Hello my lovely, patient, understanding readers. I hope some of you are still with me, because I have not abandoned this story. It's just that life's a bitch and I've been all over the place lately, so I haven't been in the right headspace to write this story. But I promised you a chapter, and here it is. After this will be one final arc, of around ten chapters, but that will take a while for me to write. So here's a heads-up: until further notice, this story will be on hiatus. Unlike last time, this time is entirely intentional, and I hope you'll all understand that. I can't say how long it will take me to write the rest, but I promise I haven't forgotten about this story - or you guys - and I will be back to finish it when I can. So for now enjoy the chapter, thank you all so much for your patience, and I apologize for any mistakes or inconsistencies - I'm trying to get back into this story and it may or may not be successful. We'll see.

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"It's too much. Do you think it's too much?" A pause. "It's too much."

The ribbon flutters from Spencer's hand, landing on the bed in a curl of purple. She looks at herself in the mirror, and then at Melissa over her shoulder. Her sister is watching her with amusement that borders on sympathy, and Spencer suddenly feels incredibly foolish. She picks the ribbon back up and twists it between her fingers, trying to work out if it is, in fact, too much.

With a sympathetic laugh, Melissa moves toward her. "Relax, Spencer," her sister says, brushing Spencer's hair back from her face and looking at her in the mirror. "Your boyfriend's coming over for dinner; you're not meeting the President."

"It might be easier if I were," Spencer mutters, but she forces herself to take a deep breath and try to calm down.

"He really likes you," Melissa comments as they go about doing Spencer's hair, which takes a while because of the wispy little strands that refuse to stay where they're put. "And I'm sure Mom and Dad will love him."

Spencer snorts, which causes Melissa to almost stab her with the pin she's using to hold back Spencer's hair. "You have met our parents, haven't you?" she asks. "Do you not remember what happened the first time you brought Ian over for dinner?"

Melissa grins ruefully at the memory. "Dad threatened to have him fired and Mom made a joke about putting poison in his food."

The two sisters share a laugh, and Spencer feels some of the weight lifting from her shoulders. She's nervous about tonight, of course – and still not entirely sure what possessed her to invite Toby over for dinner in the first place – but it's unlikely to be a total disaster. Ever since, well, everything, her parents have been different around her – gentler, more understanding. But for the past couple weeks they've been inquiring about Toby, making less and less subtle hints that she should bring him over. So she will, even though past experience reminds her of all the ways in which tonight could go wrong.

Just as they're finishing up Spencer's hair – pinned back and hanging loose around her shoulders, sans ribbon – the doorbell rings. In the mirror Spencer sees her face go pale, but she just takes another deep breath, squares her shoulders, and turns around.

"You'll be fine," Melissa assures her. "And I'll be there to help diffuse the tension."

Flashing her sister a grateful smile, Spencer leads the way out of the room. It's seven o'clock exactly – Toby's right on time. Somehow Spencer isn't surprised. By the time she gets downstairs Toby is already inside, talking quietly to her father. Toby glances up as she approaches and smiles at her, and she returns the gesture before coming to a stop beside her father, waiting patiently for them to finish. To her relief her father isn't threatening or needling him; it seems that they're talking about carpentry.

They finish talking, and the four of them make their way into the dining room, where Mrs Hastings is setting the table. She greets them all warmly, and as Spencer takes her seat she notices a look pass between her mother and sister. If she's not much mistaken, her mother's raised eyebrows are a sign she's impressed, not judgmental. Toby automatically holds out Spencer's chair for her to sit down, causing Mr Hastings to make a joke about being upstaged. While Mrs Hastings serves the first course, Melissa strikes up a conversation with Mr Hastings, deliberately leaving Spencer free to talk to Toby.

"I'm glad you came," she says, feeling her racing heart slow a little as he smiles at her.

"I'm glad you invited me." He reaches for her hand under the table and her heart rate spikes for a second, then settles into a steady rhythm.

She'll never understand how he does that, making her feel at ease with such effortless familiarity. She may not understand it, but she'll never get tired of it. The dinner goes surprisingly well – at first. Spencer's parents keep Toby busy, asking him questions about Rosewood and the school and his carpentry, and he becomes more confident and outgoing as he answers. Eventually he even asks them some questions, about their house and their jobs and how they're liking Rosewood, and it's all going well. Until Mr Hastings asks about Jenna.

Spencer can feel Toby stiffening, completely caught off-guard and unsure how to answer. There have been plenty of rumors going around about what Jenna had done and why she'd left, and all Spencer and Toby want is to stay out of it. She has no idea how her parents even found out about it, because she hadn't said a word to them. Toby gives her a pained look, and Spencer opens her mouth to intervene. Then Melissa steps in, asking their father a question about a strange noise her car has been making.

It's not the most graceful of topic changes, but neither of Spencer's parents question it. Spencer makes sure to keep them talking after that, so they don't have another chance to bring up a sensitive subject. Toby's grip on her hand tightens, silently thanking her, but at the same time it's reassuring. It's still strange for her, having this give-and-take relationship where she's not always struggling to keep up.

Dinner is a rather prolonged affair, but it's relatively painless. No more sensitive subjects come up, and Toby endears himself further to Mr and Mrs Hastings when he offers to clear the table. Spencer helps him, and they end up in the kitchen; alone together for the first time all night.

Spencer exhales slowly, suddenly feeling drained. "I'm sorry about them," she says, gesturing at the closed door, on the other side of which sits the rest of her family.

Toby, stacking plates on the bench, glances over at her. "What are you apologizing for? Your family seems a lot nicer than mine."

From what Spencer's seen so far, he has a point. She closes her eyes, focusing on this moment, wanting to remember it. Her parents haven't threatened to kick Toby out or poison him, Melissa's been as supportive as ever, and even the level of awkwardness hasn't been as bad as expected. All in all, the night has been a success.

"Hey," says a soft voice, and Spencer opens her eyes to see Toby standing in front of her, "you okay?"

She smiles, touched by how concerned he is, even though, for the first time she can remember, nothing's actually wrong. "It's perfect," she says quietly, and the smile that washes over Toby's face makes it hard for Spencer to believe there ever was anything wrong.

Then the smile fades and his expression changes, almost like he's embarrassed.

Spencer quirks an eyebrow, back on high alert. "What is it?"

"There's something I want to show you," he says, and yes, he definitely sounds embarrassed. "But if I do, you're probably going to think I'm a total dork."

Spencer snickers. "I already think you're a dork," she jokes, "so you may as well show me."

Toby laughs too, and his embarrassment disappears. Spencer marvels again at how easy it is to get to this point, where they're completely comfortable with each other. She watches curiously as he reaches into his coat pocket and withdraws a small bag – a pouch, really – and hands it to her. It fits in the palm of her hand, and it doesn't feel like any of the typical (or so she's heard) presents a boyfriend might give to his girlfriend. Her curiosity growing, she pulls on the strings and opens the bag.

There's only one thing inside, and at first she doesn't understand what it is. She pulls it out, flipping it over, taking it in. It's a small piece of wood, carved into an S shape. There are carvings around the edge, looping and swirling in a way that's so beautiful she actually forgets to breathe. She looks up at Toby, seeing his nervous smile become more confident as he sees her reaction.

"Do you like it?" he asks, and she almost laughs at the thought that somebody could not like this.

"Did you make this?" she asks, and he ducks his head ever so slightly; that's enough of an answer. "When?"

"I started it after the Charity Ball," he replies. "I finished it last night."

Spencer turns it over in her hand again, running a finger along the carvings on the edge, completely awestruck by the fact that someone would put so much thought and time into making something for her. But old habits die hard, and embarrassment creeps in; she should have made something for him too.

As if sensing what she's about to say, Toby takes her free hand in his. "I hope you like it," he says, and then he heads back into the dining room.

For a moment Spencer stays where she is, the S still resting in her hand and her heart feeling heavy in her chest – but not in the way it used to. It's heavy because it's so full, not because the world is crushing her. It's a pleasant change, but it will take some getting used to. Finally she comes back to her senses, and, having nowhere else to put the S, she tucks it into one of the drawers before following Toby back out into the other room.

Toby's talking to Melissa, and Mr and Mrs Hastings are sharing a glass of wine. Spencer takes her place at the table beside Toby and Melissa, and soon conversation turns to the future. Mrs Hastings invites Toby for dinner next week as well, and Mr Hastings asks if he wants to come to the Club with him one day. To his credit, Toby hides his surprise long enough to graciously accept both offers. Melissa gives Spencer a slightly smug smile; Spencer has a feeling her parents might have had a little prompting.

At last it's time for the dinner to end, and Spencer and Toby say their goodbyes at the door.

"It was lovely to meet you, Toby," Mrs Hastings says, while Mr Hastings shakes his hand again.

"Thank you for dinner," Toby says, giving both of Spencer's parents a wide smile. Then he turns to her, and if her parents weren't there she knows he'd kiss her. But instead he just gives her a smile too – but this one is different. Softer, more personal, like he's sharing a secret with her. "I'll see you at school tomorrow," he says, and Spencer nods.

Then she leans forward to hug him, and she whispers in his ear, "Thank you for everything."

She pulls back before he can reply, but she knows he understands. They say their final farewells, and then Toby departs. Mr and Mrs Hastings look at their youngest daughter with expressions of actual happiness, but none of them mention it. Instead they just share a quiet moment before going their separate ways, and somehow that's perfect.

Spencer ends up in the kitchen later that evening, retrieving the S that Toby had given her. She's halfway through getting it when she realizes that Melissa is sitting in the kitchen, enjoying her usual fro-yo dessert. Spencer tucks the S into the pocket of her sweats and sits down across from her sister.

"That went well, didn't it?" Melissa asks, handing Spencer a spoon.

Spencer nods, mouth full of frozen yogurt. It had definitely gone well, and for the first time she has the feeling that it's not just the calm before the storm. Maybe she's finally finding the shore.

While they finish the frozen yogurt they talk about trivial things, and it actually feels nice. Nothing is the way it used to be, or how Spencer had once thought it would be, but somehow that doesn't seem to matter.

Melissa dumps the empty fro-yo container in the trash and then turns to her sister on the way out of the kitchen. "I'm happy for you, Spence," she says, and it sounds like she means it.

Spencer smiles in response, and she means that too. Because for the first time in a long time, she's actually happy. All she can do is hope that this time it will last.

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Thank you all again, and I hope the chapter was worth the wait. I'll see you all next time, whenever that may be.