"He's gotcha there Lukas, I recall one or two that made you practically do back flips to please them. One in particular, let's see she was a brunette as I recall."

Daisy grinned at her older cousin.

Bo chuckled and shook his head, looking at Daisy.

"Brunette? You gotta be kiddin. The only girl I have ever seen make Luke go completly into nervous mode over was Candy Dix and that includes Amy Creevy. He was more in love with her car than her."

"You was too young to care 'bout girls Bo so ya probably didn't pay any attention to what Luke was doin it always made ya mad when he'd moon over some girl insteada payin attention to you. You was pretty smitten with Amy's car too." She smirked at both of them.

Luke smiled slightly, though the thought of the one that got away always gave him a pang in his heart. Sure it was true that he was never without a date...and it was true also that the girls always came after him, but Bo was right...not one ever held a candle to Candy Dix. He supposed that was why he remained single. He said nothing of all this, however, instead making the remark, "Yeah...I guess you did teach me how not to stumble over my words around her...eventually."

Bo nodded with a small grin, chuckling.

"I can only imagine what it was like between ya before I did....I'll bet you didn't hardly talk t'each other 'cause you was stutterin' too much."

Luke smirked knowing that was true. "Yeah...you're right about that..."

Daisy got up from her place in the livingroom where she'd been listening to them and went to finish her chores before they started in on things she had done.

"I'll give it to ya though...she sure is pretty...I wonder how different it would be if she'd gotten t'me first."

He said with a grin and a wiggle of his eyebrows.

"You'd be cryin' cuz after she saw me, you'd be yesterday's news..." replied Luke with a smirk.

Bo smirked back, shaking his head and patting his shoulder.

"You keep tellin' yerself that...it must make ya feel better..."

Luke laughed at that, shaking his head. It seemed a long time since the two had bantered like this...he missed it.

Bo grinned, stretching lightly with a yawn. He loved these lazy days when all the chores were done, the sun was shining and the birds were singing. Sometimes, just sitting with his family and bantering was the best way to spend it.

Luke just smiled, thinking of the banter, but now thinking of Candy also. Softly, he let out a gentle sigh.

Bo frowned as he did, glancing to him.

"You ok cousin? You know I don't mean it right..."

As much as he loved to tease Luke, sometimes he knew he pushed things too far and he didn't want to argue about things when everything was going so nicely. Also, he hated to disappoint or upset his family if he could help it.

"Huh?" asked Luke realizing that Bo had been speaking to him. "Sorry...was just thinkin' is all..."

Bo nodded a little, patting his shoulder supportivly, knowing he was probably thinking about Candy. Whenever her name was mentioned he tended to go quiet and thoughtful.

"Alright..."

One thought of loss usually led to another as he began to think about his aunt. "Wonder what Auntie would say if she seen us right now..."

There really was no sense wondering though...she, like every parental figure he ever had except Jesse was gone now. And for everyone, including his beloved wife, Jesse had been the one to teach the kids about life and death.

***flashback***

Jesse sighed softly as he put down the phone, having finished making the second to last call of the terrible day that had really only just started and sure wasn't going to get any eaisier before it was out either. Leaning against the wall a little, he glanced around the old farmhouse with a deep sense that something was now missing....it was unmistakable...her singing wasn't in the kitchen whilst she made breakfast...the scent of her shampoo she used in the shower wasn't coming from the bathroom...the sight of her beautiful figure wasn't cuddled close in his arms anymore....she was gone.

Swallowing hard, he looked back to the phone and tried to steel himself for what he had to do next. When things had taken a downhill decent overnight, Jesse had sent the three cousins off to spend the night with Cooter and his folks...now he had to bring them home...and somehow tell them that another person was gone from their young lives.

"You sure you don't want some breakfast, Luke....Bo...Daisy...some juice maybe?"

Luke shook his head. "No, thank you, Miz Davenport. We...we ain't much hungry," said Luke softly answering for all three of them from the spare room they shared. To be sure sleeping three to a bed was crowded at best, and Cooter had a spare bed in his room that Luke could have had, but none of the cousins would hear of it. All they wanted was to cling to their family, even if all they had was each other.

The lady nodded sadly, giving Bo a gentle tousle of his curls before leaving the room, shutting the door behind them*

Bo just sat still while she did, not having done much of anything for a few days now. For him, this was his first time thinking about losing someone he loved...losing a parent. For Bo, the only parents he had known were Jesse and Lavinia since he was 6 months old. If you asked the 7 year old to pick his parents out of a bunch of photographs, he'd instantly point to Jesse and Lavinia. He was Lavinia's baby boy and treated him as such all the time...even now little Bo missed her hugs and wanted to get back home to give her one. He wasn't even thinking about the idea that she may not be there when they got home...

Daisy meanwhile was fast asleep. She had spent most of the night crying softly into her pillow down the other end of the bed until she had cried herself to sleep later that night.

Luke gently covered Daisy with a blanket stroking her cheek, before taking his baby cousin in his lap. Though not quite twelve, Luke took his role of older brother seriously. Jesse had always told Luke to take care of Bo and Daisy when he and his aunt were'nt around. Now, they weren't, and Luke was old enough to understand by the grave doctor visits and hushed tones that chances were very good that his aunt, his surrogate mother would no longer be there at all. So Luke supposed that, more than ever, his younger cousins needed him to be strong and take care of them...and that he would do.

Bo looked up at him with big innocent blue eyes as Luke picked him up and hugged him close, biting his lip before asking quietly.

"Why is everyone so sad..."

Luke swallowed hard not knowing what to say. "Cuz...Auntie's real real sick Bo," he said softly daring to hope the youngster would be satisfied.

"Sick?"

Bo asked, his eyes widening a little before he tried to crawl out of Luke's lap, saying in a slightly higher tone and quicker pace.

"Then we gotta go home! Auntie always looks after us when we's sick! We's gotta look after her!"

"No...no Bo...we can't...on account a....Unca Jesse's takin' care of her...an' Doc...." began Luke softly holding the tail of the little boy's nightshirt.