Early the next morning, Raphael sets out for Taylor's home before anyone else in the lair. It's a sunny day, perfect for the beach, and he's jittery with nerves. He has to stop himself from scratching at the patch on his inner arm.

At Taylor's, he's once again greeted by the Montero family's rented cars and one exhausted girlfriend. She hasn't done her usual makeup, leaving the shadows under her eyes in full view, and he can already hear the sound of young kids playing inside. She's already dressed in her bikini—a red top with a halter neck and black bottoms with sheer sides.

"Did you sleep okay?" he asks as she lets him in the front door.

She lets out a long sigh, dragging her hand down her face. "No. And yeah, I know I look like a troll."

"Nah. Still the prettiest girl I've ever seen."

She punches his chest lightly even as she starts to smile. She pauses, frowning a little before slowly reaching out and resting her fist against his chest again. He raises an eyebrow.

"It's so weird that your chest is all soft," she mumbles.

He tenses the muscles in his pecs. "There, that better?"

Her cheeks immediately flush and she yanks her hand back. "Ay, have some shame!" He smirks and she takes his hand, hauling him further into the house. "I still have to pack a few things. Come help me."

----------

Figuring out rides gives Raphael a headache.

He's used to just piling into whichever vehicle he and his brothers have chosen for the day, seatbelts and riding capacity be damned. In this case, there's an SUV with six seats and a Ferrari with two, and Bianca is basically foaming at the mouth trying to convince Taylor to ride with her.

But, that leaves Alessandro to drive Jack, Raphael, and the three younger kids in the SUV—Diego opted to stay at the hotel and, according to his dad, promised to grab a taxi and join them later. Raphael can already sense the tension and just knows it'll get thicker the second the men are locked in that SUV.

What would they even talk about, if they talk at all?

"So, we both slept with Bianca, huh?"

"Yup. Both had kids with her too."

Raphael shudders at the thought. Still, there aren't many alternatives. None of the three kids can sit in the front seat of the Ferrari safely and Alessandro doesn't want Jack or Raphael driving the rental cars, understandably.

Raphael can see Taylor's clear discomfort, the nerves pinching her jaw as she hugs herself tight. He decides to take one for the team.

And so, it comes to pass that Raphael ends up in the Ferrari with Bianca, leaving Taylor with her dad and the stepfamily in the SUV.

He has to admit, though, the Spider is wicked awesome, and he can almost forget about who's driving him if he closes his eyes and just lets the wind run through his hair.

"So how long have you and Taylor been together?" Bianca calls over the wind. She wears a pair of designer sunglasses that shades her eyes, but he hopes she's looking at the road and not side-eyeing him too much.

He clears his throat. "Oh, uh..." He taps his fingers against the car, elbow hanging out the open window. "A year, maybe? A little over?"

He rubs the back of his neck, jaw clenching a little. Time's gone by so quickly and he doesn't know exactly what day they would call their anniversary. The timeline of when they met to where they are now is littered with secret rendezvous, teen angst, misplaced passion, and betrayal.

And forgiveness, above all.

"It's been about a year," he says.

"Oh, everything's still so new at that point," she sighs, almost wistful. "Such passion! Enjoy it while it lasts, huh?"

He frowns a little. "I am."

She lets out another long sigh. "Life happens so quick, you know? One day you're young and beautiful and vibrant, the next you're old and washed up. There's not enough time to enjoy youth!"

He gives her a long look. "Okay."

She glances at him. Her eyebrow peeks out from the top of her sunglasses. "No comment?"

"No. Not really."

"Not a talkative one, huh? Well, that's alright. You don't have to talk much if you're handsome, if you can provide. Alessandro is a shining example of that."

He gets the feeling she's digging at him, trying to get a certain reaction, like she's playing some kind of weird mind games. For a brief second, he's reminded of when he first met Taylor, of her nonchalant, carefree vibes that hid so much more, and the resemblance between mother and daughter slaps him across the face.

"Yeah, sure," he says.

"What sort of work do you do? Mi princesita deserves the best!"

He tries to come up with a lie, something to satiate her, but it all clogs in his throat. "I...I'm still figuring that out," he says.

"Oh, poo. That's no fun," she whines. "Really, Raphael, I expected more! Where's the intrigue?"

You have no idea how intriguing I can be, lady, he thinks. Outwardly, he says, "I mean, I have hobbies. I do martial arts, I play drums. I do...art, sometimes."

"Martial arts? You know, I dabbled in street fighting back in the day. Oh, Jack and I used to get into some real trouble as teens."

Taylor really is her parents' daughter. He leans forward a little, curiosity peaked. "Yeah?"

"Oh, the usual dumb kid stuff. One time, Jack punched out our weed dealer for putting his hands on me. Honestly, I was flattered! Having men fight over you like that? God, the rush..." She shimmies her shoulders a little. "But, you know, it goes both ways. Your man protects you, you protect your man. You have to have each other's backs. I kicked a few asses back in my day."

She stirs up the most conflicting feelings in him. Part of him wants her to just shut up and drive, because she clearly only wants to talk about herself, and yet...it's like he's filling in missing pieces from Taylor's puzzle, hearing her talk.

"But..." She sighs. "Jack mellowed out after we had Taylor. Suddenly, it was all, 'We have to focus on the baby. We have to make a college fund. No, we can't go clubbing, I have work in the morning.' No fun at all."

"You had a kid," Raphael says. "You had a responsibility to raise that kid."

"I mean, I did. I did for as long as I could." He bristles a little, but Bianca keeps talking, seemingly unaware of the souring mood. "Honestly, it was so hard, and I was so unhappy for so long. Jack and I had Taylor so young and then suddenly, it was like I had to give up everything that made me happy to take care of her. I didn't have a life outside of her and that townhouse and—"

"So you run off and have three more kids with some other guy?" he cuts in. "How does that make sense?"

Her grip tightens briefly against the steering wheel before relaxing again. "I mean, I wanted children. I love children. It's just so much easier to raise them when you have help. Back in Segovia, we have nannies who can just take over when I get overwhelmed, and it's just so much easier that way. I don't have to be on 24/7, Alessandro and I can have date nights. It's everything I wanted." She smiles, although this time it seems...lesser, not as toothy and overdone. "I deserve to be happy."

Raphael stares at her for another long second, his chest hot with a new kind of anger. Leaving Taylor after the Mutacorp incident was one of the worst things he's ever experienced and he hadn't known her for very long at all. Leaving her hurt him so deeply that it still resonates in him today, and this woman...this woman left her behind, her own child, with a smile and a wave.

Fuck that.

He doesn't speak for the rest of the ride.

----------

The cars arrive at the beach shortly after one another. Taylor pushes the door open, helping Isabel and Lola from the car while Alessandro goes to unhook Luz from his carseat. Jack goes around to the trunk to unload the beach supplies. Raphael hurries from the Spider, going to help Jack gather things.

The back of the SUV is packed and most of the stuff looks new, like they went out and bought everything they could for the beach yesterday. There are beach chairs, an inflatable unicorn, life jackets, and coolers that must be stuffed to the brim with snacks and drinks.

"I got an air pump for the unicorn," Alessandro says as he comes around the back, Luz hooked on his arm. "Might have to use the car to get it going, but—"

"I'm sure we can figure it out," Jack says. "Raphael, mind grabbing that for me?"

Raphael nods and hurries to haul the still-boxed unicorn from the car. He kneels and sets to work ripping the box open and pulling the glittery pink abomination from its confines. He keeps looking at the picture on the box, all smiley and happy with exaggerated sparkly anime eyes that stare right into his soul.

If he ever has a daughter...well, this will be good practice.

He hears a sharp squeal of glee and then a tiny body hitting his back, two arms surrounding his neck. "Unicorn! I wanna ride the unicorn!" Isabel says, wriggling around even as she keeps squeezing his windpipe.

"Izzy, calm down a bit," Taylor urges, coming to them with Lola in tow. "Raph needs to breathe."

"Oh..." Isabel backs off and when Raphael looks back at her, she's folded her hands in front of her, head bowed in shame. Her tiny bottom lip pouts out a little. "I'm sorry, Raph."

Man, say what you will, the kid's adorable. He shrugs as he gets to his feet, dragging the deflated unicorn with him. "It's alright, kid," he says. "We're gonna get this all filled up with air and then you'll be set, alright?"

She immediately grins, jumping a bit in place. "Yeah!"

----------

Finally, everyone gets out onto the sand, set up with their umbrellas and towels and beach chairs. The adults get the kids loaded up with sunscreen and, soon enough, they're racing off into the surf. Bianca settles down on her towel, umbrella casting the perfect amount of shade, while Alessandro starts building a castle with Luz, although Luz just throws sand around and squeals with delight as he mashes his hands into anything his dad tries to create. Jack heads down to the water with a floating lounge chair, flopping onto it and letting himself drift.

Raphael and Taylor have just helped Lola and Isabel onto their floating unicorn when a honk sounds from the nearby road. Raphael looks back just as the Party Wagon, recognizable even from this distance, rolls up to the parking lot.

"Tay—" Raphael starts.

He looks at her again but Taylor's focused on pulling the unicorn around, making motorboat noises that earn her peals of laughter from the little riders atop it. He splashes back to the shore, hurrying up the beach to the parking lot to greet his brothers and sisters.

At least, that's who he's expecting. His three brothers, Destiny, and Sarina climb out of the wagon, not a shock in the least, but they're followed closely by Casey, April, Karai, Shinigami, Splinter, and Leanne. It's kind of like watching a clown car empty out.

"Sorry we're late!" Annalise says as she hurries up to Raphael, a pink floral beach towel hanging around her shoulders and a folded camping chair under her arm. She wears a cute pink and blue tankini with ruffles on the chest and around her hips. "We had to get some supplies."

Raphael pats her head. He has to take advantage of the fact that she's the only person around who's shorter than him. "I'm just glad you guys are here."

She grins. "The news kind of got around that a beach day was happening. My mom had the weekend off and I wasn't working, so then we figured we'd invite her, and then she wanted to invite Splinter along, then it grew to Karai and Shini—"

"Bianca said the more the merrier," Raphael says.

"Annalise, make sure to put on sunscreen!" Leanne calls from the car. She's wearing a gigantic floppy sunhat that gives her a wide berth of personal shade and even then, she's wearing sunglasses.

Annalise pouts a little in faux annoyance. "I know, mom!"

"And wear sunglasses if you aren't gonna wear a hat!"

"Okay, mom!" She gives Raphael a long-suffering look before she smiles. "My mom's kinda sensitive to sunlight. It's a blonde-blue-eyed thing."

He smirks. "All good. Anything I can help carry?"

"Yes, please."

----------

"Oh, my," Bianca says as the Hamato clan plus friends make it to the beach spot. "When Taylor said she was inviting friends, I didn't think it'd be so many!"

"Thank you for having us," Splinter says, bowing to Bianca. "I'm Raphael's father, Yoshi."

"Bianca. Taylor's mama," Bianca replies. She eyes him, then looks at Raphael briefly as he heads back to the water to join Taylor. Her attention falls on Leanne. "And...you're Raphael's mother?"

Leanne's face flushes red. "Me? Oh, no, I'm Annalise's mom. She's dating Michael, Raphael's brother. The blond boy over there."

"She is a dear friend of mine," Splinter says coolly. Leanne flushes darker even as she nods, making her floppy-brimmed hat bounce.

Bianca nods. "Oh. I see. And...the others are all friends?"

"My children and their partners," Splinter explains. "I have five children. Those four boys and my daughter, Miwa."

Bianca follows him as he points each of them out by name, confused, to say the least. She didn't expect Raphael to have so many siblings, nor for them to look so different from one another. He can see the resemblance to Yoshi most in Miwa, the punk girl with black and blonde hair, although she supposes Leonardo shares some resemblance to his father too.

She just can't get over it. A single father with five children? Dios Mio, Bianca thinks. And he must have been busy. Baby mamas galore! He'll have to share with her all the nitty-gritty details.

"Mama! Mama!"

Bianca's head snaps forward as Isabel and Lola race up the sand, haphazardly dragging their inflatable unicorn behind them.

"Come swim with us, mama!" Isabel says. "Please? Please, please?"

"Oh, darlings, maybe later," Bianca says, glancing at her magazine. Maybe she'll dip her toes in a bit, but the teenagers are splashing around in the water too much right now. "Maybe you should help your daddy build a sandcastle?"

Alessandro looks up from his work. "We're about to start making a moat," he says. "We could build it all the way down to the water. That sound good?"

Isabel gasps. "Yes! And can we make a bridge over the moat?"

"I...I'd like that," Lola says. "Can we, daddy?"

"Of course! Come on!"

Bianca sighs with relief as the girls hurry to join their dad and brother with building. She tries to focus back on her magazine, but her attention goes back to the teenagers in the water. Taylor should tire soon, and then they can get some mommy-daughter time like she planned.