A/N: It was another attack of that which bugged me all day at work. What was it? Well, the first one was Bart Tomkins AND Pete getting emotionally tired. The second involved the puzzled blonde nurse who has incredibly poor timing and gave herself athlete's gums. (And I didn't think they COULD make me cry over a jacket. I was wrong.)
Week 10 - UDC 2 - Why we don't go shopping on a severe sleep deficit...
46. Water
"I can't believe... no, yes I can. I can totally believe she did that right now."
Bart looked away from the meeting taking place in hushed voices to find that all three of the girls, two of them at or near his age and one older, standing closer to them, the blonde whose shoulder-length hair was free-flowing appearing incredibly unhappy while she glared at her mother's back. "Why?"
She shook her head and glanced at the older one. "Char, go over there and stop her from turning around and causing another scene, would you? I'm so glad you're driving, by the way." Then she looked at the other one. "And Jenn? Go get a cart. Jeeze."
"But what about-"
"Jenn?"
"Right. Cart. Got it."
She waited a minute, then looked down at him. "He asleep? And don't touch him, Bart. We don't need him reacting badly and punching you."
"Actually," Nick spoke up, getting her attention. "I think he did pass out. And who are you? Wait, Pete reacts badly to being touched?"
"Sometimes." She glared again at her mother's back. "Mom's going to kick herself tomorrow when and if she remembers that she asked someone who is basically an orphan unofficially how his mother is. Hate when she's been on too many overnights and her sleep schedule is crazy, and the shifts were bad." She paused and glanced down at Pete. "She must have had MedSurg overflow shifts to interact with him like that when his grandfather was in the hospital."
"What makes you say that?" Bart wondered.
"Because she's normally on the OB floor?" She waved both of them off from talking when Pete jerked awake in Nick's grasp. "New kid? Where is your parent's car? Is it close?"
"Yeah. Come on, Pete. Let's go."
47. Wine
"Still best day," Pete mumbled at him as they both stood. "And Karen?"
"Hmmm?"
"Don't make your mother feel too bad. She didn't know."
Karen was still glaring in her mother's direction. "That may be, but she overwhelmed you when you clearly already were and didn't stop herself. She's a nurse and knows better."
"I'm-"
"Say you're fine," Karen interrupted, surprising Nick at her tone. "And I swear I'll get Mr. Fredrickson to come up with a Geometry problem that will puzzle you for weeks. He'd probably jump at the challenge, even."
"Are you threatening him with Math?" Nick wondered. "Seriously?"
Karen smiled at him momentarily. "Well, he's in my Geometry class. Of course I am. Off with you. Now."
"Can we get him to do it anyway?" Pete asked. "I love challenges."
"We'll see. Get."
48. Ale
"Who was that and why does she scare me?" Nick wondered as he got the keys out and unlocked the car doors. "Guess I'll find out tomorrow."
Pete didn't say anything as he looked around to see where everybody was, found both Walt and Noah watching them now, and he waved. They made their way over and Noah simply looked at him for a minute before opening his arms in a universal gesture, and Pete nodded and let the hug happen. "Still the best day," he repeated.
"Glad you think so," Noah told him. "Even if I feel like a moron right now."
Pete pulled back and looked up at him. "Don't. Walt, did you exchange numbers?"
"We did," Walt answered, startled by the sudden informality.
Pete grinned at him, then looked up at Noah again. "You said there was a box?"
"It's in the trunk," Nick said as he handed the keys to Walt. "A jacket with patches was on top of it."
49. Tea
Noah watched as Pete's eyes went wide. "You know what that is." He nodded. "Walt-"
"Already on it," Walt told him as he got the trunk open. He pulled the folded up jacket out and studied some of the patches for a minute before turning and nearly bumping into Pete who was again hopping from heal to toe and smiling, eyes shining with unshed tears.
Pete took the jacket from him, smelled it, and then hugged it to himself. Then he tried wearing it, only for them to all smile at how small he was compared to the jacket. "This... I'm swimming in it."
"You'll grow," Nick told him with a grin.
50. Juice
"I think he looks perfect," Helen spoke up from behind them and Nick spun to find she was holding a camera that she must have pulled from her purse. "Nick, come take Nicky. Miss Lowell, go stand over there with Maggie. It's picture time."
Pete sighed. "Pictures?"
"Yes, Pete. Pictures. Alan missed this, after all." She waited for Nick to get the toddler, who laughed at him, and Nick grinned again as he came back to the car and stood beside his father. Chelsea got into position beside Noah with Maggie. "Everybody ready? Good."
She took a couple, and then Chelsea handed Maggie to Noah and directed Helen to take her place, and then she took a few more. Chelsea frowned at the expression on Pete's face, and then someone tapped her on the shoulder and she spun to find a man standing there. "Oh. Hi."
"Allow me. Join them, Bart."
"Why?"
"Just get over here, Bart," Pete told him humorously, and Bart did so with a grin, where he ended up next to Nick.
Nicky reached for him and startled Bart. "Oh. Hey. Look at my Dad, little guy."
Mr. Tomkins waited, and then took several more pictures. Then he handed the camera back to Helen with a smile.
"Thank you," Helen told him with a questioning glance at Pete, who simply smiled tiredly at her.