A/N: songs to set the scene:

- Unstoppable by The Score
- Legends are Made by Same Tinnesz

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September 10, 2021

Jamie's POV

Tonight's a big night. It's EJ's first home football game. Kimberly and I went the extra mile and bought shirts from the Oceanside Spirit Store to represent our team spirit. We even roped Jonathan and Emily in on the action. You might be wondering what's happened in the past two weeks since the night the four of us went out to the club. Well, I learned that Jonathan and Emily had actually started seeing each other before he left six months ago.

~Flashback~

I wake up to the smell of bacon seeping under the door to EJ's bedroom. I rub the sleep from my eyes and look over at EJ's digital clock: 7:30am. "Who the fuck is up?" I rub the bridge of my nose and head out to the kitchen. I hear faint laughter and some soft music playing from the kitchen. When I finally get a better vantage point, I see Kim and John dancing around the kitchen giggling like two love-sick teenagers. I watch them exchange a few kisses and my eyes widen.

"It's not nice to snoop on people, Hamilton," Emily whispers behind me and I jump ten-feet in the air. "I wasn't snooping. I just hadn't made it to the kitchen yet," Emily laughs at me and I take a deep breath. "Also, don't scare the shit out of me next time. I suffer from PTSD, you know this," I take another deep breath and Emily's face immediately morphs with guilt. "I'm so sorry, Jamie. I didn't think it would trigger you," she wraps her arms around me and my body relaxes. "I'm good, and thank you. Now let's go see how long this," I gesture behind me, "has been going on."

I clear my throat as soon as we step into the kitchen, and Kim and Jonathan both stop their actions immediately. "Morning," I say to them and I see Jonathan physically gulp. "How long have you been standing there?" John asks and I can see the sweat building on his forehead. "Long enough to see you laughing, smiling, and kissing my sister," I raise my eyebrows and cross my arms. I'm trying to milk this out a bit and keep him on his toes. "Listen, we can explain," John starts, but I hold up my hand. "How long?" I ask looking between the two of them. John avoids eye contact and Kim stands between me and him. "Before he deployed this last time. It just happened. I found out about mom, and Jonathan was the only person who I could cry to since you were halfway across the world in a desert," Kim had tears forming her eyes and I sighed.

"I'm not angry or upset. I just wish you guys would've told me. I'm happy for the both of you," I look between them and give Kim a smile. She beams and throws her arms around my neck. I give Jonathan the 'I'm watching you' gesture and he lets out a short chuckle. "So, who wants breakfast?" Jonathan lightens the mood and we collectively say 'me.'

~End of Flashback~

After that night, Jonathan has been staying over when he can. It's hard since the Naval base is an hour from here, but he makes it work and that makes me feel better about him being with my little sister. Along with that news, I started back up at work. I've been sitting in an office going over mission reports and finalizing the most recent one I had to put together. I'm lucky that my commanding officer, Gunnery Sergeant Collins is a bit more laid back than most. He has me focus more on preparing Echo company for the possibility of being called out at any given moment.Tonight, though, is all about family. We're not going to talk about work, and I'm sure as hell not going to let myself feel immensely single watching John and Kim being all lovey dovey.

We pull into the high school parking lot and I look around at all of the excited families. "Don't forget to lock the car, Sergeant," John yells at me and I hit the button giving him an unimpressed look. He smiles and slings his arm over Kim's shoulders. They walk towards the field's entrance and I shake my head. Emily puts her hand on my back and I look down at her. "Sometimes I think I was just born to be single," I look back up where John and Kim walked away. "Hey, like I said, someone is out there for you. If it wouldn't be like being with a brother, I'd totally fill the spot for you," I chuckle and see Emily smiling. "Let's make a pact that if neither of us are married by the time we're forty, we'll bite the bullet," I put up my pinky finger and Emily shakes her head. "Oh come on! You just being with me wouldn't be so bad," I add and she looks at my pinky. She reluctantly hooks her pinky with mine and I pull her into a hug.

"Even if you are like a sister to me, I'd marry you in a heartbeat not to die alone," I drape my arm over her shoulders and we walk towards the stadium. "You could still die alone. We have eleven years to find our people," Emily hands the woman money for two tickets and I put my hand over my heart. "That one hurt, Jones. Dagger right through the heart," I smile and she smacks my ticket into my chest. I put it in my back pocket and quickly catch up to her. "Hey, wait up!" I holler at her as I weave through the various students clumped together talking.

I catch up to my Three Stooges, and look out on the field. I see EJ warming up and a huge smile fills my face. "Hey, he's wearing #33. Seems to me he's honoring a Hamilton who also killed it on the field," John smacks my back and I smile. When I was in high school, I wore #33 when I played soccer. I was really good, but because of my responsibilities at home I chose those over trying to go on to play in college. The announcer starting to discuss tonight's game pulls the four of us towards the stands to get some seats.

"Do you think he'll see any playing time?" Kim looks over at me and I shrug. "He's a junior so he should get to see some, right?" I say to her and she nods. The past two games were pre-season and didn't mean anything important to the team. EJ got to play a bit in those games, but, again, those games don't mean much to the coaching staff. "Ladies and gentlemen, please rise for the singing of our national anthem by our Pirates Chorus," the announcer directs everyone and we all stand to face the large American flag waving in the end zone.

The chorus sings the national anthem beautifully and the announcers hypes up the crowd as the team takes the field. I obnoxiously cheer along with Jonathan, and we catch EJ waving at us from near the benches. We wave back at him and I look over at Kimberly wiping a tear from her eye. "What? He's not a little boy anymore. I'm starting to feel old," I roll my eyes at her. "And how do you think I feel? Ancient?" Everyone laughs at my comment.

Everyone settles into their seats and we watch the teams take the field. Since Oceanside won the coin toss, they decided to receive the ball. I see EJ taking the field and tap Kim for her to pay attention. The game gets started and there are a few moments my heart stops from a few hard hits EJ gives a few of the guys on the other team. "Remind me why we let him try out again?" I lean over and ask Kim. "I don't know. I think it was decided while you were deployed, so you felt bad and said 'yes'." I nod at Kim's point. Sounds like me to give in to EJ wanting to do something I'd normally say no to if I were fully present.

~~

The clock runs down to zero for halftime and Oceanside is leading 34-7. EJ has played a considerable amount of the game, and has even made a few blocks for run-in touchdowns. I couldn't feel prouder of my little brother. "Kid looks good out there," Jonathan leans towards me and I nod agreeing. "I think I prefer him playing baseball though," I look at him and he smiles. "A lot less likely to get seriously injured playing baseball. Be careful, you're protective, overbearing brother instincts are kicking in," he pokes my arm and I swat him away. "I just want him to be safe, especially because I can't be there for him all the time," he gives me a sad smile and I run my hand through my growing hair.

The team comes running back onto the field to prepare for the second half of the game. Based on how the team is playing, I think it's safe to say they'll win the game, but sports are unpredictable, kind of like war. You never truly know the outcome even if it seems like you're winning. The teams take the field and the game resumes. I see EJ sitting with his teammates on the bench, and he looks so happy. This is how I want both EJ and Kim to be; happy and living their greatest lives. I glance next to me at Jonathan and Kimberly, and see them cuddled up watching the game. Both of my siblings are happy, and I just want to capture these moments and live in them forever.

"You okay?" Emily whispers and I nod. "Yeah, just enjoying the moment. You okay?" I ask and she loops her arm with mine. "I'm great. With my family watching my favorite Hamilton kick ass on the football field," she smiles at me and I gasp at her remark. "I thought I was your favorite Hamilton," I put my hand over my heart, acting hurt. "Eh, you in the top three," she lets out a laugh and I just look at her. "There are only three of us, so that's not fair," I turn my head back to the field and feel Emily rest her head on my shoulder.

As affectionate and close Emily and I are, we will never be anything more than best friends. Outsiders would think we are together, but those who know us know that this is simply how we show our love to people. Touch is my love language, and it just so happens to be Emily's. Match made in heaven, right? Wrong. You see, Emily and I have talked about what it would be like to actually try dating. The issue isn't because I'm transgender or that I'm in the military. The issue is that if we ever broke up, which would probably happen, our friendship would be ruined and I don't want to lose my best friend over something like that.

I get pulled from my thoughts with the crowd screaming around me. I look at the scoreboard and San Marcos scored 13 unanswered points. Oceanside still leads 34-20, but San Marcos is trying to put up a fight. Our offensive players take the field, and I only hope that they score to get some more points up on the board. They slowly work their way down the field, focusing more on their running game rather than trying to send the ball deep down field. Our quarterback snaps the ball and I see EJ wide open for the ball. He does just that. He runs and takes a hand-off from the QB and makes his way down the field. He passes the 30-yard line then the 20 then the 10 and runs the ball into the end zone. I jump up and start cheering very loudly for EJ. His teammates gather around him and run off towards the bench. He takes off his helmet and searches the crowd for us. When his eyes lock with mine, I point at him and throw my other fist up into the air. He puts his helmet in the air and I have a huge grin on my face.

~~

The rest of the game goes by pretty quickly with neither team scoring any more points. We wait outside near the car for EJ to change out of his uniform. "I hope he takes a quick shower or sprays a bunch of that Axe body spray cause I do not want the car to stink," Kim says and we laugh at her. I see EJ walking towards us and see a girl with him. "Hey Kim, you recognize that girl?" I ask her and she looks where I'm pointing. "Oh that's Michelle," Kim says nonchalantly. "Your little brother has more game than you, JT," I smack the back of Jonathan's head. "Shut it, or you can walk back to my house," I glare at him and he puts his hands up in defense.

"Hey guys!" EJ greets all of us and we all congratulate him on a good game. "So who is this EJ?" I ask, gesturing towards the young girl. "This is Michelle. Michelle, this is Jamie, my older brother, and Kimberly, who you met over the summer," EJ points us both out. I give her a smile, "It's nice to meet you, Michelle." "I'm Emily, family friend," Emily puts out her hand and Michelle shakes it. "And I'm Jonathan, a family friend and Kim's boyfriend. It's nice to meet you," he also shakes her hand and I see her eyes glaze over as she looks at John. I try to hold back my laugh, noticing a slight crush brewing towards Johnny.

"Well, bud, we gotta get home, so say your goodbyes. We'll be in the car," I open the car door and look at the others silently telling them to give the two teens some privacy. We all shut our doors and I start the car up. "Wow, that's more privacy then you give me and Kim," Jonathan squeaks out and I hear Kim smack his chest. "Ouch, is it Hamiltons hit Jonathan day or something?" I laugh and turn around to look at him. "It is actually, you didn't get the memo?" I ask and he flips me off. I turn back around, and hear the back door open and EJ slide into the seat.

~~

The drive home was pretty silent. I looked in the rearview mirror and saw EJ fast asleep. Kim had fallen asleep too. I clear my throat as we drive through base to get home. "Doctor called this morning and said we could visit our mom tomorrow. I'd appreciate it if you both could be there or just be available. He said that she might not make it through tomorrow, so I need you both ready to pick up the pieces," I look between my two friends and see them nod. Emily reaches over and takes my hand, "We're here for you, Jay. We're here for all of you. Whatever you need." John puts his hand on my shoulder and pats, "Yeah, Jay. We're here for you guys. I'll ask my CO if I can have a few days here to help out." I smile at them both grateful for them.

We finally pull into the driveway. Jonathan and I look at each other and back at the two sleeping figures in the backseat. "You take your girlfriend, I've got my not-so-little brother," I sigh and hand his duffle bag and the house keys to Emily. I wrap his arm around my neck and carry him bridal-style into the house. I take him to his bedroom and pull a small throw blanket over him. I shut the door behind me and am met with Jonathan shutting Kim's bedroom door too. We both walk into the kitchen where Emily is making the three of us tea.

"Have you told EJ yet?" She asks as she pours hot water into three mugs. "No, I wanted him to be focused for the game today. Kim and I talked about it when she got home from work. Our plan of action is pretty straightforward. We'll visit her tomorrow then I'll meet with your mom and dad, and go over our mom's will. We already know she wants to be cremated and have her ashes spread at the beach. We'll have a small service with just the few of us and then we'll be done. She doesn't have a house to go through and the few belongings she does have, Kim has already gotten and put in our small shed out back. Am I missing anything?" I look over at Emily and she hands me a mug.

"How are you going to handle EJ? He'll be a loose canon for a bit. You should make sure to let his teachers and coaches know just in case anything comes up," she takes a sip of her tea and I look into the murky water. "I honestly don't know," I sigh and sit back in the chair. "I'll make sure to send an email to his teachers so they're aware of what's going on. They already know about her being sick and that I'm constantly being deployed, but this might hit a bit differently. I feel like I make his life way more difficult than any kid his age should have to live with," I hang my head back and groan. Emily puts her hand on my thigh and squeezes, "You're doing the best you can and EJ knows that. Don't beat yourself up." I nod at her and put my hand over hers. "This week is going to be so shitty," I look between John and Emily. John runs his hand through his hair and Emily gives me a sad smile.