Gordon and Atlanta make the joint decision to tell his brothers that they are going to be uncles. Gordon is still only twenty years old, but he has everything he ever wanted. A real father in Commander Shore, the best brothers anyone can ask for, a Grandmother who only wants him to be happy but most importantly he is married to his best friend. He is determined to be a real father to his baby, one that is nothing but kind and understanding.
The newly weds have just returned from their honeymoon, jet-lagged and exhausted neither bother to get undressed before they collapse onto the top of their bed.
Atlanta is the first one awake, groaning as she glances at the digital clock on the bedside table which is advising her that it is two in the afternoon. Gordon is still asleep, his head leaning up against her shoulder, happily snoring.
Slipping out of the bed, yawning heavily, Atlanta wanders aimlessly down the stairs. To find Scott and Paul sitting at her kitchen table, helping themselves to her coffee supplies. "What are you doing here?" Paul asks in surprise.
"I live here! What are you doing here?" Atlanta fires back. "And make me a coffee"
"Feeding Tornado and watering your plants" Paul reminds her, "I didn't think you were back until tomorrow"
"Looks like you're doing a good job watering yourselves!" Atlanta says, sitting down on one of the empty chairs. The small black and white cat jumps up onto her lap and she absently scratches his ears.
"You did say to make ourselves at home" Scott reminds her, placing his feet on the table.
"Why are you still in California Scott?" she asks, not even bothering telling him to get his feet down, with four brothers in law you have to choose your battles wisely!
"We are setting up a California office, I am selling the farm and moving up here. We need a fresh start and I want to be closer to Gordon. That and it doesn't snow here, have you been to Kansas in January before? It is bleak and depressing. This is the life I deserve!" Scott tells her with a smile. "And besides, I had to stop Paul here from burning down the house."
"Don't listen to him!" Paul protests, throwing a cushion at Scott.
"Hey, I wasn't the one who tried to microwave a metal fork!" Scott reminds him.
"I am never leaving home again" Atlanta gives them a facepalm, groaning loudly.
"Where is Gordon?" Scott asks, changing the subject from Pauls cooking skills to save him further embarrassment.
"Still asleep" Atlanta replies.
"Ooh I will go and wake him" Paul volunteers grinning evilly.
"Don't even think about it, he needs to rest" Atlanta replies, glaring at Paul through her slightly open fingers.
"Fine, let me. I am his big brother, therefor annoying him is my job" Scott insists getting up.
"NO!" Atlanta demands. "You wake him up and I will throw you both in the pool!"
"I am up anyway" A voice calls out from the doorway. "Where is the coffee?" he asks Scott, while pushing him off the seat so he can sit down.
"HEY!" Scott exclaims.
"My house, my rules. If you don't like it Scotty, you can rent your own apartment!" Gordon reminds him.
"Fine, I will make you a coffee" Scott replies giving in easily. "Now I have finally figured out how to use this blasted thing"
"It isn't that hard Scott" Gordon tells him.
"Yeah right, it took you three hours and four YouTube tutorials before you figured it out" Atlanta reminds him smiling fondly at the look of indignation on his face. "Where are Virgil, Alan and John?"
"Virgil is in Texas building a shopping mall, John is about to leave for the international space station and last I heard Alan was in Monaco looking for a European base for next season" Scott replies.
"What about college?" Gordon asks.
"He would rather be an internationally famous racing superstar" Scott tells him, looking disgusted and proud at the same time.
"Don't blame him, I would have done the same in his position." Gordon replies, "we need to have a video chat soon, I have something I need to tell you all" looking over at Atlanta smiling.
"You are getting divorced and running away with Paul?" Scott asks.
"No!" Gordon replies.
"You are leaving W.A.S.P and becoming a drag queen?" Paul asks.
"N… Actually that sounds like fun. Maybe I should consider that as my next career" Gordon replies.
"I give up. Gordon, Scott gather your reprobate siblings within the hour I am going to take a shower and get dressed" Atlanta tells her husband and brother in law.
Gordon who is still wearing nothing but a pair of boxer shorts and no intentions of anything else nods before downing the rest of his coffee. "Not bad Scott, could be stronger next time though"
"Next time?" Scott asks. "I am not your own personal maid Gords"
"No, you're living in my house rent free though. The least you can do is make me the occasional coffee!" Gordon reminds him.
"And you could put a shirt and some jeans on" Scott tells him.
"My house my rules!" Gordon reminds him.
"I might go and sleep in the pool house" Scott tells him laughing.
*TB*
Gordon consents to getting dressed for their scheduled video chat, pulling on a clean shirt and pair of jeans before downing his fifth coffee of the day and gathering at the table with Scott and Atlanta. Tornado is sitting on the table, while Gordon strokes her fur, nuzzling into his hand.
Alan looks exhausted when his face appears on the video screen, his hair is sticking up and dishevelled, and his face is wrinkled from the lines on his pillow.
"Are we keeping you up?" Scott asks, disapproval etched into his face, as Alan is clearly enjoying his freedom with non-stop partying.
"Scott I am nine hours in front of you. It maybe eight o'clock in the evening for you but it is six in the morning here!" Alan reminds him. "The last party I went to was Gordons wedding reception, I don't have the time to party. I am studying remotely during the off season."
"Studying?" Scott asks smirking. "That's a new name for it!"
"Grow up, or I am not inviting you to my graduation!" Alan replies.
"Okay fine, I will be good" Scott assures him. "Why did you call this meeting Gords? Because I am fairly sure it wasn't so I can pick on our younger brother!"
"No it wasn't. That is just a delightful bonus. No I wanted you all together in the same room, well video chat to let you know that in five months time you are all going to be uncles" Gordon tells them, before settling back against the chair to watch their reactions.
"You're pregnant?" Alan asks Gordon in surprise.
"No, Atlanta is pregnant you idiot" Gordon replies laughing.
"I knew that" Alan replies poking his tongue out. "I was going to add that you don't look very pregnant!"
"Thanks Allie. I think!" Gordon replies still laughing.
"Congratulations guys" Virgil tells them smiling.
"Yeah congratulations" John adds.
"You are going to be a great father Gords" Scott tells him.
"You think?" Gordon asks, he can't help feeling nervous, his own father was a bitter disappointment, and he is terrified of following in his footsteps.
"Absolutely, and besides, you have us to help" Scott reminds him. He may tease his brothers relentlessly, but he loves them more than anything in the world. Gordon has never failed at anything in his life, and there is no way he is about to let him fail at this. "I can teach you how to change diapers, I changed Alans often enough"
"I didn't wear diapers" Alan insists.
"Of course not, you walked out of the womb, toilet trained and fluent in four languages" Gordon tells him laughing.
"I did!" Alan replies. But even he is laughing now. "What are your plans now your farming project is finished?"
Gordon grins happily, "Well little brother I am going to start testing the new hydrofoils. These babies make your race car look like a snail. I have been working on some new underwater breathing apparatus too, that is going to be patented so I will earn even more than you do from partying. I mean racing."
"I don't party!" Alan replies. "How fast do these fancy-pants boats go anyway?" he asks, determined to keep the conversation away from his lifestyle.
"They can get up to 700 knots, we are taking them out onto the Pacific Ocean as we need the room to get them up to top speed" Gordon replies. His enthusiasm for the project growing by the minute.
"700 knots, what is that in non-boat geek?" Alan asks.
"805 mph roughly" Gordon tells him.
"You are not doing 800 miles an hour on some flimsy boat!" Scott tells him interrupting, "That is suicide!"
"Scott don't panic, we aren't even planning on doing that kind of speed with a crew on board, I am captaining this mission Scott. Safety is my number one priority" Gordon reminds him.
"See that you don't" Scott tells him sternly.
Virgil, ever the family peacemaker decides the only way to avoid Scott getting into full smother brother mode is to change the subject. "John, when are you leaving for the space station?"
Johns face lights up with delight. Any excuse to talk about space and he is happy. "Next Monday, for six months. I will miss the birth of your baby Gords, but you naming it after me will more than make up for it!"
"Sure, we are having a girl!" Gordon tells him.
"Actually we are having one of each" Atlanta tells him interrupting for the first time.
Gordon spits his coffee out in shock. "Twins?! When did you find that out?"
"This afternoon at the scan, remember the doctor said there were two definite heartbeats" Atlanta reminds him.
"I thought that meant yours and the babies!" Gordon replies.
"No sweetie, my heart is nowhere near my womb! You were at the scan remember?" She asks him.
"Yeah but I was jet-lagged and sleep deprived!" Gordon reminds her. "So we are naming our daughter John, but what about our son?"
"I am not naming my precious baby girl John!" Atlanta tells him, smacking him lightly with the scan photos.
"Sorry John, I tried!" Gordon tells him.
"Do we have any other news, or can I go back to bed?" Alan asks.
"Actually…" Scott starts nervously, twisting his hands in his lap.
"Yes" Virgil prompts.
"Iboughtusanislandandiwantostartarescuebusiness" Scott mutters without taking a breath.
"Use your words. Speak clearly and enunciate" John tells him.
"Exactly. Say it with me Scotty. Wingardium Leviosa" Gordon chimes in.
"Shut up you dork!" Scott tells Gordon fondly, laughing. "Okay, so as you know I have taken over the business and I am running the company now" he starts. Stopping to see the reaction from his brothers, and they are all giving him his undivided attention – for once!
"I have bought us an island, and I have hired an engineer to help with a new project. I want to start a rescue business, and I want us all to be involved."
Now he definitely has their interest, so he is happy to continue. "Think about it, dad made billions of dollars and never once lifted a finger to help anyone else. This is our chance to give back to the whole world. Brains, my engineer and project leader has designed the most amazing craft. Including a submarine for underwater rescues, a spaceship capable of going into deep space, a large cargo plane and a small jet which can reach speeds of 15,000 miles an hour and anywhere in the world in less than two hours. And a space station which will pick up distress calls to be relayed to earth."
There is a stunned silence in response. Before they all start talking at once.
"What about my racing?" Alan.
"I am building a shopping mall" Virgil.
"I am in space for the next six months" John
"We are having babies" Gordon.
"John, you can have your own space station" Scott reminds him.
"Sold!" John replies.
"You can keep building the mall Virg, we won't be ready to start operating for about twelve months and none of this is mandatory, I am not going to disinherit you if you don't want to join us" Scott tells Virgil. The last thing he wanted his brothers to feel was that this is a forced life decision.
"Can I think about it?" Virgil replies.
"Of course. Alan, Brains is working on a prototype engine and he needs someone willing to test it"
Alan too is sold, a racing car is the only thing he needs to be happy!
"Gords, you can bring the family! You can even bring commander Shore, I was hoping that he would agree to come with us, and help with the organisation, I was going to speak to him in a few weeks once I had some more of the details worked out" Scott reassures him.
"It sounds great Scott" Gordon tells him sincerely. Having spent time with W.A.S.P he knows that there is so much more the world can do before it is a safe environment for everyone, and he can't wait to get stuck in. "Can I use the submarine for research?"
"As long as you don't crash It and are available when you're needed then fine. Just think, your own personal submarine" Scott tells him, knowing that he has Gordon sold on the idea already.
"Can we take a trip to the Island to check it out?" Virgil asks, he is already coming round to the idea, and the thought of doing something so worthwhile with his life apart from build shopping malls.
"Of course we can. Why don't we all go next weekend? We can go through the plans, and yes Gordon there will be a pool!"
They wrap the call up shortly after, and Alan goes straight back to bed!
*TB*
"So we aren't having a baby, we are having two?!" Gordon confirms once they are alone.
They are lying on one of the deck chairs near the pool, Scott has long since disappeared for the nightclub down the road, and despite it being mid-winter it is warm enough to be outside still.
"We are. If I had known you were so tired this afternoon, I would have rearranged the appointment" Atlanta tells him, looking over at her husband.
"Yeah sorry about that, I can't even remember the name of the doctor!" Gordon tells her apologetically.
"It's fine, you had a really long day remember. Just think this time yesterday you were still surfing in Hawaii" Atlanta reminds him.
"I know, this doesn't seem real yet, I am tempted to get back on the plane!" Gordon tells her. "Leave this world behind and start our own."
"I think that is what your brother is trying to do." Atlanta tells him.
"I can't say I blame him, I wonder what this Island of his is like" Gordon asks, as they continue to sit, relaxing and watching the waves crash against the ocean floor content to just enjoy each other's company.
*TB*
The island is everything Scott promised them, a rock sticking out of the Pacific Ocean about an hour away from New Zealand.
The main guest house has rooms for everyone, including what Scott hopes will be the nursery. A bright, airy room painted in a sunny yellow with a wallpaper border of ducklings around the ceiling. There are wall to floor windows on the East side, so the twins will wake to bright sunshine every morning. The furniture is all custom built and painted in a clean white colour.
"What do you think?" Scott asks hopefully, as he is desperate to get all of his family back living under one roof.
"It is beautiful" Atlanta assures him. The whole island has a peaceful and tranquil feeling to it and would make a perfect home.
Scott gives them a tour of the underground facilities, and the hangars where the thunderbirds will reside. Brains is every bit the genius that Scott claimed, and has an impressive attention to detail and safety. There is even a dock with a boat, for fishing trips and a runway for access via air.
Even Virgil is impressed, and is drawn to the plans for the giant transporter craft. "Hey Scott, can we paint it green?" he asks.
"Does this mean you are in?" Scott asks.
"Yeah. I am in" Virgil replies smiling. "What are we going to call this organisation?"
"I was thinking Gordon and his entourage save the world" Gordon replies.
"That's a good idea, get all the awful ideas out of the way first!" Alan replies.
"Well do you have anything better?" Gordon asks.
"How about International Rescue?" Commander Shore asks.
"Much better" Scott replies smiling.
Grandma is happy to live out her retirement years looking after her grandsons and great grand children in a tropical paradise. Cooking them up a dish of their favourite lasagne they gather in the kitchen for their first island family dinner.
"These tests you are starting next week Gordo. You promise me that you will stay safe?" Scott asks.
"Scott, it is perfectly safe, trust me" Gordon replies smiling. "I have spent hours on the simulators, and we have remotely tested the crafts. They have been put through thousands of miles in testing. And we are not even going to go close to maximum speed."
"Who else is doing the tests?" Scott asks, despite Gordons confidence he is terrified that something will go wrong.
"The boat crew is Paul and I, and there are marshalling posts all along the route." Gordon tells him. Nothing will go wrong Scott, we have everything under control."