Disclaimer: Only Benjamin and Charlie are mine. The others belong to a bunch of people and companies who aren't me.

Author: Catgurl83

Title: Shocking News

Feedback: Thanks for all of the awesome feedback that you've been sending. I really appreciate it.

Rating: G

Author's notes: My classes are back in session so I'm not going to be able to update very often. Let's try for twice a month.

Thanks to Kimberly for beta reading this for me!

*************

"Chocolate," Sam stated decisively.

"I don't want chocolate."

"What kind of ice cream do you want?" Mary asked David.

David shrugged, "I don't know but not chocolate."

"I'll take a vanilla," Benjamin told the young girl behind the counter. He turned to David, "Vanilla?"

"No."

"Strawberry?" Mary asked.

"No."

Mary glanced at the line starting to form behind them. The man behind them was tapping his foot in annoyance. "You need to choose a flavor Sweetie, these people want their ice cream too."

David sighed. "I'll take rainbow sherbet."

Glad to finally have the order, the girl turned around and started the first cone.

"Are they always like this?" Benjamin asked his girlfriend quietly as Sam accepted his cone.

"Like what?" Mary asked with a chuckled as she took her Cookies & Cream cone.

Benjamin shrugged. "I don't know how to explain it. They just aren't what I expected."

"You mean from twins?" she asked with a slightly raised eyebrow.

Benjamin took his cone. "Yeah, I guess."

David accepted his cone and they began walking again. Sam and David walked ahead of their sister, sometimes walking, sometimes running, sometimes skipping. If they got too far ahead, Mary would call out 'red light' and they'd stop until she gave them the 'green light' to go again.

"I've never really been around twins," Benjamin said after a moment. "I guess that I thought that they'd do everything in tandem. Have the same likes and dislikes."

"They do speak at the same time quite often but not always. They think similarly but not exactly alike. They aren't two halves of the same person; they are two unique individuals. As for likes and dislikes, it is like with all siblings. They like and enjoy some of the same things but there are also differences. Most twins are like that."

"They seem close to all of you," he mused.

Mary smiled, "One of the advantages of being from such a large family is my siblings. They are my closest friends yet there are times when I can't stand them; times when I'm very glad that I live so far away from most of them."

"As a kid it must have been cool to have so many built-in playmates."

Mary chuckled, "When we didn't want to kill each other, yeah it was."

They reached the end of the park and the boys waited for Mary and Benjamin to reach them so that they could cross the street. Reaching the sidewalk on the other side of the street, the boys raced ahead again.

"I miss them when I'm in New York," Mary admitted softly.

"Have you ever thought about moving back to California?" Benjamin asked glancing at her curiously.

Mary hesitated before answering. "Yes, I have. I think about it every once in a while." She gave him a smile. "But I quickly discount it. I miss them and I love them. I miss GlenOak when I'm not here. But it isn't home anymore. New York is home. I miss New York when I'm gone for more than a day or two at a time."

Benjamin gave her a teasing smile that belied the serious look in his eyes. "And me? Do you miss me when you're not in New York?"

Mary pretended to think about it. "Hmm, I'm not sure."

He mock scowled at her. "Not sure?"

Mary turned to him. "I miss you when I'm in New York," she admitted quietly. "I miss you whenever I'm not with you."

As they reached the Camden's driveway, Benjamin leaned close to her and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.

"Ew," Both boys said in complete disgust.

Mary laughed, "I told you that they do that."

"Can we watch something on TV?" Sam asked in a pleading tone.

"Please?" David added with wide, innocent eyes.

Mary laughed again as she held her hands up, "Save it guys. Mom and Dad should be home. Matt's going to watch you while they grill Benjamin."

Sighing, Sam pulled the door open and stepped into the house.

"Seriously, what is with leaving all of these doors unlocked? I thought that California has one of the highest crime rates in the country."

Mary shrugged, "We basically always have. Maybe it's because the town is so small and my parents know so many people?"

**************

At the Promenade, Mary sat down across from her father. Benjamin sat next to her with her mother across from him. Her parents were both studying Benjamin. Mary wondered what they were thinking, knowing that she wouldn't have to wonder for long. Soon they'd start asking questions. They probably each had a running list of questions, if not on paper than at least in their heads.

Benjamin didn't mind having lunch with Mary's parents. He understood that they loved their daughter and were concerned for her. He and Mary had been dating for over a year and they hadn't met him. That must be disconcerting for them. Yet, sitting here with Annie and Eric silently perusing him, he was starting to become uncomfortable.

"So, did you have a good time with the boys?" Annie finally asked.

Benjamin shot her a genuine smile. "Yes, I did. They are wonderful children."

"They have their moments," Annie replied with a smile. "They both adore you now. I think that we'll be hearing about how great you are for the next several days. Do you have much experience with children?"

"Not really. As I said last night, I am an only child. My mom had an older brother but both of his kids are several years older than me. My dad has two siblings. His younger sister has no children and his older sister has a daughter a year older than me and a son a year younger than me." He smiled, "The only child that I've really been around very much is Charlie."

Annie and Eric exchanged a look.

"Are you around Charlie often?" Eric asked.

Benjamin shrugged, "Relatively often."

"You and Matt seem to be close friends," Annie said.

"We are."

"Benjamin and Matt hit it off the first time that they met," Mary added.

As their sodas arrived, Mary glanced around. The Promenade was one of her favorite spots in GlenOak. She loved the outdoors, the fresh air, the casual feel and atmosphere. So far, she hadn't found anywhere like this in New York. Sure, she'd found outdoor café's but none that had this ambience. New York was hurried; GlenOak was not.

"Did you always want to be a pilot growing up?" Annie asked.

Benjamin took a sip of his Dr. Pepper. "I decided that I wanted to become a pilot when I was about eleven. I think it came from having to fly between my parents so often."

"They lived within a few hours of each other. They didn't drive you back and forth?" Eric wanted to know.

"Sometimes they did. At first, they almost always did. As I got older, they started having me fly back and forth more and more. I began to love it." He grinned, "There is something special about being in the air. A feeling that you can't get from anything else."

Mary shared his grin. She felt the same way. There was a freedom to being in the air that she'd never felt while doing anything else. It was amazing.

Benjamin truly loved his job, Eric could tell. The younger man obviously had a passion for flying. His eyes lit up when he talked about being in the air, much like Mary's did.

"What do your parents think of your career?" Annie asked curiously, remembering her own reaction to the news that Mary was a flight attendant.

"My mother was concerned at first. She was terrified that I'd be in a plane crash. After I reminded her that there was a bigger chance that I'd be in an accident in a car than in a plane, she mellowed. My father however, thought that it was a great career from the start." He smiled, "My dad is a daredevil. He loves all things that are dangerous. His favorite hobby is whitewater-rafting."

Annie raised an eyebrow. "Do you enjoy that type of thing?"

"Somewhat. I enjoy physical activity but I'm not as much of a risk taker as my dad is. I enjoy rock climbing but I'd never go bungy jumping or skydiving. I've gone whitewater-rafting several times. As long as you follow safety precautions, it isn't that dangerous."

Annie and Eric exchanged another look. It frustrated Mary that her parents could silently communicate their thoughts and feelings like this without her being able to tell what they were thinking. She knew that some of her siblings felt the same way.

"Have you met Benjamin's parents, Mary?"

Mary pulled herself from her thoughts to answer her father's question. "I haven't met his mother but I've met his father and stepmother."

Eric raised a brow in silent question.

Mary took a breath before reluctantly answering her father. She braced herself for the reactions that both of her parents would probably have. "I met him almost six months ago."

Annie's eyes widened in surprise.

"Um. I went on a whitewater-rafting trip with the three of them."

"You went whitewater-rafting?"

"It was fun Mom."

Annie sighed knowing that she wasn't going to be able to reason with her daughter. "Did an expert go along?"

Benjamin laughed, "My father has been whitewater-rafting for years. Since before I was born. He is a certified instructor."

"Is that what he does for a living?" Eric asked in surprise.

Benjamin shook his head. "He is a lawyer. A prosecuting attorney. My stepmother is also."

"And your mother?" Annie asked.

"My mother is a doctor. She specializes in neonatalogy."

"That must be a tough job," Annie mused.

"Yeah," Benjamin agreed. "A lot of her patients don't make it but then there are the ones that do. She says that they are the ones that make the job worth it. And the parents, she says that some of these parents are just amazing."

Their meals arrived.

As she took a bite, Annie studied Benjamin. He was nothing like what she had expected. Nothing like anyone that Mary had dated previously. There was just something about him, something special. She knew what had drawn Mary to him, what had kept her interested in him. He was good-looking and intelligent. He was a child of divorce yet unlike so many, he didn't seem embittered by it, didn't seem to hold a grudge against either of his parents, to blame one of them. He seemed to have respect for, and a close relationship with, both of his parents. That was rare these days. Almost against her will she found herself liking him, trusting him.

*************

"So, how did lunch go?" Sarah asked Mary. Mary, Benjamin, Annie, and Eric had been home for hours but things had been hectic and Sarah hadn't gotten a chance to speak to Mary alone until now.

"Pretty good," Mary said with a relieved sigh. "It wasn't as bad as I expected. They did quiz him but it was more like a conversation than I expected. I think that my mom has decided that she likes him."

"What about your dad?"

Mary hesitated. "I'm not sure. I really couldn't tell." Her father stood by the barbecue with his father. They were making the hamburgers and hotdogs that they'd all be having for dinner.

Sarah glanced across the yard to where Benjamin was standing with Kevin, Matt, and Chandler. Charlie was perched in Benjamin's arms and the other men were making faces at her while they carried on their conversation.

Mary followed her sister-in-laws gaze. "He's fitting in very well."

Sarah turned back to her. "Didn't you expect him to?" she asked in surprise.

"I don't know. It is hard for me to imagine anyone not liking him but this is my family that we are talking about. I don't think that they have ever completely liked any of the other men that I have dated. Wilson was the closest and they didn't trust him, not completely."

Sarah had to concede that from what she had seen, Mary was correct. "You haven't dated anyone like Benjamin before. I'm not saying that your former boyfriends weren't nice but they all seemed to."

"Have big faults?" Mary finished.

"Well, yes," Sarah agreed although she had been trying to think of a more tactful way to put it. "Most of them were very immature, not the type of guys that you would want to be in a serious relationship with."

"That's true," Mary agreed softly.

"Plus, there is just something there, character wise when it comes to Benjamin."

Benjamin looked up and met Mary's eyes. She gave him a smile while answering Sarah, "That's true too."

Sarah, who was watching Benjamin and Mary, smiled. Whether Mary had figured it out or not, this, unlike her past relationships, was serious.

***********

Author's note: Next chapter, the last chapter before Benjamin goes back to New York.