A/N Hello everyone here's the new chapter this one is half a Nicholas and Lincoln focused chapter while the other half is back to Will. Enjoy!

Roughin' it/Things Still Change.

It was a three day weekend from School. That Friday night was a special episode of The Dream Boat that Lincoln wouldn't shut up about. Luckily Will was at home not watching it.

It's apparently the episode where the main girl chooses a 'first mate' whatever that means. Luckily It's just me, Dad, a bowl of popcorn, and a scary movie. Tonight it's the first installment of Scream.

Will sat on the couch with Nicholas right next to him, the popcorn was in between them Nicholas and Will flinched as they saw a brutal death take place.

"So gruesome." Nicholas groaned.

"Yeah, but the self aware humor is nice." Will remarked as he scooped up a handful of popcorn and shoved it down his mouth.

Suddenly the doorbell rang. Will rolled his eyes as he got up to go answer the door. Nicholas paused the movie until he returned. Will answered it and it was Lincoln.

"What is it?" Will asked, trying not to sound annoyed.

"What are you guys doing?" Lincoln asked, trying to sound innocent.

"We're watching a slasher movie." Will answered. "Why?"

"Can I watch it with you?" Lincoln asked, nervously rubbing his arm. Will was a little confused at such a request.

"Uhhhh. You know Lincoln, if it was just me. I'd let you, but it's not." Will turned to his father and called to him. "Dad! Can Lincoln watch the movie with us?"

"Ask your parents first Lincoln!" Nicholas called back. "I can't live with myself if I let you watch a movie like this and it freaks you out!"

"Dang it." Lincoln groaned. "Dad wouldn't let me watch this."

"What happened to you watching Dream Boat?" Will asked.

"Well….." Lincoln said, looking away even more nervous than before. "Lori said that despite being the only boy in the family I was just like 'one of the girls.' I tried changing it to the Rip Hardcore show but they made me change it back."

"Oh, I see." Will said understanding. "You feel as if you're losing your masculinity. Although, do you like Rip Hardcore?"

"Not really." Lincoln sighed.

Rip Hardcore is one of those extreme survival shows. The titular character is a very typical 'manly man.' He's bald, and super muscular. Has an attitude that's not just brave, but instantly rushes into danger….for no real reasoning but for just showing off. I saw it a couple of times, but I'm not a fan.

Lincoln's face shot up with joy as he got hit with an idea.

"Will, your dad is kind of like Rip Hardcore!" Lincoln said with excitement.

"What do you mean?" Will asked, not knowing what he's saying.

"He's big, he's tough." Lincoln said, counting things off with his fingers. "He's a real man's man."

"A man's man?" Will asked in disbelief. Lincoln excitedly pushed past Will and jumped in front of Nicholas who was confused at the big smile on the boy's face.

"Mr. Clements, I need you!" Lincoln exclaimed.

I know my dad, especially when you first look at him. He looks a little….unusual? But a man's man?'

"Uh, what do you need?" Nicholas asked, feeling a little nervous about this. Lincoln answered with a big smile on his face.

"Me and Clyde are going on a retreat with his dads this weekend. We're gonna rough it and be real men! I think it would be a great idea if we had a big tough guy like you with us!"

"Where at?" Nicholas asked with a suspicious look.

"We're going to be at a Bed and Breakfast which is on the edge of the forest in the mountains." Lincoln answered excitedly.

"Hmmm. I don't know." Nicholas pondered. He scratched his chin as he thought about it. He looked over to Will who was looking unfocused.

Truth is my mind was wandering. I just couldn't get it outta my head about Lincoln's comments about my dad.

However Nicholas got hit with an idea. He smiled at Lincoln.

You know what? You tell Clyde and his dads I'm coming along.

Yes! Lincoln cheered. Thank you Mr. Clements.

You sure that's a good idea? Will asked. I mean, aren't Clyde's dads….you know? Intimidated by you?

All the more reason to go! Nicholas answered. Show them I'm not a huge brute. So Lincoln? When do we leave?

The next morning Nicholas was packing a sleeping bag and a large backpack in his bedroom. Will was standing in the doorway watching.

So, are you excited for this? Will asked.

As much as I can be. Nicholas answered.

I guess I'll go get ready. Will sighed. Turning to walk out the door.

Hang on! Nicholas called, freezing Will in his tracks. I'm going with Lincoln and Clyde, you're staying here!

What? Why? Will asked in disbelief.

No offense but Lincoln said this would be just me, him and Clyde.

None taken, I guess. Will grumbled. So what am I supposed to do?

Maybe I was overthinking, but what's that supposed to mean? I mean, am I just not 'manly' enough to be on this nature trip?

Nicholas smiled as he took out his phone and went through his text messages.

You see I reached out to a 'certain someone.' They're gonna spend the weekend here with you.

WHAT!? Will yelled. Then the doorbell rang.

Excellent timing! Nicholas said happily as he opened the door and his new girlfriend was on the other side. Ms. Johnson. She looked like her usual self except she had a brown suitcase with her.

"Hello sweetie." Ms. Johnson said to Nicholas. "Hello Will! We're gonna have so much fun together!" She moved to Will and leaned to his eye level and smiled brightly at him. Will was looking annoyed and sick.

No way, an entire weekend with her!?

Will rushed around Ms. Johnson, and grabbed Nicholas's arm. He pulled him outside onto the front porch.

"Will you excuse us for a minute?" Will said to the teacher as he closed the door and spoke softly so she couldn't overhear them. Ms. Johnson just sighed, she hoped she didn't overstep.

"Dad, why are you doing this to me?" Will mumbled loudly.

Nicholas answered in a light whisper. "I want you two to get to know each other. Who knows you might like her."

"But-but…" Will stammered. Nicholas's face turned into an intimidating one.

"At any rate. You will respect her. If I find out you are as rude to her as you were to the Louds when we first moved here, you're grounded." Will's mouth hung open, he was completely speechless and he felt as if his soul just jumped out of his body.

Honestly I was feeling quite betrayed here. I don't hate Ms. Johnson, I'm just feeling a little inside out about this.

Nicholas sighed. "Look son. I know you aren't too thrilled about someone else coming into our business, but I do like her. She's a nice lady. Give her a chance, please."

Will sighed sadly, not really giving an answer. The two went back inside, Ms Johnson was eyeing the two intently.

"I'm leaving now. Have fun you two." Nicholas said as he walked out the door and got into his truck and honked the horn. Lincoln came rushing out of the Loud's and climbed into the passenger seat with his own green hiking backpack full of outdoor necessities.

"So the McBrides are gonna meet us there?" Nicholas asked.

"Yep. Let's roll!" Lincoln said, excitedly throwing his fist into the air. Nicholas smiled and rolled his eyes as he started the vehicle and began to make the journey to the Bed and Breakfast.

About a quarter of an hour later they arrived at a large yellow building that looked no different than an oversized house.

"Here we are." Lincoln said.

"I've never actually been here, I've only heard about it." Nicholas said. "It looks very quaint."

Lincoln and Nicholas stepped out and eyed the building and enjoyed the freshness of the morning air of the woods. The two slowly entered the building and encountered Clyde and his dads in the lobby. Sitting on a big couch next to the front desk.

"Hey Lincoln! Mr. Clements!" Clyde said as he got off the couch and greeted them Clyde's dads sat still and stared at Nicholas with fake smiles and shaking in their seats. He wore the same backpack as Lincoln, however Clyde's was colored blue.

"Are you ready for a great adventure in the woods?" Nicholas asked.

"Yep." Lincoln smiled. "Once we're done we're gonna be tougher than two dollar steaks!" Nicholas and Clyde eyed each other with confused looks after hearing Lincoln's statement.

"What?" Nicholas and Clyde said at the same time.

"Oh nothing." Lincoln sighed. "Let's head out, and get EXTREME!"

Nicholas turned to Clyde's dads and approached.

"Uhh Hi." Howard said nervously.

"Listen." Nicholas said, trying to sound as calm and friendly as possible. "I'll keep your son safe. Trust me, I hope in time you'll understand me a little better." The two looked at each other as Nicholas turned around and walked out the door. He quickly rejoined the two boys as they started to move out to the woods.

"So what's the first thing we do?" Clyde asked. Lincoln took charge. Despite the fact that Nicholas, an adult was with them.

"First we find a spot to sleep." Lincoln spoke with confidence. Lincoln took the lead with Clyde behind him and Nicholas taking the rear. He was simply holding a larger hiking backpack in his fist. A few other camping supplies wrapped in his other arm.

"How do you know what to do?" Nicholas asked. "I mean why did you bring me exactly?"

Lincoln answered. "I binge watched Rip Hardcore after everyone went to sleep last night. I asked you here in case we need advice, or something else."

Several minutes pass and the group enter a small meadow next to a river surrounded by trees.

"Here we are!" Lincoln said proudly. Clyde gulped as he noticed a sign close by.

"Uh, Lincoln we can't stay here." Clyde warned. "This sign says 'No Camping. Extreme Danger.'"

"Exactly!" Lincoln said happily. "This is where we're gonna get extreme!"

"Ok boys, I gotta object to this." Nicholas said. "Park Rangers put signs like these up for a reason."

"All the more reason to have you here with us." Lincoln replied, he laid his stuff down on the ground and Clyde followed immediately, Nicholas sighed and did so with great reluctance. Now our first order of business is to secure us a shelter.

"I got us a nice large tent that my dads use!" Clyde said, taking out a folded up purple colored tent. Lincoln simply took it away.

"Real men don't need that, we build our own shelter." Lincoln started gathering some long, thin sticks and the others started to help, they began to stack them against a large tree at an angle. The shelter they had in mind is to just lean a stack of sticks against a tree and sleep under the gap it forms. It looked really useless.

"What a bute!" Clyde said as he and Lincoln stood admiring their 'hard' work.

"Sure….if you say so." Nicholas said, rolling his eyes. "I would've preferred the tent."

"All in a manly day's work." Lincoln said, puffing out his chest, he then started to rub his hands together. "Now let's rustle up some grub."

"Great idea!" Nicholas said. He reached into his insulated bag inside his backpack and took out some raw hot dogs. "Let's roast these weenies above a fire and…."

"Forget that stuff!" Lincoln interrupted. "Tough guys eat beans!" He took out three sixteen ounce cans of pinto beans.

"Ok." Clyde said. "Let's get a fire going and…"

"Nope!" Lincoln objected. "We're gonna just open these up and eat them as they are from the can!"

"You know they're gonna taste terrible right?" Nicholas said.

"Real men love this flavor!" Lincoln responded as he took a can opener from his bag and opened up the cans and gave Clyde and Nicholas spoons. Lincoln and Clyde sat on a nearby log and began to eat the beans. The looks on their faces indicate that it was the worst food they ever had. They had grossed out frowns as their cheeks puffed.

"Gonna eat Mr. Clements?" Clyde asked Nicholas.

"I'm not hungry." Nicholas groaned as he sat his can of beans on the ground.

"I think I'll save the rest for later." Lincoln said, setting his beans on the ground.

"Yeah!" Clyde agreed, setting his beans down too. "For tomorrow's breakfast, or maybe never."

"How else do men get food?" Lincoln asked Nicholas. The man thought hard as he rubbed his chin.

"Well…..I suppose you could hunt for food." Nicholas answered. "However I don't know how to do that." Lincoln sighed in disappointment, although for a different reason. While Clyde shuddered at the idea of killing and harvesting an animal.

"Well we're burning daylight here." Lincoln said standing up. "We need a fire." Nicholas decided to take charge at this point.

"Way ahead of you." He said. "First you boys gather up some wood." The two boys left and after several minutes they returned with several small sticks and logs. Nicholas gathered some small rocks and formed a circle with them in a dirt patch in this 'campground,' and instructed the boys to lay the sticks inside his made up fire pit.

"Good job boys." Nicholas complimented. "You need a circle of rocks and dirt to contain the fire otherwise you just created a wildfire. Also make sure it's safely away from any plants." Nicholas took out a regular cigarette lighter from his pocket and ignited the flame as he took a stick from the pit to burn it.

"Wait!" Lincoln cried.

"What?" Nicholas said, shrugging.

"We can't use that! Real men make fires with the elements around them."

"You're kidding right?" Nicholas scoffed. Unfortunately Lincoln wasn't kidding as he and Clyde tried to smash two rocks together over the pit to make a spark, but to no avail. Lincoln tried blowing on it to grow non existent embers. He even took Clyde's glasses and tried to magnify sunlight on the pit but that also didn't work. Nicholas shook his head as he watched the two boys struggle.

"You know how to start one with two sticks?" Lincoln asked Nicholas.

"Actually I don't." He answered. Lincoln groaned as he rolled his eyes. The boys gave up and sat back on the log as Nicholas sat on a huge boulder.

"You know what?" Lincoln said, trying to sound unphased by this setback. "Real men don't need fires. They brave the elements!" Clyde looked at Nicholas who returned the look. They both knew this trip was going real bad real fast.

Later that night it was time to sleep. Lincoln and Nicholas took out sleeping bags as Clyde took out an air mattress. Lincoln took out an extra sleeping bag for Clyde as he stated that the ground would be their mattress. After a few minutes they struggled to get comfortable and just spent the rest of the night huddled together on Clyde's air mattress. Nicholas unfortunately stayed on the ground as he couldn't fit on the mattress with the two boys, mostly because he's so big.

"I'm glad we did this guys." Lincoln said happily. "Out here away from the girls, I'm starting to feel like a real man already!"

"Me too!" Clyde said, although Clyde didn't seem to be very sincere in his statement. Although he felt he needed to ask something Lincoln clearly wasn't thinking about something. Hey Mr. Clements. "How much survival stuff do you actually know?"

"Almost nothing." Nicholas answered.

"WHAT!?" Lincoln shouted as he quickly rose up in bed. Completely shocked at this revelation.

"You didn't ask." Nicholas answered. "I know how to camp, but survival? I know almost nothing. Look, I can teach you about some good outdoor skills. If you're feeling insecure Lincoln, and if you believe that being outdoors will help you out here, I'll give you a hand. However,to help you feel more comfortable with you being the only man surrounded by women….well, let's talk about that once we're done here."

Lincoln sighed. "Ok Mr. Clements. I guess I shouldn't assume that because you look manly you don't actually know how to."

Nicholas felt a little insulted by Lincoln's statement, he responded by clearing his throat.

"Well, that's another thing we'll have to discuss." He said.

The next morning, the three were hiking through the trees to try to find the trail to return to the B & B. They were completely surrounded by trees, with their bags on their backs.

"Hey, are we lost?" Clyde asked. It seemed as if they were kind of wandering aimlessly, no signs of civilization or a pathway were visible anyway.

"I'm afraid we may be." Nicholas answered.

"Ha, nothing tough men like us can't handle!" Lincoln said not sounding scared at all. Nicholas smiled as he liked Lincoln's optimism.

After about an hour they heard a loud snort and an angry roar. The group froze in fear and looked to the right and saw a large angry bull moose with a female and a cub.

"Oh god." Lincoln gasped softly as they stood still.

"We crossed the trail of a moose family." Nicholas said. The trio's eyes widened in fear at this standoff. Their hearts raced in fear the Bull locked eyes with the trio and locked its legs. Lincoln and Nicholas were sweating as Clyde was rapidly breathing. One wrong move and it will charge.

"Guys, back away slowly." Nicholas whispered. The trio started to back away, not taking their eyes off the Moose. Unfortunately Lincoln stepped on a twig, the snap set the Moose off as it dug its hoof into the ground and charged at full speed towards the group.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" They screamed as they fully turned and ran with great haste.

"Guys! Climb the tree, as high as you can!" Nicholas shouted. The closest one was right next to them and was as tall as a giraffe. Nicholas took the boys hand and forcefully shoved them up the tree as the two scampered up the branches with all their might. Nicholas joined not soon after. Clyde and Lincoln were already somewhat athletic and were able to climb up, although not very swiftly, it would be no trouble for Nicholas, but he needed to make sure the boys were safe first. The Moose barely missed Nicholas's leg as it rammed the trunk with its antlers. The tree rattled and shook as the trio held onto branches for dear life. The three were safe as it couldn't reach them.

After about ten minutes the moose snorted again and walked away. The three breathed a sigh of relief as they dropped down, unfortunately Clyde landed on his back in a bush of something just as dangerous.

"POISON OAK!" He screamed as he jumped out.

"Don't worry!" Lincoln called. He found a nearby mud puddle made from the stream of the place they camped at and scooped it up and rubbed it on Clyde's skin before a horrible rash could form. "Lori taught me that this can clean your pores. It has to work on these dangerous plants!"

"Good thinkin Lincoln." Nicholas praised. Unfortunately, overhead the clouds started rolling in and it started to thunder.

"We need to get out of the rain!" Lincoln cried. They saw a rock wall several feet away and dashed towards it. Once they arrived they found a cave and ran inside. Nicholas took out his lighter and once again ignited it to get some light.

"We're safe here." Clyde said, breathing a sigh of relief. Unfortunately, he spoke too soon as they heard another loud angry roar. In the back of the cave was a large brown grizzly bear standing on its hind legs.

"Everyone, play dead!" Lincoln shouted as everyone instantly dropped onto their backs and laid lifeless. The bear grunted and sniffed the humans before departing, once it was safe they stood up. Nicholas was shocked.

"How did you know?" He asked.

"Something I remember Lucy doing with Lola. She ruined Lola's clothes and she was gonna tear her apart. Lucy played dead and Lola said she couldn't destroy her if she's already dead."

"Very good young man!" Nicholas praised, as he applauded Lincoln's quick thinking. Although making yourself look as big and intimidating as possible also works too.

The three waited in the cave safe from the rain. After about an hour it stopped and the sun came out. They continued their trek through the woods to return to the B&B.

"Which way do we go?" Clyde complained as it did seem they were not making any progress.

"I can help you here." Nicholas said. He looked at the trees and noticed an important detail. "Ok boys. We need to find north, the trees have the answer."

"How?" Lincoln asked. Nicholas pointed to fresh green moss on the trees.

"Moss always grows on the north side of trees which means we go west." Nicholas pointed in that direction and the group continued feeling more confident. After forty minutes they came out of the woods and made it back to the building.

"WE DID IT!" Lincoln cheered as he collapsed on the ground and made 'snow angels' on the ground. Nicholas knelt down before the two boys and took out a first aid kit from his bag.

Lincoln sat up as Clyde sat criss crossed on the ground in front of Nicholas. He breathed a huge sigh of relief now that he could sit and relax finally.

"Mr. Clements. I'm sorry I dragged you into this." Lincoln said regretfully. "You were right. A simple camping trip would have been way more fun."

"Listen to me boys." Nicholas said warmly with a smile on his face. "I know I may look like a big tough guy, at least to you guys. However I'm still just a guy. My skills are my job, cars and building, and lawn care."

"I realize that now." Lincoln sighed. "I'm sorry."

"Don't feel bad though." Nicholas said, smiling at Lincoln. "You showed that you have taken in great knowledge from your sisters. They've shown you that they know many things that can help you greatly in life, it doesn't matter if that stuff is 'girly.' In turn you've shown that you have much potential when it comes to self reliance. That and remaining in control of yourself and taking responsibility. Not being a tough, mean, musclebound ape. That's what you need to be a man."

"I think I understand what you're saying." Clyde replied. Nicholas rested his hands on the boy's shoulders as he had one important piece of advice for them.

"Understand this you two. You guys are still very young, you don't need to worry about being 'manly' yet. It will take a long time before you know yourselves and who you're meant to be. I didn't understand who I was meant to be until two years after Will was born. I still don't have all the answers for myself and odds are you two may not get those answers until much later in life, and that's perfectly ok."

Clyde and Lincoln looked at each other and nodded. They reached out and gave Nicholas a hug which he returned.

"Thanks Mr. Clements." Clyde said as they all separated.

"Now how about we go inside and get a nice warm meal?" He offered. "I'm dying for steak and eggs!"

"YEAH!" Lincoln cheered as the three went inside the building.

Monday night Will and Nicholas were having dinner as they went over their respective weekends.

"Oh my that sounds like a nightmare!" Will laughed.

Nicholas chuckled. "It was, luckily Lincoln had some hidden talent he didn't even know about."

Will calmed down his laughter as he said. "Glad that it seems that Lincoln managed to start feeling more secure with himself."

"Indeed." Nicholas agreed. "I think I made progress with Clyde's dads but I'm not sure. Too early to tell. So tell me, how was your weekend with Agnes?"

Will looked down at his plate as he thought back to the past two days.

Back after Nicholas left Ms. Johnson and Will stayed silent as they looked at each other. Will's face was flat, not conveying any emotions while she just smiled.

"So Will, what do you like to do?" Ms. Johnson asked.

"Stuff." Will answered in a rather dull voice.

I felt as if I was gonna relapse in my personality. I knew I couldn't do that to her, because I'd be doing it to dad.

"Oh? Like what kind of stuff?" Ms. Johnson asked.

"I don't know, movies, games." Will shrugged.

"How about we watch a movie?" Ms. Johnson suggested. She moved to the small shelf next to the T.V. and started scanning the movie and T.V. Collection.

'Oh here's a good one!' She said happily. "Godzilla!" Will's expression changed to surprised.

"You like that?" He asked in slight disbelife.

"Of course!" She announced with pride. "I love its extensive history as well as its metaphors for mankind's carelessness towards the planet. As well as a kick to humanity's complacency for feeling nothing can stop us."

Will didn't answer. He was even more stunned than before.

I'll admit, I'm not a big fan of those movies. I can get some entertainment out of it though. I'm just surprised because her description is pretty much right on the money.

She took the DVD and placed it in the player as the two sat on the sofa and watched. Halfway through, Ms. Johnson decided to break the ice further.

"So Will, who's your favorite monster in these films?" She asked while leaning in his direction.

"Uh…..I guess Godzilla himself." Will answered, not sounding too sure.

Told you I wasn't that big of a fan of these films. We own it because my dad is.

"I love Mothra, she's so elegant looking and kind." Ms. Johnson added.

Once the movie ended Will got up and turned towards the stairs.

Glad that's over. I'm just gonna lock myself in my room until she leaves.

Unfortunately it was five thirty and Will's stomach growled quite loudly. Of course Ms. Johnson took notice of this.

Oh are you hungry Will? She asked.

No, I'm fine. Will answered.

Oh nonsense. It's dinner time anyways, I'll make us a nice meal. Ms. Johnson declared as she rushed to the kitchen and began to fan through the ingredients and cooking utensils to see what she has to work with.

Will sighed and went up to his room and shut the door. He laid on bed and stared at the ceiling.

I meant what I said about me wanting my dad to be happy. I knew I was being unfair to his new girlfriend but I just wasn't expecting this. I just wasn't sure what to do. I wanted what's best for him, but I wasn't gonna just ignore how I feel.

Will reached under his bed and found a blue rubber ball and began tossing it in the air, catching it and repeating this action as he was lost in his thoughts.

I mean, who was I to keep him from dating? Surely I would want to be myself one day right?

After an hour of this repeated action a delightful aroma filled the house.

"Will! Dinner's ready!" Ms. Johnson called. This snapped Will out of his thoughts and the ball bounced on his head. Will grumbled and climbed off his bed and went to the kitchen. To his surprise the spread was pretty nice. There was a pitcher of iced tea with a small basket of makeshift breadsticks that had a garlicky, buttery scent to them. The main course was a large piece of breaded chicken topped with white cheese and marinara sauce underneath was pasta noodles.

"Is that…" Will said, pointing to the plates.

"Yep!" Ms. Johnson said proudly. "Chicken Parmesan! You didn't have all the ingredients to make it the best way I know how so I improvised. Go ahead, dig in!" Will's mouth hung open in shock as the two sat across from each other and started to eat. The food was actually very well done, the flavor of the chicken was moist and tender, the sauce was tangy and went well with the noodles and the flavor of the bread matched the scent of them.

Wow, I have to admit I think I underestimated this lady.

"I didn't know you could cook so well." Will remarked as he happily ate his food.

"Oh I picked up a few skills during my travels in Europe." She answered.

"Really?" Will said.

"Oh yes. I've been to Italy, Greece, Britain, and Germany." She happily explained.

"I had no idea you were so…well traveled." Will stammered slightly, not knowing what to say.

"I love to see what the world has to offer." Ms. Johnson said. "Your dad tells me you like history, you might like to be an archeologist one day."

"Well…..I guess." Will said, scratching his head.

To be honest I never put much thought into my future career. Sad isn't it? It is true though I do like history and I would love to travel, to see and study much of the ancient world up close.

Ms. Johnson offered. "I'd be more than willing to help you with this goal."

"I guess I'd appreciate it?" Will shrugged.

I really didn't know if I would…again, sad isn't it?

There was a uncomfortable silence in the air as Ms. Johnson failed to really break the ice with Will. Unfortunately she felt it's time to 'address the elephant.' She asked nervously, not knowing how he'll react.

"So Will, how do you feel about me and your dad being together?"

Will was moving a forkful of food to his mouth but froze. It lasted for a few seconds as his face turned serious and he put the food down.

"That doesn't matter right now." Will answered.

"But it does." Ms. Johnson retorted. "He's your father."

Will pushed right back. "Right, so what matters is this. You two have been dating for a short time, how do you feel about him?" Will stared at her right in the eyes as he needed the truth. Ms. Johnson sighed as she began to describe how she felt.

"He's a very kind man. I see the relationship you two have and he cares about you more than anything else. I know some of Lincoln's siblings do like him. He told me about some of it some time ago."

Will was starting to feel a little at ease about this but not completely.

I can tell the feelings are genuine.

"What else do you like?" Will asked further.

"He's a real go-getter, and he is really strong and handsome." Ms. Johnson concluded.

"Ok. I understand that you really like my dad." Will finally somewhat relenting.

"However he did tell me something." Ms Johnson sighed looking down. "You have reservations about us being together."

"Look, I want my dad to be happy." Will said, raising his hands defensively.

Ms. Johnson picked her head up. "That's nice of you but, I don't want you to feel like I'm intruding on what you two have built together. I'd like to be a part of your lives, but only as comfortable as you're ok with. Forgive me for bringing it up, but I'm not looking to be your new mother."

Will grinded his teeth in slight anger as his mom was brought up again. However he couldn't ignore how sincere she was with him.

I gotta admit talking about my mom is still too painful for me. I'm not too thrilled about dad sharing such sensitive information with her, although I guess it was just a matter of time. However, man, she's really trying to get me to accept her. How can I say no to this? I mean, it's clear she likes my dad, and she wants me to be comfortable. I guess I need to give her a more fair chance.

"Ok then, but I don't know you, not like how dad does." Will said. Ms. Johnson smiled and reached into her handbag, which was sitting on the floor on the right underside of the table, and took out two tickets to an event.

"I got just the thing." She smiled. "In a couple of weeks is the Royal Woods founders day festival. I got tickets for just the two of us."

"Sounds interesting." Will said with a smile as he rubbed his chin. He smiled fully as he got an idea. "Hey after dinner let's play a board game."

"What did you have in mind?" Ms. Jonson asked.

"Where in the world is Carmen Sandiego? I figured you'd like it since you're a teacher."

"Hahahahaha!" She laughed. "Deal!"

Back to the present time. Nicholas smiled. "You two seem to start getting along now."

"Maybe. I understand she's a good lady. I'm now glad you two are together." Will smiled as the father and son hugged each other, as it seemed some kind of an understanding was finally reached.

A/N Thanks for giving this chapter a read. Now I got a question for you guys. When you read the lines of Nicholas and Will, how do you imagine they sound? What kind of voices do you think they have? Let me know in a PM or a review. See you all next time!