"Hey, what do you want for your birthday?"

Ross stopped reading the script in his hands and looked over at Laura, who had her legs stretched out on the sofa as they chilled out in the game room at his parents' place. It had been a week or so since she returned from fashion week, and spent most of her actual free time with Raini, and after having slept for ten hours straight, met back up with him at the studio where he watched her record her half of the song for Calum's show. During that time, he'd been in and out of auditions while still being in talks with CBS about their new drama show that he really really wanted to get. "Where did that come from?"

"I was thinking about it the other day. Do you know what you want?"

He raised his eyebrow even higher than it had been before. "You do remember that my birthday is after yours and, oh, I don't know, three months away. Right?"

Laura pushed his leg playfully with her foot and poked her tongue out. "Yes, I know that. I don't think I could forget when your birthday is, and your fans wouldn't let me either."

"But three months..."

"Which is why I'm asking now. It's your 25th. Do you want to go big, small, somewhere in between? Do you want to take a trip or make a big splurge? Give me ideas here."

Ross laughed at her and set aside his script and scooted one cushion in, pulling most of her legs over his lap as he did. "What do I want...what do you want? It's your 25th before it is mine."

"Nuh uh," Laura swung her index finger back and forth in front of him. "No switching this around. I asked first."

"I honestly haven't thought about it, but since you mentioned it, a trip does sound nice." Ross leaned his head back against the upper cushions and started to rub the smooth skin of her legs. He looked over at her and as soon as she was about to say something else, he cut her off. "And I don't know where."

Laura's pout came out to play then and it took a lot for him to not lean forward and make it disappear. He could see her mind over working and over thinking about something that would happen in three months. That was three whole months; ninety days filled with so many other things to worry about than just his, or her birthday.

"Did you have any ideas about yours?" he questioned.

She shook her head. "Not one. I remember having this big plan when I was younger, but now it seems like the worst idea."

"What was it?"

"Don't judge me okay?" He nodded at her words. "Going to Disneyland and actually scaring the crap out of every cast member there."

Ross didn't judge, but he did laugh. And laugh. And laugh, and laugh some more. There was a point after she said her once upon a time birthday plans that he was keeling over and imagining her trying to scare anyone in the park let alone every single cast member there. How on earth would she scare the Evil Queen anyhow? Or Donald Duck?

"I said no judging," Laura slapped him.

Still trying to get his laughter under control, Ross held his hand to his heart.

"Not judging, not judging," his chuckle died down. "I just really want to see you do that now."

"You're mean." The pout came out again and this time he wasn't resisting. Ross leaned forward and stole a quick kiss from her before leaning back into the sofa again. He watched as she scooped her straight brunette hair from one side of her face to the other and mimicked him, leaning her head back on the couch across from him. "I still need ideas."

He smirked at her, knowing she wasn't going to let this go until she had a full plan in her head. Meanwhile, he still needed to memorize the sides his agent gave him for the guest role he had booked on another show. "You can surprise me."

"Okay. Sex party it is. Should I book a restaurant for it?"

There went his study session for the day. Ross pushed her legs off of his lap and didn't give her much choice in anything as he picked her up from the sofa and headed straight for the french doors to the backyard where his mom was enjoying a little bit of piece of quiet with her book - but that was all about to change. Laura pounded on his shoulder and wiggled her legs back and forth, trying to get out of his arms. "Not going to happen."

"I was kidding! I was kidding! Do not throw me in that pool!"

Ross stopped just short of the edge and looked over to her. "See, I actually wasn't, but now that you mentioned it..."

"Ross!" Laura squealed again as he jerked her body forward and faked throwing her in. "You can put me down now."

"You're right, I can," he looked back at her as she kept kicking her legs with his mom sitting just behind them, but he didn't let her down. Winking down at her, all Ross heard before he let her slip into the water was her scream. Stripping off his shirt and smiling as she resurfaced, he dove in after her, not giving her the satisfaction of pulling him in for punishment. He swam around underwater and grabbed onto her legs, circling around her before popping up from the water. Ross brushed his hair back from his face, slicking over his head before he became even more amused at her expression.

"I didn't mean put me down in the pool!" Laura raised her voice and shoved him back into the cool water all around them.

Ross swam back to her again, ignoring her protests about him getting close to her again. He pulled her close and wiped the wet strands of her hair back from her face before circling his arms around her waist.

"I just got my hair straightened, too," she whined just before he felt her crawling up his legs and surprising him by dunking him back in the pool with her hands on top of his head.

Pushing himself right back up, he pulled her underneath with him before swimming away to the other edge of the pool, beckoning her to join him. They were both soaked from head to toe and he could spy his mom still reading her book on the patio, but with an amused smile playing on her lips at the sight of them. Ross watched Laura swim back over to him, crawling back up his legs and wrapping hers around his waist just as he hit the cement border. He gave her a slippery wet kiss, tossing back his dripping hair from his face. "Hey mom," he mumbled after breaking away for a breath.

"Did you just call me your mom?"

"No. Mom," Ross looked towards Stormie for just a minute, before kissing Laura's nose. "Do you think you could read your book inside?"

"Not a chance."

"Please," he strung out, kissing Laura's chin.

"You're not going to have sex in my pool, mister," Stormie was firm and flipped a page in her novel.

Laura leaned back from him, her right eyebrow higher than the other as he shrugged his shoulders. "It was worth a shot."

She playfully hit his shoulder and swam backwards to the other side of the pool before lifting herself up to sit on the edge. "No, not worth a shot. I wasn't going to have sex with you in the pool with your mom there."

Stormie laughed behind her. "This is why you're my favorite, Laura," she placed her bookmark in her novel and closed it. "The one girl Riker was with one time did not care about who heard or saw."

"Wait, Riker did this too?" Laura asked, not really shocked at the fact, but more surprised that the first born Lynch would do it out in the open.

"Sure did. There were yelps and screams and giggles and laughing...and it was during a pool party. Pretty sure Mark and I grounded him after that," Stormie paused. "And then we took a page from his book."

Ross scrunched up his nose as he heard his Mom talking and plugged his ears, singing la-la-la out loud. He definitely didn't want to hear about his parents doing the deed and really didn't want to hear about Riker nailing a girl in the same place he was almost going to. He actually remembered that party too and now, he'll never look at it the same. Never ever again.

+++

To the best cast alive,

First, I MISS YOU GUYS! And Cape Town, and Livhu, and even Milo eating all the food in the entire country.

Second, I come with new news...we have a release date and an official movie title! I've been in and out of brainstorming meetings and in post production and have way more Chinese takeout containers in my fridge and in the trash bin than my wife likes, but it was worth it. Back to the movie - our title is...(insert drumroll here) is Into Thin Air! Cool, right? Movie title gold; and the movie will officially be out in theaters this coming October.

I've got more meetings with the studio later this week, so be expecting more emails from your favorite director ever about the press tours, premieres and film festivals and most importantly, when we all can really start giving away the secrets. But, toss the confetti and share the news with everyone, and by everyone, I mean your fans. Social media awaits this epic news!

- Stevenson Long

+++

Twitter was her thing. She loved it. She loved interacting with her fans and catching up with friends who lived far away. She especially loved promoting and talking about causes she cared about. Every month she had a book of the month for her fans that they should read, she'd share quotes that would inspire her and she'd share corny jokes that came to her at the most random times. While she hadn't been able to tweet while they were in Cape Town filming their movie, she was known for doing live tweet sessions for First Aid. She loved live tweeting. It was just another cool way to connect with her fans.

Lately, fans had been asking more and more questions about her and Ross and while she never answered them straight out, she did favorite some of them. They were funny and sweet and knowing they had more lovers than haters was always making her smile.

Ross on the other hand, was not a tweeter. In fact, he was the opposite of that...what was the opposite of a tweeter called anyhow? He was the silent kind. The ones who had a Twitter account just to have one to once in a blue moon connect with their fans or friends miles away; or the ones who just wanted to Twitter stalk a person for some unknown reason. That wasn't the full truth...Ross would tweet every now and then, only to let his fans know he was actually still alive and working on fun projects or making new music or he was just sharing cool photos and the music he was listening to at the moment. So, when he agreed to do this with her, she was surprised but happy. So happy that she promised him that he could finally teach her how to skate...Laura was still second guessing that and would be taping cushions all over her body for that lesson.

Sitting across from him at the table at a local cafe, she watched him open up his Twitter app on his slim phone and got just a bit distracted by the clearness of the graphics...no, flip phone user forever.

"Okay, all set."

"I'm kind of excited you're up for this."

"My followers are going to think I've been hacked."

"Well, you have. By me," Laura beamed over at him just as their waiter brought them refills on their drinks. "I'll start."

Her fingers flew over the keyboard she slid out from underneath the face of her phone. Hey rossr5, guess what?

Ross followed her movement. . lauramarano What?

. rossr5 Our new movie has an official title!

. lauramarano Finally! What's it called?"

. rossr5 Our new movie is 'Into Thin Air' and I play this amazing pilot #MagellanSnow #IntoThinAir

. lauramarano With me as the handsomest doctor ever ;) #RoryMcLaren #IntoThinAir

. rossr5 You betcha ;-*

. lauramarano We also have a release date. Do you want to do the honors?

. rossr5 I think you should. When does #IntoThinAir come out #RoryMcLaren?

. lauramarano I'm so excited for October 2020! #IntoThinAir

Laura smiled up at Ross after he sent the last tweet out and she slid her keyboard closed, turning on the video capture instead and recording a little video for Instagram. "We hope you enjoyed our little announcement everyone. Mark your calendars for October because I'm flying this cool plane and Ross is saving my life. Literally. Say bye Ross," she quickly flipped the camera around to find him blowing bubbles into his soda before he waved to the phone. Ending and uploading quickly with all the appropriate hashtags and everything, Laura glanced at her phone's alerts and realized their little announcement conversation was now trending.

"Why is it that whenever you're involved, things trend?"

"Never underestimate my R5family," he winked at her just as their meals came and he dug into his burger that he had been craving. The two had ended up at the small cafe on their way to the beach to hang with Rydel and Ellington because he had a craving.

"My Kits are just as cool, you know," she argued back.

"You still don't have a name for all your personal fans, do you?"

She slumped her shoulders. "Not a one. My personal campaign to call them all the 'Dawgs' didn't really go anywhere."

Ross laughed at her after taking a bite out of his sandwich, which only made her poke her tongue out at him quicker than she planned on. "I can see why."

"It's not that bad."

He kept on laughing as she stole a fry from his plate. Okay, maybe it was three. So far. Laura and Ross finished up their meals about twenty minutes later and after getting a few lemonades for the road, were back in his car once again and headed to their spot. The spot where they had promised Rydel and Ellington that they would meet them almost an hour ago.

"You can drive faster, you know."

"This coming from Ms. Safety ten years running?"

Laura poked him in his side. "You're driving like my grandfather does, Ross. Come on, sun, sand and my bikini need to be seen."

"Bikini? The one you showed me the other day? The one with the..."

"Yep, that's the one and this bikini needs to meet the ocean. So, lead foot please."

He looked over at her for a quick minute, sliding his hand over on her thigh. "I like that bikini."

"As you told, and showed me the other night."

His fingers danced across to her smooth leg, squeezing her kneecap and she suddenly wished he had an older car; one that it was one giant seat in the front so she could scoot closer to him and lean on him as he drove them to the coast. His current car was good...it was safe and sharp and nice to ride in, but what she wouldn't give to get rid of the gearshift separating them.

+++

He often wondered what it would be like if he had become a professional hockey player. Would he be playing for the Kings, or the Rangers, or even the Red Wings? Or would he still be in the minor leagues like the Lake Erie Monsters. The only reason he knew of that club was because the members fed straight into the Colorado Avalanche...and he would not say no to that at all. Helmet on, mouth guard in, Ross took his position in the middle of the rink, and stared back at his eldest brother, Riker, giving him his game face. He squinted his eyes as the whistle was blown and the puck dropped onto the solid sheet of ice and they both slid their sticks across the middle, hitting each other with their sticks and trying to get the puck away from the other.

Riker, unfortunately, was the victor and slid the black piece of vulcanized rubber between his legs and over to Ryland. They were playing two on two, with him and Rocky having already won one game out of three, since Ryland was being a sore loser about the defeat. He eyed Rocky from across the way and headed straight for Ryland, pushing him out of the way and capturing the puck that Riker had started to pass. He reversed his skate pattern and glided backwards, bringing the puck along with him towards the empty net. He saw Ryland coming up behind him and Riker on his side, edging him out before he reached the net.

He also saw Rocky out of the corner of his eye and hit the puck over to him, Riker cutting him off and stealing it away at the last minute. "Come on..."

The battle went back and forth, back and forth and while Mark was the referee of the game, he really wasn't doing a referee's job. This only resulted in Ross getting rough with his brothers on the ice and Stormie coming in to blow the whistle around her husband's neck.

"Thank you mom!" Ryland called out, checking Ross against the boards.

"Whistle was blown, Ryland," he spat at his younger brother, swiping his stick

around his feet.

"Do I have to put you both in the penalty box?" Stormie warned as they leaned over the boards and Rocky and Riker took a seat on the bench. "Good boys. Now, you only have an hour left here, there's a little kids' party at five and Ross, your phone has been buzzing since the start of this game."

Taking off his gloves and padding, Ross reached for the slim phone in her hand and scrolled through the recent calls...and they were all from Stella. Crap, that meant something was either booked, or urgent, especially if she hadn't left any messages. It had always been that way with her. Pressing the call back button, he pulled the phone to his ear and had to pull it back the minute she picked up.

"WHAT THE HELL ROSS? I call you, you answer. No questions asked!"

"I'm playing hockey. Can't exactly hear the ringtone when I'm beating my brother's asses."

"He is not!" Riker leaned forward and made sure the agent knew it.

Ross rolled his eyes and skated off on the rink, making it a more private conversation. "What's going on Stella?"

"Okay, so CBS called me and the pilot you were interested in? It was given a straight to series order and they are offering you a role in it."

"What?" Ross stopped, turning on his blade and letting thin specs of ice fall over the solid.

"It's the role of Joseph Michaelson, he's a supporting role and a science officer on the ship. Fate unknown about if he stays or leaves at the end of the season, but if you want this, it's yours."

"It's mine? This is Permafrost, right?"

"Yep."

"Anyone else signed on?"

"I'm taking this as a yes, yes?"

Ross smiled into the phone. It wasn't just a yes. It was a hell yes. "Yes. Ten times over yes." He could feel her smile through the phone too. "Go ahead, get your happy dance on."