5 Times someone fell in love with Zoe, 1 Time Zoe fell in love (Zoe Centric) 1/1

[shippergal]

Title: 5 Times Someone Fell in Love with Zoe, 1 Time Zoe Fell in Love

Pairings/Characters: Alicia, Boylan, Elisabeth, Jim, Josh, Maddy, Mark, Sam, Skye, Taylor (Maddy/Mark & 1 hint of Josh/Skye in background)

Word Count: 4,611

Rating: Teen

Spoilers: Spoilers for throughout Season 1 (minor ones)

Summary: 5 times someone fell in love with Zoe Shannon, the 1 time she fell in love

A/N: I love Zoe and this was thought up (and with me? It was bound to happen at one point)

Warning: Fluff...

5 times someone fell in love with Zoe, 1 time Zoe fell in Love

1 - Out of mouths of babes (Wash)

Lieutenant Alicia Washington wasn't exactly sure how she had gotten into this situation, she briefly wondered if Reynolds had anything do with it before dismissing it. Reynolds wasn't stupid, he feared her just enough not to do anything like this.

Maybe it was Jim Shannon. He had wanted payback since she made him pair up with Mark during an OTG mission. Apparently the boy had been that nervous that he kept talking about anything and everything.

She remembered the look on Jim's face when he demanded to know why she had paired him up with the guy who was determined to steal his oldest daughter. Her excuse? Because he was a potential Son-in-Law and would be more than likely to be the father of any children Maddy had. Oh, it was fun to see Jim choke on his own breath while Elisabeth laughed somewhere in the background.

There was an emergency where one of the Outposts was under danger. Taylor had ordered her to stay behind while he ran out of the door with Elisabeth, Jim and Mark hot on his heels.

Maddy and Josh had been called into work so she had been offered up as a babysitter with Taylor communicating with her to tell her she was to look after the youngest Shannon. For a brief moment, she had thought they had made up the emergency at the Outpost and was currently watching the two of them through the cameras before brushing that thought aside, Taylor wouldn't waste manpower.

So here she was, sitting at table with Zoe next to her, both of them drawing pictures. It had been a while since Alicia had drawn a picture but she had to admit it was like riding a bike.

"Do you think Mark will be okay?" Zoe asked, lifting dark eyes to meet Alicia's dark ones.

"Mark?" she asked, amused. "I thought you would be worried about your parents." Zoe shook her head.

"I know Daddy can take care of mommy, he's good like that but Mark…Maddy told me he got hurt not long ago," she informed the older woman, who remembered Mark's team being ambushed by the Sixers. She had heard the soldiers saying Mark must be feeling better after that kiss Maddy had planted on him once she saw herself that he was fine.

"Mark will be fine," Alicia assured the youngest girl, who stared at her with a critical look then she nodded, happy with Alicia's assessment. "You like Mark?" Zoe smiled widely.

"Yeah, he's funny and he likes to draw with me. Sometimes we play games and he watches Disney films with me," Zoe listed off. Alicia had to smother her smile.

"Does everyone else like him?" Zoe giggled.

"Maddy has a dreamy look on her face whenever someone mentions Mark's name and she smiles more with him around. Josh is okay with him because he makes Maddy happy and both of them like music. Mommy really likes him, she calls him 'Sweetheart' and she told me that she calls us 'Sweetheart' causes she loves us," Zoe explained. Alicia couldn't stop the broad smile crossing her face; apparently Zoe was more like Maddy when it came to talking.

"And what about your dad?" she asked.

"Daddy likes to pretend he doesn't like Mark," Zoe told her with a roll of her eyes. Alicia had to smother her laugher. "He does like Mark; he likes how Mark makes Maddy happy. But he says it's a father's job to make sure that any guy who wants their daughter's heart has to go through him to get to her."

Alicia felt a fond smile cross her face. She had seen how protective Jim was with his family and how the family flourished under that protection. Most teenagers would rebel against how protective a father could be but Jim made it work for him, they understood that by being a cop, he saw things he never wanted to happen to his children.

She remembered the furious barks when he shoved Horton into the office after dragging the man back, informing her that the man had just tried to kill his daughter. Just when she had managed to get Jim under control, Reynolds had shown up out of breath and anger flashing across his face, telling her that he heard about Maddy only to spot Jim then Horton.

She thinks that was the one time she had seen both men unite together when it came to Horton. Mess with Maddy Shannon and you would have two men who were trained to use guns after you.

"Mark talks about you," Zoe's sweet voice broke into her thoughts and she looked at the younger member. "He says you're like a big sister to him."

"He…He does?" Alicia asked.

"You're Mark's family and Mark is my family which means you're my family," she told her with a stern nod and a sweet smile.

She felt a smile curl her lips as she watched the adorable youngest Shannon turn back to her drawing. Now she can understand why Mark found it hard to stay away from both Maddy and Zoe Shannon.

2 - Her adorable interest (Boylan)

He knows that he could get arrested for having a five year old in his bar and he knows that her father would shoot him if he ever found out but he found it very hard to say 'no' when she turned those big brown eyes and trembling bottom lip on him.

Tom Boylan had never thought himself as a softy type but his gruff façade crumbled when Maddy Shannon entered his bar with Zoe walking beside her. She had been looking for Mark Reynolds, who had been with his friends over in the corner where they usually liked to sit.

Maddy had helped Zoe up onto the stool as Boylan opened his mouth to tell her that they couldn't be there only to be distracted when he saw Zoe playing with a watch, an honest to god real-life watch.

He had been curious that Maddy explained that her grandfather had left it to her in his will when he died. It broke and she had been looking for Mark to see if he knew anyone who could fix it. Seeing the sad look on Zoe's face as she played with the watch just made his heart break and he offered himself up.

The identical smiles on their faces brought warmth to his heart and he found that he couldn't deny them anything. Zoe had eagerly handed the watch over, having no reservation about handing something so precious to someone she didn't know and both of them watched with fascination as he fixed the watch.

He was startled when both girls would ask him questions about what he was doing. At first, he thought they were just merely humouring him but that faded the moment he saw the interest on their faces. They wanted to know and he gladly indulged them.

The moment he fixed the watch and handed it back over, he knew that he had been sucked into the abyss that was Maddy and Zoe Shannon. He had heard people talking about the girls but he had never believed it himself until they drew him in.

They had been delighted with the fixed watch that both of them hugged him, giving him a kiss on the cheek each as thanks before Mark wandered by, smiling amusedly at Boylan, who just glared back, trying to cover up his softness that the girls brought out.

He watched as Maddy and Zoe greeted Mark happily, Mark taking Zoe into his arms as Maddy told him why they were there. He looked at Boylan, thanks in his eyes before he turned to the girls and asked them if they wanted to go to the park. He had gotten agreements before both girls turned to Boylan and thanked him once more.

Since then, Maddy would bring Zoe by, apparently the little youngest would demand to see him, and Boylan would teach Zoe how to repair watches, the little girl watching on, fascinated as he explained all the different pieces and how they worked together.

He even got her to help out, teaching her how to hold the tools, to know when to stop and when to push on. She had gotten good at it, something that still amazed him and more people would bring their watches to him just so they could watch as Zoe greeted them with a bright cheerful smile, assuring them that their watches would be fixed in no-time.

For the first time in a while, he was thankful to Taylor for allowing the Shannon family to stay after Jim Shannon had broken rules to ensure their family stayed together, especially when he looked into the shiny happy face of Zoe Shannon whenever she handed a fixed watch over to its rightful owner.

3 - Thank You (Taylor)

Commander Nathaniel Taylor sat at his desk, going over his reports that his Second-in-Command had dropped off before she went home to sleep off a hard day. It had been a rough day for everyone because Maddy Shannon and Skye, his adoptive daughter, had gotten stranded OTG thanks to a scientist putting them in harm's way.

He breathed heavily as he tried to control his anger and his impulse to go down to the brig and knock a few teeth loose from the man. Maddy had been assigned to intern with the man and Skye had gone along with them.

A dinosaur had come out of nowhere, startling them. That…man…had grabbed the rover and drove off without the girls, forcing them to spend the day OTG. Thankfully both girls had the sense to camouflage themselves and stay hidden within the trees, slowly making their way toward Terra Nova.

They hadn't known the girls were in danger until Malcolm had asked where they were. They had been confused until Malcolm told them that the girls had been with the scientists when he went OTG. If he was back, then surely he would have brought the girls back.

He sighed, remembering the furious expression that had dominated Reynolds and Shannon's face when the scientists admit that he had left them OTG because he had been so scared and grabbed the rover.

Wash and Dr Shannon had to step in front of the men when they threatened the scientist. He allowed himself a brief smile when Dr Shannon had turned on the man, demanding to know where he had left her daughter and friend. People who thought Jim Shannon was scary had never seen Elisabeth Shannon ticked off.

The scientist had admitted that he couldn't remember when Mark asked if Maddy had been wearing the necklace he had given her for her 17th birthday. Jim admitted that Maddy never took it off and Mark told them that he would know where she was.

It turned out that, after the whole Horton ordeal - something that still haunted Taylor because his people were meant to be safe within the walls of Terra Nova - Mark had gotten permission from Maddy to put a locator in her necklace. It was their way of protecting each other if one of them were stuck OTG.

Jim and Elisabeth had been so relieved when Mark brought up the screen and input the password that revealed Maddy's whereabouts. Jim had been badly hurt in an earlier mission and told Reynolds to bring Maddy home. Reynolds had promised him before he left, close on Taylor's heels.

It hadn't taken them that long to find the girls and Taylor didn't think he had ever been so relieved to see the girls unharmed. Reynolds had wrapped Maddy up in a tight hug, kissing her passionately while Skye clung to Taylor saying she was just glad to see them.

He came out of his thoughts when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in!" he ordered and he heard the door opening.

"Mister Taylor," he lifted his head to see Zoe Shannon, six years old now, standing in the doorway. He frowned, concerned.

"Zoe; is everything ok?" he asked. Zoe nodded as she moved closer into the room, coming to stop on the other side of his desk.

"Thank you," she told him simply. Taylor felt an amused smile curl his lips.

"You don't need to thank me for finding your sister," he told her but she shook her head.

"Thank you for everything," she told him. "For giving our family fresh start, for allowing my father to stay with us even though he broke out of jail and brought me here when it was against the law for doing so. For helping to save my brother and my sister when they were in danger."

"It's my job to make sure everyone is safe," Taylor assured her as he got up from his seat and rounded the desk, kneeling down on knee in front of the girl, who nodded.

She wrapped her arms around his neck, startling him before she kissed his cheek and took a step back.

"You're a good man, Mister Taylor. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise." She gave him a sweet smile before skipping happily out of his office.

He just watched her go before a broad smile crossed his face. Little Zoe Shannon was different and the look of happiness on her face when she saw her family was still in one piece was all the thanks he ever needed.

4 - Family (Skye)

"Why do you like my brother?" Skye lifted her head to look down at Zoe who was currently lying on her side, her eyes closed with a stuffed dinosaur to her chest.

"Excuse me?" Skye asked, wondering if Zoe had really spoken. Zoe opened her dark eyes, shifting so she could look into Skye's face. Skye had been asked to babysit Zoe because Josh had been called into work.

Usually Maddy would be the one but since Skye knew Maddy was on a date with Mark, she loathed to interrupt them, especially after the rant Maddy had given her father and brother for walking in on her and Mark during a heated make-out and had promptly flipped out on them.

Skye had to hold back her laughers as remembered Maddy laying into the two men as they had barged in on them at Mark's house therefore she and Mark could do what they wanted before she kicked them out.

The look on the men' faces had made her and Elisabeth laugh until they were in tears. It only got worse when Mark would shift nervously whenever he was in the presence of the men with them glaring at him and Maddy glaring right back at her Father and Brother.

She had admitted to Skye that she and Mark were trying to take the next step in their relationship but unfortunately for them, everyone had developed bad timing. Skye didn't think she had laughed as much as she did when it came to the Shannon family, there was always some drama going on.

"Why do you like my brother?" Zoe's voice broke into her thoughts and she looked at Zoe. Both of them were lying in Zoe's bed as she tried to get to sleep. It was harder to sleep without Maddy in the same room so Skye had offered herself up until someone came home.

"What do you mean?" Skye asked.

"He makes you smile yet he makes you cry," Zoe told her, her voice serious. "I know he likes you but Maddy says he doesn't know who he wants, you or Kara." Skye felt that little hole in her heart tear wider at Kara's name. "So…why do you like him when he makes you cry?" Skye sighed, turning onto her back.

"I like him because he can make me laugh," Skye admitted, her eyes staying on the ceiling and she noticed the girls had glow-in-the-dark stars on them. She felt a smile curl her lips. "Even though I know he still likes Kara, he's still my friend."

"Do you think he will like you back?" Zoe shifted closer, copying Skye as she rolled onto her back, smiling when she spotted the stars.

"One day…maybe," Skye told her softly and Zoe nodded.

"I still think you're our family," she told Skye. Skye turned her head to see Zoe was looking at her. "You're like another big sister. You help Maddy get ready for her date and you put make-up on me, even though dad complains I look older with it on." Skye grinned. "Mommy likes you too and so does Daddy, despite him complaining all the time that we seem to be taking over the house."

"I like you guys too," Skye told her.

"Good, then don't be sad," Zoe told her. "I don't like it when people are sad. I like it when they are happy because they seem more…colourful." Skye grinned, used to the weird stuff that liked to come out of Zoe's mouth. It suited the youngest member.

"Okay, I'll try," Skye promised and Zoe nodded, her eyes dropping to half-mast and she let out a yawn.

"Josh is an idiot," Zoe mumbled sleepily. "But then again, Mark says all boys are idiots when they are trying to impress a girl they like." Skye grinned, kissing Zoe's forehead as she fell asleep and she let her eyes wander back up to the stars.

"Yeah," she softly agreed, feeling that little hole slowly repair itself. Maybe she doesn't need Josh to make her happy…maybe it was a family she needed, one that had a little doe-eyed six years old who was smarter than she let on.

5 - Like Sisters (Mark)

"Do you think you and Maddy will get married?" Zoe spoke up from where she sitting at the counter in her kitchen, watching as Maddy and Mark weave around each other, getting dinner ready for when her father, mother and brother would get home.

She arched an eyebrow when Mark dropped the bowl and Maddy flushed bright red, both of them turning around to look at the youngest member of the Shannon family, still five (five and a half!) years old and currently drawing a picture.

"Zoe!" Maddy hissed. "What's with the question?"

"Nina said only married couples should be kissing. Since you two kiss…does that mean you will get married?" Mark made a funny choking sound while Maddy groaned.

"How many times have I told you not to believe everything Nina tells you?" Maddy warned her sister. Zoe rolled her eyes.

"She's right though; mommy and daddy kiss and they are married. Even Leah says that it's only married people who kiss," Zoe informed them.

"That's not true," Mark spoke up and both of them looked at him. He seemed to flush under their questioning gaze before looking at Zoe. "What about those films you like to watch? Not all of them are married."

"Mark, most of them are animals," Zoe informed him with an arched eyebrow. "So really, that doesn't work because, while animals can marry each other, they are not going to wait until they get married." Mark couldn't stop the twitch of his lips at Zoe copying Maddy with her knowledge.

"But the others involve humans and not all of them are married before they kiss," Maddy reminded her sister, shrugging when Zoe looked at her. "You don't need to be married to kiss." She narrowed her eyes at her sister. "And just how do you know about Mark and me?" Zoe grinned.

"Leah and I were playing hide-and-seek and we came across you. It was at the park and you were hidden among the trees," Zoe informed her. Mark coughed, his cheeks going bright pink while Maddy gaped at her sister.

"Did you tell anyone?" she asked, almost pleadingly and Zoe shook her head.

"Nope," she popped the 'p', something she picked up from Josh. She found it funny that both of them looked relieved.

"Good," Maddy sighed before she pinned her sister with a glare. "And you can't tell anyone."

"If I don't tell anyone, can I be the flower-girl when you and Mark get married?" she asked hopefully. Maddy sighed, obviously not going to get Zoe to budge on from that conversation before she snuck at a glance at Mark, who was looking too entirely amused for his own good.

"If," she pointedly looked at Zoe, "if," she looked pointedly at Mark then looked at Zoe, "Mark and I do get married, then yes, you can be the flower-girl," Maddy assured her and Zoe beamed brightly. Maddy nodded, satisfied that the conversation was over and turned back to making the dinner, very aware of Mark's eyes on her.

Mark couldn't help the images of him and Maddy getting married before he looked at Zoe, who had turned back to her drawing and smiled softly. He was going to have to find a way to thank Zoe and he wondered if their children would take after their mother.

The door opening distracted them and they turned to see Elisabeth, Jim and Josh making their way into the house, tiredness lining their faces after having a hard day of work.

"Hey sweethearts," Elisabeth greeted all three of them with a tired but bright smile.

"What are we up to?" Jim asked, following his wife as they moved closer to the counter. Maddy and Mark were about to speak when Zoe got there first.

"Maddy and Mark are getting married!" Zoe gleefully cheered to her parents, watching as her father turned pale, Josh gaped at her and her mother looking curious and amused while Mark and Maddy protested, saying they weren't getting married.

Zoe just shrugged, turning back to her picture where she had Maddy and Mark facing each other, holding hands with Maddy in a white dress and Mark in his soldier outfit (cause it was the only thing she really saw him in) and smiled, maybe they will get married soon…and she can be the flower girl.

6 - It hurts, so bad (Zoe)

Zoe Shannon pulled the pillow close to her chest as tears trickled down her cheeks. She was now a 15 year old girl who had grown up. She's been in Terra Nova for 10 years, she had faced the possibilities of losing her family members and she had gone to funerals for people who had died due to old age, illness and giving their lives on the line.

But not once did her heart hurt as much as it did today.

"Hey Zoe," she looked up to see Mark Reynolds standing in the doorway with a soft knowing smile on his lips. She sighed, relieved that it wasn't her father or her older brother. "Do you want to talk?" Mark moved in closer, sitting on the bed.

Fresh tears welled up in her eyes as she shook her head. His face twisted with sympathy as he shifted so he had his back resting against the headboard and slipped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her in a side-way hug.

She went willingly, going into her brother's arms and burying her face into his chest. He murmured her name, stroking back her hair was she cried into his chest, needing to get it out. She knows that she could have gone to her father or her brother but both of them were already protective of her dating, finding out she was crying over the guy would have just sent them straight into paranoia while Mark was willing to sit with her and wait until she let it all out.

Soon she ran out of tears and she sighed, keeping her face in Mark's chest.

"Why are boys such idiots?" she mumbled and Mark laughed, kissing the top of her head.

"Because we want to impress the girl we like," he told her and she shifted her head so she was looking at Mark, frowning.

"How does that even work?" she demanded. "How does making a girl cry impress her?" Mark sighed.

"Because he didn't think it through?" he suggested with a knowing look. "He thought it would work out the way he expected it and you would be impressed. Instead, he got himself hurt and made you worry."

"He scared me," she told him, hiccupping as she tried to control her tears. "There was blood and I thought he was…" she trailed off as Mark nodded.

"I know," he assured her. His Mother-in-Law had called him up in a panic after seeing her daughter storm out of the medical facility when she had been assured that the boy would be fine. "But that's what happens when you have strong feelings for someone. You try your best to hold onto that faith they will be fine but sometimes, you end up imaging the worse."

"I think I'm in love with him," she admitted before lifting her eyes to the ceiling. "Every time he smiles, my heart does these flip-flops and I get butterflies in my stomach whenever he looks as me and says my name."

"Then he's a lucky guy," Mark told her and she turned to face him, curiously. "Because the Shannon women, when they fall in love, they fall fast and no matter how stupid he is, no matter how many times he makes you cry with worry or fear, you will still love him because it's part of who he is."

"No-one ever said love hurts," she muttered and Mark grinned.

"I know," he told her, pressing a kiss to her forehead. "But in the end, it's worth it because you get to spend the rest of your life with that person."

"Really?" she wanted to be sure and Mark gave her that smile she knew was associated whenever he thought about her older sister.

"Yeah, it's totally worth it," he assured her and she gave him a smile.

"Hey," they turned to see Maddy Reynolds standing in the doorway. She smiled at her sister with a knowing look. "There's someone at the door for you. He says he goes by the name of 'Idiot'." Zoe stared at her sister before she started laughing, wiping away her tears.

"That's because he is an idiot," she muttered fondly as she and Mark got off the bed. She turned to her brother-in-law and embraced him in a tight hug. "Thanks for everything, Mark." He hugged her back.

"No problems," he stepped back, "Now you go and let him know that he shouldn't make you worry so much." He gently pushed Zoe toward the door. Maddy pressed a kiss to her forehead before she slipped into her husband's arms and both of them watched as Zoe squared her shoulders and left the bedroom toward the front door.

There he was, Sam Marco, the guy with the wild blonde hair (he likes to say he's tamed them into spikes but…it didn't quite work out like that) and the bright green eyes that looked at her with an apologetic gaze. He gave her a sheepish smile.

"I'm sorry," he told her, sincerely. "I really didn't think that would happen, I just…" he groaned, trying to find the words that would show how sorry he really was but Zoe just wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down for a hard kiss.

He proved it in his kiss that he was sorry and she told him that she forgave him in her kiss. Because Mark was right, no matter how much worry and fear you go through, in the end, it was worth it.

The End

Yes, Stef - I gave you lots of cute Mark/Zoe moments (couldn't help myself and I sincerely hope we will get more scenes with those two. It should be illegal not to!)