"Mom? Dad? We're home!" Cory yelled as they came in the kitchen door.
"Oh Alan the kids are home! ALAN!... Ooo Cory, Topanga" Amy greeted her children with a hug.
"Mom"
"Eric" Amy gave her eldest son a hug.
"You did make the gravy from scratch right?"
Amy smiled and gave him a playful shove.
"Now let me see, one, two, three… now don't tall me Shawn stayed home all alone in that house."
"I'm right here Mrs..."
"Shawn, now what did I tell you?"
"Hi mom" he smiled as he bent down to give her a hug.
"That's much better" Amy said while hugging her surrogate son. Baby came over and rubbed her head against Shawn's legs.
"Oh who's this" Amy bent down to rub Baby's head
"This is Baby, she followed home one day, so I decided to keep her."
"Hello Baby, you're such a good girl aren't you?"
Amy continued cooing over Baby until Alan walked in with Morgan and Joshua.
"Whoa why is there a dog in the kitchen?"
"Alan this is Shawn's dog, Baby"
"She's pretty" Morgan dropped to her knees immediately began playing with her.
"How are my kids?" Alan opened his arms ready to arm all of them with hugs.
"Hey Shawn how you doing son?" Alan asked leading Shawn into the living room.
"I'm fine"
"You sure Hunter you look a little down in the dumps"
"Jon, Mr. Feeny. I can't escape you guys can I?"
"Shawn, Cory, Topanga I'd like you to meet the future Mrs. Turner"
"Miss Tompkins, well it's about time" Topanga said clapping.
"Well I guess you weren't they only one with wedding bells on their mind huh Shawnie?" Eric patted Shawn across the back.
"Wedding bells? Shawn?" Amy looked at Shawn questioningly.
"I was going to ask Angela to marry me when she came back from Europe"
"Shawn that's fantastic" Alan gave Shawn a hug.
"Yep sure is especially since that ring's been burning a hole in his pocket for over a year now" Cory said while grabbing his best friends' shoulders.
Mr. Feeny, Jon, Alan and Amy looked at each other, "Ooooo" it was like a chorus all in perfect unison.
"Well Shawn" Amy nudged.
"Well what?"
"The ring let's see it" Amy put her hand out, Shawn placed the black velvet box in her hand.
"Shawn it's beautiful; white gold, with an inset caret and a half square cut diamond?"
"How do you do that?" he stared at his surrogate mother in shock.
"It's a girl thing" Amy and Topanga said in unison.
"Shawn why don't you put this ring some place safe so you don't lose it, and let's all go have a nice family dinner. Eric I made the gravy from scratch. Cory I put marshmallows and chocolate chips in the sweet potatoes. Topanga I made a tofu turkey breast, and Shawn I made your favorite Baked Ziti Parmesan Lasagna."
"Thanks mom" Eric raced into the kitchen.
"Thank you mommy"
Amy smiled as she watched Cory take off after his brother.
"Cory, Eric no running, Thanks mom" Topanga walked after the boys in hopes to stop them before they gobbled everything down.
"Thank you mom" Shawn kissed Amy on the cheek following in suit to the kitchen.
"Amy," Jonathan stopped her, "how do you remember everything these kids like? I mean Shawn eats Ziti with Lasagna; Cory eats potatoes with chocolate chips and marshmallows."
"Jonathan, moms just remember everything."
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"So Mr. Hunter how do you plan to, as they say, pop the question?" Mr. Feeny asked during dinner.
"I don't know Mr. Feeny, I don't even know when she's coming back or even if she is."
"Shawn we've been through this of course she's coming back" Cory look across the table to his best friend.
"Then why the hell hasn't she called Cory? I haven't heard from her in a year. She doesn't care about me anymore. If she did she would have called by now", Shawn was fuming by now, "why in hell's name would she ever want me anyway? I'm trailer trash okay? I'm just some poor kid from a trailer park who's jackass of a father who made a deal with my half brother's step father to treat me like some charity case."
"Shawn..." Amy stood up.
"No, no that's exactly why she doesn't want me. I can't give her anything, her father says he likes me, but you know what that's probably it, that's why her father wanted her half way around the world to be away from me."
"Shawn…" Cory imitated his mother in an attempt to calm him down.
"She's found some rich French guy who can give her everything. She's never coming back to me. I got to get some air", Shawn headed for the living room, "Damn it!" Shawn shoved the kitchen door open so violently that is swung back with a bang.
Amy placed her hand over her mouth as if to try and hold back the tears from flowing and stared at her husband. Jon stood up to follow Shawn, Cory followed suit Baby at his heels.
"Hunter that was some scene"
"Sorry" Shawn's voice was thick and sour.
"Shawnie you have to stop doing this to yourself, you have to stop…"
"Stop what Cory? Huh? What is it you want me to stop?"
"He wants you to stop treating yourself like you're worthless. Shawn you are not that same kid from the trailer park anymore", Shawn gave Jonathan his back, "Shawn", Jon turned him so they were face to face, "You were never trailer trash you just got stuck with some parents who obviously were never ready to be parents in the first place. You had a hard life and tried to get through it will rebellion. You put yourself on a bad path for a while, but you pulled yourself right off it. You made a life for yourself, a good life, you studied hard, you got a good career, and you support yourself, by yourself. You were buried and you dug yourself out so I never again want to hear you put yourself down again. Do you understand me?"
"I'm not fifteen anymore Jon" he yanked away, but Cory blocked his path.
"Shawn Angela saw that in you, she will come back."
"I don't want to talk about her anymore Cory, I'm gonna get some air. Come on Baby"
Alan watched Shawn from the living room window. He was sitting cross legged in the snow; Baby had her head in his lap. Even though over the last twenty three years he saw Shawn grow from a toddler, to a boy, to the man he is today, all he saw was a little boy sitting there heart broken with his dog.
"How's he doing Alan" Amy joined her husband.
"I think his entire lower body is frost bitten"
"You know you should have seen him a month ago", Topanga joined them; "before he got Baby he was even worse."
"Yeah", Cory wrapped his arms around Topanga, "He never used to go out, only for work, then Baby followed him home and it seem to cheer him up a little."
"Yeah he started going out more with her and playing, laughing, smiling. It's kind of freaky." Eric chimed in obviously on a sugar rush.