Author's Notes: Hi, readers. Here's chapter ten of "Turnaround." It has some Podcast/Phoebe and Gary/Callie. I will tell you that Trevor and Phoebe's reunion with their birth father will not be pleasant at all. Stay tuned for chapter eleven.
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Chapter 10: Around the Bend
Jeanette stood before the kitchen stove ten minutes later. She had her eye on five pieces of sausage cooking in a skillet on the right front burner. She held a small spatula in her hand. She looked over at a plate containing ten pieces of sausage and fourteen pieces of bacon. Ronnie hit an egg on the counter near the sink. She opened it over a big bowl. The contents dropped into the bowl along with that from six other eggs.
Trevor read the newspaper while sitting at the head of the table. He flipped from one page to the next. Oscar poured coffee into a mug. He stopped when it was nearly full and returned the kettle to the coffeemaker. He put two spoonfuls of sugar into his coffee. He stirred the contents and tapped the spoon on the side of the mug three times. He took a long sip and nodded in approval. He laid it down.
"There is nothing better than a good cup of coffee," Oscar whispered and looked toward Trevor. "Any exciting news, Trev?"
"Unless you count an article about us catching the interstate dragon yesterday, there is no exciting news at all," Trevor said, folding the paper and laying it on the table. He yawned a little bit. "I may go and take a nap in a little while. I didn't get a whole lot of sleep because my parents, my sister, and her boyfriend were so loud last night."
"Jeanette and I didn't hear anything. We slept like rocks," Ronnie said, looking over her shoulder at him.
"So did I," Oscar added.
"You three are lucky you are heavy sleepers," Trevor pointed out annoyingly. He touched his forehead. "Let's not forget we had to convert two office rooms on the second floor into living spaces for Jeanette and Ronnie."
"That reminds me of Full House. Jesse and Becky had the attic converted into their own living space after they married. It was actually done for Michelle, who was saddened at not being able to see her uncle as much as she used to. She was four years old, so she didn't understand why they were moving out," Ronnie explained.
"Then Jesse, Becky, Nicky, and Alex moved out when Michelle was eleven according to Fuller House. She understood life better by then," Oscar said, taking another sip of his coffee. He put it down before crossing his arms.
"Michelle may have been bratty at times, but I couldn't blame Danny for taking it easy with her. She was his last baby after all," Trevor said, propping up his head with his elbow.
"Younger kids tend to get away with misbehavior more often than older kids do. Sometimes, the reverse happens," Jeanette commented. "Parents should never play favorites, but there are times they can't help it because they have so much in common with the favored kids."
Jeanette was about to say something else when Gary, Callie, Podcast, and Phoebe came into the kitchen. She, Ronnie, Oscar, and Trevor turned toward them. Trevor emitted a soft huff. Oscar grabbed his coffee and went to the table. He seated himself on Trevor's left.
"Well, well, if it isn't the noisemakers," Trevor said and clicked his tongue twice.
"Trevor, what are you—" Gary started.
"Don't give me that, Dad," Trevor interrupted sternly. "I heard you and Mom doing it last night. The same goes for Podcast and Phoebe. None of you stopped until close to two o'clock in the morning. I didn't get a whole lot of sleep. You guys need to get a cabin in the middle of nowhere if you want to be that loud."
Phoebe pressed her lips together. "We are sorry we kept you awake."
"You will be doing what we do with Lucky someday, Trev," Callie added.
"Your mom's right," Gary agreed.
"We won't be ready for that for a while," Trevor commented honestly. "Let's not forget Podcast and Phoebe need to be careful when they do it."
"Phoebe and I try to be as careful as we can. You know that," Podcast responded seriously.
Trevor sighed. "I know, but it does not hurt to have a reminder, does it?"
Podcast shook his head. "No."
Phoebe put her hands underneath her stomach. She inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. She looked up at the ceiling for a minute before turning back to her brother.
"School starts in a couple of weeks for most students. Jerry will come to the Firehouse to teach Podcast and me around the same time. I will be having Gabrielle sometime after that," Phoebe whispered, licking her lips.
"Kids are very lucky to have online schooling today," Callie said, going over to the cabinet next to the refrigerator along with Gary. She grabbed mugs from it. She handed the first mug to him while she kept the second one. "Teen parents had three options when I was a teen. They could drop out of school. They could go to an alternative school. They could be homeschooled."
"I think homeschooling was the best option that Podcast and I could choose. Jerry was proud to see we had gotten a little ahead of our peers," Phoebe admitted.
"Yeah," Podcast agreed. "Of course, not every child is cut out for homeschooling."
"Some parents have half their kids in public school. They are homeschooling the rest," Gary commented while grabbing the kettle. He poured coffee into his mug. He filled it nearly all the way before giving the kettle to his wife. "If it works for them, then it's more power to them."
"A better education is not the only reason kids are homeschooled," Callie said as she poured coffee into her mug. She returned the kettle to the coffeemaker. "It can also help keep them from falling behind if they have health issues."
"Like a high-risk pregnancy," Ronnie said.
"Exactly," Callie responded and headed over to the silverware drawer. She got a spoon and returned to the coffeemaker. She put three spoonfuls of sugar into her coffee. She stirred the contents. She sipped it and gave an approved nod. "The biggest downside with homeschooling is it can be used it to isolate children from the world."
"Kids need to have exposure to different people and cultures. They can't be kept hidden from everything forever," Trevor muttered, cringing badly.
"When kids experience something forbidden, they want more of it. It can get to the point that it becomes addictive," Podcast added, taking his girlfriend's hand into his.
"Everyone is hooked on to something to some degree," Phoebe said and emitted a soft snort. "It's human nature."
Podcast and Phoebe headed over to the table. They seated themselves on Trevor's left. Callie approached the sink to put the spoon there. She sipped more of her coffee.
"I am looking forward to going out to dinner at Hobbie's Place," Callie commented excitedly.
"Me too," Phoebe said, smiling. "It has some really great food."
"My sisters and I are heading to O'Charley's with our parents for dinner. Winston is taking his family out for dinner at Denny's. Ray and Lucky were the only ones left," Oscar said, crossing his arms.
Podcast smiled. "They accepted our invitation to have dinner with us eagerly."
"Who wants to be stuck at home at the end of the weekend?" Gary asked, wrapping his arm around Callie.
"Nobody," Phoebe answered. "That is especially true for you, Dad."
"Let's hope some bratty kids don't start a food fight like last time," Gary muttered somewhat nervously.
"They couldn't stop throwing food at you and Mom," Trevor said annoyingly.
"Those kids and their parents got kicked out. They were told they couldn't come back to the restaurant again," Callie pointed out while raising her eyebrows.
Phoebe giggled. "Look on the bright side. We did have a lot of fun throwing food all over the place."
Callie pointed her finger at her. "That we did."
Callie sipped more of her coffee before putting it down. She brought her hands up to Gary's arm. She gave it a hard squeeze. He chuckled, causing her to look up at him.
"What?" Callie asked curiously.
"Your grip gets stronger every time you squeeze a part of my body," Gary responded, tickling her nose.
"Ah-choo," Callie joked and broke into a fit of giggles.
"Bless you," Gary whispered and kissed her forehead. "Just don't start a hurricane with the next sneeze."
"Oh, no!" Phoebe yelled while putting her arms back. "I am being blown away!"
"Me too!" Trevor agreed and held up his arms.
"Hurricanes and tropical storms can spawn tornadoes. These tornadoes usually occur in rain bands far from the centers of the storms," Oscar explained.
"Hurricane Ivan continues to hold the record for the most tornadoes spawned from a hurricane. It spawned one hundred eighteen tornadoes. Two hundred thirteen tornado warnings were issued," Gary explained.
"We experienced a few thunderstorms while we were vacationing in Florida back in June, but they weren't bad," Phoebe said, giggling. "I was six months pregnant. I wasn't even showing then."
"Just because you have a small bump does not mean your baby isn't healthy. I had a big bump with Trevor. I had a small bump with you. Both of you were born perfectly healthy," Callie said, smiling sweetly.
"Small babies can be born from big bumps. Big babies can be born from small bumps," Trevor added.
"Strong abdominal muscles can conceal a pregnancy more easily. I did get into the habit of working out before I got pregnant. It is no wonder my bump is smaller than that of most mothers. However, that does not mean carrying Gabrielle is easier," Phoebe pointed out matter-of-factly.
"Maintaining a healthy lifestyle does not prevent morning sickness, though it can make it easier to deal with," Callie added.
"Some mothers do everything right and still experience miscarriages, stillbirths, and premature births," Gary whispered with a bit of sadness. "Life can be so complicated sometimes, especially when it comes to ghostbusting."
Jeanette turned back to the skillet. She lifted the first piece of sausage and found it was done. She flipped it over. She repeated her actions with the others. She tapped the fork on the skillet handle twice. Ronnie cracked another egg on the counter. She held it over the bowl, opening it and allowing the contents to drop into it.
Ronnie grabbed three other eggs and went to the trashcan. She threw them in. She repeated her actions with the six other eggs. She went to the refrigerator to open it and grab the milk. She closed it and returned to the bowl. She poured the milk in. She took back it to the refrigerator. She got back to the bowl, picking up the fork and stirring the eggs.
"We don't see protesters outside the Firehouse whenever any of us go out to bust ghosts as often as we used to," Jeanette said honestly.
"I honestly believe most of the protesters just jumped on the bandwagon to hate on us," Trevor suggested.
"It's human nature to want to be part of something. That group is no exception," Gary said and suppressed a yawn.
Callie rolled her eyes. "Some hate bandwagons are absolutely ridiculous."
"No shit, Mom. Some involved celebrities who were hated on for absolutely no reason other than boredom," Phoebe hissed, shuddering in disgust.
"People start something when they get bored," Oscar commented, shaking his head in disbelief. "They pull others into their little groups, especially lonely ones."
"Melody pulled me into her scheme to free Garraka, though I had no idea about it at the time. I was so lonely and desperate for companionship after getting benched," Phoebe whispered, guilt lining her voice.
Gary exhaled. "Like I said, smart people can be the biggest morons. This is especially true if they are young. I made plenty of stupid decisions when I was young."
Trevor touched his sister's arm. "The best thing about Melody is she is at peace now. That's not to say she could come see you someday."
Phoebe nodded in agreement. She began talking about the time she found a real frog in her bed.