SF Chapter 22: Come Fly with Me III
Claire was walking around with the phone in her hand while talking to her cousin, Monica Geller.
"Uh-huh, it's already confirmed it'll be next month!" she said.
Daniel was gesturing toward himself, since the event happening next month would be his premiere - the Mean Girls movie.
"Of course you can stay here," she agreed to her cousin's request.
Daniel got bored of annoying his sister and went back to sit with Leonard, who was alone since Phil had stepped out.
"Hey, Leonard, do you remember Ross or Monica? Have you ever seen them after that day?" he asked, turning off the television.
"Not really. The last time was the last family gathering we had…" Leonard replied.
Daniel nodded. "Yeah… our grandfather's funeral. I was seven, so I don't remember that much. But I do remember Ross had a dumbass face." He laughed.
Leonard burst out laughing too. "But he was nice…"
"Nice? He didn't invite anyone here to his wedding," his cousin frowned.
They talked for a while, until Claire finally said goodbye to Monica and hung up the phone.
"So?" her brother asked, turning to her.
She placed the phone back on the hook. "Monica is coming. Ross and his wife Carol too. And our uncle Jack and aunt Judy too," she announced.
"Whoa, we might get to see the four demons together again," Daniel gasped. "Who is supposed to take care of hell without them?" he muttered.
The other two didn't have the courage to be that open with their opinions, but the silence made it clear they agreed.
"Uh, I have an idea," Daniel raised his hand. "We could make the four of them get together to write a book about how to be a 'good mother.'"
They still held back their reactions.
"DeDe: 'If I made mistakes, it was because I loved too much.' Beverly: 'Affection is a cognitive bias.' Judy: 'I don't have a favorite. I just care more about my son.' Evelyn: 'Discipline is love with pedigree.'"
Leonard and Claire burst out loud.
"I could turn that book into a horror movie," he continued with his venom. "Leonard, maybe in another freak universe the quartet are competing to see who's the Mother of the Year."
"Okay, that is enough," Claire admonished, but it was clear she was holding back her amusement.
[Claire and Daniel commentary]
"It was eleven years ago. Monica stayed here for almost the entire summer vacation, something like two months," Claire recalled, sitting on the living room couch.
Then she made a face. "Her mother 'forgot' to send her to summer camp. Only her brother went."
Daniel mocked, turning to her. "Come on, sis, they only came all the way from New York to Los Angeles. They could have easily forgotten. Never saw Home Alone?"
Claire ignored her brother and wrapped up the story. "She kind of became a little sister to me, since I never had one. Monica even helped take care of baby Alex, and Haley, who was four at the time, when she was here."
"Oh, there is one more thing," Claire remembered with a teasing expression. "There was a little kid who got really jealous and even tried to push her, saying, 'That is my sister.'"
But her brother didn't take the bait. "Don't worry, sis. I'd do that even nowadays," he smirked.
She rolled her eyes, but ended up resting her head on his shoulder, smiling.
[Commentary ends]
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Mitchell and Cam were at their house in Fox Hills, getting ready to head out, when someone knocked on their door.
"Alan? Wow, it's been a while," Mitch said as he opened it and saw his cousin, whom he hadn't seen in years.
Alan shook his hand. "Yeah, it's been some time. Sorry for stopping by without calling first."
"I was just passing by…" he explained in his own way. "Uh, Daniel told me about you and Cam adopting a girl, so I thought I'd stop by to congratulate you and meet her."
"Oh, of course," Mitchell nodded, gesturing for him to come in.
Cam appeared holding Lily. "Mitchell, who is it?" And when he saw the guest, "Oh, Alan, it's you."
"Alan wanted to say hi and to meet our daughter," Mitch explained.
"Of course," Cam smiled, already slipping into gossip mode. "Alan, I'm sorry about you and your ex-wife."
The guest, who had been smiling while looking at the baby, shifted his mood and replied a bit awkwardly. "Judith and I are still together. We're just taking a break. We didn't divorce."
"But isn't she… gay?" Mitchell inquired, raising an eyebrow.
"What? Who…" Alan looked astonished. "Of course…" He quickly pulled out his phone and called his younger brother.
"Hello, bro," Daniel's familiar voice could be heard on the other end of the line.
"Did you go around telling people that my wife is gay?" Alan snapped.
"Of course," he replied shamelessly. "That's basically the rule of gossip. You have to give a good one to get a good one. Didn't you know that?" He even used a tone that made it sound like Alan was the one in the wrong.
"Anyway, I told Claire," Daniel continued, "so everyone was going to find out eventually."
A woman's shout was heard in the background. "Did you just call me a loudmouth?"
"And a busybody," Daniel added, immediately following it up with an, "Ouch!"
"Alan," he continued, "people will find out eventually when she starts dating chicks."
[Mitchell and Cam commentary]
Mitchell and Cam were sitting on two chairs placed in the living room of their house.
"Alan and I were good friends growing up. We kind of had the same problems: difficult moms, problems with older siblings…" He glanced slightly to the side. "…and I thought he was gay too."
Cam patted Mitchell on the thigh. "You don't need to feel embarrassed. My gaydar went on too when you introduced him to us… until I met his ex-wife." He made a face of disgust.
"Yeah…" Mitchell sighed. "His wife is the reason we drifted apart. Judith is..."
"A bitch," his partner finished.
"Cam," Mitchell called him out, "...but yeah, she is." He looked forward again.
[Commentary ends]
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