Chapter 5

Manny winced as Alan squeezed some sort of lotion on her burnt hand. She smiled at first, enjoying the scent of the ointment. Now that it was on her hand, she decided she hated both the cream and the stove.

"What is that stuff?" she asked him, eyeing the package.

"Special burn cream. You learn to keep it around when you have two sons who aren't always all the way there, if you know what I mean," he said chuckling. She grinned and clenched her jaw as white-hot pain stabbed her palm. 'He definitely knows what he's doing,' she thought.

"From what I've learned in the time I've spent with them," she laughed, "you probably need a fully stocked hospital!" He looked up from her hand to smile at her. "You really do have two amazing sons, Mr. Epps," she said, looking towards the hall.

"Call me Alan, please! Mr. Epps makes me sound old." Manny's heart fell at his comment. Alan reminded her of her own dad, who she had been missing a lot lately. Alan took notice of the change in her disposition, but only held her hand gentler. "They are pretty good boys, aren't they? Good to know they turned out well. We…that is, my wife and I, had quite the trouble when they were growing up."

"How could you not? Both of them are exceptional. There's bound to be a little head butting," she commented. Charlie was exceptional, yes, but so was Don. Maybe he wasn't special in the most obvious way, but he truly was as special as his brother.

"A little?" Alan asked, remembering the emotional issues both his sons had had growing up. Alan stopped tending to Manny's hand for a second, looking her in the eye. "It seems to me," he started, "that you think one of my boys is a little more exceptional than the other." He egged her on; he knew what she really thought, but was curious if she'd admit it to him. He was Don's father after all.

Manny's face turned as red as her palm as a grin snuck across her lips. "You could say that," she stammered. She had been caught. Was it that obvious? There was no way for her to hide it now.

"No need to get embarrassed Manny. But isn't he a bit old for you?"

Manny looked at him, dumbfounded. "Pardon?" she asked.

"Don. Isn't Don a little old for you?" Alan's brow furrowed as he looked at Manny.

Manny's eye grew wide, realizing what Alan was thinking. "Mr. Epps! Yes, Don is much too old for me! He's nice and all, don't get me wrong," she started.

"So I guess Don was right. You don't like Don?" Alan asked, still not sure of the story.

"No, sir. Well, not as anything more than a friend. I do like him as a friend." Manny's cheeks had become a wind-burned pink.

"Ah. I see. Just curious though, do you like Charlie?" Manny did not answer, letting her red cheeks answer for her. "Hmm. That does make sense. I had a feeling you had a thing for one of the Epps boys. I guess my senses are getting a little rusty."

"You almost had it," she remarked, trying to calm herself down.

"Almost." Alan smiled and patted her hand. "But you hand is just about done. I would suggest using a little cold water to cool your face down."

Manny grinned back at him before grabbing him in a hug. Alan was a little taken back at first, but relaxed into the hug quickly.

…..

Charlie laughed at the caricature-like form his brother had taken. He was leaning at strange angle, attempting to hear the conversation in the bathroom. Their house was not made for stealth and that made Don's work hard. After a few minutes of failure, he finally gave up and sat at the kitchen table.

"You would think an FBI agent would be better at that," Charlie commented as he stirred the noodles. Don laughed at himself, looking defeated.

"You know, you should be the one straining your neck to hear the conversation! I could have sworn I heard your name," Don said, rubbing his neck.

"I should, shouldn't I?" Charlie asked, smiling slightly. "Maybe I shouldn't. I don't know. What I do know is that I love being around Manny now. I don't want to screw that up." His face fell at the thought of loosing Manny as a friend. It fell further at the thought of having her only as a friend.

Don looked at his brother, his eyes open wide. "You really like her, don't you?" Charlie looked guilty as charged. "Well, of course you do! How could you not?" Don asked happily, making Charlie blush. "You better be good to her, Char. I don't want to lose another agent."

"Lose another agent? Why?" Manny asked, walking into the kitchen. Alan followed soon after. Charlie eyed Manny's bandaged hand with guilt before she caught his eye and made him smile again.

"Nothing, just discussing some things from the office," Don said, trying to wave off the topic. "Ready to eat?" Everyone nodded hungrily and began to get plates out.

Charlie wasn't exactly sure, but he could have sworn he felt Manny's knee against his at the dinner table. And was it just his imagination, or was Manny smiling just at him, not anyone else? Why did his knees feel weak whenever he was around her? This was all quite curious to him and he had a feeling this couldn't be solved with a math problem.

Author's Note: Sorry this has taken so long you guys! I've been really busy lately. Thanks again for all the reviews! They've been a great help. Kudos to all of you that have been writing fanfics! Last I checked, there were over 40! That's incredible. When I started, there were 12. Snaps for all you!