Chapter Three – New Beginnings
The next morning Susan was woken by Little Susie shaking her.
"Aunt Susie, it's time to get up. Doug says if you don't get out of bed, he's going to come in here and kick your…"
"Don't finish that sentence," Susan said groggily.
Susan dragged herself out of bed and went to the bathroom, where she bumped into Elizabeth who was just coming out.
"Morning," Susan said.
"Morning," Elizabeth replied, slightly stiffly. After they had gone to bed, she had questioned Mark about his relationship with Susan, but he hadn't been very forthcoming with his answers. She guessed that there was some history between them and the chemistry between them unnerved her.
Meanwhile, Mark was downstairs with Carol and Doug, helping them get the twins ready.
"So, what time did you and Susan get to bed last night?" Doug asked.
"About three," Mark replied, yawning. Doug raised his eyebrows.
"What?" Mark asked.
Doug looked at Carol. "Nothing," he said.
"Don't start, guys," Mark said. "We were just catching up, that's all. It's been a long time."
"And Elizabeth doesn't mind you coming to bed in the small hours of the morning after spending the night with an old flame?" Doug asked. Mark said nothing.
"I mean, she does know about you and Susan?" Doug said.
"There was no 'me and Susan'" Mark said.
"You know what I mean," Doug said.
"We were just catching up!" Mark repeated, turning his head as he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. "Please don't make a big deal of this."
Elizabeth walked into the kitchen and became aware of the silence that followed.
"Did I interrupt something?" she asked.
"No," said Carol, trying to ease the awkwardness. "Just too many things to do and not enough time. Doug, will you please get the diaper bag ready."
"Anything for you," Doug said, kissing her on the cheek before disappearing upstairs.
"What can we do to help?" Elizabeth asked.
"You can help me change the twins. Their outfits are upstairs in our bedroom, will you fetch them for me?" Carol asked.
"Sure," Elizabeth said, going upstairs.
Carol looked at Mark. "You know, Doug's only looking out for you."
"Well, he doesn't have to. We were just catching up," Mark said, exasperated. "Look, Susan and I are just friends. I'm happy with Elizabeth.
"I believe you," Carol said.
"You know, you could have told me Susan was going to be here," Mark said.
"I know, I'm sorry. Susan was nervous enough about seeing you, I couldn't deal with you too."
"She was nervous?" Mark asked.
"Sure. When you think about how she left and what you went through afterwards, she thought you'd be mad at her. Even I didn't know how you'd react," Carol said. "So, how are you feeling about it all?"
"I think if I'd have known she was going to be here, it wouldn't have been so easy to just forget what happened," Mark said. "But it's good to see her. I've missed her."
Carol smiled. "I'm glad."
At that moment, the door opened and Carol's family came bustling in, her mother frantically waving her arms and talking in Russian. The rest of the morning disappeared as everyone ran around getting things ready for the christening. There was to be a barbeque at Carol and Doug's afterwards for all the guests, and all the preparations had to be done before the christening.
The christening itself was held at a small church nearby mid-afternoon. As well as Mark and Elizabeth, Susan was a second godmother. Carol cried for most of the service, much to Doug's amusement.
Afterwards, at the party, the drinks flowed and the music played. Doug grabbed Carol round the waist and began to dance with her. Little Susie took Susan's hands, pulling her up from her chair and making her dance. Mark and Elizabeth were each holding one of the twins, and Mark took Elizabeth's spare hand and spun her around. As the music changed, so did their dancing partners. Elizabeth noticed, again, the chemistry between Mark and Susan as they danced together, laughing. She was still preoccupied with the silence that had greeted her earlier that morning.
Later in the evening, as she took a break from dancing, Elizabeth caught up with Susan at one of the tables where she was sat with Little Susie. Susan looked up and smiled. Elizabeth smiled back at both of them, sitting down.
"Taking a break as well, huh?" Susan said.
"Yes, I'm exhausted," she said. An uncomfortable silence followed.
"So, you used to work in Chicago?" Elizabeth asked.
Susan nodded. "At County."
"Why did you leave, if you don't mind me asking?" Elizabeth said.
"Family reasons. This one really," Susan replied, nodding her head towards Little Susie. "It's complicated."
"Not because of Mark?" Elizabeth asked, cautiously.
"Mark?"
"You two dated, right?" Elizabeth said.
Susan laughed, nervously. "No, we never dated."
"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought…" Elizabeth said, embarrassed.
They were interrupted by Doug, who brought over some drinks.
"Here you go, Elizabeth," he said, passing her a drink. "This one's for you, Little Susie. And for you, Big Susie."
Susan grinned at his nickname for her. "Thanks."
The three of them chatted together for a while, both Elizabeth and Susan glad they could avoid their earlier conversation. Eventually, Little Susie fell asleep with her head on Susan's lap.
"I'd better put this one to bed," she said. "Come on, little one."
"She seems nice," Elizabeth said to Doug, watching her lead Little Susie into the house.
"Whose nice?" said Mark, coming up behind Elizabeth and sitting down beside her.
"Susan," Elizabeth said.
"Yeah, she is," Doug replied.
"Does she come here much?" Mark asked.
"Yeah, I guess she does. She and Carol are still good friends. And sometimes she brings Little Susie here," Doug said.
"I can't believe how big she is now," Mark said, referring to Little Susie.
"I know. She's a wonderful kid. A little monkey sometimes, just like her mom. But fortunately, she's more like Susan," Doug said.
"Why 'fortunately'?" Elizabeth enquired.
"It's complicated," Mark said, and changed the subject to basketball. Elizabeth was left feeling put out by Mark's vagueness, but didn't say anything.
When the party was over, Carol declared that the tidying up could wait until morning and everyone made their way to bed. Once alone, Elizabeth couldn't hold her silence any longer.
"Is there something I should know about you and Susan?" she asked.
Mark looked surprised. "What do you mean?"
"I'm not stupid, Mark," Elizabeth said. "I noticed you all go quiet when I walked into the kitchen this morning. You changed the subject earlier when we were talking about her…"
"Elizabeth…"
"And she got really embarrassed earlier when I asked if you two had dated."
"You did what?!"
"Do you know, I've seen you look more relaxed these past couple of days than you have all year?"
"What does that have to do with Susan?" Mark asked.
"You tell me."
"Ok, stop," Mark said, firmly. "I don't know where this is coming from, and I don't really know why it matters, but no, we never dated. Susan and I were friends, good friends. We went through a lot together. And yes, once upon a time I wanted more, but that was three years ago. This is the first time I've seen her since she left Chicago. A lot has changed since then – I've changed."
"You loved her?" Elizabeth asked.
"Yes, I loved her," he said, taking Elizabeth's hands in his. "But now, right now, I love you. Whatever there was, or wasn't, between me and Susan is in the past. Please understand that. I want to be with you."
Elizabeth sighed. "I'm sorry."
Mark kissed her lightly on the lips.
"It's ok," he said, grinning. "I kind of like it that you were jealous."
Elizabeth smiled, as they curled up in bed together.
The next morning, Doug, Carol, Mark, Elizabeth, Susan and Little Susie sat eating breakfast together, a relaxed atmosphere amongst them. Doug stood up, with his glass raised.
"Oooh, speech!" Mark joked.
"I know I'm not exactly the sentimental type…" Doug started. Carol raised her glass in agreement, and everyone laughed. "…but I just wanted to say thank you to our three godparents. It means a lot to Carol and me that you guys were here. And to Carol, thank you for giving me two beautiful baby girls. You know how much I love you. So, lets toast to new beginnings."
"New beginnings," everyone said in chorus.
Suddenly, a car horn sounded outside.
"That's our taxi," Susan said. "Come on, little one, time to go."
They all made their way outside.
"Bye Elizabeth, it was nice meeting you," Susan said.
"You too," Elizabeth said, smiling.
Susan and Carol hugged.
"Thank you so much," Carol said.
"Anytime," Susan said. "I'll speak to you soon."
Doug and Mark were putting the bags in the car. Susan walked over.
"See ya, Big Susie," Doug said with a grin and kissing her on the cheek. "Bye, Little Susie."
Susan laughed as she watched Doug pick up Little Susie and swing her around, making her giggle. Then she turned to Mark.
"New beginnings, huh?" she said.
"New beginnings," Mark agreed, giving her a hug. "I'll call."
Susan smiled. "Me too."