A/N: I'll give you all one guess as to what goes wrong at the telethon this time. ;-)


"Hey, Vicky," Stephanie said as she stood in the doorway of her parents' bedroom.

"Hey, Steph! What's up?"

"Oh, I just thought you might want some company up here since everyone else is busy getting ready for the baby shower," Stephanie explained.

"Let me guess. The baby shower planning committee sent you up here to keep me distracted so I wouldn't try to come downstairs early?"

Stephanie laughed. "Well, that too!" She admitted, taking a seat on the edge of the bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Tired, which is ironic, considering all I do anymore is lay in bed." She reached around to adjust one of the pillows behind her back. "And my back is killing me!"

"Well, at least you don't have much longer to go!" Stephanie encouraged her. "You know, my biology teacher said that at the end of her pregnancy, a woman starts getting these urges to clean the whole house and get everything ready for the baby. Have you had any of those yet?"

Vicky shook her head. "Not really. Luckily, your dad has enough nesting urges for both of us. You would think that this was his first baby from the way he's been acting!"

"He's probably just a little nervous since it's been so long since Michelle was born."

"That's what he told me last night."

"Hi, Vicky! Hey, Steph." DJ entered the bedroom with her younger sister in tow and the two made themselves comfortable on the bed next to their sister.

"Hi, girls! How's it going downstairs?" Vicky asked.

"Everything looks great! Michelle and I just finished decorating the living room and the grandmas are still busy in the kitchen getting all the food ready." DJ looked over and noticed a sullen expression on her sister's face. "Hey, Stephanie, is everything okay? You've been acting really weird lately and you've barely left the house all summer. What's going on?"

"This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with those letters you told me about, would it?" Vicky wondered.

"Stephanie sighed. "Yeah. Rusty came over a few weeks ago and found one of the letters, and he got really upset -"

"Understandably so," DJ pointed out.

Stephanie glared at DJ before continuing. "Anyway, I tried to explain to him that Julio and I are just friends and probably won't even see each other again, but he didn't care!" Stephanie bowed her head and wiped a tear from her cheek. "He broke up with me," she whispered.

"Oh, Steph," Vicky gasped softly. "I'm so sorry."

"Thanks," Stephanie replied. " I guess I did kind of deserve it, though." She looked over at her big sister. "So there, you were right. Are you happy now?" she snipped.

"Stephanie…"

"No, it's okay, Vicky. I got this." DJ grabbed Stephanie's arm and pulled her off the bed. "Come with me, Steph. Michelle, you stay here and make sure Vicky doesn't go downstairs early and ruin the surprise!"

"You got it, Dude!"

DJ led her sister across the hall into her bedroom and gently shut the door.

"You don't have to lecture me again," Stephanie sneered, folding her arms across her chest. "You've made your point."

"Stephanie, I wasn't going to lecture you! I was going to apologize."

"Really? You were?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry I was so judgmental about you talking to another guy. I know this was your first real relationship and you're still figuring out how all of this works. I just wanted you to think about how your actions can hurt other people, whether you meant to or not. I know that if I ever found out that Steve was writing letters to another girl and she was saying the things about him that Julio wrote to you, I would be furious. Steve and I trust each other, and he knows that I would never intentionally hurt his feelings like that, but even when you know somebody trusts you, there are certain lines that you shouldn't cross."

"I really blew it with Rusty, didn't I?" Stephanie asked.

"Well, maybe not completely. You might still be able to be friends someday."

"You think?"

DJ shrugged. "Maybe. But you'll always have me, no matter what." She smiled and gave Stephanie a tight squeeze.

"Thanks, Deej!" Stephanie grinned as she returned her sister's embrace.

"Hey, girls!" Aunt Becky called from the hallway. "Get down here! The baby shower's about to start!"

"C'mon, we better get down there so I can beat you at Pin the Bib on the Baby!" DJ teased.

"Oh, yeah? Well, I bet I can name more songs with Baby in the title than you can!"

"You're on!" DJ wrapped her arm around Stephanie, and they made their way downstairs together.


"Oh, hi Honey!" Danny exclaimed as he rushed into the kitchen after work the following Monday. "I've got great news!" He kissed Vicky hello and pulled a bottle of water out of the fridge.

"I do too," Vicky replied. "Why are you so out of breath?" she chuckled.

"Wait, what are you doing out of bed?"

"I asked you first."

"Fine," said Danny. "I wanted to get home before Becky so that I could be the first one to tell you that she and I are going to be hosting Channel Eight's We Love Our Children Telethon again this year!"

"Oh, Sweetheart, that's fantastic!" Vicky wrapped her arms around Danny's neck and gave him a congratulatory kiss.

"Wait, so what was your news?"

"Oh!" said Vicky, "Dr. Kent told me today that I don't have to be on bed rest anymore since the baby could come any day now. Isn't that great?!"

Danny stiffened up and his face slowly turned white. "Any day now?" he asked weakly.

"Sweetheart, are you alright?"

"Me? Oh, yeah, I'm fine!" Danny quickly assured his wife. "I just didn't realize your due date was that soon. But first babies tend to come well after their due date anyway. At least that's what the doctor told us with DJ. You can stay home and watch the twins while the rest of us are at the station! Are you sure the doctor said, 'any day'?"

"Any day." Vicky nodded in confirmation. "But she did also warn me that first babies tend to be late. Danny, I'm sure everything will be fine. Like you said, I can stay here with Nicky and Alex, and my mom will be here with me if something does happen. This is a great opportunity for you and Becky. I don't want you to miss this."

Danny smiled. "Thank you, Honey." He embraced Vicky from behind, wrapping one arm across her chest and the other around her stomach.

"Andrew, do you promise to stay put until this telethon is over?" Danny felt the lightest tap of the baby's foot against his hand. "I'm gonna take that as a yes!"

"Danny, what happened to you?" Becky demanded as she waltzed into the kitchen. "You missed the best part of the meeting!"

"It just so happens that I left early so I could beat you home and tell everybody about the telethon first!" Danny proclaimed proudly. "I mean, Vicky was the only one here to tell, but still! Why, what did I miss?"

"You are never going to guess who the station got to make an appearance at the telethon!"

"The Beach Boys are coming back?!" Danny guessed.

Becky shook her head. "Nope! Michael. Jordan." Becky grinned and let out an excited squeak. "Danny, can you believe it?!"

Danny laughed heartily. "I'm sorry, Becky. I must've misheard you. It sounded like you said Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls is coming to San Francisco to be on our telethon!"

"I did."

"Oh my God!"

Vicky rushed to steady her husband as his knees gave out and his face turned a familiar shade of white.


Stephanie walked into her bedroom where Michelle sat at the table surrounded by a group of her friends.

"Hey, Michelle. What's up?"

"Dad said that we could all perform in the telethon, so we're trying to figure out who's doing what."

"Of course, Lisa and I will be doing a duet," Derek Boyd stated as if it were obvious. He turned to address Lisa. "I was thinking this time we would go for something a little more theatrical, like something from Hello, Dolly! or maybe The Sound of Music?"

Lisa grinned cheekily. "Ooh, how about Little Shop of Horrors?!"

"Would you settle for Phantom of the Opera?" Derek countered.

"Deal!" Lisa nodded and shook Derek's hand.

"Teddy and I are doing our breakdance routine!" Aaron announced. The two boys folded their arms across their chests in an attempt to look tough, leaning their backs against each other.

"Very impressive," Stephanie replied, doing her best to feign interest.

"And I'm going to tell some of my favorite jokes from Funny Buddy!" said Denise. "Wanna hear one?"

Stephanie shrugged. "Sure."

"Where do you learn how to make a banana split?"

"I don't know," said Stephanie. "Where?"

"At Sundae school!" All of the kids, Denise included, burst out laughing.

Stephanie smirked. "Okay, that was pretty good," she admitted. "What about you, Michelle?"

Michelle frowned. "I don't know yet." She slumped back into her chair. "I can't sing like Lisa or dance like Teddy, and I'm nowhere near as funny as Denise!" she complained. "Steph, do I have any talents?"

"Sure you do, Michelle! You're great at, uh…. well, you're a really good, um…"

"Great, thanks. That helps a lot," Michelle deadpanned.

"Look, Michelle, I'm sure you'll find something you can do for the telethon! Why don't you teach Comet some new tricks?" Stephanie suggested, gesturing at the Golden Retriever sleeping on Michelle's bed.

Michelle stood up and walked over to the bed. "Comet, speak!"

The dog didn't budge.

"Roll over?" she tried. Still, there was no response.

"Fine, stay!"

With that, Comet awoke with a start and ran from the room.

Michelle sighed in defeat. "It's hopeless! I'll never find something I'm good enough at to be ready for the telethon by Saturday!"

"Hey, rugrats!" Uncle Jesse said as he appeared in the doorway, "The phone's been ringing off the hook. You're all late for dinner!"

Michelle's friends scrambled out of their seats calling out various goodbyes as they ran past Jesse and down the stairs. Once they were gone, Jesse picked up the chair next to Michelle and spun it around, taking a seat and leaning with his arms folded against the back of the chair.

"Hey, Shorty, why the long face?"

"Michelle thinks she doesn't have any talents," Stephanie explained.

"What do you mean?" Jesse asked. "You've got plenty of talents! You're good at math. You're a great speller. That baking soda volcano you made won second place at the science fair last year!" he pointed out.

"You and Joey built that for me," Michelle retorted.

"Yes, and we would have won if it weren't for Brandon Ferguson and his stupid model rocket! The kid's father worked for NASA, for crying out loud! He should have been disqualified!" Jesse exclaimed indignantly, throwing his index finger in the air.

"Uncle Jesse, can we please focus on my problem?"

"Right, sorry. What were we talking about again?"

"How I don't have any talents," Michelle reminded him.

"Oh, yeah! Now, Michelle, I can assure you that you are a very bright young lady. What makes you think that you don't have any talents?"

"Because I can't sing like Lisa and Derek, or tell jokes like Denise," Michelle bemoaned. "Being good at math and spelling isn't going to make a good act for the telethon."

"Oh, so that's what this is all about," Jesse realized. He stood up and turned the chair back around, motioning for Michelle to sit on his lap. "Come here, Munchkin."

Michelle sat on her uncle's lap and put her arms around his neck.

"Now, Michelle, people can be talented at all kinds of different things. Sure, I'm talented in music, but that doesn't make me any better than somebody who's talented in, for example, rocket science. I mean, it definitely made me more attractive to the ladies back in the day, but that's beside the point." Michelle giggled. "I know you want to be in the telethon with all of your little friends," Jesse continued, "But even if you can't come up with an act, you can still help out by answering the phones! What's more important: performing on live TV, or contributing to a cause that's going to help a lot of people?"

"Well…" Michelle hesitated.

"Michelle…" Uncle Jesse cautioned.

Michelle sighed and rolled her eyes. "Helping people!" she finally conceded.

"Atta girl!" Jesse gave Michelle a tight hug before lifting her off his lap and standing up from his chair. "Dinner should be ready in ten minutes," Jesse informed both girls as he headed out the door. "Oh!" Jesse paused in the doorway. "You know, Michelle, Jesse & The Rippers could always use another tambourine player if you're interested."

"Thanks, Uncle Jesse. I'll think about it."

Jesse pinched Michelle's cheek and left the room.


On the morning of the telethon, Danny rushed downstairs, scrambling to fix his tie and combing his fingers through his hair.

"Okay, today's the big day! How do I look? Do I look like somebody who's ready to interview an NBA legend?" Danny asked frantically.

Vicky stood up from the sofa to console her anxious husband. "Sweetheart, you look fine! Besides, you're interviewing Michael Jordan. I don't think anybody is going to be paying attention to what you look like!" she teased.

"I guess you do have a point. How are you feeling?" he asked as Vicky laid her head on his shoulder.

"A little tired, but no more than usual. Why?"

"Just checking!" Danny promised. "You would tell me if you felt like the baby was going to come today, right?"

"Danny, relax! Look, if it makes you feel any better, I can call the station once every hour to let you know I'm still pregnant. Would that help?"

"Okay, okay. You've made your point. I'm acting ridiculous. Now, where are the girls? We need to get going."

"Right here, Dad!" DJ called out from the top of the stairs. She and her sisters made their way downstairs in a single file line.

"Oh, there are my beautiful girls!" Danny boasted. "All dressed up and ready to spend the next twenty-four hours answering phones!"

"Don't forget to tune in during Hour 6 to see Girl Talk's TV debut!" Stephanie reminded her stepmom.

"And during Hour 11 to see Steve Hale's TV debut!" DJ added. "We're singing a duet from Aladdin. You know, a lot of people tell Steve he sounds just like him!"

Vicky laughed. "Don't worry, girls! I'll have the TV turned to Channel Eight for the whole day, so I won't miss a thing! Michelle, did you ever decide what you're doing for the telethon?" she asked.

Michelle shrugged sadly. "I guess I'm just going to answer the phones."

"Oh, well, that's okay, Sweetie! I'm sure that callers will find you so charming and adorable that you'll collect twice as many donations as the other volunteers!"

Michelle smiled. "Thanks, Vicky."

"Alright, girls. We need to get going. Becky, Jesse, and Joey are already down at the station. Bye, Sweetheart!" Danny kissed Vicky goodbye and ushered the girls towards the door.


"Wake Up, San Francisco! I'm Danny Tanner!"

"And I'm Rebecca Donaldson-Katsopolis!"

"And welcome to We Love Our Children Telethon '94!" Danny bellowed. "For the next twenty-four hours, you'll be treated to a variety of live entertainment acts with a myriad of special guests as we raise money for the San Francisco Children's Hospital! As you can see, our lovely volunteers are waiting by the phones to take your calls, including my three beautiful daughters. Michelle, why don't you tell all of our viewers what number they can call to donate?"

"555-0123," Michelle grumbled halfheartedly.

Danny laughed awkwardly while giving his youngest daughter the side-eye. "She's clearly not a morning person!" Danny explained gleefully. "For those of you who didn't catch that, you can call 555-0123 to donate. We've only got twenty-three hours and 57 minutes to reach our goal of one million dollars, so pick up a phone and call right now to donate! While you're doing that, enjoy this performance from one of my favorite bands, and I'm not just saying that because the lead singer is my brother-in-law, Jesse & The Rippers!"

In a greeting to his wife at home, Danny quickly scratched his eyebrow before gesturing to the band on the other side of the studio as they broke into Elvis Presley's Jailhouse Rock.

Back in the Tanners' living room, Vicky smiled and returned the favor.

"What was that all about?" her mother asked.

"Oh, just a silly little greeting I came up with when I was anchoring the news in Chicago," Vicky explained. She reached around to rub the small of her back.

"Are you alright, Vicky?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. My back is just a little sore, that's all! Mom, can I ask you something?"

"Of course, Sweetie! What is it?"

"If I were going into labor, would I be having pains that start in my back and move around to my stomach?"

"How far apart are these pains and how long have you been having them?" Liz demanded.

"About every ten minutes for the last hour," Vicky admitted sheepishly, gritting her teeth as another wave of pain came over her.

"Oh, for Heaven's sake, why didn't you say something before Danny left?!" Liz scolded.

"I didn't want to worry him in case it turned out to be nothing! Danny's been waiting his whole career to interview someone like Michael Jordan. I didn't want to be the reason he had to miss out on such a great opportunity!"

"Well, I would think the birth of his son would take precedence over an interview with some basketball player," said Liz, "But fortunately this is your first baby, so you've probably got a little ways to go yet. I'll go call your doctor's office to let them know what's happening, and then I'll put a hot water bottle on the stove for those back pains. Do you want me to go ahead and call Danny at the station?"

Vicky quickly shook her head, still wincing. "No, I don't want to call Danny yet. Let's wait and see what the doctor says."

Liz nodded and exited towards the kitchen.

Vicky felt relieved as the wave of pain subsided and she relaxed back onto the couch.

"Couldn't you have waited just one more day?" She giggled and rubbed her stomach affectionately.


Two hours into the telethon, Vicky stood pacing back and forth behind the couch with her hands resting on the small of her back as she watched Michelle's friends perform "Music of the Night".

"When did the doctor say we need to go to the hospital?" she asked her mother.

"Once your contractions are five minutes apart or when your water breaks, whichever comes first," Liz replied.

"And how far apart are they now?"

Liz looked at her watch. "About seven minutes, so we still have a little time. Honestly, Vicky, don't you think we should at least call Danny and tell him what's going on?"

"Absolutely not! He only has one more hour before his big interview. I can make it until then." Vicky paused to lean against the back of the couch as another contraction hit and she let out a small groan.

"Just take a deep breath," Liz reminded her, rushing to her daughter's side. "That's it. Slow and steady," she coaxed.

"Hey, Mrs. T, what's going on?" Kimmy Gibbler wondered as she let herself in the Tanners' front door.

"Kimmy, now is not really a good time," said Vicky.

"Why? Oh." Kimmy paused, finally noticing her neighbor's odd position and the pained expression on her face. "The littlest Tannerito is finally making his way into the world, huh?"

Vicky nodded. "It seems that way. Wait, aren't you supposed to be at the telethon?"

"I was, but Mr. T banned me from answering the phones after I offered to go on a date with this one guy if he donated more money." Kimmy frowned. "I mean, he did say yes, but his wife didn't sound too happy about it."

Both Liz and Vicky gave Kimmy an incredulous look, but they became distracted when Vicky's pain intensified.

"Mom!" she pleaded, tightening her grip on the back of the sofa.

Liz soothingly rubbed her daughter's shoulders. "Vicky, you're doing great! Just relax and focus on your breathing, okay?"

Vicky nodded and drew in a sharp breath before quickly blowing it out as she had learned in Lamaze class. She repeated the same breathing pattern until the pain finally subsided and she was able to relax and turn her attention back to the TV.

"Let's give it up for Lisa and Derek!" Danny was saying as the musical number ended. "We're at the top of the third hour and we're already ten percent of the way to our goal of raising one million dollars for the children's hospital, so make sure to pick up the phone now and pledge what you can. Every little cent helps. And be sure to stay tuned for our next hour where we'll be joined by none other than NBA star, Michael Jordan! Trust me, you won't want to miss this! I sure don't!"

"Oh, I really hope you don't," said Vicky.


Back at the station, Danny stood next to the cameramen watching Joey's stand-up performance when Mr. Strowbridge tapped him on the shoulder.

"Tanner, I'd like you to meet the one and only Mr. Michael Jordan!"

Danny did a double-take and then took a breath to compose himself before extending his hand for a shake.

"Oh, Mr. Jordan, it is an honor to meet you! I'm a huge fan!" Danny gushed.

"I'm happy to be here and help out such a great cause, " he replied. "And please, call me Michael!"

"Well, Michael, it's great to have you! I'm really looking forward to this interview."

Becky came over to join the group and, though she tried her best to hide it with a nervous smile, Danny could tell that something was wrong.

"Becky, what's going on?"

"Uh, Danny, we've got a little situation. Liz just called. Vicky's water broke." Becky glanced at Michael then smiled sympathetically at Danny, knowing what the news she just delivered would mean for the upcoming interview segment.

"Of course it did," Danny said, grinning to hide the panic on his face. "I have a once-in-a-lifetime interview opportunity. Why wouldn't my wife be going into labor?" He chuckled nervously, rubbing his palms together.

"I guess Rebecca will be doing the interview then," said Mr. Strowbridge.

"Well, now, wait a minute," said Michael, "Why don't you let my driver give you a ride to the hospital, and we can do the interview on the way?"

"You really mean that?" Danny asked.

Michael nodded.

"Oh, Mr. Jordan, thank you!" Without thinking, Danny opened his arms and gave the confused but compliant basketball player an appreciative embrace.


After making sure the twins were settled with Kimmy, Liz drove Vicky to the hospital.

"And you're sure Danny is on his way?" Vicky asked as she settled into her hospital bed.

Liz nodded. "That's what Becky told me. Do you want me to turn the telethon on?"

"Sure."

Liz turned on the TV just in time to find her son-in-law getting into the back of a black SUV with Michael Jordan.

"Welcome back to We Love Our Children Telethon '94! As you can see, our next segment involves a slight change of scenery. Don't worry, Sweetheart, I'm on my way!"

"What on Earth?" Liz exclaimed, putting her hands on her hips.

"He didn't!" Vicky chuckled in disbelief, throwing her head back against her pillow.

She only vaguely paid attention to the rest of the interview as her contractions were making it more difficult to focus. However, a remark made by her husband towards the end caused Vicky to turn her attention back to the TV.

"I get what you mean about family being above everything else," Danny was saying. "And I think that's very admirable coming from somebody like you, who pours so much into his career."

"Yeah, well, you just gotta find that right balance," Michael Jordan replied. "That's why I really wanted to help you out. You were willing to drop everything at work to go straight to the hospital to be with your wife. I find that very respectable."

"Well, thank you," Danny responded humbly. "My family means everything to me. My girls. My wife. And now our son. They're everything."

Vicky's lips puckered and she dabbed at her eyes with a tissue.

Liz smiled. "You really lucked out with that one, Vicky."

"I sure did."

On the TV, the camera crew continued to follow Danny as he scrambled out of the car and into the hospital. He paused just outside the door to his wife's room to address his live audience one more time.

"Thank you for bearing with us during that last-minute change of plans. I now leave you in the capable hands of my cohost, Rebecca, as we continue to climb toward that million-dollar goal. Thank you so much to our special guest, Mr. Michael Jordan, for joining us, and if you're enjoying the show, make sure you pick up that phone to make a donation by calling the number on your screen! Have a great day, San Francisco!" Danny smiled and waved at the camera for a moment before going into Vicky's room and shutting the door behind him.