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Chapter 2:



Around the time of eight fifteen and 31 seconds that evening, the Littrell household was far from calm and peaceful; rather it was turning chaotic, all thanks to a little bundle of joy known as Bailey Andrew Littrell, who insisted on throwing his dinner all over his pitiful grandfather to start off with, knock a picture frame off a shelf and causing it to break, throwing couch pillows and balls around the living-room in a dangerous manner as his grandfather and great uncle tried to keep up with him, pinching them when they got near...and now...just to make matters worse, something was becoming just a tad bit...hmmm, let's say...STINKY?



"Bailey Andrew Littrell!" Brian screeched as he watched his tiny grandson run away from him as fast as his little legs could carry his body. Brian groaned; of all nights, Bailey had to pick this one to become a hyperactive little monster?...just to put it nicely. "Howie, grab a diaper so we're ready once we finally catch him!"



"What do you mean "we"?" Howie asked, stopping dead in his tracks. Brian stopped and looked at him pleadingly, but Howie only shook his head "no". "Uh-uh...I don't think so, 'Rok."



"Awww, c'mon, D!" Brian continued to plead as he watched Bailey mocking him from behind the large couch. "I'll pay you big bucks to change it! Big bucks! Heck, I'll get Matt to pay you big bucks!"



"No can do, amigo! Knowing YOUR luck, it's one of those really runny diarrhea diapers and I haven't come near to changing one of those since Ana was a baby. And trust me, I don't plan to until Ana has kids of her own. You're on your own with this one!"



"But D-"



"Papa!!!" Bailey screamed at the top of his lungs as he climbed onto a chair that was fairly near his grandfather and stood straight up. Stretching his arms out at full length in front of him, he screamed again. "Papa!!!"



Consequently from letting his mind get thrown off track, Brian had just enough time to turn towards his grandson to see the little boy take a flying leap off the chair and come crashing into his arms. Unfortunately, Brian's balance was also thrown off and he went crashing to the floor, taking Bailey with him. "Argh!" Brian groaned as he laid flat on his back, Bailey bouncing joyessly on his stomach.



"Papa!!!" Bailey giggled with a cheeky grin.



'Just like Matt when he was two' Brian thought with a warm smile as he gently threw Bailey to the ground. "Alright, listen here, kiddo!" he grinned, tickling his grandson's sides and blowing a raspberry on his tummy. Bailey giggled louder. "You need to stop squirming so Papa can change your diaper!"



"No!"



"Yes!"



"NO!!!"



"Tough luck, Bailey. Papa needs to change your diaper! You's stinkay!"



"Way to go on lowering your grandson's selfesteem," Howie joked as he collapsed onto the couch, exhausted, watching the scene on the living-room floor.



"Whatever," Brian replied rolling his eyes and blowing another raspberry on Bailey's tummy. This time he grimaced as an even heavier putrid smell wafted through the air and entered his nose. "C'mon D, I'm givin' ya one last chance to take me up on my offer-"



"No thanks." And Howie was quick with his answer.



"Fine. Be that way," Brian answered childishly as he went to undo the hooks on the straps of Bailey's overalls, then quickly pulled them down. Next, with minimal difficulty, he was able to slip Bailey's yellow t-shirt over his head until the little boy was left dressed in nothing more then the dirty, stinky, diaper.



"No diaper," Bailey growled and tried to get up and crawl away, but Brian was even quicker to grasp hold of one of his legs and tug him back over. "No!"



"Nice try. I know how you work. Papa may be old, but he's not stupid."



"'Tupid?" Bailey asked with curiosity.



"No, only your Uncle Howie."



It took a few seconds for Brian's sentence to register in Howie's tired mind, but when it finally did, his eyes widened. "Hey!"



"Slow are we?" Brian chuckled.



"Watch it, amigo!"



"You really are getting old."



"You're coming right behind me, ya know?"



"But I'm still younger, and I sleep better at night knowing that."



"'Owie 'tupid?" Bailey asked again. Brian only grinned, instead of answering.



"Thanks alot, Bri," Howie moaned and smothered his face with one of the couch pillows that was within his reach. All he heard was Brian's laughter and Bailey's giggles.



"Anytime, buddy. Anytime."



"Poopy?" Bailey giggled in an upward tone as Brian worked at slowly removing the putrid diaper from Bailey's bottom and scrunching his nose as he did so.



"Yes, very poopy...and very stinkay!"



"Poopy!" Bailey agreed, nodding his head.



"And very stinkay!"



"Papa 'tinky?"



"No, Uncle Howie-"



"I'll murder you in your sleep if you finish that sentence!" Howie growled.



"Ouch...need some some midol, D?"



"Shut up!"



"Sorry...could you toss me the wipes and a clean diaper?"



*smack*



Brian glared at the shorter latino as he rubbed at his forehead. "Very funny, Howie..." he grumbled, picking up the soft pack of wipes from the floor after it had bounced off his forehead with the diaper. Rubbing the sore spot a second time, he finally set to the undesirable task of producing a wet wipe and cleaning the "split pea"-brownish goop from his grandson's bottom. Who knew a kid could have possibly pooped this much? "Hey, hey! Stop squirming, pal!" he spoke in a distracted tone as Bailey continuously wiggled his body in an attempt to get away...before he was even clean. His whimpering became more persistant. "C'mon, we're almost done. Just let Papa finish."



"No diapa! No diapa!"



"I can't let you run around nakey. It's too cold."



"Your house is sweltering, 'Rok," Howie stated his opinion.



"For one thing, I find the temperature in my house to be quite comfortable. And another thing, shut up, D! You're not helping!" Brian stated in return, smirking shortly afterwards. He wrapped up his task quickly as the stench became unbearable. "D! Take this to the garbage!"



"I'm not touching that thing!"



"But it stinks!"



"And that's why I'm not touching it."



"Thanks for all the help, man. Can you at least put on the clean one while I throw this away?" Brian's soft blue eyes pleaded pathetically with the latino to do him that favor.



"THAT I can do." Howie smirked, plopping off the couch and crawling the few inches over to the toddler so he was kneeling down to Bailey as Brian ran to throw the stinky diaper away in the garbage in the kitchen. 'He'll defenitely want to take the trash out to night' he thought with a chuckle.



"Papa!" Bailey cried out, his eyes scanning the room quickly after Brian had dissappeared from his sight.



"Hold on, 'Lil One. Uncle Howie is just gonna put this on-"



"No! No diapa!"



"Yes, diapa! Hold still!" It came as quite a surprise to Howie when he found himself struggling to get the diaper on because of the squirming the toddler was doing, but after moments of relentless attempts and failure, Howie was finally able to get Bailey's new diaper on. Much to his luck, too. He finished just as Brian came back, his face a little pale.



"That's why I hate changing diapers. The smell always gets me sick." Brian moaned, sitting down on the couch. Bailey toddled over to him seconds later and struggled to climb on his grandfather's lap. Brian ended up assisting him the rest of the way up and cuddled him tightly in his arms. Relief washed over him when he realized the little boy was extremely tuckered out. This defenitely meant it would be bed time soon for Bailey.



"AHEM!" Howie cleared his throat. "I'm the one who always got stuck changing your girls when they were little, I think you can stand to do it once in awhile when Bailey is over."



"That's not true," Brian attempted to deny as he placed a small kiss on the top of Bailey's head. "I changed their diapers!"



"Name one time!" Howie challenged.



"Um..."



"Ha. See, that's what I thought."



"I changed their diapers alot. You didn't live with me, so how would you know? I just happened to have the skill of bribing you into changing the twins' diapers whenever you were around. And anyway, that doesn't matter. I always changed Matt's diapers."



Howie chuckled as Brian continued to make his claim, then he looked to a tiny pair of drooping blue eyes. Little Bailey was snuggled deeply in his grandfather's arms and was nearly falling asleep. There was no denying that that boy was overly adorable, especially right at that moment. Dressed only in a clean diaper now, his short hair tassled, and his cheeks rosey from exhaustion, he could steal anyone's heart. "Looks like he's about ready to fall asleep, huh?"



Brian smiled as he looked down. "Yep," he answered quietly, kissing the top of Bailey's head again. He would need to take him upstairs and put some pajamas on the boy soon before Bailey actually fell asleep. "I'm going to take him upstairs and put him to bed."



"All right," Howie nodded as he watched Brian carefully get up and head to the baby nursery upstairs that he made for when he had grandchildren. Bailey was the first Littrell grandchild of Brian's to use it. And it made Brian proud.



"Night 'Owie," Bailey called quietly, resting his head on his grandfather's shoulder as Brian carried him up the stairs.



"Nighty night, Bailey," Howie replied, a smile on his face. He couldn't help but smile whenever he was around that toddler. Bailey was always surprising him and everyone else with each of his capabilities. Especially his high vocabulary. At times he would only speak a few words, and other times, it was as if he wouldn't ever shut up. It was those times you could actually hold a fragment of a conversation with the two year old. Turning his attention away from the staircase, Howie switched the TV on and began watching whatever channel it was already set to. A movie half way through was already playing and Howie immediately recognized it as "The Godfather". That's when someone knocked on the door, causing Howie to jump where he was sitting on the couch. 'Who the heck is that?' he wondered, getting up unwillingly to answer the door. Upon opening it, though, a grin formed on his face. "Kev!?"



"D!" Kevin's voice pierced the air with just as much surprise. For a moment, both of them stood in shock, before finally pulling each other into an almost forgotten "brotherly" hug. "Man, it's been a long time!" Kevin voiced as he stepped through the doorway and Howie shut the door.



"Too long!" Howie agreed, with a quick nod. "What brings you over here?" he questioned with curiousity and seeing that Kevin was alone, he added, "And where's Kristin?"



"Kris? Where's Kris? Argh! Don't EVEN ask me where that woman is!" Kevin exclaimed, his eyes bulging out in a sort of odd way.



Howie was a little surprised by Kevin's outburst. "The two of you having problems?" He was a little uncertain on how to ask the question, but the stress in Kevin's eyes pressed him to.



"No, WE'RE not having problems. SHE'S the one having problems!" Kevin answered as his dark eyebrows furled immensly. "D, I swear, I'm about ready to tear my graying hair out because of that woman's antics! I don't know what her problem is!"



Howie chuckled as he motioned for Kevin to follow him over to the couch. "I'm still not understanding," he replied, trying to stay as completely serious as he possibly could. It wasn't that easy though, not with the look Kevin held on his face.



"God, it's like she's pregnant or something! Every little thing sets her off!" Kevin paced the living-room in a furious manner; Howie was almost afraid that the older Ketuckian was going to go bang his head against the wall a couple of times. "Tonight was our anniversary and I had made this great dinner for her, right? Because I thought she'd really like it. And to make it even better, I accompanied it with a bunch of gifts and what not. I even did the "rose thing" because I know she loves roses. So what does she say when she gets home? The moment she steps through the door, she goes "What is all this for? Kevin, I'm tired, I don't wanna do this right now...". For Christ's sake, it's our ANNIVERSARY, D! Argh!" Kevin tugged on his dark hair, which was sparatically streaked with silver. Howie had to bite his tongue so he wouldn't laugh.



"Maybe she's going through menopause?" he suggested lightly.



Kevin's emerald eyes narrowed along with his eyebrows at the shorter latino. "Meno-what?" he asked with the slightest bit of confusion. Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. "Oh! You mean that thing our moms' went through back in the day?"



Howie couldn't hold his laughter back. That sounded all too much like something Nick would have said years ago. "Yeah, that 'thing'. Just give her time, man, it takes awhile."



Kevin sighed, "Exactly how long?"



"Ah well, could take years, ya know? I mean, I've heard of women being in menopause for up to ten years or so-"



"TEN YEARS?!"



"Yeah."



Kevin growled out in frustration. "Just put me out of my misery now!"



Howie busted up at that moment. "Calm down, Kev. It's not always this bad."



Kevin rolled his eyes and collapsed onto the couch, crossing his arms over his chest in a stubborn manner. "Anyway, how's everything going with you and Ana?" he asked, forcing his mind towards other things besides his menopausal wife.



"Ana and I? We're doing good," Howie answered, nodding his head.



"She's doing ok?" Kevin clarified.



"Yeah, she's doing great."



"What about you then? How have you been? I mean, it's been a while since we've actually been able to talk to one another. It's kind of regretful, ya know?"



"We have our own lives. There's no real blame."



"I know. But seriously, Howie...how have you been doing lately?"



Howie raised his eyebrows as he glanced at his friend and saw genuine concern in Kevin's emerald eyes. "I'm doing better, if that's what you're wondering..." he answered quietly, looking back at the TV. "It's still hard, but I'm doing better..." His voice was near a whisper this time.



Kevin understood and dropped the subject there, seeing that Howie wasn't up to speaking about it. "Where's Bri-" he'd begun to ask, but didn't get the chance to even finish his sentence as a pair of feet came pounding down the staircase and the two men looked up just in time to see Brian's returning form. "I spoke to soon," he muttered as Brian stumblef off the last step upon seeing his cousin seated in his living-room.



"Kev? What are ya doin' here?" were the first words to slip from Brian's mouth. Howie rolled his eyes, Kevin let out a short laugh (more of a snort) as a smile played at his lips, and Brian's cheeks turned a shade of crimson. "Sorry," he apologized sheepishly, biting down softly on his bottom lip.



"Hi to you, too, cuz," Kevin replied with amusement at the sudden discomfort that his cousin was feeling.



"Well this is surprising," Brian noted as he walked over to stand in front of his cousin. "Why'd ya come over?"



"He never has been good with his greetings," Kevin told Howie, shooting the latino a side-ways glance.



"Funny," Brian shot back with sarcasm.



"He's here because he's having women trouble," Howie explained.



"Trouble doesn't even begin to explain it!" Kevin continued, that same look passing over his eyes as before. The "I want to tear all of my hair out and ram my head into a wall" look.



"What's going on?" Brian asked. "Wait, shouldn't you be at home? I thought it was you and Kristin's anniverysary-"



"Yeah, so did I," Kevin grumbled.



"Uh-oh..."



"Ok, tell me honestly, now...if you came home and found an awesome five star meal prepared for your enjoyment, gifts and roses to accompany it-"



"You trying to say I'm a girl?"



Kevin glared. "Shut up and let me finish."



"Sorry. Go ahead."



"If you came home to find all of this waiting for you, wouldn't you be the least bit...hmmm, let's say...happy?"



"Sure, why not?"



"Yeah, that's what I thought, too."



"So spit it out, Kev. What happened?"



"I had all of what I just said waiting for Kris when she arrived home from her errands. I really thought she would have been ecstatic. I mean, dang, I worked hard and all to make it perfect since it is our anniversary and what is the first thing she says when she walks through the door and sees everything? "What is all this for? Kevin, I'm tired, I don't wanna do this right now..."."



Brian's mouth was let slightly agape as Kevin explained why he wasn't at home on his anniversary with his wife. "Are you serious?" he asked dumbly, feeling a strain of pity for his cousin. Kevin looked more then dissappointed because of what had happened.



"More then serious."



"Man..."



"Yeah. Then she left me standing there, roses in my hand, and went to our room. Well, I figure, hmmm...might as well go talk to her and see what's biting her butt."



"Biting her butt, cuz?"



"Shut up."



"Continue."



"She locked herself in our room and wouldn't even answer me. So, finally, I just gave up and left. I needed to get out of the house, because trust me, I was steaming by then."



"That's a real drag-"



"I told him that Kristin's probably going through menopause," Howie chuckled, seeing the horrified look spread across Kevin's aging face for a second time.



"Good explanation, D. But for this to happen on your anniversary, that just...sucks."



"Yeah, tell me about..." Kevin trailed.



"But hey, it's cool you came over here. Haven't seen ya much lately."



"I figured you wouldn't mind. I didn't want to bother anyone else anyway."



"Oh, so you only came over here to bother me?"



"You know want I meant," Kevin answered, rolling his eyes. "So where were you when I got here?"



Brian grinned and motioned towards the ceiling. "I was putting Bailey to bed."



"Ah, got the grandkid tonight?"



"For the whole weekend actually. Matt talked me into keeping him for the weekend; he said he and Ariane needed some "alone" time."



"Not like it took much for him to talk you into it."



"Hey, watch it. You're just jealous that you don't get to see your grandkids as often."



"I wonder why, Bri...doesn't help that they live in another state." Kevin chuckled.



"Still!" Brian stuck his tongue out in an utmost immature fashion. This gesture caused all three men to bust up laughing as it was things like this that reminded them of their early youth. Those were the good memories, the ones most cherished.



"Real mature, `Rok," Howie continued to laugh as Kevin rolled his eyes.



"Shut up, man," Brian scowled playfully in return. "C'mon, Cuz, maybe if we watch the Discovery Health channel, we'll be lucky enough to catch some advice on how to handle teenage daughters and menopausal wives," he added hastily, plopping down in his lazy boy recliner that was next to the couch.



"Teenage daughters? Something going on with the twins?" Kevin asked.



"Not the TWINS. Jessica." Brian sighed, tugging at his own graying hair. He kicked up the foot stool and leaned back in the chair, resting his eyes shut for a second.



"Don't you just love being a parent?" Kevin chuckled, but fell quiet as Brian peaked his eyes open to glare at him. Kevin cleared his throat. "Ok, uh...so, what happened?"



"I'm gonna ground her for the rest of her life," Brian muttered.



"Or until she, Ana, and Stephanie leave to go to the movies tonight?" Howie said in a tone that was more of a statement, rather then a question.



Brian sighed. "Yeah, yeah...sure, whatever."



"Maybe if you watch the Discovery Health Channel long enough, you'll find some parenting advice on how to not be so much of a softy."



"Who are you to talk?" Brian shot, a wry grin on his face. "You wouldn't know, because Ana has never given you any trouble."



"I think it's genes. You see, both you and Leigh were stubborn. That's how Jessica is. Like I said earlier, she's just rebelling. Most kids do that at her age. Just be happy Stephanie isn't like that."



"Stephanie. Man, if all teens were like her, there would be no problems in this world!" Kevin and Howie laughed at Brian exaggerations.



"Yeah, she hasn't ever given me the trouble Jessica does!"



"Twins are always opposites, Bri. It was gonna be her or Jessica."



"And she'll grow out of it too," Kevin added with optimism for Brian's sake. "...Sooner or later..."



"Knowing my luck, if ever, it will be much later," Brian chose to say as his eyes were drawn up towards the ceiling when they all heard loud voices ring out from upstairs. He about ready to yell up at them to quiet down.



"Keep looking at it that way, cuz, and you'll jinx yourself. Trust me, Jessica will grow out of it. All of my kids went through their own stage of rebellion."



Brian nodded unwillingly as he continued to look up at the ceiling. "Hey! Y'all need to quiet down up there! Bailey's sleeping!" he yelled as he stood up from the recliner abruptly. The noise died down at once and he looked to see Howie and Kevin smirking at him. "What? You would have done the same thing if you were me! You don't want Bailey to be woken up. Trust me, that kid is a monster if he is woken up before he gets enough sleep. He's cute when he's awake, but if he's woken up, well, we'll just leave it at that."



"I have to agree with you on that, Brian. Especially if he needs a diaper change." Howie made a face as Kevin laughed.



"All part of raising kids."



"Yeah, yeah, yeah, old man." Brian snickered.



Kevin glared at him. "Yeah, but at least I know what I'm talking about." He had to chuckle at the stumped look that crossed Brian's face.



"That's besides the point!" Brian replied as Ana, Stephanie and Jessica chose that moment to come barreling down the stairs.



"KEVIN!" they all squealed after noticing the Kentuckian, running to him on the couch.



"Ahhh! Help!" Kevin cried out as the girls burried him under a massive set of three hugs. "Uh, girls? I can't breath!"



Kevin's voice came out muffled and the girls all jumped back. "Sorry Uncle Kevin," Ana apologized with a wide grin. "We just wanted to see how long you could actually hold your breath. Well, Steph, Jess...it wasn't long. Check him off on the "Old Fart" chart. He's defenitely ahead of Papi and Uncle Brian!"



"Hey!" three male voices chorused at Ana's reply.



"What?" Ana grinned innocently. "I said he's ahead of you guys."



"Anita," Howie spoke in a dangerously low voice, referring to his daughter as "Little Ana" in spanish. He couldn't help but chuckle as she turned to look at him, showing him that she was only joking around in good fun.



"Hey Papi? Can I borrow twenty?" Ana immediately asked, holding out her hand.



"What?!" Howie exclaimed in disbelief. "She disses on her father, then asks to borrow money? ¡Ay caramba!"



"Oh, come on, ¿por favor? It's only veinte! Besides, it's just to the movies, and those places are expensive."



"Please Uncle Howie? Please?" Stephanie begged.



"Yeah, Uncle Howie, let Ana come with us. It's no fun without her." Jessica added.



"Papi?" Ana asked again, batting her eyelashes as she continued to hold out her hand. She knew just exactly how to wear her father down and get him to cave in to what she wanted. Howie looked at Brian and Kevin, and they knew he was going to give in when they saw the puppy dog face Ana was now giving her father.



"All right, all right. VEINTE. No more than that," Howie answered, his expression dead serious that he wasn't going to give her anymore then what she'd asked for as he reached into his back pocket for his wallet. "And I expect you to be back here by your curfew. Understood?"



"Yeah, yeah, yeah..." Ana rolled her eyes.



"Anita."



"Sí, papi."



"Overprotective much, Uncle Howie?" Stephanie giggled as Ana snatched the crisp twenty dollar bill from her father. "Don't worry...we'll bring her back safe and sound."



"Safe and sound?" Jessica repeated, looking at her sister with a mysterious look. "Actually, we can't garauntee that she will come back in one piece. So don't bet your money on it-"



"Jessica," Brian scolded.



"Yes, yes, I know. Bye," Jessica waved to her father, but hugged Howie and Kevin. "Bye Uncle Howie. Bye Kevin. We'll be back later. Don't worry about us, we'll be fine." She grabbed the keys to Stephanie's '67 red Ford Mustang and headed out the door.



"Bye, Daddy," Stephanie also spoke as she leaned down to offer her father a hug and kiss.



"Have fun, sweetie," Brian smiled, content that at least one of his daughter's cared enough to show a bit of affection towards him.



"Adios, papi." Ana hugged Howie as well when Stephanie started heading towards the door. After their short good-byes, both girls went out to the mustang where Jessica was already waiting in the driver's seat. Even with the doors shut, they could hear Jessica's Eminem cd blaring from the car stereo. The bass system in the car was being overworked from the volume.



"She acts as if she owns it. It's my car," Stephanie mockingly whined as she watched her twin through the window mouthing the lyrics to song and making hand gestures. "And who said she could drive it tonight anyway? I wanna drive!"



"Why don't you just open the driver's side door. Pull her out, then climb in yourself. After all, like you said, it is your car," Ana suggested, her voice dripping with amusement.



Stephanie only shrugged back in reply and went straight for the passenger side door, deciding it wasn't worth arguing with her sister over who would be driving that night. Stephanie was just like their father, so she knew she would end up relenting and letting Jessica drive. "Could you at least turn that down if you're going to drive?" she shouted over the music as her and Ana climbed in.



"What?!" Jessica called back, squinting at her sister.



Stephanie reached over and pressed the 'power' button. The music immediately died out. "I said, turn it down."



"You suck. That was a good song," Jessica glared.



"Well, if you're going to listen to it, then turn the volume down a notch. I don't plan on blowing my speakers anytime soon."



"Ah, can it!" Jessica grinned, pressing the 'power' button to turn the stereo back on again. Once more the car was filled with the blaring rap music as Jessica put the car into reverse and quickly directed the car out of the driveway. "Let's blow this joint," she muttered and sped off down the road.



*****



"So, D, what brought you here to Bri's today?" Kevin asked as they sat around the poker table in the rec room, deeply involved in an intense poker game. He reached for his soda and took a long drink before placing one of his cards down.



"Huh?" Howie replied in a distracted tone as he studied his cards carefully, taking note of what he could do. He needed to win this hand as he was betting big bucks with Kevin and he'd be damned to lose this time. Brian wasn't part of this round as he'd had to excuse himself from the table minutes earlier when they all heard the sound of Bailey's crying filter through the baby monitor Brian had placed on the table. Now they could hear Brian softly singing a lullaby to his grandson, and Bailey's whimpering was slowing dying out.



"I asked what brought you to Bri's today?" Kevin repeated himself, looking at Howie with a questioning glance. The shorter latino was deep in concentration. "D!"



"Oh! Sorry!" Howie grinned sheepishly, finally placing a card down and looking up at Kevin. His eyes lit up. "You remember that old plantation I mentioned about a while back and how I was thinking about buying it?"



"That one out on Shelton Rd?"



"Yep, that's the one."



"Yeah, I remember. What about it?" Kevin grinned as he smacked his card down and waited for Howie to make his move.



"I bought it," Howie answered shortly, drawing a card from the stack. "Alright. I got a two pair. Whatcha got?"



Kevin's grin widened even further. "Full house."



Howie's mouth dropped open when Kevin showed him his cards. "¡Hijo de la puta!" he exclaimed in frustration as Kevin pocketed the money both he and Howie had bet. "¡Caray!"



"Say what?!" Kevin laughed at the expression on the latino's face.



"Nothing," Howie grumbled, throwing his cards onto the table.



"Aw, c'mon...you only lost fifty dollars..."



"Yeah, exactly. That makes me fifty dollars poorer now."



"Bet me again and try to win it back. You were dealt a bad hand."



"Fine. Deal," Howie challenged.



"Anyway, tell me about the plantation. You actually bought it?"



"Yeah, and I'm glad too. I just feel like Ana and I need to get out of the house we have. I know she's been gone for a year now, but it's so hard with all the memories in there..." Howie trailed off, reading the hand he was just dealt and getting deep into his bout of concentration again. Kevin nodded, understanding completely. "So, I bought the house. The papers were finalized a couple of days ago."



"Whoa. That's a huge project, man. How much is it gonna cost for you to hire a crew to fix the place up for you?"



That's when Howie looked up at the older man with a weird smile on his face. "Not gonna cost me anything at all," he answered.



"Nothing at all? Where'd you find that crew?"



"Actually, I was thinking about getting us all together. Ya know, invite everyone to the plantation to help renovate it ourselves. I mean, how long has it been since the five of us have been together?"



"You really want to do that?"



"Yeah, I already discussed it with Brian and he agreed to help out. He'd like to see everyone together again and so would I. I was thinking that after I discussed it with you, I would get a hold of AJ and Nicky and see what they have to say. You have to admit that it would be cool for all of us to get together again. It's been too long."



"You're definitely right about that," Kevin agreed with a nod of his head as he drew a card from the deck.



Howie was about to open his mouth to continue when he saw something sticking out of Kevin's sleeve. He narrowed his eyes. "Hey! What's that?"



"What's what?" Kevin asked, trying to look innocent.



"You little cheater! You have a card in your sleeve!"



"I do not!" Kevin defended himself.




"You do too, amigo!" Howie claimed.



"Man, D, I can't believe you would accuse me of such a thing!"



"Then what's this, huh?" Howie reached over and snatched the card from Kevin's sleeve and held it in front of his face. "Explain!"



"Hmmm...wonder how that got there," Kevin shrugged with a smirk.



"¡Eres el cerdo sucio!"



"Man, that's not fair! Stop with the spanish! For all I know, you could have just called me something like a hairy pig!"



"Actually, I called you a filthy pig, but that's besides the point. You cheat. I want my money back."



"Aw, but I-" Kevin stopped short, noting the glare he was receiving from the Latino. "All right, all right," He took out the money in his pocket and handed it to Howie unwillingly. "Sorry man, but you're easily tricked."



"You still shouldn't cheat! Ay, yi, yi!" Howie had to chuckle. A pair of feet came pounding down the stairs to the rec room at that moment and Brian came bounding into the room. That's when the two men realized that they no longer heard any sound coming from the baby monitor.



"Hey, y'all. Who won the game?"



"At first, it was your primo. Now it's me!" Howie cackled as Kevin frowned.



"He called me a filthy pig," Kevin noted as Brian took his seat again.



"For shame!" Brian mockingly scolded Howie.



"In spanish," Kevin added.



"Good job, D!" Brian cackled along with Howie.



Kevin frowned further. "I no longer like the both of you."



"We're heartbroken, Kev. Really, we are," Howie joked.



Kevin rolled his eyes just as his cellphone rang from within the confines of his pants pocket. Undisturbed from the ringing, he reached in and pulled the device out, glancing at the caller id screen. "Uh-oh..." he mumbled.



"Who is?" Brian and Howie asked in unison with curiosity. The two of them looked at each other and busted up.



"It's Kris..."



"Dun, dun, DUN!" Brian laughed.



"Shush up, man!" Kevin glared as he proceeded to answer the phone. "Hello? Yeah, I'm at Brian's... What? Yeah, I had done it for you, it is our anniversary, you know. Uh-uh, yeah... okay. Yup, I love you too. Bye." He hung up with a smile on his face.



"Well?" Howie asked.



"Kris wants me to come home. She feels bad about tonight and wants to make it up to me. I gotta go." Kevin got up from his chair and walked over to the staircase to head to the first floor and gain access to the front door.



"Oooh, Kev's gonna have fun tonight-- minus the money he lost to me!" Howie laughed.



Kevin only grinned. "I'll call ya guys later." And with that, he was gone.



*****



"You better lose yourself in the music / The moment / You own it / You better never let it go / You only get one shot / Do not miss your chance to blow / This opportunity comes once in a lifetime yo!" The lyrics blasted from the stereo in Stephanie's mustang as Jessica directed the car down one of the busy streets of the city where they lived. "Man, I love this guy! Too bad he ain't around in the music business anymore!" Jessica stated as she bopped her head to the beat, tapping her hands on the steering wheel.



"Where'd you get this cd?" Ana called loudly from the backseat as she leaned forward a bit to try to be heard.



"Uh, I think Uncle Nick gave it to me! It used to be his cd!" Jessica answered. "You better lose yourself in the music / The moment / You own it / You better never let it go / You only get one shot / Do not miss your chance to blow / This opportunity comes once in a lifetime yo!"



"Why'd he give it to you for?" came Stephanie's question.



Jessica looked at her sister as if she'd been offended. "Because I was looking through his cd collection the last time he was visiting dad and I popped the cd into my cd player. He walked into the room and saw that I was listening it. He said something like, "Oh, didn't know you liked old time rap from when I was your age." I laughed and he gave me the cd."



"That's Uncle Nick for ya."



"Yeah, my dad said he was always acting blonde back in the day," Ana noted.



"I wouldn't doubt it," the twins replied in unison.



"Uh, Jess...you just missed the street the theater is on!" Stephanie spoke as she looked out her window in confusion when Jessica directed the car straight on past the street they were supposed to turn on to.



"I know," Jessica answered, staring straight ahead.



"What do you mean you know?"



"We're not going to the movies."



"Excuse me?" Ana asked from the backseat.



"Prima, hand me my purse, ¿por favor?" Jessica kept her eyes glued to the road as she held her hand behind her head in anticipation of Ana handing her what she wanted. When she felt the object hit her hand, she brought it in view and began to blindly dig inside until she finally found what she was looking for. Pulling three objects out, she handed them to Stephanie. "Here, find your's and give Ana's to her."



Stephanie took only a second to look at them and her jaw dropped. "FAKE IDs?! Where did you get these?!"



"I have my ways," Jessica grinned, side-glancing at her sister. "Just give Ana her's so we can have some fun!"



Ana and Stephanie exchanged worried looks as they looked at the plastic cards they had been presented with. "Where are we going?" Ana decided to ask for both her and Stephanie. She could feel something nagging at the pit of her stomach as she looked at the card again.



"Oh, just this place downtown."



"Jess-"



"It's a club I heard about and I've been wanting to check it out for quite some time now. But you need to be 21 to get in, so I got us these IDs made up."



"You're nuts! We can't go there!"



"Yes we can. That's what the IDs are for."



"They'll never let us in."



"C'mon, Ana! Live dangerously for once! It'll be fun!"



"The one time I live dangerously will be the time I get killed by papi," Ana replied, shaking her head in disgust at the idea her cousin was brewing. Just looking at the prospect of the idea, Ana knew it was no good.



"We won't get caught, don't worry about it!"



"Jessica, this is the most dumbest thing you have ever made us do. If dad ever finds out-" Stephanie had begun to argue, but Jessica shot her a stern glare, silencing her immediately.



"He won't, all right? Let's just have fun!" With that said, Jessica grinned. Sighing, Stephanie and Ana nodded in defeat, watching as the car was directed into the parking lot of the club. The place had to be popular as the lot was jammed with cars and a line of people stood outside the entrance doors, waiting anxiously to get inside. All three girls climbed out of the car once Jessica had killed the engine, and began making their way up to get in line.



"Jess-" Stephanie tried one last time.



"Just c'mon! I'm not gonna let you ruin my Saturday night! This will be fun. Nothing is going to happen!" Jessica reassured her sister as she tugged on their arms and pulled them into line.



'That's what you say every time you get one of your crazy ideas like this...' Stephanie thought, listening to the music pounding through the walls from inside. If it was this loud outside, then she could only imagine how loud it was inside. Glancing at her side, she saw the same nervous stare pass through Ana's eyes and she playfully nugged the girl in the ribs, trying to get her attention. "Let's just get this over with," she told her loud enough to be heard over the music, but quiet enough so it wouldn't catch Jessica's attention.



"Yeah, yeah," Ana groaned as they moved up in line. Groaning, she looked down at the ID again, skimming the information. "Well, at least she made me an inch taller then I actually am..."



Stephanie grinned at her cousin's sense of humor as a stream of people were let inside and they suddenly found themselves standing face to face with the club's bouncer. The two girls gulped while Jessica stood up to the bouncer casually. "Hey," she greeted.



"ID," the bouncer growled in a monotone voice, clearly not wanting to strike up a conversation of any sorts. Jessica shot the bouncer a dark look, but handed him her ID. The burly man looked over the ID carefully, looking up at Jessica every few seconds as if to compare what he was reading and seeing. Finally, he handed her the card back and motioned for her to go inside. Jessica grinned, snatching the card back and waiting for her sister and cousin. "Go," the bouncer growled towards the other two, and together, with Jessica, they stepped inside.



The music inside was a magnitude of ten times louder then it had been outside. Bodies swarmed all over the place; couples danced close to one another (some casually and others more freakishly), groups sat at tables trying to be heard over the blaring music as they held conversations and drank what ever it was that was in the glass in front of them, others were making their way onto the dance floor, through the crowd with a drink, or up to the bar to order a drink. Jessica's eyes quickly scanned the dance floor, a grin on her face, before leading Stephanie and Ana over to a high table with three stool-chairs. "You guys want anything to drink?" she yelled.



"No," Stephanie and Ana answered, their voices barely heard in unison.



"All right, suit yourselves. Meet me at the front door when this place closes if we lose each other." Jessica turned around when all she recieved was a nod from both of them and headed to the bar, noticing a lot of guys checking her out. That made her smile. Scott wasn't around that night...so what would a little bit of harmless flirting do?



Stepping up, the bartender, who sported green spiked hair and a dark t-shirt that clung to his abs, looked her over closely. "What can I get ya, honey?" He asked finally.



"A strawberry margarita, please," Jessica replied without hesitation, smiling. He nodded, making it quick as she placed the money down on the bar. After placing the drink on the counter, he reached for the money, but from nowhere a hand grabbed his wrist, catching the bartender in surprise.



"Give this pretty lady her money back. The drink is on me," a raspy voice sounded, suddenly so close to Jessica's ear. If she wouldn't have been thinking clearly, she would have guessed it was her Uncle AJ who had spoken, but that was HIGHLY unlikely. She watched as the bartender nodded and pushed the money back towards her as this mystery person's money replaced it. The fingers sported several silver rings. 'Too much like Uncle AJ...' Jessica thought with a shudder.



"Thanks for the drink," Jessica spoke as she turned around to see exactly who this person was, immediately becoming face to face with short brown spiked hair, deep chocolate orbs, and a decent six pack that was shown off from his tight-fitting wife beater he sported.



"Name's Brett," he answered, seemingly reading the question on Jessica's mind.



"Well, Brett..." Jessica began, hinting a bit of seductiveness in her sapphire eyes. "Was that the best pick up line you could possibly have come up with?"



He chuckled. "Naw, I have better, but you looked so damn good from where I was standing, it was all I could think of right then."



Jesscia giggled, kind of liking this Brett. 'A lot more fit than Scott, that's for sure,' She thought, looking over Brett's body again. "So, how old are you?" She asked casually as she watched him lean against the counter with a sly grin on his face.



"23. How about you?" Brett replied, his dark eyes seeming to go straight through her soul.



"21," Jessica replied, remembering the age on her I.D.



"Cool. Is anyone else with you?"



"Yeah, my sister and cousin. They're over at that table right there." Jessica pointed to Stephanie and Ana, finding that they were flirting with some equally cute guys that looked to be around Brett's age. 'Ha, I told them tonight was going to be fun,' she thought with a grin.



"Ah, my friends and I have the same taste," Brett mentioned, following Jessica's gaze.



"Pardon?"



"Your sister and cousin are talking to my friends."



"Oh, I see," Jessica replied, getting even more confident about her being right.



"Let's go and see how my boys are doing," Brett said and grabbed Jessica's arm a little tightly as she struggled to drink her margarita and keep up with his pace.



*****



The guy standing closest to Stephanie, stepped even closer and rubbed himself against her. "How about we go to my apartment tonight?" he asked in a low and seductive voice.



"How about you take a jump off a cliff?" Stephanie spat back, pushing him away and grabbing her Vanilla Coke. She quickly threatened to throw it in his face if he didn't back off further.



"Hey, Ana, why don't we leave these two and go out on the floor?" the other said to Ana.



"I'd rather get my teeth pulled," she snapped, finding absolutely no interest in this person whatsoever. She was just going along with it at the beginning to have fun, now he was just becoming annoying. He was like an annoying bug and she just wanted to squish him between her fingers.



"That can be arranged." He snarled, grabbing the back of her neck.



"You wouldn't dare throw that," Stephanie's 'date' replied, daring her to even try.



"Wanna bet, asshole?" Stephanie growled as an answer and without second thought, threw the soda directly in his face to prove her point.



The guy steamed as the brown liquid dripped from his face and stained his shirt. "You blonde bitch!" he screeched, reaching forward to slap Stephanie across her right cheek.



"Don't fucking touch my sister you bastard!" Jessica screamed as she slammed her body against the guy that was getting ready to harm her sister. Her blood boiled through her veins at such a thought and she fell into her infamous protective mode.



"Jess!" Stephanie cried out in shock as her sister came out of nowhere.



"Fuck you, slut!" the guy who had been doing the harassing cursed as he stumbled back onto his feet. This time he went towards Jessica, all the while Stephanie and Ana watched on in shock.



"Don't even think about hitting me. If you do, I swear I'll hand you your balls in a doggy bag!" Jessica growled.



"Jess, this isn't worth it, let's just-" Ana started to say as the other guy grabbed the back of her neck, causing a screech of pain to escape her lips."



"Let go of her!" Stephanie yelled, trying to get Ana free of his grasp. Brett took this opprotunity to slap Stephanie across the face, breaking her lip open.



"That's for causing all this shit to happen, you stupid fuck!"



Upon seeing what Brett had done to her sister, Jessica turned away from the jerk she was yelling at and lunged at Brett. Before he could even react, she had tackled him to the floor and began to send her fist into his face, not caring that a large crowd had begun to gather and who was watching. All she cared was that this guy had just violated her in one of the worst ways and she was going to make him pay. "You stupid son of a bitch! How dare you touch my sister like that! I'll kill you!" she screamed as Brett struggled with her helplessly.



"Jessica! STOP!" Ana screamed at her cousin.



"You fucking asshole!" Jessica raged as Brett tried to swing at her, but she quickly dodged the blow and kneed him in the crotch.



"FUCK!" Brett cried out in pain. He kicked Jessica in the side, causing her to fall backwards into Stephanie and Ana's arms.



"Jess, c'mon, we gotts get out of here!" Stephanie ordered in a hurry as they tried to weave through the crowds.



"Come back here, you little bitches!" the three guys called.



"Fucking say that to my face!" Jessica yelled as she broke away from Stephanie and Ana and charged back at the guys. This time she succeeded in knocking two of them down, but was more inclined to causing damage against Brett. "Stupid motherfucker!"



"ALRIGHT! BREAK IT UP! BREAK IT UP!" a loud voice boomed and a strong pair of hands pulled Jessica off of Brett. Jessica struggled for a moment before the voice spoke again. "COOL IT DOWN NOW, MISS!" Jessica turned her gaze behind her and nearly fell limp when she saw who it was. An officer from the police department...a person she most dreaded to see that night. She was really in for it now. "This is officer Taney! I'm down at Club Fiesta responding to the disturbance that was dispatched a minute ago! I'm going to need assistance here right away!"



*****



"Well, it's almost time for the twins' curfew. I swear, if Jessica brings them home one minute late..." Brian trailed off as he and Howie played some pool in the rec room, after having gotten bored of the endless poker games after Kevin had left. He missed the pocket by mere centimeters.



"`Rok, calm down. With Steph and Ana there, I'm sure nothing will go wrong," Howie replied with concentration , taking his turn and easily sinking in the striped 6 ball.



"You don't know my daughter very well, do you?" Brian asked dryly as he got ready to take his shot. Right when he did, the doorbell rang, causing him to yelp and make the 8 ball fly off the table. He grinned sheepishly as Howie laughed at his mishap, tossing the ball back onto the pool table.



"I'll go answer the door," Howie offered and began to hurry up the stairs. "Take your shot, but no cheating!" he joked back over his shoulder.



"Who said I ever cheat?" Brian mumbled and began to line up his shot. Once he was sure he had a defenite sinker shot, he pulled the pool stick back...



"Brian!"



Brian yelped again and watched as the 8 ball flew off the table a second time. "Dangit, Howie! What is it?!" he growled under his breath, dropping his pool stick on the table and running up the stairs. Upon reaching the living-room, he noticed Howie standing by the open front door and came to a halt, ready to question him when he saw the officer from the police department standing in the doorway.



"Mr. Littrell?" the officer asked.



"Y-yeah, that's me," Brian replied nervously, fear sinking into his stomach and forming a ball.



"I'm officer Taney," the officer explained, then stepped aside and in walked the hesitant forms of Jessica, Stephanie, and Ana.



Brian stood there in shock as he watched them walk through the doorway, none of them looking up to lock gazes with him. Looking at Howie with confusion and recieving the same stare back, Brian looked at the officer again. "What's going on?" he almost demanded the answer.



"Well, it seems like these young ladies decided to get some fake IDs, go to 'Club Fiesta' and get into a little fight," Officer Taney explained. Stephanie and Ana winced at the story, but Jessica just folded her arms over her chest. "I just happened to be driving by the club when the disturbance was dispatched over the radio, so I witnessed a little of what happened."



"Excuse me? Did you just say the words 'fake IDs', 'Club Fiesta' and 'fight' which concerned my daughters?" Brian asked in disbelief. He looked at his girls, eyes bugging out as he saw dried blood on Stephanie's lip and shirt. He reeled with concern, but the feeling was quickly replaced with anger and dissappointment.



"And my daughter?" Howie added.



"I'm sorry to say so, but yes. Did either of you know this was going to happen?" Taney asked, crossing his arms over his chest in the same manner Jessica had.



"No, no clue at all," Howie answered, now looking at Ana in disbelief.



"And you didn't know about the fake IDs they had in their possession?"



"Once again, no. They claimed they were going to the movies tonight." The words dripped from Brian's lips in an icy tone. He couldn't believe the sight he was seeing or the story he was being told.



"You do realize that it is a crime to obtain fake IDs and enter a club underage?" Taney seemed to be directing the question more towards the girls, but Brian answered with a "yes" as Taney silenced his walkie-talkie that was on his shoulder. "It's actually a misdemeanor charge."



Ana looked away in shame when she felt her father's dissapointed stare baring down on her. "How big of a misdemeanor?" Howie asked, not taking his eyes off his daughter. This was unbelievable.



"That all depends sir. But not only did they enter a club underage with the use of fake IDs, but they proceeded to start a fight with three others-"



"We didn't start the fight!" Jessica exclaimed, her eyes masked with fury.



Brian shot his daughter a death look. "Hush your mouth, NOW, Jessica Marie!" he growled.



Stephanie nudged Jessica, which made her shut up. "Daddy, it wasn't our-"



"Stephanie Holly, you're in enough trouble as it is, just keep quiet!" Brian snapped. This startled her, but she quickly obeyed, knowing not to push it.



"As I was saying, they did start a fight, BUT witnesses say the men had started it more so. So, the misdemeanor stands at an eighty dollar each. They're very lucky, this isn't going to be on their records." Brian and Howie sighed in some relief. "But, they are now forever banned from that club, as are the men who harrassed them."



"That's perfectly acceptable," Howie nodded in agreement. "I apologize for this happening, officer."



"I apologize too. And I hope I don't hear of this happening again with them. Otherwise, next time, they won't get off so easily."



"It won't happen again. I can gaurantee you that," Brian replied, tapping his foot dangerously on the ground.



"Well, sirs, if you can handle this from here, I will be leaving now."



"Yes. And thank-you for bringing them home."



The officer nodded and walked out the door, shutting it behind himself.



The three girls looked at each other nervously as Howie and Brian stared at them.



"Well? Where's the explanation?" Howie demanded.



"Papi, it wasn't our fault! Those guys-" Ana started to say.



"It doesn't matter who did what in that club! The point is that you went to it in the first place!" Brian interrupted.



"Daddy, Ana and I didn't know we were going there, but Jess-"



"And Stephanie! What happened to your lip?!"



"One of the assholes slapped Steph across the face!" Jessica growled as they all were forced to collapsed onto the couch to be interrogated.



"Watch your mouth, young lady!" Brian hissed.



"Jess, just shut up for once! You're the one who got us into this mess by buying those IDs!" Stephanie bluted. She immediately slapped a hand over her mouth and winced when she hit her open sore.



"WHAT?!" both Howie and Brian exclaimed. Jessica stared at her sister with hatred.



"Um, that's not what I said. I meant-"



"You better start explaning right now, Jessica Marie Littrell!"



"No! It's not that big of a deal!" Jessica claimed, glaring at her sister with even more hatred.



"Not a big deal?!" Howie exclaimed. "¡El infierno eso es no importa, Jessica! ¡Está comprando la licencia falsa, está tirando sus ellas con tu, y está llevando a cabo esto ejercicio! ¡Tiene mucho atrevimiento a pretender eso es no importa!"



Brian's mouth dropped open as he blinked in shock, listening to the words racing off Howie's tongue freely. He could tell that it had shocked Jessica too, as her eyes snapped up to look at her uncle in fear.



"This is great. I get a lecture in Español and English," Jessica muttered.



"Jessica, this is what you deserve! Who in Hell gave you the idea to do this?!" Brian exclaimed.



"It was my own god damned idea, you hijo de la puta! Just lay off, okay?!"



"Don't you dare call your father that!" Howie roared.



"What? What did she say?" Brian asked. Jessica quickly gave her uncle the look that said 'If you tell him, I'll hate you'.



"Jessica called you a son of a bitch," Howie answered.



"¡Malditolo, tío Howie!"



"¡Vela su boca!"



"¡No dices a me como hacer! No es mi padre!"



"¡Gracias el Dios de arriba eso no soy!"



"¡Papi!" Ana exclaimed.



"¡Anastacia, no intenta! Estoy mucho desilusionante en tu! Pensar esa harías algo del ejercicio de Jessica y estar escolta a la casa a la policía? Como es mala con tu? Como estuviste pensar? Contesta a me!"



"Papi..." Ana whimpered, sinking into the couch in fear.



"¡Deja ella solo, tío Howie! Este no es falta de ella-" Jessica tried to come to her cousin's aid, but she was interrupted.



"I have nothing more to say to you, Jessica," Howie growled, his eyes narrowed and his teeth gritted.



It was only a mere second of silence after Howie said that to Jessica that Bailey started wailing from in the nursery upstairs. Brian looked towards the ceiling and sighed. "Stephanie, Ana, go upstairs and check on Bailey. We'll talk about this later." he instructed in a calmer voice, clenching his fists. The girls looked at Jessica one last time, and headed upstairs to the nursery.



"Ooh, it's time for the double team," Jessica spoke rather sarcastically, flipping her hair behind her shoulders.



"Jessica Marie Littrell, this is the most outragous stunt you have ever pulled! Do you even realize what could have happened to your sister and cousin if those guys were alone with 'em?! I can't believe how irresponsible you've been actin'! I really am sick of your attitude, especially since you weren't like this two years ago!" Brian ranted, his Kentucky accent dripping over every word.



"Why am I getting all the blame for this?!" Jessica cried out in an exasperated sigh.



"Why are you getting all the blame for this?!" Brian clarified in disbelief.



"Yeah, that's what I said estúpido!"



"I don't appreciate your language and attitude you are using with me right now!"



"Well I don't appreciate you bitching at me all the time!"



"Stop that swearing!"



"I'll speak however the Hell I want to, damnit!"



"Jessica, stop this right now! All I've been trying to do is be your father! Why do you insist on always giving me crap?!" Brian sighed, tugging on his graying hair.



"Maybe it's my mission in life!" Jessica snapped, standing up from the couch. "Why won't you just treat me like the adult I am?!"



"An adult?" Howie laughed cruely. "You want to be treated like an adult, but you act like a niña! I really don't undetstand your logic at times, Jessica."



"I thought you said you had nothing more to say to me, Uncle Howie!" Jessica answered back snidely. She glared darkly at her uncle.



"You better learn to start showing some respect, ¡dama menora!"



Jessica scuffed. "Show some respect?" she asked in disbelief. "Niether of you deserve respect from me. Screw you both. I'm out of here!" Jessica pushed past her uncle, causing him stumble backwards, and headed towards the door.



"Jessica Marie! Where do you think you're going?!" Brian yelled, hurrying after his daughter.



"Away from this Hell hole!" Jessica screamed.



"Get back here!"



"No way in Hell!"



"Jessica!" But Brian found no reason to waste his breath any longer as Jessica ran the length of the driveway and dissappeared down the darkened night street. Brian stood helplessly on the front steps, his stare blank when he could no longer see his daughter. His heart pounded in his chest.



"She'll come back, man. Probably went to her boyfriend's house," Howie offered, resting his hand on Brian's shoulder.



"I should have let her live with Leigh after the divorce. Maybe things would be different." Brian's voice was coated with defeat, sadness, and a sense of failure. Howie didn't like the sound of it.



"She would have acted like this, whether she was with her mother or not."



"Maybe, maybe not," Brian replied, still trying to see where Jessica went. After he still caught no sight of her, he and Howie turned around to head back inside.



"Just give her a chance to cool off for the rest of the night, and when she comes home tomorrow, try talking to her about what happened. But be civilized about it so another blow up doesn't happen," Howie suggested, even though he was still very much angered towards his niece. Catching a nod from Brian, he walked over to the base of the stairs. "Anita! Come downstairs! We are going home!"



Within a few moments, Stephanie and Ana came down the stairs, though, accompanying the girls was a wailing Bailey held tightly in Stephanie's arms. "Daddy, I think Bailey's sick. His forehead is really hot," Stephanie said, her voice coated with concern, worried about her nephew.



Instantly, Brian's features softened as he looked at his grandson. The little boy's usually tan face was now pale and his cheeks were flushed a rosey red color as he clung to his aunt. Salty tears streamed down his little cheeks as he continued to cry. "Oh no..." Brian cooed, "Baily boy! Come see papa!" He walked towards Stephanie and when Bailey saw him, the little boy stretched his arms out helplessly. Brian pressed his hand lightly against Bailey's forehead and winced. He could just feel the heat radiating from Bailey's skin. "My poor Bailey," he continued to coo as he brought him into his arms and hugged him tightly. Bailey, in return, continued to wail. "Stephanie, go get the thermometer."



"We're gonna head home now, Bri," Howie noted, seeing now was a good time to leave so Brian could tend to his grandson without any distractions. Brian nodded. "Anita? Do you have something to say to your uncle?"



"I'm so sorry, Uncle Brian," Ana whispered, her head hung down in shame.



Brian nodded, giving her a hug with his free arm. "We'll talk about this more tomorrow, okay?"



"I'll give you a call tomorrow," Howie said. "And Stephanie?" he added when his niece walked back into the room with the thermometer.



"Yes, Uncle Howie?" Stephanie hesitantly asked.



"Stay out of trouble the rest of the night, huh?" Howie offered Stephanie a small smile to hint that he had calmed down a bit.



"I will," Stephanie answered.



"Adios, prima," Ana called as she and her father headed to the door.



"Bye, Ana," Stephanie replied as she handed her father the thermometer. Howie and Ana left without another word as Brian placed the device carefully in Bailey's ear. "Daddy, is he gonna be all right?" she asked timidly. She still didn't know if Brian was as mad at her as he was at Jessica. When she didn't recieve an answer, she spoke again. "Daddy?"



"Hmmm?" Brian questioned in a distracted tone as he heard the thermometer beep. He removed it from Bailey's ear and looked at the reading, frowning.



"Is he going to be alright?" Stephanie repeated.



"He's got a temperature of 102.1...that's not very good. But yeah, I'm sure he'll be alright," Brian answered softly, placing a tender kiss on Bailey heated forehead. "He seems a bit dehydrated. Could you go get one of those Pedialite freezies from the freezer?"



"Yeah. Be back in a sec." Stephanie turned around and hurried off to the kitchen, crossing the tile floor and going over to the fridge. Opening the freezer, she had to rummage around for a bit before she found the box of Pedialite freezies in the very back. Stephanie reached into the back without looking and withdrew her hand, pulling out a red one. She smiled, knowing that was Bailey's favorite.



"Stephanie! Quick!"



Stephanie heard her father yell out to her, followed by the level of Bailey's wails rising. She rushed back into the living-room, finding her father placing Bailey on the soft carpet and removing the clothing. "Daddy-" she began to inquire, but realized why her father was doing this. Bailey's clothing was covered in throw-up and so was the front of her father's shirt.



"Steph, get me a fresh diaper and a clean set of pajamas," Brian instructed his daughter as he stripped Bailey down to his diaper. The little boy screamed out as his whole face turned a deep crimson color. "Bailey boy, it's ok...shhh, Papa will make you feel better. Shhh..."



Stephanie ran upstairs as Brian gave Bailey the freezie, which he sucked on immediately. The color in his face became a little less red by the time Stephanie came back with the new pajamas, diaper, and some wipes. "Here, daddy," she said, handing Brian everything. "Do you need me to get anything else?"



"No. Thanks, honey. I've got this. Why don't you go and get some sleep? We'll talk about this tomorrow."



"Are you sure?"



"Yes. Clean your lip up. Is it ok?"



"It'll be fine. Where'd Jess go?"



"You're guess is as good as mine," Brian mumbled, cuddling Bailey on his lap as he sat on the floor. "I'll talk to you in the morning."



"Ok. G'night, Daddy."



"'Night sweetheart." Brian watched as his daughter hurried up the stairs, then focused all of his attention on his grandson, with a thought lingering in his mind. Why did his life have to seem so frustrating lately?