Fanfic: B&S episode 702: part 1/4
Season 7 - Episode 02 - New beginnings
By Marea67
About: Brothers & Sisters
Rate: G
Disclaimer: I don’t own Brothers & Sisters - written with love, not for money.
Summary: Ingredients: Take a couple of Walkers, add a few Wandells, a pinch of Holden and a Caplan formerly known as Harper, a dash of Altamirano and Whitley, a teaspoon of Byrolt, Paresa and Salazar and (for added flavor only) a Barry&McCallister. Mix and shake…and… watch it explode.
Warning: It is my very own season 7, you guys! Go with it! ;) Don’t complain! If YOU can do better, post your own story! (I dare you!)
*****
PART 1/4
*****
Starring:
also starring
*****
The net curtains get moved by the wind and then they hang still again as the breeze has passed. Kevin tries to look out the window, but the near silk-like fabric doesn’t let him. He hears a door open and he smiles when he feels the bed move and a body covers his.
“Had a nice shower?” Kevin asks.
“Yes. It was sensational. Not that it will help us much with this heat.” Scotty answers.
“Still believe that spending two weeks in Hawaii was a bad choice?”
“No… I was a fool and I’m sorry.”
“You’re forgiven.”
“Where are the kids?” Scotty now wonders.
“Mateo took them to get ice-cream.”
“You mean, you actually got him out of the water?”
“Yes, who knew he’d turn into such a swim-fanatic.”
“I blame Chad.” Scotty laughs.
“I know. He taught Mateo very quickly how to swim.”
“Mateo wanted to learn at it.”
“He had a good start. He knew the basics of not drowning.”
Scotty merely smiles at being corrected by Kevin and rolls off Kevin to lie beside him.
“And the girls and Daniel?”
“You know Olivia and Daniel. The only way to separate those two is to surgically remove one from the other.”
“Who would have guessed, after the way Olivia felt, when he was given back to us, that she would turn into such a loving, caring big sister?”
“She spoils him more than we do, if that is at all possible.” Kevin jokes.
“We don’t spoil him that much…” Scotty pouts, feeling a little ‘attacked’.
He’s usually the one who spoils all four kids in their household the most.
“I didn’t say that we do, just that Olivia does it more than us.” Kevin grins.
“Always the lawyer…” Scotty protests sweetly and he kisses Kevin. “And Elizabeth?”
“Mateo and Elizabeth have formed a bond.”
“I guess, it’s because they both feel like they don’t actually belong in our family…” Scotty sighs. “Even though they are a large part of it anyway.”
“Quite possible.” Kevin answers a little sad. “Daniel and Olivia are now officially ours. Mateo isn’t. And Elizabeth never will be either.”
“Are you saying that we should adopt Mateo?”
“No. He’s old enough and doesn’t really need us, even though he’s happy with us.”
“It will be strange to not have Elizabeth in our house anymore though.” Scotty sighs.
“I know.” Kevin nods with a sad face.
“How do you feel about that?”
“I’m trying to deal with that. I hate it, but what can I do? She’s their child, not ours.”
“I wonder how she will feel about it, now that she knows that you are her biological father … She’s grown so close to you over the last few months…”
“Maybe. But she still considers Tommy her ‘dad’ and me just ‘Kevin’.”
“Still feels strange that she stopped calling you ‘uncle’.”
“Yes, but I’m glad that Elizabeth made a clear difference between Tommy and me and never saw me as her father…”
“I’m glad..” Scotty changes the subject, away from a topic that is painful for Kevin.”… that Julia is feeling better after what has happened to her. The kidnapping, the discovery that she was used as life-stock to supply babies… It must have been so hard for her…”
“Tommy said that the therapy was long and hard. On both of them.”
“I’m just glad that it brought Julia and Tommy closer to each other.” Scotty lies closer to Kevin. “It must have been so strange. Julia found herself pregnant, which was all she ever really wanted for such a long time. Unfortunately it wasn’t the right way… or by the man of her choosing.” Kevin nods at Scotty’s words.
“I know…. Scotty, as fun as these last two weeks have been, I’m dying to go home, even though there are quite some big issues waiting for us there. Café 429 will re-open after 2 weeks of closure due to the extensive remodeling.”
“Don’t remind me. I’m terrified.” Scotty answers.
“I would never have believed that building one restaurant out of one shop and one restaurant would make such a mess.” Kevin smiles.
“No. Me neither. But, in the end, it’s all for the best. We now have a bigger area for the customers to sit and a larger kitchen.”
“But we also have more tables, requiring more waiters. I hope we have chosen a few good ones.”
“Yes. Me too.” Scotty sighs. “And I hope that once you and Carter have officially opened your new offices that you’ll get many of new clients as well.”
“Yes. Are you sure that us opening my law-firm and your restaurant at the same day, won’t steal your thunder?”
“No. I think that we made the right choice. Opening Café 429 on the same day and Walker & Carter and Ojai Fruit and Wine will definitely put the Walkers back on the map in Pasadena.”
“Yeah, but you’re a Wandell?” Kevin reminds Scotty with a sweet smile.
“That may be true, but I’m feeling more and more confiscated by the Walkers…” Scotty gives him a quick kiss.
“Good, because you’re here to stay.” Kevin sighs and he leans into the kiss.
*****
“Oh, Holly, this place looks amazing! So light! So airy!” Nora sighs in amazement. Holly smiles proudly.
“Doesn’t it? It really doesn’t look much like the old Ojai Foods offices anymore, does it?”
“Which is good. Ojai Foods is gone. Ojai Fruit and Wine is the new company.” Nora says.
She looks around at what used to be the place that her husband William'had built. The old offices with their dark filing cabinets and wooden desks have gone, replaced by modern office furniture in soft colors. The old computers screens, that somehow always took up too much space on the desks have been replaced by thin flat-screens.
It all looks new, shiny, professional, ready for work and completely different from the bankrupt Ojai Foods that she had built up with Saul and William. Holly notices the look on Nora’s face and wraps her arms around Nora from behind.
“Sad? Not good enough?” She asks.
As William’s former mistress, Holly would never have believed that her relationship with William’s wife would ever be so intimate that she would dare to this, but over the last few years they had really gotten to know each other well and they had slowly cultivated respect and friendship. Nora shakes her head, breaking free from Holly’s friendly hug, without giving Holly the feeling of being rejected.
“No… It’s good.” Nora nods. “William is dead. The past should be dealt with by now. Ojai Food, and all it stood for, is gone. It was time for something new. And this is good.”
“I’m glad that you approve. Even though you don’t want to take part in the every-day running of this company, I would have felt weird if you woul not have approved of how Sarah and I plan to run this company. You’re after all part-owner, as are the other Walkers.” Holly smiles.
“It has become a different family company.” Nora has to admit. “Speaking of family. How’s Rebecca?”
“She’s fine. My grandson is in New York, while his parents are in Africa. I still don’t agree with Rebecca’s choice, but … it’s her choice. I have other things to worry about.”
“True. You’re going to be far too busy with Ojai Fruit and Wine.” Nora points out.
“That too.” Holly laughs.
“Am I disturbing something important?” The question makes both women turn around.
“Ryan! I didn’t know you’d be here today?”
“I am. Preparing my office for the opening.”
“Looking forward to starting with a new company?” Nora asks.
“Can’t wait!” Ryan laughs. “I’ve been doing my sales-pitch at so many different companies. I can only hope that a few of them will consider us interesting.”
“I have to admit that it is my worst fear about next Monday. I have nightmares of us standing here. New offices. New and old crew. All ready to go… And then…. dead silence. Not a phone ringing.” Holly confesses.
“Sounds like a reasonable nightmare to me. Under the circumstances.” Nora nods.
“I think you’re not the only one with that fear, Holly.” A fourth voice is added to the conversation.
“Sarah! I thought you wouldn’t be back from your short trip to Vegas until Friday?” Nora hugs her daughter.
“Joe asked if it was possible for me to come back a little sooner. He has several gigs with his band and one was added without his knowing. So, he asked me if I could come back sooner.”
“If he needed someone to look after the kids, he could have called me.” Nora says, slightly offended at not being asked.
“That was his second option, if I would have wanted to stay. But I didn’t. I wanted to be home. Be with the kids. And be nervous about this place every day….” She adds.
She, too, takes another look around, appreciating the view as much as Nora had.
“I have had the same nightmare as Holly.” Sarah then admits. “I know, we already have a few orders to work with. We’re not exactly starting empty-handed, but still… it’s a new beginning for all of us… The start of a new company.”
“Will it all be ready and finished in time?” Holly wonders and the women turn to Ryan now, who raises his hands.
“The warehouses are ready. Everything is functioning right. Some of our older staff was glad to be back and they have already tried a few things out.
Garage-doors that used to get stuck are now fully functioning. Conveyor belts respond as they should. All computers work, so stock-wise we should be fine and able to stay updated. The knowledge we had built with Walker’s Landing was put to good use and we have our first wine to present, even though we cheated a little.
After all, we didn’t have the time to get our own wine, like we used to have, but we have bought an excellent wine, that we can brand as our own. A wine that tastes a lot like ‘Costal reserve’ used to. And I’m sure that next year, we will most definitely have our own wine…. So, all we need now is customers.”
*****
“All we need now is customers.” Saul says while he looks at the kitchen of Café 429. Jonathan, Saul’s husband, nods.
“They will come.”
“I hope so. Two to three weeks of closure is an eternity.”
“What are you worried about?”
“Aren’t we too big? Café 429 used to be quaint, cozy, cute, intimate. Can we still be all those things now that we’re twice as big?” Saul wonders and Jonathan looks around him at all the tables.
“There are high plants that are used as screens, so people don’t have to see what others are eating. You have soft lights that makes the place feel warm and gentle. The restaurant still breathes comfort and peace. It invites you to come in and enjoy a wonderful meal made by an amazing chef.” Jonathan shows his more poetic side.
Saul’s smile fades when he hears the door to the restaurant open. He steps up to say that the restaurant isn’t open yet, when he sees who it is.
“Mr Carter!” Browne Carter, Kevin’s partner in the new law-firm they are about to open, stands in the restaurant.
“Yes, sorry. I couldn’t get in through my front door because there are people working just in front of our entrance?”
“Ah, yes, sorry. They are putting up the new signs for both Café 429 and Walker & Carter? Do you want to use the entrance from the bar?”
“Please. Kevin and Scotty are coming back tomorrow and I don’t want Kevin’s immediate concern to be the running of our company.”
“Good idea." Saul replies, knowing how his nephew can be.
*****
End of part 1/4
**** COMMERCIAL BREAK****
By Marea67
About: Brothers & Sisters
Rate: G
Disclaimer: I don’t own Brothers & Sisters - written with love, not for money.
Summary: Ingredients: Take a couple of Walkers, add a few Wandells, a pinch of Holden and a Caplan formerly known as Harper, a dash of Altamirano and Whitley, a teaspoon of Byrolt, Paresa and Salazar and (for added flavor only) a Barry&McCallister. Mix and shake…and… watch it explode.
Warning: It is my very own season 7, you guys! Go with it! ;) Don’t complain! If YOU can do better, post your own story! (I dare you!)
*****
PART 1/4
*****
Starring:
also starring
*****
The net curtains get moved by the wind and then they hang still again as the breeze has passed. Kevin tries to look out the window, but the near silk-like fabric doesn’t let him. He hears a door open and he smiles when he feels the bed move and a body covers his.
“Had a nice shower?” Kevin asks.
“Yes. It was sensational. Not that it will help us much with this heat.” Scotty answers.
“Still believe that spending two weeks in Hawaii was a bad choice?”
“No… I was a fool and I’m sorry.”
“You’re forgiven.”
“Where are the kids?” Scotty now wonders.
“Mateo took them to get ice-cream.”
“You mean, you actually got him out of the water?”
“Yes, who knew he’d turn into such a swim-fanatic.”
“I blame Chad.” Scotty laughs.
“I know. He taught Mateo very quickly how to swim.”
“Mateo wanted to learn at it.”
“He had a good start. He knew the basics of not drowning.”
Scotty merely smiles at being corrected by Kevin and rolls off Kevin to lie beside him.
“And the girls and Daniel?”
“You know Olivia and Daniel. The only way to separate those two is to surgically remove one from the other.”
“Who would have guessed, after the way Olivia felt, when he was given back to us, that she would turn into such a loving, caring big sister?”
“She spoils him more than we do, if that is at all possible.” Kevin jokes.
“We don’t spoil him that much…” Scotty pouts, feeling a little ‘attacked’.
He’s usually the one who spoils all four kids in their household the most.
“I didn’t say that we do, just that Olivia does it more than us.” Kevin grins.
“Always the lawyer…” Scotty protests sweetly and he kisses Kevin. “And Elizabeth?”
“Mateo and Elizabeth have formed a bond.”
“I guess, it’s because they both feel like they don’t actually belong in our family…” Scotty sighs. “Even though they are a large part of it anyway.”
“Quite possible.” Kevin answers a little sad. “Daniel and Olivia are now officially ours. Mateo isn’t. And Elizabeth never will be either.”
“Are you saying that we should adopt Mateo?”
“No. He’s old enough and doesn’t really need us, even though he’s happy with us.”
“It will be strange to not have Elizabeth in our house anymore though.” Scotty sighs.
“I know.” Kevin nods with a sad face.
“How do you feel about that?”
“I’m trying to deal with that. I hate it, but what can I do? She’s their child, not ours.”
“I wonder how she will feel about it, now that she knows that you are her biological father … She’s grown so close to you over the last few months…”
“Maybe. But she still considers Tommy her ‘dad’ and me just ‘Kevin’.”
“Still feels strange that she stopped calling you ‘uncle’.”
“Yes, but I’m glad that Elizabeth made a clear difference between Tommy and me and never saw me as her father…”
“I’m glad..” Scotty changes the subject, away from a topic that is painful for Kevin.”… that Julia is feeling better after what has happened to her. The kidnapping, the discovery that she was used as life-stock to supply babies… It must have been so hard for her…”
“Tommy said that the therapy was long and hard. On both of them.”
“I’m just glad that it brought Julia and Tommy closer to each other.” Scotty lies closer to Kevin. “It must have been so strange. Julia found herself pregnant, which was all she ever really wanted for such a long time. Unfortunately it wasn’t the right way… or by the man of her choosing.” Kevin nods at Scotty’s words.
“I know…. Scotty, as fun as these last two weeks have been, I’m dying to go home, even though there are quite some big issues waiting for us there. Café 429 will re-open after 2 weeks of closure due to the extensive remodeling.”
“Don’t remind me. I’m terrified.” Scotty answers.
“I would never have believed that building one restaurant out of one shop and one restaurant would make such a mess.” Kevin smiles.
“No. Me neither. But, in the end, it’s all for the best. We now have a bigger area for the customers to sit and a larger kitchen.”
“But we also have more tables, requiring more waiters. I hope we have chosen a few good ones.”
“Yes. Me too.” Scotty sighs. “And I hope that once you and Carter have officially opened your new offices that you’ll get many of new clients as well.”
“Yes. Are you sure that us opening my law-firm and your restaurant at the same day, won’t steal your thunder?”
“No. I think that we made the right choice. Opening Café 429 on the same day and Walker & Carter and Ojai Fruit and Wine will definitely put the Walkers back on the map in Pasadena.”
“Yeah, but you’re a Wandell?” Kevin reminds Scotty with a sweet smile.
“That may be true, but I’m feeling more and more confiscated by the Walkers…” Scotty gives him a quick kiss.
“Good, because you’re here to stay.” Kevin sighs and he leans into the kiss.
*****
“Oh, Holly, this place looks amazing! So light! So airy!” Nora sighs in amazement. Holly smiles proudly.
“Doesn’t it? It really doesn’t look much like the old Ojai Foods offices anymore, does it?”
“Which is good. Ojai Foods is gone. Ojai Fruit and Wine is the new company.” Nora says.
She looks around at what used to be the place that her husband William'had built. The old offices with their dark filing cabinets and wooden desks have gone, replaced by modern office furniture in soft colors. The old computers screens, that somehow always took up too much space on the desks have been replaced by thin flat-screens.
It all looks new, shiny, professional, ready for work and completely different from the bankrupt Ojai Foods that she had built up with Saul and William. Holly notices the look on Nora’s face and wraps her arms around Nora from behind.
“Sad? Not good enough?” She asks.
As William’s former mistress, Holly would never have believed that her relationship with William’s wife would ever be so intimate that she would dare to this, but over the last few years they had really gotten to know each other well and they had slowly cultivated respect and friendship. Nora shakes her head, breaking free from Holly’s friendly hug, without giving Holly the feeling of being rejected.
“No… It’s good.” Nora nods. “William is dead. The past should be dealt with by now. Ojai Food, and all it stood for, is gone. It was time for something new. And this is good.”
“I’m glad that you approve. Even though you don’t want to take part in the every-day running of this company, I would have felt weird if you woul not have approved of how Sarah and I plan to run this company. You’re after all part-owner, as are the other Walkers.” Holly smiles.
“It has become a different family company.” Nora has to admit. “Speaking of family. How’s Rebecca?”
“She’s fine. My grandson is in New York, while his parents are in Africa. I still don’t agree with Rebecca’s choice, but … it’s her choice. I have other things to worry about.”
“True. You’re going to be far too busy with Ojai Fruit and Wine.” Nora points out.
“That too.” Holly laughs.
“Am I disturbing something important?” The question makes both women turn around.
“Ryan! I didn’t know you’d be here today?”
“I am. Preparing my office for the opening.”
“Looking forward to starting with a new company?” Nora asks.
“Can’t wait!” Ryan laughs. “I’ve been doing my sales-pitch at so many different companies. I can only hope that a few of them will consider us interesting.”
“I have to admit that it is my worst fear about next Monday. I have nightmares of us standing here. New offices. New and old crew. All ready to go… And then…. dead silence. Not a phone ringing.” Holly confesses.
“Sounds like a reasonable nightmare to me. Under the circumstances.” Nora nods.
“I think you’re not the only one with that fear, Holly.” A fourth voice is added to the conversation.
“Sarah! I thought you wouldn’t be back from your short trip to Vegas until Friday?” Nora hugs her daughter.
“Joe asked if it was possible for me to come back a little sooner. He has several gigs with his band and one was added without his knowing. So, he asked me if I could come back sooner.”
“If he needed someone to look after the kids, he could have called me.” Nora says, slightly offended at not being asked.
“That was his second option, if I would have wanted to stay. But I didn’t. I wanted to be home. Be with the kids. And be nervous about this place every day….” She adds.
She, too, takes another look around, appreciating the view as much as Nora had.
“I have had the same nightmare as Holly.” Sarah then admits. “I know, we already have a few orders to work with. We’re not exactly starting empty-handed, but still… it’s a new beginning for all of us… The start of a new company.”
“Will it all be ready and finished in time?” Holly wonders and the women turn to Ryan now, who raises his hands.
“The warehouses are ready. Everything is functioning right. Some of our older staff was glad to be back and they have already tried a few things out.
Garage-doors that used to get stuck are now fully functioning. Conveyor belts respond as they should. All computers work, so stock-wise we should be fine and able to stay updated. The knowledge we had built with Walker’s Landing was put to good use and we have our first wine to present, even though we cheated a little.
After all, we didn’t have the time to get our own wine, like we used to have, but we have bought an excellent wine, that we can brand as our own. A wine that tastes a lot like ‘Costal reserve’ used to. And I’m sure that next year, we will most definitely have our own wine…. So, all we need now is customers.”
*****
“All we need now is customers.” Saul says while he looks at the kitchen of Café 429. Jonathan, Saul’s husband, nods.
“They will come.”
“I hope so. Two to three weeks of closure is an eternity.”
“What are you worried about?”
“Aren’t we too big? Café 429 used to be quaint, cozy, cute, intimate. Can we still be all those things now that we’re twice as big?” Saul wonders and Jonathan looks around him at all the tables.
“There are high plants that are used as screens, so people don’t have to see what others are eating. You have soft lights that makes the place feel warm and gentle. The restaurant still breathes comfort and peace. It invites you to come in and enjoy a wonderful meal made by an amazing chef.” Jonathan shows his more poetic side.
Saul’s smile fades when he hears the door to the restaurant open. He steps up to say that the restaurant isn’t open yet, when he sees who it is.
“Mr Carter!” Browne Carter, Kevin’s partner in the new law-firm they are about to open, stands in the restaurant.
“Yes, sorry. I couldn’t get in through my front door because there are people working just in front of our entrance?”
“Ah, yes, sorry. They are putting up the new signs for both Café 429 and Walker & Carter? Do you want to use the entrance from the bar?”
“Please. Kevin and Scotty are coming back tomorrow and I don’t want Kevin’s immediate concern to be the running of our company.”
“Good idea." Saul replies, knowing how his nephew can be.
*****
End of part 1/4
**** COMMERCIAL BREAK****