[ - ]
Table of Contents [Report This]
Printer Chapter or Story Microsoft Word Chapter or Story
- Text Size +
Author's note: This chap was written with the help of Anastacia. Thanks, chica!



"Wow... are you sure you didn't make this house look gigantic since I was here last, Uncle Howie?" Melicia gasped as they pulled up to a Spanish themed house. She hadn't been in her uncle's house since she was in elementary school.

"I don't think I changed anything except the whole indoor pool made into a halfway outdoor pool with just a glass wall in between..." Howie trailed, hefting two of Melicia's largest cases of luggage. The other guys trailed in with various boxes, not really saying much, because finally, Howie had warmed back to Melicia.

"It looks so different," she replied, grabbing two duffel bags. "I don't even remember the last time I was here..."

"You just said elementary school," Nick snickered.

"Yes, but I now RESIDE in Tampa... you RESIGN here, right, Nicky?"

"Say...huh?" Nick asked blankly.

"Mission accomplished," Melicia and Brian laughed, giving each other a high five.

"Sometimes I think her moving here means that I'll be taking care of four kids," Howie muttered to Kevin as the began to trot up the stairs. Howie had given Melicia her own room with a living room area and her own bathroom.

"Yeah, welcome to my world," Kevin chuckled as they reached Melicia's room.

"Holy crap! This is MY room?" she squealed, walking into her room.

"Yeah, yours and only yours," Howie replied, ruffling Melicia's dark locks.

"Uncle Howie, this is great!" she gave him a tight hug and kissed his cheek. She looked out the window and squealed again. "And I have an ocean view! Oh my God!"

"I think I've lost my hearing," Nick complained, rubbing his eardrums.

"Just think of all the more joyous events that will follow with little Mel in the family," Brian teased, headlocking Nick underneath his arm.

"Yeah, with little Mel-- hey! I'm not middle!" Melicia objected as she turned from the window.

"Not middle?" AJ snickered, holding his mouth in his hands.

"Shut up, I have jet lag," Melicia replied. "Be nice to me."

"Nice to you? After all the kind of pranks you used to pull on us? Oh, no, dear child. This will be payback time. Sheer paybacks," AJ replied, kissing her cheek. He then turned and hurried back down the stairs to grab more boxes before the loaders arrived.

"This is gonna be Hell," Melicia muttered to herself while beginning to unpack and the guys went down to get the rest of her things. The room was already furnished and designed exactly the way she wanted. In the middle of her bedroom was a king size bed. A grin creeped on her face as she ran and plopped onto it. "Whoa!" it was then she realized it was a water bed. "This is so cool, I always wanted a water bed!"

"Yeah, you'll be a spoiled brat all over again," Howie replied, sitting next to her by the bed. He gave the boys a look, causing them to scurry away. Howie gave Melicia a knowing look. "I know I was mad, but we have to talk about the other day."

"Do we have to? I mean, we can just pretened..." she trailed off at the look Howie had on his face. "Alright, let's talk."

"Yes, we have to. You're old enough to know that it was wrong. And you're old enough to know that it's not the way to solve your problems. And don't give me the pitch that all teenagers expirement with that stuff. I know better. I'm not Gram nor am I Pop. I'm your uncle," Howie replied stiffly.

"I know, and it was a stupid thing to do," Melicia looked down at her hands in shame. "I'm really sorry I let you down, Uncle Howie. I just got caught up in the whole party scene and didn't say no when I should have."

"And the whole issue about calling AJ over me. Never, under any circumstance, do I want you to substitute me for Aje. He's a great guy and one of my best friends, but I'm your uncle. You need to know that I'll help you out no matter what the cause, even if I'm mad. I'm your guardian and I love you, I won't let you down, even if I have to punish you," Howie replied carefully, knowing Melicia's touchy attitude might explode.

"I know. And I love you too, but I thought that if he came and got me, you wouldn't have known what I did. Then you wouldn't be disappointed in me like you are right now."

"You can't erase what happened. And the truth is, I'm more disappointed that you couldn't trust in me."

"I'm sorry, Uncle Howie."

"Yeah, I know you are," Howie replied with his famous nuturing smile.

Melicia smiled back. "You know, that smile is a killer. No wonder you're such a ladies man."

"Yeah, now if I could only get a woman, any kids your age?" Howie teased, nudging her on the shoulder.

"Ew, that's so gross," she laughed, poking him in the side.

"No grosser than you hooking up with one of the boys that are hanging in the hallway, listening to every word we say," Howie recalled, chucking a pillow into the hallway, causing one of them to tumble.

"Hey!" a voice shouted, throwing the pillow back and bonking Melicia on the head.

"Ow! Who did that?!"

"You'll never find the culprit," Howie replied as all four shuffled in with more boxes, piling them in a corner. Melicia glared at them, but they all shrugged their shoulders with impish grins. Howie patted her knee. "So, do you want to hear about the new school you'll be attending for senior year?"

"Yeah! Is it the one you, Mama, Uncle John, Aunt Polly, Aunt Angie and Aunt Caroline went to?"

"Yeah, the one and only... you might be a little famous going in...but it'll be fun," Howie replied, glad that she was excited at the very least.

"As long as I don't get mobbed by girls, I'm okay," she thought for a minute. "But GUYS, on other the hand. THAT'S a different story."

"Yeah, that is a different story," AJ muttered.

"What do you mean by that, Alex?" she asked curiously.

"Nothing," AJ replied, shrugging it off.

"Ooookay," Melicia replied, getting back to unpacking books, DVD's and CD's. "When do I start school, Uncle Howie?"

"How soon do you want to start?" Howie teased, "Not that you have much choice."

"Umm... graduation!"

"Yeah, you start Monday," Howie replied, patting her head. Melicia rolled her eyes, trying to swat at him. Yet, Howie was already making for the door. "Now, if you'll excuse me, you have some unpacking to do. And I think it's a total kind of spiritual thing where you need to define your space... Or, another way to look at it is that I need to call for some grub and play pool."

"You're just as weird as Mama," Melicia replied, rolling her eyes. "No wonder you two were related."

"Yeah, but remember, she influenced me more because I'm younger," Howie replied, clapping Kevin on the shoulder.

"That means I'm doomed," Melicia groaned as she continued to unpack.

"Def-definitely," Nick answered, flashing her a grin before he chased the two older men down the stairs, begging to order pizza.

"Yeah, sorry, Mel. It's what the human race calls the Dorough family curse," Brian chuckled before going downstairs.

"So... are you gonna help me or just stand there?" Melicia teased as AJ stood by the doorway

"Do you want help?"

"Sure, I got a lot of stuff to unpack. Maybe you'll be able to find my journal... it's somewhere in this mess."

"Anything I'd find interesting in it?" AJ asked, bending down.

"Maybe, maybe not," they unpacked in silence for a few moments when it was interrupted by a thud and a string of curses. Melicia had accidently dropped an armload of the Harry Potter hardback cover books on her feet.

"Yeah, that'll definitely leave a mark," AJ laughed, stepping up. He bent down to remove the books from her toes, quickly hefting her into his arms. He carried her back to the bed without hesitation, plopping on the bed with her. "I'm not a doctor or anything though..."

"Ow, ow, ow, ow," she whined softly, her head against his shoulder. "Stupid books, I think my toes are broken."

"Can you wiggle them?" he asked, still studying her foot.

She finally did move them a little, gritting her teeth in pain. "Yeah, but it really hurts."

"Probably just a bruise... Buck-up, you didn't get them run over by a car," AJ chuckled, running his finger underneath her chin. When he felt the sparks between them, he instantly pulled away, just studying her.

"Alex? Are you okay?" she asked.

"Of course, just peachy, kid," AJ answered, trying to distance himself without even thinking about it.

"Then why are you moving away from me?" Melicia replied. "Did I do something wrong?"

"No, just got the skeeves touching you under the chin. Felt like I was my mother or something."

"Well, what if I touched you under the chin?"

"I don't know... go ahead and try."

Without hesitation, Melicia reached over and brushed her fingers underneath the stubble of his growing beard. She shivered as he grabbed her fingers, pulling her close. Their lips were almost touching, but Howie's voice caught them by surprise. "Mella, I just called the school. They got your classes arranged based on what you were taking back in New York, except I had to swing you into Anatomy and Physiology--" AJ sprang back, tumbling off the bed. "J? What the Hell? It's a water bed, not a trampoline."

"Alex was just trying to see if the bed was to his standard," Melicia spoke up, getting to her feet. "What were the classes you got me into?"

"The stuff you were in before, but you had two extra slots. So they put you in Anatomy and Physiology plus Choir. Hope you're not too shy about singing," Howie teased, handing her the slip of paper, glancing sideways at AJ's uneasy demeanor.

"Choir is great as long as they don't ask if I can sing higher than you... that's damn near impossible," Melicia laughed, trying to get Howie's attention off of AJ.

"Yeah, well, maybe the competition will make you nervous," Howie teased, focusing back on his niece. "There should be some girls around this neighborhood that go to the school. Maybe you'll find one that you can hang out with so you're not with us old farts a lot."

"Yeah, sounds good to me," she laughed, pushing Howie in the shoulder. "The only one here who could halfway give me a run for my money is Nick and he's too much of a blonde 99% of the time."

"Well, you might meet some valley girls on the way," AJ replied, stacking the books on a nearby shelf. "Maybe one of the rich girls can give you a ride in her beemer, too!"

"Beemers? That's what they drive around here?" Melicia made a face. "Back at home it was Mercedes and Cadillacs."

"You never know, maybe you'll meet a rich chick with a hummer," AJ chuckled, ruffling her curls. When Howie eyed him curiously, he immediately moved away. He shrugged his shoulders. "I'm going to go make sure that the pizza man doesn't get mobbed by Nick."

"Yeah, good idea. Tell him I get half of the cheese," Melicia called as AJ scurried out of the room.

"The girls aren't too bad around here. Pretty cute for being eighteen," Howie replied, glancing down at her bruised toes. "You might need a Hummer for those bruises."

"No kidding," she winced as she walked to the bookshelf. "I dropped all my Harry Potter books on top of my feet. Mama said I'm clumsy like Daddy was. Another curse from the family genes."

"There's no curse in your family genes," Howie scorned gently. "Just a whole lot of love."

"I know, Uncle Howie. I'm just letting you know that clumsiness DOES run in our family."

"A lot of things run in our family."

"Yeah, I know... Uncle Howie?"

"What?"

"What convinced you to do that "Howie doing sweetheart" saying when All I Have To Give came out?" she asked, snickering a little. "I always asked Mama, but she laughed too hard when I did to tell me."

"What made you think of that?"

Melicia shrugged. "I don't know. I was just curious."

"Long story, babe."

"Ah, the reply of a man too embarrassed to tell his niece," she laughed. "Can I go down for a swim, just for a little bit?"

"Yeah, sure, your weekend to splurge."

"Really? Splurge?" Melicia asked with a wide eyed stare.

"Don't even think about it. Nothing illegal. I don't care if you go shopping or whatever, just make sure the police don't call me with a warrent for your arrest. Rules of the house - alright? If it's illegal - don't even go near it."

"Don't go near anything that's legal," Melicia confirmed with a grin. "Got it!"

"Melicia, don't start stepping on cracks, alright?" Howie groaned.

"I'm just teasing, Uncle Howie," she walked over and kissed his cheek. "Now get out of here, I need to change. Shoo!"

"I love you, Mella," Howie cooed, kissing her cheek as he walked out.

"Love you, too!" she called after him before changing into her swimsuit, which was luckily in her favorite duffel bag. It was a sleek, metallic blue one piece. Putting her long hair into braided pigtails, she grabbed a towel from the bathroom and headed downstairs.