February 24th 2020

Chapter 55
Their Bonds to the Future

"Okay, so you know how you said you wanted to keep it relaxed tonight, just the four of us tonight, pizza, movies, because tomorrow's Valentine's Day and we're going out?"

Lucas had called Maya after finding a text from her, as he got out of class. Call me, about tonight. When she'd answered her phone, it was the first thing she'd said. The lack of a greeting had a way of putting things into perspective for her state of mine. It usually meant a change of plans at the last minute.

"Hey…"

"Hi, sorry…"

"So, are we having guests? Or are we the guests?"

"Your parents, my parents," Maya told him. "Coming over for dinner. And my parents are leaving the kids with the Matthews tonight, so I don't know what to make of it except I do, and I'm thinking you do, too." Oh, he did, yes.

"They want to talk about the wedding."

"Bingo," she sighed. "I tried to find a way out of it, it's just your mother is very persuasive, and I… well, I was sort of… distracted."

"Busy day at the theater?" he smiled sympathetically, even if she couldn't see him.

"Yeah, you know how it is, a bunch of dramatic people and artists, Friday the 13th… It's just weird around here."

That was only a slight exaggeration, and surely her co-workers would forgive her for casting them in that role, the better to redirect the question into a safe place, away from suspicion. It wasn't Friday the 13th that was keeping her distracted when Melinda Friar had called her.

She had been doing her best not to move or breathe in any way that would create motion, and sound, that could reach the ears of her mother-in-law and make her guess what she'd been doing right at that moment. She didn't want her knowing she was standing in one of the back rooms of the theater, with the girls from the costume department. Already the three of them had needed to get back there as covertly as possible so that her own mother wouldn't catch on to the fact that they were working on her wedding dress. If Melinda Friar should hear the slightest rustle of fabric…

So, when the woman had asked if the four parents could come over that night, assuring her that they would see to the meal themselves, Maya had only one thought and it was to see the call come to a prompt end. She'd said yes, and after they'd hung up she'd finally allowed herself to breathe, letting a muttered curse fly off on the way. It was silly, maybe, but it was really important to her that no one would have any say on what the dress looked like but herself, and the costume girls, Denise and Ilsa. The way she say it, as much as it would come from a place of kindness, of wanting to help and offer advice, she knew it would only turn into her losing touch with the vision she had in her head. She would show it to them before the wedding, she would, just not before it was absolutely done.

"I guess we should have seen this coming," Lucas told Maya. "We have been keeping a lot of the plans to ourselves, and they want to get involved."

"I get that, I do, and it's not like I don't want them to be involved, I just don't want it to become…"

"It is going to be our wedding, the way we want it to be. We will make sure they understand. If there's anyone who can hold their ground, it's us, right?"

"Yeah, sure, but they know that, they know us. Their firstborn kids are getting married, your parents' only kid is getting married. You don't think they're going to pull out the dirtiest tricks they have in their books?"

"I kind of hate that I don't think you're wrong," Lucas sighed. "But can't we just hope they'll surprise us and not be all manipulative about it?"

"Oh, sure, sure…" Maya replied; she was going to stick with apprehension, just in case. "See you tonight?"

"As soon as I can," he vowed.

The whole of his last class that day, Lucas debated whether or not to make up an excuse so he could leave early. If it wasn't that he had to drive Robbie and Ramona back to Austin along with him he might have done it, too. Instead, he stuck it out, but he'd warned his friends and classmates, and as soon as they were dismissed the three headed to the parking lot, got into his car, and started for home. Having been through the madness of pre-wedding preparations not too long ago, his friends had told him to just drop them off at the first bus stop on his route home which would get them home. He had done that, with many thanks, before carrying on his way.

It was to be expected, but still he frowned when he saw that the parents had arrived ahead of him. He just knew Maya would be in there, hoping he'd just get home already.

Lucas: Knock knock.

Twenty seconds later, the door opened and Maya came bounding down the steps and over to meet him next to his car. He opened his arms and she came over to be held by him.

"How bad is it?" he asked, kissing the top of her head.

"The calm before the storm," she laughed. "They're waiting for you to get in there to start asking questions, but doing a terrible job of being discreet about it. Your mother looks like she's one second away from going through the drawers, notepads…"

"And you left her unsupervised?"

"She's not unsupervised, Sam's in there," she shrugged.

"Sam?" he gave her a look, doubting that her brother had it in him to hold up against Melinda Friar.

"And your father. The pro wrangler," Maya teased.

"Fine, alright," Lucas laughed.

"Anyway, dinner's nearly ready, which means…"

"Ready, set, go."

It was just as well that they went back in when they did. They'd gotten one look at Sam, and he looked like a deer in headlights before relief flooded in, seeing that they had returned and he could scurry off back to obscurity. Lucas was soon in the grip of his curious mother. How was school? How was the drive home, not too much traffic?

"Come, come, dinner is ready, you're just on time," she led him to the table, even as he turned his head to catch Maya's eye.

"Our house, right?" he signed, leaving her to try and cover up her smile with her hand. "We really weren't expecting this," he spoke now, to his parents as much as hers. "Just the four of you, too."

"Yes, well, you two aren't kids anymore, are you?" Shawn told him. "So why not a night between adults once in a while?" Maya raised her eyebrow at him, pointing over to Sam. "What, he's in college."

"Wow," she shook her head at her father.

The seven of them were soon sitting to dinner, which started off with mostly standard fare, everyone inquiring about everyone's day, a bit of news, a bit of weather… The whole time, Maya and Lucas kept sneaking looks to one another, wondering when the mask would fall off and it would get all police interrogation-like.

"Hey, do you have that book you were telling me about?" Thomas turned to his son, coming off casual but almost overly so. Lucas looked at him, clueless but trying not to show it. What book? He'd never said anything about a book, why would his father… Oh…

"Yeah, it's upstairs… I think," he turned to Maya, hoping she was on the same page. She got there as soon as he looked at her.

"I'll go," she got up and headed toward the stairs.

"Wait, I got it," Lucas stood and followed. He arrived in their room and found her scouring a pile of books on her desk. "There's not really a book…" he whispered.

"Your dad was kind enough to give us a minute, do you want to sell him out?" Maya pointed out. "What about this? He's open, he might like it?" she held up a book.

"Sure, okay."

"Great, now… I think we should just to go in and take charge of the information, yeah? We give them what we want to give them, let them get lost in it, and then whatever we don't want to give we can just sort of… keep out of mind."

"Yeah…" he nodded to himself, then to her. "Yeah, let's do that." They moved to head back, only to stop again, looking at each other with the same thought. Okay, but what do we want to say to them?

"We still haven't told them about the venue…" Maya pointed out with a smile. It got a smile right back out of him.

"That could actually take the whole night."

It very nearly did. After having been gone for all of a minute, they came back down and returned to the kitchen with 'the book,' which was passed on to a very believably thankful Thomas Friar. Sam looked ready to climb under the table.

"Maya sent you the picture of the tree, yeah?" Lucas turned to his mother as he took up his fork again. Melinda's face lit up, sharing a smile with her husband.

"Yes, she did," she confirmed.

"A tree?" Katy asked, as lost as Shawn. Sitting at her side, Thomas showed her the picture on his phone. "Oh!" she saw the initials and understood. "Where's this?"

"Sullivan Stables," Maya told her.

"Oh, your mother's ranch," Katy looked to Melinda, who was still smiling as she nodded.

"Proposed to her in front of that tree," Thomas nodded. "I can still see the look on your face," he looked at her. Melinda smiled, taking his hand. "There it is."

"We went out there, Maya, Sam, Cecilia, and I," Lucas told Katy and Shawn. "Maya had never been, and I really looked forward to finally showing her around, to show her everything my grandmother created, and where my mother grew up. It was her idea for us to go though, and it was really… a great, great idea," he turned to his fiancée. Maya nodded along, catching to the fact that he wanted her to be the one to share her idea.

"I just know how much she meant to him, Granny Em," she told their guests. The Friars knew this very well, and they looked to their son, Melinda already growing emotional as she thought of her late mother. "So I suggested…"

"And I agreed…" Lucas tagged in.

"We're going to get married at Sullivan Stables," Maya revealed. As expected, the news was received with a lot of voices coming in at once, emotions running from happy surprises to overjoyed humility. Melinda had been quick to go and hug her son, who nodded over to his fiancée, reminding his mother that it had been her idea. She didn't have to be told twice, hurrying over to where she might hug Maya, too.

"I hope you know… how much this means…" she pulled back, holding her future daughter-in-law's face in her hands.

"More and more every day," Maya promised her. "Why did you never tell him?" she had to ask.

"Tell him what?" Melinda asked.

"The will, the job?" Maya explained. Melinda looked to Lucas, surprised. "Juliet told us. She thought he already knew."

"We just didn't want to put any pressure on him," Melinda shrugged, a simple truth. "We didn't want him to feel like he had to do it, had to do anything except what he wanted." She turned to Lucas. "We were going to tell you, at your graduation, like a… well not a reward, but a…"

"A gift," Thomas provided, and Melinda took it. From someone who couldn't give it herself.

"So," Marianne's daughter looked to the bride and groom. "Tell us everything."

TO BE CONTINUED

See you tomorrow! - mooners