𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐢𝐱𝐭𝐞𝐞𝐧 | 𝓯𝓸𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻

KAT HAD NEVER KNOWN HER father. She isn't even sure her father knows she exists. But after a lot of therapy, she's become okay with her non-existent relationship with one of her parents. If he doesn't care about her, then why should she give a damn about him? She believes it's one of the many reasons herself, Gina, and Jake are so close with each other. They had yet another thing to bring them together; something they could relate to where maybe not as many others could.

"Hey, Captain," Peralta calls out. Holt stops and looks over to him. "Did you get my report on the Finley murder?"

"Ah, yeah, I looked it over," Holt tells him. He nods to the detective. "Nice work."

"Good. Thanks, Dad."

The entire bullpen falls dead silent at the word that had slipped out of Jake's lips, and he doesn't even realise that he's said it.

Jake's eyes flick around, his brows drawing together ever so slightly in confusion. "Why is everyone staring at me?" he asks, complete clueless to what's going on.

"You just called Captain Holt 'Dad,'" Rosa replies in amusement. "You said, 'Thanks, Dad.'"

"What? No, I didn't! I said, 'Thanks, man.'"

Kat winces. "Yeah, you did, kiddo," she confirms.

"Do you see me as a father figure, Peralta?" Holt questions him.

"No," Jake denies firmly. "If anything, I see you as a 'bother' figure, 'cause you're always bothering me."

Terry shakes his head as he stands up from his desk chair. "Hey, show your father some respect," he retorts.

Jake spins around to him. "I didn't call him Dad!"

"No, no, no, no, Jacob..." Everyone smiles as Holt points at him for a second. "I take it as a compliment."

"It's not a big deal," Charles declares, attempting to ease the attention off his best friend. "I called Vivian 'Mom' once, and she's my fiancée."

Jake quickly nods and waves a hand over to Charles in appreciation. "Guys, jump on that!" he begs the bullpen. "Boyle has psycho-sexual issues."

"Old news," Amy drawls out. She tilts her head slightly as a smirk appears on her face. "But you calling Holt 'Daddy'-"

"Hey, 'Daddy' is not on the table here," he interrupts.

The perp Jake had been questioning before finally speaks up. "But you did call him 'Dad,' dude..."

Peralta waves a hand at him in exasperation. "You, shut up," he orders. "You've done nothing but lie since you got here."

The man holds his hands up. "All right, all right, I was lying about the holdup," he admits. "But the dad thing, that happened."

Jake grins as he stands up. "Aha!" he exclaims. "He admitted his alibi was a lie. It was a trap, all part of my crazy, devious plan." Kat rolls her eyes at his claim but can't hide her smile.

"I believe you," Holt says.

"Thank you!"

"Son." Jake grits his teeth together. Kat stifles her laughter, something she's doing a terrible job at. "Do you want to talk about it later over a game of catch?" Holt suggests.

Jake hesitates for a moment, then he dips his head in agreement. "I'd like that," he responds timidly.

Katherine sighs. "Dad, stop making fun of Jake," she calls out. Her eyes widen and her hand flies to cover her mouth as everyone turns to her. "Oh, my God," she whispers in alarm.

Rosa grins widely. "You just called him Dad too."

"Everyone kept saying it!" Kat defends herself quickly. "It was on my mind!"

Holt suppresses his want to smile as he turns his attention onto the blonde-haired woman instead. "Would you like to join our game of catch?" he offers her.

Her eyes flick down to her desk. "That would be really nice..."

Holt nods to Jake. "Son." He glances to Kat before he walks back to his office. "Daughter." Jake and Kat share a look, their eyes wide in shock at what had just happened as laughter spreads across the bullpen. Maybe their fathers not being in their lives does still affect them.

⋆。 ﾟ✩。 ⋆。 ﾟ☀︎ ﾟ。 ⋆

All the detectives had been called in to the precinct on Saturday. Kat is a little annoyed considering the weekend is the only time where she could dedicate all her attention to Tisha and Bear, but she's aware that the reason is important. Their evaluations. It's something some people aren't fazed by at all, like Jake and Kat, or something that some people spend all month stressing over. The 'people' represents Amy Santiago.

Holt seems to understand their slight frustration as he steps up to the podium in the briefing room. "Thank you for coming in on your day off," he tells them appreciatively. "I know you'd all rather be at home, binge watching media content, or listening to the popular musician, Taylor Swift."

Jake and Kat share a glum look. It's the first time in weeks that they're sitting next to each other in a meeting. "I mean, at least he knows who she is now," Kat whispers to him. Jakes shrugs. They'd take the little wins.

"But these evaluations are important," Holt reminds them seriously.

"Sir, I think I speak for all of us-"

"She doesn't," Jake and Rosa interrupt the woman.

Amy tries to ignore them. "... when I say that we can't wait for you to sit in judgment of us."

"Oh, these will be self-evaluations, Santiago," Holt reveals.

Kat watches Amy's eyes widen whilst trying to remain composed. She knows that her best friend's anxiety has just skyrocketed. "Why...se." Amy closes her eyes for a split-second and nods. "Very wise, sir."

"Nice save," Jake praises. She rolls her eyes.

"Also, please stay out of the way of the weekend squad," Holt announces. "They are on duty, and the bullpen is theirs."

With her arms tightly folded over her leather jacket, Rosa scowls at the mere mention of the group currently on shift. "I hate the weekend squad," she huffs. "Detective Lohank shaves at my desk and gets hair all over my computer. My R key is jammed with stubble."

Kat nods in support of Rosa's hatred. Every Monday she would return to her desk to find that her weekend counterpart had been clipping their nails over her keyboard. Personally, she thinks that's worse than Rosa's grudge with Lohank.

Jake turns around to Diaz with an amused smile. "Well, that explains the email you sent about the 'guesome mude.'"

"Dismissed!"

Kat had planned to be the first to be evaluated weeks in advance. She, like Jake, just wanted to get it over and done with. And because he wanted to be first just as badly as her, they had battled it out over a game of Monopoly. Some would say that had been Jake's error, because, of course, Katherine had won. Crushed him, she would say.

She strides into the captain's office to find Holt and Terry waiting for her. Gina sits on the couch with her pad in hand to take notes. The sergeant smiles at her. "Kat asked to be first," he says. "She's setting an example for the rest of the squad."

She shakes her head. "Actually, I just wanted to get this over and done with," she corrects. Terry grimaces and Gina quietly giggles. Kat turns to Holt as she clasps her hands behind her back. "Over the last four months, I have a total of eighty-two arrests, a ninety-two-percent clearance rate, and am submitting between fifteen to twenty hours of overtime per week."

Holt nods thoughtfully as he looks at her. "Have you considered the sergeant's exam any further?" Terry's eyes widen in surprise at his question, but he smiles proudly at Katherine.

It was something Holt had suggested to her a week ago, and since then, she hasn't stopped thinking about it. She now has the extra expenses for Tisha to cover, and being able to have a little more control of her hours and a raise would help considerably. Kat smiles at him and she nods. "Yeah, I think I'm going to take it," she replies. Gina grins proudly at her sister.

A small smile graces Holt's face. "Great work, Detective. Dismissed."

"Yo!" Jake walks into the room but pauses upon seeing Kat still inside. "Oh, whoopsie daisy... I'll just come back later."

Holt holds a hand up to him. "No, Peralta, you may begin your evaluation." Gina grabs onto Kat's arm to stop her from leaving and drags her onto the leather couch to sit beside her. Shockingly, Holt nor Terry comment on it.

"Peralta wanted to be one of the first to show you how seriously he's begun taking his job," Terry informs their captain.

And exactly like Katherine did, Jake states his true feelings. "Nope, I just want to get this over with!" Terry sighs. "So, I have seventy-two arrests, an eighty-percent clearance rate, but most importantly, I wore a tie sometimes." The sisters both grin. "Now, I have a question for you: Is there any way I can borrow four-hundred and thirty-thousand dollars?"

Kat's jaw falls slack. Holt's eyes squint ever so slightly at the detective. "Why on earth do you need that much money?" he questions Jake, thoroughly confused as to why he had so casually asked for almost half a million dollars.

"I need to buy my apartment," Jake says. "I've been living at my nana's place since she passed away 'cause it's rent-controlled, but now the building's going co-op, so I have to buy it." Kat and Gina share a look. "I need to secure a loan by the end of the day. Uh, so should we do a wire transfer, or do you think cash is easier? Let's just do cash."

Terry's eyes narrow. "Shouldn't you be asking somebody else for that kind of money? Like, I don't know, a bank?"

"Yeah, I tried that," Jake responds. He grimaces at the memory. "It did not go well."

Gina shakes her head in disbelief. "Jake, I can't believe you're gonna lose Nana's apartment! We all grew up together," she tells Holt. "We used to hang out there every day after school."

Jake sighs. "That's right, because there was no one to look after us. Because our moms both worked, and..."

"Well, our fathers all abandoned us," Kat finishes, getting the subtle hint from Jake that perhaps appealing to Holt's sympathy would help his case. "Because, you know, divorce."

Holt's eyes flick between the three. "Peralta, I will not give you a cool half mil because you had a slightly sad childhood."

"Sir!" Kat exclaims with offence. "Our childhoods were far more than just 'slightly sad.'"

"I have never met so many people in such close proximity that have, and I quote Peralta, 'daddy issues.'"

Jake, Gina, and Kat all stare at Holt. "Damn," Terry whispers to himself.

"Go solve your housing crisis," Holt dismisses him.

The sisters step up beside their friend. "Can we go with him?" Gina asks. "Nana made me the intelligent, sensuous woman I am today."

Kat nods. "And she did a damn good job," she states. Gina sighs.

Terry's brows knit together. "Weird way to describe a grandma's influence on you," he points out.

"Katherine is free to go," Holt nods. She smiles. "However, I'm sorry, Gina. I don't know that we can spare you."

Jake and Kat lean closer to Gina to get a glimpse at her notepad. "Um, these are her notes so far," he begins. "'Empanadas, Atlantic City, how to force two people together, birth control.'"

Gina quickly shakes her head. "No, that's my travel journal. I haven't started on the notes yet."

"You both may go with Peralta."

"Thank you," the three echo as they rush out the office.

⋆。 ﾟ✩。 ⋆。 ﾟ☀︎ ﾟ。 ⋆

The last time Kat had been inside Jake's apartment was last Sunday when they had had a movie night together with Tisha. And it looks exactly the same now. Dirty laundry is thrown into the corners of every other room, pizza boxes are stacked in the kitchen, and the odour of something Kat doesn't even want to know where it's originating from hangs in the air.

Gina walks in with a sentimental smile. "It is always so crazy coming back here!" She spins around and looks around the living room filled with Jake's numerous massage chairs. "Remember when Nana got cable?"

Kat chuckles at the memories. "Oh, my God, we watched House Party 2 so many times."

"It was a pyjama-jamma-jam," Jake adds. "We had no choice."

"Our hands were tied!"

They all grin. "I gotta say, I'm psyched to be hanging like this," Jake admits to the sisters. "Old-school stylez. 'Stylez' with a Z."

"Oh, I could tell," Gina smiles. She claps her hands as she addresses their priority. "Okay, well, maybe we can figure out a way for you to afford this place."

Kat nods. "Where are all your bank statements?" she asks.

He holds his hands up to them. "Hup, hup, before we get all financial, can I interest you both in an ice-cold foh-dy?"

"A'ight!"

As they drink their beers, half an hour passes of Kat working on the calculator and Gina reading through the pile of bank statements. There are a lot. But at least Jake had actually kept them. He holds a basketball in one hand and his beer in the other as he joins them at the table. "So, talk to me, Goose," he says, more specifically to Kat since he trusts her completely with his financial records. "How we lookin'?"

"Sexy, but not like we're trying too hard," Gina responds. "Like, sure, we're trying, but it's almost effortless."

Kat points to her. "That, and... you have a debilitating spending problem," she voices with a frown. "It's terrible."

Gina's eyes flick over to the living room. "Jake, you have six massage chairs," she points out.

"Well, they don't make a massage couch," he retorts as if the answer was obvious.

"Okay, but you also have three turntables," Kat adds. Her brows raise. "What could you possibly need three turntables for?"

"Ooh, yeah!" Jake tosses the basketball away. "I'm learning how to spin! Check it out." Gina and Kat share a look of exasperation as they watch him hurry over to the turntables. The music blares out the speakers and Jake puts on his headphones to then yell, "All I have are my grandma's old klezmer records, and I still haven't quite figured out how to sync up the beats, but it's not bad, right?"

"Oh, boy," Kat mutters. "This is you."

Gina nods. "It's awful," she calls out. "It sounds like Joy Behar falling down some stairs!"

Jake stops the music and Kat looks back down to one of the papers. "You also bought Olympus Has Fallen On Demand twelve times." She squints her eyes at him. "Did something about it make it a difficult movie for you to follow?"

He shrugs. "No, just watched it a lot." He jumps up to sit on top of the couch. "So, hit me. How much do I need to cut back in order to keep this place?"

"Everything," Kat answers honestly.

"Or, infinity percent," Gina says. "Technically speaking, you're bankrupt, kiddo."

"No, no," the blonde interjects. Her eyes meet Jake's wide ones. "Not technically. You are bankrupt."

"That sounds bad..."

"Oh, it definitely is."

"'Kiddo' was only used to soften the blow, kiddo," Gina confesses.

With a frown that might be permanently etched onto his face, Jake glumly walks over to the fridge and takes out another beer. "This is so unfair," he exclaims. "I've lived in this building fifteen years, and then all of the sudden, they decide they're going co-op with zero warning?"

Kat's brows furrow as she watches him walk back over to them. "That is definitely illegal," she says.

"Well, it's possible I missed a letter, but I doubt it." Jake purses his lips in thought.

But when his eyes light up, Kat's heart sinks. "No," she pleads, knowing exactly what he's about to suggest.

"Yes," he argues with a grin. "It's time to check the mail tub!"

As they follow him out of the room, Gina lowers her voice to ask Kat, "What's the mail tub?"

The blonde-haired woman grimaces as if she's experiencing physical pain. "He told me about it a few years ago," she mutters. "It's horrific."

Sure enough, when they enter the bathroom, the claw-foot bathtub is fill to the brim with letters, packages, magazines, and newspapers. "Oh, man," Gina whispers.

Jake sits on the edge of the tub to sift through the mail and try to find the letter that may have been sent to him. The longer Kat looks at the bath, the more certain she is that the building had sent him a letter. He had just never read it.

"No, no, no, no..." Jake throws up his hands in frustration. "See? It's impossible to find anything in here! It's not my fault."

"This is actually a cool little bathroom," Gina comments, her hands stuffed in her jacket pockets. "Nice claw-foot tub."

Jake glances back over to them, wincing slightly at Kat's judgemental stare.  "Which I will never throw my mail into again," he promises. "Unless... I didn't want to do this, but I do know one way we could get the money."

"You'd make a decent prostitute," Gina tells him.

"Actually, I think you would," Kat agrees.

"I'd make an amazing prostitute," Jake corrects. "But I was actually talking about this guy I know, Frank. He's kinda skeevy, but he will loan money to anybody."

Katherine's eyes widen at his insinuation. "No," she denies. "Jake, no loan sharks!"

Gina quickly nods in agreement with her. "Yeah, I have a feeling you're not thinking this through."

Jake scoffs. "Says the woman who's been engaged eight times," he retorts.

"Uh, but never married once. Game, set, match – Linetti."

"Well, it's the only choice I have," Jake responds. "So, let's go." Kat groans in frustration as she's found that the only option left is to follow him and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. No, anything else stupid.

⋆。 ﾟ✩。 ⋆。 ﾟ☀︎ ﾟ。 ⋆

Despite the Linettis obvious disapproval, Jake had signed the forms to get twenty-thousand dollars from the loan shark. He had reasoned that it would be enough to prove to the co-op board that he would be able to make a down payment. Kat thinks it's one of his worst mistakes yet. After missing the application deadline, Jake had decided to dress up in his uniform and meet one of the board members to try and bribe him over with the money.

Kat and Gina wait in his apartment for him to return with what they can only presume will be bad news. When he trudges inside with disappointment radiating off his body, they immediately know the answer.

Jake groans in frustration and throws his jacket over one of the massage chairs. As he drops down in between his friends on the couch, Gina grimaces slightly. "Aw, that bad?"

"I'm gonna be homeless," he declares in defeat. "A homeless cop." Kat sighs and pats his leg. "It's like a made-for-TV movie that I will not be able to watch because I won't have a television because I'll be homeless."

"It'll be okay," Katherine tries to reassure him. "We'll figure something out."

Gina nods. "Chin up, lil' pup." Jake folds his arms and sighs. "First of all, you could watch it on your phone. Second, this isn't the only apartment in the city."

"Yeah, we'll help find you a new one," Kat smiles.

Jake stands up and nods at them, suddenly feeling a little more hopeful than he had a minute earlier. "You're right."

"We know."

"No, seriously, you're right. This could be good. I mean, maybe we'll find a great place!"

"Atta girl," Gina praises.

"In a cooler neighbourhood," Jake adds.

Kat grins at his excitement. "That's right, girl!"

"Maybe I'll even have a cute neighbour."

"Get it, girl," Gina exclaims.

His eyes move between them as he smiles. "You gotta stop calling me girl," he says.

Kat glances to Gina whose grin hasn't disappeared. "Sorry, girl," the latter apologises. Jake's smile remains as he shakes his head.

⋆。 ﾟ✩。 ⋆。 ﾟ☀︎ ﾟ。 ⋆

The three apartments they had seen over the two and a half hours had gotten progressively worse. The first had over a dozen cats. The second could only fit a bed in if it was a murphy, but even then, it only opened halfway before getting stuck on the wall. The third had a bird fly out of the toilet. It's safe to say house hunting did not go to plan. With Jake's extremely limited budget, it would be incredibly difficult to find somewhere in Brooklyn that didn't have safety and health hazards.

By five o'clock, they've returned to his apartment to wallow. The apartment he'll lose in less than twenty-four hours. For the last ten minutes, they've been sitting in the dark. With her head resting on Kat's good shoulder, Gina squints her eyes as she continues to adjust to the limited light. "Should we turn some lights on?" she suggests.

"Trying to save electricity," Jake replies monotonously as he rocks back and forth in his chair.

Kat rolls her eyes. "Your massage chair is on," she points out dryly.

He glances to her. "Yeah, I'm poor. I'm not a savage." He sighs and leans back. "Man, what am I gonna do?"

"I would let you stay with me," Katherine begins. Jake's head snaps over to her with hope, and she sighs. "I said 'would.' I literally couldn't fit you in my place if I tried... Unless you wanna convert the dining table into a bed if you're happy with a dog and a teenager yelling all day."

Jake groans and slumps back in the massage chair. Gina suddenly straightens herself and lifts her head off from Kat's shoulder. "Well, what if I bought this apartment?" she voices.

Kat's eyes widen as she turns to her. "Nina, that's brilliant."

Jake scoffs with an amused smile toying at his lips. "What are you talking about?"

"And then I could rent it to you till you find a new place."

"What?" he asks incredulously. "How could you afford this place? Have you been dealing drugs?"

"She's thrifty," Kat answers.

"Bitch, I'm so thrifty," Gina exclaims. She leans forward on the couch to show him just how serious she is. "I cut my own hair. I walk to work. I eat Scully's lunch every day. I've rented the same crap box since I was twenty 'cause it's so cheap. I've saved up money, and I'm looking for a real estate opportunity."

Whilst Kat smiles, Jake's face scrunches up at her words. "Ew," he retorts. "A real estate opportunity? Are you being serious? We were drinking forties this morning!"

"I'm saying I could give you a fair rent because I would be your landlady," Gina explains.

"Whoa, whoa, you be my landlady?" When Gina frowns, he rolls his eyes. "You're Gina. Your lifelong dream is to be on Wife Swap. You call gum, 'the dentist.' You think Ray J is a national treasure."

"Yeah, so what?" Gina argues back. "I'm eclectic."

Kat shakes her head in disbelief when Jake then says, "You're not better than me, okay? And I'm glad that I still own this place because I can happily invite you to leave." He smiles as he gestures to the door.

Gina laughs as she stands up. "Grow up, Jake." 

"'Grow up, Jake,'" he mocks.

"Oh, my goodness."

"Yeah, thanks for your help," he calls out sarcastically. "Old-school styles. I take back the Z!"

As she watches her sister walk out, Kat pins Jake with a glare. She feels proud when he flinches. "God, you are so immature," she snaps. "She's trying to help you, and you're so wrapped up in your own ego that you can't see that she's doing a nice thing." 

He smiles at her cynically. "You're so immature."

Kat scoffs. "Wow. Just... wow. I'll just remind you that you're bankrupt. And in twenty-four hours, also homeless." She watches his face slowly fall. "So when you decide to stop being a dick, apologise, then take the fucking offer, Jake."

She walks out the apartment without saying another word. He's too speechless to find something to reply back.

⋆。 ﾟ✩。 ⋆。 ﾟ☀︎ ﾟ。 ⋆

The Linetti sisters have decided to shun Jake Peralta. Rightfully so. Since it's Saturday night, Kat had offered if Gina wanted to come back to her place to have company. She had happily accepted.

Tisha leans her chin on her palm as she stares at her foster mother. "So..." Kat glances to her from the kitchen. "When are you going to ask out Rosa?"

Gina barks out a laugh at how her sister freezes in place. "Oh, dang, girl!" She reaches over the table to high-five Tisha.

"I-I'm-I-" Kat splutters over her words and her cheeks tinge a light pink. "I'm not asking her out."

"Katherine, spare me from this again," Gina pleads.

Tisha nods as she runs a hand down Bear's back. "Agreed. She's into you."

Kat points a finger to her. "I am not discussing this with you," she states firmly.

"Dude, I'm fifteen! Not twelve!"

Gina nods. "Exactly. So, when are you going to ask out Rosa?" Her lips curl into a smirk when Kat turns around to scowl at her. "It's a valid question, Kitty Kat. The people want to know."

She returns her attention to the counter and fills her wine glass up to the brim. "It's not happening," she grumbles.

"Good God," Gina groans in frustration. Tisha waves a hand to her in agreement. "You both think you're hot. You have feelings. So don't make it a date, just tell her where to meet you!"

Kat rolls her eyes and takes a long sip of the alcohol. "It's not happening," she repeats.

Gina's eyes soften at how she notices the hurt flash across her sister's face. "Okay, is this about Alana?" she asks gently.

Tisha's brows furrow in confusion. "Who?"

Kat sighs. There's no getting out of this conversation now. "My ex," she replies. "Three years ago. She cheated on me."

"Multiple times," Gina adds. She winces at the glare Kat sends her way. "Sorry..."

"Woah," Tisha whispers. She gnaws on her lip as she looks back to the blonde. "I'm sorry, that's shitty."

Kat gives her a half-hearted smile and places a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Yeah, it was."

"So that's it," Gina concludes. "You're afraid to get your heart broken again." She doesn't need an answer from Kat to know that she's right. Gina reaches across the table and places her hand atop of her sister's when she sits down. "I think Rosa would rather kill herself than hurt you."

Tisha hums. "Agreed, I've seen the way she looks at you."

Katherine takes another sip of her wine. "Yeah, well, I won't risk getting my heart shattered again if I don't put myself out there." She forces a small smile onto her face as she taps her forehead. "Logic."

Gina sighs. "Okay, honey bun." Kat's brows raise in surprise at how quickly she had just given up. "But you can only avoid it for so long. And by the way, I'm almost certain that she'd wait for you as long as you need her to."

Kat closes her eyes when she feels them burn with incoming tears. One slips down her cheek. "Feelings suck," she declares. Without uttering a word, Tisha leaps out of her chair and hurries around to wrap her in a hug.

Seconds later, Gina follows suit. "Group hug," she calls out. Kat laughs quietly when she feels Bear place his two front paws up on her leg. They stay in the hug for at least a minute, and she finds that it's one of the most healing moments she's ever experienced. The knock on her front door shatters the comfortable silence. "Oh, piss off," Gina yells.

Tisha bursts into giggles.

Another knock.

Kat sighs and extracts herself from the embrace. "I'll go get it," she says. But the second she opens the door, her face falls. "Go away."

Jake's eyes widen and he quickly places his foot in the doorway before she can slam it shut in his face. "Wait, is Gina there?"

"No," the mentioned woman yells.

"Come on, please?"

Kat rolls her eyes and glances over her shoulder to her sister. Gina begrudgingly makes her way over. "What do you want, Jake?" she asks with narrowed eyes. "You're interrupting something very private and important. We were then going to watch Oprah's Legends Ball, which is what I do every time a close friend hurts my feelings."

"I came here to apologise," Jake tells her.

The sisters share a look and Kat opens the door for him to come inside.

He winces at the glare Tisha is giving him. "Not you too..." He turns back to Gina. "Look, I was mad at you for being more together than me, and that's not fair. I felt stupid, so I acted out. I'm sorry."

"Yeah, you were stupid," Gina immediately agrees. "And you should be sorry, Jake. But watching Oprah have brunch with her strong woman friends has taught me that it's okay to forgive."

Jake breathes a sigh of relief. "Great. Also, you should buy Nana's place." Gina's eyebrows furrow. "Not for me. You should live there."

A smile adorns Kat's face. "This is the character development I was looking for!"

"You love that apartment, and you said so yourself. It's a great investment."

Sat on the ground, Tisha rests her chin on Bear's head. "So, man-child, where are you gonna live?"

Jake can't even find himself to be annoyed at her nickname. "I'll live at yours," he tells Gina. "I'll sublet from you. I actually ran the numbers."

Kat grabs the piece of paper from him. "Yeah, I'm gonna have to run those myself..."

He nods, a small smile playing at his lips. "Fair enough. But basically, I'd keep paying the same amount of rent, and you would turn a small profit." Gina beams up at him. "It's a starter apartment, and it's my fault for starting when I'm thirty-three."

Tisha's eyes widen in disbelief. "You're thirty-three?" she exclaims. "Jesus Christ, I thought you were, like, fifty." Kat snorts.

"I do not like you," Jake deadpans. But his smile betrays his attempt to feign being serious. Tisha giggles.

Gina leaps up from her chair with a wide grin. "You have a deal," she declares. "Shake, shake!" They vigorously shake hands, mimicking the other's contagious smile. "Okay, now, who wants to order pizza and ice-cream and watch The Notebook?"

Jake's smile drops and his eyes widen in concern as he looks between the siblings. "Oh God, who died?" he asks worriedly. "This is your 'when something bad happens' movie!" However, when he properly studies Kat, he notices how her eyes are ever so slightly irritated. "Who do I need to kill?"

Katherine softly smiles at his protectiveness. He really is her older brother. "No one."

Gina sighs and pats Jake's shoulder. "Oh, boy, we have a lot to fill you in," she says.

Tisha squeals with excitement as she grabs the landline phone off the reciever and a takeout menu. "Ice-cream time!"

"Tisha, this is a sad moment, stop being so happy."

"Gina!"

𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘢 𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘭𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘫𝘢𝘬𝘦, 𝘬𝘢𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢'𝘴 𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘥𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘥 😭