Series: Snapshots of the Past
Story: Say You Love Me Too
Chapter 23
Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Previously: Susan explained to Abbey what may have triggered her amnesia; Jed and Abbey opened up about their fears and reassured one another
Summary: Abbey and the girls "kidnap" Jed for a surprise getaway!
- - -
Jed stirred around his bed, still half-asleep and unwilling to surrender to the beam of sunshine that protruded the gauzy rose-colored curtains when the soft breeze caused them to tremble slightly. It had been so long since he woke up with a clear head, free of mental agony.
The trauma of the past several weeks hadn't completely vanished, but now that Abbey's memories weren't clouded by fear, he was hopeful the family could heal together, that there would be an end to the nightmare, that neither he nor Abbey would ever spend another sleepless night consumed by the anguish that seemed rule their lives.
It was a happy thought, one that formed the smile on his face as he turned to the other side, his hand collapsing on the empty pillow beside him.
He listened carefully to the soft-spoken chatter outside the bedroom. The pitter-patter of tiny feet approached the bedroom door, then faded quickly, as if running away.
"Can't I wake him? Pleeeeeease?"
He laughed as he heard Ellie's plea echoing all the way from the kitchen. His little girl had inherited her father's knack for begging with a certain oomph her mother usually couldn't resist.
"She said no, Ellie." Obviously, Lizzie had no trouble resisting. "Don't bug her about it."
The four-year-old ignored her sister's stern warning and turned her attention to Mom. "Mommy? Pleeeeeease?"
"You can wake him in a minute. We're not ready yet."
"But I've been waiting forever!" she pouted.
"Quit whining, Goldilocks, and pick up the juice." Abbey instructed her with a grin, watching as she cupped both hands tightly around the glass and cautiously lifted it off the counter.
"I'll get the tray," Lizzie excitedly volunteered.
Abbey stepped back, making room for her daughters to lead the way as the trio walked quietly towards the master bedroom. Ellie glided across the carpet on the tips of her toes, lost in the belief that any hint of noise would ruin the surprise.
With a quick yank on the doorknob, Abbey opened the door and jumped to the side, leaving Jed with only a view of his daughters.
"Happy Father's Day!" they yelled, Ellie staggering a syllable behind her sister.
"Oh my God, would you look at that!" Jed awoke from a feigned slumber, an exaggerated look of shock on his face.
"Happy Father's Day, Daddy."
"It's not Father's Day today."
"Yes, but there was a lot going on when it was Father's Day, so we're celebrating it now," Abbey replied.
"Did we surprise you?" Ellie asked.
"You sure did!"
Since the year Lizzie was born, there was nothing sweeter than the treatment he received on this holiday. Abbey made sure of it. He would be showered with gifts, kisses, and kindhearted sentiment. Every year, he'd be given a special letter from each of his daughters. It was a tradition Lizzie started when she was old enough to write.
"Here you go, Daddy!" she said, handing him a sealed envelope. "Ellie has one too."
Ellie stared down at the floor. She was always a lot more shy than Lizzie, but her sudden hesitance was out of the ordinary.
Sensing her daughter's distress, Abbey kneeled down beside her. "Don't you want to give Daddy your letter?" She shook her head and whispered into her mother's ear, her hand blocking view of her lips. "Oh, Sweetheart, it's okay."
"What is it?" Jed asked.
"Is it all right if I tell him?" Ellie nodded as she hung tight to Abbey's leg. "She didn't put hers in a pretty envelope the way Lizzie did."
"Ellie, the envelope is just the packaging. What matters is what's in the letter," Jed assured her.
"I want it to be like Lizzie's."
Lizzie took her own letter and carefully broke the seal as Ellie pulled a folded piece of paper out of her pocket. Big sister stuffed both letters into the envelope and handed it to Jed with Ellie's approval.
Abbey smiled. "Better?"
"Yeah." Ellie left her mother's side and jumped into her father's waiting arms. "I poured the juice all by myself!"
"You did?"
"And Lizzie helped Mommy with the eggs."
The tray sat at the foot of the bed, opposite Jed's side. Lizzie moved towards him and leaned forward for a hug, falling on top of him when he tugged at her arm.
"Daddy!" she giggled.
"Careful. Don't spill the breakfast," Abbey warned.
Jed, Lizzie, and Ellie read both letters together, a chorus of laughter erupting between them as Abbey watched with a misty-eyed stare.
"We have more, Daddy." Ellie leapt to her feet and sat on the edge to climb off the mattress.
Lizzie followed her out of the bedroom and returned seconds later with a neatly wrapped gift they presented to Jed. He didn't need to open it to know what it was. The customary Father's Day photo mug. Every June, Lizzie and Ellie sat for a picture to be imprinted on a creatively designed coffee mug, specifically picked out for Dad.
The Bartlet cupboards were lined with these mugs, dating back to the one shadowed with a photograph of three-month-old Lizzie. It was a family album of sorts, a record of his daughters throughout the years.
"This is just gorgeous." Jed twisted the ceramic cylinder, reminding himself that next year, there would be a new face added to the picture.
"They picked out their dresses themselves," Abbey told him.
"And they did a good job," he replied, reaching forward to kiss Ellie then Lizzie.
"Mine's prettier." Lizzie always knew how to incite a reaction from her sister.
"Nuh uh! Daddy, which one's prettier?"
"I think you both look breathtakingly beautiful."
"We got you more gifts," Lizzie teased. "But Mom says we can't give those to you yet."
"Why not? It's Father's Day." He looked to Abbey for an answer.
"After your shower."
"I promise you the presents won't care whether or not I've shampooed my hair."
"I will." She snickered at him with a wink and one brow mischievously raised as she reached for a piece of his toast.
He whimsically smacked the back of her hand. "I thought this was my breakfast."
"Made with love by your wife," she replied, holding the sides of her hair back as she planted a soft kiss on his cheek.
"And me," Lizzie interjected.
"Me too!" Ellie added.
The foursome sprawled out across the sheets. Ellie and Lizzie squabbled over bacon and sausage links while Jed and Abbey shared a plate of scrambled eggs.
"You're both going to eat a real breakfast, you know," Abbey reminded her daughters.
Now it really felt like old times. Father's Days of the past had always been highlighted by at least a couple of shallow conflicts, usually revolving around whose present Jed would open first or which one he liked best, a lecture by Abbey on what actually constitutes a decent breakfast, and a late-night adult frolic in the bedroom after the kids had gone to bed.
"So what's the plan for today?" Jed asked as he pushed the white and black patterned tray off to the side.
"We'll get to that later." Abbey wasn't about to give it away.
He curiously moved towards her, his eyes sparkling with questions. "Just tell me what we're doing."
"Nope. Surprises are meant to remain surprises until I decide it's time to share."
"Don't think I'll forget this when Christmas comes rolling around."
"Oh, I'm sure you won't, Cupcake." She wasn't worried. All she had to do was snip the tape around the wrapping paper to get a sneak peek at her gifts. The only time that didn't work was the year he replaced the actual present with hardware and he wouldn't dare do that again.
After Jed joyfully sauntered towards the shower and the girls skipped off to their bedrooms to change, Abbey began the tedious task of cleaning up the crumbs that settled into the tiny creases of the wrinkled linens. She was so caught up in folding the sides of the bedding towards the center of the mattress that she didn't even hear Jed approach from behind.
He curved his frame over hers and whispered in her ear. "Thank you."
Startled, Abbey spun around quickly. "What?"
"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's okay. Are you almost ready?"
"Almost."
He was dressed in jeans and a blue t-shirt. His damp hair still tousled, a droplet of water teetered on the bottom of his right eyebrow.
Abbey brushed back a few bangs with her fingers as he reached for a comb. "Girls!" she shouted with her head tilted to the side. "We're ready!"
Jed was more suspicious than ever when Lizzie and Ellie ran into the room and pushed him onto the bed. Abbey crawled on her knees, sneaking up behind him with a blindfold in her hand.
"What's going on?"
She pulled on the fabric to straighten it out and tied the ends behind his head. "We're taking you away."
"To where?"
"It's a surprise, Daddy!" Ellie squealed in excitement.
"You have to wait until we get there," Lizzie added.
"Just play along," Abbey said quietly, only loud enough for him to hear.
Surprises were fun, but this one was going just a bit too far, he thought. Still, without argument, he sat in the backseat of the car. Ellie sat beside him, her eyes keenly trained on the blindfold. His sight might have been impaired, but it didn't matter. It took only a few minutes to guess which direction Abbey was driving. A few more to figure out where they were going. And if the winding country roads off Interstate 93 didn't give it away, the sweet smell of clover would.
Minutes before they arrived, he took in the overwhelming scent that reminded him of only one place. They were at the farm.
The intermittent sound of birds chirping in the distance was interrupted by the noise coming from the pastures. Abbey removed Jed's blindfold as Ellie and Lizzie ran towards the open field, stopping just short of a barbed wire fence that separated them from the cows.
"Is this for me or for them?" Jed asked, taking Abbey's hand as they headed towards their daughters.
"For all three of you. I know how much you love it here. I know how much they love it here."
"You do too," he said. "Do you remember?" It finally dawned on him why they were there. "Oh."
She didn't bother to tell him it was the last little bit of memory she needed to complete the puzzle. "I thought it would be a nice surprise."
"It is," he agreed with a warm smile.
"Mommy! Look!" Ellie jumped jubilantly, staring at the nursing calves.
"I see it, Sweetie."
"Can I touch them?"
"I'm afraid not."
"How come?"
"Because moms are very protective of their young," Lizzie informed her, exchanging a glance with her own mother. "Hey, El, that one's on the move."
Ellie followed the wandering calf. So entranced in her surroundings, she didn't even notice the blooming raspberries that blocked her path. She reached for the vine of one of the pretty white flowers, a loud yelp escaping her small body as she was stung by a thorn.
"Yeah, you're not supposed to touch those, Princess." Jed examined her finger with a gentle touch, pressing his lips to the barely noticeable indentation.
"Is she bleeding?" Abbey asked.
"Nah."
Ellie looked to her big sister for an explanation. "What are they?"
"They're raspberries. You can pick them later this summer."
"So we can come back again?" It wasn't just a question. It was a plea.
"As many times as you want," Abbey answered.
The girls loved the farm. She remembered that. But she had forgotten about the serene atmosphere that enveloped her with a sense of security. Her attention moved from the animals grazing in the pasture to the beautiful daises that dotted the fields and the purple irises that were blooming all around.
In addition to the clover, the smell of recently mowed hay filled the air, leading the girls towards the horse barn.
This was Lizzie's favorite part of a visit to the farm. "Can I ride Shasta?"
"Me too!" Initially, Ellie had been afraid of horses.
"You wanna ride?"
Ellie looked down for a minute, thinking about her answer. She eventually nodded. "With Mommy."
"I'm gonna sit this one out, Sweetie." The girls still didn't know that Abbey was pregnant.
"I'll ride with you, Ellie. What do you say?"
She turned her beaming face to her father. "Okay!"
After a quick ride, the young Bartlet duo was lured into the house with the promise of homemade ice cream. Jed held the canister and allowed Lizzie and Ellie to pour in the ingredients. The outer bucket was firmly in place when he tried to attach the mixer, accidentally dropping it in instead. A mixture of sugar, vanilla, coffee syrup, and milk splashed the trio and a round of giggles alerted Abbey.
"Shh." Jed tried in vain to silence the girls.
"I told you to wait for me," Abbey scolded her husband. "See what happens when I leave Daddy in charge?"
As she jokingly lectured her daughters, Jed marked her neck with a smidgen of sugar. She turned angrily, her temper fading when she saw his mischievous smirk and coffee colored face.
"It wasn't my fault. You've got a faulty mixer there."
"Okay, first of all, none of this is mine. Secondly, there's nothing wrong with the mixer, except for the fact that it was designed for someone who knows how to use it."
He responded with a smug nod. "You're so smart, you make the ice cream."
She was being challenged. "I will." She reached for the abandoned canister. "But first, I need to get rid of all this since you ruined it."
"It isn't ruined," Jed insisted.
"Did you wash the base of the mixer before you tried to attach it?" He avoided the question and looked away. "Okay, then."
Another failed attempt later, the foursome retired to the screened piazza behind the house. The bowl of homemade coffee ice cream the girls were promised had become a pint of Ben & Jerry's from the convenience store twenty minutes away.
It mattered very little in the grand scheme of things. The hot Sunday afternoon sun had dissolved into a warm evening and as dusk approached, the bright porch lights shined an iridescent gloss over the water in the pool. Lizzie and Ellie sprinted up the stairs to change into their bathing suits while Jed and Abbey finished the last of the ice cream.
"Today really has been wonderful," he said with a genuine look of appreciation.
"For all of us," she replied. "Jed?"
"Yeah?"
"I was thinking. What if we move to the farm? I mean, could we?"
He dropped his spoon to ponder the thought. "We talked about this a couple of years ago. We decided that because of your residency, you'd need to be close to the hospital."
"My residency is almost over. I'm going into my fourth year."
"You want to move now or in a couple of years?"
"We can think about it now. We can get the house ready, put it on the market next summer. When I have this baby, we'll need a bigger place anyway, so it makes sense."
He pushed out his chair and chose a seat closer to her. "What's this really about? Why do you want to move to the farm all of a sudden?"
Abbey avoided his glare, choosing to focus straight ahead. "I just thought that it would be the perfect time to..."
With a single finger under her chin, he turned her head. "Seriously, Abbey, why now?"
"It's beautiful here. It's quiet, it's secluded..."
"It's safe."
"Yeah."
"Abbey, if you want to move to the farm, we'll do it. But I don't want you...I don't want us running away."
"I'm not talking about packing up and moving tomorrow, Jed. I'm talking about slowly making the transition. That's all."
"Okay. Whatever you want." He leaned in closer to sweep aside a strand of hair that tickled her eye lashes.
"Are you comfortable with the idea?"
"I always have been," he said. "I bet I can beat you to the pool."
"I swear, you're such a child sometimes," she shook her head and laughed.
"I could run upstairs and change in record time. Be down here and under the water before you know it."
"What makes you think I even want to go swimming?"
"You packed your bathing suit."
"Only as a precaution."
A precaution? "In case a random act of swimming was forced upon you?"
"Jed."
"Okay." He stood up in that nonchalant manner that drove her nuts with anticipation. "Suit yourself."
She watched for only a second as he disappeared into the house, Lizzie and Ellie's laughter escaping the barrier of the door when he opened it. That was a sound she couldn't resist.
But unlike the others, Abbey didn't need to go inside to prepare herself for an evening swim. She lifted her shirt and slipped out of her shorts, revealing the turquoise bikini underneath. She jumped in the water and floated on her back, the long stroke of her arm heaving her breasts upward.
It was enough to wipe the cynical expression right off Jed's face as he walked out of the house. He flicked the water towards her head to get her attention.
"I thought you weren't going swimming."
"I didn't say I wasn't going swimming. I asked you what makes you think I want to go swimming."
Not to be outdone by semantics, he positioned one hand under her hip and another under her head. With a quick push, he rolled her over.
Shocked by going under, she struggled to find her balance. "You're really in trouble now!" she vowed as she unplugged her nose and headed for the steps.
Uh oh. She looked pretty serious. "Hey! Don't go! I was just teasing!" He leaned on the side and jumped out when she ignored his plea. "Abbey!" he called out to her as he turned her around. "Abbey, wait!"
With a soft maniacal chuckle, she pushed on his chest, throwing him back in the water. "Don't do it again!"
It took mere seconds for him to rise from the water, but it was enough to color his cheeks with a frustrated blush. "That isn't funny! I could have gotten hurt. I couldn't have hit my head!" His eyes turned to his older daughter for support. "Right, Lizzie?"
"No, it was pretty funny!" Lizzie answered, offering her mother a high-five just as Jed pulled Abbey back into the pool and playfully dunked her head.
A day that began with no serious worries, ended in the same way. It had been so long since the girls had seen their parents laughing together, teasing each other, and playing around the way they had come to expect. The tension was gone. The lighthearted banter was back.
And at least for the time being, it was here to stay.
- - -
Dressed in a terrycloth bathrobe, Abbey approached the bedroom later that night.
"Are the girls asleep?" she asked.
"I just tucked them in," Jed responded, caught slightly off-guard by the wonderful scent of her wet hair.
"Good."
"Why good?"
"Because it's still Father's Day and I haven't given you my gift yet."
TBC