will's Guestbook

"Good," Andrew said as they rode their horses into town and towards the stables. "Because there is no consoling Hoss when he gets in one of his really bad tantrums," Andrew said and then stopped suddenly as he looked over at Will. "Unless you give him your hyde, in which case, he will only take so much before he's satisfied enough to leave you alone," Andrew said with a chuckle and then started his horse again, riding right next to Will as they were getting closer to the stables. It took them another five minutes or so, which they rode in silence before they reached the stables. Andrew knew that he needed to choose his next words wisely, and stabling their horses and choosing where to eat first just gave Andrew a little more time on how to approach the subject of Skylar, which he knew was a touchy subject for Will and Andrew didn't really want to upset his brother anymore that he already was. Finally, Andrew began to speak as they sat on their horses while in front of the stables. "Why don't we stable our horses and then we can decide where we want to eat," Andrew said knowing that Will was right about him being less preachy over whiskey if he had a full belly instead of drinking first. In fact, if Andrew drank before eating, he intended to get even more preachy than ever, just because of the booze. Will nodded and soon both Andrew and Will got off their horses and walked them into the stable, where Andrew paid for both horses to get the best care that money could buy.

Once both horses were taken care of, Andrew walked with Will out of the stable and over to the sidewalk, where Andrew had turned to Will with a smile on his face. "How about a burger and fries?" he asked his little brother, who nodded both eagerly and hungrily. It was finally time for Andrew to speak as they were walking to the café that had the best burgers in town. Andrew knew they would also have to wait for a little bit since that place was always so busy, though Hoss did have his very own table there. As they were walking, it was Andrew who began to speak, though he was careful as to how he put his words, but before he said anything, he cleared his throat and then finally began to speak. "Have you ever thought that maybe she loves you regardless of how you live your life?" he asked his little brother. "And maybe she doesn't feel like she is being stuck with you but maybe calls it being in love," Andrew said. "I only met Skylar a few times, but she seemed like she would do just about anything in this world for you, even if that meant going and making her life a little bit better so that she can provide a more comfortable life for the both of you, while you figure out what you want out of life," he told Will as they finally got to the restaurant but stood outside in line, though the line wasn't that long, so they decided to wait. That was when Andrew went on as he turned and faced Will. "Will, little brother, don't let the love of your life, and I can see it in your eyes, that Skylar is the love of your life," he told Will and then went on. "Slip away. I had two women who were the loves of my life and even though I have one of them back, I will always miss the time I had with the other," he added without mentioning any names. Then Andrew slapped Will on the back playfully as the line moved more quickly than Andrew thought. "Now, lets forget our troubles and have us one of the world's greatest burger and fries," he said with a huge grin on his face.

"And most of the time, he's just working normally," Andrew asked chuckling as he gave Will, yet another look at him. "But yes, when it comes to Laura and someone messing with her, he can get very creative and not in a good way," Andrew said shivering at the thought of what Hoss could do if something happened to Laura. It was then that Andrew stopped his horse when Will said he did send Laura flowers both anonymously and at least one time with his name on the card. He was sure that Will was just kidding but he just had to make sure. "Will, it does not matter if it was once or twice or if it was years ago or just yesterday. If Hoss finds out, there will not be a Ponderosa left in Nevada, especially if he finds out you signed your name to the cards," Andrew said serious without the playful tone. "So, I really hope, for your sake, that you are completely joking," he said as he sat there for a few minutes, before getting Sport to walk again and then moved onto Skyler.

His tone then calmed a bit more as they went on talking about Skyler. He could hear the loneliness and the sadness in his voice, and he could not help but feel bad. "Maybe she's trying to make a better life for herself so she can come back with something that you two can share together," he said with hope in his voice as he continued talking. "I mean, I can hear it in your voice. You miss her deeply, but you just will not allow yourself to feel it because you do not think you are worth loving," he told Will shaking his head, knowing he really should stop hanging out with Ross. "But you are and I know that you and Skyler will be together forever, even though right now it feels like it's never going to happen," he said. And then Andrew smiled big as he continued his thought. "And you are welcome but that's what big brothers are for," he said. "To come to for advice and to make sure that his little siblings know their worth," he added. "And sometimes to borrow money," he said with a laugh as he remembered a few times being asked for money.

But when Will said that if Marie finds out about their little talk and that Will was going to make sure that Andrew took the blame, Andrew's grin turned from a happy one to an evil playful one. "Fine by me little brother," he said sounding like he was already planning his revenge for when or if Will does that. "But just remember this little brother," Andrew said as they rode into town, watching and enjoying all the happy people talking and laughing as they went on their way. "Revenge is a dish best served cold. Just keep that in mind," he said playfully and then changed the subject. "So, shall we go get something to eat before heading to the saloon or would you rather go to the saloon first?" he asked his little brother as he once again stopped Sport to look around and figure out where they wanted to go first. "Myself, I could use a bite to eat before I get any alcohol in me," he added.

"I highly down that," Andrew said with a smirk. "You like me too much to keep your mouth shut," Andrew said as he sat there on his horse for a little while. He watches Will check to see if Marie was anywhere around and Andrew couldn't help but lower his head and laugh even harder. Finally, after catching his breath and pulling himself together, Andrew began to speak again to Will. "Don't worry, Marie isn't even in Nevada, though she does have pretty good hearing," he said. "Anyway, I know you were joking," he said as he wiped away a playful tear. Soon, Andrew and Will started riding towards town again, still talking about Marie and everything she could or couldn't do. "That is so true, and you know once Marie gets in Pa's head, it's hard to get his attention," he told Will as they continued riding slowly and enjoying the ride to town. It felt good letting the wind blow through his hair and the sun beams hit his face. "Such a beautiful day out here, wouldn't you agree little brother?" Andrew asked as he changed the subject for the moment before going back to the subject of Marie.

"Oh, she did more than just ground me for that," Andrew said as he was getting back on track. "She made me clean up every bit of throw up Joe and Jennie ever did, even if it wasn't fair related. And then just because she could," Andrew told Will. "She told my date that I had herpes and that she needed to stay away from me. Do you know how long it took me to live that down?" Andrew asked. "Of course, when Marie did that, she also hurt Adam's rep too," he added. " That woman has mean streak in her and I just don't trust her, but she makes Pa happy and that's all that matters," he said as they rode in silence for a little while, this time getting a little faster, moving up from a slow trot to about a medium trot, though they still was able to talk to one another. After riding a few miles down the road, getting closer to Virginia City, both Will and Andrew stopped to let the horses rest for a little bit.

As they did so, Andrew responded to Will getting a coat thrown on him in front of all the ladies of Virginia City. "To be honest, that was Adam who did that. But I was one who put the idea in his head though," Andrew said chuckling as he went on with his thoughts. "That is true, we were pretty hot back then, but you weren't doing too bad yourself," he added. "I mean you did have a few looks, granted, they came from the geeky girls, but still better than no looks at all," he said teasing his brother. Then Andrew got all serious as he continued with what they were talking about. "But seriously little brother," Andrew said. "Don't sell yourself short," he said. "You are a good-looking man, even if the women of Virginia City don't see that," he told him being serious. "There still is one lucky girl who thinks the world of you and by the burning of your ears, I can see that you feel the same way about her too," he said. "I'm sure that when she comes back from getting her nursing degree, she will still feel the same about you as you do her," he said as he was speaking about Skylar.

Andrew went deep in thought and didn't say anything for a long time. It was as if Andrew had lost himself in all the memories that they were talking about. "That maybe so," Andrew said now talking about Hoss. "But he still got the girl, and you didn't," he said chuckling. "And I didn't believe that story about you being forced to have a tea party with them and I don't believe it now," he said. "Because I distinctly remember you sitting there having the time of your life with a cookie in one hand and tea in the other," Andrew said. "And I also believe that was when you kissed Laura on the cheek and Hoss bloodied your nose," Andy said. "But I must confess, it was Adam and I who came up with the idea for you to kiss Laura on the cheek," Andrew laughed. "Boy did Hoss get in trouble, and we got away with one of our usual pranks," he said laughed as he started to ride once more, at first ignoring Will as he got ahead of him. Andrew continued to laugh as Will was trying to get his attention over non-existent flowers.

Finally, Andrew stopped to let Will catch up. One he got caught up and saw the look on Will's face, Andrew looked confused for a few minutes. "Wait, have you really been sending flowers to Laura Schaffer?" Andrew asked, knowing if it was true, Will would need a good puzzler to put him back together after Hoss rips him apart. "Because I was only joking to get back at you for threating to tell Hoss that I came up with the joke about writing Laura poetry," he said as he could feel the heat of embarrassment coming off his face. "And for the record, if anyone deserves hazard pay, it's me," Andrew said as they both continued riding in silence until they could see Virginia City. "Okay, let's make a pact, neither one of us will tell Hoss about our little jokes about Laura," he said. "This way, neither one of use get to feel the wrath of our brother," Andrew said. "Agreed?" he asked.

"Of course not, little brother," Andrew said laughing. "What kind of person do you think I am?" he asked still chuckling. "Besides, I think Pa would have something to say about using you as a sacrifice, especially since he's getting used to having yet another son. Let's see that makes 6 sons so far that our father has," as he was thinking about little Ethan but not saying much about him now. It was after Will brought up the fact that they should sacrifice little Joe that Andrew snapped back into reality, though Andrew did still have his crazy smile on his face as he answered Will's suggestion. "Pa might overlook Joe being gone, but have you ever gone up against Marie?" he asked getting a bit more serious.

Then Andrew looked around to make sure nobody was around to hear what he had to say. "She has a way of finding out about the skeletons in a person's closet and using it to her advantage," he said. "I remember this one time when Joe and Jennie was about 10 and the fair was in town," he said as they were riding slowly to town. "I had a date that I was planning on taking, until Marie found the F on a bio test I had gotten," he said. "Of course, she told me I could either take Joe and Jennie with us or face the wrath of Pa," he said. "Needless to say, I ended up taking them with us and still ended up grounded because she told Pa anyway," he added. "Ever since then, I've had to be careful around Marie, and you should too," he added.

Andrew couldn't help but laugh at Will's silly imagination as he began to speak again. "Adam and I can't help it if all the ladies in Virginia City sees a good-looking cowboy," Andy smirked as they continued riding and enjoying each other company as Andrew went on speaking. "Well, I tried to hang my coat on you, and you got all huffy about it," he said laughing and then went on with his thoughts. "But you don't have to worry about Adam and I being your competition anymore, both Adam and I are taken, so go nuts with the ladies," he said. "Though I still say that you and Skyler made a very cute couple," he said as he moved on to the subject of Laura and Hoss and then on Skyler.

Andrew couldn't help but chuckle as he began to speak to Will again. "I know what you mean, Hoss stays close to Laura at all times," Andrew said. "And heaven help the person that makes one single tear fall from Laura's face," Andy added as he started to laugh as he thought of an old childhood memory. Andrew turned and looked at Will as he began to speak. "Do you remember the time that Inger took me, Adam, you and Hoss swimming up at Lake Tahoe and Laura Schaffer showed up chasing a butterfly," he told Will. "And you and Hoss saw her at the same time and the both of you had a splash fight to see which one would win Laura's heart?" he asked laughing.

"You came so close to winning, except Hoss was a year younger and a little cuter," Andrew said. "You swore you wouldn't speak to them for the rest of your life and the next day; you ended up having a tea party with them," he said laughing. "Those were the days," he said as Andy moved onto Skyler, in which he saw his little brother squirming and blushing when Skyler was brought up. Andy listened to everything that Will had to say, thinking about his response and what he could do to help his little brother. When it was his turn to finally speak, he let his heart do the speaking for him. "Will, if she does all that, then I think she likes more than just the tips," he said as he continued to speak. "I think she was trying to get you to notice her," he added.

"But don't worry, I'm sure she will be back very soon," Andrew said as he gave Will an annoying look. "And we don't have any girls," he said with a smirk on his face. "Adam and I have girls," he said now chuckling. "You, unfortunately, have a maybe girl," he said as he continued to chuckle until he heard what he was plotting to do. Andrew gave him a playful look as he replied to that. "You just go ahead and tell Hoss that I came up with the joke," Andrew said with a revengeful grin on his face. "That will be easier to explain than the flowers that you had sent to Laura," Andrew said as he rode away from Will, knowing that Will would be wondering if Andy had got through and had flowers ordered for Laura with Will's name on the card.

Andrew couldn't help but let out a chuckle as he mounted his horse. "Oh don't worry, The Ponderosa  won't go dry," Andrew said with a smile on his face. "Because when the time comes, we are gonna sacrifice you to make the rains come," Andrew said sound very serious , though knowing he was only joking. And as much as Andrew tried to hold in the laughter, he couldn't and soon busted out laughing. 

And as he waited for Will to mount on his horse, he went on speaking about the ladies all drooling over him and Adam. "And as for the ladies in town, yeah we might show off for them,"Andrew started to say. "But they all know that both Adam and I are off the market now, but that doesn't stop them from trying though," he said chuckling as the thought about what Will said about Adam and Laura and at first, he just shook his head. 

"Will, let me give you one piece of advice," Andrew said as they sat on their horses for a moment. "Never let Hoss hear you make joke about anyone writing poetry to Laura or else we....well, namely you, will be dealing with a force that even God himself couldn't stop," Andrew told him. "Laura is one thing that nobody jokes about, especially in ear shot of Hoss," he said and then gently kicked the sides of his horse and took off for town, with Will riding next to him. 

Then Andrew looked over at Will and continued to speak.  "Our girls will come back....well....Jennifer will before Michaela, but that's a whole other story," he said and then quietly changed the subject. "And what about you? Wasn't you going with some waitress named Skylar?" he asked. "Or, like usual, was she just a passing fancy?" he asked.