This is a fun bit of fluff, giving Jo and Marcus a much needed break from school. You'll get Leili's break from school this weekend.

Of Dates and Lost Bets

1996
Spring break
7th year
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Jo had lost at poker.

She never lost at poker, and yet, somehow she had.

She maintained that Marcus had cheated. She just couldn't figure out how.

His prize? A date with her family.

She didn't want to introduce them. Her parents' opinion of her personal life was none of her business and it was easier to keep that in mind when she kept them separate. But this was what he wanted so she compromised, she'd introduce him to her 12 year-old sister.

This afternoon's date was bumper car racing. It had been Jillian's choice: she wanted the chance to kick her sister's wizard boyfriend's butt. If Jo were to tell the truth, she too was looking forward to beating Marcus' butt.

The three of them jumped into their cars and started them up. …Well, two of them jumped in and started them up. Marcus clumsily clambered into his car and couldn't figure out how to start it. He had no knowledge of how a car worked, even if he did, the bumper cars were electric and so had no ignition key to turn, they had three pedals: forward, backward and brake.

Sighing, Jo sidled her little car up next to Marcus and called over the calliope music, "This is no fun if it's not fair. Put your left hand near your thigh and move it further left until you find a button—the start label may have worn away by now. You may have to feel around 'till you find it. Once you do, push the button and hit the far right pedal with your right foot to go forward, left foot on the far left pedal to go backwards and use the center pedal if you need to stop. Use the wheel to steer. Got it?"

Marcus tossed a bright smile her way as he suddenly went zooming backwards, "Got it!" he cried, waving.

Jo made a U-turn and careened straight for him, laughing maniacally the whole way. "I'm gon-na GetCHA!" she shrieked as she sped forward, eventually ramming headlong into him. "HAHAHAHAHA!" she laughed as Jillian executed a turn she'd only seen on TV, one where she did a whole 180 and ended up hitting him in the side with the butt of her car.

"Wheeee~!" Jillian cried before zooming off, only to come back around and hit Jo's car. Marcus noted the laugh as she did was eerily similar to Jo's, no question they were sisters. He stomped on his reverse pedal, peeling away so he could follow Jillian on a merry chase around the rink.

Jo caught up with them and bumped into Jillian's front, using her sister to bump into Marcus; they split the points.

When they were done with the bumper cars, Jo slipped Marcus a few dollars so he could buy the funnel cake Jillian was eyeing. She'd spent her allowance on comic books the week before and couldn't afford the cake, no matter how badly she wanted it. She'd basically given up on tasting the powdered sugar and strawberry sweetness when Marcus returned bearing cake in one hand and three forks in the other.

Her blue eyes glittered as her face split with a giant grin, her hands came up to clasp under her chin. "I love you. Marry me!"

Marcus laughed, "You're out of luck, kid. I'm taken."

Jo shrugged as she dove into the cake, "Eh, she can have you."

Jillian's eyes got bigger as she gasped in delight.

Marcus quirked an eyebrow at his girlfriend before rolling with it and dropping to one knee, producing a bouquet of flowers from the wand hidden up his sleeve, "For you, my darling."

Jo repressed the snicker as Jillian's face heated, turning bright red. Jillian fanned her face as she fell into a make-believe faint.

"Oh, look, you've killed her," Jo said with feigned disinterest. Truth be told, this was going better than she could have hoped for.

Marcus shot her an amused look, laying the flowers across Jillian's lap.

"Jillian," Jo warned, "You better wake up or I'm going to eat alllll of this cake Marcus bought…"

Predictably, Jillian shot bolt upright and fell upon the cake with sticky abandon.

Under the table Marcus' hand sought out Jo's, his fingers brushing against the back of it before winding his fingers through hers.