The Coffee Shop (Hamilton Lams Modern AU) **IN EDITING**

Chapter 37

Alexander's POV

2 ½ Hours Later

John and I had been watching the recorded version of Miranda for the past two and a half hours, and it was nearly over. He was curled up on top of me, almost asleep. "W-what time is it..?" he asked, stifling a yawn. "Lemme check- crap it's 2:30! We gotta go get the kids." Jackie groaned. "Do we have to...?" he whined. "Yes, we do. We can't just leave them by themselves," I told him. "Fine.." he huffed, getting up and dragging me with him to put something on (other than pajamas).

~

"How to account for his rise to the top? Man, the man is NON-STOP!" The music was blasting throughout the car. "This song basically describes you, Alex," Jackie joked. We'd picked his siblings up and were on our way to Schuyler Mansion to drop them off (John insisted on leaving them there because he, and I quote, "couldn't deal with them today"). "Question, Jack: why'd you make us wear these matching t-shirts again?" I asked. He'd forced us to wear matching Camp Half Blood t-shirts (from Percy Jackson, he loves the books and TLT musical). "Because you look cute!" he told me. "But why did we have to wear them?" He just gave me a look. "We had to wear them because I'm in charge for the day and if you didn't, I would've tried to pulverize you." He'd been making jokes like this all day, seeing as I let him do whatever he wanted today, which was mostly snuggling with me and watching TV. My phone started ringing whilst I was pulling up to Schuyler Mansion. Jackie grabbed it, answering it and putting the caller on speaker. "Hey guys! I kinda need your help on something," Peggy told us. "And uh, John, your little brother Henry might wanna cover his ears if he's with you," she advised. John reached into his backpack and grabbed his noise-cancelling headphones. He handed them to Henry, who was sitting behind him. "Continue," I prompted. "Well, Philip came up to me, Angie, and Eliza today and told us that he has a crush on Henry," she quickly explained. "Really? 'Cause Henry told us the same thing." Peggy sounded like she choked on her own spit. "ANGIE! LIZA! TIME FOR OPERATION MATCHMAKER!" she screeched before hanging up. "Can I take these off now?" Henry asked, a bit louder than normal (probably couldn't hear himself). Jackie gave him a thumbs-up and Henry gave him his headphones back. "What was that about? Who was calling you?" he asked. "Personal stuff-" I was cut off by an eager Mary-Ellie. "Philip's sister called and said he likes you back!" she yelled. Henry just groaned and buried his face in his hands. "We're here, you guys. Off you go.." John mumbled. He sounded really tired, and when I glanced at him again, he was out cold. "We might not pick you guys up, so it's possible you're having a sleepover. And one last thing." I handed the three of them their phones. "You'll get your iPads later, okay?" They just ignored me and excitedly ran off, well, Henry and Mary-Ellie did. "There are parental restrictions on theirs, right?" James asked. I nodded. "You haven't taught them how to get past them, have you?" He shook his head. "Okay good, and if you catch them doing anything they're not supposed to, like watching or looking at, ahem, graphic stuff, gimme a call." He nodded before running in after his siblings. "Are they gone yet..?" Jackie asked me, sounding half-asleep. "Yeah, hun, they just left," I told him, closing my door and pulling out of the (gigantic) driveway. "Also can I ask you something?" I shook his shoulder gently to make sure he was awake. He just nodded a little. "Did you take some of my insomnia meds last night to put yourself to sleep?" I asked. "Y-yeah.. I t-took two..." he replied with a yawn. "Two?! Jackie, I only take one! No wonder you're so sleepy today.." He gave me a soft smile. "I guess I shoulda read the prescription.." he mumbled. The next thing I heard from him was soft snoring.