A/N: I own nothing you recognize. Full House is property of Warner Bros. I'm just playing with the characters for a while.
A/N: Obviously this story is AU. In this version, the garage was always renovated and the second set of steps leads to an outside door. From here on, some events and scenes will have happened in the show.
1987
"So, how is Suzie holding up?" Danny asked Joey as they sat at a diner waiting on Suzie to join them for lunch.
Joey shrugged. "I don't know. She won't talk to me. She won't talk to anyone. Whenever I bring it up, she says she's fine, that there is no point in talking about things that can't be changed and rushes out the door to the hospital, or to go running, or just away." He let the 'from me' stay silent. Danny had enough to deal with. It had only been about three months since Pam's death and while he was healing from the accident, he wasn't healing from the loss. The only reason he knew about the pregnancy was that he was Suzie's second emergency contact and the hospital had called him when Joey wasn't immediately reachable.
"You know how she is," Danny replied. "She keeps everything in. She always has. Stephanie's just like her. I've been taking her and DJ to a grief counselor. DJ talks. Stephanie draws pictures."
"And you?" Joey asked, gently.
"I just try to keep it all together," Danny said. "Mom helps and mom is part of the problem. Last night, DJ stayed over at the Gibblers' until well after dark and I had to walk over and get her. When I tried to send her to her room, Mom says, 'She was just next door. She's been through so much, don't punish her.' Stephanie bit a kid in her preschool class and Mom chewed the teacher out for putting her in time out. The teacher apologized! So now, the girls think they can run wild and Grandma will save them. My mom has to go."
"I agree," Suzie said, joining them. She hugged Danny and kissed Joey before sitting down. "Mom has got to go. She called me six times at work last night to see if I thought it was safe for you to go back to work already. I told her that she had already interrogated Tom, his nurses, his Physician's assistant, and the parking attendant. She didn't really need my opinion."
"Tom?" Joey questioned.
"Dr. McCarty. The orthopedist that did Danny's surgery," Suzie explained.
"We've met," Joey replied a little more sarcastically than he intended.
"Well, I'm glad you agree that Mom needs to go back to Seattle," Danny said, either not hearing, or more likely, ignoring Joey's tone. "Because I'm going to need your help for that to happen. When she leaves, I'm going to need some help with the girls. I mean, DJ and Stephanie are in school most of the day, but that'll only last another month. I've looked into daycare for Michelle and a few of them will take older kids in the summer, but Stephanie's already having such a hard time and I don't really want to leave her with strangers right now."
"Well, I'll be off this summer. I can help out," Joey volunteered.
"Me too," Suzie said. "I'll help out as much as I can."
"That's great, but that still leaves the problem of Sports at 10 and 11 pm.," Danny said.
"Just what are you getting at, Danny?" Suzie questioned suspiciously.
"Well, I was thinking, and feel free to say no, but maybe, you two could possibly, maybe, move in with us for few months? Just until I get things sorted out," Danny replied.
"Wow," Suzie said.
"Danny...," Joey started to protest.
"I know it's a lot to ask, but it would really mean a lot to me if I didn't have to leave the girls with strangers just yet. You could take the rec room. It has a private bathroom and an outside entrance," Danny said in a rush.
"I'm well aware of the features of the rec room, Daniel," Suzie laughed. "I lived there. I lived there when it was still a garage, remember?" Their dad had closed in the garage decades before to make first a play room where all their toys were kept, then a rec room where they could watch TV and bring friends over. Pam had changed it in to a guest room when they moved in.
"Right," he said, sheepishly. "Well?"
Suzie and Joey looked at each other for a long moment as if silently discussing the proposal. Finally Suzie shrugged. It couldn't be any worse than their current situation. She motioned towards Danny.
"We'd be happy to," Joey said.
"Really?" Danny said, relieved.
"Our lease is running out anyway," Suzie replied. "Living with you can't be that bad. Besides if it gets Mom back in Seattle, it'll be worth it."
"This is great," Danny replied, letting out the breath he wasn't aware he'd been holding. "This is, just.., Thanks guys, really."
1987
It was moving day. Jesse had said he was going to come around breakfast, but it was almost lunch time and he hadn't shown up. Suzie had called a few minutes earlier to say she was on her way to take their mom to the airport, with Joey bring some of their stuff over later. Danny was trying to get the girls to say goodbye to Grandma while convincing them that she couldn't stay.
"You know, Danny, I could stay just a few more weeks," Claire said, after DJ and Stephanie had clung to her instead of saying goodbye.
"Mom," Danny replied with a hint of warning to his voice. "You've help me out ever since Pamela died, but now its time for you to get back to your life and for us too. Besides, I'm getting help."
"What? Pam's brother and Suzie and Joey? Jesse is a single man who has never taking care of children and Suzie and Joey should be trying starting their own family instead of moving in to help you with yours."
"Mom, not a word about that to Suzie," Danny said. "You know that it isn't from a lack of trying."
Claire nodded and sighed, "Well the fact that she seems to spend her every waking moment at her work doesn't help things."
"Just stay out of it, Mom. Arguing with her won't help anyone," Danny said.
"I won't say anything," Claire surrendered, holding up her hands. "It's not like she'll take my advice anyway."
"Good," Danny said as the doorbell rang.
"Ready to go?" Suzie asked as DJ let her in. She was dressed in scrubs.
"Are you working today?" Danny asked. "What about moving?"
Suzie shrugged. "I got called in. It's just a few hours after I drop mom off. We've already put most of our stuff in storage and Joe can handle the furniture and boxes we're bringing here."
"I thought we could all have a family dinner tonight," Danny replied. "Our first night together and all."
"I'll be back by dinner," she said. "Come on, Mom. Planes don't wait."
After another round of tearful goodbyes, Suzie and Claire were on their way to the airport and Jesse arrived with a bang and not very child-friendly story about a dancer.
Joey came in a few minutes later with his arms full of what he first said was dirty clothes, watching Danny drop them and jump back as if he was contaminated before laughing and saying, "Relax, Danny, they're clean. The box ripped."
"Not funny," Danny groaned.
Despite her assurances, Suzie didn't make it home for dinner. She didn't get home till after midnight. She walked into what looked liked a party going on. Jesse's band was set up. Both DJ and Stephanie were still up and Danny was glaring at Joey and Jesse as though they had lost DJ again, or whatever it was that Stephanie had tried to tell her when she called home to say she would be late. After assessing the situation she took DJ and Stephanie by the hand.
"I'll just take the junior Laker Girls upstairs and wash the purple out of their hair," she said, leading them upstairs.
"Aw, do we have to, Aunt Suzie?" Stephanie whined. "I like it."
"Yes. There'll be plenty of time to dye your hair purple when your a teen," Suzie replied.
By the time she had the girls cleaned up and back in bed, she found Joey, Danny, and Jesse talking in the kitchen.
"Is there any dinner left?" she asked.
"Yeah, the girls saved you a couple of slices of pizza," Danny said.
"Cold pizza, my favorite," she replied very unenthusiastically.
"It was hot six hours ago when you said that you would be home," Joey said.
"Well, excuse me," Suzie snapped. "I guess I should have just told the patients to have their heart attacks and get shot tomorrow because I have to be home for dinner."
"Have I told you all how grateful I am that you agreed to move in?" Danny asked, interrupting them.
"About a million times," Jesse said. "We've told you we are happy to do it."
"Yeah," Sue and Joey agreed.
"Quit worrying about it," Joey added.
Jesse yawned and stretched his arms. "Okay, I guess I'm going to sleep and hope the pink bunnies don't attack me in my sleep."
"Just don't look them in the eye or feed them after midnight," Joey quipped.
"Right," Jesse smirked.
"I think I'm going to bed too," Suzie said, dropping her pizza crust in the trash. She went downstairs, happy to see that though their furniture and boxes were all a jumbled in the front of the room, Joey had set their bed up. They could deal with unpacking in the morning. She dug through some of the boxes to find her pajamas before getting in the shower.
Joey was already in bed when she got out of the shower. She slipped into the bed beside him. After a few moments of silence, Joey finally spoke.
"This is weird," he said. "I keep expecting Wendy to pop up from wherever she's hiding to spy on us."
"And run tell mom that we're touching," Suzie laughed. "We're in bed together. Her head probably would have exploded with that to report."
"Especially since your mom wouldn't let me stay after eleven thirty once we started dating," he said. "Danny had to start sleeping over at my house which I always found funny because by the time we started dating, there was only a fifty/fifty chance that either one of my parents was actually there."
"I once asked her exactly what did she think we would do after eleven thirty that couldn't do before," Suzie said. "She didn't have an answer but I wasn't allowed to see you for like a week."
"Well, it's after eleven thirty now," he replied, suggestively.
"That's true. We could find out just what's so bad after midnight," she said, moving closer and kissing him.
Please R and R.
