man of the woods.

SABRINA: Would you have gotten another job if I wasn't so harsh?

LILIANA: I can be mean with them when they are stupid

LIZZIE: I LOVE TO HAVE FRIENDS HERE.

LIZZIE: Oh yeah for sure. BUT LIKE, SEXY IN A PLATONIC WAY FOR ME.

LIZZIE: Not perfect, but happy, right?

MARK: How many friends do you regularly invite to your firehouse? I don't feel special anymore.

MARK: Understandable.

LEN: Nah, I'm just kidding, but I would really enjoy some hot chocolate, and I can't have any here because my face would probably melt off.

LEN: Where did you have in mind?

CLARK: True. It's so damn hot outside.

She gave him a weak smile when he greeted her. “I didn’t either, I should have called.” Dahlia sighed, but she relaxed when he kissed her cheek, if he didn’t want her there, surely he’d be colder to her, she thought. “I have the weekend to myself, I thought maybe if you’re free I could hang around here?” She said, her voice hopeful, being careful not to mention Jaime’s name. It wasn’t as if Dougie didn’t know about him, but she liked him being an unspoken part of the equation, she could pretend he didn’t exist that way. Jaime went out of town for work sometimes, and she liked to be able to come here, be out of that house for a few days. Being at home was never pleasant, sure Jaime being away was better than him being there, but it was still full of him. She felt like she couldn’t even live, she didn’t want to disturb his things, or do anything wrong, even when he wasn’t there to see it. It wasn’t like that with Dougie, he was warm, and made her laugh, and she could relax with him. It was so strange, how he could completely throw her off, but keep her calm all at the same time. Dahlia moved a bit closer to him, one hand reaching forward to gently grasp his forearm, the other resting against his chest as she took in the scent of him. “I missed being here.” She admitted as she rested her forehead against his chest as well. Dahlia was sure that at some point Dougie would end whatever this thing was. He’d get tired of her showing up, or tired of being a secret, or maybe he’d just get tired of her in general, but for now, she was sure to soak up every minute with him that she could. 

Dougie was pretty good at playing it cool. So much so, that it never really seemed like an act. But it was an act with Dahlia. He was extremely happy that she was there, but he was determined to play it off like he was just mildly enthused by the whole thing. “You can hang around here,” he confirmed with a nod. He was actually extremely relieved to hear that her boyfriend wouldn’t be around for the weekend. Not only because it meant that she was going to spend most of her time with him, but because that meant Jamie wasn’t going to be around her, and that was what Dougie really wanted for him. Even if he took himself out of the equation, he knew that Dahlia didn’t deserve to be stuck with that guy. He sighed slightly, sinking into the feeling of her being pressed up against him. He reached up his free arm and around it around her, not really wanting to let go anytime soon. “I, uh, missed you being here,” he admitted, even surprising himself. “I like it when you’re here.”

Kenzie was never very good at talking, especially not to strangers, but right now she was grateful for the interruption. “Nice to meet you, Sidney. And thanks again,” She said as she held the phone up, before beginning to gently tap it against her palm before shoving it back into her pocket, making sure it was safely in there this time. When he continued she let her eyes widen slightly at his question before shrugging it off and nodding. “Oh yeah, I’m good. I’m fine.” She said, a meek smile spreading on her lips. “I just…” Kenzie began trailing off and then decided that maybe a stranger was an okay person to express herself to. “Sometimes I can’t get my brain to shut down. I’m a nurse, and I work with premies, so sometimes it’s just a lot, and also I’m thinking about proposing to my girlfriend, which is also a lot?” She said, not meaning for it to sound like a question, but it did anyways. “I mean, I kind of have a terrible history with dating, I’ve only been in one relationship and it was…horrible, and ended even worse.” She said, “So proposing is kind of terrifying.” Finally finishing, she was surprised by how the sudden burst of honesty actually did make her feel a bit better. 

Kenzie let out a short laugh as she realized her rambling, “Sorry. I’m so sorry.” She said, her voice still light, though she did feel some real guilt for laying all of that on him. “You were being nice, and I totally just … I’m sorry.” She said again, and shook her head. “Okay, well your turn, I guess. Everything okay for you? I have to say, unloading your problems on a stranger is weirdly therapeutic.”

Sidney didn’t have any problems talking to strangers. Most people enjoyed talking to him. He was always pleasant to be around and it wasn’t like he ever forced them into intelligent conversation. He was mostly interested in chatting about the teenage mutant ninja turtles and how adorable his daughter is than anything else. He nodded his head as she replied that she was good, not really expecting her to immediately contradict herself with word vomit. “Proposing is good news,” he responded with a shrug. “Also, I’m really great at shutting my brain off. So, if you need tips, I can definitely help you out. I usually watch cartoons.” He didn’t know if he could be much help with the proposal side of things, but he knew he could help with the idea of relaxing. He loved being able to just lounge around and forget about the craziness of the world. “I say, if your current relationship is awesome then you should go for it. Propose. I fully believe in the idea that when you’re ready, you just know. Do you feel ready?” He questioned before finally lowering himself down on the ground to sit. “You don’t have to apologize,” he responded, shaking his head. “Everything is fine for me. Great, actually. My girlfriend just had a baby a month ago.”

CHLOE: Kind of sounds like a challenge.

CHLOE: Oh, really? Why? I can come pick you up, but you're gonna have to give me your address... That sounds like actual friendship though, I don't know if you're ready for that.

NOAH: I'm sure I'll be super annoyed with you soon. You're pretty close already.

RYLAN: I sure am. I'll be your McQueen.

RYLAN: It's awkward, I shouldn't have said it. I just meant, like, after everything. I don't know. We don't have to talk about it.

DONOVAN: Aw. You really know the right words to steal my McHeart.

DONOVAN: I'm supposed to be the awkward one in this relationship.

DONOVAN: We can talk about it if you want. Of course, I think you're hot. I've always thought you were hot.

CHLOE: That depends. Do you feel like you did?

CHLOE: I'm feeling a road trip.

CHLOE: I mean, not an actual road trip. I don't know, I kind of just feel like going for a long drive. Wanna come with?

NOAH: Not yet. But we'll see.

RYLAN: You'll be getting promoted to manager before you know it.

RYLAN: No, I know, I didn't mean that.

RYLAN: Never mind.

DONOVAN: Are you ready to date a McDonald's manager? All that success might go to my head.

DONOVAN: You're not getting away with a "never mind."

Robin’s brows rose and fell playfully. “Way bigger,” she nodded, voice lowering slightly. “Plus, don’t tell the royal family, but our kids are cuter than theirs.” Ever since finding out about the pregnancy, it had been something of a dream for Robin to walk down the aisle with with their babies a part of the day. The thought excited her, and it was difficult for her to wipe the grin from her face, even as they talked about her crazy golf course freak out. “I mean, it wasn’t that ridiculous. You wouldn’t have liked someone kissing my cheek.” Robin had really never considered herself much of a possessive person, but that all changed when it came to Grant. She knew he felt the same way in return; they had always been one another’s exception. She nodded along in agreement as he spoke. “I know, but I like that we never cared what anybody else thought. I like that it’s always just been about us,” she admitted, “Now it’s us and our babies… all five of them. And I don’t know, I think that’s kind of perfect.” Robin shrugged a shoulder gently, mouth twisting in thought. “Do you want to know one of my favorite memories? And it really shouldn’t be a favorite,” she frowned, thinking back, “But it is.”

“Our kids are cuter than everyone’s kids,” Grant replied with a shrug. Robin freaking out while they played mni-golf seemed like a lifetime ago. She had been pregnant at the time and Grant had been determined to make her feel better about the whole thing, even if he didn’t understand why she was so jealous. But she was right. If the roles had been reversed, and some guy had decided to kiss her cheek, he would have ended up punching him in the face. “You’re not wrong. No one else is allowed to kiss you,” he responded with a playful pout. “Just us and our babies,” he replied, letting out a small sigh. It was kind of the perfect life. It wasn’t exactly the life he’d pictured for himself, but it was definitely a lot better. Before he’d met Robin, he didn’t know what his future held and he really didn’t care all that much, but now he was excited for every aspect of their futures together. “Tell me,” he mumbled, leaning his head back slightly.

Kristy rarely got angry. And in truth, there were a lot of things in her life that she could pretty rightfully be angry about, but she just wasn’t that kind of person. She wanted to be angry now, though. She wanted to, because it felt like the right emotion, but she just…couldn’t. It was difficult not to want to smile when Mark smiled, and she knew that that wasn’t okay, but she couldn’t help herself. “It’s not,” she retorted halfheartedly, lips slightly pouted. In spite of herself, in spite of the fact that she definitely should’ve moved away when Mark stepped closer, Kristy remained on the spot, glancing up at him with a twisted frown. “Because,” was the only response she could think of, especially with such a small distance between them. Standing here and staring at him, the two of them alone in a room together, was definitely not the right move to make, so Kristy quickly pulled herself from her trance, shaking her head. “I don’t…” She paused, shoulders slumping as she exhaled a sigh. “Look, yeah, okay, I do. But you’re married, dude.” There was a kind of pleading look on her face, voice at not much more than a whisper. “It’s just not okay. It’s not fair to your wife.”

Mark wanted to regret hooking up with Kristy and he wanted to feel bad about flirting with her right now, but he just couldn’t. Sure, he was a bad husband. But it wasn’t like Jessica was a perfect wife. Not that she deserved to be cheated on. Still, he was undeniably attracted to Kristy and he was finding it harder and harder to pretend like he wasn’t. He bit down on his bottom lip as he listened to her speak, and he started to feel bad. Maybe flirting with Kristy wasn’t the best idea. As good as it felt, she was clearly freaking out and he couldn’t blame her. Jessica was her boss. “I’m married. You’re right,” he replied with a shrug of his shoulders. Another small sigh escaped from his lips as he stared down at her, nodding his head apologetically. “I’m sorry. I’ll be on my best behavior for now on,” he mumbled, taking a step away from her.

All things considered, Darby was in an incredible mood anyway, but hearing her niece’s little giggle only made her grin wider. “You guys get cuter and cuter,” she commented, chuckling at the way Carson threw a grape at her brother. Darby had never really cared much for babies, but she loved those two. “Fair,” she shrugged, taking a quick sip from her newly uncapped water bottle. Lips twisting into a small smirk as Grant questioned her, Darby brought her gaze up to his face. “Okay, so,” she began, though paused momentarily, mostly because she hadn’t actually said it out loud yet, and it felt so strange coming from her—almost unbelievable, in fact. “I, your little sister, Darby McCarthy,” she began, almost trying to stall a little bit, “Am going to propose to Kenzie,” she finally announced, brows raising as she finally heard the words aloud. “God,” Darby chuckled, “Yeah, I’m gonna do it. Dude, I’m gonna ask her to marry me.” Almost as if she was the one hearing the news, she paused to think for a moment. “Yo, you know what this calls for? This calls for champagne. Or I mean, at least wine, right?”

Grant couldn’t really blame Carson for chucking a grape at her brother. If he had a grape in his hand, he probably would have chucked it at Darby. Giving siblings a hard time was just easy. He let out a small sigh as he leaned against his kitchen counter, waiting to hear what Darby had to say. He didn’t always keep up with his siblings’ lives. He knew the gist of what everyone was interested in and who they dated, all of that nonsense, but anything deeper than that, he was a little clueless about. His eyes opened wide in surprise as he listened to her words. He was definitely shocked. “You’re going to get married?” He questioned, shaking his head. “That’s great,” he replied, nodding his head apprehensively. It wasn’t that he didn’t think Darby and her girlfriend were a good couple. They were fine. Just the idea of Darby being settled down was kind of strange to him. “It’s the middle of the day and I’m literally with my children. We can pop juice boxes if you want, but I’ll pass on the champagne.”

CHLOE: How's your schedule looking today?

CHLOE: (I'm asking for a reason. Promise!)

NOAH: Did I make a mistake giving you my phone number?