Crowded into the old Pinto that he'd given Kenny, their bags were packed and loaded into the boot and back seat, with barely enough room for the two young men in the front. Correy was cramped, his tall and lanky body shoved forcefully into that small bucket seat. "Glad it's not a long drive," he grinned as he popped another potato chip into his mouth.

"I'm glad we're going back," he commented as he took his eyes from the road to watch Kenny as he drove. "Humph's not getting any younger and I'm tired of being angry at Jon and them. It was stupid, really. I overreacted to their texts, I guess. The whole thing just weirded me out." Correy shrugged and then smiled more as the portal came closer and closer. "Almost there!"

If Correy was folded up into the car, then Kenny was bent like a pretzel. As much as he loved the fact that Correy had given him the Pinto, it had taken a while to get used to driving with his knees approaching ear height. He glanced across at Correy with a faint grin, appreciating the oddness that had kept them in Ireland longer than they had originally been intending to stay. "And it had nothin' t'do with bein' molly-coddled by six women, ah?" he teased cheerfully, setting the car into neutral just as they crossed the portal barrier. Experience had taught him that cars had a tendency to do weird things if they were in gear crossing the Nexus. Like the engine falling out, or the windscreen turning into water.

"If you mean getting my *ss pinched six times a day," Correy added with a grin. "Think I've got a permanent mark now," he playfully grumped. His eyes went wide with wonder as they glided through the portal, it never ceased to amaze him that they could do such things. And when they were on the other side, Correy leaned back as much as he could. "And I'm sure that they've been missing you, at school. Carol has the hots for you," Correy teased his boyfriend playfully.

"Carol can swivel," Kenny snorted, smoothly setting the car back into gear as he turned onto the main road toward the city. "Where're we headin'" The Grove, or the dorm?" He smirked at the mention of the mark on Correy's backside - between his mother and his five sisters, it was a wonder Correy had survived the year at all. It had been even worse during the month Kaylee had visited with them.

Correy gave his *ss an absent minded rub. The past year had been fun, for the most part. Though he complained loudly and often about the pinches and teases, Correy wouldn't have changed it for the world. Kendrick's family lived in what seemed to Correy a simpler place and time. Their love for each other was stronger than King and Country. It had been nice to be a part of that. Not that his own family wasn't strong and that they didn't love each other. There was just far less drama in Kendrick's family. Even with five girls and a very dominant mother. And when Kaylee was there" Correy was out of the world happy. Happier than he'd been in a very long time.

"Let's go on up to the Grove," he nodded slowly. "Let them see that I'm alive, safe and back in town." Correy reached for Kenny's hand and brought his head down to brush his lips across Kenny's knuckles. "If that's ok?"

"'Course it is." The hand he kissed twisted to tweak his nose fondly. "Droppin' in on Caroline, or the big house?" was the next question, and a pertinent one. Were they going to bounce in on Humphrey, and possibly Jon, Vicki, and Emily, or were they going to crash in on Caroline, Richmond, and Jack in the last days of her second pregnancy' "Besides, you've a year of news t'catch up on, and that isn't going to happen unless you ambush one of them."

"Hmmm." It was a good question, though he was smiling widely for having his nose tweaked. Though Kenny still wasn't quite so comfortable with public displays of affection, he seemed to be a bit more relaxed about it. "Well, I think Caroline would be the best bet. I don't think that Victoria likes me much." He chuckled then and folded his hand into Kenny's. "Can't imagine why."

"Aye, well, see it from her side, love," Kenny pointed out mildly, taking the turning that would lead them to the Grove. "You're the other woman." He smirked once again, enjoying teasing Correy for all he was worth. "Shame I didn't get to see your get up for her baby shower last year. Then you really were another woman!"

Correy burst out with a loud laugh. The memory of his Driving Miss Daisy costume for the party had him shaking his head with amusement. "I guess so. But I'm really not. What Jon and I had was great, but things happened and we've both moved on. She can't expect me not to still love him. He's my cousin, for Chrissakes. We grew up together. So she should just get used to it and get over it."

"Not everyone's as comfortable in themselves as they seem, love," Kenny said thoughtfully. "Whatever it is, 'tis her problem, not yours. Maybe she's relaxed a wee bit since popping out the lass." He shrugged, glancing at Correy sideways. "Given any more thought to what we were talkin' about a while back?"

It was true; whatever the problem Victoria had with Correy, it was hers alone. Though it did prick at him just a bit that there was someone out there who wasn't a fan. Though, he surmised in his head, there had to be one in every crowd. The subject was changed and Correy was drawing a blank. "What were we talking about?" They had talked about a lot of things and Correy did have a good night's sleep the night before.

"Gettin' a place together that's prop'ly ours," his lover provided the lost information. It was all very well them sharing each other's dorm rooms on a regular basis, but they'd been together over a year now. The next step was living together properly, and then ....maybe something else would happen. Kenny might seem reserved and overly cautious, but he didn't want to rush into anything that would make them both miserable in time.

"Oh, yeah." Correy nodded. "Of course I want us to get a place of our own," he smiled again and squeezed Kenny's hand. "But I don't want it to be on the family grounds. I love my family, but I don't want to be up each other's *sses all day either." Correy leaned back against the door and considered Kenny thoughtfully. "Saw some houses on the way in. A nice little ranch with four bedrooms, two and a half bathrrooms and a kitchen so big that we could get lost in it." He described the home that he envisioned them in. "Talk to a broker once we're settled back into school?"

"Once you're settled back in school," Kenny chuckled. "Fully trained nurse now, remember" I'm the one wearin' the sexy panties in this relationship for the next year." He laughed, patting Correy's knee affectionately. "But aye, we can talk to someone about gettin' a place. You expectin' to grow a womb, wantin' so many bedrooms?"

Correy's smile grew proud when reminded that Kenny had graduated and was now a licensed nurse. "You always did wear the sexy panties," he waggled his brows with a chuckle. "You never know what might happen, or who might drop by. So a guest room or two and maybe a hobby room or man cave. Possibilities are endless." No, Correy had no intention of having children. His cousins were having plenty enough.

"My bank account isn't," Kenny pointed out gently, and with that came the implication that he wasn't going to let Correy pay for everything. He wanted a home that was as much his as it was his lover's, and that meant them finding something he could afford to pay for in his own right.

"Super nurse," Correy smiled and pulled Kenny closer as they went into the living room with Richmond and Jack on their tail. "We can do that, and even help out with Jack so you two can get a little rest." Correy couldn't not offer some sort of assistance. He'd seen what Caroline had gone through before, trying to do everything by herself. That wasn't going to happen again. "Gives us practice for when we have some," Correy smiled teasingly at Kenny.

Richmond deposited Jack onto a blanket surrounded by toys, then went to help Caroline with a small hand to her back. It was a supportive, quiet touch. If she wanted to sit or have a drink" Rich was right there to get her anything she needed.

One thing Kenny was good at was making himself comfortable in other people's homes. It must have been an Irish thing. He dropped down onto the floor beside Jack, bopping the little boy on the nose with the first toy to hand, watching as Richmond helped Caroline ease down into a chair with a faint smile. "Thought you said you weren't plannin' on growin' a womb?" he nudged Correy laughingly. "You goin' t'convince Kaylee to play surrogate for us?"

With Caroline in a chair, Richmond sat nearby, taking her hand in his own. His touch was soft, gentle and caring. He watched Kenny with Jack, a wry smile appearing on his face. "Think we found the real babysitter," he murmured quietly to Caroline with a chuckle.

"You never know, babe," Correy grinned and flopped down next to Kenny, leaning against him as he played with Jack. "Once we get a place of our own, we might want to get into the family way. Though I never saw myself with children," he admitted with a chuckle. "So much easier to send them home to mom and dad."

Following Richmond's gaze, Caroline smiled softly. "Think we did," she murmured back, leaning into him with a weary sigh. This being almost there nonsense was very tiring. "Correy, if you get your sister to incubate a baby for you, I will personally leap naked off the bridge in the middle of winter."

Kenny laughed at the threat, somehow having managed to get Jack into his lap without even trying. "I like children, aye," he agreed with Correy, "but never saw it as somethin' I could do."

"Kaylee will do anything for her baby brother, it's going to be a very cold swim for you," Correy teased Caroline right back. Truthfully, he hadn't even given thought to having children. But the way that Jack took to Kenny, and watching them together" It brought a soft smile to Correy's face. It was definitely something he could imagine, now.

Richmond slid his arm around Caroline, and began to massage her lower back. It was done automatically, without much thought. A habit he'd gotten into out of practice. "Even I know that Kaylee's not going to want to ruin her figure. Not even for you. Sorry, Correy."

"You could always adopt, though," Caroline pointed out with a smile, knowing as well as Richmond that Kaylee would rather be defiled by a dozen randy orcs than slow herself down with a pregnancy any time soon. "Lots of children in Rhy'Din who need a family to love them."

Kenny nodded mildly, distracted by a toy Jack was jabbering to him about for a moment. If he'd known that Correy was having paternal thoughts, he might have been a little more stand-offish with the little boy, but he was used to children. It was a family thing.

Correy's smile was fading, the more food for thought that was thrown his direction. He was seeing Kenny surrounded by little boys and girls all clamboring for his attention with cries of "Daddy! Daddy" and hands in the air, pawing at him. He sighed, lost in his daydream.

"Uh-oh." Richmond touched his temple to Caroline's and nodded towards Correy. "I think the baby bug's bitten him," he chuckled softly. "Kenny, might want to wake him up," he laughed again.

Chuckling, Kenny nudged Correy's knee. "Easy there, munchkin - school, house, marriage," he informed his lover firmly. "Then an' only then will we talk about babies. Right, little man?" This last was addressed to Jack, who burped hugely and nodded. "Wise lad you've got here, Ms. Granger."

Caroline rolled her eyes, laughing. "Kenny, how often do you have to be told to call me Caroline?" she pointed out. "Even board members call me by my first name these days."

Correy was nudged out of his daydream with the nudge to his knee. He flushed with embarassment of being caught. But then Kenny mentioned marriage and that brought Correy's brows up sharply. It had been mentioned between them before, but in such a way that it was something Correy thought wouldn't happen for years and years. He laughed at Jack's burp and sat back on his butt when Caroline was addressing Kenny. "It's his upbringing, Caro. Eventually Kenny will believe what I do: that he's not beneath us. He's just as equal to us because he's already family." Reaching, he gently squeezed Kenny's knee. "Married, kids, or not."

Richmond simply continued to rub Caroline's back. He listened to the banter back and forth, and only added a laugh when Jack belched. That was his boy.

Kenny only smirked at the surprised look on Correy's face. He'd thought it was patently obvious that they were heading toward marriage, but he wanted to make sure they were both happy before they went into that together. "Takes time, love," was all he said to his eventually fitting in better, swaying from side to side as Jack jabbered away in his own little nonsense language.

And that's what made Correy love Kenny even more. While Correy reacted without thinking, Kenny thought about and planned each action before he reacted. Leaning forward, impulsively, Correy kissed Kenny and then sat back with a grin on his face. Ha!

Richmond shook his head and chuckled. "Never thought I'd see the day. Correy. Tamed. Did you ever think you'd see it, Beautiful?"

Bringing yourself into such close proximity with a toddler armed with a toy was never a good idea. Jack got Correy on the backswing as Kenny grinned back at his lover, letting out a full laugh at the silly attack.

Caroline smiled, squeezing Richmond's hand. "I know," she agreed. "Look at him, all domesticated. I half expect him to go Stepford Wives on us."

"Ow," Correy rubbed his cheek where the toy had smacked him. "Kid's got a hell of a swing on him," he looked up at his cousin and grinned widely. "You teaching him to be a ruthless killer?" Of course Correy was teasing, but he didn't make the mistake of putting his head near Jack again. Instead, he leaned back against the couch and sprawled his long legs out in front of him. And then, on a totally different note, as he watched Kenny playing with Jack, his expression softened. "I didn't know you wanted kids, baby."