Valentine's surprise

chapter 20

Ron dropped his school bag to the floor with a sigh of relief, closing the door to his home behind him. "Man, I am so glad this day is over. Now I get to veg for a few hours before I pick Bonnie up for our date and..."

"Ronald, is that you?"

Ron looked up curiously at the sound of his mother's voice. She was home far earlier than expected. "Yeah Mom, I just got in." Ron walked deeper into the house and saw his mother coming down the stairs putting one of her earrings in. She was dressed in one of her best outfits and her makeup had been done already. "Wow Mom, you look great. Are you going out tonight?"

"We all are Honey. Go get dressed in that suit of yours."

Ron started to dash past her but paused. "Uhh... I have a date tonight. How late are we going to be?"

Ron's Dad appeared at the top of the stairs, dressed in a dark blue suit. "I wouldn't worry about that Ronald. After all, we are going to the Rockwallers for dinner."

Ron sighed with relief, heading back up the stairs. "Well, that's a relief. I wouldn't want to have to cancel with Bonnie because we had to have dinner with..." It was at that moment that Ron's brain kicked into gear and heard what his father was telling him. "Wait a minute... did you say... dinner... with the Rockwallers? As in... all of them?"

Ron's mother walked by, scooping up her purse off the couch. "Of course Dear. I was talking with Bonnie's mother, delightful woman by the way, and she suggested that both families get together for dinner. Her father is back from New York and both her sisters are home from college, so we thought tonight would be the perfect time for everyone to get together."

Ron looked positively stricken at the thought. Bonnie's mother had always been nice, if a little embarrassing for Bonnie, but Bonnie had always been warning him of her sisters and her father, whom he hadn't met yet. He also knew Bonnie didn't know about this, or else she would have warned him before. "Sooo... you talked with Mrs. Rockwaller this morning then?"

Gene Stoppable stepped past his son, adjusting his tie. "Oh no, your mother has been planning this with her for over a week now."

"A WEEK?" Ron grabbed the railing for support. "Why didn't you tell us sooner?"

Gene looked over at his wife before meeting Ron's eyes. "This was our way of telling you son. Now go get changed, we're leaving in just a few minutes."

Ron staggered up the stairs to his room, dread already well underway. This was not going to be a good night.

Ron straightened his tie for the tenth time as they made their way up to the Rockwaller's front door. His concern was building with every moment. Gene had barely knocked when the door opened quickly, showing a bright and smiling Bonnie standing in the doorway, dressed in an outfit, most likely provided by her mother, that made her look all of twelve, though a twelve with a definite figure. The smile on her face did not seem to reach her eyes though.

"Mister and Missus Stoppable, how great to see you again. I'm so glad you could make it." Bonnie leaned in to give Ron's mother a hug and then did the same for his father. The pleasantries out of the way, she turned to Ron, her smile never wavering. "Hi Ron." Bonnie leaned in to hug him, her arms going over his shoulders. When she was fully pressed against him, her voice changed and dropped to a whisper. "If you knew about this and didn't tell me..."