Missy's Day || Georgie Cooper ||
A/n: Missy is finally getting her own day.
It started because Missy made the mistake of mentioning Red Lobster.
You were stretched across one of the lounge chairs beside your family’s pool, sunglasses perched on your nose while Missy sat cross-legged beside you with her feet dangling in the water. Georgie had disappeared inside to hunt down drinks, leaving the two of you alone, and somewhere between discussing which teachers were secretly miserable and whether Georgie had always been that easy to embarrass, birthdays had come up. You’d asked Missy what she’d done for her last one, expecting cake, presents, maybe some ridiculous family tradition, only for her to shrug.
“Nothing really special,” Missy admitted, flicking water from her toes. “It’s usually what Sheldon wants.”
You slowly lowered your sunglasses.
Missy either didn’t notice the immediate offense on your face or chose to ignore it. “Being twins means everybody acts like our birthday’s one birthday. Sheldon doesn’t like loud places, Sheldon doesn’t like certain foods, Sheldon doesn’t like surprises.” She sighed, resting her chin against her palm. “I really wanted Red Lobster.”
There was a moment of silence.
Missy glanced over. “What?”
“Well, Sheldon doesn’t like—”
“I didn’t ask what Sheldon likes.” You state sitting up on the lounge chair.
That should have been Georgie’s first warning when he returned carrying three glasses of lemonade and immediately slowed when he saw your expression. By now, he’d learned there were different versions of you. There was the Boston Girl complaining about Texas heat, Sweet You who handed Missy expensive purses because she’d said they were pretty, Flirty You who pinched his cheeks whenever he blushed, and then there was this version.
This version apparently had plans.
“What happened?” Georgie asked suspiciously.
You pointed at Missy. “Your family neglected her birthday.”
Missy’s mouth dropped open. “I didn’t say neglected!”
“You did not receive lobster.”
You nodded once. “Unacceptable.”
Georgie handed you your lemonade. “Please don’t buy her a restaurant.”
You looked genuinely offended. “I wasn’t gonna buy a restaurant.”
“I’m taking her ta Boston.”
Georgie nearly dropped his glass.
Three days later, George Cooper was standing in the middle of his living room holding an suitcase while Mary stared at you as though she couldn’t decide whether you were an answer to prayer or some extremely well-dressed test sent by God.
“Let me understand this,” Mary said carefully. “You want to take Missy to dinner.”
You crossed your arms over your chest. “That’s generally where Boston is.”
Georgie covered his mouth.
George Sr. turned away because he was absolutely not going to let Mary see him laughing.
You shrugged your shoulders still smiling. “Sorry.”
Missy was already standing by the door with her suitcase.She had packed six hours ago.She also had the purse you’d given her tucked proudly beneath her arm.
Sheldon, meanwhile, had entered the conversation solely because he had overheard the word Massachusetts. “Boston is approximately sixteen hundred miles from Medford. Driving there solely for seafood would be wildly inefficient.”
You adjusted your sunglasses. “My father’s plane is waiting.”
George slowly blinked. “Your father’s what?”
And that was how the Cooper family ended up flying to Boston because Missy Cooper had once casually mentioned wanting Red Lobster.
You didn’t take her to Red Lobster.You did something considerably worse.
The restaurant overlooked Boston Harbor, all glowing windows, white tablecloths and polished silverware, with enormous tanks of lobster near the entrance and waiters who somehow managed to make George Cooper feel underdressed despite the fact that Mary had forced him into his nicest shirt. Missy stood beside you staring through the windows at the harbor, completely speechless.
“You said seafood,” you told her with a little shrug. “Boston does seafood.”
Missy looked at you, to the restaurant then back towards you. “I meant Red Lobster.”
“This is definitely not Red Lobster.”
“Is this better than Red Lobster?”
Your expression became solemn. “Missy, please don’t insult my city.”
Georgie snorted beside you.
And that was really the entire reason you’d done it.
Not because you wanted to show off. Not because taking several people halfway across the country for dinner seemed particularly extravagant to you. You had simply heard a girl you liked admit that her birthday always became about her twin brother, and somewhere inside your head you’d decided that wasn’t fair.
So that evening, Missy got to choose everything.
She picked the appetizers.
She ordered a ridiculous dessert for after and when, Sheldon complained that he didn’t like anything on the menu, you calmly pointed toward the children’s selections and told him there was plain pasta available.
“Tonight isn’t your birthday.”
Missy nearly inhaled her drink.
Georgie dropped his head onto the table, shoulders shaking.
Even George had to hide his laugh behind his napkin while Mary gave you the sort of look normally reserved for people who had just said something she strongly disapproved of but secretly found hilarious.
Later, when the restaurant staff brought out a little cake you’d arranged ahead of time with MISSY written across the top—only Missy’s name—something changed in her expression.
It wasn’t about lobster anymore.
It wasn’t even about Boston.
For once, nobody had asked what Sheldon wanted.
Nobody had compromised because Sheldon might get uncomfortable.
Nobody had reminded her that she had to share.
Someone had heard what Missy wanted and decided that was enough.
She looked down at the cake for several seconds before quietly asking, “This is really just mine?”
You frowned as though the question itself bothered you.
Missy looked at you, eyes suspiciously shiny and then she threw both arms around you.
You barely had enough time to squeak before she squeezed.
“Don’t make it weird,” Missy mumbled against you.
Your expression softened immediately as you hugged her back.
“I wouldn’t dream of it.”
Across the table, Georgie watched the whole thing.
He’d thought you were pretty the first time he saw you.He’d thought you were funny when you insulted the cafeteria gravy.
He’d nearly died when you’d invited him to your private pool.
But watching you quietly rub Missy’s back while pretending not to notice that she’d gotten emotional did something entirely different to him.
George noticed his son’s expression. “Oh, boy.”
Georgie’s head snapped around. “What?”
George took another drink. “Nothin’.”
Mary had noticed too. She leaned toward her husband and whispered, “He’s got it bad.”
Missy finally pulled away from you and immediately wiped beneath her eyes before anyone could comment. “I’m getting dessert.”
“I’m getting two desserts.”
Mary sighed. “Please stop encouraging her.”
Georgie leaned toward you. “You know you’re spoilin’ her, right?”
You turned your head toward him, close enough that Georgie’s confidence immediately began abandoning him. “Jealous, cowboy?”
“Because I can spoil you too.”
Across the table, Missy pointed her fork at him as she couldn't stop smiling .“Look! She’s doing the thing where she makes him turn pink again.”
You reached over and pinched his cheek affectionately. “You’re cute, Georgie.”
George Sr. stared down at his plate.
And Georgie Cooper, sitting sixteen hundred miles from Texas because the pretty Boston girl he’d fallen hopelessly for had discovered his little sister wanted lobster, realized he was in serious, serious trouble.
The morning after Missy’s birthday dinner, you had apparently decided that flying the entire Cooper family to Boston, taking them to an expensive seafood restaurant overlooking the harbor, and giving Missy her own birthday celebration still wasn’t enough.
Mary discovered this when everyone gathered for breakfast at your family’s Boston home and you casually slid an envelope across the table toward Sheldon.
Sheldon stared at it suspiciously before opening it.
Then he went completely silent.
George lowered his coffee. That was concerning all by itself.
Sheldon almost never went silent.
“What is it?” Mary asked.
Sheldon slowly lifted several glossy passes from the envelope, his eyes widening behind them. “These are VIP passes to the Museum of Science.”
Georgie looked toward you.
You continued buttering your toast as though you hadn’t done anything unusual.
Sheldon examined the passes with increasing disbelief. “These include priority admission to the planetarium, reserved seating for presentations, access to exhibits without waiting in the general admission line, and—” His voice suddenly went up an octave. “The electricity demonstration.”
“Oh, yeah.” You nodded. “I heard you’d like that.”
Sheldon looked genuinely overwhelmed.
You smiled at him. “Happy birthday, Sheldon.”
For all his complaints the previous night about Missy’s birthday celebration technically occurring around the same date as his own, Sheldon suddenly had absolutely nothing to complain about.
In fact, fifteen minutes later, he was waiting by the front door.
“I’ve never seen that boy get ready that fast in his life.”
Mary gave you a grateful smile. “That was very thoughtful.”
You shrugged. “He likes science. Missy likes shopping. Everybody gets something they actually want.”
Missy slowly lowered her orange juice. “Wait.”
You glanced toward her. “Did you really think that O would leave you out?”
“I....” Missy paused. You said we're going shopping?."
Missy immediately knew that smile. “Oh my God.”
Mary pointed at her. “Language.”
“Sorry, but she’s doing the rich-person smile.”
“The what?” Georgie asked.
Missy ignored him completely.
You reached for your sunglasses. “Go get dressed.”
Missy practically launched herself out of her chair.
Georgie watched his sister disappear upstairs before turning toward you. “Where are y’all going?”
Dating you had taught Georgie that you enjoyed irritating him almost as much as you enjoyed kissing him, and unfortunately for his dignity, you were very good at both.
From upstairs came an immediate, horrified shout.
Georgie looked toward the ceiling. “Nobody asked you!”
Missy’s footsteps thundered down the stairs, and a few seconds later she appeared in the doorway with her cheeks puffed out in outrage. “You can’t come.”
“Because it’s my birthday shopping.”
“You’re my little sister.”
Georgie folded his arms. “I’m goin’.”
Missy folded hers right back. “No.”
You watched the argument bounce between them while sipping your coffee.
Mary didn’t even attempt to intervene.
George was pretending to read the newspaper.
Sheldon had already abandoned everyone emotionally and was studying the museum brochure.
Finally Missy whipped around toward you. “Tell him he can’t come.”
Missy looked at you expectantly.
Georgie’s expression softened into that charming little smile he’d recently discovered occasionally worked on you.
You stared at him for several seconds then smiled sweetly.
Georgie’s grin became triumphant.
“We need someone to carry our bags.”
Georgie’s smile disappeared. “…What?”
Missy stared at you then she slowly began to grin as she held her head up high.
You leaned across the table and kissed Georgie’s cheek. “Thank you, sweetheart.”
“I didn’t agree to carry anything.”
“I mean....You insisted on coming along.”
“I thought we were gonna hang out.”
Missy grabbed your hand. “I love you.”
Georgie pointed at her. “She’s my girlfriend.”
“That’s not how girlfriends work!”
Missy was already dragging you toward the stairs.
George finally lowered his newspaper. “Son.”
Georgie looked toward his father hopefully.
George shook his head. “You walked into that one.”
An hour later, Georgie learned just how badly he’d walked into it.
Shopping with you was not shopping the way Georgie understood shopping.
Shopping in Medford meant going into a store, finding what you needed, buying it, and leaving.
Shopping with a rich Boston girl was apparently a military campaign.
Garment bags appeared from seemingly nowhere.
Salespeople greeted you by name.
Someone offered Georgie sparkling water while he stood beside an increasingly large collection of shopping bags and stared at the bottle like it had personally offended him.
Missy, meanwhile, was having the greatest day of her life.
You never told her something was too expensive.
You never made her pick something because Sheldon was getting bored.
You let her try on dresses she would never have dared touch back home, found her jeans she actually liked, helped her choose shoes, bought her a jacket after she stared at it for approximately three seconds too long, and when Missy hesitated over something because she had finally noticed the price tag, you simply turned it over.
“That’s really expensive.”
You smiled. "Do you like it?"
She glanced toward the dress again. “…Yeah.”
Behind you, Georgie emerged from another store carrying approximately twelve bags.
“Can we discuss how many arms I have?”
Georgie had shopping bags hanging from both hands, both wrists, one forearm, and somehow one shoulder.
Missy burst out laughing.
“I’m losing feeling in three fingers.”
You walked over and gently fixed the bag slipping from his shoulder.
Georgie stared down at you.
“You invited me because you knew this would happen.”
“No.” You smiled innocently. “You invited yourself.”
Georgie opened his mouth.
Then frowned because, unfortunately, you were completely right.
"I could have just had them send it to the house but you did insist." You winked as Missy patted him sympathetically on the arm.
You rose onto your toes and kissed him.
Georgie’s complaints immediately stopped.
Missy gagged. “Oh, gross.”
You pulled away smiling while Georgie stood there looking significantly happier about his circumstances. “There,” you murmured. “Better?”
Georgie adjusted the bags.“…Maybe.”
You slipped another shopping bag onto his wrist.
Missy nearly collapsed against a storefront laughing.
By the time Sheldon was enthusiastically explaining everything he’d learned at the Museum of Science that evening, Missy was surrounded by bags, Georgie was sprawled across the sofa with the thousand-yard stare of a soldier returning from war, and you were curled comfortably beside your boyfriend with your head against his shoulder.
Missy looked over her new things before smiling at you. “This was the best birthday ever.”
Your expression softened. “Good.”
Georgie cracked one eye open. “My arms hurt.”
You kissed his cheek. “My brave cowboy.”
“I carried twenty-seven bags.”
Missy immediately corrected him. “Thirty-one.”
Georgie’s eyes opened. “THIRTY-ONE?”
From across the room, Sheldon barely glanced away from his museum book. “Technically, you volunteered.”
Georgie stared at his siblings.
You gave him that sweet little smile that had been ruining his ability to think since the day you arrived in Texas.
He sighed and wrapped his arm around you anyway.
“Next birthday,” he muttered, “we’re goin’ bowlin’.”
Missy hugged one of her new dresses against her chest. “No, we’re not.”
