Author's Note: I do not own the rights to "Cheaper By the Dozen" or "Cheaper By the Dozen Two," this story is only for the enjoyment of the author and whomever chooses to read the following story.

This story occurs right before, during and after Mark runs away in "Cheaper By the Dozen." It takes the place of some events in the movie, and adds new ones. Enjoy!

Chapter one: A Mapped Plan

Mark's Point of view (POV)

"Beans, please come back, don't stay dead, please!" I wailed to my only friend who was in his shoebox grave. Of course this begging did not bring Beans back alive; I did not really expect it to though. Only in those fairy-tales that my sisters like and seem to live by, did wailing help someone to be brought back to life. Well, except for in the days of Jesus, but other than that, physical life after death just did not occur. It figures that I would be the one to lose my best friend, who by the way was a frog; nothing seemed to work out in my life. I was always the outcast of the family, the one with the geeky glasses and just general quirkiness. My siblings, particularly Sarah, had taken to calling me FedEx, saying that I was not a real member of the family. I hated that nickname, but I now wondered if there was any truth in it. Sitting up on my bed, I could still hear my so-called family arguing downstairs. I had left the scene when everyone showed that they did not give a care about me. Well, Nora called my name, but what does she know, she left the family for her child-hating boyfriend named Hank! I gently placed Bean's makeshift grave on my bed as I slowly got off and walked to my desk. After a few minutes of searching, I find what I was looking for, a map.

This was no ordinary map; this was my dream come true map, my map that could change my life if I decided to act upon it. For a long time I had entertained thoughts of using the map, but I had never dared to. It was time to stop being a wimp and use it. Reaching into my desk once more, I pull out a blank sheet of paper and write a simple message:

BIG FAMILIES STINK!

I decided that the note was perfect, it said what needed to be said, and it did not meander in matters that were unimportant such as what I was doing or where I was going. I thought of what I would need on my journey, and decided against bringing a lot of stuff, which would only create unnecessary baggage. Thanks to my secret passage way, I could leave right at that very moment, instead of waiting until everyone went to bed, like most children have to do. I gingerly hug Bean's shoe box, and set it back on my bed, placing the note on top of the box. With a glance back towards where my best friend laid, I grabbed my small knapsack which I had placed what few things I was bringing with me and crawled into the passageway. A moment later, I had exited the house.