The Bears were on their way to the Super Bowl so James and Malachai stayed up to call their parents in Israel to ask if they wanted to join the family for the Super Bowl. “Good morning son”, their mother said, answering their father’s phone.
“Is that what it is over there, Mom?” James laughed.
“Yes it is. What can I do for you James Matthew?”
“I need to talk to you and Dad about something real quick. Is Dad around?”
“He’s in town. He took my phone. Kinda funny that our phones look so much alike when they’re sitting right next to each other, huh?”
“Were you charging them?”
“Yeah. We have one of those cordless charging stations for our phones. I’m tempted to call him to see what his reaction is.”
“When will he be back from town?”
She was quiet for a moment. “He just pulled the car into the garage. He went to get some things for breakfast. I’m sitting in bed letting your Dad spoil me.”
“What?” Malachai said with a chuckle. “You’re actually letting Dad spoil you?”
“It’s rare I know. But, it was bound to happen. I enjoy it upon occasion.” They heard the heavy foot falls of their father and grinned. “David, I have James and Malachai on your phone.”
“I noticed that I had yours when I got to the market and Maddie was calling. She needs a bit of advice from your vast knowledge of massage.”
“You’d think she knows everything there is to know by now, but ok. I’ll call her after we get off of the phone with the boys.”
“Hi Dad”, James and Malachai said in unison.
“Hello sons. What’s on you minds?”
“You want to come back to the US in a couple of weeks and see the Super Bowl?” James asked.
“Only if the Bears are going.”
“They are. They killed the Rams. Practically a shutout, Dad.”
“Final score?”
“Forty- nine to 3.”
“Yeah, I’d say that the Rams were thoroughly spanked. But, from what I’ve seen, we’ve had an awesome defense all year and the offense isn’t all that bad either.”
“You got that right, Dad.”
“When’s the game?”
“In three weeks.”
“What do you think, dear?” he asked the boy’s mother.
“As long as the kids continue on with the no fretting over us thing, I don’t see why not. As long as we’re there early, we should spend a little time with Skyler and Kaylian.”
“I need to talk to Skyler anyway, so I like that plan. We should have them out for dinner a couple times at the cottage.” He took a deep breath. “We’ll be there in two weeks, boys.”
“Ok Dad”, Malachai said. “I’ll be picking you up. I’m going to talk to Jake about it tomorrow.”
“Is there a reason that you’re doing it?”
James decided to spill the beans. “Dad, do you know that there’s a huge Disturbed tribute being done?”
“I kind of figured that was happening when I saw the article in the Revolver eZine. What about it?”
“Ok. Do you remember that kid from the Kennedy Center thing that could do your signature sound?”
“Yeah. Ryan something.”
“Well, he ruined the song.”
“He ruined ‘Down with the Sickness’? Not possible.”
“No, Dad. The song.”
“I don’t know which…”
“He ruined MY SONG?!” Brie shouted.
“Yeah Mom”, Malachai said.
“Who told him he could do that song?” David asked. He was starting to get a little upset.
“No one”, Malachai was quick to say. “Jordan and I both told him that if they did it they were inviting trouble. Not only did they do the song; the fucked with it.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’d have to hear it yourself, Dad. I can’t even describe how horrible it sounds”, James said. “I asked to hear it and Malachai asked me if I wanted my ears to bleed. I had to threaten him with pulling the plug on the project so that he would let me hear it.”
“Malachai Aaron Draiman, I want you to listen very carefully to what I’m saying to you. When you pick us up at the train station, you will play the song for us on the way home. If it’s as bad as you say it is, you and Jordan will personally bring him to the house so that your mother can scream at him and I can curse him. Do you understand what I’m saying to you?”
“Yes sir.”
“Good. Now, your mother and I are going to eat breakfast. You’re going to go the hell to bed. I’m sure your wives would love to have the warm bodies of their husbands next to them. Good night, my sons.” The call ended.
Malachai and James exchanged a look. “Dude. Mom’s going to flip when she hears it.”
“No kidding. I wanted to throw up listening to it. That shit made me physically sick.”
“Ryan Winters has no idea the shit he’s just brought down upon himself. I told him not to touch that song; period. There was no discussion. That was the one song that was off limits and he had to go fuck with it. I’m going to call Jordan in the morning and let her know what Dad said and to have Ryan at her house the day they arrive. After I drop Mom and Dad off, I’m sure they’re going to want to take their piece of his ass then rather than later.”
“For sure, bro. Good luck. I don’t envy you this trip.”
---------------
“Nonsense!” Brie shouted as she prepared breakfast. “If he ruined my song, I will ruin him. He will regret ever thinking that he was going to touch that song.”
“No kidding. That’s your song for a reason. I never wanted anyone else to cover it. I wrote it specifically for my voice to carry”, David said. “I don’t even think that Jordan would mess with it.”
“Or Malachai for that matter. I think all of our children are afraid of that song to be perfectly honest with you. Well, afraid of it musically. They won’t even sing it if they’re goofing off around the house or singing to they’re significant others. They know that’s MY song.”
“Well, I meant what I said to Malachai. I want to hear it when we get there and I want him and Jordan to bring that boy over so that you can scream at him and I can curse him. There is no point in destroying a song he really had no reason to mess with.” He sighed. “Why don’t we change the subject?”
“Sure. What do you want to talk about?”
“I was thinking that we could eat breakfast and take a soak in the hot tub for a little bit, then we can go into town and get some actual groceries.”
She grinned. “You know just how to diffuse my temper. Just mention that hot bub we had put in a couple years ago and I don’t wanna rant anymore.”
“I know you. So, what do you say?”
“Let’s eat so that we can soak in the hot tub.” And they did just that. As she finished making breakfast David got the hot tub out of its little hiding space inside the back deck and started it heating up. They sat and ate their breakfast at their little breakfast nook as they watched the steam rise up from the hot tub.
After breakfast they took their time changing so that they could soak and relax. Once they were seated in the hot tub, David pulled her against the front of his body. “Isn’t this a lot better than ranting about that song?”
“Yeah. I have to say that I’m enjoying thing a great deal more than going on and on about that little prick Ryan Winters.”
“So, what do you think about this trip to the States for the Super Bowl?”
“I think it will be fun. We’ll just hang out there until the end of the summer.”
“Sounds like a plan to me.”
Thy lapsed into silence. “You know, David. I was just thinking”, Brie said from out of left field.
“What were you thinking?”
“This is probably the last bit of time you and I will spend in this house. We only have two weeks left here.”
“I hadn’t thought about that. What makes you think that?”
“Just remembering the dream I had at Hanukkah; the conversations with Ira and my mother. Ira said that we wouldn’t have to suffer much longer and that you weren’t going to have to live without me.”
“Could that have meant that you have to live without me for a time?”
“I don’t think so. Even if that’s the case, this is the last time I’m going to see this house. I’ll have Jessi pack my things and ship them to the US. I can’t stay here in this house without you. There are too many memories here and I couldn’t stay here. I’d rather move back to the US and let Jake fuss over me.”
He smiled sadly. “I would probably do the same. I couldn’t stay here without you.”
She turned her head and kissed him briefly. “So, either way this is the last two weeks we’ll be spending here. The last time we will sleep in our bed will be the night before we leave. The last time we soak in this hot tub will be before we leave.”
“That reminds me- I don’t think we ever christened this hot tub.”
“We’ve never christened any hot tub we owned.”
“I think that needs to change. What about you?”
“Let’s change it then.” She turned in his arms and kissed him softly, allowing him the room to take the lead if he wanted to.
And he did. He took the kiss up a couple of notches from soft to passionate so that they could make love in their hot tub and she would forget for a few moments that someone decided to ruin her song.
---------------
Malachai couldn’t sleep that night. He was too anxious about what his parents would say about the song when they arrived. He just knew they would hate it. He knew that once they got to homestead, they would curse Ryan, then him and Jordan for allowing it to happen. And to be honest, they would deserve it. They didn’t pay close enough attention to it to what Ryan was doing and they didn’t rein him in like they should have.
That night, he just sat in his bed with his wife sleeping next to him and tried to take his mind off of the impending visit from his parents. TV wasn’t much help, but it was what he had. It was that, and the social media pages that the kept up with. He sat with his iPad and answered questions from the fans around the world and playing games.
He glanced over at his bedside table and saw that his sister Jordan was calling. “Hello?”
“How did I know you were up?” she laughed.
“I don’t know, Jord. How did you know? It wouldn’t be because we’re both insomniacs.”
“So what’s got you all hot and bothered tonight, ‘Chai?”
“I talked to Mom and Dad a while ago and I’ve been ordered to pick them up at the train station and to play the song for them as I drive them to homestead. You’re going to have to have Winters with you so that if they hate it- which I’m certain they will- I can call you to be ready because WE have to bring him over so that Mom can scream at him and Dad can cuss him.”
“Who told them about the mockery of a tribute?”
“James.”
“Figures. He loves that he’s technically our boss.”
“No kidding. And he’s the younger sibling. The little fucker has let being COO and Chief legal counsel for Intoxication Records go to his head.”
“This is James we’re talking about, ‘Chai. He’s not exactly humble.”
“True. And apparently he’s just as big a horn dog now as he was in high school and college.”
“What makes you say that?”
“Something he said to me after I came home from your place.”
“What did he say.”
Malachai got out of bed, feeling his knees creak and groan in protest. “Hold on, let me drag my ass down the stairs so that we can talk and I don’t run the risk of waking Mandy.” He walked down the stairs and sat down on his leather couch- turning on the TV and turning down the volume as he spoke to his younger sister. “Well, when I can in he was watching the recording of the Bears game from Sunday. He caught me up on the stats where he was in the game and we started talking. I asked him why he didn’t just watch the game Sunday and he told me that it was ‘date night’. That he had to keep Kenna happy so that she would keep giving him nookie. Then he said, and I quote, ‘I’m a pretty good dog but if you don’t pet me it’s hard to stay under the porch. Thankfully, I’ve never cheated on my wife because she pets this dog often and very, very well’, and Jordan I nearly died laughing.”
“So she says, ‘Jump’, he says, ‘How high’, as he takes off?”
“Pretty much. I asked him if she stopped screwing him if he’d cheat on her and he said no. That it would be difficult to stay faithful but he’d manage. He said that he’s lucky that Kenna is as out spoken as she is because she will tell him exactly what she needs and he gets it no matter what it is. In return, she bangs him regularly.”
“That’s priceless”, she chuckled. “Totally sounds like James.”
“Yep. It certainly does.” He sighed. “I wish I could sleep, Jordan. My mind just won’t be still. I keep thinking that Mom and Dad are going to chew our asses over the mess with Mom’s song while they chew Ryan’s ass.”
“If that happens we’ll kind of deserve it. Wrought Iron is on our label and it was our responsibility to make sure that he didn’t do anything stupid.”
“I know. And I feel like shit because our mother’s song that was written just for her by our father was ruined by some little punk who doesn’t understand what that song means to our mother.”
“You and me both, ‘Chai.” She yawned. “I’m going to go curl up with my wifey. Maybe get some to take my mind off of all of this shit. When will Mom and Dad be in the US?”
“They’re coming in a month early so that they can watch the Super Bowl with us.”
“Cool. Go Bears. Night big brother. I’m starting to crash.”
“Night sis. Get some sleep and we’ll talk tomorrow about the tribute. We have a million more to listen to, it seems. We’ve got to sort through them all and determine how many volumes are going to be in this tribute.”
“Not looking forward to it. See you tomorrow morning. Tell Miranda I said take it easy. I know she’s excited about the wedding and all that.”
“Excited doesn’t cover it. She and Callan talk every night and she tells him what she and Mandy have managed to get done. He did get approval for the sword arch because she’s the granddaughter of the Voice of the Resistance and the Great- niece of The Legendary Master Gunnery Sergeant Matthew J. Cartwright.”
“Awesome”, she yawned. “Going to climb in bed next to Ronnie now. Need sleep.”
“Night Jordan.”
“Night Malachai. Try to get some sleep yourself.”
“I will. I just need to make my mind shut up.” They hung up and Malachai turned on the news. That usually bored him to the point where he was ready to pass out. He usually couldn’t stand the news. It bored him to tears. How his father and his younger brothers Jake and Jeremiah could watch it and not want to go to sleep stupefied him. After a couple of news stories, he was ready for sleep. He shut off the TV and trudged up the stairs to curl up next to his wife for a little bit of sleep.
---------------
Jordan slipped into bed behind Ronnie quietly and slipped her arm around her waist. She was finally tired enough to sleep a little bit before having to get up and get Jasmine off to school. Normally Matt and Seth would swing by to pick her up, or the triplets would drop by to get her, but Jordan was usually the one to get her up and ready for school.
As she settled into bed Ronnie rolled over to face her. “What kept you?” she asked.
“Couldn’t sleep. I called Malachai and we chatted for a bit. Now, I’m ready to snuggle with you and get some sleep.”
“Was your insomnia messing with you again?”
“Yeah. It makes me wonder how many of us are insomniacs. I know Malachai and I are. I think Jake is, but I don’t know. Meagan is and Marc is for sure. I don’t know about the rest of my siblings.”
“You could ask them.”
“Nah, if they want me to know they’ll tell me. I’m not nearly as nosy as I was when I was younger.”
“That’s good. It’s not good to be nosy.”
“True.” Jordan turned her face and yawned. “I’m really tired, baby. I didn’t mean to wake you as I crawled into bed.”
“You didn’t wake me. I don’t sleep very heavily when you’re not in bed with me. We’ve been together for nearly ten years now and it’s still the same. If you’re not in bed with me, I don’t sleep.”
Jordan smiled softly. “So during the times you’ve stayed here while I was away on tour and Reece had competitions, you weren’t sleeping very well?”
“Not really. I sleep better when I have you real and solid in the bed with me so that I can touch you.”
“It’s not because you suspect me of cheating, is it?”
“No. I know you wouldn’t cheat on me. I just feel better when I have you next to me. I was always jealous of Davina. I have to admit. She had you and you were the most loving and sweet woman in the world. She was always treating you like crap and she treated the kids even worse. I hated that. I know what that’s like. You know about my past.”
Jordan nodded. “I know, Ronnie baby. I don’t expect you to relive it. And I know that Davina was treating the kids badly now. I didn’t when the kids were younger. I’m glad I learned what was going on before she really did hurt one of them and I lost my cool with her.”
“The best thing you ever did was leave her and go after custody of Jasmine. All of the things that came to light in that hearing only damned her.”
“Well, I learned rather quickly just how unsupportive she really was and I wasn’t cool with that. I needed her to be there for me like I’d been for her so many times, and she wouldn’t do it.”
“Well Jordan, I’m here for you. I know that there’s a lot going on and everyone’s trying to accept that at some point your parents are going to go. I’ve been there. My mom’s passed on already. I know that pain.”
Jordan smiled sadly. “I know. I remember her funeral.” She kissed her woman softly. “Thank you, babe. I really appreciate that. I can’t express how much I appreciate it. Now, let’s get some sleep. I have to get Jasmine up for school soon and I’d like to have gotten a little bit of rest before making sure she’s up and ready for school.”
Ronnie smiled. “Ok.” She rolled back on to the side she’s originally been lying in and settled into the bed and Jordan’s embrace. “I love you, Jordan.”
Jordan kissed her neck. “I love you too, Ronnie. I’ll see your beautiful smiling face in a couple of hours.”
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