A/N: and no, this isn't the last chapter. we still gotta have the weddings. woot woot. i love this chapter. i think it's my best. sorry it took so long. thankies for all of the reviews. i luff you all! oh, i had to hcnage the thing with the punisher soundtrack to make the years and stuff work. sowwie. but you'll see why i did it in the second part. so yes, here is chapter 19:
J stared at Leon's sleeping, naked, body. It was 3 in the morning and J couldn't sleep. She was glad to be home and she was glad that her and Leon had worked everything out. J sighed and laid on her back and stared up at her ceiling. Letty was pregnant, but J couldn't figure out why Dom hadn't proposed to her yet. J knew that Mia and Brian were trying to get Mia pregnant, but Brian hadn't proposed yet. She couldn't figure out what their problems were.
As for me, I can't say I ever want to be pregnant, J thought. Oh sure, making babies is the funniest part, but then you've gotta carry them around in your belly for 9 months and then pop it out. I don't think so. J turned on her side and stared at the clock. It was a model of a 2001 Nissan Skyline with yellow pain. She had it specially ordered from Japan when she was in Miami. She had been planning on giving it to Leon as a gift when she came back, but she had fallen in love with it, and since they sleep in the same room, it didn't really matter.
J sighed again and rolled over on her back. Something was nagging her at the back of her mind and she couldn't figure out what it was. A voice was screaming in the back of her mind. It was telling her to open her eyes and mind and really pay attention.
"Bugger." J muttered as she climbed out of bed. She picked Leon's boxers up from the floor and slipped them on and then put one of his jerseys on. She tiptoed over to the door and looked back at Leon. He was still peacefully sleeping. J shook her head and quietly left the room. She walked down the hallway and then down the stairs. The good thing about the house was that you couldn't hear a thing. Only the bedrooms upstairs, the living room, J's office, and two sections of the basement were carpeted. And even when you were walking on the wood floor you still could barely hear any noise, unless you were wearing shoes.
J walked into the kitchen and then down the basement stairs. She sat down on the tattered couch in the basement and turned on the small TV. The TV only got news and sports channels, which was fine with J because Soccer was on.
"Who in the hell sits up and watches Soccer at 3 in the fucking morning?" J muttered. She laughed and shook her head. "Duh me." J watched the match for a minute before she began to grow restless again. She turned off the TV and looked around the basement. Normally she couldn't stand being in her basement alone. Scary movies always popped into her mind and she'd freak herself out. But oddly, at 3 in the morning, she was fine with it.
She stood up and stretched and started to walk around. She had made it a point to never come down here unless she had to. True, the washer and dryer had been down here at first, but she changed that by getting a Utility Room built upstairs next to the garage so she wouldn't have to come down in the basement. She liked the idea of going into the garage by herself more than going down into a dark, scary basement.
J walked over to the sliding glass door and stared out into the backyard. The pool looked so nice at night. The night-lights made it look so peaceful. She looked past the pool and stared into the woods. They were dark and haunting at night, but beautiful and peaceful during the day. The woods were the exact reason why her parents chose to build the house here. They loved the landscaping and the neighborhood. It wasn't a rich upper-class neighborhood, but most of the families consisted of doctors and high businessmen and women, but they were nice homely people. A nice neighborhood.
There was a middle school on the other side of the woods. It was a small patch of woods; it would only take five to ten minutes to walk from the backyard to the school. That was another reason her parents chose this spot. The high school was about 25 minutes west of the house, and the elementary school was about 15 minutes east of the house. There were grocery stores, fast food restaurants, a theater, a mall, and the garage and store were only about 10 minutes away. The house was in the middle of everything.
J sighed and turned around, her back leaning up against the glass. Life shouldn't be so hard, J thought. You should be able to live a nice life without a bunch of shit. But I was cursed when I was 12. I was cursed. Bad things follow bad people. J let out a yelp and pushed away from the glass. She turned around and stared out the door.
I could just run again. Run and live a new life. Go to New York. Yeah, New York's a great place. No. No more running. But I need to run. Not far, just through the woods. J looked around the floor. I know I put them around here somewhere. And then she spotted her tennis shoes over by Brian's workbench. He was always down here working on models. J walked over and stared at his cars. They were all on a shelf next to the workbench. He had three or four shelves of cars. He had made a model of each of the team's cars. There was Dom's, Letty's, Vince's, Jesse's, Leon's, and J's, complete with a mini Lioness. J smiled and then looked up. She saw Tej's car and his truck, then Suki's car, Rome's car, and Jimmy's. J sat down on the carpeted floor and slipped her shoes on. She didn't care that she was wearing boxers and a practically see through jersey and tennis shoes with no socks. She just had to go.
She stood up and unlocked the door. She took a deep breath and carefully slid the door open. She stepped out into the fresh air and smiled. She shut the door behind her and took off. She ran around the pool and onto the path into the woods. She felt free as she ran through the woods, jumping casually over fallen tree limbs and rabbit holes. She reached the end of the path and stopped to stared at the school, resting for a minute. She looked at the baseball field and then the tennis courts and the football/soccer fields. The school was two stories and had sixth, seventh, and eighth graders. It was a weekend so the kids would be back in school on Monday.
J turned around and started running back on the other path, heading towards the end of the street, instead of her backyard. She reached the street and looked around. The streetlights were still on but J knew they'd be going off soon, she could see the edge of the sun as it started to come up. She turned right and started jogging away from the house. She wasn't ready to go back.
She ran up to the main road and waited. She made another right and ran down the sidewalk that runs in front of the school. She was about to turn down the road to head back home when she saw a car pass by with 'Go AVS, Bring Home the Stanley Again' painted on the windows. J stopped and stared as the car went past. They had been doing the Truck Heists in June so she had missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs. She cursed herself. Hockey and cars were her life, being from Detroit, it was expected. But luckily she only missed Colorado Avalanche win. Detroit and Colorado were rival teams. I wonder when hockey starts back up, she thought as she turned and jogged down the street.
Minutes later she stopped in front of her house and stared up at it. It really didn't look as big as it was from the outside. She shook her head and headed down the hill to go in through the back. She headed in the basement door as the sun started to shine over the house. She had been running longer than she thought. She locked the door and turned around. Brian was at his workbench, holding a car and looking at her. She had almost scared the shit out of him. He had been busy working on J's green car when the door opened.
"What are you doing up so early?" She asked him as she walked over to a chair and started taking her shoes off. Her feet were sore from running without socks.
"I always get up early to work on my cars, nobody ever notices cause you guys are usually asleep. What are you doing up?" He asked as he set down the car and looked at her. J shrugged.
"I couldn't sleep. I was just going to watch some footy, but I got restless so I went for a run." J tossed her tennis shoes on the floor and leaned back in the chair. Brian just chuckled and shook his head.
"Did you have fun?" Brian asked. J nodded and stood up.
"Yeah." She stretched. Brian went back to working on his car.
"You look nice, by the way." He said, trying to hide his smile. J laughed and then surprised him by jumping on his back.
"Thanks, so do you." She gave him a small kiss on cheek. "But now I'm hungry. What time is it anyways?" J asked as she climbed off Brian's back. Brian looked at his watch and then up at J.
"A little after five." He replied. J nodded.
"Alright. I guess I'll try and sleep or something." She gave Brian a small wave and headed up the stairs. She walked into the kitchen and shut the basement door. She walked over to the fridge and pulled the door open. They were well stocked on Corona's and Snapple's. They had two eggs left and some odds and ends. J sighed and moved things around trying to find something.
"Anything good to eat?" Letty asked. J jumped and hit the back of her head on the top of the inside of the fridge. J pulled her head out and put her hand on it as she looked at Letty. Letty was standing in a spaghetti strap shirt and Dom's boxers. Letty stuck her tongue out at J.
"Thanks for the scare and no. Nothing to eat, at least nothing that would satisfy hunger for three." J said. Letty laughed.
"Yeah yeah. Check the freezer." Letty said as she walked down the hall to the office. J smiled and got a carton of Cookies and cream ice cream out, grabbed two spoons, and then headed to the office. She sat on the couch as Letty stuck Pearl Harbor in the DVD player. Letty sat down next J and pushed play.
"I feel like crying. There's nothing better then watching two hot guys in a war movie where one of them dies. It's great." Letty stuck a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth as J laughed.
3 hours later J and Letty had almost finished the carton of ice cream and had gone through many tissues. Everybody started waking up and coming down the stairs as Letty took the movie out and replaced it with Remember The Titans. J put the ice cream back in the freezer and took out some cold pizza. She grabbed the box and two Snapple's and went back into the office as Mia headed for the kitchen.
"Morning J." Mia said with a yawn as the squeezed past each other in the narrow hallway.
"Morning Mia. We're watching Remember the Titans if you want to join us." J said as she stood in the door to the office. Mia stopped.
"Oo!" She said as she turned around and padded barefoot down the hallway in one of Brian's button up shirts and some shorts. J laughed and sat on the couch. Mia squeezed in on the other side of Letty. Letty pushed play and set the box of cold pizza on her lap.
After the movie ended, Mia and Letty noticed that J was asleep. Mia and Letty carefully situated her on the couch, turned off the TV and lights and then left the room. They went into the living room where the guys were watching American Chopper. Letty and Mia stood next to the stairs.
"Why was she up so early?" Letty asked, staring at Leon. Leon looked up at her and shrugged.
"Damned if I know. She was tossing and turning all night. I got used to it and fell asleep so I ain't got no clue when she left." Leon said, looking back at the TV.
"She was up before I was. When I went down to work on my car she came in a few minutes later. She said she was out running." Brian said. Letty nodded.
"Alright. So Lee...when you gonna ask her?" Letty asked. Leon looked up at her confused.
"Ask her what?" He asked. He was genuinely confused. Letty walked over to him and slapped the back of his head.
"To marry you, you dope!" Letty hissed. Leon grabbed the back of his head and looked up at Letty.
"Damn girl. Chill. I was going to do it this morning but when I woke up she wasn't there. It's kinda hard to propose when she's not there." Leon said. Letty sighed and shook her head. She looked up at the mantle over the fireplace. It only had 6 pictures on it, but after the weddings and births, there would be tons of pictures on there.
Letty walked behind the couch and stared closely at the pictures. The first picture was of Vince, J, and Dom on their graduation day. J had her arms around the two guys and they were all smiles in their Maroon Graduation Gowns and caps. Well, it's safe to say that only Mia was the one who liked Maroon as our school color, Letty thought, smiling. She looked at the next picture. It was Letty with Dom on Letty's graduation day. Letty had her turn in the maroon Graduation Gown and Cap, and was only smiling because her and Dom had started dating that year. Letty heard the TV turn on in the office, so she figured J was up. Letty smiled and looked at the next picture.
It had finally been Mia's turn to graduate. The picture was Mia and J together. Mia was wearing the Maroon Graduation Gown and J was standing next to her wearing her old high school automotive club shirt. "For school Spirit." J had said. Letty sighed and then stared at the next few pictures. There was one of J and Leon together outside of DT's automotive. Letty stepped closer to it. I took that picture, she thought. She remembered that day. She looked at the next picture. It was Mia, Letty, and J at J's Graduation from the University. Letty smiled. J looked so bored in the blue Graduation Gown and Cap. Mia had been so proud of J, and J was just happy that she could go back to working on cars all the time.
The last picture was of the whole team, minus Brian, together. Letty turned around as J walked into the living room.
"So who's going to go get lunch? Cuz we ain't got shit." She said. Letty smiled.
"I'll go wit chu." Letty said. J shook her head.
"No. I ain't going." J protested. Letty winked.
"Yes you are. Now let's go get dressed." Letty grabbed J's arm and dragged her upstairs. Letty gave J a push into J's room, while Letty went to hers. J shut the door and smiled. She walked over to her closet and pulled open the door. It was a walk in closet, though there was little walking room, but it worked for her. She took a pair of her tan Dickie pants and a white wife beater off their hangers and threw them behind her into her room. She pulled Leon's boxers and Jersey off and tossed them in the laundry basket. She grabbed a bra, a g-string, and a pair of tube socks as she heard a scream from Letty and Dom's room.
"DOM! SHUT THE MOTHER FUCKING DOOR YOU BASTARD!" Letty screamed. J could hear the deep roar of Dom's laugh. "FUCK YOU! GET OUT! SHUT THE DOOR! YOU FUCKING BASTARD!" She screamed. J heard the door slam shut and then heard Dom walk past her door. J laughed and walked out of the closet, shutting the door behind her. J slipped the g-string on and then put her bra on and looked at the clock. 10:10. Ok, so it wasn't exactly Lunch time yet, but J was hungry. J pulled her Dickies on and then put her wife beater on. She looked around the floor. She knew she had thrown her Anarchic Black Cyber Cross Boots on the floor somewhere. They were the plain black version of Letty's flame boots. J was in love with them. She opened her closet and saw them on the floor. She picked them up and walked over to the bed. She sat down and was putting her socks on when the door opened and Leon poked his head in.
"Hey." He said as he walked in and shut the door behind him. J smiled at him and went back to putting her socks on.
"Hey. What's up?" She asked. Leon sat next to her.
"I was just wondering where you went this morning." He asked. J finished putting on her socks and grabbed one of her boots.
"I couldn't sleep. I didn't want to wake you so I went down to the basement to watch some TV, but I couldn't sit still. I went for a run." She said as she laced up her boot.
"Oh. Well...there was something I wanted to ask you this morning, but it was kind of hard since you weren't there." Leon started to say. J put her foot on the floor and looked at him. He was rubbing the back of his neck and he seemed really nervous.
"What's up buttercup? Don't be so nervous. Got something on your mind?" She asked him. She pulled herself behind him and started massaging his shoulders.
"Actually yeah. I don't know how to say it, but I've got to. It's something I've wanted to do ever since you came back." J continued to massage his shoulders as he pulled something out of his pocket. He opened the blue box and turned around. "J, I love you so much. You've been everything to me ever since I met you and when Jeff and Tran took you...I-I don't know how I made it. But now that I have you back, I'm not letting you go." He held up the box with the ring in it for J to see She gasped. "Will you marry me?" He asked. J tore her eyes away from the ring and looked Leon in his beautiful brown eyes.
"Yes. Of course!" She said. Leon smiled and kissed her. She kissed him back, harder. He flipped her around to where she was sitting on his lap. Leon dropped the ring on the floor and started taking J's boot off. He succeeded without ever looking behind him. He then moved to start taking off her shirt, while still kissing her. J pulled back.
"What about the food?" She asked as Leon kissed her again. He pulled her shirt off.
"You're the only food I want." Leon growled. J pulled his shirt off. J tilted her head back and laughed.
"Yummy!" She said as she pushed him back on the bed.
Letty, who was standing outside the door waiting for J, smiled when she heard Leon ask her and then J say yes. Letty turned and walked down the stairs. She went into the living room and sat on Dom's lap.
"Mia, you got to go with me." Letty said, wrapping her arms around. Mia looked at her.
"Why? What about Jez?" Mia asked. Letty looked at Mia and smiled.
"I didn't tell ya'll but Leon finally got some balls and asked her to marry him. She said yes and know they're gonna have a fuck fest so he can really put use to those new balls of his." Letty winked and laughed at Mia's face. She had a look of horro on her face.
"God Let! Too much fucking info." Mia said as she buried her head in Brian's shoulder. Everyone laughed.
"Exactly Mia. You got it now, fucking." Letty said, laughing harder as Mia squealed.
"Stop Letty! God! My virgin ears!" Mia screamed. Letty stopped laughing and stared at Mia.
"Don't play that Mia. Everybody in this house with ears knows you and Brian ain't no virgins." Letty replied. Everybody laughed as Mia blushed, yelped and then ran upstairs. Even Brian was laughing.