept.



“So tonight wasn’t so bad right?” Andy asked as he wrapped his arms around Dess’ shoulder and she leaned her head against him. They were walking up the front steps and they were both ready to get inside, change and get in to bed.

“No, I will admit that I wanted to sneak off and text Jinxx to see how things were going, but I sucked it up.” Dess laughed as she tucked a long piece of blonde hair behind her ear and looked up at her home. Everything seemed to be in one piece-the house was still standing and the guys weren’t running out screaming.

“Well this should just prove that we can do this more often. I missed being with you babe…” Andy stopped her at the front door, placing a hand on either one of her arms and Dess just smiled up at him. His blue eyes were shining in the moonlight, so much love and passion glowing down at her that she felt her knees give in.

“Don’t push it…” Dess laughed as he kissed her neck and then the couple walked through the door.


They were met with light snoring and the couple only looked at one another as they followed the noise. The kitchen was a mess-boiled over milk was all over the stove and Dess groaned-all of the bottles she had made were empty in the sink. Andy stood in the doorway of the kitchen and Den, a smirk on his lips and as Dess approached he only laughed softly. She looked out on the room before her and Dess could hardly hold in her laughter.

Ashley was passed out on the couch, a pillow over his face as he snored softly. Jake and Jinxx were kind of sort of spooning as they laid on the floor-game controllers at their socked feet. The funniest thing to see was their daughter-wide awake and sitting in her swing. She smiled at them, her fists filled with CC’s hair as he slept with his face pressed against the swings tray, his drool making a small puddle. Dess said nothing as she walked over to Arabella, picking the little girl up and holding her close. The baby had been changed and Dess knew-they probably had some trouble getting a diaper on her.


“Do you think we should wake them?” Andy asked as Dess walked over towards him and smiled as Andy pressed a kiss to the baby’s soft head.

“Nope…” Was the only thing she said as Dess reached out a hand and flicked off the light.

“I love you babe…” Andy said as he leaned down, pressing his lips against hers and Dess only smiled as they climbed the stairs.

“I love you too…more than I can ever scream…” They both laughed and soon Aria was joining in.


The little family were all soon tucked in to bed and as she drifted to sleep-Dess couldn’t wait to find out what happened with the Great Babysitting Adventure.

Notes

Could you imagine any of these guys watching a baby? Priceless! I just want you guys to be aware that this story is going to start skipping forward, but it's only so that I can fit everything in. Also the site has been having problems with trolling on the forums and just incase this website goes down like the Titanic I have some other places that I have in mind to start posting my stories. They are:

Wattpad-BrokenWings89
Tumblr-safetypinndsally
bvbfanfics.webs.com-Broken Wing
Email-brokenwingfictions

Review for an update on Thursday<3
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PS. Check out my brand new story-Land Of F.E.A.R which debuts thursday!