A/N 1:Well the biggest news of the week is of course the announcement of the Blue Blood's spin off starring Donnie Wahlberg as the character of Danny moves to Boston so 1) not sure how I feel about that 2) not sure how I'm going to work THAT into this story and 2) I guess that means Eddie is about to have the longest pregnancy in history as we wait for that show to air and announce what she had off screen back in New York...
Kidding! Well kind of. Maybe... I don't know yet. Seriously not sure how I feel about only 1 character spinning off into another series and them trying to 'replicate' the Reagans with a whole other family. I might be biased but i liked my idea of 3 Reagan's (Jamie, Eddie, Joe) spinning off and discovering another branch of the Reagan family better. boo. I guess life really is 'going on'. Sigh. Anyhoo now back to this story...
A/N 2: More ideas being sparked out of the review comments so keep them coming! Also to answer the one guest reviewer as to if my continuity error with Amelia and The Chevelle was done on purpose or not... well, it wasn't. That was a complete oops! on my part (sorry) but hey, still made for a great material for a chapter... right? so finally and without further adieu, hope this chapter lives up to what people might have wanted to see from all of Frank's grandkids. Enjoy!
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Chapter 13: And Baby Makes 5
FLASHBACK:
Everyone is just finishing eating around the Reagan Family dinner table the day of Luis Badillo's funeral and Jamie and Eddie's baby announcement when suddenly Nicky pipes up "Okay Sean, Jack, Joe and I volunteer to clear!"
Immediately, Sean, Jack and Joe all snap their heads up in surprise.
"Um say what now?" Joe queries.
"We do?" Jack questions confused.
"Oh come on…" Sean whines "You're both here…" he continues as he gestures between Nicky and his brother "I thought I'd finally get a week off!"
Nicky looks directly at Sean "No." She rejects before looking expectantly at Jack and Joe "There are a lot of us here today so it will go faster if we all pitch in…" She prompts "Besides it will give us all an opportunity to catch up!"
"Um sure…" Joe hesitantly agrees as Jack sighs "Alright." and Sean grumbles "Ugh fine."
"Great!" Nicky happily accepts with a big, bright satisfied smile "Okay everyone else!" Nicky declares to the table "SHOO!" She instructs as she begins to gesture with her hands for everyone else to leave.
Immediately Danny removes his napkin from his lap, wipes his mouth and while placing it on the table gets up saying "Yup. Don't have to ask me twice."
"Nope!" Jamie easily agrees as he also gets up "Me neither."
"Yeah, I'll gladly take the week off." Eddie states in compliance as she too stands.
"Me too!" Erin eagerly agrees.
"I'm with her." Jack adds as he gets up to follow his secret wife out of the room.
Still sitting in his chair, Henry can't help but chuckle at the quick exit of all his grandchildren and their spouses "Bunch of deserters." He snickers in amusement.
"You too Grandpa, Great Grandpa." Nicky instructs with more shooing gestures of her hands "Out you go!"
Henry looks at his only great granddaughter a moment before looking across the table at his son while starting to rise from his seat "Wow. Is it just me or has she gotten a bit bossy since living on her own all the way across the country?"
Also getting up, Frank smugly smiles "Works for me!" He easily quips "Just means I don't have to clean up!"
Nicky rolls her eyes "Oh please Grandpa. You NEVER clean up!"
Frank shrugs "How would you know? You live half way across the country now."
Nicky turns to look at Sean for confirmation or denial of Frank's statement but Sean holds up his hand in surrender "Hey, I still eat here every week so I plead the 5th."
Henry chuckles "Smart man." He commends before he and his son head to depart the dining room "It's the good china kids – don't break anything."
"WE KNOW!" Nicky, Jack and Sean all automatically reply.
"Boy." Joe states in a bit of awe when finally its just him and his cousins left in the room "There is clearly a whole different dynamic to this dinner when all of you are here together."
"And by all of us…" Jack clarifies "...you mean Nicky because really I just go with the flow."
"Okay…" Nicky suddenly interrupts in an urgent and hushed voice as she glances around at all the entrances to make sure no one else but the four of them in the room can hear "…just shut up and listen. I have a great idea and we don't have a lot of time to pull it off."
"A great idea." Sean challenges "You mean like your last 'great' idea of doing dishes?"
"Yeah…" Jack agrees "…I'm not sure I want to know what this new great idea is."
"Oh my god I have so not missed you two." Nicky snarks right back at her cousins causing Joe to dawn a bit of a surprised look on his face at her words.
Seeing his look, Sean leans slightly over to Joe "She really doesn't mean that." He explains.
"Yes I do!" Nicky insists but Jack shakes his head "No you don't."
Nicky sighs "Okay I don't." She admits.
Sean arrogantly smiles at Joe in triumph "See!"
"Okay wow." Joe just admits at the ease at which his other three cousins interact with one another.
"Oh don't worry." Nicky dismisses to her older cousin "You'll fit in just fine – you'll see - especially once we complete my great idea."
"Which is?" Joe prompts.
"We…" Nicky begins as she scans the dining room and settles her gaze on Eddie's old baby high chair "...are going to take a picture of all of us for Grandpa including…" she adds as she makes a beeline for the chair picks it up and then sets it down right in front of her "…our cousin to be."
"Huh?" Joe questions.
"We'll just include Aunt Eddie's old high chair in the photo to represent Uncle Jamie and Aunt Eddie's unborn baby in the photo." Nicky explains.
"Oh." Jack accepts with a nod of his head in agreement "I get it."
"Yeah." Sean notes "Grandpa will love that."
Joe takes a second to think about that "He will won't he?" He admits in awe.
"See!" Nicky arrogantly boasts "Great idea right? This is why I volunteered all of us to clear!"
Jack, Sean and now even Joe all nod their heads in understanding and agreement.
"Okay now let's figure out where we are doing this…" Nicky urgently prompts "…and do it fast before someone catches us. Boys…" Nicky then instructs Jack and Sean like they are still little kids "…watch the entrances while I set this up."
Even though they are now adults, Jack and Sean still obey as they each move to a dining room entrance way to watch for 'interrupters.'
"Um… " Joe hesitates "Don't we need someone to take the photo?"
Nicky rolls her eyes "No…" She begins.
"Phones have timers." Sean reminds his oldest cousin.
"Use the buffet." Jack suggests as the spot to stage the phone for the picture.
"Good idea." Nicky accepts as Joe watches the three cousins that grew up around one another work together like a well oiled machine.
"Here." Joe quickly offers as he moves some chairs out of the way so they all have a place to stand.
"See!" Nicky again quips to her older cousin in pleasant acceptance "You're fitting in already!"
"Incoming!" Jack hisses.
"Everyone!" Joe instructs "Grab a dish!"
So like that all four cousins rush to the table to start gathering dishes as Erin steps in the room. For a second she suspiciously eyes them – her gut telling her they are up to something but then the next second she pushes that feeling aside "Hey Nicky – make sure you don't leave before talking to me and your Dad okay?"
"Of course not Mom." Nicky sweetly accepts with a reassuring smile.
Again Erin eyes her daughter "Okay good." She accepts before turning to walk away and the second she is gone all four cousins put the dishes back down and visibly relax.
"Why do I feel like we are committing a crime?" Jack can't help but ask as they start working together again getting ready for the photo.
"We're not." Joe reassures them but Nicky laughs it off as she sets up her phone on the buffet "Um because we are in a house full of cops and we can NEVER get anything past them?"
"Until today." Joe declares in determination as if taking this photo and keeping it a secret until they are ready to share it is now the most important thing in the world "Oldest to youngest with the chair in the middle?" he suggests.
"Works for me." Jack accepts as Sean eyes Joe as they all step into position "You're going to come in handy." He decides.
Joe rolls his eyes "No I'm not getting you out of parking tickets or whatever else you might have in mind."
Sean snaps his fingers in jest at the missed opportunity "See you fit right in with the rest of the law enforcement individuals in this family cuz none of them would do that either."
"Okay get ready." Nicky whispers as she is about to press the count down timer but stops when Jack calls "Wait, I have an idea!" as he turns to swipe up a stack of dishes and heads for the kitchen "Be right back!"
Having no choice, Sean, Nicky and Joe all just stand there looking at one another waiting.
Suddenly Joe just starts to hum the Jeopardy theme "Do do do do, do do, do…"
And Sean and Nicky join in "Do do do do, DO! do dodododo." as Jack reappears with a piece of paper, tape and black marker.
"Okay…" He narrates as he places the items on the table, quickly writes something out, rips off a piece of tape and slaps the sign on the front of the top bar of the back rest of the high chair so it is visible to the camera.
"Plus Baby Reagan ETA June 13?" Nicky laughs as she reads the sign "NICE!" she accepts as she this time does indeed press the timer button on her phone "Say cheese." She instructs as she rushes back to get in position.
"Cheese." Everyone whispers out as Nicky's phone snaps a picture and the second they hear it 'click' Nicky makes a beeline back to her phone to check it.
"SEAN!" She immediately admonishes at the sight of her younger cousin in the photo holding up two fingers behind his brother's head.
"Oh come on!" Sean prompts with a laugh as Nicky shows the photo to Jack and Joe "Grandpa will find that funny!"
Nicky glowers at Sean "We are doing this again…" She states with a bit of a growl to her voice "…and doing it RIGHT this time." She decides as she resets her phone, steps to place it back on the buffet and as she turns to walk back to her spot to do this all over again she throws Sean another look "Oh I so hope this baby is a girl."
"No way." Sean rejects "Gonna be a boy, I can feel it!"
"Could we please just do this?" A now impatient Joe admonishes both as he apprehensively glances out the dining room entranceways again.
"I've been ready the whole time." Jack points out with a sigh as everyone plasters smiles on their faces "And if you do something like that again." He warns his brother of the bunny ears through his smile "I'll hit you."
Snap.
Nicky drops the smile from her face "Please be a girl." She pleads to the heavens above as everyone breaks form and she heads to check the photo.
"Well I'll be happy either way." Joe states as Nicky now satisfied with the photo returns to the group "Watching you all interact together makes me a bit sad I wasn't a part of that growing up…" Joe admits as they all look at Nicky's phone "Looks good." He comments of the photo before continuing on "…so I'm looking forward to getting to know this baby right from the start."
"Yeah fine go with that one." Sean approves next before looking at Joe "But hey, it wasn't all sunshine and roses. Believe me."
"Yeah far from it." Jack tacks on before addressing Nicky "I like that one – please delete the other one."
"No way!" Nicky laughs as she pockets her phone.
"Still." Joe reiterates as he watches Jack glare at Nicky before shaking his head and sighing a bit in regret "Hey can I just say I'm really sorry for bailing on everyone when this all first came out? You know, me being your cousin? I know you…" he continues as he looks at Nicky then Jack "…you both came out special to meet me and I… I turtled."
At the use of that word, Sean snickers while Nicky and Jack each raise their eyebrows "Turtled?" Jack questions.
"You had to be there." Sean pipes up in explanation before smugly smiling a bit "Hey I'm kind of like the interpreter for the group cuz I have the most experience with each side."
Jack looks at his brother and frowns in displeasure "Then we're screwed."
"Hey!" Sean protests.
"Okay enough." Joe laughs.
"Finally!" Nicky states in relief "Someone other than me that can play peacemaker now so tag!" She announces as she lightly taps Joe on his arm "You're it!"
But at the use of the word 'tag' Joe looks around the house in thought "Tag would have been so fun in this house." He admits as can just picture all of them running around playing when they were younger.
"Hide and seek was better." Sean admits.
Joe looks around again now picturing all of them playing hide and seek instead "Oh I bet." He agrees.
"Well we might not be little kids anymore." Nicky decides "But that doesn't mean we can't all still hang out and have fun."
"When you're in town." Joe points out.
"Same goes for you." Sean counters "You're always off on some undercover assignment."
"True." Joe admits before looking at Nicky "That photo really was a great idea. Thank you."
"Well considering this is the first time all of us cousins have actually been in the same room together I knew we needed documented proof that it actually finally happened because who knows when the next time might be."
Again Joe grimaces a bit in regret "Sorry." He apologizes again.
"It's okay." Jack reassures him "It really was great to actually finally meet you in the flesh."
Nicky smiles a wide smile at her older cousin "Ditto!" She confirms "And I'm so happy you're not as tall as these two!"
At that Joe can't help but huff out a laugh at that "Gee thanks, I think."
"HEY!" Henry's voice suddenly booms through the house "I THOUGHT DISHES WERE SUPPOSED TO BE GETTING DONE?"
"COMING!" A unified chorus of all four grandchildren return before they all break apart to start actually clearing the table.
"See." Nicky reiterates to Joe as they go "What did I say, you fit in just fine around here." She notes as all four glance up and briefly smile at one another before focusing on the task at hand.
END OF FLASHBACK
"And that's how it happened." Sean states as he finishes his story to see everyone but especially Frank smiling contently knowing all his grandkids are forming a great bond.
"I KNEW you were all up to something!" Erin declares as she points a finger at Sean and narrows her eyes "I couldn't quite put my finger on what it was." She explains "But I knew it."
Shaking his head at his grandchildren's antics, Frank then focuses his attention back at the photo and a look of true pride appears on his face "Well I think this is absolutely great. Thank you Sean and please thank everyone else for me too."
Smiling widely at his grandfather's reaction, Sean nods in acceptance "You're welcome." He happily returns before turning his attention to Jamie and Eddie "And FYI us four current grandchildren we will need to borrow said fifth grandchild once born for an updated photo."
A still a little overwhelmed himself at the gesture, Jamie nods in complete acceptance "We can arrange that."
"Good!" Sean quips "And seriously, please be a boy." He requests of his Aunt and Uncle.
"Well we um…" Jamie hesitates with a slight laugh as he glances at his wife "Make no promises."
"Either way." Eddie quickly adds.
"Still holding out on finding out are you?" Danny questions of his brother and sister in law.
"Um yeah." Jamie nonchalantly replies in a way that has Danny suspiciously narrowing his eyes at his brother "Wait. You know don't you?"
"Danny…" Jamie deflects "I just answered your question that I don't."
"Yeah but it was the way you said it." Danny points out – his investigative intuition tingling "It was very noncommittal like you wanted to throw us off the trail."
"Oh stop playing detective." Jamie just dismisses but the exchange now has Erin looking at and studying her younger brother and sister in law too "Are you holding out on us?" She demands "Do you know?"
Jamie leans towards his wife and whispers "Now would be a good time for you to fake a morning sickness spell."
"So you are holding out on us!" Erin unhappily decides.
"Oh I'm kidding!" Jamie profusely promises with a laugh.
"You better be." Eddie seriously warns her husband as she throws him a super unhappy look "Because I do NOT find jokes about morning sickness funny."
"Uh oh!" Danny delightfully sings "I think someone is now in the dog house!"
Eddie turns her attention to Danny to give him an even unhappier look "You want to join him?"
Danny immediately stops laughing "No." he seriously promises.
"Then drop it." Eddie growls while Jamie desperately tries to squash the smile that wants to appear on his face at his wife expertly containing the situation.
"Okay!" Jack suddenly decides in an attempt to play peacemaker "Moving on! So Sean…"
"Yes Uncle Jack?" Sean eagerly chimes in in an attempt to also maintain peace.
"Why couldn't Joe be here for this?" Henry suddenly interjects silencing everyone as he gestures at Frank's gift "He still lives in this city."
Frank sighs "He's on assignment."
Henry frowns "Again?"
"It is his job Pop." Frank reminds his father.
"Still." Henry gruffly grumbles.
"Ah come on Gramps." Danny ribs "Yah got Jack over there." He laughs as he gestures at his sister's husband "What more could you want?"
"Actual family." Henry unhappily grumbles.
"Yeah." Jack mumbles annoyed while Erin tries to take a deep calming breath "That never gets old."
Everyone else just looks around the table – all wanting to say something but no one daring until…
"So who wants another cookie?" Eddie suddenly pipes up as she once again picks up the plate of Valentine's Cookies to offer it around.
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