Family Struggles - 21. Beginning and the End

Beginning and the End:

Blu couldn’t get through the period quick enough, the excitement was building for him to watch Levi’s reaction when he realized he was going for a ride in the Viper. There was a little bit of anxiousness for him to be able to drive it too. The chances he’d ever own one were minuscule, Kyle and he had better ways to spend their money.

‘Levi Dalton please report to the office,’ bellowed over the school intercom.

He smiled when he heard the announcement, “Okay guys, that’s our cue for the class.” He had to speak louder as the kids started packing their backpacks. “Make sure you read chapters five through ten tonight, John Steinbeck is on the cards for tomorrow. AND I will be asking questions.”

There were a bunch of moans made by his students.

Blu waited for the last kid to leave, who seemed to be taking his time. He wanted to toss the kid out and his bag to follow.

“Come on, Mr. Richards, time waits for no man. Move it,” Blu called out his leg bouncing with excitement.

Keith rolled his eyes at Blu, “I have study hall next, why hurry?”

“We aren’t all on your schedule young man, I have to see a man about a reptile.” Blu smiled.

“Old people like weird stuff,” Keith mumbled as he slung his backpack over his shoulder heading for the door of the classroom.

Blu laughed, “Good man, enjoy the rest of your day.”

He couldn’t move fast enough to get to the office, he found Levi waiting on the chair outside the office looking worried. As soon as he saw his Pop he jumped up and ran to him.

“I didn’t do anything, honest, I was in gym class,” Levi pleaded his buzzed hair still damp, even though it was barely visible since the boys had cut their hair in support of Cody.

“Grab your stuff and follow me,” Blu said deadpan giving nothing away.

Levi grabbed his backpack following Blu, “Is Dad gonna yell?”

“I wouldn’t think so,” Blu gently guided Levi by the shoulder.

He walked them both out to the Escalade, he unlocked the doors. “Jump in.”

“Pop, Dad is gonna freak out if we both skip out of school. Can he give you detention too?” Levi asked as he climbed into his seat and secured his seatbelt.

“Just get comfortable, your Dad knows where we are. So you can relax and don’t tell your brothers or your sister. Our secret.” Blu winked at Levi.

Levi looked skeptically at Blu and turned his head staring out the window.

The drive was short to where Blu had been instructed to go from Bryson by text earlier in the day. Levi still seemed worried, Blu turned the radio on.

“Your choice bud, pump up whatever you want to listen to.”

Levi smirked at Blu and flipped to the most obnoxious rap music he could find. Levi sat in his seat grunting and mumbling the words out as he stared at Blu. Thankfully, for his Pop, the drive wasn’t very long. Levi’s interest increased as they pulled into what looked like a private speedway.

“P… Pop, this is a racetrack,” Levi bounced in his seat with excitement.

Laughing at his son whose entire attitude had changed, he parked the SUV and hopped out. Levi sprung from the car with his backpack still attached to him.

“You might want to leave that in the car, Bud,” Blu said pointing to the bag.

Levi glanced over his shoulder, “Oh yeah,” he said smiling stupidly as he opened the door and threw it inside slamming the door afterward.

“So what are we doing here?” Levi asked as he ran to Blu’s side like an excited puppy.

“Patience, young grasshopper,” Blu said putting his arm around his son’s shoulder as they walked to the meeting point in the reception area as per his instructions.

Once they were inside the building Blu spoke with the man at reception. He was older and didn’t look like he had any business greeting people with his serious demeanor.

Levi rolled his eyes at the old man, “Thanks for shopping at Walmart,” he mumbled loud enough for his Pop to hear. Blu squeezed his shoulder hard for being rude and gave Levi a look of warning.

“What he looks like he swallowed a grapefruit, sourpuss and all?” Levi said quietly.

“Ah, hi, I’m Blu Waters, this is my son Levi. We are meant to meet Ben Shepard,” Blu said to the grumpy older guy.

“Yep, right.” The man picked up a clipboard with a pen attached and tossed it on the counter. “Sign this waiver for you and your son and I’ll take you back to the instruction area.”

Blu read over the waiver quickly, hesitated for a moment, but couldn’t resist when he looked at Levi with his hopeful puppy dog eyes. Levi didn’t exactly know what was happening but he had an inkling and hoping he was right. He signed the form for him and Levi, placing the clipboard back onto the counter.

“Follow me,” the man said as he snatched the clipboard and started moving quickly.

Levi and Blu looked at each other, then decided to move quickly and catch up to the man. They were taken through what could only be described as some sort of tunnel. At the other end of the tunnel brought them to a set of stairs, when they reached the top Bryson was standing with his father. Bryson’s face lit up, Blu thought that was nice, until he remembered Brent was a few feet behind him. He forgot the man was around these days, he was so unobtrusive in Blu’s life, he would forget the man was even there.

“Hi Blu,” Bryson tossed the keys in the air as he walked past the pair, “Hello, Brent, so nice to see you again.” Brent smiled and pointed towards Blu and Levi. “Fine,” Bryson pouted returning to his customer.

Levi snatched the keys from the air, “Pop, what am I driving?”

Bryson smiled at the boy, “Blu, I like the little guy's spirit.”

Blu laughed hardily, “He’s a wild Mustang this one, definitely not boring. Bryson this is one of my sons Levi, he’s a car enthusiast.”

Bryson dapped Levi’s fist, “Far out little man.”

“I really wanted Dad and Pop to buy the Viper, but nooo they wanted something with more room,” Levi said as he played with the keys in his hand.

“Hey, we can always go back to the squishy Explorer with no tv, cooler, or separate music functions if you’d like,” Blu smirked.

Levi shook his head, “No, no, no… We like the Escalade.”

“I thought so, hey when your fourteen get a job and save by the time you get your license me and Dad will match whatever you have saved toward a car.”

Levi turned toward Bryson, “How much is the Viper?”

Bryson laughed and Brent joined in, causing both of them to get glared at by the boy.

“Why don’t we get this test drive underway, it’s costing me money,” Ben Shepard said as he looked at the group.

“Sorry sir,” Blu said sheepishly, “thank you for doing this for us.”

Blu held his hand out to shake with Mr. Shepard.

“Not a problem,” Ben leaned in whispering to Blu, “Gotta remind the youngsters who’s the boss.”

Grinning at Mr. Shepard, and judging him at the same time, they were interrupted by a man in a driver’s racing suit.

“Hi, I’m Mitchell, if you’d like to come with me we’ll quickly run through the safety procedures.”

Mitchell led Blu and Levi into a changing room.

“Okay gentlemen, there are safety suits for you to wear during the drive. They are in all sizes find one that fits, while you change we’ll run through the procedures and rules of the track.”

Mitchell moves about as Blu and Levi changed, the young boy hanging on to every word the man said, taking it in. Levi was always a stickler for the rules when it came to serious safety and had no problem calling people out when they were doing something that could be considered dangerous. He was always the protector. Once the man had finished, and the pair was dressed in their safety gear, he took them both back out to the track where a shiny blue Viper sat. Levi’s eyes were as big as saucers.

“Oh god, can I drive it?” the boy asked excitedly.

Mitch laughed, “Sure, when you turn twenty-five or buy one of your own.”

“Shoot, Pop, are you sure you don’t want to buy it?” Levi asked as he glanced at the car.

Blu scoffed, “The second it comes in eight-seater we’ll consider it. But for now, I prefer to have you kids. Sorry, bud.”

“But maybe for a graduation present from college.” Blu thought. “I should talk to Kyle about that and start saving. Meh, we’ve got at least ten years to worry about it.”

Mitchell had the two get into the car, he explained about how the car handled and what to do as it was a circle track.

“Take it easy for the first few laps, get a feel for the car then you can go faster. We have put a speed limiter in this car as the track is fast and people who drive it aren’t experienced enough to drive that fast. It still hits some pretty decent mph, a lot faster than the street. Do NOT go any faster than you are comfortable driving, there is no competition, this is a test drive. Understood?” Mitchell’s tone was serious, and his words were said with authority. “Now you will get the white flag when you have one lap to go, the next time around you will be expected to pull into the pits. There are serious consequences if you don’t. Am I making myself clear?”

“Yes sir,” Blu said.

“Pop, you can’t drive like Nan would,” Levi said seriously.

Blu grinned at his son and tapped him on the helmet. “You ready Bud?”

“Put the pedal to the metal, the thingy to the floor,” Levi re-enacted a moment from ‘Smokey and the Bandit’ which the family had recently watched.

“Okay, and we’re off.”

Blu put the car in first gear, Mitch yelled, “Go get em,” and tapped the roof as the car moved away.

Indeed Blu was wary for the first few laps, gauging Levi’s silent response. The kid was grinning from ear-to-ear, on the third lap Blu pushed it a little harder, each lap he did the same until he hit a speed he wasn’t very comfortable with and dropped back five mph at a comfortable 160 mph.

“Are you having fun?” Blu yelled across to Levi.

Levi gave Blu a thumbs up, “Link’s gonna be so jealous,” and he continued smiling.

Blu continued to concentrate on his driving, the next time around the white flag came out. He put a little more on the gas for Levi on the straight, then backed off as they came around turn four and rolled into the pit area. The car stopped where their entourage of car dealers and security were waiting for them.

“That was incredible,” Blu let out a hasty breath of excitement.

“Pop, we need one of these,” Levi rambled as he took off his helmet.

Blu and Levi stepped out of the car, everything seemed like it was moving too fast around Blu, similar to when you step off a treadmill.

“That was the most thrilling experience I’ve ever had,” Blu said to Brent grinning after taking his helmet off.

Bryson smirked, “I can think of something more thrilling,” the young man stated louder than he meant too.

Brent’s eyes grew in size as he looked at the smaller man.

“Oh, I meant how was the ride Larry?” Bryson looked at Levi.

“I’m not named Larry, it’s Levi. L-E-V-I.”

Bryson waved his hand dismissively, “That’s nice,” as he ogled Brent.

Blu narrowed his eyes at Bryson, then turned to Mr. Shepard.

“Thanks so much for this, we had the time of our life.” Blu smiled.

“You’re welcome Mr. Waters, I hope you and your husband continue doing business with us in the future.” Ben Shepard stated as he patted Levi’s shoulder, “And you young man come see me when you’re ready to buy yourself one of these babies.”

“Oh, I will. Do you lay them away?” Levi asked as he took the opportunity to stare at the prized machine.

Ben laughed, “I’m afraid not son.”

“Darn it, okay.” Levi said, “let’s go so I can brag about this to Link.”

“Come on, Bud, we have to get back to school.”

*****

“Do you have your meeting tonight with your brothers?” Blu asked Kyle as they drove home.

While Levi sat in the back regaling his experience from earlier in the day. So much for him making Lincoln jealous, if he was there didn’t appear to be anything but happiness for his brother showing from Link. Blu was keeping an ear in their direction, they would do something equally as exciting for Lincoln when the opportunity presented itself. Lincoln didn’t much care for cars, so he just seemed thrilled for Levi, smiling while his brother gabbed on.

Kyle glanced in the mirror at the kids, “Yeah, we are meeting at the high school with contractors about renovations to consolidate the middle school into the high school next year.”

“Cool, can you get a ride with Jare. I might take the kids over to see Mom and Dad, since Mom has her first chemo treatment tomorrow. Are you still taking Cody tomorrow?”

“Jared and I are taking the Explorer so Mason has the good car to do some shopping with Kasey,” Kyle chuckled. “I sort of feel sorry for Mason, he doesn’t know how to say no to the shop-a-holic.”

“True, he’ll have to knock that on the head pretty quickly.” Blu smiled.

*****

Blu drove the Escalade and parked in the visitors parking at Kaleb and Davis’ building. The kids all jumped out of the car and quickly made their way to the entrance before Blu had even cut the engine. He hopped out, locked the SUV and made his way where the kids had actually bailed up Kaleb to give him a hug before he left.

“Your Grandpa is a miserable grumpy old man, nothing like the rest of the family,” Kaleb said as he passed by Blu, punching him in the arm.

“Ha, tell me about it.” Blu scoffed, then stopped.

“Grandpa?” he said to himself. Blu turned to ask Kaleb what he was talking about but he was already in his car. “Oh shit!”

The kids had already gone past the Javier the doorman and up the elevator. Blu waved at Javier going straight to the elevator. He pushed the button rapidly in succession willing it to go faster. He hadn’t seen his grandpa in over twelve years, the day he came out to the homophobic prick. The man was retired military, with an opinion about everything, and he had no problem voicing that opinion loud and proud. If he makes his kids uncomfortable or says any snide comments to them Blu was going to lose it.

“What the hell is that man doing here?” Blu said out loud as he entered the elevator.

His stomach was in knots and grew tighter the closer he got to Kaleb’s floor. At least if anything went down in the apartment, Kaleb and Davis’ place took up the entire floor. The elevator dinged, the doors opened as Blu took a deep breath before exiting into the condo.

Blu made his way to the living room where the voices were coming from. When he entered the room both his Mom and Dad gave him a look of concern. He didn’t want to upset his Mom, so he would play the situation by ear, but he wouldn’t be bullied or intimidated by his Grandpa.

“Hi Mom,” Blu said stepping over to where she sat kissing her cheek.

“Dad,” he said to his Dad as the man stood and hugged Blu.

“Sorry, son,” Doug whispered in Blu’s ear. “They arrived unannounced.”

Blu broke the embrace and turned to his Mom’s parents, “Grandma, Grandpa, have you been introduced to my kids?”

“You mean these heathens?” Franklin asked with a motion of his hand.

“Huh, I see you’re as judgemental as ever,” Blu said.

He stepped forward toward his Grandfather, his voice low so the kids couldn’t hear him.

“Say what you want about me, but one more derogatory word about my kids, I will flatten you old man.”

Franklin stared at Blu, “You’ve grown a set of balls, I’m amazed.”

“Yeah, well, you don’t intimidate me anymore I’m not thirteen. So watch your mouth around my kids.”

Blu stepped back then found a place to sit, a recliner near his Mom. Cody climbed up and sat on his lap.

“Are you okay Pop?” Cody asked quietly.

“Yeah, sweet boy, I’m fine.” Blu cuddled Cody to him, the boy really could pass on what strength he had to another. “Levi, did you tell Grammy and Pappy what you did today?”

Levi smiled at his grandparents, “Dad got Pop and me a chance to drive a Viper. I wanted them to buy it, but they said there wasn’t enough room for all of us. It was really fast, and we wore these safety suits and helmets. Oh, and I tried to lay it away but the dealer guy said they didn’t do such things.”

“Wow, that must have been exciting, Levi. How did that come about?” Lily asked.

“When we bought the Escalade, Kyle made it part of our package to buy the SUV.” Blu chuckled. “He knows how to get a good deal.”

“He’s another pansy, what’s this world coming too?” Franklin said snarkily.

Doug opened his mouth to say something but Lincoln beat him to it.

“Dad’s a great person, and so is Pop so quit talking about both of them.” Lincoln glared at the old man.

“Link sweetie, come sit with Grammy.” Lily patted the couch while Doug moved over to make room for Lincoln.

“Come sit with us Bud, Grammy needs a hug.” Doug smiled warmly at his grandson.

Lincoln backed himself up until he sat between Doug and Lily.

“Just as disrespectful as his father, a good tanning of their backsides would fix that problem,” Franklin said sternly.

“You raise one hand and it will be your last,” Levi said heatedly.

“Boys, enough.” Blu chastised the two boys sternly.

Elsey, Blu’s Grandma huffed.

“That’s enough out of you too Franklin, what do you expect when you were attacking his parents.” She turned her focus to Blu. “Your children are lovely Blu, I just wish we could have been here when you were growing up. I’m very sorry.”

“Too little, too late,” Blu thought to himself.

“Thanks, Grandma, we like them. They are pretty good kids.” Blu plastered a smile on his face. “So what brings you to Boston?”

“Your Mom, she told me about her diagnosis and the treatment. I’ve come to make sure she’s okay and that Doug is supported too.” Elsey smiled affectionately at her daughter.

“That’s nice,” Blu said, it was hard to keep the condescending tone to a minimum.

“Your Mom tells us you are married now,” Elsey said sadly.

“Yeah, for five years. We’ve had these guys for about six months, Cody here,” Blu wiggled his finger, tickling Cody, “he’s been ours for about six weeks. He’s Lincoln’s pride and joy. Aren’t ya buddy?” He chortled kissing Cody on the head.

“Link and Levi are good big brothers,” Cody said as he smiled at the pair.

“And what about you, young lady? I am sorry I’ve forgotten your name.” Elsey sheepishly put her drink aside and focused on Arabella.

Bella smiled, “It’s Arabella, but everyone calls me Bella,” she said politely, not the least put out by her Great Grandma not remembering her name.

“Bella, very pretty. How do you find living among all these handsome boys?”

“I’m used to it,” Bella answered shyly, “I like them most of the time.”

“Just like living with girls I’m sure,” Franklin mumbled with his arms crossed.

“One more remark like that Franklin and you’ll be out on your ass. You are a guest here unless you have something positive to say keep your mouth shut. I won’t have you mouthing off in front of my Grandkids, that includes my son,” Doug said angrily.

Franklin puffed out his chest and stared at his son-in-law.

“How could you be okay with all of this?” Franklin asked, “It’s just not natural.”

“I’ve always been okay with Blu, you… you… horses ass. I, unfortunately, let you speak for me. Just like I said before we came here, if you ruin this for me I will divorce you. Get over yourself. The choice is yours. You’ve kept me from my babies too long. I will no longer put up with your shenanigans and opinions. I have more birthdays in the past than are coming, I’m going to live the way I want, and that is in contact with my family.” Elsey crossed her arms and pursed her lips in after her feral tirade to show she meant business.

Blu and his parents were wide-eyed and sat back in their chairs. It was very out of character for his Grandmother to go against her husband, apparently, Blu wasn’t the only one that found a set of balls.

“Way to go, Grandma,” Blu whispered in Cody’s ear.

Franklin stood up from his seat, “Mother it’s time to leave, you’re not thinking straight. Blu has always been an issue, when Rain died he started acting feminine.”

Doug pushed himself off the couch and got into Franklin’s face.

“You are leaving, and right now. You are no longer welcome at any of my families homes.” Doug pointed toward the front door. He then turned to Elsey, “You Mom, of course, are welcome to stay as long as you like.”

“I can’t believe this world supports peter puffing homos, this is the type of situation Hitler himself should still be around to remedy. Blu, your mother should have miscarried you, the world would be a much better place without you, your sickness spreads so rapidly I can only imagine these children will be like you.” Franklin said irritably.

Franklin looked up at Doug from the floor, holding his face after Doug landed a punch Sugar Ray Leonard would have been proud of.

“Get the fuck out of this house, and don’t come back,” Doug growled picking him up off the floor.

“Well, I’ve never been so disrespected by anybody,” Franklin said as he struggled to his feet wobbly.

“Bye, bye, Franklin dear.” Elsey turned her back to face the rest of the family. “I’m so sorry.”

Franklin straightened his shirt and tie before leaving in a huff.

Lily had tears running down her face, pained as she observed Blu. He’d tried to make sure to hide his hurt from the comment but it didn’t really work. His Mom put her hand out for him to take.

“I love you Blu, don’t think about what that man said for one minute.” Her voice quivering as she spoke.

“Are you children okay?” Elsey asked concerned and embarrassed for what they just witnessed.

Levi watched as the elevator doors closed with Franklin inside.

“We’re fine Grandma, people have done worse to us,” Levi walked over placing his arm around the older woman’s waist. “Are you okay?”

Grandma let out a sob, “You really are a good boy like your Poppy said.” She gathered Levi in her arms for a hug. A sneaking suspicion he was her favorite going forth.

Blu tried to change the conversation and tension in the room.

“So are you ready for tomorrow Mom, Kyle and Cody will pick you guys up at about seven?” Blu asked.

Lily still held Blu’s hand with no intention of letting go, while Lincoln snuggled up on her other side.

“I’m just going to check on Pappy, make sure his hands okay.” Bella left the room.

“Nervous, I suppose mostly. I don’t know what to expect,” Lily smiled sadly.

Cody took his baseball cap off, “It’s not that bad Grammy, you’ll lose your hair like I did. The treatments make me not hungry,” the boy smiled. “I get sick to my stomach but Dad and Pop have helped clean me up after. Link and Levi share their bed even though I make a mess in it sometimes. You have all of us to help you when you don’t feel good.”

Lily transferred her hand to hold Cody’s, “I’m sorry you have to go through this Cody, I bet you’re glad tomorrow will hopefully be the last time you have to do treatment.” Lily gave the boy a loving smile.

Squeezing Lily’s hand tightly Cody looked her in the eyes, “Grammy my treatments gave me all of you guys, I hate being sick but it’s worth it to have a family.”

“Oh you sweet boy, Blu give him a hug for me.” A few more tears fell from her eyes.

Blu followed orders squeezing Cody tight, then tilted him back trying to tickle him and smother his face in kisses.

“POP! There are people here, I thought you agreed not to do that. Gross,” Cody giggled and wiped his face.

“They were from Grammy, don’t wipe them away.” Blu laughed as Cody quit wiping his face.

Bella came back into the room followed by Doug with an ice pack on his knuckles.

“Uh… Pop, I think Pappy might have broken something we should probably take him to the emergency room,” Bella said as she grimaced.

“I’m fine sweetheart. I promise I’ll have it looked at while we are at the hospital tomorrow. Okay?” Doug said trying to placate Bella.

*****

In the middle of the night, Kyle woke up and went downstairs to get a drink. As he reached the bottom of the stairs he noticed flickering lights coming from the living room. Once he rounded the corner, he found Cody laying on the couch watching television.

Kyle walked over sitting on the edge of the couch beside Cody, “Why are you up buddy?”

Cody wiped his eyes, “What if I get sick again Dad?”

Kyle picked his son up and hugged him, “Then we will all face that together Cody. You’re part of our family, whether you’re sick or not, we’ll be right there with you. Link would kick our butts if we weren’t.” Kyle kissed Cody’s head as he held the boy.

“But what if it comes back Dad? It could be bad,” Cody wiped his face on Kyle’s t-shirt.

“Stop thinking that way buddy, we love you. Our love is making you better,” Kyle hugged his son tightly giving him all the strength he could. “How about we grab a quick drink and a snack, then you can come up and sleep with Pops and me?”

Cody nodded his head as Kyle stood up carrying the boy to the kitchen. After sitting him on one of the stools he poured each of them a cup of milk and grabbed a few cookies.

“Here you go bud, don’t tell Pop we finished the chocolate chip cookies. It can be our secret,” Kyle said smiling at the scared boy.

“Thanks, Dad,” Cody said as he gobbled his cookie down, chasing it with his milk.

“You’re welcome let's lose the milk mustache,” Kyle giggled wiping Cody’s face.

After their snack, Kyle picked Cody up and carried him back upstairs to the master bedroom placing him in the center of the bed before crawling in making a Cody sandwich.

*****

At five in the morning, not long after Cody and Kyle had come back to bed Blu extricated himself from Kyle and Cody. He put on some sweats, kissed his men, then made his way to the living room. Levi was on his way to the bathroom.

“Where are you going?” Levi asked.

“For a run,” Blu said patting his belly, “too much good living with you kids. I’m getting fat.”

“Can I come?” Levi yawned. “I just have to piss.”

“You mean pee.” Blu corrected him.

“Yeah, that.” Levi waived his hand groggily.

“If you want you can come, I’ll grab us some water bottles meet downstairs in five.” Blu left Levi to get ready.

Levi pulled on a pair of school logo sweatpants and sweatshirt before coming back downstairs.

“Ready old man?” Levi asked a little more cheerfully.

“Let’s do it,” Blu sang.

The pair headed for the front door, only to be greeted with Teddy on the other side.

“Your two security guys are ready, Bill and Tyrone will go with you gentlemen. Have a good run.” Teddy smiled. “Remember Levi, you need to do ten-second sprints, every two minutes. It’s baseball.” He called out as the four men jogged out of sight.

Levi looked over his shoulder at Blu, “Pop, do you need oxygen? Bill and Tyrone can call an ambulance for you,” he chuckled.

“Zip it, mouth. I’m out of shape. If we do this for two weeks you’ll be the one trying to keep up.” Blu panted as he tried to keep up with Levi.

“Tomorrow we can bring Khan and tie his leash to your wrist, some stray will motivate him.” Levi laughed without showing any signs of fatigue.

“Actually that’s not a bad idea. If you go jogging without me, make sure you always take Khan with you. Even with the security guys, it would make me feel better if he was with you to keep you safe.” Blu said seriously.

“Maybe Brody can join us, we’ll be able to run circles around the other players,” Levi called over his shoulder before breaking into a sprint.

Blu picked up the pace to sprint with Levi, not quite as fast but he held his own, kind of. When he caught up with Levi, he answered.

“You should, if you're going to play sports, take it seriously it can take you places if you work hard enough. But even more, it will keep you fit, plus it could get you scholarships into good colleges.”

“Yeah,” Levi turned around jogging backward to face Blu, “Now playing shortstop making his debut for the Yankees, Levi Waters.” He mimicked a big league announcer.

“Hey congratulations, Bud, don’t forget your old Dads when you make it famous.” Blu laughed.

“I’ll remember the little people,” Levi chuckled as he spun around and broke into a sprint.

“You ready to turn around, that’s about two miles?” Blu asked.

“Tired huh? Need a piggyback ride?” Levi smiled as they turned around.

“Something like that, but we aren’t training for a marathon, and you’re young. We probably shouldn’t do any more than five miles at the time. It’s not healthy.” Blu was starting to slow down, his legs were burning.

Levi looked over his shoulder noticing Blu had slowed down.

“Are you okay Pop? I didn’t mean to push you so hard,” Levi fell into pace by Blu’s side.

“Yeah, I just have to get used to this again. I ran all the time in college, my job was labor intensive so I had to stay fit.” Blu shared with Levi.

“I’m glad we got to do this, it’s fun.” Levi smiled and waved his hand in front of his nose, “No offense but you stink Pop.”

Blu moved closer to Levi putting him in a headlock as they jogged, the poor kid's nose stuck under his Pop’s armpit.

“How’d you like that, get a gooooood whiff,” Blu said messing around and laughing.

“Bill, Tyrone, shoot him this is abuse,” Levi gagged.

Both of the bodyguards chuckled and had barely broken a sweat.

“Some help you are,” Levi squeaked, “Teddy will fire you.”

“You’ll be alright, ya big baby,” Blu said releasing the kid.

“Why do old people sweat soooo much?” Levi chuckled as they reached the porch.

Kyle opened the door and smiled at his men, “I saw these two great men coming so I figured I’d let them in the house. Come on in Bill and Tyrone.” He chuckled, “How was the run?” Kyle asked as he hugged Levi and Blu. “God you both stink.”

“Hey, it’s Pops fault he put me in a headlock so I didn’t show him up,” Levi smirked, “I’m gonna take a shower, Dad, Pop needs better deodorant.” He raced up the stairs laughing.

“How’s Cody?” Blu asked Kyle, quickly giving him a peck on the lips.

“Nervous and worried what will happen if he gets sick again.” Kyle smiled sadly, “I told him we’d be right by his side if he did get sick again.”

“He’ll be okay,” Blu said giving Kyle’s shoulder a squeeze. “Save water?”

“Yeah,” Kyle said as he wrapped his arm around Blu’s waist. “I’ll get Cody ready after, he didn’t sleep much last night so I left him in our bed.”

After showers, breakfast, and good luck hugs were given to Cody, Blu dragged the kids out to the Explorer to go to school. Much to Lincoln’s discontentment of course. Kyle waved at his family from the Escalade as Blu pulled out of the driveway first.

Kyle and Cody made the short drive to pick up Lily, Doug, and Elsey at Kaleb and Davis’ condo, once they arrived Kyle texted to let the group know they were parked at the front door. A few moments later Lily, Doug, Elsey, followed by Kaleb came out to the Escalade. The doors opened and the adults got in the back with Cody and Kaleb jumped in the passenger seat next to Kyle.

“Kaleb is coming with us. He told me to tell you so you wouldn’t get mad.” Lily giggled nervously.

“Is everything okay?” Kyle glanced over at Lily and then to his brother.

“Yeah, I was a little upset this morning. Kaleb insisted he had a light day and he wanted to come with us, mostly to keep you company and in support of Cody and me.” Lily hiccupped, something she did when she was anxious.

“Well we are all in for an exciting day,” Kyle smiled as he glanced in the rearview mirror looking at Cody. “Everybody buckled up back there bud?”

Cody nodded his head as he placed his headset on turning on his music.

“Thanks for coming Kaleb,” Kyle said as he pulled into the roadway.

“No problem Kyle,” Kaleb smiled at his brother, “You deserve our support for taking care of Cody and Mom. Oh, you didn’t get to meet Grandma Elsey. She’s a keeper, not as handsy as Nan but she’s a good woman, just don’t make her mad.” He chuckled as he looked back at the woman.

Kyle looked in the mirror at the newest member of the family, “Grandma Elsey, I’m Kyle, Blu’s husband, it’s nice to meet you.”

“You too Kyle, my Grandson has told me a lot about you. Your children talked about you a lot too. You have a lovely family, Kyle.” Elsey said with sincerity.

“I’m sorry about how your husband acted,” Kyle said apologetically.

“That’s okay dear.” Elsey sighed. “I should have left him years ago.”

The older lady watched out the window, ending the conversation. No need to air dirty laundry.

Kyle found a parking spot, “We’re here folks.” He said as he shut off the vehicle, before stepping out of the car. “Come on bud,” Kyle said as he stood at the passenger door waiting to scoop Cody in his arms. “This is the last time for you to do this Cody, I love you.”

Cody sighed as he laid his head on Kyle’s shoulder, “Love you too,” he mumbled.

*****

Doug had his hand checked while Cody and Lily had received their treatments. He had some bruising and a hairline fracture but was otherwise declared in good health. He was also given a sweet kiss on the cheek from the nurse for his actions.

Cody made an attempt at joking about his Pappy looking like a boxer with his hand wrapped in a bandage to keep dirt out of the few cuts he had gotten.

*****

Saturday morning Kaleb and Davis made their way to the surrogacy clinic, where their surrogate was being introduced to the fertilized eggs. Kaleb was all smiles, holding Davis’ hand from the time they left the condo.

“This is it, Baby, we’re really gonna be daddies. I hope we made the right choice on Terri being the surrogate,” Kaleb kissed Davis’ hand that he had been squeezing so hard it was turning white.

“They wouldn’t have recommended her if she wasn’t right, Leb. Everything is going to be perfect. I’m sure of it,” Davis said with as much positivity as he could, even though on the inside he was a nervous wreck.

The surrogate walked into the conference room before having the procedure done and introduced herself to the pair of men in person, although they had spoken numerous times on the telephone.

“I don’t mind you guys coming into the room while they perform the procedure, or coming to any of the check-ups,” Terri said thoughtfully so the men felt as included as any father should be.

Kaleb thought it was a cool idea to be present during the procedure, although he passed out part way through it. Davis nursed Kaleb during the procedure, keeping an eye on the doctor. He asked questions as they went so he could be sure the surrogate was safe. Once the procedure was over the doctor, insisted that he check out Kaleb just to make sure it was just a normal response, not something else underlying.

After smelling salts were flipped under his nose for the second time Kaleb woke up a little confused.

“I’m not fucking pregnant Davis,” Kaleb mumbled with a glazed look in his eyes.

The female doctor chuckled, “That could make me rich, but no you’re not pregnant Mr. Hansen.”

“I thought we were here to be pregnant,” Kaleb looked around the room before grabbing Davis by the crotch.

“Sorry,” Davis said to the doctor sheepishly, while removing Kaleb’s hand from his crotch.

The doctor snickered, “While you might not be pregnant yourself, hopefully, your surrogate will be.”

Kaleb smiled, “I didn’t have to fuck a vagina right?”

“Oh my god, Leb. Jesus, watch your mouth in front of the doctor. Seriously.” Davis was beyond embarrassed.

The doctor stood up snickering, “I think he’s fine, I’ll let you deal with your husband. The receptionist can give you the date of the next check-up.” The doctor walked out of the room repeating some of Kaleb’s comments to herself laughing as she done so.

Davis helped Kaleb up. “Jesus Leb, you need to tone it down a little before they lock you up for mental illness, and me for thinking you’re okay.”

“God Baby, every time I think about having to fuck a woman it sends horrifying images in my mind. It’s like a movie where the woman’s thing talks to me and yuck,” Kaleb cringed as he continued to recall all of the weird thoughts he had.

“Maybe they should lock us up,” Davis mumbled as they walked out of the room.

The receptionist chuckled when she saw Kaleb and handed Davis a card for the next check-up.

*****

Two weeks later the family attended classes at the American Redcross building for CPR and first aid, as Kyle and Blu had both agreed to as part of the house renovation.

Lincoln proudly held up his cards as the instructor gave them each their certification, “I can save lives now!”

“God, you’re a moron.” Levi shook his head, “We’re all certified to do the same thing.”

Kyle looked at the twins, “Do you really need to call your brother a moron?”

“No, but he is.” Levi shrugged his shoulders.

“How would you like it if Link called you that name you hate all the time?” Kyle asked Levi.

“It would suck, and I’d hate it,” Levi mumbled.

“Then what do you think you should say to Link?” Kyle prodded their son.

“I… I’m sorry Link,” Levi said as he stared at the floor. “You’re pretty smart, I just hate how you show off.”

Lincoln nudged Levi’s shoulder, “I’m not the one that plays baseball like it’s easy, heck I can’t hit the ball out of the infield.”

“Maybe Cody and me can show you how to hit?” Levi smiled and nudged Cody.

“Yeah, with some work the three of us could kick peoples butts together,” Cody smirked.

Blu and Bella stood beside Kyle smiling as they witnessed the three boys bonds growing stronger. Pulling out his phone, Blu got the attention of the instructor.

“Would you please take a photo of my family please?” Blu asked excitedly.

“Absolutely.” the lady smiled. “I wish more families would do this together. You never know when you’re going to need it.”

Blu and Kyle got the family standing tightly together holding up their certificates, while the lady took the photo.

“Oh, that’s brilliant. Lovely,” she said handing Blu’s phone back to him.

He showed Kyle the photo proudly.

“I'm going to frame this and put it on the wall in the pool house, as well as all our certificates. Make it a feature,” Blu said smiling proudly looking at the photo.

“I’m glad the construction will be done it ten days,” Kyle said while smiling at the photo.