Fan Fiction |
by Jenny Tran
Ted and Erin stepped into the tiny restaurant, they greeted Shelly at the cash register with a smile while Chuck ran around taking orders and greeting the usual customers. The two took a booth by the door and waited for him to spot them. Chuck turned his head to shout out the order when he caught Erin’s smile “Hey! I’ll be with you in two seconds!” he rushed into the kitchen and gave some orders to the assistant chef.
“Looks like business is good.” Ted commented as he looked around at the group of people.
“Looks can be deceiving.” Erin said slyly. She straightened up when Chuck came up to join them with a pot of tea in his hand. Pouring himself a cup, he drank the hot liquid and gasped in pain “Don’t burn yourself!” Erin scolded like a mother.
Chuck laughed “Too late for that.” He stuck out his tongue to show her while she winced with disgust. He turned to wink at Ted “Works every time. You know, sometimes I have to put her in her place. I’M the Uncle.” He pointed to himself.
“Its hard when you act like a ten year old.” Erin quipped. She nodded at Ted to begin what they were there for.
“We need your help.” Ted cut to the chase.
“No. Whatever it is…I don’t want anything to do with the P.R.A.” Chuck shook his head vigorously.
“Why?” Erin asked in shock, she didn’t think they would be shot down so soon without a fight “You were once a lieutenant. Don’t you remember how fun it was? Come on Uncle, you have to help Matt out. Between the new group and us, he can’t handle the pressures. It seems the crime rate has erupted since we went public.” She was using her logic and reasoning on him.
Chuck sighed “Guys, I’m getting old, I can’t run around like you youngsters anymore. Haven’t you noticed my stomach has gotten bigger?” he pointed. Shelly laughed to herself after hearing his comment “Get back to work!” he snapped at her. She pouted her lips and he quickly calmed his voice “I’m just kidding.” He smiled sweetly and turned back to Erin and Ted “She’s been so moody lately. You think she’s…” he leaned in and whisper “Pregnant?”
“What?” Erin asked, it was barely auditable.
“You know!” Chuck hissed as he made a rocking baby motion with his hand.
Ted laughed, “Moody doesn’t prove that she is. Tell her to go the doctors and check it out. They have been married for three years. It’s not surprising if they are pregnant.”
“Who’s pregnant?” Shelly looked up at them curiously from her station.
“Mia!” Chuck answered quickly as he turned back to Ted with the evil eye “Don’t talk so loud. She’s very sensitive about that.” He leaned in closer to them “I heard Ryan has been trying to have a kid but for some reason it’s not working out. If she turns out not to be pregnant, it will crush her little heart. We shouldn’t talk about this anymore.”
Erin shook her head at her Uncle “You were the one that brought it up.”
“Smart mouth.” He nodded “Just for that, I’m really not going to help Matt. I was going to but you said one too many comebacks. Anyways, I like my job, who’s going to watch this place for me while I help you guys?”
“Its only part time.” Ted insisted.
“I’ll sleep on it.” Chuck said finally. His eyes moved to the entrance and made a double take on the woman walking in. Her face was stuck in a book “Hi Evelyn.” He cooed.
She managed to give him a glance and a short smile “Hey Chuck. I told you, call me Eve.” She walked past them and sat down on the booth behind Erin and Ted.
Erin and Ted exchanged knowing smiles “A new target?”
Chuck arched his neck to steal more glimpses of the beauty “Can you make it more obvious?” Ted teased.
He looked defeated while slumping back “It doesn’t matter, she never looks at anyone. I think she’s some sort of a teacher or a librarian. She always has a book in her hand and has lunch here every other day.”
“Is that why you asked me to lend you the money to take over this deli?” Erin accused.
“SHH!!” Chuck hushed her with an annoyed look “Not so loud, I don’t want to scare her away.”
“She’s not deaf.” She teased “Stop trying to change the subject, so are you going to help us or not?” He was too busy looking at Evelyn to bother answering Erin. She crossed her arms sternly and still he did not acknowledge her. She shrugged at Ted “He asked for it.”
She got up and spun her heals to sit down at the seat across from Evelyn. Chuck’s face turned a crimson red “What is she doing?” he asked. Ted was smiling as he leaned his arm on the booth behind him to watch Erin work her magic.
“Hi!” Erin greeted the woman brightly.
She eventually dropped her book and smiled at Erin “Hello.”
“I’m Erin, Chuck’s niece.” She pointed an outstretched hand to the girl who did not look that much older than herself.
“Oh really? Well, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Evelyn, but call me Eve.” She shook her hand firmly.
Erin smiled “Look Eve, I don’t want to waste your time but my Uncle has a huge—” a large thick hand clasped over her mouth and she looked up with playful eyes.
“Sorry Eve. My niece is being a nuisance. Erin, I told you not to bother the customers when they’re eating!” he scolded and practically yanked her from the seat and pushed her roughly next to Ted.
Ted wrapped a protective arm around her “You okay?”
She nodded and turned to her Uncle, who was fuming “So?”
“So what?” he asked heatedly.
“Help us or I find out where she lives and tell her you’re stalking her.” Erin threatened.
“Family…is…is that what it means to you?” Chuck asked while pretending to be hurt.
Erin rolled her eyes “Please, that stunt only works on Shelly.”
“Hey!” Shelly objected.
“You know it’s true!” Erin widened her eyes at her sister who then nodded and returned to the figures she was calculating. She leaned in closer to Chuck “Shall we escort you to the headquarters?”
He was stumped and not to mention pushed in a corner “Fine…but you have to promise me one thing.” Ted and Erin smiled as they nodded in agreement “Help me get her.” He pointed to Eve, whose nose was plastered in the book again.
“It’s a deal!” Erin shook his hand sealing the agreement.
************
Matt waited for the new and old teams to enter their conference room before speaking “Doug, close the door please.” He noticed the wondering glances that were exchanged “Erin and Ted will be a little late. First off, I want to apologize to all of you for endearing the last month of my not so professional attitude. Ryan, I didn’t mean to snap at you earlier this morning.”
He grinned at his brother “I was not offended.”
“Either way, I am sorry. Erin and Ted made me see something that I could not admit. This is a hard job.” Matt sighed.
“I could have told you that.” Mia quipped.
He laughed, “Yes, you could have. And I need to admit defeat when it slaps me in the face. I thought that I could handle both running the team and training the new group. But unfortunately, I can’t. Erin and Ted are trying to get a familiar face here to help me out with the new group.”
“Who?” Becca asked curiously “Don’t tell me he has a big tummy and no hair on his head.” She warned with a narrowed eye.
Matt pressed his lips to keep them from grinning, “Okay, I won’t tell you.”
“Yay!! Chuck is coming!!” Mia blew up into giggles.
Darren looked at her strangely “Honey, don’t get too happy. He won’t be leading us, he’ll be with the new guys.”
“Who is Chuck?” Leah asked.
“He’s Erin and Shelly’s Uncle.” Darren explained.
“Mine too.” Ryan chimed in “This should be fun!” Matt threw him a look and he quickly added, “Not that it wasn’t fun with you, Gor…I mean Lieutenant!” he stood up and saluted Matt.
Matt laughed with a shaking head “I’m only teasing. I know I do not appeal to the younger group anymore. I’m getting older.”
“No, just wiser.” Mark smiled, he admired the young lieutenant.
Jenna crossed her arms as she twirled in her swivel chair “Gee Mark, I had no idea you had a degree in kiss ass?”
Darren let out a short whistle “Wow, she’s ruthless.”
“I’m kidding!!” Jenna cried and smiled at Mark “Don’t be mad.” He couldn’t resist the charming grin as he nodded showing no teeth “Give me a smile.” Jenna requested “Come on, with teeth…you do have teeth don’t you?” Mark spread his lips to the side and smiled with force “Oh…sorry I asked.” Everyone stifled a laugh.
The glass doors were suddenly opened, appearing Erin, Ted and Chuck “See, they don’t need me.” Chuck pointed to the laughing group.
“Nice try. Sit down.” Erin pointed inside.
Matt stood up to greet his new partner in crime “It’s been a long time, Chuck.” They hugged comfortably.
“Yes, it’s been too long. I always ask Ryan about you and you know Erin, it’s all about rules and stuff. She won’t let me come near this building…Uncle Chuck, you are not a member of the P.R.A. you’re not allowed to walk inside.” Chuck said with a roll of the eyes while mocking her tone without success.
Ryan and Erin exchanged glances “I had no idea I sounded like an forty five year old man trying to be a woman.” Erin snickered.
“The last time I saw Uncle Chuck, he asked me if he could borrow my wife to help him at his new restaurant. I don’t recall him asking about Gor.” Matt scratched his head, playing along.
“Busted!” Mia cracked.
Chuck narrowed his eyes at the smiling group “Kids. They don’t have any manners these days.” he patted Matt on the shoulder “So, what do you want me to do? Sit in the office? Operate the missions? What?” he took a seat next to Matt and propped his feet on the table with comfort.
“Actually, I kinda wanted you to train the new group.” He stepped behind the four “This is Ryan, I think you don’t need introductions. This is Jenna…”
“Hi, I’m Jenna!” she got up and reached across the table to shake Chuck’s hand with a playful grin.
He stared at her hand blankly “A pleasure. Look—”
Jenna shrugged her shoulders as she sat back while Matt followed down the line “This is Leah, our newest addition. She’s got quite a background for volunteer work and the black belt in karate that she earned at sixteen is very impeccable for this job. And finally, this is Mark. I always call him the young Darren Lam. He comes from a wealthy and honorable family and so very humble. He went into police training at a young age when his father pulled some strings to get him in at a ripe age of eighteen. So, this is your new team. They are still in the training process…”
Chuck began laughing “This is a joke right? You want ME, to train THEM?”
“Hey! We’re not that bad!” Jenna protested.
He stood up and shook his head “Sorry, I was promised by your Captain that I would be sitting in the air conditioning office and controlling the operations indoors. He did not say anything about training.”
“Uncle Chuck!” Erin blocked his exit “You promised.”
“I’m breaking it.” He said stubbornly.
“The training is a part time job only. From eight to two in the afternoon.” Matt said.
Chuck turned back and noticed Ryan and Jenna’s puppy eyes and smiles “Fine.” He sighed, “I better be getting paid for this.”