"Kristy, I want to go," David Michael whined.

Kristy adjusted her hair in the mirror. She was letting it hang loosely, instead of putting it back into her usual pony tail. She wasn't really sure why. It was hardly like she wanted to impress her father. For some reason she just felt like the night called for something a little more special.

"I know you do buddy," Kristy said, running a comb through her hair. "But mom thinks your too young, and you need to listen to her. Besides, you get to go pick up Karen and Andrew at the airport, that will be fun."

"I'm not too young," David Michael said pointedly, slamming a fist into the pillow beside him on Kristy's bed. "I want to go out to dinner with my dad!"

"I tried talking to mom about it already, but she wouldn't give in," Kristy said apologetically. And she had tried. She thought it was absolutely ridiculous that David Michael wasn't being permitted to come, and the fact that her mom hadn't given her a decent explanation frustrated her even more. I'm sorry David Michael."

"I'm going to go talk to Sam!" David Michael shouted, stomping out of the room. Kristy sighed and nervously tucked her hair behind her ears. It was going to be a long night.

Kristy spent the next hour nervously primping and trying to choose accessories. Much of this ended up being a waste, as she was simply not the type of girl who wore accessories, even if she was going out to dinner with her barely there father. It was during this hour that she wished that she had kept in better contact with Claudia, who had pretty much given her fashion advice her whole life.

Kristy was looking in the mirror for about the fiftieth time in the last hour, which may have been more than she had looked at it during the entire course of her life when she heard Sam call her name.

"What?" she called back.

"Come on, Charlie's going to be here in a few minutes."

"I'm coming!" Kristy called back, grabbing her jacket. As she did, she heard the junk bucket sputter into the driveway. Taking one last look in the mirror, she raced out of her bedroom and down the stairs.

"You look lovely my dear," Nannie said, as Kristy was putting her shoes on in the foyer.

"Thanks Nannie," Kristy said, her cheeks turning red. From the driveway, she heard Charlie honk the horn. This was pretty much the first time her brothers had ever been ready for anything before her.

"Have a good dinner with your father sweetie. You can tell me all about it when you get home," Nannie said, putting her hand softly on Kristy's shoulder.

"I will. Tell Karen and Andrew that I love them and I will spend some time with them when I get home tonight. Bye Nannie," Kristy shouted, running out the door.

"Bye Kristy," Nannie called

Kristy climbed into the junk bucket and settled herself into the backseat. "Hey Charlie," she said, fastening her seat belt.

"Hey Kristy," he said.

Sam and Charlie spent the entire drive to Stamford talking about which football teams were most likely to make it into the play offs this year, and then about the upcoming Stoneybrook High basketball team that was rumored to be the best team in years. Normally, Kristy would have been a central part of a conversation like this with her brothers, but tonight she found herself hanging back. She was just nervous.

After what seemed like an eternity, they pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant that they were meeting Patrick at. Sam and Charlie walked in first, with Kristy lagging behind.

"Do you have reservations?" Asked the waiter as they walked in.

"Yes, under Thomas," Charlie responded politely. "Has anyone else checked in from our group yet?"

"The waiter looked at the sheet in from of him and frowned. "No, not yet. We can take you to your table while you wait for the rest of your party."

"Thank you," the siblings answered together.

The waiter led them to a small booth in front of a window. Sam and Kristy slid into one side, while Charlie sat on the other. Kristy was momentarily relived, as she really hadn't wanted to sit next to Patrick. They sat in uncomfortable silence for a moment, until Kristy couldn't take it anymore. "Why do you think mom wouldn't let David Michael come?" she asked her brothers.

Sam shrugged. "I don't know. I'm sure she thinks that what she is doing is for the best though; mom is always looking out for us. Besides, in the long run I'm sure that he'll be happier that he went to the airport to get Karen and Andrew."

Charlie furrowed his brow. "Why are Karen and Andrew coming to visit? It's the middle of the school year."

"They're coming to live with us Charlie. Don't tell me you didn't know that," Kristy said, her voice full of disbelief.

"I'm sorry I don't know every detail of what's going on at home. In case you forgot, I live at school now and I have a life there," Charlie replied.

"All the more reason to forget your family then," Kristy muttered under her breath.

"It's not that big of a deal Kristy," Sam said, defending his older brother.

"Yes it is Sam," Kristy replied, her eyes narrow. "Charlie has no idea what is going on at home. He doesn't even care."

"Relax Kristy," Charlie said. "I'll call home tomorrow and talk to all the kids for awhile. It will be fine."

"Well you better call. They might forget what you look like, but at least they will be able to hear the sound of your voice," Kristy retorted.

Charlie opened his mouth to continue the exchange when suddenly Patrick slid into the booth next to him.

"Aren't you going to say hello to your father?" Patrick asked. From his tone, Kristy could tell that he was only half joking.

"Hey dad," Charlie and Sam chorused together.

"Hi," Kristy said meekly.

"That's more like it," Patrick said smiling. "Have you ordered yet?"

The siblings shook there heads, and everyone picked up their menus and began perusing. After a few minutes, a waiter came to take their order, and the Thomas' were left to there own devices.

"How is everyone doing in school?" Patrick asked.

Kristy shrunk back in her seat as Charlie started to drone on about how wonderful everything at Boiceville State was, and how much his life had changed since entering college. When it was his turn, Sam talked more about Stacey than school, which earned a sly smile from Patrick.

"How is everything going for you Kristy?" Patrick asked. "Is your club still the most successful business in Stoneybrook?"

"We actually disbanded at the start of the school year," Kristy responded. She was about to explain why when the waiter showed up with the meal. Luckily, everyone became so consumed with their food that Patrick never asked Kristy to elaborate on what she had just said. For some reason, she didn't want to talk to him about something that was so important to her. It didn't feel right.

For a few moments no one spoke as the four of them concentrated on the meals in front of them. Eventually, Patrick broke the silence, clearing his throat.

"I'm really glad that were all able to get together tonight. Zoey and I have some exciting news, and it worked out really well that I was coming to this side of the country so I could tell you in person. Zoey wanted to be here too," Patrick added.

The Thomas siblings exchanged curious glances with each other.

"What is it Dad?" Charlie asked.

"The three of you better get excited, because you are going to have a new little brother or sister!" Patrick said smiling

Everyone was silent for a moment, before they all started talking at once. Kristy even felt herself getting excited. She loved kids, and even though she already had four brothers and two sisters, there was almost nothing as exciting as a new sibling.

Charlie and Sam both gave Patrick a high five, which Kristy took for some kind of guy ritual. She felt herself grinning from ear to ear. "When is Zoey due?" she asked.

"The end of March," Patrick replied. "I'm so glad that you are all excited about this. I knew that you would be. I'm always telling Zoey how great you kids are, and believe me, she agrees. If this new baby turns out half as great we're going to consider ourselves really lucky."

"Do you know if it is a boy or girl?" Sam asked.

Patrick shook his head. "It's too early to tell yet. Besides, we've decided that we don't want to know. We're going to be happy with anything, so we thought it would be fun to be surprised."

"Wow, I wasn't expecting this," Charlie said, smiling. "I don't think that any of us were. But I'm really excited about it. We all are," he added.

Sam and Kristy nodded in agreement.

Patrick looked around the table and grinned. "I'm a lucky man," he said. "And this baby is going to be luck as well, with three great older siblings to look up to."

"Four," Kristy corrected.

"Yeah," Sam chimed in. "Don't forget about David Michael."

Charlie looked across the table to Sam and Kristy. "David Michael is going to be really excited. You need to tell him right away when you get home."

Kristy shook her head sadly. "Now he's going to be even more angry that he didn't get to come." She looked directly at Patrick. "He should be here."

"Kristy…" Patrick said, all the happiness gone from his voice.

"It would have been nice," Sam added. "You haven't seen him in years."

"There's a reason for that, Sam," Patrick said.

Sam rolled his eyes. "I know, he's too young. That's what mom always says. But come on, I mean, he's a kid, but it's not going to hurt him to spend time with his father."

Patrick shook his head. "I know it wouldn't. But I'm not his father. David Michael is not my son.