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missmara13This one takes place like 8 years before the previous one in the 'Four Brothers' universe. It's got a tinge of angst, but... it's also got sleepy Little!Ryan... so I think it balances out...
December 3rd, 1995
Lucky woke to the sound of quiet whimpering, and immediately glanced across the room at Jess, who was still fast asleep. He knew Nathan didn't have many nightmares, and when he did he just woke up with a single yell before shaking it off and going back to sleep. So that only left their new baby brother, Ryan. Skinny as hell, beaten up as hell, and screwed up as... well... as all the rest of them. With a sigh, Lucky got out of bed and padded down the hall to Ryan and Nathan's room, where Nathan was still fast asleep, too. Lucky moved over and crouched down besides Ryan's bed, reaching out a hand to rest on the little boy's shoulder. "Ry? Wake up, Ryan, it's just a bad dream," he whispered.
Ryan woke with a start and whimpered as he tried to pull away. "No..." he whispered.
"Hey, hey, it's okay, it's just me," Lucky replied. When Ryan just whimpered again, Lucky pulled his hand back. "Bad dream, baby brother?" he asked. "Come on, I think Ma has some of the good ice cream stashed in the bakc of the freezer, we'll eat it all before Jess and Nate find it," he suggested, grinning conspiritorially and offering his hand.
Ryan hesitated, then nodded and sat up, rubbing his eyes sleepily. He stared at the offered hand for a moment, then looked up at Lucky's reassuring smile and took it, letting Lucky lead him out of the room and down the stairs. "Is there really ice cream?" he asked softly.
"And sprinkles," Lucky said, nodding. "I know where Ma hides all the good stuff." When they got down to the kitchen, Lucky started pulling out ingredients for two ultra-sundaes, as his biological father used to call the completely bad for you treats, then paused before making them to see Ryan watching him. He smiled and patted an empty patch of countertop. "Wanna hop up here and tell me what you want on yours?" he asked.
Ryan nodded and tried to pull himself up but couldn't quite manage. "Ow," he muttered as he hit his elbow.
"Want some help?" Lucky asked, trying to keep his tone offhand. When Ryan nodded again, Lucky scopped his brother up and set him on the counter. "Now, what do you want on yours?" he asked, gesturing at the various toppings.
"Everything?" Ryan asked.
Lucky grinned and ruffled Ryan's hair. "Same as me, then."
"Are we gonna get in trouble?" Ryan asked softly.
"Nah," Lucky said. "Ma will never know we were down here. And even if she did catch us, all I gotta do is tell her the truth, that it's a brotherly bonding thing, and it'll be cool."
"Are you seriously makes sundaes without us, Lucky?" Jess said as he and Nathan stumbled into the kitchen, both of them with hair sticking up all over and Nathan rubbing his eyes with his fists.
"Hey, I gotta work on winning that favorite new brother title," Lucky replied, smiling over at Ryan, who replied with a shy smile of his own. "I think I'm ahead of the game," he added.
"You're cheating is what you're doing," Jess complained.
"Make me one, too?" Nathan asked Lucky.
"And me?" Jess asked.
"You can make your own, Jess," Lucky said. "You're 14, not a little kid anymore like Ryan and Nate..."
"I'm not a little kid!" Nathan protested. "I'll make my own!"
"Good for you," Lucky said. "But Ry, you're stuck with me making yours. In this house, you're little until you're at least 10. And since your the youngest..."
"You're the baby unless Ma adopts another lost cause," Jess said.
"Lost cause?" Ryan asked.
"No one wanted any of us, we were all too much trouble," Jess explained. "And when ma said she'd take us, everyone said she was crazy, we'd burn her house down..." He paused when Lucky snorted. "That was an accident, they meant on purpose!" Jess hissed.
"You almost burned down the house?" Ryan asked, eyes wide.
"I was smoking..." Jess began.
"Take a lesson, smoking is bad," Lucky interrupted.
"Stop being a grown up and be a co-conspirator," Jess snapped.
"What do you call this?" Lucky said, gesturing at the array of ice cream and toppings. "I'll be grounded for a year if Ma catches us."
"You will?" Ryan said, suddenly worried.
Lucky leaned in close. "Nah, but don't tell them that. They're nicer if they think you're risking somethin' to have a little fun," he said, winking.
Ryan smiled again, a smile that only widened as Lucky handed him a bowl heaped with cie cream and toppings. "Thank you," he whispered.
"Anytime, baby brother," Lucky replied, ruffling Ryan's hair.
"Move your ass so we can make ours," Jess griped, shoving Lucky.
"Shut up," Lucky said, snorting as he shoved Jess back and hopped up on the counter beside Ryan. "Good?" he asked the smaller boy.
Ryan nodded quickly, mouth full.
"We gotta teach this kid to talk," Jess said, rolling his eyes.
"Maybe he's just got better manners than you and doesn't talk with his mouth full," Lucky suggested around his own mouthfull of ice cream, making Nathan and Ryan both laugh. He and Jess exchanged glances, a silent 'mission accomplished' message passing between them. Ryan was gonna be okay, now that he was starting to understand that he had three new big brothers who'd be there for him.
~~~~
A little over an hour later, Lucky finished cleaning up the kitchen after Jess and Nathan had gone back to bed, then he knelt down to carefully pick up Ryan, who was swiftly falling asleep. "Come on, baby brother, let's get you tucked back into bed," he whispered as Ryan wrapped his arms around his neck. He carried Ryan upstairs, keeping his word and tucking the little boy in. "If you ever have a bad dream and need someone to tell you it's okay, you come to me, Jess, or Nate, okay? We're your big brothers now, and we'll always protect you."
"Okay," Ryan said sleepily. "Trey used to protect me, too."
Lucky fought his reaction, remembering the conversation he'd overheard about how Ryan had watched while one of his biological mother's boyfriends beat his older brother to death. "That's what big brothers do," Lucky finally said, one hand resting on the top of Ryan's head. "The four of us may not look the same, and we may argue and tease and make fun of eachother, but we're brothers, and that's what matters." Ryan smiled softly as he drifted off, and Lucky brushed the little boy's hair off his forehead. "Sleep tight," he whispered as he stood and left the room, rolling his eyes as Nathan let out a snore from the other bed. As he closed the door quietly, he turned and shrugged when he saw Sophie standing nearby, her arms crossed over her chest. "It's a brothers thing, Ma," Lucky explained, walking over and kissing her cheek. "I think baby brother's gonna be okay."
"You're a good brother," Sophie told him with a smile, patting his cheek. "Now go to bed, you're cleaning the garage tomorrow."
"But Ma..." Lucky began.
"No buts," Sophie interrupted. "You know better than to make sundaes at 2am."
Lucky sighed as he heaed towards he and Jess' room, then glanced back at Ryan and Nathan's closed door before looking at Sophie again. "It was worth it," he said with a smile.
The End
On a side note, I found out today that I work reduced hours next week, and then I won't HAVE to work for at LEAST 3 weeks, maybe 4 weeks! I agreed to be 'on call' if my manager is desperate for help, and I volunteered to come in in the afternoon to do prep or wash some dishes, but I don't HAVE to come in unless she specifically schedules me to do so, which it sounded like she wouldn't, she'd jsut call if she needed me... so... YAY!
Although, this does mean it'll take long for me to get to the goal of $500 dollars in my checking account (I already have $1,081 in my savings account... but I wanna leave that alone unless I really need the money for an emergency...), at which point I plan on buying myself this oh so cool leather jacket I saw in a local store... it's $50, which isn't that bad, but... I still want to reach my goal of $500... even though I initially made a goal of $1,000 in my savings before I'd buy myself something bit, and now I'm not buying something big even though I reached that goal... lol
December 3rd, 1995
Lucky woke to the sound of quiet whimpering, and immediately glanced across the room at Jess, who was still fast asleep. He knew Nathan didn't have many nightmares, and when he did he just woke up with a single yell before shaking it off and going back to sleep. So that only left their new baby brother, Ryan. Skinny as hell, beaten up as hell, and screwed up as... well... as all the rest of them. With a sigh, Lucky got out of bed and padded down the hall to Ryan and Nathan's room, where Nathan was still fast asleep, too. Lucky moved over and crouched down besides Ryan's bed, reaching out a hand to rest on the little boy's shoulder. "Ry? Wake up, Ryan, it's just a bad dream," he whispered.
Ryan woke with a start and whimpered as he tried to pull away. "No..." he whispered.
"Hey, hey, it's okay, it's just me," Lucky replied. When Ryan just whimpered again, Lucky pulled his hand back. "Bad dream, baby brother?" he asked. "Come on, I think Ma has some of the good ice cream stashed in the bakc of the freezer, we'll eat it all before Jess and Nate find it," he suggested, grinning conspiritorially and offering his hand.
Ryan hesitated, then nodded and sat up, rubbing his eyes sleepily. He stared at the offered hand for a moment, then looked up at Lucky's reassuring smile and took it, letting Lucky lead him out of the room and down the stairs. "Is there really ice cream?" he asked softly.
"And sprinkles," Lucky said, nodding. "I know where Ma hides all the good stuff." When they got down to the kitchen, Lucky started pulling out ingredients for two ultra-sundaes, as his biological father used to call the completely bad for you treats, then paused before making them to see Ryan watching him. He smiled and patted an empty patch of countertop. "Wanna hop up here and tell me what you want on yours?" he asked.
Ryan nodded and tried to pull himself up but couldn't quite manage. "Ow," he muttered as he hit his elbow.
"Want some help?" Lucky asked, trying to keep his tone offhand. When Ryan nodded again, Lucky scopped his brother up and set him on the counter. "Now, what do you want on yours?" he asked, gesturing at the various toppings.
"Everything?" Ryan asked.
Lucky grinned and ruffled Ryan's hair. "Same as me, then."
"Are we gonna get in trouble?" Ryan asked softly.
"Nah," Lucky said. "Ma will never know we were down here. And even if she did catch us, all I gotta do is tell her the truth, that it's a brotherly bonding thing, and it'll be cool."
"Are you seriously makes sundaes without us, Lucky?" Jess said as he and Nathan stumbled into the kitchen, both of them with hair sticking up all over and Nathan rubbing his eyes with his fists.
"Hey, I gotta work on winning that favorite new brother title," Lucky replied, smiling over at Ryan, who replied with a shy smile of his own. "I think I'm ahead of the game," he added.
"You're cheating is what you're doing," Jess complained.
"Make me one, too?" Nathan asked Lucky.
"And me?" Jess asked.
"You can make your own, Jess," Lucky said. "You're 14, not a little kid anymore like Ryan and Nate..."
"I'm not a little kid!" Nathan protested. "I'll make my own!"
"Good for you," Lucky said. "But Ry, you're stuck with me making yours. In this house, you're little until you're at least 10. And since your the youngest..."
"You're the baby unless Ma adopts another lost cause," Jess said.
"Lost cause?" Ryan asked.
"No one wanted any of us, we were all too much trouble," Jess explained. "And when ma said she'd take us, everyone said she was crazy, we'd burn her house down..." He paused when Lucky snorted. "That was an accident, they meant on purpose!" Jess hissed.
"You almost burned down the house?" Ryan asked, eyes wide.
"I was smoking..." Jess began.
"Take a lesson, smoking is bad," Lucky interrupted.
"Stop being a grown up and be a co-conspirator," Jess snapped.
"What do you call this?" Lucky said, gesturing at the array of ice cream and toppings. "I'll be grounded for a year if Ma catches us."
"You will?" Ryan said, suddenly worried.
Lucky leaned in close. "Nah, but don't tell them that. They're nicer if they think you're risking somethin' to have a little fun," he said, winking.
Ryan smiled again, a smile that only widened as Lucky handed him a bowl heaped with cie cream and toppings. "Thank you," he whispered.
"Anytime, baby brother," Lucky replied, ruffling Ryan's hair.
"Move your ass so we can make ours," Jess griped, shoving Lucky.
"Shut up," Lucky said, snorting as he shoved Jess back and hopped up on the counter beside Ryan. "Good?" he asked the smaller boy.
Ryan nodded quickly, mouth full.
"We gotta teach this kid to talk," Jess said, rolling his eyes.
"Maybe he's just got better manners than you and doesn't talk with his mouth full," Lucky suggested around his own mouthfull of ice cream, making Nathan and Ryan both laugh. He and Jess exchanged glances, a silent 'mission accomplished' message passing between them. Ryan was gonna be okay, now that he was starting to understand that he had three new big brothers who'd be there for him.
~~~~
A little over an hour later, Lucky finished cleaning up the kitchen after Jess and Nathan had gone back to bed, then he knelt down to carefully pick up Ryan, who was swiftly falling asleep. "Come on, baby brother, let's get you tucked back into bed," he whispered as Ryan wrapped his arms around his neck. He carried Ryan upstairs, keeping his word and tucking the little boy in. "If you ever have a bad dream and need someone to tell you it's okay, you come to me, Jess, or Nate, okay? We're your big brothers now, and we'll always protect you."
"Okay," Ryan said sleepily. "Trey used to protect me, too."
Lucky fought his reaction, remembering the conversation he'd overheard about how Ryan had watched while one of his biological mother's boyfriends beat his older brother to death. "That's what big brothers do," Lucky finally said, one hand resting on the top of Ryan's head. "The four of us may not look the same, and we may argue and tease and make fun of eachother, but we're brothers, and that's what matters." Ryan smiled softly as he drifted off, and Lucky brushed the little boy's hair off his forehead. "Sleep tight," he whispered as he stood and left the room, rolling his eyes as Nathan let out a snore from the other bed. As he closed the door quietly, he turned and shrugged when he saw Sophie standing nearby, her arms crossed over her chest. "It's a brothers thing, Ma," Lucky explained, walking over and kissing her cheek. "I think baby brother's gonna be okay."
"You're a good brother," Sophie told him with a smile, patting his cheek. "Now go to bed, you're cleaning the garage tomorrow."
"But Ma..." Lucky began.
"No buts," Sophie interrupted. "You know better than to make sundaes at 2am."
Lucky sighed as he heaed towards he and Jess' room, then glanced back at Ryan and Nathan's closed door before looking at Sophie again. "It was worth it," he said with a smile.
The End
On a side note, I found out today that I work reduced hours next week, and then I won't HAVE to work for at LEAST 3 weeks, maybe 4 weeks! I agreed to be 'on call' if my manager is desperate for help, and I volunteered to come in in the afternoon to do prep or wash some dishes, but I don't HAVE to come in unless she specifically schedules me to do so, which it sounded like she wouldn't, she'd jsut call if she needed me... so... YAY!
Although, this does mean it'll take long for me to get to the goal of $500 dollars in my checking account (I already have $1,081 in my savings account... but I wanna leave that alone unless I really need the money for an emergency...), at which point I plan on buying myself this oh so cool leather jacket I saw in a local store... it's $50, which isn't that bad, but... I still want to reach my goal of $500... even though I initially made a goal of $1,000 in my savings before I'd buy myself something bit, and now I'm not buying something big even though I reached that goal... lol
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no subject
Date: 2007-12-07 07:02 pm (UTC)