Family - Chapter 10
by Kadi
Rated: T
Andy Flynn could be the biggest ass on the planet. It was known and accepted in certain circles. What few understood or were aware of was the side of him that waited until everyone had gone up to bed before checking each of the doors. Or waited until his wife was sliding off to sleep before he finally let his own eyes close. On nights when she was home, in any case. Few also knew that he waited until he heard the key in the door, or the familiar jingle of keys hitting the tray on the table in the foyer before allowing himself to relax. There was one thing that Andy had figured out for himself, and it was that retirement was not for him. Not unless he could talk his wife into retiring with him.
He never realized, not even once, just how nerve wracking it could be watching a spouse leave, gun and badge in hand, and then waiting for them to return again. When they were working together there was always this worry in the back of his mind, but he knew that she could handle herself. More than. The bean bag incident would be forever imprinted on his mind, and one of his favorite moments. He just had his own work to keep him focused.
In the days since his injury, Andy's days were scarcely filled at all. He had physical therapy and he kept an eye on Katie. He did a few things around the house, or the yard, at least when his shoulder wasn't hurting too badly and he just couldn't stand the abject boredom any longer. With Rusty's help he finally got the last few boxes of crap out of the garage, which his wife had been asking him to remove - oh so patiently - for months now. It was crazy making, this worry he had, knowing he couldn't keep an eye on her and then just... waiting. Without him the team was shorthanded, and that was frustrating on its own.
Sharon stepped into the on call position left open by his absence, and when the phone had gone off at three that morning, Andy got up with her. Despite her protests and almost ordering him to go back to bed, he'd gone down and had coffee brewing while she was getting dressed. Her sisters-in-law were a godsend. They stayed just over a week and got them over the initial hump of his injury coupled with Katie's next infusion. They stayed until Andy was on his feet again and moving around, albeit slowly.
Rusty watched Andy move inside from the garage again. He called it puttering, and just a little bit of cleaning, but Rusty wasn't fooled. He had an old police scanner out there, and he was listening to it. Rusty laughed quietly and turned his attention back to the movie they were supposed to be watching while Flynn dropped back into his recliner. "Why don't you just call her?"
"Who?" Andy pretended to ignore his smirk. "What are you on about kid?"
Rusty rolled his eyes at him. "Sharon. Just call her." He glanced at the clock, it was nearing eleven at night.
"No." Andy sighed. He shifted back in his chair and tried to get comfortable. His shoulder was aching like hell today. "She said she'd be late. I'm not going to bother her."
"Sucks doesn't it?" Rusty lowered the volume on the television and glanced over at him. "You know, if you're really worried, she doesn't care if you call. Not when it's this late."
He figured the kid probably knew, of all people. Andy just shook his head again. "I'm not going to call her, Rusty. She'll be home when she's home. If it's too much longer, she'll call. It's fine."
"This is the part where I'm supposed to remind you that she's been doing this as long as you have, and there's nothing to worry about," Rusty added. The only problem was, Flynn doing it as long as he had didn't really stop him getting hurt, and so, there was reason to worry. "All the guys, you know, they keep an eye on her," he added instead.
"I know." Andy slanted a look at him and tried to concentrate on the movie. Thing was, he was usually one of the guys keeping an eye on her. It wasn't the only reason why he was worrying, though. Andy slumped in his chair and sighed loudly. One thing Sharon promised Rusty, early on, was that she would always be honest with him. Andy extended him the same courtesy whenever possible. "I don't know if she can take much more, kid. It's been one thing after another all year." He ran a hand through his hair. "What with the letters, and then the whole Douglas Grand thing, and the trial. This summer was great, even with all the remodeling, but then there's been the thing with Katie, and now this," he waved a hand at his injured shoulder. "She's running herself ragged and I worry, you know?"
"Yeah." Rusty studied the television for a moment. He rubbed his hands against his pajama pants and sighed. "She always does. She doesn't stop, not ever. I think she'd be more upset that you're worried about her when you are the one that's supposed to be getting better. You know, she's kind of weird that way."
"She is, isn't she?" Andy smirked. "Here's the thing, she knows we worry. She likes to pretend she doesn't so that we think we've gotten one over her. Kind of how she always knows when you've been eating in your room."
"How does she do that!" Rusty shook his head. "I'm always so careful."
Andy shrugged, and almost winced at the pain it caused. "That's just Sharon."
"Yeah." Rusty sank down in the sofa again. "So… call her."
"Nah," Andy decided. "She'll be home soon enough. If I call her she'll know that I'm worrying."
Rusty just smirked back at him. "True." He tilted his head. "So we won't tell her we were talking about it?"
"Hell no." Andy reached for his book, since he'd missed enough of the movie to not know what was going on. "If she thinks I've drawn you into my worry-wort ways she'll kill me."
"So then…" Rusty tapped a finger against his chin. "How much is it worth to you for her to not find out?" At the glare it earned him, more playful than anything, he shrugged. "Just keeping it real."
"A little too real." Andy let his gaze drift back to his book.
Rusty grinned as he turned the volume on the movie back up. He got comfortable in his favorite corner of the sofa again, but let his attention wander. Flynn was right, Sharon was worrying about all of them lately. He wondered if maybe it was time they did something for her, especially with Christmas right around the corner. He glanced sideways at Flynn and figured he'd talk it over with the other kids. Between the five of them, they might be able to come up with something.
It was nearer to midnight before they heard the key in the lock. Rusty turned the movie off and stood up. "Well, I'm beat. Night."
He made a hasty retreat up the stairs which had Andy rolling his eyes. The kid didn't want to be caught waiting up, but he so obviously had been. "Night kid." Andy closed his book and put it aside at the same time he heard her keys hit the tray on the table by the door. He could tell by the click of her heels on the tiled floor in the foyer just what kind of day she'd had. The slower, near shuffle spoke of exhaustion, but it was also slightly measured. He knew what came next. He heard her pause, sigh before stepping out of the foyer and into the living room. That cleansing breath where she tried to let the day go. That meant it hadn't gone well, or the case had been a particularly bad one.
Andy sat his reading glasses with the book on the table beside his chair. "Sharon." When he tipped his head around the edge of the recliner to glance at her, his stomach twisted. She was drawn, so obviously tired. Her purse had slipped from her shoulder and was hanging from her bent arm. He pushed out of the chair and walked toward her. "Hey."
"Hey." When his arm curled around her she leaned into him gratefully. "You didn't have to wait up," she said quietly, without much complaint.
"Didn't," he lied, and they both knew it. "Couldn't sleep. My feet got too hot, they needed their personal ice packs." His hand stroked her back. "Did you eat?"
"Hm. Yes, I got something earlier." She tipped her head back and smiled tiredly up at him. "Think you can sleep now? I need to find my bed, the stairs are looking entirely too good."
"I think I can manage." He swept a lock of hair behind her ear. "Go on, I'll be right up."
Her smile softened into a warm, affectionate expression. He would check every door before coming up. "Don't be too long." She stepped out of her heels near the stairs and stooped to pick them up.
Andy watched her walk slowly, exhaustedly up the stairs before he made his usual circuit through the house. Garage, patio, and front door. Each was confirmed to be solidly locked and the alarm system that was installed after the whole Douglas Grand incident was armed before he made his way up the stairs. He found Sharon already pulling back the bed, comfortably ensconced in one of his old, long-sleeve t-shirts.
He wrapped his good arm around her and just held her for a moment. "I think you get more wear out of my clothes these days than I do," he rumbled quietly.
"I like your clothes." She leaned back against him, tipped her head against his and sighed quietly.
"Want to talk about it?" Sometimes the bad ones just needed to be gotten off one's chest.
"Hm." She nodded. "Hazing accident at a prep school. Dead fifteen-year-old girl, and it was all just so stupid. The other girls involved got scared and tried to hide it. They weren't even trying to be cruel, it was all meant to be fun." Sharon sniffed. "Andrea is going to try and have them charged and tried as juveniles. None of them had any priors. Honors students. Good kids, just… unbelievably stupid."
"I'm sorry," he said softly. His hands rubbed her arms. It was hard when children were involved, harder still when the cause wasn't malicious. The world could be an unbelievably cruel place, it cold also be unspeakable idiotic, or just unlucky.
"Me too." She turned and slipped her arms around him. "I think I might have finally driven your partner around the bed, though. I kept looking for you today. It was… habit."
"We're idiots," he grinned.
"Mmhm." She leaned up and kissed the tip of his chin. "Sleepy idiots."
"Yeah." She had been going for almost twenty four hours. Andy nudged her toward the bed. He climbed in behind her and managed to get comfortable. When her feet slid along his calves he hissed. "Geez, Sharon. Do you stick your feet in front of the A/C vent or something right before you get home?"
She giggled quietly. "I thought you said you missed them?"
"I was delirious with pain and fatigue," Andy teased. She was curled against his side, while he lay on his back. He stroked her hip slowly. "I'm getting you socks for Christmas," he threatened playfully.
"Now wouldn't those just look stylish with my heels," she chuckled, and rubbed her cheek against his uninjured shoulder.
"Don't worry," He promised. "I'll get the colorful kind. I'll make sure they match every dress."
"Oh well," she drawled. "That's all that really matters, honey." He'd moved his hand into her hair and was rubbing her scalp. She hummed quietly and felt her eyes closing.
"Katie wants a puppy for Christmas," he announced with a half grin.
"She's been asking for a puppy every year since she was four," Sharon mumbled. "The answer is always the same."
"Oh." Andy hadn't known that. He was considering it.
Sharon lifted her head and narrowed her eyes at him. "Andy. No."
"Sharon, come on. It's just a puppy. We've got the whole closed in back yard. What's the big deal?" He lifted his brows hopefully.
"What about the pool? Or the flower beds? How about my shoes." She poked his chest. "Andy, puppies chew things. You know she isn't going to want to put it outside all the time. She's really not up to caring for one right now anyway. Her immune system is—"
"Okay, okay," he pulled her back down with a sigh. "The answer is no, got it." He sighed.
"Oh my god." Sharon groaned. "She suckered you. I don't believe it." She pressed her face against his chest. "Andy." She could see the chewed Manolo's in her future. Sharon heaved a sigh and lifted her head. "It has to be a healthy one, from a highly rated breeder. You get to housebreak it," she told him. "And replace any shoes that get destroyed."
He grinned widely at her. "Oh come on, it'll be fine. We survive Provenza everyday, how hard can a puppy be?"
Sharon snorted. "I'm going to remind you that you said that." She snuggled back in to his side. "I can't believe you fell for the puppy thing. You're such a teddy bear."
"Where my girls are concerned?" He kissed the top of her head. "Yeah, sure, you betcha!"
"If I step in anything gross, even once, I'm coming after you Mr. Flynn," she warned ominously.
"Duly noted, Mrs. Flynn." He continued to stroke her back until he felt her relax again and finally go completely slack. When her breathing evened out, Andy closed his eyes and followed her into slumber.
It felt as though they'd hardly been asleep at all when a loud banging downstairs woke them. They cast bleary eyes at the clock beside the bed and found that it wasn't quite three in the morning yet. Sharon almost whimpered as she sat up and tried to rub away the ache behind her eyes. She had a fatigue induced headache trying to get started.
"The hell." Andy reached for the lamp and rolled from the bed. He reached for his gun on the dresser and pulled open the bedroom door. He found Rusty and Katie standing in the hall, similar looks of confusion and concern on their faces. "Go back to your rooms," he told them.
Yelling had accompanied the loud banging, which was coming from the front door. "Sharon, I know you're in there, goddamnit. Open the door!"
"You've got to be kidding me," she groaned. She had joined her husband in the hall. "How does he even know where we live."
Katie's eyes widened. "It's my dad," she told Rusty.
"Rooms," Sharon pointed at both of them and started down the stairs, she knew that Andy was hot on her heels.
He caught her arm before she could unlock the door. "You don't have to do this."
His dark eyes were brimming with concern and irritation. Sharon sighed. "Yes, I do. I can't ignore his existence, Andy. Especially not with him trying to beat down the door," she finished, sounding just as annoyed as he felt.
Andy held up a hand and backed up. He folded his arms across his chest and stood back, although the motion pulled at his injured shoulder and collarbone. "Alright." Didn't mean that he had to like it.
Sharon drew a breath and steeled herself to the confrontation. She flipped the lock, and then the chain, and waited for Andy to reach over and key off the alarm before she pulled the door open. Jack was poised to knock again. She knocked his hand aside. "Jack, do you have any idea what time it is," she glowered at him.
He pushed past her, and if she hadn't been so tired, she might have put up more of a block. "I want to see her. I know she's living here. I want to see my little girl."
"My god, are you drunk?" Cheap liquor. The fumes were flowing off him in strong waves. She glanced toward the driveway. His car was parked haphazardly, half in the yard. "You're driving. Jack have you lost your mind? Do you have any idea—"
"Oh cut the perfect Captain routine." He pointed a finger at her. "I want to see my kid. How could you not tell me that she's sick, Sharon. Who does that? Anything could have happened, and what, you were just going to tell me after the fact?"
"I tried to find you, Jack," she gave the door an absent swing and let it fall closed. A little too loudly, but she didn't care. "That's the thing about having a husband who likes to come and go with the wind—oh, wait. Ex-husband," she amended. "That means I don't have to know where you are or actually care. We're divorced, Jack, in case it slipped your mind. So really, walking into my house in the middle of the night, not winning any points."
"Does telling yourself that really help?" Jack flashed a nasty smile. "According to the Church, I'm all you've got, sweetheart."
"You're the last person I'm going to discuss that with," she shot back. "As to Katherine, she's in bed. I'm not getting her up just so that she can be disappointed, again, by you. If you want to see her, call her. It's really up to her. My days of forcing my children to have anything to do with you are long over. You burned your own bridges Jack, there was no one but you holding those matches."
"Is that how you sleep at night? You've got my entire family keeping things from me." He took a step forward, pointed at her again. "My own brother knew that my daughter was sick and didn't tell me."
The smell of the alcohol made her take a step back. Her stomach rolled. This was an all too familiar dance. "I can't speak to the decisions of others, Jack. I didn't know where you were. If Katie or anyone else chose not to speak to you on the matter, that was their choice. I'm not going to argue with you about it at three in the morning. Call a cab, get out of my house."
He wasn't going to leave. Not until someone threw him out, not like this. He was just too bullheaded when he was like this. Katie sat at the top of the stairs, well out of sight. Rusty was beside her. "Thats my dad," she muttered. "I'm so proud."
"Yeah," he rested his elbows against his knees and propped up his head. "I've met him. Remind me to introduce you to my mom some time. The biological one." He didn't even think of her as his real mom anymore. "You know, if I knew where she was, or even if she was alive."
Katie forgot sometimes that he was so much younger than she was. Looking at him now, he seemed very young. Or maybe she just felt very old. She leaned against his side and rested her head on his shoulder. "Yeah. I guess, at least mom always had a way of finding dad. When she wanted to. Inevitably, he always showed up at some point."
"Why does he always do it in the middle of the night?" Rusty made a face. "Dude seriously needs to learn how to read his watch."
Katie giggled quietly. "He is pretty bad at that, isn't he? It's always been like this. I don't know how many times Ricky and I would wake up and mom would be fighting with him, because it was late and suddenly he just had to stay with us. We had no idea he was coming. We never did. Sometimes we'd get up in the morning and he'd already be gone; mom wouldn't say anything. She didn't want to disappoint us because he couldn't even be bothered to stay long enough to say hello. I think she's done covering for him."
"That's kind of what being divorced means," Rusty said with a half grin. "Now he's just pissing her off." He slanted a look at her when they heard Sharon's voice hit that note, the really low one that meant she was three seconds from putting him down, hard.
"He shouldn't have done that." Katie winced. Her father had just called her mother something that was going to get him hurt. "That's not going to end well." Sure enough, she heard Andy interrupt. He'd been silent, and she could just imagine him standing there, silently glaring. Until now.
"She won't let it get out of hand," Rusty stated quietly. He shared a glance with Katie when they heard Sharon interrupt again. "See. It's fine."
"Mom's good at that." Her head inclined, the argument was growing quieter, but that was her mother's effect on everyone. She didn't raise her voice, she could usually get her point across without going to that level. "Do you think it's at all odd that we still love them," she asked after a moment.
"I don't know," Rusty answered honestly. "Probably not. They're still our parents, even if they do suck at it. I tell myself that she's sick, and I guess she kind of is. She needs to get help, and that won't happen until she wants it to happen. No one can make her change. I can't make her change," he added quietly.
"What do you think would happen if you saw her again," Katie asked gently. She gazed over at him, genuinely curious and just a little concerned. This was something they'd never discussed before. They didn't talk about before, as if somehow not acknowledging it meant that he had always been theres and none of the bad really happened or mattered. Or maybe that was just the way she liked to think of it, since it was all just too horrible to grasp, not for someone so young. It never failed to remind her just how lucky she was, no matter what happened with her dad.
"I don't know," Rusty said honestly. "I've thought about it, a lot. I used to think about it everyday. Now I can go days without really going there. Sometimes I wonder if she's okay, where she is. Does she think about me? Is she sorry? If she came back, I don't know. Everything has changed. When I needed her," he shrugged. "She walked away. Something else was more important. I can't change that." His gaze shifted and he looked away. "It took me a long time to figure that out. Doesn't make it easy though. I think I'm still figuring it out, even with everything. Sharon is-well, you know. Sharon. But my mom is still out there somewhere. I'm always going to wonder. Sharon gets it though. I think that's why it's been easy for me to be here. I can feel what I feel and she understands it all, and it's okay." Rusty flashed a smile. "Took me a long time to figure that out too."
"I don't think it matters how long it took, Rusty." She touched his arm, and then she used his shoulder for balance as she stood. She drew a slow breath and then squared her shoulders before starting down the stairs. Behind her, she felt Rusty move as well. Katie stopped and turned back. She held up a hand and quietly shook her head. "No, honey. Stay here."
It was sort of like watching her transform. The exuberantly carefree girl faded away, not gone, just pushed aside. Rusty blinked a couple of times. It was like looking at a younger version of Sharon. Rusty sat back down on the step they had been occupying and watched her descend the stairs. He was reminded that while Katie was wildly spirited, and laid back, and usually very cheerful, she was several years older than he was. He always said that Katie was like the alien in the family, unlike anyone. Maybe, he thought, he was wrong.
As she neared the living room, Katie centered herself again. Anxiety churned in her stomach. This confrontation would be necessary, but she usually shied from such things. It wasn't that she believed that life was all kittens and rainbows, more that she was an optimist. She liked to see the bright side of everything. If it feels good, do it, she thought. Within reason of course. She had spent the last few months letting everyone else worry about realism and setbacks while she focused on the positive. It was a nice little vacation, but it was time to stop that now. It was so easy to let her mother take care of everything, she was just so good at it, and it felt so good to have her mother wrap her up and chase away the bad. Maybe, she thought, she had indulged a little too much. It was such a fine line, remaining cheerful and positive to keep others from worrying, while also letting herself be taken care of, because really... when you're sick, you just want your mommy.
"Maybe if you wanted to see me," Katie stated quietly, upon joining the argument in process in the living room, "you could call me. You have the number. You've used it before. The righteous indignation doesn't really work for you, Jackson, you've nothing to base it on. You weren't interested in what was happening in my life before, why is this any different?" Her gaze swept the room; Andy was obviously irritated and trying very hard to keep a lid on his temper. Her mother was drawn, in that way that she always was when dealing with Jack. She was upset, but more resigned and disappointed than truly angry.
"Katie, you should be in bed," Sharon said quietly. "It's late."
"Who can sleep?" Katie shook her head. "It's okay Mom. He isn't leaving, and at some point, you've got to stop playing buffer for us. We're not kids anymore." It was spoken gently, but her gaze never left her father. He was intoxicated. She could smell it from where she stood. His skin had that flushed look that she vaguely remembered from her childhood. Ricky would know, he had more memories of Jackson Raydor than she did. Katie's head tilted. "Suddenly so quiet, Jack?"
He shook his head. He couldn't remember the last time that he actually laid eyes on this girl, this child that he created but hardly remembered. She didn't look well, he supposed she shouldn't, although he had nothing to compare it to. Not really. Not unless he dug out any number of pictures sent to him over the years by Sharon or his brother. "I heard you were sick," he finally said, his former bluster gone. God but she was her mother's daughter, wasn't she? "I wanted to see you."
"Why?" She took a step forward. "You haven't wanted to see me before. No." She held up a hand when it looked like her mother might intercede. Behind her mother, she saw Andy stiffen. His muscles bunched, and she figured it wouldn't take much for him to take her father and toss him out on his ass. "It needs to be said," Katie told both of them. "He needs to hear it. You cannot referee our relationship with this man for the rest of your life, Mom. He wasn't there, you were, you don't get punished for that."
"Katie, it was never-" She stopped at the look on her daughter's face. Sharon folded her arms over her chest and stepped back. "Very well," she said quietly.
She watched Andy lay his hands on her shoulders and her mother lean back against him. Katie wondered if they even realized it and almost smiled. Instead, her attention shifted back to the man who had sired her and she allowed her face to become impassive. "There hasn't been a single important moment in my life when you were present. You weren't even there when I was born. My aunts held my mother's hand. You couldn't be found. You were laid out in a bar somewhere. By the time I started school you were gone, we can take that off the table too. You've never been to a single recital or audition. When I learned how to drive, Ricky took me out for the first time, but mom taught me that too. When I left for New York, you weren't with us. Mom took me. She helped me find my apartment. You've never watched me perform." Her jaw clenched when her voice hitched. "When my company toured through Las Vegas, I sent you tickets and passes. You never picked them up. I understand, it must have been a very important card game. All I know is that you're this guy who used to show up at our house in the middle of the night sometimes. When we found out I was sick, we didn't even know where you were, and you certainly weren't here with me. How dare you," she said, growing indignant. "How dare you walk in here, in the middle of the night, acting like you're someone who deserves to be in my life. I don't even know you."
"Katie," Jack began, running a hand through her hair. He shifted nervously. Yes, he was an absolutely, appallingly bad father. But he'd been there, sometimes, hadn't he? He called them, not always when Sharon made him. It was just that they didn't want to talk to him.
"Katherine," she stated firmly. "People who do not know me, people who are not my family call me Katherine."
"Oh?" His eyes flashed. Jack's face flushed red. "So I guess you consider him," he flung a hand in Andy's general direction, "to be family?"
Her brow arched. "I do," she said simply. "He's been here. When I got sick, he made sure that my mother had a place to bring me home to. A place that I would be comfortable. A place that would feel like home. When I decided I wasn't going back to New York anytime in the near future, he got my apartment closed up and my things sent here. I could have done it, but he wanted to help, and he was here to help. While mom has been running herself all over the place taking care of me, he's been taking care of her, and that's something that you never did." Katie shook her head. "I don't need you here. I don't want you here, not if this is how it's going to be. You showed up here tonight because you felt slighted, not because you were the least bit worried about me. So this is what's going to happen." She took a step forward. "You're going to give mom your keys, and someone is going to call you a cab. You're going to go and sleep it off somewhere, and we'll arrange to have your car dropped off wherever that is. After you've sobered up, when you decide that you want to see me, then we'll talk. Until then, you're no one that I want to have in my life."
"Katie." Sharon interrupted gently. "I think that might be enough, honey. Let's go back to bed." More alarming than watching her daughter react harshly to anyone was watching the effect it had on her. She began to sway slightly because of the energy it had taken to face this very painful confrontation.
"I've got her." Andy stepped around his wife and took his stepdaughter's elbow. She resisted, for all of about a moment, and then went with him when he maneuvered her toward the stairs.
Sharon waited until they began to ascend the stairs before her attention shifted back to Jack. Katie had managed to shame him, well and truly. "She's not Ricky," she said, not unkindly. "She has no memories of you to temper all the disappointment and the hurt. The memories she does have aren't great."
He sighed, and his shoulders slumped. He looked at her blearily. "You warned me this might happen, didn't you? You always said that one day I might regret not being around more when they were younger."
"Yes." It was all she said, all she needed to say. There was no point in rehashing it all now, or rubbing it in. Instead, Sharon held out her hand for his keys. "I'll call you a cab."
Rusty was still waiting at the top of the stairs. He stood up when they approached and stood aside. "Are you—"
"I'm okay." She smiled at him, tired, and a little sad. Katie started toward her room, but stopped. "Hey, Rusty, I don't think I can sleep. Can we watch Game of Thrones on your computer?"
"Sure." He shared a look with Andy but went to his room to get the laptop. Rusty didn't expect she would really last long.
When Rusty was gone she slumped a bit and gave a sad sigh. Her shoulders slumped completely and she covered her eyes with her hand. "That was ugly."
"Come on kiddo." Andy nudged her toward her room. "I won't say it was great. It was just something you needed to say, and he needed to hear. It happens. At some point or other, it happens. People forget sometimes, that's not a disease that just hurts the one. It hurts everyone around them."
Katie gave him a watery smile. "I forget that about you. You go every Thursday without fail, and sometimes, I still forget it."
"Nicole doesn't," he told her with a bit of regret. "Neither does Tony. Their mother wouldn't let them, but even without her…" Andy shrugged. "I don't try to hide it. It was different for you kids, your mom tried to shield you from it. I don't mean that Amanda did it wrong. It happens the way it happens for everyone. Nic and Tony were a little older when we split. They remember a lot more."
"You were there." Katie sighed. She swept her fingers beneath her eyes to get rid of the moisture. "Do you think he'll ever change?"
There was just enough hope in her expression to make him loop an arm around her shoulders and draw her close. "I don't know, kid. It's not something you can really predict. If he doesn't, it's not because of you."
"It's not really me that I want it for." She smiled, sadly again. "It's Ricky. He actually remembers what it was like before Jack left. I don't. I never knew what I was missing." Katie shrugged. "Until now. It would be nice, but I'm okay." She nudged his good arm. "I get by."
"Yeah, I know." He shook his head at her. "Into bed." Andy tugged on a dark lock of hair. "Remind me to have another talk with Buzz."
Katie laughed. "Are you going to encourage him or warn him off?"
"Just make sure he's well informed of what he's getting into," Andy teased with a grin.
"We're just friends," she reminded him.
"Yeah. Heard that before." Andy passed Rusty on his way out the door. "Ain't that right kid?"
"I don't want to think about it. I'm repressing." Rusty smirked.
"You're still a funny guy," he said. Andy left them to their video streaming. He understood now the closeness between them, and why it had happened so quickly. They had similar hurts. Andy walked back to the stairs, but his wife was just stepping onto the second floor landing. She looked tired, practically asleep on her feet. He took her hand and pulled her to him. His arm curled around her and held her close. "Okay?"
"Hm." She nodded quietly and leaned heavily into him. "He's gone, or will be. I'll move his car in the morning, I can't even see straight right now."
"I'll take care of it." He turned her toward their bedroom. "Right now, just go back to bed." Andy tucked her back into bed, but didn't join her. Instead, he went back downstairs. He glanced outside and found Jack leaning against his car, waiting for his cab. Andy shook his head. He locked the door and reset the alarm. There was nothing he could say that hadn't already been said. He turned off lights and made his way back up the stairs again. When he checked in on Katie and Rusty, she was asleep and the kid wasn't far behind. Andy nodded, satisfied, and returned to his wife.
When he slid into bed beside her, she mumbled and wriggled closer when his arm curled around her. Andy glanced at the clock. She would be able to sleep a few more hours before the alarm went off. If the phone didn't ring before then. He sighed quietly. He hoped it wouldn't. She needed to rest.
"Andy." Her voice was thick, slurring with sleep. "Maybe a puppy isn't so bad after all."
He smiled and pressed his lips against her shoulder. "No, maybe it isn't." He closed his eyes and waited until he felt her relax again before sighing quietly and following her. His body ached all over. They were getting too old for all this. He still wouldn't give any of it up.