Warm smells radiated from the hot oven. Rich melted cheese with the lathered robust tomato sauce and swirled over eight chicken breasts. The whiffs of delightfulness lingered throughout the entire house and caused mouths to water. The dinner bubbled as intense heat baked through out the dish.
Haley stood at the oven with her hands resting on her hips. As she inspected her newest cooking creation, a smile hugged the corners of her lips. One of the highlights of her week had always been when Lucas and Ava Joy joined the family for dinner. Sometimes it had been once a week and others it had been multiple times. No matter how often the gatherings were, the kids always found different ways to amuse the parents. Sometimes they did talent shows, plays, and concerts where someone always plunked hard on the piano. Tonight Jamie confessed that the two cohorts were planning a magic show.
Haley looked away from her oven and unto the steel fridge. In the most organized and meticulous way, pictures decorated the surface. There were several of just Nathan and Haley either posing sweetly or with humor. Others had them including their son. But there were definitely a plethora of Lucas and Ava Joy intermingled with the rest. Haley beamed brightly. That little girl would alwayser and help him so he could get her crying to cease and fall asleep. He tried everything. It had been even more difficult as he would have to be careful about the weight on his injured leg and balance the crutches and her. Worrying he would take out all his frustration and lack of energy out on her he texted his best friend for help.
So, as Haley threw on one of Nathan's sweat shirts over her leggings, slipped on some shoes, and headed out the door. Once there, she softly knocked at the kitchen door. The door clicked open and she saw Lucas hobbling on his crutches. Her best friend's, once meticulous hair, flowed in every direction, his forehead wrinkled with overwhelment, and he stood rocking the baby carrier of a wailing three month old with his good foot. Once the door shut behind her, Lucas defeatedly looked up at his best friend completely hopeless.
"I don't know what to do, Hales. I have fed her, I have changed her, but she still is crying!" he exclaimed with pure exhaustion and defeat drenching his tone. He carefully sunk his weary body to the nearest couch and stretched out his hurting leg.
Haley swooped in and pulled the little whaling princess out of the carrier. She delicately cradled Ava Joy's head for support. She bounced her gently and walked around the room. be her non orthodox daughter and nothing could ever change that.
Nathan and Haley reminded Lucas over and over again that he was no alone in raising his daughter. If he needed ANYTHING they would be there and provide what help they could. One of those times had been late one night. Just as Haley given up any attempt to sleep, she wrapped her robe around her small body and headed downstairs. After making a cup of chamomile tea, she brought it over to the black grand piano. Just as she went to play a melody bumbling in her head, her phone chirped with Lucas's texting ringtone. She opened it and immediately felt the desperation in the unspoken words. He begged her to come ovThe hysterical crying began to slow down as the baby locked eyes with her magical aunt. Haley spoke sweet words to her and Ava Joy's cries began to desist in intensity.
With his eyes shut and his hand resting on his forehead, Lucas begged to know what secret Haley knew that he didn't.
Not breaking her focus of looking into those deep rich sepia eyes, "I just got the magic aunt touch. What can I say?" she spoke with a small giggle.
The exhaustion Lucas felt pressed heavy on his eyes and he could barely utter a simple acknowledgement. He almost succumbed to the sleep calling his body, but he heard all too familiar humming. As a yawn escaped his mouth, he quietly presented his question.
"I know that song. Where is it from?"
"Yeah, you've heard of it." Haley responded pridefully. "I wrote it and sang it at your…." quickly she caught herself about to say a triggering word and proceeded to finish the question delicately, "Wedding."
Haley heard the man's sharp breath. It had only been a few months since the accident. Things were still so delicate,fresh, and horribly raw. Sometimes the medication Lucas used for his leg caused him to launch fits of rage that came out to any near bystander. Haley prepared for one of those moments, but it never came. Lucas had been far too exhausted to pick a fight.
There were hundreds of events that took place. Most of the time Lucas would fumble through an apology for putting too much on them. They had their own family and lives to worry about. Nathan would always deny any of his pathetic insecurities.
As Haley, stood staring at her fridge she didn't notice her husband sneaking up behind her. He wore a large clown mask knowing how much the woman found herself deeply afraid of clowns. She didn't even allow any clown memorabilia to enter their house, but this one Nathan snuck in without her knowing it. He stood directly behind her and waited for her to turn around.
The timer chimed for the food being prepared went off. Haley stop looking at the fridge with a wide smile, turned her socked feet backwards, and something jumped out at her. She let a high pitched yelp as she swung a fist right across the assaislant's mouth. Nathan slid off the mask and rubbed his sore cheek.
"I think we scared her, Jamie!" he exclaimed.
Jamie entered the room with his dad's black phone, "And I got it all recorded."
Haley let out a dramatic scuff full of annoyance. She took the mask away from Nathan, walked over to the door to the connected garage, flung it open, and pitched the heinous mask in the trash can. When she came back to the kitchen she pulled the food out of the oven and placed it on the island in the middle of the room.
"You boys think you are funny, don't you?"
"We're not funny," Nathan began.
"We're hilarious!" Jamie cut him off.
"Be that as it may, the two of you will not be eating." as the boys went to protest, Haley brought the glass dish with the steaming food over to the dining table. "I have plenty for Uncle Lucas, Ava Joy, and myself to fully enjoy and not have to share it with you two baboons."
Nathan and Jamie looked at each other and put on fake apologetic faces. Nathan tried to reach for Haley's ties to her apron, but she shooed him off. He then spun her around to look at him and dove in for a kiss. Placing her hands on his shoulders she accepted his apology.
"Eww…gross!" Jamie proclaimed.
Just then the front door swung open. Without missing a beat, Ava Joy came bobbing in the room with her braids jumping in the air with every movement. She exclaimed a loud hello making her presence fully known and the family responded with their greetings. Nathan pulled down a large collection of ivory plates and handed them off to his ten year old son.
"Son, why don't you set the table?"
Jamie groaned. Nathan told him to have Ava Joy help him accomplish the task. As she tried to bounce past her uncle he blocked her way.
She began giggling and screeched, "Uncle Nathan! I have to help Jamie set the table."
Nathan sat down on his knees still guarding the girl's way, "Really? You aren't going to even say hello to your uncle?"
Ava Joy lifted her nose in the air and tried to walk past his barcade. His strong muscular arms grabbed a hold of her and began tickling her unmercifully. After she giggled for a bit, he put her down. She placed her hands on his cheeks and spoke her greeting to him.
"Ava Joy, did you know that you are my favorite niece?"
Making a very serious face that including squinting her asian eyes, "I am your only niece, Uncle Nathan!"
"Oh," Nathan resigned as he dropped his blockade.
The little girl approached the table and took the cups. As she placed one in front of every chair, Haley inquired
"Where's your dad?"
Without skipping a beat, Ava Joy retorted "Oh, he's in the car fighting over music with his date."
This brought Nathan and Haley to instantly look at each other. Haley mouthed the word date and Nathan shrugged. While beaming, they went to sneak into the front room to peer out the window, but they could hear voices coming up to the porch. Their bickerings about something echoed.
Nathan went to pull the door open, stopped once he saw the knob moving on its own. Haley and him stood waiting with large smiles highly anticipating who Lucas brought along. The door pushed open with a heavy woosh of hot air.
As opened the door, he turned his head back and declared firmly, "Folk is not country music." Upon entering the doorway, he almost ran into Nathan and Haley and spoke a surprised, "Hello?"
"Lucas, there is no question. Folk and country are the same thing. They both have banjos in them!" an all too familiar southern accent exclaimed her point.
"We want to know who your date is!" Haley blurted.
Lucas made an incredulous face and then remembered the earlier conversation at the cafe when Lucas and Ava Joy tried to convince Peyton to come with them. Funny how Nathan and Haley heard the specific word date and Lucas knew full well they were more then excited about it.
Trying to explain the actual situation, Haley pushed him aside to see this important lady.
"Peyton!" she squealed with joy. After the two hugged, she instructed the kids to make another place setting.
