Reunion (The Monkees Family Vol. 3)

Chapter 7

As was customary, the Monkees family gathered for Mike and Davy's birthdays on December 30. They never bothered to celebrate Peter or Micky's birthday with any regularity, but for some reason – maybe because it was close to the holiday season and folks already felt festive and celebratory, or maybe because it was a double birthday – they always made sure to mark the tallest and shortest Monkees' days of coming into the world. This time, Micky and Gabby decided to host it so that it could also be something of a housewarming to show off their new digs.

Gabby went all out and had it catered Lord and Lady Nesmith style, with four-star restaurant quality food and champagne and other expensive booze, plus waiters to circulate appetizers before the sit down dinner. She also decorated the backyard with hanging lanterns and set up a bar outside in case folks wanted to continue the party alfresco, since the weather was uncharacteristically warm. They were experiencing what native Californians referred to as the Santa Ana winds, which brought with them high temperatures, but also the threat of brush fires and high smog levels. The party invitation exhorted folks to bring their bathing suits in case they wanted to take a dip in the pool or at least enjoy the Jacuzzi.

As a final touch to make sure that the party could go on for as long as folks wanted, everyone was invited to spend the night. It had been so long since everyone had spent quality time together, and Gabby wanted to really have a chance to catch up, particularly now that she and Wendy had mended their relationship. She hoped that the extra time and space together might encourage further fence-mending between Wendy and other family members, and maybe Mike also. Gabby even hired a babysitter to take care of Charlotte and Sebastian so that Peter and Dawn could take it easy and enjoy the party. It was really Gabby's gift to the family to try to bring them all together, but she selfishly also wanted to gather them around her after she had been through such a traumatic year herself, and revel in their friendship and love. It was going to be like a sleepover for adults, and she found herself inordinately, giddily excited about the party.

Two by two, the family members arrived. Gabby mused fancifully that it was like prom night, only with a lot less social pressure and a lot more fun. She had had a terrible prom night. She didn't have a boyfriend, so she'd borrowed one of her older brother's fraternity brothers, but he was so much older than her he looked more like her dad than her date. And the guy she'd had a crush on all senior year long, when he spotted her in her prom dress, instead of complimenting her, said "Oh, Gabby, I didn't think you'd be here. I didn't think you'd be able to find a date." Harrumph! Oh well, she'd shown him! His date and she were good friends and they ended up gossiping about him in the lady's room. His date told Gabby what a bore Gabby's crush was and how she couldn't wait for the prom to end! At least at this party, Gabby could be queen and Micky would be king.

Everyone arrived wearing semi-formal attire, as requested. For a joke, Robert was wearing a suit with a bow tie at his neck and another pinned to his ponytail. Lynda had borrowed a very au currant Pucci pants suit from the chic Rodeo Drive clothing boutique where she worked. Mike was wearing a suit, but he insisted on wearing his wool hat. Dawn was wearing a long and flowing Laura Ashley type dress that had a small flowered print and lace at the collar and cuffs. Peter still tended to go with the hippie look, so he had on a suit that was suede with fringe and beads strung around his neck. Jan made her statement with a simple black dress but an elaborate coiffure of layered braids and fake falls that she proudly admitted she had concocted herself. Davy still tended to wear his specially tailored shirts, Gabby noted, and he had on a lavender one with a velvet navy blue suit and white pointy boots. Wendy wowed everyone by turning up in a dress that rather than hiding her bun in the oven highlighted it. No maternity mumus for Wendy – she wore a sleek plum-colored Halston dress that was formfitting and made her look voluptuous for the first time in her life, particularly in the bust, for which she confided in Gabby she was truly grateful and was probably the only upside to being pregnant.