Noise

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</noinclude>

Two high-pitched voices squeal from the other side of Jimmy's front door.

Logan sighs, shoulders back, knocks.

""He's here! He's here!""

Hoo boy.

A grinning Jimmy opens the door, greets, "Hey, kid."

"Hey."

"The girls have been looking forward to this /**aaaall** day." Beckons Logan inside. "Claire's totally been hyping you up to her cousin."

"That's what I'm afraid of," mutters Logan. He steps out of his shoes, shucks his hoodie, hangs it on a hook, shakes tiny water droplets from his hair.

"It finally start raining?"

"Just spitting now, but it looks 'bout ready to storm."

Two small faces peer around a corner: one from under blonde hair and the other, ginger.

"C'mere, scamps," calls Jimmy.

Claire bounds into the foyer.

Ginger creeps over.

"Ames here—" Jimmy ruffles ginger hair.

Ames squirms away.

"—is my niece. My sister's kid."

"Hi," greets Logan.

"Hi," says Ames with a little wave and sparkly eyes.

Mrs Jimmy strolls up, smiles warmly. "Hi, Logan."

He bobs his head.

Ames cups Claire's ear, stage-whispers, "He's cuter than you said."

Logan's ears pink.

"He's mine! I saw him first!" Claire hisses back.

Logan's blush spreads to his cheeks.

Scuffling.

"Laaaadies ...."

Giggles and elbows.

Jimmy chuckles, passes Logan a wad of cash. "Here's money for the pizza—order's already in—they should be here in a quarter hour."

Logan tucks the money in his shirt pocket, acknowledges.

"Cokes're in the fridge and they get /**one**—"

Girls pout.

"—each. Bedtime's eight."

Girls pout louder.

"We'll be back really, really late, so go ahead and crash in the guest room after the girls're out."

Logan grunts an affirmative.

"Good luck, kid." Jimmy claps Logan on the shoulder, accepts his coat from Mrs Jimmy; they amble out the door.

Logan locks up behind them.

"Movie time!" announces Claire, grabbing Logan's hand, towing him to the family room, and dumping him on the couch.

"What're we watching?"

"/*Tangled*!" pipes Ames, plopping down beside Logan. "It's about a princess."

"Really."

"Uh huh. With /**really** long hair." Claire cues up the DVD.

"And she's trapped in a tower."

"And then she meets a handsome thief and escapes."

"And the horse is /**awesome**."

Logan snorts. "Sounds interesting."

"It's /**amazing**." Claire claims his other side, presses—

A roll of thunder shakes the house.

Ames squeaks, jumps.

"You okay?"

"She's a-/**fraid** of thunder." Claire peers around Logan at her cousin. "Aren't you, Ames?"

Windows rattle.

Ames eeps, buries her face in Logan's side.

He peers under his arm at his new limpet.

She's latched on like Derek does to Jack when he's freaking out.

"Ye know, thunder's no big deal," says Logan. "It's just noise."

"Yea, Ames," smugs Claire.

Ames whimpers.

Logan shoots Claire a Look.

Claire slouches.

"The rain's actually more likely to hurt you."

The walls tremble.

Distressed snuffling and tighter clinging.

"Not. Helping," points out Claire.

Logan takes a deep breath. "What I mean is ... you wear a coat when you go out in the rain, right? Protect yourself?"

Miserable, slightly damp nod.

"Because if you don't—protect yourself—you can get sick." Cautiously wraps an arm around Ames. "But what happens if you don't hide from thunder?"

""'uffin?""

"Right. It's just noise."

Ames peeks up at him. "Can we keep cuddling?"

"Fiiine."

"Me, too!" Claire octopuses on.

Logan sighs, snags the remote, starts the movie.