Hey guys, the plan had always been to add more to this one, but I do like how it is. And I figured today would be a good to post this one, as it is my gift to you on my birthday. It can be taken a few years after the show ended. Enjoy this small little one shot.
Disclaimer: I don't own Hart of Dixie or the characters from the show I used.
"What kind of cake would you like this year?" Zoe asked her eldest son, over dinner the night before his birthday. Prepared to make yet another variety of chocolate cake, the only cake he wanted for the past 4 years.
"I thought Lemon was making the cake for his party?" Wade questioned looking at his wife, confused.
"Not that cake, Dad," Jay said, rolling his chocolate colored eyes. "Can we make an orange dream cake this year?" He asked, his eyes filled with hope.
"Oh that cake," he chuckled, the realization hitting him fully now. In the past 9 years he would be at work and never get the opportunity to witness this tradition. Turned out the tenth year was his lucky charm.
"We can," Zoe smiled, clearly relieved it was a flavor far from chocolate. She would look up the ingredients needed after dinner than go to the Dixie stop to get what she didn't have in the house.
For the past 9 years, this year making it 10 that she had made a cake with her son on his birthday. It started out as a little thing on his first birthday when it was just the two of them, his party was on the weekend, and they didn't want a party to be in the middle of the week. After that first cake made with very little assistance from Jay, it grew into a birthday tradition with not only Jay, but with Dave when he came along 3 short years later, then again when little Lynn joined the family 2 years prior. It was a special thing she did with the birthday kid every year; the one thing she looked forward too when their birthdays came around.
Wade, however, never got to witness it in the past nine years, busy with work, not that he minded, it was something that his wife shared with their kids and he didn't want to intrude on their thing. Not only did his wife look forward to it, but so did the kids. Not that he could blame them when he had his own birthday traditions with his wife, that is how they ended up with their little girl, the little girl he would forever be thankful for. He was pretty lucky when his wife and kids made him a special cake every year. He loved his sons, there was nothing better than the bond he shared with Jesse before things went sour between them, so for his sons to be the best friends they are it was bitter sweet, reminding him of the brother he lost so to speak. When they learned that they were having a girl he was scared but overjoyed. Pleasantly pleased to see how protective his sons are over their little sister.
While Wade sung a lullaby to Lynn to get her asleep, Zoe went and got what was needed, excited about making a new memory with her oldest, her days of baking a cake with him were coming to end in just 8 years, and those 8 years seemed to be approaching faster than she would ever like them to. It was one of the many things she could only wish they pass down to their own kids when they had a family. Shaking those thoughts from her mind, she placed the ingredients in the right spot and joined her husband in their room, only after she stopped in to check on her little angel, kissing her forehead. Giving her boys a warning that bedtime was catching up to them as well.
Wade woke up the next morning to laughter filtering through the house. With a sleepy smile on his face he followed the laughter to the kitchen. Leaning against the entryway, arms folded over his chest, he watched his wife and son make the cake. Nevermind that they made a bigger mess than anything else. Seeing the pure joy on their faces everything else in that moment faded away. Feeling as if he was cheating them out of their moment, he wanted to sneak back to bed and let them have this, the more he watched the harder it was for him to sneak away from it.
With the cake in the oven, he walked over to kiss his wife good morning.
"We didn't wake you did we?" She asked, pulling out of the kiss.
"No," he assured her. Getting up before the sun was one thing he has grown use to over the years needing to open the Rammer Jammer. "Why did you two get up at this hour of the day?" He questioned sweeping his son up for a hug. "Happy birthday morning," he told him.
"Thanks Dad," Jay smiled, hugging him. "We always get up this early," he shrugged.
"If we do it later than Dave and Lynn interrupt. I love them but this is something I like to cherish with each kid separately," she explained the best she could to him.
"I get it," he responded. He loved all three of his kids greatly. And he found nothing wrong in spending quality time with each one doing something that kid enjoyed doing. "I am going to let the two of you finish your thing here and I am going to jump in the shower before the other two hooligans wake up," he said slipping from the kitchen.
"Do you think I could hang out with some friends today?" Jay asked. "I know it's my birthday but after the cake we aren't doing anything until dinner, so would it be okay?"
"You'd have to run it past your father. With him having the day off I don't know if he planned on doing something special with you," she told her son.
"Okay. And if he doesn't can I?" He asked, starting to help clean up.
"I don't see why it would hurt any," she told him, running hot water in the sink to start washing the little bit of dishes they used. "Remember that is only after your father okays it."
"I know," he smiled, wiping cake batter from the countertops.
By the time Wade finished in the shower and dressed for the day, the kitchen was spotless, the cake nearing done. The second Jay spotted his dad, he quickly asked what they were doing for the rest of the day.
"I didn't outright plan anything, bud. We can do anything you want," he told him.
"Would it be cool if I hung out with a few friends?"
"Yeah that be cool," Wade commented. "Or we can pick them up and head out for a day of playing laser tag, bumper cars and arcade games, if you want," he suggested knowing just how much his son loved doing things like that.
"Must you even suggest doing something like that?" Jay questioned with a laugh.
"Can we first wait for the cake to be done baking and cool so we can frost it before running off?" Zoe asked with a smile.
"What do you take me for? I would never put a stop to this," Wade said, feigning shock. "Not to mention we do have to wait a few more hours for your friends to be up."
With the cake cooled off and frosted, Wade took off with his eldest son to see what friends of his could join them on their day out, leaving Zoe to wrangle her two youngest kids from bed, to figure out what they wanted to do while Wade was off with Jay.
In the end the water park won out. She called Lemon and Annabeth and they agreed to meet her there, giving their kids a chance to play as they wore their energy down greatly.