"Caitlyn, stop screaming. I'm driving."

"But you're going on a date with Shane! Shane Gray!"

Ella let out a laugh from the backseat. They were on their way to Ella's parents' house, for their Christmas dinner. They saw Caitlyn and Mitchie as surrogate daughters, and demanded their presence every year. Considering how good Mrs. Pador's food was, they didn't have a problem with it.

"Did you talk about it?" Ella asked.

Mitchie blushed a little. "He thinks it's better if we go when we're already in California. Tomorrow we're flying back, anyway. Probably in the 27th."

"Jason owes me fourteen dollars," Caitlyn said, self-satisfied.

"You were betting on us?"

"Hell yes. Most of the cast was, actually. There was a pool."

"Oh, God. I'm supposed to be their boss."

"Dana started it." Caitlyn informed her. "She noticed you were both texting at the same time during the preliminary meeting, and Shane's face when you left... She bet you'd take at least 'til January."

"I said you wouldn't go out until February."

"Wow. Have a little faith, Ella."

"At least I didn't say you'd never go out. That was Hank Copely."

"Hank said that?" Mitchie faked a gasp. "Wow. I'm so suing him."

The Padors lived in a small, homely house in a quiet town in New Jersey. The front garden was always impeccable, the cars clean, and the windows shining. It looked remarkably common, nothing outside betraying the complexity of the family inside.

Ella was the first to move out, when she got into Pratt for her Fashion Design program, and lived in a sublet for the better part of her course. Ella's siblings, Ed and Eve, who were twenty and eighteen, respectively, still lived with their parents. Ed was an aspiring musician, who played alternative music with some of his friends; he'd dyed his hair bright blue two years ago, and wore hoodies all the time. Eve was studying Aerospace Engeneering at MIT, which gave an outlet for her extremely high IQ and active brain; but to balance that out, she was shy and lacked basic social skills. Thankfully, living with Ella gave her some idea of what she should and shouldn't do.

Mrs. Pador was a vibrant woman. She had Ella when she was fresh out of high school, but she didn't resent it at all. In fact, Mrs. Pador loved spending a good part of her life with her children. She had a catering business on the side, developed after Ed turned fifteen, and it was doing well. Mr. Pador was a bit on the quiet side, like Eve, but he loved his job, being CEO of a media company located in Manhattan. This meant he spent a good time of his life being away from his family, but he tried coming home every weekend.

They were such a weird bunch that Mitchie had trouble keeping up with them; Ella, Mrs. Pador and Ed were very extroverted, and pulled everyone into conversation constantly. She loved it; they were the closest thing she had to a family these days.

Seconds after she pulled up in front of the house, Mrs. Pador opened the door and opened her arms dramatically. They all got out of the car and went inside, greeted with enthusiastic hugs and yelling from the living room. Mrs. Pador's full, curly hair tickled Mitchie's face as she let her go.

"How are you?" She asked Mitchie with a motherly smile. "Anything new?"

"Well, they're turning my book into a movie," she responded cautiously. "But other than that-"

"Mitchie's got a date next week," Caitlyn announced.

"Ace!"

"Mitchie's dating?" Ed showed up from the kitchen and hugged Mitchie with such enthusiasm that he lifted her off the ground. He then looked down at her, for he was a few centimeters taller, with an eyebrow raised. "Never thought I'd see the day."

"Wow, Ed, you really know how to flatter a girl."

They moved further inside. The Pador living room was tiny, but not cramped. Two soft couches, perfect for sinking into, were the main point of the room. They had a TV at the office room upstairs, but the living room was simply for talking and using the worn piano at the left corner. Surprisingly, this was the most used room in the house.

On top of the old, unused fireplace, Mitchie spotted some family pictures. She sat down, squashed between Ed and Caitlyn, and noticed an art project made by Ella at kindergarten hung on the hallway.

"I heard shouting and I figured it was you," Eve said with a gentle smile, leaving the kitchen. Her brown hair was pulled into a messy bun, a pair of browline glasses perched on her nose, and a slightly wrinkled sweater. Her glasses matched Mitchie's, who'd forgone contacts because her eyes were irritated that morning.

"Hey, Eve," Caitlyn replied easily, "How's the course going? You're still top of the class?"

"Yes."

"Good job, sis." Ella held her sister closely after she sat. "Keep kicking ass."

"Language, Ella." Her mother scolded lightly. "Where's Julio?"

"Here." Mr. Pador said. He wiped his hands on a dishtowel before greeting Caitlyn and Mitchie. "What's this I hear about Mitchie having a date?"

Mitchie groaned, mortified. "I hate all of you."

They spent all afternoon teasing Mitchie and trying to pull information out of her. Caitlyn zipped her lips when asked, and Ella was having the time of her life watching Mitchie grow redder and redder with time.

Everyone filled in and out of the room, but it was never completely empty. Sometimes Mrs. Pador went to check on her food, or Mr. Pador excused himself to take a call. Eve soon pulled up a book and started reading, before she timidly started asking Mitchie's opinions on common interests, like literature and history. Ella, Caitlyn and Ed bickered and prodded at each other, but frequently discussed deeper subjects. One of the best things about this family, was that they were all interested in everything, from politics to pop culture, and they enjoyed a balanced argument, even if it went against their own.

It was around seven when Mrs. Pador, at last, asked Mitchie who her date was. She stammered a bit, but spoke. "It's- um, you know him- Shane Gray."

Mr. Pador's eyebrows formed a thick line above his eyes. "Who?" He asked, at the same time as Ed exclaimed, "The singer?"

"That's right."

"But he's a jerk!" Ed said. Mitchie pursed her lips, bothered by the affirmation of Shane's previous image.

"He's not a jerk anymore." Ella was quick to defend him. "He's been trying really hard to be a better person."

"With a little help from someone," Caitlyn quipped, poking Mitchie's ribs. "Right?"

"Oh, shut up." Mitchie said. "But yeah, he's better. And we've been friends for a while."

"Is he treating you all right?" Mr. Pador asked, pulling up a chair to sit by Eve's place. He looked like a proper, over-protective father, and it made Mitchie smile instantly.

"Yes. Very well."

Mrs. Pador peeked out of the kitchen and waved her spatula at Mitchie's general direction. "I want to meet this boy."

"Jesus."

"Don't be so dramatic," Eve consoled her with a twinkle in her eye. "They'd be as invested as they are now if your brother finally asked Ella out."

"Don't turn this into me!"

"But it's true," Eve countered. "God knows he's taking too long."

"Agreed." Mitchie and Caitlyn said in unison.

Nate arrived shortly before eight, his demeanor reserved but looser than usual. No one gave presents at the Pador residence during Christmas; they were usually shared a few days after. Christmas for them was essentially about being with family and enjoying their company.

Dinner was loud and generous; the Pador were big on talking and were overflowed with information they liked to share. Ed talked about a possible record deal - not with Lava Records, thankfully - and Eve about some possible internships she could take without having to quit her education. Mr. Pador was an endless source of dry humor, and when he was busy eating, Mrs. Pador told funny stories concerning her children and their friends.

At some point, conversation split between two main groups; Mr. and Mrs. Pador talked with Eve and Ella, while the others jumped from subject to subject.

"Now that you're finishing the trilogy, what you're planning to do next?" Ed asked around a mouthful of turkey.

"I've got a few ideas, but I'm waiting for the end of the publicity deals and things like that for the second, so that I can work them out. Not another sci-fi book, however."

"No more aliens?" Nate asked, close to sulking.

"Yeah, Natey, sorry. I know how you are about aliens."

"Even though they aren't real," Caitlyn said breezily, knowing she'd opened a can of worms.

"Hey!" Ed and Nate protested at the same time.

"Aliens are real and here, okay?"

Mitchie hid a grin behind her hand. "I know, guys."

"Oh, please." Caitlyn shook her head. "Don't abandon me on this, Joker."

"You started it."

"When we prove they're real, you'll see your fate," Ed raised his fork in a way intended to be menacing, but just looked silly. "Unbeliever."

"I'm so making you watch Star Wars again." Mitchie said gleefully.

"No." Caitlyn paused to consider. "Wait. It's got Harrison Ford. I'll watch it."

She high-fived her friend. Nate shook his head, but chuckled.

"Now, speaking about movies," Mrs. Pador jumped in. "How's yours coming along?"

"We're heading back early tomorrow to keep shooting." Ella said with no little amount of pride. "I'm coming along because Jason asked me to."

"Is Nate coming?"

"No, I'm not," Nate said. "I'm staying because Mitchie's delivering the first draft this week and I have to supervise CRP's proofreading."

"Sounds boring." Ed chirped.

"It is." Nate nodded sagely.

"I wish you luck, bro." Caitlyn's smirk mirrored Mitchie's. He narrowed his eyes at both of them.

"But, seriously, thank you for being my agent. Otherwise, I'd have to endure Tess and Brown at the same time." Mitchie visibly shook. "Terrible."