Chapter 2
"Scott, wake up," said Jeff. "We need to get everything ready to load into the truck. Make sure that you and Virgil have packed for warm weather and don't forget your swim trunks. Anything that you want to read and your Gameboy need to be packed in your carryon bag. Not to mention your walkman and cds. Please wake Virgil up when you are done with your shower."
With a huge yawn Scott stretched his tall frame and nodded in understanding to his father. Grabbing comfortable clothes to travel in he headed for the bathroom to take a quick shower. Twenty minutes later a wide awake Scott returned to his room with a cup of cold water in hand and went to Virgil's bedside and began the daunting task of waking him up. It was well-known in the Tracy household that Virgil was not a morning person.
"Hey Virgil, it's time to get up. You need to get into the shower before Sam uses all the hot water again," coaxed Scott. Virgil just rolled over in his sleep not even aware that Scott was shaking him. "Well desperate times call for desperate measures," thought Scott. Slowly Scott tilted the cup of water over Virgil's head and began to pour it over his head.
"Ahhh, what the heck did you do that for?" demanded a very wet Virgil with a murderous gleam in his eyes.
"Dad told me to wake you up when I was done with my shower. You just rolled over and wouldn't get up so I woke you up the only way I had left," responded Scott as he shrugged his shoulders. "Now get up and take your shower we have to get everything into the truck. By the way whatever you want to take with you on the plane needs to be packed in your carryon bag."
Confident that Virgil would do what he was told Scott went to Sam's room and knocked on the door. When he didn't get a response he cautiously opened the door while calling out her name.
"Sam it's time to get up," said Scott in a quiet voice. He knew that Sam would have heard him open the door. When he had the door opened and looked towards her bed he realized that she wasn't in it. He looked around the tidy room and didn't see her sitting in her favorite chair or anywhere else. He quickly walked out of her room and headed to John's room to see if he knew where Sam was. With a quick knock on John's door he walked in. John was sound asleep and from where Scott was standing he didn't see Sam asleep on the floor.
"Johnny, wake up!" said Scott in a voice that barely contained his worry. Slowly, John looked up at him in confusion.
"Have you seen Sam this morning?" asked Scott. "I checked her room and she isn't in there." The fear of not being able to account for his baby sister was clearly causing him some worry and it was spreading to John.
"What do you mean she is not in her room?" asked John as he got out of bed and started running to Sam's room. Once in the hallway he knocked Virgil against the wall in his haste to find his sister. Scott was right behind him.
"Hey watch where you're going!" demanded a still sleepy Virgil as he made his way to take his shower.
Upon entering Sam's room John looked around in bewilderment and without another word ran back out into the hallway. He paused long enough to look in Gordon and Alan's room to make sure Sam wasn't in there. Then he ran down the stairs and into the kitchen to see if Sam was in there eating breakfast with their Grandma.
"Grandma, has Sam been down this morning?" asked John in a strained voice.
"No honey, she hasn't come downstairs yet. Why what's going on?" demanded Grandma.
"Scott and I can't find her. She is not in her room nor is she in Scott's room and only Gordon and Alan are in their room," stated John with the panic creeping into his voice. Grandma took his hand in hers and walked with him back upstairs to his room. Quietly she guided him to his bed and told him to look at his window. With a confused expression he did what he was told. That is when he noticed Sam lying on the floor oblivious to the tension around her.
"She knew that you were upset last night. I saw her creep into your room after your dad checked to make sure you were all tucked in for the night," said Grandma quietly. John and Scott looked down at their sister and felt kind of a weird mixture of relief and silliness. Neither of them could believe that they didn't see her on the floor.
John bent down and gently shook Sam's shoulder. "Sam it's time to get up and take your shower," said John in a quiet voice. Sam rolled over and looked at him in confusion much like he had done to Scott. Slowly, Sam realized that she had gotten caught sleeping in her brother's room. This was the first time that she had not gotten back to her room before the rest of the family woke up.
"Don't look so surprised, Sam. I have been aware of you sneaking into John's room when you or he was upset since you were just out of your cribs," chuckled Grandma. She was pleased at how protective her grandkids were of each other. John held out his hand to help his sister up. She quickly got to her feet and grabbed the blanket and pillow from the floor and placed them back into the cabinet for the next time she needed them. Scott headed to Gordon and Alan's room to make sure that they were awake. Grandma gave the twins a hug and went back downstairs to finish fixing breakfast for her family.
"John what was going on?" asked Sam confusion in her eyes. "Why were you and Scott worried about me?"
John shrugged his shoulders and told her that it was the big brother prerogative and that she should be used to it by now. "Now go take your shower so we can get packed," said John. He then turned to his dresser drawers and pulled out a pair of shorts, t-shirt, and underclothes. He looked at Sam and then headed to the bathroom to take his shower. Sam went to her room and gathered her clothes and headed to her bathroom to get cleaned up for their trip. Within twenty minutes both John and Sam were in their rooms finishing up with their packing. With a last look around their rooms to ensure that they weren't forgetting anything they headed downstairs with their luggage and carryon bags. Just as they were passing Gordon's room they heard a scream. Dropping the luggage in the hallway Sam rushed into the bedroom with John and Virgil right behind her.
"Who screamed?" demanded Sam as she looked for the source of the scream. Sitting in the corner of the room was Scott with a very angry look on his handsome features. He was trying to stand up yet every attempt caused him to gasp in pain. Clearing a path through the mess on the floor Sam knelt down next to Scott and looked at him.
"I tripped on one of Alan's stupid toys and twisted my ankle," admitted Scott with a suffering sigh in his voice. Without another word, Sam scooted over to one side of Scott and John went to the opposite side and together they helped Scott get to his feet.
"John, you and Virgil help Scott get back to his room and I'll get Dad to get an ice pack to help reduce any swelling in the ankle. Then I'll help the brats get packed and ready for the trip," instructed Sam. It was times like this that her organizational skills came in handy.
Slowly, the boys made their way out of the bedroom. It was slow going because of the mess. Sam ran downstairs and into her father's study. "Dad can you get an ice pack and take it up to Scott's room? He tripped on a toy of Alan's and twisted his ankle. I would do it myself but I am going to help Gordon and Alan with their packing and get their stuff downstairs." Just as quickly as she came in she was gone again to help her baby brothers get ready. Jeff shook his head and went to the kitchen to get the ice pack to take to Scott.
"Gordon, do you need help packing?" asked Sam as she refolded Alan's clothes and placed them into his suitcase. "Make sure you pack your swim trunks." Realizing what she had just said Sam shook her head and laughed to herself. Of all of the Tracy kids Gordon never had to be told to pack his swimwear. If he could get away with it that is all he would ever wear.
"Alan, would you please get your favorite books and Gameboy and whatever games that you want to take with you on the plane and bring them to me so that I can put them in your carryon bag," asked Sam in a very patient voice.
"Sam, I already packed my carryon but you can check it if you want," said Alan with pride in his voice. He was trying to help and was pleased that he had already packed something that Sam had not gotten to yet. Sam looked into his bag and found that he had indeed packed his Gameboy, games, books, and some coloring supplies. In a side pocket she found his walkman and his favorite cd's and a pack of chewing gum. Alan was ready to go and he offered to carry his stuff downstairs.
"Sam, can you help me finish packing?" asked Gordon. "I can't fit everything into my suitcase." Sam went over to Gordon's bed and looked into his suitcase and dumped everything onto his bed and began to refold his clothes and neatly place them into the suitcase. She made sure that he had everything that he would need while on vacation. After she repacked his suitcase she double checked his carryon bag and found that he had packed his Gameboy, games, books, and his walkman and cd's. In a side pocket she found a chocolate bar and a pack of gum. Handing him his suitcase and carryon bag she told him to take them downstairs.
After Gordon had gone downstairs Sam began to tidy up the bedroom. She found the dirty hamper in the closet and promptly filled it up. Next she got Alan's toy box and placed all of his toys back in it. Satisfied with her work she looked around to make sure that she was alone and reached into the cabinet that hid Virgil's sketch pad and John's astronomy book and pulled them out. She then quickly made her way out to the hallway and grabbed her carryon bag and headed to her room. She quietly shut her door and unzipped her bag and placed the sketch pad and astronomy book into it and then zipped it again. She grabbed her bag and went to Scott's room to see if her brothers were still in there. With a cursory look in the open door she realized that they must have headed downstairs to eat breakfast. Just as she was walking down the stairs she could hear her brothers' voices coming from the front door. While she had been helping Gordon and Alan they had been loading the truck. Sam went out to see if her brothers needed any help but they were just putting the last suitcase in the back of the truck. They finished just in time for Grandma to come out and tell them that breakfast was ready and that they needed to hurry up and eat so they could get going on this mysterious vacation.
All of them rushed to the kitchen table and sat down. Scott made sure that he kept a hand on his chair to make sure that he didn't end up on the floor again. Grandma served them cinnamon toast with real maple syrup and orange juice and milk. After they had all eaten John and Sam volunteered to do the dishes again so that their grandma could finish getting ready for their vacation. Jeff had insisted that she come with them but it was the kids that finally convinced her to go with them. Finally everyone was ready to go and the house was locked up and the Scott started getting his siblings into the truck, actually it was a SUV. With six kids Jeff had to have a large vehicle but he refused to buy a mini van. Scott, Virgil and John sat in the rear seat and Gordon, Alan, and Sam sat in the middle seat. Jeff drove and Grandma rode shotgun.
When they got to the private airport Jeff drove to where his personal jet was waiting to be loaded with family and luggage. He had already packed everything else in the rear storage compartments for this vacation. After unloading the SUV Jeff parked it in his private hangar and closed the giant door and keyed in his code to lock it. His kids and mother had already made their way up the small set of steps to the passenger cabin. John and Sam sat together over one wing while Scott and Virgil took the seats over the other wing. Gordon and Alan sat in front of Sam and John. Grandma sat across the aisle from Alan. They all looked up at Jeff as he boarded the plane. He went to each of them to make sure that their seatbelts were fastened and that their carryon bags had been properly stowed in the space beneath the seats in front of them.
"Keep your seatbelts on until I give the all clear. Is that understood?" questioned Jeff. He made sure that he met the eyes of each of his children and received a nod from all of them. With that he turned towards the cockpit and began his preflight plans and checks. Finally he received clearance to approach the runway to begin takeoff. Scott looked out the window to see them leaving the ground while Sam just leaned back in her seat to relax. Virgil and John began debating where they were heading. Gordon and Alan were whispering back and forth while keeping an eye out for their brothers since they thought that Sam had fallen asleep. They didn't realize that she heard everything they had said. After about a half hour Jeff gave them the all clear to unfasten their seatbelts. By this time Sam had fallen asleep with her head against John's shoulder. Scott went to the front to see if Jeff would let him sit in the cockpit with him for a little bit. Gordon and Alan were beginning to get fussy because they were getting tired. Grandma had Alan sit next to her. She talked to him in a soothing voice and soon he was asleep. Gordon also fell asleep because he didn't have anyone to argue with.
"I'm going to get Scott," said Virgil with the same conspiratorial gleam in his eyes that Scott had the night before. John nodded his head and slowly pushed Sam off of his shoulder. The movement woke her up and she blinked in confusion forgetting that they were on an airplane.
"The brats are asleep and Virgil just went to get Scott," whispered John. He didn't want their grandma overhearing anything. Suddenly he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see Scott and Virgil heading to the rear seats. John and Sam followed after Sam had grabbed her carryon bag. Sitting down quickly they looked at Scott and waited for him to start.
"Has anyone come up with any ideas as to what we can do to our dear brothers?" asked Scott. His voice dripped with sarcasm as he said dear brothers. Evidently he was still upset for landing unceremoniously on the floor the night before and now he was suffering with a twisted ankle. Sam quietly unzipped her bag and pulled out John's astronomy book and Virgil's sketch pad and handed them back to the correct owner.
"Now they can't use those books as leverage against us," stated Sam with a slight smile. She knew how much those objects meant to Virgil and John and she didn't want to see the Terrible Two accidentally destroy them.
"I think that we should just let them think that we are going to do something to them. That will bother them more because you know how much imagination they have," theorized John. Sam nodded her head in agreement. The thoughtful look on Virgil and Scott's faces showed that they thought that the idea had merit. In the end that is what they decided to do. A sudden movement next to them caused all four of them to jump in their seats. Looking up they realized it was just their dad.
"What are you four up to?" questioned Jeff. He knew that whatever his oldest were up to did not bode well for Gordon and Alan. Sam and Virgil shook their heads to deny that they were up to anything. Scott and John both began to speak at once. Jeff put his hand up and told them that he really didn't want to know what they were up to.
"We will be landing in about 2 more hours. I want you all to get fastened in to your seats and try to take a nap. You have all been up since before 6:00A.M. No more arguing and just get some rest." When Jeff spoke like that his kids knew better than to argue. Without another word they all went back to their original seats and fastened their seatbelts. Sam leaned her head against John's shoulder and within 15 minutes she was asleep. John and Virgil fell asleep next. Scott held out to the very last and then he only gave in because he had been up since 5:00A.M.
"Scott, look out the window. Scott, wake up now," begged a little voice. Scott looked up into the blue eyes of Alan. With a glance next to him, he realized that Virgil, Sam, and John were still asleep.
"What am I looking at Alan?" asked Scott in a tired voice. He wanted to be asleep like the rest of his brothers and sister. All he saw when he looked out of the window was water and some islands scattered around. Suddenly Scott felt the plane begin to lose altitude as they approached one of the islands. It was then it dawned on him just exactly where they were spending their vacation. He just didn't know where here was. He didn't have to wait long to find out where they were. Within 5 minutes they were taxiing to a complete stop in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.
Author's note: I would like to thank Bluegrass for her support and advice in the writing of my first fanfiction story.