The old rocking chair creaked methodically back and forth on the worn porch. An old woman sat humming softly, watching the last of the rain taper off. She loved to sit out on the old porch, watching the storms come rolling in over the hills. The lighting had once again struck the same place in the tree, almost every time it came barreling through. That poor old Maple tree was hanging on for dear life. Most of its leaves had fallen off over the years. She remembered when they had planted that tree.
She had been around 15 or 16 at the time. Her father had brought the tree home with him one day from work. He said it was to bring new life onto the farm, since the old tree had fallen down earlier that week. The tree was gorgeous, well in her eyes it was. The leaves had that reddish purple tint to them that changed in the light. Her sister Evelyn thought that the tree was a stupid idea, most likely to fall down in the next thunderstorm. She never had any hope or luck with nature, preferred animals instead. Jacob of course disagreed, saying that it was a beautiful addition to the farm. He thought everything was beautiful or gorgeous. That's what made him so special.
So between the three of them, with Evelyn watching from a distance on the porch, they planted the new tree. Standing back they admired their hard work. The middle of the tree leaned slightly to the left while the top leaned the opposite way. Over the years, the tree straightened up a little but not much. It still leaned two different directions even after all these years.
The door opened with a creak as Evelyn came shuffling out followed closely by Grace. Turning her head Karen took in their appearance. Evie's hair was still as curly as ever but it had lost its rich chocolate color. Now it was dabbed with touches of grays and whites, making it seem dull. Grace's hair had changed as well, taking on a darker grayer red. It was actually very striking color. But they all had changed over the years. Jack had taken to walking around the property lost in thought. All four of them were secretly lost in thought, some more than others, but not as much as Karen. She missed his touch and his soft kisses. How he always knew what was wrong and how he held her when she cried. Sitting in his rocking chair, the tears slowly trickled down her face. She hadn't cried when he had died, or at his funeral. But today sitting in his chair on the porch where he proposed all those years ago finally got to her. Grace pulled the other chair closer to Karen, slowly placing her hand on top of her friends. She was relieved to see tears streaming down Karen's face.
Grace reached up, gently wiping them away, murmuring softly 'Everything will be okay honey.'
And Karen just shook her head in response, shakily adding, 'No it won't Grace. I need him in my life. I need him so badly. I miss him so much, I don't know what to do anymore.'
'Sweetie, you're allowed to miss Will. That's natural. You two were married for over 60 years. That's amazing when you think about it. You had your own secrets, quirks, things that you guys tick and work. Having those 4 beautiful kids helped as well,' she broke off laughing loudly, thinking back on the kids.
Karen just gazed at her friend, a small smile playing on her lips. Her children were her pride and joy. They lucked out, having 2 daughters and 2 sons. Elise and Patrick were the oldest being eleven months apart. The youngest, William (or Liam as he liked to be called) and his sister Eleanor (or Ellie as she preferred), were fourteen months apart. The kids had grown up, gone off to college and managed to be successful. That's all a mother hopes for really. Remembering when she found out she was pregnant, Karen sighed softly thinking how excited Will had been.
She found him sitting in the den reading a book. Glancing down at the little white of plastic device in her hands, she looked back up at him, a small smile on her lips. He noticed her presence as she sat down next to him. Karen remembered just handing him the test, waiting to see what his reaction would be. They had always wanted a big family. Talked about it often, but it just never seemed to work out right. Until now. He looked up into her eyes, noticing the joy and happiness and love she felt reflecting back to him. He smiled widely before leaning over and kissing her softly. She broke the kiss first, laughing softly as she remembered they were sitting where they baby had been conceived.
Patrick was a surprise and was an even bigger surprise when he made his grand entrance into the world 2 months early in the back of their limo. He was an adorable baby with soft dimples and dark curly hair. William was more or less planned out all their kids. Then again Karen didn't even know she was pregnant with him until she felt him kick. Eleanor was, what Will had called, 'full of luck.' She was born about four months early and almost didn't make it. The four friends sat crouched around her small crib in the NICU for weeks. Each taking turns, talking, singing or sharing they're own wisdom with the small girl. Over the weeks, Ellie, as she had been nicknamed, grew slowly and seemed to be getting stronger. She was a vibrant giggly child who everyone loved.
The children loved their parents deeply and held each other as they cried at their father's funeral. Elise and Ellie had tried to comfort their mother but realized the only person who ever could do that had just been buried. Karen realized she was lucky to have her kids and a husband who she shared her entire life with. She loved her friends, her sister and missed her brother.
She continued her rhythmic rocking watching as Jack came walking back up to the porch. Behind him a storm was once again rolling in. The tree swayed in anticipation. Grace was lost in conversation with Evie. And Karen sat remembering what had been.
A/N: Thanks for reading, feel free to review. I wrote this using a writing challenge on my Will & Grace Forum and I absolutely love how this turned out. Karen/Will are my favorite pairing. hehe
-K