Kickin' It on Route 66 ~ Epilogue
Title: Kickin’ It On Route 66 ~ Epilogue
Rating: PG
Pairing: adam/kris, OMCs
Summary: The Allen-Lamberts take a road trip along Historic Route 66
Disclaimer: I don’t own Adam or Kris. This story is fiction. Other major characters are fictional; the places they visit in this story are real. Imaginary character created for part of this trip.
Dedicated to adamluvr36_fic ~ just because ♥
The Allen-Lambert’s fall back into everyday life yet memories of their epic trip aren’t far behind.
Time for an Allen-Lambert universe mini series. Hannah is 12 years old, Josh is 7 years old. Mrs. Willowby comes along too! Get ready for Americana and nostalgia.
Retrace the trip ~ http://cunningdeb.livejournal.com/45756.html#cutid1
Masterlist of Allen-Lambert universe ~ http://cunningdeb.livejournal.com/21722.html#cutid1
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
TWO WEEKS LATER
HOME IN LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
“Joshie! Hannah! Hurry up, we’re going to be late!”
“Coming Daddy!”
“One second.”
“No seconds! Hurry up!”
“Coming!”
Kris waiting at the bottom the stairs, foot tapping and checking his watch every five seconds. Adam had left at 7am for a breakfast meeting and Mrs. Willowby was enjoying a vacation from their vacation. A week after they got home, Adam and Kris surprised her with plane tickets to England to go and visit her family. After everything she put up with, she deserved it … and more. He had to drop his son off at one school, his daughter at another, and then he had to be at his own meeting by 9am.
Welcome back to the real world.
A stampede charged down the staircase, backpacks dragging on the steps behind them. Both kids were wearing t-shirts they got on the trip and Joshie insisted on showing off his genuine cowboy hat. He tried to talk his parents into relinquishing the lasso but it was still under lock and key.
“Everybody got everything? Notebooks? Pencils?”
“Daddy, Papa checked everything last night. We’ve got it,” Hannah replied.
“How about lunch? Do you have your lunch bags?”
Hannah ran to the kitchen and Joshie stayed put.
“Don’t forget the ice packs!” he called after her. He turned to his boy. “Better get your lunch.”
“I already got it.”
“When?”
“I put it in my backpack last night.”
After supper they had put together the lunch bags and left them in the fridge for the kids to get in the morning.
“You’ve had a TUNA AND MAYO sandwich in your bag since last night?!”
“Yup.”
“Hand it over.”
“But Daddy ….”
“No buts. That’s going to make you sick. You NEVER eat anything with mayo that hasn’t been kept cold.” Reluctantly, Joshie handed over the now flattened sandwich. Kris felt a little guilty for reacting so strongly. “I love that you wanted to do that yourself but next time, keep it in the fridge overnight, okay.”
“Okay.”
“Great. Now, let’s hurry up and make you something else then get our butts out the door!”
Thank God the first day of school only comes once a year.
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
Both men were home by noon and after a dip in the pool, they had lunch el fresco and enjoyed a quiet afternoon until they had to pick up the kids. There were chores to be done … they never realized how much they relied on Mrs. W until they had to take up her job on top of their own … but they decided to take a day off.
That night at dinner, everyone talked about their days. Adam told them about his meeting and the script he was given to read. The kids were excited about their Papa being a movie star but he told them it was for TV, not the cinema, and that he hadn’t agreed to anything other than reading it to see what he thought. Kris told them about his conference call with his management and George Dayton regarding a fundraising concert in the near future.
Once the parents were done, the kids monopolized the rest of their dinner time talking about their first days back to school. Both were excited to see their friends again and they liked their teachers, although they didn’t like getting homework the first day.
“I have to write about something I learned this summer. How am I supposed to pick ONE thing I learned?! I learned something new every day!” Hannah blurted out in frustration.
Kris squeezed her shoulder sympathetically and replied, “At least you won’t have trouble coming up with an idea.”
“No, I’ll have trouble narrowing it down.”
“I have to write too,” Joshie shared.
“What do you have to write?”
“I gotta write 100 words on what I did this summer. I don’t know 100 words!”
Adam chuckled, “I think you’ll be surprised how many words you actually know.”
“I got an idea,” Kris declared. “How’s about after we clean up from dinner, we take out our scrapbooks and look through them. Maybe it will help.”
Joshie nodded and returned to his spaghetti.
Hannah twirled her pasta lazily on her plate.
“Or it could make it worse,” she mumbled.
The rest of the evening was full of laughter and stories. Looking at the scrapbooks did help … but just like Hannah surmised, it hurt too.
Joshie wasn’t worried anymore about coming up with 100 words; rather, he now worried about how he was going to tell everything in so few words.
Hannah went to bed with so much swimming through her head, she didn’t sleep much. At least she had a few days before it was due. Maybe if she was lucky, the answer would come to her in her sleep.
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
The next two days were stressful for everyone … the paper recycling bucket was nearly overflowing with discarded, half finished essays.
Joshie quickly learned that he knew 100 words. In fact, his first attempt at summing up his summer vacation came out at 2000 words! Obviously frustrated, his parents suggested he mention one or two things from each state. With that hint, the boy eventually got it done but he didn’t want his Papa and Daddy to read it until his teacher saw it.
Curiosity was eating away at them but Adam and Kris understood.
Hannah was having a harder time of it. She didn’t have a word limit and started with the obvious lessons she learned yet as she read it over, something in gut told her it wasn’t what she really wanted to say. Adam and Kris tried helping her and though she appreciated their input, she was still lost. They even suggested she email Mrs. Willowby, who told the family they could contact her at any time, and she did. Her nanny was supportive and had some ideas of her own. Hannah thanked her and immediately settled into her slump again.
Inspiration came from the most unlikely source … her little brother.
The night before she had to hand it in, the kids were having one last dip in the pool before heading off to bed. Hannah had told her parents that the essay was done so they weren’t bugging her to work on it and though they were nearby watching them, the two men were out of earshot.
“Remember the water parks we went to? I wish we had cool slides and stuff like that in our pool.”
“We can’t have that stuff Joshie; our backyard’s too small. Be happy with what we got.”
“I guess.” He splashed water in her face. “I wouldn’t want to get lost in my own yard.”
As she splashed him back, her mind jumped back to her misadventure at Six Flags Mid America in Missouri when she stupidly took off on her parents to go to the park’s Hurricane Harbor after she’d been told several times ‘no’. That memory started a tidal wave of ideas and she leapt out of the pool, wrapped a towel around herself, slipped into her flip flops and ran to the house.
“Hannah, where are you going?” her Daddy called after her.
“I, ah, I have homework I forgot to do. Goodnight!”
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
“Papa! Papa!”
Adam got his cell put away just in time to catch his airborne son. The boy had charged him across the playground and flung himself against him. Adam staggered at the child made contact. Hoisting him up higher, Joshie squeezed his neck until he couldn’t breath.
“I got a B+ … I got a B+ !”
“That’s great Joshie Bear! Was it on your vacation essay?”
“Yeah and my teacher wants me to bring my suv’neers to school tomorrow. Can I? Please?”
“Of course you can. Can I read your essay?”
“Sure.”
Still wrapped in his Papa’s arms, the boy twisted around, trying to unzip his backpack.
“Woah kiddo, how about after dinner?”
“Okay.”
When they got home, Kris and Hannah were already there. Adam asked his daughter if she got her essay back and she got the same response Kris had when he picked her up: a silent nod and averted eyes. Of course, a reaction like that would make any parent worry and though they were dying to press the matter, they decided to let her come to them when she was ready.
The kids ran off and did their thing … Hannah disappeared and Joshie dug out suv’neers … before they got together for dinner. Afterwards, Joshie ran upstairs and got his essay. When he handed it over to his parents, he turned to leave.
“Aren’t you going to stay while we read it?”
“Or better yet, why don’t you read it to us?!”
“Nah, I wrote it. I know what it says. Can I play with my DS?”
“Yeah, go ahead,” Kris replied. “Hannah, would you like to hear what your brother wrote?”
“No thanks. I, um, have promised I’d call Amy after dinner.”
“Oh … alright. Say ‘hi’ for us.”
“I will Daddy.”
After she left the room, Kris asked, “Do you think we should have asked her about her essay?”
“Let’s wait a while longer baby. She’ll tell us eventually. In the meantime, let’s read this little masterpiece.”
Picking up their coffees, they adjourned to the living room and curled up on the couch. The first thing they looked at was the big red B+ in the top right hand corner and the teacher’s comment ‘Great Job! Spelling needs works’:
“’My Summer Vacation by Joshua Allen-Lambert’
“’This summer, me and my family went down Root 66. In Illinoise I ate a horseshoe and met President Linkon. In Misshurry I went to a baseball game and went to a restrant named after me. In Oklahomea my Uncle Danny got scared by a fish and my grandparents stayed with us. In Texass I went to a car ranch and Papa came back. In New Mexico I got sick and played in a giant bathtub. In Airizonea I got dinosaur poop and rided a mule. In Calafornea I said bye to Winnie and came home. The End.’”
Both men were quiet but their faces where splitting with huge smiles. A noise in the kitchen caught their attention and they spotted their little tour guide sneaking a cookie.
“Joshua!”
The little guy turned, a cookie stuck in his mouth. Slowly his hand came down with half an oatmeal cookie in it, the other half still in his mouth.
“Great job buddy, we knew you could do,” Kris declared proudly.
Joshie smiled and the snack left in his mouth hit the floor.
“And we’re going to work on your spelling every night after dinner,” Adam added, effectively wiping the rest of the smile away.
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
It was after midnight and the house was quiet. Adam and Kris were in their bedroom, the TV on Jimmy Kimmel Live and paperwork for meetings the next day spread over the bed like a blanket. There was a quiet rap on the door and it opened a crack.
“Can I come in?”
“Sure sweetheart. Why are you still up?” Adam asked kindly, patting a space beside him on the bed.
Hannah slowly walked over and sat, a folded paper in her hands. With no preamble, she held it out to her parents.
“Here.”
“Is that your essay?”
“Uh-huh.”
“You want us to read it?”
She nodded again.
“Are you sure?” Kris interjected, looking at her uncertain face. “We don’t have to.”
“But you want to right?”
“Well … yeah. We always want to know how you kids are doing in school.”
“Did you … did you get a bad grade?”
“No Papa, I got an ‘A’.”
“That’s wonderful!”
Finally she smiled, “I guess I’m just nervous.” She held the paper out further. “Please read it before I die of embarrassment.”
Adam still looked uncertain so Kris slipped on his glasses and took it from him. Hannah got up and started pacing but didn’t stop him. He began to read aloud.
“’This summer, my family traveled the country on Route 66. I learned many things this summer about history, science, different cultures, even different foods, but the most important lesson I learned was about my parents.’”
Kris paused and looked up. Hannah was now at their bedroom window, looking through the curtains to their backyard. Adam wrapped an arm around him and quietly urged him to go on.
“I love my parents. I love them more than anything or anyone. But sometimes, I want to do things that won’t let me and I get mad. That happened on our trip when we were in Missouri. I don’t know exactly when it started but I wanted to go places or do things that we didn’t have the time to do. I felt that my little brother Joshua got to do whatever he wanted and that they didn’t care what I wanted.”
Kris took off his glasses and looked at his husband. Both men had tears pooling in their eyes at the thought that their precious daughter would ever doubt their feelings for her.
“Just so you know,” she explained softly from the window, still looking away, “I don’t feel that way anymore.”
Kris cleared his throat, put his glasses back on and continued.
“We were at Busch Stadium in St. Louis for a baseball game and I met a group of kids my age. Their parents and grandparents worked there and they’d spent a lot of time exploring it. They asked me to go with them and my parents wouldn’t let me. All I wanted to do was have some fun and they said ‘no’. I didn’t understand what the big deal was. Instead of enjoying the private suite we had with the best views ever, all I did was sit and sulk.
“Two days later, we spent the day at Six Flags Mid America. I wanted to go to Hurricane Harbor, their waterpark, and every time I asked, my parents said we didn’t have time. Again, it seemed to me we time for everything my brother wanted to do.
“Finally, I saw my chance and did something really stupid. When my Daddy and brother were somewhere else, I ran away from my Papa and headed to the water park. I told myself they made me do it … I wouldn’t have to run away if they’d let me go. Well, I had fun for about 20 minutes when my Daddy and a bunch of security guards from the park found me. I had never seen him so angry in my life. He told me to get my things and we left. When we met back up with my Papa, he was mad too. We went back to the campground in the back of a police car since they’d been called too.”
“I can’t believe she shared all this,” Adam whispered.
“When we finally talked, I realized they were more scared then angry. They explained why they didn’t want me going off on my own. It wasn’t because they wanted to control me or ruin my life; they were afraid of some sick person trying to use me to hurt them. Daddy and Papa acted the same way towards my brother but in my self pity, I didn’t see that. They apologized for not being honest with me sooner so I’d understand and I apologized for acting like a brat.
“I’m sure I’ll get mad again at them someday and I’m also sure they’ll be angry at me too but the next time that happens, I’ll realize that no matter what is said, underneath it all is love and we’ll get through it, whatever it is.”
When the last word was spoken, Hannah finally turned around. Just like her parents, her eyes were damp with unshed tears and she chewed her bottom lip.
“I’m sorry I acted like that … I’ll always listen to you, I promise … just don’t get mad at me again …,” she said with a quiver in her voice.
Adam opened his arms and she hurried to the bed, falling into their hug. She felt the kisses on her head and the soothing sounds in her ears.
“We love you and your brother more than life itself. We’re sorry we made you think otherwise.”
“Hey! What’s all the blubbering about?” a voice of curiosity declared.
The trio on the bed looked over at Joshie standing there in his pajamas, cowboy hat, cowboy boots and carrying his Ra66it Ranch stuffed bunny. They couldn’t help it … they had to laugh.
“We’re fine Joshie, just getting sentimental,” Kris explained. “We’re good, right Hannah?”
“Right Daddy.”
Adam looked at the clock.
“Joshua, it’s nearly 12:30 in the blessed morning! Why are you still up?”
“Why are YOU still up?” the kid countered.
“We’re old people, we’re allowed to stay up,” Adam replied.
“Even Hannah?”
“Yes, even Hannah. So, answer my question.”
“I have to make sure I got all my suv’neers for tomorrow and I can’t find my favorite.”
“Your favorite?”
“Yeah … I lost my poop!”
Rating: PG
Pairing: adam/kris, OMCs
Summary: The Allen-Lamberts take a road trip along Historic Route 66
Disclaimer: I don’t own Adam or Kris. This story is fiction. Other major characters are fictional; the places they visit in this story are real. Imaginary character created for part of this trip.
Dedicated to adamluvr36_fic ~ just because ♥
The Allen-Lambert’s fall back into everyday life yet memories of their epic trip aren’t far behind.
Time for an Allen-Lambert universe mini series. Hannah is 12 years old, Josh is 7 years old. Mrs. Willowby comes along too! Get ready for Americana and nostalgia.
Retrace the trip ~ http://cunningdeb.livejournal.com/45756.html#cutid1
Masterlist of Allen-Lambert universe ~ http://cunningdeb.livejournal.com/21722.html#cutid1
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
TWO WEEKS LATER
HOME IN LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
“Joshie! Hannah! Hurry up, we’re going to be late!”
“Coming Daddy!”
“One second.”
“No seconds! Hurry up!”
“Coming!”
Kris waiting at the bottom the stairs, foot tapping and checking his watch every five seconds. Adam had left at 7am for a breakfast meeting and Mrs. Willowby was enjoying a vacation from their vacation. A week after they got home, Adam and Kris surprised her with plane tickets to England to go and visit her family. After everything she put up with, she deserved it … and more. He had to drop his son off at one school, his daughter at another, and then he had to be at his own meeting by 9am.
Welcome back to the real world.
A stampede charged down the staircase, backpacks dragging on the steps behind them. Both kids were wearing t-shirts they got on the trip and Joshie insisted on showing off his genuine cowboy hat. He tried to talk his parents into relinquishing the lasso but it was still under lock and key.
“Everybody got everything? Notebooks? Pencils?”
“Daddy, Papa checked everything last night. We’ve got it,” Hannah replied.
“How about lunch? Do you have your lunch bags?”
Hannah ran to the kitchen and Joshie stayed put.
“Don’t forget the ice packs!” he called after her. He turned to his boy. “Better get your lunch.”
“I already got it.”
“When?”
“I put it in my backpack last night.”
After supper they had put together the lunch bags and left them in the fridge for the kids to get in the morning.
“You’ve had a TUNA AND MAYO sandwich in your bag since last night?!”
“Yup.”
“Hand it over.”
“But Daddy ….”
“No buts. That’s going to make you sick. You NEVER eat anything with mayo that hasn’t been kept cold.” Reluctantly, Joshie handed over the now flattened sandwich. Kris felt a little guilty for reacting so strongly. “I love that you wanted to do that yourself but next time, keep it in the fridge overnight, okay.”
“Okay.”
“Great. Now, let’s hurry up and make you something else then get our butts out the door!”
Thank God the first day of school only comes once a year.
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
Both men were home by noon and after a dip in the pool, they had lunch el fresco and enjoyed a quiet afternoon until they had to pick up the kids. There were chores to be done … they never realized how much they relied on Mrs. W until they had to take up her job on top of their own … but they decided to take a day off.
That night at dinner, everyone talked about their days. Adam told them about his meeting and the script he was given to read. The kids were excited about their Papa being a movie star but he told them it was for TV, not the cinema, and that he hadn’t agreed to anything other than reading it to see what he thought. Kris told them about his conference call with his management and George Dayton regarding a fundraising concert in the near future.
Once the parents were done, the kids monopolized the rest of their dinner time talking about their first days back to school. Both were excited to see their friends again and they liked their teachers, although they didn’t like getting homework the first day.
“I have to write about something I learned this summer. How am I supposed to pick ONE thing I learned?! I learned something new every day!” Hannah blurted out in frustration.
Kris squeezed her shoulder sympathetically and replied, “At least you won’t have trouble coming up with an idea.”
“No, I’ll have trouble narrowing it down.”
“I have to write too,” Joshie shared.
“What do you have to write?”
“I gotta write 100 words on what I did this summer. I don’t know 100 words!”
Adam chuckled, “I think you’ll be surprised how many words you actually know.”
“I got an idea,” Kris declared. “How’s about after we clean up from dinner, we take out our scrapbooks and look through them. Maybe it will help.”
Joshie nodded and returned to his spaghetti.
Hannah twirled her pasta lazily on her plate.
“Or it could make it worse,” she mumbled.
The rest of the evening was full of laughter and stories. Looking at the scrapbooks did help … but just like Hannah surmised, it hurt too.
Joshie wasn’t worried anymore about coming up with 100 words; rather, he now worried about how he was going to tell everything in so few words.
Hannah went to bed with so much swimming through her head, she didn’t sleep much. At least she had a few days before it was due. Maybe if she was lucky, the answer would come to her in her sleep.
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
The next two days were stressful for everyone … the paper recycling bucket was nearly overflowing with discarded, half finished essays.
Joshie quickly learned that he knew 100 words. In fact, his first attempt at summing up his summer vacation came out at 2000 words! Obviously frustrated, his parents suggested he mention one or two things from each state. With that hint, the boy eventually got it done but he didn’t want his Papa and Daddy to read it until his teacher saw it.
Curiosity was eating away at them but Adam and Kris understood.
Hannah was having a harder time of it. She didn’t have a word limit and started with the obvious lessons she learned yet as she read it over, something in gut told her it wasn’t what she really wanted to say. Adam and Kris tried helping her and though she appreciated their input, she was still lost. They even suggested she email Mrs. Willowby, who told the family they could contact her at any time, and she did. Her nanny was supportive and had some ideas of her own. Hannah thanked her and immediately settled into her slump again.
Inspiration came from the most unlikely source … her little brother.
The night before she had to hand it in, the kids were having one last dip in the pool before heading off to bed. Hannah had told her parents that the essay was done so they weren’t bugging her to work on it and though they were nearby watching them, the two men were out of earshot.
“Remember the water parks we went to? I wish we had cool slides and stuff like that in our pool.”
“We can’t have that stuff Joshie; our backyard’s too small. Be happy with what we got.”
“I guess.” He splashed water in her face. “I wouldn’t want to get lost in my own yard.”
As she splashed him back, her mind jumped back to her misadventure at Six Flags Mid America in Missouri when she stupidly took off on her parents to go to the park’s Hurricane Harbor after she’d been told several times ‘no’. That memory started a tidal wave of ideas and she leapt out of the pool, wrapped a towel around herself, slipped into her flip flops and ran to the house.
“Hannah, where are you going?” her Daddy called after her.
“I, ah, I have homework I forgot to do. Goodnight!”
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
“Papa! Papa!”
Adam got his cell put away just in time to catch his airborne son. The boy had charged him across the playground and flung himself against him. Adam staggered at the child made contact. Hoisting him up higher, Joshie squeezed his neck until he couldn’t breath.
“I got a B+ … I got a B+ !”
“That’s great Joshie Bear! Was it on your vacation essay?”
“Yeah and my teacher wants me to bring my suv’neers to school tomorrow. Can I? Please?”
“Of course you can. Can I read your essay?”
“Sure.”
Still wrapped in his Papa’s arms, the boy twisted around, trying to unzip his backpack.
“Woah kiddo, how about after dinner?”
“Okay.”
When they got home, Kris and Hannah were already there. Adam asked his daughter if she got her essay back and she got the same response Kris had when he picked her up: a silent nod and averted eyes. Of course, a reaction like that would make any parent worry and though they were dying to press the matter, they decided to let her come to them when she was ready.
The kids ran off and did their thing … Hannah disappeared and Joshie dug out suv’neers … before they got together for dinner. Afterwards, Joshie ran upstairs and got his essay. When he handed it over to his parents, he turned to leave.
“Aren’t you going to stay while we read it?”
“Or better yet, why don’t you read it to us?!”
“Nah, I wrote it. I know what it says. Can I play with my DS?”
“Yeah, go ahead,” Kris replied. “Hannah, would you like to hear what your brother wrote?”
“No thanks. I, um, have promised I’d call Amy after dinner.”
“Oh … alright. Say ‘hi’ for us.”
“I will Daddy.”
After she left the room, Kris asked, “Do you think we should have asked her about her essay?”
“Let’s wait a while longer baby. She’ll tell us eventually. In the meantime, let’s read this little masterpiece.”
Picking up their coffees, they adjourned to the living room and curled up on the couch. The first thing they looked at was the big red B+ in the top right hand corner and the teacher’s comment ‘Great Job! Spelling needs works’:
“’My Summer Vacation by Joshua Allen-Lambert’
“’This summer, me and my family went down Root 66. In Illinoise I ate a horseshoe and met President Linkon. In Misshurry I went to a baseball game and went to a restrant named after me. In Oklahomea my Uncle Danny got scared by a fish and my grandparents stayed with us. In Texass I went to a car ranch and Papa came back. In New Mexico I got sick and played in a giant bathtub. In Airizonea I got dinosaur poop and rided a mule. In Calafornea I said bye to Winnie and came home. The End.’”
Both men were quiet but their faces where splitting with huge smiles. A noise in the kitchen caught their attention and they spotted their little tour guide sneaking a cookie.
“Joshua!”
The little guy turned, a cookie stuck in his mouth. Slowly his hand came down with half an oatmeal cookie in it, the other half still in his mouth.
“Great job buddy, we knew you could do,” Kris declared proudly.
Joshie smiled and the snack left in his mouth hit the floor.
“And we’re going to work on your spelling every night after dinner,” Adam added, effectively wiping the rest of the smile away.
~~~~ ☼ ~~~~
It was after midnight and the house was quiet. Adam and Kris were in their bedroom, the TV on Jimmy Kimmel Live and paperwork for meetings the next day spread over the bed like a blanket. There was a quiet rap on the door and it opened a crack.
“Can I come in?”
“Sure sweetheart. Why are you still up?” Adam asked kindly, patting a space beside him on the bed.
Hannah slowly walked over and sat, a folded paper in her hands. With no preamble, she held it out to her parents.
“Here.”
“Is that your essay?”
“Uh-huh.”
“You want us to read it?”
She nodded again.
“Are you sure?” Kris interjected, looking at her uncertain face. “We don’t have to.”
“But you want to right?”
“Well … yeah. We always want to know how you kids are doing in school.”
“Did you … did you get a bad grade?”
“No Papa, I got an ‘A’.”
“That’s wonderful!”
Finally she smiled, “I guess I’m just nervous.” She held the paper out further. “Please read it before I die of embarrassment.”
Adam still looked uncertain so Kris slipped on his glasses and took it from him. Hannah got up and started pacing but didn’t stop him. He began to read aloud.
“’This summer, my family traveled the country on Route 66. I learned many things this summer about history, science, different cultures, even different foods, but the most important lesson I learned was about my parents.’”
Kris paused and looked up. Hannah was now at their bedroom window, looking through the curtains to their backyard. Adam wrapped an arm around him and quietly urged him to go on.
“I love my parents. I love them more than anything or anyone. But sometimes, I want to do things that won’t let me and I get mad. That happened on our trip when we were in Missouri. I don’t know exactly when it started but I wanted to go places or do things that we didn’t have the time to do. I felt that my little brother Joshua got to do whatever he wanted and that they didn’t care what I wanted.”
Kris took off his glasses and looked at his husband. Both men had tears pooling in their eyes at the thought that their precious daughter would ever doubt their feelings for her.
“Just so you know,” she explained softly from the window, still looking away, “I don’t feel that way anymore.”
Kris cleared his throat, put his glasses back on and continued.
“We were at Busch Stadium in St. Louis for a baseball game and I met a group of kids my age. Their parents and grandparents worked there and they’d spent a lot of time exploring it. They asked me to go with them and my parents wouldn’t let me. All I wanted to do was have some fun and they said ‘no’. I didn’t understand what the big deal was. Instead of enjoying the private suite we had with the best views ever, all I did was sit and sulk.
“Two days later, we spent the day at Six Flags Mid America. I wanted to go to Hurricane Harbor, their waterpark, and every time I asked, my parents said we didn’t have time. Again, it seemed to me we time for everything my brother wanted to do.
“Finally, I saw my chance and did something really stupid. When my Daddy and brother were somewhere else, I ran away from my Papa and headed to the water park. I told myself they made me do it … I wouldn’t have to run away if they’d let me go. Well, I had fun for about 20 minutes when my Daddy and a bunch of security guards from the park found me. I had never seen him so angry in my life. He told me to get my things and we left. When we met back up with my Papa, he was mad too. We went back to the campground in the back of a police car since they’d been called too.”
“I can’t believe she shared all this,” Adam whispered.
“When we finally talked, I realized they were more scared then angry. They explained why they didn’t want me going off on my own. It wasn’t because they wanted to control me or ruin my life; they were afraid of some sick person trying to use me to hurt them. Daddy and Papa acted the same way towards my brother but in my self pity, I didn’t see that. They apologized for not being honest with me sooner so I’d understand and I apologized for acting like a brat.
“I’m sure I’ll get mad again at them someday and I’m also sure they’ll be angry at me too but the next time that happens, I’ll realize that no matter what is said, underneath it all is love and we’ll get through it, whatever it is.”
When the last word was spoken, Hannah finally turned around. Just like her parents, her eyes were damp with unshed tears and she chewed her bottom lip.
“I’m sorry I acted like that … I’ll always listen to you, I promise … just don’t get mad at me again …,” she said with a quiver in her voice.
Adam opened his arms and she hurried to the bed, falling into their hug. She felt the kisses on her head and the soothing sounds in her ears.
“We love you and your brother more than life itself. We’re sorry we made you think otherwise.”
“Hey! What’s all the blubbering about?” a voice of curiosity declared.
The trio on the bed looked over at Joshie standing there in his pajamas, cowboy hat, cowboy boots and carrying his Ra66it Ranch stuffed bunny. They couldn’t help it … they had to laugh.
“We’re fine Joshie, just getting sentimental,” Kris explained. “We’re good, right Hannah?”
“Right Daddy.”
Adam looked at the clock.
“Joshua, it’s nearly 12:30 in the blessed morning! Why are you still up?”
“Why are YOU still up?” the kid countered.
“We’re old people, we’re allowed to stay up,” Adam replied.
“Even Hannah?”
“Yes, even Hannah. So, answer my question.”
“I have to make sure I got all my suv’neers for tomorrow and I can’t find my favorite.”
“Your favorite?”
“Yeah … I lost my poop!”