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Max looked at him and relaxed a touch before she sat down backing away and taking a few deep breaths. Mary simply scoffed "As petulant of a child as always..." She muttered under her breath. A few tense moments passed before her father spoke "You are the only one who can calm her so quickly..." he said seemingly impressed despite his stern expression looking Sage up and down again before he turned to his daughter "Maxine... We simply wanted you to choose something that wasn't so risky..." he replied his tone was softer then her mother's but still mildly aggravated "Dad... I didn't want to be nor do I want to be a doctor... taking the medical course yes ill admit saved our butts plenty of times... but I hated every minute of it... I'm not a doctor." She said. "Do you at least have something stable then?" Mary piped in "Or does your husband here work?" She asked raising a brow at Sage "Sage is in the military mother..." She replied through gritted teeth. Her mother didn't take that well... she clenched her fists making the fabric of her pants scrunch and twist under her fingers "You're in the military? What is my daughter suppose to do when you die? Or lose a limb?" She asked "You-" she muttered with a huff. "So neither of you have what I'd call a "Stable" paycheck... and you've gone and had a baby? How irresponsible can the two of you be? What if Charlie gets sick? Or one of you breaks a bone or your necks What then? Cause I doubt neither of you have insurance..." She retorted crossing her arms. They were valid questions... questions Max didn't know how to answer because of the way she and Sage and likely Charlie as well were able to heal..."Sage had insurance through the military..." She retorted "He's our main source of money..." She replied "I simply have a backup job and I paint to make extra money." She said simply "But you still have no right to judge my life when you haven't been or tried to be for the last 4 years..." She snapped. |
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Sage felt himself tense up beside Max when her mother started lecturing him about having a stable paycheck and having a child, even after just having told Max to calm down. "With all due respect, I won't be dying or getting injured any time soon," he muttered, trying to at least control his tone. "I've grown up in an....intense area with parents who weren't exactly good people. Fighting an occasional battle isn't going to kill me," he all but hissed. He knew he could control his voice a bit, but his eyes had turned cold ... though, hopefully Max's parents would see that it meant he wasn't going to get killed. Normally, a glare from him definitely unsettled people, most of the time they went the opposite direction. Hopefully, a bit of a scare or nervousness would assure her parents rather than make them not want him with Max. It seemed like they were making leeway with her father, though her mother wasn't keen on him still. When Max started talking about being judged, he put a hand on her shoulder lightly, trying his best to keep both of them calm. Normally he was the one with a bad temper ...and found it odd to keep not only him but Max from a fight as well. Charlie started whimpering behind him, no doubt as a result of the tense situation. Sage turned to pick up the girl and calm her down a bit, face softening as he reached for his daughter and wrapping his arms around the girl. |
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"Really now?" Mary said raising a brow "And just how do you know that?" She asked "You're not invincible Sage." She retorted as her husband set an arm on her "Mary... Sage is a good man... you once told me you wished things were different between us and our daughter... did you mean it? Because you're not proving it right now." He said firmly. Max's mood changed visibly... it was clear her father had never stood up for her before and clearly it meant a lot to Max though she seemed to be holding back a bit of her hope like she was waiting for him to say something that indicated he was only kidding. When he didn't her eyes went soft as she looked at her father silently thankful that for once he's backing her up. "Especially now if we want to know our granddaughter and any other grandchildren they may give us." He pointed out. |
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Sage sighed slightly at Max's reprimand, knowing she was right...he did have to be more careful now. But he knew he would never leave her he'd always come back....he just couldn't say that here with her parents in the room. He could feel some of the tension leave his back and shoulders when Max's father supported her though. Max had relaxed a bit too, which was good. It was really quiet now, though, which was admittedly stressing him out a bit. He kind of shifted back and forth, not really sure what everyone else was thinking. Though, Charlie seemed to dislike the silence too, and let out a squeal of laughter and grabbed his earring to yank on it from where she was sitting. He hadn't really expected that, but he grinned down at the girl, attempting to wrangle his ear back from her baby grip for a bit of time. Once he'd done that though, he gave her his finger to chew on, with a gentle warning of not to break daddy's face. |
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Lance gave Sage a small nod and chuckled lightly at the little girl's antics. Mary gave a huff "If you want to indulge them so be it... I have no desire to indulge in it as far as I am concerned my daughter ran away years ago and we still haven't found her." She said getting up and walking out. Of the house "I'll be in the car when you've finished indulging them." She said glaring at the four of them and heading out. Lance gave a small sigh "May I hold my granddaughter?" He asked looking between the two of them. Momma bear Max glanced between her father and Sage before she gave him a nod "Of course." She said gently "But... first..." She said standing and heading over to him giving him a hug "Thank you for backing me up..." She said choking back her tears as her father hugged her back. |
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Sage winced when Max's mother stormed out of the house...he'd been hoping her husband could have calmed her down a bit, but apparently she was just as stubborn as her daughter. As in, very. But...Max had her father back, and that was better then nothing. She at least had one parent, one supporter. It was hard not having that...he knew, and he knew well. But she had gained him back, and maybe Lance would grow to like him too, at least a little bit. He didn't really want to hope for a father figure, but maybe it would finally happen, after all these years. He allowed them to hug and whatnot for a moment, a goofy grin on his face, before walking over and offering Charlie to Lance. "Careful, your shirt button might be slobbered on," he half joked in reference to Charlie's apparent love of shiny objects. He was willing to trust Lance and forgive him for ignoring Max for years...which was a bit hard since he still half expected him to haul off and hit Max like his father would have. But handing his daughter over to him told him he was willing to trust him, to try and form a positive relationship with him. Hopefully, Lance would agree and they could get along. |
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Lance chuckled "Oh I know anything is a chew toy for a baby." He assured happily propping Charlie up on his legs and tickling her "Hey you... you're beautiful just like your mama." He chuckled. Max gave a smile and leaned on Sage happily. Lance turned into a Teddy bear around his granddaughter... he was talking in a high pitched voice and he was just simply giddy to play with the little girl "If you ever need anything you let me know alright?" He said looking up at Max then to Sage "Mary doesn't have to know anything." He assured "She won't anyways... we're separated as of now anyways." He explained. |
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Sage grinned at the man's reaction...melting from a sort of goofy boy than the stoic man trying to crush his hand he had been just moment before. He exchanged a delighted look with Max and wrapped his arms around the girl when she leaned into him. He felt his shoulders relax when Lance offered his help....it would be nice to have someone who could help. And hopefully, Lance would come to like him like part of the family. He was almost afraid to hope for a father figure, though something inside of him just really, really wanted one. Needed one, almost, since his own father wasn't a very good person. He nodded at Lances exploration, and thanked the man for both him and Max. "You'd be the only parent who'd be willing to help between the two of us," he sighed. "You'll definitely be utilized," he half joked. Lance could ask about his parents if he really wanted to, but he wasn't going to bring up the topic himself. |
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Lance looked at him and gave a nod "I'll do what I can... in fact I will probably stay I town." He admitted "I don't wanna miss the next part of my daughters adventure and I don't want to miss my granddaughter grow up..." he said playfully tickling her again "And of course I don't wanna miss a chance to get to know my son in law either." He told him. |
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Sage chuckled slightly, more than happy that Lance was accepting...well ..him. People definitely tended to think he was an awful person because of the way he looked...and maybe Lance had at first, but he wasn't doing that now, and he was open to learning to have a positive relationship. "Well, we're glad you decided to make your own choice." It was good Lance was so glad about Charlie too. Really, he seemed like a great guy, and sage was looking forward to spending more time with him. |
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Warming, with Sleet and Heavy Icing
