Hey everyone. :) My boys and I have been down and out with really bad head colds. Who gets sick in the summer time? Apparently we do! Anyway... again, I am flattered by all of the feedback you all have been sending my way. Thank you so much for your kind words, favorites and follows! This chapter is a very, very long one. And lots of fluff. I'll be interested to see what you all think of it... I hope it's not too over the top. I'm not going for Edward Cullen here – I'm just trying to be true to Bracken's personality.
Other news: I might have a job soon as an editor. ;) Fingers crossed!
Chapter 9: Birthday
"Mom. No. Definitely not that one," Kendra said, blushing slightly.
"What's wrong with it? I think it's cute. And what a fun color!" Marla responded. She was holding up a scandalously short, bright red dress for her daughter to see.
"It will barely cover anything. Are you kidding me?" Kendra was eying the backless, sleeveless dress with embarrassment. She would never be comfortable in something like that!
"A woman's body is beautiful, Kendra," Marla laughed. "But I was just kidding. Your dad would kill me if I let you go out in public in something like that. It's not you, anyway." She rifled through the rack in front of her for a few moments and pulled out a long, dark blue dress. "Oh, I really like this one," she commented, walking over to stand next to Kendra. "What do you think?" she asked, showing her daughter what she'd found.
Kendra smiled. "Wow. I agree – that is really pretty!" She took the hanger from her mother and draped the dress over her arm along with a couple of other ones she'd found to try on. Marla ushered her daughter to the nearby dressing room and took a seat in one of the cushy chairs reserved for those who were waiting for their friends (or daughters) to put their selected outfits on display.
She was glad Kendra had agreed to do this. Formal dress shopping was something Marla had looked forward to ever since her daughter had started middle school. When Kendra had been presumed dead just a couple of years back, she had lamented many such lost opportunities with her daughter; now that she had her back, she had been taking advantage of all of the time they had together by creating as many fun memories as possible.
A couple of minutes passed before Kendra walked out of the stall she'd claimed wearing a knee-length, willowy dress that matched her eye color – darker than emerald, but not quite forest green. The young woman stepped onto a small pedestal several feet in front of her mother and looked at her reflection from a few different mirrors that had been hung up along the walls of the room. She moved around to try and see how the gown fit her from behind by lining up angles of the mirrors, but couldn't get a good enough view to be satisfied.
"Well? What do you think?" Kendra asked her mother once she'd mostly stopped looking at herself in the mirrors.
"It's nice," Marla said. Her tone of voice indicated that she was of an indifferent opinion.
"Just nice?" Kendra prompted.
"Well, if you want me to be totally honest, you look kind of Irish. I'm half expecting you to start breaking out into Riverdance or something. It's not a bad thing, it's just... not what I was wanting for you today."
Kendra looked down at herself again. "Riverdance? Really?"
"You asked," Marla responded, shrugging her shoulders. "It doesn't really match what we're going for tonight. You need something a little more formal than that."
"If you'd tell me where we're going tonight, I might actually have a better idea of what kind of dress I'm supposed to be looking for," Kendra hinted, trying to get her mother to let on even just a little bit.
"Nu-uh, no spoilers," she teased.
Kendra let out an exasperated huff and marched back to the dressing room stall to try on something else. "This had better be good," she said through the door loudly.
"Of course it's going to be!" Marla answered. "You'll love it!"
Scott and Marla – well, mostly Marla with the "support" of her husband – had planned something special for their daughter's seventeenth birthday. It was going to be a fun evening, and she was deeply excited to see the look on Kendra's face once she learned what it was that she would be doing.
The next dress Kendra came out in was very different for her – long and dark purple with a small, lighter purple bow on her left hip. She looked at her mother and, without even stepping up to the pedestal like the last time, she shook her head. "I don't think I like this one after all," she said.
Marla had to agree. "I bet it looked great on the hanger."
"It did!" she heard as her daughter rounded the corner to return to her stall.
Several minutes passed until she heard the lock on Kendra's door slide open. When she caught sight of her daughter, she beamed. "That's the one!" she cried out enthusiastically. "I chose the winner! Yes!"
Kendra looked uncertain. "Are you sure?" she asked. "This is way more fancy than I've ever worn before." She walked up to the pedestal and gazed at herself from a couple of different mirrors nearby, clasping her hands loosely in front of her and holding them below her navel. The dress was royal blue and the lower half cascaded loosely to her feet. There were no sleeves, however the bodice did not show off any skin where her cleavage was concerned, which gave it a more modest feeling. A sheer, sparkling piece of similarly colored material loosely drifted down the back of the dress, the same length as the rest of the material. Overall, it was form-fitted and very flattering to her body while still allowing her to come across as a more reserved, classy young woman.
"You are beautiful," Marla answered. She stood up and walked over to the young woman, grinning from ear to ear. "You look so grown up. I could cry right now. I might cry. Don't make fun of me if I do."
"Mom," Kendra replied, giggling nervously. She decided to change the topic. "This dress costs a lot of money."
Marla waived her hand dismissively. "Don't even think about that," she said. "I'm paying for it. It's part of your birthday gift."
"Part? Mom-"
"Since when have we ever given you cause to worry about our financial situation?" Marla interrupted. She looked at the price tag that was hanging out of the top of the gown, near Kendra's arm, and smiled. "This is well within the budget. We'll be able to get your shoes and some gloves and still be under what I had set aside."
Kendra gaped. "How much money did you plan to spend today, exactly?"
"Don't worry your pretty little head over it. This is all my pleasure," Marla smiled. "Well... your father's and mine, technically."
"I don't know what to say." Kendra looked into a mirror that gave her a profile view of herself. "I feel like a princess in this dress."
"That's what I wanted to hear."
The two women left the shopping mall after collecting a pair of heeled shoes and a couple of long, white gloves to go with the gown, then headed for a nearby hairdresser. It was almost 4:30 in the afternoon when they made it back to Fablehaven, and her mother was stressing about making sure everyone was ready to go on time. She shooed Kendra upstairs to don her recent purchases, then made a dash for the bedroom that she and Scott shared to prepare herself for the evening.
"Do I really have to wear a suit?" Seth complained as she passed by.
"Yes," Marla answered in a matter-of-fact tone, slowing down to look at her son.
"Why can't we just do a birthday party here?"
"Because I want this to be particularly special for your sister."
"When it's my seventeenth birthday, I want everyone to wear ripped up jeans and t-shirts and have a party at the beach. That's way more comfortable than this."
"When it's your birthday, you can have what you want. Within reason. Today isn't about you. Now go finish getting dressed; I expect to see you in the front room with hair combed and jacket on in twenty minutes." She then made it successfully into her own bedroom and started gathering the articles of clothing she would need for the evening for herself.
Fifteen minutes later, Marla emerged in a shimmering black dress that cascaded past her knees. She didn't notice her husband sneak up on her from her side while she was trying to put on her second shoe, and jumped in surprise when she suddenly heard his voice in her ear. "Someone looks especially lovely tonight," he'd said.
"Well thank you," she answered once she recovered from her shock, leaning in and giving him a quick kiss. "Now go find your son and make sure he knows how to comb his hair, please."
"That's all I get? A tiny little peck?"
Marla winked at him, and he grinned. "Behave yourself tonight and you might end up with more," she teased with a smile on her face.
"Alright, I did not need to see that. Or hear that," Seth protested loudly. He was holding a tie in his hands and was otherwise fully dressed for the evening.
Scott and Marla laughed. "I'll help him with his tie. You go check on Kendra," Scott said.
"Where are our parents?" she asked.
"They're sitting in the dining room, ready to go."
"Perfect," she nodded, then headed toward the stair case that led to the attic bedroom.
Kendra was already walking down the steps when Marla approached, and this time her mother did start to tear up a little.
"Mom, what's wrong?" Kendra asked, concern evident on her face.
"Nothing," Marla smiled, dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief she'd fished out of her purse. "You're just... not my baby anymore. I'm being overly emotional. It's normal."
Kendra descended the rest of the stairs and embraced her mother. "I'm not a baby, but I'm still your daughter," she whispered. "Thank you for tonight."
"The night hasn't even started yet!" Marla laughed. She looped her arm in her daughter's and led her to the front entryway of the house.
"There are my beautiful ladies," Scott announced as they drew near. He hugged Kendra and gave her a velvet box that was about six inches in length. "This is for the birthday girl," he said, smiling at her. "Open it now, please." Marla and Seth exited the house.
Kendra opened the box and her face betrayed the surprise that she felt. "Are these... are these real?" she asked, bewildered.
"Yes," he said. "I actually bought them for you before you were born, shortly after we found out that you'd be a girl. I've been hanging onto them for a long time, and well... tonight seemed to be the right time to give them to you." He smiled and hugged his daughter again, then pulled the necklace out of the box and clipped it around her neck. It was a simple golden chain, but small diamonds were studded in it periodically. At the center of the necklace were ten diamonds all next to each other in a small circular shape. "I can't tell you how proud I am of you."
She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thank you, Dad," she said, trying to convey the sincere gratitude and love she felt for her father.
"Let's get out of here." They closed the front door behind them, and Kendra wondered what surprises the rest of the evening would hold for her.
As the car that held Kendra, her brother and her parents pulled up in front of their restaurant destination, three men in suits dashed up to the vehicle – one to the driver's side where her father was sitting, one to the passenger's side where her mother was, and one to the door behind the passenger's side where she was sitting herself. Kendra was busy paying attention to what was happening with her father – apparently there was valet parking – and didn't notice the gentleman at her door until he opened it.
She turned to face the man who opened her door and her thought processes stopped. Bracken was there, smiling widely at her. Handsome did not even begin to describe him – he was beyond compare.
"May I assist you, milady?" he asked, extending his right hand out toward her.
She raised her eyebrow at the old-fashioned speech, but placed her left hand into his proffered one and used her right hand to help propel herself forward and out of the car. Once she was standing up on the sidewalk, she grinned back at him and embraced him. "What are you doing here?" she asked, obviously pleased that he was there.
"I hitched a ride with your grandparents," he answered. "They're all seated inside already. I wanted to escort you in, so I waited out here."
Kendra looked up at the name of the restaurant. Chez Philippe. She'd never heard of this place before but judging by the patrons' and the servers' incredibly formal attire, it was obviously very upscale. "I haven't been here before," she said. "I kind of feel out of my league."
"Believe me when I say that you definitely do not look anywhere near out of your league," he responded. She returned her gaze to Bracken's face and smiled at the open adoration she found there.
"Earth to lovebirds," Seth interjected. "Are we going inside or what?"
Kendra rolled her eyes at her brother's remark. Bracken offered her his arm and the two followed Scott, Marla and Seth into the restaurant. A couple of doormen wearing neatly pressed tuxedos ushered them inside.
The restaurant was amazing on the inside. Kendra was in awe over how fine everything was. The layout was fairly simple; the room was a very large oval, with both ends of the oval holding round tables that were intricately set with what appeared to be fine china. At the center of the oval was a large dance floor with several more circular tables along the sides. The dance floor was empty at the moment, aside from a small group of beautifully dressed men and women who were setting up string instruments. They looked nearly ready to start playing. Kendra counted a harp, two violins and two cellos.
Romantic lighting enshrouded the restaurant. Many guests were being shown to their tables, and several of those who had recently been seated were sipping at glasses of wine and perusing the dinner menu.
Bracken lightly pulled Kendra ahead of her parents and walked up to the hostess. "May I have the name of your reservation?" she asked. Her voice held a light accent that Kendra couldn't place.
"John Carrigan," Bracken responded. The hostess, a woman in her mid- to late-thirties, scanned her register and stopped when she found his name. She looked up to her right, and a gentleman in a tuxedo appeared. He bowed slightly before Kendra, then said, "Please come with me."
He took the Sorensons and "John" to a table on the far right side of the room. The group walked up a couple of carpeted stairs and past a polished oak banister, to a table near the back but toward the center of the other tables. Her grandparents Sorenson and Larsen were seated at a nearby table, but not one of the ones closest to them.
Scott pulled out a chair for Marla, and Bracken did the same for Kendra. Seth pulled out his own chair and sat down while rolling his eyes and slouching forward, already decidedly bored with the evening.
"Seth," Marla tutted, about to quietly scold her son. She was interrupted by the approach of three other gentlemen in tuxedos; one was holding a pitcher of water, one cradled a bottle of wine in his hands, and the other carried a menu for each of them.
"May I interest you in a glass of wine?" the one asked, holding it out for them all to see. Bracken looked like he wanted to say yes, however Kendra had removed her gloves and placed her bare hand in his with the thought, If you say yes, you will probably need to have an ID on hand to prove you're over 21. He swallowed his words and his face showed a general feeling of amused gratitude as his response. "I forgot about that," he muttered to her.
She reclaimed her hand as Scott and Marla both accepted the man's offer. The one who held the crystal pitcher of water gracefully poured some for everyone while the third man provided them all with menus, then all three departed. A fourth gentleman approached their table immediately and welcomed them in for the evening. He explained that the musicians would begin their songs in a few moments as the last patrons were being seated, and told them that they were free to dance should they desire to do so. Then, deciding to discuss the carte du jour of the evening, he told them that they would be presented with four courses. The first would be an avocado and romaine salad with a balsamic dressing, the second would be one of two soups to choose from.
"For the main entree tonight, we have a choice between either buckwheat galettes with salmon, capers and dill, or the classic Steak au Poivre with fine savory seasonings, cooked to your liking. If you would prefer a vegetarian dish, we have a spinach souffle that is simply wonderful."
Kendra found the fact that the menu was small to be interesting, but it made it easier to decide.
"Excuse me," Seth began. Everyone's attention turned to Seth, who was suddenly sitting up straight and behaving like a perfect gentleman.
"How can I help you?" their server – Andre – asked.
"The fourth course – am I correct in assuming that will be dessert?"
Andre smiled. "Absolutely," he answered. "I was going to wait to tell you about the dessert options until later on in the evening. There is a wider selection to choose from."
"That is what I wanted to know," Seth responded, settling back into his chair with a satisfied look on his face. Kendra couldn't help but grin – her brother was still her brother, even in a suit.
"If there are no other questions at the moment, I will go welcome another guest and will return shortly to receive your decisions," Andre announced. No one spoke up, so he gave them a small bow and headed off in a different direction.
"This place is impressive," Scott said. "We haven't been anywhere this elegant since that cruise we took a few years back."
"Yes, it's quite beautiful. This restaurant gets only the highest ratings and is nearly impossible to get a reservation for," Marla responded.
"Good choice," Scott approved.
"Oh no, this was all Bracken's doing," Marla responded, winking at the handsome young man sitting across the table from her. Scott choked on his sip of wine.
"Why did you pick this place?" Seth asked, wrinkling his nose. "I mean the menu is decent I guess, but why would you ever want to wear a suit if you didn't have to?"
Bracken chuckled. "It's Kendra's birthday," he answered simply.
"That's not the answer I was looking for."
"Seth, one day you may want to treat a lady to something especially nice," Marla said as she patted Scott's back while he continued to gently cough.
"I don't doubt that. But I'm going to at least have the guts to tell her that I love her," Seth countered, smirking at Bracken in a silent challenge. The boy clearly knew what he was doing.
Kendra's face flushed and she looked away from everyone at the table, wishing she could disappear. Bracken laughed lightheartedly and replied to Seth, "You think I'm going to propose marriage, don't you?" Her eyes widened and her embarrassment increased dramatically as her thoughts raced. Uncertainty reigned over her features. She was not ready for a proposal. They weren't even dating yet!
"Men generally spend a small fortune on women when they are about to ask them to be with them for the rest of forever, yeah," Seth answered.
"Seth, you're embarrassing your sister. Stop it," Marla reprimanded. "Do something about this," she directed toward her husband.
"I want to hear what he has to say," Scott said, staring at Bracken. "Why did you choose a place like this if not to propose? And furthermore, why wouldn't you discuss something like that with me in advance? She's too young-"
"Everyone just... stop!" Kendra spoke up. "This is too much. All of this – it's too much." She stood up and grabbed her gloves from off of her lap, but Andre returned to the table before she could go anywhere.
"Is everything alright?" he asked.
Bracken stood up and put his hand on Kendra's elbow. "Everything is great," he answered. "Please excuse us for a moment. The band just started playing and I would like to dance with her."
"Certainly," Andre responded, sounding doubtful as he observed Kendra's distressed expression. "Before you go, have you decided on what you would like for your main course?"
"I will have the souffle," Bracken answered. "She would like the salmon."
"Very well, then. Enjoy your dance."
Bracken quickly led her to the dance floor. "I hope you don't mind," he stated. "I needed to talk to you."
"I don't know how to dance, John," she replied unhappily.
"I will lead; you just follow. Please," he pleaded, looking into her eyes. "I want to explain."
What she really wanted was to flee to the women's washroom and hide from her embarrassment.
"You can trust me," Bracken said simply, still holding his hands out in front of him in a gesture for dance.
Peace started to trickle into her. He was right – she did know she could trust him; she always could. Deciding to go along with him, she placed her right hand in his left and he wrapped his right arm around her torso, placing his hand on her spine a couple of inches below where her shoulder blades were. He stood calm and confident.
"Thank you," he said, clearly feeling relieved at her acquiescence. "Your left hand goes on my shoulder."
"Right," she stated, following his instruction.
"This is a waltz," he told her. "The rhythm has three counts to it. On count two, you step up a little on the balls of your feet. It kind of makes us look like we're bobbing up and down as the music plays. The idea is to be graceful and make all transitions smoothly."
"I'm going to step on your feet," she answered.
"Only if you keep thinking that way," he countered. "Just follow my lead. Don't pay attention to your feet; do what feels natural."
"We're the only people out here," Kendra said shyly.
"We won't be for long. The first couple to break the ice is often joined quickly by others who wished they were as brave."
He led her through a few practice measures, then led her off at a steady pace across the dance floor.
"Your brother has a fantastic way of ruining my plans for anything even slightly romantic where you're concerned," he stated. Sure enough, another couple joined them on the dance floor only a few moments after they'd began.
Kendra didn't know what to say, and she was afraid of stepping on Bracken's toes if she concentrated too hard on anything else, so she stayed quiet.
"I did not bring you here with the intention of asking you to marry me," he spoke up again. "If I were going to propose, the whole world would know about it. Not just this room of people." This inspired a nervous giggle from Kendra, which he took as a good sign and continued. "You're missing out on a lot of things by not going back to school," he explained. "I wanted to treat you to something special, something that will give you great memories in future years. I wanted you to feel important and beautiful today."
"You brought me here because I'm being home schooled?"
"No. Partially? I brought you here because you're worth it," he awkwardly tried to explain. "You're worth every penny that could ever be spent on you and more. Today is your birthday – that's why I brought you here. I chose a venue like this, because when you're talking with other women later on about prom and winter formal and everything that you're not going to be part of, you will have something even more spectacular to remember instead."
She understood his sentiment – she had lamented the fact that she would miss these types of things when she decided to be home schooled – and she felt incredibly flattered. She stopped dancing and when he looked at her questioningly, she threw her arms around his neck and pulled him into a tight embrace.
"Bracken, this place is more than anything I could have dreamed of."
He smiled and pulled away to hold her at arm's length. "You are more than anything I could have dreamed of," he answered. Her face reddened for the second time that evening as she smiled back at him, but this time she wasn't ashamed of it. He then seemed to register the importance of what he'd said and stammered, a small blush creeping into his own face. "I, um... I didn't mean – well I did, but I didn't mean for it to sound like-" Kendra started to laugh a little, and Bracken cleared his throat to collect his thoughts. "I made this way too serious. You're supposed to be enjoying tonight."
"I am enjoying it," she said. "I could have done without that whole interchange at the table, but I've loved everything else about today in general." She embraced him again. "Thank you," she said, hoping he could sense her genuine gratitude.
From the view their table offered, Scott stared at his daughter and the boy, watching every move closely. They weren't far enough apart for his liking. He thought about marching down there and forcefully separating the two of them.
"You leave them alone," Marla demanded under her breath. Scott clenched the fork in his hand even tighter in response.
"How could you let her buy a dress like that? It's too revealing."
"Why, because it shows off her shoulders? Oh no, call the police," Marla commented sarcastically. "This is exactly the type of situation I had in mind when I told you to behave earlier tonight. She's seventeen years old. Seventeen. She's not our little girl anymore; she's growing up. And if she wants to date Bracken, I say we let her."
"That guy is too forward. Do you see how he dotes on her all the time? And what kind of guy would bring a girl to a place like this unless he's got some sort of ulterior motive?"
"The same young man who kept her safe while the world was ending. The same one who has spent the past year and a half getting to know her quirks and faults and likes and dislikes. The same young man who thought of a wonderful, wholesome date and who is treating our daughter and her parents to a very nice dinner tonight." She patted him on the shoulder. "He's very traditional. There's no way he would do anything to her. You should put more trust in him. And your daughter too, for that matter – she's an extremely sensible young woman. Some would say virtuous, even."
Scott grunted. "I still don't like it."
"You were there when she was born. I don't think you'll ever like any boy she shows interest in, no matter how well-rounded and respectful of her he happens to be." She patted his arm softly, then said, "They're coming back. Please try to at least be polite. And Seth," she stated in a dangerous tone, glaring at her son, "No more of whatever that was earlier. You have been warned."
Seth looked at his dad nervously. Scott sent him a thumb's up and mouthed the words "well done." Marla whacked his arm and muttered something about a certain someone being 'out of luck' later that evening.
"She's my baby," Scott protested under his breath, staring off into the distance.
Bittersweet. :.)
There is pretty much zero character development for Scott and Marla in the books. None! They hardly speak at all (they don't need to, since their presence is not required for pretty much the entire series). It leaves a lot of room for interpretation, so... here's some of my interpretation.
I was thinking along the lines of the dress that Anastasia wore to the ballet from the animated movie a while back. Anyone remember that movie? I still love it.