Noah walked down the steps dressed in his tux. Looking into the studio he spotted the family minus Blackie all dressed as nice. “Where?” he asked Anna.
“Where do you think?” she asked as she pointed toward the garage.
Opening the door he found Blackie wearing grease stained jeans and no shirt. His chest also smeared with grease.
“Mmmm Mmmmm mmmmmmm, not that you don’t look tasty but…” he smiled as he leaned in the doorway.
“Not going.”
“What do you mean not going? Yes you are, Connie and Shay need us to meet everyone at Kelly’s for the big holiday thing.”
“No, I’m not. I don’t care.”
“Why?”
“Because Shay promised to send Bobbie away and she didn’t.”
Noah laughed. “Things take time.”
“Not this much time.”
“Now, Now,” Noah said, crossing to the other man. “Things will work out, they almost always do.”
“Who else is going to be there?” Blackie pouted as he tightened the bolt with his wrench.
"Everyone." he answered. "Your dad, both of mine. Jay and Alfie, Louie. Just everyone and you HAVE to go."
“Why do I have to go?” The man pouted as he tossed his wrench toward the toolbox.
"Because if you don't Shay will get pissed at you and you know what she does to people she's pissed at."
The man scowled, “Painful horrible deaths. Why would she get pissed at me though, you’re the one keeps her up most nights trying to invent new ways to get hot and sticky.”
"Pretty much the same thing you do to Connie isn't it?"
Smirking, he nodded. “Yeah, okay, soooo!”
"So go get changed before they take sex away from us again ok?"
“Or make us take the bike to Dayton in a snowstorm,” The man grumbled as he walked into the house.
"That was YOUR idea." he called after him. "Shay doesn't know anything about bikes and Connie tried to talk you out of it."
As the man grumbled his way through the studio, Robin jumped up, “Daddy! Daddy! I ride the brand new ike you made me to da thing?”
Noah shook his head. "No way, Doll face. It's 4 degrees outside and you're in a pretty pink party dress."
Rolling her lips, she stomped back toward the couch, “all ou let me ride it is slow on da riveway.”
Kelly’s
"This is so stupid." Natalie Drake protested as she struggled in her straight jacket painted with a Christmas tree. "I haven't had a single line of dialogue since May. Why do I have to be here? There don't even like me."
Nearby, Fred grumbled, “You lady? Only time I get dialogue is when Nancy needs someone new to trade insults with.”
"Oh shut up, old man." Jay yelled across the diner. "I had to go gay to get a story." he quickly turned to Alfie. "Not that I'm complaining."
“Awe hell, I want a story but not THAT bad,” Frisco answered as he lowered himself to a chair.
Tony slugged his brother. "Hey at least you have had some time. I haven't been mentioned since Volume 1."
"Oh shut up all of you and stop complaining." Nancy yelled. "You ALL know that Noah and Blackie are their favorites."
Twisting his foot Charlie joined the group whine, “It’s not just them you know. . the readers too. It’s all about Noah and Blackie.”
Frisco jumped to his feet. "But why? Hell I'm hot ain't I? I sing better then either of them and my hair is almost blond. Girls like that right?"
“Sit down, hair boy,” Danny commented slapping him in the back of the head, “Blackie isn’t doing the band thing anymore. Remember? Doesn’t matter how good you sing.”
"Awe man, the only reason you have any story at all is because Shay didn't want crazy nutty Rick Springfield fans getting him and Noah mixed up so she made him a character."
“Man, you’re on drugs!” Danny argued back, “I’ve had lots of story that hasn’t involved the music gig.”
"Oh do tell." Chimed in Michelle Fitzgerald.
“SHUT UP BITCH!” Everyone else in the room answered.
"Where's my Daddy?"
Giving his sister a shove AJ said, “Go sit by the crazy lady before they give you a straight jacket of your own.
The door opened and in walked Amy. "Hi everyone, what are we talking about?"
“Noah and Blackie,” the group grumbled.
"Oh god... do we HAVE to talk about them? Everyone talks about them. I'm sick of them."
Climbing out from under a table, Randy stomped loudly. “You guys be nice to my OLD brother.”
"Shut up, kid." Mike growled. "Connie and Shay only love Noah and Blackie and pretty soon they are gonna shove you in the closet they keep all the kids in."
"Hey now." Devin protested. "Shay loves me, I'm a cute little bunny."
Joe responded, “Oh yeah, you’re a cute little bunny that eats pages like they were lettuce. Geez, I don’t think I’ve ever had a ten-page sex scene. Lord, I can remember the last time we got on-text, do you, Cyn?”
She looked up. "Ummmm, our honeymoon?"
“On text? One could only hope,” Rose said with a sly grin.
Paddy looked down at his own body. "Married to me there is no hope. They don't like us old gray people."
“Speak for yourself,” Drew snapped.
"Fine, correction." Paddy snapped. "They don't like straight old gray people, and I'm with hair boy. I want sex but not that bad."
“I’d have to argue with that,” Henry spoke up, “Not so young, gray, straight, and had on text, not as much as I’d like, but hey, at least they decided to reform me. . They did kick around a murder mystery storyline with me as the corpse you know.”
"Yup." Bucky laughed. "I was gonna get to kill you."
“Instead they move you to LA, and bring me in. Only to have Noah continuously trying to pour tequila down my throat and turn me into you,” Grant fumed.
"Oh girl, please." Bucky fired back. "Look who they gave you to cuddle with? That should far outweigh any negative aspects."
“Is that a veiled complaint I hear, Lover?” Dana defensively spoke up.
Bucky smiled. "Not at all, honey, but have you looked at Jimmy Lee Holt recently?"
“Look all you want, but don’t even think about touching,” Grant smiled as he pulled the other man into his lap.
The door opened and Noah and Blackie entered followed by Anna, Holly, Robin, Lori, Brett and Stacy. "Sorry we're a little late," Noah grinned. "Blackie was being pokey."
“Being pokey or getting poked,” Bucky asked with a laugh.
“Both,” Anna answered jokingly.
Crossing to the table, Blackie flipped a chair around and looked across to Jimmy Lee, “Am I the only one hating this?”
The man laughed. "Possibly. Come on Dude, how bad can it be? We tell people season's greetings and then we go home right?"
Looking around he asked, “So what we suppose to do get together like for a picture or something?”
He nodded. "We're just waiting for Bobbie."
“Yippee,” the man shot back sarcastically. “They promised me she would be GONE GONE GONE by now.”
"Yeah but think about the alternative. What if Shay hadn't decided to pull you out of moth balls. What if Connie hadn't come along? Where would you be?"
Nodding he conceded, “Still rotting away in jail 20 years later on a two year sentence.”
"Exactly, and I'd be on some farm somewhere. Noah would probably be married to some woman and hell Grant...you know the dumb TV writers made him evil right?"
“Okay. . this is better.” He conceded.
The door opened and Bobbie entered. "Sorry, Jeff and Anne are right behind me and Steve Hardy is behind them and he said if you all get in rows he'll do the count down."
Moving toward the back of the diner, everyone lined up as Jeff, Anne, and Steve came into the diner, joining the group.
"We ready to do this people?" the chief of staff bellowed.
“As ready as we’re ever going to be,” Blackie grumbled, and Noah’s arm came around his waist.
"Ok on the count of three." he said. "1....2...3"
Instantly everyone joyfully shouted. "Merry Christmas and Happy New Year."
Randy crawled out from under Martin. "Or Season's Greetings if you don't celebrate Christmas."
***And from the crew . . . . er writer’s. .. ok, just us, Happy Holidays. . . We’re taking a three-week break. . And we’ll see you in the New Year!!