Ease on Down the Road

Trip returned to school and played basketball the following Saturday with Phil, Jemma and Skye cheering him on with gusto. Although his team was defeated, and he was a combination of angry and disappointed he kept his emotions in check, smiling when Jemma sadly greeted him and Phil patted his back in consolation. The team elected to celebrate anyway and with Phil's permission, Trip left with them and an extended curfew.

Phil decided a celebration was due as well and treated his girls to ice cream sundaes before heading for home. As usual, Skye wore most of her vanilla with rainbow sprinkles and Jemma managed to finish most of her strawberry. Phil finished a double-chocolate fudge sundae then took home enough for Melinda and a quickly recovering Fitz. Jemma carried it through the door as Phil had his hands full with a sticky, sleeping Skye who was put to bed just the way she was.

"We brought you some ice cream." Jemma announced as she skipped into Fitz' room. "I know it's late but Aunt Mel said you can have it now." Fitz groaned as he pushed himself up on one side and grimaced at the ache in his backside. Jemma grimaced in sympathy. "Still hurts?" She pouted.

"Not so much," he answered as he propped himself up on the many pillows he'd acquired and popped a spoonful of vanilla ice cream into his mouth. "But, it gets me a lot of sympathy." He smiled around the swallow. Then he looked at Jemma with wide eyes and pointed his plastic spoon at her to make a point. "And don't ya go tellin' mom. She'll just be wantin' to come in here and go checkin' to make sure it's healin just right, and that can be quite embarrassin'."

"Fitz," she giggled as she scolded, happy to have the 'old' Fitz back. He still didn't look too great with those dark circles under his eyes and the fine prickly rash that covered most of him, but his fever had broken two days ago and he'd been improving since. Melinda wouldn't let him out of bed except to use the bathroom but she promised if he behaved himself she would let him transfer to the sofa tomorrow…but, just for a little while.

"How was the game?" He asked paying more attention to the ice cream than Jemma.

"I'm afraid they lost." She shook her head. "Trip was quite disappointed."

Fitz shook his head and scooped more of his ice cream out of the container. "This is the best." He smiled for the first time in days. "Even though it's just plain vanilla, ya know I like chocolate and a bit of whipped cream on top." He licked his lips and wiggled his brows at her.

Jemma shook a finger at him. "Leopold James Fitz, you should be thankful you have any at all."

The boy stared for a moment, mouth open and spoon halfway there, then shrugged his shoulders and popped it into his mouth. He rolled his eyes and let a soft 'mmmmm' escape his lips. Jemma could not suppress a giggle.

Melinda sat at the kitchen table and enjoyed her pineapple sundae. Phil sat across from her occasionally helping himself to a spoonful of the same. They'd been debating how and when to tell their brood about the new house and their upcoming move. In any 'normal' family, announcing the purchase of a new home with enough bedrooms and bathrooms to go around, not to mention, a large yard that held the possibility of a pool in the distant future (and the half-court basketball court behind the garage) would be met with a round of cheers. The basketball court would get extra kudos from a young boy with a love for the game. The thrill of moving to such a home would be especially rampant after living in the close quarters they'd shared for the past few months.

However, the Coulson family was not quire the norm and a new home would certainly have much different meanings to their children. Jemma and Fitz had traveled half a world to come here and finally seemed settled. To uproot them again after such a short time seemed almost cruel. Trip might not be so keen about moving to the suburbs. He'd lived in the city all his life. His grandmother's home was here. His friends were here. His little bodega job was here. His school was here, although this was his last year in middle school. He'd go to a new school next year anyway. Then there was Skye, who had her own ideas about going to a 'new house'. For that little one a new house meant a new family. It meant she was no longer wanted where she was and had to move on to another house, another family that probably wouldn't want her either.

Life was certainly not simple in the Coulson house, it probably never would be.

"We should probably wait until Fitz is feeling better." Phil said to the spoon of ice cream he was about to put into his mouth. Melinda nodded in agreement. "It's not like this is going to happen over night. We have a lot to do."

Melinda nodded again and pushed the remainder of her sundae to her husband who smiled at the offering. They had stopped at the bank Thursday afternoon before picking up Skye and while Trip was able to sit with Fitz. All of the necessary papers had been signed. Selling their two-bedroom condo would be no problem. The building's owners had a waiting list that stretched into the next decade. A place this close to the hustle and bustle of the city was prime real estate. They decided to hold off on that step until the children were told the news. From that, point things would move quickly and they did not want any of their kids to find out about this move from anyone other than their parents.

"Phil, you and I know this is the best thing for all of us, but how in god's name are we going to tell them. We'll be closer to the little ones' schools but Trip will have to transfer and leave his apartment. What about his grandmother? What about…"

Phil reached across the table and placed his hand on hers. "It'll be okay, Mel. We get through it. We'll be here for them, for all of them. We'll make sure they know that."

Melinda let out a slow breath, unsure of the situation or how to handle it. "I think we should talk to Trip first, alone. He needs to make a choice and what about Mrs. Triplet. Do you think she's going to allow us to take her grandson to the suburbs, start him in a new school and practically steal him away from her? Phil, is that fair to them? What if he doesn't want to go? What happens when she's released from her rehab? Are we really doing the right thing here, Phil?"

"Mel," he rose from his chair and moved to the one next to hers. "We are not always going to do the right thing." He smiled at her frown. "We are going to make mistakes, all parents do. But, this is not one of those times, Mel. We all need this." He squeezed her hand. "The boys are on top of each other in that small bedroom and Skye is practically sleeping in a shoebox behind Jemma's door. We've got one bathroom and a teenager! That alone is reason to find a bigger place." He laughed at the though. She grinned. "But, I do agree that we speak to Trip first and spring it on him in front of all the others." She nodded and squeezed his hand.

Jemma hurried into the kitchen with a look that already told them something was wrong. "I think allowing Fitz ice cream might not have been a wise choice." She shook her head. "I did not move swiftly enough and he's gone and vomited all over himself."

Melinda was already on her feet and heading for the door. "So much for making mistakes," she sighed.

Through a joint effort, the Coulsons were able to strip Fitz's bed and scrub both the mattress and the tile. Melinda wondered how a small boy who had consumed very little other than a small cup of ice cream could have brought up so very much. While Phil pulled sheets, blankets and pillows from the bottom bunk and ran them through the washer not once, but twice, just to be sure, she filled the tub with warm water and managed to get a stubborn Fitz into it with minimal effort. Despite his protests, she soaped him clean and got him into clean PJ's. A quick temperature check, with a new ear thermometer courtesy of Dr. Stephens, showed a low-grade fever. Melinda tucked the little boy into her bed choosing not to dose him with acetaminophen and risk another vomiting episode. She'd watch the fever just in case.

Jemma apologized to the point of tears before Phil convinced her to get into her own PJ's foregoing a bath until morning. He sat with her in the large wing-backed chair, humming the tunes of his favorite oldies until she drifted off, then carried her to her own bed and tucked her into it.

Trip practically fell into the apartment at 11:07, apologizing for his lateness and explaining that traffic had been unusually heavy for a Saturday night. Phil waved it off, understanding how these things happen and a mere seven minutes couldn't really be considered being late. The young boy smiled his thanks and hurried to his room before either adult could let him know what had happened less than an hour earlier. Trip entered the room, took one deep breath and dashed, with one hand over his mouth, into Melinda's freshly cleaned bathroom. The teen's stomach churned with the scent of the recent mess in his room. Pizza, chilidogs, milk shakes and soft drinks consumed in teenage celebration did not make for a happy tummy when that same teen had a very weak stomach. He almost made it to the commode, but managed to grab a towel before christening the freshly washed floor.

Phil took charge this time. Trip tried valiantly to help clean the mess but only succeeded in making himself sick twice again. Melinda made up the couch for the teen and had him sip ice-cold ginger ale with bland crackers to help settle his stomach. He apologized repeatedly, sounding very much like Jemma had earlier. With the bathroom cleaned again, another load of wash done and all windows in the boys' room and bath thrown open Mel and Phil made one last bed check then climbed into their own bed, already occupied by a much too warm Fitz and fell into a tentative sleep.

Three hours later, Skye's screams and Fitz's moaning woke the entire household. It would be a very long night that would end with Phil, Trip and Fitz in the master bedroom, while Melinda shared a small bed with a sobbing Skye and a shaken Jemma.

With Skye and Jemma spending the afternoon in the care of Mack and Yo-yo and Fitz dosed with Tylenol® to keep down his renewed fever, Phil and Melinda sat down with a very nervous Trip. The boy thought he'd been given a free pass on his tardiness last night but apparently he was about to pay the piper. He ran through every minute of leaving the restaurant to the second he stepped through the door and even considered calling the friend whose mom had driven him home.

Phil and Melinda sat across from him at the kitchen table. He couldn't read the looks on their faces, but sensed they were about to tell him something he would not like. Suddenly the thoughts of missing curfew were mute. His thoughts went to his grandmother. It was Sunday and they always went to visit on Sunday. He looked at the clock over the kitchen door, almost one o'clock. They should already be on the road. There was only one reason he could imagine would keep them from their weekly visit. He swallowed hard telling himself to take this like a man, to be strong…not to cry…not to imagine the worst…

"Trip," Phil began with a nervous smile, "we want to talk to you about something important."

The boy swallowed hard and nodded, looking from one adult to the other. He squirmed in his seat and wished they would just get it over with; he wanted to shout at them and let them know. Instead, he folded his hands on the table and bounced his foot causing the floor to tremble.

"It's okay, Trip, you're not in trouble." Melinda assured him.

He swallowed again. It was about his Gram. He was having a very hard time sitting still and the tears were getting very hard to control. He brushed his hand across his eye quickly and smiled at the couple. They were looking at each other, probably looking for the best way to tell him the bad news. 'Just get it over with!' He screamed in his mind.

"Trip, our offer on the house in Bethesda was accepted. We've already signed the papers. We wanted to let you know first, before we let the little kids know." Phil spoke so fast, the boy wasn't sure he heard correctly.

Trip stopped shaking, stopped squirming, stopped clenching his teeth and bouncing his feet. It took a few minutes for him to unprocess and reprocess his thoughts. "You're l-leaving…m-moving away?" He choked.

"Yes…n-no, Trip, no we…we are moving into a bigger place." Phil corrected him. "I mean if you want to…if you…if it's okay."

Melinda came to the rescue. "What Phil's trying to say is that we want you to come with us. You're part of the family, Trip. We wouldn't just leave you."

"But, it's up to you, we aren't forcing you or trying to make you do something you not comfortable with…we want you to be the one to choose." Phil added.

Trip sat up straighter on the chair and spread his hands out on the table. Aside from losing his grandmother this was his worst fear. How could he make such a decision? How could he leave his grandmother, especially now when she needed him? He was all she had, even though he had a whole family that really loved him. What if he said no, what would happen then? Where would he go, what would happen? His stomach started feeling queasy again and he wondered if he could make the sprint to the bathroom in enough time. The squirming feeling was back too and he started to understand how Skye must feel when she just could not sit still.

"Trip?" Phil was concerned.

"What…what about my Gram?" His voice sounded a lot younger than he wanted it to sound.

"We're all going to talk about this, Trip. Your grandmother knows we were looking for a place. She wants to talk to you, but we wanted to let you know how we felt." Phil continued.

A new feeling overcame the boy, "my Gram's just givin' me up…just like that…" He knew he sounded more like Fitz at that point, but didn't really care. He loved the Coulsons but he loved his grandmother. She was family, she was blood. He looked at his hands still clasped on the table, anchoring him to the spot…preventing him from running, because that is what he really wanted to do…run. "Doesn't she want me anymore?" Looking up quickly, he gasped, "is she okay, is something wrong? She's not gonna make it?" He was on the verge of panic.

"No…no, Trip," Melinda quickly consoled him. "Your grandmother is fine and getting better all the time." She hurried to the opposite side of the table and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "She loves you very much Trip and wants you to have the best. She knows she can't take care of you now and doesn't want you to be alone." Melinda smiled and squeezed him tighter, ignoring the tear that rolled over the boy's cheek. He quickly wiped it away.

"There's a great little apartment over the garage at the new place, Trip. We're hoping you can help us convince her to consider moving in there." Phil smiled his widest smile. "Of course, that would be after she's well enough, of course."

Trip breathed a sigh and nodded. He remembered the house with the big garage and the apartment over it. Phil had joked that he could rent it out to college kids until Trip was old enough to move in on his own. It was the same house that had the basketball court behind the garage and the giant park for a yard. Phil had asked his opinion on the house the day they were there and then a couple times after. He even compared it to other places they saw. He didn't realize it at the time, but Phil and Melinda really wanted to know how he felt. They already planned for this. They already wanted him. They already had all this worked out with his Gram.

"I don't know what to say." Trip looked at his hands and shook his head.

"You don't have to decide now." Melinda patted his arm.

Phil nodded. "How about we go see your Gram? I told her we'd be late today. We missed lunch but, the doctor agreed to let us take her out to dinner."

Trip smiled as he stood. "Really, at a real restaurant? She'll love it." He started for the door then turned back. "Maybe I should put on a tie, huh? Gram'd like that. Yeah, I'm gonna change real fast, Mr. C." He backed out the door with a quick wave.

Phil moved to Melinda's side and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "That went well." He remarked. She gave him a sidelong glance.

"Well, you're right about one thing." She smiled.

"Yeah? What's that?"

"Parents sure don't have to be perfect." She sighed as she stepped away.

It was time to check on Fitz and probably help Trip tie that necktie.

"That's right," Phil called after her. "We are perfectly imperfect parents."