March 18th 2020

Chapter 78
Their Music to Run

"Is it weird that it's kind of blowing my mind right now? You are twenty-five years old as of today… Twenty-five," Maya whispered almost reverently.

"Why does it make me feel closer to seventy-five when you say it like that?" Lucas laughed as they both lay there on their sides, facing one another, with barely inches between them so that their noses nearly brushed.

"I'm sorry, it's just really hard to believe that now, every day, you're getting closer to thirty than twenty," she grinned.

"Here I thought I'd earn respect in my old age," he sighed, making her laugh. "It is kind of crazy to think about it though," he finally admitted.

"Right?" Maya nodded, reaching to hold his face in her hands. "Happy birthday, Huckleberry."

April had disappeared into May already, and it brought with it the impending end of school for many of them, the start of summer… There would be some of course, like Maya, where these weeks wouldn't so much be the end of one thing and the start of another and more… well, more of the same.

No, that wasn't true, was it, not exactly… Back in April, when she'd been in Arizona with her siblings, she'd started to get this idea. It had come together, little by little, in scribbled notes on paper or on her phone, and then by the time she'd returned to Austin, on Thursday morning, she was putting in an e-mail to Siobhan at the theater, asking if they could have a meeting.

Stage Ready Summer Camp.

She knew plenty of kids, from some of her siblings, to some of the kids who'd been attending the regular sessions at the theater, or fans of the band who had communicated with her and the others over the years, or some tales from Lucas and Sophie and the other former camp counselors among them, who would love something like this. They would prefer to spend their summer singing and dancing and doing everything that Stage Ready did, instead of whatever a regular summer camp would ask of them or offer them. She didn't imagine that this was an entirely novel idea, but it would be something to expand the program they had at the theater the rest of the year.

It worked in her favor, along with the fact that Siobhan generally loved the idea, that already the program as it was… well, it was profitable. This profit came by way of the fees to attend the sessions, yes, but it was more than that. It had inspired more presence at the various productions presented at the theater, more ticket sales… When Siobhan had showed her this, Maya had gone back to her office and had herself a good sort of… happy cry, hop around kind of cheer. They'd done that. Her team and her, they'd done that… and now their summer camp would be the next phase.

It would be happening here, and in Houston as well. They'd started putting out feelers in Tucson, though it was still early days and would probably mean no camp for them until next year. She would be coordinating the Austin camp, so yeah, maybe she had a start of summer approaching, too, school or no.

She already knew two of her future campers very well. Cara and Teddy were both going to attend, and they would spend the summer in Austin, along with the rest of the kids, and Abigail and James as well. They could have sent the kids on their own, giving themselves a summer to enjoy their new marriage on their own, but when it came right down to it they didn't see being away from their kids as a thing to look forward to, especially with their being so new as a united family. They had both instead worked out how to get the time away from Tucson with their jobs, and as far as lodging…

Lucas had mentioned to Sophie, on one of his 'shifts' with her, how the Hart-Lanes were looking to spend the summer in Austin. Three days later, Maya had gotten a call from Abigail. She had just been speaking with Diana Zvolensky, who had somehow managed to get in touch with her. Abigail knew who she was mostly by the name and how she knew Sophie through Maya and Lucas and Sam, and she'd never spoken to her before. But now the woman had reached out to her, having heard through her daughter that the family was coming to visit. She wanted to put them up at her Austin summer house, a small showing of her appreciation for all that everyone, including Sam, and Maya, had done for Sophie lately.

"I don't think I could have said no if I tried," Abigail had told Maya with a laugh, and on that she had to agree. She imagined what it might be like if Sophie's mother ever joined forces with Lucas' mother… Oh the things they could accomplish.

This would really be the best of both worlds. They would all get to be together and no one would be left behind. The time they had gotten to spend together in Tucson had been so good, right up until it was time for her to go again and Wyatt had reacted about as well as she'd suspected he would. Maya had almost extended her stay until Abigail and James would be back because of this, but it really wasn't possible, she had to go back. All she could do to try and make it all better was something she'd done before, back when her little sisters had not wanted her to go away either. They'd been having daily Skype calls, him and her, catching up on their days, even as Wyatt proved that he was taking the second part of her goodbye bargain very seriously.

She had entrusted him with the chain holding their father's guitar pick. Her neck felt a little empty without it, but it had felt right to do it. She'd taken the chain from her neck, put it around his, and said that he should hold on to it for her until they saw each other the next time. Anytime you feel like you miss me, you just hold on to that, okay?

"Tell you what though, I'm not going to be sad about not having to drive back and forth every day for a while," Lucas breathed out as he and Maya went down the stairs. They could hear noises from the kitchen – and barking – which suggested Sam was already off to his breakfast adventures for the day. Then there were voices?

"Happy birthday!" Dylan happily declared, stepping away from where he'd been slicing oranges to come and greet his friend. He kept his sticky hands well out of range.

"Thanks, I… hey…" he laughed. Also in the kitchen that morning were Riley and Rosa, and Robbie and Ramona, or as they had named themselves, the Pirates, 'because arrrr,' as Rosa had properly intoned, to ensure all their initials would come through. Half of them would have been coming over to pick up Sam, the others to ride off with Lucas, so they'd decided to make a group breakfast of it, for Lucas' birthday and for the impending end of the semester.

"Hey, so any chance you might pack something a bit less 'class time chic' to take with you today?" Maya asked as they climbed back up to their room after breakfast.

"Formal?" Lucas asked.

"Uh, semi? Nice button up, good pants, jacket, clean shoes, leave the tie…"

"We going somewhere?" he smiled.

"Well, you're going to Houston to see Sophie this afternoon, and I'm going to be out there to check on the camp out there, so I'm thinking I meet you at the house, we go and stop by Isabel's for dinner, a little one on one birthday dinner date…"

"I like the sound of that," Lucas nodded back at her, stalled on the stairs. "One on one dinner, and then one on one long drive home, with you… That's a good birthday right there."

"It would be… so easy for me to make an age joke right now," she planted her hands on his shoulders with a smirk. "It's like right there on the tip of my tongue and it wants to come out…"

"I'll make you a deal, you can tell as many jokes as you want on the ride back tonight," he beamed.

"Ooh, a road roast," her eyes practically sparked.

Morning had gone and passed them by before they knew it. Lucas knew, as he made the drive from university to Sophie and Chiara's house, that Maya would be out there at their partnered theater, working on the camp project, and he couldn't wait until she showed up and they could head out to dinner. At least the afternoon would go by quick. It always went in a flash, whenever it was his turn to help Sophie.

"Hello? Sophie?" he called out when he let himself in and found she wasn't on the couch as she usually was.

"Kitchen!" she called back. He blinked.

"How'd you get in there?" he asked, moving to find her and trying not to sound like he expected to find her on the floor.

"A hop and another hop and I lost count how many more," she stood near the counter, hands planted on either side of a walker. She had one foot on the ground, the other held off the ground. "I lobbied for one of those sort of scooter things where you put your knee on, you know? I was outvoted, but right now I'll take the granny look over no mobility."

"What about your arm?" he asked. Sophie looked at it.

"Not loving this, after all those weeks I couldn't really use it, but we're making this happen," she nodded, flexing her fingers, wrist, elbow, shoulder… "Hopping is exhausting," she went on to admit. "I am so out of shape."

"You want to sit here?" Lucas asked, indicating the kitchen table. He had a feeling she wasn't looking forward to going back to the couch again.

"That one, with the cushion, that's mine. Behold," she gestured for him to get out of the way, and she started on her way, moving the walker, hopping, moving the walker, hopping… He couldn't keep his hands from staying at the ready, to catch her if she lost her balance as she made the turn to get herself on to the chair with the cushion. Once she was there, she pulled her bad leg on to the next chair over. "Landed…" she breathed.

"Water?"

"Please." When he set the glass in front of her, she gave his arm a pull and he came down for the hug. "I totally meant to do this standing up by the way, but I got caught up in showing off. Happy birthday, Lucas."

"Thanks," he laughed. "Seeing you walking is a pretty great present, by the way."

"Hopping," she had to correct.

"Being upwardly mobile," he offered, knowing it would be exactly the kind of thing Maya would say.

"You're welcome," Sophie took it with a nod. "Short bursts of mobility, followed by long bouts of… this." She was putting up a good front, but he could see through that front. She hated this, it worried her, weighed on her beliefs that she would get to wear her badge again.

"How long have you been on the walker?" he asked her.

"Saturday morning," Sophie replied. "Chiara was so nervous, she barely let go of me the whole time. Not that I minded that…" she grinned innocently.

"Alright, so it's only been a couple days. And before that you couldn't do this, but you are now. That's progress. Next thing you'll be doing more than hopping."

"Good thing I've got a year to find my dancing feet again," she smiled, just barely.

"You and me, we are going to bust a bunch of moves, for the old days. Friar, Zvolensky, Monster Mash." She looked at him, and the tears in the corners of her eyes rolled away on a full giggling laugh. That was a deal.

TO BE CONTINUED

See you tomorrow! - mooners