"Don't forget to call when you get there sweetheart. You and Alan just focus on having fun." Jeff placed a chaste kiss on his wife Lucy's cheek as he loaded the last of his wife and young son's luggage in the trunk of the vehicle. "Say hello to your great aunt for me and the boys."

"I'll do that honey." Lucy closed the trunk of the family's 2004 dark grey Chevy Malibu. Turning to her husband, Lucy wrapped her arms around his neck before bringing her beloved husband close for a kiss.

"The boys and I will miss you and Alan." Jeff returned the kiss from his wife. "I love you."

"I love you too." Lucy pulled away from Jeff before grasping his hand in hers and interlocking their fingers. "Come on, I want to go give the boys a hug and a kiss before Allie and I take off."

Lucy fell back so she was walking right beside her husband. Jeff's index finger glanced over the wedding ring he'd given to Lucy, it had been his grandmother's before his dad gave it to him. Jeff fiddled with Lucy's fingers as they walked in companionable silence. Every so often Jeff would lift their intertwined hands and kiss Lucy's knuckles as a show of affection for his wife.

Upon entering the house it was filled with rambunctious laughter and squeals of delight. Jeff and Lucy stopped just inside the door frame as a four year old half-dressed Alan went racing past giggling as he ran, Scott hot on his tail. The fourteen year old boy ran past his parents without batting an eyelash at their presence. Scott was carrying a child's shirt held firmly in his grip.

"Come on Sprout! You can't go with mom if you aren't dressed!" John and Virgil ran along behind the older boy, hollering for Alan as they ran.

"Alan! Come on! Stop playing around!" Scott yelled from one of the back rooms and Jeff placed a finger in front of his lips letting Lucy know not to make a sound. Soon the sound of tiny bare feet thumping against the linoleum flooring rang out. As Alan rounded the corner, Jeff reached out and plucked Alan up off the ground, eliciting a loud squealing giggle from the boy.

"I've got him Scott!" Jeff called as he held a squirming Alan by the undersides of his arms. The tiny blonde was giggling with glee at being caught by his dad. Holding out his arms for a hug, Jeff gave in and pulled the small child close before giving him a big bear hug. Alan being the more affectionate Tracy son hugged his dad's neck tightly making a 'mmm' sound with a big smile on his face.

"Finally! I've only been chasing him for the last ten minutes!" Scott rounded the corner before doubling over to place his hands on his knees while he caught his breath. "I have no idea where that boy gets his energy from!"

"What happened, you were almost done getting him dressed when I stepped out to help your mom load the last of the luggage." Jeff looked at Scott with a raised eyebrow.

"As it turns out the Sprout decided he just had to go pee while we were getting him dressed and wouldn't hold still for even a second. Gordon took him to use the bathroom and when Alan was finished, he tore out of the room not even waiting to get his shirt and shoes on." Scott approached his dad who was still holding Alan who was clinging like a limpet to his dad's torso.

"Where's Gordon?" Jeff looked around when he noticed a breathless Virgil and John come to a halt directly behind their eldest brother.

"He got wore out trying to help us catch Allie. He's on the couch in the living room." John supplied the location of his younger redheaded brother.

Threading Alan's head through the neck hole in the shirt, Scott utilized his dad's hold on his baby brother in order to get him appropriately dressed. Virgil and John assisted Scott and their dad in the task of dressing the squiggling four year old. When Jeff placed Alan on the floor, Lucy crouched down to distract her little spitfire from fussing over getting shoes put on. He hated wearing shoes.

Once Alan was dressed and had his shoes tied, the family released the boy and like any small rambunctious child, he took off into the living room before a cry of "Alan" was heard followed by more squeals. Scott rolled his eyes before traipsing off towards the living room, his parents and younger brothers following to discover that Gordon had Alan pinned to the floor and was tickling the four year old mercilessly.

"All right Gordon, that's enough. Your mother and brother won't make their rendezvous time if they don't leave now." Jeff coughed into his hand to disguise his laughter at the situation.

"All right dad." Gordon leaned up away from Alan and watched with a mischievous grin as his little brother gasped in much needed air after laughing and screaming from the tickle attack. Moving quickly, Gordon reached out and poked Alan in the ribs, making the small boy curl into a ball to protect his ticklish spots from his big brother.

"Say good bye to your mom and brother boys, we'll get to see them next week when they get back from your Great Aunt Faye's house." Jeff stooped to pick up his four year old off the floor and gave him a big hug and kissed his forehead gently. "You be good for your mom and Aunt Faye now Alan."

"Yes, daddy!" Alan hugged his dad tightly before he was passed off to Scott who gave him an equally big hug.

"Love you Sprout, be good for mom and have fun." Alan leaned up and gave his big brother a sloppy wet kiss on the cheek. "Aw thanks Sprout."

Passing Alan off to John, Scott waited until Alan's back was turned before he wiped the slobbery kiss off with his t-shirt. Not that he minded kisses on the cheek from his parents; he just didn't like the wet kisses from his youngest sibling. Alan had reached that stage where he thought it was perfectly okay to give big wet sloppy kisses to his loved ones and Scott was actively trying to break him of the habit.

"Be a good boy for mom and have fun Allie-gator. We'll see you two next Sunday." John pecked Alan gently on the forehead only to receive a kiss of his own on the cheek from his baby brother. It wasn't nearly as sloppy as the one Scott had received.

"'Kay Johnny." Alan hugged his big brother tightly and John couldn't help but to return the affection. Alan was a grade A snuggle-bug. John supported Alan on his hip while Virgil and Gordon approached for their own hugs from the tiny blonde.

A chorus of 'good-bye mom, bye-bye Alan' was heard as the family saw the mother and son out the door and to the car. Lucy carried Alan out and put him in his booster seat before turning to kiss her husband and sons good-bye. Turning back to the car, Lucy waved good-bye before climbing in the vehicle and shutting the door soundly.

"I'll call when I reach Cheyenne, Wyoming. Provided the roads are good, we should make it to that bed and breakfast in the next eight to nine hours. Then tomorrow Allie and I will drive out to Billings, Montana." Lucy started the car and adjusted her rearview mirror before fastening her seatbelt. "I love you all and I'll call before Allie goes to bed this evening."

"Bye Mom, Bye Allie!" Scott, John, Virgil and Gordon all waved exuberantly at their mom and baby brother as they prepared to drive away.

"Good bye my love, drive safe and have fun." Jeff blew a kiss to Lucy as she put the car into reverse and started to back out of the driveway.

… … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … … …

Lucy drove across the state border crossing into the state of Colorado and smiled brightly. She and Alan were going to stop in the first town they came to in order to fuel up the car and use the restroom and get a bite of lunch. After being stuck in his booster seat, fast asleep for the past five hours…Lucy knew that her baby boy would be bursting immediately upon waking. Checking her GPS, Lucy found that they'd be reaching Westminster, CO in the next half hour. Flexing her wrists, Lucy turned on the radio to listen to the weather reports. The sky looked dreary at best, but rain wasn't uncommon to experience in October.

Hearing a soft intake of breath Lucy glanced into her rearview mirror to see Alan had woken up. He was scrubbing at his eyes with a fist sleepily. He'd been so excited to see his great-great aunt Faye again that the boy hardly slept the night before. Lucy would know. Alan crawled into bed with her and Jeff at quarter to midnight and he wouldn't hold still. True he had slept, but it'd been a very restless sleep. The tiny blonde only held still when Lucy or Jeff would cuddle him close so he could listen to their even breathing and heart-beat to lull him back to sleep.

"Hi, honey. How was your nap?" Lucy kept her eyes on the road, but inquired of her four year old as he woke up.

"Good." Alan rubbed at his eyes with both fists as he yawned widely.

"That's good to hear. Are you ready for a bite of lunch?" Lucy checked her GPS again to find they were twenty minutes outside of Westminster.

"No. I got to go potty." Alan swung his legs to and fro as he wiggled and squirmed in his seat.

"Do you think you can wait a few minutes until we get to the next gas station?" Lucy glanced in the rearview mirror to try to gauge how bad her son had to go. His facial expression said it all to her. He had to go…pronto. "Let me find a pull out okay sweetie?"

Alan nodded silently as he tried not to focus on his need to go to the bathroom. Continuing his leg swinging Alan lost track of time. Soon though Alan developed a pained expression on his face, he needed to go potty now.

"Mommy, I got to go." Alan whimpered as he squeezed his legs together and placed his hands in his lap.

"I know baby. There's a rest stop just up ahead." Lucy spotted an exit to a rest stop and turned on her right blinker. Pulling into the pull out area, Lucy put the car in park before climbing from inside and extracting her son from his booster seat. Alan was practically hopping up and down impatiently as his mom took him in to use the restroom. They weren't very far from the next town…about ten minutes. Not long after stopping, the mother and son left the restroom; Lucy couldn't help but to grin at her now happy son. "That's mommy's big boy. Feel better?"

"Uh-huh." Alan smiled up at his mom from his place on her hip.

"Now, after we get you in your booster seat, then we'll be able to stop for lunch in about ten minutes. What do you want?" Lucy knew of a couple places and figured her son would choose a diner or someplace that appealed to children.

"Grill cheese." Alan got a wide smile on his face.

"Nice choice." Lucy knew just the place to go to. It was a small diner that a friend of hers worked at while the both of them were still in high school.

Lucy opened the backseat door and secured Alan to his booster seat. His babyish face was no longer strained with discomfort; it was now relaxed as it should be. Before closing the car door, Lucy leaned in and kissed Alan on the cheek. Closing the door firmly, Lucy climbed back into the front seat and secured herself in before returning to driving.

"Mommy, can you sing me a song?" Alan gave his mom an imploring look.

Lucy ran through a mental list of songs that she could possibly sing for her little boy and settled on singing "A Thousand Years". She'd sang it to Alan a couple times over the years as he grew up and he seemed to like the song. She mainly reserved it for when he'd wake up after a bad dream, but those had thankfully become few and far between. Vocalizing softly to make sure she was in the correct vocal range, Lucy started singing.

Alan tried to join her at the chorus, but kept muddling up the words. After a few minutes, Alan just sat back and listened to his mom sing him the beautiful song. In no time at all Lucy and Alan arrived in the town of Westminster. Navigating her way through the city thru fares, Lucy finally managed to locate the diner her friend worked at. Pulling in and putting the car in park, Lucy shut off the vehicle before removing Alan from his booster seat.

Entering the diner, Lucy was greeted by her old friend. It had been Hector who had introduced her and Jeff when they'd met at college. Opening one arm, she hugged her childhood friend. The man noticed the towheaded child hiding behind his mother's leg and crouched down to greet the child.

"Lucy, for shame! Why didn't you tell me you and Jeff were blessed with another little one?" Hector peered around Lucy's legs to try to catch a glimpse of the boy and he only hid more eliciting a heartfelt chuckle from both parties. "This makes…what four kids?"

"Five. This here is my youngest." Lucy reached down and gently ran her fingers through Alan's head of blonde hair. "Aren't you going to say hello Allie-bear?" Alan's greeting was to step further behind his mother's legs and clutch onto her pant legs and hide from the strange man. Scotty always told him to never talk to strangers.

"Seriously? Five kids? What's his name?" Hector beamed up at his friend and smiled widely.

"Yep. Jeff and I were blessed with five wonderful, rambunctious boys. This here by the way is Alan." Lucy placed a hand on top of Alan's head before ruffling his downy blonde waves. "Baby, can you tell mommy's friend Hector how old you are?"

Alan wouldn't look at Hector, or resurface from behind his mother's legs. He was painfully shy. He was so shy in fact that Alan looked at his fingers, before holding up four fingers around his mom's legs to show Hector how old he was. Hector practically howled with laughter at the display from the young boy and Lucy side-stepped away from Alan before crouching down to hug her little boy. Alan's reaction to being shown was to bury his face in his mother's blouse, shielding his face from Hector.

"Come on baby. This is a nice man; he's a friend of mommy's." Lucy tousled Alan's hair affectionately before turning to Hector with a playful grin. "He isn't normally this shy; he actually talks a mile a minute and never seems to stop to take a breath. I'm sorry."

"Ah, don't apologize Luce, I seem to remember a certain fair-haired little girl who wouldn't look anybody in the eye when she was Alan's age. He'll grow out of it, just like…you." Hector grinned mischievously at his childhood friend. They'd known each other since pre-school, they had been like two peas in a pod whilst they were growing up. "So, did you want a table or booth?"

"Booth please." Lucy cuddled Alan close and chuckled when Alan refused to lift his head from where he'd burrowed.

"What would you like to drink? We have water, iced tea, milkshakes, soda and coffee." Hector removed a notepad and pencil from his apron pocket.

"Iced tea for me, thank you Hector." Lucy sat down in the booth that Hector directed them to.

"And what about the little guy? We have chocolate milk, does he like chocolate milk?" Hector peered down at Alan who lifted his head before spotting Hector still standing nearby and burying his face in his mother's bosom again.

"He loves chocolate milk, are you kidding? You are looking at the biggest chocoholic that ever attended Belleview Christian Schools. He inherited it from me." Lucy chuckled as she pried Alan away from her chest to turn him around in her lap. Alan's face was beat red from his bashfulness and he immediately cast his eyes down at the table.

"Hey you never know, he could be like your eldest and not like chocolate at all." Hector laughed amusedly at the look on Lucy's face. "Hey son, do you want some chocolate milk?"

Alan refused to lift his head when Hector spoke to him; he just nodded mutely. Lucy stroked Alan's flushed cheek affectionately and chuckled at her little boy. He and John both were her two shy boys, both blonde haired and both with sapphire blue eyes like their father. Hector wrote down the drink order before sticking his pencil up behind his ear.

"I'll have your drinks out to you in a few moments. Here are your menus and here is a coloring book and some crayons for the little guy." Hector laid a little Smokey the Bear coloring book on the table and a small box of crayons down for Alan before turning and walking away to the kitchen to get the orders.

"Thank you Hector." Lucy flipped open the menu and looked it over with Alan and decided she'd have the same thing Alan was getting. A grilled cheese sandwich. "Sweetie, do you want to color with mommy until Hector returns with your chocolate milk?"

Alan remained silent, but nodded eagerly. Lucy tousled his hair and kissed him on the forehead before opening the coloring book and crayons. Lucy decided on helping Alan color an image of Woodsy Owl. It was something simple, nothing too intricate for the four year old. Mother and son remained quiet for the most part, sharing a whispered conversation occasionally. Hector returned with a small tray balanced on his fingertips and he placed the drinks in front of the respective recipient.

"So have you two decided on what you'd like to eat this afternoon or do you need more time to decide?" Hector grabbed the pencil from behind his ear and retrieved his notepad from his apron pocket.

"Yes we've decided. Alan sweetie, can you tell Hector what you want to have?" Lucy prompted her little boy to speak and Lucy and Hector watched as Alan's fair skin became beet red at having been put on a pedestal. "It's okay sweetheart. He's not a stranger, he's mommy and daddy's friend."

Alan looked up at his mom before getting a reassuring nod from her. Directing his gaze back down at the table, Alan spoke so softly that Hector and Lucy both had trouble understanding what he'd said. Hector crouched down next to the table to gaze at the little boy who refused to speak up. Hector tapped the table top gently to grab Alan's attention and bring his gaze up to meet his eyes.

"I'm sorry; I couldn't hear what you said. Could you repeat it please?" Hector caught Alan's blue eyed gaze and smiled gently at the bashful little boy.

"Grill cheese." Alan spoke again, this time a little bit louder than before. It was still really soft, but not nearly as soft as it had previously been.

"Excellent choice. Lucy what would you like?" Hector wrote the order from Alan down and nodded his thanks at Alan before standing up to his full height.

"I'm having the same as Alan. Thank you Hector." Lucy handed the menu back to Hector who took it happily.

"I'll have that out for you in a couple minutes Lucy. Enjoy your drinks in the meantime." Hector turned and went back into the kitchen to give the cook the order of lunch and stayed gone for several minutes.

"Sweetie, when we are done with lunch we'll go pick up some snacks from the gas station and be back on our way. Are you having fun yet?" Lucy murmured into Alan's ear as she wrapped her arms around his torso. She shuffled her legs to bounce Alan around a little, before settling down to finish coloring Woodsy Owl with Alan.

"Yeah mommy. Lots of fun." Alan turned his head and beamed at his mom.

"That's good to hear." Lucy and Alan continued coloring Woodsy Owl for several minutes, before Hector returned with their sandwiches. Hector had taken the liberty of having the cook cut Alan's sandwich into quarters. Placing the plate gently down in front of the small boy, Hector wasn't expecting to get any form of response from the kid. However he was surprised.

"Thank you." Hector and Lucy both looked to Alan who was nibbling on the corner of one of his sandwich quarters. The little blonde, smiled at his mom and the waiter before giggling.

"You are very welcome young man." Hector tapped the tips of his fingers against the table again before walking away to greet a few new customers.

"I am so proud of Allie-bear. Nice job using your manners." Lucy tousled Alan's blonde curls before setting to work on her sandwich. The two of them continued to eat and color Woodsy Owl in peace. There was a little bit of laughter from both parties, but primarily it was just mom and son bonding together.

Hector stood just behind the counter watching Alan and Lucy interact. It amazed him to find out that that little blonde girl he'd grown up with was sitting in the diner that he'd purchased with his wife…spending time with not just her youngest…but her fifth child and a son at that. Hector could always recall how Lucy said she always wanted two children one of each and your typical picket fence in the middle of a cul-de-sac. Shaking his head, he couldn't believe how life had turned out for the both of them.

Hector had developed a crush on Lucy whilst they were in high school, despite having known her since preschool and practically being the brother she never had. He'd taken her to their senior prom and he'd told her he loved her. She sadly didn't reciprocate those feelings, but it had been for the best. After moving off to attend college in Houston, he'd befriended a man a few years older than him and unintentionally introduced him to Lucy.

She'd come to surprise him for his birthday and Jeff and Hector were planning on playing billiards in the lounge. Lucy being the practical jokester had rigged up a vat of green food coloring treated water above the door to drop a deluge of water over Hector's head. Jeff had been the unfortunate soul to walk through the door first and become the not so jolly green giant. Lucy started laughing at the look on Jeff's face and Jeff had fallen head over heels in love with her smile.

Hector properly introduced the two, after Jeff went to his dorm to shower and try to remove as much green food coloring as he could. The two met, and married within the year and were expecting their first bundle of joy before their second anniversary. Hector met his wife, ironically through Jeff. She worked at NASA as a secretary and when Hector gave Lucy and her one year old son Scott a lift to HQ he'd met Briana. Lucy and Briana clicked instantly as did Hector and Briana.

Briana called Jeff to come greet some visitors at the front desk and when the man showed up, he'd introduced his wife and son to Briana. Hector had been struck speechless and it was end of story for them. After graduating college Hector worked as a chef, attending additional training at the Cordon Bleu in Austin. Briana contacted Hector to see if he'd cook at Jeff's going away party when the man decided to retire from NASA to open his own business. Hector of course agreed and was in attendance of the retirement party.

When Briana found out that Hector was moving back to Colorado, she'd told him she was going to follow him. They'd started dating by that time and he'd suggested they elope…which they did. Lucy and Jeff were witness to their vows and then they parted ways. Jeff and Lucy returned to Jeff's hometown in Kansas to raise their gradually growing family, while Hector and Briana returned to Hector and Lucy's hometown of Westminster, CO. Hector and Briana purchased the small diner that had treated Hector and Lucy good whilst they'd been growing up and now he and his wife ran the business together.

Breaking out of his memories, he realized that Lucy and Alan had finished with their lunch and were waving at him to bring the tab. Making his way over to the table, Hector stopped to grab a couple of tootsie rolls from the jar to give to Alan and Lucy as a complimentary dessert. Placing the tab down, Hector hung around to talk to his childhood friend. It wasn't often that he got to see her much anymore, them living in two different states…several hours away.

"So how was your lunch?" Hector grinned at seeing Alan had a chocolate milk mustache. He apparently loved his lunch.

"It was very good Hector. Thank you very much." Lucy noticed Alan's milk mustache and dabbed at the residue with a slightly damp paper towel. Alan turned his head this way and that to try to avoid his mom washing his face, but mom succeeded.

"So, I never asked earlier…but what brings you up here?" Hector removed the plates from the table, while maintaining a conversation with his friend.

"Alan and I are going up to visit my great aunt Faye in Billings, Montana. A cousin of mine is getting married and my great aunt Faye has just been dying to see me and Alan again, so we are going up to stay for a few days. She hasn't seen him since he turned two and I know he misses her too." Lucy tousled Alan's hair affectionately. "We should get to Billings sometime tomorrow evening. When we leave here, we are going to drive straight through to Cheyenne, Wyoming before we stop for the night."

"Well, you and Alan be careful. I know the roads can be okay when dry, but it's supposed to rain this evening and most of tomorrow. If possible, call me and Briana when you get there just so I know you made it safely…okay?" Hector looked down at his best friend. Her brown eyes shone playfully like they used to when the two of them were children.

"Will do Hector. Tell Briana I said hello and give Jason a big hug from his aunty Lucy…okay?" Lucy picked up Alan and held him on her hip.

"Jason and Phoebe...but yes I will give them both a hug and kiss from their aunt Lucy." Hector rolled his eyes playfully.

"We have got to stay in touch better. I didn't know you and Briana had another baby!" Lucy gushed over his children and Hector being the proud dad, he pulled out his wallet and showed the pictures of his two little ones. "How old is Phoebe?"

"She just turned two years old three months ago. However…it looks like Briana and I are following the footsteps of you and Jeff. Bri's pregnant with twins. It looks like we'll have two of each." Hector also displayed the ultrasound photos to his childhood friend.

"I am envious, I'll say that much…but I wouldn't give up my sons for the world." Lucy ogled the baby pictures and ultrasound photos Hector showed her. "Call me and Jeff if you need any help…we don't mind taking Jason or Phoebe for a few days after the twins are born. I know when Allie was born, it was like a circus. I had two older sons who helped take care of their two younger brothers, but five children can be hectic."

"I'll keep that in mind. Now, get on out of here. I don't want you to get caught up in the rain." Hector accepted the pictures as well as the payment for Lucy and Alan's lunch. Ushering the two out the door, he waved at them both. "Good-bye Luce, bye Alan…it was nice meeting you little guy!"

"Bye!" Alan waved from his mother's shoulder with a big smile. He liked Hector. He hoped he'd get to see him again sometime.

Lucy turned to wave at Hector as she walked back to her car. It was nice to see and spend some time with her childhood friend again. It really had been too long since she and Jeff met up with Hector and Briana…they'd have to plan a get together sometime…let Jason play with Scott and the boys. He was after all two years younger than Scott, but her boys all liked Jason. He'd fit in well with her gaggle of sons and she personally missed seeing Briana and Hector. The last time she'd seen them, Virgil had been a two years old, a couple months before she'd conceived Gordon.

"Well, honey…ready to hit the road?" Lucy settled Alan in his booster seat and secured him. Reaching into his activities bag, she retrieved his teddy bear and gave it to him to play with. It'd keep him occupied until they got to Cheyenne. It was only another hour and a half drive. They'd have all afternoon to go play at the park and relax at the bed and breakfast where she'd reserved a room for her and Alan.

"Yeah! Let's go mommy!" Alan giggled in excitement as his mom shut the car door and climbed in the driver's seat. It was time to get this show on the road.

A/N: Each chapter I have assigned the name to be the title of a song I was listening to in order to influence the chapter...

This 1st chapter is titled after Christina Perri's song - A Thousand Years