Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me, and I am making no profit from their use.

A/N: A short one-shot inspired by the Twister episode. I had this in mind as taking place in the universe of my SL series (Better Than Fine, Fifty Nine Minutes, That Much Sweeter, Ready Or Not, and A Labor of Love) but they're all self-contained enough to be read separately. Besides, chronologically, this one comes first :P

Enjoy!

Cody Martin had been driving for hours, and he smiled as the tall rows of corn on either side of the car parted, offering him a view of the quaint, tidy Pickett farm. The smile faded, however, as he pulled the rental car up to the house and parked. He had been here several times since the house had been rebuilt after the twister five years ago, but this was the first time he was coming without Bailey.

He sat in the car for a long moment and took a deep breath, trying to picture his girlfriend's soft face and sparkling, intelligent eyes. She was the reason he was here, and if he kept her in his mind, he could get through this.

He allowed himself one last calming breath before opening the car door and stepping out into the dirt. The slam of the car door woke Bailey's 95-year-old grandmother, who had been occupied with her favorite pastime: slumbering in the rocking chair on the porch. "Whatzat? Who's there?" she cried, sitting forward and squinting in his direction.

Cody quickly moved forward and identified himself. "It's all right, Grammy, it's me, Cody." He ascended the porch steps and leaned down, planting a gentle kiss on the old woman's papery cheek.

"Cody?" she repeated.

Cody frowned. If Bailey's grandmother didn't remember him, that didn't bode particularly well for the rest of the weekend. "Cody Martin." he clarified. "Bailey's boyfriend." When she didn't respond, he added lamely, "...Your granddaughter?"

"Well, I think I know who my own granddaughter is!" Bailey's grammy reprimanded him. "I remember you, boy, it's just that my hearing has been starting to go lately." She leaned towards him, confiding, "I'm starting to get old, you know."

Cody, of course, politely refrained from comment.

The front door swung open and Bailey's mother, Eunice, came out, clad in a plain cotton dress and apron, her hair pulled back in a kerchief. "Cody!" she exclaimed in welcoming tones, pulling him into a hug. "What a surprise! What brings you here?" Before he had time to answer her, she released him, looking around in puzzlement. "Isn't Bailey with you?"

"Ah... no." Cody admitted. He was starting to wonder if this impromptu visit wasn't one of his smartest ideas. "I'm sorry to drop in unannounced, Mrs. Pickett. I was really just hoping to talk to you and your husband for a little while-"

"Nonsense!" Mrs. Pickett reassured him, cutting him off. "Any friend of Bailey's is always welcome here! And especially the boy who helped save our farm a few years back!"

"Thanks, Mrs. Pickett." Cody mustered a smile. Bailey got her sweet nature from her mother. He hoped her reference to 'friends of Bailey's' was a generality and not a personal label... sometimes he wondered if Bailey's parents realized exactly how serious things were between him and their daughter. Or worse, maybe they noticed but didn't want to acknowledge it.

Either way, they'd know very soon.

"You'll stay for dinner, won't you, sweetie?" Eunice asked.

Cody paused. Truth be told, he had no real plan for the way things would go once he'd made it to the farm, but dinner sounded like a step in the right direction. "I'd love to, if you're sure that's all right." he said politely.

"Well of course it is! There's plenty to go around." Bailey's mother told him kindly. She took a few steps off the porch and towards Cody's rental car. "Do you have luggage? Will you be stayin' the night?"

"Oh! Oh, no." Cody assured her quickly. "I wouldn't want to impose, I was planning on finding a hotel in town. My flight back to school leaves tomorrow afternoon, so-"

"Hogswash!" Eunice exclaimed, taking it upon herself to open the car's trunk and lift out Cody's suitcase. "A hotel in town! We wouldn't have it. You can stay in Bailey's old room!"

"Er, thanks, Mrs. Pickett," Cody said nervously. He stepped forward, whether to help the diminutive woman with his bag or to stop her he didn't know, but she easily hefted it to the ground by herself. "But I really don't want to intrude on you like that. It's just that there's a few things I'd like to talk to you and Mr. Pickett about and I-"

"Well, he's down in the barn, working." Eunice explained. "He'll be up shortly for dinner, of course, but..." She looked at Cody, and then at the suitcase. "Well, until then..." Something behind Cody caught her eye, and she suddenly called out, "Moose! Moose, over here, please!"

Moose? If Cody hadn't already been tense, the sudden mention of Bailey's ex-boyfriend would have done it. Slowly, he turned around. Just as he'd feared, the tall, dark-haired farm boy was coming up behind him. To his chagrin, he saw that despite his having reached a perfectly respectable adult height of 5'11", Moose still had several inches of height on him, coming up to perhaps 6'2" or 6'3". "Hey, Moose." Cody said with false cheer. The two boys hadn't exactly parted ways in the best of circumstances all those years ago; the last time they'd been together, Bailey had been rejecting Moose to choose Cody.

There was a flash of recognition in Moose's eyes, followed by the briefest expression of hurt before the tall farm boy also affected a smiling demeanor. "Hey there, little feller. Cory, ain't it?"

"Cody." Cody corrected, accepting the hand Moose offered and shaking it as pleasantly as he could. "Didn't expect to see you here, Moose."

"The Picketts hired me on as a farm hand." Moose explained. "Since they have no sons, and the girls are all gone now too, all bein' off to school or married or whatnot, they can use the extra manpower."

Eunice patted Moose's face fondly. "Like Clyde always says, you're the son we never had." she told him affectionately, before remembering that she had summoned him over. "Now, Cody's planning to stay the night." she said. "Can you help Cody take his things up to Bailey's old room?"

Cody blushed furiously. He hadn't exactly made the best impression during his first meeting with Bailey's parents, proving inept at all manner of farm work and menial labor. But although he wasn't particularly physically strong, he was certainly capable of carrying his own suitcase! How did Mrs. Pickett think he'd gotten it here in the first place? "Oh, no, that's fine." he said as Moose reached for the suitcase, lip curling slightly in scorn. "I can handle it myself."

"Not a problem." Moose said lightly, lifting the suitcase as though it were completely empty. "Come on, I'll show you where it's at."

"Really, I've got it." Cody insisted, reaching for the bag, but Moose held it out of his grasp.

"Why don't you go with him, Cody, and freshen up before dinner? Clyde will be back then, and we can talk then." Eunice suggested, ignoring the minor power struggle she had initiated between the two boys. "Thank you, Moose."

"Y'welcome, Miz Eunice." Moose said amiably. He ambled into the farmhouse, leaving Cody with no choice but to follow.

Moose led Cody into the Pickett living room. Porkers, the pet pig that Bailey had rescued on Parrot Island almost eight years ago, got up from his bed in the corner and trotted over to Cody, nuzzling his knee. Cody reached down a hand to stroke the pig's head fondly. At least Porkers was in his corner.

Moose ascended the stairs and showed Cody into the room at the end of the hall. While Cody had visited the farm every once in a while, he had never been in Bailey's room. Looking around, he smiled; the room was so her. It was as sunny and cheerful as Bailey herself, pretty and feminine without being too girly. Family photos and cherished souvenirs from her travels adorned the pastel-yellow walls and the tidy surfaces of her hardwood furniture, along with a few personal items- a childhood journal with a cheap padlock rested on the bookcase, a cowboy hat and a pair of chemistry goggles hung from one of the bedposts. In the corner by the window, a small refracting telescope perched dreamily on a tripod, aimed vaguely into the late-afternoon sun.

Moose set down the suitcase with a gentle thud, and Cody started. He'd nearly forgotten the other boy was there. "Thanks." he nodded reluctantly.

"I know why you're here." Moose said abruptly, seeming to ignore Cody's forced gratitude. He leaned against Bailey's dresser and folded his arms, looking plainly at Cody in a way that began to unnerve him.

"You do?" Cody asked, more wary than ever. Sure, it wouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure out what Cody's errand at the Pickett farm could be, but Bailey's mother hadn't seemed to have an inkling of why he had come, so why should Moose?

"Sure." Moose said in that slow, irritating way of his. "Only one reason you'd come here, without Bailey. You want her daddy's permission to marry her."

He'd hit the nail on the head, and Cody straightened up to his full 5'11", mirroring Moose's position and folding his arms across his chest. "Yes." he said baldly. "I do." Do you have a problem with that? The challenge remained unspoken. "How did you know?" he finally asked.

Moose shrugged ponderously. "It's what I woulda done. Come in person, talk to her dad man-to-man..." He straightened up and delivered a bone-jarring friendly slap to Cody's shoulder. "Good luck, little feller." he said finally, before pointing a warning finger in Cody's direction. "But if I hear tell of you hurting her, - ever – it won't just be Clyde and Eunice you have to answer to. We look out for our own in Kettlecorn... and you ain't one of us."

Cody raised an eyebrow but didn't respond to the taller boy's warning, instead remaining silent as Moose let himself out. Hurting Bailey was, of course, the last thing he intended to do. And yet...

Cody sank down on the bed and sighed. There was nothing like being on the Pickett farm to make him feel inadequate. Anywhere else, he was Cody Martin, a smart, capable, confident young man with a beautiful girlfriend and a loving family, who was about to graduate one of the most prestigious colleges in the country with a 4.0. In Kettlecorn, he was nothing but a weak, scrawny city-slicker who was never good enough for the town princess. As Moose had pointed out, in Kettlecorn, Cody was an outsider, and he always would be.

There was nothing in the world more important to Bailey than her family, and by extension, her town. But Cody was so different from Clyde, from Moose, even from Bailey: he didn't belong.

And if Kettlecorn wouldn't accept him... would Bailey accept his proposal?

There was a rustling at his feet and Cody realized that Porkers had followed him up the stairs and was trying to scramble up onto the bed. The pig, however, wasn't as young as he used to be, and it took an assist from Cody before he was able to curl up on top of the homemade quilt, his head on Cody's lap.

Cody's phone buzzed in his pocket, and Porkers started, sniffing around for the source of the sound. Pushing away the pig's snout, Cody reached into his pocket to find he had one new voicemail. He must not have had service when the original call came through.

The message was from Bailey.

"Hi, Cody! You'll never guess what I just found out." There was a brief silence on the line before Bailey realized she was talking to herself and elaborated. "I got an A-plus on that research paper I spent all last month doing! I just got it back today!"

Cody grinned as she laughed into the phone. Of course she'd gotten an A on it; it had been an excellent paper. But he well knew the sense of triumph that came with having good work acknowledged. And of course, he was proud of her. "Sorry to call you, I just had to share the news!" Bailey continued energetically. "I hope you're having fun with Zack, try not to get into too much trouble." she teased.

Cody momentarily felt guilty- he'd told her he was spending a guys' weekend with his brother and some friends in New York City. On the off-chance she contacted Zack, he would vouch for him. But of course he couldn't tell her where he was really going: she'd guess immediately what he was doing, and he wanted her to be surprised.

"Miss you already." Bailey said, and then laughed again, softly. "I really do. Talk to you soon. Love you, Cody."

Porkers was oinking at the phone in confusion, hearing Bailey's voice but unable to see her anywhere. Cody smiled. "I know, buddy, you miss her too." It was amazing how such a simple message from her could change his mood so radically. The sound of her voice, the fact that she called to talk about schoolwork... even the (admittedly well-deserved) warning about getting in trouble with Zack only made him fall a little bit more in love with her.

There was nothing, he realized, that he wanted more than to slip that diamond ring on her finger and make her his forever.

Gently moving Porkers aside, Cody stood up, a new determination in his step as he left the safety of Bailey's old room and ventured downstairs. He found Mrs. Pickett in the kitchen. "Clyde and Moose are still out working." she told him.

Cody bit his lip. He would have liked to offer to help, but realistically, he'd probably be more of a hindrance. His eyes settled on the half-peeled potatoes that were sitting on the counter. "Can I help you with dinner?" he asked. Cooking, he could do.

The way Mrs. Pickett smiled at him made him wonder if anyone else had ever offered to do the cooking for her before. "Well, thank you, Cody. That'd be great."

Relieved, Cody picked up the potato peeler and began stripping the skins off the vegetables while Mrs. Pickett prepared the steak.

"How are your classes?" Mrs. Pickett asked him as they worked. "From what Bailey tells me, it sounds like you've got a pretty tough schedule this semester. Then again, I guess I shouldn't expect anything less from someone who's majoring in rocket science!"

"Astrophysics." he corrected with a slight blush.

Mrs. Pickett elbowed him good naturedly. "Uh huh, don't be modest, son, you're a rocket scientist and that's that."

Cody chuckled, "Okay, when you're right, you're right."

"Now, Bailey was telling me about your fluid dynamics project, and from what I understood, it sounded mighty impressive..." Mrs. Pickett continued to talk about school and his and Bailey's classes, and Cody found himself very surprised. Bailey was always telling Cody about the happenings in Kettlecorn, but he hadn't realized Bailey had kept her parents so up to date on Cody's life. When he and Mrs. Pickett were finished with dinner and her husband was still nowhere to be found, Cody looked in the cupboard and suggested they make dessert. They prepared apple tarts as Mrs. Pickett asked him about his family, his mom's job, Zack's college and career aspirations. By the time Clyde arrived back at the farmhouse, Cody was feeling a lot more comfortable with Bailey's mother.

Of course, Bailey's father was always the one he felt he needed to impress.

"Cody!" Clyde shook Cody's hand upon entering the kitchen. "Good to see you, boy! Is Bailey with you?"

"It's good to see you too, sir." Cody said. "And Bailey's not with me. Not this time."

"Shucks." Clyde said in disappointment, taking a seat at the dinner table. "Been too long since my little girl's been home. Mm, Eunice, somethin' sure smells good."

Mrs. Pickett smiled warmly at Cody as she finished bringing to dinner to the table- steak, mashed potatoes, a bowl of steaming applesauce, and, of course, cornbread. "Cody's been helpin' me with dinner." she explained, taking her own place at the table and spreading a napkin over her lap. "Wait until you see dessert. He's got quite a talent for cookin'."

"Cookin', huh?" Clyde said wryly, looking at Cody. "Why am I not surprised?"

Cody blushed. Not that this was the first time he'd been ridiculed for his unmanly interest in the culinary arts. "More a necessity of self-preservation than a talent." he joked gently. "My mother is a woman of many talents but cooking is not one of them." Luckily, Clyde and Eunice laughed, seeming to understand that he was not really insulting his mother; a miscommunication like that was the last thing he needed tonight. He looked around, making sure everything that needed to be on the table was there, when a sudden thought struck him. "Isn't Grammy Pickett going to eat with us?"

"Land sakes! I nearly forgot!" Mrs. Pickett exclaimed, pushing her chair back from the table. "Poor Grammy can't chew steak, even with her dentures, but she should be able to manage the mashed potatoes and applesauce."

"I'll get her." Cody volunteered before Mrs. Pickett could rise. He walked out to the porch and gently nudged the sleeping woman, who smacked her lips and mumbled as she slowly woke up. "It's dinnertime, Grammy. Are you hungry?"

"Hungrier than a bear outta hibernation!" Grammy said, rather enthusiastically for a woman of her age and size. "Now if I could just get me outta this chair..."

Cody offered her his arm to lean on as she struggled out of the rocking chair, and she continued to lean on him all the way into the house, taking small, shaky steps the whole way. Finally they made it to the table, and Cody pulled her chair out for her and eased her into it. "There you go."

"Thank you, sonny." Grammy said. "You see, Eunice? Chivalry ain't dead!"

They all laughed at that, and after a quick recitation of the Picketts' usual grace, they began to eat. It wasn't until his plate was clean that Cody finally summoned the courage to bring up the reason for his visit. "Uh, Mr. Pickett... sir..."

Clyde finished his meal, pushing his plate a few inches inward. "What is all this 'sir'?" he asked. "How many times do I gotta ask ya to call me Clyde, boy?"

Cody winced. Although he was technically an adult himself now, it was still his habit to call people of his parents' age - especially those he did not know well - Mr. or Mrs., out of respect. Mr. Pickett had, of course, told Cody to call him Clyde several times, and each time Cody had vowed to do so... just as soon as Mr. Pickett stopped referring to him as "boy."

But now was not a good time to haggle over nomenclature. "Sorry, sir. Clyde." he quickly corrected. "Mrs. Pickett. Grammy. I'm so glad I've gotten the chance to talk to you all together. I..." he paused, trying to make sure his next sentence was phrased exactly right.

Eunice clasped her hands together and leaned in. "This have to do with the reason you're here, sweetie?" she prompted.

Cody looked up at her, startled. Maybe Bailey's mother had understood more than he'd previously thought. "Well... yes. It's about Bailey, and she's the reason I'm here." he said, taking a deep breath. "I love your daughter. I love her so much, and I plan on continuing to love her for the rest of my life." he looked Clyde in the eyes. "I came because I need your blessing to ask her to marry me."

His speech was met by silence from the Picketts, until Bailey's father spoke, turning to his wife, his voice raspy with surprise. "Eunice... did you know he was going to ask to marry Bailey?"

"I suspected, darlin'." Eunice said warmly. "A mother can always see these things."

Grammy readjusted her hearing aid, momentarily filling the kitchen with cringe-inducing reverb. "To marry?" she repeated loudly. "Bailey?"

"Yes, Bailey." Cody confirmed. "She's the most amazing woman I've ever known. The smartest, kindest, funniest, most beautiful girl I've ever met." He continued without stopping, his nerves getting the better of him. "I know I'm not Moose, I know that I'm just a scrawny city-slicker who once nearly lost you the farm, but just know that I intend to do everything in my power to make her happy. She loves this family more than anything in the world, and your approval would mean everything to her."

"Well shucks!" Grammy exclaimed. "You'd better let him have her!"

"...Let him... let him have her!" Eunice repeated. Bailey's mother had one hand clapped over her mouth and seemed to be halfway between laughter and tears. "Oh, Cody, sweetie..." She stood up and pulled him into a hug. "That was just beautiful."

Standing up, Cody returned her tearful embrace, anxiously meeting Clyde's eyes over his wife's head.

Clyde stood too, his lips pressed together in a thin line. "If you're what my Bailey wants, who am I to stop her from getting you?" he said finally. "If she says yes, then of course you have my blessing."

It wasn't an entirely encouraging response, but at least it was an affirmative. "Thank you, Clyde."

Mr. Pickett sank back down in his chair. "Call me sir."

"Clyde!" Mrs. Pickett reprimanded, finally releasing Cody.

Clyde's face broke into a grin. "I'm only teasin' the boy, Eunice. After all he's family. Or he's gunna be!" He reached across the table and thumped Cody's arm supportively, if forcefully enough to leave a bruise.

Luckily, Cody was so boneless with relief he barely felt the friendly blow. "Really? You're not upset about it?"

Eunice sat down again, but kept a firm grip on one of Cody's hands. "Why would we be upset about it?"

"Well..." Cody realized that it had already slipped out, and bringing it up again seemed like a tremendously bad idea... but he had to be sure of where he stood with the Pickett family. "I'm a scrawny city-slicker, remember? I'm not one of you."

"One of who?" Eunice said, confused.

Cody blushed. "You know..." he made a sweeping gesture with his arm. "Kettlecorn."

There was another awkward silence... until Grammy broke it with her wheezy laughter. "Well," she cackled, "he ain't wrong!"

"Grammy!" Eunice scolded, but a smile was twitching at the edge of her lips as well. "Cody did a brave thing, comin' down here to face us like this, just because he knew it would make Bailey happy."

"Well, Cody," Clyde began, placing his palms flat on the table. "You're not from around here, that's true. And you certainly ain't Moose... but that's all right."

Cody's eyebrows shot up, and Mr. Pickett continued.

"Maybe Moose would have been a good husband for my little girl if she'd never gone off to school, but Bailey's always thought bigger'n the rest of us, always wanting to learn, to travel, to explore. She loves Kettlecorn, but she never wanted to be a farmer's wife. When I first met you, I didn't understand why she preferred you to Moose, but now I see." Clyde paused. "You may not fit in much with the folks in Kettlecorn, but you fit our Bailey just fine."

To say Cody was stunned by the endorsement would have been an understatement. "Thank you, sir. You don't know what that means to me."

"You're welcome." said Bailey's father. "I'll tell you what. We'll accept you bein' a city slicker, if you'll accept us bein' country folk. Sound fair?"

Cody blushed again, knowing that he was just as guilty of prejudice and stereotyping as they were. "Yes it does, Clyde." he confirmed with a smile.

"Just when he gets used to callin' me Clyde, he's gonna have to start calling me Pop." Clyde smirked to his wife.

Cody leaned back in his chair and laughed with the rest of them, suddenly feeling much more at home with them. They weren't exactly family (yet, he reminded himself, thinking of Bailey) but someday, with a little more work on both sides, they could be.

...And now that that was settled, all he had to do was propose.