Summer Days… 9A

Sawyer and Tom are both named after Tom Sawyer. Which the children felt was completely ridiculous. But their parents had told them that it was the one thing they had in common by the end of their first date. They'd both enjoyed the book at some point in their separate lives. It had been a no brainer picking Sawyer as a name, and Thomas just felt right. Steph had always said and Travis always agreed. To continue what they had now begun, their little baby girl was named Sidney. And Margaret was her middle name. They hadn't thought that far ahead but Peggy didn't like the name Sid on account of the character she'd found annoying. And by the age of five, when her grandfather called her Peggy for the very first time, she wanted nothing more than to be called that. As she grew older, Tom and Sawyer often called her Sid to annoy her. She told her parents and a rule was set in place where the name Sid could only be used once a week. Soon, Tom barely used it and Sawyer only used it when he needed to get her attention which always worked. Or when he remembered. Which hardly happened.

=The whole house was awake and alive with the scent of cookies and the warmth of it. While the boys still tossed and turned with the aroma in the air making their dreams more pleasant, including their dad. Steph woke up and followed the scent to the kitchen where she heard the maid talking. At first she wondered what was going on. Knowing she hadn't discussed breakfast with the cook. Since it was summer and the children are all home, breakfast was decided by everyone and then made. "When this set is…" and who is she talking to?

Peggy popped up from between the kitchen island and where the oven sat. "We'll start the frosting." She was holding up a tray of cookies with oven mittens and was about to set the tray of cookies down.

"Hi guys." Steph stepped into the kitchen, heading right for the kitchen island and the cookies.

"Morning mom. You're up early." Peggy pointed out. Focused on getting the cookies onto another tray before getting on to the next batch."

"Good morning missus Wade."

"Good morning Bev. Where's Benny?" Benny being the cook.

"We ran out of a few things so he went to get more." Peggy answered. Now picking star shaped cookie dough and placing them gently on the tray. Not once looking and her mother.

"What things? He's helping too?"

"No, it's just us. I called him so he'll bring them on his way in." Peggy's forehead creased. "Icing sugar, milk… umm…"

"Eggs. We used the last ones." Bev completed.

"Yes eggs. Aaand some yogurt."

"Yogurt?"

"Dad was talking about having yogurt so I thought…" Peggy trailed off, taking the tray of raw dough to the oven.

"Okay." Steph shrugged. "Well done guys. Smells gre-"

"Benny!!!" Tanner's voice. Peggy looked over her shoulder. "Wow Benny! Whatever you're making has literally woken me up."

Bev laughed, hearing him take a long loud whiff as he got closer

"Bet it tastes good. Let me guess… bread. No wait, donuts." He took another whiff. "Coo-" his enthusiasm died when he saw Peggy. "It's you." He sighed.

Steph looked from son to daughter. Both were frowning.

"I'm not doing this this early Tanner."

"Doing what?" He asked innocently.

She hates him being in the kitchen when she's making anything. "If you leave now, I'll send out two cookies. Just don't come in here."

"Why are you baking so early anyway?" He raised his chin

"Good morning Tanner." Steph waved her hand in his face.

"Oh. Sorry mom. Good morning."

"Do you agree to my terms?"

He scoffed, "Terms."

Steph and Bev shared a look, both smiling.

"Answer me." Peggy looked on the verge of anger.

"Why are you baking so early?" "Cause I feel like it. That's why."

"Cle-"

"Enough Tanner. We're leaving. Before you make her burn a finger. Well done Peggy. Tanner, leave."

"She promised me cookies."

Steph smirked. "You never agreed to her terms."

Peggy folded her arms with a victory smile on her face.

He gasped in shock. "You're in this with her aren't you?" He looked at his mother. Sixteen years old and a bit taller than her already.

"I've been here for five minutes and I've barely said anything."

"Fine. I'll" He looked round the kitchen. "I'll make some milkshake and you can't have any."

Steph rolled her eyes. "You'll have cookies eventually. Now let's go. Things were running smoothly before we showed up." She turned him around and walked him out the kitchen.

"Do I smell cookies?!" Travis announced.

Steph chuckled. "Turn around honey."

"What? But I just got here."

"When she's done you'll have some."

"Are we having cookies for breakfast?"

"Can we have cookies for breakfast?" Tanner asked. Steph sighed and shook her head.

A days of worth of pages summarized...

Everyone got to have cookies. Travis took his in his office after breakfast while he worked, Steph took a box of them to work with her, Shane and Tanner had theirs while they played video games in the living room. By noon, the reason she'd made the cookies walked through the front door. Trip. Instead of giving him his right away, she left it with Benny and went out with her friends. Five hours later, she got a text. -Trip "Thanks for the cookies Pegs." Her bright smile was not enough to contain her excitement. She didn't reply his text. But for the rest of the day, while she played with her brothers and talked with her parents. She stole glances at the text and did her best to hide her smile. He'd made her already bright day even brighter.=

Days were spent touring with Otto, nights were spent either in Otto's house or his room or at a party he went to with Otto. And still, not once did he spend a night in Otto's home. By the third week, he and Otto had begun to spend days on end in other cities, weeks even, taking in the sites and making new friends. There wasn't much to do besides that and talking to Hannah. He didn't communicate with Tom. Not since their anger filled call. But on his father's condition, he told Travis when and where he was going and for good measure, what he'd done there. It made for good conversation and increased the amount of time they spent talking from two minutes to at most eight. That is of course when Travis wasn't busy. Other times Toby relayed the messages and Toby always had a fascinating adventure for him to go on, places to see.

In all that 'excitement', he still had to make video calls to Richard. Still twice a week. Richard saw his outings and new friends as progress. More progress which he informed Sawyer and Travis on.