A new year is upon us, and I decided to be a good sport and give you all a new chapter to make up for my long absence, truth be told, this one is going to be bittersweet or maybe not, you're going to have to wait and see.

"Vega?" Jade asked, looking for her spouse. "Vega where are you? We're going to be late!"

The former Goth searched around in every corner of their home, hoping to find Tori before the year was over, only to hear sobbing coming from...

"The kitchen...?" Jade thought. "I should've known."

She walked past the living room and into her destination, opening the door Jade saw her wife on the counter trying to hold on tears but losing the battle.

"Tor?... Baby?"

The tanned woman raised her head, once she looked into the eyes of her wife, Tori tried to wash some tears away with a napkin.

"I'm fine! I'm fine!" She said. "This was just... Some allergies."

But Jade knew better.

"Tori." She sighs, taking a seat next to the Latina. "How long has it been?"

"Since what?"

"You know very well what I'm talking about."

"Two weeks."

"Try six months." Jade said. "Unless you're counting the last time you cried here... In this very spot."

"I can't help it." Tori replied, tears in her eyes. "Every time I set foot in the kitchen from the last few months, I get... Emotional."

"Mostly weepy."

"And you haven't?!" Tori snapped. "I remember that we went out every night for, breakfast, lunch and dinner for an entire month because you couldn't get even a glass of water from here!"

"Well can you blame me?!" Jade snapped. "You're not the only one whose feeling his absence! I thought it would get easier but it just gets harder!"

"I know what you mean."

First Dani... She went out into the world to study animation, then Tawny left the nest so she could be a vet and now Tony spread his wings to become and I quote... The best damn chef in the whole damn world!"

"It really hits hard huh?" Tori said sadly. "Adding insult to injury, Tony had to get that scholarship to that cooking school in France! Why he couldn't stay here and study to be a chef!?

"Because you're the one that taught him to follow his dream and reach the stars."

"It wasn't supposed to come back and bite me!"

"You're not the only one that who cursed that backfiring on us." Jade grunted. "But in the end, we had to let him go, we had to let them all go because we want what's best for our children and it while it sucks that they grew up so fast, I think we can feel proud to know that we raised three good kids that I wouldn't trade for the world."

"Neither would I." Tori smiled sadly. "Remember the time Tawny wanted a puppy and instead we got her a hamster?"

"Who was the idiot who thought of that?!"

"You."

"One of the worst calls I ever made." Jade replied irritated. "The damn thing somehow escaped from his cage and left us some 'presents' at every corner of the house... I was about ready to get a cat to solve the problem but with our luck, Tawny grew attached to the hamster and wanted to find it at all cost... What was its name again?"

"The hamster?" Tori asked. "I think Tawny named him Snowball."

"Ah right... Snowball." The thespian said. "Poor thing ended up getting fried, remember that?"

"How could I not?" The Latina replied. "Tawny was inconsolable after that."

"I think that's where her desire to be a vet came from." Jade mused. "She didn't want to see another animal die ever again."

"She sure is passionate about that."

"Very much so."

"Remember when Danielle started drawing?"

I was so proud!" Jade grinned. "That's when we saw her first act of creativity... I remember her drawing a bunch of zombies eating Trina's brain."

"I'm still sure I know from who she got that idea from." Tori said suspiciously. "And her name begins with a J."

"Can't prove anything Vega." Her wife smirked. "Just like I can't prove that it was you that wanted her to like the color pink but instead Dani claimed seeing it made her cough blood."

"She got that from you all right." Tori said dryly. "Speaking of pink, remember when Tony tried to sneak in who knows how many cans of pink paint into the house so he could paint his room."

"We got an eternal reminder of that upstairs Vega!" Jade snapped, putting her hands over her eyes in despair. "Go figure, I hate pink and it ends up being Tony's favorite color! Ugh! WHY?!"

"I'm surprised you even let him."

"After the talk I had with you both?" Jade asked retorted "How could I not? I wasn't mat at him that because he's a boy he can't like pink, he can! I just hate pink because it brings up some unwanted memories."

Afterward the thespian shuddered in disgust.

"Remember the time they all made us a present for our anniversary?"

"Which one?" Jade asked. "They made us so many over the years after all.?

"That's true, I was talking about the time when they wrote a song and tried to perform it for us." Tori clarified. "It was so sweet."

"I remember that Dani kept trying to sing while Tawny kept chasing after Tony since he didn't want to share some cupcakes."

"And they ended up doing such a mess." Tori said. "It took ages to clean up."

"As I recall, we ended up causing an even bigger mess because someone started a food fight."

"You're never going to let that go, are you?"

"Nope!"

"Where do the years go Jade?" Tori asked sadly. "It's just seemed like yesterday when we had three kids causing mayhem all over the house... Now it's too quiet."

"I remember a time when we actually wished for silence." Jade said unhappily. "Now that we have it... I don't want it!"

"Neither do I." The Latina sighs. "But there's nothing we can do about that now... Our kids are all grown up."

"It was a long ride Vega." The thespian said. "And honestly? We have plenty of memories that we'll always look back on in our road to Parenthood."

"Now that, was the best decision of our lives."

"Going down memory lane?"

"That we became parents."

Jade gave her wife a kiss on the lips.

"It was your determination to seeing the best in me that set everything else in motion." Jade smirked. "I love for for that Vega."

"I love you too Jade." Tori replied with equal affection. "And it's West!"

"Of course it is." The pale woman chuckled. "So... Are you feeling better?

"A lot, actually."

"Still feeling like going to The New Year's party?"

"Yeah... Tori replied. "I am... It was fun remembering the past but I look forward to the future with my wife,"

"Couldn't said it better myself."

Both women left their house hand in hand.

"Our kids... No matter the distance or their ages, they will always be here with us in heart and mind."

Yeah, this was sort of bittersweet, truth be told, I originally considered the idea of Danielle, Tawny and Tony appearing at the party to surprise Jade and Tori thus making their New Year "happier" but after writing such a tender and emotional trip down memory lane for the , I felt that doing so would kill the message that every parents has to let their children go into the world but will always have the memories and that's something to hold onto to forever.

So, what are your thoughts on this one?

On a final note, I want to wish you all a Happy New Year! See ya all in 2019.

Invader Johnny Signing Off.