Alice was happy for her son but hated the situation after hanging up after Luke’s phone call back home. Luke sounded so happy, but all the reasons for his happiness hurt. Her son loved living in California and Alice was hoping that he would be begging to come back home. Luke wanting to return would make her husband stop the fruitless house hunting they were doing. His happiness for being in with a crowd and having a nickname, was not right to the concerned Mom. Luke was Luke, he should not be going by Eck. This was nothing like how an older brother should act.

The summer sun was rising as Luke stood on the cove looking towards the ocean next to his cousin Sam. Even with the bearer of the new day coming up from behind them instead of coming from the sea, the landscape was still breathtaking to Luke. The waves looked bigger, the water looked bluer, the sand was finer than the other beach Luke was at. Even with the beach being what Luke would consider paradise, this felt more like home than the other one. With how much Luke felt at one with the place, he did not even pay attention to the group of about 15 kids in the corner of his sight.

Basking in victory made Lori being sent to her room easy to take. Even with how angry her dad was and being told she was punished, Lori was enjoying being in what her dad thought was a prison cell. To her, this was just a holding pen and her mom would grant her a partial pardon. She would be able to do anything when the warden, her dad, was not home.

After the beach vacation Fred was interacting a lot more with his family. He made it a point to know exactly what was going on in his home. When the loving father and husband asked about everyone’s day it was not just part of his greeting. He pried if anyone gave short answers. Also, anything out of the ordinary lead to Luke’s Lord Protector to become The Inquisitor. This meddling was going to put a delay on Lori’s revenge on Luke. The Brat Princess still had not forgiven nor forgotten about the transgression the commoner committed against the queen.

Most of the time there was no other place in the world where Tom Downey would rather be than the Lincoln Park Bike Park. Going there was special because the bike park was only open weather permitting. His parents would only take him there once a month during the school year and twice in the summer. The trip to the bike park not being common, made everything about the place even more special. To Tom, the expert level BMX course was the best in the world. The bike trail must be the longest and widest Tom had ever seen. Even the wooden picnic benches were comfortable.

Luke and Lori were feeling anxious when coming home from dinner with Pappi and Memaw. The twins felt uneasy for different reasons. Luke was distressed because he knew his parents were fighting. He felt like the reason was because of him. Everything his mom was saying just to get peace weighed down on him. Words have meaning and those words were taken to heart. Because she never took his side, Luke started feeling he caused whatever went wrong.

For people who are on banker’s hours, the weekends are great for multiple reasons. The days named after Saturn and the sun are a break from their day to day routines. These days are used to relax from the stress of their life. These days are important to keep a good work/life balance. After having these two days people feel recharged and able to go back to the daily grind of their work. Lastly, after the break there is a reset. A restart to erase little disagreements which need no work other than time away to be amended.

The kitchen in the Walha’s household smelled of cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and ginger. The kitchen counter was a little bit of a mess. There was some flour, spices and sugar on it. Renee just finished mixing the batter and was pouring the batter in the cake pan. As she was handing the pan to her dad, the first-time baker could not be prouder of herself. Renee was going to be able to say she made the cake when she gave it to Luke.

The next day at school was the first of many of the worst days ever of Luke’s life. Even with Lori being told not to tell anyone at school, she could not wait to share. Lori betrayed her brother and told everyone right after their mom dropped them off at the bus stop. As soon as the Brat Princess closed the car door, she opened her mouth and with joy in her voice Lori said “Luke likes wearing dresses.”

Simon Harper came into the bar and his first order of business was to order a round of shots. The offer was good to anyone in the group who wanted to join the newcomer in a drink. He was just in a happy mood and wanted to spread the cheer by saying cheers with his companions for the night. Most of the gang quickly said yes to Simon’s gesture of comradery. Only Liv Perry quickly turn down the kind offer. The lady was also disappointed by her fiance, Joe Wyant, not joining her in restraining from the shot.