This time I feel the need to add a little dictionary input:
OTC – Operator Training Course
Okay, now… Let's get going!
The next morning, Jack was woken by three niblings running inside his room at a quarter to eight.
"Uncle Jack! Wake up! Wake up-wake up-wake up!" they sang as they jumped up and down on the floor beside his bed.
Jack turned his head to the side, and rubbed sleep out of his eyes with his good hand. "Alright, I'm awake…"
"Good uncle!" Thea beamed, "Mom is making breakfast! Dad's watching the news…"
Jack nodded. "I'll be right down, just need to get dressed first…"
He knew all his siblings had seen most of his scars. And he knew they could take seeing the new ones too, but he wanted to avoid mentally scarring his nieces and nephews as far as it was possible. At least the youngest ones.
"Can you three go ask mom if she has coffee ready?"
Rita's three children sprinted out of his room, and down the hallway. Jack hurried to get up and get dressed. He had just put on his t-shirt and was about to put on his sling as the three kids returned to his room.
"Why do you wear that thing uncle?" Matt, the oldest asked.
"Because I broke my arm, and I need to keep it still."
"But you only have cast up to here…" Matt observed and pointed near his own elbow.
"Yeah, that's because it's my wrist and hand that is broken…" Jack nodded, "But it's still very fresh, and it starts throbbing if I just walk around with my hand down…"
Matt nodded. "Breaking things hurt…"
Jack couldn't agree more. "You broke your arm a few months back, didn't you?"
Matt nodded, "I went over the handlebar of my bike…"
"That's not what Rita told me…" Jack chuckled.
"Okay, I jumped with my bike. Then I went over the handlebar…"
Jack couldn't help but laugh. As far as he knew, Matt was a blond copy of himself. Same wild and rambunctious demeanor, but protective as hell of everyone he cared for.
"Was it a big jump?"
Matt shook his head, "I would only have jumped 4 feet long if I landed…"
"Now, a four foot jump on a bike can be long enough…" Jack shrugged. His own record was far further, but he had been a little older than Matt was now.
"-But I've made an eight foot jump!" Matt looked up, "Landed it too!"
Then he looked at his siblings, "And you don't tell that to mom or dad!"
Thea and Ryan nodded obediently.
Jack laughed. Yep… Matt was a blond version of himself at 8-years old. Rita and Mark sure had their work cut out for them…
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"Sis, this tastes wonderful…" Jack as he picked up another piece of pancake with his fork.
"It's only pancakes, not much that could go wrong with the recipe…" Rita shrugged.
"But you make the best pancakes, like… Ever…" Jack smirked, "Always have…"
"Well, I know it's your favorite. So I figured you might want some for breakfast…" Rita smiled.
"Thank you!"
"So, any plans for today?" Mark asked, smiling over at his brother-in-law, if not he'd be happy to spend the evening watching sports on the television with him.
"Thought I should visit mom, and maybe Tessa, or Christine…" Jack shrugged, "It's sure been a long time since I did that last…"
"I could make a couple of calls, see how many we can get to visit mom today…" Rita shrugged, "That way most of us could get together all at once…"
"That's not a bad idea…" Jack admitted, "Let's do that…"
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"Jack!" his mother, Caroline, grinned as she hurried down the stairs. The woman was still fit and fast in her steps. "I haven't seen you in forever kid…"
"You're quick to assume it's me…" Jack chuckled, "I could have been Nick…"
"Nonsense…" Caroline shook her head, "You still look like you do sports, often, and if one of my seven kids shows up here with a cast, or with crutches. There is a 95 percent chance it's YOU!"
"Taking all my sisters into that count too?"
"Of course I am!" the 69 year old answered with a light slap on Jack's good shoulder. "So, what have you been up to now?"
"Oh, this?" Jack nodded to his arm, "Was doing stunt work for a new movie, landed odd."
"And you managed to break two fingers?" Caroline raised her eyebrows in suspicion.
"Two metacarpals… Yeah…" Jack nodded, "And my wrist…"
"I thought you usually broke metacarpals by punching…" his mom looked at him with the same laser-like stare she used to get him to spill the truth when he was younger.
"Well, that's usually how it's done…" Jack admitted, "But I was falling, and about to catch myself with my hand, but my hand was balled up in a fist and I hit the concrete knuckles frist. My wrist just collapsed…"
"Not your most believable story, son…" Caroline sighed, "But then again, it's you…"
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jack frowned.
"Oh, falling off your bike at stand-still… -Breaking your elbow. Crashing your motorcycle against a Mack-truck, walking away from it just missing some skin on your right knee… -And that was less than 18 months after your shoulder had been turned into Swiss cheese back in Kuwait or Afghanistan or wherever! Your motorcycle was totaled in the crash…"
Jack nodded, "Okay, sometimes I'm unlucky, sometimes I've got luck shoved up my rear… I get it…"
Caroline nodded, "Well, come on in… Let's get some food in you, you're way too skinny!"
Jack just shook his head. After his mom had become a grandma, she had turned into her own mom. The kind of grandma that would feed you until you practically rolled out of the kitchen afterwards, and would say that you'd gotten too skinny if she hadn't seen you in a couple of months. But he followed her up the stairs.
"Missy, Mary, Christine, Rita and Tessa are coming over later…" Caroline smiled, "They didn't tell me why, but now I get it!"
"Yeah… Did they say if they were bringing the kids too?"
"Mary and Tessa will, don't know about the others…" his mom shrugged, "Tessa's little baby-girl is just the cutest little angel ever!"
"Oh, yeah. How old is she now?"
"Five months! And she's so awake, she always smiling and flirting with us!" Caroline grinned with stars in her eyes, "Just wait until you see her! She'll totally steal your heart!"
Jack smiled and sat down at his old spot around the kitchen table. His mom had already started to set over some coffee.
"I bet she will…"
Caroline walked over to the fridge, taking out some homemade lemonade. Then she found a glass and a cup for each of them. "And Nick has finally found himself a girlfriend, they got engaged about a month ago…"
Jack nodded, he suddenly felt a bit bad for not keeping tabs on all of his siblings. Especially his twin who only lived a couple of hours away. "He did? What's her name?"
"Anna, cute girl. Maybe a little bit wilder than your brother…"
"Well, Nick's never been really wild…" Jack reasoned.
"No, but she's more what I'd expect from you… Not him…" Caroline shrugged, "But they are cute together. And they look to be good for each other too…"
Jack nodded.
"And you, Whiskey?" Caroline asked as she poured up a glass of lemonade for him. "What's happening in your world…"
"Oh, same old… Lots of work…" Jack shrugged.
"Any girls stealing your heart?" his mom inquired, taking a sip of lemonade from her own glass.
Jack blushed, and instantly knew there was no way of wiggling past that question now.
"What's her name?"
"-Michelle." Jack answered and looked away, willing the redness to leave his cheeks.
"Is she the kind you end up with, or just a couple of months worth of fun?" there were no judgement in her tone as she asked. Just curiosity. Caroline knew her son.
"I hope this one will last…" Jack smiled, "She's… She's perfect."
"And is this a new thing? Or has it lasted some time?"
Jack shrugged, "Since the start of June, but she lives here in Texas… So we've been keeping in touch by phone mostly…"
"About three months then…" his mom calculated. It was September 8th now. "Keeping in touch by phone, that sounds boring…"
"Well, you and dad kept in touch by letters when he was in 'Nam… And we skype too…"
Caroline nodded, "Okay, you're right… But do you plan on moving back here?"
Jack shrugged, "We'll see…"
"Well, we'd all like that…"
"She lives up in Sealy, it's a bit of a drive…"
"But you'd be in Texas…" Caroline winked, I could actually jump in the car and visit you for the weekend!"
Jack smiled, "We'll figure it out, but there's no need to rush it…"
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It was fun to meet most of his family again, a little tiring, but mostly fun.
All of his sisters had brought their kids with them, even the ones who were grown up (as far as they were still in the area). Nick was the only one of his siblings who couldn't come, but he was back in San Diego.
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Thomas, one of his oldest nephews, sat next to Jack. He was busy showing him pictures he had taken at the base he had been stationed at the last twelve months. The kid was home on leave, and would return in about a month.
"I can remember you were in the military…" Thomas sat back, a smug smirk unfolding on his face "I'm not sure I remember what you said you did…"
"Of course you would remember me being in the military, I didn't leave until late in 2011…"
"Yeah, I know… I was just trying to start a conversation…" Thomas smirked, "All my childhood I remember you, suddenly showing up out of nowhere, then suddenly have to leave again a couple of weeks or months later… It was always awesome when you were around. You always taught me cool tricks… And it always sucked when you had to leave, but mom told me you had a real important job…"
Jack nodded, "Yeah, I liked the action… Never was good at staying home. But leaving always sucked for me too…"
Thomas nodded understandingly.
"How old are you now, Tommy?"
"26…"
Jack nodded, "And when did you enlist?"
"At 20, mom didn't let me until then…"
Jack smirked, "Yeah, sounds like Mary…"
"But what did you do in the army?" Thomas asked, already knowing the answer.
"Oh, I was a delta force operator…" Jack admitted.
Thomas brought his phone up again, found a picture and zoomed in. "Does this look familiar?"
The picture was of Thomas in his service uniform. Most likely at the graduation from OTC
"Wait, you're Delta?" Jack recognized the familiar emblem Thomas wore on his uniform.
"Yeah, when I enlisted, mom told me you used to be a Delta operator." Thomas shrugged, before he continued with a wink "And I've always wanted to be just like my uncle you know…"
Jack grinned proudly, he could remember his second oldest nibling always mimicking him whenever he was around.
"I just have to ask, do you happen to know a guy named Cooper Lea, or Duncan Johnson?"
Thomas shook his head, "No… Why?"
"Nothing, it just would have been awesome if you accidentally had been placed with my old outfit…" Jack shrugged.
"I'll keep eyes and ears open, if I meet them I'll let them know you're my uncle…"
"Shit, now I've got to call and order them not to tell any embarrassing stories about me, if you ever happen to meet them…"
"Oh, I'll make sure to have a bottle of something good at hand at all times. Information can be bought you know…" Thomas teased with a huge grin.
"You wouldn't…"
"Oh, I certainly would!" Thomas laughed, "Especially now!"
Jack shook his head as he chuckled, "Well, that's it… My reputation is screwed…"
"It already is, the 'adults' still talk about all the weird shit you pulled growing up. After hearing some of it, I'm amazed you're not resting underneath the soil already…" Thomas shrugged, no longer with a playful tone to his voice. "You make all of us young ones look like choir boys, and girls… -Maybe except Matt…"
Jack ran a hand down his face, "They still keep that up?"
"Whenever they run out of other things to talk about, yes…" Thomas chuckled, "If I got to know a few of your old Delta buddies, we could finally get some new stories to talk about…"
Jack grimaced, "Well, some of those stories don't belong amongst family, because of somewhat bad taste… Others are classified… But good luck!"
I couldn't help myself, I had to insert more of Jack's family into this fic…
I'm incredibly good at getting sidetracked… (If you haven't noticed that before…)