We Are
I'd like to thank annabellex2, winterschild11, Charlie-Rose94 Cicibunbuns, DeniseDEMD, and Silent Reader for all taking the extra time to review. They mean so much to me that you guys are enjoying this story.
Chapter 26: Brotherly Advice
Adam yawned as he got out of bed. He was relieved that he didn't have to work today. There had been an issue with some pipes at the diner and they had closed down until after the holidays. Each employee was given a holiday bonus for the inconvenience.
Adam stopped in Miri's room and saw she was still sleeping. He smiled and made his way to the kitchen. Cooper was up as well making breakfast.
"Morning Addie," Cooper said.
"Morning Coop," Adam replied. He walked over to the other man and kissed him on the cheek. Cooper smiled at that.
"You might want to check your computer, I think Jake has been trying to get ahold of you," Cooper said pointing to the laptop on the counter. Adam nodded his head.
He quickly logged onto his computer and saw he did indeed have a message from Jake. It seemed rather important. He wanted Adam to message him back as soon as possible.
"I'm gonna take this in the bedroom, let me know when breakfast if ready," Adam said.
"Everything alright?" Cooper asked.
"Yeah, I just want a little privacy, you know brother stuff," Adam replied. Cooper nodded his head and carried on cooking.
Adam took his laptop to the bedroom. He quickly sent Jake a video chat request. Jake popped up on the screen pretty quickly.
"Hey Jake, is something wrong?" Adam asked getting straight to the point.
"Uh, kind of yeah, maybe," Jake said biting his lip.
"Are you alone?" Adam asked.
"Yeah, Day is in the shower. We are about to head out with Tito and his cousin," Jake replied.
"What's wrong then?" Adam asked worriedly.
"I think I'm pregnant," Jake said lowly. Adam's has dropped for a second before he nodded his head. "I mean a took a test and it came back positive," he said.
"Wow, I thought you were on birth control," Adam said arching a brow at his brother.
"I am, but did you know that some antibiotics render the pill useless?" Jake asked.
"Wow Jake, have you told Damien?" Adam asked. He already knew Jake hadn't told Damien.
"No, I can't figure out how to tell him. I don't know if now is a good time," Jake replied.
"I get what you're feeling Jake, but trust me it's better to be up front with it rather than hide it," Adam said quickly.
"I know, I know, I just...I'm scared," Jake admitted.
"It's ok to be scared Jake," Adam replied, "hell I'm scared about this little one," he said putting his hand on his stomach. "I'm scared that I'm not ready for a second child and that I'm gonna fail, but I've got Cooper and Miri. I know my fears are just that and we will make this work somehow," he said.
"Thanks Adam," Jake said smiling.
-We Are-
Jared, Roldy, Noah, and Matt were all sitting with Mia. The doctor had taken Marney and Ross out of the room to talk to them in private. The guys were nervous, but couldn't let Mia see it. For only being five, she was pretty smart.
"So Mia, how's school going? Have you made any new friends?" Matt asked trying to keep the topic light and keep the guys minds off of Jace.
"I made friend. Her name Julanna," Mia said proudly.
"Oh, is she nice?" Jared asked.
"Yeah, she my wife," Mia said.
"Wife?" Matt asked.
"Only because Billy wanted her be his wife, but he mean an not let her play with me. I made her my wife an he can't be mean no more," Mia explained.
"Are you telling the guys about Julianna?" Ross asked as he walked into the room. Mia looked over to Ross and smiled. Marney was right behind him with a smile on her face.
"Yes daddy, Uncle Matty ask about school an my friends," Mia replied.
"So what's the verdict? Is Mia gonna get the surgery to get better?" Jared asked.
"Yeah, we got a match and after this, she should get all better and be back to school," Marney said walking over to her daughter. She sat down on the bed beside her and pulled her into a hug. "You're gonna get better my little Bumblebee," she said.
"Then I can see Julianna and Terri again?" Mia asked.
"Sure thing sweetie," Marney said just holding her daughter as a few tears slipped down her cheeks.
Jared looked around to the others in the room. They shared Marney's happiness, but there was some apprehension. No one knew exactly what would come of Jace meeting Mia. Jared just hopes that he would keep his word. Everyone seemed to have that thought as well.
-We Are-
Jake walked along behind Damien and Tito and his cousin Sofia. The three of them were talking and Sofia and Tito was sharing their memories of Rome and special places they knew with the couple. Normally Jake would be excited to learn a bit more about Rome, but his mind was elsewhere.
His mind was on the positive pregnancy test sitting in the bottom of the garbage can of his hotel bathroom. Damien had almost caught him the other day. Jake had been suspicious for awhile and had the test for awhile now. He had been scared to take it though. He didn't want to believe that he was pregnant. He thought maybe if he played this off, it would go away. It was going away though. It was still happening, and the test had only confirmed his suspicions.
Eventually Tito and Sofia took the pair to a small shop. Damien started looking around while Jake wondered around.
"Are you ok?"
Jake turned to his side and saw Tito standing beside him. Damien was talking with Sofia across the shop.
"Uh, yeah I'm fine," Jake said quickly.
"You've been awfully quiet, Damien seems to be worried about you," Tito said.
"I've just got a lot on my mind, this is my first Christmas away from my family," Jake lied smoothly.
"What else is bothering you, I can see you're not telling me something," Tito pressed on.
"Can you keep a secret?" Jake asked.
"From Damien?" Tito asked looking over to the other man. He was still busy talking with Sofia.
"Please, just until I figure out how to tell him," Jake begged.
"Tell him what," Tito asked.
"I-uh-well I'm pregnant," Jake said lowly. Tito visually relaxed and chuckled.
"Damien thought you were dying or something worse," Tito replied to Jake's glare. "Trust me, I think he will be happy about this," he added.
"I'm not sure, maybe, but you don't know my family," Jake said.
"I know that your brother has a daughter and another on the way," Tito replied.
"Right, famous dads mean all our dirty laundry is American entertainment," Jake sighed.
"Is that what you are afraid of?" Tito asked.
"No, yes, I mean...I don't know...maybe," Jake sighed.
"It's ok to be scared, but talk to Damien, he's freaking out coming up with wild scenarios," Tito said glancing over at Damien. He was making his way over to the pair. Sofia was right behind him.
"Hey," Jake said smiling at Damien.
"You guys ready to go? I want to get something to eat," Sofia asked her accent thick. Sofia, like Tito had been born in Rome. She however had lived here her entire life, visiting the U.S. on occasion. It was how she knew English so well.
"Sure, lead the way," Jake said with a smile.
Sofia grinned and looked to Tito. "I know the perfect place," she said.
"I agree," Tito replied already knowing what his cousin was thinking. "You two are in for a treat. Sofia's dad works at a restaurant not far from here."
"He owns it now, and it's like a million times better now," Sofia corrected Tito.
"Sorry, I did not know," Tito apologized to his cousin.
"Maybe you should visit more," Sofia replied.
"I would Sofia, but I've got school," Tiro chuckled.
-We Are-
Kendall yawned as he watched James play with Jenny. The kids were out exploring the town with Carlos and Logan. Kendall was content to spend a day alone with these two.
"Baba," Jenny said as she jumped on James. James over reacted making Jenny laugh causing James to laugh as well.
Kendall leaned against the doorway. He lifted his mug of coffee to his lips as he watched the pair. It was little moments like this that made everything worth it. If only the others four were here it would be better. They were all grown up though, well almost all of them. They all had their own lives and plans. It was hard to accept that they didn't really need him or James much anymore.
"You gonna stand there all day?"
Kendall smiled and walked into the room. He set his mug on a shelf out of Jenny's reach and walked over to the pair. He sat down on the floor and welcomed a sloppy kiss from Jenny. She babbled and jumped around. Kendall and James spent a good half hour playing with her before she yawned. Checking the time, Kendall realized that it was almost her nap time.
"Jenny wanna watch Elsa?" Kendall asked. Frozen had become her favorite movie thanks to Leora. Jenny perked up at that. Kendall retrieved the movie from his and James suitcase upstairs. He walked back to the living room where James was laying on the couch with Jenny. She looked up at Kendall with a smile.
"Start the movie and join us," James said. Kendall did just that. He sat down on the couch by James's legs. The brunette had lifted his feet and let the blonde sit. His feet rested on Kendall's lap. Jenny eventually crawled over to Kendall and rested against him as she watched the movie.
"I thought we were done with this movie," James sighed.
"I think it's cute," Kendall replied.
"Yeah, because when Leora was little you were working half the time. You did not have to watch this movie as much as I did," James argued.
"I've watched it enough," Kendall replied.
Halfway through the movie, as Kendall expected, Jenny fell asleep. Kendall brought Jenny to the playpen upstairs, in the room next to his and James' room. He grabbed the baby monitor, and headed back down to the living room where James had turned the movie off.
"So," James said walking over to his husband. He placed his arms on Kendall's shoulders and leaned in close. "Is this vacation what you hoped it would be?" He asked.
"Kind of, I do wish Jake and Adam were here though," Kendall said.
"Adam said he'd try, but he's got work, and Italy is good for Jake. He's right Kendall, he's married now and he won't always be around for every holiday," James said slowly.
"I know," Kendall sighed.
"Wanna know something?" James asked. Kendall arched a brow in silent question at his husband. "We are alone."
"Oh really?" Kendall asked looking around.
"Yeah," James replied with a chuckle. He pulled the blonde closer. Kendall grinned at the brunette before capturing his lips in a kiss.
James directed the blonde over to the couch. Kendall sat down and laid back as James quickly crawled on top of him. James pressed their lips together once more in a more heated kiss than before. Kendall's hands found an anchor on James's waist.
Things started to heat up pretty quickly. Kendall felt fingers skin over his stomach and up higher. Kendall slipped a hand into James pants as he moved to kiss the brunette's neck. James moaned and sat up. Kendall arched a brow at him.
"Bedroom," James said simply. He jumped up and Kendall followed him. They both ran to the master bedroom.
Once there Kendall quickly set about getting them both out of their clothes as quickly as he could. Once he succeeded he pushed James down onto the bed. James was all to willing to comply.
"God, I love you," Kendall said looking at the brunette before him. James smiled and held a hand out to the blonde. Kendall took his hand and climbed onto the bed over his husband. James spread his legs and Kendall looked down.
"I love you Kendall," James said pulling the blonde into a heated kiss. Kendall sighed happily as they prated. He rested his forehead on James'. James grabbed Kendall's hand and brought it to his mouth. He licked the tip of Kendall's finger before taking it in his mouth. Kendall shivered at the thought of James doing that elsewhere.
"You are such a tease," Kendall said pulling fingers from James' mouth. He brought them down to prep James.
"You love it," James replied with a flirty smile.
"Correction, I love you," Kendall replied as he sunk one finger in. James sighed at the sensation. He moved his hips and Kendall added another finger. James was moaning so Kendall withdrew his fingers. Kendall grabbed the lube from the side table.
James grabbed the tube and flicked the cap open and poured some onto his palm before tossed it aside. He reached down and grabbed Kendall. The blonde gasped and hung his head as James worked him.
Once James was done he laid back once more. He grinned up at the blonde as he moved to hover over him. Kendall pressed into the brunette who hissed with pleasure. James lifted his hips to meet the blondes hips. They both just laid there a moment. This was perfect.
-We Are-
Jared followed his friends down the hallway. They had spent all day with Mia. They were heading home to get some rest. Mia would be going into surgery tomorrow night while Jace would be in surgery in the morning. Jace had arrived about an hour ago and had been getting all the information on the surgery and signing forms. He was gonna meet Mia soon and the guys wanted to get out of there before
"Alright Mr. Munroe your room will be right here."
Jared on instinct at hearing his last name turned to look. He saw Jace with his friends from the other day. Jared stumbled forward as Noah and Roldy walked into him.
Jace noticed them. He turned into the room and the others followed him. Jared looked to Noah. He had a faraway look on his eyes. Roldy placed a hand on Noah's shoulder.
"You guys go ahead, I'll catch up," Jared said.
"Mind if I come, I wanna talk to him," Matt said. Jared nodded his head. Roldy quickly led Noah away.
Jared and Matt walked into the room Jace had been led into as the nurse left the room. Jace was talking to his friends. Jared quickly made himself known.
"Jace," Jared said.
"We just want to thank you for doing this. Lord knows you didn't have to," Matt said thankfully.
"I know, but Jared is very persuasive," Jace said.
"Yeah," Matt said.
"Jace, we're leaving if you want a chance to meet her I can go talk to Marney," Jared said.
"The nurse just told me he was here."
The guys turned to see Marney. She looked to Jace and gave him a small smile. The room was silent.
"I just want to thank you," Marney said.
"I've been getting that a lot lately," Jace replied.
"There is one thing I'd like to make clear here," Marney said walking into the room. "She is mine and Ross's daughter. You can be a part of her life but please don't take her from us," she said tears in her eyes.
"I know Marney," Jace said quickly. "I don't want to take her away from you guys. I just want to meet her," he said.
Marney nodded her head. Jared tapped Matt on the shoulder and the pair left. They headed down the hallway together. Once they reached the parking garage Matt stopped and turned to Jared.
"It's weird, I wanted nothing more than to beat him for what he did to Noah, but at the same time I'm thankful he's doing this for Mia," Matt said.
"I haven't forgiven him, but like I said before I we don't give him a second chance who will?" Jared asked.
"Do you think he's changed?" Matt asked as they walked along.
"Seems like it, but old habits do die hard," Jared replied.
They reached their car where Noah and Roldy were standing. Noah seemed to be trying to keep it together while Roldy comforted him. They looked up at the sound of the other two approaching.
"You ok No?" Matt asked.
"I wanted to hit him. I wanted nothing more to do to him, what he did to me," Noah replied. "I just...I..." He trailed off.
"Noah it's ok," Roldy said placing a hand on his shoulder. "You are a better person than that."
"Come on let's go get something to eat or something," Jared said pulling the car keys from his pocket. He unlocked the car and the four got in. "By the way Noah I felt the same way when I first saw him at our concert. I would've too if it hadn't been for Roldy, Kendall, and Kyle," he said.
"Thanks Jer," Noah said smiling.
"No problem Noah," Jared replied.
-We Are-
Adam laughed as he watched Cooper and Miri play together. Cooper was down on the floor with Miri rolling around and laughing with her. Adam felt like everything was perfect. Cooper made everything just feel perfect.
"Hey Addie," Cooper said getting his attention.
Adam looked down to Cooper. Miri was playing with her doll now and Cooper had a moment.
"Have you and Mina worked things out?" Cooper asked.
"Yeah, she came to the diner last week. After my shift we talked for a bit and we're good," Adam said.
"She wants to have a play date with Hank and Miri soon," Cooper said.
"Sounds fun, it'll have to be after we get back from the cabin," Adam said.
"Yeah, so we're going then?" Cooper asked.
"Yeah, I have off and I'm sure you can get off," Adam said.
"I already talked to Hal, he said go ahead. It's about time I took a few personal days," Cooper replied. Adam nodded his head. Cooper moved up next to Adam.
"We don't have to go up North if you don't want to," Adam said, "we can stay here with our little family," he added.
"Maybe, but I'm sure your dads want you up there," Cooper replied knowing how Kendall and James were. They weren't ready to let go of Jake and Adam yet. They still treated them like they were in high school.
"I know but, I'm old enough to make my own decisions and I am almost seven months pregnant and traveling it hard on me," Adam said reasonably.
"We'll see, let's sleep on it and see what we want to do in the morning," Cooper replied. "I mean Christmas is still two days away," Cooper added.
-We Are-
Jared laughed as he followed Roldy into his parents house. They had just left Noah and Matt off. The guys had gone to their favorite restaurant and cheered Noah up. They made him forget all about Jace. On the ride home the two had gotten to talking about high school and other things. Neither of them noticed the car parked by the curb.
The entered the living room where Deanna was sitting with two people Jared never wanted to see. Erin and Todd Munroe looked to Jared with small sheepish smiles. Jared was blind sided as two more blurs ran to him. He looked down as his younger sisters Jill and Carly hugged him. Jared hugged the pair back.
"Jared, we've missed you," Jill said.
"Yeah, we miss you," Carly said quickly.
"I miss you guys too, it's not my fault I don't visit. I'm not exactly welcome," Jared said sending a small glare to his parents.
"Jared listen to what they have to say," Deanna said slowly.
"Why should I? They only want to be a part of my life once more because I made something of myself. They want to be there for me because I'm actually living my dreams, which aren't to silly now are they?" Jared asked.
"Jared," Erin said standing up to move over to her son. Jared took a few steps back shaking his head. He was fighting so hard to just keep it together.
"No, you guys told me how you felt when you kicked me out. I am not going to just forgive you like that," Jared said shaking his head.
"Jilly-bean, Carls," Roldy said getting the girls attention. "Let's go get a snack," he said. The girls followed Roldy from the room.
Jared stood there glaring at his parents. He had half expected this, but at the same time he wasn't ready to deal with this yet. He wasn't ready to forgive them yet. After what he had gone through he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to forgive them.
"Jared please," Erin pleaded with her son. Jared just shook his head.
"Jared stop being so ridiculous," Todd scolded his son.
"No you can't just waltz back into my life. What you did...I just I can't deal with this," Jared said shaking his head. He turned and left the room. He looked to the stairs that led upstairs for a moment before he took off out the door. He didn't want to do this right now.
-We Are-
Leora and Lilly were in their shared room. Lilly was on her phone and Leora was laying back with a book.
"So Le," Lilly said after awhile. Leora marked her page and looked to her friend.
"What's up Lil?" Leora asked curiously.
"Yesterday, when I asked you about Caleb," Lilly said slowly.
"Look it's nothing, Caleb and I are drifting apart. I knew this was gonna happen. He's a year older than me after all," Leora sighed.
"Are you really considering breaking up with him?" Lilly asked curiously.
"No...I don't know," Leora said slowly. She was torn over this. "I care about him Lil, I really do but he's busy and we hardly get to see one another. I just don't know what to do."
"Well, have you talked to him?" Lilly asked.
"How, he's so busy," Leora replied.
"Maybe you guys need to take day and just talk. Tell him how you feel and go from there. Caleb is more understanding than most guys I know." Lilly said.
"I guess," Leora said looking down at her lap.
"It'll work out Le, even if you do break up," Lilly said.
"Says the girl who's still hung up on my brother," Leora replied. Her eyes went wide as she realized how awful that sounded. "I didn't mean it that way-" she started. Lilly held a hand up.
"I know Le, and it's ok," Lilly said softly. She looked down at her lap. "I can't help it, I try to move on but something's holding me back. Seeing him so happy while I'm so miserable doesn't help either," she said.
"I didn't mean to say that Lil," Leora said.
"It's ok Le," Lilly said quickly.
Silence filled the room. Both girls got lost in their own thoughts.
So there you go another chapter. Noah and Jace met, briefly. Will they run into one another again? Will Noah keep his cool? Jake is pregnant! Will he tell Damien? How will Damien react? Jared's parents showed up, what will this do to Jared? So much happening so little time. More to come as always.
Always
OUTOFMYMIND