The next few days were a blur for the entire Efron and Aames family. Starla's uncle had arrived and they all shared more tears before heading to the funeral home to make plans.

They spent one evening going through photo albums looking for pictures of Amanda to create two collages that would sit in the room where they held her wake. The memories held in those photos brought laughter, tears and discussions of the past. Zac and Vanessa sat with Dylan on the living room floor much of the time as their parents, grandfather and great uncle passed pictures from one to the other. They were enjoying listening to the stories about their grandmother and the life that she had filled devoted to her family.

Several times, Starla noticed that Vanessa would grab the engagement ring around her finger and twist it. Not really nervously, but almost intently, as though she was feeling a little comfort from Amanda's ring, and maybe channeling a little bit of Zac's grandma through that beautiful, simple, old, worn, diamond ring.

Alexander watched as the kids went round and round over some of the pictures that included them with their grandmother. They didn't argue, but Dylan and Zac had different ideas about the photos they wanted to use. In the end they had set the pictures in front of Vanessa and let her pick. This time Alexander noticed Vanessa as she grasped the ring and then wrinkled her eyebrows as she concentrated on the pictures.

They had told Alexander about their engagement almost as soon as they had walked into his house that morning. They had to…he had spotted the familiar ring on Vanessa's finger as soon as he opened the door for them to come in. He had simply nodded to Zac and then pulled Vanessa into a hug. Then he put a hand on her cheek and one on Zac's shoulders. "Congratulations!" he said to both of them. Then he looked straight at Vanessa. "And thank you!" he smiled.

That had been the end of the engagement conversation for the time being. They all knew they had to focus on other things that Amanda had wanted.

On the day of the wake the family traveled to the funeral home in a series of three cars. They had chosen a beautiful box for Amanda's ashes to be stored in. Flowers had been sent from friends and from several family members from David's side of the family.

They entered the room to soft music playing, the photo collages on easels at the back of the room for visitors to view and the beautiful box at the front. The flowers were placed strategically around the room and filled it with a beautiful scent.

Vanessa noticed how handsome Zac looked in his black Armani suit. His grandmother knew what made him look good. She thought to herself. She also noted that he hadn't removed his sunglasses even though they were inside. She knew he was holding back tears again, trying to be strong for his family.

Alexander took a seat on the front bench, near Amanda's box. Starla sat beside him and pulled some tissues from her purse. Alexander looked at his only daughter and smiled before she put her head down on his shoulder. David came and sat down beside Starla putting his arm around her shoulders and touching Alexander's. Zac, Vanessa, Dylan and Amanda's brother Joseph sat in the next row behind the others. They sat silently, just staring at the box that held Amanda's ashes.

Friends began to enter the room, stopping to look at the photos of Amanda interacting with her family. A faded wedding photo caught many of their eyes, along with the pictures of Amanda, Alexander and Starla together as a young family. Their eyes then drifted over to the pictures of Amanda with her grandsons, her new pride and joy for the past nineteen years of her life. They shared tears at the memories and smiles as they chuckled at young Dylan and Zac in chef's hats making cookies with their grandma.

Starla and Alexander took turns chatting with their guests, thanking them for coming and helping them get seated. Once in a while they would motion for Zac and Dylan to come greet someone, or bring someone over for them to meet. Each time Zac would grasp Vanessa's hand and bring her with him. She was always introduced as Zac's fiancée, especially when Starla or Alexander was making the introductions. Vanessa would just smile politely and shake hands. She made a point to always have her left hand available, whenever someone wanted to see her engagement ring. Zac took great pride in telling Amanda's friends that this ring had been hers for the past 54 years.

When the service began the minister did a wonderful job portraying Amanda's life to those who had gathered. Starla gave a loving testament to her mother's faithfulness and love for all of her family members. She also mentioned her mother's love for her grandsons, and how special the boys were to her. To Zac and Vanessa's surprise, a song had played after Starla's eulogy. They recognized it right away as one of the songs they had performed in High School Musical 2 called 'You are the Music In Me." Both of them stayed quiet as the song played but Vanessa could feel Zac beginning to shake as the tears started flowing down his face. She took his hands in hers and held them as tightly as she could, with tears streaming from her own eyes. The song suddenly took on new meaning to both of them.

Dylan leaned over to Vanessa who was sitting between him and Zac. "Playing the song was Grandpa's idea," Dyl confessed in a whisper. "He wanted to let you know that Grandma loves you too, and she loved this song when she saw you and Zac singing it together in the movie."

Vanessa let go of Zac's hands for just a moment as she gave Dylan a loving squeeze on his knee. She also took the opportunity to twist the ring again that was on her finger. Somehow she was feeling a connection to Amanda Aames. One that she felt would last for years to come. As she took Zac's hands again he took the chance to touch that same ring on her hand. Through his tears he looked at her and smiled. My music, my love, my fiancée… he thought.

The service finished with the minister inviting everyone to come by Alexander's home for a final toast to Amanda. The ornate box had been gently loaded into one of the family cars and then moved to the home that Amanda and Alexander had shared for so many years. David and Zac carefully took the box from the car and then placed it on the mantle in the living room where Starla had created a space the day before.

They waited just a little while as people arrived at the house then Alexander took control, raising his glass and gathering their attention. "To my wife, my love, my everything," he said with a smile. "Amanda darling, may you rest in peace, but please watch over us and care for us in your new home. We love you."

"To Amanda" everyone joined. And with that, Zac realized, they had said a final farewell to his grandmother.

He sighed deeply and took Vanessa's hand and led her into the den which was considered his grandfather's 'thinking' room. The guests were leaving and Zac felt no compulsion to help see them to the door. Instead he sat down in his grandfather's well-worn recliner and pulled Vanessa into his lap. "What happens now?" Vanessa asked as Zac held her hands in his. "We get back to normal, I guess." He shrugged his shoulders and wrapped his arms around V. "We keep in touch with Grandpa and make sure he's doing ok. Mom will be doing a lot of that, I'm sure. But it may also mean a couple of extra trips up here if we can find the time." He continued.

"When we find the time." Vanessa stated.

"When we find the time," Zac repeated. "It'll be quite an adjustment for him, but he's strong. I know he will be fine. It's just gonna take time." He stopped briefly. "Hey, do you mind staying one more day up here?"

"Not a problem for me," Vanessa answered. She hadn't made any plans to go home. She wasn't sure how long Starla or Alexander might need them to stay. "Just want to be close to your family a little longer?"

"Yeah, I think so. I wouldn't mind if you and I spent a little time with Grandpa tomorrow, just the three of us." Zac certainly didn't want to leave his Grandpa alone. He knew Starla would be looking in on him. She had already tried to make him come stay at their house for a few days, but Alexander had declined. Zac thought maybe it would help Starla to know that he and Vanessa would watch out for his grandfather the next day, and it would ease his own mind as well.

"Sounds good to me." Vanessa said. She leaned her head onto Zac's shoulder and closed her eyes. Zac could feel her warm breath on his neck as she began to relax. He didn't realize how stressful this day had been on Vanessa. Even though she was practically family already, she was still the outsider and her nerves had been on edge. He curled his arms around her small body just pulling her closer to him.

Zac pulled the lever on the side of the recliner raising their feet off the floor. He leaned back a little more giving him and Vanessa both room to stretch out in the soft cushioned chair. Vanessa lifted her head for just a minute to see what he was doing.

Before she could say anything Zac gently nudged her head back onto his shoulder. "Shh, Baby. Just lay back down. We'll just stay in here a few minutes." Then Zac pulled an afghan over top of them, leaned back and closed his own eyes. They fell asleep together, finally letting the stress of the past few days fall away from them.

That's how Alexander discovered them after everyone had left. Starla and David were straightening things up in the kitchen and living room. Dylan had headed into the basement to watch tv and relax. And Starla had ordered Alexander to go lie down and try to relax a little himself. So he had headed for his recliner. "Tsk," the elderly man snorted softly. "Manda never snuggled up with me in my chair." But he smiled and straightened the afghan to cover Zac and Vanessa a little better. He caught another glimpse of Amanda's ring on Vanessa's finger as he pulled the afghan over her petite arms. He looked up toward Heaven and asked, "That's where it belongs now, right Manda?" He looked back at the young couple and smiled, knowing his wife was smiling above them all.

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"Dad, I thought I told you to go lie down." Starla shot a warning look in her father's direction.

"Well that's kinda hard to do since your oldest son and his fiancée have taken over my thinking chair." Alexander smiled.

"You can kick them out dad, their adults you know." Starla bantered back.

"Starla, honey, they're asleep. I'm not waking them up to kick them out of my chair. I'm just going to go downstairs with Dyl and lie down on the couch down there."

Starla just nodded at her father and looked back at David. When Alexander had closed the door of the basement Starla asked David for his cell phone. "Who do you need to call?" David inquired.

"No one," Starla said as she pulled the phone from his hands. "I need the camera." She stated.

David followed her into the den and then watched her snap a couple of pictures of Zac and Vanessa asleep in the chair. The two had shifted around in their sleep again. And once again V's left hand was resting on Zac's right shoulder, proudly displaying the engagement ring.

Starla took David's hand and led him back into the kitchen. "There," she said as she showed him the pictures. "maybe these will help them remember getting engaged with some happy thoughts, not just the sad ones from this week."

"That could work." David thought for a minute. "Or Zac's going to think that you intentionally set them up to catch Vanessa sleeping on top of him." David smiled at the blush that rushed onto Starla's cheeks.

"I've done no such thing! And you know that. I can't help it if our son has caught his grandmother's romantic spirit and is better at showing it than any of us could've guessed." Starla looked again at the pictures on the phone.

"Having a young lady who's madly in love with him probably doesn't hurt the situation, you know." David put his arm around his wife and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek. "Was I like that at some point?" David asked with a little grimace on his face.

"Oh, I think we were like that. You obviously swept me off my feet somewhere along the way David Efron. Otherwise my mother wouldn't have let you marry me."

They smiled at each other and David held up Starla's hand, playing with the engagement and wedding rings that still encircled her finger. "I hope," he said softly, "that we can be as supportive of Zac and Vanessa as our parents have been to us."

Starla nodded as she and David sat down on the couch in the living room. The house grew quiet except for the faint sound of the tv running in the basement. David sighed and held his wife in his arms as she put her legs up on the couch, leaned against him and fell asleep.

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