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As Things Change - Part XXXV The following week… Matt is getting back to his normal routine. Bo takes him for his driving test and he passes. Nora is still apprehensive about him being out on the road unsupervised but there’s not much she can do about it if the state of Pennsylvania thinks he’s ready. Matt drops Bo at the PI office and heads over to pick up Stevie so they can have lunch together.   Bo opens the office door and stops, frowning at the sight in front of him. “What are you doing, Balsom?”   Rex is sitting in the middle of the floor surrounded by parts and flipping through an instruction manual. He glares at Bo. “What does it look like I’m doing?”   Bo closes the door with a grin. “It appears you’re trying to build something. What that is, I’m not quite sure.”   Rex points to a box in the corner. “It’s supposed to look like that.”   Bo walks over to inspect the box. “A swing? Well, at least you have plenty of time to figure it out.”   “I want to surprise Lauren when I go home.”   “Today?” Rex glares at him. “Okay, okay.” He walks over and takes the instructions from Rex. “It’s only a swing, Balsom. How hard can it be?”   Rex laughs. “I thought the same thing an hour ago. You see how far I’ve gotten.”   Bo takes a seat on the floor, looking at the scattered pieces. “Maybe Lauren can wait until tomorrow for the swing…”   Rex shakes his head. “It has to be today. It’s a celebration because we had our first sonogram today.”   “That’s terrific. Can they tell the sex yet?”   “They can, but Lauren wants it to be a surprise.”   “So you don’t know?”   “No. And the suspense is going to kill me. The baby won’t be here for months.”   Bo gets up, tiptoeing around the scattered pieces. “I think the swing can wait another day. Let’s go get a beer to celebrate.”   Rex hops up. “That sounds like a better plan than this.”   Matt walks into the Diner with Stevie and slides in a booth. “So, Buchanan, you’ve decided to be human again?”   “Don’t give me a hard time, Stevie."   "Don't you think you deserve it?"   "What do you want from me?”   “An explanation would be a start.”   Matt shrugs. “I was having a rough time, that’s all.”   “And now you’re done with it?”   “Yeah, I’m done with it.” He pauses. “I guess I should thank you for being cool when I was being a jerk. I know you were just trying to be a friend. Sorry.”   “No sweat. You didn’t leave me alone when I was having trouble with my parents. We’re a team, Buchanan. Even if we’re both jerks sometimes.”   Matt grins. “I guess you’re right.” He flips open his phone, anxious to change the subject. “Wanna see a picture of my new boat?” He pulls up the picture and hands the phone to Stevie. “Sweet, isn’t it?”   Stevie nods. “Your mom is gonna freak. I'd love to see her face when she gets a look at this. Your dad didn’t tell her about it?”   “A little. But Mom doesn’t know anything about mini boats so she’s not really sure what it is.”   “Can’t wait to see how fast it goes.”   “You’re coming on the Fourth, right?”   “Are you sure you want me interrupting your date with Kallie? Three’s a crowd.”   “Funny. It’s not a date. We’re just hanging out.”   “Does she know that?”   “What do you mean? It was her idea. She asked me at the end of school because I was going to the ranch.”   “And you think she just misses your ugly mug?” Matt shrugs. “She came to your birthday, didn’t she?” He nods. “And she bought you that corny horse sculpture, right?”   “It’s not corny. I really like it.”   “Whatever. And you don’t think all of that adds up to this being a date?”   “No. We haven’t talked about being a couple again.”   “Man, it’s a good thing you got money, Buchanan, because you sure got no brains.”   “Screw you, Taylor. Why are we talking about this? Kallie’s not my girlfriend. End of story.”   Stevie sits back in the booth with a huge grin. “So you wouldn’t mind if I asked her out?”   “You did? When? She never mentioned going out with you. When did this happen?”   Stevie cracks up. “Gotcha!”   Matt throws a balled-up napkin at him. “You suck, Stevie.”   Nora is sitting behind her desk, squinting at the monitor in front of her, wishing she had remembered her glasses when she left the house that morning. She looks up when there is a knock on the door. “Come in!”   Marcie pushes open the door and sets Miki on her feet. “Hi, Nora. We’re not bothering you, are we?”   Miki makes a beeline around the desk. “Nana!”   Nora reaches down and scoops her up, setting her on her lap. “Of course not. I’ve been hoping you would stop by. How did the hearing go?”   Miki lunges for the candy dish. “Candy!” She looks back at Nora. “Please?”   Nora smiles. “We’re celebrating, right?”   Marcie nods. “Yes, we are. Miki is officially a McBain. Mikayla Marie McBain, to be exact.”   Nora opens the top of the candy dish, pulling it over toward Miki. “Congratulations, to all of you. Where’s Michael?”   Marcie takes a seat in front of Nora’s desk as Miki digs into the M&Ms, grabbing a handful before Nora takes it away from her. “He got called into an emergency. I just wanted to stop by to thank you again for getting our hearing moved up. Now I can relax knowing it’s official and no one will take her away from us.”   Miki holds out her hands, waving them at Marcie. “Mommy, Mommy! I made a mess.”   Marcie laughs as she digs in her purse for a wipe. “Isn’t it just the sweetest sound, hearing her call me Mommy? She called her foster mother Mary so it hasn’t been confusing for her to start calling me Mommy.”   Nora nods with a smile. “It’s so cute. I’m so happy for all of you.” She hugs Miki as Marcie wipes her hands. “This is one special little girl.”   “Yeah, she is. But I see all those kids at the Center and so many of them need a loving home. Michael is already freaking out that I’ll pick out another one while I’m volunteering.”   Nora smiles as she sets Miki on the floor. “I know what you mean. It’s hard to resist those cute little faces. Bo and I talked about it at the ranch. I’m going to meet with Andrew when he gets back from his conference. I’d like to see what I can do to help other kids like Miki.”   “Oh, that’s a great idea, Nora. Count me in. I’d love to help in any way possible.”   “I’d love to have your input. I’ll let you know when I get a meeting with Andrew. But you have quite a full plate these days with being a new mom and a Maid of Honor.”   “I have it all under control. Since we found the dress and we have the room at the Palace, we’re all set.”   “That’s all Renee. She upgraded the other wedding that was booked that day to the bigger hall so we can use the smaller one.”   “That was so sweet, and the small room is really all we need. Lauren doesn’t have a big family and doesn’t know a lot of people in town. And Rex really only has your family and Roxy and Natalie. I'm expecting it all to go smoothly.”   “I hope so. Matthew is excited about being Best Man.”   “How is he doing with Asa’s death? I know Lauren said he was having a tough time.”   “He’s doing okay. He’s getting out of the house more, and that’s a good thing. He passed his driving test, so he’s having lunch with Stevie to celebrate. And he wants to go up to the lodge for the Fourth with his friends.”   “That sounds like fun.”   Nora nods. “Yeah, the lodge is great in the summer. Rex and Lauren will be joining us. You should come. The more the merrier.”   Marcie gathers up her purse. “Let me see what Michael’s schedule looks like and I’ll get back to you. Are you sure it’ll be okay with Miki by the water?”   “Of course. There will be plenty of adults around to keep an eye on her. Even though she’s pretty fast!”   “Yeah, she is. Thanks for the invitation. I’ll let you know.” She turns and scoops up Miki. “I have to get going. Miki and I are having our first official mother/daughter lunch.”   Nora smiles. “Enjoy!” She waves at Miki as Marcie walks out the door. Matt and Stevie walk through the front door. “Mom! You home?” He’s met with silence. “She must still be at the Center. Let’s play my new video game.”   Stevie follows him upstairs. “Hey, did you hear Raven got busted for shoplifting at the mall last week?”   “No way! Is she going to juvie?”   Stevie takes a seat on Matt’s bed. “I’m not sure. But I heard it’s not her first bust. At least she won’t be bugging you again when school starts.”   “That’s something. Maybe she really did need our help when she showed up at the Teens Together meeting.”   “I think she has problems that can only be solved in juvenile hall.”   Matt chuckles as he pops the video game into the player. “You’re bad, Stevie.”   He picks up a controller. “I can only play for an hour. My mom is taking me to get duds for ski camp. You won’t be needing any of that since you wimped out on me.”   Matt rolls his eyes. “About that… I changed my mind. I’m going.”   Stevie stares at him. “Are you serious?” Matt nods. “When did you decide this?”   “When my dad and I were at the lodge, he told me to think about it.”   “What happened up there? Are you ever going to tell me why you decided to become a hermit when your grandpa died?”   Matt shrugs. “It’s complicated.”   Stevie drops the controller and turns to him. “I got time. Spill.”   Matt takes a deep breath. “Part of it was missing my grandpa but the other part was my parents.”   “What about them?”   “When my brother Drew died, my parents kinda flipped out and they broke up. I don't know all the details, but it was bad. I didn’t know if the same thing was going to happen this time. I didn’t want to leave them alone and give them a chance to mess things up.”   “You think that’s possible? I mean, your parents always seem pretty tight. As parents go, anyway…”   “I know. But they weren’t together for a long time when I was a kid and it was pretty horrible. Maybe it’s selfish, but I like having us together as a family. I don’t want them to screw it up again.”   “Why didn’t you just tell them you were worried?”   Matt shrugs. “I didn’t want to seem like a baby. I mean, how lame is it that a teenager needs his mommy and daddy to stay together? But I didn’t want to go back to the way it was before they got back together, with all the fighting and silent treatment.”   “Are they? Is the same thing happening again?”   Matt shakes his head. “No. I think they’re keeping it together this time. Dad says they’re fine...”   “I think they’re more worried about you. What made you decide it was okay to go to camp?”   Matt shrugs. “Just some of the things my dad said at the lodge. About Grandpa not wanting me to hide away and waste my life.”   “I can see that…”   “And about me letting you down if I didn’t go...”   “Damn straight!”   “Do you want me to go or not?”   “Of course I want you to go. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me sooner. We need a strategy on how we can meet the most babes. We only have a week.”   Matt shakes his head. “That’s your deal. I really do want to learn to ski better.”   Stevie rolls his eyes. “Sure, sure, it's all about the skiing.”   Nora is staring intently at her computer when her cell rings. She picks it up off the desk, glancing at the ID and flipping it open. “Hi, Bo. What’s up?”   “Where are you?”   She glances at the clock. “I’m still at the Center. Why is it so loud? Where are you?”   “I’m at Rodi’s. Balsom and I are having a beer. He had his first sonogram today.”   “Oh! Is it a boy or girl?”   “He doesn’t know. Lauren wants to be surprised.”   “I see. Well, that makes it harder to know what kind of outfits to buy. No big deal. I’ll just buy plenty of both and she can return the ones that don’t work.”   “I’m sure that will be fine. Are we still on to meet and pick up Matt’s gift?”   “Actually, that’s why I’m still here. I’m researching all the safety options.”   “We’ve been over all that, honey. The car is perfectly safe. The only thing we have to worry about is if Matt thinks it’s cool enough.” “Well, that’s true. I’m just making sure…”   “So, Balsom gave me a ride to Rodi’s. Pick me up here and we can drive over and pick it up together.”   “Good idea. I’ll be there in 20. Order me a burger.”   “It’ll be ready when you get here.”   TBC