Thank you to everybody who read or reviewed the last chapter. Sorry this chapter took so long. I had horrible writer's block. Eventually, something did come out, but it took a while. Also due to real life being real life, Heather is no longer able to work as the beta on this story for the moment. Her years of working on the story work are greatly appreciated. UrsulaR was kind enough to step up and work on this chapter, but I do need another beta for either this story or anything else I work on. Let me know if you're available.
Also, there are two sections in this chapter that are nothing but text messages. You will know them when you see them.
Chapter 37: Bail Money Needed
"Would you be up for a preteen sleepover?" Hilda heard her stepmom ask as soon as she hit the talk button. Faye was never one for pleasantries.
Hilda was currently making her way back to her father's restaurant after trying to repurchase Thanksgiving dinner. (Yes, Betty, she's using a hands-free device.) She had no turkey, but did manage to get three roasted chickens, a sweet potato casserole, and lots of frozen Stauffer side dishes and pies. She's sure her father will be upset about putting prepackaged frozen macaroni and cheese in one of his ovens at the restaurant, but at least this way, they're not going to be ordering pizza or Chinese.
When she agreed to help with Thanksgiving in exchange for doing the hair and makeup on the Tim and Chloe shoot so her stepmother could set up Betty and Daniel, Hilda wasn't expecting to have to pull off dinner for 20 on her own with about an hour to do so. Her father's original Thanksgiving dinner was not usable due to one of Betty's colleagues completely destroying all of her childhood memories and making her father's condo unlivable. They had barely time to pack up a bag, let alone finish the turkey or grab her beautiful turkey-shaped cupcakes.
Now she was running around New York picking up various things for their new Thanksgiving dinner while her father dealt with the management of his co-op and her stepmother dealt with everything else. She really hopes that Faye doesn't do something that will require Hilda to get the woman out of jail on a holiday.
"You know I love DJ, but shouldn't Daniel be the one asking me?" She really did love DJ. She was happy that Justin had at least one good friend at his school. She also recognized that DJ needed someone too. Losing your mom is hard. It's been two years and it still hurts Hilda for her mom not to be here, but it must be worse for DJ having to move to another country to find out that your father is really your uncle and your uncle Alex is really your father who's now your aunt Alexis. Poor kid.
"He's really overprotective of DJ." Hilda added.
"He just went in to talk to your sister about going with her on her emergency run to Target to get props for tomorrow's Tim and Chloe shoot after dinner. I'm asking for him because I'm sure it will be easier to do shopping without a 12-year-old there." What she's not saying is that it will be easier for the two to just fuck it out of their system so they can stop acting like idiots without having a child there to act as a buffer.
"You don't need me to babysit because first of all, DJ knows how to make himself scarce. Second, if they pull their heads out of their asses, it won't take that long. I wouldn't be surprised if they're already going at it in our room now." She knows Daniel and she knows Betty.
"Which I don't want them to do. I just spent the last hour rebuying Thanksgiving and they'd better be here. I expect the food to be ready in an hour or less, maybe. How long does it take to make frozen lasagna and macaroni and cheese in an industrial convection oven?" Hilda quickly glanced at the bag of frozen food sitting next to her. However, she couldn't look at the directions because she needed to stay focused navigating her way through Rosa's parking garage.
"Significantly less time. At least tell me you brought some bleu cheese to at least dress up the store-bought stuff." Faye sighed.
"The restaurant will have stuff like that. No desserts though. I had to elbow a woman for the last pumpkin." She also almost knocked out someone's teeth for the last sweet potato pie. It was ugly.
"And I thought Fashion Week was violent."
"Nothing is as violent as a New York City grocery store 30 minutes before closing on Thanksgiving. I was able to get some roasted chickens so at least we won't have to order pizza and you and Justin will have something that's not a carbohydrate."
"Maybe you should still, just in case."
"I can cook." Hilda may not be as good as her dad, but it wasn't like Justin starved. "If it's okay with Daniel, I'll be happy to take DJ for the night." She sighed
"I will ask as soon as he gets out of your sister's bedroom."
"That may be a while. Unlike my baby's daddy, Daniel is anything but quick." She joked.
"I don't doubt that … As much as I would love new grandchildren, this is not the time to work on them." "Told you they were having sex in there." Hilda whispered, mostly to herself as her stepmother kept addressing her sister and almost brother-in-law.
"Daniel, take care of that in the bathroom and Betty, put some pants on. Ignacio will be very angry if we're not at the restaurant in an hour and if you take after either one of your fathers, this will not be a short encounter." Faye walked out of the room, not even bothering to shut the door.
"I did not need to know that," Hilda told her stepmom.
"And I didn't need to see my stepdaughter and my ex-boyfriend's son 10 seconds from ripping each other's clothes off. I'm going to put you on speakerphone so you can ask Daniel about DJ spending the night yourself before he takes care of little Daniel in the bathroom." Faye said just before she heard Daniel say,"… bathroom now. I may not be able to have sex for weeks."
"That was the point. You two need to talk to each other, really talk to each other before you fall into bed again. Just sex relationships don't work." Faye called from the living room. "You can talk over turkey. Get dressed." I guess she forgot that they were having roasted chicken instead. Maybe she can order turkey sausage pizza. You can't have Thanksgiving without turkey in some form, even if that form happens to be tofu. Which, incidentally, she could not find.
"That was embarrassing and we weren't really doing anything." She heard her sister say a little too innocently. Hilda just rolled her eyes as Daniel kept talking about her sister's lack of a bra.
"Get dressed." Hilda heard Faye call out in exasperation as Hilda pulled into a parking space underneath Rosa. As Daniel and Betty were talking about what underwear she should wear, Hilda was trying to figure out how to carry all the food into the restaurant. Then she remembered that Marc and Cliff were inside going over outfits for tomorrow's shoot with Justin. She quickly sent off a text message to Marc asking him to come help her.
"Black lace." Hilda suggested to her sister when she was done with her text message. One of them deserved to have a good night and it wasn't going to be her. Seriously, why did she think the Justin Timberlake wannabe would ever be interested in her beyond a quick fuck? She was too old to be dealing with that. Her bad taste in men has already screwed with Justin, starting with his usually absentee father. She is almost positive the only reason why he started calling again recently was because of the Justin Timberlake wannabe ex-boyfriend that he was obviously jealous of.
"You have Hilda on speakerphone?" Her sister called out almost sounding surprised.
"Of course, she has me on speakerphone. I'm the one who's trying to help our father put this Thanksgiving dinner together." While you were about 20 seconds from giving Daniel blowjob. "Just be happy we were able to salvage the…" She was just about to say whole thing when she saw Justin's father knock on her hood.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" She said out loud before ending the phone call. How did he even get in the garage? This place had good security.
"You invited me to Thanksgiving." He replied smugly. Seriously, why did her sister get nice guy Daniel and she got this idiot, who didn't even bother to have anything to do with his son until they ended up on the Upper East Side?
"And then I uninvited you because Justin doesn't want to see you." Or talk to you for that matter. This was evident by her trying to get Justin to talk to his father himself the day before.
"Yet you still emailed me about the change of venue." She cursed herself for using reply-to-all on the original Thanksgiving invitation, only bothering to add Christine. She didn't have time to add everybody's name and individually because it's really hard to re-create Thanksgiving by yourself when you only have 45 minutes before the store closes. Seriously, in New York City, you would think the stores would stay open after 3 PM even on Thanksgiving?
"I'm Justin's father." Only when it suits you. Hilda thought to herself. "The boy needs strong male role models in his life." Unfortunately, you don't qualify.
"He has them." Besides, how can you be considered a strong role model when you ran away the moment I told you I was pregnant?
"In addition to my father, who owns the restaurant above us, he has his uncle Daniel, who not only offered to help Betty take care of Alex when he thought the boy was Walter son, but also stepped up and adopted his brother's child even though he was the product of the man sleeping with his girlfriend."
That alone pretty much changed her opinion of Daniel. He wasn't Santos. He loved Alex and would always be there for him regardless of how complicated things were with Betty.
"Yes, the bisexual fashion editor." She noticed that he said 'bisexual' like a curse word. "There was another article about one of his ex-boyfriends on page 6 this morning." She's not surprised. Interviews with Daniel's fake ex-boyfriends was becoming a staple because the man was very good at keeping the paparazzi from DJ and Alex for that matter. Therefore, the paparazzi had to make stuff up for their daily dose of Daniel Meade.
Daniel can count on one hand the number of guys he's had sex with and not one of them has actually done an interview with anybody, not even the one who initially confirmed the rumor. Ironically enough, in fashion circles, people now take Daniel more seriously.
"So what if some of his former partners had a dick. At least he's not a dick. That's more than I can say for you." Hilda got out of the car at that moment fighting the urge to slam the door on Santos's hand. "Why are you even bothering now? Two years ago, if I ran into you in the grocery store with Justin, you would pretend you didn't even know us. Why are you trying so hard now? You never gave a fuck before," she asked icily.
"I don't want Justin to grow up weak. He doesn't like basketball. He knows nothing about baseball. He wants to be an actor or a fashion designer when he grows up. He has a subscription to every fashion magazine there is. He should be reading Spiderman comic books, not Isabella." Santos complained.
"One, Isabella is not even allowed in the house. Two, Justin does read comic books." That was because of DJ and Justin likes to redesign their outfits. But whatever. "So what if he prefers fashion magazines. So did his step-grandmother and she is now the CEO of Meade publications. That's not a bad thing." Hilda shot back.
"Yes, his grandmother." He emphasized the mother part of that word.
"Santos, it is 2006, almost 2007. You need to get over your ideas about what makes a man a man. Although, your ideal of masculinity does involve leaving me when I got pregnant with your kid so I'm glad Justin doesn't live up to your standards. I'm sure he's going to be a better person for it." She remarked curtly, just as she heard the footsteps of someone else in the garage.
"I'm here to help. Just tell me what to bring." Cliff said as he approached the car. Just in time to keep Santos from responding to her harsh criticism. "Justin and Marc are too busy trying to find the perfect outfit for the baby and despite me being the photographer, they don't like any of my ideas." She exhaled. Glad Justin didn't hear what she said.
"Cliff, this is Justin's biological father Santos." She almost said sperm donor, but stopped herself. "Santos, this is famed fashion photographer and friend of the family, Cliff St. Paul." Santos extends his hand to shake Chris hands.
"It's nice to meet Justin's father. My boyfriend Marc has appointed himself as Justin's guide to the fashion industry." And that's when Santos pulls back his hand, making her well aware of his real problem. Actually, she was always aware considering he painted the F word, the other F word, on somebody's locker during their senior year when he ignored her and half the school called her a slut.
"Thanks, but you and Marc are not needed anymore. I'm here." She just rolled her eyes at that.
"For how long? Justin needs people that will actually stay in his life and accept him for who he…"
"Cliff, can you just grab the pies." She said cutting the man off. Cliff may look like a gentle teddy bear, but he was a grizzly bear when it came to protecting Justin and anyone else he cared about. This Thanksgiving was already a disaster. It would be good to avoid getting arrested for punching out Santos.
"Sure Hilda."
"What do you want me to do?" Run far away and never come back. You were so good at it the first time around when I didn't get that abortion you asked me for.
"Fine, if you want to actually be in your son's life, then you need to actually be in it as it is. Stop wanting Justin to be somebody he's not because he never will be. Real love is about caring about somebody for who they are and not for whom you want them to be." She said as she pointed to the chickens for him to pick up. "Let me warn you now. If you hurt Justin in any way, whatever Faye said she would do to you if you fuck with Justin would be nothing compared to what I would do. Do we understand each other?" Hilda's voice was harsh and her gaze menacing.
"Perfectly."
Of course as a precaution Hilda sent a text message to Marc to warn Justin that his father was going to be there. However, in hindsight, she should've also asked Marc to warn DJ, but how was she supposed to know that the 12-year-old would toss one of the hard to get pumpkin pies at Santos. Also, how was she supposed to know that Santos would retaliate by turning the whole thing into an all-out food fight?
Monique: My boyfriend may no longer be my boyfriend when this is all said and done, but we should be there within 90 minutes barring traffic stops.
Nico: Because you dragged him away from his perfect Thanksgiving dinner? I know he loves cooking. Tell him I'm sorry and his cookies are better than what they have here.
Monique: No, because I left them at mom's house so he could finish cooking his perfect Thanksgiving dinner. You preferring his cookies will soften the blow.
Monique: Mom may prefer me dating Daniel, but she likes Gio's cooking.
Nico: Because he's good, I think he will forgive you. Your mom is still better than both of my parents.
Monique: Your dad, yes. I'm not sure about Wilhelmina. She's with me right now to come get you.
Nico: Seriously? The two of you will kill each other if you're forced to spend time in a confined space.
Monique: Yes, unfortunately. Actually she's driving. Otherwise, I wouldn't be text messaging you right now. Also, we may make it to the restaurant in 70 minutes the way she drives.
Nico: Is Vivienne making her come with you?
Monique: My mom is making me take her with me.
Nico: That doesn't answer my question.
Monique: Yes, it does. She wanted to come. We are only in the same car together to save resources.
Monique: She's currently describing in graphic detail how she wants to eviscerate your father.
Nico: I don't believe you.
Monique: See image attached of your mom cursing out your father.
Nico: So, what he said to me was true? They only got married because grandpa paid him.
Nico: You're not answering so I take that as a yes.
Monique: I didn't answer because your mom started praising Daniel's parenting skills in an effort to chastise the sperm donor. I had to record that.
Nico: That's going to be Daniel's new happy moment.
Nico: That still doesn't answer my question though.
Monique: You're here and you're a great human being, which is a small miracle considering your father is a prick. The behind-the-scenes parts of that decision don't matter.
Nico: Dad married Mom because grandpa paid him to. What does that say about me?
Monique: That you are better than them :-)
Monique: It shows that he's a prick and your grandfather is a manipulative bastard. Also I now feel sorry for your mom a little.
Nico: That must be so hard for you.
Monique: You know I don't like your mom. But despite all the pressure that they were putting on her, she chose to have you. That earns her bonus points from me.
Nico: It doesn't matter.
Monique: Yes it does. Wilhelmina Slater does have a heart, even if it is three sizes too small.
Nico: It's too early for the Grinch that stole Christmas references.
Monique: It's never too early for Dr. Seuss.
Monique: We are now only 50 minutes away with the way your mom drives. I think she just killed a squirrel.
Nico: You're terrified right now?
Monique: Completely. I'll send you a message when we get closer.
Marc does not like Justin's dad. He never has. There's just something that bothers him about a guy who brings a kid into the world and doesn't bother to take care of him or even see him unless it's convenient for him. This explains why Marc may have thrown half a chicken at the man, even though his outfit is now completely ruined. It's just impossible to get cherry pie out of silk. He doesn't regret throwing the chicken at the man because after Christina manages to get DJ and Justin out of the room, the bastard tells Marc what he really thinks about him and Daniel, which was bad. Lots of uses of the F word, both versions.
Good thing he doesn't know about Justin's best friend DJ having a transgendered mother/aunt and not that heterosexual father. Actually, things got bad enough that Cliff, much to Marc's disappointment, had no choice but to call his cop ex-boyfriend to escort Santos off the premises. Okay, they did this when Mr. Suarez arrived to see his kitchen covered in bits of Thanksgiving gone awry.
"What did I ever see in him?" Hilda said as she cleaned bits of mashed potato out of her hair in the bathroom. Her outfit was also ruined, but in Marc's opinion, that was a good thing. Too many loud colors and patterns.
"A nice looking ass." Marc remarked darkly as he removed pieces of chicken from his hair.
"Too bony." Cliff smirked as he took Marc's backup outfit from the car. Best boyfriend ever.
"I mean he is an ass that has the misfortune of looking good." Marc clarified.
"No arguing there." Hilda smirked. "Please tell me there are hair products in there?"
"Of course. I'm a professional." Marc pulls out six different hairbrushes.
"You're worse than me." She grabbed one and a bottle of the secret weapon hair finishing cream. He always carries a bottle of that in his emergency bag. "I need to find Justin and then I need to find more chicken as soon as I get the last of the mashed potatoes out of my hair."
"You look fine, both of you. I can take care of dinner, or what's left of it. There's nothing wrong with lasagna for Thanksgiving dinner. Go talk to Justin."
"Just order pizza." Hilda suggested before leaving to go find Justin. Marc joined her after actually changing. It took them 10 minutes to find Justin. They assumed he would be changing in the other bathroom like the others, but instead Justin was in his grandfather's office streaming the fashion TV website.
"I'm sorry I destroyed everyone's Thanksgiving." Justin said with tears running down his cheeks.
"First, DJ threw the first pie." Hilda said as she put an arm around her son. "Second, Thanksgiving was already ruined when Carlo Medea flooded your grandfather's condo with raw sewage. We have lasagna plus macaroni and cheese. It will be fine."
"Cliff is ordering pizza." Marc added.
"Will we have anything that's not a carbohydrate?"
"I will grill a chicken breast for you, me, and Faye, or rather, I'll have your grandfather do it or Cliff. I'm not the one who cooks in our relationship."
"I think there's turkey breast in the cooler." Justin suggested.
"Grilled turkey breast it is."
"Thanksgiving is not about food, it's about being with family. The people that you love. And despite everything that happened today, we still have that. DJ would not have thrown the first pie if he didn't care." Marc told the boy which resulted in him getting a hug from both him and Hilda. It was family overload.
"You know I'm good. I love you no matter what. No matter who you are."
"Santos doesn't."
"Santos is a fool. You are the greatest kid. Anybody would want you for his son. If Cliff and I make it long enough to consider adopting a baby from China, I hope we have one just like you." Marc said sincerely, which just resulted in him getting a really sad smile.
"I know what it's like to have a parent like Santos. My mom is exactly the same way. She hasn't talked to me since the tabloids broke the news about me sleeping with Jamie. But I don't care because someone like that is not worth my time." Marc made peace with that fact a long time ago. Besides, he would rather have frozen lasagna with the Suarez-Somers family.
"You're too good for her." Hilda whispered.
"You're lucky, Justin. Unlike me, you have a lot of people who love you. Your mom adores you, so does your grandma Faye. Actually as soon as she finds out about what Santos did today, they may never find his body." Marc is not even joking about that. If anybody could get away with murder, it would be Faye Somers-Suarez."
"So do you. I love you a lot more than my biological father." Marc couldn't help, but smile at that.
They sat down an hour later to pizza, lasagna, macaroni and cheese, and turkey cranberry salad. Despite everything that happened that day, including the fact his fashion shoot was practically ruined by a sociopath, it was a good Thanksgiving. Apparently Marc had a lot of things to be grateful for.
Nico: At least DJ had a chance to throw a pie at him.
Justin: I know. He deserved it. Daniel is 1000 times the man he is. So is Marc. He would have made a much better father.
Nico: Do they know DJ threw a pie at Santos for making nasty comments about Daniel?
Justin: I decided it was best not to tell them. They just think DJ was defending me. It's better that way. Besides, it wasn't just about Daniel.
Nico: What else did the asshole say?
Justin: The last time he was over, Santos said some not so nice things about Aunt Alexis in front of DJ and let's just leave it at that. That's the whole reason why I didn't want him here in the first place.
Nico: Why did we get bastards for fathers?
Justin: Defective prophylactics and moms who love us anyway.
Nico: Maybe. Mom and Monique are still not here yet. They should've been here half an hour ago.
Justin: I hope they didn't try to kill each other in the car.
Nico: Hey Monique, please tell me I don't need to wire bail money. Did you try to kill my mom on the way here? Or did she just get pulled over for speeding?
Nico: Thank you for putting the idea in my head. I just had to check with Monique to see if that is true.
Monique: Possibly. Your mom just punched out your dad. You should probably have my mom call the lawyers.
To be continued
Yes, Thanksgiving is over with. However, Black Friday will be brutal.