"Okay, and these are from his junior high school graduation." Jillian was saying to Tifa when Patrick and Reno returned to the living room after clearing the table. Reno groaned and reluctantly took his seat on the couch again. They were up to his teenage years apparently.
"You had braces…Richard?" Tifa asked him, unable to believe such a sweet-looking boy could grow up into such a naughty one.
"Yeah, I did." Reno felt a twinge of gratitude for her not exposing his new identity momentarily override his sulking fit for his old identity being revealed. He saw his old blue blanket on the floor still, and using his long legs, he dragged it to him, then picked it up and threw it over his head. He may be stuck here, but he had a good imagination and could just pretend he was somewhere else.
"Our boy was always wanting to be the center of attention, wasn't he, Mother?" The traditional Sinclair smirk appeared on Patrick's face as he watched his son's antics.
"Oh yes, he was." Jillian agreed. "We still would have spoiled him no matter what though. I'm just surprised that…now where is it?"
"What are you looking for, Mother?" Patrick asked.
"Maybe it's in his yearbook." she answered.
Reno finally couldn't take it anymore, his imagination wasn't working with his parents and Tifa constantly talking, he was forced to endure this nightmare. Nightmare! Maybe that's what was really going on here, he was dreaming, and if he wanted to wake up…he shot up out of the couch, tore off the blanket, and ran headfirst into the wall.
"It worked!" Reno exclaimed when he opened his eyes and was staring at a ceiling and it was quiet at first, then he realized his surroundings, he was in his childhood room, lying on his bed.
"Oh, good, you're awake finally!" Jillian entered the room carrying a tray with his favorite breakfast and a cup of coffee on it.
"Mom?" he asked, his disappointment fading as he looked at his pancake sandwich, two pancakes with a nice thick ham slice in between them.
"Yes, and your silly little stunt last night put you right out. Tifa and your father carried you up here." Jillian explained. "She was finally able to get home a couple hours ago."
Reno frowned…he was glad Tifa was gone, but…she was his room! He looked at his Mickey Mouse clock on his nightstand next to his Rubik's Cube, all his scholastic achievements on the wall, along with his posters of boy bands and Star Wars. Idly he wondered if his D&D game was still in its hiding spot. "I'll leave after breakfast." he announced as he took his knife and fork to start eating.
"Wait a moment." Jillian took the maple syrup bottle and made a smiley face on the top pancake. "There's for my silly boy. Oh, can you come home for New Year's?"
"Sure." Reno mumbled without thinking, his mouth half full of pancake and ham, and his mother smiled and left.
"He said he'll come for New Year's." Jillian told Patrick when she got back downstairs to the kitchen.
"You didn't tell him, did you?" Patrick asked.
"Of course not!" Jillian exclaimed. Like she'd tell her son Tifa had accepted the invitation as well…he might be a wonderful boy, but men had to be handled carefully when it came to domesticating them. Some of them were more skittish than others, and he didn't have that much experience with women, so she was making sure Tifa knew exactly what her son was like before they did the right thing.
"You're home! You're home!" Marlene and Denzel ran with open arms towards Tifa.
"Yes I am!" Tifa gratefully told them. "How was your Christmas? Did Santa give you everything you wanted?"
"He did now that you're back!" Marlene smiled and hugged her tighter.
Tifa managed to smile back, ignoring Barret's quizzical expression. There'd be plenty of time to talk later…and how was she going to tell everyone she was pregnant with Reno's child? She barely had time to process any of this before his parents dived in with both feet, taking her with them as she was shown Reno's entire childhood. They were nice people, but this…it was just going too fast! She'd have to explain to them at New Year's, confident Reno wouldn't be there, he would no doubt be trying to score with all the eligible women wanting to start the next year off in style…how did he learn how to do that? Tifa wondered, thinking of his prom picture, he couldn't get a date so he had to take his cousin, and he was dressed like PeeWee Herman! Awkward childhoods were no fun.
"Um, there's leftovers for breakfast." Barret said. "I don't know where they put the stuff away though."
:"I'm fine." she pasted a smile on her face, the thought of food suddenly making her queasy, which is exactly what made her worry she could be pregnant in the first place. New Year's would be soon enough to deal with her situation, right now she had to focus on cleaning house, noticing that wrapping paper and bows were everywhere.