AN: I really don't want to do another funeral scene. So I'm going to skip over that to Friday.

Oh, don't expect me to detail a romance for Nooshy. Porsha's close enough to 18 but I'm not comfortable writing a romance for someone Nooshy's age. She's just shy of 16. Maybe she'll get a girlfriend in the sequel when she'll be close enough to 18. Also I don't focus too much on high school because that was a hard time for me. I plan to take this up to the one year anniversary. I then have an epilogue planned. Before the sequel will be series of shorter stories focusing on each of the main groups of characters as individuals. So one book might focus on Meena and Alphonso between the last chapter and the epilogue. One might focus on Ash and Tyler. Of course the characters will all still interact with each other but each story will see more focus on the title character or characters. I'm not sure if Marcus and Suki should get their own though.

Part 90

Friday morning, Porsha went to her homeroom class, turning in the homework she had missed turning in the day before.

Glenn smiled at her. "I missed you yesterday," he admitted. They'd been eating lunch together every day since they'd first started talking.

She nodded. "I had a funeral to go to. My kind of grandmother, sort of. I think I told you that my family is kind of a hodgepodge."

The German shepherd laughed. "Yeah, I think it's pretty cool. I don't know if I told you before but I'm actually adopted." His green eyes twinkled at her.

She shook her head. "No, you didn't mention that. Not that it matters of course. My new family is great. I love them all."

He nodded. "So, you got any big plans for the weekend?"

"Well, tomorrow's my birthday so I have to go to Redshore City and then we're having a big family dinner with everyone," she explained.

The young canine smiled. "Happy Early Birthday. That sounds like fun."

She bit her lip. "Would you… would you like to come? I'm sure there's more than enough. You could meet everyone."

He nodded. "I'd love to help celebrate your special day. What time?"

"We're serving dinner at 6," she replied. He was such a nice guy.

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At their apartment, Ash was getting the twins ready for school while Tyler made breakfast. "Yesterday was a lovely service. Thank you for staying with the kids," she said as she ushered them into the dining room.

He smiled. "It was my pleasure. Here ya go kids. Strawberry and banana pancakes. Alphonso gave me the recipe. Topped with whipped cream."

"Yummy! Thank you, Uncle Tyler!" Lancey cheered as he dug into his plate-sized pancake.

Ash smiled at them as her phone rang. She looked at the number. She didn't recognize it. Confused, she answered. "Ash Beaumont speaking." She went into her living room.

"Ash? Ash dear! How are you?"

She knew she should know the voice. It was very familiar but she couldn't place it. "Um, who is this?"

"Ash, silly, it's your mother!"

The porcupine gasped. "Oh! Mrs. Cohen, it's a shock to hear from you."

The woman laughed. "Oh, Ash, I'm your mom. I know it's been awhile but we were starting to wonder how you've been doing."

Ash shook her head. "I'm fine. Now you know. How'd you even get this number?"

"Aren't you going to ask us how we're doing?" She asked.

"No, I couldn't care less," Ash replied. "Lose this number please." She hung up and looked at Tyler when he came in. "Well, I know what I'm doing today. It's time for me to change my phone number. Somehow my parents found it."

He hissed. "How?"

She shook her head. "No clue, but I'm getting a new one and telling no one except our friends. How'd they expect that to go? They only gave me the bare minimum and threw me out the day I turned 18!"

The orangutan nodded. "And let me guess, she didn't even lead with 'I'm sorry.'"

She nodded. "I doubt she is. I don't really care. I don't want anything to do with them." She shot up straight. "Crap! The bus! Come on kids! We're going to miss the bus!"

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Meena stood in front of her mirror. She would start to show soon. She rubbed her abdomen. "Good morning, baby. Please, be nice to Mommy today."

She went downstairs where Alphonso was working with his many little ice cream makers. "Mmmm, I see it's recipe time again."

"Yep. I got this idea for a churro ice cream. As well as buñuélo, sugar skull, pan dulcé, Trés léché cake. All the treats I grew up with turned into ice cream!" He smiled. "Tyler and I want to go to Mexico next November."

Meena thought about it. "What part of Mexico?"

"It's a small village just about 100 miles from Mexico City. Where my dad grew up. Before he immigrated," he explained. "You wouldn't object to going down for Dia de los Muertos this year, would you? I want to put my dad's picture on the ofrenda. You could meet mi familia."

She shook her head. "Not at all. As long as the doctor says it's safe. Me encantaría conocer a tu familia." She laughed. "Good thing I took four years of Spanish in high school."

Her husband laughed and hugged her. "I love you so much." His phone rang and they had to part. "Alphonso speaking. Oh Pastor John. Yeah? Yeah? Great? What? 12 weeks? Starting in July? That's a long time to leave my wife? Yes, yes. I understand. I'll talk to her. Yeah, I'll let you know. See ya on Sunday." He hung up. "They've got me set up with a school to get my BA in religious studies."

"Oh! That's great! What's the problem?" She asked.

He sighed. "It's in Arizona and it's a 12-week course. I'd live in a dormitory and it goes from July 11 until October 3." He shrugged. "Don't worry though, I won't go."

Meena was taken aback. "But this is your dream. Why not?"

"I can't leave you for that long. I'd miss you too much," he admitted.

"Alphie, it's okay. I'd miss you too but we can talk and FaceTime," she hugged him. "This is your dream."

He held her. "Are you sure? I'd miss you so much."

"I'm sure, Alphie. I got my dream. You should get yours too," she reassured him. Him being gone for three months would suck but he wanted this job so she wanted it for him.

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Norman got his kids on the bus just in time for the quints to demand their breakfast. Or their second or third breakfast, he lost count. He found Rosita laying on the nursing lounger, looking through a photo album.

"Do you remember when our other children were this small?" He asked teasingly.

She smiled up at him. "Of course I do. You were such a proud papa."

He came over to kiss her tenderly. "How are you doing?"

Rosita shook her head. "I'm… I'm alright. Yesterday was a lovely service. Eddie is taking it as well as can be expected. I just wasn't ready. You'd think I would have been." She sighed, looking at the photos of Nana with her brood. "You'd think I would have seen it coming."

He hugged her. "I don't think you're ever ready to say goodbye to the people you love. It just means you loved them very much and they loved you. We all loved Nana." He reached a hand to stroke his babies. "We just need to make sure that we do our best to honor her memory."

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Eddie insisted on making his usual room their master bedroom for now. He wasn't ready to change anything about Nana's room.

Jerry was always an early riser but he found himself in a conundrum. He was stuck between both Eddie and the hog.

He liked being their third, so far. They'd set ground rules and everything. For now, he just wanted it casual and kept a secret. He was a very private cat. However, he still had a problem. How to get out of bed without waking them.

Carefully, he wriggled and shimmied until he was free of the pair, running to the bathroom. After doing his morning routine, he went downstairs to the kitchen. The iguana was already drinking a cup of fresh coffee.

"Mmm, that smells so good," Jerry said as he made his own cup with ample cream and caramel syrup. He rarely had the chance to interact with the old lizard. She seemed almost neutral to him. She didn't seem to hold the past against him but she didn't go out of her way to get to know him either. He looked out the window. "It's a nice morning. At least it looks like it's going to be a sunny day."

She nodded. "It does. Did you sleep well?"

He smiled. "Yeah. The beds here are very comfortable." He looked up as the telephone began ringing. He got up and answered the antique device that Nana still insisted on using. Out of habit, he answered with, "Noodleman residence, Jerry speaking."

"Yes, let me speak with my mother. Now!" A voice commanded.

Jerry pulled the phone away, perplexed. "Who is this?"

"Who do you think? Now put my mother on the phone!" The voice ordered again.

A green hand took the phone. "Mr. Noodleman, you will not talk to Jerry or anyone in that manner. Now, I'm going to hang up and you can try this call again when you're ready to act like an adult." She hung up the phone, hard.

A few moments, they heard Eddie's cell phone ringing and the clip-clop of his shoes coming down the stairs. "Hello? Dad? No, Dad, I can't talk to Nana for you. It's none of your business and she doesn't want to talk to you anyway. Dad, I don't know what you want me to say. This isn't my fault! You helped Mother try to kill me! I can't forgive you for that. You don't even seem to care other than you got caught! You need to serve your sentence. Now, I have to go. My boyfriend and I have to plan our wedding." He laughed as he hung up. He stuck his tongue out at his cell phone as they came into the kitchen. "Jerk won't take a hint!"

Gunter hugged him. "Maybe a new phone number is the way to get him off your back." He suggested. "Or just ignore his calls. Will you ever tell him? About Nana?"

Eddie shook his head. "She didn't want me to do so, so no. He has no right to know." He clenched his fists. "I will never forgive him."

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AN: Finally done with this chapter. What do you think? Should Eddie tell his dad in the end or do you agree with him? Next chapter: Porsha goes back to Redshore and ends up in a tight spot. Please review.