Operation M.I.A: Missing in Action (IN NEED OF REVISING)

Chapter XXIX

So the only possible reason this could be is if somebody is arriving here.

It couldn't possibly be... could it?

Music: Give My Heart to You from Nemesis 3 MSX

Indeed, it is. Shanna takes a look out the window and her whole face lights up. "Oh my god, you guys... it's Mackenzie!"

"WHAT!?" Luke exclaims, looking up from the tennis match to try and look out the window. A tennis ball knocks him in the head, but he doesn't even flinch from it.

"You're kidding!" Heath yells, putting his yo-yo away.

"No! She's not!" Mia yells back, glancing out the window with Shanna.

The front door is opened and all nine of us pile out. Sure enough, Mackenzie is climbing out of her birth parents' van. She looks at all of us, smiles cheerfully, and gives us a simple, "Hi!"

The reaction is mostly shock. Mouths open but no words can be found. Mia does the best job at locating some, however. "What... how... but..."

"Amelia said she didn't feel at home at our place, so we felt like it was our duty to give her the life she wanted," her birth mother says. Both parents step out of the vehicle and walk behind Mackenzie, placing their hands on her shoulders.

"Yeah. They've already talked to Mia's parents about it, but I just wanted to stop by and see you guys first," Mackenzie tells us. She then turns around and tells her birth parents, "Thank you so much for doing this. Judging from today alone, I'm positive you two would've been great parents. Promise me you'll visit soon, okay?"

"Will do," her biological father says, nodding. With that, the two walk back to the van, hop inside, and drive off.

"So... does this mean we have to start calling you Amelia now?" Luke asks.

Mackenzie laughs. "I think I prefer Mackenzie."

"Oh, come here, you," Mia says, walking forward to hug Mackenzie. Sean and Shanna join them, and pretty soon, it's a ten-person group hug.

"Okay, there are way too many people here for a group hug," I comment after only a few seconds. We all release each other, looking joyful as ever.

"It's so good to have you back, Mackenzie," Sam says.

"I mean, I was only gone for two days. You couldn't possibly have missed me that much in so little time," Mackenzie chuckles. This eventually erupts into a laughing fit from the rest of us. It's not funny, but the circumstances and the context behind it is.

"Whaddya say we celebrate this special occasion?" Avery suggests, pumping her hands in the air in a "woop woop" styled fashion.

Everybody unanimously agrees with the idea, so we walk back inside the clubhouse to start setting up.

AVERY

Music: Nervous Breakdown from Salamander 2

Sam gets some music going on his phone while we happily stroll on inside the clubhouse to set up for an outdoor mini-party. Elle, Shanna, Mackenzie, and I grab some snacks from the cupboards and carry them outside. Heath, Luke, and Sean work together to bring a table outside and then place it randomly in the grass. Sam, Mia, and the hovercraft bring some chairs out and place them at the table. All work is done in a fast-paced, enthusiastic manner.

Next, the small decorative stuff. Mia and Mackenzie find Christmas lights in the storage room of the clubhouse and hang them along the front of the building, giving off a nice series of colorful lights to go with the early summer afternoon sunset. I grab some napkins from the kitchen cabinets and place them at a seat on the table. Heath and Luke get plates and utensils and do the same thing with them.