Author's Note: Finally after two long months an update. I won't bother with excuses as to why this has taken so long other than to say that, sometimes real life just gets too busy. I have already outlined the rest of this story, there will be about 13 more chapters then it will be the end. So I hope you enjoy this installment as well as I will attempt to get the next chapter out faster.
Chapter 50 – A Boy's Night Out
Fastening a pearl earring into her ear lobe Belle stared at her reflection in the entry way mirror. "Brady already picked up the girls and Shawn and I will be dropping Ian at the sitter's Are you sure that you'll be fine, JT?"
JT nodded as he flipped over the edge of the couch and plopped down on the cushions, resting the bowl of popcorn on his stomach. He flipped through the stations on the television randomly stopping when he found something that captured his interest. "Belle, I'm seventeen years old, I'm not a total doofus." He said with his mouthful of popcorn. "Of course I'll be fine besides I invited Isaac over and we're going to watch some movies. It's not a big deal really."
She turned to say something when Shawn entered the room from the hallway in a dark blue suit carrying Ian on one arm and a diaper bag in the other. "Ready Belle?" He asked as he placed young Ian on his feet and knelt to button the child into his winter coat.
"Not just yet, Shawn. Give me a minute I want to on put this necklace," she held out a pearl necklace in one hand. "Can you give me a hand?" She positioned the necklace on her neck and turned to him waiting.
"I'll do it." JT added as he gulped down another hand full of popcorn before placing the popcorn bowl on the table and slapping his hands clean on his jeans as he rose to his feet. He fastened the necklace around his sister's neck and returned to his prior position on the couch remote in hand.
"Thank you, JT." Belle added as she moved to pull on the black evening coat over her royal blue evening gown that was sculpted to her petite but sleek figure. Shawn, meanwhile, was still pulling on all of Ian's various winter gear. There had to have been at least a million buckles to fasten. Of course it didn't help that her son was frowning and swatting Shawn's hands away as he worked.
"'Top it, Dad-ee" Ian said as he moved his father's hands out of the way once again. But Shawn, more willful than his son by a million had successfully buckled the last buckle.
"Ian I promise you won't have to wear this too long. But, you need to be dressed warmly for the drive to Ms. Connell's." Shawn said as he stood and pulled on his own black trench coat over his suit.
A few minutes later, JT helpfully trussed Ian one more time before passing him off to Shawn before waving them all off from the doorway. Once he saw that his brother had driven out of driveway he turned back into the house kicking the door shut with his foot. "Finally, alone at last," he cheered as he walked the short distance to the kitchen to use the phone to call Isaac. "Hey Zac, man I've got the place to myself, the kiddies are gone and Shawn won't be back till late."
"Cool, I'll pick up the girls and we'll be there in half an hour. Did you get everything?"
"Yup, I got some good old scary movies including the Scream trilogy and my personal favorite, The Village. I'm good for drinks and food, too."
"Great see you in thirty." Isaac replied as he hung up the phone.
"Thirty," JT placed the phone on the hook. "I'd better shower." He ran to shower and change for his double date.
Two and a half hours later, JT and Sarah were cuddled together on one end of the couch while Maris and Isaac where on the opposite end. They were currently watching his pick of the day, The Village. All-in-all things were going fairly well on their impromptu double date. It was only their second time going out together; the first time had been before JT's expulsion and before he'd moved in with Shawn and Belle.
"So your brother doesn't mind that we're here?" Sarah asked as she glanced away from the movie to look at JT. She was a petite brunette with grey eyes and an olive-toned complexion indicative of her Italian heritage. She and JT had an on and off relationship of sorts so her going on a date with him again was leading their relationship straight into the on-again status.
"Oh no, he totally said that I could invite a few friends over to watch some movies." JT whispered back tossing some popcorn kernels into his mouth.
Isaac catching the JT's response leaned over. "I thought he said no girls."
"No he said I could have friends over and he didn't specify gender so neither did I."
"Mighty big over cite if you ask me." Isaac added holding his fist out to knock knuckles with JT over a raised brow.
The two couples continued to watch the movie becoming engrossed in the story on the screen so much so they didn't hear when the door opened in the kitchen.
"I'm sorry girls we'll have to go roller skating another time." Brady said as he followed Serena, Ariana, and Racquel into the house as he balanced three-year old Iris on his arm.
"That's okay Uncle Brady." Serena said as she shook her hair free from her knit cap.
"I'm glad, I hate to disappoint you guys but I forgot that since your Dad and Mom were out of town today that I'd be on call. I promise that I'll make it up to you guys, later." He placed Iris down on a stool and went about the process of taking off her winter gear. "Even though, our roller skating trip ended I bet JT will have something really fun for you guys to do."
"Yeah, he always has good ideas." Rocky said agreeing with her father as she unbuttons her dark grey winter coat and throwing it over the chair.
Brady finished taking off the remainder of Iris' winter gear and sat her down her socked feet. "All right, so why you guys hang up your coats and everything while I go find JT and let him know you're here."
"'Kay Daddy," Rocky replied as she, Serena and Ariana grabbed their coats and went off down the hallway to hang them up. Iris stood by and watched as the older girls left.
"I help." She offered and raised her arms to be lifted.
"Well of course, you do I don't know how I could think about any of this without your help Iris. After all, all you're the boss." Brady acquiesced as he lifted his niece back into his arms.
"S'right. I da' BIG boss." The little girl nodded in complete agreement. "Where JT at?"
"I don't know so how about we find out." He took off moving away from the kitchen down the hallway towards the family room where he could hear the television on. "It sounds like Uncle JT is watching a movie."
"Care Bears?" Iris asked hopefully as she laid her head on his shoulder.
"Unfortunately, I doubt it sweetheart," he said as he rubbed her head. Then he noticed she felt hot. "Are you okay, sweetie?" He paused outside the door to the family room.
"I's tired." She sighed mournfully.
"Oh poor baby. I'll make sure that Uncle JT lets you lie down for a—,"
"No, nap." Iris screeched vehemently shaking her head as she wiggled her way out of his arms almost causing Brady to drop her.
"Okay, okay calm down." He placed her on her feet only to have Iris run away yelling no nap. "Daggit Meems told me … Ah, Iris don't do this to me," he said taking off after her. "What I meant to say was…"
Meanwhile back in the family room, JT had caught Sarah's eye in the dim light and was moving in for a kiss. She leaned forward to meet him halfway but no sooner had their lips touched did she pull away startled. "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" JT asked his eyes still looking at her lips intent to get his kiss.
"I distinctly heard a child's voice." Sarah answered frowning as she thought about what she heard.
"I didn't hear anything." JT repeated attempting to lean forward for yet another kiss when Isaac pulled his back.
"Dude. Even I heard it. Are you sure you're sibs aren't coming back early?"
JT sat back on against the couch as he rubbed his hands over his face and into his hair. He just wasn't going to get a kiss from Sarah tonight. "Man trust me I should have the place to myself for hours yet, Shawn and Belle took Ian and went to the Fashion Awards Gala in Chicago. And Brady has the girls for the night so I'm home free." No sooner had he said the words, the door opened. Serena came walking through the door.
"Oh hi JT what are you watching?" Serena walked into the room and settled herself down next to her uncle on the couch taking a handful of popcorn. Completely oblivious to the fact that there were other people in the room.
"Serena, what are you doing ho—," JT started taking to popcorn from his niece when Racquel and Ariana came into the room followed by Brady who held a yelling Iris with her hand plugged over her ears. "Here." The jig was up.
"JT, I need you to do me a favor," Brady started.
"Oh I've seen this movie before." Ariana added as she sat down next to Serena grabbing a handful of popcorn.
"Maybe we should go," Sarah offered taking the remote and pressing stop on the DVD. Maris nodded in agreement. So much for his kiss
"Yeah maybe we could do this again sometime later when you're not so busy. She reached to take her coat from Isaac only to have him help her put it on. "Thanks Zac." She smiled at him.
As JT looked as though he were about to protest she stopped him by simply placing a kiss on his cheek. "I had fun and we will definitely do this again." She kissed again this time on the lips and took her coat from Maris and heading out of the family room with JT on her heels.
"Bye, JT." Maris called as both she and Sarah left through the front door.
"Bye," he sighed closing the door behind them.
"Dude, I'm going to head home too." Isaac said as he pulled on his leather coat and gloves.
"Aww, man you don't have to go yet. You could stay."
Isaac shook his head as he pulled on his colorful knit cap that completely ruined the black leather look he had going on. "Naw, man I'm an only child and I'd like to remain that way. 'Sides, I don't want to do the whole babysitting deal and the girls already left. I should probably head home anyway, my granddad is supposed to be coming by today." He pulled his car keys out of his coat pocket.
JT nodded resigned that his attempted double date was truly over. "That's cool man, I totally understand. I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" He offered his hand to the other boy who shook it with their special slap, grasp, pat hug before Isaac left the house. "See ya," he called as he saw his friend disappear into his beige SUV.
Brady walked up behind his brother as the boy closed his door sans Iris. "Hey, I'm sorry about this. I didn't mean to ruin your date."
JT shook his head leaning back against the door. "It's fine, dude. I just wish I'd had some warning that's all." He pushed off from the door heading to the kitchen. "What are you doing here anyway? I thought you were supposed to be roller skating or something?"
"We were but I got beeped by the office and since Shawn is at that fashion awards thing with Belle I'm on call, today. I would have left the kids with Mimi but she took the boys to the movies and her cell phone is off. But, I left her a message.
"It's cool Brady. You should know that my going rate for babysitting is $10 bucks an hour and extra if I have to change diapers." JT fixed himself a glass of iced tea.
Brady grinned. "I can deal with that. You know when I used to baby sit I used to charge $5 bucks per kid, $10 for babies with an hourly rate of $3." JT opened his mouth to amend his rate. "Sorry no changes. I shouldn't be but a couple of hours and when the movie ends Meems should be by to pick up Rocky and Ana."
"Okay. So any other instructions before you go?"
Brady leaned down speaking softly so as not to allow little ears to hear him. "Um, just make Iris take a nap. She's a little cranky but I left her and the girls watching Princess Diaries 2." Brady headed for the kitchen doorway. "Thanks again, JT."
"No problemo, I got your back bro." JT waved his brother away and then headed to the family room to settle down for a fun-filled afternoon with the girls.
Several hours later after Mimi had come and taken Rocky and Ana home. JT was left watching Serena and a very cranky Iris. Her mood had taken a dive from the moment Brady had left her in his brother's care. Progressively getting worse and worse till the point where she was red in the face from crying endlessly for her mother.
"I want Mommy." She cried her face red and heated as she lay her head down on JT's shoulder as he paced back and forth around the living room.
JT paused as he paced. "So do I," he mumbled and then began once again paced around the room.
"What are we going to do JT? Iris is really red; Mommy usually knows what's wrong with her. Maybe she's sick?" Serena suggested as she sat watching him from the sofa as he paced.
He looked down at the child in his arms. She was indeed red and her forehead felt warmer than it should be. "I think you're right. She does feel warmer than usual. What does Belle do you get sick?"
Serena frowned as she thought aloud, "Well usually she takes our temperature and fixes some chicken noodle soup. But, you can't cook can you?"
"Hey, hey I can cook, just not soup. Okay so I can take Iris' temperature." JT walked down the hallway to the children's bathroom and opened the medicine cabinet to see the only thermometer available was the old-fashioned kind. "Uh, Rena do you know where they keep the other thermometer? You know the one they use in your ear?"
"Nope." Serena said as she peered into the bathroom from the doorway. "Mom would know where it is though. Maybe we should call Grandma, maybe she would know where it's at?"
JT considered for a moment calling his mother to come and bail him. But, then how could he continue to say that he was capable enough to handle things on his own. He couldn't call her or his father. He had to do this on his own. Closing the mirror he stared at his reflection momentarily as he considered what he needed to do.
"Rena, get your coat and Iris' coat, we're going to the ER." He ordered his niece who nodded and then ran back down the hallway to complete his tasks. He adjusted Iris on his hip and took off after Serena. "It's going to be okay, Iris, Uncle JT will take good care of you. You'll see." He took the offered coat from Serena and sat down on the couch to pull it on Iris.
As soon as he got her coat on the crying and tears paused on the splotchy face of his niece as she gazed at him with wet blue eyes. "We go see Mommy?"
"No something a little bit better Iris. A little bit better," placing his niece on the couch next to her sister he pulled on his coat grabbed his car keys, hat, and gloves. "All right let's go." He picked up Iris and headed to the front door with Serena trialing behind him.
JT sat down at the packed emergency room holding a slightly whining Iris in his lap. He had only been to the emergency room once in his life and it was not an experience he wanted to relive. Besides, the whole fact that the ER was packed back to back with sick and injured people was hardly something to enjoy.
"Iris Brady," a young nurse said standing in the doorway. JT rose to follow her though to another exam room. "Have you notified the child's parents?" She raised her head up from the medical chart she was writing on to look at JT. "That is unless you're her father?"
"Uh, no I'm her uncle and I called her parents before we arrived. They're supposed to meet us here." He answered rubbing Iris' head soothingly,
The nurse nodded and then placed the chart on the table. "Okay Miss Iris tell Nurse Wallace where it hurts." When the toddler didn't answer and merely turned her head, the nurse tried another tactic. "Can you show where it hurts?"
Iris lifted her head up and touched her ears.
"She gets ear infections." Serena added as she stood beside the bed.
"Okay then Miss Iris I would like to check you out for a moment so could you sit down on the bed for here with Uncle while I check you out?" The nurse looked at JT, "why don't you have a seat?" She gestured for JT to settle down on the bed with Iris on his lap. Pulling out her stethoscope she began the examination process.
Belle and Shawn arrived at the ER nearly an hour later still in their gala finery. They headed over to the main desk to find out what happened to their daughter.
"Excuse me, my name is Shawn Brady and I was told that my daughter had been brought in."
The nurse at the front desk smiled as she looked up at Shawn. "You must be JT's brother; your daughter is fine and she's in room 4 behind you to the left."
"Thank you." She and Shawn turned and walked over to room 4 where they found Iris sitting on a bed with Serena sitting beside her. It was Iris who saw them first.
"Momma," she cried out raising her arms to be picked up, opening and closing her hands. Belle picked up the toddler.
"Oh, sweetie are you okay," she smoothed down Iris' flyaway curls.
"She's fine just a minor ear infection. The nurse even said she could go home tonight but she wants to give Iris a shot first. I wasn't sure what medicine she was allergic to." JT explained as Belle cuddled Iris to her placing a calming kiss over the child's forehead.
"We didn't think to tell Brady about the inner ear inflection, she gets them every now and then. It's a good thing that Iris has such a capable uncle." Shawn added as he rubbed his daughter's back.
"Hi, Daddy. Where's Ian?" Serena asked as she jumped off the bed with JT's help.
"He's at the sitter's sweetheart; we're going to pick him up on the way home." Belle answered as a nurse pulled back the curtain to come into the examination area. "Hello, you must be Mom and Dad, I'm Nurse Wallace. JT here wasn't sure what if any medication Iris was allergic to so he had me wait to give her a shot."
"I'm sorry what shot, I thought Iris had a minor ear infection?" Belle interrupted.
"It's a mild sedative that will help her to sleep tonight and I'll have a prescription of antibiotics for her to take." The nurse explained.
"Iris isn't allergic to any medications."
"Good then, we'll just give Miss Iris her shot then she'll be ready to go home." The nurse went to the counter and took out a small needle encased package, alcohol packed, and a small bottle of liquid. Turning her back to Iris she quickly filled the needle with sedative and torn open the alcohol package. She turned back to Iris. "All right now Miss Iris I'll give you a peppermint stick if you can be real brave for me." The nurse said distractingly as she swapped Iris' arm and inserted the needle a few seconds later she was done.
"See, you were a very brave girl taking this shot." JT said as he ruffled his niece's hair.
Iris nodded tucking her head under Belle's chin as she snuggled closer to her mother. Then as though she recalled her treat she turned toward the nurse with an open palm. "Mint, please."
Belle walked back into her bedroom sighing as she closed the door. "Well, Iris is finally asleep." The blonde told her husband who was pulling on his drawstring pajama pants over his boxers.
"That's good. I talked to Brady about the Newell client and he told me that JT wasn't alone when he dropped off the girls."
Belle ran the brush through her hair a couple of times before moving to turndown the bed. "That's not surprising considered he had the house to himself."
"Uh huh well apparently it was two girls and Isaac, they were watching a movie."
"And I repeat, not surprised. Honestly, Shawn can't you even admit that our brother's a pretty popular guy even before the expulsion. And now even with it, I'd bet that the girls are even more interested in getting to know him." She pulled back the covers back on her side of the bed and got in.
"I know I was simply making the point that JT could have blown Brady off when he dropped the girls off because technically it was his night away from the joys of uncledom."
"Yes, but our dear brother isn't like that and I for one am glad that he isn't. I mean look at the way he handled Iris' ear inflection. I just wish there was something I could so he could have his senior year back like a normal kid."
Shawn sat down on his side of the bed facing Belle. "Maybe there is something we could do for him. Do you think Chloe might be able to talk to the school on his behalf?"
Belle shrugged. "I don't know. It could be worth a shot."
"Well Chloe's certainly experienced dealing with situations like this so maybe she can help." Shawn lay back in the bed pulling Belle against him as he reached over and turned off the light.
To be continued …