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Alright for Now
Addison Reilly yawns while sitting on the couch in her office and then glances at the clock. Any minute now, she will hear the ding of the elevator and then the voices of seven elementary schoolers. Three of those children are King-Friedmans, one is a Bennett, the youngest is a Shepherd-Patterson, and the remaining two are hers: ten year-old Henry and eight year-old Hillary.
The kids get out of school one hour early on Wednesdays, so the Seaside Wellness parents take turns picking them up in Cooper's 8-seater SUV and bringing them back to the practice for the remainder of the work day. It started with Henry and the King-Friedman girls and has expanded to include the younger three once they entered school as well. It works out nicely, and she enjoys getting to spend time with her children in between patients once a week.
Henry is in fifth grade now. Tall and thin like Jake with big brown eyes and short dark hair, he has grown to be a handsome boy with a smile that will surely make girls melt once he hits his teenage years. He loves his pet gecko and playing basketball with his dad, and he bonds with his mother over Star Wars. Addison and Jake couldn't be more proud of him; he is smart and insightful, a straight-A student, and a loving older brother who is willing to do anything to make his little sister happy.
Hillary Amelia, their miracle baby, is in third grade. Conceived against all odds, Addison gave birth to her almost three months prematurely after a difficult pregnancy. They weren't sure she was going to make it, but eight years later, the only signs of her early entry into the world are her glasses and asthma. A loud and opinionated girly-girl, she has her father wrapped around her little finger, loves playing dress-up with her mother, and wants to do everything her big brother does. She completes their family, and they don't know what they would do without her.
After running between the hospital and the practice twice today, Addison is exhausted, but soon after she leans her head back and closes her eyes, she hears the elevator, followed by a bunch of excited little voices talking a mile a minute. She opens her eyes just in time to see Hillary jump into Jake's arms as he stands at the reception desk, and she grins as she watches them embrace. Hillary's wavy brown hair is a mess, as per usual, and she laughs as Jake makes a fruitless attempt to smooth it back and away from her face.
She stands and heads to the open doorway of her office to greet them, noticing that Henry is looking a little sluggish as he walks through the lobby. Jake gives him a loving pat on the shoulder when he passes, but Henry doesn't react at all. It's very unlike her son, and she knows something isn't right.
"Henry, come here, bud," she calls to him.
He looks at her reluctantly and doesn't say a word as he allows her to usher him inside.
"Are you feeling okay?" She asks as she closes the door.
"Yeah," he replies succinctly, dropping his backpack on the floor before curling up on the couch with the blanket that is always there. "My head just hurts."
She groans sympathetically as he pulls the blanket over his head. Henry has been prone to headaches since he was little, and she just hates seeing either of her babies in pain. "I'm sorry. You want some acetaminophen?"
He shakes his head under the blanket. "No th-thank you."
And it is then that she realizes that her baby boy is crying.
"Henry?" She asks, moving his legs so that she can sit next to him with his feet in her lap. "What's the matter, honey? Did something happen?"
He sniffles, and she is immediately concerned. He has always been her sensitive child, but he doesn't often cry unless something is really wrong.
"You have to tell me the truth, okay?" He cries.
"The truth about what?"
"I have a question, and I need you to tell me the real answer."
She has no idea what he is going to ask, but she is so worried that she will tell him just about anything right now if it will make him feel better. "I will. Just tell me what's the matter."
"Okay," he says, taking a long pause and then a shaky breath. "Do you and Dad love Hillary more since she wasn't adopted?"
The question seems so absurd to her. Of course not; she loves her children equally.
"What? No! Of course not," she answers without hesitation, and then her heart just sinks when she begins to think about how upset her son must feel if he felt the need to ask that question. Her whole body instantly feels weighted down with sadness for him, so she does the only thing she can think to do as his mother: put her arm around him and lean in close to let him know that she's not going anywhere. "Oh, Henry, no. Sweetie, we love you so much."
He stifles a sob, and she feels him tremble. "Some kids at school said that you guys probably don't love me as much because I'm not really yours, and I-I was just wondering if—"
"Those kids are wrong. You are absolutely mine," she tells him firmly. Anger surges through her as she thinks about what she would say to those kids if given the chance. No one is allowed to hurt her boy. She quickly calms herself and sits up, speaking gently, "Come here, okay?"
He hesitates for a moment, but when she reaches under the blanket in search of his hand, he grabs it tightly and allows her to pull him up and into her arms. He may not be tiny anymore, but she is still his mother who wants nothing more than to hold and soothe her baby until he stops crying.
He scrambles into her lap and lays his head on her shoulder. "Mommy," he whimpers.
And that's when she starts to cry. At ten years old, Henry doesn't call her 'Mommy' very much anymore, and hearing it from him under these circumstances makes her feel a mix of nostalgia and vicarious sadness that just brings her to tears.
"I love you so much, sweetie," she murmurs, gently rocking him as she did when he was a baby and it was just the two of them against the world. "And Daddy loves you so much, too."
She lifts her hand to wipe her eyes discreetly, but he notices and pulls away to look up at her. "Why are you crying?"
She smiles at his concern and kisses his forehead. Even when he is in the midst of his own tears, he still worries about the well-being of others, and she loves that quality about him.
"Because you are such a good boy, and it makes me mad that anyone would say something like that to you," she explains honestly before hugging him just a little more tightly. "Henry, you might be ten years old, but you are still my baby. I wanted you more than I have ever wanted anything. I had wanted a baby for years and years, and when they finally put you in my arms, it was the happiest moment of my entire life. I was afraid that I would never be a mom, but then along you came, and you were the most perfect little thing I had ever seen. I loved you from that very second, and I'm thankful every single day that you are my son. I am so lucky." She pauses and then lightly strokes his cheek for a moment until he manages a small smile. "Your dad and I are so proud of you, Henry. You are thoughtful and kind to others, you work hard in school, and you are so smart. You are fun to be around, you say the funniest things to make us laugh, and your sister adores you. Sweetheart, you are the absolute best son that we could have ever asked for. It doesn't matter to me one bit that I didn't give birth to you."
He looks at her with relief on his reddened, tear-streaked face, and gives her a watery smile. "I love you, Mom."
"I love you, too, Henry William Montgomery Reilly. I love you so much, and I don't want you to ever forget that. We are your family, and we will always love you no matter what," she assures him. "Those kids might say those mean things, but you have to know that those things aren't true. You are our son just as much as your sister is our daughter, and we love you both exactly the same, okay?"
"Okay."
"And if anything like this ever happens again, you can talk to me about it. You can talk to me or Dad about anything, you know."
"I know."
She kisses his cheek, and then they sit quietly on the couch for a few minutes, cuddled into each other as they both calm down before Henry breaks the silence.
"Hey, Mom?"
"Yes?"
"What's a 'milf'? One of Lucas's friends called you that when I was over at his house yesterday."
A/N: Had to add that last little bit in there so that it wasn't an entirely serious piece. haha. I'm a little stuck on my other Private Practice fic, so I wrote this. Inspired by Tom Petty's song 'Alright For Now,' which is likely about a guy and his girlfriend but also seems to fit Addison and Henry pretty well. Hope you guys liked it :) Thanks for reading!