Ta-da! Here it is, folks! The seventh story in my Jessica/Ryan series! I know, it took me forever to post it, but I really wanted to finish out "Collective Souls" and "No day but Today," not to mention update a little with "A Love Like Ours," before I started working on this one. I didn't want to overload myself with managing four stories at once. Sorry again to all who have been patiently waiting.
Peace Out! ~KC
Destination Unknown
Father's Day
Horatio opened the door and was clobbered by his daughter jumping into his arms. "Happy Father's Day, Daddy!" she exclaimed as she planted kisses on his cheek. Horatio smiled and held his daughter in his arms as he sank to the ground.
"Hey Bug, what brings you here?" Horatio asked her.
"Are you deaf old man?" Jessica asked, knocking her fist against his head lightly. "I just told you Happy Father's Day. You do remember what that is, right? Or has olds timers kicked in already?"
"I believe its pronounced Alzheimer's, Jess." Ryan said, helping Horatio to his feet. He smiled at Horatio and they hugged. "Happy Father's Day, Horatio," he whispered.
"Nope, Dad's got olds timers! He's just senile!" Jessica smiled as she jetted to the kitchen of Horatio's house.
Horatio chuckled and looked towards the kitchen. "Just as mischievous as her mother."
"And just as cute!" Jessica hollered.
"With your hearing abilities," Ryan joked. He smiled at Horatio and Horatio returned it with one of his own.
"I hope someday, Mr. Wolfe, we'll be celebrating for you," he said with a wink.
"Yeah, me too, H," Ryan replied quietly.
They found Jessica in the kitchen unloading the box she had carried with her. She turned the oven on and set a glass baking dish on the counter next to it. She pulled back the aluminum foil on the top and checked the contents.
"Good Ryan," she said, "It looks like you didn't ruin the lasagna when you ran that red light."
"I did not run a red light!" Ryan retorted, nudging her with his elbow.
"Blah, blah, blah, you know you ran it."
"Hey who's the one with obsessive compulsive disorder here?" Ryan asked.
"That would be you cod."
"Well don't you think I would be freaking out if I had run a red light?"
"Nope," Jessica said, pushing him away with her foot. Ryan grabbed her foot and tore her converse off and began tickling her. Jessica laughed and pulled, trying to get away from him. "You bastard, you're going to make me drop the cheesecake!"
"Blah, blah, blah," Ryan playfully retorted. He wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his hands on her lower abdomen. He sighed as he felt the flat muscle and buried his face into her neck.
Jessica turned and wrapped her arms around him. "You still look for her sometimes, don't you?" she whispered to him.
Ryan nodded his head against her shoulder and sighed. "I don't know why either. I know she's not there anymore. It's like my subconscious just keeps looking."
Jessica looked into his sad hazel eyes and kissed him gently. "Someday Ryan, someday," she quietly said.
The moment was interrupted when they felt cold water spray them. They looked to see Horatio standing at the sink with the hose in his hand. "Today's about me, so stop being so gloomy," he said as he sprayed them again.
"Oh no you don't, old man!" Jessica exclaimed as she ran at him. Horatio took off running and Jessica followed him out of the kitchen. Ryan turned off the sink and replaced the hose and followed the sounds of their yelling. He found them outside running around Horatio's backyard, Jessica still wearing only one shoe. They circled around each other before Jessica jumped at him, tackling Horatio to the ground. They laughed as they wrestled in the grass. Jessica pinned Horatio to the ground and held his arms down as she straddled his hips. Ryan stood by the pool and smiled as he watched father and daughter share their moment together.
"Dad?" a voice said behind Ryan. He turned to see Kyle standing in the doorway in his army uniform and a duffle bag over his shoulder. Jessica and Horatio sat up and looked towards the house. Jessica's eyes lit up at the sight of her younger brother. "Kyle!" she exclaimed as she ran towards him.
Jessica jumped in his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist. She kissed his forehead as Kyle staggered under her weight. "Hey sis," he said, kissing her cheek. "Miss me much?"
"Just a whole freakin lot!" Jessica happily exclaimed. "I didn't know you were coming home!"
"I didn't either until yesterday," Kyle said as Jessica crawled off him. "My Sergeant said I was going stateside but he didn't say it was to Miami."
"Hey Kyle," Horatio said, wrapping his arms around his son. "I've missed you." He kissed Kyle's forehead and held him close.
"I missed you, too, Dad," Kyle said. He looked at Ryan and smiled. "Don't you have your own father you could be celebrating with Ryan?"
Ryan tried to smile as he hugged Kyle. "Well no, my Dad's dead."
Kyle froze and looked at him shocked. "Oh god, I'm so sorry Ryan. I didn't mean to….I mean I didn't…"
"You didn't know," Ryan said. "It's ok Kyle. I never told you."
Jessica ran over and grabbed Ryan's hand and pulled him towards the house. "Come on, Ryan, let's go make you a father on Dad's bed!"
"Oh no you don't!" Horatio exclaimed. He grabbed Jessica around the waist and heaved her onto his shoulder. "You're going to finish making this surprise dinner you brought over! I'm the Dad and I'm hungry!" Horatio carried her through the door and towards the kitchen. Kyle and Ryan watched and listened as Jessica's protests faded.
"Damn it, old man, put me down! Why do you always do this? This is freakin child abuse! Child abuse I tell you! I have half the mind to turn you in!"
"Shut up or I'm taking back the kidney."
"Ha! Joke's on you! You take back the kidney and I die! What are you going to do about that?"
"Kyle should be a match."
"Hey! Don't you go pawning off my organs, old man!" Kyle called after him. He chuckled and smiled at Ryan.
"I'm really sorry about what I said, Ryan," Kyle said. "I didn't know. I need to think before I open my big mouth."
"It's ok, Kyle, really it is," Ryan said, wrapping his arm around Kyle's shoulder and leading him back to the house. "It was an honest mistake. A lot of people don't know my parents are dead."
"Both your parents are dead?"
Ryan nodded his head. "Yeah, they died when I was six in a car accident. It's been me and Rachael and Uncle Ron all these years." Ryan sighed and looked at Kyle. "I miss them."
"I know how you feel. I didn't have a father until I was sixteen, and I only met him because I was under house arrest and on the run from the cops."
Ryan smiled and pulled Kyle in for a hug.
"So when are you and Jess getting married?" Kyle asked him.
Ryan looked at him for a moment and then put him in a head lock. "Why does everyone always ask me that?" Ryan asked him as he rubbed his fist roughly against Kyle's head. "I swear one more time and I'll throw you in the pool!"
"Hey you two!" Jessica yelled at them from the doorway. "Get your butts in here or no dessert for you tonight!"
Ryan and Kyle laughed and walked towards the house together. "Ryan, what happened to Jessica's face?" referring to the yellowish bruise around her left eye.
Ryan smiled and wrapped his arm around the younger man's shoulders. "Well, Kyle, let's just say Jessica had an epic battle with a doorknob Wednesday morning and it won."
