I had a gut feeling that Joey was going to break curfew, so I was surprised when she walked in the door around 8:00 looking upset. I could tell she'd been crying. She avoided us and went straight for her bedroom. I looked at Lin and sighed.

"Trouble in paradise?" I guess as he worked at my bare feet with his talented hands. He sighed with a little groan. When there was drama with Joey, there was really drama. Most of the time she was fine, but every once in a while there was a big blow up. This time it probably involved my son.

"I'll give her a minute then go back there," he decided.

"Well, if it's boy drama she probably won't want to talk to you about it," I pointed out. Lin and Joey were close, but some things were definitely better for girl talk. He sheepishly admitted it, pulling up his phone to look at a text message.

I got up to get more wine. As I neared the fridge, I could hear sobbing coming from down the hall. I couldn't let her just sit in there and cry, so I wandered down the hallway and pushed her door open. She was curled up on her bed, facing the wall as she cried.

I gently made my way over and sat on her bed, then began rubbing at her arm. "Oh, sweetheart," I cooed. "What happened?"

"Elliott got mad at me and told me I should go home," she reported, choking on her sobs. "He said I was acting immature. But there were all these girls just openly flirting with him! Was I supposed to just sit there and take it?"

"That sounds upsetting," I sympathized. Joey had a tendency to get a little jealous. I'd seen it before, but now wasn't the time to point that out. "Has he texted you?"

"No," she said, rubbing at her eyes. She laid on her back and wiped away tears as she started to calm down. I laid on my side next to her just for moral support. No matter your age, guy drama was hard. Being a teenager made it even worse. "What if he breaks up with me?"

I breathed out and rubbed at her arm some more. "Well, a lot of high school couples do that when one goes away to college," I acknowledged. "A lot of times they just grow apart, and that's okay."

"I can't stand to think of him there, flirting with other girls," she went on. "Maybe that's immature of me, but that's how I feel."

"The distance is hard," I said simply. "You're used to seeing each other every day so this is a big change."

She nodded and sighed, letting her eyes close.

"Give it some time and see how it goes," I urged her. "If it's meant to be, it'll be."

She took in a deep breath and let it go through her mouth.

"Want me to run you a bubble bath?" I offered, sitting up. She gave me a small smile and nodded her head. I went to the bathroom and drew a bath for her, checking the temperature to make sure it was just right. I poked my head back in her room to tell her it was ready, then joined Lin again with my wine.

"She okay?" he asked as I sat down.

"Drama with Elliott," I reported. "She said he was flirting with other girls and he got upset and said she was being immature."

Lin sighed out. "She can be a little possessive."

"She can be," I agreed, taking a sip of wine. "We'll see if the drama dies down or if they decide to call it quits."

"I think it'd be good for both of them to explore their options," Lin said, setting his phone to the side again. "Joey was only fourteen when they started dating. She's already changed so much since that."

After her bath, Joey joined us in the living room. She needed some cuddle time with us. The teenager scooted her way between us, laying her head on a pillow in Lin's lap. She was still very much a daddy's girl. Lin lovingly stroked at her hair as we watched a comedy on the TV.

Before the movie had ended, Joey fell asleep. I watched Lin gently scoop her up and carry her back to her bedroom. Joey was at an awkward stage - she was still in many ways a kid, but she was also rapidly turning into an adult. She could be challenging at times, but watching Lin carry her reminded me how much growing she still had left to do.

____

The next morning, I could see Joey constantly checking her phone. Presumably, she was hoping to hear from Elliott but it didn't look like he was biting. If I knew my son, she wouldn't hear from him for a couple days. After an argument, he needed his space. Joey might not like that, but he wouldn't answer her texts or calls until he was ready.

"Again!" Alex demanded of Lin. She was standing on the couch, arms out like an airplane, and Lin groaned with exhaustion.

"Last time," he told her, though we all knew she had him wrapped around her little finger. Lin grabbed her sides, flying her over his head, until he gently body-slammed her on the couch. She cackled loudly as Lin collapsed onto the couch. Instantly, she was on him, climbing all over. She worked her way behind his back, clasping her arms around him.

"Piggy back!" she requested excitedly.

"Ugghhhh..." Lin complained, looking at me. "I think I need to take this one to the park to burn off some energy. Wanna come?"

"It's all you," I told him. "Take her sidekick too."

Jack was off playing in his room quietly for once, but we both knew he'd jump at the chance to go to the park. Lin wrangled them into their shoes and grabbed some sippy cups of water and headed out with our two youngest. Joey collapsed on the couch, laying down with her phone.

"Staring at your phone all day won't make him answer," I told her as I got myself a snack from the pantry.

"It might," she countered.

"He needs some space, Joey," I told her. I grabbed four cookies from the package and gave two to my future stepdaughter. She took them gratefully and bit into one.

"He's driving me crazy," she said, slamming her phone down on the couch.

"He could probably say the same thing about you now," I told her honestly. She sighed and looked at me.

"Did you have a boyfriend in high school?" she asked me curiously.

I shook my head. "No. I was too busy with school and singing."

"How about college?"

"I had a couple," I said. "No one I had a deep connection with though."

She nodded and kept thinking. I could tell her brain was churning. "Why did you and Steven get divorced?"

I sighed as I finished my last cookie. "Well, there's never just one reason," I told her. "But basically we just kind of grew apart over the years. He wasn't being the partner I needed him to be, especially with raising Elliott."

"Do you hate him?" she asked.

"No," I said. "I get frustrated with him, but I still love him in a way. I could never hate him. We just weren't happy together anymore."

"Are things with Dad different?"

"Very much so," I smiled. "Your dad's amazing. He's very supportive and willing to jump in to help with whatever I need. That was a big problem with Steven. I was doing everything for Elliott and he did very little. Your dad is very hands-on with Alex and Jack."

"He's crazy about them," she agreed.

"He's crazy about you too," I told her and she smiled a bit. I don't think any of the kids would ever have to wonder how much Lin loved them. He was such a great father.

Not long after they'd left Lin came back in with both kids, looking thoroughly overwhelmed. Jack was screaming and I could see that his forearms were both bleeding. Alex was not happy about having to come home.

"I'm hiding," Joey decided, picking up her phone and going straight back for her bedroom. I rushed over to help Lin.

"It isn't fair!" Alex complained as Jack bawled.

"Alex, go play in your room please," I told her as I went for some paper towels to stop the bleeding. Lin sat him in the kitchen island and kissed his head.

"Deep breaths, bud," he told our son. Jack tried to, but he was still pretty upset. Lin found the Band-Aids as I pressed the towel to his wounds.

"Ouch, Buddy," I sympathized. After cleaning him up I picked him up for some hugs. In all the chaos, Joey had popped back out and told me she'd be back later.

I walked to the couch and sat down with Jack in my lap. Lin got his favorite snack, Goldfish crackers, and we cuddled it out.

"Where's Joey?" Lin asked after a while.

"I don't know," I said. "She said she'd be back in a while."

"Huh," he said, looking confused. "She was supposed to help me run some errands today."

"Try calling her," I suggested.

Lin called but didn't get an answer. It went straight to voicemail. For a long time he tried her but couldn't get a response. He was starting to get worried. Suddenly I got an idea.

"I'll call Elliott," I said, pulling out my phone. "She's been upset that he won't answer her. Maybe she went to see him."

Lin looked annoyed that she would just take off. I called up my son and he answered, sounding annoyed.

"Good to hear your voice too," I teased. "Is Joey with you by chance?"

"Yes," he said, clearly perturbed. "She just showed up out of the blue."

"I heard about last night," I told him. "Everything okay?"

"She's refusing to leave until I talk to her," he said. "I told her I need some space."

That sounded about like Joey. Will you pass the phone to her? Lin really needs to talk to her. He gratefully took the phone from me and Joey was subjected to his wrath.

"Josephine, why weren't you answering your phone?" he demanded of his daughter. He listened, arm crossed, to her excuse. "Well after you got off the subway you'd get reception and you should've called me right back. You told Pippa you'd be right back and you've been gone for over two hours."

Lin worried about his kids' safety. New York was pretty safe, but you still had to be careful. Lin didn't like the idea of her hopping on a subway alone and travelling 45 minutes, especially without telling him where she was going.

"Get your butt home," he told her firmly. "Now."

Lin hung up and breathed out, running a hand over his hair. He passed the phone back to me and I pocketed it. If Joey knew what was good for her, she'd come home right away.

"Momma?" Jack asked quietly. He'd suddenly appeared at my side. He was a quiet little fellow.

"Yeah, buddy?" I asked, bending down to pick him up.

"Can I have another snack?" he asked sweetly. He'd just had one not long ago, but he was too cute to resist. Story of my life - giving in to adorable little kids' demands. I smirked and went to the pantry, unable to resist the three-year-old's charm.