Amanda had been unusually quiet for a ghost lately, opting for pensive sighs over her usual snarky commentary. As Drake wrestled with a particularly stubborn sink clog, the spectral figure materialized beside him, her wispy form shimmering softly.
"You two ever think about taking a vacation?" she asked, her voice uncharacteristically gentle.
Drake paused, wrench in hand. "Vacation? With what money, Mama? Robbing a museum in broad daylight isn't exactly on my current resume."
Amanda chuckled, a sound like wind chimes tinkling in a graveyard. "Not that kind of vacation, silly. A romantic one. Paris, maybe? City of love, croissants, overpriced cafes..."
Kurome, who had been listening from the living room, perked up. "Paris? That would be amazing!"
Drake scoffed. "Amazing and expensive. We barely scraped by this month after your, uh, 'accidental' antique shopping spree."
"Nonsense," Amanda declared, her spectral form puffing up with indignation. "Consider it an early anniversary gift from your favorite (and only) ghostly mother-in-law. I happen to have some...unclaimed treasures gathering dust in the ether."
A mischievous glint flickered in her spectral eyes. Drake exchanged a wary glance with Kurome, both of them well aware of Amanda's "unclaimed treasures" often being ill-gotten gains from her earthly days.
"But wouldn't that, you know," Drake started cautiously, "be, uh, morally dubious?"
Amanda rolled her spectral eyes. "Morality and vacations don't always see eye to eye, honey. Besides, wouldn't you like to see Kurome's face when she steps in front of the Eiffel Tower? Or when you get her a croissant so big it needs its own passport?"
Drake couldn't deny the image was tempting. Kurome's eyes sparkled with excitement, and a grin tugged at his lips. He looked at his wife, her face alight with the prospect of their first real vacation together.
"Alright, Mama," he conceded with a sigh. "You win. Paris it is."
And so, a whirlwind of visa applications, last-minute packing, and Yuki's extensive wardrobe consultations later, the Callaways found themselves on a plane bound for the City of Lights. Amanda, for once, remained blissfully silent, perhaps enjoying the vicarious thrill of their adventure.
Paris unfolded before them like a dream. They strolled hand-in-hand along the Seine, marveling at the Notre Dame cathedral, getting lost in the labyrinthine streets of Montmartre, and indulging in pastries that defied the laws of physics (and Drake's waistband).
One evening, as they stood beneath the twinkling Eiffel Tower, Kurome leaned against Drake, her eyes shining with happiness.
"Thank you," she whispered, her voice filled with emotion. "This is the most incredible gift."
Drake squeezed her hand. "The only gift I need is seeing you smile like this."
He glanced up at the sky, half expecting Amanda to materialize with a smug grin. But there was only the soft Parisian night and the distant echo of laughter. Maybe, just maybe, his ghostly mother had a heart buried beneath all that spectral sass.
As they continued their Parisian adventure, laughter echoing in the cobbled streets, Drake realized that vacations weren't just about fancy cafes and overpriced croissants. They were about stolen moments with loved ones, shared experiences that became cherished memories, and the realization that even the most unlikely journeys could be filled with love, laughter, and a touch of ghostly matchmaking.
YOU ARE READING
The Callaway Household (Season 1)
Historia CortaThe Callaway family is anything but ordinary. Drake, an ex-gangster with a heart of gold, has traded his life of crime for the domestic chaos of being a househusband. His wife, Kurome, a skilled samurai with a dry wit, keeps him on his toes. But the...
