"Why the long face?" Haley asked Ava as the child slumped down on a chair at the counter of the cafe, fiddling with a centerpiece full of fake plants.
"I wanted to hang out with my friends today." Ava pouted.
Maddie suggested that they hang out by the Market Street Docks and take a walk to enjoy the scenery. Carter thought it was a good idea and even invited Sam, though he didn't know her all that well. The three kids made an extra effort to include Sam in everything they did so that the girl wouldn't feel left out and it wasn't hard to, Sam was really nice.
But those plans wouldn't go anywhere today.
"So why don't you?"
"Uncle Keith says I can't..…at least not today."
"Did he tell you why? I'm sure there's a good reason." Haley couldn't imagine that Keith would tell Ava that she couldn't spend time with her friends unless there was a perfectly good reason for it.
"My dad's birthday is today and my grandparents are here..…he wants me to meet them tonight at dinner." She pouted. "It isn't fair. Lucas gets to get out of this dumb dinner, but I have to go and eat with people I don't know."
Ava had no problem celebrating her father's birthday, but she never met her grandparents, she had no idea what they were like.
"I get what you mean." Haley sympathized, handing her a cookie before sitting down across from her. "Can I tell you a secret?"
"Yeah."
"Nathan invited me to go to the dinner with him." The teen told her. "I said I would."
"Yay!" Ava perked up instantaneously. "You're gonna be there, too!"
"Maybe it won't be so bad." Haley smiled back, glad that she could brighten the girl's day.
Ava shifted in her chair just as a man entered the cafe and studied them, trying to get a read on them. She had never seen him before in her life, but he was looking around as if he were trying to find someone.
"Good morning, Sir." Haley greeted him, standing up once again. "Table or counter?"
"Um, actually, I'm looking for Karen."
"My Mama's not here." Ava spoke softly, making sure to keep her distance.
She saw the way his entire demeanor changed once she revealed that Karen was her mother, and she didn't know what to make of it.
"Karen's in Italy right now." Haley clarified. "Cooking school."
"Good for her." The man smiled. "How's that boy of hers doing?"
"Lucas is great…..She calls in every once in a while, do you want me to leave a message?"
"No." He shook his head politely. "That's alright. I'll catch her the next time I'm passing through."
"Okay, can I tell her who stopped by? Mr…..?"
"Just and old friend." The man waved before leaving the two girls completely bewildered by his visit.
Who was that guy?
"Look at the bright side, you didn't have to wear a dress." Keith playfully nudged his niece as they stood outside of Dan's house preparing to go in.
It took a lot of effort to get Ava to go to this dinner. Keith knew his niece was stubborn, but this was just a whole new level of it. He couldn't exactly blame her, because it wasn't like he was looking forward to this either.
He just thought that it was important for her to get to know her grandparents.
"If I promise to wear a dress at school, will you let me go home?"
"Nice try." He shook his head in amusement as he opened the door and motioned for her to go in.
"Uh uh." She protested, giving him an incredulous look. "No way, you go first."
Keith laughed, but he did enter the house first, with Ava clinging to the back of his shirt.
"Keith!" An older woman rushed to hug him, making Ava tighten her grip on her uncle as she grew more and more bashful.
"You look great." Keith hugged her back warmly.
"Look what the cat dragged in." The man who had stopped by the cafe said from the dining area.
Ava's eyes widened when she saw him, but she didn't say a word.
"It's good to see you, too, Dad." Keith shook his hand diplomatically, once he was in reach, before doing the same with his brother. "Happy birthday, Danny."
"Thanks."
"Well, who is this?" The woman gasped once she caught sight of Ava, who had been doing a pretty good job of hiding herself up until this point.
"Mom, this is Ava, your granddaughter." Keith tried to pull Ava so that she would stand in front of him, but she wouldn't budge. "Ava, this is May, your grandmother, and that's Royal, your grandfather."
"Hi, sweetheart." May smiled gently. She could see how shy she was, the poor little girl looked like she wanted to jet as soon as she got the chance. "I'm sorry we've never met before, but I'm sure glad we can get to know each other now."
"Hi." Ava smiled back, slightly peeking out from behind her place of protection.
"She is gorgeous." May continued to gush. "Why don't you come and help me set up and put dinner out on the table?" She asked, holding her hand out to her.
Ava eyed the woman's hand, trying to decide whether or not she should take it. She didn't want to leave Keith's side, but she also didn't want to be rude. This woman, her grandmother seemed like a really nice person and she had no desire to hurt her feelings.
"Go on, she doesn't bite." Keith encouraged.
"But I do." Royal joked.
"Oh, hush." May scolded him as Ava finally slipped her hand in hers, allowing herself to be lead into the kitchen. "I think I might have some peas and broccoli here for you. Your uncle told me you love them. Is that true?"
"Yes ma'am." Ava nodded, looking at all the food.
There were several platters of food all over the kitchen and everything looked delicious, but it made Ava's mind race with worry.
What if they didn't let her serve herself? What if they put too much food on her plate? What if she couldn't eat all of it? Would they be mad? Would they yell at her?
Up until today, she had never had any grandparents, so she didn't really know what to expect from May and Royal.
"Oh don't you, 'yes ma'am' me." May scolded her with a playful twinkle in her eye. "Call me 'Grandma."
"Okay, Grandma." And though Ava had to force it out of her mouth, it felt good to say. "Are those lima beans?"
She spotted them almost as soon as she walked in and she couldn't wait to get them on her plate.
"They sure are. Do you like those, too?"
"Mmhm." Ava grinned.
"You really do like your veggies!" May laughed. "We practically had to bribe your brother to get him to eat just a few bites of his."
That made Ava giggle as she thought about a young Nathan refusing to eat his veggies. As stubborn as he was as a teen, she could hardly imagine how hardheaded he must've been at her age.
"Well, the mood is certainly better in here." Deb smiled as she entered the kitchen. "Ava, why don't you take all the plates and the utensils out to dining room?"
"Okay." Ava complied and picked up the plates and utensils, carefully carrying them out.
She noticed that there were more occupied seats at the table, Whitey, Haley, and Nathan had arrived while she was in the kitchen, but she focused on her task.
"We've got a strong girl here." Royal smiled from his place at the head of the table.
"Hello, Miss Ava-Rose." Whitey greeted.
"Hi, Coach." She answered politely, setting three plates down in front of him, Keith, and Dan, moving to Royal.
She was still skeptical around him, so she didn't say much of anything to him.
"I should make you do this at the cafe." Haley quipped when a plate was set in front of her. "It'll make my job easier.
"You'll have to pay me first. I want half your paycheck." Ava may have been shy, but she was sharp and quick as a whip.
"Step into my office later, we'll talk."
Ava couldn't help but giggle at the joke and squealed when Nathan poked her stomach.
Luckily, she had just put the last plate down along with all the utensils, so she didn't have to worry about dropping anything.
Even if she did drop something, it would've been Nathan's fault.
"You did that on purpose!" She tried to attack her brother, but he grabbed her hands.
"Did what?" He played coy. "I'm just sitting here."
"Is this the kind of table manners the youth of today have?" Royal asked, completely unamused. "Back in my day —"
"— Leave those two alone." May told her husband, coming out of the kitchen with Deb, carrying the food. "It's about time they got a chance to be siblings."
Nathan pushed Ava to sit down in the seat next to him and squeezed the back of her neck, making her cringe.
"Nathan quit torturing her." Keith laughed. "She's had enough."
Nathan let go, but sent her a look of warning.
He could start up again at any time her wanted, and there was nothing she could do about it.
May and Deb served the food before sitting down to enjoy their own meals and each other's company.
Ava's plate wasn't ridiculously stacked to the brim the way she feared it would be, but there were far too many carrots on it for her liking.
So she ate around them.
"So, how's the team doing this year?" Royal asked.
"Oh, we're still undefeated actually." Dan answered. "Dad, you still rooting for the Magic these days?"
"Please!" May interjected. "No talk of sports until after dinner, okay?"
"Good idea, Mom. Sorry."
"Well, Nathan." Even though Dan had agreed with his mother, Royal had completely disregarded what his wife had asked and continued. "What are you averaging these days? You know your dad had twenty-seven and a half points a game. You beat that yet?"
"Royal." May sighed. "We just said—"
"—I'm asking the boy a question, May."
"Uh, well." Nathan stammered. "Maybe you should ask the old man."
"Twenty-four points a game, I think, isn't it?"
"So, twenty-four a game, huh? You're gonna have to get that up if you're gonna beat the old man." Royal told his grandson. "Your dad's star would've risen through the roof at Carolina if it wasn't for that knee of his…...how're your knees?"
"No worries."
"Oh, he's got great knees." Haley spoke, making everyone laugh.
And while everyone was occupied, Ava took advantage of the distraction and moved some of her carrots over to Nathan's plate, hoping he wouldn't notice.
Of course, he did.
Nathan took some pieces of broccoli and moved them onto his sister's plate in retaliation, but when her face lit up, he gave it all to her and motioned for her to give him all her carrots.
In his opinion, as far as veggies go, carrots weren't the worst.
Deb had watched the entire exchange and narrowed her eyes at the two so they'd keep their forks on their own plates.
But inwardly, she was highly amused.
"Uh huh." Royal continued. "Of course Danny takes after his old man. Never let adversity stop him. Too bad Keith takes after his mother's side of the family."
"Lucky for him." May quipped and winked at Ava, making her giggle.
"I'd drink to that, but I have to get a refill." Keith rolled his eyes.
"Well, I should see about the cake." May began to stand up, but Haley stopped her.
"I'll go do that, Mrs. Scott." The teen jumped out of her seat, turning to Nathan. "Want to come help?"
"Yeah…...cake, right." Nathan stood up, hauling Ava out of her seat as well, much to her surprise.
She was kind of enjoying the little fireworks show.
Dinners with her mom and Lucas were never this interesting.
"I warned you, it was gonna be intense." Nathan smirked at Haley once they were in the kitchen.
"Oh, insane is more like it."
"I think it's funny." Ava shrugged, eyeing the cookie jar.
"That's because you don't live here." Her brother pulled her away from the sweets. "You know, there's a door right there. We could sneak out, nobody would ever notice."
"Tempting." Haley looked at the door, really considering it. "So, how often do your grandparents come into town?"
"Couple times a year. Why?" And when Haley didn't say anything, he pressed further. "Haley, you've got that look."
"What look?"
"The look you get when you want to tell me something, but you don't really want to tell me."
"Uh huh." Ava nodded, before taking a bite of the cookie she had managed to get when the two weren't paying attention. "That's the look."
"No, I don't." Haley glared at Ava, before turning back to Nathan. "And you shouldn't know that look yet."
"What is it?"
"Your grandfather came by the cafe today." She admitted. "And he asked for Karen."
"He did?"
"Yeah." Ava nodded. "And he looked at me funny, and asked for Luke."
"What?"
"I kind of get the feeling, they've been keeping in touch." Haley clarified.
"Does Lucas know?"
"No." Ava shook her head. "We've never met him before and Mama's never talked about him before either."
"But he asked about him."
"That doesn't make any sense." Nathan furrowed his eyebrows. "Why would he visit Karen?"
"I don't know, I don't want to start anything, I'm just telling you."
"You know what? My family's so screwed up, nothing new would make a difference right now. Don't worry about it."
"Can we bring the cake out now?" Ava asked impatiently, eyeing the cake.
"Do you ever get full?" Nathan laughed.
"The answer is no, Nathan." Haley shook her head, lighting the candles before grabbing the cake. "I don't know where she puts it all, but she never stops."
"I do, too!" Ava pouted, following the two teens back out into the dining room.
"Happy birthday to you!" Everyone sang as Haley set the cake down in front of. "Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, dear Dan! Happy birthday to you!"
Dan smiled and blew out all the candles.
"What'd you wish for?" Ava asked innocently.
"I can't tell you that." Dan scoffed playfully. "It won't come true. But I can tell you, that I think it's something reallyspecial."
"Neat."
"So, Nate." Royal changed the subject of the conversation once again. "How's your game this year?"
"Here we go again." May rolled her eyes. The conversation always led to sports, somehow, someway.
"Just cover your ears, May. I just want to know how my grandson's doing on the team."
Now Ava didn't really know or understand much about how marriages were supposed to work, but she knew that had been highly disrespectful on Royal's part.
The real question was, why did May tolerate it?
"Well, I already told you, Dad."
"No you didn't." Royal glared at Dan. "You didn't tell me jack. And every time I mention it, you change the subject! Now will somebody around here tell me what's going on?" Royal looked around the table. "Nathan? Whitey? Anybody?"
"Nathan, I think you'd better take this one." Whitey sighed.
"I quit the team, alright?" Nathan blurted, tired of all the lying.
"You quit the— what do you mean, you quit the team?"
"He didn't quit the team, Dad." Dan jumped in quickly. "He's just taking some time off."
"No, he's not." Deb shook her head. "Please stop lying, Dan."
Ava was beginning to see why Haley and Nathan weren't so thrilled to have to sit back down and eat with everyone. This family was crazy.
And she was a part of it.
Check, please?
"Were you ever gonna tell me this?" Royal snapped. "I mean, that's a big thing to keep to yourself!"
"Yeah, you're one to talk." Nathan grumbled.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"I know you visit Karen at the cafe, alright? What's that about?"
"Nathan!" Haley hissed. She had told him that in confidence.
Even Ava's eyes widened at the fact that he blabbed.
"That's none of your business!" Royal looked at Haley. "I guess somebody's got a big mouth."
"Shut up, Grandpa!" Nathan snapped.
This family was nuts!
Ava would rather have her boring dinners with Lucas and her mother any day of the week, than to have to eat in an atmosphere like this again.
Was family supposed to be at each other's throats like this?
"Don't you talk to me like that!" Royal whirled around on his grandson, making Nathan flinch, even though there was a seat in between them being occupied by Haley.
Ava shot up out of her seat and wrapped her arms around her brother's neck. She wasn't used to that kind of aggression coming from anyone.
Sure her mother yelled sometimes when she was at her wit's end, but she never was never that aggressive.
"Back off, Royal." Deb could see that all three kids were startled by his actions. "I've had enough of your crap. Nathan is not the problem."
"Would someone please explain?" May spoke up once again.
"Dan has been riding Nathan for the past six years about that stupid game." Deb explained.
"Deb, stop." Dan looked like he had tears in his eyes.
"Riding him so hard, that Nathan took drugs so that he could measure up." Deb continued.
"Drugs?"
"Until he had to be rushed to the hospital." Deb nodded. "He could have died because of this insane pressure to put a ball through a hoop! But none of that is my son's fault, Royal. It's your son's."
"Danny..…" May gasped. "You of all people. How dare you? You know how much you hated it when your daddy bullied you to be better."
"I never bullied him!"
Ava tightened her grip on her brother and he snaked his arm around her waist, rubbing her back to calm her down.
This was going worse than he ever thought it could have.
"And when you wanted a way out, I gave you one." May continued. "All these years, I protected you. I lied for you. And now you're doing the same thing to your son?"
"What lie?" Royal questioned. "What are you talking about?"
"In college. His knee injury. It wasn't permanent. Danny quit, and I helped him."
That must've been a well kept secret, because looking around, Ava could see everyone's shocked faces.
"What do you mean, he quit?"
"It's not like that, Dad."
"Oh, stop it, Dan. It's time the truth came out."
"Will somebody tell me what's going on here?"
"You were on the road when Danny hurt his knee. So we lied."
"You told me it was a degenerative knee condition."
"It was, Dad. It was….." Dan trailed as more tears pooled in his eyes, threatening to fall at any second.
"You looked me in the eye and told me that."
"Don't you see, Royal?" May pleaded with her husband. "He was never going to be the star that you wanted him to be. You just couldn't see that. The boy had two choices. To fail in front of you, or to quit. Either way he lost."
"So you just quit." Royal didn't know what to think.
And honestly, neither did Ava.
Why were they all upset over a game? Basketball was supposed to be fun.
At least, it was whenever she played with her brother and his friends on the River Court.
Even losing was kind of fun. Because that meant that she could come back next time and be better than before.
As long as she got to do it with the people she loved, it was fun.
But should she have been looking at it in a more serious way?
Should she have been working harder at it?
Maybe it wasn't just a game.
After all, people play ball for a living.
"There's more to the story, Dad." Dan tried to explain himself, but his father just got up, unwilling to listen. "You don't know the whole story."
"I've had enough."
"Me, too." Nathan stood up. "Come on, Haley, I'll take you home."
"Thanks for dinner." Haley smiled awkwardly, happy to finally be able to escape.
"Ava-Rose, are you coming?" Nathan asked.
Ava shook her head, signaling she wanted to stay. She didn't care how awful this dinner was, she was not third-wheeling with those two.
"Okay, I'll see you later, then." He ruffled her hair and headed out with Haley.
"Well, I can show myself out." Whitey got up. "Thank you, May, Deb. Happy birthday, Danny."
"Danny, why don't you—"
"—Why?" Dan's voice nearly broke as he got up from the table and left.
"Well, I guess I'd better do the dishes." May sighed, knowing that the whole evening was a mess.
Just then, Ava had remembered the gift she had brought for her father. It wasn't exactly a gift, considering she didn't have a lot of money, but she did the best she could with what she had.
"Where did he go?" She asked her grandmother.
"Your daddy? He just went somewhere to be alone."
"Try his office and if he's not there, he's in the back." Deb told her.
"Okay. Thank you." Ava pushed her chair in and walked straight to Dan's office.
It was empty.
So she walked through the house and out to the backyard, finding him sitting all by himself with a look of hurt etched on his face.
Ava knew what he had done to Nathan was wrong.
She knew that whatever he did to Luke and her mother was wrong.
She knew he had done so many things wrong.
But she couldn't help that tug she felt in her heart for him.
She had never seen him upset like this before. She didn't think that he could ever get upset like this.
Until now.
This man. Her father. The one she thought was on top of the world, had really just been acting the entire time.
He had flaws. He had issues. He had trauma. Pain.
He was human.
"Hi." She cleared her throat to let him know she was there.
"Hi." His voice sounded weak and tired and he didn't even bother looking at her.
"Um, I got you something for your birthday….." She hesitated before approaching him, pulling a card she made, out of her sweatshirt pocket.
She hoped he didn't notice, and if he did, he didn't say anything, but Ava's knees were practically knocking against each other as she waited for him to take it.
Because the reality was, he didn't have to.
They didn't know each other very well yet.
And he wasn't in the greatest of moods. So he could've just turned her away.
But he didn't.
He actually looked shocked at the gesture.
"Thank you." He handled it as if was the most precious thing in the world, when really, it was just a sheet of construction paper, folded in half and filled with the drawings of a nine year old, along with some childish handwritten note.
But that's not what it was to him.
When he read the note and looked at the drawings, he couldn't help the tears that had begun to spill from his eyes.
In Dan's eyes, it was a masterpiece he had just been given the privilege to see.
And it was just for him to see.
"It's okay if you don't like it...…" Ava mistook his tears for something negative and panicked. "I'm sorry I made you cry, I didn't mean to. Here." She pulled a pack of m&m's from her sweatshirt pocket and handed it to him. "I got you those, too." She rambled. "I was gonna get you Snickers, but I didn't know if you were allergic to peanuts, so I got these instead, because everyone likes m&m's, but if you don't like 'em, I—"
Dan cut her off, by pulling her in for a tight hug.
She could've gone out there to yell at him, or cut him down.
But she didn't.
She showed him the kindness that he didn't deserve after everything he had done.
And she did it graciously.
"Happy birthday…...Daddy."
"I thought you weren't coming for at least half an hour." Deb smiled at Ava as she entered the house the next morning. "Where's Keith?"
After the dinner debacle that happened the night before, Ava didn't want to go back. But when she thought about the progress she made with her father, she didn't mind it so much. Plus, this was a chance to spend some more time with her grandmother.
"He had stuff to do…..he'll be here though." Ava told her.
"I'm glad you came. Make yourself at home. Breakfast will be ready soon and Nathan's around somewhere." The blonde told her before heading back into the kitchen.
"I didn't think I'd see you again after yesterday." Royal somehow, someway, managed to sneak up on the child, making her jump out of her skin. "What happened last night must've been confusing, but you have to know that I'm doing what's right for my son and this family."
"You yelled at my brother and you made my dad cry, and you don't even care." Ava looked up at him defiantly. "I don't think I like you very much."
"Now, see here, young lady." Royal's entire demeanor changed. "You don't have to like me, but I'm your grandfather and you have to respect me—"
"—Why?" Nathan came from down the hall. "It isn't like you've been there for the past nine years. Where have you been all this time?"
"Don't take that tone with me." Royal glared. "It isn't any different from where you've been."
"The difference is, I'm doing something about it." Nathan put a protective hand on his sister's shoulder and glared at their grandfather.
"Listen, Nathan." Royal once again, changed the subject to avoid working through a tough conversation. "Whatever you're going through, I'm sorry about your dad."
"I understand why he did it, Grandpa. He must have really loved you, you know that? Cause anything seemed better than disappointing you." Nathan told the older man, turning his attention back to his sister. "Go help Grandma in the kitchen. See if you can convince her to make some chocolate chip pancakes." And when she hesitated, he put a smile on his face. "Go on."
Ava nodded and rushed into the kitchen, bashfully standing by the island before the two women took notice her.
As awkward as it was to just stand there, waiting for them to realize she was in the room, she would rather that, than be anywhere near Royal.
"Ava!" Deb put a hand on her chest, startled by the girl sudden presence. "Make a noise!"
"Sorry." Ava couldn't help but giggle. "Can I help?"
"Of course you can." Deb nodded. "You know what? Why don't I leave the two of you alone. I might just get in the way." She winked before leaving.
"Why don't you grab the flour and put it into that bowl in front of you?" May suggested.
Ava picked up the bag of flour, which was heavier than it looked, and poured some of its contents into the bowl, before subconsciously scratching the bridge of her nose.
When May looked back at her, she burst into unbridled laughter.
"What's so funny?" Ava asked. "Why're you laughing at me?"
"Oh honey, I'm sorry." May continued to laugh. "It's just— you've got flour on your face!"
Ava furrowed her eyebrows and looked at her reflection through the glass of the oven door and pouted. "That's not funny, Grandma."
"It most certainly is funny!" May kept laughing as she mixed the flour with all the ingredients they needed to make pancakes. "You just don't see the humor in it. My, my, look at that pout."
Ava narrowed her eyes at her grandmother before she looked back at the flour, getting a brilliant idea.
She didn't appreciate being laughed at, and she was going to make sure her grandmother knew that.
"Grandma, can I ask you something important?" She spoke, grabbing some flour without the woman noticing.
"What is it, honey?"
As soon as May turned to look at her, Ava flicked the flour at her face, making her yell in surprise.
"Why, you little—" May gasped. "Do you know what this means?"
"No."
"War!" May grabbed a huge handful of flour and threw it at Ava, making her shriek as it got all over her.
And so they went back and forth, throwing flour at each other like one would throw snowballs at their friends after a blizzard.
And that's exactly what it looked like happened in the kitchen.
A blizzard.
"Do you give up?" May quirked an eyebrow. "Or do you need more convincing?"
"I give up!" Ava shouted from behind the pot cover she had been using as a shield, though it hadn't been much help. "I give up!"
"And you admit that I win?"
"You win!" Ava laughed boisterously. "I give!"
"Good." May smirked. "Now get over here and help me finish this breakfast."
"Can I ask you something?"
"Oh no." May shook her head. "Don't start that again."
"No, really!" Ava crossed her fingers to show that she was serious this time around.
"Go ahead."
"Can we make chocolate chip pancakes?"
"Let me ask you something." May turned it around on her. "Did Nathan put you up to this?"
"If I say yes, can we?"
May just nodded her head.
"Yes." Ava had no problems ratting her brother out.
She did it all the time with Lucas.
It was better that Nathan learned early on, that no one was safe with her.
"Go get the chocolate chips. They're in the pantry."
"Sweet!"
"Breakfast is served." May smiled as she brought the food out onto the patio and set it down with Ava bringing the rest behind her.
"What happened to you two?" Keith laughed.
The two had tried to dust off as much flour as they could, but they couldn't get everything.
"Your niece decided that it was a good idea to start a food fight in the middle of the kitchen." May threw her granddaughter under the bus without any hesitation. "She's a rowdy one."
"Only because you laughed at me." Ava pursed her lips and lifted her chin, defiantly.
"You two look like you've been in a snowball fight." Deb laughed and pulled some flour from Ava's hair. "Honestly, May, set an example."
"I did!" May insisted. "I taught her not to start something she can't finish."
"Did you do it?" Nathan whispered as soon as Ava sat down.
"I did it." Ava nodded and fist-bumped him as if they had succeeded in accomplishing a master plan. "Extra chocolate chips."
"Nice. You do good work."
"And Nathan?" May turned to her grandson. "The next time you want me to make chocolate chip pancakes, try asking me yourself instead of sending your sister in to butter me up."
"I don't know what you're talking about." Nathan threw his hands up in surrender.
"Sure you don't."
"How's business, Keith?" Royal asked after everyone fell into a comfortable silence, successfully killing the mood with little to no effort.
Ava was beginning to believe that one of his talents was making everyone around him miserable.
"It's pretty steady."
"Good." It seemed as if Royal was trying to make up for something. Whether it was for the way he treated Keith all these years, or for the night before, or even just to make Dan feel bad, Ava didn't know. "I know I rib you a lot, son, but I hope you know I think you're a good man."
'That's great, Dad. The first nice thing you say to me and it's really just to dig at Dan."
It was the latter.
Go figure.
"Now, son—"
"—Please." May interrupted them before they could start an argument. "Could we just eat our breakfast? Dan, you forgot to open your presents." She handed her son a big box. "This is from your dad and me."
"Oh, okay. What's this?" Dan asked, opening the gift, only to pull out a quilt with all his basketball jerseys stitched into it.
"It's a quilt. A lady in Orlando made it. We still had all your old basketball stuff and I just couldn't bring myself to throw them out. You see, son, you still have a lot to be proud of."
He did.
Ava just hoped that one day, he'd be able to see it, too.
"Wait, so you actually told him you don't like him?" Lucas asked as he and his sister sat down on his bed, hashing out what happened at the dinner and the morning after. He was typing away on his computer, writing an email to their mother, but he didn't mind the company. "Seriously?"
"Yeah, but don't write that." Ava shrugged. "I don't think he was happy about that."
"You're getting feisty, Ava-Rose." Lucas smiled and shook his head.
Who would've thought that his sweet baby sister would turn into this fierce little girl, who stood up for herself and others? Of course he did. But it was still shocking to hear about.
"What's our grandmother like?"
"She's nice. She says, 'hello'." Ava perked up. "We made chocolate chip pancakes and had a food fight in the kitchen...…I wonder who cleaned all that up?" She wondered aloud.
Seriously though, Ava knew she didn't clean it. She knew May didn't either.
Maybe she made Royal do it.
That thought alone was enough to satisfy her.
"You're really something else, you know that?"
"What's up, loser?" Haley greeted as she popped in once their conversation came to an end. "Hey, Trouble."
"Hey, you." Lucas looked up from his computer. "I'm just finishing up this email to my mom. She comes back tomorrow."
"Oh cool. Tell her I said, 'Hi'. You're going to call me when she gets back from the airport, right?"
"Oh yeah."
"Cool." Haley nodded. "So, I needed to borrow a couple of things from you, like your basketball and you."
"Okay, why?" Lucas quirked an eyebrow.
"Because I'm totally flagging PE and I need you to show me how to throw a stinking free shot."
"Free throw." Ava giggled at her expense.
"Whatever, Smarty-Pants." Haley tapped her nose, making her scrunch it like a bunny rabbit.
"You know I'd love to, Hales, but I've gotta do some stuff with Brooke and Peyton tonight."
"Like what?"
"I kind of need to talk to you about something."
"What's going on?" Haley always had time to listen.
But she never got the opportunity to do so.
Brooke burst into the room and smiled at the three of them.
"Hey, Tutor-Girl."
"Tigger, what's up?" Haley waved half-heartedly.
She and Brooke weren't the best of friends, but that didn't mean she couldn't be civil.
"Never mind." Lucas sighed. "Rain check?"
"You kids have fun." Haley nodded and stood up, pulling Ava with her. "Come on, Bugs Bunny, you get to help me shoot a free shot."
"Free throw!" Ava corrected her as she was dragged through the door.
"You're holding it wrong." Ava huffed, watching Haley attempt to shoot Lucas' ball.
The two had braved the cold walked to the River Court, and Ava was trying her best to teach her pseudo-sister how to shoot a simple free throw.
Evidently, it was harder than she thought it was going to be.
"I'm holding it just like you showed me!" Haley scoffed.
"No, you're not!" Ava insisted. "You're holding it wrong! That's why you keep missing!"
Haley rolled her eyes, shot the ball again and missed.
This time, Nathan caught the ball just as he arrived and gave her a look.
"Was that your jump shot?" He asked. "Cause if that was your jump shot, I can't date you anymore." He joked. "My mom said you'd be here. Something about a grade?"
"Yeah." Haley nodded. "You cannot be here right now."
"Why not?"
"Because I look stupid."
"You realize I've seen you in that crocheted poncho thing you wear, right?" Nathan handed her the ball.
"Come on, this is embarrassing!" Haley insisted. "I want you to think I'm….."
"Not awful at something he's good at?" Ava quipped, earning herself two identical glares.
"Not embarrassing." Haley continued her thought, ignoring her.
"You don't embarrass me, Haley." Nathan smiled flirtatiously.
"Oh yeah?" Haley challenged and shot the ball. "Okay."
She missed once again and Nathan caught it. "Okay…..I take that back."
"I can't do it."
"Yes, you can." The middle Scott encouraged. "Alright, square your shoulders, to the basket." He instructed, positioning her correctly. "And you've got to bring the ball up right past your nose like this." He demonstrated to show her. "Okay? Bend your knees a little. Relax your hips. And just shoot."
Ava stood under the basket and watched as Haley shot the ball.
"She's gonna have to shoot it, 'Granny Style', like Rick Barry." She said.
"Okay, that wasn't perfect, but it also wasn't embarrassing." Nathan wiggled his eyebrows. "It was actually kind of sexy."
"Oh, yuck!" Ava screwed up her face. "Why are you looking at each other like that?"
"You know, Nathan." Haley smirked. "Maybe if we keep this up, she'll go home and torture someone else."
"You think so?" Nathan pulled the teen closer to him.
"Ew!" Ava dropped the ball and covered her eyes, peeking out between her fingers. "Are you gonna kiss?!"
"So what if we do?" Nathan questioned, trying not to laugh. "Would that bother you?"
"Yes!"
"Fine. We won't kiss." He relented. "But you have to be nice to Haley. She's still learning and this isn't easy for her. No more granny jokes, deal?"
"Deal." Ava uncovered her eyes just in time to see the two give each other a peck on the lips. "Gross!"
"Sorry!" Haley laughed. "I just wanted to seal the deal."
"Whatever." Ava grumbled, dribbling the ball once again. "Wanna play?"
"I don't know." Nathan looked at Haley, but she nodded.
"One game." She said. "Maybe I'll learn something from watching you two go at it."
"Okay, you're on. I'll spot you a couple of points." Nathan got ready to steal the ball.
"You? Spot me?" Ava scoffed. "Get real. I could beat you in my sleep."
"I'll believe it when I see it."
"Are you sure you want to embarrass yourself in front of your girlfriend?"
"You know, you talk a lot of smack for someone who hasn't made a shot yet."
"That's rich coming from someone who's going home a loser." Ava faked him out and drove straight the the basket, officially starting the game.
"I still don't see why I have to sit in this stupid seat." Ava pouted from the backseat of Keith's car.
The three Scotts were on the way to to pick Karen up from the airport. Six weeks had passed and she was finally coming home!
Ava sure did miss her.
What she didn't miss, was having to sit in a carseat whenever she got in a car.
She was nine years old! That was plenty old enough not to need one of those things!
"Because you're short and you weigh next to nothing." Lucas practically insulted her.
Ava knew the difference between when her brother was just pulling her leg and when he really wanted to get under her skin and make her mad.
He was definitely trying to get under her skin.
"I'm not short!" She wasn't that short.
Okay...she was that short, but that didn't mean Lucas had to emphasize it.
"Oh yeah? Then why are you still sitting in a baby seat?"
"I hate you, Lucas Scott! I'm never speaking to you again!"
"Is that a promise?"
"You're so mean!" Ava's lip quivered.
"Lucas. Ava. Stop." Keith sighed. They had gone through six weeks without the two siblings arguing and he was enjoying the tranquility. So he changed the subject. "So, you excited to see your mom?"
"Yeah." Lucas nodded.
"Ava?" Keith looked through the rearview mirror and saw that Ava had been crying silently. He couldn't do anything to make her feel better right now, so he just continued the conversation. She was probably just tired anyway. "It seems like just yesterday, I was kissing her goodbye at the airport."
"Wait, you were kissing my mother?"
"Yeah." Keith nodded like it was no big deal. "Saying goodbye."
"Okay, Keith could you just do me a favor and keep the PDA to a minimum?" Lucas asked as they approached a red light.
"You think maybe you could keep that tattoo covered up for a while? Like, say, the rest of your life?" Keith joked. "Luke, I know it wasn't always smooth sailing between us, but, whatever your mom wants us to be, I just want you two to know that—"
"—I love you, too, Keith." Lucas smiled. "And I know Ava does, too. Even though she wants to be stubborn and not say anything. Right, Ava?"
He felt a little bad about making her cry, but he was still reeling from an argument he had just had with Haley.
Ava had just successfully gotten on his nerves and he snapped.
He'd make it up to her later.
Ava just whined and kicked the back of his seat to show her displeasure.
"Quit bothering her." Keith scolded him lightly as the light turned green.
He was so distracted by the fact that he was so close to seeing Karen again, that he didn't see that the turning light was still red.
So he didn't have the right of way to turn.
And he also didn't see the car that came barreling towards them until it was too late.
Lucas gasped once he saw it and Ava let out a shriek that was cut off as soon as the car collided with theirs, pushing them a few feet back until they finally came to a stop.
People had stopped and gotten out of their cars to see exactly what happened and if anyone was injured.
And across the intersection, Dan happened to be heading home and had stopped at that same red light.
He had seen the whole thing and had gotten out of his car to see if anyone needed help.
But once he recognized the car, he picked up the pace and ran right over to the driver's side where Keith stumbled out.
"Keith!" Dan gently helped him get down on the floor. "Easy, easy, Keith. I got you."
"Lucas and Ava!" Keith tried to push him off for the sake of the kids. "Get them!"
Dan moved around the the passenger side of the car and found the two kids.
Neither of them looked good.
Lucas was unconscious and his neck was in a very awkward position.
Ava, on the other hand, was still awake, but she was dazed. It looked like she had hit her head on the window when the car hit.
Dan whipped out his phone and dialed for an ambulance, but he only got a busy signal.
Imagine that.
"Dan, are they okay?"
"They're going to be okay, Keith." Dan assured his brother. He would make sure of it. "They're going to be okay."
And with a split second decision, Dan wrenched the passenger door open and lifted Lucas up, carrying him right to his car, before coming back to Ava.
As soon as he opened the door, the child threw up and groaned in pain. There was no way she even knew what was happening.
"It's okay, Ava." Dan soothed, paying no attention to the vomit that got on his clothes when he lifted her up. "Just hold on, okay?"
Dan made one last trip to the wreckage and helped his brother into his car before he slammed his foot on the gas, breaking all the traffic laws to get his family to the hospital as quickly as possible.
He came to a sharp stop directly outside the building and carried Lucas in, screaming for help. "I need a doctor! My brother and my daughter are in the car! They need some help!"
Several nurses and a doctor rushed over with a stretcher, helping the man lay his son down.
"What happened?" The doctor asked.
"Car accident." Dan huffed, out of breath. "He was on the passenger's side. Nearest point of impact."
"Set up for a chest tube." The doctor ordered. "Cross in time for four units. He's a minor?"
"Yeah."
"He's going to need surgery."
"Do whatever you need to do, Doc."
"You're his legal guardian?"
"He's my son."
Dan was in a daze as he watched them wheel Lucas away, before he snapped out of it and raced back to the car.
A few nurses were helping Keith out, so he lifted his daughter from the backseat and laid her down on a waiting stretcher.
"We're looking at a possible concussion and multiple fractures." Another doctor examined her once they wheeled her into the building. He took a penlight out of his coat pocket and shined it in Ava's eyes.
The child groaned and tried to close her eyes. "No." She whimpered, turning her head.
"She has a mild head injury." The doctor spoke to Dan. "She'll need to stay overnight."
"I'm her father, do what you have to."
"We'll keep you aware of what's going on with both of them."
Dan could only hope that the would all be okay.
But all he could do, was wait.
