Disclaimer: I own nothing, all rights belong to their respective owners.

Happy Birthday, Angel-Sue! Hope you have an amazing day!

"Hey."

Jeff moved quietly through the house, toeing off his shoes and kissing his exhausted wife on the cheek. She was leaning against the kitchen counters, her hands folded over her swollen stomach and bags under her eyes. Jeff felt a flash of guilt – the baby was due any day and she still was running around after a two-year-old while he spent the day sitting at his desk. But they needed the money and he was still too new into this business to be able to take time off. He needed to save it for when the baby was born.

"You're on bed-time, okay?" Lucy said, leaning tiredly against him for a moment. Jeff nodded, then realised that neither of them could see Scott and that never ended well. Pressing his lips to her forehead, he moved out of the kitchen and into the lounge. Scott didn't notice him and Jeff could only stand there, watching his little son play. The boy seemed to be bent intently over something and as Jeff moved closer, he saw that Scott was colouring. His movement drew the toddler's attention.

"Daddy!" Scott leapt up, all his energy returning in one swoop. The picture was still clutched in his hand as he threw himself at his father's legs, all but climbing up Jeff. Jeff reached down and obediently hoisted the boy into his arms, settling Scott on his hip even as the child wrapped his arms around his neck.

"Hey kiddo," Jeff murmured, taking the chance to hug Scott even as his son started wriggling. "Have you been good for your Mom?"

Scott instantly launched into an explanation about his day. Although there were several words that Jeff couldn't quite make out, he got the gist.

"And puppies, Daddy," Scott declared. Jeff sat on the sofa so Scott could untangle his arms and show him his picture. "We get puppy."

"I don't think…"

"Are. Mommy said."

Jeff had no idea what to say to that. Instead, he looked at Scott's picture. It was of a dog, but his son hadn't yet mastered the art of colouring in the lines, and the dog appeared to be green. Jeff hid his grimace; he knew his wife wanted one of their children to share her love for art, but it didn't look as if it would be Scott. Maybe their second would change that?

"Scott, I don't think we're going to get a puppy, not when…"

"Are!"

Jeff sighed, shut his eyes and hugged his son. It was easier than arguing with Scott, especially this close to bedtime. When he looked up, his wife was standing in the doorway looking apologetic.

"We saw some in the pet store," she explained quietly. "And then he was asking about babies and puppies and it all got confusing… He thinks he's getting a puppy, not a brother. I can't talk him out of it."

Relieved that Lucy hadn't been promising Scott a dog without his knowledge, Jeff nodded. Scott had gone quiet and the father knew this was his opening to get the boy up the stairs and into bed before he remembered that he didn't like going to sleep. He stood up, gathering Scott in his arms, drawing and all.

"'Night, Scotty," Lucy whispered, leaning forward to kiss their son on the head as Jeff carried him past. He knew full well that once Scott was calm and in bed, she would come up to say goodnight properly. Scott mumbled a reply, his energy draining again now he had told his father about his day, and Jeff made his escape up the stairs.

Bath and bed were adventurous as always and Jeff found himself avoiding promises about a puppy far too often. Scott had one last flare of energy and managed to soak most of the bathroom as well as his father as he splashed happily in the bath.

But Jeff wouldn't have changed it for the world; he missed his son when he was at work and he knew he was only going to get worse once the second arrived. He knew Lucy must have been truly exhausted. Normally, Scott was in his pyjamas by the time his dad got home and all Jeff had to do was get him under the covers. But at long last, he got Scott in bed and had just finished a story when Lucy appeared in the doorway. She looked better than she had done earlier that evening and Jeff felt his guilt over the long hours ebbing away.

"So, a puppy, right?" He began teasingly once they were both downstairs with the television on and satisfied their son was fast asleep. Scott might not like going to bed, but as soon as the light went off and his head hit the pillow, he was out without a fuss.

"Don't you start." Lucy settled back against him with a yawn, putting her feet up. "I didn't know how else to answer him; I don't even know what he was asking me! Only, one minute we were looking at the animals and the next, we are apparently getting a puppy, not a baby."

She broke off with a sigh, rubbing her stomach. Jeff folded his hand over hers, smiling when he felt the baby kick as if in reaction to his presence.

"I'll explain it to him tomorrow," he said softly, glad the weekend had arrived. "He'll soon be as excited about getting a baby brother as he is about a puppy."

"He better be; he's not getting both. And neither are you so don't give me that look."

Jeff chuckled, mentally making plans for how he was going to broach a subject that Scott had no understanding of.

But the conversation never took place. Instead, Jeff was shaken awake at three in the morning with the strict instructions to phone his mother and get the overnight bag in the car. Puppies would have to wait; right now, a baby was coming.

TBTBTB

"Come on, Scott, don't you want to hold him?"

Jeff barely suppressed a sigh as Scott scowled and shook his head, clutching obstinately to the stuffed toy in his arms. The fact it was a dog wasn't helping matters, but Jeff couldn't bring himself to swap it, not when Scott was clinging to it like it was the only thing he understood.

His father couldn't blame him. Scott's world had been turned around with John's arrival and it was taking the little boy some time to adjust. John was three weeks old now and still Scott glared at the baby and muttered something about puppies each time. Jeff had never known him to cling to an idea so much, but the fact Scott had wanted a puppy and got a brother instead clearly wasn't sitting well with the boy.

John gave a soft wail at the moment and although Jeff knew his youngest son was hungry, he used the chance to try and draw Scott closer.

"He wants you to hold him. Can't you hear that he is calling for his big brother?"

Scott's scowl deepened and he shook his head, backing out of the room and running off to play with his dog somewhere else. This time, Jeff couldn't hide his sigh and before he could react, Lucy had taken John from him.

"Go after him," she said with a smile. She certainly seemed to be handling the broken nights' sleep better than Jeff was and he didn't think he had seen her look so radiant. He nodded and set off after Scott, only to almost trip over him from where Scott was sitting just outside the door. To Jeff's dismay, there were tears running down Scott's face.

"What is it?" Jeff asked softly, sitting down next to his son. He tried to loop an arm around the boy, but Scott pulled away and buried his face in the fur of his toy. Jeff let him – he knew how obstinate Scott could be when the mood took him, although he still didn't understand the knowing and amused smiles his wife and mother shared when he complained about it.

"Scott," Jeff said, a hint of warning in his voice, "is this about John? If it is, you know your brother is here to stay. He needs you to teach him, to look after him and protect him."

"But…but…" it took Scott a moment to stop hiccupping through his words. "Mommy said…"

He trailed off as fresh tears spilt over and Jeff understood. This wasn't about John. Scott thought he had been promised something and in his young mind, Lucy had ignored that promise and then forgotten about it. In Scott's thoughts, he had been forgotten. This time, Jeff lifted his son onto his lap and hugged him tight.

"Oh Scott." Jeff didn't know what to say. Scott had to learn he couldn't have everything he wanted and Jeff knew he needed to find a way to make Scott accept his brother.

"Tell you what, shall we make a deal?"

Scott looked up, his tears forgotten as his interest was piqued. It was why Jeff hadn't realised the supposed promise of a puppy had weighed so heavily on Scott – he usually forgot everything five minutes after it had been said.

"If you give it…six weeks and still want a puppy instead of a brother, I'll see what I can do?"

Scott eagerly nodded and Jeff desperately hoped he hadn't just made a big mistake. But he had noticed in the last week that Scott was watching John more and more and knew in another week, he wouldn't be able to resist interacting with his baby brother. Six weeks in Scott's lifetime was like saying forever. He gave the boy a nudge off his lap and this time, Scott scampered off towards the kitchen. Knowing his own parents were in there, Jeff let him go and returned to his wife and new-born child. If this didn't work, Scott would never forgive him and Lucy would never let him forget it.

To his delight, it did work. Scott softened towards John and Jeff knew he had won their deal when he found the stuffed dog in John's room one night. Scott's sulk was forgotten and he turned back into Jeff's happy little boy, helping out his mom the best he could (which only resulted in more mess for Jeff to clear up, but no one told Scott that). Six weeks came and went and neither Jeff nor Scott mentioned the deal. Jeff knew his son had forgotten all about the puppies.

With John in bed and Scott playing quietly with his planes, Jeff told his wife that he would be able to accompany them to the hospital the next day for John's check-up. He couldn't believe how quickly time was going but the smile on Lucy's face made it worth it. If nothing else, it stopped her having to call his mother to watch Scott while they got John weighed. Jeff slipped his arm around her, knowing he had scored good points and the washing up got momentarily forgotten. But neither noticed Scott backing away from the door, looking horrified.

If Jeff thought his son was quiet when he was put to bed, he just took the chance to escape back downstairs quicker before John needed a final feed. Sending Lucy to bed, Jeff watched something rubbish on television, heated the bottle and headed upstairs himself. There was less chance of disturbing Scott if he wasn't walking around all over the house.

Switching on the night-light in John's room so as not to startle himself with the brightness, Jeff stepped forward and a loud "ow!" escaped him before he could stop it. He could hear Lucy getting out of bed but concentrated on fumbling for the light. He wanted to know what had caused the shooting pain to radiate through his foot – they were so careful to keep the floors clear, first because of Scott and then to allow themselves to move in the dark.

Lucy arrived just as Jeff hit the light-switch. Both of them gasped at the sight in front of them. Scott had emptied what looked like his entire toy box – including a scattering of Lego, the culprit behind Jeff's painful foot – all over John's floor. Jeff almost dropped the bottle in surprise when the toddler himself appeared from behind John's cot. His eyes glittered with unshed tears, most likely due to exhaustion, but there was a defiant expression on his face.

"No." He stated boldly, glaring at his parents from across the room.

"What is this?" Jeff said in a low voice, knowing they had potentially been letting Scott get away with too much since John's birth. "What have you done?"

Scott's bottom lip trembled and he glanced at the cot. John began to cry, no doubt wanting his now-late dinner.

"No take back," Scott said. "We keep Johnny, 'kay? No take back, I don't want puppy!"

Jeff stared at him in complete bewilderment. Lucy's small intake of breath revealed she was faster on the mark than her husband. She delicately picked her way through the mess and Jeff wondered how many times she had navigated Lego bricks over the last couple of years. She crouched down in front of Scott, who took hold of one of the bars on John's cot as if to prevent her from removing him.

"Did you hear us earlier, sweetheart?" She asked gently. "When we said about taking John to the hospital?"

As Scott nodded, Jeff felt the pieces slot into place. Scott didn't understand about check-ups; he thought they were taking John back.

"I want him, Mommy," Scott whispered, his voice trembling. "Please?"

Lucy reached out and wiped Scott's tears away. Jeff knew she would be smiling at Scott. He too edged his way around the room, kicking a few bricks out the way for good measure and crouched in front of his son.

"It's okay, Scotty," Jeff murmured. "He's here to stay, I promise. No one is taking him anywhere, not without your say-so. Is that okay, kiddo?"

Scott glanced at his father, then at the cot, then at his father again. Chewing on his bottom lip, he tentatively nodded and let go of the bars. Jeff straightened up and picked up John even as Lucy scooped Scott into her arms.

"Come on, baby," she said. "You need to be in bed."

Scott squirmed in her arms until Lucy lent over and let Scott kiss the top of John's head.

"Night, Johnny," he murmured, sleepily leaning his own head against his mother's shoulder. Jeff gave John the bottle, watching as his wife and son disappeared, Lucy turning off the light on her way out until just the night-light once. Then he looked down at his youngest before sighing and rolling his eyes.

"Don't copy him," he said sternly. "Don't be as stubborn as your big brother."

TBTBTB

Two-year-old John glared stubbornly across the room, clutching the toy cat in his arms. Scott stood in front of him, arms folded across his chest in a way he had seen their father do countless times before.

"You hafta show him, Johnny," Scott said patiently. "You're big brother now too, you have to help."

On the other side of the room, their parents exchanged amused looks even as Lucy shifted position, causing the sleeping infant to whine. Jeff rested his hand on Virgil's back and the baby instantly settled into a calmer sleep.

"But…" John stared at them across the room, his arms tightening around his toy. "He small."

"He gets bigger, silly!" Scott giggled and Jeff prepared to rise. He had thought distracting both boys by getting Scott to teach John how to be a big brother would have been a great idea. Only Scott wasn't the most patient of teachers and John seemed to have no interest in learning.

"No." John turned his back on them, sitting on the floor and playing with his cat. Scott dramatically huffed – and Jeff tried not to flush when his wife glanced at him, knowing full well where his son had picked it up – and turned to his parents.

"No go," he said seriously, crossing the room and clambering up beside his mom so he could get closer to Virgil. Jeff smiled fondly, unable to believe the change in Scott's attitude in just a few years. He seemed to have realised there was something positive about being a big brother and was looking forward to the challenge of having two siblings rather than one.

"What do we have to do next then?" Jeff asked, knowing full well that Scott knew the answer. They seemed to have been playing this game ever since the parents had announced to their sons there was another Tracy on the way.

"Not give up," Scott replied with a firm nod of his head. He sat still for a few moments, then gave up being serious and slithered down to the floor again, crossing back to John and sitting with his brother. Over his head, his parents once again exchanged amused looks. Scott was never going to be able to sit still. Jeff left his hand resting on Virgil as he watched their heads bent together, one dark and one blond.

"No!" John suddenly yelled, breaking the tranquillity of the room. "Want kitty, not brother!"

Jeff rested his head back on the sofa with a groan. He distinctively remembered telling John to not take after his brother. Only this time, he settled further back into the sofa and ignored the pointed look his wife was trying to give him. After all, if John was copying Scott, then it was only right that Scott should be the one to explain why John could not have a cat and instead had to have a baby brother.

Maybe his son would be able to do it better than he had done two years ago.