�You�re gonna party tonight, right?� He asked, kissing her neck.

�Mmm-hmm,� she replied, putting her arms around him. Did she really want this? It didn�t matter; she�d be too high to care in a few minutes�

The Hanson family stood in the large backyard watching the incredibly amazing display of fireworks. Although, it wasn�t the same without Taylor, it never had been� Zac stood with his arm around his wife and their son at his side; Isaac stood beside his wife, each of them with a six-year-old boy on their hip and Amanda in front of them. Their parents stood nearby, arms around each other. Avery stood with Bobby; Mackenzie and Jessica stood by each other, having no significant other�s like their siblings. Zo�, was absent, as usual.

�Wow� Uncle Zac, aren�t the fireworks pretty?� His niece said to him. He smiled at her.

�You bet they are, sweetheart.� She went back to hugging her father�s side. They all watched in awe�

The fireworks lasted well over and hour. Jordan had fallen asleep on Isaac�s shoulder, Danny on Marie�s shoulder, and Taylor was falling asleep on Zac�s head.

�Hey big guy,� Zac said, carefully lifting his son up and off of his shoulders. �Time for bed.�

�That was the best I�ve seen in years.� Mackenzie said.

�Tell me about it,� Marie replied. �That display was amazing.�

�So it takes fireworks to get all my children together, huh?� Their mother asked smiling, arms around their father, smiling.

�Any time you want us, Ma, you got us.� Isaac said; she smiled.

�Daddy?� Amanda said, and yawned. �Where am I gonna sleep?�

�You, little girl, are going to sleep in your Aunt Zo�s old room, with your brothers.� She nodded, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

�Come on, sweetie,� Diana said. �Grandma will take you up to bed.� She nodded again, taking her grandmother�s hand, and letting her lead her into the house and down the hallway near her own bedroom, where Zo� used to sleep.

In less than twenty minutes all three of Isaac and Marie�s children were asleep. Taylor was asleep in what used to be Mackenzie�s room, on a small air mattress, Zac and Rebecca in a larger bed on the other side of the room. Zachary was lying on his side beside Rebecca with his hand on her large stomach; the baby was kicking like crazy.

�She�s on a roll,� he said quietly with a grin.

�We may end up having her a lot earlier than expected.� She said. �I�m still having contractions.�

�Do you want me to take you to the hospital?� He felt her shaking her head on the pillow next to him.

�No; my water hasn�t broken yet,� she replied.

�Are you sure you don�t want me to take you?� He tucked her brown hair behind her ear. She nodded.

�I�m exhausted,� she said, starting to fall asleep already. He leaned over and kissed her softly on the lips.

�Night, honey.�

�Night��

�I love you.� He whispered.

�Love you too,� she replied, and fell asleep shortly afterward.

�Whoa�� He caught her. He kept his voice down, �Tell me you didn�t drive home like this�� She looked up at him drunkenly, shaking her head dizzily. �Come on, kid,� he said quietly, pulling her in and closing and relocking the door. She walked three steps and stumbled; she was lucky he had hold of her or she would have fallen.

�Don�t you dare tell Mom and Dad,� she said; her breath reeked of alcohol. He didn�t say anything.

�Let�s just get you to your room.� He said quietly, trying not to wake his wife. It took him at least five minutes just to get her successfully up the stairs. She looked awful.

�Make the rooms stop spinning�� she said closing her eyes; they were almost to her room. �I�m not feeling so good�� He stopped, holding one of her arms around the back of his neck.

�Tell me now if you�re gonna throw-up; I�ll take you to the bathroom.� She swallowed hard and nodded. He led her into the bathroom, none too quietly. She dropped down onto the floor, lifted the toilet lid and seat, hung her head over the toilet, and puked. Isaac turned his head away in disgust. Without warning, his mind flashed back to a time fourteen years earlier; Taylor had made it up here with his help, and he�d said nearly exactly the same thing to him, and Taylor ended up in there puking as well. The memory hurt.

The door to the room next to the bathroom opened, and Zac stepped out, closing the door quietly behind him. He stood in the doorway of the bathroom.

�What�s the matter with her?� Zac asked, squinting in the light.

�I�m sick,� she said snottily between puking.

�She�s drunk,� Isaac answered.

�That�s wonderful,� Zac said, growing somewhat angry. �What the hell were you thinking?� He asked her angrily.

�Shh,� Isaac hushed. �People are sleeping. And I don�t want Mom and Dad to come up here.�

�What? She�s drunk, Isaac. She�s eighteen years old; legal drinking age is twenty-one. I think Mom and Dad should know.�

�F*ck you, Zachary.� She said, her head still hanging in the toilet bowl.

�Let me handle this � �

�What the hell is wrong with you?!� Zac asked loudly and angrily. �The last time we covered for someone he died!�

�You sonofabitch,� he said quietly. �How could you even say that?�

�Obviously you�ve forgotten, or maybe you just don�t care. Maybe you wanna go through it again.� He said heatedly.

�Don�t you think I miss him too?! Huh? Don�t you think I lose sleep at night? Don�t you think I�ve been beating myself up for the last fourteen years?� Isaac returned. �You�re not the only one who feels guilty. I lost my brother too.� He was getting choked up now; tears were visible in his eyes.

�You�re not the one who�s been living with the guilt for fourteen years that if you remembered five minutes earlier you could�ve saved your brother�s life.� Zac said, his chest and throat tight with painful emotion. Tears slid down his cheeks. Becca had been watching from the bedroom doorway; Mac and Jess stood in the doorway of the room they were sharing � Isaac, Taylor, and Zachary�s old room. He stood staring at Isaac for a moment, and then turned away.

�Zac�� Becca said softly, touching his shoulder as he walked by, but he kept going. She watched him go down the stairs, unable to stop him.

�Nice going, Zo�.� Mac said; later he�d realize it wasn�t the best thing to say, but at the time he didn�t think about it.

He didn�t go far. He went out the patio doors, out onto the patio in the back. He leaned over, placing his palms flat on the picnic table. He was fighting a breakdown. It�d been a long time since he�d actually broken down and cried hard over his brother. He refused to lose another sibling that way. Taylor had been nineteen years old for God�s sake! He�d be damned if he lost Zo� to drugs too. He took deep breaths, his eyes still burning with tears. Fourteen years or not, it was still so hard for him to think about Taylor�s death. It was easier to thin of him as having left, just gone away�

�Zac�� her voice was soft and concerned; he didn�t move. She approached him, and gently placed her hand on his back. She rubbed his back gently with her open palm. The damage had already been done; she knew how sensitive her husband was about the topic of his brother�s death. His parents had told her how he�d never been the same afterward. And even now, it was so difficult for him; and tonight he�d been forced to think about it way too much. He�d had a strong and harsh reminder, and it hurt so much.

�Honey�� she said softly. He turned to her and buried his face in her neck. She hugged him as tightly as she could without squishing her swollen belly. She gently stroked the back of his head, his hair drawn back in a ponytail. His tears dripped onto her skin.

�Baby�� she whispered sympathetically. He wrapped his arms around her. �I know it hurts; I know�� she whispered. The wind chimes hanging by the patio doors stirred, ringing delicately.