![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ajremixTitle: Things You Need to Learn
Fandom: Smallville
Rating: PG-13 for two scenes of implied sexy times
Word Count: 4081
Characters: Ted, Booster, Jaime, Milagro, Skeets, Bianca, Alberto
In Response to:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
winds_of_autumn's ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
boostlethon: "Booster and Ted being Dad like to Jaime (and Milagro too if you want)"
Summary: In the same 'verse as Step Out on Faith. Jaime learns a hero's hardest lesson: realizing you can't protect everyone all the time, even if they're your little sister.
Jaime's at the park so Milagro can run around like a spastic crazy child and the only reason why this isn't the most annoying thing ever is because his alternative is being back at the apartment and doing his physics homework under Booster's surprisingly watchful and critical eye. He slouches against the park bench with a sigh, texting Paco until the little tornado decided she's worn herself out. Paco's giving him the play-by-play of a basketball game that Jaime's missing; Khaji Da had offered to find a radio station to tune into it but having announcers in his head weirded Jaime out more than having a mechanical device chittering in an alien language did.
The teen smirks at his friend's commentary on a charging call and the ref's apparent near-sightedness when crying breaks over the park. Jaime's head snaps up, blood running cold. He's frozen in shock and terror and Khaji Da takes over, doing as it was instructed in an emergency situation.
~*~*~*~
Ted's head is aching and the droning of the sales rep is making him want to jump out the nearest window. Or toss the rep out - he hasn't quite decided if the subsequent police investigation is better than suicide or not. His phone - set next to his tablet and silenced -lights up and Ted spares it enough of a glance to recognize two things: the caller is Jaime and the emergency-use priority number is attached. More worried than glad for the interruption, Ted holds up his hand to stop the rep and answers, "Jaime, what is it?"
He can hear someone crying in the background and then Jaime's voice comes in fast and more than a little hysterical, "/Ted! Oh god, Ted- I don't know what to do!/"
Panicking teenagers - never a good thing. "Calm down and tell me what happened."
"/Milagro's hurt - I was suppose to be watching her! Why wasn't I watching her?/"
Well, that's that, then. Ted looks at the rep and shakes his head in a quiet dismissal. He packs his briefcase, grabs his coat and all but runs for the door. "How badly is she hurt?"
"/It's her leg. Her ankle is swelling up. Mom and Dad are going to kill me!"
Okay - bad sprain at best, broken at worse. Sounds like the crying has dissolved into sniffles. "Anything else? Is she hurt anywhere else?"
"/I-I don't know-/"
"Ask her, Jaime." Ted slips into the elevator and uses his emergency override to head straight to the garage. He hears the teen talking, asking three or four times if anything else hurts. By the end Ted can hear Milagro getting annoyed and he can't help but smirk at that. He doubts there's anything worse than a broken bone. When Jaime confirms it's just the leg, Ted asks, "Have you called an ambulance?"
"/No - oh! I should-/"
"Jaime," Ted breaks in gently but firmly (in what both Jaime and Milagro call the Dad Voice which confuses and kind of horrifies Ted because he's never had a Dad Voice before) . "I'm coming to get you two right now so don't worry about it. If anything else starts hurting or if Milagro starts feeling sick before I get there, then call an ambulance, okay?"
"/Okay./"
"Good - now this is what you're going to do while you wait for me. Call your mother, let her know I'm going to take you two to her hospital; she should expect us in about twenty minutes. After you've talked to her, talk to Milagro. Reassure her that she'll be okay and that I'll be there soon and we'll get her leg fixed up, got it? Make sure she stays calm."
"/Call Mom, keep Milagro calm. Got it./" Over the line Milagro makes a faint remark about her having to keep Jaime calm to which Jaime responds with, "/I'm not spazzing out! I just... shut up, you're supposed to be an invalid./"
"/It's just my leg, doofus. I can still talk./"
Ted snickers as he starts up the car. Oh yeah, she's going to be fine.
~*~*~*~
Not twenty minutes later, Ted pulls up to the hospital where Bianca is waiting with a wheelchair that she and Ted carefully move Milagro to. Milagro is on the phone with Alberto, telling him that aside from her leg she's okay and Alberto promises to be there soon. Bianca flags down a technician and wheels her daughter over to be X-rayed. Ted takes that moment to drop a hand on Jaime's shoulder and ask, "You okay?"
Now that the panic is over, the full realization of what happened is sinking in and Jaime looks like he thinks he's worst person ever to exist. "My little sister got hurt when I was suppose to be watching her. I am not okay."
Ted just sighs and pulls the teen into a half-hug. "It's not your fault."
"You weren't even there!"
He rolls his eyes, "Okay, let's say you were paying attention. You see her just as she trips or falls or whatever happened - what were you going to do? Catch her? Fly over and put a cushion out for her? Keep her from running around and having fun in the first place?" Jaime doesn't have a rebuttal but he's clearly still blaming himself. "Milagro got hurt - that's just one of those inevitable life things. She's probably going to hurt herself again at some point but it won't be your fault then, just like it isn't now, and she's not going to blame you for it and your parents aren't going to blame you for it. Okay?"
Jaime just gives an automatic nod but at least Alberto finally arrives. Ted hopes Jaime will listen to his father. It's not long after that Bianca comes out and tells them Milagro's condition: a clean fracture and nothing else. She'll get a cast and be sent home as soon as it sets. Bianca goes back to help with the cast, Jaime and Alberto decide to stay and wait and Ted, seeing his presence is rather superfluous at this point, tells them he's going to head to the apartment building and fill Booster in on what happened. Before he leaves he gets Alberto's promise that they'll knock on Booster's door when they get back.
~*~*~*~
There's a spare key on his keychain which technically Ted could've gotten without Booster's permission since he owns the building but the fact that Booster had it made for him always puts a small, warm feeling in his heart. Booster is lounging across the couch, laptop across his legs and the television on some random reality show. He doesn't actually watch, just needs some background noise as he works. Ted knows this but he likes teasing him about it anyway. "Are you watching the Kardashians?"
Booster looks up at him, then squints at the TV. "....Yes?" It's obvious he has no idea who these people are. "How can you tell?"
"Trade secret." Ted drops his briefcase and coat and toes off his shoes. He keeps his tie on, though, just because Booster has some sort of kink about them. He makes a show of moving to stretch on the couch, giving the other man just enough time to put his laptop aside and pull Ted into his arms.
"Long day?"
Ted just sighs, nestling against Booster's neck. "Milagro fractured a bone in her leg."
"Is she okay?"
"Hairline oblique fracture to her fibula. She'll have a cast for a few weeks, maybe a month but that's it. Alberto'll let us know when they get back from the hospital."
"Hmm, that sucks." There's a tugging at Ted's shirt and a brief moment of room-cool air against his skin before Booster's hand is there, warm and strong. Ted doesn't know what it is about Booster but practically every touch manages to ignite something in his blood. He hooks an ankle around one of Booster's and kisses softly at his neck. There's a puff of laughter against Ted's ear but that hand is tracing deliberate circles on his back.
"Do you have homework tonight?" Ted asks. Booster's been taking online college courses, part for something to do and part because a college degree is a college degree no matter what century.
"I do," Booster sighs, "but there's this incredibly sexy guy that's always distracting me. For some reason, every time I see him all I want to do is take his clothes off."
"You should introduce me sometime. I could stand to undress incredibly sexy people."
"Too bad. You'll have to settle for me."
Booster's hips roll and a part of Ted's brain shorts. "I think I can deal."
~*~*~*~
It's about an hour and a half, maybe closer to two hours before the Reyes family gets back from the hospital. Ted, Booster and Skeets meet them in the hall with a warm tin of lasagna from a nearby Italian restaurant, enough for the six of them. Milagro is stuck in a temporary wheelchair for a bit. Though the apartment is supposed to be rated for them, none of Ted's scientists ever had to use one, so he tells Milagro to let him know if she has any problems with ramps or doors or whatnot. He clarifies that as 'wheelchair access only' because he can see she's pretty miffed about having to use a wheelchair at all.
"At least it's not permanent," Ted tells her and tries not to think of Barbara.
Alberto says he'll call her school tomorrow and let them know that Milagro won't be attending for the rest of the week. His boss gave him tomorrow off to look after his daughter and Bianca has Friday and Saturday off from the hospital so Booster volunteers himself to watch her on Wednesday and Thursday.
"Are you sure?" They ask, obviously not wanting to burden him.
"The only thing I have to worry about is schoolwork and I can bring my computer here to do it, so it's really no problem."
"And I can stay and do simple tasks for Milagro until she's able to do them herself," Skeets says. "Get her water, pick things up."
"Oh, Skeets." Bianca smiles and rubs his frame, "that's very sweet of you but you don't have to."
"It's no problem at all," the little robot tells her. "It's more than what I've been doing with Booster, anyway."
Well, one supposes even robots get bored.
Tuesday is apparently boring without Skeets around because Booster hangs out with Ted, following him as he makes his rounds through the R&D labs, talking to the techs about this, that and the other. Booster follows along surprisingly well and occasionally gives some thoughtful suggestions. Ted knows that Booster is more familiar with a higher level of technology but it still surprises him how much he actually knows technology. Which makes him put that couch in his office to good use during lunch and honestly Ted thinks Booster does it on purpose anyway just from the way he grins when Ted climbs onto his lap.
As the workday starts winding down they talk about maybe getting Milagro a treat on the way back - an ice cream cake or a hot fudge brownie. They call Alberto to see if it's okay and he tells them if they do, they'll have to bring enough for a whole party since both Milagro and Jaime's friends have come to see her. So they decide to pick up a big chocolate and vanilla ice cream cake for the kids and a hot fudge brownie for Ted because it is delicious.
The kids are ecstatic to see them (or at least the cake) because the two are swarmed almost the minute they enter the apartment. Alberto cuts out precise pieces and Ted takes the first slice to Milagro who gives him a toothy grin in thanks. She was apparently saving first sign on her cast for her best friend, Lian because now the whole thing is covered in words and scribbles. Lian's message is on choice real estate, upside down so Milagro can easily read the happy message whenever she looks at it. The West twins doodle silly figures next to theirs while Traci and Brenda's are simple 'get well' messages with hearts and smiley faces. Paco's has a crudely drawn mini-comic strip about how her cast will give her superpowers and she'll become a masked hero, beating criminals with her leg. There's still plenty of room for Ted to sign but he picks the bottom of her foot, writing 'I'm so lonely down here' backwards with a sad face on her heel. He uses a mirror to show it to her and it makes her laugh - mission accomplished.
~*~*~*~
After Bianca leaves for her shift on Wednesday afternoon, Booster takes over as Milagro's caretaker. Ted crams all his meetings into the morning, skips lunch to finish his to-do list and decides to leave work early, grabbing a drive-thru burger to eat on the way (which will get him a lecture from Booster and Ted hasn't figured out how he always seems to know). When he gets to the apartment, Jaime is already back from class. His World History book is out but he's paying more attention to Booster, Milagro and Skeets who are apparently doing a dramatization of Milagro's reading assignment, Peter Pan with Milagro as the titular character, Skeets as Wendy and the narration and Booster as Hook. All the other characters divided between them (though several times the reading is halted by the cast forgetting who has which character).
As much as Ted wants to join them, he plops down by Jaime instead. "What, you don't have a thespian bone in your body?"
Jaime just gives a little half-hearted smile and shrugs.
"You're still not blaming yourself, are you?"
The teen sighs, "I know it's not my fault, Mom and Dad tell me it's not my fault. But it still feels like it is. I mean - I'm supposed to be a superhero and I can't even protect my little sister!"
Well, seems to Ted that as a non-powered civilian type, he probably wouldn't be able to change Jaime's mind. So maybe an actual superhero can. "Hey, Booster! Switch places."
Booster, curiosity clear on his face, complies. Ted stops him just long enough to say, "Hope you're good at off-the-cuff, inspirational speeches," and goes to play Captain Hook. Which he does with great gusto and a pillow and Milagro Pan takes him on with her own.
Booster watches them for a moment with a fond smile on his face. He turns back to Jaime, spins a chair around backwards and sits with his arms folded over the top. "So you think Milagro's leg is your fault."
Jaime rolls his eyes and slouches. "Ted tell you that?"
"She's got a cast and you're wallowing. It doesn't take multiple doctorates to figure it out."
The teen sighs and scrubs a hand through his hair. "I know, I know - it's not my fault, I couldn't have stopped it, blah blah blah. I already heard it from Ted and my parents."
"But you don't believe them."
"I do!" is the quick reply, followed by a more hesitant, "I do but... I'm supposed to be this superhero in training but I can't even protect my own sister."
Booster just sighs and cups his chin in one hand. "Well, I can't really give you any heroic personal experiences seeing as my own career hasn't been that long, but speaking as a brother, you're always going to be protective of your sister. No matter how preventable it may have been, if it was because of something silly or dumb, physical or emotional, anything that hurts your sister will always hurt you. And that's simply because you're a good brother who cares about her. Once you become a hero and an innocent person gets hurt, it's also going to be hard on you because you're a good person."
"So what - I'm going to be emotionally crippled if I want to do this superhero thing?"
"No." Booster takes one of Jaime's hands in his own. "You've got a huge heart, Jaime. You're a sweet kid who cares about everyone around you, even people you don't know. All that compassion is the reason why you want to be a hero and it's the reason why you're going to be a damn good one. You just have to realize that sometimes you're going to make a mistake or you're not going to have the ability or you just won't be there to save everyone. It's something that happens to every hero at some point in their careers and, historically, not all of them can overcome this. But it's going to happen and you need to be prepared for that."
Jaime just looks at him, uncertain.
Booster pulls him in by the shoulder in a half-hug. "So you need to decide if you're going to be the kind of hero that lets the loss and your failure crush you, or if you're going to pull through and continue to save others to the best of your abilities. And you have to decide if you're going to be the kind of big brother that agonizes over every little hurt your sister goes through, or if you're going to get over it and support her when she needs you." He lets the thought sink into Jaime's head for a moment. "So?"
Jaime looks up with a little smile, still uncertain but less so than before. "I think I get it."
~*~*~*~
Thursday after lunch, Ted gets a call from Booster saying Milagro has gotten... restless. Which is actually kind of good timing in a way because it reminds Ted of something that's nearing the end of beta testing she might enjoy. So he meanders down to testing, drops a little (not so little) hint that he has someone in mind to give it a consumer test if they can get him the latest version before the end of the day and then meanders his way back to his desk. He has the item, remote and updated report an hour before he's ready to leave. It's good to be the boss.
When Milagro sees it and once he's explained it to her, her eyes sparkle with delight and mischief.
~*~*~*~
After dinner has Jaime in his room on his computer, Milagro on the phone with one of her friends and Albert and Bianca lounging together on the couch, watching the crime drama of the night. Suddenly there's a vrr vrr sound approaching the front room and Alberto and Bianca look over the edge of the coffee table to see a little mechanical dog-like creature. It opens its mouth and though the voice is tinny, it's still obviously Milagro's voice in a bad attempt to sound like it's not. "[The mistress requests cookies.]" The little robo-dog tells them. Then just sits and waits.
The two look at each other in amused consternation. "Should we thank Ted for this or not?"
~*~*~*~
The little remote-controlled dog, as Ted had hoped, keeps Milagro busy all throughout Friday. By Saturday, though, it's lost its novelty. Every time Milagro looks out the window and sees what a pretty day it is, it reminds her that Lian's uncle was going to take the kids on a nature hiking at Waterfall Glen. They offered to put it off, but Milagro wouldn't let them. Lian's uncle was only visiting while on his way to meet a friend in New York and Iris was really looking forward to hear him talk about the plants and wildlife they might see.
So she's stuck inside, bored , wondering how much fun her friends are having. Skeets is helping Bianca clean the house while Alberto is out running all the errands. Milagro is so bored she actually wants to help with the cleaning.
She looks over to her right and finds that her glass is empty. Milagro picks up the remote control and her robo-dog gives a little 'yip-yip!', a little signal to call Skeets over so the toy won't get underfoot. Not half-a minute later, Skeets floats in with a featherduster and a little handkerchief tied around his body to keep the dust from getting into vents.
"Do you need anything?"
She holds her glass toward him. "Orange juice, please."
"Of course." It takes no time at all for him to return with her beverage and Milagro takes a sip with a little 'thank you'. Skeets, however, doesn't leave. "Is there something bothering you?"
She snorts a little. "'M bored. Really bored."
"Is there anything else, though? You seem to be rather agitated the last few days."
"I'm stuck at home, my foot itches and I'm bored." Milagro sinks deeper into her pillows and says with quiet petulance, "Jaime won't play with me anymore."
"Have you talked to Jaime?"
Milagro looks with a frown, "No - he's always busy doing something."
"He thinks he's responsible for your leg."
It takes her a moment of staring blankly at Skeets before she realizes he means it's not that Jaime's always busy, it's that Jaime's been avoiding her. Milagro pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs - looking very much like a tiny Bianca.
~*~*~*~
He doesn't notice when his door creaks open or the little noises as something comes toddling at him. But Jaime does notice when something tugs at his pant leg. It's Milagro's robo-dog, whose camera eye focuses in on Jaime's face to make sure it has his attention. The robo-dog sits back and says, with Milagro not attempting to disguise her voice for once, "[We need to talk.]"
Abandoning his notebook, Jaime makes his way to his sister's room and peers in, trying not to look as guilty as he feels. "What's up?"
She points at a nearby chair. "Sit."
"...Okay." He does as he's told. "So?"
Milagro wastes no time in asking, "Why are you being such a dork?"
"A what? What are you talking about?"
"This!" She flings back the blanket covering her cast and watches as Jaime winces and tries not to look at it. "It's not diseased or anything! It's just a break, it'll get better!"
"I know that," but his words are obviously just for show.
"Then stop acting like you think it's gonna fall off!" It takes a bit of maneuvering but Milagro begins scooting across her bed and closer to her brother who is quick to try and grab her before she slaps his hands away. "Okay - one? If I need help, I'll ask for it. Two: you're not being a very good brother if you try to pretend this didn't happen. Three: if you start fussing over me and everything I do now, I will kick you with the cast right now. I don't care if I rebreak my leg or not."
Unable to think of a reply, Jaime stays quiet.
"You weren't watching me at the park - I knew you weren't, but I'm old enough to take care of myself, you know. I know to look both ways before crossing the street and not go anywhere with strangers and stuff like that. I didn't break my leg because I was being stupid or because someone hurt me, I broke it because I tripped. It was an accident and it wasn't anyone's fault - certainly not yours just because you were messing with your phone. Do you get it yet?" Milagro tugs at Jaime's hands. "I don't blame you. I never blamed you. So don't turn psycho-over-protective because of this. I don't need you trying to safety-proof the world and keep me from having my own life because you feel guilty over a little thing like this. I miss having my big brother around."
"Aw, Milagro," Jaime sits on the bed and wraps her up in his arms. "I'm sorry. I guess I have been a dork about this, haven't I?"
"You guess?"
With a sigh, he turns the hug into a headlock. "Okay- I have." Jaime gives his sister a noogie, making her squeal and laugh. "Tell you what, let me finish up my homework and then I'll watch a movie with you."
"Will you make popcorn?"
"Sure. What do you want to watch?"
"Shaun of the Dead!"
"With Mom here?"
"Oh, uh.... The Princess Bride?"
"Works for me."
Fandom: Smallville
Rating: PG-13 for two scenes of implied sexy times
Word Count: 4081
Characters: Ted, Booster, Jaime, Milagro, Skeets, Bianca, Alberto
In Response to:
winds_of_autumn's boostlethon: "Booster and Ted being Dad like to Jaime (and Milagro too if you want)"Summary: In the same 'verse as Step Out on Faith. Jaime learns a hero's hardest lesson: realizing you can't protect everyone all the time, even if they're your little sister.
Jaime's at the park so Milagro can run around like a spastic crazy child and the only reason why this isn't the most annoying thing ever is because his alternative is being back at the apartment and doing his physics homework under Booster's surprisingly watchful and critical eye. He slouches against the park bench with a sigh, texting Paco until the little tornado decided she's worn herself out. Paco's giving him the play-by-play of a basketball game that Jaime's missing; Khaji Da had offered to find a radio station to tune into it but having announcers in his head weirded Jaime out more than having a mechanical device chittering in an alien language did.
The teen smirks at his friend's commentary on a charging call and the ref's apparent near-sightedness when crying breaks over the park. Jaime's head snaps up, blood running cold. He's frozen in shock and terror and Khaji Da takes over, doing as it was instructed in an emergency situation.
~*~*~*~
Ted's head is aching and the droning of the sales rep is making him want to jump out the nearest window. Or toss the rep out - he hasn't quite decided if the subsequent police investigation is better than suicide or not. His phone - set next to his tablet and silenced -lights up and Ted spares it enough of a glance to recognize two things: the caller is Jaime and the emergency-use priority number is attached. More worried than glad for the interruption, Ted holds up his hand to stop the rep and answers, "Jaime, what is it?"
He can hear someone crying in the background and then Jaime's voice comes in fast and more than a little hysterical, "/Ted! Oh god, Ted- I don't know what to do!/"
Panicking teenagers - never a good thing. "Calm down and tell me what happened."
"/Milagro's hurt - I was suppose to be watching her! Why wasn't I watching her?/"
Well, that's that, then. Ted looks at the rep and shakes his head in a quiet dismissal. He packs his briefcase, grabs his coat and all but runs for the door. "How badly is she hurt?"
"/It's her leg. Her ankle is swelling up. Mom and Dad are going to kill me!"
Okay - bad sprain at best, broken at worse. Sounds like the crying has dissolved into sniffles. "Anything else? Is she hurt anywhere else?"
"/I-I don't know-/"
"Ask her, Jaime." Ted slips into the elevator and uses his emergency override to head straight to the garage. He hears the teen talking, asking three or four times if anything else hurts. By the end Ted can hear Milagro getting annoyed and he can't help but smirk at that. He doubts there's anything worse than a broken bone. When Jaime confirms it's just the leg, Ted asks, "Have you called an ambulance?"
"/No - oh! I should-/"
"Jaime," Ted breaks in gently but firmly (in what both Jaime and Milagro call the Dad Voice which confuses and kind of horrifies Ted because he's never had a Dad Voice before) . "I'm coming to get you two right now so don't worry about it. If anything else starts hurting or if Milagro starts feeling sick before I get there, then call an ambulance, okay?"
"/Okay./"
"Good - now this is what you're going to do while you wait for me. Call your mother, let her know I'm going to take you two to her hospital; she should expect us in about twenty minutes. After you've talked to her, talk to Milagro. Reassure her that she'll be okay and that I'll be there soon and we'll get her leg fixed up, got it? Make sure she stays calm."
"/Call Mom, keep Milagro calm. Got it./" Over the line Milagro makes a faint remark about her having to keep Jaime calm to which Jaime responds with, "/I'm not spazzing out! I just... shut up, you're supposed to be an invalid./"
"/It's just my leg, doofus. I can still talk./"
Ted snickers as he starts up the car. Oh yeah, she's going to be fine.
~*~*~*~
Not twenty minutes later, Ted pulls up to the hospital where Bianca is waiting with a wheelchair that she and Ted carefully move Milagro to. Milagro is on the phone with Alberto, telling him that aside from her leg she's okay and Alberto promises to be there soon. Bianca flags down a technician and wheels her daughter over to be X-rayed. Ted takes that moment to drop a hand on Jaime's shoulder and ask, "You okay?"
Now that the panic is over, the full realization of what happened is sinking in and Jaime looks like he thinks he's worst person ever to exist. "My little sister got hurt when I was suppose to be watching her. I am not okay."
Ted just sighs and pulls the teen into a half-hug. "It's not your fault."
"You weren't even there!"
He rolls his eyes, "Okay, let's say you were paying attention. You see her just as she trips or falls or whatever happened - what were you going to do? Catch her? Fly over and put a cushion out for her? Keep her from running around and having fun in the first place?" Jaime doesn't have a rebuttal but he's clearly still blaming himself. "Milagro got hurt - that's just one of those inevitable life things. She's probably going to hurt herself again at some point but it won't be your fault then, just like it isn't now, and she's not going to blame you for it and your parents aren't going to blame you for it. Okay?"
Jaime just gives an automatic nod but at least Alberto finally arrives. Ted hopes Jaime will listen to his father. It's not long after that Bianca comes out and tells them Milagro's condition: a clean fracture and nothing else. She'll get a cast and be sent home as soon as it sets. Bianca goes back to help with the cast, Jaime and Alberto decide to stay and wait and Ted, seeing his presence is rather superfluous at this point, tells them he's going to head to the apartment building and fill Booster in on what happened. Before he leaves he gets Alberto's promise that they'll knock on Booster's door when they get back.
~*~*~*~
There's a spare key on his keychain which technically Ted could've gotten without Booster's permission since he owns the building but the fact that Booster had it made for him always puts a small, warm feeling in his heart. Booster is lounging across the couch, laptop across his legs and the television on some random reality show. He doesn't actually watch, just needs some background noise as he works. Ted knows this but he likes teasing him about it anyway. "Are you watching the Kardashians?"
Booster looks up at him, then squints at the TV. "....Yes?" It's obvious he has no idea who these people are. "How can you tell?"
"Trade secret." Ted drops his briefcase and coat and toes off his shoes. He keeps his tie on, though, just because Booster has some sort of kink about them. He makes a show of moving to stretch on the couch, giving the other man just enough time to put his laptop aside and pull Ted into his arms.
"Long day?"
Ted just sighs, nestling against Booster's neck. "Milagro fractured a bone in her leg."
"Is she okay?"
"Hairline oblique fracture to her fibula. She'll have a cast for a few weeks, maybe a month but that's it. Alberto'll let us know when they get back from the hospital."
"Hmm, that sucks." There's a tugging at Ted's shirt and a brief moment of room-cool air against his skin before Booster's hand is there, warm and strong. Ted doesn't know what it is about Booster but practically every touch manages to ignite something in his blood. He hooks an ankle around one of Booster's and kisses softly at his neck. There's a puff of laughter against Ted's ear but that hand is tracing deliberate circles on his back.
"Do you have homework tonight?" Ted asks. Booster's been taking online college courses, part for something to do and part because a college degree is a college degree no matter what century.
"I do," Booster sighs, "but there's this incredibly sexy guy that's always distracting me. For some reason, every time I see him all I want to do is take his clothes off."
"You should introduce me sometime. I could stand to undress incredibly sexy people."
"Too bad. You'll have to settle for me."
Booster's hips roll and a part of Ted's brain shorts. "I think I can deal."
~*~*~*~
It's about an hour and a half, maybe closer to two hours before the Reyes family gets back from the hospital. Ted, Booster and Skeets meet them in the hall with a warm tin of lasagna from a nearby Italian restaurant, enough for the six of them. Milagro is stuck in a temporary wheelchair for a bit. Though the apartment is supposed to be rated for them, none of Ted's scientists ever had to use one, so he tells Milagro to let him know if she has any problems with ramps or doors or whatnot. He clarifies that as 'wheelchair access only' because he can see she's pretty miffed about having to use a wheelchair at all.
"At least it's not permanent," Ted tells her and tries not to think of Barbara.
Alberto says he'll call her school tomorrow and let them know that Milagro won't be attending for the rest of the week. His boss gave him tomorrow off to look after his daughter and Bianca has Friday and Saturday off from the hospital so Booster volunteers himself to watch her on Wednesday and Thursday.
"Are you sure?" They ask, obviously not wanting to burden him.
"The only thing I have to worry about is schoolwork and I can bring my computer here to do it, so it's really no problem."
"And I can stay and do simple tasks for Milagro until she's able to do them herself," Skeets says. "Get her water, pick things up."
"Oh, Skeets." Bianca smiles and rubs his frame, "that's very sweet of you but you don't have to."
"It's no problem at all," the little robot tells her. "It's more than what I've been doing with Booster, anyway."
Well, one supposes even robots get bored.
Tuesday is apparently boring without Skeets around because Booster hangs out with Ted, following him as he makes his rounds through the R&D labs, talking to the techs about this, that and the other. Booster follows along surprisingly well and occasionally gives some thoughtful suggestions. Ted knows that Booster is more familiar with a higher level of technology but it still surprises him how much he actually knows technology. Which makes him put that couch in his office to good use during lunch and honestly Ted thinks Booster does it on purpose anyway just from the way he grins when Ted climbs onto his lap.
As the workday starts winding down they talk about maybe getting Milagro a treat on the way back - an ice cream cake or a hot fudge brownie. They call Alberto to see if it's okay and he tells them if they do, they'll have to bring enough for a whole party since both Milagro and Jaime's friends have come to see her. So they decide to pick up a big chocolate and vanilla ice cream cake for the kids and a hot fudge brownie for Ted because it is delicious.
The kids are ecstatic to see them (or at least the cake) because the two are swarmed almost the minute they enter the apartment. Alberto cuts out precise pieces and Ted takes the first slice to Milagro who gives him a toothy grin in thanks. She was apparently saving first sign on her cast for her best friend, Lian because now the whole thing is covered in words and scribbles. Lian's message is on choice real estate, upside down so Milagro can easily read the happy message whenever she looks at it. The West twins doodle silly figures next to theirs while Traci and Brenda's are simple 'get well' messages with hearts and smiley faces. Paco's has a crudely drawn mini-comic strip about how her cast will give her superpowers and she'll become a masked hero, beating criminals with her leg. There's still plenty of room for Ted to sign but he picks the bottom of her foot, writing 'I'm so lonely down here' backwards with a sad face on her heel. He uses a mirror to show it to her and it makes her laugh - mission accomplished.
~*~*~*~
After Bianca leaves for her shift on Wednesday afternoon, Booster takes over as Milagro's caretaker. Ted crams all his meetings into the morning, skips lunch to finish his to-do list and decides to leave work early, grabbing a drive-thru burger to eat on the way (which will get him a lecture from Booster and Ted hasn't figured out how he always seems to know). When he gets to the apartment, Jaime is already back from class. His World History book is out but he's paying more attention to Booster, Milagro and Skeets who are apparently doing a dramatization of Milagro's reading assignment, Peter Pan with Milagro as the titular character, Skeets as Wendy and the narration and Booster as Hook. All the other characters divided between them (though several times the reading is halted by the cast forgetting who has which character).
As much as Ted wants to join them, he plops down by Jaime instead. "What, you don't have a thespian bone in your body?"
Jaime just gives a little half-hearted smile and shrugs.
"You're still not blaming yourself, are you?"
The teen sighs, "I know it's not my fault, Mom and Dad tell me it's not my fault. But it still feels like it is. I mean - I'm supposed to be a superhero and I can't even protect my little sister!"
Well, seems to Ted that as a non-powered civilian type, he probably wouldn't be able to change Jaime's mind. So maybe an actual superhero can. "Hey, Booster! Switch places."
Booster, curiosity clear on his face, complies. Ted stops him just long enough to say, "Hope you're good at off-the-cuff, inspirational speeches," and goes to play Captain Hook. Which he does with great gusto and a pillow and Milagro Pan takes him on with her own.
Booster watches them for a moment with a fond smile on his face. He turns back to Jaime, spins a chair around backwards and sits with his arms folded over the top. "So you think Milagro's leg is your fault."
Jaime rolls his eyes and slouches. "Ted tell you that?"
"She's got a cast and you're wallowing. It doesn't take multiple doctorates to figure it out."
The teen sighs and scrubs a hand through his hair. "I know, I know - it's not my fault, I couldn't have stopped it, blah blah blah. I already heard it from Ted and my parents."
"But you don't believe them."
"I do!" is the quick reply, followed by a more hesitant, "I do but... I'm supposed to be this superhero in training but I can't even protect my own sister."
Booster just sighs and cups his chin in one hand. "Well, I can't really give you any heroic personal experiences seeing as my own career hasn't been that long, but speaking as a brother, you're always going to be protective of your sister. No matter how preventable it may have been, if it was because of something silly or dumb, physical or emotional, anything that hurts your sister will always hurt you. And that's simply because you're a good brother who cares about her. Once you become a hero and an innocent person gets hurt, it's also going to be hard on you because you're a good person."
"So what - I'm going to be emotionally crippled if I want to do this superhero thing?"
"No." Booster takes one of Jaime's hands in his own. "You've got a huge heart, Jaime. You're a sweet kid who cares about everyone around you, even people you don't know. All that compassion is the reason why you want to be a hero and it's the reason why you're going to be a damn good one. You just have to realize that sometimes you're going to make a mistake or you're not going to have the ability or you just won't be there to save everyone. It's something that happens to every hero at some point in their careers and, historically, not all of them can overcome this. But it's going to happen and you need to be prepared for that."
Jaime just looks at him, uncertain.
Booster pulls him in by the shoulder in a half-hug. "So you need to decide if you're going to be the kind of hero that lets the loss and your failure crush you, or if you're going to pull through and continue to save others to the best of your abilities. And you have to decide if you're going to be the kind of big brother that agonizes over every little hurt your sister goes through, or if you're going to get over it and support her when she needs you." He lets the thought sink into Jaime's head for a moment. "So?"
Jaime looks up with a little smile, still uncertain but less so than before. "I think I get it."
~*~*~*~
Thursday after lunch, Ted gets a call from Booster saying Milagro has gotten... restless. Which is actually kind of good timing in a way because it reminds Ted of something that's nearing the end of beta testing she might enjoy. So he meanders down to testing, drops a little (not so little) hint that he has someone in mind to give it a consumer test if they can get him the latest version before the end of the day and then meanders his way back to his desk. He has the item, remote and updated report an hour before he's ready to leave. It's good to be the boss.
When Milagro sees it and once he's explained it to her, her eyes sparkle with delight and mischief.
~*~*~*~
After dinner has Jaime in his room on his computer, Milagro on the phone with one of her friends and Albert and Bianca lounging together on the couch, watching the crime drama of the night. Suddenly there's a vrr vrr sound approaching the front room and Alberto and Bianca look over the edge of the coffee table to see a little mechanical dog-like creature. It opens its mouth and though the voice is tinny, it's still obviously Milagro's voice in a bad attempt to sound like it's not. "[The mistress requests cookies.]" The little robo-dog tells them. Then just sits and waits.
The two look at each other in amused consternation. "Should we thank Ted for this or not?"
~*~*~*~
The little remote-controlled dog, as Ted had hoped, keeps Milagro busy all throughout Friday. By Saturday, though, it's lost its novelty. Every time Milagro looks out the window and sees what a pretty day it is, it reminds her that Lian's uncle was going to take the kids on a nature hiking at Waterfall Glen. They offered to put it off, but Milagro wouldn't let them. Lian's uncle was only visiting while on his way to meet a friend in New York and Iris was really looking forward to hear him talk about the plants and wildlife they might see.
So she's stuck inside, bored , wondering how much fun her friends are having. Skeets is helping Bianca clean the house while Alberto is out running all the errands. Milagro is so bored she actually wants to help with the cleaning.
She looks over to her right and finds that her glass is empty. Milagro picks up the remote control and her robo-dog gives a little 'yip-yip!', a little signal to call Skeets over so the toy won't get underfoot. Not half-a minute later, Skeets floats in with a featherduster and a little handkerchief tied around his body to keep the dust from getting into vents.
"Do you need anything?"
She holds her glass toward him. "Orange juice, please."
"Of course." It takes no time at all for him to return with her beverage and Milagro takes a sip with a little 'thank you'. Skeets, however, doesn't leave. "Is there something bothering you?"
She snorts a little. "'M bored. Really bored."
"Is there anything else, though? You seem to be rather agitated the last few days."
"I'm stuck at home, my foot itches and I'm bored." Milagro sinks deeper into her pillows and says with quiet petulance, "Jaime won't play with me anymore."
"Have you talked to Jaime?"
Milagro looks with a frown, "No - he's always busy doing something."
"He thinks he's responsible for your leg."
It takes her a moment of staring blankly at Skeets before she realizes he means it's not that Jaime's always busy, it's that Jaime's been avoiding her. Milagro pinches the bridge of her nose and sighs - looking very much like a tiny Bianca.
~*~*~*~
He doesn't notice when his door creaks open or the little noises as something comes toddling at him. But Jaime does notice when something tugs at his pant leg. It's Milagro's robo-dog, whose camera eye focuses in on Jaime's face to make sure it has his attention. The robo-dog sits back and says, with Milagro not attempting to disguise her voice for once, "[We need to talk.]"
Abandoning his notebook, Jaime makes his way to his sister's room and peers in, trying not to look as guilty as he feels. "What's up?"
She points at a nearby chair. "Sit."
"...Okay." He does as he's told. "So?"
Milagro wastes no time in asking, "Why are you being such a dork?"
"A what? What are you talking about?"
"This!" She flings back the blanket covering her cast and watches as Jaime winces and tries not to look at it. "It's not diseased or anything! It's just a break, it'll get better!"
"I know that," but his words are obviously just for show.
"Then stop acting like you think it's gonna fall off!" It takes a bit of maneuvering but Milagro begins scooting across her bed and closer to her brother who is quick to try and grab her before she slaps his hands away. "Okay - one? If I need help, I'll ask for it. Two: you're not being a very good brother if you try to pretend this didn't happen. Three: if you start fussing over me and everything I do now, I will kick you with the cast right now. I don't care if I rebreak my leg or not."
Unable to think of a reply, Jaime stays quiet.
"You weren't watching me at the park - I knew you weren't, but I'm old enough to take care of myself, you know. I know to look both ways before crossing the street and not go anywhere with strangers and stuff like that. I didn't break my leg because I was being stupid or because someone hurt me, I broke it because I tripped. It was an accident and it wasn't anyone's fault - certainly not yours just because you were messing with your phone. Do you get it yet?" Milagro tugs at Jaime's hands. "I don't blame you. I never blamed you. So don't turn psycho-over-protective because of this. I don't need you trying to safety-proof the world and keep me from having my own life because you feel guilty over a little thing like this. I miss having my big brother around."
"Aw, Milagro," Jaime sits on the bed and wraps her up in his arms. "I'm sorry. I guess I have been a dork about this, haven't I?"
"You guess?"
With a sigh, he turns the hug into a headlock. "Okay- I have." Jaime gives his sister a noogie, making her squeal and laugh. "Tell you what, let me finish up my homework and then I'll watch a movie with you."
"Will you make popcorn?"
"Sure. What do you want to watch?"
"Shaun of the Dead!"
"With Mom here?"
"Oh, uh.... The Princess Bride?"
"Works for me."
