Disclaimer: I don't own the Thunderbirds. Never have, never will!
Diabetic warning might be necessary for this little piece.
Prompt inspired by Wonderavian. Original request: Alan and Gordon used to dress up as superheroes when they were younger and would go parading around the house. Nowadays, it isn't just a kid's game.
I gave it a little twist...Enjoy!
Memories
Climbing into the attic of the old farmhouse, Jeff Tracy paused as his eyes scanned the numerous boxes that scattered the upper floor. It all seemed overwhelming as he contemplated where to start.
It had been a trying week emotionally for all of them. The matriarch of the family and Jeff's mother – Ruth Tracy – had passed leaving another hole in their family. It had come suddenly and unexpected. For the grandmother of five grandsons had passed peacefully in her sleep.
For the past several days following the funeral, Jeff and his sons had been combing through the memories of their lives that had been left on the old Kansas farmhouse. Decades worth of treasures had often left them pausing to relive the cherished memories.
Taking in a deep breath, Jeff settled on a stack of boxes that resided against the wall in front of him. Opening up the top box, he wasn't surprised to come across miscellaneous items that had seemed to have been thrown into the box haphazardly. Pictures, papers, and trinkets were scattered throughout the box. In the early years following the passing of his beloved wife Lucy, many items had been spontaneously boxed away in an effort to keep the house decluttered. Even though Ruth tried her best to keep order in the house full of five growing young men, often pictures were accidently thrown in and entirely forgotten.
Picking up a stack of pictures, Jeff smiled at the young faces in each of the pictures. Simple pictures that never should've been thrown carelessly in the box. A picture of a pre-teen Scott in his valued baseball uniform. A picture of Virgil sitting at the kitchen table surrounded by numerous finished water paintings.
Flipping to the next picture, Jeff paused chuckling as he remembered the memory of it perfectly. In his hands was a picture of a four year old Alan and an eight year old Gordon dressed in superhero costumes. The candid moment capturing the laughter and silliness between older and younger brother.
Gordon at age eight was already deeply obsessed with the water and anything to do with it. It was for that reason that it was no surprise to his family that the ginger's favorite superhero wasn't the traditional heroes, but indeed Aquaman. The orange and green costume popping out in the picture in stark contrast to his baby brother's.
Alan – who was still so little in comparison - was easily raptured and swayed. Being a son of Kansas, it was no surprise that the child loved Superman. If you asked the youngster why he really liked the hero, his response was always animated. At only four, Alan had already begun to worship his four older brothers. To the blonde baby of the family, his brothers were exactly like Superman. The blue and red costume making him feel just as adventures and strong like his brothers. Superman flew high among the clouds like his oldest brother Scott loved to talk about. Superman soared among the stars like John always gazed upon.
Jeff smiled fondly as he remembered returning home from work to the two superheroes causing havoc throughout the household.
~0~
Walking through the front door of the Kansas home, Jeff loosened his tie and sat his briefcase near the entry table.
"Gordon Cooper get down from there!" the father heard his mother yell. Walking into the sitting room, Jeff watched as his two youngest children ran around the room dressed in their favorite Halloween costumes.
"Sorry, Grandma! I'm busy saving the world!" the copper haired eight year old bellowed, and jumped down from the back of the couch.
"Gordy, hurry this way!" Alan's young voice yelled as he zoomed toward a corner of the room, oblivious to his father's presence.
Gordon followed but suddenly dropped to the ground. "Help Allie, they got me!"
Alan quickly ran toward his older brother, tackling him further to the ground with a hug. "I'll save you Gordy!"
Jeff's heart melted as he watched the two interact. After a tough day at work, the innocent moment was exactly the medicine he needed.
"Daddy!" Alan suddenly cried as he finally noticed their father, rushing toward him. Jeff knelt down and allowed his youngest to fall into his arms, his blonde curls bouncing at the contact.
"Hey, Dad!" Gordon smiled coming up to give his father a hug as well.
"Busy saving the world, huh?" Jeff smirked.
"Sorry, Dad," the ginger said, frowning.
"It's okay, son," Jeff smiled. "No climbing on the furniture, okay? Why don't you two go ahead and wash up before dinner?"
Gordon smiled. "Deal! C'mon Al, race you to the top of the stairs!"
"No fair, Gordon! You're bigger than me," Alan cried as he tried to trudge up the stairs quickly.
~0~
"Little did we know you'd both become our own versions of superheroes," Jeff chuckled to himself.
"Dad!" Alan yelled from below, interrupting the patriarch from his thoughts.
Walking back toward the opening, he was met with Alan's glistening baby blue eyes. Eyes so much like his mother's. "Yes, Alan?"
"Scott's back from town with dinner. Figured it was time for a break. What do you think?" the youngest smiled up at his father.
"I think so," Jeff nodded. "Just let me grab something real quick."
Alan waited a few minutes, before his father climbed down the ladder and stood beside him. "What's that?" he asked, noticing the stack of items in Jeff's hands.
"Just some old photos I thought we could look at over dinner," Jeff smiled, handing Alan the photo he had been gazing upon only a few minutes prior.
"You're kidding!" Alan exclaimed in disbelief at the candid picture. As he and Jeff walked downstairs to the kitchen, he instantly searched for his immediate older brother. "Gordo – look!"
"There's plenty more from where that came from," Jeff announced, sitting the stack on the corner of the kitchen table. His son's quickly began looking through the pictures, each laughing and smiling at the memories.
As he watched each of his sons, Jeff couldn't help but think of a quote he had once heard.
"A truly rich man is one whose children run into his arms when his hands are empty."
The last few weeks had been rough on him and his sons, but no matter how much Jeff had lost over the years it held nothing on what he had gained.
A/N: What the? I don't even know where this really came from but I hope you enjoyed it! I blame it on post-surgery meds! Lots of fluff!