"MAMA!" Drew squeals, leaping up from his place on the floor and toddling towards Jade as fast as his small legs will carry him "You back!"
"I'm back." She chuckles, picking him up and hugging him tightly "Did you have fun with your dad?"
"Uh huh." Drew nods
"I told you that you would." Jade smirks, kissing her son's cheek before setting him down on the floor "Go clean up your toys so we can go home."
"Okay!"
It's 11:38. Not quite noon, which would be pushing it with Andrew, but also late enough in the morning that Jade was able to maximize her alone time...with Beck. They have plans for him to come over later that evening once the kids are asleep, which isn't all that different from what they've been doing...with the exception of maybe watching a movie before they have sex...but it's nice to know they're doing it as a couple rather than friends with benefits.
"You survived the weekend." Jade remarks as Andrew walks over to her
"Barely."
"It looks like Drew enjoyed himself." Jade notes "Where's Harper?"
"Oh..." Andrew looks around, clearly not having noticed his daughter's absence "She's probably in her room. That's been her favorite spot the past few days."
"Really?"
Normally Harper's favorite place to be is wherever Drew is, or wherever Jade is, or Cat when she's around. It's not like her to go off on her own, but it's not unlike her to retreat when she's feeling upset...and she hadn't been thrilled about Jade leaving her for the whole weekend.
"Dunno." Andrew shrugs "She wasn't crying or anything so I just let her be...figured it was better than fighting."
"Harper!" Jade calls out, walking down the hallway to her daughter's room and pushing the door open "Hey, Harper Bug. What are you up to?"
"Mom!" Harper's face lights up when her eyes land on her mother "Hi!"
"Hi!" Jade laughs, the force of Harper wrapping her arms around her legs almost knocking her over "I missed you this weekend."
"I missed you too!" The three and a half year-old tells her "Is it time to go back to our house now?"
"Yup." Jade nods "As soon as you get all of your toys picked up."
"Okay!" Harper runs back to her toys and begins shoving them into her toy box "I'll clean fast!"
Although she seems excited, maybe even relieved, to be going back to her regular home environment, Jade notices that Harper still seems to be a bit withdrawn once they arrive home. The little girl opts to once again go off to her room to play by herself rather than playing downstairs with her mother and brother. Jade knows that Andrew has never been the type to stick to consistent bedtimes or nap times, so maybe her daughter is just feeling a bit off. But she can't seem to shake the feeling that something much more serious is going on beneath the surface.
"Are you feeling sick, kiddo?" Jade asks her later that night
Drew goes to bed about an hour earlier than Harper does, mostly because trying to get them both ready to go down at the same time creates too much chaos for Jade. She decided to take advantage of the one-on-one time with her daughter to see if she can get to the bottom of her mopey demeanor. Everyone is allowed to have bad days, Jade knows that better than anyone, but if there really is something bothering Harper...Jade wants to get to the bottom of it as quickly as possible.
"No." Harper shakes her head
"Are you sure?" Jade asks, pulling her daughter into her lap to run a brush through her hair, still damp from her bath "Your tummy feels okay?"
"Uh huh."
"And your head?"
"Uh huh."
"You seem a little sad."
"I am sad." Harper sighs
"Oh, Harper. I'm sorry." Jade frowns "Can you tell me what's making you feel sad?"
She knows from personal experience that it's better to get to the bottom of what is making a child feel sad or upset rather than just telling them not to be. That's how her parents had always done things when she was little, how a lot of parents had done thing with their young children in the 90's, and Jade knows it isn't effective. If she can pinpoint what is making Harper feel sad, there's a much better chance she can help her feel better.
Harper mutters something quietly, but Jade does't hear her.
"Can you say that again?" She asks "I promise I won't be upset with you."
"Daddy doesn't love me..." Harper says again, only barely loud enough for Jade to hear this time
"Woah..." Jade turns Harper around to face her "What makes you think that, Harper?"
This had been one of her biggest fears for a long time, probably since Andrew admitted to being disappointed that Harper was a girl. It was heartbreaking enough for Jade to watch him not have any interest in his own child, to clearly favor his son over his daughter, but it's even more heartbreaking that Harper is now not only recognizing it, but verbalizing it.
"He only plays with Drew!" Harper frowns "I asked him to play with me, but he 'nored me. He always does what Drew wants! It's like I'm not there!"
"Harper..." Jade hugs her daughter tightly "I'm so sorry."
"He makes me sad sometimes."
"I know he does, and that makes me feel very sad too." Jade admits "Can I ask you something?"
"Uh huh."
"Daddy fed you all of your meals when you stayed with him, right?" Jade asks "Breakfast, lunch, and dinner?"
"Uh huh..."
"Did he give you a bath?"
"Yeah."
"And give you new outfits to put on?"
"Yeah..."
"Alright..." Jade sighs, rubbing Harper's back gently "I'm so sorry, baby..."
Deep down she had known this was a possibility, she had known how insensitive Andrew had the capability to be, but their Wednesday visits had been going better so she had been ignorant enough to think he had matured and finally gotten over the 'my first born is a girl' thing. It's clear now that she made a mistake.
At least Andrew hadn't ignored Harper completely, he made sure she was fed and bathed and had clean clothes. Physically, she cared for, but emotionally her father is causing her harm.
"Daddy has some things that he needs to figure out." Jade tells Harper simply, brushing some hair out of her face "I'm sorry that he made you feel this way. You know I love you very much, right?"
"Yeah."
"Alright, good. I promise that nothing will ever change that. " Jade kisses the top of Harper's head gently "I need to make a few phone calls, but it shouldn't take me that long. Maybe after that you can come lay in my bed with me and watch a movie, sound good?"
"Yeah."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah." Harper smirks a bit "Can I pick?"
"Of course you can." Jade smiles, lifting Harper off of her lap so she can stand up "I'll be right back, okay? You play with your dolls until I get back."
"Alright Mama."
Jade slips out into the hallway and closes Harper's bedroom door behind her, making sure that her daughter catches absolutely no bits of the two phone calls she needs to make. She dreads one more than the other, but they're both necessary.
"Hello?" Andrew answers as Jade enters her own bedroom
"What the fuck is wrong with you?" She hisses
"Woah, alright!" Andrew is immediately defensive "What the hell?"
"Our daughter just told me that she thinks you don't love her." Jade explains "Which I immediately would have tried to talk her out of if I didn't think it were true."
"You can't seriously think that's true, Jade."
"I think you care for her." Jade explains "But I see clear favoritism in your relationship with Drew. We've been having this argument since she was born, Andrew. She's almost four, you need to get over the fact that you have two children and one of them is a girl."
There's silence on the other end of the line. Jade allows it for a moment, hoping that Andrew has finally heard her and is mulling over what she said. After a full minute though, she has to speak.
"Andrew?"
"I don't know how to be a dad to a girl." Andrew admits "I grew up with brothers, I know boys. I wanted boys. I don't know how to raise a daughter."
"I've never seen you make even the slightest effort to figure it out...or create any bond with her at all."
"So now I'm a horrible father?"
"S'not what I said." Jade tells him "But since you asked, I definitely don't think you're going to win any parenting awards any time soon."
"What do you want from me?" Andrew is practically yelling
"I want you to give a fuck about Harper!" Jade exclaims, fighting the tears that are welling up in her eyes "Or at least make some kind of effort to pretend that you do."
"I'm trying!"
"Are you?"
"Whatever." Andrew scoffs "I'll see you on Wednesday."
"We're not done talking about thi-"
She doesn't get the chance to finish her thought, because there's a click on the other end of the call and Andrew's line goes dead.
Jade is frustrated, so incredibly frustrated. She knows that she can't lash out at Andrew, she can't be cruel, she can't make the situation any worse. Doing so will hurt Harper even more, possibly even Drew. She wants nothing more than to be able to successfully co-parent their children with Andrew, but she knows she needs to protect them from any potential harm as well.
She takes a few moments to collect herself, then dials Beck's number. Although she had been looking forward to time with him tonight, she needs to prioritize Harper.
"Hey." Beck answers "I was just getting ready to head over in a few minutes. Are the kids asleep?"
"About that..." Jade sighs "I'm going to have to cancel tonight...something came up."
"Is everything okay?" Beck asks her
"Harper didn't have an awesome weekend." Jade admits "She needs some extra love tonight, and she needs it from me. I'm sorry."
"So...I can't come over at all?"
"Not tonight."
"Alright." Beck sighs, clearly sounding upset
"I have to prioritize my kids, Beck." She tells him "These are the kinds of sacrifices you make as a parent. When they need you, you drop everything."
"Got it."
"Beck..."
"I understand, Jade."
"You don't sound like you understand."
"She's been home with you almost all day." Beck reminds her "I guess I just don't really get why she needs to encroach on my time with you now too."
"You're joking, right?" Jade scoffs "Unbelievable."
"What?"
"Nothing, I don't want to fight with you right now."
"No, let's fight about it." Beck tells her "Since you're clearly so bothered by whatever 'it' is."
"Beck..."
"Whatever."
"If we're bickering like this already, maybe getting back together was a mistake." Jade says to him
"Oh, Jade...c'mon." Beck sighs "I'm sorry, it wasn't like that-"
"No." Jade cuts him off, shaking her head "The sex was good, we had fun, let's cut this off before we can't come back from it."
"Are you being serious?" Beck asks
"I dunno." Jade shrugs "Are you really that upset about having to cancel on tonight?"
"Well I'm not thrilled about it but-"
"Then yeah, I'm being serious." Jade affirms "Goodnight, Beck. Enjoy your time off, I'll see you at the table read in a few months."
She doesn't wait for him to respond to what she said, ending the call before he has the chance. Irritated, she throws her phone onto her bed and retreats back to Harper's room.
If Andrew and Beck both want to be dicks, then let them. She doesn't have time to dwell on either one of them tonight. Jade knows what her priorities are, and right now her only priorities are Harper and Drew. Harper needs to be reminded that she's loved by someone, even if it isn't her father. She'll give her all of the love that she needs.
"Ready to watch that movie?" Jade asks, leaning against the doorframe
"Uh huh!" Harper nods "Moana?"
"Again?" Jade chuckles "We just watched that one."
"Let's watch it again!" Harper cheers, exiting her bedroom and heading for Jade's "It's my favorite!"
"Alright..." Jade smirks, happy to see Harper excited about something again "Moana it is."