"Yeah! But what if he'd rather stay in England? Suppose he gets new friends over there and forgets about us?" cried Peter.

"Do you think he'll actually go against his Grandfather's wishes?" asked Micky.

Mike thought about this for a few moments and then said matter-of-factly "That'll be his decision, won't it?"

Meanwhile, back in England...

"Davy, I'd like for you to meet Miss Elizabeth Herrington."

Davy took Elizabeth's hand and kissed the back of it. "How do you do, Elizabeth?" he asked with his charming smile.

"Very well, thank you." she answered with a shy smile.

Thomas smiled as it seemed his plan was working.

Elizabeth's father looked at Thomas. "I see the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." he smiled.

Thomas gave George, Elizabeth's father, a quick smile then turned his attention back to the young people.

"Elizabeth, we have a beautiful garden in the back, full of every kind of flower that you could imagine. I'm sure you would like to see it, wouldn't you?" Thomas hinted towards Davy.

She nodded shyly, and Davy took the hint.

"Would you do me the honor of walking with me in the garden, Elizabeth?" he smiled and offered his arm.

"I would be delighted, Mr. Jones." she smiled.

"Oh, please, call me Davy. 'Mr. Jones' makes me feel old." he teased as they walked out towards the garden.

When they left, Thomas spoke, "My grandson has been moping around the house for the last couple of days. But I believe a good woman, like Elizabeth, can pull him out of this mood."

"Of course!" stated Isabelle. "Every man needs a good woman beside him."

Thomas smiled and kissed her on the cheek.

"But I think it's going to take more than a good woman to help Davy." she thought to herself.

"I've always wanted to visit the States." said Elizabeth. "My father said that when I turned eighteen, he would send me over there for a few months."

"You'll love it over there. Almost so much that you won't want to leave."

"But you left. Why?" she asked.

"Grandfather thought it was best." he stated, simply.

"Do you miss it?"

"Very much! I had made many friends over there. I was even part of a group. We called ourselves the Monkees."

She smiled at the name and then asked "Were you any good?"

"Well some thought so. Our landlord, Mr. Babbit, didn't seem to care for us too much. Especially when we threw a party. Guess we got a little too loud on those occasions." he laughed, remembering the old landlord storming over to the Pad with his face beat red with anger.

"Do you still talk to your friends?"

"No. Grandfather won't allow me to speak to them anymore. He thinks they're a bad influence, but he didn't get to know them like I did." he sighed.

She stopped and he turned to face her with a questioning look in his eyes.

"You really miss them, don't you?" she asked.

He looked down and answered. "Yeah, I do. I miss them so much it...it actually hurts."

Even though she couldn't see his eyes, she knew he was fighting back the tears. She bit her lip in quiet concentration, then her face lit up with an idea. She grabbed Davy's hand, which Davy thought was a little forward for a girl, but didn't say anything.

"Come with me. I have an idea." she said and then led him towards the front of the house and down the sidewalk.

They arrived at her house about ten minutes later. 

"Nobody is home right now," she was saying, "so we won't be caught."

"Caught?" he asked, astonished. He had thought Elizabeth was a nice, quiet girl. "Elizabeth, I know what you're thinking, but I don't go that far, especially when I just met a girl..."

"What are you talking about?" she asked, leading him to a phone.

When he saw she truly didn't understand what he meant, he carefully asked, "What did you have in mind?"

"What I had in mind was that you were going to call your friends from here so you wouldn't be caught."

"Oh!" his cheeks turned a light shade of pink. "But won't your father be a little upset when he gets the phone bill?"

"Not if you call collect." she smiled.

He smiled with her. He could just imagine the look on Mike's face when he found out how much it was going to cost him.

"Elizabeth, you're wonderful!" he kissed her on the cheek and started dialing.

The guys were sitting around in a gloomy daze when the phone rang.

"Phone's ringin'" Mike said lazily from the couch.

"Peter's got it." stated Micky from behind his drums.

Peter gave Mike and Micky an annoyed look from his position at the window and got up to answer the phone.

"Hello?...Just a minute." Peter looked at Mike. "Do we wish to accept a collect call from David Jones?"

Mike and Micky's eyes went wide and they both jumped up and ran over to the phone. There was a small struggle over who would get to talk first, but Mike finally won.

"Hello? Yes! Put him through." he shouted. "Davy? Are you all right? Is something wrong? How are ya?"

"Whoa, Mike. Slow down. I'm fine!" Davy nearly cried when he heard his friend's voice. "How are you and the guys doing?"

"Ah Davy, we're miserable here without you. How are you able to call? I thought you weren't allowed to talk to us anymore."

"Well, my Grandfather doesn't know about this. I've snuck over to my friend's house to call you. Of course, you do realize this is collect, so I'd better not stay on very long."

"Davy, it's good to hear ya again. I don't care how much this cost."

"Wow! You must really miss me." Davy teased.

"Like you wouldn't believe." he laughed. "Hey Micky and Peter are dying to talk to you, so I'm gonna let ya go. You're sure you're ok?"

"I'm fine, Mike. Miss you a lot." he said in just above a whisper.

"I miss you too, Davy. Here's Micky."

Davy could hear Peter saying something in the background about being last and Mike telling him he'd get his turn.

"Davy? How are ya man?" Micky asked excitedly.

"I'm fine, Micky. How are you doing?"

"Oh not bad. Not bad at all. Just helping all the chicks around here through their grief."

"Oh sure!" Davy said, not at all convinced.

"No really, man. Once they heard Davy Jones was no longer in the area, they took to grieving and I just supplied them with a shoulder to cry on."

"Well I hope it's not putting too much of a strain on you."

"It's not an easy job, but somebody has to do it." he laughed, but suddenly grew serious. "You know, Davy...we really miss you around here."

"I know, Mick. I miss you guys something awful. But I'm going to try to call you guys as often as I can."

"You do that, Davy. We'll be waiting for the call. Well, I'd better hand you over to Peter. You take care, you hear?"

"You too, Mick. Bye."

"Bye!"

Davy didn't have to wait long for Peter to come on.

"Davy?" Peter's shaky voice sounded over the phone.

"Hey, Pete, old buddy. How are you?"

"Davy I miss you a lot. When will you come back?"

Peter sounded as if he might cry, and Davy didn't have the heart to tell his friend that he wouldn't be back for a very long time.

"I don't know, Peter. We're still working on my grandfather."

"Davy you gotta come back soon. I can't get your songs straight. Only you can do them." Now Peter was crying.

"Peter! Peter! Calm down. Everything will be all right. Don't worry. I'll try to come back soon. It's just going to take some time, ok?"

"You...you promise?" Peter asked, obviously trying to keep his tears back.

"I promise." Davy tried to assure him, although he wasn't too sure about it himself. "Look, Peter, we'd better end this now. This call is costing you guys a lot of money, and I know you can't afford it."

"OK, Davy." Peter sniffled. "I miss you."

"I miss you too, buddy. Take care of yourself and the other guys, ok?"

"OK!"

"Bye, Peter."

"Bye, Davy."

Peter hung up the phone and Mike tried to cheer everyone up.

"You see, guys? He's fine. Everything is fine. He's gonna call us often and he'll be back before you know it." Mike smiled, but it didn't work. All three of them started bawling.

Davy, who was now sitting at the kitchen table, hung up the phone, and with a heavy sigh, laid his head on his folded arms.

Elizabeth came up behind him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"Feel better?" she asked.

He put his hand on hers. "Yes I do. Thank you. You don't know how much that meant to me."

She sat across from him and poured him a cup of hot tea. "My father is a doctor and he has to be at his office Monday through Friday in the afternoons. Sometimes even on the weekends. I'm sure if you just happened to stop by while he's away..." she left the end hanging and smiled at him.

He smiled back at her and said "Elizabeth, you're a wonderful girl. I'd like to see more of you, if you don't mind. And I don't just mean whenever the phone is handy."

"I'd like that very much, Davy!" she smiled.

He leaned over to kiss her, but before their lips could touch, the front door opened and they quickly sat upright.

George came into the kitchen.

"Ah there you two are. Davy, you're grandfather was looking for you. Your dinner is almost done. We tried calling here, but the line was busy."

He didn't notice the smile that passed between Davy and Elizabeth.

"Mr. Herrington, if it's all right with you, I'd like to call on your daughter." Davy gave George a hopeful look.

"Well she's right there, ask her yourself." he replied with a smile.

"He did, and I said 'yes'"

"Well then what are you two looking at me for? Obviously everything has been set." he said, and exited the room to hang up his coat.

Davy looked at Elizabeth. "Tomorrow night at seven?" he asked.

"It's a date." she smiled.

"Great!" he smiled. "Now where were we before? Oh yes!" he leaned in and kissed her before they could be interrupted again.

"Good night!" he said, and walked out the door and toward his house thinking of Elizabeth, his three friends back in the US, and just what the future held for all of them.

Davy and Elizabeth saw each other almost everyday since they had met. Davy came over to her house in the afternoons when her father was gone and called his friends. Of course, he couldn't do this everyday. He knew his friends couldn't afford that. But he tried to call at least once a week.

One day, while Elizabeth was upstairs getting ready to go out with Davy, he was on the phone downstairs with the guys.

"Yeah, Elizabeth and I are going out later." Davy was saying.

"You're seeing a lot of her, aren't you, Davy? I think this is the longest you've ever been with one girl." Micky said.

"She's a groovy kid. And don't forget, if it wasn't for her, I wouldn't be able to talk to you guys without my grandfather finding out."

"David Thomas Jones!" Davy heard from behind him.

"Busted!" he heard Micky say on the other end.

Davy's face drained of color as he slowly turned around to see his grandfather and George standing there.

"Oh! Hello, Grandfather." Davy gave his most innocent and charming smile, but it wasn't working. Thomas looked as if he might blow at any minute.

Davy turned back to the receiver. "Uh, Mick, I think I'd better let you go."

"Good luck, Davy!" Micky said. He hung up and looked at Mike and Peter.

"Hey, we didn't get to talk to him." Peter whined.

"We'll be lucky if we ever get to talk to Davy again. Provided he's still alive within the next two minutes." Micky said, cringing when he remembered the tone in Grandfather Jones voice.

"What is the meaning of this?" Thomas was on the verge of yelling.

"Davy, was my daughter in on this too?" George asked.

Davy did not want to get Elizabeth into any trouble, so he didn't answer George. 

Just then, Elizabeth came strolling down the stairs. "So, Davy, where are we going tonight?" she was asking, but stopped in her tracks when she saw Thomas and George.

"Father! What are you doing here. I thought..."

"It's very obvious what you thought, Elizabeth." George said, his own temper rising. "Go to your room!"

She gave Davy a fearful look and went back up the stairs to her room.

"David, I can't believe you purposely went against my wishes." Thomas yelled, his attention turning back to Davy. He grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the door. "You're coming home with me right now."

"Thomas, I'm sorry about Elizabeth's involvement in this. She will be punished." George said.

"No!" Davy finally spoke. "Don't punish her, Mr. Herrington. It was my fault. I talked her into it."

This earned him another set of growls from Thomas and he was led out the door and towards their home.

Davy knew he was really in for it now, but after all Elizabeth had done for him, he couldn't let her be punished. But another set of problems surfaced. Would he ever see or hear from his friends again after tonight?

Thomas, still holding Davy's arm tightly, walked into the house, mumbling about how disappointed he was, how he knew that those boys back in the States were a bad influence on him and how he was right to take Davy away from them before he became worse off than he was now.

Isabelle came out of the study when she heard the commotion.

"Davy, go to your room. I'll deal with you later." Thomas growled.

Davy was about to protest, but upon seeing the glare coming from Thomas, he decided it was best to obey.

"Yes sir." he quietly mumbled and made his way towards the stairs as Thomas stomped off into the study.

Isabelle came over to Davy before he ascended the steps.

"What happened?" she worriedly asked.

"He caught me on the phone with the guys back in the States." he said. The thought of her being disappointed in him too, hurt.

"Oh Davy!" she moaned. "You shouldn't have done that. It'll be harder than ever to convince him to let you go back."

"I know, Isabelle. But I miss the guys so much, I couldn't help it." he almost started crying, and she put her arm around him.

"I'll go talk to him. You'd better get up stairs before he gets even more angry." and she went into the study.

Davy was about to go back up the steps, but he had to know what his Grandfather and Isabelle were saying. Even though he knew there was no one else in the house, he looked around to make sure he wasn't being watched, and snuck over to a spot where he could listen in without being observed.

"He's only a boy!" Isabelle was defending.

"Don't give me that, Isabelle. He's old enough to know better." Thomas was still very angry, but at least he wasn't yelling anymore.

"Oh, Thomas," she reached over and put her hand on his, "he wasn't trying to hurt you. He just misses his friends very much. You can't just take him away from them and expect him to forget about them over night.

"He loves those boys. Haven't you ever loved someone so much that it hurt when you were away from them?"

"How do you think I felt when I was over there in the States away from you?" he smiled, and she knew she had him softened up.

"He's told me about those boys, and they're really not all that bad. Now what can it hurt to let him talk to them over the phone every now and then?" she smiled sweetly.

"No!" he shouted, angry again. Isabelle saw her plan crumbling right before her eyes.

"I can not...I will not allow him to have anymore contact with those boys. He got by with it before, but not again. He will never see or talk to those boys again. He stays here, and that's final!"

Davy shut his eyes and lay his head back against the wall, willing the tears to keep away. The finality in his grandfather's voice cut into him like a knife. He knew there would be no talking to him about the matter from now on.

Isabelle came out of the study and saw Davy leaning against the wall. She could tell by looking at him that he had heard every word.

"Oh Davy, I'm so sorry!" she sighed and put her hand on his shoulder. "When he calms down again I'll talk to him. Probably in a few days when this blows over..."

Davy shook his head. "Forget it, Isabelle. I heard everything."

The despair she heard in him and the sadness on his face gripped at her heart.

"I know that tone in his voice. It's over. There's no more use in talking to him." he said, and went up to his room.

Two days later, Isabelle descended the steps in the Jones home, carrying a tray.

"Well?" Thomas looked at her with a worried expression.

"I brought him some lunch, but it's the same thing each time. He's not hungry." Isabelle shook her head.

"This is ridiculous. He hasn't been out of his room for two days, nor has he eaten anything." Thomas started pacing. "He's just sulking, that's all. Well I'm going to put an end to it." he said, taking the tray from Isabelle and going up the stairs.

He knocked on the door and then walked in. He saw Davy laying on his bed with his eyes closed, but Thomas knew he wasn't sleeping.

"David, this has gone far enough." Thomas stated firmly. "I demand that you eat... NOW!"

Davy slowly opened his eyes and looked at his grandfather. "I'm not hungry." he replied, then closed his eyes again as if saying "I don't want to talk about it."

But Thomas would not be put off that easy. "David, you haven't eaten in two days. Now quit sulking and eat!"

"I'm not sulking, Grandfather. I'm just not hungry!" Davy responded wearily.

Thomas sighed and sat on the edge of Davy's bed.

"Davy, I know this has been hard on you. But you must understand that I wasn't trying to hurt you when I took you away from your friends. I was only thinking of your own good! I still am."

"Yes, I know." he sighed. How many times has he heard this speech now? He knew his grandfather meant it, but it was getting old and it wasn't helping him any.

Thomas grabbed the tray. "Won't you just eat a little bit?"

Davy shook his head and Thomas sighed deeply and stood. "Very well!"

He exited the room and went downstairs where Isabelle was waiting. She could see by the tray that even he wasn't able to get through to Davy.

"Oh, Thomas!" she sighed and sat in the nearest chair. "What are we going to do? He's so depressed."

"And I suppose you think it's my fault? Go ahead and say it!" he shouted at her.

She was shocked at this sudden outburst. "Thomas, I..." she reached out to embrace him, but he pulled away and stormed out the door.

Thomas stood at the fireplace staring down at the fire. It has been a week now and Davy still hadn't come out of his room. Isabelle had gotten him to eat a little, but not enough.

Had he really been wrong to take Davy away? "I only did it for his own good," Thomas found himself thinking for the millionth time since he made Davy come back. But each time, it sounded as if he were trying to convince himself of that fact. Many times, the things Mike had said would come back to him.

A little over a month earlier - back at the Pad:

Thomas had just made the very unpopular announcement that Davy was to go back with him to England. Davy had walked out of the Pad to be on his own, and now Thomas was left with the other three boys.

"You want to know something? Davy did this whole thing for you! I mean he wanted you to just be proud of him!! He wanted you to think he was a success!!" Mike had said.

"Davy needs a family!! He just can't go on frittering his life away!!" Thomas defended.

"Oh, man, be honest!! It's you!! You're not thinking of Davy at all! You want him back because you miss him! You want him back because you need him!" Mike argued. *

"Oh well what did he know!" Thomas angrily thought. "I doubt he's ever had any children to worry about. But then again, with young people the way they are today..." he shook his head.

Just then, George came down the stairs and into the study where Thomas, Isabelle and Elizabeth were waiting.

"Well how is he?" Thomas impatiently asked.

"Not good. And I don't have the cure for what's wrong with him." said George. After Davy had been caught on the phone that day, Elizabeth had explained everything to him. George had made it a point to talk to Thomas since.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Thomas replied angrily, turning away and looked back to the fire. He knew where this was going.

"Davy misses his friends and his life back in the States. When he over heard you and Isabelle talking, he knew he'd lost all hope of seeing his friends again. So he is now in a state of depression which will get worse until...until something can be done. And I think you know what that is, Thomas."

"No!" Thomas growled. "I will not lose David again!"

There, it was out. Mike was right. He had only been thinking of himself, and not Davy. Thomas buried his face in his hands and started weeping. Isabelle sat next to him and held him while he cried.

"Ever since my son died," he spoke in between sobs, "I had taken Davy in and did my best in raising him. I sent him to the States. It was only supposed to be for a few months, but he wrote me and asked my permission to let him live there. I gave it, thinking it would only last a little while and then he'd be ready to return home. But he never did. I felt I was losing my son all over again.

"Don't you see I can't let Davy go back? I can't!" he cried.

Isabelle let go of him. "Thomas, I'm sorry. I never knew you felt this way. But you must think of Davy now."

Thomas buried his head in his hands and shook his head. This infuriated Isabelle and she got up, grabbed Elizabeth's hand and walk towards the door leading out into the hallway.

"Elizabeth," she whispered, "do you know the boys' number?"

"Yes, I do. Davy left their number with me in case he needed me to reach them for any reason."

"Well now he needs you to. Get over there, call them, tell them what's going on and tell them to get over here as soon as they can. Hurry! Before your father returns."

Elizabeth ran out the door and Isabelle returned to the study. Thomas was still in the same position that he was when she left the room.

George looked at her and spoke loudly enough for Thomas to hear. "When is Davy's birthday?" he asked.

She looked at him, absolutely confused as to why he would ask.  "December 30th. Why?"

"He'll be 21 then, won't he?" he gave her a knowing look and she caught on to the scheme.

"Yes he will." she smiled.

"Hmm. Guess Thomas won't be able to hold on to him much longer." He looked over at Thomas and then continued, "The way I see it, he has two options. Either he let's Davy go now, or he remains stubborn, Davy turns 21 and he loses him forever."

Thomas didn't look up. He knew they were right, but it was so difficult to let him go.

* NOTE: Dialogue taken from the eppy

Micky kept twisting and turning in his bed. A horrible scene played out before his eyes, and he couldn't escape it.

Davy was hanging on for dear life on the edge of a hole. Below him, hideous creatures were striking out, trying to grab him and drag him in. He kept calling out for someone to help him.

"I'm coming, Davy! Hang on!" Micky would yell, but he couldn't move. Something held him in place and forced him to watch his friend fight his way out of the dark hole.

Micky fought against whatever was holding him and was finally freed. He ran towards the hole that Davy was trying to escape, and as he got closer, he could see the pain and fear on Davy's face.

"Hang on, Davy. I'm almost there!" he continued to yell, but just before he could reach him, one of the creatures reached out and caught Davy and brought him under.

"DAVY!!!" Micky screamed, now sitting up in bed, wide awake.

Mike quickly flipped on the light and ran to his friend's side. "Micky! What is it? What's wrong?"

"It's Davy! Something wrong, Mike." Micky's panicky voice answered.

"Hey! It was just a nightmare. Everything's fine." Mike tried to calm him.

"No! No!" Micky shook his head. "Something's wrong." He continued to tell Mike about everything that had happened in the dream.

"Well, I'm sure Davy is fine. I'll tell ya what, tomorrow we'll call Elizabeth's house and you'll see that everything is all right."

Mike had finally gotten Micky calmed down when Peter came rushing into the room.

"Guys...guys, I just had a nightmare." Peter whimpered.

"Not you too." Mike rolled his eyes.

Peter told them about his dream. Mike and Micky's eyes grew wide as they realized it was the same dream Micky had.

"You see, Mike? I told you." Micky panicked again.

Mike was about to respond when the phone downstairs began to ring.

"I wonder who that could be at this time of night." Mike thought out loud.

"10 to 1 it's about Davy." Micky said as the three of them made their way downstairs to the phone.

"Hello?" Mike picked up.

"Hello, who is this?" the voice on the other end asked.

"Who is this?" Mike countered.

"I'm sorry. This is Elizabeth, Davy's friend." she answered.

"Oh well this is Mike. Is something wrong?"

"Davy's sick! He really needs you guys right now. Can you come to England?" she asked, and Mike could hear the worry in her voice.

"You bet we can, shotgun. How...how bad is he?" Mike timidly asked, not sure he wanted to know the answer.

"I'm really not sure. According to my father, he's not doing too good. My father and his grandfather don't know I'm calling you right now. This was Isabelle's idea. We have an idea that if he sees you again, he'll be all right." Elizabeth sounded hopeful.

"Well don't worry. We're catching the next plane out. See you soon." he hung up, then turned to the other two Monkees.

"We're going to England."

Early the next afternoon, the doorbell rang at the Jones' home, and Thomas answered it.

"You!" he exclaimed, with total shock on his face as he saw the three boys standing there with Elizabeth. "What are you three doing here? Elizabeth, what is the meaning of this?"

"Where's Davy?" Mike asked, ignoring Thomas' behavior.

"You know I will not allow Davy to see you three again." he stubbornly replied, still refusing to give in. "Now leave this property at once."

Mike ignored the older man and pushed on by him, walking into the house with Peter, Micky and Elizabeth right behind him.

"Elizabeth, take us to him." Mike ordered.

She was about to comply, but Isabelle came down the steps.

"You must be Mike." she smiled, taking his hand in hers. "Davy told me you were the leader of the group. My name is Isabelle."

"Nice to meet ya. Yes, I'm Mike, this is Peter and that's Micky."

"Yes, I know. Davy has told me so much about you three that I would know you even if I hadn't already seen your picture." Then her smile quickly turned into a worried frown. "I'm so glad you came."

"Well, we had to come. He needs us." Peter replied, as if it were ridiculous to think there was any other option.

"Of course." her smile returned. "He was right. He does have three very devoted friends. Come with me."

She started to lead them up the stairs.

"Isabelle!" Thomas gasped, shocked that she would go against him like this.

She turned to face him. She didn't like to hurt him, but this needed to be done.

"I'm sorry, Thomas. But somebody has to think of Davy." She turned away and led the three boys up to Davy's room.

Isabelle opened the door to Davy's room, and led the three Monkees in.

They were all shocked at the change in Davy. He was laying very still in his bed, pale as a ghost and extremely thin.

Mike turned to Isabelle with tears in his eyes. "Would you mind leaving us alone for a while?"

Isabelle nodded in understanding. "I'll go get some hot soup. If everything goes the way I think it will, he'll be wanting to eat again real soon." She gave an encouraging smile and left the room.

Mike sat on the edge of Davy's bed and put his hand on Davy's arm. Micky and Peter stood at the edge of the bed, waiting for some response.

"Davy? Davy, wake up." Mike smiled as Davy's eyes slowly fluttered open.

"Mike?" Davy looked at him  "Mike, I had this terrible dream. I was..." he stopped and looked around the room, obviously confused. "No wait! It wasn't a dream." He looked back at the other three and smiled. "Mike? Micky? Peter? You're all here? But...how?
Did my grandfather...?"

Mike shook his head. "No! Isabelle and Elizabeth sent for us. You're grandfather isn't too happy about us being here."

Davy's smile faded. "Oh! Then...you'll all have to go back...and I'll have to...to stay here. Nothing's changed."

"No, wait, Davy!" Micky jumped in. "We're not going to leave you here."

"That's right, shotgun. The only way we're going back is if you're coming back with us."

"You guys would really do that?" Davy asked.

"Of course!" Micky went into his dramatics. "We would climb the highest mountain, swim the deepest ocean, and neither rain, nor snow nor gloom of night...or is it rain nor snow nor heat...no wait! Ummm...neither rain, nor snow..."

While Micky was still going over the speech to himself, Peter looked over at Davy. "I think what Micky is trying to say is that we're friends and we'd do anything for each other. Because...well...that's what friend's are for." Peter grinned.

Unknown to all of them, Thomas was watching from the door way. He had seen Davy's eyes light up when he saw his friends. It was a light that had been missing for quite some time. He heard Micky's somewhat baffled, but well meaning speech and Peter's own translation.

Thomas sighed and walked away. He knew he had to let Davy go now. It wasn't going to be easy, but it had to be done.

Mike and Micky decided to go downstairs for their luggage while Peter stayed upstairs with Davy. Thomas stopped them on the way down.

"Will you boys come in here for a moment, please?" he asked, and walked into the study.

Mike and Micky looked at each other with a "Here it comes" look, and went into the study.

Thomas silently stood there with his back to them for a while, so Mike decided to break the silence.

"Mr. Jones, you wanted to see us?" he asked.

"Why did you boys have to come here?" he asked. "He would have gotten better. It would have just taken time. But you've ruined everything."

"Look, I don't know what you think we've done, but the fact is that he was getting worse until we came, and I think you know that." Mike argued. "But in just the few minutes we've been here, he's improved quite a bit. I don't supposed you've realized that, now have you?"

Thomas whirled around, "Of course I have! I suppose you think I don't love my grandson. Then you tell me why I have decided to let him go back with you boys?"

"Look! We don't care what you say, he....you...what?" Micky stared, open mouthed.

"You'll let him go back with us?" asked Mike, not believing what he was hearing.

"I may be stubborn, but I'm not blind. I have seen how he has improved within the short time you've been here. I also know it's my fault he became ill in the first place."

"Ah, no man, it's not your fault." Mike was about as surprised at the change in his tune as he was at the grandfathers. "You just loved him too much, that's all."

Thomas looked at them and smiled. "You know, you really aren't bad boys at all. I realized this at the airport, when you boys tried to get me to miss the plane. I was just too stubborn to admit it then."

Mike and Micky smiled at him, both surprised by the sudden change in Thomas.

"Well that's all I had to say. You can go now."

"Thank you, sir." Mike said and both he and Micky turned to leave.

When they got to the door, Micky stopped and turned around. "Just think, Mr. Jones. You're not losing a grandson, you're gaining three more." he grinned.

Thomas let out a groan and covered his eyes and Mike grabbed Micky by the back of the neck and shoved him out the door.

Davy recovered even quicker upon hearing that he could go back with his friends. Within a few days he was up and around, bounding from room to room, trying to get all his things together so he could leave.

Every couple of hours one of the guys would stop him and make him sit down to rest, but that would only last for about five minutes and then he'd be back up again.

One day, Elizabeth came into the house and he nearly ran her over.

"Oh Elizabeth!" he grabbed her around the waist and spun her around in a tight hug. "Did you hear? I can go back!"

"Yes I heard." she whispered, looking as if she might cry.

He gave her a questioning look, wondering what would make her upset.
But then it slowly sank in, and he looked into her eyes. "Elizabeth,
I won't ever forget you. I'll keep in touch, honest!"

She looked down, the tears running down her cheeks. He sighed and lifted her face to his and kissed her. But in mid-kiss, and idea started coming to him and when he stopped, so did the idea.

"What?" she asked when he pulled away with a look of deep concentration.

"I had an idea...but I lost it." he whispered, while trying desperately to remember it. "Let's try this again." he said, and he kissed her a second time.

"Mmm!" he mumbled during the kiss and she pulled away. "That's it!" he exclaimed and grabbed her hand. "Come on."

Davy and Elizabeth arrived at Dr. George Herrington's office within an hour.

"Wait here." he told her in the lobby, and he knocked on George's door.

"Come in" he heard from the other side.

"Well hello Davy. How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Oh, very well, Mr. Herrington." he replied. "I just dropped by to...uh...thank you for taking care of me like you did." he grinned.

George gave him a suspicious smile. "You're welcome, Davy." he said slowly, waiting for him to get at...whatever it was that he was trying to get at.

"Uh, Mr. Herrington, may I ask you something?"

"Of course." he nodded.

Davy looked around, trying to think of how to ask. "Uh...well...would you say that my friends and I were...responsible?"

"Yes, I would say that." he nodded, waiting for the boy to go on.

"Well...if you had something of great value, and it meant the whole world to you, would you trust us with it?" he asked.

George looked to be thinking about his answer for a moment. In truth, he knew where Davy was going with this, and he was trying to think whether or not it was a good idea. He finally nodded.

"Yes, I suppose I would." he tried to hold back the smile as Davy went on.

"Well, I understand that you were planning on letting Elizabeth go to the States when she turned eighteen. But...well...wouldn't she be better off going with people she knew? People that you knew and felt were responsible enough to look out for her?"

"Why Davy, that is an excellent idea!" George stood and nearly laughed at the expression on Davy's face. He obviously didn't expect the older man to give in so easy.

"R.. really?" he stammered.

"Yes! Of course! I don't know why I didn't think of it before." he smiled. "Just one thing, David. You may consider me old fashioned here, but I do not want her staying in the same house with four bachelors."

"Oh that's no problem at all, sir. There's a small apartment complex just a few blocks away. I can see that she gets there safely every night."  he grinned. "She's out in the lobby now, sir. Shall we tell her?"

"Elizabeth?" George called out and she opened the door to his office and walked in.

"Elizabeth, how would you like to go to America with the boys?" he asked.

She gave him a huge smile. "Do you really mean it?"

He nodded, and she ran over to Davy and gave him a huge hug.

Davy looked at him. "I think this is a 'yes' if I ever saw one." he smiled.

"Yes I can see that. It's a good thing I didn't have anything to do with letting her go to America, or I would be smothered in one of those hugs as well." he gave her a sad look, and she let go of Davy and quickly ran over to him.

"I'm sorry, father! I was just so excited." she hugged him tight.

"Go on now." he laughed, "I'll make the arrangements. You go home and pack. And remember, this is only for a couple of months. Don't you even think about staying in the States until you've finished your schooling, young lady."

"Yes, father!" she smiled, and then she and Davy left the office.

Everyone was waiting at the airport and making last minute arrangements before they boarded the plane.

"Now you're sure you got everything, dear?" Isabelle asked him.

"Well he better have. There's no going back for it now." Thomas answered for him.

"Grandfather, thank you for letting me go back. Are you sure you'll be all right here all by yourself?" Davy asked.

"Davy, this is the twentieth time you've thanked me today." he laughed, "And yes, I'll be fine. Remember," he put his arm around Isabelle, "I'm not alone anymore."

George came up to them with Elizabeth on his arm. "Well, I trust you boys will take good care of her. And she is to be back at her apartment no later than eleven o'clock at night."

"Yes, sir." Peter saluted.

"Don't worry, Mr. Herrington. We'll take good care of her." Mike said.

"I know you will, boys." he kissed his daughter on the cheek.

"Well, I guess it's time." Micky announced.

Elizabeth turned and hugged her father and Davy did the same with Thomas and Isabelle. Then the group entered the terminal.

George, still looking towards the terminal, said, "You know, Thomas. I believe I'm beginning to understand a little bit of what you must have felt when Davy was over in America."

"Well there comes a time when you have to let them grow up. At least, I believe you were telling me something like that a few days ago." Thomas winked.

"Oh, don't tell me that for the next two months my words are going to come back to haunt me." George rolled his eyes.

Thomas turned to Isabelle, "Well, love, I believe we have a few arrangements to take care of ourselves."

"Whatever do you mean, Mr. Jones?" she looked at him curiously.

"Well I made an appointment for us down at St. Johns on the corner of Maple. That is, if you'll still have me."

"Oh, Thomas!" she threw her arms around his neck. "You know I will. I love you very much."

"And I love you." he whispered against her ear.

They all arrived back at their Pad the next day, each suffering from jet lag...well all except Davy. He was too excited about being home. He went around embracing just about every object in the room as if it were a long lost love.

"Well I guess everything is back to normal." Mike sighed, as he stretched out on his hammock.

"NESMITH!"

Mike fell out of the hammock when he heard Babbit call him from outside.

"Oh, great! We used the rest of the rent money to go to England."

Babbit came stomping through the door. "Well, Jones, I see you're back." he growled.

"Uh...yes sir." Davy smiled, while Elizabeth tried her best to hide behind him.

"Who's she, Jones? A souvenir?"

"Now look, Mr. Babbit. You don't have to go around insulting our guest!" Micky defended.

"What's that, Dolenz?" Babbit yelled.

"Uh...nothing sir." Micky gave a goofy smile.

Babbit turned back to Mike. "Well, where's the money?"

"Well...you see, sir...I...that is...we...Ummm.." Mike stammered.

"We have it right here." Davy interrupted, and everyone looked at him in shock when he pulled some cash out of his wallet and handed it over to Babbit.

Babbit seemed satisfied for the moment as his fist closed around the cash in his hands.

"All right. You boys are caught up, now let's keep it that way, shall we?" he growled and walked out of the Pad.

"Davy, where did you get that money?" Peter asked.

"Grandfather gave me some cash before I left. I had a feeling it would come in handy sooner or later." he grinned.

"I don't suppose there's enough left over to order some pizza, huh?" Micky asked.

"Afraid not. Used the last of it to pay Babbit." he shrugged.

"Well, like I said, everything is back to normal." Mike laughed.

"Yeah, it's good to be home." Davy sighed as he sunk down onto the couch and Elizabeth curled up next to him, laying her head on his chest.

Pretty soon, he was the only one awake in the Pad. Too many thoughts were running through his mind, that there was no use in trying to sleep.

He thought of his Grandfather and Isabelle, what a lovely couple they made. How hard it must have been for him to let Davy go. But at least he now had Isabelle by his side.

Then he thought about George. He had turned out to be a good friend. And he had trusted them all enough to let his daughter go to America with them.

Elizabeth had been filling his thoughts a lot lately as well. When he thought he would have to leave her back in England, it nearly broke his heart. She had been such a good friend to him. She had helped him when he needed it, stuck by him when things got tough and rejoiced with him when he was reunited with his friends. She was everything he
could ask for, and more.

Then there were the guys. They had tried their best to stop him from going back to England, but there wasn't much they could do. Then they had actually come out to England when he really needed them and even promised not to go back without him.

Elizabeth awoke when she felt him sigh. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

"No, nothing at all." he smiled. "I just realized, I must be the luckiest man on earth."

The End