#mercer!reader

moving from canada to the united states was it’s own culture shock, but moving from the small hometown of carbonear, newfoundland to hoboken, new jersey?? a whole new ball game. sadie mercer knew what she was getting herself into moving into a city in another country, and she was so grateful she wasn’t alone, and had her brother, dawson, to rely on when they’re so far away from their family. a 33 hour car ride to be exact, and dawson would keep reminding her as they waited for their uber to take them from the newark airport to their hotel in hoboken. 

“what if i dont make the roster, sade? i can’t just leave you in new jersey and go back to the q.” sadie frowned.

“dawson, you are literally an amazing hockey player. and the devils would be stupid to not put you straight on their roster.” dawson smiled gently at his younger sister.

“you’re always so optimistic.” sadie rolled her eyes and went back to scrolling through her instagram feed.

soon enough the uber pulled up to the airport and the pair hopped in. the 25 minute ride over to their hotel was spent in comfortable silence, but sadie knew her brother was stressing. after all, their entire plan in new jersey was based on dawson making the roster so they could live together since sadie was attending rutgers university. of course they knew that there was a chance that wouldn’t happen, but they were hoping and praying dawson would make it through camp and onto the roster. 

the uber dropped them off at their hotel, and they headed in to get to their room. their apartment lease wasn’t going to start until september 1st, but since that was the same day she was starting classes, they were in new jersey a week in advance. the 2 bed hotel room looked comfortable with a gorgeous view, and the two instantly laid back onto the beds with no want to plan to unpack anything. dawson only had a duffel bag and a backpack, while sadie had a suitcase and her school backpack. the rest of their stuff is supposed to be mailed in when they move into the apartment.

“dude i’m so hungry, those pretzels on the plan were shit.” dawson complained.

“i think there’s a dunkin like two blocks down, or we could go out to eat but i don’t know what’s open at 10pm.” dawson groaned and looked over at his sister,

“dunkin it is.” sadie lightly laughed at her brother’s dramatics, but she was starving as well so she slipped her birkenstocks back on and grabbed one of the keycards. 

it felt so surreal to walk through the city, even if it was 3 blocks to a dunkin donuts, it was so drastically different to their canadian small town. when the siblings arrived at their lovely destination, they were happy to see that the dunkin was in fact still open, even at 10:23pm. 

dawson got an iced tea with a panini and a boston creme donut, while sadie got herself a refresher, a bagel, and a small munchkin box. 

the siblings sat at one of the tables towards the corner of the store and instantly started eating. after about 10 minutes of silence and eating, dawson got up to throw away his trash and sadie followed. 

the pair walked down the street peacefully and enjoyed the late august breeze. sadie snapped a picture of the roads and sent it to the ‘mercer sibling groupchat’ on snapchat.

jessica was the first to open the snap and quickly responded with a picture of herself in her bed holding a thumbs down. sadie felt bad that she was leaving her sister all alone at home for her sophomore year of high school, but she was happy she got to send jess off for her freshman year since sadie was taking her classes online. riley opened it about 2 minutes later and sent back some funny filter, causing all 4 siblings to start sending funny photos. 

once sadie and dawson got back to their hotel, dawson decided to take a shower first, leaving sadie to have to unpack atleast some of her things. about 10 minutes later, dawson came out of the bathroom with a pair of shorts and t-shirt on and began rummaging through his poorly packed bag for his toothbrush. sadie on the other hand, took this as her opportunity to take the bathroom over and grabbed her toiletry bag with her pjs and ran in. 

“i wasn’t done in there!” dawson yelled through the now closed and locked bathroom door. 

“i can’t hear you! i’m showering!” sadie yelled back as she twisted the shower knobs and got in. 

once sadie was finally done with her shower, brushed her hair and her teeth, and did her extensive skincare routine, she opened the door and smiled at her brother as she passed his bed. 

“finally..” he groaned and got up, with his found toothbrush in hand. 

 for the next couple days, sadie and dawson spent their days out in hoboken and newark to get used to the city. dawson, of course, couldn't let the week be a full rest week and started attending a gym nearby, and occasionally dragging sadie with him, resulting in being forced to make tiktoks with her as payment.

soon enough, september 1st rolled around and sadie was beginning her classes and preparation for preseason which was starting the following monday. her schedule was set up nicely by one of the athletic’s guidance counselors, so she only had class once on monday and wednesday, twice on tuesday and thursday. luckily, they were also all at or after 11am. sadie also was lucky to have some classes with some of her teammates so it was easier for her to become friends with them.

liza ryndych and sofia maksimova were also rookies this year, but they were freshmen. sadie, liza, and sofia became a trio during practice as they all were fly/free strokes, and that translated to outside of the pool.

the beginning of september blew by and devils camp was approaching sooner and sooner. sadie was happy to make friends and be in new jersey living out her dream, but each time she came home to her and her brother’s hotel room, the idea of dawson not making roster became more and more prominent. 

it was september 20th, only two days before camp was to start and sadie only had her elective class at 1:30pm. sadie was running late to practice this morning, so she didn’t get the chance to grab herself breakfast. once practice finished at the aquatic center, sadie was starving. on her way back, her and her ‘big’ sofia chichaikina decide to stop by one of the delis in hoboken.

sofia parks her car a little farther up the street from the deli since all the parking spaces right in front of the small shop were taken.

the girls begin to cross the street after the walk sign lights up and make casual small talk about how much practice drained them that morning, until sadie hears a loud boy-ish scream and someone yells out,

"watch out!" causing sadie to stop dead in her tracks in the middle of the street to face the noise. thankfully, sofia had some common sense in her and pulls sadie out from the middle of the road as two boys speed past them on electric scooters yelling out a quick apology.

"assholes!" sofia yells out at them and flips them off.

"are you crazy?? why would you stop in the middle of the street!" she lectured as they walked on the sidewalk.

the two boys park their scooters in front of the deli and jog over to the two girls about to enter.

"hey, we're so sorry about uh.. you know... almost running you guys over.." the slightly taller boy stammers out.

"yeah, just because you're on a scooter, doesn't mean you don't follow basic traffic laws." sofia bit back at him before going on a rant about how their stupidity put not only sadie and sofia's lives in danger but also their own.

sadie took sofia's rant as an opportunity to examine both of the boys. the stuttering boy who almost ran over sadie had longer hair, blue eyes, and a growing in mustache-beard combination. he was wearing a grey nike t-shirt with a pair of basic athletic shorts.

the other boy, who had yelled in the first place for sadie to watch out, was about the same height as his friend. he had long brown hair- lighter than his friends, coming out from under his baseball cap and curling upwards at the ends. he also had blue eyes, but his seemed softer to sadie. he was also wearing a t-shirt and athletic shorts, but the simple outfit still made sadie swoon a little.

"we're really sorry about almost running you guys over with our scooters. it was irresponsible on our ends, we should've watched where we were going." he interrupted and then nudged his friend.

"yeah, we're really sorry. uh, i'll be sure to make sure i'm following traffic patterns next time." sadie looked up at the two boys and sofia rolled her eyes.

"it's okay, sometimes it happens.. i guess. but, thanks for the heads up atleast." the boys nodded back at her, so the girls decided to take that as their que to exit that awkward conversation and finally get their breakfast.

"wait! let us pay for your breakfast, it's the least we could do." the girls looked at eachother, and then back at them.

"sure." they responded. i mean, what college students would pass up free breakfast?

the two girls got on line while the boys went to grab drinks from the fridge. sadie watched them as the one in the hat took out a raspberry snapple and held it up while looking at her, she smiled at him and nodded her head.

"you like him, don't you?" sofia said to her, snapping sadie out of her thoughts.

"what do you mean? i just met him. i don't even know his name or anything. he doesn't know mine." she rambled until sofia smacked her, gently, so she'd realize the boys were back.

"here's your drink, you like snapple?" sadie looked up at him, smiled, and almost got lost in his eyes before she responded,

"oh yeah, one of my favorites." he smiled back at her and sadie thought she was going to melt away in the middle of a deli.

"i'm jack, by the way, my friends ty. he's the one who uh, you know.."

"oh! yeah. i'm sadie, and this is sofia."

soon enough, they finally got to the the front of the line and ordered their breakfast sandwiches. the girls had planned to just eat theirs on the way back to school, but the boys insisted they ate together at one of the tables outside. they had just a simple conversation, mostly the girls talking about school and swim, until sadie realized they've been talking for 15 minutes and they know nothing about the boys.

"wait so do you guys go to school around here too?" the boys glanced at eachother, trying to see how they wanted to play this,

"we actually play hockey." ty revealed quietly, and jack looked over at him like he just told the girls the biggest secret in the world.

"i didn't know rutgers had a hockey team." sadie nodded in agreement to sofia.

"so you guys live around here?" jack changed the subject 'smoothly'.

the group continued to talk until it was time for sofia to leave for one of her classes. the girls were driving over to the new brunswick campus when sadie suddenly put her phone down,

"fi, we didn't get their numbers. or like anything about them other than their names." sofia rolled her eyes,

"i knew you liked one of them, it's okay maybe we'll run into those boys again. hopefully not in a moving vehicle."

little did sadie know, she would run into those boys again, but not where she expected it..

AN: ahhhhhhhh i know this took absolutely forever to come out, and honestly i had the idea in my head but i just wasn't sure of the perfect way to execute it. this'll be the background leading up to the beginning of the song, illicit affairs by my bae taylor swift. let me know what you think about this and any requests!!

tagging mutuals for interaction: @zegras2crosby @bloodydilf @jackhues @drysdalesv @andreburakozy @yankstrash @kjohnson-91 @babydollmarauders @slafkovskyhughes @hockeyboysarehot

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“Guys come on, I’ve gotta go, I’m already late for dinner,” Reggie sighed, tilting his head to the side, practically begging his friends to end the rehearsal. “We’ll be great you guys we’ve been practicing the entire day,” 

“Week’s more like it,” Bobby corrected and Reggie pointed at him to further prove his point. 

“Come on Luke,” he pleaded and the lead guitarist finally gave in. 

“Okay, but you have to save me some dinner for lunch tomorrow,” 

“Deal,” Reggie chuckled and took the strap from his bass off his shoulder and packed it in its case before throwing it in his car and hopping in the front seat, driving off to the other end of town where his home was. 

He grabbed his bass from the back seat, slinging it over his shoulder and pulling out his keys, unlocking the front door and stepping inside the warm and inviting household. 

As soon as the lock clicked there was a giddy scream followed by a cheer of, 

“Daddy!” 

“Cupcake!” he responded, followed by a big oof as the small girl tackled him in a big hug, almost sending him to the ground with the force of her running. 

“Someone’s happy to see you,” you chuckled from the kitchen, clearing up the dishes from a recently eaten dinner. 

“What about my big cupcake,” he chuckled after picking up your daughter and pressing a kiss to her cheek. 

“Big cupcake missed you too,” you chuckled and Reggie gave you a bright smile. 

He then focused his attention on his daughter, Penelope, sweetest thing he’d ever laid eyes on. She was growing up so fast it was hard to believe. It felt like just yesterday you were twenty years old and at the hospital holding the small girl in your arms and now she was five whole years old. 

The thing Reggie loved most about his daughter was the fact that she was absolutely obsessed with ballet, to the point where she would wear her tutu wherever she went, along with whatever colour lipstick she could find from the small makeup kit her uncles had gotten her for her birthday. 

When Penelope started to squirm Reggie placed her back down on the ground where she excitedly exclaimed. 

“Daddy I learnt a new move today!” 

“Did you cupcake? Can you show me?” he asks while sliding his bass off from his shoulder and placing it carefully on the bench in the entryway. 

Penelope nodded, sticking her tongue out in concentration while she carefully twirled around in a circle. 

“Amazing!” Reggie clapped for her and she looked up at him with the brightest big blue eyes he’d ever seen, and a smile that would rival that of an angel minus a tooth or so. 

“Penny, do you think daddy can do a twirl?” you asked coming closer to the two and crossing your arms over your chest. 

“Yeah! Come on, let’s show mama,” she insisted and Reggie nodded, squatting down to his daughter’s height, red and black flannel trailing on the ground as he did so. 

He gave Penelope his hand and she helped him spin around a few times before pronouncing him ready and allowing him to try for himself. 

Reggie stood up and went on his tippy toes, his white t-shirt lifting slightly as he raised his hands into fifth position and tiptoed in a circle causing you and your daughter to applaud him. 

Penelope raised her hands to be picked up by her father, pressing a big sloppy kiss to his cheek, leaving a mark of whatever coloured lipstick she was wearing that day, but Reggie couldn’t care less because he was in love with his little ballerina. 

You came over to join the musician and dancer, pressing a kiss to Penelope’s forehead followed by a soft kiss to Reggie’s lips. 

People might think it was an odd thing, watching the bass player of an up and coming rock band, clad in a leather jacket and ripped black jeans doing ballet, but that was Reggie. He’d do anything for his girl. 

But he was lucky that whenever Alex was over he managed to get himself a break because after Penelope saw him pretending to do ballet she would always insist uncle Alex dance with her whenever he was over. 

“Penny I think it’s time to get cleaned up,” you noted and the small girl nodded, hopping into your arms so you could take her away to get ready for bed. 

While you did that, Reggie made his way to the kitchen, serving himself some food before hopping onto the countertop to eat. 

After putting Penelope to bed you rejoined your husband back in the kitchen while he was finishing clearing up his things. 

You wrapped your arms around his waist from behind, pressing a kiss to his shoulder blade. 

“Hi,” he said with a quiet chuckle. 

“Hey,” you responded. “I’m not sure if I say this enough, but you’re an amazing dad Reg, I know it’s hard with the band and your gigs, but you always make time. I’m even surprised I’m saying this but it’s very responsible of you.” 

Reggie laughed at that, turning around to face you properly. 

“The days of fixing my amp in the rain are behind me,” he joked and tapped your nose. “And you do say it enough,” he added. 

“Good,” you yawned and Reggie clicked his tongue, pressing a kiss to your forehead. 

“Maybe we should call it an early night,” he suggested. “If I stay up for another minute my hands are going to start twitching into the chord positions for Now or Never,” 

You shook your head and took his hand in yours, dragging him upstairs to your room. 

The Peters household had never been so quiet. 

—

“I told you guys I can’t go out tonight,” Reggie chuckled. “Duty calls,” 

“Okay first off what have you done with the real Reggie. I want to talk to him,” Bobby interjected and Reggie facepalmed. 

“I promised Penny I’d stay home tonight,” he explained. “And everyone knows you do not break a promise with a five year old.” 

“He does have that one right,” Alex agreed on the other end of the line. 

“You sure you can’t come? Even for just a bit,” 

“Sorry, I’m busy tonight,” he shrugged. “You’ll understand when you have-,” 

“Don’t you dare pull that card Reginald,” Luke said warningly. 

“Kids,” Reggie finished and the boys all groaned on the other end. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow, bye,” 

He hung up the phone and jogged over to the couch, hopping over in and flipping down right next to Penelope. 

“Alright cupcake, what are we watching tonight?” he asked. 

“Angelina Ballerina,” she giggled, clicking on the remote and starting the children’s TV show. 

Penelope planted herself firmly on her dad’s lap, only to be wrapped in a blanket like a small burrito. 

After about one episode had passed there was a loud knock on the door and Reggie picked up his daughter in his arms, heading to see what the commotion was. 

When he opened the door he was met with three familiar faces and a six pack of beer. 

“Heyy! Penny,” the boys cheered and Alex even scooped the young girl out of Reggie’s arms. 

“Uncle Alex what are you doing here?” she giggled wrapping her arms around his neck. 

“We came to hang out with you and your dad is that okay Pen?” he asked and she nodded her head vigorously. 

“What’s all this racket?” you asked, coming downstairs and seeing the boys gather in the foyer. 

“(N/N)!” Bobby and Luke called, grinning and running over to you. 

Bobby pulled you into a big hug after which you were dragged over to Luke who pressed a kiss to your cheek. 

“Watch it man, that’s my wife,” Reggie joked, punching his friend lightly in the arm. 

“Well if Reg thought he was busy before he is now,” Bobby noted and you all laughed. 

“Uncle Alex come in we gotta dance,” Penelope tugged on Alex’s pink sweatshirt and he complied, heading over to the stereo and popping in their usual rock CD that they would do their ballet to. 

She was Reggie’s child after all. 

“Dude your kid is something else,” Luke chuckled and you shook your head nodding and saying in unison with Reggie, 

“We know,” 

You all stood and watched Alex dance with Penelope a bit because it was very entertaining to say the least before you spoke up and said, 

“There’s food in the kitchen if you guys are-,” 

“Already on it,” Reggie nodded and headed that way causing you to shake your head and sigh. 

“Some things never change right (N/N)?” Bobby asked and you nodded. 

“Unfortunately not, our grocery bills are starting to get a little ridiculous, I just hope that one didn’t inherit her dad’s appetite,”

“Don’t tell Reggie that, it’s like the Peters family talent, he’s going to want her to carry on the tradition,” Luke laughed and you gave him a light shove. 

“Mama!” 

“Yes sweetheart,” you called back with a smile over the loud music. 

“Can you get daddy! I wanna show uncle Alex our dance,” 

“Sure, Penny,” you smiled and headed to the kitchen where Reggie was hopping along enthusiastically to the music and chopping up some fruit. At least he was eating healthy. 

“Reg baby, Penny wants you to come show Alex your moves,” 

“Oh it is on like Donkey Kong,” he grinned, putting down the knife and motioning for Bobby to come take over for him. 

He ran over to the living room and scooped up Penelope, spinning her around wildly before putting her back down just as Alex popped in the right CD for their father-daughter routine. 

The song started with a soft guitar, recorded in the band’s studio. It was Reggie’s song for his girl. 

“Blue eyed ballerina, God only knows how much I need ya. From day one I knew you were the one. Give me your hand and I’ll give you mine. You’re the reason I look forward to coming home at night…” 

Your heart would beat out of your chest each time you heard the song, your eyes welling up with tears as Reggie twirled around your little girl, the brightest smiles on both their faces. 

Bobby even stopped cutting up the fruit to watch the routine. 

Alex had since then walked over to where you stood, wrapping his arms around you from behind and resting his chin on your head just like he would when you were young kids. It was his brotherly sign of affection. You held his arms that were resting against your stomach as he whispered, 

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen him smile that wide,” 

“I know, that big full toothed grin is reserved for his blue eyed ballerina,” you sniffed. 

“You didn’t let me finish,” Alex chuckled. “I was going to say except at your wedding,” 

You smiled remembering the warm summer day and your simple white dress, sometimes you wished you were back there. 

“Really I didn’t notice,” 

“That’s because you were too busy being in love with him,” Luke added and you chuckled. 

With a soft sigh you made your way out of Alex’s hold and towards Reggie and Penelope who had just finished dancing. 

The boys were clapping, whooping and cheering them on while you went to Reggie and pulled him in for a long sweet kiss. 

“I love you,” you smiled. 

“Love you too, both of you. My ballerinas,” he chuckled while you knelt down pressing a kiss to Penelope’s forehead. 

“Okay Penny it’s getting past your bedtime, why don’t we say goodnight to your uncles and dad?” 

“Night uncle Luke, uncle Bobby, uncle Alex and daddy,” Penelope pressed a kiss to her hand and blew it to the boys who all pretended to fight over it until Bobby eventually won. 

You carried the small girl upstairs and to her room while the boys dragged Reggie to the kitchen, placing a beer in his hand. 

“Alright was there a real reason for the intrusion besides trying to convince me to come out,” 

“Nah that was it, but we decided to just see if you wanted to hang around here instead. Plus we haven’t seen (N/N) in forever.” Luke explained. 

“Yeah, she’s even busier than us,” Reggie nodded. “I don’t know how she does it. Constantly looking after Penny and going to college? She’s always insisting on taking the brunt of the work so I can come and do full day rehearsals.” 

“She’s quite something,” Alex smiled and Reggie nodded. 

“My wife is an angel,” 

“Cheers to that,” Bobby raised his beer and the boys clinked their glass bottles together. 

The boys slowly made their way into the living room, Luke unknowingly sitting on the TV remote and turning on the children’s show once again. The boys attention was diverted to the scene and for some reason they didn’t bother turning it off, so when you came back downstairs the four twenty-five-year-olds were huddled up on the couch and anxiously watching to see if Angelina won the boat race.

“Shouldn’t you guys be getting back home? It’s almost midnight and you have an early morning tomorrow,” you reminded and the boys all frowned looking at the clock. 

“Wow time flies,” Alex chuckled nervously. “Thanks for putting up with us (N/N),” Alex said and each of the boys pressed a goodnight kiss to your cheek before heading out of the house. 

You went to lock the door and when you came back Reggie was in the process of turning off the TV and turning down the volume on the stereo before popping in a CD. 

“Reg, what are you doing, it’s late,” you sighed and Reggie only gave you a smile when the soft familiar guitar came on. 

“Dance with me, ballerina?” he whispered softly, holding out a hand to you which you gladly took. 

“So,” you whispered. “Who’s really your ballerina?” 

“Both of you,” Reggie explained. “I wrote part of the song when we got married and added some things when Penny picked up ballet,” 

Your forehead rested gently on Reggie’s and you swayed gently from side to side. 

“Well that gives it a whole new meaning now, doesn’t it,” you giggled tiredly. 

“You know,” Reggie started, his forehead moving away from yours as his lips found their favourite spot right behind your ear. “I think I feel another song coming on now,” 

“Oh really?” you whispered. 

“Mhmm, it’s about a college student who’s married to a bassist in the best rock band in the world and how she’s the best mom and wife anyone could ask for,” 

“I think I’d like that song,” you yawned tiredly, resting your head on Reggie’s shoulder, loosening your muscles, relaxing into his hold. 

“Yeah (N/N),  I think you would too,” 

—

You and Reggie sat anxiously in the front row, waiting for the recital to start. You had the camcorder all ready and started up, just waiting for the right moment to put the focus on Penelope. 

You had told the boys that the reciatal started at noon sharp so you weren’t sure what was taking them so long. 

Reggie’s leg was bouncing up and down and you placed a hand on it, prompting him to slow down and take a deep breath. 

“They’re gonna be here Reg, maybe they ran into van trouble again, you know how that happens,” you assured. 

Reggie nodded, “I promised Penny they’d be here so they better show up,” 

“We’re here!” you could hear an exclamation from the back and you and Reggie turned around to see Alex, Bobby, and Luke running in, holding an assortment of flowers, teddy bears and chocolates for Penelope no doubt. 

“Sorry, long line at the checkout,” Alex explained, out of breath, taking a spot in the empty seats behind you. 

“What, is it Valentine’s day?” Reggie asked. “You guys are making me look bad,” 

“And I told you guys to stop spoiling her! I’m trying to make sure my child does not grow up entitled,” you said flatly just as the lights went down and there was a hush across the community theatre, all waiting for the group of children to come out onto the stage. 

You raised the camcorder into position and grinned as you saw Penelope happily skipping out onto the stage and getting in her position.

The theme to swan lake started to play and all of the children carefully followed their dance teacher in the routine. Reggie was beaming with pride and the boys were constantly cooing and aww’ing in the background. 

When the girls finished up Reggie was the first to stand, followed very soon after by the boys, applauding and cheering, 

“That’s my cupcake!” 

Only to be rewarded with a kiss blown to him by their little star. It was definitely a strange sight to see. The boys were in a rock band and it wasn’t like they tried to hide it. Alex walked around with drumsticks in his back pocket. Reggie almost always had his leather jacket on and if not there were black ripped jeans thrown into the equation. Luke and Bobby just really had the look, nails occasionally painted black for the aesthetic and just cause it looked pretty. So seeing them cheering the loudest wasn’t the only thing that made them stand out in the crowd of standard suburban families. 

After the rest of the show, Penelope was led out to the reception area where she was met by you, her parents, and her uncles. 

“Penny you were so good!” Bobby exclaimed, picking her up and pressing a smacking kiss to her cheek. 

“Thanks uncle Bobby!” she giggled. 

“We got you some teddy bears and chocolate, but your mama said to save some of it for your birthday,” Luke mentioned. 

“Wow, way to make me look like the bad guy here,” you rolled your eyes. “Just give it all to her now, I don’t know why I even try,” you chuckled with a sigh, only to have Reggie wrap an arm around your shoulder and press a tender kiss to your temple. 

“What do you say Penny?” Reggie prompted and the girl grinned, saying thank you to her uncles and mother. 

You and Reggie then suggested everyone come over for pizza to celebrate. It was a big day after all, her first recital. 

Your heart clenched slightly as you realized how fast your little girl was growing up. 

So while Penny, Alex, Bobby, and Luke were very engrossed in a game of go fish you pulled Reggie aside to speak to him about it. 

“Everything alright (N/N)?” he asked concernedly after you had called him back to the kitchen. 

You peaked over his shoulder at the group in the living room, laughing and enjoying themselves. 

“I think so,” you sighed. “But do you ever feel like she’s growing up so fast? I just want to press pause sometimes, make her stay like this so she doesn’t grow up and go away,” 

“(Y/N), I know what you mean,” Reggie assured, holding your hands in his. “But Penny is five. We still have plenty of time before she leaves us, so why don’t we go over there and savour those moments we have with her before Luke convinces her to pick up juggling knives or whatever other bad idea he’s come up with,” 

You chuckled lightly and nodded as Reggie brought your hands up to his lips, pressing a kiss to your knuckles. 

“Come on mama, they're expecting us to play next round.” 

The night passed on without so much as a hiccup, the boys even deciding to stay the night in the spare bedrooms upstairs and in the basement. 

By the time you finished clearing the dishes and tidying up the living room you would have argued that it was past your bedtime, but you still made one last stop to give your routine goodnight kiss to Penelope. Only this time, when you entered the room, crammed onto the small single bed was not only Penelope, but Reggie, snoring softly with one arm wrapped protectively around her. 

His flannel was draped carefully over her sleeping frame, no doubt to keep her warm from the cooler night air that drifted in from the cracked windows. 

They both looked so peaceful. Like that was where they belong, with each other. There was such a huge part of Reggie in Penelope, but also a big part of you and that’s maybe why you all got along so well. 

Quietly, you tiptoed into the room, leaning down and pressing a soft kiss to each of their foreheads, whispering goodnight before smiling at the realization that the bed was all yours for one night. 

—

“Did daddy play good?” you asked Penelope loudly over the crowd cheering and the small girl nodded, looking out from your special spot backstage where you got to see the boys perform at one of their biggest venues yet. 

They had just finished their last song and you were honestly quite surprised she had lasted this long, it was getting late and normally she could sleep through anything, even blasting rock music.

“Thank you San Diego! We’re Sunset Curve and before we go we’d like to give you one more song!” 

The crowd cheered loudly as Reggie subtly motioned for you and Penelope to come out. 

“So this is a little different than what we normally do,” Reggie started as you revealed yourself and your daughter to the crowd. “But…” he paused a moment to pick up Penelope when she ran to him. “It’s my daughter’s birthday next week and she wanted to do a little something with her dad and dad’s gotta keep his pinky promise, right Penny?” 

She nodded with a smile and you already knew what was coming so quickly you went over to Alex and kicked him off of his seat, telling him to hand over the drumsticks. 

“No way I’m dancing in front of everyone. That’s uncle Alex’s job,” you pushed your brother away and he conceded, meeting his niece at the front of the stage and taking her hand when Reggie placed her back down on the ground. 

“Again, we’re Sunset Curve and this is Ballerina,” 

Reggie started on a more rock beat for the song, you Luke and Bobby following in right behind as he started to sing the familiar lyrics. Penelope was shining brighter than the stage lights, going through her moves with Alex as they usually would to the AC/DC CD at home. 

You’d never heard the crowd of a concert more quiet, trying to take in the lyrics to the never performed song, but you could tell they liked it otherwise they wouldn't be waving their lighters right? 

The song came to a final close and the crowd roared with approval and Penelope quickly jumped up into her uncle’s arms before being passed off to her father. 

“Thank you again! That was Ballerina and apparently featuring my wonderful wife on drums!” he grinned and you stood up taking a bow before tossing Alex back his sticks. 

You all exited the stage and Reggie seemed to be riding on the high of the performance. 

“Why didn’t you tell me you could shred on the drums?!” he asked, surprised and you only laughed. 

“I’m Alex Mercer’s little sister. What do you think I did growing up? Mom and Dad’s biggest mistake as they always put it,” 

“Yeah we were on those things 24/7 the minute they bought them,” Alex added.

“Penny did you have fun?” Luke asked. 

“Yeah!” she nodded. “Best birthday present ever. Thanks daddy,” 

“Not a problem, anything for my cupcake,” 

And not only that night did he seem to prove that, but every night moving forward. Reggie would always do anything for his two ballerinas.