Rating: PG

Summary: Going home.

Spoilers: Nope.
 

MICHAEL:

April 5, 2001
 

We stayed up REAL late. Dad and Jo ended up getting even more wasted when we got home. They sat up, shot the breeze, and hardly even noticed we were there.

Do you think me and Kelly took advantage of this?

You bet we did.

We filled up the big old claw foot tub in the downstairs bathroom and spent a good long time just soaking. Kelly swiped some of Jo's bubble bath-sort of smelled like pears, which I didn't mind. Just sitting in there, stuffed, tired, naked and wet, it was awesome. We'd just keep adding hot water when it got cool, until we almost fell asleep in there.

And I spent the night in Kelly's bed. God, just being curled up next to her, feeling how warm she is-trust me, I didn't need my sweats. We both slept without any clothes on.

I could just stay here forever.

"Michael..." Kelly's shaking me awake.

"Wha--?" I'm in this thick, delicious sleepy fog, and I have no desire to blow it away.

"Don't we have to be out of here at 10?"

"Think so." I close my eyes again, reach for her.

"Well, it's 9:42."

"Uh-huh."

"Michael, our time is up in 18 minutes."

OH SHIT!

"Dad and Jo still sleeping?" Or more specifically, passed out.

"Must be. I don't hear them."

At least I have my sweatpants, so I can be marginally decent when I go to check on the big kids.

They are totally down for the count. Dad's on his sofa, Jo's sound asleep in mine.

Good thing I stayed in Kelly's bed. There's not much room on the sofa for company, and while Jo is a very cool lady, sleeping with her is not exactly what I had in mind.

"Dad! We gotta go!" I'm shouting at them, hoping to rouse both of them.

Dad mumbles, swears under his breath. "Michael, what's your problem now?"

"Uh, Dad? We got 16 minutes now to clear outta here."

This makes him open his eyes, super wide, like he's in shock or something. "We don't have to be out until 10."

"Yeah, well, it's now 9:44."

"Michael, this is a very cruel joke, even for you." He snaps his eyes back shut, like the light is hurting them.

I bet it does. He downed like an entire fifth of J&B last night.

Yecch.

"Hello?! Check your watch! C'mon, move it!"

I have a very loud voice, and I'm using it to my advantage this morning.

I notice it hasn't affected Jo in the least. I shake her awake, and I get greeted by this pained howl.

A little too much merlot, pretty lady? I think so.

"Hey, Jo, we gotta get outta here. It's time."

"Oh, dear." She can barely open her eyes. "I'm not packed." She hasn't even tried to move.

"I'll pack your stuff," Kelly offers. She's already got her backpack stuffed and ready. Well, I mean, it's not like she has a lot.

Jo mutters something that sounds like thank you, and I try to sit her up.

She looks like shit.

Dad's throwing his stuff in his duffel, missing about half the time, and swearing a blue streak and a half.

And he complains about my mouth.

Finally, everybody's gear is packed up. Kelly then says our swimsuits are still outside, she'll find a plastic bag and stuff them in, with the towels.

I'm not worried about how to stuff the gear in the car. I'm worried about stuffing the adults in.

It's 9:57. We've got three minutes. Sounds like the cleaning crew's pulling up in back.

Well, we can always take showers when we get back to Virginia.
 

Dad and Jo are passed out again before we even get to Morehead City. I slept the way down here, but thanks to MapQuest, we've got good directions that Dad at least had the brains to leave in the car.

Not that he would need them. He can probably do this drive in his sleep. I bet he has. But Jo drove part of the way down, and she didn't know the way.

We're caffeine-deprived, so we stop at Starbucks in Morehead City. Sort of like the McDonalds of coffee drinking. Kelly goes in and grabs four ventes and a bunch of muffins. I keep an eye on the derelicts in the back seat.

Kelly didn't have time to wash her hair, so she's got it bundled up in this butterfly clip that looks like it's got these huge teeth in it. She looks real cute like this. I never noticed what a pretty neck she has.

But now I do. We're out of Atlantic Beach, vacation's over, but I still get to discover neat things about her.

I want that to keep happening.

And I want to keep discovering stuff about my dad. That was a real cool part of the trip.

Kelly says she's tired, she's still sniffling and coughing, asks if I mind if she takes a nap.

She might as well. Everyone else is. She falls over and her head leans on my shoulder.

It strikes me funny that I'm the only one in good enough shape to drive right now.

We pass through bunches of towns...Havelock, New Bern, Kinston, LaGrange, Goldsboro...till we pick up the 95. I wonder how many times my dad drove through these towns.
 

Kelly snoozes for a while, but she wakes up when we get on the 95. Dad and Jo are still pretty out of it.

Good thing, too. Don't need either of them getting carsick on me.

God, I didn't want to leave. But now we're going back home.

I hope not everything goes back the way it was before.

Well, it's not like it could.

Kelly tells me she loves me.

Oh man. I love her so much...I just started figuring out how much when we were at the shore.

Dad wakes up a little bit, asks me if I'm okay, and promptly falls back to sleep. I tell him I'm fine.

Least Jo's got a decent car. The Maxima does pretty good, even if it's not quite my image.

Jo wakes up when we get close to the Virginia state line. I tell her I'm fine, and then she conks out again.

Kelly and me, we talk about stuff. About school and papers and finals. About where we'll go for upper division.

She seems to assume that we'll be together for upper division. This makes me feel real good.

I want her there. I need her there.

Cross the Virginia state line.
 

MELVIN, HEADED HOME:

I shouldn't have drunk so much.

At least Michael doesn't seem to mind schlepping us home.

I had a chance to see just how much he's grown on this trip. And to get to know his young lady a little better.

This is important, because it looks like they're going to be together for a while.

And maybe Michael feels like he knows me a little better. I hope so. It's hard for me to break down the walls. I spent so long building them to be so high and so strong.

But he chips away at them, and crumb by crumb, they fall away.

And I did get to see Jo get totally drunk. I didn't think she'd ever do something like that, but then again, this trip was a chance for her to climb out of her skin for a while. I am sure that once we are back in Alexandria-Fairfax for Jo-she will climb comfortably back into the one she wears in her everyday life.

And in some circuitous way, I had a chance to be with Dee.

I still feel her with me, even as we move closer to home.
 

MICHAEL:

Figures that everybody would wake up about now, seeing as we're about 15 miles from Alexandria.

I feel my stomach tighten up a bit. Back to the salt mines again.

First stop when we get to Alexandria is Chateau Langly to drop off Kelly. The lord and lady of the manor are there, and Miranda, and they seem all happy to see us. I tell Kelly I'll call her later, and give her a kiss that makes Langly's eyebrows shoot way up.

Take that, dude.

Then we drive to our house, and I hand Jo back her car keys. We grab our gear and head up.

It's the same as when we left it. I mean, duh! What was I expecting?

I look around, and it seems sort of empty, in a way.

"Dad, we need a cat."

He groans, but I don't hear him say no.

I'm gonna find me a cat.
 

Dad tells me we need some milk and beer and a few supplies, and I tell him I'll go get them, I'm in a lot better shape than him. He lies down on the sofa, and I head out for the Safeway.

I haven't driven the 'Stang in a week. It's gonna be weird to be back in it.

I hope to hell it starts. I'm real tired and not in the mood to work on the damn car.

I grab a few things, buck the Saturday evening crowds, and head back home.
 

I'm grabbing the bags of stuff and heading up for our apartment when I see something out of the corner of my eye. Or should I say, someone.

He looks vaguely familiar. I know I've seen him somewhere.

Or maybe I'm just imagining it.

Just as I'm imagining he's watching me.

I notice him crush out a cigarette.

I shouldn't worry so much.

Or should I?

Not tonight. Dad's waiting for me.

THE END-FOR NOW
 

Hey guys-don't get the idea I'm done. Casey still expects me to keep writing, seeing as the semester's still not over. So come back for Book III, 'Invictus Maneo.' Ally taught me that phrase, it means 'I remain unconquered' in Latin. I like it.

So come back later. After Dad shakes his hangover.

Michael