Disclaimer: The chapter titles for the Monday's Child is, etc. are from a Mother Goose rhyme, Monday's Child.
Cory and Shawn's Miracle Soap: Friday's Child is Loving and Giving
Shawn stared at the wall during homeroom. He and Cory had been relegated to different parts of the room. As it turned out, their punishment included not sitting next to each other during class time.
"Shawn."
Shawn saw Jonathan looking at him with a frown- and standing on his head. Momentarily disoriented, he blinked.
"Audrey's that way," the teacher said quietly, pointing to the front of the classroom.
"Right," he said, still confused as to why Jon was upside down. Then it dawned on him. He was leaning his head over the back of his chair, consequently inverting his view. Once he sat up properly, his spatial orientation was restored.
Homeroom seemed to drag on forever despite the fact that Audrey was in charge of it. Cory's attention kept wandering. He wondered what kind of grueling chores were awaiting him and Shawn after school.
When the bell rang, Cory and Shawn bolted for the door.
"Shawn!"
Shawn froze just outside of the door, hoping Jon would think he didn't hear him.
"I know you heard me, Hunter."
Darn it, Shawn thought, reluctantly turning around.
"I didn't do it," he declared as he reentered the room.
Audrey shook her head in amusement.
Jon regarded him skeptically. "What didn't you do?"
Shawn opened his mouth and started to say something. He abruptly closed it.
"If you don't already know, I'm not goin' ta tell you."
Jon rolled his eyes and smiled. "I just wanted tell you to come straight to the apartment when you're done today. And make sure to tell Audrey good-bye before you and Cory start your detentions."
Shawn frowned. Why would he do that? Unless...
"That wasn't part of the punishment!" he protested.
"Huh?" Jon had no idea what the boy was talking about.
"Audrey not being able to come over was not a part of the punishment!"
"Shawn," Jon said. "Audrey's not going to be here this weekend. She's going home."
"Oh." Shawn wasn't convinced that that was any better. "Why?"
"Cause I miss it, that's why," Audrey told him.
"Do you have to?"
She cocked her head to the side. "Yeah, I kind of do."
Shawn scrunched his face up. "But who's going to cook for us?"
Jon gave him a light pop with some papers he had in his hand. "She's not your personal chef. We'll survive."
"I think I'm going to try a fast this weekend," he said seriously.
Audrey laughed. "I'll be back Sunday night."
"Bring me something?" he asked, giving her his best-puppy dog eyes.
She laughed again and ruffled his hair.
"Like what?"
"One of those 'I love NY' shirts."
"You gotta deal, mate."
"Yeah," Jon said, urging him out of the room. "You got your deal. Now get going before you're late to your next class."
"I wish I was going with you this weekend," Jon said sliding his tray next Audrey's thermos. "I miss the City."
Audrey, who said she had eaten earlier, smiled as she sipped on her water. "How long has it been since you last went back?"
"Almost three years."
"Wow," she said. "I couldn't stay away for so long." She laughed. "Of course, I didn't have much faith that I'd last a week here."
"Neither did I," he admitted with a grin. "I thought for sure you'd have been gone by now." He paused for a moment. "You going to see your dad?"
Audrey nodded. "Yeah," she said quietly.
Jon quickly changed the subject. "So does this mean you won't be doing any dancing this weekend?"
"Nope. If anything I'll be doing more."
Jon raised an eyebrow.
"I spoke to my old teacher at ABC last night," she explained. "He invited me to attend classes while I'm home."
"You're definitely going to go?"
She pressed her lips into a thin line. "Yes, I think am."
"Even though you're not currently studying dance, you're going to be able to attend those classes?" Katherine had been sitting on the other side of Jon and couldn't help but overhear their conversation.
Audrey was caught off guard by the question. "Well, yes. Cooper knows that I've continued dancing here, so he thought I might want to take a few more lessons with my old company."
"Just like that?"
Audrey wasn't sure why Katherine was questioning her like this. In previous conversations, she never seemed too interested in Audrey's past profession.
"Um, well, I suppose so." She didn't know how else to answer. True, it was unprecedented that a dancer who quit dancing should be asked to come back to their company if only to dance a few lessons, but how would Katherine suspect that? Audrey tried to dismiss it as coincidence.
Once again, Jon felt extremely uncomfortable being in between the two women.
"So, um, Katherine," Audrey tried to think of something else to talk about. "It's really cool that you're going to New York with us in November. You've been to the City before, right?"
Katherine looked at her. "Yes, once. A long time ago."
Jon seemed surprised by to hear that. "Really?" he asked.
Katherine nodded.
"What were you there for?" Audrey leaned against the table to better see her.
Katherine stirred her applesauce with a spoon. She stared at it before answering.
"Dance scholarship competition," she replied quietly.
Jon's astonishment was obvious and Audrey seemed shocked.
"Really?" Audrey asked excitedly. "That's so amazing that you're a dancer, too. What company?"
Katherine gave her a thin smile, wondering why she had ever said anything.
"The scholarships were sponsored by ABC," she said.
"Wow..." Audrey sat back amazed that a fellow company member was here at this school.
"Where'd you study at?"
The question was inevitable, Katherine knew. And it made her wonder all the more why she had brought it up in the first place.
"I didn't make it."
"Oh." Audrey seemed embarrassed. "I'm sorry."
Katherine tried to be flippant about it. She smiled at Audrey. "It's fine. Besides teaching brings in more of an income than dancing ever would."
There was a brief period of silence.
"Could I ask why?" Audrey said, trying to choose her words carefully. "You had to have been outstanding to get as far as scholarship auditions."
Katherine studied her sharply, but Audrey wasn't being condescending; she was serious.
"Flat feet," she said simply.
Audrey nodded in understanding. "I see. It was one of those 'you're a beautiful person and brilliant dancer, but you just don't have the body type we're looking for' speeches, right?"
It was Katherine's turn to be surprised. "You," she said in disbelief. "You've gotten one of those before?"
Audrey gave her an "are you kidding" look. "They give you that speech whether you have flat feet or a thick waist. And, yes, I have gotten that speech before. More than once."
Katherine smiled a real smile this time. Maybe she had been wrong about Audrey being a spoiled little rich girl. Maybe everything hadn't been handed to her.
Jon sensed that the women had made a connection, which should have made him feel better. Before he wasn't convinced that Katherine like Audrey, and now that they seemed to have something in common, he wasn't sure if he was happy about it or not.
"Miss Andrews! Hey, Audrey, wait up."
Audrey was getting ready to leave the high school. She had to get home and pack before Jon took her to the airport. She turned around and saw Shawn jogging towards her.
"You're not leaving yet are you?" he asked breathlessly.
"Yeah, Shawn, I still have to pack."
"Oh. How long before your flight leaves?"
"Three hours. I leave at six."
"Oh," Shawn said again. "Are you going to come over before you go?" he asked hopefully.
Audrey shook her head regretfully. "I can't," she said apologetically. "There won't be time. And besides, Jon's taking me to the airport." She paused a beat then added, "Why don't you see if Jon'll lift your grounding just long enough for you to come, too?"
Shawn couldn't help but smile at the invitation. He assumed that she wouldn't him tagging along if she had a chance to be alone with Jon. "Really? You don't mind me hanging around?"
Audrey gave him a funny look. "Of course, not! I love having you around, Shawn. How could you think otherwise?"
He wasn't sure, actually. She often went out of her way to include him in things. It was nice not to be overlooked for once.
"Cool," he grinned. "Then I don't have to say good-bye right now."
"Nope," Audrey winked at him. "Now you better get going before Mr. Feeny comes looking for you."
Shawn's smiled diminished. "Oh, right. Well, I'll see you later."
Audrey waved and Shawn watched her leave before trying to find Cory. His friend was standing by his locker with a melancholy look on his face.
"Have you seen Feeny yet?" Shawn asked.
Cory shook his head. "Not yet. But that creepy Solomon kid ran by and told me to watch my back."
Shawn tugged at the hem of his jacket. "You say good-bye to Miss Andrews? We won't see her all weekend."
Cory looked at him. "I always say bye to her on Fridays after English. And I never see her on weekends."
"Oh, yeah," Shawn shrugged. "She's going back to New York for the weekend."
"Really?" Cory's eyes lit up. "You think she'd bring me back an 'I love NY' shirt?"
Shawn looked at him smugly. "I already asked. But when Jon and I take her to the airport, I'll ask her to get you one too."
"Cool!"
"There they are!"
Cory and Shawn looked for the source of the shout. Their eyes widened in surprise. Gathered in the hallway was the crowd that had bought miracle soap from them.
"Uh, oh," Cory gulped. "They don't look very happy."
"What's with them?" Shawn asked. "They got their money back and we're out of business. What more do they want?"
"We want you to try out your own product."
The boys turned around to see Solomon Tiegs standing behind them looking smug.
"What?"
Without warning, Cory and Shawn were overtaken by their classmates. They had no opportunity to defend themselves. After several minutes, the crowd disbanded and the halls were empty again.
Cory and Shawn were left sitting on the floor leaning against the lockers for support. Their faces were smeared with foul-smelling green goo and a minty aqua paste.
"Ow," Shawn said weakly.
Cory merely groaned and closed his eyes.
Suddenly, both boys sat bolt upright.
"F-f-f-fire!" they cried in unison, frantically fanning their faces. Jumping up and scrambling blindly about, they attempted to gain their bearings.
"That way," Cory pointed.
Without another word, they made a mad dash to the boys' bathroom.
Shawn's face was still bothering him when he finally got back to Jon's apartment. He smelled like cleaning chemicals and floor wax.
Jon was waiting for him.
"Whoa, do you smell!" he greeted him. "Go take a quick shower. We've got to get Audrey in an hour."
"I won't argue you with about," Shawn said greatly relieved to be able to clean himself up.
His hair was still damp when he and Jon left to get Audrey. They were walking to the parking garage of the apartment complex when a realization dawned on Shawn.
"How are we going to fit three people on your bike?"
Jon looked at him. "We're not." At the puzzled look on Shawn's face he added, "We're taking the truck."
Shawn was even more confused. "When did you get a truck?"
Jon shook in head in amazement that the boy could be so oblivious to certain things. "About a year ago. Didn't you ever wonder how I would have gotten groceries back here on my bike?"
Shawn shrugged. "Hey, I don't ask where the food comes from or how it got here, as long as it is here."
Jon laughed. "You're a real piece of work, Hunter."
Shawn smiled. "I try."
"I believe you."
"Which one's yours?" Shawn asked as they neared several vehicles.
"Blue Chevy," Jon said pointing to an older, but well-kept truck.
"Blue's Audrey's favorite color," Shawn commented.
Jon gave him a funny look. "Is it now."
"Hey, extended cab." Shawn jogged over to the pickup. "Not bad for a teacher."
"I don't think so," Jon said, opening the door. "Buckle up."
Shawn was kneeling in the front seat so that he could check out the back. He turned around and slid into the seat.
"So," Shawn turned slightly so he could better see his guardian. "You going to miss her?"
Jon glanced at him. "Who? Audrey?"
"Yeah."
Jon took deep breath, trying to decide the best way to answer. How honest should he be with Shawn? He was concerned that being too open about his feelings towards Audrey, whatever they were, wasn't wisdom. And he was already worried that he wasn't exercising enough wisdom with Audrey.
After a brief hesitation, he replied, "Well, sure."
His answer didn't satisfy Shawn, who suspected that it went deeper than a simple "well, sure".
"Com'n, Jon," he said. "With all time that we've spent with her- that you've spent with her; you're around her even more than me- and you're not going to miss her more than that?"
Sometimes Shawn Hunter could be remarkably astute. And it could be remarkably irritating.
"Yeah, I am going to miss her," Jon admitted hoping that would be the end of it.
"A lot?"
"Shawn!"
"What?" Shawn couldn't help but smile. He'd struck a nerve and he knew it.
"Could we talk about something else, please?"
Shawn shrugged. "Okay, fine. Let's talk about something else."
"Thank you."
"Let's talk about how hot Miss Andrews is." Shawn grinned. He'd definitely hit upon something. Jon was blushing.
"Let's not." Jon reached over and turned on the radio to a local soft rock station.
"She is hot," Shawn prodded.
"I'm not blind," Jon muttered.
That was good enough for Shawn. He leaned back in his seat and watched the scenery fly by the window.
Before long they were at Audrey's place. It was a small white two-story house with a rickety picket fence that had once been white many, many years ago. Audrey rented the top floor from a sweet, old widow who lived in the lower portion.
Audrey opened the door before they could ring the doorbell.
"Hi," she greeted them with a huge grin.
"Ask them in," said a horse voice. "I won't keep them but a second."
Audrey motioned Jon and Shawn to come inside. "This is Mrs. Dupree," she introducing them to her landlady. "Mrs. Dupree, Jon and Shawn."
Mrs. Dupree was a tiny woman, her posture bent with age and probably osteoporosis. She had to be at least eighty. Her perfectly permed white hair was cut short and she wore light pink rouge on her withered cheeks. She looked Jon and Shawn over with intelligent blue eyes that sparkle with mischievousness.
"My, what a handsome young men you have to chauffer you about, my dear," she winked at Audrey.
She turned and gazed steadily at Shawn who returned her smile. He liked the old woman.
That's what a grandmother be should like, he thought.
"Is this your husband and son?" Mrs. Dupree had a wicked gleam in her eyes. She knew full well that they weren't. But she figured that she was old enough to have a little fun with the young people.
"Maudie!" Audrey yelped in surprise. Her cheeks flushed crimson. Yesterday she had been mistaken for Jon's girlfriend and now his wife? Audrey wanted to hide. Maybe she'd just go to New York and stay there.
Shawn now loved Mrs. Dupree. Jon and Audrey looked as though someone had dumped ice water them. Shawn chuckled. While he was pestering Jon, Mrs. Dupree must have been doing the same to Audrey.
"I like the way you think, Mrs. Dupree," he grinned.
Mrs. Dupree merely winked at him.
Jon had the feeling that, if left alone, Mrs. Dupree and Shawn would start plotting something. They both had that look in their eyes.
"It was really nice to meet you, Mrs. Dupree," Jon said genially, shaking the woman's hand. "But we're going to have to be leaving if Audrey's going to catch her flight."
"Oh, of course," Mrs. Dupree said merrily. "Go, go." She kissed Audrey's cheek and stroked a lock of her hair fondly. "Be careful and don't let that airline lose your luggage, angel."
"I won't," Audrey returned the kiss. "Good-bye, Maudie!"
Jon picked up Audrey's suitcase and the trio headed out to the truck.
"Oh." Audrey's eyes lit up when she the vehicle. "I love that shade of blue. It's my favorite."
Shawn shot Jon an "I told you so" look. Jon ignored him.
As it turned out, Audrey's flight was delayed an hour due to inclement weather. To pass the time, they wandered around the airport. T-shirts hanging in the gift shop window reminded Shawn of something.
"Hey, Audrey."
Audrey draped her arm around his shoulders. "Hmm?"
"Cory wanted to know if you'd bring him back an "I love NY" shirt, too."
Audrey nodded. "Will do," she said.
With fifteen minutes left to wait they headed back to Audrey's gate and sat in the nearby waiting area.
Shawn noticed that neither Audrey or Jon had spoken much to each other since arriving at the airport.
"Do you think you could get me a barf bag and those airplane peanuts?"
Audrey and Jon regarded him through narrowed eyes.
"Do I want to know why you want that?" she asked suspiciously.
Shawn thought about it for moment. "Probably not."
Jon shook his head and laughed.
"I'll see what I can do," she chuckled.
"Is there anything else you want her to bring you?" Jon asked sarcastically.
"How 'bout Ellis Island?"
"I don't think it would fit in my bag," Audrey replied.
Eventually Audrey's flight was called. After a bit of an awkward moment, Shawn wrapped her in a big hug. Then he stood back and shoved his hands into his pocket and stared at the floor. When he looked back up at her, he had a pained expression in his eyes.
"Promise you'll come back," he said in a barely audible voice.
Audrey wasn't certain why he was asking such a thing. She looked at Jon who didn't have an answer for her.
"Of course, I will. It's only few a days. You'll hardly know I'm gone."
"Will you call?"
"Sure."
It was the most serious she had ever seen him and it disturbed her.
"Promise."
Suddenly, Audrey realized the reason for his graveness. His father. Poor Shawn was still waiting with hope for that call from his dad.
Audrey took his chin in her hand. "I promise," she said, matching his seriousness. "You can count on it, bud."
Shawn smiled. "Have fun. Dance 'til your feet fall off."
Audrey smiled. "That's more like it."
She turned to look for Jon. He stepped forward to hug her.
"Be careful," he said into her hair, trying to memorize her perfume and the silkiness of her hair.
Audrey found it hard to smile. All of the sudden she didn't want to go. Without thinking, she gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks," she said. "For everything."
Quickly picking up her carry-on, she headed for the gate, turning around one last time to wave good-bye.
Shawn wandered over to the window to watch the planes take off. Rain droplets splashed against the window and ran down the glass, making his reflection look like it was crying. Jon stood beside him and put a hand on his shoulder.
"She'll back," he said.
"How do you know?" There was forlornness in the boy's voice.
"She promised."
"So did my dad."
Jon sighed. He didn't know what else to say- he didn't think there was anything he could say. The only way Shawn would be convinced that not everyone in his life would leave for good, would be for him to see Audrey return on Sunday.
This is going to be a long weekend, he thought.
They stayed at the window until they could no longer see Audrey's plane.
Saturday's Child Must Work For A Living
Cory sighed heavily as he raked leaves into a pile on the football field of John Adams High. He still had ten yards left to go, plus bagging the leaves and taking them to the trash. If that wasn't bad enough, it was a record hot October day.
He paused for a rest and leaned on the handle of the rake for support. He could see Shawn in the distance carrying several large trash bags to the dumpster. Shawn had a discouraged look on his face; similar to the one he had when his dad first left. Cory scratched his head. Shawn had been abnormally quiet since Miss Andrews left for New York and Cory wasn't sure why. His friend had been in no mood to discuss it when Cory tried to ask about it that morning. In time, he knew, Shawn would talk to him. Until then, Cory wished he could do something to make Shawn feel better.
A call from his dad would help, Cory thought. A surge of anger towards Chet Hunter swelled inside of him. Surely the man could have found a pay phone and called. So what if he didn't have the change for it? Mr. Turner wouldn't mind taking a collect call.
"Hey, kid!" Cory spun around, startled by the shout. Janitor Bud stood of the edge of the field. "This ain't no break time. Get back to work."
Cory sighed again and went back to his raking.
"Why do you have to bring this up every time we get together?" Jon pulled away from Katherine and got off the couch.
"Because," she said defensively. "I want a commitment from you."
"But marriage?" He paced the area by the front door. "Do you know what you're asking?"
This time Katherine jumped up in a huff. "Yes, Jonathan, I do actually. Why do you think marriage is so terrible, huh?"
"I never said that!" he snapped irritably. "Don't put words in my mouth. I'm just not ready to get married."
Katherine gave a irritated grunt. She didn't want to fight with him, but this was important to her and his resistance was frustrating.
"As long as we've been dating and you don't feel any inclination to get married?"
"First of all," Jon stopped his pacing and faced her. "A few months is not a long time. And secondly, maybe I don't feel any inclination to get married because you keep pressuring me!"
"Don't you love me?"
Jon felt a headache coming one. He put his hand to his forehead and tried to pull himself together. He had no desire to argue with Katherine, but this was getting to be too much for him to handle. Every time she came over lately, they ended up in the same argument that always ended the same way- with someone angrily storming out.
"We've been over this, Kat," he said tiredly.
"And you've never given me a straight answer," she shot back.
He sighed. That much was true. He supposed he owed her an honest answer.
"I don't know," he admitted, sounding defeated.
The hurt in her eyesbothered him.
"I care about you, Kat, I really do. But I just can't tell what you want hear right now."
Katherine nodded. "Will you ever?" Her chin began to quiver; she was close to tears.
"Yes," he said immediately. "Probably. I just...I need time, okay? Shawn's about all I can deal with right now. He comes first."
Katherine pursed her lips together. "Yes, I know."
"Don't say it that way, Kat. He needs me."
Katherine looked at him sharply. "So do I."
She was angry again; Jon could see it in her eyes.
"Then tell me what to do," he said, sitting down on the arm of the couch. She stared at him. "Do you really want me to marry you now?"
She frowned at him. "Of course, I do."
"Then just let me ask you this," he said. "Do you want me to marry you because you've pressured me into it or would you rather it be because I love you?"
"You know the answer to that," she replied quietly.
"Then give me some time."
The phone rang three times before Shawn finally answered it.
"Hello?" he said sleepily. He had just gotten home from detention.
"May I speak to Shawn Hunter?"
"Audrey!" he cried excitedly. He was fully awake now.
"Hey, bud. What's up?"
"Nothing. I just got back from school." Shawn pulled a kitchen stool over to the phone so he could sit down. "Feeny worked me and Cory like dogs."
Audrey laughed. "Poor babies."
"You're telling me!" Shawn couldn't believe that she'd actually called. "You wanna talk to Jon?"
"I called to talk to you."
"Yeah? Cool! So how's New York?"
"It's cold," she said. "They're expecting snow by Monday night. I'm glad I'll be back in town tomorrow night."
"You don't think you'll get stuck there, do you?"
"Nah," she said lightly. "Weather report is predicting snow after midnight. I'll be back long before that."
"Good," Shawn breathed a sigh of relief.
"So what have I been missing so far?"
Shawn fill her in on the details of his and Cory's punishment duty and his plans for the rest of the day. He left off mentioning that Miss Tompkins had been over earlier.
In return, Audrey told him about her dance sessions at the American Ballet Company. One class she was about to be late for.
"Are you sure you don't want to talk to Jon?" Shawn asked again. "He ought be back in a few minutes."
"No," Audrey assured him. "I'll call back after class and talk to him."
"Okay, I'll tell him you called. Thanks for calling, Audrey."
" No prob, bud. I miss you, you know."
Audrey couldn't see Shawn's face light up, but she could hear it in his voice. "Yeah? I miss you too."
They said their good-byes and Shawn hung up the phone. He felt much better.
Shawn grabbed the TV remote and flopped down on the couch, but he couldn't concentrate on any of the programs. Audrey said she would call and she did. Just to talk to him. Just to tell him that she missed him. Shawn smiled. If Audrey could do that, then why couldn't his dad?
The front door opened. Jon was back from taking Katherine home. He looked stressed and not particularly happy.
Shawn sat up when he heard his guardian come in.
"Hey, Jon," he grinned.
Jon gave him a funny look. He noticed the drastic change in Shawn's attitude. That morning, the boy had been in a rotten mood.
I wonder if his dad called, he thought. Somehow he doubted it.
"Why are you so happy?" he asked.
Shawn shrugged and laid back down on the couch. "Audrey called."
"Oh?" Jon moved Shawn's feet so that he could sit on the couch. "What'd she call about."
Shawn smiled at the television. "To tell me she missed me."
You're a saint, Audrey, Jon thought.
"She say anything about me?"
"Nope," Shawn didn't take his eyes off of the screen. "She was going to be late for class so she said she'd call back later to talk to you."
Jon smiled to himself. Audrey had a knack for cheering Shawn up.
"Shawn?"
"Hmm"
"Isn't there something else on beside Bugs Bunny?"
But the Child That's Born on the Sabbath Day is Fair and Wise
"I don't see her!" Shawn was standing on his toes, trying to see over the crowd that had just disembarked.
Jon grabbed Shawn's jacket to keep him from falling over. "She probably hasn't gotten off yet. Be patient."
Shawn stood back on flat feet, shifting impatiently from one foot to another.
It seemed like a thousand people passed them before he saw the redhead.
"Audrey!" Shawn rushed to meet her.
He nearly knocked her down with his bear hug. She laughed and hugged him back. For good luck, she ruffled his hair.
"You and Cory haven't tried to sell anything else while I was gone, have you?" she teased him.
Shawn grinned. "Nope. Not yet."
"Don't even joke like that," Jon said. He greeted his student teacher with a hug as well, surprised by just how much he had missed her.
"Have a good trip?" he asked as they went to baggage claim to pick up Audrey's luggage.
"Uh, huh." Audrey brushed her hair out of her eyes. "It was rushed but I loved every second of it. It felt fabulous to be back at ABC."
The trip back went by quick. They had barely gotten in the door of Jon's apartment when Shawn asked, "What'd ya bring me?"
Audrey laughed and Jon rolled his eyes. "My, what impressive manners you have," he told Shawn.
"Actually," Audrey said, taking a large plastic bag out of her duffle bag. "This is for you."
"Cool! You're the best!"
Shawn immediately started going through his sack.
"Oh," Audrey said to Jon. "I got something for you, too."
Jon looked pleasantly surprised. "You didn't have to do that."
"I know," she said and pointed to large rectangular parcel wrapped in brown paper. " But you mentioned that you were looking for it and I found it at a little shop on it Fifth Avenue."
Jon couldn't recall mentioning anything of that nature to Audrey.
"Cool!" Shawn cried. "Check out all the bags of peanuts. Look at the barf bags!"
"I'd rather not," Jon shook his head and smiled as he lifted the package onto the kitchen table.
"You got the shirts, too!" Shawn pulled his "I love NY" shirt on over the other two shirts he was wearing. He dug in the bag a little further. "There's four shirts." He held up another white one and two black shirts.
Audrey turned to him. "I thought you and Cory might like a little variety."
"Thanks."
"Oh, Audrey." Jon held up her gift, thoroughly overwhelmed. It was a large, black-framed painting of the New York skyline after dark. "This is exactly the one I was looking for."
Audrey grinned.
"Jon, look." Shawn held up a large snow globe. Inside of the globe, was a magnificent Statue of Liberty standing proudly on an island. He turned it upside down and saw a little knob. He turned it several times and was rewarded by hearing it play "The Star-Spangled Banner". His grin lit all corners of his face. "Jon," he said again. "She brought me Ellis Island!"