Takes place a child and a half after the last epilogue. All should be self explanatory aside from Original Cindy is at the event later described in the story, she just didn't need to be in the part of it I was sharing. Logan also totally had better words to say when this was thought up last year.

Random: I still love Cale. One day he is getting a totally Cale-centric epilogue.

Thanks for reading!

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Chapter 85

An Important Birthday

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June 3rd 2030

"Then my dad fell down the stairs," Neal Riddell concluded his speech with a nod and a smile as he struggled to keep the laugh in.

"Uh thank you Neal," Miss Tyson nodded at the dark haired 4th grader, relieved as he finally started to return to his seat, thankful that the year was almost over and she'd never have to have any further contact with his parents because she was pretty sure she'd never be able to look them in the eye again. "Um Cale?" it took her a moment to compose herself enough to call on the fair haired boy behind him, whose skin already held the glow of summer. The second on her list of four Michaels stood, possibly her favorite, he was inquisitive, but never to the point of annoyance. He had a passion for knowledge his mother attributed to his father, the journalist Logan Michael Cale the Second. He also according to his mother had his father's great love of public speaking, which was evident through the slight frown he released before standing.

He cleared his throat as he stood in front of the class, a paper in hand ready to be read, "On Saturday it was the 21st anniversary of the Pulse, so my Uncle Alec decided we should throw it a party because that's a pretty important birthday…"

-o-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-o-

June 1st 2030

Max groaned as she got caught in the ribs by a stray foot meant to kick a brother invading on his space, her eyes didn't open however for sunlight meant the night was over as was her sleep.

"Stop squirming," the deep male voice on the opposite end of the queen sized bed ordered, he too with his eyes shut.

"He kicked me," Cale wined.

"Nuh uh," the three and a half year old Robby wined back.

"Uh-"

"Don't care," Logan quickly cut off his eldest son.

"Pan-akes?" Jacob, the youngest of the Cales questioned, eager to begin his day.

"Not yet baby," his mother murmured tightening her grasp on the two year old.

"I don't want pancakes," Cale complained, "I want waffles."

"You're having cereal," Logan responded with his head buried in his pillow.

"Waffles sound better than cereal," Max defended.

His eyes opened to glare at his wife who was somewhere underneath the mess of brown hair he saw across the bed. "Don't encourage them."

"Don't punish me because they woke you up."

"Stop talking, we're sleeping."

"I'm not sleeping," Cale pointed out.

"Me-"

Robby and Jay were hushed by their father, "Shh."

"Mom," Robby whined.

Jay squirmed.

"More sleep," their mother whimpered releasing the grasp on her youngest son to hide in the bed sheets.

"But," their voices once more overlapped.

"It isn't even 6," their father complained, ready to prove that grown men did cry if he didn't get more sleep.

"But we're hungry," the eldest argued their position.

"Make you a deal," his mother offered.

Cale's ears perked up, the most trained to recognize how well those words could turn out for him.

"Take them downstairs for an hour, you can each have a single cookie and juice box. Put on a movie and Daddy'll make you waffles when we come down."

"One cookie?"

"There are 23 now, don't think I won't count," Max threatened.

"Keep that in mind if you want to go to the party later," pale green eyes opened to ensure his son he wasn't kidding.

"One cookie," the boy smirked, pleased with himself.

"Okay," Logan said with his eyes closing, "get out of our bed."

Max smirked from hiding place, until she got nailed in the ankle by someone scurrying off the bed, listening as Cale hustled his siblings out of the room and towards cookies.

"Door," Logan called out realizing they were gone, but the door was open.

Max heard her oldest son rush back to the door, "Shouldn't we be able to hear them?"

"No," the quick whine sounded like it came from one of the kids, "why are you so far away," his whine lessened to that of a teenager as he reached out with one hand for her.

"That is the reason," she couldn't help, but giggle as Logan's hand as always was able to make its way to flesh.

"That didn't do it," he let out a low chuckle and his hand moved around her back and started to pull her in closer to him.

"Go away," she laughed as she was finally tugged out of her cocoon.

"Make me," his eyes started to sparkle.

"I thought you were tired," she argued.

"Hmm," he murmured against the shoulder he was kissing, "I was until I realized we were actually in our bed with no chance of being interrupted for a whole hour."

"When was the last time that happened?"

"I don't remember," the kisses started to trail.

"The kids-"

"Will watch cartoons loud enough to blow out their eardrums," he grinned over her.

"When you say it like that Mr. Cale," she laughed.

-o-O-o-

As they walked onto the semi completed job site, nearly forty five minutes after they had been due to arrive they were bombarded with praise over the "Great party."

"Told you, we didn't need to worry," Logan nodded as he shifted Jay in his arms, "Alec and parties," he smiled.

She rolled her eyes at him, knowing Alec he'd thrown all the hot dogs and burgers on the grill at the start so she'd have to scour the city looking for more. She had to admit the party did look as impressive as Alec had promised her it would, which was good considering all the damn work she'd gotten suckered into doing. "Place is coming along well," she hadn't been by the job site in awhile, but the Holiday Inn looking apartment building in Columbus City was at least looking like that again and not a crack house. She'd definitely have to keep an eye on the boys with those balconies though. She was impressed by her grown up kids though too, Logan had been needed for the initial start up funds, along with his ever present ability to work the system. Alec charmed their way through nearly everything else and always kept up the morale of his men. Zen always kept everything going and everyone calm, even when everything was going to hell. And Vida, well Vida did just about everything and she always let her boys know it.

Max normally just pointed out the weak points in their security because after being bombarded by Alec one too many times with a set of blueprints, she had to point out with 3 kids, a husband, a super moody cat and all of Terminal City to deal with the last thing she wanted to do on any possible downtime was work.

She and Logan had both reacted skeptically to Alec's idea of a party commemorating the 21st anniversary of the Pulse. The days surrounding June 1st now beat out all other holidays for suicides. That simple fact was why Alec said he had wanted to do this, and it had caused Logan to smile and nod in agreement.

Hours after their late arrival as Cale and Ronnie were under Normal's lockdown after several attempts to scale the balconies, operate the forklift, Alec had been sure was secure, and join the band onstage, Max was left with just two hellions to watch over as Alec pulled her husband away from her and dragged him on stage.

"Guys, you may not see him much because our venerable boss," Logan rolled his eyes, they referred to him as boss so he could get blamed for any unpopular decisions, "the man behind the curtain, has a way with words that would be wasted on us…" He clapped his best friend/brother/former housewife on the back, "Aside from that permit he got us overnight last week, when we almost had to shut down for a week. That was more beautiful than-" Logan was glaring at this point. "Point is our boss man has a few words to say."

Logan sighed into the microphone as Alec stepped off to the side, "I'd say thanks Alec but," he shrugged. The crowd exploded with laughter and Max couldn't help, but chuckle, Alec would never change. "When Alec first mentioned this party to me and Max," Max's elbow slammed back and nailed Alec in the gut as he started gesturing behind her, there were more chuckles, including Logan's, who had glanced over at her. "We pretty much thought he was crazy. However I think a big part of today and getting through it and every day is family and we've been family for quite a few years now." He chuckled unexpectedly, "That being said, I hope you don't it too personally when my sons and Ronnie manage to bring this place down around us." He smiled out at the crowd and more than several of them, looked over to Cale and Ronnie.

"Don't encourage them," Normal called out to the stage because sure enough their eyes once more held the devilish gleam.

Logan chuckled again to himself and started again, "Alec called today a birthday. I think he might be right, those first few years we were all so desperate to fulfill our own needs and we kept expecting someone else to fix them for us. Then as we got older, we started to lash out, looking for someone to stop us as we did want we wanted and took what we needed, our city crumbled around us and we let it because it seemed impossible. But now these past few years, I've seen this city shift its focus; we started to grown again, to build, to dream. We've matured enough to know that we're the only ones who can heal our city and our families, we're the only ones and every day we restore something, every day we make something better than it had been before the Pulse, we prove we're up to the task of taking care of ourselves and our families-"

Max smiled up at her husband in all of his discomfort as he quickly referenced the endlessness of childhood that disappears as an adult, especially as you begin to care about others more than yourself. How soon it would feel like a blink of an eye and they'd barely be able to recognize the city they had helped to create.

-o-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-o-

Cale cleared his throat after the few lines relating the food, his adventures and his father's speech. "My dad says June 1st is a good day because not many people get a single day to look around and see the city they're responsible for creating. My dad says he's proud of the city Seattle is growing up to be and that it's up to us to keep it that way."

Cale looked over nonchalantly as he waited to be dismissed, his unease having disappeared the moment the words had ended. She smiled at him, she wondered if it was wrong to tell a student she was in love with his entire extended family, "I think a birthday party is a wonderful idea." She nodded at him that he could return to his seat, he nearly ran. "`I hope everyone remembers Cale's father's words about responsibility, this is our planet, our city, not just on Earth Day like I told you in April, but year round." She smiled at her next student, "Andrea?"