As Ecto-1 entered the firehouse, Janine felt a small ball of nervousness in the pit of her stomach. Winston seemed to be fine with her, but how would the others react? Her mother's car pulled in as Kylie and Winston opened the back door, and pushed Janine's chair out.
"Janine!" a voice yelled. She turned her head to see Garrett rushing towards her chair. He looked at the other's excitedly. "Ha! You're all in trouble now." he stated. "Once I teach her how to use that baby, we'll be ganging up on you."
Janine laughed lightly. She hadn't been worried about the younger Ghostbusters, it was the three older ones that hadn't come down yet.
"Plan to run over some toes, Garrett?" she joked. His face lightened.
"See, we've already got it planned." He rolled beside her as her mother pushed her chair.
Janine laughed, and with her good hand, reached out and touched his arm. Garrett stopped and looked at her.
"It's good to be missed," she said softly. Garrett smiled widely, and covered her hand with his.
Karen smiled, and began to push her daughter towards the lift again. Garrett followed.
They took the lift to the third floor so Karen could drop off Janine's bags. Janine noticed the lab doors were closed, and the several large cans full of electronic equipment sitting in front of them. She knew he was in there. The knot in her stomach dropped a tiny bit. He didn't want to see her. She didn't know where the other two were, but the hurt from their betrayal hurt only a tiny bit less. They didn't want to see her, not like this. A lump formed in her throat, and she coughed. Her mother noticed her face and touched her shoulder.
"I heard they had a little accident last night," she said. Janine looked up at her mother.
"Someone accidentally destroyed the lab," she explained. "They've been in there all night cleaning it up."
She took hold of the handles on the back of the chair and pushed Janine back towards the lift.
"Let's get you something to eat."
As Janine's mother pushed her onto the second floor, Roland and Eduardo walked out of the kitchen, grinning.
"Glad you're back Janine," Roland said.
"Me too," Eduardo added. "I'm tired of Ray's cooking."
Janine smiled. She had no reason to ever believe that the kids would ever betray her like the others. They tended to view her a mother figure, and she knew they would stick by her. Winston walked out, carrying a sandwich and a glass.
"I thought you might be hungry," he said, pulling out a portable tray and putting the food on it. "So I made you one of my famous sandwiches."
"Man, why couldn't he have cooked for us?" Eduardo pouted. Winston looked at him.
"It's only fair you guys get a bit of what we had to put up when we were here and it was Ray's night to cook." he joked. He glanced at Janine. "You okay, honey?"
She nodded, tears forming in her eyes. "You guys are just...I don't know how to thank you."
Garrett hit Eduardo. "Nice going Eddie, make Janine cry."
"Me?!" Eduardo exclaimed. "You're the one who went tearing down the minute you heard Ecto."
Janine laughed, shaking her head and wiping her eyes. Winston touched her shoulder, and knelt down to look into her eyes. "We're all here for you Janine." He glanced up towards the third floor briefly, then back to her. "All of us, although we may not show it. Whatever you need, just name it and it's yours."
"Well, what we can get," Roland joked. Kylie threw him a dirty look. Janine smiled and allowed Winston to wrap his arms around her . Ray walked down the steps, wiping his hands an old pair of coveralls.
"Hey, have Kylie and Winston come back yet?" He stopped on the bottom step, staring at Winston hugging Janine.
"Janine!" he cried, racing down the last step and over to her. He threw himself onto both people, much to the amusement of the younger Ghostbusters.
"You're home!" he cried, hugging her. He threw a dirty look at the man who was trying to untangle himself from Ray's embrace. "Winston was suppose to call us when he got back."
Janine closed her eyes, tears running down her face, soaking in Ray's enthusiasm and enjoying the feel of his arms around her. He pulled back and looked at her face, suddenly worried.
"Did I hurt you? I'm so sorry, Janine." She shook her head, unable to speak. She opened her eyes and he searched her face, looking for answers. Suddenly he realized why she was crying. He drew her back into his arms.
"Oh, Janine," he whispered.
Karen Melnitz smiled at her daughter, then rounded up the younger Ghostbusters.
"How about I cook you guys something to eat?" she offered. "Something tells me there's going to be more of this going on for a while. I wouldn't want you to have to endure all of that."
Garrett's face lit up. "Lead the way. I'm always willing to accept the offer of free food."
"Unless it's Ray's," Eduardo joked, following the others into the kitchen. Winston had gone upstairs to fetch the other two. Ray was still holding Janine when Peter came running down the stairs, with Egon close behind.
"Janine!" Peter called, hurtling the banister and racing over to her chair. Ray wisely got of the way quickly giving Peter open access. Janine's eyes widened.
"Watch out for my arm!" she cried, sending him into a skidding halt. He dropped to his knees in front of her, looking at her bandaged arm. Then he looked up at her, and moving over to her uninjured side, wrapped his arms around her waist.
"I'm glad you're okay," he said, putting his head on her shoulder. "I've missed you."
She smiled softly, looking down at him, and putting her good hand on his head.
Egon stood by Winston, watching the scene in front of him. Ray, sitting on the floor by the couch, wiping his eyes, and Peter, with his head resting on Janine, who was sitting in a wheelchair, stroking his hair. Until this moment, he never knew just what the secretary had meant to all of them. Nor did he expect the response to her returning to be so emotional. His heart leapt a bit. He wanted desperately to push Peter away and hold her and never let go. Instead, he stood there, not saying a word.
When she finally glanced up at him, his heart jumped again. The happiness that was in her eyes had gone and was replaced with a wariness. Peter, sensing her attention had shifted, moved slightly away from her and turned his attention to Egon. Then, he stood up.
"I think Janine's mom is cooking," he said, helping Ray up.
"Karen?" Winston perked up, knowing what Peter was hinting at. "Hey, anything's better than Ray's cooking."
Ray followed them, feigning hurt. "Hey, my cooking isn't that bad."
Egon heard them walk into the kitchen, but his eyes never left Janine. She sat there, not taking her eyes off of him either. He cleared his throat nervously.
"Um, I'm glad you're back," he stammered out. "We've missed you."
He saw the sudden hurt in her eyes, and knew he'd said the wrong thing. She lowered her eyes.
"Thank you," she said softy.
He strode over to her chair and dropped to his knees, grabbing her hand. She looked back at him, startled at the wetness of his face.
"Janine," he choked out, then dropped his head in her lap, sobbing. Tears sprang into her eyes, as she began to stroke his hair.
"It's all right," she whispered. "It wasn't your fault."
"I should have stayed with you," he said, his voice muffled in her lap. "I knew something was going to happen and I left anyway."
"Oh Egon," she whispered. He lifted his head, and looked at her. Hesitantly, he touched her face.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered. "I never meant for you to get hurt."
She started to speak, but he placed a finger on her lips. "Please. I know you're hurt, but please, let me help you. I love you Janine, but if you turn away from me again..." He shook his head, unable to finish his sentence. She looked at him silently, thinking about his declaration a moment before. She picked up the hand that had just left her face, and kissed it. Egon looked up at her, startled.
"I love you," she said softly. "And right now, all I need is to be in your arms."
He stood up, and gently wrapped his arms around her, being careful of her injured arm. She laid her head against his chest, and closed her eyes, relaxing in his embrace.
They stayed like that for a while until Garrett's voice wafted out from the kitchen.
"Hey," he called out. "Mom's baking. Last chance to get decent food."
Reluctantly, Egon let her go.
"Are you hungry?" he asked, taking hold of the handles on the back of her chair.
"Oh, I see how this is going to be," she joked. "I'm going to gain twenty pounds in this chair."
He smiled and pushed her into the kitchen.