There was a prolonged silence as the Crane men looked at one another and finally Martin spoke. "I guess we should-."

Niles picked up David's overflowing overnight bag and his plush panda and handed it to Ronee. "Here's his stuff. I hope it's all there because he packed it himself. But if you need anything-."

Ronee smiled. "We'll be fine. Just… take care of yourself. Both of you." Her eyes moved to Daphne, who looked at her in-laws in confusion.

"What's going on?"

"David's going to stay with Ronee and Dad tonight." Niles said quietly.

Hurt, she swallowed hard. "What? Why didn't you ask me first instead of assuming-."

"That's enough, you two!" Martin interrupted. "Now, I'm not here to get into the middle of this! I just came because my son called and asked us to keep David tonight, which we are more than happy to do! But I'll be damned if I'm going to let my grandson hear you two arguing! Now I want you both to resolve this quickly! You two love each other-the way I loved your mother and the way I love Ronee, so by God you'd better work this out, for David's sake and for your own! Come on, Ronee…"

They turned to leave and Daphne gasped lightly. "Wait…"

Smiling through her tears, she reached for David's small hand, hoping for a hug. But he pulled his hand away, choosing instead to clutch his grandfather's shoulders, looking through her with worried eyes. The shunning was almost more than she could bear. She tried once more, this time carefully touching his arm.

"Goodbye, Sweetheart. I'll see you… soon, okay? Have fun at Grandpa and Ronee's. I love you."

She expected him to say the words back, for he had been so happy to see her just moments before. But instead her words were met with silence. Tears fell from her eyes when he allowed her to kiss his cheek. "I love you, Sweetheart. Please don't ever forget that, okay?"

"I'll call you." Niles said to his father. And to Daphne's Dismay, as Niles leaned to kiss David, the boy willingly held out his arms, hugging Niles' neck. "I love you, Daddy."

The rejection, as it were, was a blow to her heart.