Disclaimer: I own nothing of CSI

Sick Nicky

Things at the Stokes' house had been even crazier than usual because Nick had come down with a bad case of the flu, leaving him unable to help take care of the two newborn babies in the house as well as the other kids.

Thank heavens that Jill was there to help Jackie or Jackie might have moved to a tropical island by now.

Other family members as well as friends had been helpful too, and it was very much appreciated.

Jackie went up to check on Nick and he burst out laughing.

"Changing careers dear?" He asked as he looked at her, she was wearing a doctor's mask.

"I'm sorry Nicky, but I am not getting sick." Jackie stated.

He just chuckled, he loved her dearly but there was no denying that she was nuts.

"Can I get you anything? Catherine made chicken soup for you and brought it over would you like some?"

"Not right now but that does sound good, maybe later. So Cath was here?" He asked.

"Yep. She's downstairs still actually"

"Why doesn't she come see me?" He asked.

"I won't let her, I don't want her to get sick either."

Nick laughed again.

"Would you like me to get you anything?"

"Yeah." He told her with a smile.

"What?" She asked.

"A kiss." He told her.

"I'm not kissing you right now, nice try, I love you but not that much."

He grinned at her.

Just then the sound of a baby's cry got both of their attention.

Jackie hurriedly left the room, took off her mask and disposed of it, washed her hands, wiped down everything she had just touched with a wet wipe, rewashed her hands and then went into the living room to tend to the baby.

She found Catherine standing over the bassinette gently picking the baby up.

She also found Jill sitting on the couch holding Ryan in her arms feeding him a bottle.

The other kids were all covering their ears trying to shield themselves from the racket.

"Are you hungry too?" Catherine asked the screaming infant in her arms as she took a seat on the couch next to Jill.

"I think you are because you keep looking at my chest but I hate to break it to you little one, I won't be much help to you." Catherine told the baby in a soft, soothing voice.

Jackie laughed.

"There's some already made bottles in the fridge, I'll go grab one." Jackie told her.

Jackie went and grabbed a bottle and then took it into the living room.

"I'll feed him." Catherine offered as Jackie held out her arms so she could take him.

"Mommy I'm hungry too." Jasmine told her.

"Me too." Johnna said and the other kids agreed.

"Alright, would you like a peanut butter sandwich?"

"Yeah, with a smiley face." Johnna said happily.

Jackie chuckled, she knew what Johnna was talking about, the child wanted jam in the shape of a smiley face on her sandwich.

"Thanks for feeding him Cath, can I get you guys anything to eat or drink or anything?" Jackie asked Jill and Catherine.

"I'd take a glass of ice water." Catherine said.

"Yeah that sounds good, make that two."

"Ok." Jackie said as she disappeared into the kitchen.

She came back moments later carrying two glasses of ice water.

Jackie then got busy making the other kids lunch.

"Thank you guys so much for your help, without my family and friends these last couple of days I don't know what I would have done." Jackie told the two women after she had made the kids lunch and rejoined them in the living room.

"Oh no problem, I love babies, I so miss when Lindsey was little."

"Yeah they grow up so fast, it sure seems like just yesterday Jasmine was that age." Jackie said as she looked at her two infants.

Catherine nodded in agreement.

"Mama, my smiley face is broken." Johnna said suddenly snapping Jackie out of her daydream.

"What?" Jackie asked.

"My smiley face is broken." She said sadly.

Jackie hadn't a clue what the child was talking about so she got up to investigate.

Johnna had folded her sandwich in half and as a result the cute smiley face made out of jelly was now just a huge blob.

Jackie chuckled and shook her head.

She took the child's sandwich over to the counter and reshaped the smiley face and she had just a little bit of extra jelly on the knife so she made teeth for the smiley face.

"Here you go." Jackie told her as she set the plate back in front of her.

"It got teeth." Johnna said, giggling hysterically.

Suddenly Boone started to cry again.

Jackie went back into the living room. She again found Catherine over the bassinette, this time trying to put Boone back in since he had finished his bottle and Catherine had burped him but Boone was having none of it.

"Yeah you can't lay that one down if he's awake, he hates it." Jill explained with a chuckle.

"Ever?" Catherine asked.

"Not really, no." Jill told her.

"He's probably our toughest baby, he constantly wants to be held or he screams." Jackie said as she went over and took him from Catherine and rocked him gently.

"Yeah, he's definitely the more challenging one, Ryan never cries except when he's hungry or wet." Jill agreed.

"True, but I meant Boone is our toughest baby out of all the kids, not just the two of them." Jackie told her.

Jill nodded in agreement.

As if to prove them right Jill got up with Ryan in her arms, the baby was wide awake but she needed to go to the bathroom badly so she laid the baby in his bassinette and he didn't make a peep.

Jackie sat down on the couch with a still fussy Boone in her arms.

"You're ok, Catherine was so nice, she fed you, and burped you, but she just doesn't know the rule that she can't lay you down if you're not asleep." Jackie told him in a soothing voice.

Catherine laughed.

"I'll remember next time." She said in a loud voice so Jackie could hear her over the cries.

"He behaves like Nicky." Jackie quipped.

"Nick does get that way if he's hungry, I've seen him snap at people at work when he is hungry." Catherine agreed with a chuckle.

Jackie laughed.

"Shhhh." Jackie told the infant as she rocked him gently back and forth.

She attempted to give him a pacifier but he spit it right out at her.

"Gammy me want another sanich (sandwich) peas." She heard Sloan say from the kitchen.

"Ok sweetheart." Jill told the little boy.

Jackie truly did appreciate all of the help she had been given, she really didn't know what she would have done without them, but she knew one thing, Nick better get well soon or she might be driven completely crazy!

The End!