welcome!

[josephine audra harte]

"Okay, baby, work!" Josie started her car and pressed her foot down on the brake, waiting to hear it purr. "No!" she whined, frowning. "Start, damn it! I said, start!" What was going on with technology these days? She was sitting in a car with no air conditioning in humid Virginia, a few feet away from her brother's driveway! Groaning, she took the key out of the ignition, grabbed her purse, and stomped her way up to Shannon's front door. "SHANNON!" she yelled, whimpering softly to herself. What? This was sad! She was hot, sweaty, and she just wanted her big brother to make everything better! That's what he was there for, right? "Shane?" she repeated, knocking on the door. Huffing, she sat down on the steps of his front porch. Maybe he was taking a shower, maybe he was ignoring her, but he was going to open this door, damn it, and he was going to open it soon! "Shane!" she whined loudly, banging on the door now.

Josie was the baby and so she demaned a lot from Shannon. She couldn't help it. He had a knack for fixing problems and she appreciated her brother for it. She adored the man like no one else and she would never let him forget it, even if she constantly annoyed him, made jokes about his name, and just made like hell for him sometimes. That's what she was supposed to do, right? She was the younger sister. It was in the definition. Huffing, she tried the door knob, just in case it was unlocked. No, it wasn't. She rummaged through her purse to find something to pick the lock with. Finally, she found something the right size and jimmied her way into her brother's house. She close the door, locked it, then plopped down on the couch. She turned on the tv. "Oh, the Real World's on!"

[shannon joseph harte]

Shane had worked the night shift, covering for his buddy. He was officially worked out and tired beyond belief by the time that he'd gotten home. It wasn't because work had been long or hard. No, not in the least. See, Shannon had it pretty easy at night. Most of the boys went to sleep without a problem and you just had to make sure that they stayed that way and that the paper work was filled out. It was like a teenager without a make out buddy, baby sitting kids on a late night. All you could do was your homework. The problem was that he was pulling a double. Eighteen hours later, he was finally able to curl up in his bed and the thought of actually enjoying his days off didn't sound too far fetched. He'd probably sleep most of the first and run errands and do yard work for the second. He'd be busy enough that he didn't go crazy with the boredom but he'd be able to relax a bit, too. He'd currently been dreaming about himself, a beach, and Angelina Jolie when he heard pounding on his door. He, however, hadn't heard the voice who was calling to him so Shane just pulled the sheet up over his head and rolled over with a groan. They'd come back, later, if they wanted to hang out. If it was the mail, they'd leave a note and he'd pick it up tomorrow.

Another twenty minutes later, though, he heard the television on. That wasn't right. He'd turned it off before he'd gone to bed. So who...? Carefully, Shannon rolled out of bed and adjusted his boxers on his hips, better. He stumbled out of his bedroom, still bogged down with sleep. He should probably be glad that someone would have killed him by now - if that had been their intent. Seeing the blonde on the couch, though, Shannon knew exactly who it was. "Jesus, Jo." He sighed and turned around to go back to his bedroom. Five minutes later, he was back and in jeans and a black muscle tee but his hair was still a mess. "I take it that was you banging on the front door?" He dropped a kiss on the top of her head and went to the kitchen to go find something to shut up his growling stomach and, hopefully, help him wake up a bit. "What's up?" If she'd just stopped by for a visit, she would have woken him up. Maybe there was something on her mind?

[josephine audra harte]

Josie grinned up at her older brother, replying, "That's what a lot guys say once they get in bed with me." She winked at the man and hopped up behind him. "Yep," she said, nodding."You're such a good brother. Most brothers would've gotten angry about their younger sister breaking in and watching MTV. But not you, Shannon Harte. You take it all with a sigh and a smile." Giggling, she hugged him from behind, squeezing him lovingly. "Well, my goddamn car broke down a few yards from your driveway. But I came over to check on you, actually. And raid your refridgerator." Letting go of the man, she slid over to the refridgerator, opening it and looking inside. "Chinese!" She took out the box, then looked at him. "Can I have some?"

Josephine Harte didn't ask for anything. She took whatever then said thank you. But it was her brother and she thought he at least deserved to be asked sometimes. She took whatever she wanted from him most of the time and he just shook his head and huffed at her. In some ways Shane reminded her of an old lady. Or their grandma. Granny always shook her head and huffed at Josie. It was a daily occurence.

[shannon joseph harte]

Shane groaned and rolled his eyes. Leave it to Josie to tell her brother something that he didn't want to hear. She did it because she wanted to get a rise out of him. He knew it and he was prepared for it but that didn't make it any less uncomfortable. He didn't go bragging about his personal life to her and he didn't make questionable comments around her, either. "I'm sure it'll come along. I'm still sleepy." He offered a goofy grin over to the blonde with a shake of his head. After her explanation, Shannon smirked and winked over at her. "Let's reorder that, alright? You came over to raid the fridge and check on me. What's up with your car? Want me to look at it or should we just take it over to Kita's Garage?" He didn't know too much but he could poke around and fix a few things here and there. He nodded. Sure, she could go for it. He didn't really like left over Chinese but he always felt bad for throwing out food. She was more than welcomed to it.

Shannon stretched his arms above his head and yawned. "Sorry, I just got done pulling a double. Got in this morning." He didn't usually just yawn this much when she was around but, then again, he didn't think she'd care much. Shannon started to rummage around in his own kitchen to find something to eat and silence his stomach. Finally, he found the pizza from a few other nights and he shoved it into the oven to heat it up without it getting soggy in the microwave. "How's life going for you?" Now, it was time to reconnect with his sister. It was rare for them to get time like this anymore. He took advantage of it whenever he could.

[josephine audra harte]

Josie smiled brightly at her older brother, crossing her legs innocently. She enjoyed seeing his reaction. Telling him stuff he didn't want to hear was what she did. It was part of their relationship and you had to love it. He could be so sensitive sometimes, but that's why he was her older brother. That's why she loved him. "Yeah, I know. I expect to get a huff before I go home, mister." She laughed softly, gently punching her older brother in the shoulder. "Shane," she said with a sigh, "I did not come over here to raid your refrigerator. First, I came over to see how you were and then I noticed the food in your refrigerator, and then I came to raid it." Josie shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Duh," she added. Gosh, this is what always happened. You'd think he'd gotten the routine by now. Josie frowned. "I was hoping you could figure out how to fix it, but if I really have to, I guess I'll take it by there." Honestly, Josie didn't like the Kitas. Josie was pretty damn stubborn, so it'd take awhile before she took her car to the Kitas. Yummy, she loved Chinese - leftovers or not.

Josie winced at him, letting out a soft sigh. "Sucks for you. Then I am sorry for waking you up, big brother," she replied, patting her brother's head softly. It wasn't a big deal if the man did yawn, but if she woke him up after he'd done a double shift then she felt bad. After he was finished warming up his pizza, Josie warmed up hers. She shrugged, pushing some hair out of her face. "The same. Locking up criminals, being sexy." Grinning, Josie turned to her brother, her hands going to her shoulders. "So, any girls I should know about, Shannon?" She let out a small giggle and took out her Chinese food. "Sit down beside me, Shannon, let's eat like a family! Mama would love it if we did." She smiled brightly at her brother and sit down at the kitchen table.

[shannon joseph harte]

Of course she enjoyed seeing his reactions. This was what little sisters lived for, why wouldn't she be loving every effing minute of this? She'd always tried to find ways to get her brother to react in some hilarious way. Usually, it was when she or someone who would do it for her had a camera handy to catch the expression on his face. Guess that was one of the perks of being the baby. If he acted like that... Who knew what his parents would do. He chuckled and grinned, enjoying the playful banter. "Is that all I need to do to get you to go home? Huff?" Just to test his playful theory, he huffed a little and stared at her for a minute to see if she'd end up punching him for that or not. He gave an unconvinced sound as she explained her actions to him. Hey, what did he care? He rarely actually bothered looking into his fridge, it was best that she eat what was in there before it went bad. "We'll see if I can't fix it, then we'll go from there." He wasn't a mechanic but he knew a little bit. If anything, he'd know when someone was jerking him around. He could, at least, tell you what was wrong with it. That didn't mean that he could fix it but that wasn't the point.

"Eh. Shannon shrugged and went about his business. "I'll get sleep, don't worry about me." Now, you wouldn't hear him tell this to her but he would wake up for her, anyway. Even if he'd just fallen asleep, he'd get up. It wasn't that hard of a thing to do, really. It was his own fault for taking the shift. He smirked and nodded, shaking his head. Leave it to his sister to speak so highly of herself. "Yeah, you know me. I've got so many girls on hold, it's crazy." He had no life. He worked and that was about it. Of course he didn't have any girls. Shane got them both something to drink and sat down in a chair across from her with a heavy thud. He was a big guy and he was tired. Pretty much, that translated into dead weight.

[josephine audra harte]

Well, she was supposed to! That was her job, duh. She really did care about her brother, but she could be a little too cocky sometimes and she did mean what she said, sometimes. Okay, so more than sometimes. Oh, Josie just adored his faces! They were priceless and hilarious! Oh, if he ever acted like that, his parents would just look at him like he was crazy and then send him to Siberia or something. "Yeah, sure. You wish it could make me go away," Josie said, with a smile. "You tried it when we were younger and it didn't work then, so what makes you think it'll work now?" Laughing, she playfully punched him in his stomach. "You sound like you don't believe me, big brother!" Josie pouted at the older man, acting like she was sad. "Thanks, Shane. You're a life saver." She smiled sweetly at her older brother, hugging him tightly. He was the best brother ever and she couldn't bear to be too far away from him. He was awesome.

"Eh?" She raised an eyebrow at him and looked at him seriously, now. "Shane, have you been sleeping well? Have you been sleeping at all?" She wouldn't tell him this, but she really worried about him. She worried about him a lot, actually. "And when are you gonna settle down and make me an Aunt Josie?" Josie smiled brightly at her older brother. What, she thought it would be alright to become an aunt! She didn't think she'd ever get married or have children, so adoption and becoming an aunt were her best bet at being maternal. Josie pulled a face. "Don't plop down like that... You make yourself look fat." She sent a bright smile up at her older brother, hoping he would forgive her for what he said.

[shannon joseph harte]

"I do," he heaved a playful sigh and messed with her hair a bit. "Tried and failed. It's why I went away to school." No, that wasn't his real reason but she knew he was only teasing. When they'd been separated, he was constantly writing letters and phoning to see how they were doing and make sure that everything was all right in her life. Shannon laughed, holding his stomach where she punched him. That tickled! "Why would you ever think that, little sister?" He wrapped his arms around the smaller figure and returned her hug with as much warmth as it was delivered. He rested his chin on the top of her head, looking at the wall behind her. See? How could he complain about life when he had an awesome sister like this? Shane rubbed her back and kissed the top of her golden head, something he'd done since he could find his first memory. No matter how much they teased one another, they were always close and would always have one another.

He looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. How did he put this without her beating the holy crap out of him? "I've been... sleeping." Just not as much as she would want him to. What could he say? He had work and they needed him some days. He couldn't tell them no when they called and the pay checks were pretty nice for all of the effort he put forth. "Just as soon as I find a woman willing to put up with me." He'd taken off a mouthful of pizza from his slice when she called him fat. "That's me," he muttered through a mouthful of food, "the fat kid."

[josephine audra harte]

She pushed his hand away and pulled a face as he messed with her hair. “Shane,” she whined, “stop.” Josie smiled softly and rolled her eyes. “And did you learn anything? Sheesh, you’ve known me all my life,” Josie added, sticking her tongue out at her brother. When he’d left for school, it was hard for Josie, because she didn’t like losing her brother, but she was incredibly glad that he’d written to her and called her frequently. And she always wrote and called him back. See, this is why Josie loved her other brother. He was the perfect brother ever! Josie perked an eyebrow as he laughed. “Oh my God, Shane, are you ticklish there?” A slow smile played on her lips. “Well… Cause… I don’t know. You know!” Well, did he know? Who knows? It should be him job to know, duh! She snuggled close to him and sighed softly. “Are you laying your chin on my head just to rub it in that you’re taller than me?” she asked, laughing softly. Josie scrunched up her face. “I remember when you always used to kiss me on the forehead and I used to say you had cooties.” Josie let out a soft giggle. They were incredibly close and they always would be. Shane would never be rid of her.

Josie looked over at him worriedly. “Shannon,” she said, sighing. “You’ll tell me if you’re not sleeping, right? Cause I’ve got some tea that helps me go to sleep sometimes. If you want me to bring some of that, I’ll do it.” She pouted at her older brother. Yes, it was his job, and she understood, because most of the days she was up late. Josie never really got any sleep, because of her cases. Who was she to tell Shane that he needed sleep? Well, she was his sister! “You’re awesome, Shane and if girls don’t see that, they suck ass!” Now, if you asked Josie why she wasn’t with anyone? Well, it was because she sucked ass. Josie rolled her eyes. “Shut up, Shane, you are not fat." He ate like a fat kid.

[shannon joseph harte]

Shannon laughed at her. That was the usual reaction, a swipe of the hand and a whine. Typical little sister action. "Hey, you're always the one talking about how stupid boys are and how we never learn. Now who's being silly and asking questions they already know the answers to?" He jabbed out a hand to poke her tongue. She should know better than to go poking her tongue out at him. And, if she put a hand in front of his mouth, he'd lick it. That was just how it worked with them. "No," he shot back, indignantly. Yeah, as if that wasn't obvious that he was lying to her. Of course he was ticklish there! Couldn't she see it? As long as she didn't abuse it, they'd be fine. "Maybe. Or, maybe, I'm just doing it to huggle my little sister but, fine. If you don't want brotherly affection, I'll just move away and never give you anymore hugs." He gave her side a small pinch and released the smaller girl from his arms.

He sighed and nodded with a shrug. Yeah, he'd tell her if he ever had any trouble sleeping but it wasn't that. "I don't need tea, Jo." He was just working too much. Surely, she could see where that might be a bit of a problem. If he had trouble sleeping, he'd look into ways to help him but he alreay knew the answer. He was working far to much and not getting to bed at a decent hour. That was, really, his own fault. "Maybe but it doesn't change the fact that they're not dating me." He had money and, if he had a girl, he'd make time. Maybe he was just a loser or really ugly or something. "Totally a fat kid. Look at this!" He raised his shirt to reveal a smooth torso and poked at it in an effort to find a soft, fatty spot.