"Terry, where are you going?" Charlene asked curiously as she stood from the chair she was sitting in. She spent the day with Maybeck and when he slipped away to the bathroom, Aunt Bess came to the back room, striking up a conversation with her. It was easy to engage with the older woman, she was kind-hearted and very friendly; reminding Charlene of Maybeck when only the two hung out. Very rarely would he show that side of himself to the Keepers.

Maybeck looked at her from the doorway, "I just got in here, gimme a break!" He laughed, moving back over to her. "What do you mean? I'm going nowhere."

"Aunt Jelly told me you guys were heading to Virginia this weekend."

"If you know where I'm going, why are you asking?" Maybeck shoved her lightly, unable to contain a grin.

"Oh well let me rephrase...why are you going to Virginia?" Charlene rolled her eyes playfully.

"To visit my dad. For his birthday." He replies simply with a shrug. "I may even see my mom too."

"I don't want to be rude or anything, but if you're parents live in Virginia, how come you don't?"

Live, the simple word stung his chest and suddenly he felt like he couldn't breathe as memories of his parents came flooding back. Ones that he wasn't particularly ready to remember.

"Terry?" Charlene asked cautiously, putting a gentle (perfectly manicured) hand on his shoulder.

"Huh? Oh sorry, did I zone out? You're just so distracting." He said, smirking slightly, which earned a laugh from the blonde-haired beauty.

"You don't have to tell me." She said softly, taking his hand.

"Do you want to come? A quick fore-warning it may be a little weird." Maybeck didn't feel like explaining, not at the moment.

"Oh, yeah. Of course. I would love to meet your parents." Charlene was clearly oblivious to the fact that they were both deceased.

Terry took a small breath, a flash of worry behind his deep brown eyes, "okay. I'll pick you up by 7:30 a.m...bring an overnight bag, I don't plan on driving twenty four hours for a round trip."

"Okay. See you then." Charlene smiled and pecked his cheek before heading out, saying a quick goodbye to Aunt Bess.


The twelve and a half hour drive felt more like a million years. Maybeck was driving, Aunt Bess was asleep in the back seat and Charlene had drank more than enough coffee for the three of them...tripled.

"You sure you don't want me to drive?" Charlene asked, crossing one leg over the other.

"We're almost there, Charlie. It's fine." Maybeck shooed her off, adjusting in his seat.

"You've been driving for eleven hours. Don't you want to take a nap?"

"I'll take a nap when we get to the hotel."

"That's unfair."

"I've dealt with worse."

"Ugh."

After the next rest area stop, Charlene had finally convinced Maybeck to let her drive. They got to the hotel an hour after that, each of them heading to the lobby with their overnight bags in hand. Aunt Bess had gotten a two rooms that connected and Charlene tried to slip money into her purse...and it didn't work (but she would try again later).

Aunt Bess ended up getting her own room, but told Charlene she was welcome to stay with her if she wasn't comfortable sharing a room with Maybeck. But the two 18 year olds didn't mind, in fact Maybeck was like a huge teddy bear. He loved cuddling, which was another thing the other Keepers wouldn't know (except Willa because Charlene had to tell her best friend).


"Don't freak out, okay?" Maybeck told Charlene the next day, after he had bought flowers from the local florist who had recognized him immediately. When Jerry died, it was where Genevieve and a young, vulernable, eight-year-old Maybeck picked up flowers. It's also where the twelve-year-old boy picked up flowers for his mother's horrific death. It was a small town outside of Arlington, and almost everyone in the stores recognized him, asking how he was doing and what not.

"I won't." Charlene said, smiling slightly over at him.

Maybeck muttered something under his breath as Aunt Jelly chided him for saying the same phrase for at least the third time.

Arriving at the Arlington Cemetery in Virginia is when everything clicked in Charlene's mind. She felt her heart ache as she let her eyes wander over to Maybeck who seemed absolutely heartbroken.

"My dad was in the Navy." He said, getting out.

Charlene followed behind him and Aunt Bess, taking everything in. How come Maybeck never told her or the Keepers about his deceased father? Most likely, his mother was gone too. That's why he kept asking her not to panic. It all made sense now. The summer heat was unforgiving and brutal, and halfway through their hike up the deep hill, Aunt Bess sat down.

"You two go on, I'll meet you soon." She said, waving them off before fanning herself.

"Are you sure? We can wait." Maybeck said with a light shrug, his girlfriend nodding in agreement.

"No, no, it's fine. Go see your father." She insisted.

Maybeck nodded and headed up the hill with Charlene by his side, who tentatively took his hand. Gratefully, Maybeck gave her hand a light squeeze as he got to the spot his dad was buried.

"Jerry Maybeck

February 12th, 1968-August 13th, 2006

Thank you for your service."

Charlene read the tombstone, then carefully knelt down before sitting in a 's' sit, "hello, Mr. Maybeck." She whispered, glancing over at her boyfriend who joined her solemnly.

"Charlie, you don't have to d-"

"Shh, I'm talking to your dad." Charlene smiled at him, causing him to break out in a smile. "I'm Charlene Turner. Maybeck's girlfriend. We met at the DHI program in Disney World. Best day of my life, I have to say. He's certainly the greatest you can get." She paused for a moment, "I haven't heard much about you, and it's a shame. You must've been a great guy, because your son is just completely wonderful. Stuck-up sometimes. But wonderful nonetheless. I hope you're somewhere good right now. Well, I'll bet you are. It's very nice to finally know who you are."

Maybeck wiped away some tears, hearing Charlene speak was just like the cherry on top of the cake. He hadn't visited his dad in years, and guilt overwhelmed him until the tears had spilled down his cheeks. "I'm sorry that I haven't come in a while. It hurts too much. After mom died, I thought my whole world was just over. I miss you a lot dad, and I love you." He said shakily, leaning into Charlene after setting the flowers down at his grave.

From the corner of his eye, he thought he could see his dad standing by a tree nearby, in uniform. There was a simple nod, then he was gone just like that. If Maybeck had seen that when he was little, he wouldn't have believed it. However, something deep inside of him, tells Maybeck that his dad was listening. A small smile formed on his lips and he looked back at the grave, relief lowing through his body like a smooth river.