A/N: Howdy folks!

Ok, I have no excuse for how long it's been. I meant to post this chapter a few days and totally forgot, so sorry about that haha

This chapter is kind of a filler, and I can't decide if I like it or not, but I didn't want such a big jump between the last chapter and the next one. Anyway, here it is! There will be another A/N at the end of the chapter, because there are a few things I want to mention, but I don't want to ruin anything before you (hopefully) read it :D

Ok, let me know what you think!

xoloveJBox

Chapter Five

Kyle couldn't remember the last time his room was so clean. He'd always thought that he was a pretty neat guy, but apparently he'd been wrong, because the living room was full of bags, each stuffed to bursting with rubbish from all over the house. But, it was done now, and all the space they'd created was about to be filled with baby things.

Heath had agreed to go with them. Surprisingly, Bianca had too. Kyle hadn't even thought to ask her, thinking that shopping for a child might be too hard for her, but after she'd been told about Kyle's change of heart, she'd happily asked if she could join them.

Brax, Heath, Kyle and Bianca piled into Heath's truck, while Casey and Ricky stayed behind to make the finishing touches to the house. As they drove to the city, Bianca was scribbling a list of what they needed. Kyle watched it grow by the minute, and with every item that she added, the cost went up, and Kyle wondered how he was ever going to be able to pay Brax back. But, he thought, there was no getting around the fact that these things were needed, and he'd think of a way to get Brax back every penny.

"Have you thought about a name yet?" Bianca asked, interrupting Kyle's thoughts.

"I haven't really thought much about anything yet." Kyle admitted, and Bianca let out a laugh.

"It's ok to be feeling overwhelmed Kyle," she assured him gently "so for now, we will add that to the list."

"What about Slugger?" Heath suggested, grinning at Kyle through the rear-view mirror "Or Smash. Smash Braxton sounds awesome."

"Shut up Heath," Bianca told him, rolling her eyes, though she couldn't hide her amusement.

"I'm just trying to help!" Heath exclaimed, feigning defensiveness.

"Yeah, well, you tried to 'help' when Case was born too," Brax added jokingly "if it had been up to you, he'd be called Sonic Braxton."

"Alright then," Bianca chuckled, "You can help by lifting the heavy things then."

A little while later, when they arrived in the city, Kyle couldn't help but think that it was a good idea that he hadn't come alone. He didn't have the first clue where to even go, but Bianca was boss enough for them all. She divided up the list as best she could, but the reality was that Kyle was needed for decisions for just about everything. In the end, they decided that Bianca would get clothes, bottles, formula, toys and other general things that were absolutely necessary, while Kyle, Heath and Brax went in search of a cot, a pram, and a car seat.

Between the three of them, they pushed two carts, but it wasn't long before Brax went back for a third, especially since Heath kept seeing things he'd forgotten about but swore they needed. Kyle couldn't work out how such small people could need so many big things, and he was stunned by the amount of choices that he, apparently, had to make. But how was he supposed to know which crib was better than any other, or which pram was going to last longer? By the time Heath announced that they were done, Kyle was relieved, and his head was spinning.

When they finally found Bianca, Kyle was astounded to see that her cart was overflowing, items balanced precariously on top of each other, and she wasn't done. She was looking at stuffed animals, and when she spotted the brothers, Bianca beaconed Kyle over to her.

"Every baby needs their first teddy," she told him matter-of-factly "Why don't you pick one?"

Kyle thought that his head was going to explode if he had to make one more choice, but at least this one was fairly inconsequential.

He didn't know if the baby was a boy or a girl, so he disregarded all the blue and pink ones. He didn't want one that was too big or too small, so that narrowed his choices again. In the end, he settled on a mocha coloured one, with soft, light brown paws and floppy ears, wearing a white t-shirt that proclaimed 'My Daddy Loves Me.' Heath teased him a little about 'going soft' but Bianca told him it was lovely, and to ignore his idiot brother.

That, apparently, had been the last item, and they headed towards the checkout. It took all four of them to get everything on the belt, and Kyle was a little bit embarrassed that Bianca had to explain to him what a lot of it was, but she was patient with him, and he figured that it wouldn't take him long to learn.

When the cashier told them the total, Kyle thought he might have to sell a kidney to cover it. His shock must have been clear on his face, because Brax squeezed his shoulder and made a point of handing over his card without batting an eye.

"Mate, I told ya; don't worry about it." He reiterated, not for the first time.

"And we're going to get some of this stuff too." Bianca added, pulling out her own purse.

"We are?" Heath questioned, letting out a grunt when Bianca elbowed him in the ribs before correcting himself "Yeah, of course we are."

"You guys really don't have to do that," Kyle told them seriously.

"Don't be silly," Bianca admonished, unintentionally using the tone she quite often adopted with her students "We'd have bought gifts for our beautiful niece or nephew anyway. At least this way, it's stuff we know you actually need."
"I swear, I'll pay you back every penny." Kyle promised.

"The important thing is that you have everything you need now, so whenever the baby decides its time to make an appearance, we'll be ready."
As he spoke, Brax started to haul their purchases back into the cart, while Heath and Bianca waited to start taking it all to the truck. Kyle found that he couldn't move, thinking to himself that they could have had another ten years to prepare, and he still wouldn't be ready for what was about to begin.

A/N 2: Ok...

1) At first, I was a bit conflicted about the idea of Bianca going baby stuff shopping with them. Like Kyle, I thought that it would be too hard for her, but then I thought that her problems with Harley were more to do with the fact that he is Heath's baby but not hers, not just babies in general. So I figured she might actually enjoy going shopping for her niece/nephew.

and

2) I can't decide whether Brax would actually act the way he does in this chapter. I mean, I have no doubt that he would lend Kyle the money to get everything he needed for the baby, but actually going with him to buy everything? I'm not so sure. Maybe I'm wrong. But I kind of feel like Kyle is still a little bit excluded from the brotherly dynamic that Brax, Heath and Casey have, unless he's helping them, so I thought I'd put in a bit of brotherly fluff into this :D

I'd love to hear other people's thoughts on either/both of these things!