Hope everyone had a great week! I finished this chapter sooner than expected, and am excited to give you a small taste of the future. It's a bit short, but a good one :)

SEPTEMBER, a future year

"Mommy, I'm scared," a little voice whispered into the dark. In bed, Hailey was reading a case file with only the lamp on next to her. She glanced up and saw her daughter's worried expression, which immediately set off alarm bells in Hailey's head.

Pushing the covers off, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and opened her arms. "Oh sweetheart, what's wrong?"

With her blanket in one hand, the little girl crawled into her mom's lap and laid her head against Hailey's chest. "I don't wanna go to school tomorrow."

Hailey let out a breath, thankful that was the only problem her daughter had come to her with. "Willow baby, why not? You're going to have so much fun and go on so many adventures."

"I know, but it's scary Mommy." Her big blue eyes were filled with worry, which made Hailey's heart feel like bursting.

"Are you worried you won't have anyone to play with?" Hailey asked. Willow nodded, sticking her thumb in her mouth; a habit Hailey and Jay were trying to help their daughter break. Just this once would be okay though. "I know for a fact that Shayden will play with you. And Isla of course, Auntie Kim told her to wait for you at recess and lunch."

"Okay." Willow was quiet, trying to process everything. This was a big step for her, and one that she had to take on her own. She would always have love and support from her mom and dad, but school was something that Willow had to work up the courage for herself. While the past few years had been rough on Hailey and Jay, they were almost equally as bad for Willow. She had to watch her parents fall apart and then rebuild themselves and their relationship, even when it felt like nothing was ever going to get better.

But maybe witnessing them choose love in the end was exactly what Willow needed to see. Because two people in love learning to find their way back to each other taught resilience; it expressed that even people who cared deeply about each other sometimes fell off track. Good love, long-lasting love, always came back, though, no matter what.

Hailey gently rocked Willow back and forth. "Why don't we go back to your room and I'll hold you until you fall back asleep? We can let Daddy sleep."

"Okay," repeated Willow. Hailey hoisted her growing five year old into her arms, and carefully made her way across the hall to her own bedroom. Outside, the rain left a lulling pitter-patter noise, a sound that always comforted both Willow and Hailey over the years.

Hailey sat in the chair next to Willow's big-girl bed, and cradled her daughter against her. "Listen to the rain," she said softly, hoping to distract Willow.

They both didn't speak, then Willow piped up with, "Rain or shine Mommy, tomorrow I will have a good day at school."

The statement surprised Hailey, but she smiled down at Willow and nodded. "You are so right, baby girl." The term "rain or shine" had been very often said for Jay and Hailey these past few years, so it was about time that Willow said it too. "Rain or shine, Mommy and Daddy love you."

Even though Hailey was dead tired and she probably should've been asleep hours ago, she stayed wide awake as she watched her daughter drift off to sleep. She knew that the nights when Willow wanted to be rocked to sleep would soon be few and far between, so Hailey should never take them for granted.

After Hailey was sure Willow was fast asleep, she carefully stood up and placed Willow in her bed, tucking her into the warm blankets. Pressing a soft kiss to Willow's silky hair, Hailey whispered into the dark, "Goodnight sweetie, I love you." Then she quietly walked out of Willow's room and shut the door behind her.

Back in her bedroom, Hailey disappeared into the bathroom to quickly brush her teeth, before crawling back into bed. The sheets were cold, which sent a shiver up Hailey's spine. Just as Hailey was about to drift off to the sound of the rain, the bedroom door creaked open. Inwardly groaning, Hailey opened her eyes but was greeted with the sight of her husband instead of her five year old once again.

"Hey, sorry I didn't mean to wake you. I woke up and noticed you were gone, so I went to check on the baby so that I felt like I was doing something," Jay explained, slipping beneath the sheets as well.

Hailey snuggled up next to her husband and said, "I hadn't quite fallen back asleep. Willow wanted me to hold her for forever it felt like."

Jay chuckled softly. "That's our daughter for you." He went silent for a moment. "I think I heard her say something about being nervous for school tomorrow?"

"Yeah, she was afraid no one would want to be her friend." Hailey sighed. "I told her that Shayden would always play with her, and so would Isla. And that she always had friends at home, even if the first couple days would be hard without us there."

Jay took his right hand and squeezed Hailey's left with it. "All good things. She's lucky to have you as her mom. Both our kids are. Just as I'm lucky to have you as my wife."

Turning on her side to face Jay, Hailey placed her hand on his chest. "I'm lucky for you, Jay. I know the past few years haven't been easy, but we've made it through."

"Yes we have. I love you Hails. Rain or shine."

Hailey smiled; Willow was just like her father. "Rain or shine, I love you too."

Jay leaned down and kissed Hailey on the forehead, then snuggled deeper under the covers. It had been some of the hardest two years of his life and some days it had felt like his whole world might fall apart. Except he and Hailey, they were stronger than that, and they had made it through. And tomorrow, their daughter would start kindergarten, and life would go on, as it always did.

sooo, i'm sure we all caught what Jay said right? With that, I leave you until the next chapter…where we unfortunately go back in time. Don't worry, it all will make sense in the end!

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