"Jesús Adams Foster" and "Mariana Adams Foster" were called one right after the other at the very beginning of the incredibly long commencement ceremony. Both names were greeted with whoops and yells and a piercing whistle from Stef. Later on, after several hundred names that the Adams Foster families completely ignored, "Casey Sykowsky" received raucous cheers as well. Another couple hundred more students crossed the stage, everyone stood up and moved their tassels, mortarboards were thrown into the air, and the deed was done. The twins had graduated from college. Stef, Lena, and Elizabeth were all crying, though Elizabeth's tears had more to do with her soggy diaper than nostalgia. Callie swooped off to take care of her baby while the rest of the family went to meet Jesús, Mariana, and Casey, who looked positively radiant in their navy blue robes.
"I'm so proud of you, my babies," Stef squealed, hugging both twins at the same time.
"Me too, me too," Lena echoed, grabbing them the second her wife let go. "You guys, we're so proud."
"Me too!" hollered Sammy, wanting to feel included though she didn't really understand what had just transpired.
"Thanks Moms," Jesús said with a sunny smile, and then he bent down to his niece. "Thank you, Samkins," he added, grabbing her under the armpits and swinging her high into the air, her mother watching anxiously.
"And you, Casey, congratulations," Lena said, turning to the third graduate in the bunch.
"Thanks," Casey answered, blushing a little. "It's no big deal."
"Are you kidding me?" Stef replied. "It's a huge deal! It's a huge deal and we are so so proud of all of you!" She made the rounds again with hugs and sloppy cheek kisses, all given in sets of three as was her style.
"When's the party?" asked Sammy, having been returned to the ground by her uncle and now watching the adults chat impatiently.
"The party is now, my sweets," Stef cheered, ruffling the little Asian girl's hair.
"This doesn't look like a party," Sam protested.
"Sammy," her mother, Lauren, warned.
"Well why don't we get home and make it one, eh, kid?" Stef responded, winking.
The backyard was filled with strings of twinkle lights, streamers, and balloons. A rented speaker system had been set up and was blasting the clean versions of Top 40s tunes, and the usual yard furniture had been moved to the side to make way for a long buffet table of treats and a space for dancing. The garden was filled with people - the moms, the five siblings, their partners and children, all three grandparents, several friends, friends' parents, and even some neighbor kids who'd snuck in to steal the appetizers. Mariana and Casey were nearly always together, either holding hands or with their arms around each other's shoulders. It took Stef and Lena a good half an hour to pull their baby girl off to the side alone.
"Hey, Miss Thing," Stef said warmly, tugging on Mariana's hand. "Come sit with us, please." Mariana followed dutifully, prepared for the speech ahead.
"You know we are so, so proud of you, yes?" her mom asked, rubbing her knee.
"Yes," Mari confirmed, shaking her head a little at the enthusiasm.
"So proud," Lena added.
"I get it, Mama."
"And we want you to have this," Lena continued, holding out a wrapped box. "As a celebration of your achievement and a reminder of your talents."
"Ooh, a present!" Mariana laughed and tore the paper off. Inside she found a brand new Mac laptop, and her jaw dropped. "Moms, you didn't have to- This is too much! I can't accept this!"
"Yes you can," Stef said smugly, winking again. "And you will. Yours is crap anyway. It's true!" she added defensively, in response to her wife's glare.
Mariana turned the other way. "Mama, you guys can't afford-" But Lena cut her off.
"It's not every day our Miss Thing graduates from college. And with a computer science degree, no less." She ran a hand over her daughter's chocolate hair. "We're so proud of you and we want you to have this to do your best work."
Finally giving in, Mariana threw her arms around first her mama and then her mom. "Thank you!" she cried, kissing them both. "Thank you so much! It's amazing!"
"It's even got the special eyeball display," Stef bragged, pointing to the box.
"Retina display," Lena corrected.
"Whatever."
Mariana laughed. "Thank you, Moms, really. You didn't have to spend so much money, especially since you helped us with tuition for four years..."
"You and your brother did a good job of supporting yourselves, and we are happy to splurge on you for a special occasion," Lena insisted. "And this counts as very special. Congratulations, honey."
"Thanks Mama."
"Now, I can see that lady love of yours eyeing us," Stef began, "so why don't you get back over there and stop her from looking like a lost puppy?"
"Mom!" Mariana protested, swatting Stef on the shoulder. "She's not a lost puppy!"
"She looks pretty lost without you," Lena agreed, smiling devilishly in a way not suited to her usual character. Mariana simply rolled her eyes, hugged her moms one more time, and went over to her girlfriend, who, it was true, hadn't taken her eyes off the trio since Stef and Lena had pulled Mariana away.
Next the two moms sought out Jesús, who was easier to find in the center of the dance floor. Stef tapped him on the shoulder and beckoned him over to the corner where, moments ago, they had sat with his twin sister. Jesús followed willingly and sat down between his mothers, looking expectantly at them.
"Where's the present?" he asked bluntly.
"Why, you little-" Stef started.
"I know you got me one," he said, shrugging.
"We taught you better manners than that," Lena chided, poking him in the shoulder, but Stef only laughed and pulled the box up from beneath the bench.
"Alright, sweet knucklehead. Open it up."
Jesús ripped through the wrapping paper like a house afire and unearthed a series of used books. With a scathing look at his mama, he said skeptically, "Books?"
"Be grateful," Stef scolded him with a swat on the thigh. "We could have gotten you coal."
"These are some of my old pedagogy books," Lena explained. "We thought our Mister Teacher Man could use them. And there's this," she added, sliding an envelope out from under her own leg.
Jesús tore that open too, much more overjoyed to discover the iTunes gift card inside it. "Sweet, thanks Moms!"
"You're welcome," Stef laughed, shaking her head. No matter how old Jesús got, he would always be a kid.
"And I hope you know we're very proud of you," Lena tacked on, squeezing his hand. "You worked really hard to get this degree, and we want you to know we saw that."
"You did good, buddy," Stef agreed, and Jesús gave a softer, more genuine smile.
"Thanks, Moms," he repeated.
"Now let's get back to that party, hmm?" Stef suggested, elbowing him in the ribs. "I bet I can beat you in a dance-off," she challenged.
"Oh yeah?" Jesús raised his eyebrows. "An old lady like yourself?"
"Hey, watch it," his mom replied, with a second jab of her elbow. "Watch who you're calling old, young man."
"Let's see your moves then, Mom," he quipped, sticking his tongue out and jumping to his feet.
"One second." Lena stopped the two of them. "Jesús," she said seriously, grabbing his biceps and looking directly into his eyes. "We really are so proud of you, honey. And we love you. Congratulations." She pulled him into a hug, this time feeling a little nostalgic for the tiny hyper boy who barely stood still long enough for an embrace.
"Love you too, Mama," he responded, squeezing her back. "And now I'm gonna kick Mom's ass in a dance contest." He wriggled away from her grasp and dashed off, just daring Stef to follow, which she did zealously. And Lena just chuckled, watching her wife and middle son part the crowd in the center of the yard to make way for their competition.
