Story notes:

-There are mentions in this chapter of scenes that have yet to be published: the proposal scene is coming up very soon in a future chapter and has already been written. The leadup to this is at the end of Birthday Wishes and Valentine Kisses which is still being published. It too is already written.

-Jon and Audrey recall the events at the end of Keys. I have had an expanded version of the ending that Lizettevanessa asked me to write sitting on my PC for nearly a year. I am hoping to get back to it very soon to polish it up and get it out. The drunken call Jon mentions getting from Chet is detailed in that story. It is also in this one-shot that Eddie and his relationship with Chet is explored (Jon makes a mention of this in his conversation with Audrey).

As Saudade gets further along and Jon reveals more of his story, Shawn will learn just how significant music has been to him throughout his life and why he kept it hidden the year Shawn lived with him. This is hinted at throughout AiP as music was life for Audrey's dad. It is also brought up in Birthday Wishes and Valetine Kisses and will be the subject of an upcoming one-shot.

Chapter title is from a Whitney Houston (one of Aud's favorite artists) song of the same name.

It was the beginning of a new month and for Jon, Shawn, and Audrey it was the beginning of a new life.

The little family was sitting around Audrey's kitchen table eating her trademark breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, chocolate chips pancakes, and orange juice while chattering excitedly about the month ahead.

And what a month it was turning out to be.

The countdown to the end of Audrey's student teaching was being tracked at both homes on special calendars Jon and Shawn had made and they change them daily with great punctuality. The end of Audrey's student teaching meant the end of Jon's position as her cooperating teacher and although she was, thanks to Mr. Feeny, staying on until the end of the year, the moment the bell rang on her last day, they could be together publicly.

"Okay, Shawn," Jon said between bites of cereal and pancakes. Audrey was less than thrilled with his choice of Cornflakes in addition to everything else. She leaned over him slicing bananas into his bowl as he ate. "I wanna do this guardianship stuff up big."

"Like how?" the teen asked pushing the tip of his nose up with the handle of his fork.

Jon shrugged. "Like, I dunno, rent Chubbie's or somethin'. Go to Six Flags. Whatever you wanna do."

Shawn considered this for a while. A smile slowly stretched across his face. "Chubbies would be cool. Can I invite Cory and Topanga?"

"I kinda figure when I say Shawn, I'm also sayin' Cory and Topanga without actually sayin' their names," Jon remarked without sarcasm.

He grinned. "What about their parents? They've always been cool to me."

"Yeah. The Matthews and Lawrences have been a big help to us too." He grinned at Audrey and caught her in a surprise kiss as she finished slicing the banana.

"Can Little Cory come too?"

Two weeks before, he had met a couple at a livestock show Jon and Audrey took him to. They had a place just outside of the city with chickens, donkeys, goats, sheep, and a lonely little female pig just about Little Cory's age. The couple offered to let Little Cory stay with them any time Shawn needed a safe place for him.

After a long talk with Jon, Shawn decided to take them up on their offer. But Little Cory was still his and he paid for his food and vet bills as best he could with the allowance Jon gave him and the odd jobs he'd pick up every so often. Little Cory came home on weekends and for holiday visits.

Jon exchanged looks with Audrey and gave a good-natured shrug. "Sure, he can help with food cleanup while he's there."

Shawn's smile grew. "T.K. too?"

"You can ask anyone you want."

He watched the couple with wonder. They were going to extremes for him once again. Tipping his head to the side he paused his inhaling of sausage long enough to ask, "Why are you makin' such a big deal of outta this?"

Audrey had gotten up from the table to get more milk just before he asked this. When she returned Jon grabbed her by the waist and pulled her into his lap. She rolled her eyes and tried half-heartedly to get away from him.

Shawn smiled at this, but a strange feeling settled into his stomach. These days he had been having with Jon and Audrey were, to him, even better than what Cory had with his parents. Maybe that was because there were no other kids to take their attention off of each other or off of him.

"Because," Jon said pressing a kiss into the side of her neck that made her shiver. "Your mom and I didn't get to have a baby shower or celebrate our bundle of joy comin' home from the hospital. Gotta make up for lost time."

Your mom and I.

Although they'd become a real family months ago, the language wasn't there for him or Jon consistently unless it came to Audrey. Now Jon was talking like a dad.

A real dad.

His dad.

In less than a year Jon had been much more of a father to him than Chet had been in fifteen years.

Fourteen, he corrected himself.

Chet had yet to show up for year fifteen or even acknowledge it.

Conflicting emotions churned within him as he tried to reconcile not being wanted by his biological parents but being wanted by people who did not share DNA with him to the extent that they wanted to throw a party about it.

In typical Hunter fashion, Shawn chose to ignore what he didn't want to deal with and focus on what was in front of him: Jon and Audrey and a permanent home.

Shawn ducked his head and hid the incredibly pleased smile that consumed his face. Then he shrugged coolly. "Yeah, okay. Cool. Do I get gifts?"

Jon rolled his eyes, but he was smiling too. "Yeah, us."

Shawn, always happy to have at it with his teacher, pushed away from the table, and regarded him skeptically. "Huh, well. Not sure what I'm supposed to do with you, but okay."

Jon wadded up his napkin and threw it at Shawn who grinned and launched it back at him. Somehow throwing paper projectiles at each other had become a family tradition.

After breakfast, while Shawn helped Audrey in the kitchen, Jon was on the phone with Chubbie about how quickly they could reserve a few hours at the teen hangout.

When he was done with the call, he joined them at the sink and took over washing dishes from Audrey.

"I got Chubbie's for the 20th, 7 pm, the Saturday after Mother's Day," he told them looking pleased with himself.

Shawn perked up at the mention of Mother's Day and a devilish smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth as he locked eyes with Jon.

Audrey caught the strange looks they exchanged and crossed her arms over her waist. "I know those looks. What're you two up to?"

"Nothin, Mama," Shawn grinned as he tossed the dishrag to Jon. He leaned back against the table and regarded them as the smirk stretched across his face. "What's next?"

"Next?" Jon asked with an arched brow.

"Yeah. When's the party for you signin' the paperwork for Mama?"

Jon grinned as he tossed the dishrag into the sink. Putting an arm around Audrey, he lifted her hair out of the way and kissed her right behind the ear. "As soon as she gets her diploma."

Shawn started to agree with this then realized that the paperwork would be a marriage license and Jon had not yet asked Audrey to marry him. His face fell into a scowl.

"This better not be the proposal!" he exclaimed, poking a finger in Jon's direction. "You owe Mama somethin' huge to make up for the lame way you told her you loved her."

"Drop it, kid," Jon growled in embarrassment.

Shawn was not deterred. Throwing up his hands he exclaimed, "I still can't believe you told an ex-girlfriend first!"

"It's fine, Shawn," Audrey assured him. "As long as I'm Jonathan Turner's wife and Shawn Hunter's mother, I don't care about the other stuff."

"I do!" Shawn slapped his hands on the table for emphasis. He leaned over to get as close to Jon as possible without actually moving. "It better be the biggest proposal ever or I'm gonna be a pain in your butt until I move out."

Jon rolled his eyes. "You already are."

"I can get worse," he retorted smugly.

They managed to hold their stance for only a moment before dissolving into laughter.

Shawn let his teacher relax for a very short time before starting in on him again. "So another month until the big proposal and you get married. Fine. So then that means I should be gettin' my baby sister in what?" He counted the months out on his fingers. "In February? Oh! Hey, my birthday is in February! Awesome timin'."

They stared at him.

"Uh, how about one thing at a time," Jon stammered out. "Let us get married first."

"With the way you move," he said crossing his arms over his chest, "if I don't to start on you about this now, I'll be thirty before she shows up. Nobody's gettin' any younger here, especially you."

Jon pushed his jaw out at an angle and let go of Audrey. He grabbed Shawn by the shirt tail and put him into a headlock. "Say that again."

"You're old, man!" the teen choked out between gasps of laughter.

The two wrestled in the kitchen while Audrey looked on until a wayward single leg takedown knocked the entire table askew and sent its contents hurtling towards the floor. Jon nearly injured himself trying to catch the fruit bowl before it hit the ceramic tiles while Shawn scurried to corral the apples and oranges that went rolling into corners he didn't know the kitchen had.

Sheepishly they put the table back in order then went to stand by Audrey as though nothing had happened. She just laughed and rolled her eyes at their antics.

Jon wrapped his arms around her and pulled her in front of him. While he nuzzled her neck, she placed her hands on top of his and leaned into his kiss. Shawn went to the other side of the table and crossed his arms over his chest. He was doing his best to be serious and critical, but that deranged Joker grin tugging at the corners of his mouth was making it difficult.

"You better do a better job makin' out than that," he aimed his critique at Jon. "I have very high expectations for family life, you know."

"I do not know, and I don't think I wanna know," Jon remarked with a frown. The teen was getting just a little too personal. "Besides I only accept Aud's opinion on that matter."

Audrey turned and slipped her arm around his waist. To Shawn she said, "What are you talking about, honey?"

Shawn rested his hands on the table and leaned forward. "I expect to find the two of you makin' out in the kitchen every mornin' like Cory's parents do."

Jon arched an eyebrow, highly suspicious. "Why?"

"So I can watch."

This was a horrifying reason as far as the English Lit teacher was concerned. "I don't want you takin' notes on my kissin' technique, kid," he snapped grumpily.

"And I don't wanna take notes on your kissin' technique, Dad." He was struggling to contain his grin. "I just wanna heckle you."

"What?" This absolutely baffled Jon.

Audrey laughed and pressed a hand to his chest. "My parents used to kiss in the kitchen in the mornings, too. I loved to see that they were still into each other, but even more I loved being able to say…"

"Gross! Get a room!" Shawn crowed with glee; the Joker grin had now taken over his face.

Audrey nodded enthusiastically.

Jon squeezed her a little tighter. "Huh," he said, shaking his head. "Can't say I know what you're talkin' about. I never experienced that growin' up, but if it'll make you two happy…"

"Three," Shawn corrected him.

"Three?"

"Me, Mama, and baby sister." The grin widened.

Jon rolled his eyes and, while still holding onto Audrey, reached out to the teen. "Don't start that with me."

Shawn dodged his hand and skipped out of the kitchen. From the living room his voice echoed back to them, "Love you guys!"

Audrey looked up at Jon and rested her chin on his chest with a dreamy smile as he shouted back, "We love you too, kid!"

A few moments later they heard Shawn excitedly babbling to Cory on the phone about their plans.

Jon looked down at Audrey and grinned.

"Do you really not care about a proposal, Aud?"

It was nearly midnight.

With Shawn off to bed in an actual bed rather than curled up on the couch with them, Jon finally had some time with Audrey alone. These moments were few and often fleeting but they relished the time they could steal away together. Jon found these moments far more satisfying than the traditional dating he had once been so invested in. And more exciting given the secret nature of their relationship, though he would not miss the secrecy when it was over.

These times were also more intense than any date he'd been on.

Although Audrey maintained her desire to wait until marriage, she would not say no to him, which meant the moments could not last long or they would get careless. And the last thing he wanted was for her to regret any part of their relationship even if they were getting married.

They settled on the couch; Jon is his corner and Audrey curled up next to him with her feet tucked under her and her knees resting in his lap. He put his arm over her legs and settled his head back against the couch. Her fingers went straight to his hair, weaving in and out of the curls.

"I really don't," she told him. "I just want you and Shawn. That's all that matters to me."

Jon turned his head slightly to give her a skeptical look. "Aud, you're the girl who dreamed of her first kiss bein' like a movie scene. A very specific movie scene, I might add. You tellin' me you haven't put just as much thought into a proposal?"

She shrugged and tossed her hair over her shoulder with a quick flick of her hand. "Yeah, of course, but it really doesn't matter to me now. I'd hop a flight to Vegas tonight and marry you."

He gave her a small smile. "I have actually considered that, but Shawn would me haunt if I did."

"Haunt you?" she asked amusedly.

"Trust me that kid could figure out how to do it while he's alive," he retorted sarcastically, but there was deep affection in his voice.

Audrey grinned. She ran her fingers from his hair down to his jaw then lightly over his lips.

He let out a satisfied sigh. "I love you so damn much, babe."

As a smile of delight warmed her features, her fingers moved from his hair to his shirt and slipped below the collar. "I love you too, Jonny. I can't wait until I'm done student teaching."

A lazy smile spread over his face as he closed his eyes and enjoyed her touch. As he did, a song drifted through his mind.

For every major moment in his life there seemed to be a Springsteen song attached to it.

This time it was "Born to Run".

The song was the anthem of those spinning their wheels with nowhere to go and a desperate need to get out. It was about a guy and his girl with similar dreams making a risky move to make them happen. A love profession that no matter how their life turned out he wanted to die with her by his side.

He knew without a doubt that Springsteen didn't have marriage and adoption on his mind when he wrote the song, but over the years this song had shifted to mean exactly that for Jon: escaping the life he was in and doing it in the most outrageous way possible with Audrey by his side.

"In the day, we sweat it out on the streets of a runaway American dream," he said in a sing song way, lapsing into a heavier than usual Brooklyn accent. "At night, we ride through mansions of glory in suicide machines."

Audrey grinned and gently turned his head towards her. Kissing the tip of his nose, she replied, "The Boss."

Jon nodded, turning into her more. "The Boss." Into her neck he skipped a few lines and murmured, "I want to know if love is wild, babe. I want to know if love is real."

Audrey tangled her fingers into his hair even more. Although she knew the rest of the lyrics, she whispered in his ear, "I'll show you."

He grinned against her skin, left a kiss, then turned his head back so he was staring at the ceiling again.

"But no more suicide machines." The breath of her voice tickled his ear as she leaned closer to him. "That's all in the past, Jonny."

He nodded and settled against her hugging her knees to his chest. 'Suicide machines' was once a slang term for everything that promoted an early grave: fast cars, drugs, sex, and money. It went hand in hand with the motto of his youth in the 70s: "Live fast, leave a beautiful corpse."

He finally found the courage two weeks ago to tell her the details of why he lived with her dad for so long. She was surprised but forgiving, not that he expected anything different. It was just admitting the numerous sins of his youth was not easy.

And those sins were not something he ever wanted Shawn to find out about.

They sat in comfortable silence as Audrey massaged his scalp and Jon ran his fingertips up and down the seam of her jeans.

Finally, he said, "Shawn's excited about the guardianship signin'."

"Yeah, he is. So am I."

"Me, too." He fell silent as a disturbed look overtook his expression.

"What is it?" she asked, running her fingers behind his ear.

"Shawn didn't question anything. Didn't ask about Chet or Virna."

"I noticed," she said. Her hand came to rest on his chest. "I think he's finally given up on them."

"Yeah, I guess."

Jon sunk lower into the couch and let his head rest in the crook of her arm. She continued playing with his hair while kissing his forehead. He took hold of her hair and spread the locks over him like a silky sheet.

"How do you think he's going to take our little surprise?" she asked.

He smiled. "He's gonna love it, Aud. Not bein' able to tell him that you're in on this is killin' me."

She rested her cheek against his forehead. "I'm really excited."

Jon heard the catch in her voice and arched an eyebrow, but she couldn't see his expression. "But?"

Her gray eyes grew stormy. "But I just don't understand how Virna can let this happen. How can you let a stranger take your place in your child's life? Not even to contest Chet giving away guardianship to me?"

"Yeah…" Jon sighed heavily. "Chet was really strange about that."

She stopped kissing him and sat back slightly. "How so?"

He traced a figure eight over her calf. "For starters, it was his idea that you be added as guardian. Said Shawn loves you a lot and deserves a mother." He shook his head and stopped his tracing for a moment then resumed. "I asked if he'd found Virna and talked to her about all this. He wouldn't answer my question. Just kept sayin' that Virna was no threat to you. That she couldn't challenge you as his mother. He said she had no parental rights."

Audrey frowned. The only experience she had with any of this was after her mother died and DCFS was concerned about her father's ability to care for her. However, friends and family stepped in and prevented her from being removed from her home. It was stressful at times given their random checks on her and having to hide her role as his caretaker from them. But all in all, it was a minor inconvenience given everything else that was going on at the time.

Despite her father's mental and physical state, he always maintained his rights. Chet's claims of Virna not having any was either a lie or…

"No parental rights? That doesn't make sense."

"It's Chet," Jon said with disgust. "When do things ever make sense?"

"How could she not have any rights? Did she give them up after she left?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Accordin' to the lawyer there is nothin' on file that she did."

Based on her limited experience she knew that something was very wrong with this. If Chet wasn't lying, then there could only be one explanation.

"She is his mother, right?"

Jon held his out palms up and let them drop back to her knees. "That's what doesn't make sense. Outta one side of his mouth he says Virna has no rights, but when I question him, he says that she's his mother and has been powderin' his butt since day one. When I ask how it's possible, she has no rights, he tells me he has them."

"I don't think that's possible. Hold someone else's parental rights- how?"

Jon gave a frustrated grunt. He despised having to deal with Chet Hunter in any capacity, but this particular matter was making him dislike him more. "I don't know, but everything has gone through so far. That was my understandin' the last time we spoke to the family lawyer."

"Mine too." She rubbed a finger anxiously over her bottom lip. "You're really worried anyway, aren't you?"

"Yeah," he put his hand briefly over his mouth then went on. "Everythin' is lined up for the guardianship for you and me both. But the adoption stuff will take much longer, and Virna will have to be a part of that."

"And Chet? Do you think he'll come back and cause problems?"

"That's what I'm worried about. I'm worried he'll change his mind just as Shawn gets settled. Upend the kid's life and then take off on him again. Just like he did to Eddie. He screwed that poor kid over so bad. Not to mention what he did to his grandmother."

Audrey absently ran her hand down his neck to the collar of his sweater. She let her fingertip dip below the material to his collar bone as she thought of how Chet allowed Eddie's grandmother to take care of him until Virna took off on them and he decided he needed help around the trailer that Shawn was too young to do.

Eddie's grandmother fought back, so Chet took her to court where he won. To make sure she never tried to take her grandson back, Chet allowed some of the most heinous rumors to be spread throughout town about her forcing her move. As far as she and Jon knew, Eddie had not heard from her since, and his life had been nothing but a revolving door of arrests and releases. And he was even twenty yet.

"Shawn'll at least have us if that happens," she reminded him as she slid her hand over to his shoulder.

Jon nodded, but he was disgruntled. "Somethin's not right, Aud. I can't put my finger on it, but somethin' isn't right. This is too easy."

"You're thinking about Eddie and his grandmother?"

Jon nodded then shook his head. His brow pinched together in a deep scowl.

"That's not all."

"Talk to me, Jonny."

He put his arm back over her legs and clutched her ankle tightly with the other hand. "When Chet called, he was apologetic about everythin'. Dumpin' Shawn, bein' a lousy father, givin' his kid up. You remember the night Shawn called you in the middle of nightmare beggin' you to come over?"

She nodded.

"You remember the drunk call I got that same night from Chet tauntin' me about Shawn bein' his and if I tried to keep him, he'd expose us?"

"Yeah, I do." Audrey worriedly ran her knuckles over her lips.

"He apologized for that. All of it. For bein' a drunk. For threatin' you."

"You don't think he's being sincere?"

"I think, for now," he said with a heavy sigh, "he sees freedom from all responsibility. No Virna, no Shawn. He's totally free to do what he wants with whoever he wants. I could hear a lot of conversation in the background. All in French."

Audrey rolled her eyes. "He said he was in Maine."

Jon slid his hand up the hem of one of the legs of her jeans and rubbed her ankle in slow circles. "Maine. Montreal. It's all the same to Chet."

Audrey could see Jon was growing increasingly agitated and took his face in her hands. She ran both hands through his hair then interlocked her fingers behind his head. Adjusting her position so that she was in front of him, she rested her head against his forehead and said softly, "He's ours, Jonny. No matter what happens with Chet, he's ours."

He nodded morosely then pulled her into his lap, tipping her back until her head was against the arm of the couch. Rather than kiss her, he buried his face against the curve of her neck and sighed heavily unable to rid himself of the terrible feeling that loomed over him in the form of Chet Hunter.

Audrey had no choice but to stop the story and head to the bathroom. As soon as she left, Jon got up and paced the room with his hands in his pockets.

A deep scowl marred his face.

Shawn sat next to Julia with his hand over his mouth and a strange look in his eyes.

He, too, was silent.

Julia struggled to understand why reliving this memory was so hard for them. She understood what happened after Mother's Day weekend was awful, but not Mother's Day itself. Nothing that had been recalled so far was bad.

Just the opposite.

By the time Audrey returned, Shawn was in muted tears while he waited for her. When she entered the living room, he stood to meet her behind the couch with the saddest look Julia had even seen.

"You," his voice was thick with tears and each word was seared in grief, "were gonna be my legal guardian with Dad?"

Audrey's heart broke for the teen that had to grow up separated from the love he deserved and the adult who still suffered from it. She held her arms out to him. "Yeah, honey, that was the plan."

Shawn remained rooted in place. He couldn't process this news or Jon's conversation with Chet.

"For starters, it was his idea that you be added as guardian. Said Shawn loves you a lot and deserves a mother." "Outta one side of his mouth he says Virna has no rights, but when I question him, he says that she's his mother and has been powdering his butt since day one. When I ask how it's possible, she has no rights, he tells me he has them."

Shawn had known for a long time that Chet always knew Virna wasn't his mother. But that he essentially told Jon she wasn't back then made him even angrier towards his birth father.

Chet never went after his mother. He only went after his wife.

No wonder it didn't matter much to him whether he found her or not.

All those tumultuous years of Virna's unstable behavior.

Chet knew and lied to him.

All the times he begged to know why she didn't love him enough to stay.

Chet knew and lied to him.

Then there was Audrey.

Audrey, who he suggested to be his guardian too.

For years Chet tormented him with stories of how she had moved on; from Jon, from him. But he knew she was supposed to be on those documents and never told him.

No wonder Jon didn't sign the papers back then after she was gone.

He couldn't.

Not without her.

Her name was on the paperwork too.

Then Chet came back and started lying from the moment Shawn agreed to go back with him.

He lied.

Of course, he did.

Because that's all Chet Hunter ever did.

Shawn felt bile burn his throat.

Dangling Virna's rights to him in front of Jon and Audrey was an insidious thing to do, because, knowing the man as well as he did, Chet had every intention of yanking those rights out of Audrey's hands when he could use it to his advantage.

Shawn shuddered to think what he might have wanted from her given that he knew about her hidden relationship with Jon.

No, he scolded himself. This is anger talkin'. Chet wasn't that bad.

Was he?

It didn't matter.

Chet was dead.

But, oh, the things he would say to the man now if he was still alive!

The rage that had cooled since he'd been home erupted up from within him again and boiled beneath his skin. He couldn't stop shaking with anger.

Just as hate tried to pry its way into his consciousness, a cool palm curved around his cheek countering the heat of his anger. Warm gray eyes held his in their loving gaze.

"I know you're angry, honey," she said in her soft, motherly voice. "But we need to push past this. We need to get to the other side."

He leaned his forehead against hers and nodded. Then he turned his head and kissed her palm.

Audrey held onto him tightly, running her hand through his hair, and speaking soothing words of hope to him as she had done so many times before.

He would have liked to cry.

To release the pain, the anger, the hurt.

But no tears would come.

"I wanna see the itinerary," Shawn mumbled through the pencil he held in his mouth.

Three days later, Jon was sitting at the kitchen table going over Mother's Day weekend plans with the teen. A pile of brochures, maps, and assorted papers were spread out over the table.

"Shawn," he said resting his chin in his hands. "We've been over this six times in the last hour. Nothin's changed."

"That's the problem!"

"What?"

Shawn removed the pencil from his mouth and pointed to his schedule with the eraser end. "I don't like this part of the day," he said critically. "We need to maximize our time in Minetown. I wanna race those antique cars they got. But we cannot skimp on time at the Boardwalk."

"What's the Boardwalk?"

"Waterpark. It's supposed to be like Coney Island and Atlantic City mashed together," he looked at Jon through his bangs. "Don't forget to tell Mama to pack her swimsuit."

Jon, who wasn't thrilled with the idea of a water park, perked up at that. Particularly when he realized he didn't know what kind of swimsuit Audrey wore.

Or if she even had one.

Shawn interrupted his thoughts by waving the pencil in front of his nose. "Also, we have gotta make time for this new game they've got- Goblets & Fried Frogs."

Jon was duly distracted from the swimsuit issue. "Goblets and Fried Frogs? What is that?"

"Don't know. Don't care. Wanna play." He went back to the brochure. "We also have check out this Bubba Bear character."

"I know I'm gonna regret this," Jon said with a resigned sigh, "but why do we have to check out Bubba Bear?"

"I wanna see if he's cool like Mickey Mouse or creepy like Chuck E. Cheese."

Sometimes Jon had a really hard time understanding the way his student thought. "Why?"

"Because if he's gonna scare my baby sister I wanna know now so we can avoid him next time we go."

"Yep, I regret it," he snorted when he caught the pointed look Shawn was giving him.

"Oooh!" The teen jabbed his finger at a picture in the brochure, distracting himself from his baby sister. "Check this out: Lightening Racer- race against your opponent on the world's first wooden racing/dueling roller coaster! Jon, we gotta do this!" he exclaimed shoving the brochure in his teacher's face.

Jon grimaced and pushed the paper away.

At the look on his face, Shawn shook the hair out of his eyes and frowned, "Oh, yeah, I forgot. You're afraid of roller coasters. Never mind, Mama and I'll go then. You can hold our bags."

Jon was tempted to take the brochure and swat the kid with it, but instead said, "We can always go back if we miss somethin'. Lancaster isn't that far away."

Shawn rolled his eyes. "That's not the point."

"What is then?"

"This weekend has to be perfect. Are you sure we have reservations for the Old Mill Stream campground?"

"Yeah." Jon had his own brochure in his back pocket. "I got the family cabin booked two weeks ago. Kitchen is small with a mini fridge, stove but no oven, a microwave, and a sink."

Shawn squinted at the pamphlet he was given, unsure if this was enough.

"I figure a small kitchen is better if we wanna keep Aud out of it," he explained.

"Good point." Shawn pointed his pencil at his teacher in approval.

"It does have a dinin' room, picnic table, and a fire pit. We just gotta bring sheets, blankets, pillows, bath towels, and plates and utensils."

"Do we have that?"

"We do," he nodded. "I also got the flower delivery lined up for Sunday mornin'."

Shawn scribbled furiously on his notepad. "What about food? We are makin' her breakfast in bed."

"If we get the food now someone else will eat it. We don't get the cabin until the 12th."

"Okay, fine," he huffed. "But we need to make a shoppin' list and call this in ASAP."

Jon pushed away from the table. "We need to not over do this, Shawn."

Shawn put down everything in his hands to give Jon his full attention. "This is Mama's first Mother's Day ever. The first. You can't do the first one over." He eyed his teacher meaningfully. "Just like you can't do over a marriage proposal."

"I'll have you know I have somethin' very big planned for her, Smart Guy," Jon replied defensively.

"Yeah, right. French restaurant, candle lit table, down one knee? Bor-ring!"

Jon glared at him.

"I hate French food," he mumbled. "And that's not what I'm plannin' on doin'."

Shawn scrunched up his nose. "Do you even have a ring?"

Jon turned around with his hands on his waist.

"You don't, do you? Aw, man!" Shawn threw up his hands and looked at the ceiling. "Jon, this is the most important part!"

"I have the ring, thank you very much."

Shawn folded his arms over his chest.

Jon's face softened. He forgot that he hadn't told anyone about his Christmas purchase. "I bought it in December."

This shut Shawn up. He was flabbergasted and very impressed. "Seriously?"

"Seriously."

"Can I see?"

"Yeah. C'mon."

Jon led the way to his bedroom and opened the bottom drawer of his chest of drawers. Beneath the false bottom was a small velvet box.

Shawn tried to take the box from him, but Jon held on to it tightly. He did not want to accidentally lose the ring. "Sit," he said motioning the bed.

The teen gave him a funny look but obeyed.

Jon sat next to him and carefully opened the box. His hand shook as he held it out for Shawn to inspect. It surprised him that he was so nervous. He nearly panicked when Shawn picked the ring up.

Shawn gave him a meaningful look; he understood why Jon was so worried and promised, "I'll be careful."

He held the ring reverently between his thumb and forefinger examining it with a look of awe. It was a beautiful ring, an attention-getter for sure but not too flashy.

It was…

Perfectly Audrey.

He smiled.

Jon wasn't sure what he expected Shawn's reaction to be to the ring, but tears never factored into it. Yet a single tear dripped down each of the teen's cheeks.

Before he could ask what was wrong, Shawn turned to him with a watery smile. "You got this at Christmas?"

Jon nodded and told him the story of how he found himself looking at engagement rings when he went to buy Audrey a necklace and earrings.

Shawn gave the ring a strange teary eye smile, touching the diamond gingerly with his finger, then put it carefully back in its case.

Jon closed the box and put it in his jeans pocket then turned his attention to the teen next to him.

"Hey," he said putting his hand on Shawn's shoulder. "What're the tears about?"

Shawn shrugged and the tears continued to pool down to his shirt collar. "I just didn't think you'd actually get me a ring for my birthday."

Jon gave a short, confused laugh. "The ring isn't for you, bud."

Shawn laughed and wiped his nose with his sleeve. "I know, but I asked you for an engagement ring for Audrey for my birthday and you got it. You were listenin'."

"Yeah, guess I was."

"Why didn't you tell me then?"

A small smile tugged at the corner of Jon's mouth, and he said with less sarcasm than usual. "'Cause you stink at keepin' secrets like this."

He grinned and nodded. "I totally would've told Mama and proposed for you."

"I know." Jon stared at his hands as he reflected on how much he'd changed since Christmas.

He was so lost in thought that he didn't notice Shawn shift his position on the bed until the teen leaned his head against his shoulder. For this type of comfort, he usually went to Audrey. Joking around and rough housing was his forte.

This was a new, but not unwelcome, experience.

"You okay?" Jon asked.

Shawn sniffed, then said, "We're really doin' this aren't we?"

"Yeah. We are."

"What happens if Da-" he got caught on the word. He no longer knew how to address Chet. He had been trying to focus on Jon and Audrey and his time with them and not think about what guardianship and adoption really meant.

On one hand, adoption was stability, consistency, and safety.

It was home. It was love. It was family.

It was Jon and Audrey.

But on the other hand, it meant that all his greatest fears were true. He was unlovable, unwanted, useless, unimportant, a problem not worth dealing with.

He didn't matter.

If his biological parents could discard him so easily why would Jon and Audrey want him?

A wave of disassociation hit him, and he felt strangely untethered from his emotions. He was neither happy nor sad. Angry nor content.

He felt absolutely nothing.

Not even confused.

"What if he comes back?"

Jon sighed and his countenance darkened. "Then we deal with him comin' back. Together."

Shawn shifted uncomfortably on the mattress. "I know the guardianship thing isn't a big deal. But adoption is. That's, like, permanent. What did he say…I mean, did he seem to…" Shawn couldn't continue. He was beginning to feel again. He pressed closer to Jon hoping those feelings would dissipate into numbness once more.

Jon inhaled a deep breath and let it go slowly. There was a lot he didn't want to tell the teen in his care. There was a lot he felt would serve no purpose in him knowing right now. But he also wanted to be honest with him.

He deserved that much and more.

"You wanna know about my conversation with him?"

Shawn nodded, but Jon could feel his uncertainty.

His fear.

Jon took his hand and stared at the bedroom door. "Chet brought up adoption a while ago, a phone call after you'd had a bad dream. He was pretty rude about things then."

Shawn snorted his lack of surprise to hear that.

"But when I talked to him about guardianship after I finally got the paperwork, he'd changed his mind. Seems to think Aud and I are the best ones for you. He seems apologetic. He seems happy with your future with us."

"He seems glad to be free of me, you mean," he stated bluntly. He turned his head to look Jon in the eyes as though daring him to deny it.

Jon told him the truth. "Yeah, kid. He did. I'm sorry."

"Don't you apologize for stuff he did," Shawn snapped with a venom he didn't actually feel. The numbness was engulfing him again. "He's not lookin' for her, is he?"

"I don't know, but it doesn't seem like it."

Shawn leaned onto his shoulder and pushed his chin hard into Jon.

Jon tightened his grip on the teen's hand. "How do you feel about all this, Shawn?"

Shawn was silent for a long time, staring at the doorway with a blank look in his eyes. "I want you to be my dad. I want Audrey to be my mom. I want us to be a family. I want a baby sister."

"I know you do. But how do you feel about Chet and Virna?"

A blank look settled over his face matching the one in his eyes. A wave was undulating beneath the numbness with an emotion he couldn't place. "They don't want me. I don't want them."

Jon bowed his head. "They're your parents."

"Not anymore. I disown them. Both of them," he said. His voice was bitter but the emotion in him was still unnamable. "I can forget about them as easily as they forgot about me and never look back."

The wave rose over his head like a tsunami: hate, anger, fear, worthlessness, melancholy, insecurity, self-loathing, disgust all surging together to drown him.

He got up abruptly and headed towards the door, but he did so without letting go of Jon's hand. Jon used this connection to pull him back to his side. Shawn bounced on the mattress and Jon wrapped an arm around him.

"Ain't that easy, Shawn."

"It is for me." For all of the emotion raging in him, none came out in his voice.

"I said the same thing, but I couldn't just walk away," Jon told him emphatically. "I tried and got my butt in so much trouble Audrey's dad had to bail me out. I know what it's like to have your parents in and out of your life."

Shawn sat back from him just a little and gave him a curious look. This was not something he'd ever heard before.

"I know what it's like to be kept close when it suits them," he went on. Shawn saw a familiar look in Jon's eyes; one he often had in his own when Chet disappointed him yet again. "I know what it's like to have the people who are supposed to love you and protect you turn their backs on you at fifteen."

Shawn was fighting hard to keep the tears back. So much so that the full meaning of what Jon was saying wasn't sinking in: how similar they were.

"I know the anger, Shawn."

He shook his head unable to see anything anymore. He pressed the palm of his free hand to his eyes to stop the flow.

Without thinking, Jon pulled him closer and tightened his grip on him. "My problem was I ran from my feelin's about my parents. I never dealt with it. Or them."

He paused a moment to collect himself. The kid sitting next to him could easily have been himself at fifteen.

" I am not gonna let you go down that same road. Pretendin' the past never happened and lettin' that anger eat you up in the meantime. Pretendin' isn't gonna get you the life you want. It's gonna destroy any chance of getting that life."

Shawn shuddered against him, and Jon realized he was quietly crying on his shoulder. He put his other arm around him. "I know you're not ready to deal with everythin' right now and you just wanna enjoy the moment. Aud and I want that for you too. But we aren't gonna let you do it forever."

The teen heaved a heavy sigh and mumbled in a voice thick with sorrow. "Meanin' what?"

"Meanin' after those papers get signed at Chubbie's Mom and I are takin' us to family counselin'."

Shawn pulled back and looked at Jon with a strange wide-eyed look that made him appear very young "That's expensive with Mama in counselin' too. I know you're payin' for her."

Jon shrugged. "You're both worth doin' whatever needs to be done to get you taken care of. I'll take out a mortgage if I have to. But it's my concern, not yours."

Shawn shook his head and a very faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "You can't take out a mortgage on a buildin' you don't own."

Jon smiled that he caught what he said. "Guess not."

"What if he decides not to let you adopt me?" Shawn's grip on Jon's hand tightened.

"I hope he loves you enough to do what's best for you, Shawn. But if he doesn't…"

"What?"

"I'll take him to court if I have to."

Shawn stared at Jon feeling deeply conflicted but the look on his teacher's face told him that he was dead serious.

"You'd lose if you did, but you won't have to," he said confidently. "He's not comin' back."

Jon frowned. "You sound so sure."

"I know him, Jon. She," he couldn't bring himself to use Virna's name, "and you gave him what he wants most- freedom. Can't hold Chet Hunter down in one place. I'm his son, by blood anyway, and we are the same in one way: I've got what I want. I'm not goin' back. He's got what he wants. He's not comin' back."

He stood up and moved to the door still holding onto Jon.

"Maybe," Jon said standing up with Shawn. "But whatever happens, Mom and I won't let you go. Even if we have to physically, we won't let you go."

Shawn nodded. He started to head to the door then turned back abruptly and embraced Jon tightly. Jon returned the hug with the same force until Shawn relaxed. Then he let him go.

The teen headed to the couch, sank into it, and turned on the television.

Jon leaned against the doorway and watched him. He was very concerned that Chet would return and try to take back the kid he loved so much.

Shawn spent Saturday with Cory, Topanga, and T.K., whom he'd been dating on and off since his birthday. The Matthews had invited Jon and Audrey over for dinner, so the little family reunited in the Matthews living room in late afternoon. With Mr. Feeny away at his cabin for the weekend, Jon walked through the front door hand in hand with Audrey.

Eric congratulated him with a wink, wink, nudge, nudge that was far less awkward than any of his brother's attempts at the same thing, but weird all the same. Eric's best friend congratulated him on acquiring a kid and a hot wife at the same time, which was by far the most uncomfortable acknowledgment yet.

Jon and Audrey were more than a little taken aback that yet another student knew.

Pre-lunch conversation was an animated discussion about plans for guardianship signing. Very quickly the boys' plans grew out of hand as their plans stretched to include carnival games and live animals, specifically pigs.

Jon put his foot down at this saying little Cory was the only live animal allowed prompting Shawn to immediately ask if that meant they could have dead animals instead.

Ultimately, Shawn decided that he just wanted those closest to him to be at Chubbie's: Cory, Topanga, Eric, Morgan, their parents, and T.K. eating and shooting some pool.

And eating cake.

Audrey's cake, specifically.

"Are you sure that's everyone, honey?" Audrey asked as the men got up to collect the plates and utensils to take outside.

"Well," Shawn paused and glanced at the house across the back yard. "I mean, I'd kind of like Mr. Feeny to be there if things were, you know, different."

Alan walked around Audrey to slap the back of Cory's head to get him to help Eric set up the picnic table outside and to hand Shawn the silverware. He walked back to the table and looked at Jon. "You think there's a chance George might let this thing with you and Audrey slide for Shawn? She's almost done with school. What difference could it make now?"

Jon contemplated this for a while, then nodded slowly. "I could talk to him. I think George has been so hard on me outta concern more than anythin'. I know he'd wanna be there for Shawn. Yeah, I'll talk to him."

Lunch duties were divvied up: Jon and Alan on the grill, Amy and Audrey would take care of sides and desserts, and the kids were not to burn anything down while they waited. Morgan was mildly offended that three teens were put in charge of her. She felt it should be the other way around.

"So," Amy gave Audrey a sly look as she prepared the corn for the grill while the student teacher started on the brownies. "How are things going?"

"Great," Audrey replied with a pleased smile as she methodically laid the ingredients out in front of her. "I can't believe that Jon and I'll officially be Shawn's guardians soon.

Amy chuckled and gave the men outside a glance. "That is not what I'm talking about."

Audrey focused on measuring her ingredients in a way she normally didn't. "Oh?"

"I mean how are things going with Jonathan?"

She gave a shake of her head that looked like a shiver. "Good."

Amy was amused by the younger woman's blush. There were few things she loved more than a good love story.

"This is your first relationship, right?" she asked as she began to pull the outer leaves away from the corn.

Audrey hesitated. There were times when her inexperience was embarrassing. But she knew Amy wasn't asking out of judgement. She nodded. "First and only."

"While I think that is terribly romantic." Amy had to stop herself from reaching out and tucking her hair behind her ear as though Audrey was her daughter. It was strange to think she was just a couple of years older than Eric. She seemed so much older and more mature.

Taking hold of the tassel of the corn instead of Audrey's hair, Amy began to shuck the corn. "Just please do not brag too much about that in front of Cory. He's convinced Topanga should be his one and only romance ever."

Audrey smiled at the thought of the teen couple. "Even Cory has more relationship experience than I do," she pointed out.

"I think being twenty rather than five when you decide on the one and only helps you know a little more what you're looking for without much experience," she laughed. "I still think they both need to date more before deciding."

"Maybe," she said as she watched Jon help Alan haul the grill closer to the backyard hose. "I don't know Amy, I've never had much desire to date and when I did want to see what it was like, everything was going wrong. Either there was never a good time, or I never met anyone I was into enough to bother."

"And then you met Jonathan again." Amy didn't bother to hide her grin.

She blushed as she mixed the dry ingredients together. "Yeah. Everything fell into place once I met him. I still can't believe he's J. I mean what are the odds we'd find each other here in Philadelphia?"

"Meant to be," Amy said with a knowing smile. She added the freshly shucked corn to the pile and picked up the next cob.

"Better not let Cory hear you say that."

The women laughed.

Audrey set the dry ingredients to the side and reached for the milk. "Reconnecting with Jon has made my dad really happy. He's worried about Jon and missed him so much over the years."

"Has Jon talked to him about the two of you getting married?"

"Yeah," she poured the milk into her bowl and set the measuring cup aside. "Apparently Daddy had a little talk with him on the class trip while Shawn and I were visiting with other residents. Then about two months ago while I was watching Shawn because I thought he was out on a date, Jon snuck off to the City to ask him for his blessing."

Amy put a hand over her heart. "And he said yes."

"He said I was free to marry anyone I wanted but Jon was the only one he'd give that blessing to."

"Meant to be," Amy said again with a dreamy sigh as her thought drifted to her own love story with Alan.

"I can't wait to be married," she murmured more to herself than to Amy.

Amy did not miss the longing in her voice. She couldn't help but smirk. "For legal status or something more?"

Audrey's face turned bright crimson when she realized she'd spoken aloud. "Can I plead the fifth?" she asked sheepishly.

Amy wagged a finger at her. "This isn't a court of law, it's my kitchen. No, you can't."

Since she was preparing food, her hair was up in a high ponytail making it impossible to hide behind her hair. She tucked her chin to her chest and replied almost shyly. "Both."

"Meaning?" Amy prodded good-naturedly but firmly.

Audrey was at a loss on how to respond. This was not a topic she'd ever talked about before with anyone. Finally, she pushed down her embarrassment and responded, "I'm sort of looking forward to the wedding night."

Amy grinned. She found Audrey's reactions adorable but didn't want to insult her by saying so out loud. "Sort of?"

Audrey tried to hide by suddenly returning the milk to the refrigerator, but Amy still heard her say, "Very much so."

"I remember that excitement," she chuckled. "It is a special time."

"I'm nervous," she admitted, returning to her station she began to mix her wet and dry ingredients together. "But still excited."

Recalling what she knew about the young woman specifically her desire to wait until marriage, Amy tipped her head to the side and asked, "How much do you know?"

"Um…" Audrey was at a loss on what to say. Talking to Jon about it seemed less intimidating than talking to Amy. "I'm not sure."

"Not sure?"

"Well, my mum died before she could talk to me in depth about anything," she explained. "I knew basic stuff. Daddy was far too uncomfortable to talk to me when I was older, so he asked some of the women who worked with him at the Back Fence to give me the Talk."

"How did that go?"

Audrey shook her head in amusement. "They told me everything I didn't need to know and nothing I actually did. I learned a lot from Mrs. Sartori who used to babysit me."

Amy laughed. "Well, if you decide you need some motherly advice, I am happy to provide it. Besides it'll give me some practice for when my other daughter needs it."

Her words warmed Audrey and made her smile although she wasn't sure she'd actually take her up on the offer. "Thanks, Amy, I appreciate it."

Before the conversation could progress further, Shawn and Cory burst through the kitchen door. The boys were going on about plans for attending a sporting event, but they were talking so fast it was hard to tell which sport they were talking about.

Amy smiled as they passed through out to the backyard. She'd never seen Shawn so happy.

"How is he doing?" she asked nodding at door as it shut on Shawn's back.

Audrey sighed and shrugged. "He's happy about us and our family."

"What has he said about Chet and Virna?"

"Not much. He talked to Jon some earlier, but for the most part he's pretending they don't exist."

"That's not good."

"No, it's not," she agreed. She picked up the hand mixer and plugged it in. "Jon went through the same thing with his parents; it's what led to him meeting my dad. That might have been a good thing in the end, but the reason for them meeting wasn't."

Amy nodded. Outside of the window the teens were flitting around the men cleaning the grill and pestering them with questions. Alan waved them away. "They are a lot alike."

"You have no idea," Audrey said as she mixed the brownie batter. "Jon says it's eerie how much like him Shawn is. It scares him actually."

Finished with the corn Amy set it to the side and started on the potato salad. "And that's why he took Shawn in."

"He didn't want him to go through what he did."

"He's a good man."

"The absolute best." Audrey paused then took a deep breath. "Jon wants to start the adoption process as soon as we're married and start family counseling after the guardianship papers are signed, too."

"That sounds like a good idea."

"I think so. I'm glad he suggested it. Counselling isn't exactly something Jon's comfortable with."

"Alan would go kicking and screaming if I suggested it," Amy sighed with a slight smile.

"He's been doing it for me though," she said sitting the mixer to the side. "Comes to some of my sessions with Shawn when they can get away. In a way we've already been doing the family counseling. It's just this time the focus will be on Shawn."

"Is Shawn open to it?"

Audrey shrugged. "Jon only just mentioned it to him. He seemed okay with it, but that may change when we actually go. Shawn's preferred method of dealing with things is not dealing with them and I know how hard that will be to change."

Amy nodded in agreement then started to say something more when the back door suddenly flew open.

"Hey, Mama," Shawn, with Cory right behind him, ran up to her and tried to dip his finger in the batter. His hand was promptly smacked.

"Yes?"

"Do you have any Wint-o-green Lifesavers?"

Audrey frowned for a moment. "In my purse. Why?"

"Can we have some?"

His overly enthusiastic request made her pause. "Sure."

The boys exchanged secretive looks.

"Thanks, Mama."

While Shawn took off to the living room to retrieve Audrey's purse, Cory slid up his mother.

"Hi, Mama,"

"Cory," Amy drawled giving him a skeptical look. "I am not your mama."

Cory seemed shocked by this. "What?! Since when? Are you trying to tell me I'm adopted?"

He stuck his fingers in his curly hair. "That explains this," he muttered.

"No!" Amy rolled her eyes in exasperation. "I mean you don't call me mama. You call me mom. What do you want?"

Shrugging off earlier doubt, he leaned over to rest his chin on her shoulder. "Do we have any bottles of Coke?"

"There are cans in the fridge."

"No, I mean a bottle, ya know." With his hands he outlined the shape of soda bottle in the air.

"Yes," she eyed him suspiciously. "In the pantry. But just use the cans."

"They won't work."

Audrey and Amy exchanged looks as the teen headed to the pantry. Cory was just pulling out a two-liter bottle of soda when Shawn returned with the mints.

"Got it, Shawnie?" he asked cheerfully.

"Got it." Shawn held up the bag. "Cor?"

He held up the bottle. "Got it."

They pumped their fists in the air and made a mad dash outside.

"What on earth was- "Amy began.

Audrey's eye went wide with understanding. "Soda geyser!"

Amy rolled her eyes. "The last time they did that they cracked one of George's windows!"

"How?"

"They put B.B. pellets in the bottle with the mints."

Audrey dropped her pan of brownie batter and rushed outside with Amy on her heels.

"No offense, Alan, but this thing shoulda been cleaned a long time ago."

Jon was standing next to Alan staring at the grill that was thick with caked on grease, sauces, and carbon buildup.

"Please tell my oldest child that," Alan said, trying to chip off some of the blackened mess. "He's been insistent on learning to grill but refuses to cleanup."

With a side glance and an arched brow, Jon asked, "Have you tried tellin' 'Kyle' to clean up?"

Alan's closed his eyes and put a hand over his face as he shook his head. "No, I haven't. But you know that actually might work. Unless he's renamed himself."

Jon laughed and followed Alan to the shed to get the cleaning supplies for the grill. After spending some time sorting through an assortment of tools and toys that had been thrown haphazardly inside thanks to the kids not putting things back where they belonged, the men emerged with long-handled wire brushes, a wire bottle brush, a putty knife, and a five-gallon bucket.

"Hey, Morgan!" Alan called as Morgan darted towards the house from the treehouse. "Ask Mom for some Dawn, vinegar, and baking soda, would you please?"

Morgan wrinkled her nose at him then gave Jon a funny look. "Are you and Mr. Turner making a volcano in the grill?"

"No," he chuckled. "Cleaning up Eric's mess."

A few minutes later Morgan brought the items requested and skipped off again.

"So how are things going with Audrey?" Alan asked as he took the putty knife to the grate to scrape off the carbon.

"Fantastic, man," Jon replied with a grin. "I can honestly say I will never need or want another woman. She's it."

Alan stopped what he was doing to give Jon a look of faux outrage. "Who are you and what have you done with Jonathan Turner?"

Jon's grin grew even larger as he filled the bucket with soap and water. "Yeah, I'm eatin' my words now, but it's worth it. I cannot wait to get married."

"That's quite a change in tune from a year ago."

Jon nodded. "I never thought I'd say it, but I am ready to be married."

"I bet you are," Alan remarked, helping Jon remove the grates. There was a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I admire your restraint, Jon. I don't how you do it being under the same roof with her so much. Amy and I couldn't do it."

Jon removed the debris that collected in the bottom of the grill. "Yeah, well you and Amy didn't have Feeny in your face tellin' you stay away either when you closed your eyes."

"Yeah, that's a mood killer," Alan made a face. "No offense to George."

"Shawn's with us most of the time so that helps," Jon went on, "but I'm tellin' you, Alan, we have had some close calls. I mean real close. Valentine's Day was the worst. Had to take us both for a long walk that night."

Alan gave him a look of genuine surprise. "Going for a walk instead of an empty apartment? You are in love, aren't you?"

Jon nodded. "I don't want Aud to regret anythin' later. It's important to her so it's important to me. And yeah, I really am."

"So, you got plans for a proposal yet? "

"Whether Shawn believes it or not I do actually. I've had the ring since December."

Alan handed Jon a wire brush and they began to scrub the soaked grates with a paste made from vinegar and baking soda.

"Oh, it's way worse than I thought," Alan laughed. "Let me guess- went to a jewelry store for a necklace and walked out with a ring."

"And a necklace and earrings." Jon stopped his scrubbing for a moment. "You know Shawn is right about one thing, the way I told her I love her was terrible. And I do plan on makin' it up to her."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah." He put his foot on the seat of the bench and rested his elbow on his knee. "See on Valentine's Day I asked Aud about her first kiss. Turns out it was with me."

Alan looked horrified. He was very familiar with this story- it was one of Cory and Shawn's favorite. "Oh no, not the triple dog dare kiss!"

"Yeah, unfortunately," Jon grimaced. "That kiss was somethin' else I had to make up to her, so I asked what she imagined her first kiss bein' like."

Alan put his hand up. "Let me guess- movie scene?"

"Movie scene." Jon nodded in confirmation.

"Which one? Amy's was 'Love Story'."

"End kiss of 'An Officer and a Gentleman'. Apparently, Aud's had a thing for older guys on motorcylces for a long time."

"Lucky you."

Jon wiped his hand over his mouth to hide exactly how much he loved that. "So I kinda remembered the kiss and she really remembered it. Later on, when we were walkin' to the Poe House, someone was watchin' that movie with their window open, and we heard the theme song playin'."

"Your song?" Alan well knew the answer.

"Our song." Jon went back to scrubbing the grate. "I'm gonna recreate that scene for her."

"Not bad," Alan said in admiration. He took the bucket and dumped the dirty water out before filling it up again. "How are you gonna get her to work in a factory for a day though?"

"Not a factory, her dance class. I may have already talked to her dance partner about this."

"You've got so bad there is no recovery!" Alan exclaimed amusedly. He was very impressed though, especially since this was all coming from a guy who didn't do romance gestures beyond the dating industry standard.

"Aud'll go back to the American Ballet Theater when she goes back home for graduation. I'm gonna set it up to walk through the buildin' to her studio and get her from class. Gonna carry her out to the main practice stage. I really wanted to propose at the Met or somewhere she used to perform but ABT is close to the Village and where we'll go to celebrate. Anyway…"

Alan couldn't help but smile at how caught up Jon was in literally sweeping Audrey off her feet.

"Shawn'll be there already," he went on. There was a dreamy faraway look on his face. "He's playin' D.J. and will have "Love Lifts Us Up Where We Belong" playin' while I carry her to center stage. Once I get her there, I'll ask her to dance. After that Shawn'll join me…"

"And you go down on one knee," Alan finished nodding his approval.

Jon grinned. "I'll have the ring; he'll have her favorite flowers-plumeria and hibiscus."

"When are you going to do this?" Alan asked. He abruptly remembered what he was supposed to be doing and returned to cleaning the grill.

"She'll go back to the City as soon as our school year ends. Shawn and I'll join her a week later, about two weeks before she graduates. The proposal is our priority so as soon as we can get her in the right place at the right time."

"This is impressive, Jon. You've put a lot of thought and work into this."

"Yeah, well," Jon shrugged, suddenly self-conscious about the romantic overture. "Douglas Day Stewart did all the work. I'm just makin' it my own."

"Who's that the director?"

"Writer."

"Your memory is impressive then," Alan shook his head. He very fondly remembered the days of romancing Amy when everything was fresh and new. "For as many times as Amy's made me watch that movie, I really don't remember it."

"Buyin' the video helps with the details," he admitted with a laugh.

"Does Shawn approve of this?"

"He better." Jon's expression turned to mild exasperation. "I am not hirin' a skywriter and havin' 'Jon loves Audrey. Will you marry me?' written across the Philly sky."

Alan grinned then his expression also turned less jovial. "While I'm sure Audrey will be thrilled with everything you're doing, please do not tell my wife any of your plans."

"Why?"

"Because it's disgustingly romantic and Amy will be jealous. Then I'll have to recreate some scene from 'Love Story' I don't remember and don't wanna buy the VHS of."

Jon laughed. He and Alan finished the cleaning the reassembled the grill and got it ready to fire up.

"So," Alan turned to Jon with a knowing look. "You get engaged, you get married, then to work on baby sister, right?"

Jon's face paled. "You know?"

Alan clapped a hand on his shoulder and gave him a sympathetic look. "Jon, everyone but George knows."

"Everyone but George knows?" he repeated weakly.

He nodded. "Even our mailer carrier. He wishes you well."

Jon dropped the brush in his hand unable to wrap his mind around strangers knowing his very personal business. "Are you kiddin' me?"

Before Alan could say anything else, shouting at the boys from the kitchen was heard. Shawn and Cory with soda and candy in hand shot by them catching the corner of the open charcoal bag and knocking the briquettes everywhere.

Alan turned to Jon with his lips pursed into a thin line. Nodding in the direction the boys ran, he asked, "You ready for this 24/7?"

Jon looked where he was pointing and shrugged with a small smile. "I've been doin' it for a year. What's a few more years or forever?"

Three days later on Thursday afternoon Shawn was hanging onto Audrey while she was folding laundry for the three of them at her place. Jon had gone out to get more laundry detergent after a game of keep away with six pairs of socks rolled into a ball knocked the Cheer Ultra behind the washing machine resulting in a soapy clean up and an empty box.

"So what are we doin' for Father's Day?" Shawn draped his arms over her shoulders so that his hands hung out in front of her making it difficult to maneuver.

"Father's Day?" Audrey gave him a curious look as she folded a pair of Jon's jeans.

"Yeah," he said shaking his hair out of his eyes while keeping his hands dangling in front of her.

"That's not until next month. Aren't you planning a little far ahead?"

"Not really. We have a lot comin' up." Shawn shifted anxiously from foot to foot as though he had to go to the bathroom. "I mean June and July will be packed, what with the engagement, graduation, weddin', honeymoon. We are gonna be so busy. And gone a lot."

"We," she said with amused emphasis "are doing all that? Really?"

"Yeah, where've you been?"

She shook her head. "It sounds like you're planning on going to England with us. Does this mean Cory is coming on our honeymoon too to keep you occupied?"

Shawn face lit up with delight at the idea. "Can he?"

Audrey put down Jon's shorts and took the teen by the wrists. She pushed them above her head and turned around to face him. Then she let go of him and took his face in her hands. "Shawn, I love and adore you so don't take this the wrong way but…"

"Cory and I can't go on the honeymoon?" he grinned.

"Not if you want that baby sister." She pushed on his cheeks lightly making him look like a goldfish.

"Touche, Mama, we'll stay and make sure Cory's parents don't have another kid." Merriment danced in his eyes. "I really do wanna do somethin' for Jon on Father's day though."

Audrey returned to her folding. "He'd love that, honey. What are you thinking?"

"Well," he said seriously, pressing the crook of his finger to his chin. "I think Jon deserves the best, you know. I mean he's been really good to me. He's done a lot for me."

"What are you thinking?"

"I want to really show him that I do think of him as Dad. You know, in a real, tangible way."

She shot him a sideways glance of curiosity and suspicion. "What are you thinking?"

"So then when he's talkin' to Mr. Matthews or other dads, he'll feel like he's been one for almost as long."

Audrey put down Shawn's pants and gave him a hard look. Talk like this always meant that he wanted something big or unreasonable. And sometimes illegal. "Shawn, what are you thinking?"

"I wanna get him those ties Cory always gets his dad for Father's Day." He grinned at Audrey's obvious surprise at his answer. "I like the Looney Tunes ones. And I wanna get him one for every year I wasn't with him."

Her brow shot up in disbelief. "Fourteen Looney Tunes ties? Shawn, I'm trying to get him to tone down his ties. They're garish enough as it is."

"And shirts," he went on as though she hadn't spoken. "Mr. Matthews has a whole drawer full of World's Greatest Dad shirts he never wears. Several have Cory's, Eric's, and Morgan's handprints on them."

"So, you want to give Jon a drawer full of shirts he won't wear." She picked his pants up again. "Okay."

"And bird houses."

Audrey started to laugh. "Let me guess-fourteen?"

Shawn nodded. "The fifteenth one will be pretty good. The others will be trash he won't be able to throw away because I made them."

"Where are you getting this from?"

"The Matthews garage. They're so bad they look like someone stepped on them with nails poking out and paint everywhere. Cory had to tell me what they were."

"That bad, huh?"

Shawn puffed out his cheeks. "Carpentry is somethin' they should all stay far away from."

"Okay, so you're making up for lost Father's Days." She handed him Jon's clothes basket to put by the door so it could be loaded into the Bonneville later. "What do you want to get him for number fifteen?"

"A shaving kit or somethin'," he said with a shrug.

"Okay, that sounds reasonable. I like that idea."

"That Burma Shave one with the mug, brush, and soap set. You know, the one on display at the mall."

Audrey frowned. "He doesn't use Burma Shave though or a brush. He uses Barbasol and his hands."

"So?" Shawn couldn't help but smirk. He loved that she knew all these little details about Jon without having lived with him.

"I hate the smell of Burma shave," she said emphatically. She had picked up a can for Jon once when he and Shawn were over because the store was out of his usual. It clashed horribly with his cologne, but Jon insisted on using it and not wearing any after shave until he ran out. Since she didn't want him getting rid of the Hugo Boss she loved she tossed the can and replaced it with Barbasol the next time she went to his place.

"Mama," Shawn let out a whine of exasperation. "He's not gonna actually use it."

"Then why would you get it?"

"Because that's the whole point of Father's Day," he told her, leaning against the table. "You get him a gift he doesn't really want or can use. It's how kids say I love you."

Audrey was unimpressed. "Shawn."

"If I'm so wrong then what did you get Pops for Father's Day?" he grinned cheekily at her.

Audrey thought of the macaroni art, cheap plastic trophies, tacky pins, and ties he did not wear that she had gotten him over the years. "Fine," she huffed. "You get him the sentimental stuff he'll never use. I'll get him something he will."

"Like what?" Shawn asked curiously.

"Like tickets to Lord Stanley's game," she said pleased with herself. "or at least tickets to see the lead up to his game. Sherrie's dad offered me tickets again."

"For real?" Shawn's mouth fell open, and his eyes lit up in excitement.

"Yeah, I mean the Rangers aren't in the playoffs this year, but the Devils are. Close enough. It'll be fun either way."

"Sweet! Family trip to the Stanley Cup Play Offs! You have got some sweet hookups, Mama." He wrapped his arms around her. "Hey, can we get an ice cream cake too?"

"Cake is good idea. Except Jon doesn't really care for ice cream cake."

"What's he got to do with it? "

Audrey shook her head and laughed. "You're really looking forward to this, aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am," he admitted with a casual nod. "It'll be kind of cool to actually do what other kids do with their dads. At least, I don't think most kids retrieve beer cans all day."

Audrey gave him a moment to change the subject. When he didn't, she gently pressed, "Is that Chet's preferred way to celebrate?"

"If he has to be around, yeah." He leaned his cheek against her shoulder and fell silent.

Audrey finished folding Shawn's pants and set them to the side then she turned around to face the teen. "Anything you want to talk about?"

Simultaneously he shook his head and shrugged.

She brushed his bangs out of his eyes.

"You sure?"

Shawn withdrew into himself. It wasn't that he wasn't comfortable talking to her or didn't want to, he just had no clue how to put his thoughts into words. At least not out loud, writing them down was much easier.

"How did this happen?" he finally asked.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, us, you, me, and Jon. How'd we happen?"

Audrey gave him a small smile and shrugged. "I dunno, Shawn. Meant to be is the only way I can explain it."

"You're twenty," he pointed out with a scowl.

"I am."

"Why do this then? Why be my mom? Why not just Jon's girlfriend? That's what women a lot older than you want."

"I don't know," she answered honestly. It was something she had thought about many times since she began to spend her days with Jon and Shawn. The only explanation she had was that it felt right.

The right place.

The right time.

The right people.

She also knew that Shawn needed something more concrete than this given the situation with Chet and Virna. However, she could not lie to him.

"I really can't explain it." She tilted his chin up with her finger so he couldn't look away from her. "When I met Jon, I felt like I'd known him forever. Then I found out I had in a way. When I met you, it was the same thing. I felt like you were always mine. Your connection to Jon and mine to him connected us all together. And you know what I always say, 'once my kid-"

"Always my kid." Shawn squinted at her hoping it would make the tears pricking his eyes go away.

"After that first dinner in the apartment, there was no going back to the way things were. I knew somehow, we'd be together. I just wasn't sure how."

Shawn smiled but there was no happiness in his eyes. Even though he knew what she was saying was true he had difficulty accepting it. "But why? You're twenty. You have your whole life to have kids and all that. You don't have to be stuck with a kid like me…"

Audrey's hand immediately flew up to stop the negative self-talk. "I love you, Shawn. You're a good kid. You are smart. You have a big heart. You love so deeply, even the people who have hurt you so much. You're loyal to your friends. You take care of those around you, even if they're a little piglet. You notice the people everyone else overlooks and you make them feel special-that's a rare quality. You're funny too. Who wouldn't want a kid like you?"

Shawn's eyes filled with tears, and he bowed his head as Audrey took his hands.

When they first met, he had such a crush on her that lasted until he walked into the apartment where she was cooking dinner while Jon graded papers. He clearly remembered her eyes lighting up when she saw him and expressed her happiness to see him. The way she included him in her life and in her time, the way she treated him…

It was the same way Mrs. Matthews treated Eric and Cory and Morgan.

Stepping into the apartment that first night and every night from that time on felt like trading places with Cory and living his version of his best friend's life.

After that first dinner she was mom.

Never sister.

Always mom.

In all the ways he needed Virna to be mom.

And he desperately needed to know why.

"I'm sorry I don't have the answers you need, love. I wish I did." Audrey brushed his hair off his face and kissed his forehead. She held his face between his and said, "I wish I could bring you peace."

Shawn wrapped his arms around her and held on tight. "You do, Mama. You do."

They hugged each other until Shawn was ready to let go. He stepped back, put his hands in his pockets, and said, "Jon wants us to go to family counselin'."

"I agree with him. I think it's a really good idea."

"Is therapy workin' for you?" He leaned his head against hers.

"It is. It's not a magic fix, but it does help," she replied. "Talking things out helps me sort out my feelings and look at myself differently. It helps me break my negative thought patterns."

Shawn considered this for a moment then said, "If you guys think we should, I'll do it."

Audrey smiled and patted his cheek before kissing it. "Good. I'm so proud of my boy."

He kissed her back and nodded before helping to fold the laundry."

Jon returned to Audrey's place with a box of laundry detergent in hand and humming Springsteen's "Human Touch" just in time to see Shawn launching everyone's socks into a basket as he "helped" Audrey with the laundry. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he watched them.

He couldn't explain how much it warmed him to see Shawn smile like he was. The smile finally reached his eyes and was showing up more frequently.

The sight of Audrey warmed him in a different way.

Being around her had a dual effect on him: he felt intoxicated and grounded all at once.

She was his best friend. And her bright laughter was better than any music he'd ever heard.

Shawn messily tossed his clothes into a basket and Audrey made him take them out and fold them. He leaned against the couch and continued to watch them.

In just a month or two, they'd all be together under one roof for good.

Shawn would legally be theirs.

Audrey would be legally his.

And that would make him legally theirs.

Less than a year ago this would have been the of stuff nightmares to him.

But now he couldn't get the bachelor life behind him fast enough. He'd end it that second if he could.

On the other hand, there was so much to do and not nearly enough time to get it done.

After the guardianship signing, Audrey would graduate from NYU in June. He was hoping to be married before they returned to school in the fall. So guardianship, end of the school year for all three of them, engagement, marriage, honeymoon, back to school for all three of them.

Then there was the matter of where to live. They would need a bigger place, either a new apartment or moving permanently to Audrey's place. Or maybe a house of their own if money would allow.

Suddenly Jon felt overwhelmed.

If they got engaged next month how long would it take to plan the wedding?

He knew Audrey would rather elope than have a fancy ceremony. She was serious about going to Vegas, but Jon wanted more for her.

And for him.

Her dad needed to be with them, and he couldn't travel.

And then there were the Matthews and the Lawrences, Eli, Andrea, and George. There were a handful of people from the Village that he and Audrey wanted to witness the permanent joining of their family.

A destination wedding it would be.

He'd already called the Back Fence where he and Audrey, at different times, had grown up under the guidance of Richie Andrews and asked Ernie Scinto about hosting the reception. Ernie would do anything for Richie's kid and told him he'd put reservations on hold for the month of June and July open until Audrey decided on a date.

A wayward sock ball sped toward his head, interrupting his thoughts. He caught it and without thinking launched it back at Shawn and hit Audrey.

Fights involving pillows and socks were quickly becoming a family tradition. Also becoming a tradition was the game ending when something almost broke or did break.

This time it was a cheap ceramic mug that ended up in the trash.

Once the distraction of the broken mug was over, Jon and Shawn headed to the living room after Audrey shooed them out of her kitchen.

Shawn grabbed onto Jon's arm and pulled him around the coffee table every time he tried to sit down.

"What is with you?" Jon grunted as he tried to pull his arm away from the teen. "Did you drink a pot of coffee or somethin'?"

Exasperate Shawn tugged harder. "How are you not excited for this weekend?"

"I'm thrilled," he insisted while trying to maintain his balance. He crashed into the arm of the couch. "But I prefer not to have to stop by the hospital to fix a dislocated shoulder first!"

The teen let go and bounced from one foot to the other. "When are we gonna tell her?"

"As soon as the right moment happens." Jon realized that for plans as big as they had for Audrey it might have been better to tell her sooner than the night before.

"When will that be?" Shawn crossed arms over his chest. He was getting that impudent look on his face.

"I don't know."

He let his arms drop to his side and headed for the kitchen. "I'm tellin' her."

"Shawn!" Jon grabbed the back of the teen's shirt and spun him back towards the living room. "Relax, would you?"

They stared at each other for a long moment.

Shawn knew Jon was going to stall and Jon knew Shawn was going to jump ahead of him. Moving in synch they turned their head towards the kitchen and simultaneously yelled, "AUDREY!"

Audrey stuck her head into the room, very curious about the yelling. "Yeah?"

"We got somethin' to tell you," they said together.

They stared at each other again. Jon started to say something and so did Shawn. They stopped. They opened their mouths again at the same time and shut them.

Shawn was determined to put an end to the weirdness and inhaled a breath through an open mouth. Jon promptly put his hand over that mouth. "Aud, c'mere. Shawn and I have somethin' to tell you."

Suddenly Jon yanked his hand away from Shawn's mouth with a look of disgust on his face. Shawn laughed as Jon roughly wiped his hand on his jeans.

"Don't put your hand over my mouth and I won't spit on you."

"Gross."

"Eric hates it too."

"I bet you wouldn't spit on her hand," Jon said grumpily jerking his thumb at Audrey.

"Nah, I'd kiss it." Shawn shot back. He stood next to Jon grinning smugly.

Audrey laughed. "What are you two on about now?"

Jon gave Shawn a wary glance as he held his hand out to her. Shawn also held his hand out to her. She took both hands.

"What do you want to tell me?" She couldn't look directly at them, or she'd start laughing at the looks on their faces.

"We love you," Jon said, pulling her closer to him.

"Yes, I know."

"We love you a lot," Shawn said. He pulled her closer to him.

They were now standing in a very tight circle with little room to move. Shawn stood partially on Jon's foot.

"I love you both a lot too," she chuckled as she bumped heads with Shawn.

Shawn and Jon exchanged looks, each trying to silently tell the other to deliver the news. They realized too late that for all their planning they had forgotten to plan how to tell her about their weekend excursion.

Finally, Jon said, "Shawn and I were wonderin' if you're free this weekend."

She gave him a funny look since he knew her schedule. "Yeah, all weekend. Why?"

"We'd like you to go out with us on a weekend date," he replied giving her hand a squeeze.

"Because we have a gift for you," Shawn added with a grin. "A big one."

"Really?" Audrey looked at each of them in turn, then gave them a confused smile. "Um, first yes to going out with you both. What's the gift?"

"Well, it's not here," Jon grinned. "It's in Lancaster."

"Lancaster?" Now she was confused. "What's in Lancaster?"

"Dutch Wonderland," Shawn announced proudly.

"Oh?" This was even more surprising. Dutch Wonderland was a theme park aimed at kids younger than Shawn.

Or so she thought.

"Yeah," Shawn bounced on his toes excitedly and wrapped his arms around her. "It's a family theme park. Where, you know, families go."

His enthusiasm was catching, and his smile reflected on hers. "It sounds fun."

"We have a cabin," Jon added. "For the whole weekend."

Audrey shook her head, not fully understanding what she was being told. "I feel like I'm missing something here, guys. What's going on?"

"Mother's Day!" Shawn exclaimed.

Audrey was more baffled than before.

"We wanna make your first Mother's Day special," Jon put his arm around her. "We have a few things planned special for Sunday too."

"Really?" Tears sprang up as understanding sank in. "Mother's Day for me?"

Shawn impulsively grabbed her away from Jon and hugged her tightly, then pushed away from her and pointed to her bedroom.

"Yeah, so pack now, Mama," he told her. "Since there's no school tomorrow, we're leavin' at five tomorrow mornin'. Bring a swimsuit."

"Five? In the morning?" she looked at Jon in surprise. "Is Lancaster that far?"

Jon smiled and shook his head. "Nah, just a little over an hour but we have few stops planned along the way."

A delighted smile spread slowly over her face. She was deeply touched by the gesture and struggled to hold back tears. "Oh. You guys! I guess I should pack."

Shawn grinned. "Yeah, I packed three weeks ago."

Audrey shook her head. "Well, that explains why you've been wearing the same clothes almost 'every day."

The teen shrugged happily and took off to the kitchen to find something to eat.

She turned to Jon and looked up at him. "Did you pack three weeks ago, too?"

"Nah, three days ago."

She pressed her face into his chest and then looked up at him again. "Thank you."

He smiled down at her. Lightly touching her forehead, he ran his finger through her hair. "Anything for you, babe."

"I guess I should pack if we're leaving so soon."

"Sorry about springin' this on you last minute, Aud," he said sheepishly as he followed her to her bedroom and closed the door behind them.

"I don't mind. You know I'd go anywhere with the two of you, no questions asked," she told him as she went to pull her suitcases out of the closet. "But the destination choice- isn't that a little young for Shawn to be interested in?"

Jon shrugged as he helped her with the luggage. "Yeah, it's really for kids twelve and younger but it's a big family destination that people take their kids to regularly 'cause it's so close. Cory's been a lot, so has Topanga. It just wasn't somethin' anyone thought to take Shawn to or could be bothered to take him to. He's always wanted to go."

Audrey nodded her understanding. "Ah, I see. It's like Saturday mornings and Blockbuster- one of those little things that everyone gets to do but him."

"Yeah, it is." Jon watched her and appreciatively took in every graceful move she made. He smiled, then added. "That's not the only reason though."

"No?" Her voice muffled by how deep in her closet she was.

"Nah, he wants to scope it out for baby sister." Jon shook his head and ran his hand over his face before dropping to sit on her bed.

The thought made Audrey grin. She, too, had been dreaming of their future children. She left her packing to sit on his lap.

"He really has his heart on a sister." She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and lightly kissed his neck.

"Yeah," Jon was silent for a moment as he pressed his mouth into the inside of her elbow. Then he reached up and let her hair down. A cascade of fire fell around them. "He's not the only one."

"Ah," she smiled. She ran her finger over his ear and played with his earring. "So, you want a girl too? Not a son?"

Jon looked at her with a look of contentment and wonder. "I gotta son. Now I wanna daughter. Shawn's convinced me that the whole 'Daddy's girl' thing is pretty cool. Yeah, I really wanna see what a girl's like."

A soft smile spread over her lips. She wrapped her hands around the back of his head and kissed him on the lips. Pressing her forehead against his she said softly with deep affection. "That's one of the reasons I love you so much."

He gave her a quizzical look and a confused smile.

"Because you love him so much."

Jon let his forehead rest against hers for a long moment then pulled her into a deep kiss.

Music suddenly began to play, indicating Shawn had turned the radio on. From the kitchen the Hooter's "And We Danced" drifted back to them.

Audrey broke the kiss to take a change her position. He gave her a moment then pulled her back to him even closer.

And we danced like a wave on the ocean, romanced. We were liars in love, and we danced. Swept away for a moment by chance…

They were not dating. There was nothing between them but Shawn, he lied so easily to John Adams High administrators, teachers, and school board when asked.

His wild youth had taught him how to do this well and get away with it. Since February that's exactly what he'd been doing. And he had pulled Audrey and Shawn and the few others who knew into his lies.

He'd make an honest man out of himself as soon as he could. But for a few more weeks things would have to remain the way they were.

And he would have no regrets about it.

Are we getting too close, do we dare to get closer? The room is spinning as she whispers my name…

Before things could get any more heated, he broke the kiss and stood up letting her slide off his lap then helped her finish her packing.

She did not have a swimsuit.

Audrey fell silent as she felt the tension of the men on either side of her increased dramatically. They were identical in their posture, leaning forward with their elbows on their knees, hands clasped together covering their mouths. She put her hands on their backs unsure of who to console first.

Julia stared at her father and brother unsure of what to make of their reaction to, what was to her, an exciting family memory.

The tears in their eyes unnerved her.

"Mom? What's wrong with Daddy and Shawn? Why is something so happy making them so upset?"

The melancholy in her mother's eyes and her hesitation in answering was even more disturbing.

"Do you remember your thirteenth birthday?" she asked. Her voice was quiet and filled with sadness.

Jon shifted suddenly when she said this, took hold of her arm, and gripped her hand.

"Yeah." Julia cast a concerned look at her father. "We went to Coney Island for the weekend, just you, me, and Daddy. I think we did everything you could possibly do, and it was just the three of us like…." Her gaze drifted to Shawn and the weight of the reason her mother brought this up sank in. "That was like the most amazing weekend ever. No other kids. Just us. 24/7."

Audrey nodded as she rubbed Shawn's back. He bowed his head and pressed his clasped hands harder against his mouth.

"Now imagine if, after that amazing weekend, we had come home, and we were forced a part because someone's jealousy and you didn't see me and Dad again for a long time."

Julia sat at her mother's feet with her hands on her knees and eyes full of tears. Her family was more important to her than anything, including the siblings she complained so much about. She knew she was one of the lucky ones to have the parents she had. If she lost them…

"I'd feel I'd been shot in the heart and slowly dying every day but not actually ever dying. It'd hurt too much to remember Coney Island."

Normally her daughter's dramatics would amuse her, but not this time. She reached her hand out to Julia who clutched it tightly.

"That's what makes remembering such a good time so hard," she replied. "Shawn finally had stability and family, love, everything a child should always have. Then to have it snatched away for such a selfish petty reason…" Her gray eyes grew cold. "Katherine was so jealous all she could think about destroying us since she couldn't have what she wanted. She never considered what it would do to Shawn."

"Oh, yes, she did." Shawn's voice was dark and filled with bitterness. He glared murderously at the space in front of him. "You give her too much grace, Mama. She knew what she was doin'. Like an author who takes from other's stories and uses work they didn't create and twists it just enough to make claims of plagiarism difficult to prove and profits off of it. It's intentional. They aren't innocent and neither is she."

Shawn rocked forward on his toes moving himself to the edge of the couch.

"She wanted to ruin Dad's relationship with you to make way for her return to his life. But she had to get rid of me, too, or she still wouldn't have what she wanted."

"Shawn…"

"I don't want to hear it, Mama." He stood up suddenly and walked away from the couch. "I don't wanna hear any excuses for her behavior. She was thirty-four. Same age as Dad. She knew what she was doin'. She planned it."

Audrey saw the hate for Katherine in his eyes and worriedly reached for him.

For the first time in his life, he pulled away from her.

Wint-O-Green Life Savers were once used to create soda geysers. At the end of the 1990s, the manufacturer of Wintergreen Lifesaver made the candy larger, so they no longer fit into soda bottles.

Lee Marek and "Marek's Kid Scientists" performed the Diet Coke and Mentos experiment on the Late Show with David Letterman in 1999.

Also, Ernie Scinto was the actual owner of the Back Fence which was a real icon of Bleeker Street back in the day.

Next: Mother's Day weekend and the aftermath.

Jon's lies catch up with him