Chapter 9

Orientation

It was an amazing night, one Lydia wouldn't soon forget; Charlie was always such a romantic, but he definitely outdid himself this time.

There were candles everywhere casting a pinkish glow to the light blue walls. There were roses on the kitchen table, red ones this time, and a trail of red rose petals disappeared into the hallway, leading down to the bedroom.

He had a bottle of her favorite wine waiting; as they drank a glass together and talked, he cooked her dinner and they ate underneath the twilight sky, watching it grow darker and darker.

Then he took her to the bedroom and made love to her... twice.

As good as it was to be away from their lives for a little while to spend time together and behave like they were twenty-one again, the following morning Lydia was looking forward to going back home to the girls.

She called Avery when she woke up at eight, figuring the girl would be up by now too since she was such an early riser.

"Hey hon," Lydia said when the fifteen year-old picked up on the second ring. "No house fires?" she asked, glancing behind her at Charlie, who was lying in bed, eyes closed but with that crooked grin of his on his face.

"Nah, it's all good," Avery replied on the other end of the line. "How was your night?" she asked and Lydia could almost hear her goofy smile.

"It was very nice," Lydia smiled. She could hear the sound of pots and pans as well as a kitchen drawer slamming shut. "How was yours?" she added.

"It was okay," Avery answered. "Hey I've got to go finish breakfast, I'll see guys later."

"Alright, we should be home in a couple hours," Lydia said quickly before hanging up and tossing her phone onto her purse on a white armchair.

Eyes still closed, Charlie grumbled something inaudible into the pillows and reached for Lydia's wrist, tugging her back in bed.

"We should be thinking about getting up," Lydia told him, pressing a kiss to his bare shoulder and running her fingers gently through his hair. "As much as I'd love to, we can't stay here forever," she sighed, snuggling into his embrace. "At what time are we picking up Marissa?" she wondered.

"Beginnin' of the afternoon," Charlie said; his voice was groggy and hoarse with lack of use. He shifted his weight around in bed so that his stomach pressed to her back, his arms snaking around her waist. He buried his face into her neck, intoxicated by the sweet scent of her. "We've got plenty of time," he drawled.

A few hours later, after packing their things into the car and locking up behind them, they went into town to grab some breakfast. Lydia had a bag packed with toiletries and a change of clothes, courtesy of Avery, so she was able to wear something a little more casual into the little family-owned diner.

It was walking back in time. Everything had a late-eighties feel to it, from the décor to the peach-colored uniforms the waitresses were wearing. Coffee, bacon, eggs and a whole lot of grease filled Charlie and Lydia's nostrils.

It was a quiet morning; a few men in their fifties or sixties were having coffee in a corner booth, a businessman in a nice suit was working on his lap top, and a mother was trying to get her three young children to behave themselves and eat a couple more bites. She had a fourth child, a baby girl less than a year old, in a high chair.

The woman couldn't have been more than twenty-five years old.

They grabbed the table opposite the young mother and her children. The oldest of the children, a little boy around the age of five, stared at them for the longest time, his mouth and chin covered in ketchup.

Charlie grinned at him and the boy quickly tore his gaze away, whispering something to his little sister.

"Think the menus have changed at all?" he wondered, grabbing the one in front of him and peering at the breakfast section. There was a big grease stain underneath the laminate, probably from years ago. The edges were a little worn and the prices were considerably lower than what one might be used to back home, where most businesses were soulless chains. "The place hasn't... Hey, check it out: they've still got the jukebox!" he added, looking around and grinning like a five year-old kid.

Lydia found it incredibly endearing. "It probably still works too," she said with a small laugh, glancing in the direction of his gaze at the old jukebox, wondering if their quarters were still inside or if the owners bothered to take them out sometime over the last decade and a half.

"Let's find out," Charlie decided, slipping out of his booth and striding over to the jukebox. Lydia shook her head, leaning back into her seat to look at him put a couple quarters into the slot. On cue, an Eric Clapton song started playing. "Come on, dance with me," he smirked, moving back to her and reaching for her hand.

"No, I'm not dancing... Charlie, we're in public!" she giggled as he took her by the hand and pulled her to her feet, not taking 'no' for an answer. There wasn't much space between the tables, but he wrapped his arms around her anyway and began to sway to the music.

One of the old men in the corner booth gave a wolf-whistle and two waitresses, both in their late teens, were giggling and clapping.

"You're such a dork," Lydia laughed, reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck, giving into him and his silliness.

Avery thought she'd be fine sleeping in an empty house; it's not like it mattered whether or not she was alone... in a lot of her other foster homes, she would have probably felt safer that way. Last night was different though. She was in bed for hours before sleep finally came, her eyes darting around the room every time she heard the slightest of noises.

At two in the morning, she decided she wasn't completely sure whether or not she'd locked all of the doors, including the one to the deck as well as the entrance to the house from the garage. So she went around the house and double-checked.

No, she hadn't forgotten any.

Come morning, she was still in one piece and the house was still standing. She felt a little foolish for her nervousness; she was fifteen years old, she should be able to stay alone overnight without getting worked up over small noises that were likely just the wind or the boiler room downstairs.

She was already showered and dressed when Lydia called at around half past eight. She was in the kitchen making some bacon and eggs when her phone started vibrating on the countertop next to her work station, causing her to jump.

Despite her own restless night, Avery was glad Charlie and Lydia had a good time, and she grinned as she finished preparing her breakfast.

She ate alone on her stool at the island counter and then washed her dishes quickly before taking Klondike out for a jog, making her way to the beach and then back again.

She was putting her key in the lock when she saw something in her peripheral vision that distracted her from the task at hand. Her gaze darted to Asher's house, her lips twisting into a frown. Was that Sienna sneaking out of the second floor window? Avery watched as she climbed down a tree and then sprinted barefoot in the grass, struggling to get her flip flops on.

"Okay," Avery half-laughed, trying not to imagine what Sienna and Asher had been doing all night. She turned her back to the Daley residence and unlocked the door, ushering Klondike inside before undoing his leash. "Good boy," she muttered, Asher still on her mind.

The next couple of days were really hectic.

Charlie and Lydia both had work; between all of that, they also ended up going to Austin's and Jessie's house for a barbecue celebrating their son's fourth birthday. Meanwhile, Avery wanted to get her learner's permit so Charlie ended up helping her out with that as well by quizzing her. After she completed the online DATA course, he took her to the local DMV so she could write her test.

He went and ran errands while he waited for her text letting him know she was done, and when he came back to pick her up two and a half hours later she had a big grin on her face.

"You got it?" he asked when she opened the car door and got in the passenger seat.

"I got it!" she beamed at him. "I made an eye appointment for next Monday and I still need to get my mugshot taken, but after that I'm golden!" she said excitedly.

"Your mugshot," Charlie repeated with a low chuckle, shaking his head and holding up his hand for a high five. "Good job, I'm proud of you," he grinned.

Avery accepted his high five with a big grin, ducking her head in embarrassment. No one had ever told her they were proud of her before and she didn't quite know how to react.

"All of those evenings playing F1 2015 with you paid off," she chuckled.

"Tell Lydia that," Charlie told her as he started the car and backed out of the DMV parking lot. "She thinks I'm wasting my time and money," he chuckled.

Avery was still grinning like an idiot when they got on Main Street and started heading for home. She really couldn't wait to be behind the wheel of a car, even if she did have to drive with someone scrutinizing her every move for the next little while.

The day after going to the DMV office, Marissa was invited to go to the amusement park with Quinn and Zoe Lindsay.

It was also the day of Avery's freshman orientation at the high school.

"You guys really don't have to come if you don't want to," Avery told Charlie and Lydia. It was Charlie's day off and Lydia left the vet clinic half an hour early so that she could be there as well. "I doubt it'll be anything too exciting," she added.

"You're starting high school, of course it's exciting," Lydia said, dismissing Avery's words with a shrug. "Besides, it's been a long time since I set foot in that school so it'll be nice to go back," she added when Avery opened her mouth to protest again.

Truth be told, Avery was glad they were coming. This wasn't the kind of thing she wanted to be doing alone. Her friends would be there, don't get me wrong, but... it wasn't the same as having Lydia and Charlie there by her side.

The orientation was starting at five o'clock, so they made their way over there a little early to make sure they'd get a decent enough parking spot in front of the auditorium.

"You've got all of your paperwork?" Lydia asked.

"Yep, all here," Avery nodded.

There were a few tables in the auditorium with signs marking which line was for what purpose. Being a little early meant they didn't have to wait too long before Avery's turn came up to get her things. After trading in her paperwork, she was handed her class schedule, her locker number and her student I.D.

"Nice mugshot," Charlie teased, nudging her in the arm.

She had to take her picture online beforehand and, let me tell you, it wasn't her most pleasing picture considering she wasn't allowed to smile.

"You've got my brother for history, looks like," Charlie added, pointing at Austin's name on her schedule. "Make sure you mess with him for me."

"Do you want to get her suspended on day one?" Lydia smiled.

"Oh my God, it's Avery! Hey, did you get your class schedule yet?" Jo asked as she made her way over with Tori, Asher and Sienna at her heels. "Do we have any classes together? Tori and I don't even have one," she added excitedly.

Avery compared schedules. She didn't have any classes with Jo either, but she did have two with Asher and Tori, as well as biology with Sienna.

"Nice, looks like we both have English and history together," Asher grinned at her, looking at her schedule over her shoulder.

"Yeah," Avery replied.

They went around looking for classroom numbers after that, although Avery doubted she'd be able to find any of them again on her first day, what with the school being crammed with hundreds of students at that point. She also got to meet and speak briefly to some of her teachers.

"Room 501," Charlie pointed out; her homeroom as well as her first period history class with Austin – or, well, Mr. Tanner. Conveniently enough, her locker happened to be just across on the other side of the hallway.

The door was ajar and the lights were on so they peaked inside, finding Austin sitting at his desk, talking to a pair of parents and their son.

Charlie, Lydia and Avery waited for him to wrap things up before knocking on the door and easing their way inside.

"Hey guys," Austin said in the same thick southern drawl as Charlie's. "Found all of your classes yet?" he asked, addressing Avery.

"Yeah, this one was the last," Avery nodded.

"Yeah, yeah, I saw your name on one of my lists, first period history... Don't think I'll be goin' easy on ya just because you're my foster niece," he chuckled.

At six o'clock was the presentation in the auditorium. Avery tracked down Brandon and his family a little beforehand, so they all decided to sit together.

Hunter and Carly Flynn were kind and friendly people; they actually knew Charlie and Lydia pretty well, since Lydia and Carly were in the same year back in high school and Hunter was a fellow police officer.

Avery was surprised to find out that Brandon was adopted at the age of seven. He'd never mentioned it to her before... but then again, could she really blame him? It's not like she told everyone she met that she was in foster care... admitting that nobody wanted her was a bit embarrassing and sad.

Their conversation ended rather abruptly when the principal came up onto the stage and addressed the crowd of freshmen and their relatives. He was pretty young compared to most of the principals Avery had over the years – about forty years old – with a very charming disposition and an energy that made him interesting to listen to.

After introducing the faculty, he talked about the school counseling department and how they were there to help with the transition from eighth grade to high school. He talked about core classes and electives, graduation requirements, school activities and sports...

It was very straightforward, and for the most part pretty boring, although Avery did try her best to catch everything, especially the dates for the girls' volleyball tryouts, which were taking place the first week of school.

After spending a lot of her summer surfing, not to mention jogging about three times a week on average, Avery was pretty in shape. She only hoped her lack of prior experience playing on an actual volleyball team wouldn't be too disadvantageous.

"That wasn't too bad," Charlie said when they started making their way out of the school and into the parking lot.

"You were on your phone playing games the whole time," Lydia told him, nudging his arm playfully.

"So," Avery smirked, catching Charlie's gaze. "Does that mean if I ever get caught texting in class, I won't get in trouble?" she asked them, climbing into the backseat of the car.

"Do as I say kid, not as I do," Charlie smirked back.