God Blessed the Broken Road. Chapter Two, Part One.

[vyvolat_hokej]

Written by: lady_lilith and lady_death.

Title: God Blessed the Broken Road. Chapter Two, Part One.
Fandom: MLB: New York Yankees.
Characters: Andy Pettitte, Joe Girardi, Dante Girardi, Serena Girardi, Kim Girardi, Lena Girardi.
Word Count: 16,383. [Part One: 8,552]
Rating: PG.
Summary: A quiet evening at home with a new guest.
Author's Notes: This is set on August 19, 2010. Follows on Chapter One, after the game. The Yankees beat the Tigers, 11-5, at home. Broken in to two parts because of LJ's post limits.


Knocks on the open door of his office, partially standing in the entryway, "Can I come in?"

"Of course. I'm almost finished."

Still hovering on the edge of the room, "Are you alright? I can head out if you're warn out or sick of hearin' my name."

"Andy, sit down. You still have to decide what kind of dinner I owe you."

"I have to? You don't have somethin' in mind?" Considers sitting on the edge of his desk, before taking the more practical option of the couch.

"I have a lot of things in mind. I'm wondering what you have in mind."

"I don't wanna...well, I don't want to push too hard and find I've run over a fence I shouldn't have. I don't mind followin' your lead."

"Is anyone expecting you home at a reasonable hour?"

"No. I called Laura and told her I might not be home or I might be bringin' a plus one. It's flexible."

"Did you know my parents used to run a restaurant?"

Smiles, "You haven't invited me before."

Looks up at him, "Can I take you home with me?"

"I'd like that. You know me, I'm not good at doin' stolen moments and room service in some hotel tucked away where nobody recognize us. I'd try because I want to see what this is, but that's not really who I am."

"You're not my secret. And if this is going to become what I hope it does, I would insist on it. I won't lie and I'm much too selfish to relegate this to stolen moments and away trips and hotel rooms. But, there is one downfall of coming home with me."

"I won't lie to Laura no matter what this starts out as or becomes. You're thinkin' about the kids, aren't you?"

"I'm thinking of how if I bring you home, Dante is going to hog all of your attention."

"He should be all over you, you're the one with all the catcher secrets."

"He claims he knows all my secrets already. Now he's ready to catch you."

"He can have first crack at it when I'm given the all clear."

"Don't tell him that if you don't mean it, he'll remember you said so."

"Well maybe he better work out with Josh. He can work up to it."

"I'm sure he would be thrilled with that."

"You know how he likes to show off what he knows. Josh would be the one who is thrilled."

"I think having a big brother-mentor would do a lot for Dante."

"I got boys in spades."

Chuckles, "That you do, poor Lexy."

"I've just about given up on ever gettin' her to be less shy."

"Have you tried gymnastics? Serena has never had that shy problem, but they seem to be a boisterous group."

"I think she might be coaxed into that. I tell her nobody is gonna force her to compete, she can do it for fun."

"If you ask Serena cartwheels are the greatest joy in the world. I'm sure she'll be happy to share it."

"Joe, it's important to me that my kids don't get hurt in all of this. It's not like they don't already know each other, so it's not like I got a problem with them playin' together. About us, though, I don't want to make any big changes in their life unless we're one hundred percent committed to this."

Sighs, getting up to sit next to him on the couch, "Andy, maybe there are some things you should know. Some things I didn't plan on telling you, but things you should know. Do you remember when I got to New York? The first time I'd been traded and I was told flat out that I had big shoes to fill. I remember the first time I saw you." Laughs a bit, "Heard you."

"Of course I remember when you got to New York. You took my game and made it a thousand times better. Half the reason they were talkin' about the Cy Young was because of you."

"I just showed you what was already there. But I'm not talking about just baseball. I'm talking about you. What it was like to become your friend and then... feel more than that."

"You don't have to make me feel better by sayin' these things. I'm proud knowing from the moment we met that things fell into place. I never had a question about our friendship. It's why I liked bein' around you."

"Make you feel better?" Shakes his head, "You really don't understand, do you? Andy, I've had feelings for you since that first season together."

Looks at him, not sure of what he's hearing or that he can trust his own ears, "Feelings?"

Doesn't shy away from his look, "Feelings. Love."

Stares at him, the words penetrating slowly, "Since '96?"

"Yes."

Pauses, swallowing the lump in his throat. When he responds his voice is thick, "That's fourteen years."

Still hasn't looked away, "Yes, it is."

"I thought back then, I was the only one..." Finds the carpet in his office easier to look at, "I'm an idiot."

"No, Andy." Turns his face back to look at him, his hand lingering on his cheek, "I didn't say anything, you had no way of knowing."

Blurts out, "Bein' around you was a constant temptation."

Smiles, "I wish I had known or maybe I wish I was more of a temptation. Or maybe I don't. Our friendship is more important to me than having been able to sleep with you fourteen years ago."

"I don't feel that way about people I don't care about. But Joe...I'm not that rookie kid anymore. I have my demons and part of them is that I have to take this slow. I don't want to start this out with some empty promises. Because of this friendship, you deserve me bein' honest."

"You can't be anything other than honest. I don't need to rush anything. I won't sleep with you until you're healed. That will give us time to see how this works."

"I spent the past two years makin' sure I wouldn't get torn up again. I never imagined I'd get this kind of chance."

"I won't hurt you, Andy. I never though after '99 that I would have another chance. I was so sure that because I never said anything, that was it. But I have a chance now and taking is slow sounds perfect to me."

"We can negotiate the meanin' of slow. Your decree is kinda harsh." Slides a hand underneath his shirt, to run his fingers along his spine.

His eyelids flutter, along with a soft shiver, "My decree only says I need you to heal up."

"So you have nothin' against me using those parts that are fully capable."

"No, not a thing against it at all."

"You don't get appreciated enough around here."

"I--" Stops, looking at him with a slight grin, "You don't think so?"

"No you don't, but if you want to disagree with me..."

"Not if you were offering to appreciate me right now."

"I would, but knowing you, you probably never even ate lunch."

"My morning just flew by for some reason."

"Too busy lookin' after everyone, but yourself. I can't let you miss dinner too."

"I need to ask you something before we go."

"What is it?"

Looks at him for a long moment. "No, it can wait. Kim will be mad if we're late."

"The car is a good place to ask questions."

"It is." Stands up, "Are you still feeling okay?"

"Yes, I'm not the one who managed us to victory today. All I had to do was warm a spot on the bench."

"I'm lucky enough to have players that make my job easy some days. But I worry about what we did this morning. If you have another setback that's my fault? I'll never head the end of it."

Shakes his head, "It's fine. You stopped me from doin' anything selfish that would have hurt the team."

"Anything that would have hurt you. That's what I'm concerned with right now. But I've discovered a wonderful new gage of how you're feeling."

"I still say it would have been worth it."

"After fourteen years, the first time I'm with you, it's not going to hurt."

"I know." Flashes him a smile, standing up too, "I just wouldn't have regreted being with you."

Steps closer to him, watching him carefully as he slides an arm around his waist, looking for signs of derision or permission. "I'll be honest, I don't know what 'slow' really means."

There's no resistance, moving automatically into the embrace. Leans further into his touch, nearly humming with pleasure from the contact. "It means whatever we say."

Wraps his arms tighter around him, relaxing into him. "I can try my best to be as restrained as you need me to be, but you talked about a dam breaking open and I don't know how much distance I can keep now that I don't have to. This is what I've been missing."

Quietly, "This right here? This I really like." About to close his eyes to enjoy the feeling of being held, the open door catches his attention, "Do you think we left that open earlier?"

"I could spent quite some time doing this, I-- the door? It's always open." Pause, "It's---" Sighs, "Well, on the upside, no one said anything and knowing those clowns, they would have."

"They could be savin' it up or plannin' something evil. I'm never gonna get any peace from them."

"I'm not sure how you want to handle this, them. You are likely to hear more comments than I will, but like I said before, I won't keep it a secret. But I am willing to discuss how you'd like to broach the topic with them, assuming they don't have something 'evil' planned."

"I don't mind them knowin', hopin' they don't already because...that was not how I'd like them to find out. Unless you think that's going to upset the player-manager relationship."

"I want them to know, but I honestly don't know how they'll take it. I've never been on a team with.... this exact circumstance and even less so have I been in this circumstance. But I trust they can maintain a certain level of professionalism."

"I'm the one who has to keep up the professionalism. The guys will give me shit, but they'd never disrespect you."

"I don't want them saying anything to you about it either. You'll tell me if they do, won't you?"

"If they didn't tease me at all, I'd fear they stopped carin' about me."

"I don't foresee that happening. But I'd like to know all the same."

"And if I tell you?" Tugs on his arm to get him moving out of the office.

"Then I'll know." Grabs his keys off his desk as they pass it, heading for the door.

"Will you be tempted to do somethin' about it?"

"That all depends on if you're laughing as you tell me, or if it's bothered you."

"But would that be acting as my manager or my..." Frowns searching for the right word.

Keeps silent, letting him find his next word.

"Boyfriend?" Focuses on him, trying to gauge his reaction, "Are you gonna cringe if I call you that? Is that what we're doin'? Dating?"

Pauses in the hallway, rolling the word over in his head, "Boyfriend. Am I too old for that?"

"I don't think you're too old for anything. Were you thinkin' of something different?"

"I don't know if I ever actually stopped and thought of what I'd call it if I ever had it. What do you think? Do you want to be my boyfriend?"

"I've never defined anything before. It's all just sort of happened and I let it be what it was gonna be. We don't have to go slappin' words on it, if that makes it weird."

"I like to have my ducks in a row. I've been told more than once that I overplan. I'm surprising myself realising that I never thought about what it really would be like to have this chance." Steps closer to him, kissing him lightly, "I'm very sure I would like to be your boyfriend, Andy."

"You know, if you give me permission to call you that, I'm gonna use it in front of the guys." Rests his hands on his hips, unwilling to let him move away.

"I know. And I am." Slides his hands over his shoulders, pulling him into another kiss, very aware how exposed they are in the middle of the hallway.

Nips at his lip, playfully keeping just too far away to kiss, as his hand grazes the back of his neck, "When me and AJ work out next, he might even ask for details."

A raised eyebrow, with a light grin, "I always knew that's what pitchers talked about, but that has dashed any sliver of hope I had they talked about pitching."

"I only had pitchin' to talk about before, so your hope can still live on."

"But now you've been lost to the dark side."

"They already heard me exhaust the subject of curves and cutters. They might tell me to shut up if I mention workouts again."

"I find it very hard to believe that anyone would tell you to shut up. And if they do, I expect to hear about it."

"You haven't heard me when I get on a roll about trainin'. You could get sick of listenin' to me too."

"I have heard you. More than once." Pauses, "More than twice. I still would exect the rest of my staff to listen, even when you get on a roll."

"Are you sayin' I can get kind of obsessive? You're a lot more tactful than CC and AJ."

"I have a lot more practice at being tactful than they do. As for you getting obsessive, I'll say only 'perhaps a bit'. Now if I go to kiss you, will I get bitten again?"

"If you ask me to, I'll oblige you, for sure."

Laughs, "And if I ask you to let me kiss you this time?"

"I wanted to get to the car, but for that I think I can hold off."

Checks his watch, "I can kiss you for another three mintues right now and we still won't be late."

Laughs, "You got it timed, how long it takes to get from here to your house?"

Looks at him for a moment, "Why did that sound like surprise?"

"I guess I never acknowledged how much of a thing you got for scheduling. With me, I figure it's gonna take as long as it takes."

"But this way I know how late I can stay here without getting in trouble at home. And we've just used up most of those three minutes, so we should get down to the lot.

"You can blame me." Pushes him against the wall, pinning him there so he can delve into his mouth.

A small moan escapes before wrapping his arms tight around him, sliding a hand up under his shirt, just to rest there, touching him, the kiss quickly becoming the one and only thing on his mind.

Shivers at the touch, torn between pressing back against his hand and keeping him trapped against the wall with no room to maneuver away. Breathless, "Take me home."

Not moving, though to run his hands along the small of his back, meeting his eyes, he can't help a shiver himself, "Yes, Andy. And you'll stay, won't you?"

Bites his lip, but this time it's spurred on by the desire to keep himself quiet rather than embarrassment. The more he touches him the needier the sounds escaping him become. When he judges that he's under enough control to speak, "I wasn't plannin' on goin' home, if you wanted me there."

Keeps lightly petting his back just to hear what sounds he'll make, a very slight smirk playing at his lips watching him try to keep under control, trying to limit his success even more. "I've always wanted to know what it would feel like waking up beside you."

"I'd like that." His ow hands aren't still. Now that he's allowed to touch he can't help indulging in the craving to feel the heat of him under his hands. Although his eyes take him in, it's his tactile sense that grounds him in the moment.

Holds his eyes as long as he can stand not kissing him again, emotions coming in a rush that he's trying to make an effort to at least temper if not calm completely. The idea of 'slow' is quickly getting lost again.

"Joe..." Watches the emotions cross his face, fascinated by what he's seeing there and it's almost too much for him to look at. Removes one of his hands to brace himself against the wall, leaving some space between their bodies to make it easier to breathe.

Takes a deep breath, but he can't take his eyes off his. "I know. We should go. Because I know no one will be in this hall for the rest of the night and I'm much too tempted to take advantage of that."

It would be so easy to let go and be carried away by him, but instead he shifts backwards a little more. "I'm startin' to think you have the whole staff's schedules memorized."

Relaxes his touch, sliding his hands over to his hips, "Everyone falls into habits, I've just happened to notice them all. Sometimes it's nice to know when I'll have this side to myself."

"What do you do with this knowledge?"

"Enjoy the solitude and know I can get my work done without---" Leans forward to kiss him very lightly, "--interruptions."

"Mmm, you sure you want to take me home? 'Cause you've been stallin' all night." Takes another step backwards, "You aren't havin' secret trysts?"

"Stalling? Is that what I was doing? As I recall, someone couldn't keep his hands to himself. Or his mouth." Slips out from between him and the wall, "But I very much want to take you home." Leads him further down the hall.

"You didn't give me an answer. Is that what those calls to the manager’s office are really about?" If prior to this he ignored basic rules of personal space, there is even less room between the two of them as they walk down the hall.

Glances over to him with a smirk, "Oh there's a steady stream of pitchers in and out of my office all day long. It's a good thing I eat my Wheaties every morning."

"I have a new protein shake that I swear by."

"Oh? I may have to look into that, since I'll be adding you to my harem."

"Do I get to pick my own number or do you give those out by merit?"

"I accept suggestions."

Laughs, "Alright, I'll come up with a list of my top choices for y'all."

"Please submit in writing, for consideration."

"Is there official paperwork? I don't like signing that stuff, so it'd be better if I you can boil it down for me into somethin' simple."

"It's a very simple contract. All you do is sign yourself over to me. I have photocopies in the office, remind me to get you one."

"I can make my mark for you." Although the tone is still lighthearted, there is an undercurrent of sincerity, "You don't have to worry about me wanderin'."

Glances over to him, "I know that."

Reaches out to run his hand over his arm, "So you can have your ducks all settled, when I'm you boyfriend I'm nobody else's."

Takes his hand, stopping beside his car, "You understand, don't you, that it's the same for me. I am only capable of wanting, of loving, one person at a time. And that person hasn't changed for a good many years."

Nods, "I'm startin' to understand that. I wouldn't be able to do this if it were any other way."

"Neither would I." Smiles, "Now, get in. You'll be explaining to Kim why we're late."

"Because my manager wouldn't let me leave."

"No, no, no. Someone was kissing me up against the wall in the hallway."

"Would I do something' like that?"

"Because you couldn't help yourself."

"And I'm about to give the press some really good photos." Opens the passenger side door.

Shakes his head, getting into the driver's seat, "Those would certainly be different questions to answer."

"I wish I could joke about it. I would rather answer those questions than the ones they keep asking."

Sighs, resting a hand on his leg, "They'll stop asking soon enough and you can go back to answering questions about how much better you're feeling."

Covers his hand with his own, "How am I gonna keep a straight face when they ask those questions now?"

"You're 'working hard to come back as soon as possible'."

"Your wording is only makin' the images in my head worse. I'm tryin' to keep myself from gettin' into more trouble."

Smiles, "I know, I meant just what I said." Pulls out of the lot with one hand, keeping his other just where it was.

"You're such a trouble maker."

"I'm being honest. Is anything I said not fact?" Slides his hand to the inside of his leg, very carefully.

Grins at him, "I can't find anything wrong with what you said, but I know you can out think all of us."

"And let me tell you something strange. I am usually thinking of at least three things at any given time, it's just how my mind works, I like to be thinking. But I've found that I can't keep my mind from one specific focus."

"I bet walkin' in your mind is like strollin' through Grand Central. A million and one thoughts busslin' about, but they all have their specific destination, so there's order underneath what looks like chaos." Smiles more, "I'm always happy when I can keep up with you."

"I like that description a lot, I may have to use that someday. But I don't think I'm that difficult to keep up with, as long as you started on the same page. And I've never known you not to be on the same page as I am."

"It's still amazin' to me. And if I'm on the same page, I count myself lucky to be thinkin' like you."

"You're one of the few that I feel like I don't have to translate what I'm thinking into a more user-friendly version of my thoughts before I say them. And I don't know if that's simply because you've heard me talk so much, you're used to it or if I really do think that much differently and you think like I do."

"I don't see why you'd need to translate, you always make perfect sense. It's why I enjoy our conversations, you have ways of cuttin' through all the outer layers and gettin' at the real point of the matter. You explain things better'n anyone else."

"Thank you. It seems at times... there is an overabundance of personalities in the sport of baseball."

"Half of us are missin' things upstairs."

"I wouldn't say that."

"I don't mind it. Most people couldn't do this job, either because they don't understand it, or they get too discouraged, or they don't have the patience to put the hours in. You see kids come in with talent who just give up. It takes a special number of factors aligin' just right to play this game, and on top of that it takes even more to play here."

"People tend to call it ego when we try to explain that it does take more to play here than anywhere else. And I'm not saying that because we're the best team-- though I am saying that-- but there are things people don't understand about being here. And having had an outsider's point of view, I feel I'm in a unique position to be able to explain that to newcomers. And yet, they usually don't fully grasp it for years."

"People joke about me goin' to Texas, like I left to go bag groceries, and in a way it was like walkin' into an entirely different world. More relaxed, maybe. And that doesn't really suit me, we all got our quirks. I don't think we could survive baseball if we didn't."

"I love Chicago, but New York kept drawing me back. I came to realise I'd be much happier working broadcasting here than I would managing somewhere I didn't care so much about."

"There's no place to live and breathe baseball like here. But, you are right, we do get a lot of personalities."

"But that's part of it. We wouldn't be New York and we wouldn't be the Yankees without all of these personalities. I always want to run an orderly ship, but I think that if I had twenty-five automatons, I couldn't win a dozen games."

"It'd be a lie though, to say it can't wear you down dealin' with those personalities day in and day out."

"That is a fact, but I have this to come home to at the end of the day."

"Yeah." Holds back a thought.

Putting the car in park, looking over to him, "Someday, you'll stop censoring yourself."

"I didn't wanna bring Roger into this. It was only a passing thought because of what we were talkin' about."

"I don't want you to think there's anything you can't say to me."

"I care about makin' you feel comfortable. Doesn't seem fair to make you hear about that."

"Andy, I want to hear about whatever you want to talk about. I don't promise I don't have my own opinions of him, but you shouldn't feel like you have to pretend your relationship didn't happen, or it's a taboo subject."

"I don't want you to censor yourself either, it's alright if we disagree."

"And we will. That shouldn't stop you from speaking your mind."

"I was only thinkin' about what you said about too many personalities, and how sometimes it felt like there was no space for me with Roger."

"It always seemed to me there was little room for other personalities anywhere around him."

"Not always. But sometimes he would need it to be about him, his ideas. It could be fun, when I was excited about the same thing, but we weren't always on the same page."

"You said something this morning, that I haven't been able to forget. You said that being with him wasn't always good. And you didn't tell me what you meant by that. If you change the subject again right now, I won't bring it up again."

Begins to say something, but the words aren't quite right, so he takes another moment to gather his thoughts, "My wants are simple. Give me my family and that's all I need. I like spendin' time at home and Roger couldn't be contained like that. He likes an audience. I couldn't always keep up with him. I know he jumped out of retirement for me, but it was in my head that maybe I wasn't the only person he enjoyed havin' workouts with. It was probably stupid on my part, but I wanted him home and it caused fights."

"Had you set those parameters on your relationship when it began? Were you able set anything when you began?"

"We didn't define it. It sprang up. It wasn't just that. Roger is a lot more complex than I am, I don't think I always understood him completely. I wanted to, but even after nine years there were things that didn't make sense to me."

A pause. "I know I don't need to say this, but I will anyway. If anything ever comes up in our relationship that's not good, that doesn't makes sense, that bothers you at all, you will tell me, won't you?"

"I know I can approach you. You aren't like Roger that way, you know how he hated to be contradicted."

"I think we are a lot more equal than you and he were."

Sighs, "I can admit that. The world looks a lot different at 38 versus 27. I know, especially when we met, I trusted his judgment more than I should have."

"That is the best part of getting older, you also get wiser. Our past shapes us, but it doesn't define us."

"Why do I feel like you're tryin' to give me a pep talk?"

"Maybe because you sighed." Points to the front window of the house, "You're being watched."

"I sighed because I wish I had been smarter. It's harder to defend some of those youthful actions now." Looks up at the house.

"You don't have to defend yourself. No one is holding a tape recorder at you, there aren't flashbulbs. You have nothing to defend to me."

All that's visible in the window is a baseball cap and a pair of eyes under the brim.

"To myself, not to you. Do we need to hurry up and get inside?"

"There's less reason to defend yourself to yourself. You were there and you know why it happened the way it happened." Strokes his leg, gently, "Do you need a few more minutes?"

"No, I'm fine. The longer we stay out here the more questions he'll have. We're already late."

"Remember, you're explaining it to Kim." Pats his leg before getting out. Pauses, looking in the backseat, "I left my bag in my office."

"Did I cause you to leave important information back there?"

"I was going to see what paperwork I could get through tonight." Shakes his head, "I've never left my bag behind one day in my career."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be causin' you trouble. I'll make sure you don't leave things behind next time."

"It's just as well. It's unlikely I'll have time to get to much paperwork tonight anyway." Leads him up to the front door.

By the time they get there, it's open, he's looking at them expectantly for an explanation.

Brushes his hand against his, though doesn't take it, "Hey, Dante."

"Hi! Are you why Dad's late?"

"I kept him kinda busy and he couldn't leave on time."

"Are you staying for dinner?"

"Did you eat without us?"

Shakes his head, "Mom said we should wait."

"Thank you for waitin'. I'd like to eat dinner with you if you can squeeze in one more plate."

Nods, stepping aside to let them in, "It's chicken."

Waits for Joe to move first, intending to follow his lead.

Moves inside ahead of them, "Dad brought Uncle Andy home."

Puts a hand on Andy's back, ushering him inside.

Looks up hopefully from her book, then tries very hard to hide her disappointment, "Hi."

"Oh finally. Sit."

"Hi." Waves at all of them, "Thanks for havin' me over." Takes in Serena's reaction although he isn't sure what to make of it.

Ushers everyone into the kitchen, where the table's already sit. Pauses to put a hand on Andy's shoulder, "I'm glad you came."

"I'm sorry we didn't get here sooner. It isn't his fault, I was muckin' up the works, slowin' down his whole routien out of the park."

"I know how you boys can get to talking."

"Yeah..." Glances away looking at Joe, "He gets my attention and then I can't shut up."

Laughs a bit, "Of course. Sit, please."

Picks the baby up, getting her settled in her booster seat.

Pauses, and although it should be perfectly natural to sit down at their table, hesitates at where he should take his place. Settles on the chair closest to him.

Moves into the chair next to him, "Can you throw yet?"

Picks her chair across from him. She's not unhappy, but there's still an air of disappointment, a little bit of a pout.

Chuckles, sitting at the head closest to Andy, "What did I tell you?"

"No, I'm still not ready to go yet. I wish I could pitch, but I'm still hurtin' a little." Gives Joe a questioning look, hoping for some help with Serena's reaction.

"Can you throw a little? We could put the back lights on after dinner."

"Did you say hi, Serena?"

"Mmhmm."

"What's the matter?"

"Nothin'."

Starts passing bowls around after having set up Lena's dish. "Can I get you something to drink?"

Smiles at Kim, "Thank you. A beer would be great." To Dante, "I wish I could, but I'll watch you catch your dad."

Sighs, "I already do that. And he's too easy to hit off of."

Gets up, taking empty bowls with her into the kitchen.

"Dante. Don't make him feel bad."

Mumbles, "Sorry."

"It's okay. Your dad and I were wonderin' if you'd like to practice with Josh sometime." To Joe, "Are you gonna say grace?"

"Yeah, that'd be cool."

Smiles, "Would you?"

Offers him one hand to take and the other to Dante, "I could." He pauses, waiting for Kim to return to the table before bowing his head, "God, we'd like to thank you for blessin' us with our wonderful families. Thank you for the children that give our lives meaning. Thank you for this wonderful meal and the wives we couldn't survive without. Thank you for seein' fit to bless our bats today and seein' the Yankees to victory. And we know that in the times ahead, no matter how tryin' they may appear, your Will is bein' done and we have to trust in you, Lord. But mostly, we want to thank you for the infinite number of chances you give us to get things right and for giving us the wisdom to recognize them for what they are. Amen."

"Amen."

"Amen." Squeezes his hand.

"Amen. That was nice." Smiles.

Returns the gesture, lingering a little longer before releasing his hand. To Serena, "Thank you. What were you readin' when we came in? Fun stuff?"

"Mmhmm, I already did my summer reading ages ago. I had to read three books this summer. One that my teacher picked and one from a list and another one that could be anything I wanted. Have you ever read The Sisters Grimm?"

"Um, like the Brothers Grimm? I didn't know there were sisters."

Laughs, "Yeah, it's like that, but with sisters. They're really funny. You can borrow the first one, I'm already done with it."

"Thank you. I can't get Josh to lend me any of his. He keeps complain' about his English lit class he has comin' up."

"What does he like to read?"

"Graphic novels. Though I think he likes the Sherlock Holmes stuff even if I can't get him to admit it."

"Did he ever read Bone? I read that."

"You'll have to ask him the next time you see him."

Nods, blushing a little, "Do you know what Jared likes to read?"

"Fantasy stuff. At least he made me get some Ranger series the last time we were in the bookstore."

Lights up, "The Ranger's Apprentice?"

"Yeah, that was what it was called."

"Those are so good! I already read them all, I have to wait for a new one to come out. But it's always so long between books that I usually read them again before the new one comes out so I remember what it's about."

"Jared must have the same opinion you do, because I've never seen him sit still that long in one go. His face was buried in them for days."

"Did he read The Lightning Thief yet?"

"Is that the one they made into a movie?"

Sighs, "Yes, that's the only way I could get Dante to even know about it. But the book is so much better."

"The movie was kinda cool."

"You should have gone with us when we saw that, Jared complained the whole time about what it did wrong."

"And they skipped good stuff and took way too long on some other things." Shakes her head, "The books were way better."

"It sounds like you had a similar experience seeing that movie as we did."

"She talked through the whole thing."

"This is why we should have gone together. Me and Dante could have sat away from the book-lovers and enjoyed the special effects, leavin' those two to point out all the faults."

"That woulda been way better. She ruined the whole movie complainin'."

"I didn't ruin it, the movie makers did!"

Whispers to Dante, "Next time you can sit with me."

Whispers back, "Thanks. Sisters, y'know?" Shakes his head.

"It's tough having a big sister."

"She thinks she knows everything."

"Not everything, just a lot of things. At least I don't think I know everything Dad does."

"Just about catching."

"You'd be lucky to know everything your dad does."

Nods, "He's a good teacher."

"Thank you. I have a bad habit of getting students that surpass me in a short amount of time."

Grins, "It's okay, Dad. You're a good Manager too."

"No one could surpass you in all the qualities you bring to the table.

"Thank you."

"Can you tell Dante he's not better than Dad?"

"Someday he might be."

"But he's not right now, right?"

"Not yet, your dad calls a really good game, which takes time to learn.'

To her brother, "See?"

"That's 'cause he hasn't seen me catch."

Rolls her eyes with a sigh.

"I will withhold judgment until I see one of your games."

"I have a game on Saturday."

Hopeful, "In the evening?"

"At three. We don't have lights so if it gets dark, we hafta call the game."

"Maybe someone can tape it for me. I'd like to see you in your element."

"Mom, can you--"

"The camera is charging as we speak."

"Thanks. And this food has been delicious. I should have told you that earlier instead of gobblin' it down. I've lost all my manners."

"Thank you. I understand how the conversation stole your attention."

"With so many good people to talk to, it's hard not to get swept up in it."

"And next time I insist you add to the confusion and bring your family with you."

"I'll try to get 'em all into the car. It's like herding cattle."

Laughs, "Should I co-ordinate with Laura myself?"

Picks her head up, nodding.

"She's the boss, and I make a poor middle-man so that would make the most sense, for sure."

"I'll do that. We don't see all of you around here enough."

"I would like to come by a lot more." Presses his foot up against Joe's under the table, for the simple contentment of touching him.

Smiles, "I think that's something we can arrange." Looks over to him, asking without asking how much he wants to say.

"Maybe we can shift gears and bring this into the living room?"

"Is everyone finished eating?"

"I'm full."

"Ice cream? We have company over."

"I'm not steppin' into that minefield."

Ponders this, "Well, Andy did some filing for me this morning. He could request that."

"Whether your kids get ice cream is between you and your kids." Shifts his chair closer, his voice pitched only for him, "I was hopin' you'd have a comfortable couch I could request instead."

Shakes his head, "It's not happenin' today."

"I don't think so either."

"I'd be happy to oblige." Stands up, "Ice cream on Saturday, after your game."

Sighs, "Least it wasn't no." Looks to Andy, "Can I go with you?"

"Into your living room? Unless you're in trouble for something I don't know about." Stands too, about to pick up his plate to bring it into the kitchen sink.

"No, I mean is it just for you guys or for us kids too?"

Takes the plate from his hands, "Don't you dare. Go sit. Would you like coffee?"

Leaves the first question in Joe's hands, trying to cover his surprise at the remark, afraid to misinterpret it. To Kim, "No thank you. If you throw me out later, I may need some to get home."

A slight pause, "If I do?"

"Into the living room, until bedtime." Sets Lena on her feet.

Toddles right over to Andy, taking his hand.

Again, his eyes drift to Joe, unwilling to put his foot in his mouth or strain anything with his family, "If it's alright with you, I'd like to stay." Smiles down at Lena, "Hello baby girl."

Tugs on his hand, "Pick me up?"

Looks over to Joe and back to Andy, "Of course, it's just fine with me. I'll make sure the guest room is set up."

Nods his gratitude before swinging Lena up into his arms, "Did you wanna be this high?"

Laughs, "Yeah! Hi."

"Are you bringin' her to practice again?"

"Do you think we could convince Lexy?"

"Are you guys comin' in here?"

"We're comin', cowboy. Pull up on them reins." Carries his daughter into their living room area, "I don't know about Lexy. I offer every time."

Curled up on the chair with her book in her lap, but closes it as soon as they walk in the room.

"Sit here." Pats the couch next to him.

Rests her head on his shoulder.

"Where is your dad going to sit?"

Points to the other chair.

Holds back a sigh, sitting down next Dante. If Joe catches his eye, he'll be able to read the wish there to be curled up next to him.

"I'll bet if you move down a little, we can all sit together on the couch."

Makes a face, but moves closer to the arm.

Smiles a bit at that compromise, sliding over to leave Joe room to sit down with them. Settling Lena securely against his own chest, "Are you in charge of the TV, Dante? You can pick what we watch."

Sits down next to him as close as he can comfortably get.

Turns towards him, snuggling in.

"I can? Really? Can we watch the game again?"

Sighs.

"There might be some interesting west coast games." Shifts where he is leaning more against Joe than the couch. If they were on their own his head would be resting against him with an arm slung around his waist.

Slides an arm behind him around his waist anyway, pulling him a little closer. Quietly, "If you want to be around a lot."

Concentrates hard on the clicker, finding the Extra Innings channels, flipping through to find a game worth his attention. "You usta be an Astro."

Nods, and it's only the lack of room that keeps him from worming his way closer and turning Joe into a human pillow. His tendency to cuddle on full display. Answering Dante, "I was for a couple of years."

Keeps him as close against him as he can, slipping his hand just under the hem of Andy's shirt. "Do we really want to watch them?"

"But they're playing the Mets, Dad."

Forcing his voice to remain lighthearted, which is surprisingly easier while focusing on the way his hand feels against his skin, "If he wants to watch the Mets, that's alright with me."

"We should check out what the Rays are doing. That game should be starting soon."

"Oh! Yeah, that's more important that the Mets, everyone knows that." Flips the channel, focusing his attention on the screen intently.

Looking at the screen for a moment, then to the couch, "Uncle Andy, is it bad to like someone on an enemy team? Dante says that makes me.... a bad word."

"Dante, what have you been callin' your sister? And why hasn't your dad put a stop to it?" Shakes his head, "We got a lot of friends on other teams. I sometimes get mad at Johnny when he's on base because he's always askin' where we want to go after the game rather than focusin' on baseball."

Laughs, "Does he really do that? Like all the way over to you? That's kinda funny."

"I didn't call her anything! Besides, she likes people in the division! That's not okay, is it?"

"Yeah, he does that. Mostly with the guys manning our bases. If he gets all the way over to Alex, I'm mad at him for whole different reasons. Are you rootin' for the enemy, Serena?"

Horrified, "No! I would never do that! Even when we were Marlins, I didn't do that!"

Chuckles, trying to hold back a louder laugh, "It's alright, I don't believe you'd hurt my feelings like that."

Shakes her head, "Never never never."

"She still likes a Ray!"

"Because he hits a lot! It's not my fault he's a Ray. Maybe he can be a Yankee next year."

"Which one? Longoria?"

"Uh huh. She makes me shush when he's hitting."

Groans, "Can't you like one of their pitchers instead? I mean, they got a pretty good rotation, wouldn't be no shame in liking one of 'em."

"But...." Sighs.

Bites his lip, trying not to laugh.

"It's not so bad, since you like him for his hitting. Sure as hell don't know what's goin' on with that kid's hair."

Looks up at him, "It's really not so bad? 'Cause I wouldn't like him when they're playing us or anything."

"No it's not. I respect a lot of people because of their talent who haven't ever played for the Yankees."

Breathes, "Okay, good." To Dante, "See? You don't know everything."

"Hmpf."

"You don't like anybody on any other team, Dante?"

"No."

"Fibber."

"Oh? What's the real story? Who does he have a hankering for?"

"A what?"

Laughs a little, "You know, who does he like?"

"A Met."

"I do not."

"You do too."

"I do not."

"A Met, huh? Ever since Mike retired I can't say I got any reasons to dislike Mets."

"And he thinks he's cute."

"I do not. And I don't like him. But! If I did, it'd just be 'cause he's a good catcher and that's it."

"Fibber."

"Maybe we should be watchin' the Mets, so we can see how Dante reacts to this guy."

"Uh, no, we should watch the Rays."

Giggles, "He doesn't want to get caught."

"We can always flip back and forth, that's only fair. Give everybody a chance to see their boy."

"I only have Yankee boys."

"You aren't gonna be the best cater in the league if you aren't willin' to learn from everybody. Didn't your dad teach you not to have prejudices?"

"Yeah, but the Yankees are the best, aren't they?"

"We're strivin' to be."

Nods, "Who do you like that's on another team?"

"Hmm, well that could get into a pretty long list. There are the people I've met who are real nice guys and then there are people whose stuff I wish I had. Like Price, on the Rays, I wish my fastball could see anything close to 97 mph."

"Do you really? 'Cause that's not really, like, what your stuff is like."

"It's alright. You can say it, my stuff creeps to the plate like molasses comin' out of a jar."

"I didn't mean that, it's just that like you can do other stuff, like be sneaky if you're not fast. Dad says that he wouldn't ever want a team full of guys that throw 100 because then they're all the same but if you have different guys that do different stuff, then you can fool people. Dad says a good catcher hasta be able to catch a guy that throws like 80 or something and a guy that throws 100 'cause a team needs both kindsa pitchers."

Groans, "You got him started."

"The older you get, the more 'sneaky' you find you need to be. You should listen to your dad, he knows about pitchin' smart. Look at Mo, nobody can get to him because he can put the ball wherever he wants, whenever he wants. But, I still wish I could combine what I know now with a much younger arm."

"If you could have any kinds of pitches, what would you want?"

"I like all of my stuff, I wouldn't want to get rid of it. If I could be blessed with one pitch though? Tom Glavine’s circle changeup, the way he threw it."

Thinks a minute, "Okay, that's cool. Who's your favourite catcher?"

Without any hesitation, "Your dad."

Groans, "That's a cop-out."

Laughs, "Thank you."

"I am being completely serious. Your dad was the best who ever caught me."

"Okay, like, besides Dad."

"Hmm, and you probably don't want to hear Jorge either, huh?"

"No, those are easy answers."

"They're fair, I don't like judging guys I haven't worked with. It's hard to know if someone is goin' out to the mound too much. Some pitchers need that."

"Dad says that a good catcher knows without even looking if a pitcher needs you to go out there and talk to him. Dad says you can just tell."

"I think your Dad is right, but as a pitcher I don't have that psychic catcher ability."

"I think that's good because you wouldn't want pitchers to be catchers."

"I wouldn't want to deal with all us guys."

"Why not? Catching is the most fun."

"Sometimes we can be a lot of work off the field. Like Joba right now, his head is in a weird place that he needs help gettin' out of."

Sighs, "Oh I know. But Dad says a good catcher can help a pitcher with that, but they can't always fix it. Sometimes a pitcher hasta work out his own head stuff."

"That is true, sometimes there is no helpin' us."

"Did Dad help you when he was your catcher?"

"I'll say he did, but he'll tell you that nobody can get me to loosen up completely. I don't think I'm too serious."

"But you hafta be really serious when you're pitching out there 'cause it's really important. But when you go home then you can be not as serious. That's what Dad says."

"Shhh, for a minute, please."

"Sometimes you can take things too personally on the mound. Is Longoria steppin' up to the plate?"

"Mmhmm, just one minute."

Sighs, "Traitor."

"Your sister isn't a traitor." Dutifully shuts his mouth to let her enjoy the at-bat. Taking the moment to steal a glance at Joe.

Smiles brightly watching the ball bounce into centerfield, "Did you see that? I think he's maybe the best hitter in the whole AL."

"See?!" Shakes his head.

Chuckles, asking Andy 'are you okay?' without asking.

Gives him a very bright smile in return, squashing the temptation to kiss him.

Confident the children's attention is kept by the homerun just hit by Carlos Peña, leans over to kiss him lightly.

Carefully ensures that Lena isn't going anywhere, before bringing his hand up to caress the short hairs on the back of his neck.

Smiles, a whisper, "I could get used to this."

"I don't like him or anything, but he's a really good hitter too."

"It wouldn't be hard to wanna do this every day." Directed at Serena, "Hmm?"