The moment Mark sat at the metal table for breakfast the next day, Rodolfo and Zack immediately started showering him with questions.
"Did you bring us any souvenirs?"
"Did you go sightseeing?"
"Oh, yeah! Pictures! Tell us you brought back pictures, or postcards, or…"
"Boys, come on," Mark replied, his shoulders slightly shaking from suppressed laughs as Emily served the family her Mickey Mouse pancakes. "Just give me a chance to enjoy the first home-cooked meal I've had in a week before the questions, okay?" With the mention of breakfast, Rodolfo immediately was distracted by the food that was being served, which was something Mark couldn't fight a smile about it. Rodolfo was always so much like his father, right down to his love of food, and the fact that he never seemed to gain any weight no matter how much he ate.
"We really did miss you, Daddy," Lucia announced before pouring syrup on her pancakes.
"I know. I missed all of you, too." Mark gave his daughter's shoulder a gentle squeeze.
As the family started to eat breakfast, Penny came downstairs with a gigantic smile on her face, pulling her long strawberry blonde hair back into a ponytail.
"Good Morning, all," Penny greeted everyone, going over to give her parents 'good morning' kisses on the cheek. "Welcome back, Dad. It's good to have you back home. Sorry I can't stay for breakfast. I need to get to the hospital early today. Rachel's giving me a ride, so we'll grab something on the way."
"Penny," Emily spoke up, raising her eyebrows a bit, just as the young girl reached for the door handle. "Are you okay?"
"Of course, Mom!" Penny grinned, her face shining with happiness. "I've never been better." After a few seconds, an identical smile appeared on Emily's face.
"Okay then. Have a good day, Penny." With that, Penny was off, and with a nod, Emily returned to her breakfast. "I thought so," she spoke to herself.
"Did I miss something?" Mark asked, looking from the door to Emily in confusion. "What did you 'think so'?"
"It's obvious," Emily explained. "She and James said the L-word last night. You know, love."
"What? They said….? How…how do you…?" Mark nearly choked on his coffee.
"A mother knows these things," Emily shrugged. "Besides, I saw the look on her face. I had the same look on my face, after you said those special three words to me for the first time, if you'd remember." Emily's words immediately prompted Mark to fix her with a gentle gaze as he recalled that memory as well.
"Uncle Mark, please don't leave for so long next time you have business," Rodolfo complained. "Things get way too sappy around here without you home."
"Someday, Rodolfo," Mark replied with a half smile, "you may think differently about that subject."
Penny stepped out of the apartment building and immediately saw her friend and fellow student nurse, Rachel, waiting in her convertible, the radio currently tuned to a pop music station.
"Well now," Rachel smirked, taking in Penny's high spirited expression. "You certainly look cheerful this morning, Penny."
"Really?" Penny winked as she got into the car. "I hadn't noticed."
"Try looking in a mirror, girl, because you are practically radiating happiness today. Let me guess. It has something to do with James, doesn't it? No, don't bother answering. I know that's a dumb question. Of course, it's James. He's all you ever talk about."
"Oh, I do not," Penny denied, even though the disavowal didn't reach her grinning face.
"Who are you trying to fool?" Rachel challenged. "Every time I see you, when you're not off somewhere with James, you manage to bring him up in every conversation, no matter what the topic is. I swear, the two of you will are so annoyingly sickly sweet, it makes my sweet tooth hurt." Penny just shook her head. Rachel, despite her act, was a major romantic, and always enjoyed hearing about her and James.
"So, just tell me," Rachel continued as she drove her car to the hospital where they worked. "Has he taken you to meet his parents yet?"
"I've already told you, Rach. James doesn't get along with his parents. They're both extreme conservatives. He knows that they won't think too highly of my Bohemian family, and doesn't want to put me through that."
"Yeah, I remember," Rachel agreed. "That still doesn't mean you should be denied the whole 'meet the future in-laws' thing. I remember the stories you told me about when your Uncle Roger and Aunt Mimi got married, and how their parents were about being kept out of the loop until they got the invites and all that. I don't want to see you go through the same thing when you and James finally decide to get married."
"I don't remember mentioning anything about marrying James, Rachel," Penny pointed out, glancing out the window to hide a blush.
"Girl, what do you take me for?" Rachel cried incredulously. "Everyone's seen how that boy looks at you. Trust me, Penny. He's so going to ask you one of these days." Penny chose not to reply, but inside, Rachel's words had left her flustered. For the rest of the drive, the thought of her and James actually getting married kept running though her mind.
Sammy kept a firm grip on James' pant leg as they navigated through the Fairway Market with James pushing the cart filled with broccoli crowns, toilet paper, a carton of milk, a box of Coco Puffs, and other various groceries.
"James?" Sammy glanced up at his brother with wide golden-brown eyes. "When are we gonna go to the Life again?"
"For the gazillionth time, Sammy," James replied patiently as he examined the condition of a carton of eggs. "The dinner with the Cohen family is on Saturday night, in three days."
"Can't we see Penny sooner?" Sammy frowned in disappointment. It was with a contemplative expression that James met Sammy's gaze.
"You really like Penny, don't you?" James asked, his voice growing soft, with a faint glow in his eyes.
"Yeah!" Sammy replied with strong enthusiasm, grinning widely. Seeing the small boy's obvious liking for Penny, James's face broke into a warm smile, and he lightly tousled Sammy's hair before replying.
"Well," he spoke, pretending to think about it, "maybe we'll be able to stop in later, when she's on break from her work at the hospital, since you're so eager to see her."
"Nu-uh!" Sammy shot back, raising his voice slightly to emphasize his words. "You wanna see her, too, James!"
"Hmm. Can't fool you, can I?" James laughed at the sight of Sammy attempting a stern glare. "All right, you caught me. I wanna see her today, too. Okay, it's decided. We'll stop by on her lunch hour. Sound good?"
"Yay!" Sammy cheered at the thought of seeing Penny. Grinning at Sammy's reaction, and the mutual happiness he felt at seeing Penny that day, James was about to return to his shopping, but as he started to reach for a box of instant macaroni and cheese, he froze. Quickly turning his head, James stared in shock toward the end of the isle, feeling his heart stop. No. It couldn't have been her. There was just no way she was here in the city. He just saw some random person out of the corner of his eye, and his subconscious mind just connected that tiny glimpse with her. Even so, the brief thought of her being here of all places was terribly unsettling.
"James?" Sammy's worried voice snapped the young man out of his thoughts, and he looked down at the little boy, who was looking right back up at him. "What's wrong?" Sammy asked in concern. "You're all sweaty." Subconsciously, James wiped away the nervous sweat that had formed on his brow.
"I…I'm fine, Sammy," James assured a little too quickly. "Everything's just fine. I just thought I saw something, but it was just my eyes playing tricks on me. But it's not important. Let's get the groceries back home, all right? Then we'll go and see Penny."
With James' guarantee that everything was okay, Sammy's thoughts quickly moved on to visiting Penny that day. James, on the other hand, was still secretly shaken from his brief scare, and was still trying to reassure himself that what he told Sammy was true, and he really hadn't seen who he thought he saw. Things had never looked better for him. He had Sammy, a job to support them both, and even had the love of Penny. It would just ruin everything if it had really been her he had seen.