A/N: This takes place on the day of the party. Thought I'll switch it up a bit with Eddie and Jerry centric. Thanks to jackandkimforever and EverafterDemigodGallagherCahil for reviewing! Enjoy!

It wasn't that Eddie couldn't drive. He just didn't have the drive to drive for a long time. As far as he was concerned, there wasn't a need to: he would carpool with either Jack or Milton after school, and his mom still insisted on dropping him off at school and picking him up from karate classes. And anyways, it was like being chauffeured, so why would Eddie say no to that?

All in all, he was satisfied with his transportation issues,….until the dilemma of dating came up. Besides the Lincoln, having your mother accompany you on your date was just embarrassing. They put a definite end to any scant dating life he had.

The other dilemma, Eddie would later learn, involved transporting his stereos and DJ equipment to an unsupervised party without arousing suspicion.

"How long did you say this party was?"

Particularly his mother's.

Eddie gave his broadest smile. "Midnight?"

"Try again."

"Half past midnight?"

"Boy, you are pushing your luck," his mother warned.

"Mom, c'mon, it's a Saturday," pleaded Eddie. "Nobody leaves at nine pm on a Saturday! It's my job to keep the dance floor packed and the music flowing. And Jerry said he'll drop me off."

Mrs. Jones pursed her lips. "Mmm-hmm. The same Jerry who got you dangling from the ferris wheel at that carnival?"

"It was three feet from the ground! I wasn't going to even break a leg from that!"

"This is also the same Jerry that 'accidentally' pushed you at the Seaford Aquarium?"

"Mom, we've been through this: the polar bear was blind!"

"Eddie, I like Jerry, but I don't trust that boy walking, much less driving," said Mrs. Jones. "And the more I hear about this party, the less I want you at it."

"Do you want to destroy my social life?" said Eddie. "Because this is like my last chance to impress the girls."

"Son, you're being dramatic."

"I'm not being – " Eddie lowered his voice. "I'm not dramatic. Look, I've been good. I'm responsible. I got a lot of A's on my last report card. Don't I deserve something for that?"

Eddie hated his fat cheeks, but he still found plenty of times to put them to use; together with his drooping eyes, his bulldog face proved impossible for his mom to resist. He could see that his mother's skepticism hadn't lessened at all, but she looked like she was starting to reconsider. Eddie considered a different tactic.

"Look, would it help if Milton drops me off then?" he reasoned.

Mrs. Jones remained unconvinced. Eddie quivered his lower lip for good measure. The overall, adorable effect with the jiggling chin sent Mrs. Jones into a chuckle. She made sure to speak her word with a stern tone though.

"Let's be clear about a few things. You need to be home at twelve – not twelve-oh-one, twelve on the dot."

"And," she continued on as Eddie broke out into a full grin, "the only thing that better be flowing there is the music. There better not be a scratch on you either. You understand?"

Eddie nodded and practically flew out of the car. To make sure her message got through, she insisted on coming with him to deliver it to the others herself. She was discouraged, to say the least, coming upon a questionable scenario.

"Milton, be careful with the keg, yo!" Jerry exclaimed.

The metal barrel came up to his waist, but Milton didn't have the muscle, much less the bones, to lift it. His face turned red easily enough from just exerting any effort. He was hunched over, breathing heavily and glaring up at the Latino.

"You give it a shot then since you're so gung-ho about having b – HI MRS. JONES."

Milton lurched back from the object and straightened up. Jerry pivoted around, dropped what she suspected was a guilty expression, and recovered with a smile. "Hey Eddie," he greeted. "Mrs. Jones, you are looking lovely today."

Leave it to the fool to try flattery.

"Hello boys," said Mrs. Jones. She nodded her head towards the object. "What do we have here?"

"That? That's the latest and newest karate training kit." Jerry went up and knocked on the barrel. "See? Solid as a rock, and helps build our muscles."

He was good, she admitted. No hesitation whatsoever. Eye contact maintained. Voice not too smooth, but casual enough to almost dispel her suspicions. Almost.

"Uh-huh. How is it supposed to do that?"

"You lift it. And uh do kicks and flips over it. You know – real hard core stuff."

"Well that keg looks very interesting." said Mrs. Jones. "It wouldn't happen to have something in there now, would it?"

Jerry widened his eyes in mock innocence. "What do you mean Mrs. Jones?"

"I mean a certain kind of amber liquid that you clearly will be underage and therefore illegal to drink," she said. "The kind that I'm sure that Mr. Rudy would not want to pass around to people who have to drive home at night." She narrowed her eyes. "He especially will not want to answer to the parents of those people if they decide to help themselves to it when there are much better beverages to serve."

Milton strained his head. "What's that Eddie?" he with transparent desperation. "You want me to help unload the car? On it!"

The boys ran faster than Eddie on Cake Day, leaving Jerry behind to deal with the formidable lady. "Clearly, you won't be serving something like that."

Jerry nodded quickly. "Clearly."

"Where is Rudy?"

"He's out doing some errands, picking up supplies. He'll be gone for like an hour."

"Well, I'll need to have a word with him before I leave."

"Well maybe you can leave a mess – " Jerry shrunk back from Mrs. Jones' withering glare. "Or you know, not."

A/N: If you think there has never been alcohol at unsupervised party, you are wrong. Hope you enjoyed reading, and please comment and review.