Arg…sorry, writer's block got to me .

Thank you for being faithful and continuing to read…it doesn't help I've got a million fics going on at the same time…okay, so maybe it's only two, but still :D.

--

Michelle and Rose got home late that night. Rose sighed as she tossed her keys to the side, muttering "I need some aspirin" before disappearing into her bedroom. Michelle walked into their kitchen to check the answering machine, seeing three new messages.

All three were from Jake. The first one was a simple reminder that he'd be picking her up in about an hour. The second one was a little perturbed, but mostly calm questioning of where she was. The third one wasn't an all-out scream fest, but he was definitely pissed. As she listened to them, she closed her eyes and her head drooped in dismay. She had completely forgotten about calling him to let him know where she was. Meeting her father had obliterated any other thoughts in her head. She made a mental note to call him first thing in the morning.

She threw her purse off to the side, and ambled into her room. As soon as the door was shut behind her, she collapsed on her bed. She found herself unable to fall asleep; every time she closed her eyes, her father, grinning that crooked grin of his, would appear. Now that she had met him, she felt herself having the same wish her mother did. That he would come back. She wished that he had least said goodbye to her in the note he left. She sighed and rolled over, almost having the desire that she would've never met him. She wouldn't have these conflicting feelings running through her mind.

Michelle did eventually fall into a fitful slumber, waking up at noon the next day. Remembering that she needed to call Jake, she rubbed her eyes and scampered into the kitchen. She picked up the phone, fell into a chair, and dialed his number.

"Hello?"

"Hey…it's me."

"Where the hell were you last night? I waited for an hour an a half!"

"I know, I know. I'm sorry. I forgot-"

"You forgot?!" Michelle dropped her head into her hand and sighed. She loved Jake, but he had a quick, flaring temper just like she did, and it was sometimes difficult to be patient with him.

"Listen to me; just let me explain…you'll never guess what happened."

"What?" he snapped icily.

"…I met my dad, Jake," she said quietly, bringing her knees to her chest. There was a long pause.

"'Chelle…are you serious?" he inquired, his tone softening instantly.

"Yeah…I got this really weird call that morning; it some officer from Cook County in fucking Ohio. It was early, like nine, so I didn't exactly catch every thing he said-"

"You stay up too late," he teased, trying to lighten the mood.

"Shut up," she retorted, but he could hear her grinning. "…anyway, the only things I caught were the name Carrigan, that he needed bail and he knew my mom."

"Carrigan's your dad?"

"Yeah…I didn't know it at that point, but Mom sure did. She just immediately freaked out once she knew, dragged me to the car, and next thing I know we're in the middle of nowhere bailing my dad out of jail…" She exhaled shakily, still not believing all of that had happened in the course of a few days.

"Michelle, I'm sorry…for yelling at you and everything-"

"Don't be. You didn't know."

"…are you okay? You seem a bit shaken up."

She sighed. "I'm alright…I guess. I just…I don't know…"

"I'll be over in ten minutes."

Michelle couldn't help but smile. "Thanks, Jake. I'll leave the door unlocked." Both of them hung up at the same time, and she moved into the living room to wait for him patiently. As soon as he came through the door and looked at her with concern, she wasn't sure what it was, but she broke down.

She wasn't one for displaying her emotions. Sure, she had no problem speaking her mind, but things like opening up and crying made her vulnerable in her mind. However, with all that had happened, she found she could not keep her feelings bottled up anymore.

Jake instantly came over to her and wrapped his arms around her. She let her head fall into his neck and continued to sob. He rocked her gently, kissing the top of her head and shushing her.

"It'll be okay, 'Chelle…it'll be okay."

--

Weeks passed, and eventually her father diminished from a vivid image to a foggy memory. He hadn't called, written, or anything since they met, and each day a little bit more was lost. Though her mother didn't seem at all perturbed, Michelle would occasionally catch her staring dismally off into space and sighing loudly multiple times, which she could only assume was the result of her rescue mission. But they both tried to push him out of their heads, enjoying the short summer as long as they could.

One particular morning, when both girls were home, the phone rang. Rose answered.

"Hello?"

"Rosie? Is that you?"

"Yes…who is this?" There were few people who called her "Rosie," so she raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"It's Sadie, honey."

Rose laughed merrily. "Sades! It's been forever! How are you?"

"Good, good, singin' like always. How are things in Jersey?" she inquired, and Rose could practically hear her smirking on the other end.

"Just wonderful, thank you very much."

"You know I'm just messing with you. Hey, me and Jo are taking the summer off of the tour, and we're trying to get the gang back together."

"Oh, really?…continue."

"Well, it's been ages since we've all been in the same place at once, I mean…Luce and Jude are here, but we miss the rest of you guys."

"Hmm…" Rose sat down opposite her daughter, who was currently oblivious to the conversation as she munched on her cereal. "How long are we talking?"

Sadie snorted a little. "You expect me to have the details, honey…you must have forgotten about my style. Stay as long as you like, a week, a month, the whole summer…doesn't matter to me."

Rose sighed and bit her lip. The nagging part of her mind was reminding her she had a job to do and a daughter to take care of. However, the other part was telling her she could afford and use a break from her mind-numbingly easy clerical work, and that Sadie probably would not mind if she brought Michelle along with her.

"Ah, what the heck, sure! I'll be there," she said eventually with a grin. "Can I bring Michelle with me?" When she heard her name mentioned, Michelle finally looked up from her cereal bowl and glanced quizzically at her mother.

"Of course! She'll get a taste of the exciting city life she's been wanting, I'm sure. I'm not sure when everyone else is coming…I would say a week or two."

"Sounds great; we'll be there."

"Wonderful! See you then, hon."

"Bye."

As she hung up the phone, Michelle raised her eyebrows questioningly as her mother did not immediately reveal any parts of her conversation.

"So…where are we going?" she inquired finally, when she could no longer stand the silence.

"Oh, just a little place called the East Village."

Her eyes widened in excitement. "In the city?"

"Yep."

"Really?" she said doubtfully, though a grin slowly began to grow on her face.

"Mm-hmm."

"For how long?"

"I don't know, how does a month sound?" Her daughter nodded vigorously. So far, their vacations had consisted of trips to the relatives for holidays, and a short vacation in Chicago. Otherwise, neither of them had the time to go on vacation. So, even though it was only an hour or so away by subway, it was still the East Village.

"When are we going?" she asked.

"How about we leave…next Monday? Is that alright with you?"

Michelle nodded and then smiled. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

Rose came to her daughter and put an arm around her shoulder. "I'm not that much of a monster, am I? And I figured we needed a little vacation after everything that's happened."

She kissed the top of her daughter's forehead and went off to her bedroom for a moment. Once the door was closed, she sighed. Her own words swirled in her mind. I figured we needed a little vacation after everything that's happened. How this thought hadn't crossed her mind while she was talking to Sadie, she didn't know, but she had just realized that Max had been a part of that gang. She, of course, wasn't completely positive that he would be there. He probably had got himself twisted into another fix in Carolina, she thought bitterly to herself.

But what could she say to Michelle? Sorry, we can't go to the East Village anymore because I can't face your father? That hardly seemed fair, and there was a good chance he wouldn't be there anyway. So, she shook the nagging worries out of her head and grinned. No matter what happened, it was sure to be an interesting month.

--

The motel room phone rang obnoxiously loud. Two sleepy groans came from within covers, and they were thrown off with disgust.

"I'll get it," Max mumbled to Claire…or was it Rose? He honestly didn't remember, and he honestly didn't give a shit. He blindly felt around on the small nightstand and eventually felt the cool plastic against his fingers. He picked it up and brought to his ear.

"Hullo?" he said thickly. Whomever was on the other end snorted in amusement.

"Caught you a bad time, honey?" That smoky, sultry voice was unmistakable, but he was pretty sure he was hearing things. He shook his head a little, thinking because of the fact he had been so rudely awakened he hadn't heard correctly.

"Sadie?" he inquired dubiously.

Her chuckles on the other end contradicted his disbeliefs. "Yeah, it's me. What are you doin'?"

He glanced awkwardly behind him at…whatever her name was, whom was very confused and also very naked. As was he…Christ, this was weird.

"Umm…nothing, nothing much, why are you calling me?" he said, cutting to the chase, though he couldn't help but wonder how his seductive ex-landlady became so cheery at this ungodly hour of the morning…or afternoon.

"Just wanted to get the old gang back together this summer, you know, for old time's sake. You in?" Now he was really lost. He had understood what she was saying, but her direct question had messed with his slumbering head. He shut his eyes and yawned.

"Um, I'm in North Carolina right now, Sadie."

"And? Your point?"

"…I don't exactly have means of getting there anytime soon."

"Oh, you know your sister will pick you up for it."

"Yeah, and she'll bitch the whole way about how 'irresponsible' I am…" he said bitterly, but he nodded, things becoming a bit less foggy. "But yeah, I'm in."

"Sweet. I'll send her down." Max nodded and rubbed his eyes tiredly. Then a thought crossed his mind, and he couldn't believe he hadn't questioned her before.

"Wait, how will she know I'm here…how do you know I'm here??"

"Ah, you know. Through the grapevine." He opened his mouth to further question, but shook his head and figured he really didn't want to know.

"When will Luce be here?" he finally inquired.

"Couple days. I'll send her down. See you then, hon."

"'Bye."

Max hung up the phone and sighed as he collapsed into his bed. The lovely lady from the previous night huffed, and rolled her eyes as she looked up at him.

"Who was that?" she snapped coldly.

"Hmm? Oh. Her. She's a friend from New York, that's all."

"A friend, huh?" she said, trailing off. Max realized he remembered very little from last night, but he couldn't believe he had forgotten his lovely's horrendous southern accent. Or how he had managed to have his way with her without her driving him insane.

"Tell me, why'd you tell this 'Sadie' girl that I'm nothin'?" she spat, jumping out of bed and starting to pull her clothes on. After his brain clicked and understood what his side of the conversation had consisted of, Max did the same, though he did not put in much effort to stop her. It was too damn early in the…afternoon for any arguments.

"Come on, now, don't go…" he begged with weak conviction as she was heading off towards the door. She spun on her heel and smacked him smartly across the face. He hissed in pain, putting a hand to his cheek.

"You're an ass," she said simply before stalking out the door and slamming it behind her.

He groaned as he headed over to his bed, plopping down on it heavily. "Why do they always hit me, then leave? Couldn't they just leave…" he muttered absently to himself.

"Well," he continued with himself "Hopefully Sades still doesn't mind hookers…"

--

Not my best chapter ever written, I'm afraid. But again, it's set up.

Review anyway, if you don't mind :D.