Hello Everyone and Welcome Back!

Some stars have aligned, I assume, if not I don't know what happen to me, I managed to upload 2 chapters in a span of 7 days! From this chapter on, I am going to start doing some jumps in time, so we can progress with this story. If there is anything you'd like to see, let me know in the comment section!

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B. M. Adams

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Disclaimer: I do not own anything from R&I, just this plot and OCs


Megan's POV.

"More than 330 million people in this country, and Genevieve is the person she had to come with," I whispered to myself. I was still kind of in shock seeing her there after all this time. It was infuriating more than anything else, having her there, claiming to know me and my family so much and so well. Same with her husband on the phone. The most enraging thing was not her saying she was my mom's best friend, which was not even close to reality, not even pretending to know a single thing about me, the worst for me was that she said all these things not even realizing that someone that was that close to someone else, would have done something. Something to at least spear some of the pain of losing my whole family, her supposed best friends, being taken away from all that I knew, being thrown into a system I didn't know anything about, and the fear of going to a place I knew nothing about, with people I knew nothing about. It is not like they would have had space problems in their huge house. Her whole speech was basically a punch in the gut to me. Kind of making fun of me and of the whole situation.

I was probably talking out loud to myself, pacing back and forth, pushing the sand with my feet. I could stop the anger this whole situation brought to me, but I could help to be happy that they never did something to stop me from going to that group home, and that they never told me to stay at their house with them. "At least I don't have to put up with them," I said to myself, which made me chuckle a little, The memory of the most obnoxious people I have ever met was enough to make me even more thankful that I don't have to put up with that, or any of them more than what I have already pull myself though.

Ultimately, Jane and Maura find me and that made me feel better. It was strange to me that I was now kind of ok with the fact that I was living with them, it felt right in some sort of odd way. It scared me knowing that this was most likely a temporal thing. I understood what fostering meant, and since the day I came, I have mentally prepared myself for the day I have to go back to a group home or another family, for even the day I age out of the system and have to be on my own. I have been consoling myself by telling me that at least, even if this doesn't last, I'll have the memories of a caring home with caring people.

I was lost in my thoughts, looking at Lily and Lucas playing with the sand when I heard footsteps in the sand behind me, I was sure it was either Jane or Maura checking on us, but my surprise was evident when the one that stood by my side was Constance. I looked down and saw she was barefoot. I was now baffled at the surrealism of this day. We stood there silent for another few seconds when Constance spoke "I have to say I am not a fan of Genevieve either" she nonchalantly said. I looked at her, my arms crossed in front of my chest, expectant to know where she was going.

"I know we started on the wrong foot, Megan. Mainly because I, perhaps judged the situation wrongly. I'd like to apologize for my imprudence when we met" she expressed. Keeping her gaze towards the horizon as the sun was setting in the sea and her arms crossed in front of her chest.

Looking at her, It took me a good minute to reply "There is no need for any apologies, Constance. I get it" I said.

"That Is still not an excuse to be rude to someone for no reason," she said, and I just nodded, we both went back to look at the sun finally settling down, in an oddly comfortable silence, only broken once in a while by the kids' laughter.

"So, what is the story?" she asked.

I turned to look at her, with my brow furrowed "What story?" I asked confused, not knowing what she was referring to.

"About Genevieve and her family. I sense there is a little misleading information in what she claimed" she explained.

Again, it took me a little to reply, I was not really expecting to be having a full-on conversation about someone from my past with Maura's mother. To be honest, I thought she would not take any interest in anything to do with me "There is not much to it, to be fair" I said "Her husband worked with my dad for a while, and she used to come home with him and their daughter once in a while" I explained and stopped not knowing how to continue. She patiently waited for me to continue.

"I wouldn't say she is…was my mom's best friend, they were friends, but they weren't particularly close, it was more like… a someone you know and see often because someone else is there, kind of relationship. Usually, they came home when it meant business between my dad and Terry, her husband" I finished explaining, trying to make sense of the relationship they had with my family.

"I see, and what about her daughter, she said that you two were close… precisely, like sisters, she said" Constance recalled what Genevieve said while I was out here with Lily and Lucas. The expression on her face showed that she suspected that statement Genevieve made, was a little far from the truth.

I could only roll my eyes and chuckled at such asseveration Genevieve said "That is a little bit of an overstatement" I said.

Constance also let out a small smile "I imagine, I have met Chayanne and from what I can see, you two don't have much in common," she explained, chuckling softly.

"Again, that is a little bit of an overstatement" I laughed, and I find myself wanting to extend further "We were in school together, not much more than that. It was all circumstantial, our parents knew each other and that was it… If that wouldn't have been like that, we wouldn't know each other, we are opposite poles" I finished.

She nodded "I understand, I have only met her once, and well, she did not come across as a very pleasant young lady" She chuckled lightly again. I did too and find myself enjoying this moment. She was about to say something else, when the high-pitched voice Genevieve's was heard, even startling the kids.

"Connie, darling" She effusively called from the back porch.

Constance sighed deeply "Shall we?" she said inviting me to walk towards the house to finally say goodbye to Genevieve. The kids ran inside when Maura called them.

I nodded "Yeah, sure," I said sarcastically.

We started walking toward the house "I am going to tell you a secret" she said, I quizzically looked at her "I can't stand her for much longer either" she said and laughed.

I laughed at well, finding it really funny that Constance was actually being so playful. She then sideways hugged me for the rest of the short walk to the house. The closer we got to the house, the more I could see Jane's raised brows and Maura's goofy smile at the sight of her mother and me laughing about something she said. I can only assume they saw some of our interaction while at the beach from the window.

We arrived at the back porch and straight there Genevieve gave a loose hug to Constance and two kisses, in a very European way. "It has been a pleasure to see you this time, Connie, I will need to be going a little early, duties call," she said while all of us walked towards the house door.

I could only roll my eyes at that statement. Constance said her goodbyes, expressing her gratitude for thinking of her to appraise such a valuable piece of art. Then, the woman said goodbye to both kids, Jane, and Maura, thanking them for the pleasant afternoon. And finally, my turn to finally end this whole ordeal.

"I have been such a pleasure to see you, darling. I know you are in great hands" she said holding my shoulders with her hands.

"Oh, I can assure you I am" I replied. Meeting with the touched gazes of Jane & Maura when I looked at them.

"When I tell Chayanne, she will be so excited to talk to you. She misses you a lot" she continued saying "You still have the same phone number" she asked. I could only nod, dreading any kind of call with the girls. "When you come back to Boston, we have to plan a girls' date, like we use to do" Genevieve recalled while walking down the hallway.

We stood outside while she drove away. "Well, that was an experience," Maura said, making all of us laugh.

"Sweetheart, you deserve an Oscar for pretending to care in a non-caring situation," Jane remarked, laughing. We all as well burst out laughing. "Was I that obvious?" I asked while we kept on laughing when Constance announced that she had a chauffeur coming to pick her up in a few minutes as she needed to be at her hotel at 8 pm as she had an early flight the next day.

"It has been a pleasure to have you, Mother" Maura sincerely said giving her one kiss on each cheek.

They separated and her mother smiled sweetly "It has been my pleasure. I had a lovely time" she said, walking towards Jane to say goodbye. "Thank you, Jane, for the lovely time".

Jane reciprocated the gesture and hugged her Mother-in-Law "Is always nice to have you, Constance". Constance then hugged the kids and said her goodbyes to them, both kids wanting their grandmother to say a little longer. Oddly enough, this time around Constance seemed very pleasant, in contrast with our first encounter when things didn't end up too well at all.

"By the way, those scones were really nice. I Need to know where you bought them, chéri" Constance asked.

Jane smiled "That is all Megan's doing" she replied, hugging me sideways. I could only give a tight smile, embarrassed at the attention this was bringing to me.

She then came towards me and gave me a hug and two kisses as well "They were exceptional" she said, congratulating me for the scones. "It has been lovely to see you again. And next time we will finish our chat" she said, winking an eye at me.

I softly laughed "Likewise, Constance. We sure will" I replied, giving her two kisses as well.


Maura's POV

I did not know what happened between my mother and Megan while at the beach, but I was glad that anything that happened, happened. The first time they met I thought any kind of relationship between them was going to be an impossible mission. But apparently, they had a nice talk. And I couldn't be any happier. I know there were no hard feelings from last time's encounter, but I was glad they manage to enjoy a little time together, even if it was short.

My mother then boarded the car she hired and left. And everyone went on their way. Jane and I started to organize the kitchen and start the dishwasher. Lily and Lucas watch a little tv before bedtime came at 9 pm. Jane went up with them to put them to bed while I finished cleaning and putting everything we used away. I could faintly hear Megan playing the piano in the adjacent room.

At almost 10 pm, Jane came back down "The beasts have been tamed" she said triumphantly and continued "That took a while" she said, sitting down on one of the kitchen stools.

I smiled "They had too much excitement today," I said and saw Jane looking at the kitchen island's counter "Would you like something to drink, some beer perhaps?" I asked her, knowing fully well she was going to comment on the rather unusual afternoon we had.

Jane lifted her head and looked at me and nodded, just before she spoke "They were the only ones" She snorted mockingly.

"Yes, I have to admit that was uncomfortable," I said nonchalantly while drying the last dishes, and putting them away, before grabbing a cold bottle of beer from the fridge. I handed it to her and gave it a sip before she replied "Only uncomfortable? I wanted to run away, and I was not the center of the conversation. No surprise Megan wanted the earth to swallow her" Jane explained, with an annoyed expression on her face. She was right, the whole situation was uncomfortable for everyone, more so for poor Megan being the center of really unwanted attention from someone she was very uncomfortable around.

"What was her deal, though?" Jane asked, very confused about the intentions and why she was saying all the things she said. I shrugged and shook my head while I poured a glass of white wine for myself, I was as confused as she was, I did not know the intentions behind her speech. To be honest, I did not know why she was always talking about how much she knew Megan and her family. when she was, undoubtedly, a stranger.

"Why…" Jane stopped at the sound of the door of the room where the piano is, she turned around and we both saw Megan walking toward us.

I smiled "Hey, sweetheart, had a nice piano session?... you were inspired today," I said, looking at the girl who nodded her head, while she approached the island and sat on a stool, "Would you like something to drink?" I then asked.

"I assume beer is not an option?" she playfully asked.

Jane laughed "Ha ha!" she exclaimed "No for the next 6 years, kid," She said patting her shoulder. Eliciting a small from the girl.

"Then I guess, water is fine," she said, jumping down the stool to grab it herself. I sipped my wine and stopped her "I'll get it… Are you sure you don't want some tea?" I asked opening the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water.

"Water is fine, Maura. Thanks" she simply replied. I passed the bottle to her, and she simply took it between her hands, opened and took a small sip.

"So, would you tell us what's your story with that woman," Jane asked before taking another sip of her beer.

Megan chuckled "Déjà vu," she softly said.

Both Jane and I looked at her quizzically, not understanding what she was referring to. "Déjà vu?" Jane asked, both expectant of her explanation.

She smiled and took another sip from the bottle of water before replying "Your mother asked me the same thing" she said "Well, the whole story, is basically that she is the wife of a long-time business partner of my father's" she briefly explained, and looked like she was going to wait until we came up any follow-up questions. She tended to be that way. she was like a dropper, little by little she would budge and open up, but it took time, and right there, I wanted to fully know why she was so badly wanting to escape from whatever the lady was saying. I was fully aware that she felt uncomfortable when the topic of her past was brought up, but this was a tension in her I had not seen before.

"But, if that was it, why was she talking as if she was a fundamental part of your life?" I asked wanting to understand.

She shrugged "To be honest, I have no idea" She solely replied.

"So, no mom's best friend, I assume," Jane questioned.

She shook her head "Not really, I mean they were kind of friends, and we did go on some mother-daughter dates with her and her daughter. But I wouldn't say best friends" she exposed.

I wanted to keep the conversation as light-hearted as possible, I didn't want to make her feel pressured to talk or close off because she felt like she was being questioned. "She did mention you and her daughter were very close, you went to school together," I said taking a sip of my nearly empty glass of wine.

"The only truth in that phrase is that we went to school together. The rest, nah, total lie" she bluntly said. And this was the moment I felt she was letting her emotions fully take over, she only gets tense and direct when her emotions are running high.

Jane chuckled "Yeah, I only heard what she said, and I was sure you two couldn't be friends" she laughed "I have to ask you to describe her, I need to have a visual," Jane said, laughing at the thought of this teenager

"Let me paint the picture, imagine a mix between Veruca Salt from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Regina George from Mean Girls" Megan joked, laughing softly. I didn't really know the characters she mentioned but I made a mental note to look them out online.

Jane almost chocked on her beer at the comparison Megan did, but she then wanted to be discretionary "I mean, 'm not saying Genevieve or her daughter are not good people and don't want to be judgemental, but if she is anything like her mother, I can't imagine you, hanging out with someone like that".

"Nope, they are not," she said, she went straight to the point. Some seconds passed without anyone saying anything until she continued "Not like it doesn't show, but both are the most obnoxious, pretentious, and arrogant people I have met" We could feel the anger and resentment in her words. And that had to come from somewhere else, not from the simple fact that someone claimed to be closer to her than they really were.

Time passed "Sweetheart, what is it bothering you?" I asked her, leaving my glass on the kitchen counter and coming closer, to the island, where she and Jane were but keeping my distance from the girl.

She looked between us, like debating with herself whether she should talk or not. I noticed she was squishing the bottle between her hands now, and was looking down, battling an internal battle with her own self.

"They could have done something" she whispered closing her eyes and tilting her head down at the bottle in her hands. It took a minute for realization to hit Jane and me. It made sense, someone being so effusive about being so close to her, yet, not doing anything to spear the girls from the pain and abandonment. That explained why she didn't want to get too attached and comfortable around us. The little people she thought would come to her rescue, let her down. My heart sank and ached for her, a bright, young lady what has been forgotten by those who were supposed to hold her up in her darkest moments.

"I am so, so sorry, sweetheart" Jane softly said. She tried to hold the girl's hand, but she retreated herself.

Silence engulfed the room; we were patiently waiting until she was ready to continue. "She had no right", she angrily said, her voice coming out shaky, due to the anger, I could only assume. "She had no right to call herself no one's best friend…No right to pretend she knew me" Her eyes started to seem glossy and red "No right to come here and pretend as if nothing happened, pretending she… cared... Yeah, when it meant money and her benefit" She continued her rant. She stood up, continuing to hold and squeeze the bottle of water. I rounded the kitchen island and stood next to Jane. She looked at us, her olive-green eyes, red and on the verge of crying, but she was obviously holding the tears at bay. "not only them are to blame..." She wanted to say something else, but no words were coming out of her mouth. She stopped her speech, and some seconds passed before she spoke.

"Wh-why…Why wasn't I important enough for anyone to do something?" she finally whispered. She stood motionless there in from of the stools looking at her feet.

Jane stood as soon as she finished her sentence and grabbed the girl's cheeks in her hands "Hey, hey, hey, that's not true" she adamantly said "Don't you dare go there, Megan. That is not true, you are so, so, important." Jane said, intently looking into the eyes of the girl.

"You are right. She had no business coming here claiming to be someone she was not" I said, whipping the single tear that rolled down her cheek. "And Mama is right, you are so important to us, we love you, sweetheart," I said. Jane and I looked at each other and hugged the girls, sandwiching her between us. Megan hugged Jane and whispered thank you in her ear, then she turned around at did the same to me. I hold her a little longer before letting go. I noticed she was not crying; she just looked drained and looked defeated.

"You don't have to thank us, Megan. That is what we are here for" Jane then spoke up.

"But I do," she said immediately after. "You, two complete strangers stepped up and did what anyone else I know didn't do" She explained.

"And it is our pleasure," I said, kissing her temple. "and it doesn't matter what happened, we will always be here," Jane said, doing the same as I did before. We then sat down, and we all took a much-needed sip of water, too many emotions running inside the three of us. Right there, Jane looked at the wall and noticed the time on the clock. Three minutes passed 12 am, I realized as well, and she excused herself, stood up, and went upstairs. We never intended to stay awake past midnight but given the circumstances, I am glad we were there for her breakdown to happen and be able to help her through it. The girl was intently looking at her phone and while she was not aware of the time and or actions, I took one of the leftover scones from the tray, and a little candle from the cabinet, as I heard Jane coming down the stairs and rapidly lighted the candle up.

Jane saw the makeshift birthday scone and we both started to softly sing happy birthday. She looked up, her brow furrowed in confusion. We finished the song and Jane cheerfully said "You need to blow out the candles, if not, it's not official" she said smiling.

The girls chuckled and blew out the candles. "Happy birthday, Sweetheart," Jane said, placing another kiss on her temple. "Sweet 16, Love," I said hugging the girl, then bringing the little gift bag to her.

She looked at it confused "You didn't have to buy me anything, guys" she said.

"Nonsense, open it," Jane said exited.

Megan carefully opened it and took cautiously the content. She keenly looked at the engraved, golden pendant. "It's beautiful… thank you," she said and stood from the stool, she came around the kitchen island and asked me to put her on her neck. I clasped the lock, and she hugged me, saying thank you, and then she did the same to Jane, who squeeze the kid a little harder "You are very welcome sweetheart," she said holding her a little longer. Nothing made me more content and fulfilled as a mother than seeing my wife and children being loved, happy, and safe in our arms.

"Well, it's past midnight, and today we have a day full of activities," I said, and Jane right then commented "And an actual cake" She joked. Making bot laugh. Three of us went upstairs. We said good night and Megan retreated to her room after thanking us again.

We did the same and quickly got changed. We knew we needed to talk about tonight, Jane and I had the responsibility of helping her through this, and as much as we wanted to help, we knew we might need professional help. But for now, she was ok, and that would continue to be our ultimate goal with Megan, provide enough security and trust for her to come to us, whenever she felt she needed to vent out and let anything she might have inside go, or to simply rest and be held for a little.


Thank you for reading!