Chapter Seventy One

...

"We've got the barbecue and two birthday celebrations tomorrow. It's gonna be huge, dude!" Craig said, grinning at Adam.

"Yeah. You sure you don't mind me staying over?"

Craig snorted. "'Course not, dude. Since when do I mind having my best friend stay over?"

Adam shrugged. "You haven't had a girlfriend or boyfriend before."

"Yeah, but we're not, like, attached at the hips. Okay, just give me a second to appreciate that mental image," Craig added, sighing wistfully.

"It's been three seconds. Can you stop now?"

Craig opened his eyes, laughing. "C'mon, dude, I'm just messing with you. I'm seriously happy you're here. I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!"

"It's been three days, dude."

"Yeah, like I said: forever. Now, we'll get to the tour later. For now, the best part of the house is my room," Craig said, leading Adam through Edith's home to his new room.

"Why's it the best room?" Adam asked, seeing a large entertainment system in the lounge room as they passed by.

Craig grinned over his shoulder and stopped in front of a door, waiting until Adam was beside him to open it. "'Cause you get your own bed and there's unlimited wifi."

"What's the wifi password?"

Craig laughed. "At least look at the room first, dude. I picked out your quilt cover myself."

Adam looked around the room: Craig had a queen-size bed, there was a door with an ensuite bathroom beyond it, clothes behind another door, a computer desk and chair, and finally Adam's own double bed.

"Is that... Super Jesus, I hate you right now," Adam said, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes tightly. When he opened them again, the quilt cover was still there. "Really, Craig? The Commander and Jetstream official quilt cover?"

Craig burst out laughing, doubled over until he was red in the face and wheezing. "Oh, man. This is killing me. Don't worry, I'm totally kidding. The real quilt cover's here," he said, heading over to his desk where a quilt cover was still in its packaging. "Better?" Craig asked with a grin.

Adam breathed a sigh of relief at the chequered yellow and black quilt cover. "Better. Now, are you gonna return that thing or are we gonna do some damage?"

Craig grinned and shifted to Warren's form. "Let's do some damage."

...

"I think we're going to need a bigger park for the next barbecue," Curtis said, grinning when he saw how full the park was.

"Well, if you finish designing the house with the greatest entertaining space the world has ever seen, we wouldn't need a park," Ida teased, smiling at her husband.

"I'm still trying to get the deck right. It needs to have cover without making the rest of the house too dark. Pat's getting the wood, but if it's going to be an open deck, then it needs to be able to withstand Maxville's weather," Curtis said as they headed down to the barbecue area.

"I know. You've been talking in your sleep again," Ida said, kissing his cheek.

"Ma, Da, you made it!" Adam called, waving and jogging over. "I thought you had to work?"

"Surprise!" Ida said, smiling broadly at her son. "Since we paid off the car last week, I swapped my shift with Dr. Grey."

"Pat had a variety of things to say when I said I was trying to finish the Riveras' home in time to get to your party. Mostly that I was... uh, ridiculous. Heidi, right?" Curtis said, smiling at the young blonde girl who was trying to get Adam's attention.

"Oh, hey, Heids. You remember my folks, right?" Adam asked, signing along with his words.

Heidi nodded, smiled, and waved shyly at them. Then she turned to Adam, looking annoyed, and signed really quickly.

"Ah, shit. Really? Uh, I've gotta go stop Craig and Zach from hurting themselves," Adam said. "Thanks for surprising me. Love you," he called, hurrying after Heidi.

"What just happened?" Ida asked her husband, looking after their son who was heading over to the playground and yelling at Craig and Zach on the swings.

"No idea. Oh, there's Richard. Did you see the new train model release?" Curtis asked, waving to him.

Ida watched as Curtis headed over to Richard, both of them talking about the newest train model excitedly. Over at the playground, Craig and Zach had seemingly listened to Adam and were no longer trying to get the swings to go around the bar. Ida just hoped they wouldn't attempt it again; she'd prefer not to work on her day off.

"Hi Honey. Where are Sarah and Jared?" Layla asked, seeing all three dogs in the dog park.

"Still on holiday. I'm dog-sitting," Honey replied.

"When are they back?" Warren asked.

"The seventh."

"That's today," he said, frowning.

"What? No, it's..." Honey said, looking at her phone. Her eyes widened. "Oh, shit. Sarah's going to be pissed. Look after the dogs! And don't eat the cake without me!" she called over her shoulder, holding onto her hat as she ran up to the parking lot, swearing the rest of the way.

"What's wrong with Honey?" Wendy asked curiously.

"Sarah and Jared's flight gets in today. She's meant to be picking them up," Layla said, trying not to look too amused as Honey reversed her car and drove away with a squeal of tyres. "I hope she's not too late."

"She's a seer; how does she forget something?" Wendy asked.

"Focusing too much on a different future, maybe? Or just forgetful?" Layla suggested with a shrug.

"Hmm, still seems weird."

"Hey, Heidi? Want to look after a dog? Or three?" Warren asked, signing to her.

Heidi lit up, smiling and nodding eagerly.

"Dude, you just said you'd get her three dogs," Zach said, snorting. "Heids, ignore him. Want to look after Honey, Sarah, and Jared's dogs?" he asked, signing.

Heidi's expression fell slightly, but she still nodded.

"What part was wrong?" Warren asked, frowning down at his hands as he signed again.

"That bit. You need to sign it like this," Zach said. "Want look dog? If you forget 'look', you just say 'want dog' which is a definite yes from Heidi," he added, grinning. "Ah, Heids, get out of the dog park!" Zach called, waving to get his sister's attention.

"I don't think Heidi turned her hearing aids back on after the car ride here," Ethan said.

"I've heard Zach's singing; I completely sympathise," Adam said, smirking.

"Ah, shit. Hopefully she tires herself out soon. If you step in poop, you're cleaning your own shoes!" Zach called out.

"Dude, Eth just said she can't hear you," Adam said.

"I know, but the warning still stands," he replied. "And what's this about my singing? I'm an amazing singer, you should be honoured you've heard these golden pipes," Zach added.

"I'm surprised the car still has glass in the windows," Craig said, grinning.

Warren tugged on Layla's hand, guiding her away from the others as they argued about Zach's singing. Curious, Layla let Warren lead her away, wondering what was going on. He finally stopped by a tree surrounded by fallen blossoms from spring, the trunk thick enough to block them from sight of most of the park-goers.

"I just wanted you to myself," Warren explained when he felt Layla's curiosity on his wrist.

"Oh, really?" Layla said with a smile, threading their fingers together.

"Really," Warren murmured as he tugged her closer and kissed her firmly.

Layla smiled against his lips, backing him up against the tree trunk, their fingers still entwined on one side as she curled her nails against his shoulder with her free hand. Warren squeezed her hand in his grip, wrapping his free arm around her waist and tugging her against his body sharply. He swallowed her gasp, his leg pressed firmly between hers. Layla nipped at Warren's lips, biting his tongue as he licked into her mouth, rewarded with twirling pleasure around her wrist. Warren felt Layla's own pleasure and satisfaction on his wrist, and he slipped a hand under her shirt to stroke against her ribs with burning hot fingertips.

"Ooh, look, Grant. We get lunch and a show," Jewel snickered.

Warren and Layla pulled apart, Layla turning in Warren's arms to lean back against his chest and glare at Jewel and Grant.

"Oh, don't give us that look. The whole park probably knows you're here making out," Grant said, indicating up to the tree that was in bloom.

"Oops," Layla said, slowing drawing her and Warren's power away from the tree and watching as the flowers floated down to the grass.

Jewel started laughing suddenly, drawing the others' attention and curiosity. "You just gave the tree an orgasm," she said between gasping laughs.

"Okay, I arrived at the wrong part of this conversation. Or the right part," Craig said, grinning. "But seriously, what?"

"We caught these two making out," Grant said, grinning when he saw comprehension dawning on Craig's face.

"Oh, yeah, we all figured they were doing something since the tree went crazy. Don't worry, Donny got the citizens," Craig said. "Though Frieda, Anita, and Nina are probably going to tease you for the rest of the afternoon."

"Great," Warren muttered, running a hand through his hair. "C'mon, hippie. Let's steal a car and get out of here," he said, taking her hand and heading over to the parking lot, Layla laughing brightly and waving goodbye to the others.

"Don't go near my car, Peace!" Jewel called after them, then smiled brightly and tugged Craig close to kiss him thoroughly. "Hi, babe."

Craig grinned dopily. "Hi."

"Jewel's been driving me insane, babe," Grant admitted.

"Why?" Craig asked, licking his lips.

Grant pressed a thumb to the dip in Craig's chin, kissing him deeply. "Three reasons. One: you, me, and her in a sex shop; two: you, me, and her going shopping for clothes for the gala; and three: you and me in suits."

"Three-piece suits. With the shirt sleeves rolled up and vests and fitted pants. You both have amazing asses," Jewel said, giving them both an appreciative once over and biting her lip.

"I told you I have a great ass," Grant said, grinning.

"Yeah, you do," Craig murmured, his hands slipping down to curve over Grant's ass.

Grant's eyes darkened at the touch, both innocent and bold. He kissed Craig once more before pulling away. "We agreed to nothing below the belt, babe. I can't be strong enough for all of us."

"You're not wearing a belt?" Craig said weakly.

"I love the loophole, Craig, but Grant's right. We'll never make it another year otherwise," Jewel said with a sigh.

"I'm sorry. Are you... are you really sure you want to wait? You two can, y'know, have sex without me," Craig said.

"We want to wait, babe," Grant said.

"That being said, the sex shop had better have a large supply of vibrators and dildos," Jewel muttered.

Craig's cheeks turned red at the thought. "Um. Does... Does watching count as sex?" he asked, his voice pitching.

"Now that's a loophole I can get behind," Grant said, grinning. "We'd have to do it over video, though. I won't have that kind of willpower if Jewel's right there."

"We know that from experience," Jewel added, winking at Craig.

Craig opened and closed his mouth several times, his blush spreading.

"Fuck, you're so gorgeous. C'mon, before we make the tree orgasm again," Jewel murmured, kissing his blush-warm cheek and taking Craig's hand to lead him down to the park.

Grant picked up Jewel's bag and followed after them, definitely not ogling Craig's ass and trying to imagine what he'd look like in a tight-fitting three-piece suit.

Warren and Layla were at the picnic tables talking with Robin and Terry as the newcomers parents were getting acquainted with the rest of the parents and guardians. Justina's parents had sent her to summer camp, and Justina had already written to Robin saying how she hated the food and even the animals wouldn't talk to her.

"Sorry, we're late! Someone forgot to pick us up at the airport and almost forgot to pick up Babs too," Sarah said, glowering at Honey.

"I've had a lot on my mind today, I'm sorry."

"Do you know how many security guards side-eye you when you're in the airport for thirty minutes after disembarking? It's a lot, Honey."

"They wouldn't have done anything for another ten minutes," Honey replied.

"There had better be cake," Sarah muttered.

"There is; we haven't started yet," Nina said, smiling. "Now, how was your holiday? You look relaxed, for the most part," she added with a laugh.

"Thanks. It was nice not to think about work, the pool was something I already miss, and the massages were amazing. I could do with one right now," she admitted with a grin.

"We're going to the Lotus Day Spa next weekend; why don't you join us? They offer a couples massage," Frieda offered.

Sarah laughed and shook her head. "Jared doesn't like getting massages; he's too ticklish. But, I'll be there with bells on. What time and day?"

"I'll send you the details now, dear," Frieda said, smiling as she sent a text to Sarah's number.

"Great, thanks. Now, where are our babies?" Sarah asked, looking around for Toby and Snowball.

"They're in the dog park; Heidi's looking after them," Ethan called. "Hi, Babs," he said with a broad smile, waving to her as she arrived with Jared.

"It's lovely to see you again, Ethan. How is your Spanish coming?" Babel asked.

"¿Bien. Cómo estas?" Ethan asked. (Good. How are you?)

"Muy bien! You almost sound like a native speaker," Babel said. (Very good.)

"Really?" Ethan asked, straightening up at the praise.

"You'd fool any other super or citizen," she replied warmly.

"Mum, you might want to sit down," Honey said, blocking her view of Babel before she could look to her.

"Oh? What's wrong?" Frieda asked, sitting down.

"Just give it a moment," Honey murmured, sitting beside her and taking her hand.

"Frieda, Honey, this is my mother, Babs," Jared introduced.

On seeing Babel for herself, Frieda's eyes widened, her face paled rapidly, and if she'd been standing, she would have fallen over. Her knees felt weak even though she was sitting, and Frieda clutched her daughter's hand tightly as she tried to overcome the secrets she was seeing. Confused, Babel looked between them and her son.

"Frieda's... lucky," Jared said, wincing when he realised that that didn't explain much.

Babel could read between the lines better than most, so she simply nodded and waited.

Frieda came back to herself with a cough, her hands and body trembling. "I... I apologise. I'm not feeling well."

"Of course, dear," Babel said, not pointing out the lie. "Should I come back later?"

"No, no. I just need a moment," Frieda said with a smile. "Thank you," she said, stressing the two words so much that no one could mistake them as gratitude for something else entirely.

Babel raised an eyebrow slightly. "You're welcome, dear. Do I dare ask what I'm being thanked for?" she asked, amused.

"No, no. No need for nightmares," Frieda murmured.

Babel's amused expression fell as she took in Frieda's haunted expression; she knew it well from her own reflection. "Oh, my dear. I am so sorry. If I'd known you were... lucky, I would have taken the necessary precautions."

Frieda shook her head. "It's all right, dear. They never work anyway."

Elliot and Elijah chose this moment to make their presence known, screaming at the top of their tiny lungs. Victor scooped up the thrown toy, wiggling it a little and cooing, the twins' wailing only getting louder. Craig jogged over to them, picking Elliot up and making babbling noises to calm his nephew. Taking his cue from Craig, Victor did the same with Elijah, looking thankful when their cries both settled down.

"Oh, they're simply adorable," Babel said, smiling and waving at the two babies.

"They are, aren't they? I can't wait until the gala; Edith's promised to find suits for them, they're going to be the cutest babies there."

"Jared and Sarah aren't giving me any grandbabies any time soon, and as much as I love them, the grand-puppies just aren't the same thing."

"Oh, why don't you come to the gala? There's going to be a whole group of us looking after those precious babies, and we can always use another person to gossip with," Frieda said with a laugh.

"That sounds brilliant, dear, thank you," Babel said, obviously surprised at the easy acceptance.

Frieda smiled and patted her hand. "Now, let's talk business: have you seen the ideas for Sarah and Jared's wedding yet?"

Babel's laugh had Jared backing away in fear. Honey's eyes widened and she followed after him quickly.

"The last time I heard my mother laugh like that, a Prince had offered her his hand in marriage," Jared hissed.

"I'm guessing she said no?" Honey asked curiously.

"No, she accepted, but then Babs gave him a detailed report on what she expected from her husband. He ran like the hounds of Hell were after him."

Honey laughed. "Oh, I like her already."

Jared grinned, his shoulders losing their tension. "That's rare for Babs; most people hate her on sight or by reputation."

"She's lovely, I don't see why," Honey said, frowning.

"Well, as Babs usually says: she has allies at work, not friends. When you can understand everything that everyone is saying, it means there's no capacity for secrets, and in a place like the UN, I'd dare say that the reps prefer to be able to keep secrets," Jared said, shrugging.

"Well, Babs will be welcomed warmly here, I promise," Honey said, kissing his cheek before passing him over to Sarah. "I'll let you know when it's safe. They'll start on their college years eventually."

"Oh, Jesus. Tell me the food will be ready soon?" Sarah asked.

"We're opening our birthday presents!" Craig called loudly, Adam beside him.

"Food will be ready after the presents," Honey promised Sarah, hugging her firmly.

"Snowball, here girl," Jared called with a whistle.

Snowball yapped excitedly and raced over to the fence, stopping short and jumping up eagerly. Toby was after her in a shot. Behind them, Ari was yapping and running circles around Heidi.

"Ari, sit," Heidi said, signing to the eager puppy.

Ari sat for a full second before running again. Proud of her achievement anyway, Heidi followed the puppy over to the fence when she realised that their owners had returned.

"Very good training, Heidi," Honey said.

Heidi frowned, realising that Honey had spoken but she hadn't heard her. Turning her hearing aid on, she replaced it and blinked at the noise that came at her. She was somewhat glad she had forgotten to turn it back on; this much noise for so long would have made her ear and head ache.

"Craig and Adam are opening their presents," Sarah said.

Heidi smiled brightly and clambered over the wire fence. Honey laughed and unlatched the gate, gathering Ari in her arms and clipping his leash on.

Craig waited until everyone had gathered around them to start tearing into his first present, using a burst of Speed's speed to open it in record time.

"You're picking up all that paper, Craig," Honey called to him.

Craig winced at the tiny bits of paper strewn around him. Beside him, Adam rolled his eyes and opened his own present in a calmer manner, setting the wrapping paper aside.

"Oh, nice motherboard. Who'd you get that from?" Craig asked.

"Terry. Who'd you get the bag of pens from?" Adam asked.

"Zach," he replied, snickering when he saw Lisa's name taped to one of the pens.

Adam opened his next present, his eyes widening when he saw the expensive noise-cancelling headphones his friends had bought for him. "Super Jesus. Thanks, guys. This is awesome!"

"What is it?" Ida called curiously from behind her phone's camera.

"Noise-cancelling headphones," he said, holding the box up with a bright smile.

Craig smiled at the sight of his best friend looking so happy over their gift and was glad that Warren had thought of it for him. He returned his attention to his next present, grinning at the bonsai that Layla had gifted him. Craig planned on shifting to Layla and Donny's forms to practise with their powers. In the back of his mind, he thought about the gift that Grant and Jewel were planning on giving to him tomorrow; apparently it wasn't appropriate for a public park and that knowledge set his mind whirling with possibilities. Donny coughed loudly, and Craig forced himself to stop thinking about it and traumatising his friend.

A few minutes every hour was probably more than enough trauma, he thought with a grin.

"Is that... I think this is yours," Adam said, handing a box to Craig, his nose wrinkled.

"Who bought me six boxes of condoms?" Craig asked incredulously.

"I just want to make sure you're being safe, dear," Anita called out.

Craig turned bright red. "I'm not even having sex!"

"You'll have an easier time at cleaning up after yourself, at the very least," Babel said, grinning.

"Public park, everyone," Honey called out, obviously trying not to laugh.

Beside her, Donny was laughing into the crook of his arm, hearing the scandalised thoughts of others in the park. At their table, Robin and Terry were both blushing brightly, not used to such open and blatant talk about sex.

"Um. Thank you." Craig set the box down and looked to his next present. "Ooh, thanks for the socks, Frieda!"

"Fingerless gloves, awesome. Thanks," Adam said, pulling them on and flexing his fingers.

"You're welcome, dears," Frieda said, smiling.

"Pa, what's this present?" Adam asked, frowning over at his father when he opened a framed picture of a drawing.

"Our future house," Curtis said proudly.

"What?"

"I designed it. AAA are building it, we've got a payment plan set up, and we bought a plot of land that's close to the hospital for your Ma and closer to your friends. Your room's double the size of your current one, and I made sure to include a separate Internet connection with more than enough outlets for all your gadgets. Honey... uh, also said to soundproof your room. I don't want to know why," Curtis added quickly.

"What your Pa means is you'll have your own sanctuary at home, and there's access via the garden so you can come and go as you please. We'll have access through the garage, so I won't wake you up anymore when I'm on odd shifts," Ida added.

"We... I..." Adam stumbled over his words, unsure what to say or do. "Really?"

"Really," she said, smiling at Adam's stunned expression. "We've worked it all out. Ethan helped with the budget, and we can afford repayments and groceries even on one wage."

"Super Jesus, that's awesome, dude! Do I have a room in there, too, Mr. S?" Craig asked, grinning broadly.

"Yes. Also soundproofed," Curtis said, wincing.

Layla laughed, muffling the sound quickly against her palm. Behind her, Warren chuckled and wrapped his arms around her torso.

"I'm going to get your room soundproofed too, kid. Consider it a birthday present to myself," Nina muttered beside them.

Layla laughed again, forcing herself to calm down and continue watching the presents being unwrapped.

The next one was from Heidi: a light bulb in a clear container. She signed to them, and both Craig and Adam cupped their hands around the container, the light changing colour and reflecting on their hands. It would obviously work better in a darker room rather than outside on a summer's day, but they both thanked her for the thoughtful gift.

"Those would be good at the Hive," Honey murmured to Layla and Warren. "Heidi's emotional state changes the colours."

"To sell or for ourselves?" Warren asked.

"Both, but get later prototypes to sell; Heidi will have more control by then."

"Good to know. Thank you, Honey."

She smiled at them, all three turning their attention back to Craig and Adam, who were thanking Robin for their own mini terrariums.

After opening their presents, eating their food, and cutting and devouring the birthday cake Craig challenged his friends in a race to the playground. He laughed and ran ahead of them before they could respond. Robin and Terry ran after him, Heidi on their heels and overtaking fast. Grant tugged Jewel to her feet and jogged after them at a slower pace. Ethan and Zach wandered over, Zach eating a second slice of cake off a paper plate. Warren and Layla returned to their tree without an ounce of shame. Despite Craig's head start, Heidi mysteriously won the race, her face bright red and eyes shining as she signed her victory. Craig grinned and signed to his little sister about going on the tyre swing.

Back at the picnic tables, Babel laughed under her breath.

"What's so funny?" Nina asked curiously.

"Oh, the tyre swing reminded me of college."

"How's that?" Anita asked, frowning.

"Let me tell you about the Great Tyre Sex Swing Fiasco of '64," Babel said with a wicked smile.

Jared groaned good-naturedly at his mother's words and stood up to leave with Sarah and their dogs. Honey just grinned and passed them their wrapped pieces of cake, waving goodbye as Babel relayed a wild story of her college years involving a tyre swing in the college park, her boyfriend and girlfriend teasing her, and campus security catching the three of them in the act.

...

"You're not eating the cake back there, are you?" Ida asked Adam as Curtis drove them home.

"Nah, I'm too stuffed. I still can't believe you both got me a house for my birthday. That's seriously awesome."

"Well, it's not going to be built for a while yet. I'm having trouble with the deck," Curtis said. "The wood's strong, but I don't know that it'll survive Maxville's weather with the new weather supers in town."

"You should talk to Layla," Adam said, biting his tongue when he realised what he'd said.

"Why?" Ida asked curiously, Curtis frowning in the rear view mirror at their son.

"She's kinda growing the trees for AAA," he admitted in a rush of words.

"Really? That's amazing! I wondered how they got their materials so fast," Curtis admitted. "Do you think she could grow oak or cherry? It'll last longer than the pine. I'd even take maple at a stretch."

"I've got no idea, Pa. I'll text her and ask."

"Ask her which one is easiest to grow. Don't want the poor girl fainting from over-power exhaustion," Ida added.

Adam snorted. "Warren'd lose it if she did that again."

"Again? Just how many times has that poor girl fainted?"

"Only the once I've seen, Ma. Lay's okay and she knows better now."

We all do, he added mentally, remembering just how drained everyone had been after Valentine's Day.

"The deck will be last, so there's no real rush. Tell her to take care," Curtis said.

"I will, Pa," Adam said.

On the seat beside him, Heidi's lightbulb was glowing a soft blue colour, and several cars ahead of them, Heidi was sleeping off the excess sugar and excitement.

...

"They really loved you, Babs. Ethan's already looking at the language resources you sent him, and Grant and Jewel are organising to contact those UN reps you told them about," Honey said, smiling at her in the mirror.

"Oh, that's good. Garcia and Delattre are sick of dealing with me, while Tito and Pobee are sympathetic to the amount of work I have to do, so they should all agree to getting their own representatives," Babel said, smiling briefly.

"Garcia will talk to his allies and help the process along. Sarah, remind me to interview Grant, Jewel, Ritchie, and Katherine next... hmm, Wednesday should work."

"All right, I'll send Grant and Jewel an email; they can tell the other two since I don't know them. Don't forget that you have the medical facility tour on Wednesday afternoon," Sarah said, checking Honey's calendar on her phone.

"Okay. Can you set a reminder for Thursday morning for me to call Mississippi?"

"The state?" Jared asked, frowning in confusion when Sarah didn't even question Honey's request.

"Honey usually makes me write things like that when she's still not sure about who she has to call. Half the time, she ends up asking me who's in the state and things like this don't help," Sarah muttered, adding the reminder to Honey's calendar anyway.

"She is driving you home and is willing to leave you at a bus stop," Honey reminded Sarah, grinning.

"Okay. I'll just change all of your passwords while we're waiting for the bus," Sarah said with a grin of her own.

Honey snorted in amusement. "I really missed you."

"Missed you too, Honey," Sarah replied.

Jared just shook his head at their antics, far too familiar with them by now.

"You really think they liked me?" Babel asked after a moment of silence.

"Oh, yes. I gave Frieda your phone number, she's planning on inviting you to a million and one things. Including dinner on Friday."

"Oh. I haven't had a non-political dinner with someone else in..." Babel trailed off, frowning as she tried to think of the last time. "Well, probably since Bernard died. That's depressing."

"I've taken you to dinner," Jared said.

"You're my son, darling. You're obligated to take me to dinner once a month," she replied, patting his hand.

Honey laughed and pulled into Babel's driveway. "Here you are, Babs. Next time, we'll take your jet-powered car."

"Thank you, dear. Driving at a regular pace is so boring in comparison now," she admitted with a laugh. "Enjoy the rest of your day," Babel said as she stood and closed the door behind her.

Jared and Sarah called out their goodbyes and Honey waved before backing out of the driveway carefully. Once she was on the road again, Honey used the automatic lock to lock all of the doors. Jared and Sarah looked from their doors to each other in confusion.

"Honey, what's going on?" Sarah asked.

"When are you going to admit that you eloped while on your holiday?"

"What?" Jared asked, his voice squeaking.

"Don't bother trying to lie to me, Jared. I will leave you at a bus stop. In Westville," Honey threatened.

"You saw the plans, didn't you? They're ridiculous and over-the-top, and we just... didn't want that stress. So we decided to get married there instead," Jared said quickly.

"We'll still have a ceremony and reception, so the mothers can plan those to their hearts' content," Sarah added.

"You'll have to tell them soon. The spa day would be best. Leave the rings on," Honey added.

Sarah sighed in relief. "They're not going to be upset, then?"

"Oh, they're going to be pissed. But your wedding is about the two of you, not other people. I'll remind them of that, and they'll get over it by the time the facials happen."

"The facials are at the end of the day. Ugh, that's great."

"Would you like moral support?" Jared offered, squeezing Sarah's hand gently.

"You hate getting massages, Jared. I'm not making you do that and suffer their wrath."

"Ooh, your wedding song's on," Honey said, turning her radio on with a grin.

"When I wake up, well I know I'm gonna be,
I'm gonna be the man who wakes up next to you.
When I go out, well I know I'm gonna be,
I'm gonna be the man who goes along with you."

Sarah pealed with laughter as Jared started singing along loudly and badly.

...

End of the seventy-first chapter.

Note: I'm 100% serious that Sarah and Jared's wedding song is 'I would walk 500 miles'