A/N: Thankyou for all the positive reviews I am getting. Please keep them coming!
Thank goodness the boys are still alive. I was worried about them for a while. LOL
"Ooowww!" Jack protested. "Stop poking me!" He pushed Sean off the two-seater sofa where they were sitting, supposedly watching Kenan & Kel under the close supervision of their loving relatives.
The boys seemed to be recovering well from their ordeal. They had been treated at the small local hospital for minor injuries and released that same evening. The only warning their parents had received was to look out for symptoms of secondary drowning, something Linda knew all about from her work as an Emergency Nurse. Jack and Sean had survived the following two nights unscathed, however - despite being constantly woken up when one, or sometimes both, of their still-badly-shaken parents came to check on them.
Now, nearly 48 hours later, they were extremely restless. As per doctor's orders, Linda had not allowed them to engage in any heavy physical exercise during that time. In fact, the family were under strict orders not to let them do anything more strenuous than roll a dice or lift a knife and fork. A rebellion was inevitable.
"Muuuum!" Sean whined from his position on the floor, where he was rubbing his elbow, now smarting from carpet burn. "Can we at least go outside, pleeaaase?"
"No." Linda flatly denied her son's entreaty and retreated through the kitchen door to prepare lunch. Danny followed her. To their surprise, Jamie was sitting at the small glass dining table, chatting on his mobile phone. As soon as he spotted them, he hastily ended the call, but not before Danny's sharp detective ears heard him say, "You owe me, big time!" Sensing tension in the air, the youngest of Frank Reagan's children stayed where he was, ready to smooth ruffled feathers as the need arose.
Opening a loaf of white bread and spreading some slices on the table, Danny picked up a butter knife and steeled himself to broach the delicate subject with his wife. "Linda, I think it's time to let them leave the house."
"No." Linda reiterated her disapproval of the suggestion. "There's no way to keep them quiet outside and it hasn't been 72 hours yet."
"The doc said 'up to 72 hours' and the boys need to run off some energy before they explode," Danny gently argued, passing buttered bread over to be topped with the chilled meat, cheese and salad ingredients Linda had removed from the fridge.
"What do you think?" Linda turned to her younger brother-in-law, who was silently wishing he wouldn't be drawn into the discussion. No such luck!
"Danny's right," Jamie instantly concurred with his sibling.
Simultaneously feeling ganged up on and trusting the two men standing before her, Linda gave in without even a pretence of struggle. "Lunch outside it is, then."
Her husband set his shoulders for a battle of apocalyptic proportions. "We think the boys need to return to the beach." He imperceptibly raised his brow at his brother, 'Stick by me' being the unspoken request. Jamie gave a faint, almost unnoticeable nod back 'Yes'.
"WHAAAAT?" Linda instantly lowered her voice, hoping she hadn't attracted the attention of the family members entertaining her progeny in the other room. When there was no audible response, she angrily hissed, "Are you nuts? Do you want them to get sick?"
Of course not," Danny placated her. "I also don't want them growing up hiding from everything that scares them."
Deep down, Linda knew her husband was right. She sighed, "What's the plan?"
XX XX XX XX XX XX
"3-a-side, 2 subs and a ref." Jack had counted the number of people and proposed what he felt was the fairest composition of players for the soccer game.
"I don't know about that," Henry replied, shaking out his deck chair, and settling in for an enjoyable afternoon. "How about 3-a-side, 2 subs, and a cheerleader?"
"But you don't have any pompoms!" Sean pointed out. Everyone burst out laughing at the thought of their father, grandfather, and great-grandfather in a cheerleader's uniform.
After a delicious lunch, the family had packed up and left for another attempt at an outing to the beach; Linda drove Henry and her sons (much to their disgust – they only acquiesced when Linda threatened to drag them back inside) in her car, and the others walked to the end of the beach farthest from the rocks where the boys had so nearly lost their lives.
To forestall yet another quarrel, Frank flipped a coin to decide which captain selected first for his team. Heads came up trumps, so Sean picked before Jack. Taking turn about, the two opposing squads soon lined up – Sean, Danny, Erin and Nicky on one side, and Jack, Jamie, Linda, and Frank on the other. Because Linda had only agreed to the excursion on the proviso that there was always one adult and one of her boys off the field so the youngsters could be closely observed at all times, Danny and Jack subbed out first.
Just short of ten minutes into the game, Danny turned from his conversation with Henry. "Jack, it's nearly time to – hey, Bud, are you okay?" he inquired urgently, searching his older son's features for rapid, shallow breathing, a signal of respiratory distress, a tell-tale sign of the dreaded Secondary Drowning.
A pale-faced Jack stood as still as a statue, and just kept on staring wide-eyed and unseeing out to the still, flat ocean.
"You feeling okay?" Danny repeated, gently shaking his son's shoulder.
Eventually, unmoving, Jack spoke. "It looks so calm and soft, doesn't it? But it's not. It's sharp knives, and ice cubes, and bookshelves falling on top of you; it's a salty, stingy, midnight all around you - and it's all my fault!" he declared forcefully.
Danny enveloped his sobbing, trembling child in a safe and warm embrace, grateful the boy was, at long last, talking about his harrowing experience.
"How is it all your fault?" he prodded, eager to absolve the distraught lad of as much guilt as he could.
"I was mad that I couldn't go fishing with you so I started teasing Sean. If I hadn't teased him . . . " Jack's young voice trailed off as he thought of how different the day would have turned out.
"And if I hadn't said you couldn't go . . . and if Mummy hadn't organised the holiday . . . and if Sean hadn't run away . . . and if Aunt Erin hadn't suggested going crabbing . . . you see, Son, anybody could find blame for themselves for what happened. But the truth is, it was merely a horrid accident. I'm just glad you and Sean are still alive!" The relieved father squeezed Jack tight to his chest.
"Mmmpph!" Jack's voice was muffled against Danny's fleecy jacket. "I won't be if you smother me!" He pulled back, and Danny was thankful to see a gleam of humour in his eyes. "Let's beat 'em!"
There followed a peaceful interlude of family bonding; good-natured insults, friendly banter, harmless pushing and shoving, and congratulatory plaudits when goals were scored. The boys rested regularly, and exhibited no negative after-effects of their brush with death, so Linda relented and let them play together.
"Sub!" Jamie called out breathlessly. "Bathroom break!"
"Okay!" agreed Frank, leaving his chat with Henry to rejoin the soccer game.
Having attended to his business, Jamie wandered back toward the group. Watching the boys running and laughing, Jamie stilled. Slowly and gently he lowered himself onto the freshly mown grass. He put his head to his knees, wrapped his hands around his shins, and let the tears flow. Then he felt a comforting presence shroud him – two warm arms encircled him, two knees pressed against his legs, and a forehead buried in his hair.
"I wondered when this would happen," Danny murmured. "You've done so many things these last few days: convincing me to talk to Linda, keeping us occupied, driving us to the marina and the hospital, buying dinner for all of us, staying with the boys all night so we could sleep, saying nothing when we didn't. Then yesterday, you cleaned the boat, and went shopping, and still found time to babysit. Not to mention backing me on this." Danny waved his hands at the energetic competition. "I'd never have persuaded Linda without it." Whilst he was speaking, he let his presence comfort his brother like he knew little else would. "And all the while, nary a word on how you were feeling. Yep, I'd say this is long overdue."
His emotions finally under control, Jamie straightened up and offered Danny a tremulous smile. "You're welcome, and thanks."
Danny shrugged. "No problem. Shall we get back to it?" He went to stand up, but his brother stopped him.
"Actually, there's something I need to ask your opinion on," Jamie hesitated, unsure if he might be overstepping his bounds.
"The phone call?" Danny queried, remembering the puzzling scene he and Linda had encountered in the kitchen earlier.
Jamie ignored the implied enquiry. "Remember what you said about not hiding? I think we need to go over there" he waved his hand in the general direction of the rocks that had very nearly deprived him of his beloved nephews forever "and face it together as a family."
Danny snorted. "I know. Good luck in convincing Linda and Erin, though."
"Paper, Scissors, Rock – the winner choses who they tell." Jamie offered Danny his fist. "Best of three."
Danny agreed, and lost – which is how Danny found himself subbing on for Erin so Jamie could win her over to the plan. Then Jamie and Erin subbed on for Danny and his wife.
"What's going on?" the blonde woman wasn't stupid. She'd glimpsed the brothers tete-a-tete, and the whispered conversation between Erin and Jamie.
"Walk with me?" Danny invited. "We need to talk."
A/N: Because I acknowledge that my writing is far from perfect, I love to receive reviews that include suggestions for improvement =) Talking of which, do you like this longer chapter, or the shorter ones?