Chapter 35: Journeys
For Willow and Derek, summer comes with a strong urge to experience nature. Two campers at heart, they long for the sounds and smell of the forests, but when they bring this up with Corinne, she is not to be reasoned with.
"No way! Forget it! You can't make me go!"
She does suggest that they just leave her alone at home, but neither one trusts her enough to do that. It seems like there won't be any time in the forests for the two.
Resigned to a summer at home, it's with less spirit than normal that Willow picks up the phone when her brother calls.
"Come on, you can't let her dictate your life like that!" Neo snaps, almost angry.
"Well, she's right, we can't make her get in the car, and we don't dare leave her here unsupervised. She almost burned the house down once!"
"Then send her here," Neo says. "No teenager says no to a vacation in the sun. I can come get her, and trust me, I'll pick her up and haul her onto the plane if needed. Go camping. Who knows how many summers we have left to enjoy at our age."
"But are you and Malik up to the challenge?" Neo only laughs at that.
"She can try her bullshit with Malik and see how far it goes. We've seen worse than whatever some teenager can pull."
Said and done, Corinne is sent to Tartosa, and quartered in the villa overlooking the falls. Even she can't complain about bugs there, although Neo is grateful when he sees her enter the house and knows he can now let Malik deal with her worst outbursts.
True enough, when she tries to be rude, he out performs her easily. "Kid, don't try that pose with me, I've been evil since before you were born. Seriously, that won't fly here."
It's not the bes of starts, but even Corinne can't deny that the place has some perks. Like the warm water, and the sun loungers on the beach. It's where she spends most of the vacation, and when she tries to probe Malik about a life in crime, he laughs so hard at her that she sulks for the rest of the night, and decide she wants to be nothing like them anyway.
For Willow and Derek, it's a much needed break and as soon as Corinne is out of the house they pack they head off to Granite Falls, the place they first met and fell in love. It's the first time they can truly relax since Olivia died.
Derek gets to spend some time fishing in the waters he misses so much
And Willow takes the opportunity to max out the floral arranging skill.
But mostly they just take the opportunity to spend time together, talking, laughing, and romancing each other without the interruptions of an annoyed teenager.
When it's time to return home, they do so with renewed energy. Corinne, on her end, seems a bit more mellow herself, and more interested in resolving her differences with Willow. Perhaps it's because Neo is still there, or perhaps because she realises that Willow and Derek are not so bad after all or perhaps it's just a maturity thing. She is, after all, on the verge of aging up to a young adult.
Derek's painting is picking up, so on Corinne's birthday, before the guests arrives he asks if he gets to paint her portrait.
But then the guests arrive and it's just as hectic and chaotic as Willow likes it. As Corinne has next to no friends (only one) they have invited people from the family instead.
Both Willow and Derek loves spending time with little Harmony.
Finally, it's time for Corinne to blow out the candles on the cake.
And talk like an adult with the others as they eat it.
Aging up with the trait lazy means ordinary jobs are out of the picture. But a trend setter...that sounds easy! Besides, now that she is an adult she has the inheritance from her parents to live off. Willow tells her she's of course allowed to stay longer, but she's secretly grateful when Corinne's bedroom room is converted back to an office and it's only she and Derek in the house again.
Meanwhile, Christmas and Jamie continue on from Willow Creek to Oasis Springs. Summer is coming to an end, and before the holiday is over they want to visit Sunny and Carolyn. They stay, unknowingly, in the same house that Willow spent a summer in as a child.
And that first day they just settle in. While Jamie play with Harmony, Christmas and Link have a water fight after which Christmas cooks in the giant kitchen and Link watch TV.
The next day they head over to Sunny and Carolyn's place. Wow, that house is huge!
Link is delighted to be with Valentine again.
And in the desert heat the pool outside is the natural place to hang out.
Later in the evening they enjoy some Asado from the grill.
Before Christmas and her family return to the rental house. With the kids in bed she and Jamie share a cozy night with drinks in front of the fire, before rekindling another type of flame in the bedroom.
Everyone is pleased with the vacation when they return home the next day, even if Link misses his friend. But as school is yet a few days off, he takes the chance to ride his bike down to the splash pad where he meets Denise, a girl who just moved into town.
They have a ton of fun in the water, and later Link shows her his tree house, and how to play his favourite game of pirates.
For Christmas this means she has the time to paint while Harmony naps for a while.
But while Link finds new friends, Valentine has a worse end to his summer holiday. One morning during his grandmother's morning run on her threadmill, she starts feeling poorly.
She stops to take a breath, but find herself unable to breathe properly. Her pulse is racing and her heart cannot keep up with the sudden pressure. She collapses on the floor.
By the time Carolyn, who hears the noise from her and Sunny's bedroom downstairs, the Grim is already there. It's too late.
She always knew she would take over the business, but she doesn't feel ready yet. But before anything she needs to arrange the funeral. She doesn't care about guests, and clients of the company can honestly survive without an invitation. The funeral is kept small and quiet. Just she and her sister and their family as Jeanette is laid to rest next to Malcolm.
After, they return to Oasis Springs where Sunny cooks dinner to give Carolyn the space she need to spend time with her sister. It's a somber dinner, but Carolyn is grateful to have her sister close.
After, when Jasmine and Zion has returned home, Sunny and Carolyn move their bedroom upstairs and restore the conference room next to the office. That night, as Carolyn tries to focus on work, but mostly just cries, Sunny help Valentine with his homework. It's hard for Valentine to concentrate as well, but he knows he must. Autumn is coming and with it his last term at primary school. Before long, he'll be a teenager, but in honesty he cannot wait. He knows that the library at High School is better and more well equipped, and he is certain he can find more information about life and death there. Now more than ever, he is determined to find a way to cheat death and live forever.
"No way! Forget it! You can't make me go!"
She does suggest that they just leave her alone at home, but neither one trusts her enough to do that. It seems like there won't be any time in the forests for the two.
Resigned to a summer at home, it's with less spirit than normal that Willow picks up the phone when her brother calls.
"Come on, you can't let her dictate your life like that!" Neo snaps, almost angry.
"Well, she's right, we can't make her get in the car, and we don't dare leave her here unsupervised. She almost burned the house down once!"
"Then send her here," Neo says. "No teenager says no to a vacation in the sun. I can come get her, and trust me, I'll pick her up and haul her onto the plane if needed. Go camping. Who knows how many summers we have left to enjoy at our age."
"But are you and Malik up to the challenge?" Neo only laughs at that.
"She can try her bullshit with Malik and see how far it goes. We've seen worse than whatever some teenager can pull."
Said and done, Corinne is sent to Tartosa, and quartered in the villa overlooking the falls. Even she can't complain about bugs there, although Neo is grateful when he sees her enter the house and knows he can now let Malik deal with her worst outbursts.
True enough, when she tries to be rude, he out performs her easily. "Kid, don't try that pose with me, I've been evil since before you were born. Seriously, that won't fly here."
It's not the bes of starts, but even Corinne can't deny that the place has some perks. Like the warm water, and the sun loungers on the beach. It's where she spends most of the vacation, and when she tries to probe Malik about a life in crime, he laughs so hard at her that she sulks for the rest of the night, and decide she wants to be nothing like them anyway.
For Willow and Derek, it's a much needed break and as soon as Corinne is out of the house they pack they head off to Granite Falls, the place they first met and fell in love. It's the first time they can truly relax since Olivia died.
Derek gets to spend some time fishing in the waters he misses so much
And Willow takes the opportunity to max out the floral arranging skill.
But mostly they just take the opportunity to spend time together, talking, laughing, and romancing each other without the interruptions of an annoyed teenager.
When it's time to return home, they do so with renewed energy. Corinne, on her end, seems a bit more mellow herself, and more interested in resolving her differences with Willow. Perhaps it's because Neo is still there, or perhaps because she realises that Willow and Derek are not so bad after all or perhaps it's just a maturity thing. She is, after all, on the verge of aging up to a young adult.
Derek's painting is picking up, so on Corinne's birthday, before the guests arrives he asks if he gets to paint her portrait.
But then the guests arrive and it's just as hectic and chaotic as Willow likes it. As Corinne has next to no friends (only one) they have invited people from the family instead.
Both Willow and Derek loves spending time with little Harmony.
Finally, it's time for Corinne to blow out the candles on the cake.
And talk like an adult with the others as they eat it.
Aging up with the trait lazy means ordinary jobs are out of the picture. But a trend setter...that sounds easy! Besides, now that she is an adult she has the inheritance from her parents to live off. Willow tells her she's of course allowed to stay longer, but she's secretly grateful when Corinne's bedroom room is converted back to an office and it's only she and Derek in the house again.
Meanwhile, Christmas and Jamie continue on from Willow Creek to Oasis Springs. Summer is coming to an end, and before the holiday is over they want to visit Sunny and Carolyn. They stay, unknowingly, in the same house that Willow spent a summer in as a child.
And that first day they just settle in. While Jamie play with Harmony, Christmas and Link have a water fight after which Christmas cooks in the giant kitchen and Link watch TV.
The next day they head over to Sunny and Carolyn's place. Wow, that house is huge!
Link is delighted to be with Valentine again.
And in the desert heat the pool outside is the natural place to hang out.
Later in the evening they enjoy some Asado from the grill.
Before Christmas and her family return to the rental house. With the kids in bed she and Jamie share a cozy night with drinks in front of the fire, before rekindling another type of flame in the bedroom.
Everyone is pleased with the vacation when they return home the next day, even if Link misses his friend. But as school is yet a few days off, he takes the chance to ride his bike down to the splash pad where he meets Denise, a girl who just moved into town.
They have a ton of fun in the water, and later Link shows her his tree house, and how to play his favourite game of pirates.
For Christmas this means she has the time to paint while Harmony naps for a while.
But while Link finds new friends, Valentine has a worse end to his summer holiday. One morning during his grandmother's morning run on her threadmill, she starts feeling poorly.
She stops to take a breath, but find herself unable to breathe properly. Her pulse is racing and her heart cannot keep up with the sudden pressure. She collapses on the floor.
By the time Carolyn, who hears the noise from her and Sunny's bedroom downstairs, the Grim is already there. It's too late.
She always knew she would take over the business, but she doesn't feel ready yet. But before anything she needs to arrange the funeral. She doesn't care about guests, and clients of the company can honestly survive without an invitation. The funeral is kept small and quiet. Just she and her sister and their family as Jeanette is laid to rest next to Malcolm.
After, they return to Oasis Springs where Sunny cooks dinner to give Carolyn the space she need to spend time with her sister. It's a somber dinner, but Carolyn is grateful to have her sister close.
After, when Jasmine and Zion has returned home, Sunny and Carolyn move their bedroom upstairs and restore the conference room next to the office. That night, as Carolyn tries to focus on work, but mostly just cries, Sunny help Valentine with his homework. It's hard for Valentine to concentrate as well, but he knows he must. Autumn is coming and with it his last term at primary school. Before long, he'll be a teenager, but in honesty he cannot wait. He knows that the library at High School is better and more well equipped, and he is certain he can find more information about life and death there. Now more than ever, he is determined to find a way to cheat death and live forever.
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