Zac
"When's your friend arriving?" Diana asked Zac.
"Soon," Zac replied.
"Okay."
Diana went back to busying herself with finishing the dinner, while Zac waited for Faith. At last the bell rang and Zac flung it open.
"Faithy!" he smiled.
Faith
Faith had been considering doing a runner when the door opened. Well, now or never. She smiled at Zac.
"Hey you," she said softly.
Zac
"Hey," Zac smiled, taking her hand. "Come on in."
"Zac! Who's here?" Mackie asked, bounding in.
"You know Faith, don't you?"
"Yep! Hi Faith!"
Faith and Avery
Faith smiled at Mackie.
"Hey, Mac," she replied.
"Hi Zac!" Avery exclaimed, running over and hugging her brother, then seeing Faith. "Hey Faith!"
Zac
"Hi Avie," Zac grinned.
"Zac? Who... oh, it's you..." Diana said, seeing Faith. "Good evening, Faith."
Silence.
"Dinner is almost ready, if you'd all like to sit down."
Faith and Avery
Faith sighed and squeezed Zac's hand lightly.
Avery bounced as she and Mackie went to the dinner table. "Tanya has been teaching me all this cool stuff!"
Zac
Zac smiled.
"Yeah? Can you tell us about it, or would you have to kill us if you did?" Zac teased.
He held out a chair for Faith.
"Milady?"
Faith, Avery and Zoe
Faith sat down, smiling slightly.
Avie bounced. "She's been teaching me how to have more control, it's so awesome!"
Zoe wandered into the room and smiled shyly. "Hewo."
Zac
Zac sat next to Faith.
"Hey Zoe, you remember Faith right?"
Diana brought out the last of the food, then went to locate Walker and tell him dinner was ready.
Zoe and Faith
Zoe hopped up onto the seat next to Avery.
"Yes," she said quietly. "Hi Faith."
"Hey Zoe," Faith replied, smiling.
Zac
"Where's Saku?" asked Mackie.
"He's asleep," Zac replied with a wink at Faith. "Got himself tired out chasing insects today."
"Oh."
Walker and Sheldon
Diana soon returned with both Walker and Sheldon.
"Sorry guys," Sheldon chuckled, "just checking out..."
Walker gave him a sidelong glance.
"Ah... the fuzzles. Yeah."
Then he spotted Faith, and grinned.
"La belle dame choisie pour prendre la main de Zac est ici."
Then he chuckled, and sat at the table. Walker and Diana glanced at each other, before Walker also joined them at the table.
Zac
"Hey Dad, Sheldon," Zac smiled. "Sooooo... having dinner yet? I'm starved."
Diana shook her head.
"And perhaps you'd like to say grace then?"
"Okay: grace."
"Zac..."
Zac grinned.
"Dear Father, thank you for all this great food we're about to eat. Bless Mom for being so nice as to cook it. And may tonight not end in tears, unless they're happy ones. Amen."
Faith and Avery
Faith looked at Sheldon.
Oh yeah, she remembered him.
Avery bounced slightly in her seat. "Hi Sheldon."
Sheldon
"Hey Avie," Sheldon grinned, "heard you'd been having fun at the space station with Tanya. Hope she's not too hard on ya."
He looked around for the food.
Zac
Zac began to fill his plate.
"Can I pass you anything?" he asked Faith.
Faith
"No, thanks, I'm ok."
They ate dinner with a hub of small talk around the table, Diana still looking unimpressed at Faith being there.
Zac
Just as everyone was finishing off their meal, Zac spoke up.
"Everyone? I have a very important annoucement to make," he said.
He smiled at Faith and took her hand.
"Faith and I... are getting married."
Diana dropped her fork with a clatter.
Walker and Sheldon
Walker's eyes shot to his wife as she stared at her food.
Sheldon just grinned at Zac and wiggled his eyebrows.
"Di?" Walker began softly.
Avery and Faith
"Cool!" Avery said, bouncing slightly.
Faith smiled nervously. Yep, Diana was going to kill her.
Zac
Zac grinned at Avery.
"I think so too."
"Does this mean you're gonna move out again?" Mackie asked.
"Eventually, yes," Zac replied.
"Awww."
"Mom?" Zac asked.
Diana picked up her plate.
"I think I'll get dessert now."
And she left the dining room.
Avery and Zoe
"Well that went well," Avery said, raising an eyebrow.
"What's wrong with mommy?" Zoe asked quietly.
Zac
Zac looked at Faith, then back at Zoe.
"I don't think she's as happy about Faith and I getting married as you guys are," Zac replied.
"Why not?" asked Mackie.
Zac shrugged.
Walker and Sheldon
"You know as well as I do that she'd be perfectly happy," Walker said to Zac, as he got ready to stand.
"Congratulations to the both of you."
He smiled a little, then followed his wife from the room.
Sheldon raised his eyebrows, then went back to eating. It wasn't really his place to say anything.
Faith
"Thanks," Faith said softly. She half stood and looked at Zac. "You know, I think I should get going."
Zac
"You... you don't need to go," Zac said, looking in her eyes with concern. "It's okay, really. We haven't even got dessert yet..."
Diana reached for a tissue and blew her nose. She was dabbing her eyes as her husband walked in.
"Walker... he's... he's planning on marrying that... that..."
Walker and Sheldon
"Yeah come on, you have to have dessert," Sheldon insisted with a nod, "sweet stuff for a sweet girl."
Walker sighed and went to hug his wife.
"That... girl," he ended for her.
He sighed, then kissed her cheek.
"Please give her a chance. I believe that the two of them really do have something... Maybe not as pwoerful as Taylor and Jane, but something..."
Faith
Faith touched Zac's shoulder gently as she stood up properly.
"Thanks... but, I think I should go. I'll talk to you later, ok?"
She bent and kissed Zac's cheek.
"Love you."
She left quickly.
Zac
Zac stared at his empty plate. Damn it!
"Why her?" Diana sniffed. "Of all the girls in all the world? Why Faith?"
Sheldon and Walker
"Hey man," Sheldon shifted over a seat or two to sit next to Zac and put an arm around him, "she's ok. She'll be fine. Your Mom'll come around."
"Why Faith?" Walker repeated, "why not Faith, really? Love is not something you can fiddle with to make it perfect. It just happens."
He kissed Diana on the forehead.
"Try and have some faith in Faith... for me? For Zac?"
Avery and Zoe
Avery nodded and smiled at her older brother.
"Mom will, you'll see."
Zoe looked puzzled.
Zac
Zac didn't look up. He knew if he did he's just start crying.
"Thanks," he said softly. "But I... I think I'll skip dessert tonight."
He stood and left for his room.
Diana chewed her lip.
"I'll try," she said reluctantly. "But I don't like it. Not one bit."
Sheldon and Walker
Sheldon sat for a moment, debating whether or not to follow him. He decided he'd better leave him alone for a while.
"I know you don't dear," Walker hugged her tight for another moment, "but in the end it's not our decision. It is Zac's life and he can do as he chooses."
He let go of her and stood back.
"Just try to be happy for him."
Diana
Diana dabbed at her eyes a little more and sighed.
"I'll try," she promised.