Memories are What We are Made of *Don, Robin; PG-13/K*
Title: Memories are What We are Made of *Team Schmoop: How*
Universe: Odyseey
Author: loozy
Pairing/Characters: Robin- pov, Billy Cooper, Paul *OC*, Helen *OC*, mention of others; Don/ Robin, Billy/Paul
Rating/Category: PG-13/K with hints of slash, though nothing graphic
Spoilers: set in the future of Odyssey
Summary: Today, Robin Brooks is going to marry Don Eppes.
Notes/Warnings: I am so sorry about the delay but no internet at home prevented me from posting the fic when it should have been! *headdesk*
valeriev84 did the beta for this fic, and as usual I am very thankful for her assistance.
This fic works into the Odyseey- universe and is set before my other write- off- fic, Rowing against a Sea of Hurt, but can work as a standalone… It is not straightforward Schmoop, but rather works in a more subtle way…
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this fic. Numb3rs and everybody associated with it belong to Cheryl Heuton & Nick Fallucci and CBS. Also I do not own Marvel Comics or IronMan or Robert Downey, Jr or any of the men mentioned in this fic.
Feedback: Yes, please. I love every kind of review, even the bad ones, as long as they are helpful and constructive.
Today, Robin Brooks is going to marry Don Eppes.
They are not going to do it traditionally, because, as much as she loves Don, she does not really want to convert to Judaism. His interest in the religion is still going strong and he is going to Temple on a regular basis. She and their daughter often go with him, but neither of them is devout enough. They considered it, or mainly she considered it, seriously so even, but in the end he simply told her that a ceremony in front of a judge at City Hall would suffice.
They do not want something big or elaborate, just a small ceremony and then later a reception at Alan’s.
That is all, and it befits their style.
Whereas Charlie’s wedding to Amita seven years ago was lavish and big, theirs is going to be low key and private, with colleagues and close friends and not the whole teaching staff from CalSci and acquaintances from all over the world. Just Don’s family, her own and their mutual work colleagues.
They claim that they have been together for so long that they don’t need a big feast to make it official, especially since they now have a daughter, something that still makes her mother stick up her nose and wrinkle it in that distasteful way that she has. Her and Don have yet to patch up their differences but where Billy Cooper and Charlie kind of met halfway, the other two seem to attempt to out stubborn the other. At least they have their fathers on their side since Alan and Roger get along a bit too well for their liking.
“Maaaa-ma?”
The soft voice from the doorframe of their bedroom tears her concentration away.
Helen, their little daughter, all of seventeen months old, is standing there, wobbly still, her diaper- clad bottom wiggling back and forth while she is waving at her mother. The rush of affection that Robin feels when she gazes at this adorable being in front of her is well- known by now but always welcome. She still cannot get over the fact that this little child with her brunette wavy hair is a product of her and Don having sex.
Wild animal sex, if the night she thinks Helen was conceived is the right one.
Robin can never be sure, since they were in the middle of trying for her, actually had tried to do so for the last twelve months, but she likes to think that it was that specific night.
“You think we did it this time?”
She laughs at the boyish hopeful grin that Don sends her way as they lie tangled up in the sheets, her head resting on his chest, fingers slowly tracing the scar going down his ribcage.
“We won’t know until I’ve taken the test.”
“How quickly can you take it?”
He sounds so sure, so enthusiastic, but he always does when he asks, which is at least once every month. They have been trying so hard, and sure, they have had a lot of fun during it, but they decided if she did not get pregnant this month, they would go to a fertility clinic.
To her surprise, it was Don who brought up the idea, who had one evening the month before last, started musing that maybe his swimmers weren’t enthusiastic enough, that maybe Charlie had covered that department between the brothers, too. He and Amita had not been married that long after she had gotten pregnant and they had come out with twins on top, even though neither of their family had a tradition of having twins.
Robin had snorted at first before suggesting that maybe it was her.
Or maybe, it was both of them.
It had been a mood killer, sure, but something that needed to be talked about, because nothing had worked so far.
This month is the deadline they set themselves, but she can honestly say that neither have they been more enthusiastic or more pressured by this. It seems as if they have both come to terms with the fact that they might need some help in order to conceive a child.
It is not as if it is something to be ashamed about.
They are going to have a problem if one of them proves to be infertile.
Robin mentally shakes her head at herself.
She does not want to think about this.
“I will tell you in time. And I won’t know anyways until I’ve been to the gynaecologist. You know my sister thought she was not pregnant, took the tests and all, and what happened? She had a child.”
“Your oldest?”
“No. The middle oldest.”
Don chuckles as he hugs her closer.
“She is the most fertile person in the world. Every time we see her she is pregnant!”
Robin pets his hair and smiles into his chest. She is not a big believer in pregnancy tests, and for the last couple of months she has been too traumatized by them and their lack of positive results that she is determined to not find out if she is pregnant until she has been to the doctor.
“I’ll book an appointment for in a couple of weeks.”
Don shifts them around so that she is lying on her back now with him half- hovering over her.
“You do that.”
In the dim light of her bedroom she can see the sharp lines of his face and she can see his hand moving slowly towards her breasts, caressing her skin, making her shiver.
“Now, round two seems to be a good idea.”
She cannot disagree with that.
She had had a weird feeling in her tummy the day she rang her OB/GYN and made the appointment and when her mother called, she spontaneously invited her over, to come for a short visit in five weeks when she was going to check if she was pregnant.
Why she had needed her mother’s support all of a sudden she still has not figured out, but for some reason, bridges were mended when they found out that she was indeed with child.
And six months later, Helen was born, a tiny preemie, stronger than she should have been, given that she was born six weeks early, but both her and Don have always put that down to her being the results of them both.
“Yes, baby?”
Helen just beams at her.
She will be in the wedding party, of course, carried by Billy, her godfather, who is currently with Don as his best man and witness. Robin kicked out her best friend, Susan, out ten minutes ago to get some peace and quiet. There is no need to make such a big fuss about this, she is not wearing a white dress, just a dress that she has found at Chanel a couple of months ago. It was actually the first time that she tried on a new dress after giving birth and if Don’s reaction had been anything to go by, she had not looked too bad.
Two weeks later the dress had magically found its way into her closet with a note attached to it.
All the note had said was today’s date.
This morning she had found a pair of Jimmy Choo’s in her shoe rack. They fit perfectly to the beautifully tailored reddish hue of the dress and she wonders where Don had found the time to get the shoes.
And where he got the taste from.
He can wear a suit and he looks very spiffy in them, but in his off- time, his clothes are just pointed towards comfort more than anything else. Sometimes he used to try to go for something daring but that generally was an eyesore more than anything else. It took her some time to wean him off his constant lack of socks, pointing out the less- than- great odour coming from his feet and shoes especially during the hot summer months. Or to show him that subtle colours work well, too, and that he did not have to go over the top with everything.
He is a classy man, anything too garish or experimental looks just plain wrong on him.
He knows how to dress at work, but during the weekend it used to be an entirely different story.
With her not- so- gentle guidance, though, he is finally there and has succumbed to simply never go shopping without her to reign him in.
She is his personal stylist.
Apparently she is rubbing off on him a bit because the shoes are gorgeous. Or maybe he asked Billy to come with him, or Paul.
Probably both of them, even.
“Hello?”
“Who’s this?”
“This is Paul Connelly. Who’s this?”
“Robin Brooks.”
“Robin Brooks? Shit… Hi…”
“Dr Connelly? Oh God… Hi… Uhm… I… Is Billy there?”
Rustling of sheets, murmurs, a swear word.
“Robin? Shit… Paul, get offa me.”
She has to fight really hard with herself to contain the giggles.
“Billy? Paul, seriously?”
He at least has the grace to sound chagrined.
“It’s not like I could help it. You have seen him, right?”
“Oh yes, quite regularly, in fact. And he has seen a lot of me, too. Too much, even, to my liking right now.”
“Oh come on, Robin, he’s your gynaecologist. He’s bound to see a lot of you!”
It is a good thing that Billy is not standing right in front of her, or she might be tempted to clock him one. Her hormones make her irrational at time, yes, but this is one of the few times that she would be perfectly justified.
She also would like to call her former OB/GYN and give her a piece of her mind about moving out of town just when she was in dire need of one. It is a good thing that Dr Connelly came along, yes, but she might have to change her opinion now, not to mention her doctor.
Again.
Her inner musings are interrupted when Billy actually has the guts to start laughing.
“It is kinda funny, don’t’cha think?”
She wants to yell and scream and throw things, preferably at him, but as he is not here, as previously and dully noted, only Don’s apartment walls would feel her wrath. She is not up to explaining to him why the wall behind the tv has a tea- coloured and - smelling stain on it.
He will laugh, too, if he does not already know about it.
“Does Don know?”
“Yes.”
And why did he not tell her? Do they not always share everything? Is that what they have come to? To keeping secrets? They are not talking anymore and then when their child is born they will separate because maybe the decision was made too rashly and then where does that put her?
“Uhm… He did not tell you because I asked him to because I wanted to see how the evening would pan out. And you always share everything and you’re a beautiful couple, so stop worrying. You’re not keeping secrets from each other, unless it is for birthdays and even then it always has to do with presents, which are a good thing, and you guys talk. Damn it, woman, the guy has never talked so much since he started getting serious with you. What have you done with him? You won’t break up because you love each other too much and how the fuck did I end up playing relationship counsellor? Get your own shrink, Brooks!”
Oops.
She must have thought out loud.
Time to play the sheepish card, which always works with Billy.
“Sorry?”
He huffs, groans and then guffaws, having obviously seen through her attempt.
“Why are you calling anyways?”
“I’m calling on behalf of Don Eppes, who was called out on a case even though this was supposed to be his weekend off.”
“Nothing new there.”
“No. I cannot wait for him to actually become AD.”
“Yeah, when is that gonna happen?”
“Soon, if you believe Coulson. He’s just waiting for the confirmation from TPTB. Then he’s gone to the Pentagon and Don’s the AD. Might only take one more year or so. They want to make it a smooth transition because Don is another generation of agent and all that crap, you know?”
“The usual bullshit?”
“Of course.”
“You might even see less of him then.”
“Don’t remind me. But at least he’s going to be safe.”
Silence. Long silence. Too long in fact.
“Uhm, what does that silence imply?”
“He’s the AD then, and he made a lot of enemies. I’m just sayin’…”
“Yeah, but Merrick and Coulson never had any trouble.”
“That’s because they were desk jockeys. Don’s been anything but in his career.”
She does not want to think about that right now, not when she wants to ask Billy something good, when the day itself is supposed to be good.
Well, at least it was supposed to be so until Don got the early wake- up call, courtesy of David Sinclair who believed that the re- appearance of a notorious killer warranted the presence of the SAC; especially since said SAC had originally investigated the case.
“Anyways, what I meant to tell you…”
“Yes?”
“Don wanted to know if you want to be the baby’s godfather.”
“You serious?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Well, I just thought it might be Charlie or… You know…”
“Billy, you’re his best friend and Charlie is already the baby’s uncle, so there you go…”
“Wow… Cool. That’s… Wow, thanks.”
Robin has seen Billy Cooper speechless only twice before.
Now it is three times.
“So, will you?”
“’course! You didn’t really have to ask, you know?”
“Just checking.”
“As if…”
“So, now that we’ve got that one out of the way… How about Paul…”
Her daughter has shuffled up to her and just holds out something to her that she has been clutching to her chest the last couple of minutes.
It is a rolled- up piece of paper, made to look as if it was ancient parchment.
Paul is supposed to be minding her outside, distract her and keep her clothes clean, but apparently he decided to send his honorary goddaughter on a mission.
It is a voucher for a weekend away from everything, including a set of keys to Paul’s beachside house he has in San Francisco (and Don never quite gets over the fact that Paul owns a house in San Francisco yet refuses to walk Christopher Street Day. Robin has never understood why both Billy and Don seem to be so amused by it but puts it down to the sense of humour only those two seem to share. Paul is always at a loss as well) and two plane tickets with open dates.
Helen, proud at having finished her task, is bouncing up and down now, still beaming and giggling, before she abruptly turns and wobbles towards the door as fast as possible. Just before she reaches it, Paul opens is from the outside, winking at Robin, picking up her daughter and then closing the door just when she wants to thank him.
All the men that she keeps close to her heart, Don very very very close, Billy and Paul, are romantics at their core, even if they rather face torture than admit it. Whenever they roll out the red carpet, so to speak, and actually do something sweet, either to
her or each other in Billy and Paul’s case, she is always a bit overwhelmed and not sure how she should react.
“Who’s on your elevator list?”
Paul rubs his hands in glee.
“Elevator list?”
Billy laughs out loud at Don’s question.
“Oh come off it, Don. You know what an elevator list is, so shush. Don’t try to play the innocent virgin. Doesn’t work on either of us.”
Don pretends to pout before grinning madly.
“This might be fun.”
“Okay, so who goes first?”
Paul raises his hand.
“I do.”
Robin grabs another piece of naan bread that Billy made and dips it into the masala- sauce.
This will be fun.
“Okay, so mine is really straight forward-“
“Wait, do you have to name them in order?”
“Nah, not really… Now, can I tell you my list?”
Don fake- bows, which is quite the feat given that he is sitting at a table.
“Of course, Your Exhibitionism.”
Paul tries to swat him but is hindered by the fact that Billy is sitting between them and he cannot reach Robin’s boyfriend. So Billy does it for him.
“Ouch, Coop! What’s that for?”
“You’re an idiot. Let Paul tell his list so that we can get to hear Robin’s.”
“Okay…”
Paul takes a deep breath, clears his throat and then sips his whiskey.
“I got five guys. Sting-“
“Sting? That guy’s got no hair!”
“Have you ever heard him sing?”
Robin has to agree.
“Oh God, yes, that voice… Liquid sex.”
Paul and her high- five while Billy and Don stare at them as if they had grown a couple of more heads.
“Next up, George Clooney.”
Approving nods around the table. Except Don, of course.
“Oh yes.”
Billy, with a wistful smile.
“Oh God, yes.”
Robin with a half- moan.
“If I was into that, yes.”
Don, more on the cautious side.
“Then we have Johnny Depp.”
This time it is only Robin who agrees, again with a half- moan.
“Nah, I don’t get his attraction. He kinda looks like a sissy.”
“He does not!”
Before that debate can get out of hand, Paul quickly drops the next name.
“Hugh Jackman.”
Again, they are all united in their agreement.
“Oh yes, totally.”
“If he does not appear on everybody’s list, I’ll be surprised.”
“Hate to break it to ‘ya, Coop, but he won’t be on my list. But he’s great, yeah.”
“And for the last one…”
Paul pauses for dramatic effect.
“Robert Downey, Jr.”
There are two audible thuds, as both Billy and Don hit the table in front of them with their foreheads.
“You just had to say his name, didn’t you?”
“I never thought I’d be jealous of an ex- junkie, but come on, Paul, you’ve seen her when she watches a film with that guy! That’s just not fair!”
Paul just grins, waggles his eyebrows and then puts a napkin between Billy’s head and the wood. Robin decides that is a good idea since neither of their partners are letting up.
“Babe, you’re already a couple of brain cells short, you don’t have to make it worse.”
The glare that Billy sends Paul would make ice melt but instead it just sets him and Robin off in giggles.
“And why are you moaning about Robin? This is my list! And I want him on that list! Always have, ever since I saw Chaplin. So, there you go.”
He and Robin are due yet another high- five, simply because they can, and if you had told Robin that she would ever sit around and spend a brilliant night in with her gynaecologist before she met Paul, she would have just shaken her head and called you stupid.
“Plus, it just shows that your girlfriend has impeccable taste.”
There is a twinkle in Billy’s eyes that tells Robin that the next thing coming out of his mouth will not be as complimentary as what he just said.
“Aside from you. I’m still trying to figure it out…”
In a very mature gesture, Don sticks out his tongue at his long- time friend which sets the others off in a fit of laughter.
“Okay, Robin, on with your list…”
“Do I have to hear this?”
“Yes, you have to. Why, you playin’ chicken now, Donnie?”
Don glares at Billy who just chortles.
“I’m not afraid of you. Most of your glares you learned from me.”
“Hah, you wish you could stake that claim.”
“Ladies, would you mind? It’s Robin’s turn now, you impolite asses…”
Like Paul, Robin makes a show of stating the first name.
“Actually, the list is not that different from Paul’s…”
“Just get on with it.”
Don is half- covering his ears which of course prompts Robin to scoot closer to him, laying her head on his shoulders dreamily before starting up. He will not be able to escape a single word of what she is going to say.
“George Clooney and Johnny Depp are on the list. And Hugh Jackman… Uhm, do they have to be dead or alive?”
“Would be kinda gross if you were in an elevator with a corpse, right?”
“Okay, so no Paul Newman… Uhm… Ryan Reynolds, simply because of the amazing body.”
Don lets out a painful howl, while Paul groans in appreciation and Billy does not get the attraction.
At all.
“Really? He is not that hot.”
“Matter of opinion, my dear.”
“Oh, he totally is.”
“Nah, I’d take Robert Pattinson over him any time of the day.”
Shocked silence.
Then:
“You’ve got to be kidding me!”
“Oh come on, Billy, that is fuckin’ joke, right? Even I can see that Reynolds is way hotter than that teabag!”
“Babe, I think we might have to check your sense of taste. I think it’s gone off the rails again.”
Billy just sits there and beams and obviously enjoys himself immensely.
“You are aware that I was not serious, right?”
Don glares at him over his beer bottle.
“No, because I would not put it past you to like that dude.”
Billy, obviously stuck for words, just sneers at him. It is Paul who brings the conversation back on track.
“So, who’s the last one on the list?”
Robin sends him a conspiring glance.
“Oh, Paulie, you know who it is.”
Now they are in time to cushion the thumps of Don and Billy’s heads.
“Say it with me, darling.”
Raising their glasses, they pat their significant others’ hair before intoning as one.
“Robert Downey, Jr!”
Don is the first one to stop his head from meeting the desk.
“Okay, I get it. The guy is hot. You are hot for him. He has a bangin’ body. He is a great actor and singer, and he finally got an Oscar and hope to never hear you squeal that loudly again. My ears are still ringing. Can we please move on now?”
Just because he sounds aggrieved does not mean that they are going to let up. Robin, after all, still has fantasies about a threesome with Don and Downey, Jr, so she will be the last person on earth to stop ribbing him about it.
Or second to last. Billy will always rib him to death.
“How about we let up about him for the rest of the night?”
“Month.”
“Week.”
“Okay… And I’m only agreeing to this because I know that you two won’t see each other until the end of next week. So, there ‘ya go.”
He is correct. Robin is going to New York for a trial the day after tomorrow.
“There is always text messaging.”
“Or Twitter.”
“Nobody uses that stuff anymore, Billy.”
“I really don’t care, you guys, as long as you stop talking about that man!”
This just sets them off into another round of laughter.
“Jeez, Donnie, he is just an actor. Don’t tell me you have got no- one you’ve got the hots for.”
“Yeah, sure I do.”
“Aaaand, speaking of, why don’t you tell us your list.”
Don grins broadly at them.
“Sure. List’s only got one name on it… Robin.”
He means it. There is no teasing twinkle in his eyes or amusement playing on his lips, only sincerity. Steadily he holds her gaze and she cannot help but get lost just a little bit in his eyes.
Damn the man for making Robin feel guilty for actually having an elevator- list.
Just as she applies her lip gloss, Susan pokes her head into the room.
“You just about finished? Don is getting a tad bit antsy out there.”
Robin glances into her mirror one last time.
“Never been more ready.”
“I used to think that winter was my favourite season.”
“Why winter?”
“Because you’d get to snuggle more.”
“Don, you don’t snuggle or cuddle. And LA does not have the same kinda winter as the East coast.”
“Yeah, but winter had Hanukkah.”
“Aha, presents, right?”
“When I was a boy, yes. We had a Christmas tree and everything, but we did Hanukkah, too. I liked that.”
“Do you still like it because of Hanukkah?”
“Yeah, kinda, but only because it’s tradition, you know? And I want Helen to experience it, too… I mean, it’s her heritage, Robin.”
“Hey, I’m not saying anything.”
“Anyways, I kinda like summer now.”
“Why?”
“’cuz I like how you look in sunlight.”
“Don, we have sunlight all year long.”
“Yeah, but there’s just something light and airy and fresh and beautiful about it in the summer months. And you glow. You both do.”
“You, too. Fatherhood agrees with you.”
“How could it not? Just look at her…”
“Why this sudden talk about seasons?”
“I think we should get married in the summer. Next year.”
“Is that a proposal?”
“Yes.”
“… Really?”
“Absolutely. I’d marry you right now, but I can wait a year.”
This fic was written for the Angst vs Schmoop Challenge at numb3rswriteoff. After you’ve read the fic, please rate it by voting in the poll located here. (Your vote will be anonymous.) Rate the fic on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 being the best) using the following criteria: how well the fic fit the prompt (how), how angsty the fic was, and how well you enjoyed the fic. When you’re done, please check out the other challenge fic at numb3rswriteoff. Thank you!
Universe: Odyseey
Author: loozy
Pairing/Characters: Robin- pov, Billy Cooper, Paul *OC*, Helen *OC*, mention of others; Don/ Robin, Billy/Paul
Rating/Category: PG-13/K with hints of slash, though nothing graphic
Spoilers: set in the future of Odyssey
Summary: Today, Robin Brooks is going to marry Don Eppes.
Notes/Warnings: I am so sorry about the delay but no internet at home prevented me from posting the fic when it should have been! *headdesk*
valeriev84 did the beta for this fic, and as usual I am very thankful for her assistance.
This fic works into the Odyseey- universe and is set before my other write- off- fic, Rowing against a Sea of Hurt, but can work as a standalone… It is not straightforward Schmoop, but rather works in a more subtle way…
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters mentioned in this fic. Numb3rs and everybody associated with it belong to Cheryl Heuton & Nick Fallucci and CBS. Also I do not own Marvel Comics or IronMan or Robert Downey, Jr or any of the men mentioned in this fic.
Feedback: Yes, please. I love every kind of review, even the bad ones, as long as they are helpful and constructive.
Today, Robin Brooks is going to marry Don Eppes.
They are not going to do it traditionally, because, as much as she loves Don, she does not really want to convert to Judaism. His interest in the religion is still going strong and he is going to Temple on a regular basis. She and their daughter often go with him, but neither of them is devout enough. They considered it, or mainly she considered it, seriously so even, but in the end he simply told her that a ceremony in front of a judge at City Hall would suffice.
They do not want something big or elaborate, just a small ceremony and then later a reception at Alan’s.
That is all, and it befits their style.
Whereas Charlie’s wedding to Amita seven years ago was lavish and big, theirs is going to be low key and private, with colleagues and close friends and not the whole teaching staff from CalSci and acquaintances from all over the world. Just Don’s family, her own and their mutual work colleagues.
They claim that they have been together for so long that they don’t need a big feast to make it official, especially since they now have a daughter, something that still makes her mother stick up her nose and wrinkle it in that distasteful way that she has. Her and Don have yet to patch up their differences but where Billy Cooper and Charlie kind of met halfway, the other two seem to attempt to out stubborn the other. At least they have their fathers on their side since Alan and Roger get along a bit too well for their liking.
“Maaaa-ma?”
The soft voice from the doorframe of their bedroom tears her concentration away.
Helen, their little daughter, all of seventeen months old, is standing there, wobbly still, her diaper- clad bottom wiggling back and forth while she is waving at her mother. The rush of affection that Robin feels when she gazes at this adorable being in front of her is well- known by now but always welcome. She still cannot get over the fact that this little child with her brunette wavy hair is a product of her and Don having sex.
Wild animal sex, if the night she thinks Helen was conceived is the right one.
Robin can never be sure, since they were in the middle of trying for her, actually had tried to do so for the last twelve months, but she likes to think that it was that specific night.
“You think we did it this time?”
She laughs at the boyish hopeful grin that Don sends her way as they lie tangled up in the sheets, her head resting on his chest, fingers slowly tracing the scar going down his ribcage.
“We won’t know until I’ve taken the test.”
“How quickly can you take it?”
He sounds so sure, so enthusiastic, but he always does when he asks, which is at least once every month. They have been trying so hard, and sure, they have had a lot of fun during it, but they decided if she did not get pregnant this month, they would go to a fertility clinic.
To her surprise, it was Don who brought up the idea, who had one evening the month before last, started musing that maybe his swimmers weren’t enthusiastic enough, that maybe Charlie had covered that department between the brothers, too. He and Amita had not been married that long after she had gotten pregnant and they had come out with twins on top, even though neither of their family had a tradition of having twins.
Robin had snorted at first before suggesting that maybe it was her.
Or maybe, it was both of them.
It had been a mood killer, sure, but something that needed to be talked about, because nothing had worked so far.
This month is the deadline they set themselves, but she can honestly say that neither have they been more enthusiastic or more pressured by this. It seems as if they have both come to terms with the fact that they might need some help in order to conceive a child.
It is not as if it is something to be ashamed about.
They are going to have a problem if one of them proves to be infertile.
Robin mentally shakes her head at herself.
She does not want to think about this.
“I will tell you in time. And I won’t know anyways until I’ve been to the gynaecologist. You know my sister thought she was not pregnant, took the tests and all, and what happened? She had a child.”
“Your oldest?”
“No. The middle oldest.”
Don chuckles as he hugs her closer.
“She is the most fertile person in the world. Every time we see her she is pregnant!”
Robin pets his hair and smiles into his chest. She is not a big believer in pregnancy tests, and for the last couple of months she has been too traumatized by them and their lack of positive results that she is determined to not find out if she is pregnant until she has been to the doctor.
“I’ll book an appointment for in a couple of weeks.”
Don shifts them around so that she is lying on her back now with him half- hovering over her.
“You do that.”
In the dim light of her bedroom she can see the sharp lines of his face and she can see his hand moving slowly towards her breasts, caressing her skin, making her shiver.
“Now, round two seems to be a good idea.”
She cannot disagree with that.
She had had a weird feeling in her tummy the day she rang her OB/GYN and made the appointment and when her mother called, she spontaneously invited her over, to come for a short visit in five weeks when she was going to check if she was pregnant.
Why she had needed her mother’s support all of a sudden she still has not figured out, but for some reason, bridges were mended when they found out that she was indeed with child.
And six months later, Helen was born, a tiny preemie, stronger than she should have been, given that she was born six weeks early, but both her and Don have always put that down to her being the results of them both.
“Yes, baby?”
Helen just beams at her.
She will be in the wedding party, of course, carried by Billy, her godfather, who is currently with Don as his best man and witness. Robin kicked out her best friend, Susan, out ten minutes ago to get some peace and quiet. There is no need to make such a big fuss about this, she is not wearing a white dress, just a dress that she has found at Chanel a couple of months ago. It was actually the first time that she tried on a new dress after giving birth and if Don’s reaction had been anything to go by, she had not looked too bad.
Two weeks later the dress had magically found its way into her closet with a note attached to it.
All the note had said was today’s date.
This morning she had found a pair of Jimmy Choo’s in her shoe rack. They fit perfectly to the beautifully tailored reddish hue of the dress and she wonders where Don had found the time to get the shoes.
And where he got the taste from.
He can wear a suit and he looks very spiffy in them, but in his off- time, his clothes are just pointed towards comfort more than anything else. Sometimes he used to try to go for something daring but that generally was an eyesore more than anything else. It took her some time to wean him off his constant lack of socks, pointing out the less- than- great odour coming from his feet and shoes especially during the hot summer months. Or to show him that subtle colours work well, too, and that he did not have to go over the top with everything.
He is a classy man, anything too garish or experimental looks just plain wrong on him.
He knows how to dress at work, but during the weekend it used to be an entirely different story.
With her not- so- gentle guidance, though, he is finally there and has succumbed to simply never go shopping without her to reign him in.
She is his personal stylist.
Apparently she is rubbing off on him a bit because the shoes are gorgeous. Or maybe he asked Billy to come with him, or Paul.
Probably both of them, even.
“Hello?”
“Who’s this?”
“This is Paul Connelly. Who’s this?”
“Robin Brooks.”
“Robin Brooks? Shit… Hi…”
“Dr Connelly? Oh God… Hi… Uhm… I… Is Billy there?”
Rustling of sheets, murmurs, a swear word.
“Robin? Shit… Paul, get offa me.”
She has to fight really hard with herself to contain the giggles.
“Billy? Paul, seriously?”
He at least has the grace to sound chagrined.
“It’s not like I could help it. You have seen him, right?”
“Oh yes, quite regularly, in fact. And he has seen a lot of me, too. Too much, even, to my liking right now.”
“Oh come on, Robin, he’s your gynaecologist. He’s bound to see a lot of you!”
It is a good thing that Billy is not standing right in front of her, or she might be tempted to clock him one. Her hormones make her irrational at time, yes, but this is one of the few times that she would be perfectly justified.
She also would like to call her former OB/GYN and give her a piece of her mind about moving out of town just when she was in dire need of one. It is a good thing that Dr Connelly came along, yes, but she might have to change her opinion now, not to mention her doctor.
Again.
Her inner musings are interrupted when Billy actually has the guts to start laughing.
“It is kinda funny, don’t’cha think?”
She wants to yell and scream and throw things, preferably at him, but as he is not here, as previously and dully noted, only Don’s apartment walls would feel her wrath. She is not up to explaining to him why the wall behind the tv has a tea- coloured and - smelling stain on it.
He will laugh, too, if he does not already know about it.
“Does Don know?”
“Yes.”
And why did he not tell her? Do they not always share everything? Is that what they have come to? To keeping secrets? They are not talking anymore and then when their child is born they will separate because maybe the decision was made too rashly and then where does that put her?
“Uhm… He did not tell you because I asked him to because I wanted to see how the evening would pan out. And you always share everything and you’re a beautiful couple, so stop worrying. You’re not keeping secrets from each other, unless it is for birthdays and even then it always has to do with presents, which are a good thing, and you guys talk. Damn it, woman, the guy has never talked so much since he started getting serious with you. What have you done with him? You won’t break up because you love each other too much and how the fuck did I end up playing relationship counsellor? Get your own shrink, Brooks!”
Oops.
She must have thought out loud.
Time to play the sheepish card, which always works with Billy.
“Sorry?”
He huffs, groans and then guffaws, having obviously seen through her attempt.
“Why are you calling anyways?”
“I’m calling on behalf of Don Eppes, who was called out on a case even though this was supposed to be his weekend off.”
“Nothing new there.”
“No. I cannot wait for him to actually become AD.”
“Yeah, when is that gonna happen?”
“Soon, if you believe Coulson. He’s just waiting for the confirmation from TPTB. Then he’s gone to the Pentagon and Don’s the AD. Might only take one more year or so. They want to make it a smooth transition because Don is another generation of agent and all that crap, you know?”
“The usual bullshit?”
“Of course.”
“You might even see less of him then.”
“Don’t remind me. But at least he’s going to be safe.”
Silence. Long silence. Too long in fact.
“Uhm, what does that silence imply?”
“He’s the AD then, and he made a lot of enemies. I’m just sayin’…”
“Yeah, but Merrick and Coulson never had any trouble.”
“That’s because they were desk jockeys. Don’s been anything but in his career.”
She does not want to think about that right now, not when she wants to ask Billy something good, when the day itself is supposed to be good.
Well, at least it was supposed to be so until Don got the early wake- up call, courtesy of David Sinclair who believed that the re- appearance of a notorious killer warranted the presence of the SAC; especially since said SAC had originally investigated the case.
“Anyways, what I meant to tell you…”
“Yes?”
“Don wanted to know if you want to be the baby’s godfather.”
“You serious?”
“Yes. Why?”
“Well, I just thought it might be Charlie or… You know…”
“Billy, you’re his best friend and Charlie is already the baby’s uncle, so there you go…”
“Wow… Cool. That’s… Wow, thanks.”
Robin has seen Billy Cooper speechless only twice before.
Now it is three times.
“So, will you?”
“’course! You didn’t really have to ask, you know?”
“Just checking.”
“As if…”
“So, now that we’ve got that one out of the way… How about Paul…”
Her daughter has shuffled up to her and just holds out something to her that she has been clutching to her chest the last couple of minutes.
It is a rolled- up piece of paper, made to look as if it was ancient parchment.
Paul is supposed to be minding her outside, distract her and keep her clothes clean, but apparently he decided to send his honorary goddaughter on a mission.
It is a voucher for a weekend away from everything, including a set of keys to Paul’s beachside house he has in San Francisco (and Don never quite gets over the fact that Paul owns a house in San Francisco yet refuses to walk Christopher Street Day. Robin has never understood why both Billy and Don seem to be so amused by it but puts it down to the sense of humour only those two seem to share. Paul is always at a loss as well) and two plane tickets with open dates.
Helen, proud at having finished her task, is bouncing up and down now, still beaming and giggling, before she abruptly turns and wobbles towards the door as fast as possible. Just before she reaches it, Paul opens is from the outside, winking at Robin, picking up her daughter and then closing the door just when she wants to thank him.
All the men that she keeps close to her heart, Don very very very close, Billy and Paul, are romantics at their core, even if they rather face torture than admit it. Whenever they roll out the red carpet, so to speak, and actually do something sweet, either to
her or each other in Billy and Paul’s case, she is always a bit overwhelmed and not sure how she should react.
“Who’s on your elevator list?”
Paul rubs his hands in glee.
“Elevator list?”
Billy laughs out loud at Don’s question.
“Oh come off it, Don. You know what an elevator list is, so shush. Don’t try to play the innocent virgin. Doesn’t work on either of us.”
Don pretends to pout before grinning madly.
“This might be fun.”
“Okay, so who goes first?”
Paul raises his hand.
“I do.”
Robin grabs another piece of naan bread that Billy made and dips it into the masala- sauce.
This will be fun.
“Okay, so mine is really straight forward-“
“Wait, do you have to name them in order?”
“Nah, not really… Now, can I tell you my list?”
Don fake- bows, which is quite the feat given that he is sitting at a table.
“Of course, Your Exhibitionism.”
Paul tries to swat him but is hindered by the fact that Billy is sitting between them and he cannot reach Robin’s boyfriend. So Billy does it for him.
“Ouch, Coop! What’s that for?”
“You’re an idiot. Let Paul tell his list so that we can get to hear Robin’s.”
“Okay…”
Paul takes a deep breath, clears his throat and then sips his whiskey.
“I got five guys. Sting-“
“Sting? That guy’s got no hair!”
“Have you ever heard him sing?”
Robin has to agree.
“Oh God, yes, that voice… Liquid sex.”
Paul and her high- five while Billy and Don stare at them as if they had grown a couple of more heads.
“Next up, George Clooney.”
Approving nods around the table. Except Don, of course.
“Oh yes.”
Billy, with a wistful smile.
“Oh God, yes.”
Robin with a half- moan.
“If I was into that, yes.”
Don, more on the cautious side.
“Then we have Johnny Depp.”
This time it is only Robin who agrees, again with a half- moan.
“Nah, I don’t get his attraction. He kinda looks like a sissy.”
“He does not!”
Before that debate can get out of hand, Paul quickly drops the next name.
“Hugh Jackman.”
Again, they are all united in their agreement.
“Oh yes, totally.”
“If he does not appear on everybody’s list, I’ll be surprised.”
“Hate to break it to ‘ya, Coop, but he won’t be on my list. But he’s great, yeah.”
“And for the last one…”
Paul pauses for dramatic effect.
“Robert Downey, Jr.”
There are two audible thuds, as both Billy and Don hit the table in front of them with their foreheads.
“You just had to say his name, didn’t you?”
“I never thought I’d be jealous of an ex- junkie, but come on, Paul, you’ve seen her when she watches a film with that guy! That’s just not fair!”
Paul just grins, waggles his eyebrows and then puts a napkin between Billy’s head and the wood. Robin decides that is a good idea since neither of their partners are letting up.
“Babe, you’re already a couple of brain cells short, you don’t have to make it worse.”
The glare that Billy sends Paul would make ice melt but instead it just sets him and Robin off in giggles.
“And why are you moaning about Robin? This is my list! And I want him on that list! Always have, ever since I saw Chaplin. So, there you go.”
He and Robin are due yet another high- five, simply because they can, and if you had told Robin that she would ever sit around and spend a brilliant night in with her gynaecologist before she met Paul, she would have just shaken her head and called you stupid.
“Plus, it just shows that your girlfriend has impeccable taste.”
There is a twinkle in Billy’s eyes that tells Robin that the next thing coming out of his mouth will not be as complimentary as what he just said.
“Aside from you. I’m still trying to figure it out…”
In a very mature gesture, Don sticks out his tongue at his long- time friend which sets the others off in a fit of laughter.
“Okay, Robin, on with your list…”
“Do I have to hear this?”
“Yes, you have to. Why, you playin’ chicken now, Donnie?”
Don glares at Billy who just chortles.
“I’m not afraid of you. Most of your glares you learned from me.”
“Hah, you wish you could stake that claim.”
“Ladies, would you mind? It’s Robin’s turn now, you impolite asses…”
Like Paul, Robin makes a show of stating the first name.
“Actually, the list is not that different from Paul’s…”
“Just get on with it.”
Don is half- covering his ears which of course prompts Robin to scoot closer to him, laying her head on his shoulders dreamily before starting up. He will not be able to escape a single word of what she is going to say.
“George Clooney and Johnny Depp are on the list. And Hugh Jackman… Uhm, do they have to be dead or alive?”
“Would be kinda gross if you were in an elevator with a corpse, right?”
“Okay, so no Paul Newman… Uhm… Ryan Reynolds, simply because of the amazing body.”
Don lets out a painful howl, while Paul groans in appreciation and Billy does not get the attraction.
At all.
“Really? He is not that hot.”
“Matter of opinion, my dear.”
“Oh, he totally is.”
“Nah, I’d take Robert Pattinson over him any time of the day.”
Shocked silence.
Then:
“You’ve got to be kidding me!”
“Oh come on, Billy, that is fuckin’ joke, right? Even I can see that Reynolds is way hotter than that teabag!”
“Babe, I think we might have to check your sense of taste. I think it’s gone off the rails again.”
Billy just sits there and beams and obviously enjoys himself immensely.
“You are aware that I was not serious, right?”
Don glares at him over his beer bottle.
“No, because I would not put it past you to like that dude.”
Billy, obviously stuck for words, just sneers at him. It is Paul who brings the conversation back on track.
“So, who’s the last one on the list?”
Robin sends him a conspiring glance.
“Oh, Paulie, you know who it is.”
Now they are in time to cushion the thumps of Don and Billy’s heads.
“Say it with me, darling.”
Raising their glasses, they pat their significant others’ hair before intoning as one.
“Robert Downey, Jr!”
Don is the first one to stop his head from meeting the desk.
“Okay, I get it. The guy is hot. You are hot for him. He has a bangin’ body. He is a great actor and singer, and he finally got an Oscar and hope to never hear you squeal that loudly again. My ears are still ringing. Can we please move on now?”
Just because he sounds aggrieved does not mean that they are going to let up. Robin, after all, still has fantasies about a threesome with Don and Downey, Jr, so she will be the last person on earth to stop ribbing him about it.
Or second to last. Billy will always rib him to death.
“How about we let up about him for the rest of the night?”
“Month.”
“Week.”
“Okay… And I’m only agreeing to this because I know that you two won’t see each other until the end of next week. So, there ‘ya go.”
He is correct. Robin is going to New York for a trial the day after tomorrow.
“There is always text messaging.”
“Or Twitter.”
“Nobody uses that stuff anymore, Billy.”
“I really don’t care, you guys, as long as you stop talking about that man!”
This just sets them off into another round of laughter.
“Jeez, Donnie, he is just an actor. Don’t tell me you have got no- one you’ve got the hots for.”
“Yeah, sure I do.”
“Aaaand, speaking of, why don’t you tell us your list.”
Don grins broadly at them.
“Sure. List’s only got one name on it… Robin.”
He means it. There is no teasing twinkle in his eyes or amusement playing on his lips, only sincerity. Steadily he holds her gaze and she cannot help but get lost just a little bit in his eyes.
Damn the man for making Robin feel guilty for actually having an elevator- list.
Just as she applies her lip gloss, Susan pokes her head into the room.
“You just about finished? Don is getting a tad bit antsy out there.”
Robin glances into her mirror one last time.
“Never been more ready.”
“I used to think that winter was my favourite season.”
“Why winter?”
“Because you’d get to snuggle more.”
“Don, you don’t snuggle or cuddle. And LA does not have the same kinda winter as the East coast.”
“Yeah, but winter had Hanukkah.”
“Aha, presents, right?”
“When I was a boy, yes. We had a Christmas tree and everything, but we did Hanukkah, too. I liked that.”
“Do you still like it because of Hanukkah?”
“Yeah, kinda, but only because it’s tradition, you know? And I want Helen to experience it, too… I mean, it’s her heritage, Robin.”
“Hey, I’m not saying anything.”
“Anyways, I kinda like summer now.”
“Why?”
“’cuz I like how you look in sunlight.”
“Don, we have sunlight all year long.”
“Yeah, but there’s just something light and airy and fresh and beautiful about it in the summer months. And you glow. You both do.”
“You, too. Fatherhood agrees with you.”
“How could it not? Just look at her…”
“Why this sudden talk about seasons?”
“I think we should get married in the summer. Next year.”
“Is that a proposal?”
“Yes.”
“… Really?”
“Absolutely. I’d marry you right now, but I can wait a year.”
This fic was written for the Angst vs Schmoop Challenge at numb3rswriteoff. After you’ve read the fic, please rate it by voting in the poll located here. (Your vote will be anonymous.) Rate the fic on a scale of 1 - 10 (10 being the best) using the following criteria: how well the fic fit the prompt (how), how angsty the fic was, and how well you enjoyed the fic. When you’re done, please check out the other challenge fic at numb3rswriteoff. Thank you!