A/N: Thanks again for the reviews! I actually wrote a 20 page document today, and this is only about the first 10. So, there's another brand new chapter just waiting to be added. The faster you review, the faster I'll post, b/c reviews are my cocaine. Hope you enjoy!

Riley awoke the next morning to that uneasy feeling you get in your stomach when your conscience is bugging you. She knew she was going to do something she wasn't supposed to that night, and the more she thought about it, the guiltier she felt. Was this what it meant to be an adult – to know something was wrong before you did it? If it was, then being an adult must be no fun! Riley wanted to live. She wanted to go to parties, and go on dates with hot guys, but was one party really a big enough deal to have her parents disappointed in her yet again?

The teenager turned over in her cozy bed onto her side, and pulled the comforter up even farther as she heard Carly yabbing in the kitchen, with some light music playing in the background her parents must have put on. She had a pang of worry in her gut that Carly would break her promise and spill the beans to their dad. And maybe Carly didn't know, but she would be in a hell of a lot more trouble than she was. Luckily, Carly was quite the obedient child, and the mere threat of punishment was usually enough to sway her from tattling.

Looking at the clock, Riley saw that it was a little after nine. If she didn't get her ass out of bed soon, she knew her dad would be getting on her case, and that wasn't how she wanted to start her Saturday. Well, maybe if her dad was being an ass to her this morning, that could help her validate sneaking out. Then she wouldn't feel as crummy hopping out her downstairs window, then grabbing a ride with Cody to wherever. Riley realized, that if she did go, whether she got caught or not, she would still feel equally bad.

Sighing, the nearly sixteen year old threw her covers off her body, rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, and slowly rose with a big cat stretch. Her tank top was a bit too chilly in the morning air, so she grabbed a long-sleeved shirt to pull over top, then slipped on her pink fuzzy slippers. As she pushed her door open, she could hear Carly giggling about something. Still looking through groggy eyes, she reached the kitchen to get a soda out of the fridge, able to make out three fuzzy figures standing around.

"Morning, Riley." She heard Sara greet her from where she was doing a few dishes in the sink. It smelled like they had made some oatmeal. They hadn't asked her if she wanted any, but then again they all knew she hated oatmeal, even the flavored kind. Her mom always used to make her eat it in elementary school.

"Morning." Riley replied groggily as she managed to retrieve a Dr. Pepper and snap it open. She let the cool fizzy liquid sizzle in her mouth for a moment before swallowing it down. It always helped take away her disgusting morning breath. She always thought it was revolting, people who kissed in the morning before they brushed their teeth.

Out of nowhere, an arm closed around her shoulders, and she was pulled into a half hug by her father. "I was about to come get you." He informed her, then kissed the top of her head sweetly. There was nothing mean about his voice this morning, like the only reason he was wanting to wake her up was to make her do chores. He seemed genuinely happy to see her this morning.

"Why, so you can put me to work?" She checked, her voice displaying a tad bit of humor, but also a tone that hoped to get her a bit of pity. They'd been working her hard these past couple weeks, making her their personal slave, practically.

Riley could now see pretty clearly through her eyes, and processed the look he gave her. "No. Can't a man be happy to see his daughter?" He pulled her in for a warmer hug this time, patting her back a little bit. Nick was always afraid that when his kids were in trouble, they'd think he didn't love them as much. This morning, he was in such a good mood, and wanted to show his whole family just how much he loved them.

"I guess. So does this mean I don't have to help you today?" Riley asked hopefully, wanting to take advantage of his really good mood. Even a day off of manual labor around here would be a gift.

Sara chuckled from her place at the sink. "I don't know, Sar. What do you think?"

"Up to you, babe." She called over her shoulder. Carly had been quietly observing the conversation around her. She knew that Riley definitely did not deserve to be cut any slack, but she had promised not to tell. And Carly, for one, did not want to ruin her dad's good mood by getting her sister in trouble.

Riley didn't expect to be taken seriously, so she was surprised by their conversation. Her dad patted her on the back again and looked at her. "We were talkin' actually. You've been very good this past week, so we've decided to take one week off your sentence."

Riley's eyebrows jumped up in surprise. Here she was, plotting to sneak out yet again, and they were trusting her enough to take a week away from her punishment? Talk about guilt. Did they secretly know her plan, and were doing this just to make her feel bad and confess to them? Riley quickly looked at her little sister, but she didn't look like she'd just spilled a secret.

"Really?" She checked, looking back and forth between her two parents. Sara was smiling a little, wiping her hands dry on a towel.

"Yeah. You haven't complained, you've watched the kids for us plenty of times. The way you're actin' seems like you've learned your lesson." Nick went on. A parent's main goal with any child is to have him or her turn into a happy, productive, good human being. It was expected for a teenager to mess up sometimes, but as the two parents talked last night, they came to the conclusion that Riley was almost there. Sometimes she was a few French fries short of a Happy Meal, but all around, she was a good kid.

"Wow." Riley stumbled, taken aback. "Um…thanks."

"You're welcome." Nick told her, noticing how surprised she seemed by this, but chose not to say anything. Instead, he gave her another kiss on the forehead and then picked up his cup of coffee from the counter to take to the living room.

"Momma, will you do my hair in braids today?" Carly wrapped her arms around her mother's waist, in a cuddly mood this morning. It was somehow soothing to have someone else play with or do your hair, she'd found, and her mother was her favorite. Her daddy really didn't have any idea what he was doing, so she never went to him. He was still good for just cuddling, though.

Sara tousled her daughter's hair as she thought about it. "I don't know, Carly. You have a game later. It's gonna get messed up."

Carly shrugged. "I don't care."

Sara continued to run her fingers through the dark brown, chestnut hair that was so similar to hers. The child it belonged to buried her face further into her stomach, something she had always done. Carly had always been a somewhat hesitant child, always held back by the chance of doing something wrong. She wasn't always a clingy child, but throughout her issues this year at school, she had been. Each day now, she was getting less and less so, not needing her parents as much any more. It made Sara proud that Carly was dealing with her problems better now, but she couldn't explain why she felt a bit sad that she didn't need her as much anymore. Sara loved being a mother, and having another human being who relied on her and loved her so much, which was odd because she never really wanted to be a mother until later in her adulthood, when Nick talked about it so adoringly. It was funny to think about now, how he so desperately wanted to be a father before Carly came along, and he unknowingly had been for several years.

"Alright. Go get the hairbrush." Sara instructed her, giving her a tiny supportive push in the right direction. She smirked as she scurried off, still in her pj's, but it was perfectly fine since it was the weekend and they didn't need to be anywhere until later. Sara walked towards the living room, where the rest of the family was hanging out now. Nick was reading the paper and sipping his coffee, with Nolan at his feet eating something. As she looked closer, Sara soon saw that he was eating Carly's banana-flavored Lip Smacker.

"Nick!" She called worriedly. Nick looked up at his wife and saw the look on her face, then followed her line of sight down to their son. The father quickly snatched the tube out of Nolan's grasp, momentarily not thinking about the slobber he now had all over his hand.

Nolan whined, because it had tasted really really good. He saw Carly using it all the time, and it smelled delicious. If she smeared it all over her lips and licked it off sometimes, surely it must be okay to eat.

"Nolan Thomas Stokes." Nick scolded his son in a firm voice, but anyone could tell he was trying not to laugh. The three year old licked his lips, making sure he got every last bit of that banana-y goodness. Sara sighed and held her hand out for Nick to pass the ruined Lip Smacker to it to throw away. "Why'd you do that? That's Carly's, not yours."

"Can I get my own?" He requested.

"No, you may not. You'll get sick." Nick told him, shaking his head, but Nolan smiled up at him. Just then, Carly returned from upstairs with the hairbrush and two hair ties. The looks on everyone's faces didn't escape her. She immediately looked to her mother for an explanation.

Nick and Sara were slightly afraid that she was going to get upset and have a little break down upon the news, however, when Riley informed her what happened, she just gave her brother a look, like he was an alien, and shook her head. She was slowly getting back to her normal self, it seemed.

"Carly, you better hide your other ones." Riley advised her, her legs propped up on the couch arm. "Don't you have one that's Dr. Pepper flavored?"

Carly settled herself on the edge of one of the couch cushions as Sara settled herself behind her and began brushing the tangles out of her shoulder-length hair. Sara was feeling in a bit of a mischievous mood this morning, so she leaned in close to her husband's ear, smiling.

"Well, if we need to watch out for Nolan eating flavored stuff, I know something in our bedroom we better hide."

Nick snickered and felt his face blush slightly. He turned his head and kissed Sara right next to her ear. "That would be a shame, baby."

Riley was currently frozen in pure disgust. "Okay, eww!!" She finally gasped, looking at her parents in a repulsed manner. "I have ears, you know!"

The other two were oblivious to know what they'd said was so disturbing, but Riley was thoroughly disgusted. The two adults smirked, finding it somewhat funny they had managed to embarrass her. It's not like they had gone into all the details.

"Do you Lip Smackers too, mommy?" Carly asked innocently. "What flavors do you have?"

Riley theatrically began to gag and pretend to upchuck as she stood up to go elsewhere. She did not need that mental picture. Nick and Sara both laughed at her as she continued to brush out Carly's hair.

"I don't think you'd like the kind I have." Sara informed her smirking. Carly sighed. Did they think she was stupid?

"Are you talking about sex?" She asked them bluntly.

Nick almost spurted the coffee he had just sipped out of his mouth in surprise. That was not a word he ever wanted to hear out of her mouth.

"Carly!" They both scolded her immediately, and Sara gave her bunched up hair a light pull. Carly laughed and Riley just shook her head as she made her way back to her bedroom. She loved her family. She really did. And it was times like that she remembered why. They were so easy to joke around with, though she hadn't quite enjoyed the topic for today. Her dad and Sara really were good human beings. They looked out for their children, and just wanted what was best for all of them. Her father was strict, but Riley was starting to realize he was also very fair. He didn't get on her back about unimportant things. He was strict about the right things, and gradually, Riley was earning a lot of respect for that.

Riley closed the door to her bedroom and sighed out contentedly. She focused on a spot on the floor, nowhere in particular, and thought about what she had planned for tonight. Did she really want to disappoint parents who trusted her like they did right now? The parents who looked out for her, even when she wouldn't look out for herself? In an instant, Riley had made her decision. No. She didn't want to sneak out to this party. Sure, it sucked to miss another party, but it wouldn't be the only one in her life. She still had plenty of parties and gatherings to look forward to, and her parents were just trying to make sure she lived to see all of them. Was that so bad? Turning on her heels, Riley walked back out to the living room, where Carly was cackling about something else now, and made a request.

"Dad, can I use my cell phone really quick to make a call? It's really important, and I'll only be five minutes."

Nick looked up at his teenager, growing up before his very eyes, and could tell whatever it was was important to her. He could usually tell if she was just being whiny or childish about something. The look on her face told him this was indeed important.

"Okay." He nodded. "Your phone's in the linen closet."

Riley smiled and thanked him, and went to retrieve her hidden phone. Nick knew he'd have to change his hiding spot now that she knew, but hopefully he wouldn't have to confiscate her phone much more. Soon, she found it and took it into her bedroom, closing the door behind her. She scrolled through her phonebook, and found Cody's name under the C's. She hit dial and waited for him to answer. Predictably, he answered very quickly.

"Riley! Hey, your party tonight's gonna be off the hook! This friend of mine has a…"

"I'm not coming." She cut him off, more sure of her decision now than she had been about anything in her life. "I mean. I'm sorry you went to all the trouble, but I don't want to lie to my parents again."

An uncomfortable silence hung over the phone for several prolonged seconds. "Cody?" She checked if he was still there.

"Yeah, I'm here. You…you're not coming?" He checked.

Riley sighed decisively and held her head up high, though no one was there to actually see her. "No, I'm not. I hate deceiving them. I'm sorry you did all that work for nothing."

Cody let out an almost disgusted, annoyed snort. "Well, we're still gonna have the party, even if you're not there." He informed her, bitterness in his voice. "Bye, Riley."

The line went dead and Riley shook her head, sighing, as she looked at her phone. "Asshole." She muttered. Before, she would have been hurt that Cody was mad at her, but she realized that she really didn't care. If he didn't understand why she didn't want to sneak out, then maybe he wasn't such a great friend after all.

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