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*3rd POV
"Now tell us!" Connie said, eyes locked on Veronica, who gave a sheepish smile in return.
Veronica averted her gaze, glancing sideways at Mary and Missy. Both were staring at her with the same intrigued expression Connie wore.
"Do I really have to say it? Maybe Georgie should—" Veronica began, only to be interrupted by an impatient Missy, desperate for the latest family gossip.
"No! It'll take forever if we wait for Brother! You can tell me now—I'm going to be a psycho-something anyway!" Missy declared, nodding proudly.
Connie snorted at Missy's words. "You just want to hear the gossip!" she said plainly, fully admitting they were all eager for the tea.
Mary, meanwhile, gave Connie a side glance, her lips twitching at the bluntness. "It's not gossip," she argued. "This is about my son. I have every right to know what kind of trouble he's gotten into now." She said while avoiding eye contact.
Veronica sighed and looked at the three women in front of her—there was no escaping for this. "Alright..." Veronica said, turning to Mary. "Jana and Lisa kissed Georgie last night." Her words came out while she holding back herself through gritted her teeth.
Connie and Mary looked at each other in stunned silence. Meanwhile, Missy's eyes sparkled with excitement. "It's a scandal!" she declared dramatically, drawing Mary's stern attention.
"Alright, that's enough, young lady. You need to go to bed!" Mary said, reaching out to pull Missy from the conversation that was clearly beyond her age.
Missy groaned and shook her head. "No way! This is about my big brother—I have to hear it!" she protested. But her wide, excited eyes betrayed her real motive: she just wanted the juicy gossip about Georgie.
"Oh Come on, it's just a kiss. She's seen it plenty of times on TV," Connie said to Mary, though she realized too late that her comment might hit a nerve on Veronica. She turned back to Veronica quickly, "No offense, girl—I wasn't talking about Georgie... you know what I am saying right?."
Veronica smiled softly. "It's okay, Memaw…" she said, calling Connie by her nickname, a sign that she wasn't upset.
Besides, Connie was keeping a much bigger secret for her—one that would maybe make Mary way angrier than just a story of a kisses.
Mary, hearing Connie's tone, glanced at her again and released Missy's arm. She knew Missy wouldn't listen anyway and would only get grumpy later. "Is that all?" Mary asked, turning back to Veronica.
Veronica began retelling everything, just like Georgie had explained it to her the night before.
As the story unfolded, their expressions twitched. It wasn't hard to read between the lines—Georgie was clearly the one at fault here.
"Of course I was upset with Georgie," Veronica admitted with a snort. "But I'm not mad at him. I choose to trust him... the same way he trusts me." A gentle smile formed on her face.
Connie smiled and patted her hand. "You should be angrier! Slap him if you need to!" she said half-jokingly.
Mary sighed. On one hand, she could understand why Georgie was starting to attract more attention these days... but letting things go that far? And Georgie let them?.
"Hmm..." Missy mumbled, clearly thinking harder than usual. "Nah, Brother likes you more than anyone right now... except me, of course." She puffed out her chest proudly.
Missy looked at Veronica again, "You're prettier than Jana. I know my brother likes you more than her. But obviously, he likes me more than you." She added herself back into the ranking, as if to reassure herself or anyone else who listening to her words right now.
Veronica's smile widened at that, "Really?? I think Georgie likes me more than his soo little princess!" she said teasingly, shooting a playful look at Missy.
"Hmph, you wish!" Missy scoffed, not believing a single word of it.
Mary and Connie both laughed at their banter. "Hahaha, Veronica girl, if it ever comes down to it, Georgie would pick Missy over Mary any day!" Connie teased, smirking at Mary.
"Excuse me?! I'm his mother! Of course he'd choose me over his grandmother!" Mary huffed.
"I am his Memaw!" Connie replied, mildly offended—even though she knew Mary was probably right.
The Cooper family hierarchy based on Georgie Favorite list: Missy, Mary, Sheldon, Memaw, and George. If you added Veronica in, she would definitely fall below Sheldon.
That was what both Mary and Connie were thinking at that moment.
Veronica laughed at their small argument. She didn't mind being at the bottom of the ladder—what mattered was that Georgie had brought her into the family.
That thought alone was enough to calm the storm inside her—much more than when she'd seen Jana earlier.
Connie noticed the peace settling back onto Veronica's face and spoke up again, "Well anyway, you do know Georgie likes you, but you better be fiercer when it comes to what he says and does."
"Yes, Memaw!" Veronica nodded, though her idea of 'fierce' was probably different from Connie's.
Missy tilted her head, narrowing her eyes at Veronica. Something felt off. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but Veronica's expression didn't match her words.
Mary didn't notice it—but Connie did. Connie knew exactly what had happened between Georgie and Veronica earlier, and she recognized the weight behind Veronica's eyes.
She reached out and squeezed Veronica's hand gently, taking her back from heavenly imagination she had right now.
Mary, unaware, turned her attention back to Missy. "Alright, young lady, time for bed." she said, then looked at Veronica. "You too."
"Awwww…" Missy and Veronica whined in unison, making Connie laugh out loud.
Mary snorted and led them away—though of course, she only tucked Missy into bed.
"How long until Brother comes back? I want to hear his side of the story!" Missy's voice echoed through the hallway as they walked.
Mary didn't answer. She wanted to hear it too, but she wasn't going to admit that to Missy. She just snorted and continued down the hall.
Meanwhile, Connie stayed in the kitchen, sipping her beer and waiting for Mary to return. When Mary finally came back, she made herself a cup of tea, and a thick silence settled in the room.
She sat down across from Connie, "What?" Connie asked, sensing the shift in Mary's mood.
"Are you really going to keep pretending nothing's going on between Veronica and Georgie?" Mary said quietly, narrowing her eyes at her mother.
Connie didn't respond. She just took another slow sip of her beer.
Mary gave a slight nod, "Did they use protection?" she asked again, locking eyes with Connie.
Connie stayed silent. Of course Mary already knew what happened.
"She's on the pill," Connie finally said, almost in a whisper.
Mary nodded again and sipped her tea.
She wasn't stupid. She understood exactly why they had kept this from her.
But it still made her feel... a little sad. And angry.
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3rd Person POV
George let out a long sigh as he placed their bags in the motel room, "I'm going to check out the bathroom!" Sheldon announced, walking off toward it.
George just sighed again and let Sheldon do whatever he pleased.
"Where do I put this thing?" Georgie asked, struggling with Sheldon's oversized suitcase. He looked over at George, who was already collapsed on the bed, clearly exhausted. "Anywhere you want…" George muttered, closing his eyes.
They had stopped at the motel for the night. Tomorrow, they'd continue their trip to Florida.
Georgie set down the suitcase and looked at his dad, "Come on dad, shower first—then sleep."
George snorted, "You go first... Then I'll go…." He replied, already half asleep.
Georgie rolled his eyes and left the room, knowing full well George would fall asleep and never make it to the shower.
Sheldon walked out from the bathroom, "Oh boy! The toilet has been sanitized for my protection," Sheldon said, grinning at Georgie who already put their suitcase into the room. "Where are you going?" he asked, noticing Georgie walking to the door of their motel with his ukulele.
"Outside, Gonna find some inspiration for my song," Georgie replied with a grin. "And hey—leave Dad alone. He's wiped. He needs the rest."
Sheldon glanced at their dad, who was already asleep, then shrugged his shoulder, "Alright then." He went back to the bathroom.
Georgie chuckled and headed out, looking at something interesting but this is just cheap motel in somewhere, if not just old couple or crazy person here, so he just sat down at the motel porch and looking at the sky.
The Florida night sky right now was clear and full of stars—so different from the polluted skies of the future.
Georgie smile, thinking about the future and what happened for the next 10 years while looking at the sky. His fingers danced across the strings of his ukulele, The gentle sound drew some attention from other guests at the motel, but no one approached him yet—they didn't know who he was.
Georgie closed his eyes, letting the melody take over. Smooth, calming until A man's voice came from in front of him.
"Hey, kid."
Georgie turned his head, "Hey." Georgie said with a friendly smile.
"What're you doing out here? Some people are trying to sleep!" the man said playfully.
Georgie gave a small grin, "Just a street musician looking for inspiration," he replied politely.
The man chuckled and stepped closer, "You look like a cowboy. But you're holding a ukulele?" He smirked as he leaned against George's car.
Leather jacket, ripped jeans, long hair—he looked like a guy who lived for rock music.
He pulled out a cigarette. "You smoke?" he offered, holding one out to Georgie.
"Nah, I don't," Georgie replied, plucking a few more notes on his ukulele. "Besides, it's not about the instrument. It's about the message you're trying to share."
The man laughed. "Hah! What are you, Bob Marley or something?" He lit up and took a long drag. "I like real music—Guns N' Roses, Mötley Crüe. Not this farmer stuff like country." He said with a smirk on his face.
Georgie stopped strumming and looked at him calmly, "Country has soul. It's not just a bunch of screaming."
The man snorted, "Soul, huh?" he echoed, voice dropping low. "I traded my soul for this." He pulled something out of his pocket.
Georgie caught just a glimpse—but it was enough.
The U.S. had been cracking down on stuff like this for years.
All the way down to Medellín, Colombia, they were hunting cartels. Trying to cut it off at the root.
But it was impossible to stop entirely.
"This thing? It can make your soul float," the man said as he sniffed the outside of the package, trying to bragging about this stuff. "Inspiration will just pour in, man. If you want to make it big, you need this." He waved the packet in Georgie's face like it was candy.
Georgie recognized it immediately and grew more alert.
His eyes scanned the man—his build, what he was carrying. Every detail.
But outwardly, he remained calm.
The man mistook Georgie's silence for interest, "Every great artist needs a little push, you know?" he said, grinning. "This—this is the good stuff."
Georgie kept his eyes on him. Steady. Cold. "I don't need that crap to get inspired," he said quietly. "I can become a real artist without it." He gave a cocky smirk, "All that stuff'll do is turn me into a useless junkie."
The man's smile faded. The sarcasm hit him right in the gut.
Deep down, he knew Georgie was right—but he didn't want to hear it.
"What do you know, brat?! You're just a kid with some stupid dream of fame!" he snapped. "If life was that easy, this stuff wouldn't exist!"
Georgie laughed, "Really, a junkie like talking about life? You think life's a fairy tale with happy endings?". He leaned forward slightly, "Stop blaming your pathetic life. You gave up. That's your choice."
That did it.
The man shot up and tossed his cigarette aside, "You better watch your damn mouth kid!" he growled, stepping toward Georgie.
But Georgie didn't flinch, looking at the man in the eyes, "Oh yeah? Or what? Say it clearly with that busted-up mouth of yours—wrecked from all the cocaine—"
He didn't get to finish.
The man's fist slammed into Georgie's jaw, sending his head to the side.
"You better shut your goddamn mouth!" the man shouted, breathing hard.
As he stepped in again, ready to say more, Georgie turned back toward him—eyes wide open, grinning.
Something about the look in Georgie's eyes made the man hesitate.
Maybe it was the drugs. Maybe the nicotine. But suddenly, this kid didn't look so harmless like other kids around his age.
What the man didn't know... was that Georgie had already marked him as dead meat.
From the shadows, Sheldon had been watching the entire interaction. He had seen the man approach Georgie, but didn't recognize who he was or what he was doing—just that he looked... dirty.
And now, alarmed, Sheldon ran back to the bed—straight to his father, trying desperately to wake him up.