When We Were Young Ch. 21

"Time to go?" she asked.

"In about fifty minutes. You wanna talk about it?"

"All talked out," she said.

I sat down beside her, and we watched the fish for a while.

"You've decided then," I said into the silence.

"Maybe."

"That's a yes, Thea; everything else is just fallout from your decision."

She nodded, let out a deep sigh, and flopped onto her back. I joined her.

"It'll change everything," she said, her voice a whisper.

"Yep."

"You know what I've decided?"

"No clue, honey, but yes, things are going to change, no matter what you decide; KJ's just accelerated it. Linda stopped taking the pill, so, hopefully, we'll have another child in the castle next year. And then a second at some point, too.

"So, our days of riding around naked in the golf carts are going to be limited. No more crazy orgies like Miss Ruth's retirement party. As a matter of fact, I have a surprise I'll let you in on. While we've been gone, my dad and Linda's dad have been laying down a basketball court in the ballroom, with soccer nets, too. It was going to be for you, Linda, and me, until children came along, but now," I shrugged.

"That'll be such fun! It's been way too long since I picked up a basketball."

"So, things are already changing, Thea; you can't stop it."

"We've had a lot of fun, haven't we?" she asked, turning and smiling.

"We have, and we're hardly dying, honey, we're just changing. We still want to be with you and Jazz, we'll just have to learn to be discreet, is all."

"You told me you'd help however you could; I'm gonna hold you to that, okay?"

"I meant it, Thea, but you know it's not just me. Linda, Mama, and Mar; Sharon and Smoke, too. We're family, honey, and we'll be there for you every step of the way."

We heard planes overhead, and I looked at my watch, surprised that we'd been down there an hour. We hustled toward the dock, where everyone was gathered with our luggage.

Carol and Nat were there, and everyone exchanged hugs, then we loaded up the planes and headed home.

KJ hopped up front with Della and told her all about his time on the island and about going to live in a castle, which I don't think he knew what that was, while she ferried us to the airport.

Burt and Allie were waiting in the private aviation terminal to take us home and, after we got KJ's paperwork sorted, we climbed aboard and were off. The private jet was a big hit with everyone, even a still-hungover Sharon and Smoke, and we sprawled on the couches and relaxed.

Everyone but KJ, who was too excited to sit still, and Jazz and Thea, who talked quietly in the back of the plane. Jazz shrieked loudly a few minutes later and jumped into Thea's arms, laughing and crying.

"What's that about?" Linda asked me. I was lying on a couch, my head in her lap.

"Thea's agreed to have a baby," I smiled.

"Oh, that's fantastic! They'll be such good parents. What about the father?"

"Thea said there were really only two choices, Cal or me. I'm hoping Cal will be their choice and he agrees; there are just too many potential complications, even if we all agreed.

"I'm excited and happy for them, of course, and it makes sense that they'd want someone they were familiar with, but there are just so many ways it could go badly," I added.

"Mmmm, you're probably right. I don't want you fathering any children but our own, of course, but I don't think I could deny them your, uh, services, if there weren't other options, you know?"

I nodded. "It would be hard to tell them no. See, complicated."

"Speaking of complicated..." and I told her about Alice.

**

G was waiting with the limo, and everyone piled inside.

"I believe you have one more than you leave with, yes?" he said, as KJ waved and climbed inside.

"Well, where did he come from?" I said, but couldn't keep the smile off my face.

"It's a long story, G. His name is KJ and we adopted him. I'll give you the details sometime over a beer, yeah? Right now, we just want to go home."

G nodded, and we were off. It was crazily cramped, but nobody minded.

When we pulled into Ferguson Hills, I asked G to slow down, opened the sunroof, and sat KJ on the roof, Linda and I standing next to him.

KJ stared as the big houses slid by, pointing from one to the other, while Linda and I swatted at the hands grabbing at our naughty bits, giggles reaching our ears.

"This is your new home, honey," Linda said, as the castle came into view.

"All of it?" he asked, an astonished look on his face.

"There are a lot of walls to draw on," I said, and he nodded.

We congratulated Smoke and Sharon once more on their engagement, then they drove off to tell their parents, and the rest of us gathered our luggage and went inside.

We had called our parents and told them we had brought home a surprise and asked them to come over that evening. Linda's parents had kept Kobe and Shaq while we were gone, and they came tearing into the kitchen, looking for their humans.

Mama was upstairs with KJ, giving him a bath, and Lin and I gathered our parents in the library. We told them everything that had happened at Nana's house, finding KJ there, the cancer, the hospital, everything.

"Nana was going to send him to an orphanage, and we couldn't let that happen. We asked her to let us take him and make him part of our family, and she agreed.

"He's a wonderful little boy who just turned four, is very loving, and an amazing artist. He's had several nightmares since we've had him, dreaming we've left him, too, and is going to need some therapy, and some time, to adjust to his new world."

"Where is he?" my mom asked.

"Mama, er, Stacey, is giving him a bath. I'll go get him," Linda said, and headed upstairs, Shaq trailing along while Kobe chewed on my shoelace.

Our parents were nervous and excited, and I passed around the photos we had taken of his drawings in the hospital and on the island.

"These are incredible," Mrs. Anderson, said. "And he's only four? But, why does he draw on the walls?"

"They didn't have money for paper, so he would draw with chalk on their concrete walls, then wash it off and draw something else. We bought him paper, but he likes the walls. Hopefully, he'll switch at some point and, if not, well, we've got a lot of walls around here."

"That's so sad," Linda's mom said.

Shaq came in first, spinning in circles, making sure Linda was behind her, and then Linda, KJ in her arms, in his new Bugs Bunny pajamas.

"Honey, this is my mom and dad," Linda said, pointing to her parents, "And that's Daddy Tony's mom and dad. Can you say hello?"

KJ gave a little wave and clung to Linda, who sat down next to me.

My mom had tears in her eyes, KJ being her first grandchild, and we answered their multitude of questions, KJ sliding to the floor so he could play with Kobe and Shaq. Kobe took an interest in the bottom of his pajamas, and he was soon laughing and giggling, rolling around on the rug.

It had been a long day and KJ's bedtime rolled around pretty quickly. We went in and looked at the ballroom/basketball court/soccer field, which was beautiful, then KJ managed quick goodnight hugs all around, and I took him up to bed, Kobe and Shaq on our heels.

I set him down on the mattress in front of the fireplace, his temporary bed, and Kobe and Shaq sat on the floor, looking up at me. Shaq whimpered.

"Oh, okay," I grinned, and waved them on, too.

"Just for tonight," I said. Yeah, right.

I lay down next to him, despite Shaq's complaints, and we talked about the plane ride and the really big car, the castle, and so forth.

"Daddy Tony?"

"Hmmm?"

"I miss Nana."

"Yeah," I sighed, and he rested his head on my chest.

"Do you think she would like the castle?"

"Uh-huh. And Kobe and Shaq. Nana said she had dogs when she was little like me."

"They sure like you," I said, as they snuggled up against him.

"Is Nana watching me?"

"Yes, I think so, honey. She said she would, remember?"

"And mommy and daddy?"

"I think so, yes. They want to make sure you're safe and happy. Do you think you'll be happy here?" I asked, nervously.

He nodded and hugged me. "But I don't wanna forget Nana," he replied, sounding scared.

"You'll never forget her, honey. Tell you what, tomorrow we'll find a really good wall, and you can draw her picture, okay? We've got photos of you two at the hospital, too, remember."

"Okay, Daddy," he mumbled, as he fell asleep.

I slid out from under him and pulled the sheet to his waist, Kobe and Shaq showing no signs of moving. Corgis are excellent with children, and I felt comfortable leaving them to watch him while I went downstairs. That, and Mama and Mar were just down the hall.

I got downstairs just in time to see our parents off. We promised to see them more often, now that the wedding and honeymoon were over.

"I'm so proud of you," my mom said quietly. "Linda, too. Let us know what the therapist says, and how soon we can babysit," and I promised I would.

**

Two months later, life had settled into a comfortable pattern. KJ was doing really well, the nightmares very nearly gone. He and Shaq were inseparable, and I think she helped to keep him calm at night, to know he was okay if he woke up after a bad dream, not that he didn't sleep in our room often.

It was hard to draw on the stone walls, so we bought sheets of drywall, and he created a beautiful likeness of Nana that we hung in his bedroom. I didn't have any photos of the elder KJ or his mom, Jessie, so I texted Rooster and Mouse to see if they could help. They came through with a few snaps, and portraits soon took their place on KJ's wall.

Cal had agreed to father Jazz and Thea's child, which made everyone happy. He and Miss Ruth stopped in for a few days every couple of weeks and stayed in their apartment; they were in their right now, as a matter of fact.

Linda had started her job at the bank six weeks ago and loved it. I woke her up each morning, washed and dressed her, and brought her coffee.

"Here's your coffee, ma'am," I said, walking into the bedroom.

"I'm late," she replied, sitting on the edge of the bed.

I glanced at the clock, confused.

"No, we've got plenty of time, honey."

"I'm LATE," she repeated, looking at me and holding up a pregnancy stick.

I just stood there, holding her coffee.

She smiled softly and patted the bed, and I sat down next to her.

"How much longer?" I asked, nodding at the stick.

"A couple of minutes."

We sat there, holding hands, each of us lost in thought, until it was time.

Her eyes found mine, those beautiful, golden flecks sparkling like a million stars over a Bahama island.

"I am virile; like a lion," I said, in my best Arnold Schwarzenegger impersonation.

"Wait, wait...OW! Okay, I deserved that."

***

Epilogue

Miss Ruth, Cal, Linda, Tony, and KJ flew down to Smiling Dolphin Cay a few months later, coming back with one very tough little five-year-old girl named Alice. She was very quiet and unsmiling around the adults, but lit up when she was with KJ, and Father David assured them she would come around.

Ferguson Hills completed the purchase of Fantasy Island Rentals, ensuring Carol and Nat would not need to look for other employment. Miss Ruth had ideas for the development and was excited to have a project to work on, already bored with driving around the country.

They also met with a few government ministers, and it looked like the Jefferson Memorial Civic Center would be a reality in the near future.

Linda gave birth to twin girls, of course, the following summer. Lacey and Jordan are healthy and beautiful, and Linda and Tony couldn't be happier.

A couple of months later, Jazz gave birth to her own little girl, who she and Thea named Ruthie.

**

If you made it this far, thank you. The ending is different than I intended at the beginning, but I hope you like it. I would ask that you let me know what you liked and what you didn't, so that my next project is better. Happy reading,

AD23