She groaned as she plopped his pillow over her head. If she ignored the knocker, maybe they'd go away. The knocking persisted, and she sang, "go away!"
When the doorbell was added to the knocking, she stumbled out of bed and to the door. She was about to answer when she remembered she was alone. She grabbed the baseball bag she kept in the umbrella holder, and held it above her head.
She dropped her voice as low as she could, "who is it?"
"It's Jimmy! Who the hell is this?"
"Jimmy?" Linda whispered as she opened the door just a hair. Sure enough, it was her brother standing there. She let him in, and locked the door behind him. "What the hell are you doing here? It's two thirty in the morning!"
"Danny not here?"
"No, Night Shift. What're you doing?" She watched him check the windows to the apartment.
"Is it alright if I stay here till he gets in?"
"I... Uh.... Huh?" She stammered, still half asleep.
Jimmy turned to face her, "hey, you're asking for trouble answering the door in the middle of the night in that thing!"
Linda shook her head, "I only answered 'cause you were going to wake up the whole building!"
"Do you always wear something that skimpy to bed?"
"Would you forget about my nightgown?" She was wearing a short black silk nightgown with lace detailing. It wasn't the best thing to answer the door in, but she wasn't exactly awake and aware at this unholy hour.
"So when does Danny get home?"
She yawned, "Usually anywhere between 6:30 or 7:00. Sometimes later. Now I've got a question for you."
"Shoot."
"What the hell are you doing here?!"
"I'll explain everything once Danny's here, alright? Just let me crash on your sofa."
She was too tired to argue, "yeah, sure, whatever."
"Thanks, sis! You're the greatest."
She mumbled something in response, heading back to the comfort of her warm bed.
*********
"I was thinkin', Half Pint, that maybe it'd be good for me to stay here for a little bit."
Linda choked on her coffee, "Jimmy, please, not before I've had time to wake up!"
"Okay, okay, sheesh!" He chuckled, "I forgot what a grumpy girl you are before your coffee."
"Brace yourself for my husband then. A Night Shift, no food, and no coffee." She shuttered. Danny always told her it didn't matter if he didn't eat food, but he got almost as cranky as she did when hungry. She was not a pretty sight when needing food.
"What's for breakfast then?"
Before she could answer, the door opened, and Danny walked in. "Linda, babe, how many times do I have to tell you to keep the door locked?"
"But it wasn't-" she didn't finish her sentence, as Danny's kiss stopped her talking.
"Please just do it. It's not safe for you to have it unlocked."
"But it's safe for you the cop, the man to keep it unlocked?"
"Why do you always go there? It's not safe for anyone to keep their doors unlocked- make, female, black, white, dog, cat, carnivorous alien!"
"I think aliens can handle themselves," Jimmy spoke up.
Danny stared at him for a solid minute before saying anything. And even after the minute, it was as if he still couldn't process his brother in law in his eating area.
"He blew in last night. Late last night," Linda explained, pouring coffee for her husband. "He wouldn't tell me why he came. He said he needed to talk to you."
"I do need to talk to you, Danny. So can we talk? In private?"
He held his hand out towards Linda, and she understood that as bring me coffee. Once the coffee was in hand, he answered, "not until I've had my coffee."
"And a shower," Linda said, giving Danny a look he knew all too well.
He knew that would wake him up. "Right. You'll be okay by yourself for a bit, right, Jimmy?"
"Oh, yeah. Sure." He nodded, knowing what his baby sister had in mind. He was no stranger to those kind of looks.
*********
"So what's with Jimmy?" Danny asked as they got dressed post shower.
Linda sighed, "I don't know. He just... showed up! Out of the blue! And he's being very secretive. I don't like it."
Danny watched her yank her scrub pants on, "do you think he's up to something?"
"Oh he's always up to something! He's never not up to something!"
"Let me talk to him, okay? You go on to work, and I'll bring you lunch. We'll talk then about Jimmy. Okay?"
She nodded, knowing it would ruin her mood if she talked about him now. Her patients didn't deserve her being in a rotten mood. "Bring something greasy."
He laughed and kissed her forehead. Her two guilty pleasures were greasy food and sugary ice cream. (And he couldn't forget her love for chocolates).
**********
"He wants five month's worth of rent."
"What?!" Linda yelled in the cafeteria, all eyes suddenly on her. "We don't even have this months rent! And we can't just be giving away money- we're saving for a house! Who the hell does he think he is?!"
There was something about his wife's anger, about how her blue eyes blazed with fire and her nostrils flared that really turned him on. "I told him all that."
"And?"
"And he said we should help him out because he introduced us."
"That is bullshit! I plowed into you! No one introduced us!"
"Linda, calm down, we're in public."
She closed her eyes, squared her shoulders, and let out a long, slow breath. "We can't give him any of our money, Danny. I'm sorry, but we can't afford it! And what happened to the money we gave him the last time?"
"He said it ran out."
"Ran out. Yeah right. He spent it on hookers and drugs."
"Look, maybe we can just set him up with a hundred dollars. I'll talk to him, tell him how he can't keep doing this to you. He'll understand."
She didn't think so, but she didn't want to argue. She sighed, "so... so what? That's it? We give him our money, and he leaves and wastes it, and we're still stuck in that apartment!"
"Didn't you promise you'd look out for him? Family first applies to you and your family, too."
She clenched her fists and actually growled. "That isn't fair."
"Is it fair for him to end up in jail?" Danny lowered his voice, "or worse?"
She closed the lid on her container and started to pack away the rest of her lunch. "Fine. Do whatever you want. You're gonna do it anyway, no matter what I say."
"Linda...!" He watched her dump her mostly uneaten food in the trash then walk away. He blew out a breath; he could never win when it came to Linda and her brother.
