That night when everybody on the Duke Farm was a sleep Luke sat out side on the front porch, holding a beer in his hand. He had been staring at the sealing for almost two hours and heard Bo fall a sleep, before he decided staying in bed was pointless. Looking at the stars he thought back about his parents, how he could drive them crazy, just being 7 years old. He remembered sitting in the headmaster's office for the third time in one week for tearing the pages out of a book so he would have finished it faster. He remembered the time he threw all the vases out of the sill with a baseball just wanting to see or he could hit him. He remembered his mama's tears as he left to stay with Uncle Jesse, he remembered his daddy's tears at his mother's funeral and he remembered his own tears of disappointment when his father told him it would be better when he stayed with Jesse even after the funeral.
He had felt really alone and even Jesse's loving embrace that evening couldn't make him feel better and prevent him from crying his eyes out.
Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder and saw Bo sitting down next to him. "Guessed I would find ya here." The blond man said.
"Why's that?" Luke asked with a sad smile.
"Cause you always sitting here when you're worrying more then good for ya is." Bo joked.
Luke smiled "Just thinking about, when we were kids. You remember the day you came to live here?"
"Well I was 5 years old." Bo said a bit sarcastic. "So not a whole lot."
"The thing I remembered most of all was Jesse's smile." Luke said a bit dreamy. "I hadn't seen my parents smile for a long time, because of me and because of my mom being sick, but when I came here Jesse stood waiting on this here porch smiling. Like he was welcoming a long lost friend, even though I can't remember seeing him more then twice before."
"Yeah Jesse knew how to make ya feel welcome." Bo acknowledged. "But what are ya really thinking about now? And please don't tell me it's that kid 'cause that would be the second time he would keep me up in the middle of the night and I'm not gonna like him more for that." Bo said with a grin in his voice
Luke grinned too . Bo always knew how to cheer him up. Both men took sips of there beers.
"Just that I know how he feels ya know." Luke said. "Feeling like nobody is wanting ya. Now I know that wasn't true, but still I have felt it as real."
Bo looked up to his older cousin. He hadn't heard Luke talk much about his feelings on this subject. The things he had done were conmen knowledge, but he had never talked about how he had felt during this period. "I can't help feeling like I'm letting him down." He added.
"Ya can't blame yourself about this Luke. Ya can't save the world all by yourself."
"I know that, but maybe we could save this kid."
"Now what are you thinking exactly?" Bo asked with a frown. He wasn't sure or he was liking where this was going.
"I don't know what I'm thinking Bo, but I do know I don't wanna see the boy placed from one family in to another again. He deserves his own place. His own home, just like we did when our parents died."
"You thinking of taking him in?" Bo asked taking another, bigger mouthful of beer.
"The thought of adopting him crossed my mind yes." Luke said honest.
Bo had to put all of his strength in not choking in his beer. He could have imagined taking Nick in just as they had come to live at the farm at the time, with Jesse as guardian, but Luke really offering himself to become a dad surprised him.
"Would it be such a crazy thought?" Luke asked his younger cousin.
"Well not crazy, but I just think it's not a decision you make over night. To be honest I wouldn't be ready playing dad yet, definitely not to a teenager. You're just 24 Lukas ya sure ya up to that?"
"No I'm not." Luke admitted. "And even if I was, that decision ain't only up to me. It will concern all of us having another person around." He gave his cousin a questioning look as he waited for a response. Bo understood where he was heading.
"Yeah, well ya know I ain't that fond of kids…." Bo said truthfully. "Wasn't planning on having them myself any time soon and this one is dragging 11 years of trouble with him." Bo paused and saw the disappointed look in his cousin's eyes. He sighed "But I guess it would be kinda quiet not having him around anymore." He grinned now. "And I know how much he means to you, so….As long if I'm not the one who has to do the parenting and stuff I guess I could handle a little cousin."
Luke grind. 'Even if that's means he'll be over your precious comics all the time?" He asked teasing.
Bo pulled a painful face. "I guess, but how does Jesse thinks about this? Ya talked to him yet?"
Luke shook his head. "Nope, and that's one of the things I'm doubting the most about. Jesse already did his job plenty. I'm not sure or I can ask him to live with a teenager in his house for another 9 years. He deserves some rest on his age."
"What about my age?" A sharp and offended voice sounded from behind. As Bo and Luke turned their heads they saw Uncle Jesse standing in his white long night clothing.
"If
you think a man my age
ain't capable of making his own decisions you better think again.
Just as when you think putting up with the both of ya is any less
trouble than handling a kid."
Both young men grinned. "Yes
sir." Luke replied with a smile.
Bo thought it would be better to let Jesse and Luke talk together. He took the last sip from his bottle and got himself up from the porch steps. "I'm going back to bed. See ya'll in the morning." He said yawning and disappeared by going in to the house.
"Uncle Jesse did you ever doubt about taking us in?" Luke asked openhearted.
Jesse said himself down next to his nephew and shook his head. "Nope not ever." He said sincere. "I did thought about it really well every time. Wondering or it would best the best thing for ya'll. Definitely in your case, when your parents were still alive, but also for Daisy. I wasn't sure how she would do with all those men around. But I never doubted about wanting to take ya'll in."
Luke sighed. Thoughts were running around in his head.
"I think I'm not wondering about wanting to have Nick around on the farm either, but I'm just scared I can't do it. That I'm not up to it."
"Well that are reasonable doubts." Jesse said comforting. "If ya do this, there's no way back. It's a job with a lot of responsibilities, without a trial period, ya can't do it part-time and ya take it for life." Jesse looked at the young dark haired man and smiled. "But the reward ya get for it is priceless."
Luke nodded. "Just that I never thought I would ever even think about something like this and definitely not at this moment in my life. And still it's not that I want to be a father that much, just that I like having the kid around. He makes me laugh, and he reminds me at myself, but most of all I don't want him to get hurt any further. He's a good kid and he deserves the same chances as everybody else, to be happy like anyone else. I would hate seeing him never caring about something or someone and I think I would do anything to prevent that. Even if that means I have to make some changes in my life." He grinned a bit sarcastic. "Not like I had a really set plan for that anyway."
Jesse had listened to Luke's words and he felt a lump appearing in his throat. "Luke." He almost said solemnly. "That sound a whole lot like a father's love to me. Now what ever you might decide, you have my blessing as long if ya have thought it through and it might be a good idea to talk this through with everybody." He stood up from the porch. "But better do that during an early breakfast tomorrow. We still got a couple of hours sleep before dawn."
"Yeah." Luke acknowledged and he stretched himself. "Don't think that's such a crazy idea." And both man returned to their beds. Luke thoughts kept hunting him though. He did fall a sleep immediately, but his sleep was restless and it was even before sunrise when he awoke without a good reason.
'Well this is a farm.' he said to him self. 'Getting up this early ain't new for any of us.' o he got himself in to the kitchen and prepared breakfast for everybody. Although it didn't came close to anything Daisy or Jesse had ever prepared, for his doing it was pretty acceptable. He would never forget the amazed looks on both his cousins faces as he woke them up and told them breakfast was ready, but they didn't complain and that morning at the crack of done the Duke cousins and their uncle found themselves listening to what Luke had to tell them .
Not much later Nick was woken up by laughter that came from the kitchen. Although his alarm clock told him it wasn't even 7 a.m. yet his curiosity made him get out bed to check out what was happening. As soon as he walked in to the kitchen they all became quiet. Nick noticed and with that already making him feel uncomfortable he also saw they had already finished breakfast without him. Now even though he had wanted to stay in bed desperately the morning before, at this time it hurt him to see they didn't even tried to wake him up this time.
"Hey look who came out of his cage." Bo joked.
Nick didn't laugh. "If ya want me to leave just tell me, so ya'll can talk again." He didn't really sound upset, rather emotionless
"Don't be crazy." Luke said with a smile. "I actually think ya can help us."
"How?" Nick asked suspicious.
"Well we just realized we don't now your birthday." Bo added grinning.
Nick frowned. "It's the 24th of January why?" He said not understanding why they wanted to know that.
"Well if we wanna keep ya, we probably have to write it down on al lot of forms."
At first Bo's words didn't really get through to the boy who was still standing in the door opening but slowly it hit him and he couldn't believe his ears. Slowly he opened his mouth as he turned to Luke and an extreme confused look run over his face while he asked….
"Is that true?" Nick's eye's were so wildly spread they almost popped out.
"He ain't just
kidding right?" He wanted to be sure.
"Yes it is, and no he
ain't." Luke answered his arms crossed, observing the boys
reaction.
Nick, obvious enough, didn't know how to react.
"Why don't ya grab yourself a chair sugar?" Daisy suggested feeling sorry for they boy who seemed to be glued to the doorstep. Nick walked in to the kitchen but leaned against the kitchen sink instead of sitting down He was confused and he didn't knew whether he should be extremely happy or just waiting for the next disappointment.
"So that means I can stay here right? Really live here right?" showing a bit of enthusiasm.
"No not right." Luke said warningly. "It means we are gonna try to get custody over ya, but like I said, we don't look good on paper, so it might become a little more difficult then it sounds."
"But ya'll want to have me live with ya?" Nick said getting overexcited now. He didn't care about anything else. It was the only thing he wanted to hear.
"We sure do kiddo." Luke said. "Or ya still must want to go back to the orphanage anyway. Cause then we drive ya right away." Jesse had told Luke about Nick's request earlier last evening and it had kinda stung him Nick would have left without saying goodbye."
"Ya crazy?" Nick yelled out now. "Like hll I want to."
"Well better watch that language then young man!" Jesse said sternly.
"Sorry Uncle Jesse." Nick reacted sincere. "Just excited ya'll becoming my new foster family."
"We ain't gonna be your new foster family Nick." Luke said serious. "Sit down for a moment would ya please, cause I want you to understand this."
Nick frowned and sat him self down next to Luke.
"I'm I aloud to stay or ain't I?" He asked not getting anything of it.
Luke sighed. "Nick listen, like I said, we want you to come live with us, so we gonna ask for custody, like a foster family does, but I also told ya, that might get a little difficult gbecauses we probably won't pass procedure. I don't think they gonna let us be a foster family for ya."
"So what then?" Nick asked almost panicking. He didn't get why they bothered to tell him all this when Luke was already sure it wasn't gonna work anyway.
"Well that means that Saturday after the race we gonna bring you back to the orphanage just like we're supposed to and after that we gonna file for adoption."
Nick couldn't believe his ears. He remembered some kids from the orphanage in Albany being adopted. And after that ya never saw them again. Ya wouldn't be sent back or to another family no more. Adoption mend things were final!
"You understand what I'm saying?" Luke asked. "We're not gonna be your new foster family, we want to be your new family."
Nick couldn't be more happy by hearing that, but he didn't like the part of him having to go back to the children's home first.
"But if you all gonna adopt me anyway why should I have to go back first. I can stay here just as well right, saves everybody the trouble of moving things and stuff." He tried to sound really convinced.
Luke grinned. "Sorry kid." Luke said. "Until the papers are signed we can't keep ya hear. That would be like kidnapping remember. And it won't be all of us who's gonna adopt ya, with none of us being married it will be just one of us."
"So who would that be than?" Nick asked curious.
Luke was silent for a moment. "Well I was thinking about me actually." He said, again watching carefully for a response.
"You would do that?" Nick asked soft with disbelieve in his voice.
Luke nodded. "But only if you want to."
Nick seemed to let go of his suspiciousness to the grown-ups in the room and suddenly he got up from his chair, wrapped his arms around Luke's neck and gave him a hug. "Ya bet I want that." he said soft so only Luke himself could hear it.
Luke being totally surprised by this gesture wrapped his around the boy a little uncertain. Not like he hadn't hold the boy before, just that Nick never had flew at him like that by himself before. After what happened at the pond the boy hadn't even wanted to be touched at all and now he was almost choking Luke by his grip. As he looked ad Jesse who was sitting at the other site of the table he saw the old man's smile.
"Doesn't mean though, ya always gonna get your way as soon as ya lock yaself up in your room now ya hear." Luke said joking
Nick showed a guilty smile. "I know." And he sat back down on his chair. "How long ya think it's gonna take before everything is done?"
Luke shrugged. 'Sometimes a couple of weeks, sometime a couple of months, sometimes almost a year. Depends how busy the judges are."
Nick pulled a
complaining face but didn't say anything.
"How do ya know
social services is gonna approve you adopting me then if ya think
they wouldn't approve of being foster parent?"
Luke admired the boy's observation . "I don't think they will do that either, simply because they can't. There are certain standards and we don't fulfill them, but with an adoption claim a judge is making the decision and, a judge can ignore the recommendation of social services or an adoption agency, so we take it to court then."
Nick had never thought things would be that complicated. "And what if the judge says no?".
Nick asked.
"Well then the answer is no and there is nothing we can do about it."
"But that wouldn't
be fair." Nick said frowning.
"Life just ain't always fair
kiddo." Bo added. "Definitely not when you're a Duke and living
in Hazzard. So be sure what ya get yaself in to."
"Yeah." Daisy agreed. "When your name is Duke, better be sure to know how to handle injustice, cause it will hit ya sooner or later."
"Or your cousin will fall in love with one of the people representing that injustice." Bo claimed.
Daisy head went red and she was capable of hitting Bo real hard. "Bo Duke, Enos is an honest lawman, doing his job!" She called out angry. "If it wasn't' for Boss and Rosco he would never be after ya'all at all."
"Daisy you don't have to yell at me, I'm sitting right next to you."
"Don't you tell me what to…..!!!!" Nick grinned. Another serious conversation ending with Duke Cousins bickering at each other. He enjoyed watching it and he would enjoy it even more seeing them make up later or even better, everybody at the table ending up I laughter. He would be the one to laugh the hardest .
Yep he could get used to living her. Having an uncle, two older cousins and a DAD to take care of him. Things would turn out just fine!
