Woo! Double upload my friends!

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Chapter 15: Happy Birthday Mia!

Phoebe stared at Kenny, speechless. After a couple of minutes, while everyone was greeting her grandparents and Mia she glared at her aunt who just smiled and sat next to Grace, leaving the empty seat next to Phoebe for Kenny to occupy. He smiled shyly at her and sat down in between her and Mia.

"Hey, Phoebe," he said quietly. She smiled.

"Hey. What are you doing here?"

"Your aunt insisted I come to her birthday meal. I wanted to tell you yesterday but she made me promise to surprise you. She's quite cool actually." Kenny grinned. She grinned back and relaxed a little.

"You look very smart," she smiled. He was wearing a simple suit, smart trousers and a cream shirt. It almost matched her dress and she had a feeling it wasn't a coincidence. She had told Mia about the dress she would be wearing and knowing Mia, she probably told Kenny to wear the shirt or she bought it for him and didn't give him a choice.

"Thank you. You look very nice. I can see why your aunt insisted I wear a cream shirt tonight."

"Yeah, she's a little enthusiastic."

"So, Kenny. Feeling like a member of the family yet?" Ava asked. Kenny laughed and nodded.

"Yeah, your family's lovely Ava. Very welcoming."

"Oh my God! You were right Ava. That accent is sexy!" Mia squealed. Kenny's cheeks turned red.

"Aunt Mia!" Phoebe said shocked before turning to Kenny. "Ignore her. Sometimes her brain to mouth filter doesn't work."

"Come on Phoebe, you told Ava the same thing. She told me so," Mia teased. It was Phoebe's turn to blush. Kenny smiled and leant in closer.

"Don't worry, I already know you love my accent," he whispered. She giggled.

"So, is everyone ready to order?" Christian asked knowing no one was as they hadn't looked at the menu yet. He was just trying to move the conversation along and stop the flirting between his daughter and Kenny. After a few minutes everyone had decided what to eat and the waiter left them all to themselves.

"So, Kenny, what do you plan to do when you finish school?" Kate asked. Kenny explained how he'd like to go on to teaching in a school that specialises in helping disabled children and children with learning difficulties. They all nodded and agreed that it was an interesting but respectful career to pursue.

"What's made you want to go into that kind of teaching?" Grace asked curiously. Kenny thought of how to answer as it was difficult for him to explain.

"When I was growing up, back in Farnborough, one of my neighbours had a kid who had autism. He couldn't understand what was going on around him all the time and our school just saw him as deviant and couldn't deal with him properly. He had learning difficulties as a result of this and his parents tried to get him into a special school who knew how to deal with his kind of behaviour and help him learn with other like him. But due to lack of staff in the nearest school the teacher to pupil ratio was at its maximum and he wasn't able to get into the school. So I sometimes went round his house to help him with his homework and try and help him find new ways to cope in class when the teachers were picking on him. I don't think it's fair that he didn't get the proper help he needed due to not enough staff and I want to be able to be there for pupils like him," Kenny explained. Phoebe started at him in awe not knowing the full explanation as to why he wanted to work in that kind of school. She wished him all the luck in the world with achieving his goals.

"That sounds very noble. Your parents must be proud," Carrick said.

"Yes. My dad likes the idea."

"Your mum?" Kate asked as the starters arrived. Kenny put his head down. Phoebe decided to help him.

"Kenny doesn't talk about his mum. Personal reasons," she said and no one mentioned her again. Kenny smiled at her, silently thanking her for her help. She smiled back and took hold of his hand under the table.

"So, Mia. Did you have a good birthday?" Ana asked, moving the conversation along as the waiter left them all to consume their meal.

"I did. I spent the day shopping with a few friends and went out to dinner before going to the club. The only thing that would have made my day better was if I was able to drink," Mia explained.

"Well, you know you can't while you're going through therapy," Grace said.

"I know you've given me this lecture a hundred times."

"You can't blame mum and dad for worrying Mia," Elliot said in between mouthfuls.

"No, but that doesn't mean I can't moan about it. Phoebe back me up on this, yeah?" Mia winked. Phoebe nearly choked on her water.

"You can both moan all you want about parents worrying, it's not going to change anything," Christian said sternly, glaring at his sister. Phoebe just smiled and looked at Kenny in the corner of her eye. When they made eye contact they both burst into laughter. The rest of the family looked at them bewildered.

"What are you two laughing at?" Ana asked, curiously though smiling nonetheless. Phoebe just shook her head and looked at her father and started laughing even more, if that was even possible.

"Ava, do you know?" Kate asked.

"I can only guess but I'm not sure if my thoughts are right." Ava replied.

"Ted?" Grace asked. Ted shook his head, looking scared at his sister's reaction. At this point they had started to calm down and Phoebe wiped a tear from her eye.

"What was that about?" Mia asked.

"You know. I actually have no idea," Phoebe replied. Kenny just shook his head.

They finished their starters and had a few minutes before the main course came out. Phoebe excused herself to go to the toilet and Ava, Ana, Kate and Mia followed. Ava hooked her arm around Phoebes as they walked.

"Right, no more secrets. I want to know everything going on between you and Kenny." She insisted.

"We're just really close friends. Who happen to really like each other," Phoebe replied checking her appearance in the mirror in the toilets.

"You seem to be more than really close friends, Bee," Mia added suggestively.

"Oh my God! Ok, I really like him. Really like him. He's kind, he cares about people. He makes Ashley to happiest boy on Earth by coming round in the evenings."

"He has a sexy accent," Ava laughed.

"Will everyone stop going on about the accent. Ok, it's sexy and I could listen to him talk all day with it but that's not what attracted me to him. And I also think you're all making him uncomfortable by continually going on about it."

"Sorry, Phoebe. He seems like a really nice boy. I just admire how he wants to help children with learning difficulties and disabilities." Kate said. Ana agreed and quickly went to an empty cubicle.

"I hear Kenny's been helping you get over your fear of touch?" Mia asked.

"That sounds very suggestive, Aunt Mia," Phoebe raised an eyebrow. Mia just grinned.

"Yes but not in that way. Dad would kill him."

"So would I," Ana said exited the stall. "You're still my little girl and I don't want anyone to take that away from me," she smiled. They all laughed, touched up their make-up and made sure their hair looked presentable.

... ... ...

Meanwhile (at the table)

The men (and Grace) sat there waiting for the girls to come back. Ashley slipped into Phoebe's seat temporarily so he could talk to Kenny while Christian, Elliot and Carrick made boring business talk and Ted, Nick and James were debating over baseball or basketball being better.

"Will you come round and play soccer with me tomorrow?" Ashley asked Kenny.

"Not tomorrow, mate. I'm working and my dad said we could hang out tomorrow afternoon. It's the first weekend he's had off in ages," Kenny explained. Ashley looked upset. "Maybe during the week? We've all finished school now for the summer," Ashley smiled and nodded.

"So, Kenny. How close are you and my niece?" Elliot asked suddenly.

"Erm, very close. She's my best friend." Kenny replied.

"But, you've only known her a couple of weeks."

"Elliot," Grace said in warning.

"Elliot is this going somewhere?" Christian asked.

"I just want to make sure he isn't getting any funny ideas involving Phoebe, considering her vulnerable state at the moment," Elliot replied as if was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Surely that should be my job?" Christian snapped.

"I assure you, Mr Grey, that I have no intention of taking advantage of Phoebe. We're just good friends."

"Well, of course you would say that. It's not you're going to come out and say 'hey I'm going to use her vulnerability against her, hope you don't mind', are you?"

"ELLIOT!" Grace snapped. "There was no need for that."

"How much have you had to drink?" Carrick asked, realising that he had seen Elliot fill his glass up several times. Elliot didn't get drunk very often and when he did, he wasn't a nice person.

"I think he's had enough," Christian said taking the glass away from him.

"I apologise for my son's behaviour Kenny. He's not always like this. He's just not a very nice drunk," Grace explained. Kenny nodded and claimed it was fine.

As the other ladies returned all the men stood up. Kenny even helped Phoebe back into her chair, tucking it under her as she sat down. After hearing a slight cough, he did the same for Ava, who was grinning like a fool causing him to grin too. After he sat back in his own seat Phoebe smiled and thanked him.

The main course came out and they ended up having several different conversations at once. The ladies talked about having a spa day soon, the men talked about their boring business and sport stuff. The kids talked about the plans for the summer but Phoebe and Kenny had their own quiet conversation.

"So, what do you Americans get up to in the summer?" Kenny asked.

"Well, in a couple of weeks is my parents wedding anniversary so we're having a surprise ball for them at my grandparents house," she whispered so Christian and Ana couldn't hear. "I like going to my dad's office with him sometimes as I want to work with him someday. We often go swimming, cinema, shopping. Most of the time we're having picnics out in our meadow at home. Hang out with our friends, messing around in our ballroom. I do dancing. We do all sorts, really. Mum and dad take us sailing a lot on dad's yacht. What sort of things do you English people get up to in your summer?"

"Hanging out in the park most of the time. I didn't really do a lot."

"We're going to the beach next weekend. Wanna come?" she offered.

"Who will be going?"

"Me, Ava, Rebecca, Susan, Julie. I think some of the other guys at school too. Possibly Nicky but I'm not sure considering what happened. My brothers may join us along with my fifty thousand security," she joked. He laughed quietly.

"Yeah, I'll come along. I was just worried your whole family would be there, that's all. Your aunt is a very active woman." She laughed and quickly turned to Ava.

"Hey, I invited Kenny to join us at the beach next weekend. You don't mind do you?"

"Of course not. I'm surprised you hadn't invited him earlier than now," she said and turned back to Nick.

"Sorted. You're coming then," she said to Kenny.

"Phoebe you know I really like you don't you?" he asked suddenly. She smiled shyly. "I'm serious. I have really strong feelings for you and I know we haven't known each other that long I think we could be really good together.

"Kenny, I... I don't know what you see in me,"

"Have you looked in the mirror lately? You're beautiful and kind and even though you're going through a tough time you are always trying to put everyone else before you. You still worry about me, where my mum's concerned, even though I tell you not to."

"You really believe all of that?" she asked shyly. He nodded. "Even though I'm scarred?"

"Phoebe, that just makes you even more beautiful. It shows that after everything you've been through you were strong enough to survive. That's pretty admirable."

"It didn't feel like that at the time."

"Ok, this is obviously making you more upset so I'm going to change the subject. Can I kiss you tonight?" she looked at him shocked.

"What a conversation changer!" she laughed.

"That doesn't answer my question," he said teasing. She decided to play along.

"I'll think about it," she winked. Christian noticed this wink and joined their conversation.

"What are you two whispering about?" he asked.

"What we Americans get up to during the summer." Phoebe answered referring to their earlier conversation.

"Hmm mmm," Christian mumbled unconvinced. "What were you winking at?" he grinned knowing he got her.

"He asked if he could kiss me tonight so I said I'll think about it." Grace, Kate and Mia spat out their drinks, shocked that she would admit it. Kenny's cheeks went red with embarrassment and Phoebe just sat there trying to control her laughter. She noticed Ava and her brothers were trying not to laugh too.

"Really?"

"Honestly, dad, you asked." She finally let her laughter and, as did Ava and Ashley. Soon everyone was laughing, except for Christian, who didn't know what to think of Kenny and his daughter having feelings for each other. Everyone soon went back to their own conversations as they finished their dinner. Christian turned to Ana.

"Do you really think that's what they were talking about?" he asked quietly.

"Does it matter? Christian you know they like each other so why are you getting upset over it now?"

"I guess she's growing up so fast. I feel this is moving too fast for her."

"Lighten up. Tonight is about Mia. When are you going to say a few words and give her, her present?"

"I was thinking as soon as the waiters have cleared the table and before we have dessert." He answered watching his daughter and Kenny talk quietly again. Mia joined in their conversation and they ended up talking about Niagra Falls and how they want to plan a trip there.

As soon as waiters had cleared the main course dishes away Christian stood. Everyone was quiet almost immediately, even Elliot who looked like he had sobered up a bit since eating a meal.

"Right, I'll keep this informal since we're all family," he started, not wanting to leave Kenny out; he felt like family after the amount of time he'd spent round their house. "Mia, no matter how old you are, you'll always be my little sister. And while you may hate it but I will always see you as that tiny baby dependant on our parents who helped me come out of my shell when we were children. I won't embarrass you by letting everyone know your age, as most of know anyway, but you still look so young. And I hope we will get to celebrate more birthdays with you because you are special to this family. And let's face it, it would be far too quiet without you around," everyone laughed. He raised his glass in the air. "So, happy birthday my darling little sister. I hope it was a good day," everyone took a drink before Ana stood handing over her birthday present. Mia squealed happily and opened it.

Inside the Cartier box was a silver choker necklace with the word 'Mia' inscribed in the centre. There was also a matching bracelet and drop diamond earring. Mia loved it and stood, throwing her arms around Ana before running over to Christian thanking them both, and the children, for a lovely gift. Grace and Carrick gave her, her gift on her actual birthday as did Kate and Elliot as they popped round briefly. But due to Christian and Ana's busy schedule they didn't get a chance to.

"And Ana and I have one more announcement to make," Christian quickly added. Grace looked at Ana and smiled, knowing what they were about to say. "I know that we aren't getting any younger but Ana doesn't look a day over 25. We have five wonderful children in our lives that we love very much. In fact we love our children so much, we are having another," he said proudly. Everyone looked at him shocked, except for Grace and the kids.

"What?" Kate whispered.

"I'm pregnant, again." Ana said simply. Everyone stood up congratulating them and pulling Ana into a hug. The kids stayed where they were.

"So, your mums pregnant again?" Kenny whispered in Phoebe's ear.

"Yes. I get to be a big sister all over again," she smiled in return then frowned.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm just thinking I have to share again." They laughed.

Once everyone was sat down, the waiter returned with dessert menus.

"So when is this baby due?" Mia asked jumping up and down.

"Sometime in December. Just before Christmas." Ana explained.

"Ooh, so exciting!"

"Why do I never realise beforehand Steele?" Kate asked. She never suspected anything any other time Ana was pregnant and was always determined to make sure she kept an eye out for anything to indicate that she could be again.

"Because, I haven't had any symptoms with this pregnancy. Don't worry, though. Dr Greene says this can happen sometimes and every pregnancy is different."

The conversation was kept light for the rest of the meal and once they were finished, Kenny asked Phoebe for a dance on the dance floor across the room. There was a sweet slow tune playing and she agreed, asking Christians approval first. Looking at her face, he couldn't bring himself to say no, but told them to be careful as they had just finished eating. He took her into his arms as much as she would allow.

"You look beautiful tonight. Did I tell you that?" he whispered. Her head was on his chest as they slowly moved to the music.

"I think you mentioned it," she answered looking up into his eyes. He had amazing sapphire blue eyes that she found dreamy and thought she could stare into those eyes all day. "You have blue eyes. I never realised before."

"You have grey eyes. Is that a yellow ring around the pupil?" he asked curiously.

"You can see the yellow ring?" she asked surprised he could see the overlooked part of her eye.

"Yes, I can see the yellow ring clear as day. Why?"

"Most people don't see and say my eyes are just grey. Most of them they I must have imagined it so I stopped asking people about it, believing I was crazy. Ava's the only other one who has really seen it. My parents said I used to have it when I was a baby but couldn't see as I grew up."

"Well, it is quite faint. You would have to be looking into your eyes like I am right now to notice it."

"Ava calls it the time vortex," she smiled.

"Why does she call it the time vortex?"

"Have you ever seen Doctor Who?" he nodded. "Well she says it looks like the rings you see in the masters eyes when he stared into the time vortex during the last episodes with Martha." He nodded in understanding. He'd seen that episode. They continued to dance in silence for a while.

"You have beautiful eyes, Phoebe," he said after a while.

"So do you. I could stare into them all day." They smiled at each other. He spun her under his arm then pulled her back to him. He only held her hand and shoulder though. He so desperately wanted to wrap his arms around her.

"Phoebe, can I wrap my arm around you?" she looked scared suddenly. "Sorry. Forget I asked." After a couple of minutes she took his hand off her shoulder and wrapped it around her waist before placing her arm on his bicep, pulling him closer. He smiled broadly at her.

"My parents are convinced you're good for me. I think I'm starting to agree with them," she joked. "I want to enjoy touch again. I miss not hugging my family and having arms wrapped around me. Making me feel safe."

"You grew up where touch gave you a sense of security and safety. Hugging your father, for example, always made you feel safe because he was the strong role model who was protecting you. After going through what you went through, you've done well to come this far," Kenny explained.

"That's one way to look at it. Where'd you learn to think logically?" she asked quoting the exact same thing he said the day they first met.

"Well, you see there's this amazing girl at school that I'm crazy about. She told me how she has been taught to always make sensible decisions and how to think logically. I thought I'd take her advice." He grinned quoting her briefly from that day.

"She's crazy about you too."

"Really?"

"Yes and she told me she wants you to kiss her. There was no thinking to be done about it," she grinned as he slowly lowered his head. Their lips touched and the kiss was as magical as if she was in a Disney Princess movie attending the ball meeting Prince Charming for the first time. They broke apart when they heard cheering and turned to see Mia and Ava high fiving. They laughed.

"And that would be my crazy family, laughing at us," Phoebe said looking at Christian to gauge his reaction. To her surprise he was also smiling, though it was a bit of a sad smile.

"I like your crazy family. Does this mean I can take you out on a date? As my girlfriend?" he asked hopefully.

"I'd have to ask my dad as we would have to have security follow us, but the girlfriend bit is a definite yes." She answered leaning up to kiss him again, though this kiss was brief as Christian came over to tell them they were leaving soon and he had ordered them an after dinner drink.

... ... ...

Once Christian had agreed to let Phoebe and Kenny have a dance, Ana kissed his cheek and whispered a 'thank you' in his ear. He looked at her and grinned.

"Wow, dad, are you feeling alright?" Teddy asked, grinning like a fool.

"Of course why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you let Phoebe go off to dance with a boy," Nick added. He, Ted, James and Ashley burst out laughing. Ava sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Come on, boys. They're only across the room, it's not like they're going to do anything," she said.

"Yes, but even doing that is a big step for Christian," Kate said with a disapproving tone.

"You can't blame me for being worried about my daughter," Christian snapped at Kate.

"No one can blame you for being worried," Grace said glaring at Kate.

"Kenny has helped Phoebe with her recovery almost in the same way Ana helped me over the years."

"I hope not in the same way," Kate said sipping her wine, rolling her eyes.

"Kate," Ana and Grace snapped.

"What I mean is Kenny is someone Phoebe can confide in without being judged and without fear of what his reaction will be. I know I'm not the easiest person to talk to and Flynn listens but gives his input. Kenny has been exactly what she needs; a friend," Christian explained. "The least I could do is let him dance with her."

"What's Ava, then? A dancing monkey?" Kate asked with much sarcasm.

"Mum!" Ava snapped though more shocked than anything else. "Phoebe does talk to me but because we're so close it's difficult for her. I'm not exactly the easiest person to confide in either."

"Well, I personally think he's amazing," Mia put in.

"Anyone who can put up with your enthusiasm outside this family is amazing Mia," Ana joked causing everyone to laugh.

"Ha ha ha, hilarious," Mia said. The waiter appeared, clearing away the dessert plates.

"Coffee?" he asked. Most of the grownups had a coffee, Ana and Ted had tea, Christian ordered a hot chocolate for Phoebe, Ashley and Kenny while Nick, James and Ava each had another flavoured water.

"So, what do you all plan to do this summer?" Grace asked.

"Well, me, Phoebe and a group of our friends are going to the beach next Saturday," Ava said.

"I'm taking my wife and children sailing at some point," Christian said. "We have our anniversary dinner and that's about it I think."

"I'm just hanging out with my friends mostly. Maybe do a bit of painting," Ted said.

"Playing baseball with my friends, mostly," Nick commented.

"Ashley has soccer practice a lot to help him socialise with others," Ana said on behalf of Ashley.

"I'm not up to much this summer," James said. "My friends are on holiday for most of it."

"Well, at least you'll have stuff to talk about when they get back," Ana said.

"Oh my God!" Mia suddenly squealed, looking at Phoebe and Kenny. Everyone turned to see what she was happy about when they saw Kenny bend his head down to kiss her. Mia and Ava gave a little cheer and high fived as Kenny and Phoebe turned around, looking embarrassed but then smiling.

Ana looked at Christian to see him smiling and her smile grew wider. She kissed his cheek and he turned to her.

"What?"

"Well done for not going thermo-nuclear," she whispered.

"Ana, I'm not that bad. And it was only a kiss. From over here it looked like it was magical for her and I'm happy that she's happy. I don't want to spoil things for her," he smiled lowering his head to kiss her lips. Their drinks arrived and he excused himself to tell Phoebe.

"Phoebe? Kenny? Just so you know I've ordered you both a hot chocolate at it's at the table. After that we'll be leaving," he said.

"Ok, dad," Phoebe answered following him back to the table, Kenny right next to her. When they sat down they noticed Ava and Mia smiling widely at them. "Before you ask, I don't kiss and tell," she said quickly.

"Oh come on!" they moaned. Phoebe looked at Kenny.

"Alright, it was magical. But that's all your getting, you saw the rest." She said not taking her eyes off him.

... ... ...

Christian insisted that they take Kenny home. He sent Phoebe and Kenny off in the SUV with security. He wanted Phoebe to be able to say goodbye to Kenny without having the whole family watching and making them uncomfortable. He drove with Ana and the boys.

At Kenny's house they kissed again. They joked about how it should him taking her home rather than her taking him but she didn't care. They said goodbye and arranged to meet up again soon before he ran up to his front door. She briefly saw his father in the doorway and returned the wave he gave.

When she arrived home she went straight to her father's office as she knew he would quickly check any emails he may have received over the last few hours. He looked up as she entered.

"Hey, Cupcake. You alright?" he asked. She nodded and walked in to sit in one of the chairs opposite him at his desk.

"I'm more than alright, dad. I'm ecstatic!" she smiled widely.

"Good. Did you have a good time tonight?" he already knew the answer but he wants her to say it.

"I had a wonderful time tonight. Thanks for allowing Mia to include Kenny."

"You're welcome. Did you enjoy your dance?" she looked at him. "Ok, did you enjoy your kiss?" he teased.

"Very much. He asked me to be his girlfriend."

"Oh? And what did you say?"

"I said yes. And he wants to take me out on a date. Without the whole family so don't be surprised if he asks for your permission." He was slightly shocked at this.

"Are you ready to go out then? I mean I know you go to see Flynn but are you ready for something like that?"

"Dad, if I don't try going out again, I will never be ready. I'm going to the beach next week with the others as a starting point. Being with a group will make me feel more comfortable but with Kenny I feel safe anyway. I can't explain it. It's kind of like when mum first met you and she trusted and felt safe with you immediately. Besides, I'll have security. Triple background checked security."

"I'll probably send Taylor with you for the first few times you go out until you're sure you feel more comfortable. Taylor and I have been going through different candidates for you, though I'm tempted to send Sawyer with you."

"Dad, you can't take Sawyer away from mum." She stood up and walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him and allowed him to wrap his arms around her. "Kenny said something to me earlier and it got me thinking," she whispered.

"What did he say?"

"He said I grew up where touch gave me a sense of security and safety. So after everything that happened I've done well to learn to accept it again. And he's right. I always feel safe when I'm hugging you or mum. You're the strong role model who is always protecting me and the boys."

"He is a smart boy and I think you should keep him around," they laughed. He kissed her forehead and she tightened to grip on him.

"I love you daddy."

"I love you too, Cupcake."

"I'm going to go to bed. Night."

"Goodnight Phoebe."

Christian sat in his office for two hours thinking how lucky he is to have his family. They've had their rough times but every family has its problems, not as extreme as theirs necessarily but problems nonetheless. Phoebe suffered a lot and she has come a long way in her recovery. And while Kenny was a great help for her, Christian knew better than anyone she still had a long way to go.

Ana appeared in his office after a while and he took her to bed where they made love before falling into a content sleep.

... ... ...

So that was part two of my double upload. Please note this story is not finished. There's still plenty to write. I've just realised that last paragraph sounded like it was all finished.