Luke's POV:
"One burger coming right up", I say to a customer. Before I can turn around and put the order in, a crashing sound comes from upstairs followed by the familiar sound of arguing.
"Give it to me!", I hear Jason's voice shout.
I roll my eyes.
"I'll be right back, Cesar", I call into the kitchen.
I make my way upstairs and with each step, the sound of yelling and things breaking becomes clearer. I walk into the apartment and find Jason in the middle of tackling Jess down to the floor.
"Hey! What the hell is going on?", I yell.
Jess pushes Jason off of him and they both stand up before me. They start shouting and pointing fingers at one another.
"Hey! One at a time! What are you two fighting about this time?"
"I was watching the game and Jess, being the jackass he is, takes the remote and turns it off", Jason accuses.
"Bullshit! I was doing my homework and you wouldn't lower the volume!", Jess says.
"So you were fighting over the remote?", I clarify, hoping they realize how immature it sounds.
"Luke, I've worked my ass off this week! I've dealt with Lindsay, I've put up with this nosy town, and I've stayed out of trouble. I just wanted to watch the game!", Jason explains.
"I have to finish my homework!", Jess says.
"Do you think I'm retarded? You and I both know that's not your homework, you've had that book forever, I know it's one of your favorites", Jason says.
"Enough! Both of you! I gave you the day off because I think you've both earned it and because you were starting to get on my nerves. If you can't last together for five minutes without killing each other, Jason, you can help Cesar out in the kitchen and Jess, you can help me out with the customers. Is this understood?"
They both nod.
"Good. Now get your homework done", I order.
"We're both done", Jason tells me.
"I don't believe that"
"We've been stuck inside for so long we've had nothing better to do", Jess grumbles.
"And who's fault is that?", I remind them.
"Ours. But Luke, can I please go outside and throw a football around? I'll be right in front of the diner where you can keep an eye on me. Only for five minutes then I'll stop bugging you", Jason begs.
"Grounded means grounded. It's not supposed to be fun, you're supposed to be learning your lesson"
"Lesson learned, I'm so sick of being in the same room as Jason", Jess mutters.
"Feeling's mutual", Jason replies, shoving Jess.
Jess shoves back and before I know it, they're back to swinging at one another.
"Hey!", I yell, trying to pull them off one another.
"Stop it right now!", I shout, pulling Jess back.
"I wouldn't even be grounded if it wasn't for you! This is all your fault!", Jess exclaims.
"Nobody forced you to get in the car!", Jason says.
I sigh.
"Alright, fine. You each have thirty minutes. Stay close to the diner. If you're not back within thirty minutes, this'll be the last time I let you two go out while you're grounded", I warn.
"Yes!", Jason exclaims as he and Jess high five.
Jason quickly grabs a football and Jess grabs a book.
"Grab a jacket, it's cold out!", I call after them. There's no use, they're rushing down the stairs at this point.
I sigh, picking up two hoodies from the floor.
I go downstairs with the hoodies in my hands. I see Jason and Jess right outside the diner. Jess was sitting on the bench, with his book in one hand, and catching the football Jason was passing to him with the other hand.
I walk outside and their faces fall when they see me.
"It hasn't even been two minutes!", Jason quickly exclaims.
"Relax, I brought you your sweaters, it's chilly out. The last thing I need is you two getting sick"
"I don't need a sweater", Jess mumbles, not looking up.
"Too bad, put it on, or come inside"
"Fine"
They both reluctantly put on the hoodies and get back to what they were doing.
I watch Jason throw the ball at Jess, who was reading, and him catch it with his one free hand, then return it to Jason.
"You two have been cooped up inside for all this time and this is what you were begging to do?"
"You said we had to stay close"
"I didn't mean right outside. Go to the park or something, just be back in half an hour"
"Do you wanna come, Luke?", Jason asks.
"I can't, Cesar and Lindsay are alone in there"
"Who cares?", Jess says.
"You two go, have some fun"
"Come on, Luke. I wanna beat your old ass at a quick game of pigskin", Jason smirks.
I roll my eyes.
"In your dreams", I reply.
"Jess, I think Luke's challenging us", Jason laughs.
Jess scoffs.
"You two want a game? You got it", I decide.
They follow me to the park and we get into our teams.
"Alright, we're only three people so, I'll be quarterback you two be receivers. Every man for himself", Jason says.
"Your call", I reply.
Jason throws the ball and I catch it and begin to run with it. Before I make it to the tall tree which we decided was the end zone, Jess tackles me. I was so surprised. He gets the ball then runs to the end zone where Jason meets him and they high five.
I pull myself up from the ground and they stop smirking when they see my face.
"You wanna play dirty? That's fine with me", I simply say.
"I'll try to go a little easier next time", Jess smirks.
"No need", I assure him.
Jason throws the ball again and I catch it again. When Jess comes near me, I'm prepared, I push him aside and swerve around him. He stumbles but doesn't fall. I make it to the end zone and slam the ball to the ground.
"That's what I'm talking about!", I exclaim.
"Don't hurt yourself, Uncle Luke", Jess snickers.
"The only thing that should be hurt is your pride. Come on, Jess, you lost to your old Uncle Luke", I smirk.
"Alright, Jess, I think he's getting a little too cocky. You be QB. I got this", Jason says.
Jess throws the ball and I catch it. Before I can even turn around, Jason tackles me and runs to the end zone with the ball.
"You good, Luke?", Jason calls, with a cocky smile on his face.
"I'm just fine", I call back.
"I'm sorry, what? I couldn't hear you from all the way back here!"
"You're gonna pay for that one", I mutter to myself with a chuckle.
I pull myself up to see Lorelai and Rory standing behind me laughing.
"That's gonna hurt in the morning", Lorelai laughs.
I roll my eyes.
"Just thought I'd take the boys out for a quick game of football, to show them who's boss", I tell her. Rory looks like she's trying to hold back her laughter.
"You're really showing them", Lorelai says sarcastically motioning over to Jason and Jess who were still snickering.
"Yeah, yeah. What are you even doing in the park? You're never at the park", I point out.
"We were walking to the diner and saw you getting tackled", Rory answers.
"Aren't they still grounded?", Lorelai asks.
I sigh.
"Yeah, but I mean, I can't just keep them locked up. They'll go nuts and kill each other. I was thinking maybe I'll let them go out for a few minutes each day to get some fresh air"
"Come on, Luke!", Jess calls.
"I'll be right there!", I call back.
"I see you've lost your monotone", Lorelai comments.
"That came off the second Jason and Jess got here", Rory smirks.
"No, he still did it for a while", Lorelai replies.
"I'm still here, you know", I say.
"Luke's gone soft", she whispers to Rory, making sure I can hear her.
"I have not gone soft"
"There's the monotone", Lorelai says.
"I'm leaving", I announce, beginning to walk back to the boys.
"Don't get yourself too beat up, we want burgers", Lorelai calls after me.
I walk back to the boys.
"Due to the reason of me not wanting to become handicapped, you two be receivers this time", I say.
"Do me a favor and throw the ball to Jess, it'll give me a reason to tackle him without you yelling at me", Jason smirks. Jess just glares at him.
I roll my eyes.
I throw the ball and they both run back to get it. Jason catches it and Jess runs after him. He keeps dodging Jess, but at the last second, Jess tackles him down. I run up to them to see if he made it to the end zone. Jason's hand didn't go make it to the tree so it's not safe.
"Dammit", Jason mutters.
"Maybe next time, big bro", Jess snickers.
I help Jason up.
"Let's run that again", he orders.
We continued to play until my cell phone made a noise when I got a text. I hadn't even been looking at the clock. We had been playing for a good two hours and forty-five minutes.
"It's time to head back", I announce.
They both groan and begin to protest.
"What? One more game, come on!", Jason tries.
"It's been almost three hours. I agreed to thirty minutes"
"Hm, I didn't even realize the thirty minutes went by", Jess notes.
"Yeah, right. Let's pretend I believe that", I say, taking the football from Jason.
"Do we have to go in?", Jason asks.
"I left Cesar and Lindsay in the diner alone for two hours and forty five minutes. Besides, you two are grounded anyways. You got lucky this time"
We had all been laughing and having a good time the whole afternoon. But, now their faces had returned back to what they were this morning.
"If you two behave and don't give me a hard time coming in today, I'll think about letting you out once in a while"
"To a party?", Jason asks.
"No way. I'll let you two come to the park once in a while during your grounding to get some fresh air"
They both nod and follow me back to the diner.
"You're both sweaty, go take a shower and change, then come down for dinner", I tell them.
"I call showering first", Jason says.
"No way", Jess replies.
I watch them both make their way upstairs. I smile to myself. I have to admit, I may have a soft spot for them.
"Luke!", Jason calls from upstairs.
"What?", I yell back.
"Is anyone downstairs?"
"Just me and Lindsay"
Before I can ask why. He comes downstairs in a towel.
"God, Jason, cover up!", I exclaim.
"Why? Lindsay's seen me shirtless", he shrugs.
It's obvious that Lindsay is trying to avoid staring at Jason.
"Go put some clothes on", I order.
"Jess hid my clothes while I was in the shower"
"I swear, you two are like little kids"
"Tell me about it, he's so immature", he says whilst grabbing a jelly-filled donut from the counter and squeezing the jelly into his mouth then putting it back.
I roll my eyes and walk over to the curtain in front of the stairs.
"Jess! Give Jason his clothes!", I yell.
"He's in the shower", Jason tells me.
I sigh.
"You'll catch a cold, go wear something of mine"
"Fine. I swear I'm gonna kill that kid", he mutters to himself, going upstairs.
"Hope that didn't make you feel too uncomfortable", I say to Lindsay.
She just smiles at me.
"You should head home, it's getting pretty late"
"Okay, thanks Luke"
"No problem, give my best to Spence"
She smiles and nods at me on her way out.
Jason comes down a few seconds later and lets out a sigh of relief.
"Good she's gone, I didn't want her to see me like this", he says.
He was wearing one of my flannels.
"It suits you", I joke.
He glares at me.
"Jess is still in the bathroom with all my clothes and he locked the door"
"I'm not getting involved because I know you probably did something that would make him do that"
"Little brothers are annoying"
"I'm sure you're not the most pleasing person to Jess", I chuckle.
"Whatever, I'm starving. What's for dinner?", he says, sitting down.
"Pizza"
"Bring it out"
"We have to wait for Jess"
"He pisses me off when he's not even in the room"
"You know, your mom and I used to fight all the time"
"I don't care"
"No, listen to this, she was my little sister so I couldn't exactly hit her. She would always get me in trouble with our dad and I hated her for it. But one day, Liz got up and left. I was angry at her for leaving us just like that but at the same time, I missed her. She was pregnant with you at the time. I sometimes can't help but think if I had gone after her and not let her run away, if your life would've been better. But then, when I look at Jess, I know it wouldn't have been better if I had gone after her because she and Jimmy gave you Jess", I explain.
Jason just shrugs but I know he was listening and I know he cares.
Jess comes downstairs a few minutes later.
"Finally, we can eat", Jason exclaims.
"Nice outfit", Jess smirks.
"Jason, set the table", I say quickly before he has a chance to respond. He reluctantly gets up to do it while glaring at Jess.
"Hungry?", I ask Jess, attempting to start a conversation.
He shrugs.
"You know, Jess, we really don't get a chance to talk just you and me"
He raises his eyebrows.
"What?", he asks.
"You know, man to man, uncle to nephew"
"Talk"
"Well what's going on with you?"
"Well, my girlfriend dumped me, I was arrested, and now I'm grounded. But you know, the usual", he says sarcastically.
"You still bummed about Rory, huh?"
"No, Luke, I'm ecstatic", he mutters bitterly.
I put my hands up defensively.
"Sorry I brought it up", I say.
He rolls his eyes.
Jason brings out the pizza and the plates.
"I made myself a salad and put it by the stove. You didn't see it?", I ask Jason.
"Oh, I saw it", he replies, sitting down.
"Where is it?"
"I dumped it in the garbage"
"Why?"
"Because, I want you to have a slice of pizza"
"Jason!"
"Just have a slice, Luke, it's not the end of the world"
"What a nut", I hear Jess mumble.
"I've had pizza before, it's just not something that should be eaten often"
"Just enjoy a nice greasy, cheesy, slice of pizza. You only live once", Jason smirks.
"Fine", I give in, taking a slice from the box.
I take a napkin to dab some of the oil off but Jess snatches it out my hand.
"Just eat the damned pizza", Jess orders.
I take a bite and the boys immediately high five.
"We broke him, after all these months, we finally broke him!", Jason exclaims.
"Bound to happen eventually", Jess smirks.
"You two are insane", I shake my head.
The phone begins to ring and we each exchange looks thinking that someone is going to get up and answer it. After two more rings, all eyes fall on me.
"No, don't get up, I'll get it", I say sarcastically.
"Hello?", I answer the phone.
"Is this Lucas Danes?"
"It's Luke, but yeah, who is this?"
"I'm calling from Department of Emergency Medicine at Mount Sinai, regarding your sister, Elizabeth Danes"
"Oh my god, did she go into labor?", I ask, catching both Jason and Jess's attention.
"I'm afraid not. We're calling to inform you that Liz was in a car accident and is now in critical condition"
"What? A car accident! Is she gonna be okay? Is the baby gonna be okay?", I ask frantically.
"I'm afraid we can't say anymore over the phone. Are you able to come down here? Amsterdam Avenue, New York, New York"
"I'll be down there in two hours!"
"See you then"
"Thanks"
I hang up the phone and turn back to Jason and Jess sitting before me.
"What's going on?", Jess asks.
"Uh, I'm sure it's nothing. Your mom just, uh, got into a car accident and I have to go down to the hospital"
"What? Why the hell was she driving? Isn't she due soon?", Jason exclaims.
"Look, guys, I have to go down there. Jason, you're in charge. I'll call Cesar and the rest of the staff to let them know not to come in tomorrow. I'll probably be back somewhere around-"
"What the hell are you talking about? We're obviously coming with you! Right Jess?", Jason interrupts.
Jess just shrugs, but I can tell he wants to come.
"It's no place for kids, alright? Just trust me on this"
"We're not kids, Luke. Let us come"
"Jay...", I sigh.
"Luke, I know she hasn't been the best mother in the world, but she's still our mother. And she is carrying our sibling, whether we like it or not", Jason points out.
"I wanna go too", Jess says quietly.
"Okay, get in the car, we have to go right now", I decide.
"Keys! Where are my keys?", I exclaim, looking through my pockets.
Jess throws me my keys.
"You always leave them in your jacket", he reminds me.
I just hope she's okay...
Hey guys! Wow, did anyone see that last part coming? Comment what you think is going to happen and what you thought of this chapter! :)
elang4: Thanks so much for reviewing! I just like the whole idea of Jason growing up and really just seeing that Luke genuinely cares for them:)
wolvecub07: Thank you so much for reviewing! I absolutely adore fluff! That's one of the reasons why your fanfic is one of my favorites! :)
Droolia: Thanks so much for reviewing! I'm glad you got the joke! I'm trying to portray that all of this is in a way affecting Jess and you noticed :)