130A/N: Short and fluffy. :)
Much to his parent's dismay, he'd driven through the night, starting the four hour trek after his 8pm class exam time finished at 9.
Thanks to traffic and several accidents, it was close to 2am before he quietly walked through the door, duffel bag in one hand, laundry bag in the other, and backpack filled to the brim with stuff for his younger siblings on his back.
He stopped short when he reached the end of the entry way.
The Christmas tree was already up, set that day after Noah and Nathan's begging and Liv's moment of freedom from work she'd taken in honor of her boy being home from college for the Thanksgiving break.
She was a stark believer in no Christmas until after Thanksgiving, but the enthusiasm of her young boys and, to her surprise, husband, melted her "Ebenezer" heart.
Eli had laughed and laughed when she'd told him.
And now, his baby brothers were illuminated in the light of the tree, both sitting up, though asleep on one another, clearly waiting for their big brother to get home.
Moving quietly through the house, he set his laundry bag by the washer and dryer before taking his other things to their bedroom.
Grabbing his pillow and blanket, he made his way back down the hall, stopping briefly to sneak into his baby sister's bedroom.
She'd changed so much, he thought, looking more and more like Nate as the days turned.
Her little face was squished into the mattress, arms above her head and her bum slightly in the air.
He laughed silently to himself, leaning over her crib and settling a gentle hand on her back, forcing her little body to relax into the cot and suck at her paci a little more aggressively.
Once she'd settled, he pressed a kiss to his finger tips and lightly transferred it to her temple, smiling when she smiled in her sleep.
"Love you, Princess," he whispered, before tip toeing from her room back to the hallway.
His parents door was cracked, and he knew the duo were sleeping with both ears open instead of their usual one, waiting for him to get back home.
Setting his pillow and blanket down, he slowly crept into their room, smiling when he found them cuddled up together but, of course, awake and watching his sisters monitor.
"Hi baby," Liv whispered, sitting up on one arm and smiling sleepily at him.
"Hey mom," he whispered back, moving quickly to wrap her in a bear hug. "What are you doing awake, huh?"
"Waiting for you!" She whisper exclaimed, making him chuckle.
"Well I'm home and I'm safe and I'm going to go snuggle my brothers on the couch."
"They tried to wait up for you," El chuckled softly, reaching out to take his son's free hand. "Glad you're home, son."
"Thanks dad," he smiled small and nodded. "Me too."
"Go get some sleep," Liv instructed, kissing his head before sinking back into Elliot's arms.
"You guys, too!" He exclaimed softly, making them chuckle.
"Love you, baby," Liv yawned.
"Hmmm second that," El nodded, already drifting off.
"Love you guys," he smiled, waving and creeping back out of their room to see his brothers on the couch.
Carefully, he lifted Noah to the recliner, smiling when he tightened his arms around him in his sleep.
"Hi," he whispered to him. "I missed you too."
"Mhm," Noah whispered softly, settling back in the recliner and waiting for him to come back with Nate who'd wrapped himself around his brother with both arms and both legs.
Eli settled beside Noah, smiling when he turned on his side and hugged his arm.
With his one free arm, he tossed a blanket over them, reclined the chair, and quickly fell to sleep.
He didn't wake again until Nate bounced on top of him the next morning.
"Wate up, buddee," Nate said with a big grin. "No made wapples wif pips!"
"And bacon! Dad taught me. I'm basically a chef now!" Came Noah's voice from the kitchen.
As Eli got his bearings, the smells of bacon, waffles, and coffee filled his nostrils, as did the sounds of his sister giggling somewhere in the kitchen with Noah.
He forced his eyes open, smiling at Nate on his chest and pulling him into a big hug.
"Thank you guys," he murmured, voice thick with sleep as he held onto Nate and set the recliner right. "Where's mommy and daddy?"
"Seepin'," Nate nodded, brushing his brothers hair from his face. "Yew tay hewe!" He exclaimed when Eli tried to get up.
"Breakfast in bed!" Noah added, bringing over Ellie and his coffee first.
"Oh my.. thank you guys," he said with a big grin, taking Ellie into his arms after Nate settled in the spot beside him. "You change her?"
"Yep!" Noah smiled. "We always get up on the weekends, even though today's not really a weekend," he laughed to himself, gathering Eli's loaded up plate and delivering it.
"Thank you so much, guys," he smiled, kissing all of their heads. "Man, you two are growing up!"
"Yup," Nate smiled proudly. "Oh! Eyi!"
"What buddy?" He chuckled, looking over to him after taking a bite.
"I put da pips in!" He smiled.
"You did!"
"Yup!" He smiled big. "No wet me!"
"Oh man! You're like a big kid this is wild."
"Yup! I awmos 2!"
"I know," he smiled, getting a little misty. "I love you guys… I'm so happy I'm home!"
"Us too!" Noah beamed, hugging him and then stealing a piece of bacon, sending everyone into loud fits of laughter.
Inside their bedroom, Liv and El, who'd been listening, rolled into one another to share a soft kiss.
"Happy Thanksgiving, Olivia," he said against her lips.
"Happy Thanksgiving, Elliot," she whispered back with a smile.