Turning Of the Tide by Diana Sander

When Frank readily agreed to the conditions to enter, a burst of cheers emanated from inside, with Stella and Sherri's voices being the loudest.

Even through the door, their joyful voices were audible, carrying an infectious sense of excitement and happiness Stella, with her knack for being persuaded by money, swiftly unlocked the three latches the moment she heard Frank's agreement. Each click of the locks echoed outside, audible to everyone present.

With each lock opening, Frank silently counted in his mind, feeling the suspense building with each successive click.

Rose, covering her mouth in an attempt to stifle any noise, cowered in a distant corner, afraid that her brother might overhear. As Frank stepped into the room, he immediately spotted his sister, who stood quietly in the corner, wearing a sweet, innocent smile, and looking remarkably well-behaved.

It was as though the mischievous planning for the prank, just moments ago, had nothing to do with her.

Frank, with his keen understanding of his sister, knew well enough that this obedient facade must have been a post-door-opening act. Before the door opened, she couldn't have been in such a state of apparent innocence.

Edward wasted no tand positioned himself next to Rose upon entering, holding her hand as they both quietly observed Frank's reaction.

Ava was dressed in a white wedding gown adorned with a diamond-encrusted crown. The gown's intricate diamond patterns sparkled like stars in the night sky. Complementing Ava's radiant smile, Frank was captivated as soon as he stepped in.

His gaze fixated on Ava, and as their eyes met, a silent exchange took place. Both were studying each other, but as moments passed, their smiles widened. It was as if love particles floated in the air, creating an almost tangible sense of affection and warmth.

Frank, mesmerized and momentarily lost for words, lacked the eloquence to express the overwhelming beauty before him. With a limited vocabulary, all that echoed in his mind was a single word, "beautiful." Observing Frank's speechless state, Trevon couldn't help but display his usual teasing demeanor. With a mix of amusement and mock disappointment, he raised an eyebrow and jested, "Are you planning to wait until the end of tor considering tying the knot anytsoon, Frank?" Trevon's teasing comment elicited laughter from everyone present, but Natalie, seated beside the irreverent jokester, responded by nudging him with her elbow, shooting a playful glare his way, a silent plea for Trevon to control himself a bit.

Receiving Natalie's pointed gaze, Trevon's lips curved into a mischievous smirk, clearly unfazed by her warning.

In a playful act of mischief, he subtly pinched her hand that he was holding behind his back.

Frank, seemingly oblivious to Trevon's teasing, knelt down with palpable emotion, his voice filled with a trembling intensity, "Ava, I've cto pick you up." It was a scene poised for romance, with all eyes on Frank and Ava, until Sherri, ever the mood breaker, interjected, 'Wow, the progress bar is going a bit too fast. Frank, how about doing 80 push-ups before proposing?" All the men in the room, along with the onlookers outside the door, remained speechless, wondering why this program arrangement wasn't revealed at the very beginning.

Jim thought, 'Who the hell cup with this idea?’ It was going to make him scared of getting married in the future.

Trevon glanced around and noticed Rose, head bowed but smiling knowingly. He then threw a teasing glance at Natalie, sending shivers down her spine, as if she'd been zapped by an electric shock from across the room.

Once again, Natalie silently signaled him to tone it down.

Upon hearing this, Frank was taken aback. Doing 80 push-ups was trivial, but he couldn't fathom who cup with the idea to demand such a strenuous activity at such a crucial moment.

However, he did not delve too deeply into this. He quickly handed the flowers to Ava and said, "Givea few minutes." Excitedly receiving the bouquet, Ava nodded obediently and even made a cheering gesture, smiling at Frank as she held the flowers close to her heart.

Without further ado, Frank removed his jacket and placed it on the bed. He adjusted his pants and placed one hand behind his back, the other firmly on the ground. "Let's get started," he said.

As soon as the words left his lips, Frank swiftly began executing perfect one-handed push-ups.

In a corner, Sherri leaned in close to Hackett's ear and couldn't resist complimenting, "With this kind of stamina, no wonder Ava can handle twins." In the corner, Sherrileaned close to Hackett Blackwell's ear and could not help but praise, "With such stamina, no wonder Ava can have twins." Feeling a bit cornered by Sherri's comment, Hackett narrowed his eyes playfully and teased, "Honey, are you trying to tellsomething?" "Oh, not really, just a comment, absolutely nothing else implied, | promise," Sherri hastily clarified, waving her hands in explanation.

Standing behind them, Rose overheard everything and couldn't help but blurt out, "Do you guys have to make dirty jokes all the time?" Hackett Blackwell turned around and was about to retort when he was stopped by Hackett, about to retort, was stopped in his tracks by Edward's imposing glare from above. Helpless, Hackett rolled his eyes at Edward before turning back to observe the commotion.

Regaining his composure, Hackett immediately looked around for his daughter. "Where's Ruby?" Sherri couldn't help but think that it took him a little bit too long to react. It was only now that Hackett remembered his daughter. "She's playing games with my future son-in-law, don't worry," she assured, giving Hackett's shoulder a reassuring pat.

Hackett was speechless. He thought, "I'm even more worried when she's with Trevon's son." After completing the push-ups, Frank stood up, donned his clothes again, and once more knelt down on one knee, gazing affectionately at Ava. He began, "Ava, would you like to marry me?" As soon as those words left Frank's lips, everyone fell silent, filled with a mix of emotion and blessings; it was as if Romeo and Juliet had finally got to be together.

Rose stood at a distance, feeling happy for her brother. She wiped away a tear, thinking, "This is wonderful. My brother and Ava have finally bechusband and wife." Ava once again accepted the bouquet from Frank's hands, then lowered her head to give a peck on the cheek of the handsprince. With others present, Frank didn't take the lead, merely offering a light peck in return. He put his arm around the young girl's shoulders and sat down nearby.

Seeing everyone deeply moved and speechless, it was Frank who broke the silence. "No other tasks?" Stella was the first to react, slightly caught off guard, "Yes, yes, there are. Alex, it's your turn to announce." Alex remembered the agreement they made about finding the shoes first, "The groom has ten minutes to find the bride's shoes. If he fails, all the men present will dance together." Everyone thought, "Con, we are not groomsmen." Sherri and Stella thought, "Alex's modification of the program sounds interesting. Originally, it was only supposed to be the groom and groomsmen dancing, all the guys were in. If the groom fails, it means Trevon and all the guys need to dance.

Nice, sharing joys and sorrows together. That was team spirit! Trevon's face darkened at the mention of dancing. He wasn't planning on performing in front of so many people, but he'd willingly dance for Natalie if it were just for her.

At that moment, Trevon even felt the urge to join the search queue himself. He reminded Frank, "Search every corner quickly." Frank, on the other hand, seemed rather relaxed. He looked at Trevon with a smirk, saying, "If you're keen on dancing, | can find the shoes in ten minutes." Trevon shot Frank a sharp look, his eyes practically daggers. Frank, still smiling, bent down and thoroughly searched under the bed and even beneath the pillows, but to no avail.

People around, especially Chris, grew anxious. "Don't you have a metal detector at home?" Hackett joined the search, remembering how he danced the hula at Trevon's wedding last time. But today, he had no intention of performing again. "Are you crazy? Shoes aren't made of metal, so what can a detector do?" Every guy in the room was now engrossed in the treasure hunt. Every nook and cranny was scrutinized, with all the women standing in corners, watching the spectacle and enjoying the show.

After about 8 minutes of searching, as they neared the tlimit, Frank sneakily glanced at Ava, but sharp-eyed Sherri caught him in the act and intervened, "No cheating, Frank!" "Holy cow, Frank, is this expired? Why's it leaking?" Hackett, being mischievous, opened a drawer and held up a greasy object inquiringly.

At his words, everyone searching for the shoes turned their attention to Hackett's hand. Ava instantly recognized her own creation.

But how did this end up here? Didn't Frank throw it away? Was he planning to keep it as a memory? Her cheeks reddened shyly, partly saved by the blush she wore. To the rest of the crowd, there seemed to be no issue. Only Natalie, Trevon, Frank, and Ava were aware of the truth behind this situation.

Trevon watched with amusement, enjoying the show as he observed what Hackett held in his hand. Meanwhile, Natalie was almost in a state of shock, thinking, "Is Hackett silly? Who would hide shoes in such an obvious place?" Frank glanced at the shy young girl, then swiftly walked over to Hackett, snatched the greasy object, and tossed it into the trash can, barely holding back a curse. "I asked you to find shoes, not rummage around like you're looking for a credit card." Rose blinked her eyes, observing her brother tossing something into the trash. She felt a pang of suspicion.

Those things didn't have a short shelf life. At least three years, if not more. Had it been three years since Ava and her brother started having sex? No, not at all! How did this expire then? Could it be that her brother bought something close to expiration? Frank coughed awkwardly, trying to ease the tension, "Anyone not wanting to dance, please continue searching." His words snapped everyone out of their thoughts, and they resumed searching for the shoes.

Hackett couldn't help but label Frank as a low-grade shopper for personal items. The sizes of items uniformly provided at Grand Manor seemed quite inappropriate. Now, even the ones Frank used at hwere leaking. This was just unacceptable.

After the wedding, out of goodwill toward his good friend, Hackett planned to buy an extra item for Frank the next the went shopping. It was a gesture of true friendship.

"Time's up," Stella announced, checking her stopwatch. In an instant, the expressions on all the men's faces in the room turned grim. Edward couldn't help but regret not having stayed at hand taking care of the kids.

Meanwhile, Frank stood with hands on his hips, a smirk playing on his lips as he glanced at everyone before fixing his gaze on Trevon. "Any preferences?" Trevon was speechless. He was supposed to be an audience.

Sherri was overly excited, her excitement fueling her inner fire. "Let loose a bit, con! Don't look so constipated. Frank runs a bar, after all. What's wrong with a little dance? Con!" Her statement was flawless, and Frank was already geared up for anything. He signaled Sherri to play a recent hit song. "How about a seaside tango?" Stella gave a thumbs-up. "It's no surprise that you run a bar. Music!"