RULE BREAKER

SUMMARY: When his parents are out of town teenage Jamie decides to break some rules. Unfortunately for him his oldest brother is always around.

FOR: BonanzaBooks; winner of my first contest (Pick a drabble)

BASED ON: Prompt 92 (Chapter 93) of 100 Days of Drabble

WARNING: The usual; if you don't know you may want to turn back or read the warning in the summary before you clicked on my link!

A/N: For reference in my drabble Jamie is a month shy of his 15th birthday. For this fic, he is simply 14. I have it so he'll graduate the following May at 15 but when he starts Harvard three months later he's 16.

A/N2: The ending should seem familiar as I went ahead and used my actual drabble. Please take note that I did break it up a little bit to match the flow of the story.

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Jamison 'Jamie' Reagan was a smart boy. In fact he was so smart that at fourteen he was already entering his junior year of High School. And so it was that he knew just by the look on his older brother's face that he was in more trouble then he'd ever been in before. Not that he actually needed to be smart to be able to tell that. Daniel 'Danny' Reagan, his oldest sibling, had a look of immense anger on his face and right now it was directed at one person…him!

Jamie could only stand stock still on the basketball court, basketball in hand. His day had been going good until this point. His parents had left early that morning, flying to Washington DC to go to a charity event that their friends hosted. Since it was only an hour flight they had decided to come back home late and Jamie had been given permission to stay home alone for the day.

The youngest Reagan had been thrilled, well aware that because he was the youngest, he was often the most protected. For that reason he wasn't left home alone for more than a couple hours at a time. Jamie planned to bask in the glory of an empty house.

It had started by sleeping in until 10 that morning and not getting dressed for the day until noon. Using his allowance he'd ordered himself a pizza sub and French fries and had it delivered. He figured he could eat the food his mom left him later. Jamie also made sure to order a pop with his food since under normal circumstances it wasn't allowed.

After getting dressed, Jamie had called his friend, seventeen year old Kyle, to come over. Kyle had brought some more pop with him and the two had simply clowned around until Jamie decided he was board and told his friend to call his other friends to meet them at the park a few blocks away.

Kyle had been hesitant knowing that Jamie wasn't allowed to "go past the yard when home alone" let alone hang out with other guys that he wanted to meet. Sadly for Kyle, Jamie was used to getting his way as the baby of the family and wouldn't stop begging until he got his way.

"What about your brother," Kyle had tried one last time.

"It's one-thirty," Jamie exclaimed. "If he was coming to check on me, he'd be here by now. Please, Kyle; I'm bored!"

Kyle finally agreed, making the calls his younger friend wanted him to make. Now, he was wishing feverishly that he had just stayed strong and said no.

For his part, Jamie could have smacked himself. Of everything he could have expected, his brother showing up to check on him at 2:30 p.m. hadn't been among them though he now realized the stupidity of that; after all their parents had asked the older brother to watch over his younger while they were away.

Desperate to get away from his obviously irate older brother, Jamie actually contemplated making a run for it, going so far as to take a quick look for the quickest path for him to run. So lost in his thoughts he wasn't aware that his big brother had made his way over until it was too late.

"Get in the car," Danny demanded.

"I'm in the middle of a game." Jamie protested, trying to stand strong in front of his friends.

"Get in the car," Danny said warningly.

Eyes wide, Jamie gulped nervously, "No."

"You have three seconds to get your butt in the car," Danny warned him quietly. "Or I promise you, I will pull you over my lap right here, right now."

"Danny," Jamie looked at him, his eyes pleading.

Danny's glare grew, "One..."

The minute the word one was out of Danny's mouth, Jamie fled to his big brother's car. He didn't dare look back to see the expression on the faces of those he'd been at the park with. He was too embarrassed and didn't want to see any looks of disgust on anyone's face. Not that he had to worry for group he'd been with didn't have look of disgust on their faces. They had fear.

After hearing his car door slam shut, Danny turned his dark expression on Kyle.

"As his friend you should have known better," Danny growled.

"Danny, I-I," Kyle stammered before looking away. There was nothing he could say to the accusation. He met Danny's eyes once more, "I'm sorry."

"Two weeks," Danny's tone softened marginally. "And another two weeks being in sight of someone."

"Yes, sir," Kyle didn't bother to argue the punishment of two weeks not being able to go over and two more weeks having to be where an adult could watch over them. He flinched when he realized Danny was turning his attention to the others behind him.

"As for the rest of you," Danny glared. "If I see you near my brother again, I'll make your lives hell. SCRAM!"

They didn't need to be told twice. Danny threw one last glare at Kyle and then headed for his car. He needed to have a long talk with his brother.

OoOoOoOo

"What were you thinking?" Danny demanded of his youngest sibling as he got into his car. "You know better then go past the yard when your home alone!"

"I'm not a little kid Danny!" Jamie protested with his own glare. "Home is just two blocks away. What's the big deal?"

"The big deal is that you could have gotten hurt, taken or any number of things," Danny answered, turning in his seat to look his little brother over. "If you can't see that then maybe you shouldn't be allowed to stay home alone again."

"That's not fair!" Jamie yelled.

"Watch yourself little boy." Danny warned sternly. "Keep your mouth shut until we get home."

Jamie didn't answer as he glared out his window. He hated being treated like a baby. Worse yet, he hated the feeling of disappointment that radiated off the older man. It made him feel sick to his stomach and he closed his eyes to try to stop the flow of tears that threatened to fall.

For his part, Danny didn't like being upset with his baby brother. It made him feel awful to know that Jamie was angry and hurt by his actions. He couldn't prevent that though. He had to make sure his brother understood why he couldn't disobey the family rules. He saw Jamie's lower lip tremble and knew the teen was fighting back tears. As he drove he thought back to when his brother had been born.

Danny was already fifteen when Jamie had been born. At that age, finding out that his mom was pregnant again, had led to some embarrassment. However, the embarrassment fled the first moment Danny had held his baby brother. It was often joked about in the family how Jamie didn't know what falling meant until his big brother joined the Marine Corp. It was more than a joke though, it was also the truth.

From birth to age three, when Danny, then 18, had joined the Marine Corp, Jamie had no reason to cry. His big brother was able to know and meet his needs before he had a chance to express his unhappiness. It was uncanny and their mom found herself jumping for the first couple of months when she'd go into the nursery to check on her youngest only to find Danny had already changed, dressed, and fed him. And so it was an inconsolable three year old that had said goodbye to his big brother.

When Danny had come back weeks later, Jamie refused to leave his side. And so had begun what would be the usual for the oldest and youngest Reagan. Danny would get shipped somewhere and when he got home Jamie was glued to his side. When Jamie was six Danny had married his long time girlfriend, Linda. Jamie hadn't been too keen on the woman and so Linda had worked hard to make sure he would accept her into his big brother's life.

Through all the changes Jamie had a special place in his big brother's heart. Not to say that he wasn't close to his other siblings.

His only sister, Erin Reagan-Boyle, had been thirteen when he'd been born and had doted on him from the beginning. Erin had gotten married when Jamie was eight and the following year had, had her daughter Nikki. Nikki and her Uncle were raised together and it wasn't uncommon to find Jamie playing with his now five year old niece.

His other brother, Joseph 'Joe' Reagan, had been eleven when he was born. To be honest he was closest to Joe as the second youngest Reagan had stayed home while he went to college and then joined the police department; he'd moved out when Jamie was twelve but still came over at least every other day.

Jamie declared Joe was his best friend since he could talk but it was Danny he wanted to be like. Danny, as far as Jamie was concerned, could do no wrong. He loved his family fiercely, felt deeply, and would move heaven and earth if someone hurt his loved ones.

Likewise Danny always felt a special bond with his baby brother. When he was sent to Iraq it was pictures and cassette tapes with 'letters' from Jamie that kept him going. When he got back, a changed man, it was Jamie who helped him learn to laugh again.

And so it was, that the first time he'd had to punish his baby brother, he felt his heart break. For Danny, it was a situation that never got any easier. Every time he had to put Jamie, up ended over his lap, he felt like a monster. Yet like those time, he knew he had no choice. If a spanking was what would get through to his younger brother then he'd do it…if for nothing else then to make sure he was safe.

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Jamie wasn't surprised when they pulled up to Danny's home rather than the family home. He'd known the instant he saw Danny that he wouldn't be allowed to stay home alone.

As he was led into the house he didn't look up knowing that Linda would be home. He saw her shoes come into view before she spoke.

"I'll hold lunch while you two talk." Linda volunteered to her husband.

"Thanks babe," Danny gave her a strained smile as he leaned over to kiss her cheek.

Linda gave her husband a soft smile as she ran her fingers through Jamie's hair. It was her signal to him that she wasn't upset with him. She wouldn't get him out of trouble but she wasn't mad. The gesture caused Jamie to look up at her briefly before he was led up the stairs and to the guest room.

Danny sat on the edge of the bed and pulled his brother to stand between his legs. With his short stature, Jamie was still slightly shorter than his sitting brother.

"Do you understand why you're in trouble?" Danny questioned firmly yet gently; his tone sounding more like what would be used on one who was five instead of fifteen.

Jamie wanted to protest both the question and the tone but found he couldn't. With a tremble in his voice he answered, "I broke the rules."

"Which rules Jamison," Danny demanded to know, his tone the same.

"Danny," Jamie couldn't help but whimper. He hated this part of any punishment. Seeing his brother's expression go stern he gulped. "I went past the yard and I was with a group of people mom and dad don't want me to be around."

Danny's hands tightened slightly around Jamie's waist as he asked the question that he knew would Jamie to try and back away from.

"And why are those rules in place?" Danny continued to question.

Instinctively Jamie tried to pull away from his big brother. Not, because he didn't want to answer, but because he was well aware that after that question came the consequences.

Jamie took a trembling breath, "Cuz something could have happened and no one would have known where to start looking. And cuz the guys are always in and out of trouble and they might drag me in with them."

"Good boy," Danny murmured as he gently upended his brother over his lap. He hated what he was about to do but he knew that to not go through with it would set a dangerous precedence.

Danny decided to leave the basketball shorts up, knowing from experience that they'd offer no real protection. He took a deep breath as he raised his hand and brought it down with a sharp snap of his wrist.

*SWAT, SWAT*

"AH!" Jamie cried out as he always did with the first couple of swats. No matter how ready he thought he was they always caught him by surprise.

Danny didn't give his baby brother a chance to think about the pain that was to starting to form as he kept a steady pace of swats coming down.

"I understand that you want to be considered an adult Jamie," Danny explained as he continued to swat. "But for that to happen you need to act like one. We all have things we want to do but can't. It's a part of life and it's a part of growing up. Do you understand?"

Jamie nodded his head through the tears that were already falling. He was never one to take a spanking stoically and he saw no reason to start now.

"Verbal answer Jamison," Danny gave him a sharper swat.

"OW!" Jamie cried out. He nodded his head again as he verbally responded, "I un-understand."

"You don't go past the yard when your home alone." Danny reinforced. "If something were to ever happen to you this family would never be the same. You mean too much to too many people Jamie. Remember that."

He'd been surprised when he stopped by his parent's house on his break to find Jamie nowhere to be found. A quick stop at the neighbors had him finding out which direction the boy had gone. For that short period though, fear had coursed through Danny's body.

Jamie was small for his age. He could easily still pass for boy of twelve or, as one person had told him, a big ten years old. As a cop, Danny was well aware of what kind of people were out there. Not only that but Danny could imagine his brother hurt and lost.

"If you had wanted to play basketball that much you should have called Linda." Danny pointed out. "You know she rarely says no to you."

"I-I know," Jamie cried out, suddenly wondering just why he had felt the need to disobey a rule.

"And if I ever catch you hanging around the guys again Jamison, I will make sure that you don't go five feet out of the house without adult supervision." Danny warned. "You know better."

"I'm sorry!" Jamie managed through his tears. He tensed as he felt his big brother repositioning him. It could only mean one thing. "No, p-please Danny!"

Danny hardened his heart even more as he targeted his brother's sit spot. Jamie managed a couple more 'I'm sorry's' before he gave collapsed over his big brother's lap and sobbed.

Danny immediately brought the spanking to a halt and righted the boy, holding him close.

"Ok, Jamie," Danny soothed. "You're okay now; I've got you. Shhh kiddo, we're ok; I promise."

"I-I'm s-sorry," Jamie hiccupped.

"I know baby boy," Danny rocked him slightly. "All's forgiven now; it's ok."

The spanking he'd gotten hadn't been the worst he'd ever received but for Jamie the disappointment that radiated off the brother he idolized had hurt so much that the spanking definitely made it on his list of 'don't ever want to re-live it again'.

"Sorry," Jamie mumbled through his tears.

"Look at me Jamie," Danny lifted his baby brother's chin with his hand. "I understand; I truly do baby. All of us were once your age and we all tested out boundaries. You need to understand that there is a difference between sleeping in and having a pop and leaving the yard."

Jamie looked at him, honesty written all over his face, "But I'm not a kid any more Danny. Mom watches me walk to the park and someone is always stopping by to check on me."

"Then you talk to us," Danny informed him. "Or tell me or Linda and we'll go to the parents."

Jamie nodded in understanding. He leaned against his brother, tired but needing to finish the discussion. "Those guys are my only friends. I know dad doesn't like them but…they accept me for me."

"Kiddo," Danny rocked him some more. "I know it's tough right now but it'll get easier eventually. If you're having that hard a time, say something. I'll help you in any way I can."

Danny couldn't help but feel bad. At fourteen he was would be entering his Junior year of high school; two years younger than his classmates. While two years may not have seemed like a lot to most it might as well have been a decade to Jamie and his classmates. Until he was fifteen he wasn't allowed in a vehicle not driven by a professional or a family member and until he was sixteen he wasn't allowed to see anything above a PG – 13 without parental consent and a family member being present. This made finding friends who understood and were willing to bow to the rules difficult.

"Stop thinking kid," Danny ordered gently as he realized the boy in his arms was fighting going to sleep. "Why don't you take a nap?"

"No, please," Jamie begged, blushing as he thought that at his age he shouldn't need his big brother to coddle him.

"Don't worry about it kid," Danny shushed him, holding onto his baby brother tighter. "I have time left on break. I'll stay till you fall asleep."

Jamie nodded and allowed himself to be helped to lay down on his stomach in the bed. He couldn't hold back a whimper as the movement caused his backside to throb that much more. Danny was quick to rub reassuring circles on his back.

Danny couldn't help but feel bad. While he knew Jamie tended to think of him as a hard-ass, it truly did hurt him to have to punish his baby brother.

With that in mind Danny stroked his baby brother's hair and spoke. "How about after work, I grab some clothes for you. Tomorrow we get mom and dad to watch Jack. Then me, you, and Linda can go to the zoo and grab some supper?"

"P-promise," Jamie asked sounding all of five at the moment.

"Yeah, kid, I promise." Danny replied softly. "You take a nap now. Linda will wake you up in an hour."

"M'kay," Jamie yawned, finally allowing sleep to claim him.

As soon as he was sure Jamie was asleep, Danny went downstairs in search of his wife. He needed his own reassurances after spanking his baby brother.

EPILOGUE:

Linda let Jamie sleep in the next morning as Danny made his way to his parents. The three adults talked about what had happened with Jamie the day before. Danny made sure to point out to his parents that when he, Erin, and Joe had been fifteen they had been trusted to find their own way to the park and they were only checked on once or twice.

It had been hard for the Reagan parent's to come to terms with the thought that their 'baby' wasn't a baby any longer. It had been decided that they would allow Jamie to do as his siblings and walk to the park unescorted. To even things out he would be required to carry his mom's cell phone and call home to check in every so often.

Danny also worked hard to get his parents to agree to allow his punishment to stand and not add to it. They finally agreed though they told their eldest to warn his baby brother that it was a one shot deal. The next time he disobeyed he'd have to face them.

Danny made his way home and had lunch with his family. They dropped their only child off at the grandparents (who agreed to watch him overnight) before taking Jamie to the zoo and walking around. They stayed until supper and then made their way to Jamie's favorite restaurant.

For Danny, seeing his baby brother smiling and laughing was worth the aching feet and sun burnt face. After supper they got ice cream and went to the 'movie in the park'. By the time it ended, Jamie was fast asleep, his head resting on his big brother's right leg.

"He had fun," Linda murmured quietly as she ran her fingers through her brother-in-law's hair.

"That he did," Danny agreed smiling down at him. "I want to protect him."

"You can't protect him forever Danny," Linda smiled gently. "You can teach him to fend for himself."

"And if it isn't enough?" Danny asked as he stood up and picked up his too light little brother.

"Then you be there for him," Linda informed him. "You take care of him. And you let him know you love him."

"He's getting to big to be carried," Danny grunted as he held his brother close and walked to the car.

"Nnn," Jamie disagreed.

"Shhh, go back to bed, sleeping beauty." Danny couldn't help but laugh softly. He looked at his wife. "And then he wonders why we all baby him."

"Because you all love him," Linda gave him a pointed look.

"Yeah, I guess," Danny laid Jamie gently in the back seat. Staring down at the boy who was so innocent, Danny knew his wife was right. They…he, loved his baby brother. And nothing would change that.

THE END