ELEVEN

They'd waited so long for the question without it coming that it shocked them that when she finally asked, they'd almost completely forgotten about it. The circumstances had been commonplace, too: Mark had been making dinner, and Jinyoung and Ginger had been going over her math homework at the table.

“So,” she said out of the blue. “I'm adopted.”

Mark and Jinyoung stared at her blankly. Of course she was. They knew that better than anyone. They'd been expecting her to ask for years. So why couldn't they process the simply spoken statement? Mark supposed he thought if she hadn't brought it up before, maybe she never intended to bring it up at all.

But here it was. I'm adopted. No accusations in those words, just a frank repetition of something Ginger knew to be true.

Jinyoung decided on a response first. “What gave it away?” he asked. “Having two daddies?” He was going for the lighthearted response it seemed, which was probably smart. Ginger responded well to light teasing thanks to growing up with Lou. It would be easier on her if they didn't get all serious right away.

“I was born after you are Daddy were married,” Ginger informed Jinyoung. “If Daddy had an affair with an Indian woman and made me, you would have killed him.”

“Wow,” Jinyoung said, looking half taken aback, half amused. “Smart girl.”

“The Christmas presents,” Ginger continued, “the cheongsams and the sari...they're from my birth parents, right?”

“Your birth mother,” Mark corrected her.

“Is she Indian or Chinese?”

“Chinese.”

“So my father is Indian.” Her eyebrows knitted together. “But he doesn't send presents?”

“We're sorry, sweetheart,” Jinyoung said softly. “But he died before you were born.”

“Oh,” Ginger said quietly. She took a moment to process how she felt about this. It was of course depressing to hear the person who'd helped give you life was no longer alive, but still a little detached since she'd never met him or heard of him until now. “Is that why I was put up for adoption?” she asked.

“Yes,” Mark said. “And because your mother has a dangerous job. And she wanted Jinyoung and I to be able to raise a child of our own, just like Aunt Allison and Uncle Jackson have Regina and Brendan.”

“Oh,” Ginger said again. “I'm glad she picked the best daddies in the world to give me to.”

“Me too, sweetie.”

She didn't ask any more questions after that. She just went back to fixing a math problem Jinyoung had marked as incorrect for her. It struck Mark as a little odd. Didn't she want to know her mother's job? Where she lived? Anything about her birth mother and father? She was always so full of questions that her silence felt unnatural.

They'd talked about this with Mei Hui before the adoption. If Ginger wanted to meet her, that would be fine with her, she'd said. She wouldn't get in the way of Mark and Jinyoung's role as Ginger's parents, but would be fine becoming an overseas aunt type figure if it ever came to that. Mei Hui also said it would be fine if Ginger didn't want to meet her. “I'll be a stranger to her, so I can understand that too,” Mei Hui said. “It might be better off that way. If she has Jai's eyes...it might be difficult to see her.”

Mark had kept up with Mei Hui ever since she went back overseas. Where previously she had been nowhere near ready to raise a child on her own, she was now fairly well off—her documentaries were successful, and she was now a published author writing nonfiction about fighting -trafficking and how the average citizen could pitch in and spot danger signs around them. Most of her money was put in to the foundation she'd set up for recovering victims of -trafficking, which was also sponsored and endorsed by several big name celebrities. It seemed to Mark that she was now the mother to many, a much needed source of support and comfort and strength to the thousands of young girls who needed her.

“Ginge,” he said, leaning over the kitchen counter. “If you want to meet your birth mother, you can. She's back in Mumbai right now, but she comes home to America ever now and then. She's a good friend to your Aunt Allison.”

Ginger looked mildly interested. “That's good. Only nice people are friends with Aunt Allison.”

“Very true.”

She thought for awhile, but finally shook her head. “No,” she said. “Not right now. Right now, my only parents are Daddy and Papa, and I like it this way. Having a Mommy right now would be confusing. But maybe...maybe I'll want to meet her when I'm older. Maybe then.”

“OK,” Mark said, exhaling. “If that's what you want.”

“But...” Now she finally looked a little anxious. “Was I the only baby you wanted to adopt? There wasn't some other baby other people beat you to?”

Mark had to bite his tongue to keep from laughing at the upfront innocence of her question. “No, sweetie,” he said. “It didn't work like that. We arranged it with your mother beforehand. We were only ever going to adopt you.”

Ginger sighed in relief. “Good. I only want you to be my daddies.” She bit her lip after a second. “Though I'm sorry to my daddy in heaven. I hope he's happy I'm here, too.”

“I'm sure he is,” Jinyoung said. “I think everyone's happy you're exactly where you are.”

TWELVE

“Do you have your hat?” Jinyoung asked Ginger, holding a checklist in front of him.

“Check,” she chirped. She flashed the front of the ball cap, which had the logo for the number 18 car embroidered on it.

“Your sunglasses?”

“Check!”

“Your special jacket?”

“Check!” There was also an 18 patch sewn on to the front. Kit and Lou had been very generous with their merch. Jinyoung, Ginger, and Mark were all covered in head to toe support of the car Kit would be racing in the day's event. He'd made it a few months back into NASCAR's Xfinity Series—the series just one level below the more famous Cup series where all the top drivers were—but this was the first occasion they could fly down for a race. They'd been streaming all of Kit's events on Jinyoung's iPad whenever they had a chance, and he'd been doing quite well so far, so they were all excited to see it in person, even though racing had never been their particular thing before.

“Looks like we're ready to go into the track, then,” Jinyoung said. “The Bhuwakuls should already be there.”

They navigated through the crowded venue until they found the special area Lou and Kit had reserved for them. BamBam, his mother, his sister, and his brother were all assembled in the stands beside where they were assigned to sit. BamBam waved them over.

“You know, I thought Kit was crazy for starting this whole thing, but it turned out nicely, didn't it?” BamBam asked, leaning back leisurely. “Earning good money. Sponsorships. A boyfriend he doesn't deserve leading his pit crew. Screaming fans. Hell, even the press is good. I thought since NASCAR was more popular in the south where it's not as cool to embrace the gays, they'd totally kick him out when they caught wind of his thing with Lou. But Kit's so charming they're actually willing to overlook it because 'he's one of the good ones'. And your kid, god, they love your kid, too. It's just so weird, man. Rabid sports fans are down with two gaysian guys making a name for themselves in the sport. I feel like I'm in the twilight zone.”

“Kit has a really good press-ready persona,” Mark admitted. “He's done a lot to get the two of them support. It's impressive.”

“If only I had know the little brat would turn out to be a halfway decent adult, I'd have been nicer to him.”

“Doubtful,” Jinyoung said. “He grew up well because Mark and I practically raised him.”

“And he pays you back by stealing your son,” BamBam said emotionally. “A true Bhuwakul.”

“Speak for yourself,” his brother and sister said in unison.

Ginger was amazed by everything she was seeing. She had loads of questions for Mark and Jinyoung, who only had a few answers to give her—when it came down to it, they really didn't know all that much about NASCAR. She was a mix of excitement—this was her first live race and her first chance to see Kit in the big leagues—and anxiety—What if Kit crashes? Will he be okay? She sent frequent pictures off to Domenicia, who was very impressed, and Brendan, who was less so having already gotten to see Kit and Lou a few weeks earlier with Regina and his parents.

Ginger also seemed very excited to see the faces of the drivers flashing across the jumbotron. She was making a tally of all the drivers who were “dreamy” and she wanted Lou to introduce her to. Mark was relieved that nothing was happening in her actual love life, because she seemed determined to make something happen. He was more anxious than he'd been with Lou at the prospect of sending her off to high school in the next few years.

When Kit showed up on the jumbotron, their whole area screamed. Even Mark was impressed to see it written there in bold letters: 18 Car, KIT BHUWAKUL. Kit's agents had begged him to shorten his last name or Americanize it to something like 'Buckle' or 'Burrows,' but Kit was stubborn about keeping it. “I want my fans to know I'm proud of where I come from,” he said. “I'm proud to represent both Thailand and America in this sport, since outside of guys like Kyle Larson, Asians haven't really been represented on these racetracks, and I'm happy to add another name, as complicated as it is to pronounce, to the list.”

“Who knew,” Jinyoung said, snapping a photo of the jumbotron on his cell, “that when Kit and Lou met at the Children's Museum all those years ago that they'd wind up here.”

Mark nodded. He certainly hadn't known. But it seemed fitting in a way. They'd met at the motor history section of the museum. Now here they were, making that history themselves.

“Where is Lou?” Ginger wondered, shielding her eyes. It would be time for the traditional national anthem, drivers start your engines, and boogity boogity boogity thing soon, so the pit crews had already long ago set up operations. Mark pointed to the pit, where several flags featuring the number of each car protruded from the barriers. “If Kit needs to change his tires or refuel, he'll go there,” Mark said. “Just a warning, though, it'll happen really fast. See the number 18?”

She spotted it. “So Lou's there? Wow, he's so close. I wonder if he gets nervous about Kit being in a wreck?”

“I'm sure he does. You might say he's a nervous wreck about it.”

Jinyoung shot Mark a contemptuous look after the joke. “You need to stop.” Mark simply cackled.

They stood up for the national anthem, sung by a country star Mark wasn't familiar with, watched the drivers get in their cars, then listened as some politician he also wasn't familiar with give the “IT'S TIME FOR THE MOST FAMOUS WORDS IN MOTOR SPORTS: DRIVERS, START YOUR ENGINES!”

The audience was shrieking the words along with him, so Ginger joined in.

The racetrack filled with the rumble of engines. It really struck Mark, then. This was Lou's life now. The little boy who had slept in a racecar bed at Mark's apartment, watched Cars religiously, and collected every Hot Wheels and RC car he could ever find was now in the midst of the world he'd always dreamed of. And he was doing it with the person who'd adored all that stuff with him, the person he loved.

The sense of his son's happiness fell over him, and he was so very moved and blessed that the joy that had filled his life had also been able to fill Lou's.

The herd of stock cars followed the pace car for a few warm up laps before the green flag was waved and the race began in earnest. Ginger's eyes widened as the cars got up to speed, roaring even louder than they had before. She lost Kit's green 18 car in the initial jockey for position, so Jinyoung and Mark helped her find it again. Then they settled in for the long haul—with accidents and caution laps, most races could extend past four hours.

Which naturally meant they had to spend a big portion of the race keeping Ginger (and BamBam) interested. Kit was in the top fifteen for the majority of the time, but he didn't seem to be making any big pushes yet to keep things exciting. There was a wreck in the middle of the pack, but he was well clear of it, though it provided a huge shock for Ginger, who hadn't expected it to be so loud in person. During the slower parts, they took Ginger to the concession stand and showed her around the rest of the track, including the part close to where the pit crews were set up. After awhile, drivers started going into the pit, so they had the chance to explain to her which each member of the pit crew did for the car during the brief time it was there. She was amazed by how quickly it all unfolded. “Dang, my big brother's epic,” she said, snapping picture after picture on her phone. “All the girls at school are so jealous too that my brother's dating a celebrity.”

“Don't let Kit overhear you calling him that,” Jinyoung warned. “It'll go straight to his head.”

Things began picking up again, closer to the end of the race. Kit had made several strategic moves and was now in the top 3. He wasn't threatening the top two just yet, but they were keeping an eye out for him.

And then right near the end of the race, everything started happening at once. Mark wasn't sure how it had happened. He had only been halfway paying attention since Jinyoung was holding his hand and that somehow remained a bit distracting after 15 years of marriage, so he must have missed part of what set off the action. The car in second had been trying to edge past the car in first for the past few laps, without much success. Kit had fallen back again. And then, all of a sudden, a crash had happened at the front of the pack. The car in second, in an attempt to get into first, must have accidentally tapped the back bumper of the first place car, sending it spinning right in front of him. They collided, then the cars in third and fourth couldn't get out of the way in time. Kit, sitting in fifth place, swerved just in time and was able to avoid the worst of the accident, passing the wreckage and getting himself into the first position before the caution laps were called. As officials checked the track, he sat at the head of the pack.

“Oh my god,” BamBam said. “There's only a handful of laps left. He could actually do this.”

They all held their breath as the race started again. Kit and the guy behind him gunned for it, and Kit was able to move steadily enough to keep the guy from passing him. Ginger began shrieking his name, mimicking a cheerleader. Mrs. Bhuwakul sounded like she was praying.

And then, in the last lap, Kit decided to stop torturing them. He put on an extra burst of speed, leaving the guy in second a safer distance behind him. To the sound of their screams, he sailed across the finish line in first place.

The whole track was screaming. This was Kit's first major win, the first major win by a Thai driver in the history of NASCAR, and, though Mark wasn't sure they'd mention it on TV, the first win by an openly gay driver. It was huge. The announcers was hollering, but Mark could barely understand what they were saying. He simply threw himself into the leaping frenzy of his entire row, hugging everyone, cheering his lungs out, and letting himself be carried by this blissful feeling of pride.

The victory lap only made them crazier. Kit was doing donuts as drivers traditionally did, and they could hear him whooping as the jumbotron shifted to his in-car camera. Mrs. Bhuwakul was sobbing hysterically now, crying “My baby, my baby!”, and they had to pause to calm her down.

He went to winner's circle, where they presented him his trophy and him in front of the event reporter. “You are now the first Thai driver to have a win at a major American series race,” the reporter said as the jumbotron captured Kit in all of his sweaty, post-win glory. “How does that feel?”

“It feels great, man,” Kit said. “It's an honor. I've loved this sport since I was a little boy, and to even be here, racing against my idols and setting milestones for my country—both America and Thailand—it's crazy. Absolutely crazy.”

“We've heard you say in interviews that you started racing because of Jimmie Johnson?”

“Yeah,” Kit said, grinning lopsidedly. He jerked his finger back towards where his pit crew was now holding his trophy behind him in winner's circle. “My pit chief told me that a guy couldn't be cool unless he was a racer, and Jimmie Johnson was the coolest and most handsome of them all. And a guy's gotta challenge that, you know?” Everyone, including Lou himself, laughed.

“Everyone knows you've also brought a bit of new color to the sport,” the reporter said. Mark assumed that was supposed to be a euphemism about Kit being gay. “You've also set some milestones for that, including today. Do you have anything to say to your pit crew after your victory?”

“Always,” Kit said. “This win wouldn't have been possible without them, and this trophy is as much theirs as it is mine. It's our first win, so we've only just begun our path to tear down walls in this sport—hopefully not by driving into them—and to make Kit Bhuwakul a household name that everyone can pronounce. And so all of you can get more practice, I thought it might helpful if the pit chief had the same crazy last name as me. Think it's a good idea, Lou?”

“Oh my god,” Mrs. Bhuwakul said again.

“He did not just-” BamBam whispered.

“He did,” BamBam's sister said.

“Holy , is this on TV?” Mark said, forgetting that he wasn't supposed to be swearing in front of his daughter.

“It is,” Jinyoung said, pointing to the cameras.

“He did it!” Ginger yelled, jumping up and down. “My big brother just got a proposal!”

THIRTEEN

“So, how does it feel?” Jinyoung asked, helping Mark knot his tie. “Forty-eight years old, and your first kid is getting married today?”

“I feel ancient,” Mark admitted. “You and I met about twenty freaking years ago, Jinyoung. Where did the time go?”

“To many special and beautiful places,” Jinyoung answered. “And now we're here.”

“In the Pocono Mountains, of all places. I've never been here before in my life. It's pretty though.” Lou and Kit had decided they'd wanted to hold their wedding near their favorite racetrack, which luckily wound up being near a scenic area of Pennsylvania, filled with gorgeous trees and nestled near Lake Wallenpaupack. Still, it was a bit weird to finally having a family wedding outside the town they'd lived in forever.

“I'm feeling a bit old, too,” Jinyoung admitted, now fixing his own tie. “Lou was just three when I met him. He called me Jinny and hated taking baths. Now he's twenty-three, getting married, and I've been his father for the past 16 years.”

“Still hates those baths, though.”

Jinyoung laughed. “Sometimes I'm worried I'm going to wake up back in college, worried about how I'm going to make you fall in love with me.”

“That's nothing you need to worry about. Even if you somehow magically go back to that time, you don't have to do anything special. I'm still going to fall in love with you.”

“I know,” Jinyoung kissed him gently. “Thank you for that.”

They were staying at a hotel right next to the Paupack Falls, where they would be holding the ceremony (Yugyeom officiating again, since they didn't know who else to ask), so they were doing all the pre-wedding prep there. When they were finished dressing themselves, they went down the hall to Regina and Ginger's room, which was being used as the gathering spot for the wedding party. Regina, Ginger, and Brendan made up Lou's party. Likewise, Kit's wedding party was composed entirely of his siblings. The two girls were wearing light orange dresses, the shade of creamsicles, and Brendan was wearing a black suit with a matching orange tie.

It had been so long since Mark had seen Regina in a dress that he was surprised, but she looked great. At seventeen, she would soon be the next of the Wang-Tuan family to launch off into adulthood, though unlike Lou she was actually going to college. “Yale,” Allison would tell anyone who listened. “Environmental Science. She's headed for great things, our daughter.” And Mark truly agreed with that. Regina's wildness, so very charming and bright like her father's, had matured over the years and become more focused. After a lifetime competing with boys in both sports and studies and having enough of hearing people telling her she was unladylike for it, she was ready to continue the fight to have women more recognized in the sciences. She'd always been the most passionate about the world around her, and now she was ready to put that into practice.

As for Brendan, Mark was much more used to seeing him around. He'd grown up a lot like Jackson—on the short side, with a strong, athletic build—though managing to be a whole lot calmer with his sense of humor. He still had a huge crush on Domenicia and hadn't done anything about it yet, but Mark was pretty sure she'd say yes when and if he asked. They complimented each other well. Domenicia was spunky, and Brendan was clever, and they could encourage each other's vibrant sides without overwhelming each other.

And then there was his Ginger, Ginger who was looking lovelier by the day, who was like a blossoming bud heading closer and closer to the spring where she would bloom completely. And not only was she becoming more and more beautiful, but she was also more confident and assured as well. She was intelligent and curious and sensitive and open, and she never limited herself. Anything that interested her, she learned, and anything she didn't understand, she explored. She was like all of the best traits of Jinyoung, Mark, Mei Hui, and presumably Jai combined.

Naturally, since she was also a teenage girl, she also had her silly moments, and was interested in cute boys and trendy clothes. But Mark didn't worry about that side of her as much anymore. She was smart. He trusted her. She would choose for herself as wisely as she chose everything. She was still holding out for Dev Patel, though.

“How do I look Daddy, Papa?” she asked, giving a twirl.

“Perfect, as always,” Jinyoung said. “I like how they did your hair.”

“How about mine?” Brendan joked, tucking the wrist corsage he had been holding on to for Regina behind his ear.

“Gorgeous,” Mark reported. “You're a knock out, like always.”

“You're looking good yourselves,” Regina said. “Fathers of the groom. Must feel good.”

“It'll take some getting used to.”

“That's what Dad said. He's been getting as emotional as Mom.”

“Can we go see them now?” Ginger asked. “We're all dressed and ready. BamBam and everyone already went to go meet up with Kit.”

“Sure. They're waiting for us in the lobby. Let's get to it.”

Lou and Allison and Jackson were waiting for them near the hotel entrance. Mark felt a lump in his throat as soon as he saw his son. There weren't many traces of the boy he'd been in his face, but they were everywhere in his heart. Mark felt the overpowering urge to hold onto him for dear life. My baby, you were the one who gave me happiness when I thought I had nothing left. You were the happiness that helped me learn how to extend my happiness to others. You're ready for this chapter in your life, but I need to be ready to let you go.

Lou must have seen the look on his face, since he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around Mark. “Hey,” he said softly. “Remember I'm not going anywhere. I'm just getting a new last name, kay?”

“I know,” Mark said, though his voice came out a little choked. “I'm proud of you, son.”

“Thanks. I owe you for raising me so well.”

Mark smoothed Lou's tux jacket, trying to keep himself calm. “You've always been a good kid. The best kid. The kid who rarely gave me a moment's worry and whose heart always went out to others when they needed it. I remember at your kindergarten graduation, the teacher said you were the class smile. Well, Lou, you've always been my smile, too. Always. So I hope...I hope you'll do your best to make Kit smile for every day of his life, too.”

“I will,” Lou said with a grin. “I definitely will.”

“And come home to visit a lot, OK?” Jinyoung said, blinking back his own tears. “The house feels empty without you. So don't be a stranger.”

“I won't, Papa,” Lou said, hugging Jinyoung tightly. “I'd miss you too much.”

The ceremony was a beautiful one. Kit was already set up near the falls with Yugyeom, so Lou had the dramatic 'entering' role. He couldn't chose which one of his parents should walk him in, so he'd just widened the aisle so all four of them could. They went down the paper runner after the wedding party had processed in and came face-to-face with Lou with best man BamBam at his side. The look on his face when he saw Lou was pure Kit—a big old grin.

The guest list had been kept as small as possible, but a lot of people had still come. All the Wangs, all the Tuans, all the Parks, and all the Bhuwakuls were naturally there, as were the rest of Kit's pit crew and numerous groups of his and Lou's racing buddies and their wives. There were a smattering of their old classmates, the guys from the mechanic shop where Lou had worked, some of Regina and Brendan and Ginger's friends including Domenicia and her parents, and even some familiar faces from the neighborhood. If Mark wasn't mistaken, there were a few people from the media there as well to report on the nuptials—this was a pretty rare event for the sport, for one, and there were some interesting points to both Lou and Kit's background from Lou being raised by one set of gay parents to the big s between both Lou and Kit and their siblings.

The ceremony itself was beautiful. Yugyeom was an old pro at this by now and gave a rousing NASCAR themed speech for the boys while sprinkling in childhood tales of both of them. He'd known Kit since his infancy, having been close to BamBam, and knew some pretty embarrassing childhood dirt. He also recounted how he'd met Lou when Mark and Jinyoung had gotten married.

“I got to watch those two at the reception all night, and let me tell ya,” Yugyeom said. “When you looked at them, you just kind of knew. Not that they were in love. They were kind of young for that, then. But you knew that they made each other happy, that they cared about each other, that one day that feeling would mean more to them than they knew. So I think none of us are really surprised to be here. Just happy. Just blessed.”

After they exchanged their vows and rings, they were pronounced maried. Kit kissed Lou so long after their announcement that he really gave the media photographer something to think about.

The reception were held in an upscale venue near the waterside, but Mark wouldn't call the atmosphere itself upscale, considering how BamBam, Jackson, Yugyeom, and the Bhuwakul and Tuan siblings seemed to immediately come up with the brilliant idea to get trashed with all of the grooms' NASCAR buddies. They were all having the time of their lives, but Mark wanted to stay sober for the night. He was feeling the solemnity of it, as Allison also seemed to be feeling. She kept looking at Lou with a smile and tears in her eyes.

After the dinner buffet, Mark made sure to drop by and congratulate Kit, who he hadn't gotten to speak to for long yet. “You sure pulled a fast one on me, infiltrating the family and stealing my son,” he teased. “But I hope you know I wouldn't have let him go off with just anyone. When I first met Jinyoung's parents, their biggest concern about letting us get married was that we wouldn't be able to protect Lou from people who hurt him because of us. I promised them we wouldn't let that happen, that we would fight for Lou, but... more so than us, I think you were always the one who fought for him the most. You gave him everything he needed from acceptance to friendship to love right from the very beginning, and I really couldn't ask for a better gift for the son I love so much than that. So...just keep taking good care of him, OK? I'm trusting one of the precious pieces of my heart to you.”

“I won't let you down when it comes to that,” Kit said, earnestly. “There is no one on the planet capable of loving that kid more than me. I can't win unless he's out there with me, so I'm going to hold on to him no matter what happens or what anyone says, just like you and Jinyoung do. I got all my love advice from the masters, after all.” He winked at Mark.

He was just charming enough to get away with it, too. Mark gave a light rap on the head, then a friendly smack on the back. “You're our son now, too. Behave yourself.”

"All right, Mark. Or is that 'Daddy' now?"

"I say something incredibly sappy to you, and you're still like this" Mark said in amazement. "Please, just call me Mark. And once again: behave yourself." 

After that, Mark went to check on Allison.

“Oh Mark,” she said, blinking back tears. “You feel this as much as me, don't you? Our little boy. All grown up and somebody's husband.”

“I know, Allie. It feels like a dream.”

“When did we get so old, Mark? Weren't we just in college yesterday?” She squeezed his hand. “If there's one thing you and I got right, it was Lou. He'll always be the best decision of our lives.”

“He was,” Mark said gently. “It was always an honor.”

“Yeah.” She blew her nose. “And I'm probably going to have to do this two more times with Regina and Brendan. It's so happy, but so rough at the same time. Maybe the next role on our list is becoming grandparents. We're just forty-eight, but...grandma and grandpa. It feels like just yesterday, I had two toddlers running around calling me Mommy. Life sneaks up on you. It still amazes me sometimes.”

“Hey, no one's pregnant yet,” Mark joked. “You have some time.”

“I know. But that goes by pretty quickly, too.”

It wasn't long before the dancing started, Lou and Kit hilariously choosing Metallica's “Fuel” as their first dance song, which entailed a lot of thrashing and headbanging while yelling “GIVE ME FUEL, GIVE ME FIRE, GIVE ME THAT WHICH I DESIRE!” It was their style, though, and Mark was glad they were doing things their way. After a few country picks to satisfy the NASCAR drivers in the room, the first ballad of the night, “Amazed” by Lonestar, came on.

He found Ginger over by Brendan, giving him several pokes in the back. “If you don't ask Domenicia to dance, I'm going to tell her about the time you threw up on Santa at the mall,” Ginger was saying.

“You wouldn't,” Brendan said, scowling.

“Yes, I would. And I'll tell her that you slept with a plushie called Mr. Pookins until last year.”

“Says the girl who still sleeps with Ow.”

“Yeah, but I'm not ashamed of Ow.”

Brendan scowled, but got to his feet. Mark and Ginger watched as he went over to Domenicia, who was chatting with some of Mark's nieces and nephews, tapped her on the back, and extended his hand.

Ginger smiled, then sighed. “I'm jealous,” she said. “I want to be in love, too.”

“It'll happen before you know it, sweetie,” Mark said, rubbing her hair. “To be honest, I don't really want you to grow up too fast in the first place.”

“I know, Daddy.” She kissed his cheek. “I'm not ready to go away from you and Papa either. So let's keep sticking together.” She grinned. “But in the meantime, I think it's okay for me to have a boyfriend.”

“There's no arguing with you, Ginge.”

“I know.” She rested her chin on his shoulder. “Why aren't you dancing with Papa?”

“He's stuck between drunk BamBam and drunk Jackson right now. It's not a safe zone.”

“You're not going to rescue him?”

“No. But I'll at least give him an excuse to leave.” He gave Ginger's head another pat. “I think I'm going to step outside for some fresh air. The scenery is so beautiful.”

"All right. I'm going to stand around and look cute until someone asks me to dance."

Mark went outside of the venue and sat down on the front steps, taking a deep breath. Today came with so many odd feelings. He was beyond happy for his son. But it still felt a little bittersweet at the same time. Ten years from now, he could be giving Ginger away. His kids could start having children. It would be a new chapter, an exciting one surely, but he wouldn't be the center of it anymore. He would be the grandparent flying in for special events and leaving his children to their responsibilities. He would be turning grey. Hopefully not losing his hair, but maybe it would start to thin a little. His children would be the ones with the exciting lives, the younger generation stepping up to take their place.

But maybe that would be a happy thing, too. Retiring with Jinyoung, holding grandbabies on their lap, spending relaxing afternoons in, maybe traveling the world, maybe doing all the things they hadn't had time to do before. Maybe even one day going to the senior dancing events at the gazebo at Lake Park, where they'd been married. Maybe he'd be crushing the Super-Moms-turned-Super-Grannies at bingo in an elderly form of petty revenge.

He felt Jinyoung sitting down on the steps beside him without needing to turn and look at him. “You're only forty-eight, hun,” Jinyoung said. “Stop looking like Lou getting married means you have a foot in the grave.”

“Who let you read my mind?” Mark asked, smiling. “I'm glad you managed to escape the drunkards. Did you tell them you needed to check on me?”

“Oh, did you do that on purpose?”

“A little. I also needed some air.”

“Yeah, me too.” He grabbed Mark's hand and laced their fingers together. “Things are starting to shift again, aren't they?”

“Yeah.”

“But it's okay. The things around us may be changing, but the center is still the same. And that's me and you.” He rested his head on Mark's shoulder. “No matter what changes, I'll be right here, OK?”

“And I'll be here with you.” He leaned his head against Jinyoung's. “I love you, Jinyoung Park Tuan.”

“I love you, too.”

The two of them sat there for a long time on the steps of the venue, sitting in silence on the other side of the music and chaos inside and enjoying the solitude of their togetherness, as comforting as it always was, until it was time for them to go inside and rejoin the party awaiting them.

-FIN-

A/N: Thank you so much for reading and supporting Cinnamon & Ginger! Before you get too sad about this being the finale, please check out my blog and read up a little bit about what's next on the agenda!!

Also, as many of you may know, I've been staying in Japan for the past year on a work trip, but in eight days, but I will be flying back home to America to move back to my hometown in Ohio. I know I've been pretty good about consistently releasing new things every week, but I'm going to be taking a short hiatus until the middle of January so I can get moved and sttled in. As soon as I've settled, I'll begin publishing the Fic #1 promised in my last blog poll. Even though there wll be a little bit of a wait, I hope you will anticipate it!!

Once again, thank you so much for the love and support!! This fic has been a joy for me to write, and all of you were a huge part of that joy!