Graceland: Family Affair

Chapter Twenty-Two

"You feeling okay?" Paul squeezes my shoulders and pulls me towards him for a hug before we leave.

"Yeah...little nervous, but it'll be fine...right?" I say, trying to convince myself that I can do this and do it well. Paul lets go of me and heads towards the car that he and Mike will travel in.

"You've been ready for this your whole life, believe me!" Paul calls towards me, giving me an encouraging wink and thumbs up as he climbs into his car. I open the door to Johnny's car and slide in. Johnny straps in his seatbelt in the driver's seat and puts the key in the ignition.

"Ready to roll?" Johnny drums his hands on the steering wheel.

"Yeah..." I smile a nervous smile, and then divert my gaze towards Paul's car – he's still alone. Mike must still be in the house. I look towards the house, wondering if I can go back and catch Mike before he leaves the house. I bite my lip in thought, and as a result of my nervous energy, and turn back towards Johnny, hastily unfastening my seatbelt and opening my car door.

"Where are you going?" Johnny shouts after me, still holding on to the steering wheel.

"I left something behind..." I lie, trying to think of an excuse. Johnny raises an eyebrow. "I need to pee...I pee when I'm nervous..." I call back. He screws up his face in repulsion.

"Too much information!" He exclaims, closing his eyes as he drops his head back against the headrest. I stop and spin around to face the car, looking at him hopefully, pleading that he'll let me go.

"See! I knew you'd do that, so that's why I said I'd forgotten something, but you made me admit it! A girl's gotta pee when a girl's gotta pee! We pee as much as guys do! You can't just hold it –"

"Go! Stop talking and go!" He covers his ear with one hand and waves his other hand towards the house. "Just go!" I start running towards the house.

"Thank you!" I call back as I run. I fling open the door and run right into Mike, pushing him back inside the house as I slam the door shut behind me, hoping that I closed it swiftly enough for Paul and Johnny not to see Mike.

"Woah, slow down there!" Mike laughs, catching me in his arms.

"Where is everyone?" I whisper quickly.

"Don't worry...we're alone. Charlie and Jakes are in their rooms...and Johnny and your brother are outside...so I think we're safe for a few minutes..." Mike answers, giving me a knowing smile as he wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me to him. "What were you in such a hurry for anyway?"

"I came to find you, actually..." I smile sweetly at him. "Just to say that you look particularly dashing in that suit...it looks very good on you –" Mike blushes, giving that little bashful, half-laugh, half-smile that he does when he's complimented.

"Well, you look beautiful, as always..." He replies, making me melt inside. I'm sure he's lying though. I'm not sure I look beautiful at any time, but I definitely won't look beautiful in my FBI get-up.

"...And I just wanted to wish you luck for today..." I carry on, finishing my sentence.

"Well..." He smiles back. "...Come here then..." He lifts my chin with his hand, tilting my head towards him as he leans forward and places and soft and lingering kiss on my lips. I close my eyes, soaking the sweetness in.

"...Thank you..." I whisper as our lips break apart, my eyes still shut. As I open them, he rests his forehead against mine, looking right into my eyes.

"No...thank you...for the compliment...and for the good luck. You'll be my lucky charm..." He whispers gently. "And good luck to you on your first assignment, Parker..." He kisses me again.

"I couldn't ask for a better first one...I'm getting to protect my man..." I smile, running my hands up his arms, resting them around his neck as I stand on my tiptoes and place a quick kiss on his lips. "Speaking of which, we better get going!" I pull away from Mike and walk towards the stairs. Mike groans at my pulling away from him.

"Why do you do this to me?!" He moans.

"I'm sorry!" I turn around on the stairs and mock-pout at him, before carrying on heading upstairs.

"Wait...where are you going? The front doors that way!" He points to the door.

"I'm going to pee...I pee when I'm nervous...Wait for me?" I call back to him as I reach the top of the stairs. Mike shakes his head and smiles, placing his hand on his hips, running his free hand through his hair.

"You're adorable..."

Mike and I leave the house, each heading to our respective cars. Mike shoots me a quick wink as he ducks into the car to join my brother. I giggle to myself and climb back into Johnny's car, strapping myself in.

"What was that?" Johnny smirks, slowly turning to face me.

"What was what?" I ask, confused.

"Mike just winked at you..." He throws an animated gesture towards Mike and Paul's car in disbelief.

"So?" I shrug it off. "You wink at me all the time!"

"But Mike's wink? That wasn't just any wink...if you know what I mean..." He nudges me.

"I don't know what you mean, Johnny". In fact, I know exactly what he means, and I'm praying that he doesn't figure it out and blow the whistle on Mike and I's relationship.

"Well, just keep an eye on him is all I'm saying. I think he might have it bad for you..." He jokes as he turns on the car engine, pulling out of the driveway as we follow Paul's car.

"Okay, Johnny..." I scoff sarcastically as I roll my eyes. Perhaps I overdid it on the trying to play-it-cool and shake-it-off thing. I sit there, picking at my fingers and tapping my foot on the floor – two other nervous quirks that I have. I have completely zoned out. Johnny waits a minute or two and then glances over at me.

"Are you okay?" Johnny asks, bringing me back into the real world. I swallow and steady my foot to stop it tapping on the floor. "Look, if it's about what I said about Mike – I'm sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out. I know you and him go way back, and I think it'd be great if you...you know – but, I'm sorry –"

"It's not that..." I smile a weak half-smile at him. "I'm just a bit nervous, that's all..." Johnny nods and focuses on the road. We sit in silence for a few moments longer, and then Johnny turns his head to me again.

"You did actually pee, right?" He tries to keep a straight face. I slap his arm, trying to keep the smile that's attempting to sneak out and spread across my face. That's just something about Johnny, and it always has been – he has this knack for breaking through the walls I try to put up around myself during my darkest, loneliest and most nerve-filled moments. Even when I was just visiting my brother at Graceland, Johnny knew how to break through. He's been like an adopted brother in that manner – perhaps the brother that I wish Paul could have been. To tell the truth, while Paul is a great brother and one that I wouldn't want to try and do life without, he has let me down more times than I care to remember. But Johnny has yet to let me down. He's always come out tops. "Look, there's no need for you to be nervous. I mean, a little bit of nerves are good, but don't let it get inside your head and take your eyes off the game. You've got this, Parker!" He reaches over and puts a hand on my shoulder, shaking me a little as if he's a coach or teammate giving a pep talk before a big game. "And I'll be right there – you're not in this alone. You're surrounded by family. We've got each other's backs..."