Rehearsal and Family Meetings
A/N: Sorry for the bit of silence, I had one more school thing to resolve, but now I'm free. Happy Holidays!
Shadow woke up early that morning, deciding to let Sandy sleep in for a bit after the past few days she'd been having. He entered the kitchen to find SpongeBob and Jodi at the table, sharing cups of tea.
Jodi noticed him first, smile widening as she waved him toward the table. "How'd you sleep, hon?" she asked.
Shadow sat beside her, quietly thanking her as she slid him a mug of tea as well. "I slept fine," he answered, taking a sip of his tea.
"That's great, sweetheart, glad you're comfortable. Mm, how's Sandy doin'? I know this whole mess is—"
"She's fine," SpongeBob and Shadow said at the same time, Shadow shooting a glare at the sponge. "She's sleeping in today," Shadow continued, taking another sip of his tea.
Jodi looked between the two for a moment. "Did somethin' happen?" she asked looking at Shadow instead.
He swallowed, trying to figure out how much to reveal and what to keep. He wanted to keep this between him and his fiancée. He cleared his throat, gripping his cup for a moment. "Not between us, no." he finally answered, getting up after finishing his tea and taking his mother-in-law's mug as well.
By the time Sandy was up and downstairs, Shadow had helped with making breakfast while listening to SpongeBob tell stories of his time in Bikini Bottom, even the story about the giant worm.
Sandy kissed Shadow's cheek, wrapping her arms around him in a hug. He kissed her back, starting a quiet conversation between them SpongeBob couldn't hear.
"Uncle Shadow," the girls yelled, eagerly running up to the hedgehog for hugs. He bent down to hug them, picking the three squirrels up in his arms.
"How's my favorite nieces?" he asked, putting Macadamia, Pistachio, and Hazelnut down.
The girls spoke at once, somehow managing to drag Shadow off. SpongeBob and Sandy stood next to each other, watching for a moment before Sandy spoke.
"Y'know, I never thanked ya fer comin' all this way with me," she said, looking at SpongeBob.
SpongeBob laughed, watching the girls unsuccessfully wrestle with Shadow. "It's no trouble Sandy, I would've done it anyway." He said, taking a sip from the cup of punch he was given by Jodi.
Sandy smiled, going over to Shadow and the girls, leaving SpongeBob by himself for a moment. The sponge watched the group of people in front of him, grateful Sandy had such a big support system outside of Bikini Bottom. Now, he just had to make sure the next few days stayed like this.