AU - Backdraft

Dita rarely talked of Thom, none of the Trager's did. He had no idea that Thom had been her twin. What a terrible loss to have to endure, he thought.

"Baby, I'm sorry, I didn't know," he held her tight.

Dita looked down, forcing a small laugh, "It's funny...he's been in my dreams a lot lately. Besides Corrie, he was my best friend. He would always joke that he was my older brother by two minutes and forty-three seconds."

Juice smiled, "How did he die? No one ever talks about him."

He wondered if his death was some kind of family secret.

Dita sighed, "I was in contempary art when I got the message from the admin assistant. Thom was killed in the line of duty...shot during a bank robbery in Chicago. I was supposed to visit him that weekend."

All the freak outs over Corrie completely made sense now and he felt terrible. His shoulders slumped,"and I yelled at you and pushed Cor into that hole. Shit, Dee, I'm sorry."
Feeling like an ass he shook his head.

Dita moved so she was facing him, cupping his face in his hands, "She would have gone anyways, J. It isn't your fault. It's your job, and yes, it scares me, but I know how important it is to you all."

He rubbed against her left hand with his cheek, "I still feel like an asshat."

He flipped the cool rag on her neck to expose to the coolest side to her neck.

Dita relaxed under the coolness, closing her eyes, "Our family can't bear to talk about him, apart from mom. Usually her and I talk about him just to each other. Especially around my...our...birthday."

"I'd love to hear more about him. If he's part of you then he is part of me too," he kissed the top of her head.

Dita smiled softly, a tear slipping down her cheek, "He and I were a lot alike. He loved music, especially the Beatles, loved trivia, history and art...he had an infectious laugh. You could be having the worst day in the world and he could make it all better with his jokes..." Dita shook her head, her eyes looking away from Juice, "It kills me...he survived a tear in the left valve of his heart only to die in the line of duty."

Juice listened in awe. She had never really taked about him so candidly before. He wiped away her tears with his thumbs.
"What if we name the baby after him if it is a boy?"

Dita smiled softly, "I'd like that."

"The tear in his heart, is that a family thing?" Suddenly juice was concerned

Dita sighed, "The family flaw as mom calls it. Mom keeps asking me to get checked. I admit, I have Trini checked at every appointment."

He frowned, "How did I not know that about my own daughter?"
He sighed.

Dita frowned, "I didn't want you to worry. You already had so much going on."

He held her face,"You don't ever have to do this alone."

Dita smiled, "I know. Don't worry though. Trini is doing amazing."

"Good. What are the plans for today?"

Dita shrugged, "I was going to make breakfast...that's all I really planned."

He stood and started to run some warm bathwater for her.

"I want you to take a bath and I will make breakfast. Then we'll veg out in front of the TV for a while. After that we can do whatever you want," he leaned down to kiss her head.



He went to the kitchen and made pancakes, eggs, and bacon. When Dita was pregnant with Trinity she loved pancakes. The bacon and eggs were just covering bases just in case. He hummed as he worked.

Trinity came padding down the hall in her Toy Story themed footie pajamas. Her curly black hair brushed up neatly in pigtails. She was caringl her beloved Tiggy bear from her grandpa Tregar. She went up to her father and gently tugged on his shirt, "Where's mommy, daddy? Can I help?"

He smiled, "She's in the bathroom, of course you can help."

Th stool he kept in the kitchen for her use was under the table, he pulled it out and put it at the counter next to him. As he sett her down on the stool, he grabbed the apron she loved to wear and tied it around her waist.

"You can butter the toast," he smiled again.

Dita finished her bath and redressed herself in a fresh pair of pajamas. She went to the kitchen seeing Trinity along with Juice making breakfast. She smiled, going over to kiss Trinity's chubby cheek, "Mo chailin beag ionuin." She smiled at Juice, "Anything I can do to help?"

Juice smiled at the lyrical beauty of the gaelic, "You can sit, we've got this."

He helped Trinity get the butter out of the fridge and gave her a butter knife to butter the toast. Plating the food, he took Dee her plate and helped Trinity get into her seat. While they ate he cleaned up the mess, putting the dirty dishes into the dishwasher and putting the various ingredients back where they belonged. Finally, he sat and started to eat.

"Feeling better?"