Hi! I would like to thank Dulcineah (Dulcey), mkat, and LoisandClarkSuperfan for reviewing on the last chapter. Before we start, I wanted to note that whenever Adam is talking, assume that he is speaking and signing at the same time. And when Analeigh is talking to or around Adam, she is also signing and speaking. Also, I forgot to mention that in the first couple of chapters, I went back and did some revising so that the story would work better. Among these changes are:

- Frederick was five when Analeigh was born, not fourteen.
- Analeigh did not leave a note when she snuck out in the prologue

Those are the only ones that I can think of right now. I would recommend re reading those chapters if you have been following this story since it was published, just in case I forgot any. Anyway, enjoy!

After walking out of the office, my mother called me over.

"What I came here to tell you is that Chris invited us to dinner tonight upstairs at Melville's." She said. "You need to be up there by seven, that gives you two hours."

"Do I have to?" I asked.

"Yes." She answered quickly. "Chris says that he has some very big news to tell us and he wants everyone there."

"Fine." I said.

"What's wrong?" She asked, genuinely this time. "I thought you liked Chris."

"I do." I said. "It's just, it feels like he's always around. He came over every day during Hanukkah and nearly every day on a regular basis. It's like whenever we do something, he has to come, too."

"Analeigh," She sighed. "I can understand that you would feel that way. But, I don't know about you, but I want him to be around for a long time. I want him to feel like he's a part of our family; I want him to be a part of our family."

"Mom, how am I supposed to accept him as a father- figure, when I don't even know who my real father is?" I asked. She didn't answer. She sighed and looked up at nothing in particular.

"Be upstairs by seven." She said finally. She quickly got up and left.

I sighed and walked back to the pool room.

"Hey there, kiddo." Sam said, lining up the cue ball. "What's up?"

"Nothing." I lied. I saw Adam across the room, grabbing a pool stick.

I sat on a stool, watching them play. I started to think about tonight.

What could Chris' big news be? What if he was planning on proposing to my mom? What if she said yes? What if she said no because of what I just said? What if I just ruined everything?

I felt my chest start to feel heavy and my breath feel shorter and quicker. I was brought back to reality when Adam came over and asked me what was wrong.

"Nothing," I said. "Just thinking too hard."

He seemed sort of confused but went with it. For some reason, I got this crazy burst of confidence.

"Do you want to come to dinner with me and my family?" I asked.

"Uh, sure. " He said. "Would your parents be okay with it?"

"I don't see why not. It's gonna be my mom and her boyfriend, my brother and his fiancee," I said. "And then I'd end up being the odd man out. Please?"

"Would you mind if I took off, Sam?" Adam asked.

"Go ahead." He said, taking a shot. "Business is kinda slow tonight anyway."

We headed upstairs to Melville's. We got a table for six and waited for everyone else.

"What time is your family going to be here?" He asked.

"It's only six fifty, so within the next ten minutes or so."

That's when Chris and my mom showed up. "Speak of the devil."

I waved over at them to get their attention. When they saw me they smiled, but their expressions quickly changed when Adam stood up next to me.

"Hey, Analeigh." Chris greeted. "I didn't know you invited a friend."

"I figured you wouldn't mind." I said, feeling rebellious. "I figured it would be fun having a conversation you guys can't understand, for a change."

They looked confused.

"Adam, this is my mom, Dr. Lilith Sternin. " I said, fingerspelling her name. "And this is Chris, her boyfriend."

"It's nice to meet you." He said. His speech wasn't as concrete as that of a hearing person, but very impressive for that of a deaf person. "I'm Adam Malone."

"Adam is deaf." I said simply.

"Well," Chris said. "Frederick and Krysta ought to be here soon."

We sat down at the table. I had to interpret nearly everything Adam said, since my mom and Chris had a hard time understanding him. When Frederick and Krysta arrived, I introduced them to Adam and enjoyed the initial shock on their faces.

While Chris and Frederick talked about God-knows-what involving medicine and my mother and Krysta talked about wedding plans, Adam and I talked about him going to Marbury next semester. There were times during the dinner when we would all talk about the same thing, but it wouldn't last for long.

After dessert was served, Chris gathered our attention.

"I'm sure you're all wondering what my big announcement is, right?" He said. I interpreted for Adam, since he had a hard time reading Chris' lips.

"Yes." We all said.

"Well," He looked at my mom.

Oh no. He was going to do it. I was sure of it. He was about to ask my mom to marry him.

"Oh, Chris." My mom said. "Please cut the suspense, it's killing us all."

"Not quickly enough." I signed to Adam. He laughed quietly.

"I got your book published!" He said excitedly.

"What?" We all said.

"Why? She said, less than excited.

"What book?" I asked.

"I thought you'd be happy." Chris said. "You've been working on it for so long."

"What book?" I asked again.

"I wrote a book, but I wasn't sure if I should publish it." She looked at Chris pointedly. "It was about you."

"What!?" I asked. "What do you mean it was about me?"

"It was a book on raising an introverted child. " She admitted. "Raising an introverted child in general and also when you have an extroverted child, like Frederick."

"Why would you do that?"

"Because it seemed like a good idea at the time."

Like deciding not to tell my father that I existed? I thought.

"My editor said that it was a good idea, so I started writing it." She said. "But, I wasn't sure if I wanted to go through with publishing it."

I got up and walked outside, Adam came after me.

"Hey, why are you so upset?" He asked.

"I don't know." I said, honestly. "I just don't understand why she would write something about me, without telling me. I don't know what she wrote or what's in there."

"I guess that makes sense." He said. "Are you gonna be okay? Do you want to go back inside?"

"Not really." I don't know why I was being so honest with him. "But, I guess I have to eventually."

He opened his arms and smiled. He hugged me and I hugged him back. We just stood there for a minute, in silence. Then I saw my mom come outside. I broke the hug and pointed to my mom.

"Um, we're going home." She said awkwardly. I could tell she was upset.

"I've got to go." I said to Adam. "I'll see you later."

"Okay." He smiled. He hugged me again and went down the stairs to Cheers.