I don't own Melissa and Joey and never will. No copyriqht infringement intended.
The two men that had broken into the Burke household an hour and half earlier paced back and forth, guns drawn. Joe glared at them, ready to fight, but protecting Mel and the kids at the same time. He wasn't about to let any of them get hurt. Lennox stood behind her aunt and her frame shook with sobs she was desperately trying to hold back. She was terrified out of her mind (but not alone since everyone else felt the same way).
That Saturday that changed everything started off as a normal day in the Burke household. By the end of the night, their lives were irrevocably changed. Joe, Mel, Lennox, and Ryder had been eating breakfast, the two teenagers arguing, completely unaware of the events that were about to transpire. Less than twenty minutes later, Ryder had opened the door to go out with his friends and came face to face with a gun.
Mel couldn't take it anymore and decided to ask the criminals in front of her a question. She moved towards them, leaving a terrified Lennox exposed and the teenager whimpered. "What do you want? Is it money? I'll give you some if you would just leave us alone." Mel wasn't sure where her bravery was coming from exactly, but these people had threatened her, her family, and had invaded her home. She wasn't about to let that stand.
One of them laughed. "Honey, it's not just about the money. You're a fucking politician. You're famous! I want a whole lot more than what you could offer me."
A chill went down Mel's spine as she suddenly realized getting them to leave wasn't going to be easy. "Let the kids go. They're innocent. Joe and I will stay here."
In any other circumstances, Joe would have protested her throwing him under the bus, but he was right there with her in protecting Lennox and Ryder. "They have nothing to do with this, man. Come on, be compassionate." He pulled the still shaking Lennox closer to him and moved so he was in front of Ryder.
"Nice try, but it's not happening." The other man just glared at the family of four.
"Is it about you being famous? Because I will make sure that your names aren't plastered anywhere if you dare to hurt us." Mel hoped her words didn't betray the fear she was experiencing. She was terrified for all of them, especially her niece and nephew.
"Shut up because no one wants to hear what you have to say." The taller one wished they had figured out a plan earlier instead of coming up with this spur of the moment a week earlier. They'd know what to do now instead of panicking like this.
The other one started pacing again, unsure of what the next step should be. They wanted to blackmail the politician, get a shitload of money out of her, but it wasn't working yet. They were now just terrorizing this family some more before getting the hell out of dodge (richer). "You serious about that money? Because we'll go if you give us twenty-five million."
Mel didn't have that much money and if she had been thinking straight, she would have realized they knew that too. But the panic was overriding every rational thought she had ever had and she was willing to do anything to make them go away. "I don't have that kind of money, but I can call my father. He'll give it to me." She didn't believe he had that much money either, but she wanted some excuse to get away and call 911.
"We don't believe you. We might lower it, we might not. That's for us to decide, not you." The taller one sneered at her and Mel backed away so she was near Joe and the kids again.
Ryder honestly regretted ever opening the door now. Maybe this day would have gone better if he hadn't. It was a stupid thought since the house would have been broken into no matter what, but like his aunt, he wasn't thinking straight at all. "What do you want from us? You still haven't told us." He cringed at his inability to stay quiet and wished once more that this wasn't happening.
"Shut up," Lennox hissed through her tears. She decided to leave Joe's protection and decided to sit in one of the chairs. She was tired of standing and wanted to protect herself. She didn't need him to help with that, no matter how much she wanted him to.
Unfortunately, all hell broke loose as a result of this action and something soon happened that Lennox blamed herself forever for. No matter how many times her family and others insisted she wasn't at fault, the teenager never believed them.
"Did we tell you that you could move?" The shorter one waved the gun around again and Lennox tried to suppress a small scream, but failed.
"I'm sorry." Lennox remembered they had never said they couldn't move so she technically hadn't done anything wrong. She gasped when he stomped over to her side and roughly grabbed her. Lennox was forced to the middle of the living room, away from everyone else.
"You're not sorry yet, but I'll make sure you pay for that little transgression. You will not disobey us again." The man laughed in her face and Lennox flinched.
And that's when Joe had finally had enough. He was willing to do anything to make sure they were safe. Threatening Lennox had officially crossed the line in his eyes. "Back away from her now or you will pay for this," he warned.
"I'd like to see you try, nanny. Do you think I'm scared of you?" As if he was proving a point, the taller one placed a finger on Lennox's face and wiped away some stray tears. She tried not to show them the sheer terror she was feeling, but failed as her body started to shake again.
Joe was furious now. These criminals could threaten him and Mel – They could protect themselves – but Lennox and Ryder were just kids. He made a move to walk towards them when one of the guns was pointed at Lennox. "Back the fuck away from my daughter!" he screamed and went to dive in front of them, but was stopped dead in his tracks when the other man fired the gun at him. He didn't have time to register the pain before he was flat on the floor, bleeding. He didn't even register Mel, Lennox, and Ryder's screams.
"What the hell was that? We weren't supposed to shoot anybody!"
The other man grabbed him by the collar and pushed him into the kitchen. Mel rushed to Joe's side and put pressure on the wound. It looked like he had been hit in the shoulder, but she wasn't sure because there was so much blood. Her hands were shaking and she bit her lip to prevent tears from bubbling up. "You're going to be okay, you idiot. Why would you do that?"
"Had to protect the kids," he gasped out.
And that's when Mel realized they were alone as the two guys fought loudly in the kitchen. Lennox was crying hysterically and obviously couldn't do much of anything so she turned to Ryder. "Ryder, I want you to run as fast as you can to the neighbor's and have them call 911. Do it now!"
Ryder ran towards the door and opened it. He hesitated for a brief second, not wanting to leave his family, and then took off like a bat out of hell. "Hurts," Joe murmured.
Mel tried her best to calm him down, but she knew she wasn't succeeding. "I know it does, but you just have to hold on until the police and ambulance get here, okay? Just hold on," she pleaded.
"Love … you," he murmured.
"Don't tell me that now. Tell me that when you're aware and in the hospital. Please." She didn't want him to die.
"Aunt Mel, what are they doing in there?" Lennox's voice was wrecked and she was already blaming herself for Joe getting shot.
"I'm not sure, but come on over here and help me." Mel didn't want to traumatize her niece, but she figured they were long past that now.
Lennox shuffled over to her and helped put pressure on Joe's wound as he trembled from the pain and shock. The sound of sirens was a relief to all of them, but as Joe began to lose consciousness, Mel begged him to stay awake.
The two men were gone by the time the police came, but Mel's focus was on her family. She hoped they were caught soon, though.
Joe immediately went into surgery so Mel, Lennox, and Ryder sat impatiently in the waiting room. A few hours later, a doctor came out and informed them that Joe was going to be fine and in the recovery room. Mel's knees buckled as she sagged in relief, but Ryder caught his aunt in time.
When Joe woke up a few hours later asking for Mel, she rushed to his room. "Hey, how you feeling?"
"Okay right now, but I think that's the morphine."
She laughed. "Do you remember what you said to me?"
He nodded and then grabbed her hand. "Of course I do. And I still mean it."
Mel beamed at him. "I love you, too, Longo, but don't you dare pull a stunt like this again."
"I don't plan on it. How are the kids?"
"Terrified. Do you want me to go get them?" She had a feeling Lennox and Ryder needed to see him with their own eyes to make sure Joe was okay.
He nodded. "Yeah, I do."
Mel sent a nurse out to get them and they shuffled in a few minutes. Lennox let out a sob when she saw him. "I'm sorry you got hurt because of me, Joe."
"It's not your fault, Lennox." He held his arms out and all of them dove in for a somewhat calm hug.
"You called me your daughter when that guy threatened me," Lennox said when they all pulled away.
"You are my kids. Your aunt and I may not have raised you, but you two are ours. That's never going to change." Joe smiled at her and they all beamed back.
As soon as the kids filed out of the door, Joe beckoned Mel to his side. She didn't want to hurt him and protested, but he insisted until she gave in. They cuddled for about half an hour, until Joe fell asleep again.
He was discharged from the hospital a few days later. A new security system had been installed in the house and things were definitely different. Lennox flinched at any loud noise and ended up in Mel's bed because of nightmares. She finally decided to do something about it a week later. "I think you should think about therapy."
"I don't need a therapist!" Lennox glared at her.
"You wouldn't be alone – We're all going to need it. It was traumatizing." Joe winced as he moved wrong but tried not to let her see it.
"All of us?"
"We're scared all the time, Lennox. It's not good for us," Ryder pointed out. He had been the first to suggest it and they had agreed.
"Fine." Lennox was already sick of flinching at everything and not being able to sleep. And at least she wouldn't be alone either. She couldn't stop remembering what had happened and it was driving her up the wall. She definitely needed to talk to someone.
"We'll be right there with you, sweetie," Mel assured her. She kissed the top of her head and beamed when Joe pulled her closer to him. They were still navigating their relationship, but they were happy now. It was nice.
The robbery would haunt all four of them for a long time, but it changed their relationships for the better. Therapy also helped them in the long run, something they appreciated. And six months after it happened, the two men were finally caught and Mel, Joe, Lennox, and Ryder finally relaxed for the first time since the incident had happened.