Stringfellow Hawke checked his watch for the tenth time in an hour as he gathered up the breakfast dishes and dumped them unceremoniously in the sink. Without breaking stride, he swivelled on his heel and made his way back across the living room towards the stairs, sidestepping the open chemistry and history textbooks strewn across the cabin floor with relative ease. In the four and a half weeks that he'd taken in his nephew Le, his life had become disorganised. Messy. he finally reached the stairs, he grimaced as a crunching sound beneath his feet announced the demise of his nephews favourite remote controlled helicopter Cait had given him for his birthday.
Hawke knelt down beside the mangled wreckage and picked up the remains of what used to be the tail rotor. From his,place on the hearth, Tet raised his head and watched his master with interest as he tossed the twisted plastic aside, and surveyed the destruction that currently encompassed his living room. Anyone on the outside would think a hellfire missile had landed bang in the middle of the cabin, as opposed to the presence of one thirteen year old boy. Hawke sighed as he looked around his once solitary retreat, and as his gaze alighted on his faithful hound, Tet cocked his head and let out a mournful whine at the sullen expression that crossed his masters face.
"Yeah"
A thump from upstairs pulled Hawke from his reverie, and pushing himself to his feet, he crossed the living room to the foot of the new stairwell that served the upstairs extension to the cabin.
"Half-Pint!" He yelled "Would ya get down here! I gotta be at the hangar in-" he checked his watch "Half an hour!"
Hawke waited and listened for any sound from the new bedrooms.
"Half-Pint!"
"Just a minute Uncle String!" Came a muffled reply.
Hawke muttered under his breath. The stunt started in twenty minutes and even flying at Mach one, he'd never make it in time. He'd worked with the studio director before, and patience wasn't one of his virtues.
"Le-"
Hawke paused as his nephew bounded down the stairs, his oversized rucksack hanging from one shoulder. Hawke took in the youngsters appearance. His usually floppy, dark hair was neatly combed to the side with what looked like half a tub of hair wax, and his maroon school blazer neatly ironed and pressed. The fact that he even had it on was a miracle in itself.
"You ready, Uncle String?" He asked nonchalantly, jumping down the last two stairs. Hawke's blue eyes narrowed on the young Amerasian as he strolled casually past his bristling uncle.
"Yeah. For the last hour. What took you so long?" Hawke asked as he opened the door and grabbed his flight jacket off the peg.
" Stuff" Le replied vaguely, taking a step outside the cabin.
"Wait-"
Le felt a strong hand on his shoulder, halting him in the cabin doorway. Hawke ducked his head and leaned in closer to Le. The teenager squeezed his eyes closed and held his breath as his uncle straightened, not seeing the small smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
"Is that cologne?"
Hawke wondered vaguely where his Drakkar Noir had disappeared to.
Hawke quickly wiped the smile from his face as Le turned and pinned Hawke with a glare to rival one of his uncles.
"Can we just go, Uncle String?"
Hawke shrugged his shoulders and closed the cabin door behind him.
"Sure"
"Great" Le replied under his breath as Hawke shrugged on his jacket and followed his nephew to the white jet ranger waiting on the dock.
"Hey! Half -Pint!"
Le pulled the cockpit door open an inch as Hawke joined him at the chopper. Hawke leaned towards his nephew, his piercing blue eyes twinkling with mischief.
"Are ya gonna tell me her name?"
Le's dark eyes flashed angrily, and without another word he pulled himself into the cockpit and slammed the door. Le watched through the window as his grinning uncle rounded the front of the chopper and folded his arms defiantly across his chest. This was going to be a long flight.
AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWA
Conversations about Caitlin...
Stringfellow Hawke resisted the urge to smile as he glanced across at his nephew in the co pilots seat. He sat in his seat, ramrod straight, resolutely looking anywhere but at the pilot. Not a word had passed his lips for almost the entire flight, and clearly his own propensity for brooding and long silences had rubbed off on his nephew.
Hawke turned his attention back to the sky as a small voice crackled through the headset.
"Hey, Uncle String?"
Hawke glanced across at Le.
"Yeah?"
"Are Cait and uncle Dom coming to the cabin tonight after my soccer game?"
"Nah. Not tonight" Hawke replied "Why?"
Le shifted his small frame and twisted round in his seat to face Hawke.
"I really wanna show Cait my experiment for the science fair next week" Le chattered excitedly, his eyes lighting up at the mention of the female pilot. "She promised she'd help me and she's got this really cool idea..."
A warmth encompassed Hawke as he listened to his nephew talk excitedly about the pretty, red headed pilot who had dropped into his life almost four years ago. She'd surreptitiously wormed her way past his defences and into his life like she'd always been there, and if he was honest, he couldn't really remember life before she arrived. She'd been a godsend since he'd taken on Le, watching him at a moments notice when Hawke couldn't be around and all without complaint. Hawke had no idea how he would've managed without her.
"So, what do you think?"
Jarred from his thoughts, Hawke stared vacantly across at his nephew
"Huh? About what?"
"Cait!" Le exclaimed, almost jumping out of his seat "Will you ask her?"
Hawke returned his eyes to the sky in front, gripping the cyclic a little tighter.
"Cait probably has plans-"
Le leaned back into his seat as a sly grin spread across his face.
"She'll come if you ask her"
Hawke shifted in his seat and scowled.
"I'll make you a deal. I'll talk to Cait-"
Le punched the air triumphantly as Hawkes lips twisted into a grin
" IF you give me her name"
The ecstatic grin quickly slipped from Le's face and he slumped back into his seat, his arms crossed defiantly across his chest.
AWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAWAW
Promises are hard to keep...
"You are coming to my soccer game this afternoon?" Le Van Hawke's dark eyes narrowed accusingly on the pilot as they stood at the gates of the Nuys Academy. Hawke glanced over Le's shoulder as a sea of green and maroon trooped past the pair, and through the large, wrought iron gates that led to the sprawling mansion that was the Nuys Academy, and suddenly remembered why he left school duty mainly to Cait. They moved aside as a large four by four turned into the gravel driveway.
"I'll be there"
Le's eyes dropped to the floor as he scuffed the stones with his school shoes.
"That's what you said last time"
Hawke winced as though he'd been slapped. The missed karate tournament last week was still weighing heavily on his mind, and he knew he had to find someway of making it up to him.
"Hey-"
Hawke placed his hands on Le's shoulders and turned the boy to face him. Le kept his eyes resolutely on the ground.
"Le-"
Hawke caught Le's chin with his hand, nudging it slightly so that Le's gaze met his.
"I promise"
Hawke pulled the teenager into a hug and wondered for the millionth time how he was going to make this all work.
"I better go" Le murmured as he pulled out of Hawke's embrace "I'll see ya later"
Hawke watched as Le joined a group of classmates and trudged through the open gates. Hooking his sunglasses over his ears, Hawke made his way back to the familiar red, white and blue jeep parked on the corner and swung himself inside. Hawke folded his arms across the steering wheel as a group of older girls in Academy uniform, strolled arm in arm towards the gates, deep in conversation. The middle of the group, the only blonde, her hair scraped back into a pony tail, laughed at her friends joke, her striking blue eyes widening as she whispered into her friends ear. Le glanced up and stopped as the group approached, seemingly mesmerised by the sight in front of him. Hawke rested his chin on his arms and watched intently as the blonde glanced in Le's direction and flashed him a half smile as her group continued on through the gates. Le stumbled forward as his friend Billy slapped him on the shoulder and dragged him inside.
Hawke grinned as he released the handbrake and merged into the California traffic.