A/N:
As promised, I worked last night to try and get out another chapter for you before Thursday, and this is what I came up with!
Again, thank you all so much for all the reviews and please keep it up!
Also, if you think my chapters are too short, please let me know and I will work on making them longer!
Thanks so much!
~Effy
The Parker-Nichols household was anything but serene the next morning; Walter was working his hardest to look as nice as possible for his boss, Audrey was making sure everything in the house was fit for her children while she and Walter were away this weekend, Josh was helping his father find his missing car keys, and even Megan helped out by finishing up the macaroni and cheese Audrey was fixing them for lunch.
Everyone was feeling the stress that hung heavily in the air.
Even Drake, who everyone thought to be fast asleep upstairs, felt it as he tossed and turned in an attempt to get some more rest (if you could call it that) before he was forced out of bed to say goodbye to his parents. But, alas, none came and he found himself nearly stumbling out of bed.
He made his way to the bathroom, where he quickly bolted the door shut and looked at his own reflection to see if he looked half as terrible as he felt. He did. In fact, the shade of pale his tired face had assumed made him look almost sicker than he knew his was, and left him contemplating whether or not he should go downstairs. He knew his mother better than anyone, and if there was one thing that would keep her from L.A. with Walter that weekend (business trip of some sort, Drake thought), it would be one of her children falling ill.
He wondered for a long moment if she'd be willing to leave without saying goodbye to her only biological son, and when he decided she wouldn't, he thought he had better get down there before she came to him. The thought made him shudder, and certainly added to the uneasy nausea that had been building in his stomach since the moment he woke that morning. Lord, help me, Drake silently prayed, starting toward the stairs.
He descended them slowly, both out of reluctance and just not feeling up to it, and eventually reached the bottom, only to find the entire lower story of his house a complete wreck, with family members running about and the smell of burnt macaroni in the air. And, though he silently questioned the presence of macaroni (all while trying not to throw up at the scent of food), he entered the living room to see his mother seated on the couch, trying to zip up her own flowered sundress with little success.
Deciding to help her, Drake approached Audrey from the back and, leaning over the couch, gripped the zipper between two sweaty fingers and closed the gap between either side of her dress back with one swift movement. She turned to face him, a smile on her face until she spotted his, pale and drenched in cold sweat. Her smile faltered, and she found herself brushing stray hairs from her son's ghostly white forehead as she asked him, "Are you all right, honey?"
Drake resisted the urge to roll his eyes at his mother's actions, and instead just pulled his head back so she no longer had access to his face. She frowned at this, as expected, but still nodded as she reminded herself that her son was no longer a baby and should be treated in a more adult manner.
"Are you feeling okay?" she asked instead, waiting for him to shake his head no. When he didn't respond, she asked, "What's the matter, sweetie?"
"Nothing, Mom," Drake said, upset to hear how hoarse his voice was. "I'm fine, don't worry about it."
Audrey's frown deepened, but she nodded regardless and stood, heading to the kitchen to check on Megan while Drake fell back on the couch with a loud sigh of both frustration and exhaustion.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
It was a long time before Walter and Audrey were finally ready to head off, and, though they were reluctant to leave, Drake was ecstatic, since he'd hoped beyond hope that he'd be able to kick this illness out quickly and with minimal mother-henning from Audrey. Or anyone else for that matter.
They stood by the door as they said their farewells and I-love-yous, and after only a few moments of staring Drake down sadly, Audrey felt sure that there was no way her son would permit any babying or second thoughts about leaving and she was soon out the door, waving goodbye to Megan, Drake, and Josh.
When they'd gone, Josh was practically cheering his content, since they'd be alone for an entire two days with no parents and absolutely no one to boss them around. And, more importantly, it was he and Drake's turn to finally order Megan to behave, since their parents were so immune to her little prankster ways and instead knew her as a sweet little girl who loved and cared for her brothers. However, when they'd finally pulled out of the driveway, Josh noticed, there was none of the expected Mom-and-Dad-are-finally-gone celebratory pranks.
Instead, Megan was seated on the couch beside Drake—who looked even worse when now that he was awake—and they were actually, get this, talking. And she wasn't threatening him. Josh wondered for a moment if Megan had also caught whatever it was Drake had.
Brushing it off, Josh headed towards the kitchen for a far overdue breakfast of pancakes and bacon to celebrate their temporary freedom, even if no one seemed to be feeling the excitement but him (which seemed oddly out of character). True, he was 'finished' with one of his two siblings, but he also had been recently feeling the pain that he knew Drake felt over the entire situation, and, though he knew he'd regret it, he'd almost forgiven his ex-brother for what he'd done. He also wasn't sure how ready to make-up he was, but making pancakes for the family never hurt anyone.
A knock at the front door was the only thing to disturb the otherwise perfect scene of the three siblings co-existing in peace for once, along with the hoarse voice of Drake saying with much reluctance, "I'll get it" in response to Megan's "that's probably Grammy".
Drake stood from his spot on the couch and staggered toward the front door, by which Grammy's hairbrush was seated.
He swung the door open and, sure enough, Josh's grandmother stood behind it with arms wide open for a hug from her step-grandson. "Drake!" Grammy exclaimed, enveloping him in a hug tight enough to crush bones. "You're burning up," she said, examining him once they had broken apart. "You don't look well either, dear."
"Yeah, well…" Drake said with a shrug. "I don't feel any better than I look."
She was frowning, though it soon turned into a smile when Josh exited the kitchen to say hello to his grandma. "Joshy!" she said and hugged him even more tightly than she had Drake, if possible.
Feeling Drake's discomfort, Megan stood and hurried to his side, dismissing him with a simple nod. Thankful for his sister's sudden regard for others' feelings, Drake took this opportunity as it presented itself and started toward the couch again. But…
"Not so fast, Mister," Grammy said, stopping Drake dead in his tracks. "Has your mother taken your temperature yet?" she asked as soon as she'd finished hugging Megan.
"No," Drake said, suppressing a scowl. "She already left. But I'm perfectly capable of taking my own temperature, thank you very much." And with that, he turned down the hall and into the bathroom to either get the thermometer, or puke. Whichever came sooner, he thought grimacing.
Megan smiled when Grammy laughed good-naturedly and let Drake's bitter tone slide, very grateful that she was such an understanding woman.
"It's okay, Joshy," Grammy said at Josh's look of disgust towards Drake. "He's a piece of work when he isn't running a fever."
This caused the two females to laugh, but Josh was not the slightest bit amused. In fact, he was suddenly quite angry with his brother, and he couldn't believe he'd thought for a moment that maybe time apart had taught Drake a lesson.
No, Drake was most certainly the same selfish boy who'd abandoned his brother on the day of his Chemistry exam. And Josh was not going to forgive him anytime soon.
~.~.~.~.~.~.~
A/N:
I hope this didn't seem too rushed. If it did, please let me know and I'll be sure to fix that in the future!
Again, please review and thanks so much for reading and giving feedback!
~Effy
