Overland Park, KS, Later Monday FT
It was amazing how much work could go into a single dinner when everyone knew it was a big freaking deal of a dinner. Kate spent most of her day in the kitchen with her mother and aunt, while the various menfolk (apart from Marshall who was still insisting on being uncooperative and making cracks about just ordering takeout - though he did do a grocery store run) cleaned the good plates and utensils and wine glasses, and tried to watch a game on TV. Sure, it might have been a little... enforcing traditional gender roles or whatever, but Kate didn't mind. She wanted to hang out with her mother before she went away. Even if it meant dealing with Charmaine's whining about getting cold feet about moving to Houston.
And all the preparations of the day had paid off. It was almost dinner time, and they were all gathered at the dining room table. Kate, Bod, and Marshall were seated on one side, Tara, Charmaine and Neil on the other, with Max and Ted at either end. All the food was still in the kitchen, though: they only had wine.
Well, wine and lively conversation. Kate raised her glass to Bod and smirked a bit. "How's it feel to be at a civilized dinner with wine and everything?"
"Quite interesting," Bod joked with a laugh. "It's been awhile since I've done this. Whenever we eat together, you concentrate on the food and forget everything else."
Sorry Kate, Bod just made a joke at your expense.
That was okay. No one else was really paying attention to them, anyway. Kate could still look mock indignant, though.
"No I don't!" she exclaimed with a laugh. "You're making me sound like a pig, stop that."
"You love food!" Bod said, laughing. "I have seen you react joyously to food. There's nothing wrong with that. I think it's cute."
"Oh so now I'm a cute pig?" she teased, shaking her head. "Well, I guess that's better than just being pig in general. Plus I've already wooed you, so I probably don't have to keep trying to impress you anymore."
"Yes, I think I've seen you at your worst now, Kate," Bod said, laughing. "You could wear sweat pants with stains from ribs on them and I'd be in love with you."
Kate laughed pretty hard at that, and there was a quick flash from the other side of the table as Charmaine snapped a sneaky picture of them. The impending move had brought out the urge to document things.
Kate was just about to say something when her attention was drawn to Neil who was standing next to Max, now. "Tell Kate the name of that club in Houston that Beaverlamp played," he was saying, sounding like it was both important and potentially fun. "What was it called... ?"
Max didn't sound particularly enthusiastic. He'd been like that all day. "The Ida Leventhal Youth Center."
"That's it!" Neil exclaimed, circling around the table back to his own seat again. "We had a great time. Marshall is gonna love H-Town." He ticked off things on his fingers. "We, we've got the beaches, we got the rodeo, we got the NASA space center."
"Oh, well, that sounds like our Moosh," Kate replied with a lopsided smile and a look at Marshall past Bod, "a sun-speckled, cow-punching astronaut. Every displaced teen's dream."
"Take several pictures, Marshall," Bod quipped, grinning. "I doubt I'll ever get to Texas myself and if I did, I'd probably absolutely fry in the Texas sun."
"Mmh." Yeah, Marshall's mood had not improved greatly over the course of the day. This was not surprising.
"Oh, you'd just burst into flames," Kate said, shaking her head. Then her mother gestured for her to get up, nodding towards the kitchen, so she put her glass on the table. "Oh. Gotta go get the food."
"Don't eat it when you get it into your hands," Bod joked, smiling at her. "It's for everyone now."
Kate responded to that with a mock disapproving look and a little thwap against the back of his head for making fun of her.
Then she headed for the kitchen, along with her mom, and was gone. There was still chatter around the table, though mostly from Charmaine, Neil, and Ted. Max looked withdrawn at his end of the table, and Marshall swished his drink around in his glass absently.
"Are you all right, Marshall?" Bod asked quietly. "You don't look very...aware, I guess is the best word to use."
He knew happiness was hard to muster right now.
"Very little to find worth being aware of," Marshall said.
And yes, it was probably understandable. His ex was dead, and it had gotten buried under all his mother's problems. He was finding it hard to care.
"Mmm."
Bod paused and glanced around before turning back to Marshall.
"So, if I were to tell you something, something Kate doesn't know I'm going to say, would you keep it a secret, please? It might paint me in an...unflattering light."
It would've been a stretch to say Marshall looked intrigued. Bt he did turn his head more fully towards the other boy. That was something.
"Sure," he said, mildly. "I won't tattle."
"I know you lost someone recently."
He didn't think he had to elaborate.
"And I wanted you to know that -- that that hurt, it won't go away. I know I've told you about my parents but they're not really my parents. I was adopted because my parents and my sister, they were murdered when I was just a baby. I can barely remember them. I don't even remember their faces. You, you have that opportunity to remember your friend. You have his face and you have the time you had together, no matter how short it was."
He paused and glanced around. "There's a lot going on recently and what I want you to know is that I remember your friend too. Amongst all this, I remember what kind of person Lionel was. It might seem like he's forgotten but he's not. You're not alone in remembering him. I'm right there with you."
Marshall bit on the inside of his lip as he listened. It was the most vulnerable he'd looked in days. There was a little bit of surprise there, too. Couldn't help it, what with the subject matter.
He nodded, slowly, and he hesitated before he replied. During, too.
"There's this... memorial where, um, you know..."
He couldn't say it.
"Where people are remembering him. Mourning him," Bod filled in, nodding. "Have you been yet?"
Marshall shook his head. "For whatever reason..." He trailed off for a bit there, then shook his head again. "Everybody's been there, but... I can't."
It was also the most sincere he'd sounded in a while. Tara and Kate had already come back, and were going around the table putting food on plates. They exchanged a look.
It was one of approval.
"I understand." He did. "It makes it final, doesn't it? Going to a place like that makes it seem like it's final but it doesn't have to be. I felt bad going to the graves of my parents because I couldn't even remember their faces. What I learned though, what I want you to know is that memorials like that are a good way to help ease the pain but it doesn't make anything final."
Bod gave him a little nod. "Nothing's final unless you say it's final. We'll go to the memorial, you and I. And we'll drop a few flowers off and talk to your friend and then we'll walk away and we'll talk to your friend some more. And tomorrow, when you've visited the memorial and you're starting another day, we can talk to him again because he's not going to be forgotten just because of a visit to a memorial."
That was... That was sort of beautiful, though painful all the same, and Marshall was about to say something, perhaps even to that effect, but then Ted came back in, far too cheerful for a conversation he hadn't heard.
"Turducken, turducken!" he called out, carrying the plate with said monstrosity to Max. "Almost as fun to say as it is to eat!"
And then Neil started chanting "tur-duck-en! tur-duck-en!" and everyone else was laughing, and Kate slipped back into her seat, food evenly distributed.
Bod reached over and gave Marshall's shoulder a quick, brief squeeze before he turned his attention to the chanting. He didn't join in but he smiled at both the display and Kate when she took her seat again.
Kate smiled back at him, picking up her glass again. "You want to carve it, honey?" Tara asked Max, but no one really listened to his reply. "Wait, Max, I want to take a picture," Charmaine said, already angling her camera to get the turducken and the mashed potatoes and everything else in the shot. "This meal is amazing."
"Who's gonna clean up all this shit?" Neal chimed in, nodding at Max and Tara. "I mean, these two are hitting the bricks tomorrow."
"Oh!" Kate perked up, raising her eyebrows at her dad. "Did you remember to cancel the paper?"
Neil had another one, too. "Oh, and -- and put a stop on the mail?"
"What are you doing about school?" cut in Ted, looking over at Tara.
She smiled. "Well, you'll be pleased to know that even though I'll be missing a few weeks, my grades are so good --" The smile turned into a grin. "-- this girl gets to graduate!"
This announcement caused much rejoicing around the table. Rejoicing, which then turned into calls for a toast, though those were directed towards the end of the table. It would only make sense for Max to make a toast right now, wouldn't it?
"The man of the hour!" Kate whooped, then shot a grin at Bod. She looked happy, for a change. Hey, things were almost normal. Right this second.
"Congratulations," Bod said though it might have gotten lost in the happiness around the table. He folded his arms and leaned them against the table.
After returning Kate's smile, he glanced down at Mr. Gregson as well, wondering if he was going to make the called for toast.
Well, he got up from his seat, at least. That was a good, traditional start for a toast. But then he roared, "What the fuck are we doing?"
And he punched the turducken. Yes. Everyone fliched back.
"We're having a goddamn party?! While the universe is out there dreaming up new and devious ways to --" Three punches, one for each word. "-- fuck us over!"
He flailed, gesturing wildly at everyone gathered around the table. His face was reddening, his voice growing hoarse. Still loud. Very, very loud. Desperate and angry, too.
"Look at this family! My beautiful wife, who tries so hard to be a good person, good to other people -- and my children, who've never done fucking anything wrong to anybody, never asked to be dragged into this!" He extended his arms towards the ceiling. "God, did you put us down here just so you could take a big fucking shit on our heads? Well I want it to stop!"
He picked up the turducken and slammed it against the plate again, hard. A turducken leg got torn off and he brandished it in the air.
"Whoever's up there listening, move on to somebody else! 'Cause it's not fucking funny!" He picked up the poor battered meal again and slammed it against the table. "It's not fucking fair!" Slam. "And we deserve some fucking mercy!"
... And that was the turducken flying through the air over the table. It connected with the wall across the room with a thump and fell on the floor. And then everything was quiet. Everyone was staring (well, Charmaine was picking bits of turducken off her shirt), and even Max looked like he wasn't sure where that had come from, and if he'd actually just done that.
Bod wasn't sure what to do now. He'd flinched and sat back but he could understand where Mr. Gregson was coming from. He felt bad for the poor turducken though.
He stayed quiet and glanced around, waiting to see if more food would go flying at some point.
No, it seemed food was done flying. Thankfully. Kate glanced over at Bod, though, her eyes wide, but said nothing.
"Well," Tara said, clearing her throat. "I can't think of a single thing that needs to be added to that." She said it like that had been a completely normal turn of events. She evn gave her husband a wry little smile before turning to the others. "Anyone else?"
Ted shook his head. "Not a word," said Kate. "Well put," added Marshall.
Bod didn't have much to add either. He gave a single nod to demonstrate his agreement with what had already been said. He glanced around at everyone, glad that nothing had taken a downturn at that speech.
Seemed that way. Maybe they had reached the point where further outbursts just passed on by. "Ready to eat?" Tara, still with that little smile.
Max finally went to re-take his seat. "Yeah," he said, a little unsteady still from letting his anger go. "Yeah, let's, uh, let's -- let's eat."
And so they did.
But no turducken. Charmaine just took a picture of the empty plate.
-----
The dinner was over, the turducken had been cleaned up, and everything was... Not good, if you considered the circumstances, but okay. Not terribly bad.
Kate and Bod had relocated next door along with Charmaine and Neil, and Kate was absently fluffing the pillows on her and Bod's bed, when she heard something. Like someone playing guitar outside.
"Huh," she said. "Must be Chastity Stargazer."
"...I don't think I've met her," Bod said, glancing at Kate. "Who's that?"
Kate chuckled a little as she glanced over at him. "It's not a person," she explained. "It's my dad's old guitar. I don't know why it has a stripper name."
"Ah." Bod listened for a moment longer. "He's quite good, strangely named guitar or not. Perhaps it's just a way of unwinding after a long night."
"Probably," Kate agreed, dropping the pillows back on the bed. "Everyone probably needs a little something like that. It's been a crazy week. And here..."
That was really saying something.
"We've almost made it through, though," Bod said, smiling. "And while things have been tenuous, they haven't worsened and that's a good thing."
"Exactly." She came closer and reached out for his hands, tilting her head with a thought. "You know, I've been thinking about what happens next. Here."
"Here as in Kansas?" Bod asked, lacing his fingers with hers. "Or here in a metaphorical way?"
"Here as in Kansas," Kate nodded, swinging their hands a bit. "Think I'm gonna move back next door. I mean, I'm gonna have to since Char is gonna put this house back on the market, but, you know... I should watch over Moosh, you know?"
"That's an admirable decision," Sam said, smiling at her. "I think Marshall would appreciate it. I don't know how well he'd adjust to something so new after everything."
"I don't know, I'm starting to think we all just adjust to everything," Kate mused wryly. "I mean, look at all the shit that's been going on in my life over the last year - which is still not over, by the way. 2011 is really outstaying its welcome."
"We're getting through it though," Bod noted, pulling her closer to him. "And wherever you're going to be, I'm going to be there too. You're really it for me, Kate. I hope you know that."
Kate let go of his hands so she could slide her arms around his waist, tucking herself close to his chest. "I do," she murmured. "I love you. You're totally fucking irreplaceable."
"So are you," he said, embracing her and pressing a kiss against the top of her head. "I love you too. I love everything about you."
"Even my thoroughly messed up family?" Kate asked quietly.
Because she did. With all her heart, even with all the shit they kept putting her through. They were still her family.
"Yes, I love your family too," he murmured but it was sincere and completely truthful. "All of them. Even the ones I might not have met yet."
Kate chuckled and shook her head against his chest. "Oh God," she muttered, "please don't let there be any more people showing up in this family."
"Perhaps there's a long lost cousin out there that might show up and be a millionaire!" Bod said jokingly. "I'd love him as well."
"Well, I would too." But mostly for the billionaire part. "Assuming he'd be generous."
"But even if there's no one else in your family to meet, I don't care." He hugged her closer to him. "I love the ones that are here."
Kate sighed and nuzzled his shoulder. He really was the best boyfriend ever, and she felt lucky.
She was about to say as much, too, but then there was an awkward cough from the doorway. It was Marshall.
Well, at least it'd only been a hug and nothing more than that. Bod loosened his grip on Kate but didn't completely let her go when he glanced over at the door.
"Hullo there, Marshall," he greeted easily.
"Hi," Marshall said, as Kate turned to give him a curious (maybe even slightly concerned) look. "What's up, brother?"
He shrugged, mostly because of awkward. "Uh, Bod?" he started. "Um... Mom is gonna -- we're gonna drive to the, the memorial and... I was wondering, do you maybe want to come with us?"
"Of course," Bod said immediately, nodding. "Yes, I'd like to come with you both. Of course."
He gave Marshall a nod and glanced down at Kate after a moment. "I'm going to go with your mum and Marshall. Don't miss me too much."
Kate was a little surprised, but then again not. And she couldn't have thought of a better person to tag along.
"I won't," she replied, reaching up for a peck on his cheek before pulling back from him. "Take your time."
Bod gave her a kiss on her forehead before stepping back and moving over to join Marshall. "I'm ready whenever you are."
Marshall just nodded, inclined his head towards the door, and turned to lead him out.
This was not the kind of thing you invited someone along to all cheerfully, after all.
-----
The ride over to Lowell Avenue was quiet. Not as tense as it could have been a day or two ago, but quiet. It was already dark, and the memorial was easy to spot, even from far away. There were candles burning, and lots of flowers, and cards, and stuffed animals, and pictures, and someone had affixed lights to the chainlink fence to spell out 'WE ♥ YOU LIONEL'.
He was remembered.
Tara stopped the car a little further away from it all, and looker over at Marshall. "You want some time alone?"
"No."
"It's a very nice memorial," Bod remarked with a sad, quiet smile. "It looks like he was really loved."
"Or noticed," Marshall said. Lionel had been a character at school. Not everyone had loved him, and Marshall suspected not even everyone who'd brought mementos to the memorial had. But it was more appropriate to love someone when they were dead. Easier.
He reached for the car door, going to get out, so his mother did the same.
Bod followed after a moment or two, closing the car's door quietly and glancing around. There might have been people bringing mementos just to say that they had but Bod liked to think there were people bringing things because they'd loved Lionel and missed him and wanted to remember too.
He was quiet, letting Marshall have his time without any talking to interrupt.
There were skid marks on the street. Marshall refused to look at them after the first glance where he'd noticed them. He could guess where they were from.
That particular pain mixed in with all the rest, and he just walked closer to the memorial, his mother silently in tow.
It was beautiful, it couldn't be denied.
Bod stayed behind both mother and son, getting briefly lost in a few thoughts of his own for those he'd lost and sometimes struggled to remember. He never forgot though. He never did and he hoped Marshall wouldn't either.
Eyes closed, Bod took a deep breath and settled himself before following behind the pair again.
They stopped just a few feet away from the memorial, then just stood in front of it. In silence.
Then Marshall said, "There's so much that I never got to say." He turned towards his mother. "So from now on, I'm not holding back. If I have something to say to you, I'm gonna say it."
Tara gave him the slightest little nod of understanding. "I'm okay with that."
Marshall glanced back at Bod. "You should, too. Even if Kate is louder." Lionel had been louder too.
Bod nodded as well. "I'll do my best. I will."
Marshall nodded at him.
Then, slowly, he moved forward, towards the memorial, only to turn his back on it and sit down on the edge of the cold pavement. His mother followed his lead after a moment.
A few moments later, Bod followed suit, taking a seat as well and tucking his hands into his pockets to keep them warm. He was quiet.
They all were. It didn't seem like a time to speak. Tara put her hand on her son's knee, and he covered her hand with his.
It was quiet. Maybe it was less than fitting for a place for remembering Lionel, but it would do. They could all be quiet for a while. It was enough.
[ooc: NFB, NFI, OOC-okay! This, too, preplayed with nimeni and taken/tweaked from USoT S03E12. THIS IS KATE'S SECOND TO LAST CANON POST YOU GUYS.]
And all the preparations of the day had paid off. It was almost dinner time, and they were all gathered at the dining room table. Kate, Bod, and Marshall were seated on one side, Tara, Charmaine and Neil on the other, with Max and Ted at either end. All the food was still in the kitchen, though: they only had wine.
Well, wine and lively conversation. Kate raised her glass to Bod and smirked a bit. "How's it feel to be at a civilized dinner with wine and everything?"
"Quite interesting," Bod joked with a laugh. "It's been awhile since I've done this. Whenever we eat together, you concentrate on the food and forget everything else."
Sorry Kate, Bod just made a joke at your expense.
That was okay. No one else was really paying attention to them, anyway. Kate could still look mock indignant, though.
"No I don't!" she exclaimed with a laugh. "You're making me sound like a pig, stop that."
"You love food!" Bod said, laughing. "I have seen you react joyously to food. There's nothing wrong with that. I think it's cute."
"Oh so now I'm a cute pig?" she teased, shaking her head. "Well, I guess that's better than just being pig in general. Plus I've already wooed you, so I probably don't have to keep trying to impress you anymore."
"Yes, I think I've seen you at your worst now, Kate," Bod said, laughing. "You could wear sweat pants with stains from ribs on them and I'd be in love with you."
Kate laughed pretty hard at that, and there was a quick flash from the other side of the table as Charmaine snapped a sneaky picture of them. The impending move had brought out the urge to document things.
Kate was just about to say something when her attention was drawn to Neil who was standing next to Max, now. "Tell Kate the name of that club in Houston that Beaverlamp played," he was saying, sounding like it was both important and potentially fun. "What was it called... ?"
Max didn't sound particularly enthusiastic. He'd been like that all day. "The Ida Leventhal Youth Center."
"That's it!" Neil exclaimed, circling around the table back to his own seat again. "We had a great time. Marshall is gonna love H-Town." He ticked off things on his fingers. "We, we've got the beaches, we got the rodeo, we got the NASA space center."
"Oh, well, that sounds like our Moosh," Kate replied with a lopsided smile and a look at Marshall past Bod, "a sun-speckled, cow-punching astronaut. Every displaced teen's dream."
"Take several pictures, Marshall," Bod quipped, grinning. "I doubt I'll ever get to Texas myself and if I did, I'd probably absolutely fry in the Texas sun."
"Mmh." Yeah, Marshall's mood had not improved greatly over the course of the day. This was not surprising.
"Oh, you'd just burst into flames," Kate said, shaking her head. Then her mother gestured for her to get up, nodding towards the kitchen, so she put her glass on the table. "Oh. Gotta go get the food."
"Don't eat it when you get it into your hands," Bod joked, smiling at her. "It's for everyone now."
Kate responded to that with a mock disapproving look and a little thwap against the back of his head for making fun of her.
Then she headed for the kitchen, along with her mom, and was gone. There was still chatter around the table, though mostly from Charmaine, Neil, and Ted. Max looked withdrawn at his end of the table, and Marshall swished his drink around in his glass absently.
"Are you all right, Marshall?" Bod asked quietly. "You don't look very...aware, I guess is the best word to use."
He knew happiness was hard to muster right now.
"Very little to find worth being aware of," Marshall said.
And yes, it was probably understandable. His ex was dead, and it had gotten buried under all his mother's problems. He was finding it hard to care.
"Mmm."
Bod paused and glanced around before turning back to Marshall.
"So, if I were to tell you something, something Kate doesn't know I'm going to say, would you keep it a secret, please? It might paint me in an...unflattering light."
It would've been a stretch to say Marshall looked intrigued. Bt he did turn his head more fully towards the other boy. That was something.
"Sure," he said, mildly. "I won't tattle."
"I know you lost someone recently."
He didn't think he had to elaborate.
"And I wanted you to know that -- that that hurt, it won't go away. I know I've told you about my parents but they're not really my parents. I was adopted because my parents and my sister, they were murdered when I was just a baby. I can barely remember them. I don't even remember their faces. You, you have that opportunity to remember your friend. You have his face and you have the time you had together, no matter how short it was."
He paused and glanced around. "There's a lot going on recently and what I want you to know is that I remember your friend too. Amongst all this, I remember what kind of person Lionel was. It might seem like he's forgotten but he's not. You're not alone in remembering him. I'm right there with you."
Marshall bit on the inside of his lip as he listened. It was the most vulnerable he'd looked in days. There was a little bit of surprise there, too. Couldn't help it, what with the subject matter.
He nodded, slowly, and he hesitated before he replied. During, too.
"There's this... memorial where, um, you know..."
He couldn't say it.
"Where people are remembering him. Mourning him," Bod filled in, nodding. "Have you been yet?"
Marshall shook his head. "For whatever reason..." He trailed off for a bit there, then shook his head again. "Everybody's been there, but... I can't."
It was also the most sincere he'd sounded in a while. Tara and Kate had already come back, and were going around the table putting food on plates. They exchanged a look.
It was one of approval.
"I understand." He did. "It makes it final, doesn't it? Going to a place like that makes it seem like it's final but it doesn't have to be. I felt bad going to the graves of my parents because I couldn't even remember their faces. What I learned though, what I want you to know is that memorials like that are a good way to help ease the pain but it doesn't make anything final."
Bod gave him a little nod. "Nothing's final unless you say it's final. We'll go to the memorial, you and I. And we'll drop a few flowers off and talk to your friend and then we'll walk away and we'll talk to your friend some more. And tomorrow, when you've visited the memorial and you're starting another day, we can talk to him again because he's not going to be forgotten just because of a visit to a memorial."
That was... That was sort of beautiful, though painful all the same, and Marshall was about to say something, perhaps even to that effect, but then Ted came back in, far too cheerful for a conversation he hadn't heard.
"Turducken, turducken!" he called out, carrying the plate with said monstrosity to Max. "Almost as fun to say as it is to eat!"
And then Neil started chanting "tur-duck-en! tur-duck-en!" and everyone else was laughing, and Kate slipped back into her seat, food evenly distributed.
Bod reached over and gave Marshall's shoulder a quick, brief squeeze before he turned his attention to the chanting. He didn't join in but he smiled at both the display and Kate when she took her seat again.
Kate smiled back at him, picking up her glass again. "You want to carve it, honey?" Tara asked Max, but no one really listened to his reply. "Wait, Max, I want to take a picture," Charmaine said, already angling her camera to get the turducken and the mashed potatoes and everything else in the shot. "This meal is amazing."
"Who's gonna clean up all this shit?" Neal chimed in, nodding at Max and Tara. "I mean, these two are hitting the bricks tomorrow."
"Oh!" Kate perked up, raising her eyebrows at her dad. "Did you remember to cancel the paper?"
Neil had another one, too. "Oh, and -- and put a stop on the mail?"
"What are you doing about school?" cut in Ted, looking over at Tara.
She smiled. "Well, you'll be pleased to know that even though I'll be missing a few weeks, my grades are so good --" The smile turned into a grin. "-- this girl gets to graduate!"
This announcement caused much rejoicing around the table. Rejoicing, which then turned into calls for a toast, though those were directed towards the end of the table. It would only make sense for Max to make a toast right now, wouldn't it?
"The man of the hour!" Kate whooped, then shot a grin at Bod. She looked happy, for a change. Hey, things were almost normal. Right this second.
"Congratulations," Bod said though it might have gotten lost in the happiness around the table. He folded his arms and leaned them against the table.
After returning Kate's smile, he glanced down at Mr. Gregson as well, wondering if he was going to make the called for toast.
Well, he got up from his seat, at least. That was a good, traditional start for a toast. But then he roared, "What the fuck are we doing?"
And he punched the turducken. Yes. Everyone fliched back.
"We're having a goddamn party?! While the universe is out there dreaming up new and devious ways to --" Three punches, one for each word. "-- fuck us over!"
He flailed, gesturing wildly at everyone gathered around the table. His face was reddening, his voice growing hoarse. Still loud. Very, very loud. Desperate and angry, too.
"Look at this family! My beautiful wife, who tries so hard to be a good person, good to other people -- and my children, who've never done fucking anything wrong to anybody, never asked to be dragged into this!" He extended his arms towards the ceiling. "God, did you put us down here just so you could take a big fucking shit on our heads? Well I want it to stop!"
He picked up the turducken and slammed it against the plate again, hard. A turducken leg got torn off and he brandished it in the air.
"Whoever's up there listening, move on to somebody else! 'Cause it's not fucking funny!" He picked up the poor battered meal again and slammed it against the table. "It's not fucking fair!" Slam. "And we deserve some fucking mercy!"
... And that was the turducken flying through the air over the table. It connected with the wall across the room with a thump and fell on the floor. And then everything was quiet. Everyone was staring (well, Charmaine was picking bits of turducken off her shirt), and even Max looked like he wasn't sure where that had come from, and if he'd actually just done that.
Bod wasn't sure what to do now. He'd flinched and sat back but he could understand where Mr. Gregson was coming from. He felt bad for the poor turducken though.
He stayed quiet and glanced around, waiting to see if more food would go flying at some point.
No, it seemed food was done flying. Thankfully. Kate glanced over at Bod, though, her eyes wide, but said nothing.
"Well," Tara said, clearing her throat. "I can't think of a single thing that needs to be added to that." She said it like that had been a completely normal turn of events. She evn gave her husband a wry little smile before turning to the others. "Anyone else?"
Ted shook his head. "Not a word," said Kate. "Well put," added Marshall.
Bod didn't have much to add either. He gave a single nod to demonstrate his agreement with what had already been said. He glanced around at everyone, glad that nothing had taken a downturn at that speech.
Seemed that way. Maybe they had reached the point where further outbursts just passed on by. "Ready to eat?" Tara, still with that little smile.
Max finally went to re-take his seat. "Yeah," he said, a little unsteady still from letting his anger go. "Yeah, let's, uh, let's -- let's eat."
And so they did.
But no turducken. Charmaine just took a picture of the empty plate.
-----
The dinner was over, the turducken had been cleaned up, and everything was... Not good, if you considered the circumstances, but okay. Not terribly bad.
Kate and Bod had relocated next door along with Charmaine and Neil, and Kate was absently fluffing the pillows on her and Bod's bed, when she heard something. Like someone playing guitar outside.
"Huh," she said. "Must be Chastity Stargazer."
"...I don't think I've met her," Bod said, glancing at Kate. "Who's that?"
Kate chuckled a little as she glanced over at him. "It's not a person," she explained. "It's my dad's old guitar. I don't know why it has a stripper name."
"Ah." Bod listened for a moment longer. "He's quite good, strangely named guitar or not. Perhaps it's just a way of unwinding after a long night."
"Probably," Kate agreed, dropping the pillows back on the bed. "Everyone probably needs a little something like that. It's been a crazy week. And here..."
That was really saying something.
"We've almost made it through, though," Bod said, smiling. "And while things have been tenuous, they haven't worsened and that's a good thing."
"Exactly." She came closer and reached out for his hands, tilting her head with a thought. "You know, I've been thinking about what happens next. Here."
"Here as in Kansas?" Bod asked, lacing his fingers with hers. "Or here in a metaphorical way?"
"Here as in Kansas," Kate nodded, swinging their hands a bit. "Think I'm gonna move back next door. I mean, I'm gonna have to since Char is gonna put this house back on the market, but, you know... I should watch over Moosh, you know?"
"That's an admirable decision," Sam said, smiling at her. "I think Marshall would appreciate it. I don't know how well he'd adjust to something so new after everything."
"I don't know, I'm starting to think we all just adjust to everything," Kate mused wryly. "I mean, look at all the shit that's been going on in my life over the last year - which is still not over, by the way. 2011 is really outstaying its welcome."
"We're getting through it though," Bod noted, pulling her closer to him. "And wherever you're going to be, I'm going to be there too. You're really it for me, Kate. I hope you know that."
Kate let go of his hands so she could slide her arms around his waist, tucking herself close to his chest. "I do," she murmured. "I love you. You're totally fucking irreplaceable."
"So are you," he said, embracing her and pressing a kiss against the top of her head. "I love you too. I love everything about you."
"Even my thoroughly messed up family?" Kate asked quietly.
Because she did. With all her heart, even with all the shit they kept putting her through. They were still her family.
"Yes, I love your family too," he murmured but it was sincere and completely truthful. "All of them. Even the ones I might not have met yet."
Kate chuckled and shook her head against his chest. "Oh God," she muttered, "please don't let there be any more people showing up in this family."
"Perhaps there's a long lost cousin out there that might show up and be a millionaire!" Bod said jokingly. "I'd love him as well."
"Well, I would too." But mostly for the billionaire part. "Assuming he'd be generous."
"But even if there's no one else in your family to meet, I don't care." He hugged her closer to him. "I love the ones that are here."
Kate sighed and nuzzled his shoulder. He really was the best boyfriend ever, and she felt lucky.
She was about to say as much, too, but then there was an awkward cough from the doorway. It was Marshall.
Well, at least it'd only been a hug and nothing more than that. Bod loosened his grip on Kate but didn't completely let her go when he glanced over at the door.
"Hullo there, Marshall," he greeted easily.
"Hi," Marshall said, as Kate turned to give him a curious (maybe even slightly concerned) look. "What's up, brother?"
He shrugged, mostly because of awkward. "Uh, Bod?" he started. "Um... Mom is gonna -- we're gonna drive to the, the memorial and... I was wondering, do you maybe want to come with us?"
"Of course," Bod said immediately, nodding. "Yes, I'd like to come with you both. Of course."
He gave Marshall a nod and glanced down at Kate after a moment. "I'm going to go with your mum and Marshall. Don't miss me too much."
Kate was a little surprised, but then again not. And she couldn't have thought of a better person to tag along.
"I won't," she replied, reaching up for a peck on his cheek before pulling back from him. "Take your time."
Bod gave her a kiss on her forehead before stepping back and moving over to join Marshall. "I'm ready whenever you are."
Marshall just nodded, inclined his head towards the door, and turned to lead him out.
This was not the kind of thing you invited someone along to all cheerfully, after all.
-----
The ride over to Lowell Avenue was quiet. Not as tense as it could have been a day or two ago, but quiet. It was already dark, and the memorial was easy to spot, even from far away. There were candles burning, and lots of flowers, and cards, and stuffed animals, and pictures, and someone had affixed lights to the chainlink fence to spell out 'WE ♥ YOU LIONEL'.
He was remembered.
Tara stopped the car a little further away from it all, and looker over at Marshall. "You want some time alone?"
"No."
"It's a very nice memorial," Bod remarked with a sad, quiet smile. "It looks like he was really loved."
"Or noticed," Marshall said. Lionel had been a character at school. Not everyone had loved him, and Marshall suspected not even everyone who'd brought mementos to the memorial had. But it was more appropriate to love someone when they were dead. Easier.
He reached for the car door, going to get out, so his mother did the same.
Bod followed after a moment or two, closing the car's door quietly and glancing around. There might have been people bringing mementos just to say that they had but Bod liked to think there were people bringing things because they'd loved Lionel and missed him and wanted to remember too.
He was quiet, letting Marshall have his time without any talking to interrupt.
There were skid marks on the street. Marshall refused to look at them after the first glance where he'd noticed them. He could guess where they were from.
That particular pain mixed in with all the rest, and he just walked closer to the memorial, his mother silently in tow.
It was beautiful, it couldn't be denied.
Bod stayed behind both mother and son, getting briefly lost in a few thoughts of his own for those he'd lost and sometimes struggled to remember. He never forgot though. He never did and he hoped Marshall wouldn't either.
Eyes closed, Bod took a deep breath and settled himself before following behind the pair again.
They stopped just a few feet away from the memorial, then just stood in front of it. In silence.
Then Marshall said, "There's so much that I never got to say." He turned towards his mother. "So from now on, I'm not holding back. If I have something to say to you, I'm gonna say it."
Tara gave him the slightest little nod of understanding. "I'm okay with that."
Marshall glanced back at Bod. "You should, too. Even if Kate is louder." Lionel had been louder too.
Bod nodded as well. "I'll do my best. I will."
Marshall nodded at him.
Then, slowly, he moved forward, towards the memorial, only to turn his back on it and sit down on the edge of the cold pavement. His mother followed his lead after a moment.
A few moments later, Bod followed suit, taking a seat as well and tucking his hands into his pockets to keep them warm. He was quiet.
They all were. It didn't seem like a time to speak. Tara put her hand on her son's knee, and he covered her hand with his.
It was quiet. Maybe it was less than fitting for a place for remembering Lionel, but it would do. They could all be quiet for a while. It was enough.
[ooc: NFB, NFI, OOC-okay! This, too, preplayed with nimeni and taken/tweaked from USoT S03E12. THIS IS KATE'S SECOND TO LAST CANON POST YOU GUYS.]