A/N: My apologies. I didn't post the bonus for week six over here.

A/N: With these bonus prompts... does it count if a character is rattled and someone glugs or feels like doing so? Twang is accounted for because Texan and Tennessee accents.

Bonus - Week Six - The Bradshaws

Rattle

As Nick passed by her, he stopped and tapped his left wrist and then motioned back to Pete and Alan. Helen frowned at him for a moment, nodded, and shooed him off to the kitchen, then turned back to look at... how old was this boy? Certainly not as old as her son, judging by his height alone. Left wrist, and then she frowned, hoping that wasn't what she thought it was. "Pete? Can I see that?"

Pete looked up at her, frowning. "See what?"

"Is that an MIA bracelet?" Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Jenkins was staring at the kid with an unreadable expression, but didn't dare break eye contact with Pete. He nodded and came closer to show her, and Helen paused at the two names listed. "Are they both MIA?"

"No," Pete answered. "Just Dad. Sheryl gave it to me after school today. I don't know why she put Mom's name on it, too."

Helen nodded. Both parents gone, a social worker... not having a lunch at school enough times that her son felt he needed to intervene somehow. "Can I hug you?" Pete stared up at her, startled, as if he didn't understand the question, and then he nodded and she was blinking back tears as she put her arms around him.

Glug

Nick heard the back door open as he finished setting the two extra places, glanced up to see his father with a plate of freshly cooked hamburgers, and put his finger to his lips. He nodded to the living room, and his father put the plate down on the counter, then looked, only to frown at the sight of his wife hugging a small boy he'd never seen before while an older man looked on. Nick joined him. "Did you make enough for five, Dad?"

His father nodded, still frowning, then whispered back: "Who is the kid?"

"Pete and his social worker, Alan Jenkins."

His father paused. "Wait a minute. That kid goes to your school?"

"Skipped a couple grades, according to Jenkins," Nick explained and his father nodded.

"Good kid?"

"Yes."

Nick watched his father go into the living room and shake hands with Jenkins, and then bend down when his mother finally let go and say hello to Pete, who clearly didn't know how to react to another person dragging him into a hug.

Twang

Dinner was anything but quiet as his parents asked questions of Jenkins and Nick felt like laughing into his napkin at how overwhelmed Pete looked, even as he put his burger together. He reached over, nudged his shoulder. Pete looked up, and Nick smiled reassuringly at him. "It's okay, you know?"

"No one ever asks," Pete told him. "Or they're Navy and they assume things because of something they heard at the base."

Nick paused, taking in the implications of that and felt more than saw his mother's attention on them. "Oh?"

Suddenly Pete was blinking back tears and he took a deep breath. "Pass the mustard?"

Nick passed the mustard to him and then he jumped at hand on his shoulder, as Jenkins slid a note over: [Ask if he can stay the night?] Nick stared at the note, glanced at Jenkins in question, considered why he'd do that and then quickly put the note in his pocket. "Ma? Dad? Can Pete stay the night?"

Swish

At the request, Pete froze. What? Why would Nick want him to? What was going on here?

"If Mr. Jenkins says yes," Nick's father answered, and Pete looked up at him, startled. "I don't see why not. Helen, what do you think?"

"Of course he can," Helen said, smiling. "Pete, do you want to stay over?"

Slowly, uncertain, Pete nodded. "Yes?" He looked at Alan, who smiled and motioned to the burger on his plate, reminding him of it.

"Eat, and then we'll decide," Alan told him. "You've never had a sleepover before. It's different."

"Never?" Nick wondered. "Not at all?"

"No," Pete said, wondering why that mattered all of a sudden when he hadn't had a permanent home since the spring of 1970.