The Visitor From The University of Buffalo
Pairing: Speed and Calleigh
Kevin had settled into the guestroom of his brother's condo. Tim and Calleigh make dinner. What plans does Tim have for his kid brother?
Disclaimer: I don't own Speed, Calleigh and the other CSI: Miami characters! Like I had said in my previous work, if I owned these characters, Speed would be alive and with Calleigh. However, I do own Kevin Speedle and his girlfriend Amber.
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Kevin Is Settled in the Speedle Condo. Now What?
When they arrived at the condo, Tim reluctantly helped Kevin with the suitcase. Calleigh unlocked the door and everyone was inside. Tim gave his brother a tour of the house and showed him to his room. He went to the kitchen to fix dinner.
Calleigh went to the guestroom to talk with Kevin. She opened her mouth to say something, but the young man cut her off.
"So, Tim tells me you are pregnant," Kevin said casually. "How far along are you?"
"I am now two months into the pregnancy," she replied. "I am due sometime in July."
"That's great!" Kevin said. "I am looking forward to becoming an uncle. That is if Tim would let me into the kid's life."
"I am sure he will," Calleigh smiled.
There was a brief silence as Kevin unpacked his suitcase.
"Kevin, did you decided on a major yet?" Calleigh asked.
"I just finished my first semester in college," Kevin replied. "I am still undecided. I took math, English Comp, sociology, psychology and art history. I am taking biology, French, chemistry, political science and physics next semester."
"That is interesting," Calleigh said. "Can I ask you something?"
"Calleigh, you are part of my family," Kevin said. "You can ask me anything you like. Just as long as it is not about why Tim and I never got along. You may want to ask your dear husband about that!"
"How come you have your hair like that?" Calleigh asked. "You know what I am talking about; the shoulder length hair and the ultra blue streaks. Are you in a band or making some fashion statement?"
"It's part fashion statement, part rebellion," Kevin replied with a big smile. "It is the in thing now and it is a fun way to piss off my parents and brother. Have you ever done anything to piss off your parents when you were my age?"
"I did some things as a teenager to ruffle my parents' feathers," she said. "It is a long laundry list. However, I never went for the punk look. In parts of Louisiana, kids who rebel like that got stares from older people. I had a friend who got suspended from school for having a Mohawk."
"Does Tim know about your wild phase?" Kevin smirked.
"I told him about it when we started dating," Calleigh said. "He found that really appealing."
There was another brief pause.
"Kevin, I'll let you get settled in," Calleigh said. "The remote for the TV is here. No, we don't have satellite TV, but we have an awesome digit cable system. If you want to call your parents and/or Amber, we have phones in the living room, kitchen and the master bedroom. I have to go help Tim with dinner. If you need anything, just holler."
"Thank you, Cal," Kevin said.
Kevin placed his emptied suit case in the closet. He sat on the bed, grabbed the remote control and turned on the television to a comedy channel. He then lied down on the bed and took a brief nap. The flight from Buffalo to Miami with a connection at Charlotte, North Carolina was very exhausting.
Meanwhile, Tim and Calleigh were at the kitchen. Tim was making shrimp scampi and Calleigh was making mushroom risotto to accompany it. The smells of garlic, shrimp and mushrooms cooking permeated the place. Calleigh looked at Tim and gave him a quick kiss.
"What was that for?" Tim asked dumbfounded.
"Oh, just for the hell of it," Calleigh said. "Look, we really need to talk."
"Is this about my brother?" Tim asked. "If it is, the answer is no."
"Tim, you didn't even hear me out before you refused what I was about to say," Calleigh said sharply. "We have a visitor here. Albeit it is your brother and I know that the two of you were never close. I have seen you react to his presence whenever I see you together. The only exceptions were our wedding rehearsal, the rehearsal dinner and our actual wedding. I-"
"At those three events, there were other people there," Tim harshly interrupted. "You know who I am talking about our colleagues, friends, my parents and your family. I didn't have much of a choice."
"Well, do me and our unborn child a favor," she said sweetly. "Try to get along while your brother is here. Who knows? Maybe you will become close."
"It is not as simple as that, Cal!" Tim exploded, making Calleigh cry. "I am sorry, babe, I didn't mean to shout like that. If it makes you and our future baby happy, I will make an effort to be super nice to Kevin. I can't promise miracles, but I will be sweet."
"Thank you!" she said as Tim wiped her eyes and tenderly embraced her.
"Dinner is almost ready," Tim said. "Your risotto is looking delicious. Are you going to put some parmesan cheese on top?"
"Tim, you know that I wouldn't do that," Calleigh said. "I put a container of grated cheese on the table if we wanted some on top. Some people might not like stuff on top of food."
"Oh, I see now," Tim smiled. "Let's get the serving dishes for the salad, shrimp and risotto. Then, we will bring the food to the table. I will call Kevin to the dinner table."
"Okay, handsome, I shall bring the stuff to the table," Calleigh said with a smile.
"Kevin, wake up if you are sleeping!" Tim shouted. "If not, turn off the television and come to the table! We are having dinner now!"
Kevin arrived at the dinner table with his hair slightly messed up from the nap. He smiled at the smell of the food that permeated his nose. He sat at the table. Calleigh seeing her husband and brother-in-law were already seated; led them in prayer. Tim served the salad and passed the balsamic vinaigrette.
"Is this dressing from a bottle or someone made it?" Kevin asked. "It is great! Compared to the crappy dressings they have in the campus cafeterias, this is awesome!"
"I made it!" Tim said. "I am glad you like it."
Once the salad course was finished, Tim place some of the shrimp on each plate and Calleigh place some risotto next to it. Nobody really wanted to put the parmesan cheese on top of the risotto. The food just looked, smelled and tasted too good to be tampered with.
"So, Kevin, how is Buffalo State treating you?" Tim asked. "Do you know your grades yet?"
"Buffalo is treating me well," Kevin replied. "I don't know all of my final grades of the semester. I do know that I haven't gotten any Fs on my report card."
"That's good to know," Tim beamed. "Did you decide on a major and minor yet?"
"No, I haven't," Kevin replied. "I am at that point in which I am checking out things. I hope before my junior year to declare a major."
"I already knew that I wanted to major in biology," Tim said and Calleigh kicked him in the shin and before he could say anything that would cause a fight. He winced in pain.
There was a minute of silence.
"Kevin, are you considering going through recruitment?" Calleigh asked breaking the silence.
"I haven't given any thought," Kevin said after swallowing a bite of risotto. "I might go through it or I might not."
"Go for it!" Tim said. "The worst thing the fraternities would tell you is no."
"I just said I'll consider it," Kevin replied. "I still have all of winter break and the early part of the spring semester to mull over it."
"Don't worry, we won't stressed you out over it," Calleigh said. "Anybody save room for my homemade chocolate pecan pie?"
"Yeah, we all did!" Tim and Kevin said at the same time and look at each other with amazement.
Calleigh went to the kitchen to get the dessert and to heat water for coffee and tea. Tim cleared the table of the dirty dishes, bowl, glasses and silverware. Calleigh returned with the pie followed by Tim with the dessert plates, forks and pie cutter.
"Hey, bro, I was thinking," Tim said. "Would you like to come with us tomorrow to the crime lab, check out the place and meet some our colleagues."
"That would be awesome," Kevin said. "I would like to see where you work."
TBC