Lead Me Home, Numb3rs, Part 2/84
Don't own 'em, don't sue.
Part 1
Jason Granger was going to kill his little brother. He was supposed to be helping with chores. Instead he was standing in the barn door like an idiot letting all the heat out.
Well, that was going to stop.
Jason walked right up behind Keith ready to startle the bejesus out of him. Then he saw what Keith saw.
Colby.
Their baby brother was standing on the porch nursing a cup of coffee. It was a sight for sore eyes.
"He looks okay. Do you think he really is?" Keith's eyes never left Colby as he asked what the whole family had been thinking since Colby’s arrival the night before.
"Dunno. He hasn't said much."
"It's Colby; he never has."
Jason snorted at the truth of that statement. Colby was the quiet one, prone to keeping his own counsel. Hell, they hadn't even known he was joining the Army until two weeks before he had to report for boot camp.
"Jase..." Keith turned to look at Jason. His eyes seemed to beg for reassurance.
"Colby's tough. And if he's not okay, he's got us to get him there. Don't worry."
"You sure?"
"Yep. Now, come on. I'm not paying to heat the outdoors and these sheep won't feed themselves."
Keith chuckled and started forward to help with the feeding.
Jason sighed and gave his baby brother one last glance before closing the door and getting back to work.
~3~
Colby finished his coffee and set the mug on the railing. His gaze swept the horizon for easily the fiftieth time that morning. He loved the way the snow made everything clean and bright. L.A. was never like this.
L.A.
Colby had never put too much thought into why he'd wanted to stay in L.A. but now that he'd had to...
Charlie Eppes.
Colby wanted to tell himself that Charlie's appeal was work-related. After all, no one else on the planet could do what Charlie did with numbers and data. He'd never get another chance to work with a genius like that. He'd be stupid to leave when...
But Colby knew he was kidding himself. His interest in Charlie was personal.
"Isn't that a kick in the ass?"
The fact that Charlie was a) straight and dating Amita and b) his boss's little brother wasn't even half of Colby's problem. Charlie was so out of his league. And that was just on the intellectual scale.
Colby brushed the snow off the porch swing and sat down with a sigh. He had never been good working with someone he'd found himself attracted to. His high school chemistry grades more than demonstrated this fact. Now that he'd made the connection with Charlie and wanting to stay, his life was going to be even more complicated.
Well, hell. Maybe L.A. wasn't a good idea.
Colby looked out at the snow again. Unfortunately the sheet of white didn't provide him with answers to his problems.
"Hey, little bro!"
Startled, Colby looked up at his only sister. "Hey, Emily."
Her smile was the soft one she always gave him, her green eyes sparkling. "Mind if I join you? You looked pretty deep in thought."
"I'd love your company. I was just... contemplating the snow."
Emily snorted. "Yeah, a lot to think about there."
Colby shrugged, not really sure he was ready to talk about... well, anything actually.
Emily set the swing in motion as they sat quietly together. Both were staring at the snow but their minds in other places.
Colby smiled as he made out the faint sounds of bleating coming from the barn. Once upon a time the sound would have been so every-day to him that he wouldn't have even noticed it. Now, it was one of the many sounds of comfort he'd found in this place.
"Colb, you know that I'm here for you, no matter what, right?"
Colby glanced at Emily, a smart ass remark all ready on his tongue. But the uncertainty on her face stopped him. How could she think...? "Never in question, sis. Never in question."
She nodded, once, her face quickly becoming composed again. "Good."
Colby smiled and bumped his shoulder against hers. "Yeah."
Emily took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "So, Mom, Richard, and I are headed into town for some last minute shopping and supplies. Wanna come with?"
Colby shook his head. "Don't think I'm quite up for town yet."
"Yeah," Emily said with a laugh as she got up from the swing, "there's a lot of snow left to contemplate."
Next
Part 1
Jason Granger was going to kill his little brother. He was supposed to be helping with chores. Instead he was standing in the barn door like an idiot letting all the heat out.
Well, that was going to stop.
Jason walked right up behind Keith ready to startle the bejesus out of him. Then he saw what Keith saw.
Colby.
Their baby brother was standing on the porch nursing a cup of coffee. It was a sight for sore eyes.
"He looks okay. Do you think he really is?" Keith's eyes never left Colby as he asked what the whole family had been thinking since Colby’s arrival the night before.
"Dunno. He hasn't said much."
"It's Colby; he never has."
Jason snorted at the truth of that statement. Colby was the quiet one, prone to keeping his own counsel. Hell, they hadn't even known he was joining the Army until two weeks before he had to report for boot camp.
"Jase..." Keith turned to look at Jason. His eyes seemed to beg for reassurance.
"Colby's tough. And if he's not okay, he's got us to get him there. Don't worry."
"You sure?"
"Yep. Now, come on. I'm not paying to heat the outdoors and these sheep won't feed themselves."
Keith chuckled and started forward to help with the feeding.
Jason sighed and gave his baby brother one last glance before closing the door and getting back to work.
~3~
Colby finished his coffee and set the mug on the railing. His gaze swept the horizon for easily the fiftieth time that morning. He loved the way the snow made everything clean and bright. L.A. was never like this.
L.A.
Colby had never put too much thought into why he'd wanted to stay in L.A. but now that he'd had to...
Charlie Eppes.
Colby wanted to tell himself that Charlie's appeal was work-related. After all, no one else on the planet could do what Charlie did with numbers and data. He'd never get another chance to work with a genius like that. He'd be stupid to leave when...
But Colby knew he was kidding himself. His interest in Charlie was personal.
"Isn't that a kick in the ass?"
The fact that Charlie was a) straight and dating Amita and b) his boss's little brother wasn't even half of Colby's problem. Charlie was so out of his league. And that was just on the intellectual scale.
Colby brushed the snow off the porch swing and sat down with a sigh. He had never been good working with someone he'd found himself attracted to. His high school chemistry grades more than demonstrated this fact. Now that he'd made the connection with Charlie and wanting to stay, his life was going to be even more complicated.
Well, hell. Maybe L.A. wasn't a good idea.
Colby looked out at the snow again. Unfortunately the sheet of white didn't provide him with answers to his problems.
"Hey, little bro!"
Startled, Colby looked up at his only sister. "Hey, Emily."
Her smile was the soft one she always gave him, her green eyes sparkling. "Mind if I join you? You looked pretty deep in thought."
"I'd love your company. I was just... contemplating the snow."
Emily snorted. "Yeah, a lot to think about there."
Colby shrugged, not really sure he was ready to talk about... well, anything actually.
Emily set the swing in motion as they sat quietly together. Both were staring at the snow but their minds in other places.
Colby smiled as he made out the faint sounds of bleating coming from the barn. Once upon a time the sound would have been so every-day to him that he wouldn't have even noticed it. Now, it was one of the many sounds of comfort he'd found in this place.
"Colb, you know that I'm here for you, no matter what, right?"
Colby glanced at Emily, a smart ass remark all ready on his tongue. But the uncertainty on her face stopped him. How could she think...? "Never in question, sis. Never in question."
She nodded, once, her face quickly becoming composed again. "Good."
Colby smiled and bumped his shoulder against hers. "Yeah."
Emily took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "So, Mom, Richard, and I are headed into town for some last minute shopping and supplies. Wanna come with?"
Colby shook his head. "Don't think I'm quite up for town yet."
"Yeah," Emily said with a laugh as she got up from the swing, "there's a lot of snow left to contemplate."
Next