742. Finally seeing someone you've missed

 

"Fuck." Did Vanna hear Remi correctly who was driving her little pink Kia down the freeway? REMI DIDN'T HAVE A DRIVER'S LICENSE? It about gave Vanna a heart-attack. She looked in the back seat and saw her precious sleeping True. Dove was dozing too. She sighed. This was unbelievable. How could she have had so much faith in Remi?

"I haven't had one in a long time, actually," Remi shrugged. "DUIs and all."

Vanna breathed in and out. Ready to pass out.

"Wait, you never said nothing about DUIs?"

"You never asked?" Remi looked over at her.

"Keep your eyes on the damn road, Woman!" 

Vanna was ready to pull her hair out. Why in the world didn't she tell Koda where she was going? They'd had sex last night and she forgot all about it. No. She swore she'd never tell him about this secret mission. All though, he kept taunting her. "Isn't there something you want to tell me?"

Well, her only answer was to get him in bed and the rest was history. Now she felt like a total idiot. No way did he want to drive on the freeway in this traffic. How in the world was she going to get through this? Thank God, Remi made the exit. Vanna was sure she would pull over, but she didn't. She drove another six or twelve blocks in a managery of old streets and there they were.

"See, I got you here, now didn't I?" She parked and handed the keys over to Vanna who was practically shaking. Of course, they both had to unload babies and their equipment. One might think they were going to a convention of some kind. 

Vanna texted that she was here. Although, Maisy didn't look too happy to see Remi.  They both hugged her as if she was a long-lost sister.

"Ain't it amazing we all have kids?" Remi laughed.

It caught Maisy off guard, but of course, she had lemonade and cupcakes waiting for them. Then about eight minutes later the real crowd woke up. Dove was fussy and True was a real follower in that matter while Maisy's baby looked at them as if they were all crazy.

After the babies quieted down with pacifiers and a diaper change, everyone passed around the babies to have a good look at them.

"You and Wolf?" Maisy smiled as she held Dove in her arms.

"Yes, me and Wolf," Remi looked at her as if who did she think she was. Of course, Maisy just laughed. She did talk about her troubles how the couple had left her high and dry. "I hear they make dramas and all, but I haven't seen any of them."

Vanna nodded. "Well, Akira has you and Cade. It'll be good. Won't it?"

"Hope so." Maisy was even-lipped about it.

"Has Cade even told his parents he's back?" Remi wanted to know.

Maisy shook his head, no. "I wouldn't want to tell my parents either."

"You can't just go on hiding with your life, you know." 

Vanna felt certain it wasn't nearly as horrible as Maisy thought, but then again she hoped the cops didn't catch them on the way home. She knew if nothing happened. She would surely tell Koda the truth about Maisy and her baby.

Time won't take nothing

 "I just don't think you are telling me everything," Maddie felt she and Boone had been pulled apart this last week or so. Sure, there was work and time was for those daily tasks, but it was the weekend and she really hoped he would talk about everything with his mother and this brother, Naoki.

"What's there to tell?" He smiled and kissed her in the kitchen as if that was all she needed.

"Oh, stop, you need to talk to me, how are you really feeling?" She winced as he leaned at the kitchen counter. They had been cleaning on the place like his mother might stop in any second. She wondered if Naoki would come too.

"How much do you really know about Naoki?" She wanted to know as she wiped down the counter one more time so he wouldn't.

"Look, stop worrying about me. It doesn't matter," he sighed. "It's Alfie I'm worried about. I mean, she's had this son tagging along with her all this time while she," Boone did look uncomfortable mentioning it. "Why couldn't she have been there for Alfie, you know?"

He hugged himself as if he wished Maddie hadn't brought it up. Of course, she went to get him coffee. There was always time for coffee. 

He pressed his lips tight, "And my father has been no help." He shook his head. "No way is he going to see her and well, he's not even talking to Alfie."

Maddie slid her hands up her shoulders, thinking what could she say. She didn't know.

"Look, I know it won't be easy for Alfie to get used to having his mother around. I don't know if I could do it." 

She festered a frown. "I've got a mom with a whole new family, I don't even know." She didn't mean to sink into emotion. "I'm afraid I would tell her to go away if she ever came here."

"No, you wouldn't," Boone said he didn't believe that. "Alfie is doing the right thing, and you would too."

"I guess you're right." 

He gave her a hug before they sat down to coffee and some leftover apple pie.

"I guess that guy Naoki is doing pretty well for himself. And he seems to really be taking care of Tammy, too.

"Tammy?" Maddie looked at him with serious eyes while he reached into the fridge for a can of whipped cream.

"Yes, my bio mom has a name." 

He swirled the cream on top of her piece of pie and then his.

"I think she wants to make something Hawaiian for us," that's when Boone told her they'd been invited to Sunday dinner.

"It wouldn't be a luau would it?" Maddie asked between bites.

"I don't think so, she lives in an apartment," Boone shrugged while he watched her eat. "I told her I could bring something, but she didn't want me to." He sipped his coffee.

"I wonder if Naoki will be there with someone?"

"I don't know, he does seem to be a Momma's boy to me," Boone nodded.

Maddie smiled back. "You know, you're a Momma's boy."

"Evidently." He chuckled.

Walking around like some lonely clown

 Millie was finally settling in at KC's. Although, he kept reminding her it was their place. Not his. It would take some getting used to. Of course, she was sick, but thankfully Covid ran it's course quickly.

She thought about how she'd dodged it all this time. Yes, she got her vaccines in the beginning, but this last year or so the family PCM said it wasn't necessary. Oh, it felt necessary now. She was dragging. Maybe she'd had Covid longer than she even knew, but KC didn't get it.

And then after getting the apartment all in order, and putting together a few more shelving units, and having her favorite futon in the livingroom..finally it felt like she had really moved in. It felt like her happy place. Her desk area was situated where she studied. Yes, her laptop needed it's own space. She liked it that way. Perhaps she was an old soul at heart. Her mother used to tell her this. And she was certain her mother loved having an empty nest too. Which only lasted for a week. Millie's sister came back home from New York City.

Of course, no one really got any answers out of Tyra who looked so gaunt. This tiny girl. She'd left a fierce wonder woman. But it was over with her and her partner and her parents had to send her a bus ticket to get home.

Naturally, Millie had a good cry about it at home. And there was KC to console her. She hadn't meant to be such a baby about it, but she felt so sad for Tyra.

"Will we ever know what happened?" She'd asked KC late one night.

"Probably not," he shrugged. 

"I wish we were close," she blubbered.

"Are you sure you're not just homesick?" He'd asked if she'd feel better if she spent the night at home, having some time with her sister.

She shook her head no, and cried on his shoulder as if she didn't even know the truth.

"Let's just give her some time," KC patted her on the back. "She is working at the bowling alley again, you know."

It wan't like she was sulking at home under the covers. Millie sighed in a pout, "Why can't she and I be close like other sisters?"

She liked being close to KC. She told him she thought it was sweet the way he was with his little sister, Junie.

"Sweet?" He laughed. "We aren't close." He told he saw more of Junie now than he did when he lived at home. "Besides, she is my step-sister."

"But she thinks the world of you," Millie looked at him brightly. "Remember when she brought over those big fat green grapes. She remembered those were your favorites so she made sure your mom bought extra so she could bring them to us."

"Don't you know, they think we're starving, that's why she brought us grapes and bananas too."

"Tyra would never do something like that for me," Millie shook her head, no. "No, all we ever did was fuss and I ..I regret that..but..but she was the one who started it. She always made me feel that I didn't understand anything she was going through."

"You both like music," he reminded her. 

She nodded. Her frown was full circle. "She's so much better than me, but..but I never envied her. I didn't. I just know..I looked up to her."

"Maybe when she gets into a good schedule, you could see if..if she would want to play with us. Maybe, maybe you two could just play some music," he shrugged.

Millie nodded. She would like that. Of course, she could just hear her sister say No. She was used to hearing that word from her.

And I don't wanna miss a thing

 "Wow! I mean..this is amazing!" Gage couldn't help but laugh when he heard the news from Alfie about the baby on the on the way. "Not even six weeks?"

He couldn't phantom the idea of getting ready for a newborn. Of course, he was a father of two now. Ava would be a year old in June. Where had the time gone?

Zoey and Alfie were expecting a boy. Of  course, Gage knew they wouldn't be interested in their pink assortment of baby clothes. Besides, Nora had given the infant clothes to charity, already. She did like going to thrift places that specialized in baby clothes. So maybe she would know how they could help.

Nora was the master of decluttering.

"I have faith in you two. You've been thinking of starting a family for so long now," Gage said. He knew Alfie was nervous, so he listened to him talk of his mother and his brother.

"And I guess I have a brother I didn't know about," Alfie told him.

"Oh Wow," there Gage was back to saying his favorite comeback line, evidently. "You gonna be OK with that?"

"Not really," Alfie sighed. "But I guess I don't get a say in it."

Alfie said Boone was fine with it. He didn't make a big deal about it. He was being pretty low-key about all of this with his mother and the other brother.

"Don't worry about it, just enjoy right now, get ready for that baby!" Gage said enthusiastically even if he needed to get off the phone and head out to the baseball field with Alec to practice baseball. The season was already starting up. "You and Zoey need to think about baby names."

"Yeah, I know, my mom mentioned something about her brother Robert,"

"Robert?" Gage winced. "Are you going to?"

"No," Alfie said. "This our baby we have to think of a name we both love."

Gage chuckled. He wondered if that was true. He knew they'd have to make a compromise. "Well, don't take too long about  it."

"I know, we don't have much time."

With that Gage checked his watch, he knew he and Alec had to get to practice.