[Taboo + Some ] Initiation

[Blake Emma Renner]

This was the first Sunday dinner in a while that was actually going to have the whole family, and Blake could not be happier. It was about damn time Shane and Ryan were home, especially with everything that was going on in their world lately. She scratched her thumb over her eyebrow before she smiled tightly at Kat. That girl was so excited she was downright acting like a kid, running all over the place, singing at the top of her lungs. “ Hey.. why don’t you go bothe—see..Shane?” she said with a smile before she went back to cooking. Mack had a hard time lately, whether she wanted to admit it or not.It couldn’t have been hard to live with a man who didn’t remember you, and not only that but she’d gotten pretty attached to Lily.It seemed like every time Blake turned around Mackenzie was coming to see her. Blake sighed as she looked down at her stomach. God, she’d gotten fat, atleast in her opinion. She was still really small in the grand scheme of things, and certainly small compared to other pregnant women. But she was so naturally tiny that she wasn’t sure how to make any extra weight look flattering. But most of all she felt embarrassed around Logan. He could have any girl in the world he wanted, and he was stuck with some frizzed haired drama queen with a watermelon growing out of her stomach.

“Hey,” she whispered quietly, trying to get Logans attention. She held out a Malibu and mountain dew that she had made for him and stepped closer to him as she wiped her hands off on a towel. “ Have you spoken to Scarlet? About Bolton?” she watched him for a few moments. She wasn’t entirely fond of their friendship, but if Scarlet was going to talk to anyone about it, it would be Logan. Having your ex-fiance get killed couldn’t be easy, no matter how long ago you broke things off. And she’d already had so much death in her family. She looked away from Logan when Samantha approached them and smiled as she congratulated them on having a girl. ” Thank you.. Logan’s lot in life is to be surrounded by women,I think”. She looked back at Logan and smiled as she kissed his cheek. They had literally been through so much together; and he had been right all along, telling her she needed to be honest with herself, just biding his time.He’d been so upfront and direct to her, that she should have known he was in it for the long haul. Now she was having his kid, and she wondered if he ever fully understood how much that meant to her, to be forever connected to him somehow. Plus, being able to see him with a girl was going to be such a treasure.They’d told their family but she hadn’t told anyone else yet, and she wasn’t sure if Logan had. “ Let everyone know that dinner is ready? Even though Scarlet isn’t here yet…” she kissed him again, placing her hand on his cheek but doing her best to keep her belly away from him before she picked up some of the pasta bowls and began to take them out to the table.

Outfit

[Katy Alexis Sutton]

Kat scrolled through the music on her iPod as she hummed happily to herself. Shane was home, she could give a shit less about anything else. Not only that, but he was home . She’d lived with him before, but that was with Ryan. Not that she didn’t love Ryan, she did. But now this really was her and Shane’s. Their place. She stopped on their families song and turned up, even though she could see Blake rolling her eyes. Kat picked up one of the spatulas that Blake was using to make some spaghetti sauce with and sang into it, “ I had the time of my lifeeee fighting dragons with you, long live .. the look on your face and bring on all the pretenders sommedayyyy” Kat threw her hand up in the air and threw her head back dramatically,mocking the way Blake tended to sing when she was on stage. That girl moved around a lot. And whipped her hair like she was the original Willow Smith or something. After the song ended she drummed against the pots and pans hanging over the island and started singing the song that Blake had written for some of the artists now at the New York studio for Taboo Records to sing, and she and Shane got to open the song. “ Hey hey hey you and me keep on dancing in the dark, it’s been tearing me apart, never knowing what we are. Hey hey hey you and me keep on trying to play it cool, now it’s time to make a move and that’s what I’m gonna do,” but she was cut off from starting to sing Shane’s part when Blake suggested she go find something else to do. “Oohh sorry mama bear, “ she said, giving a quick salute.

Kat threw something together to make Shane a quick drink. It looked like90 percent rum and 10 percent coke. Yum. She walked through the house as she tried to find him until she found him with Chad, Ryan and Riley in the living room, gearing up for what looked like was a countdown to Shark week. Kat set the drink down in front of Shane before she stepped over Ryan and Chad’s legs to get to her boyfriend. Riley was looking at him like he was an alien and it seemed like Shane was trying to get him up to speed on their friendship. Kat sat happily in Shane’s lap and wrapped her arms around him before she placed her cheek against his shoulder and played with the back of his hair. He’d already been to their apartment so he had seen everything she’d done to the place, along with Mackenzie’s help. Whatever she could do to make him coming home easier was well worth it. “ I’m glad your home,” she said quietly , not wanting to rudely interrupt him talking with Riley. She sat up and kissed his cheek.” I love you,” she said before she stood from his lap. He could have his boy time, he hadn’t seen these guys in forever and they had a lot to catch up on.She got to skype him almost every night so she didn’t want to steal him. Kat took a quick drink from Shane’s cup before she headed off to the dining room.

Outfit

[Lance James Renner]

Everyone had been busy lately. The guys were out on tour. Logan was balancing work with personal life. Blake was running herself crazy trying to plan out a tour. Mack was spending her time with Riley and Lily. He’d been on set of Wizards of Waverly Place like his life depended on it. But thankfully he’d found a new friend in Jake, so the time was going by quicker than it used to. Being on set with Dani after the break up used to be awkward, but thankfully her and Jake got along too so they could all hang out together. He’d completely forgotten that today was the day that Shane and Ryan were coming home, which had sent Blake into some sort of ‘gotta outdo myself for Sunday dinner’ frenzy. When he got to Logan’s place he gave him a quick hug. He was still so excited that he was going to be an uncle to what could only be a gorgeous, gorgeous niece. And Logan didn’t say anything, but Lance kind of felt like he was really excited that it was a girl.

Lance made himself a drink in the kitchen before he ventured out to the living room. Shark week? What was that bloody rubbish about. He leaned against the wall and tried to catch the tail ends of all of the conversations, but eventually got bored with it. Why did sharks need a whole week. He walked into the dining room where Kat was and took a seat next to her. ” Excited Shane is home?” he asked as he looked at her. He smiled as Kat gave him a ‘ no shit’ look and chuckled as he took a drink. Part of him had been wondering lately whether or not he should look into a relationship. He just wasn’t sure he had the time. Or energy. Women were a hell of a lot of work.

[Joel Carter Foster]

Joel adjusted his baseball hat against his head and laid his head back tiredly against the couch. He’d been working really long hours with Logan at the studio, but he at least he was getting songs done to show for it. And he had a music video shoot this week; not to mention he was talking to Dani and Natalia about coming over to Taboo records. Not that he would mind, hell they were both hot. He just couldn’t let Logan thing that was his main motivation for bringing them over there. He’d been thinking a lot about his image lately and he thought that it might be a good idea for him to date another singer his age. Maybe not seriously date her, just date her for the press and publicity. Joel groaned as his baseball hat was ripped off and opened his eyes to see Blake looking at him with a lifted eyebrow. “…..Sorry” he said before he shook his hand out over his hair and sat up straight.

Joel yawned again, rubbing his hand over his face as he placed his elbows against his knees. It was no secret that he looked up to Logan above everyone else, and if Logan had any idea how exhausted he was, he’d probably pull the breaks for a while. But then again who was he kidding, Logan noticed everything. “ Hey boss” he said, looking at Logan as he came into the living room. “ I was thinking about that next track. Maybe it should be sped up a little bit. The lyrics sound like they could be a ballad or some slow song, but I think if we added a quicker beat it could be a song to dance to. And.. I’m not sure how seriously someone would take a song from me right now if it was all slow, and..baby lets light some candles, kind of shit” he put his hands on his knees and stood up as he looked over at Logan.

[Samantha Jade Masters]

Samantha looked down at her legs and sighed as she poked them. She was still thin by everyone elses’ standards. But she definitely didn’t have the ballerina body she used to.She traced her thumb over the top of her leg to watch her skin and sat back against the couch. She stretched her legs out before she gave a small sigh and stood up, leaving Chad on the couch as she went into the kitchen. He probably needed a beer right now.They were probably the first people in the group of anyone they knew actually planning on having kids instead of it just happening to them. And with that, it meant that Chad was trying to get her to gain weight. She knew that he was trying to be smart about it, he wanted both her and their baby to be healthy when she got pregnant. But on days like this when she felt fat and ugly she just wanted to glare at him and his perfectly chiseled body for turning her into some fatass who probably couldn’t do a proper spin if she tried to. Samatha stood in fifth position lazily as she came up to Logan and Blake. She smiled watching them, envying the fact that some things in their life had come easily. Like the baby. “ Congratulations again guys on it being a girl, that’s so amazing” she stood up on her toes and hugged Blake and Logan quickly before she went to the fridge to get Chad a beer.

After popping off the cap she carried it back into the living room she stood behind the couch behind Chad and kissed the side of his neck before offering him the beer bottle. She rubbed his shoulders for a few moments before she stepped back around the couch and took her spot next to him, curling up to his side as she pulled her legs up to her chest and crossed her feet so that she was sitting in some sort of pretzel position. Samantha pulled at the ends of her sleeves so that the shirt covered her wrists and closed her eyes as she laid her head against Chad’s shoulder. If she thought she had a lot on her plate, there was no telling how stressed Chad was. His best friend lost his memory. He was in med school. He and his wife were trying to get pregnant. She squeezed his arm tighter as she curled up next to him. They were lucky to have one another, to find someone that was so supportive no matter what.

Outfit

[Riley Scott Collins]

Riley was staring at Shane, trying to piece together all of the parts of their friendship. “Okay so we all pretend that we’re gay and in love with each other?” he said, blinking at Shane as he looked at him, confused as to why they would do something like that, but hell it sort of made sense. He turned his head to look at Ryan, ‘ And you and I actually talk about shit? Like…deep talks?’ Riley took in a deep breath and sighed. There was so much to process and he felt like eighty percent of the time he walked around with an insanely massive headache. Finally he looked up and when he did he saw Scarlet coming in with someone else. He threw his hands in the air out of frustration, “Now who the hell is this guy?” he said before he looked at Ryan and Shane. Riley shook his head, standing up. “ I’m getting a fucking beer” he said before he made his way into the kitchen and dug through the fridge.

Riley looked down at his phone to see if Mackenzie had sent any more pictures of what she had bought for Lily. It made him smile that she and Lily spent so much time together, like they had some sort of bond already set in place. Which was pretty important considering he had found out not too long ago that apparently Mackenzie was the girl he had planned on proposing to. But now they were living together, working things out, and he was thankful for all of the help she gave him. Sometimes he didn’t know what was and wasn’t appropriate to say, but she was always there to let him know. All things considered, he was lucky. “ Mackenzie and Lily should be here soon,” he said as he walked back to Shane. Ryan had already met her, and so had the rest of them. Shane was the only one who had yet to.

[Madeline Lea O'Neil]

Madeline came inside and took her sunglasses off instantly before she started throwing her purse and keys down on the bench that was near their foyer. “ Sorry!!” she yelled out , apologizing for being late. “ Sorry, sorry, sorry. I know I’m late!” she called out before she came into the living room where everyone else. Madeline hugged Logan and kissed him on the cheek while trying to explain her tardiness, “ Patrick had a dinner with Senator Harris and it sort of ran late. But, I didn’t eat! Just had a few cocktails. ‘ she let go out of Logan and moved to Blake, hoping that kissing her ass would make her quit staring at her like she was the devil for being late. “ Why on Earth would I eat at a five star restaurant when I have…. Pasta… it looks like, to look forward to?” she put her hands together and smiled with a nervous laugh before she hugged Blake and stepped back.

Madeline screamed quietly, but happily, as she saw Shane and went over to him quickly, smacking Chads and Rileys legs to get out of the way so that she could hug him. She leaned down and wrapped her arms tightly around him. “ Good lord, I can’t believe you’re finally home,” she said to Shane as she hugged him though she opened her eyes to look at Ryan sitting next to him. After a few seconds she stood up and then realized she was standing in front of the tv. “ Oh sorry,” she apologized again before climbing over Ryan’s legs to get out of the way. She watched the tv for a few moments, realizing she hadn’t said hi to Ryan, but she couldn’t exactly do it now without it looking awkward. ” Ready for shark week guys? I heard it’s going to really bite” she said with a quiet snort as she laughed at herself. She was horrible at jokes, but atleast she kept herself entertained. Madeline put some of her hair behind her ear before she looked down at her arm and notice the bruise across her forearm. Her sleeve wasn’t long enough but she pulled down as much of it as she could to cover it. She hadn’t thought a bruise would start forming that quickly, but.. she was sure she could convince Logan to let her borrow a sweatshirt.

Madeline turned as she saw Scarlet come in and smiled, " Hey speak of the devil," she said before she walked over to her. " I was just at dinner with your dad, we were talking about his approval ratings and it sounds like California is on the trend of going u- " Madeline blinked as she looked at Scarlet, who had just stuffed a roll in her mouth. She stood there with the roll in her mouth, completely confused until Scarlet walked away, dragging some guy behind her. After a moment Madeline opened her mouth and spit the roll out into her hand before she turned to look at the rest of the group. ".... Okay am I missing something?" she said before she made another confused look and leaned against the wall.

Outfit

[Scarlet Rose Harris]

Scarlet smiled nervously at Zach as she stood outside of Logan and Blake’s door. She hadn’t even ever brought Bolton to one of these things, and hell they were engaged. And here she was bringing Zach. She took in a deep breath and rubbed her palms against the side of her jeans.Nothing to be nervous about. Wasn’t like she cared about the guy. But maybe she did, I mean they hadn’t slept together yet. And why? She kept wanting to just like… spend time with him. Whatever the hell that was about. “ This is going to be fine,”she said to Zach,though it was more to herself. She pushed the door open and headed inside, and it looked like everyone else was mostly there. Except for Mack, but maybe she was upstairs changing Lily or something. Scarlet coughed quietly as she stood inbetween the entry and the living room. “ …..Everyone, this is Zach Pierson,” she said, gesturing to him awkwardly. “ Ryan, you know him,”. She clicked her tongue before she gave a small nod, “ Right,well Zach this is… everyone.” she coughed as she started off doing introductions, “ Blake Renner, she’s the one that sings those sappy love songs that go number one no matter what.Honestly Blake I think you could sing about a guy throwing shit at you at this point and you’d get a billboard hit off of it. That is.. Ryan,you know him..I said that.Shane is the lead for All Time Low and all around bad ass.If you ever need a request for the impossible or crazy, go to him. That is Kat Sutton. She’s also known as Lights and is a really fun artist, but more importantly she is shane’s “love bitch” as she so..eloquently describes herself. That’s Joel, Logan’s little protégé. Chad and Samantha Masters. He’s my… old friend, and she’s Logans cousin. That’s Riley. Don’t worry if you can’t remember his name, he won’t remember yours. Umm.. Lance. Oi, little twit. Yeah him, that’s Logan’s little brother. The red dress with legs coming out of it is Madeline Foster… here’sa shocker, she’s a lingerie model. Gross, right? And she’s married to Senator O’Callaghan Otherwise the only other two who I don’t see right now are Mackenzie and Kiersten,but you’ll love them they’re great. Um.. and that’s just Logan. “ Scarlet looked through everyone before she nodded. ” Yeah that’s it”. Scarlet smiled again before she headed off. ” I need a drink”.

Scarlet wasn’t entirely sure why she was so nervous. Her friends would like him, he was harmless enough, and fun and sweet. But she had this need for them to what like..approve of him. None of them had thought Logan Bolton was a good idea and they were right.But it wasn’t like she was going to compare Zach and Logan.I mean she was engaged to Logan, her and Zach were just…friends.Yeah. That sounded convincing if you said it enough times. Scarlet stood in place as she was approached by Madeline. “ Hi,” she said with a small smie.But as Madeline started talking about her father she looked over her shoulder at Zach quickly and then turned back to Madeline, yelling over her. ” You look great! But you really really need to eat something!!” Scarlet picked up a roll from the table before she shoved it in Madeline’s mouth and headed off to the kitchen to get herself and Zach a drink.

Outfit

[Logan Chase Renner]

Logan couldn't have been happier about the fact that everyone was together again for a Sunday dinner. And that literally was everybody, even Scarlet has said she was going to join them and she was bringing someone. Logan worried about her and the fact that Bolton had just died, but she didn't seem to have anything to say about it. Which, in all reality, Logan really all that surprised. He'd wondered from the beginning of that relationship if it was really in Scarlet best interest, knowing that Bolton was suffocating her in a relationship she didn't really want to be in. She'd never wanted to be tied down. Logan understood that. Even though he was now married and Blake was expecting, he had been at that point once too. That had been a really toxic relationship for Scarlet, and even though she wouldn't wish death n anyone, Logan knew she resented Bolton for trying to tie her down and moping about it later. Logan went int eh kitchen where Blake was finishing up dinner things and Kat who looked like she was driving Blake up the wall. Logan smiled, watching Kat bounce out of the room and Blake handed him a drink. "Thanks," he told her, taking a sip and looking over all the dinner preparations. Pasta, yum. "Not really. I mean I mentioned but... well. You know how she is." Samantha had come in and congratulated them both on having a girl, which Logan was really excited about. "Thanks, Sammi, we're both really excited." Logan laughed and rolled his eyes when Blake said he just wanted to be surrounded by women, "Oh yeah, that's my goal in life, absolutely. I obviously just want to be surrounded by as many divas as possible." Logan grinned at both of them, Blake kissing his cheek. Sam had gone back out to the living room after grabbing a beer for Chad, and Blake had asked Logan to let everyone know that dinner was ready. Logan could tell she just felt... ugly. It was a horrible word choice but he knew she felt fat and whatever which was ridiculous because she wasn't fat at all. And she was giving Logan the best gift he could have ever asked for, she had no idea how much it mean to him. As she stepped away to bring the food out to the table, Logan pulled her back, taking her hand and wrapping his arms around her from behind and rested his hands on her stomach. He smiled as he leaned down to kiss her neck, holding her close. He hated when she felt fat and ugly. It didn't make any sense to him. If anything, being pregnant made her even more beautiful then before. "You look extra pretty today," he said smiling against her neck. He could tell she was scoffing at him as if to say yeah right, or very funny. Logan laughed, "No I'm serious! You do..." Logan kissed her cheek and went back into the living room, sitting down on the couch with his drink. Riley was still trying to understand his friendships with various family members and Logan just tried not to laugh. "Oh, I'm supposed to say dinner is almost ready. Where is Mack and Kiersten?" Logan knew Mackenzie was out with Lily, but usually she wasn't this late. Usually she was around to help Blake with dinner. And Logan didn't know where Kiersten was, she was usually with Lance so that was kind of weird.

Logan nodded at Joel, agreeing about the track that Joel was talking about, "Yeah i was kind of thinking that too, we'll work on it first thing tomorrow. But again, we'll talk tomorrow, Blake might hit you with her spatula if she hears you talking business," he joked, smiling. Logan could plainly see that Joel was completely exhausted. But that's how things were. Logan had been that age once, doing the exact same thing, and he knew if you didn't work that hard you wouldn't make it. Yeah Logan wanted to give Joel a day off, wanted to give him break. But he had to work hard to reach his goals. Joel had set himself really big goals. Int he long run, pushing Joel until he nearly broke would get Joel what he wanted. He'd thank Logan later. And it wasn't as if her was going through it alone. Speaking of Foster's, Madeline had finally arrived, apologizing repeatedly for being late, "Don't worry about it, Scarlet isn't here, neither are Mack and Lily or Kiersten. It's all good." Logan hugged her back, and then settled into his seat, taking a deep breath but then laughed out loud, quickly stifling his laugh. Madeline had made a joke about shark week and both Shane and Ryan had looked at her with completely blank expressions, clearly not funny. But it was funny the way they both looked at her like she was nuts. Logan wondered if it was really awkward between Ryan and Madeline or if she had ignored him on purpose.

Just then, Scarlet had walked in, introducing Zach to everyone, who Logan was figured out was Zoe's older brother. He seemed like a nice guy, except she had failed to not introduce him. Oh well, it was his house, he was sure Zach knew who he was. And Scarlet probably just missed him. Logan got up to help Blake finish carrying everything to the table, hoping the other got there soon because he was starving.

[Shane Alexander Madden]

Shane laughed trying to explain to Riley that they were absolutely not really gay lovers or anything of the sort. "No, no, it's just funny. I mean, it was funny at the time. It makes the girls laugh, we all just try to keep them happy, you know? Happy girls makes for happy guys, you know what I'm saying. Gotta help a brother out." Shane reached over the couch to Ryan, who was nodding in agreement to high five him. It was so true though. Kat had come back fro the kitchen, setting a drink down for him on the table. Shane picked it up, giving it a smell, "This mostly rum?" Shane took a swig, smiling, "You know me so well." Shane smiled at her, holding his drink out of the way so she could climb onto his lap. He wrapped his free arm around her, taking another drink. Ryan and Riley were talking, Ryan trying to tell Riley that yes, they had deep conversations. Shane leaned down, resting his chin on Kat's head, "I'm glad too. I missed everyone. And you. Skype isn't as good as the real thing, " he smiled. Kat got up again, but before she got up Shane said quietly, "Love you too." He knew he meant it. Never in a million years did he think he'd say that and mean it so much, but he sure did.

Kat had gone off somewhere, and Madeline had walked through the door. After she hugged Logan she bounded over to Shane, leaning down to hug him. "Aw Madeline, I missed you too. I miss you trying to understand the point of Modern Warfare," he laughed, "It's just not the same with out you, 'I don't get it, are there teams?'" Shane said in a high pitched voice that probably sounded nothing like Madeline. She made a comment about Shark week, trying to be funny. Shane looked at her blankly, knowing she meant it as a joke, but he couldn't see how it was funny. He shook his head, refocusing. "Shark week, is a very serious, serious, thing. I expect your ass on this couch, nine o'clock sharp tonight. You're mind will be blown by the mysterious nature that is sharks in their natural habitat." he said seriously, trying not to laugh and pointed a stern finger at her. "Anyways, is dinner almost ready, I am hungry."

[Kiersten Mollie Bannon]

Kiersten practically ran up the steps of Renner's house, she knew she was late and she was completely prepared t face the wrath that was Blake. She was a force to be reckoned with on her own but when she was pregnant and hormonal... that was just, quite the combination. Kiersten let herself in, tossing her purse aside. "Sorry I'm late!" She had been at the studio, writing a song. She never really put much thought into song writing, but Logan did it. Blake did it. Ryan, Shane, Kat, Joel, they all wrote songs. And Kiersten had as much musical background as them all, if not more. Kiersten walked in, scanning the room for Lance. "Sorry," she said again, "I was just at the studio, i lost track of time..." Logan looked up from his spot on the couch. "At the studio? It's Sunday." "I know, " she replied, shrugging. She wasn't about to tell everyone she was writing songs. What if they weren't good? Kiersten made her way over to Lance, "Hey," she said, smiling and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear.

She stopped in front of him. Some days she just wanted to tell him. Tell him how she really felt. She just couldn't help it, he was Lance. Her best friend. And yeah, they spent time together doing things that friends didn't do. But she loved him. She just couldn't tell him. She knew he couldn't feel the same way. Considering the types of girls he liked, look at Dani. She was nothing like Kiersten, Dani was so pretty. She could see how Lance had liked her. Kiersten just wasn't his type, she understood that. And she was okay with it. She didn't want to ruin their friendship over it. Kiersten looked around. Even Scarlet was there already, but the only person she didn't see there was her own sister who was on a shopping date with a five month old baby. Well. She had to start sometime, may as well start her early. Lily would know the difference between Dior and Gucci before she was five. That was the price of having Mack as someone helping to raise you. At least she'd be a really well dressed kid. Mack bought the stuff and then Riley had an entire closet full of options. It was like team work really.


Outfit

[Chad Anthony Masters]

Chad sat and watched all the different interactions going on around him. It was good that everyone was home. Just being int eh same room with everyone could easily put you in a better mood. Everyone else happiness could just rub off on people, it was infectious. They were all just happy to be together. Chad leaned his head back to see Sam handing him a beer and smiled, "Oh, thanks Sam." He took a drink while she massaged his shoulders. He seriously didn't know how he had lucked out with her. And he said it all the time, e knew that, but it didn't make it any more believable to him. She was like, unreal. She somehow managed to be an amazing wife and a best friend rolled into one. Sam walked around the couch and curled up next to him, Chad wrapping and arm around her shoulders. He could tell quitting dance was taking a toll on her and on top of that, she already had body image issues. Chad knew she struggled with her eating habits, and it wasn't like they hadn't talked about it before. He just wanted her to be healthy. and they wanted to have a baby, she really needed to be healthy.

Chad pulled her closer, kissing the side of her head, "Hey, my grandma called earlier today. She wants us to come to dinner Friday night with the family. They want to meet you." Chad's grandma was like, full fledged Italian. She had an accent and everything. It was kind of funny because there was her and his grandpa, who were straight from the old country. And then there were Chad's two uncles and their wives. And then Chad's cousins. It was weird to think he had a whole family that wasn't teh same as Mackenzie and Kiersten's family.

[Ryan James O'Neil]

Ryan laughed while Shane explained the situation to Riley, giving Shane a high five. "So true," he nodded. Shane was talking with Kat and Ryan said to Riley, "Yeah, you and me bro, we have conversations that might blow your mind. Just wait, it'll happen." Ryan looked away when Madeline came in. They weren't supposed to be together in any way. Because she was married. And everyone still thought they were at odds, or things were still awkward. Madeline had leaned down to hug Shane and Ryan couldn't help but notice the bruise on her arm. Of course he tried not to star at her but she was always wearing little red dresses... she always looked so hot. But he wasn't focused on her dress anymore as he focused in on that bruise on her arm. It was shaped just like... fingers. That wasn't right. It wasn't as if he could just ask her about it just then. But he fully intended on asking her about it later. Ryan knew people had noticed that she hadn't said a word to him. Way to be obvious Madeline. Oh well. Madeline made her cute little joke about shark week and Ryan knew Shane was probably looking at her the same. He had to force himself not to laugh when Shane told her she had to be watching with them at nine. But Ryan knew better. If he could make an excuse to go back to his place, he knew where Madeline would be. If she was gonna be watching Shark week, she'd be watching it with Ryan. IF she was watching ti at all. Ryan did only get home a couple of hours ago.

Scarlet had showed up with Zach, who Ryan knew from back home since their little sisters were best friends. And then Kiersten showed up, so really they were just waiting on Mack who had Lily with her. Ryan just wanted to get through this dinner and get home, as bad as that sounded. He was tired from traveling and he was starving. He just wanted to spend some time with Madeline.

[Zachary Adam Pierson]

Zach smiled politely as Scarlet introduced him to everyone, but it was at least kind of comfortable because he already knew Ryan. And though Scarlet didn't know it, and Zach doubted Chad's wife knew it, Zach and Chad already knew each other. But that was something else entirely that didn't need to be brought up right now unless someone asked. Neither of them wanted to give the other away. Zach didn't want Scarlet to get suspicious of what he was doing, and Chad didn't want Samantha to know about his family. He cracked a smiled when Scarlet joked about Riley not remembering his name. Sad but true, he knew. Zach watched as Scarlet went to get herself a drink, fully noticing the way she shut Madeline up about her dad even though Zach knew about her dad already. Zach hoped one day there didn't have to be any secrets between them because this was exhausting. Scarlet had went to get her drink and Zach had excused himself in order to socialize with the guys, sitting down beside Chad. He said hi to all the guys, listening in on all the small talk. It was sooo weird to be at a group gathering were no one was talking about illegal activities. These people were so normal. Zach heard that dinner was close to being served, but they were still waiting on someone named Mackenzie who had a guy named Riley's baby with her. That was very trusting of him, but Zach put two and two together that they were a couple. Just not married, but had a kid? That wasn't uncommon, the kid was probably with the mom. And they were running late. Zach did know that Riley was struggling with having lost his memory too, so it seemed this conversation was one big tell all trying to fill him back in on who was friends with who and what not.

[Samantha Jade Masters]

Samantha looked over at Chad as he said that his family wanted them to come out for dinner on Friday. She instantly felt nervous and looked at him with a blank stare. “ When I’m fat?” she questioned seriously as she blinked at him, unsure of how she was supposed to impress them when she looked like this. She noticed everyone starting to get up to go to the dinner table and she put her hands on the couch and stood up, heading into the dining room. ”You’ve never even really talked to me about your family out here,” she said as she looked over his shoulder to look at him. It was like for some reason they’d been so secretive about it, which was ridiculous in her opinion. But whatever. Every family had secrets.

“ Tell them we would love to be there.” she said as she smiled at Chad. She’d do anything to make him happy, and considering they didn’t know each other very long at all before they got married it was sort of surprising. But he made her happier than anyone else she had ever met in her entire life, and he just.. knew her. She pushed at the pasta on her plate, spreading it around to make it look like she had eaten some of it before she looked at Chad. “Should I be worried if they don’t approve?” she smiled as she looked at him, wondering what the rest of his family was going to be like.