John Hennigan sighed as the phone rang and rang. He didn't know how long he'd waited, but he was about to hang up. They weren't newlyweds anymore, they weren't supposed to be playing hide Teddy's pickle again. He was just about to hang up when he heard an answer.

"This fucking better be good."

Came the guttural male voice. He chuckled and sighed. He knew this was going to be hard to do, but he needed to do it. He hated planning birthdays of any kind, especially his wife's. But Melissa was everything to him, and he wasn't going to make the mistake of missing her birthday…again.

"Yeah, I need to talk to my sister-in-law, pronto."

"She's kind of indisposed at the moment, dude. Can't you call back in like an hour?"

"Ted, we both know you finish in less than ten."

"Ooh, burn Johnny. Here…."

He said, handing the phone off to his wife. Ted DiBiase smiled at the woman laying under him. He slid out of her, and rolled off to the side, keeping his hand on her protruding belly. She was seven months pregnant with twin girls. She was insanely happy, though it wasn't always this easy for them. Cheryl DiBiase kissed her husband softly and grinned.

"Johnny."

"Hey Cheryl…aren't you guys supposed to stop having sex while you're pregnant?"

"No, doctor said we could have all the sex we wanted…what's up?"

"Melissa's birthday is in a couple days….and I haven't the faintest idea of what to do."

"Okay, well I can't fly. But I'd really love to see her. Maybe you could bring the party out here."

"To Mississippi?"

"Sure. Why not? Teddy and I haven't seen you guys in awhile. It would probably be so much easier for me to help you plan this whole thing if I were there. Rounding into my third trimester and I'm not allowed to fly."

"She's got three weeks vacation coming. I know you told her that they were going to induce you if they had to. We can come and stay with you, while you plan this whole thing."

"Sounds like a plan. See you guys, soon!"

He said, hanging up. He shook his head and smiled. His sister-in-law was the funniest person he'd ever met. That's why he was glad he and Ted had stopped on that road so many years ago. He was deliriously happy. Living in LA. He picked up the phone and dialed the phone number that had been engrained in his mind for so long.

"Los Angeles Times, Kacie speaking?"

"Kacie, hi. It's John Hennigan. I need to speak with Melissa."

"Sure John, one second."

And he waited on hold for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, he heard the click and the sound of her voice. And when he heard her, his heart swelled. He didn't know how she was going to take his idea.

"Melissa Buckley-Hennigan?"

"Hello darling."

"Johnny!"

She squealed. It amazed him after all this time, how she reacted when he spoke to her. It was like she hadn't seen him for six months, and all she wanted to do was kiss him.

"Hi babe. So, do you remember how we were discussing your birthday?"

"Sure. You didn't know what to do."

"I think I have an idea. I know you have three weeks vacation coming. So, I was thinking, why don't we go to Mississippi to see Teddy and Cheryl? I know she's having a hard time with the whole first-time mom thing, and the book coming out."

"You'd go to Clinton? For me?"

"Of course, darling. I'd go anywhere you go."

"Alright. I'm done at six. We can pack and be there first thing in the morning."

And then it was settled. John and Melissa were leaving for Clinton, Mississippi the next day. And that's when the fun would start….

The next day….

"She's my sister, Teddy. She stays."

Cheryl said, throwing two pieces of toast in the toaster. Since Ted had found out that Cheryl's biggest secret was having sex for money when she was a teenager, he'd been closely watching her. It was like he didn't trust her. She called him on it several times, but he'd always said that it wasn't anything.

"Okay, fine. I'm sure the guest room is very comfy."

"This is ridiculous! Yes Ted, I had sex for money! Okay, I was also seventeen years old. I didn't tell you, because it was a year of my life I wasn't proud of! I was desperate! What was I supposed to do? I don't have any regrets, but you need to realize two things, Ted…okay? One, I am married to you now. And I am also twenty-six years old, Teddy! And I love you, and I know that you love me. And that's all. Now, Johnny and Melissa are coming today. And I'll be damned if you spoil that. So, come on Teddy…put on a happy face!"

She said, shoving past him. He knew he'd hurt her. But this little bit of information had hurt him. She'd withheld it from him. She deliberately didn't tell him, and that's what scared him. He followed her into her office and sighed. He sat down at her desk, and watched as she checked her email from her laptop.

"What?"

"Babe, I'm sorry. But think of how you'd feel if you found out that I'd had sex for money and didn't tell you. And then you found out from another person. Please? I do love you, but when Matt said that to me, I was mind boggled. So yeah, I'm sorry."

"You waited until after the book came out to come to me with this info. But can we please not do this now…we've got to plan Lissa's birthday party."

"Okay, so what does she like?"

"Chocolate cake. And sprinkles. She's a sucker for sprinkles. So, we get a cake that says Happy birthday Lissa, and have it plastered with sprinkles. And since it is also technically my birthday as well, we should have half vanilla. And streamers. She's a sucker for streamers…please…and one of those big cheesy happy birthday banners. And balloons. We need balloons…"

She said, standing up. She started waddling around the office making a list for Ted of things to pick up. She started rubbing her stomach softly and grinned when they kicked. She giggled and Teddy turned to her.

"What?"

"They're kicking the hell out of me. Dora, Dahlia. Stop it…Let me get through Aunt Melissa's party first."

"Wouldn't it be something if they chose to induce you on party day? And another thing, why are you calling our daughters Dora and Dahlia? I thought we'd agreed on Ainsley and Kate."

"We did…but Dora Alexandra and Dahlia Katherine sounds better. Now shoo! We got a party to plan!"

She said, as Johnny came into the office, towing Melissa behind him. Melissa saw Cheryl first and squealed. Melissa pulled away from John and went to hug her sister. They both started crying and the boys watched.

"So, you got everything?"

"Cheryl gave me a list. Why don't we go do this, and let them catch up?"

"Works for me."

And then the boys left. Melissa and Cheryl talked about everything. But Melissa was very perceptive. She could see the sadness in Cheryl's eyes. She was bustling around the kitchen, distracting herself. Melissa could see herself all over it. She finally turned the chair towards the dishwasher and looked at Cheryl.

"Cheryl…honey, calm down. You look like hell. You and Teddy okay?"

"No."

"No? What do you mean, no?"

"I mean, Matt came over unannounced a few days ago. I didn't even know he was in town. He started blabbing about all these things that I'd already told Teddy…except the part about where I had sex for money…"

Melissa grabbed her sister's hand and sighed. She watched as Cheryl sat down across from her and started talking. She'd told Melissa all of this before their wedding and she hadn't judged her. She hadn't told Teddy because it didn't matter. After she got it all out, Lissa smiled.

"Okay, so obviously it was a long time ago. You have to make Teddy realize that. You two are about to embark on this new journey with the twins. And it's time to move on from it. So, we've got three wonderful weeks together. And we're going to make the best of it."

"Totally! So, happy birthday to you sis!"

"Happy birthday to you as well, Cheryl! So, you're twenty-six now. What do you do for your birthday?"

"We party!"

Ted said, carrying a cake into the kitchen. Cheryl gasped and looked at him with an accusatory glance. This was all planned. The whole setup. It was a setup that John and Teddy had planned. The phone call was a distraction for the setup. The cake was huge. It said 'Happy birthday Melissa and Cheryl' on it.

"Surprise."

Johnny said, wrapping his arms around Melissa tightly. Cheryl looked at her and grinned, and then she realized that she knew too. It was all a plan. A setup for them to spend more time together.

"I got you a gift, Lissa."

Cheryl said, but Melissa hugged her. She shook her head and then whispered in her ear.

"The only birthday present I need, is my sister. So happy birthday."

"Happy birthday."

-The End

A/N: Happy birthday to my sister, I love you!