"Mom, are you sure I should go? What if you need help while daddy's away? Maybe I should stay."
Addison looks up from the baby boy nursing in her arms to see Emmeline hovering in the doorway of her bedroom; she looks impossibly young in the soft, early morning light with her tousled hair and sleep-flushed cheeks, and suddenly the thought of sending her over two thousand miles away for two whole weeks seems like an awful idea. Despite her second thoughts she smiles at her daughter and pats the bed next to her. "Sweetie, Lisa will be here to help me. You should go and have a good time."
Emme makes her way to the bed, pausing briefly by the bassinet by the window. She reaches in and strokes Georgia's wispy, strawberry blonde curls, then climbs up on the bed. "But what if they miss me? They might get sad," she points out as she melts into Addison's side and runs a finger across Everett's little bare toes.
"Of course they will miss you," Addison says as she hoists the baby up to her shoulder and pats his back. "But just think how happy they will be to see you when we get to Seattle."
"Hey, breakfast is almost ready," Mark says as he pops in the door.
Addison gets up and puts Everett in his bassinet. "We'll be down in a minute." Before returning to bed she grabs a hairbrush and elastic bands from her vanity, and soon has Emme's dark hair in two neat braids. "Okay, let's go eat."
Mark already has Cecilia in her booster seat. It's early, much earlier than she would normally be up, but he knows they will never hear the end of it if she doesn't get to say goodbye to her big sister. Emme slides into the chair next to her, and Mark serves up scrambled eggs and English muffins with jelly.
After breakfast Emme brushes her teeth and checks her carry-on bag at least three times to make sure her blanket and lamb are safe inside, along with a few books and some small toys. Satisfied that she has everything, she runs to Addison and hugs her tight. "Are you sure you don't need me here?"
"I'm sure. I will miss you very much, but I'll be okay." Addison squeezes Emme and covers her face with kisses before releasing her.
"I don't want you to go," Cecilia announces in a shaky voice as she wraps her skinny little arms around Emme. "I wanna go with you."
Emme wipes a tear from Cecilia's cheek. "I know, but you gotta stay here and help mommy. You're gonna be the big sister for now, so you're super important. Take good care of the twins, and make sure Annie stays out of trouble, okay?"
Cecilia sniffles and nods. "O...okay."
Mark squeezes Emme's shoulder. "Okay, kiddo, you ready? We don't want to be late." They won't be, though; he's used to these drawn-out goodbyes and has allowed plenty of time for it.
"Yeah, I guess so." Emme gets one last hug from Addison and they head out the door, but she stops a few feet down the sidewalk. Cecilia is in the window, palms pressed against the glass, sobbing forlornly. "Daddy, wait!" She drops her bag and dashes back inside. "Cece, it's okay. It's only two weeks. That's fourteen days. Remember we counted to fourteen? It's not that many. Then you'll be in Seattle and we'll be together, okay?" she soothes as she hugs her sister, though her voice trembles and it's unclear exactly who she's trying to convince.
"Okay, we really need to go," Mark insists gently as he separates the girls after a few minutes. "We'll call Emme every night before bed, okay Cee?" He shoots Addison an apologetic smile and steers Emme out the door while Cecilia continues to cry.
Outside, Mark hails a cab and tries to ignore the ache in his chest as Emme looks back and waves until the brownstone is out of view. This is why we're moving, he tells himself. He's been out to Seattle many times over the last six months to check on the progress of their new home. Emme has accompanied him a half dozen times and splitting up the sisters never gets any easier; he can't imagine going through this for the next twelve years.
For all her trips to Seattle, this will be a new experience for Emme. The other trips have been quick weekend visits; she's spent a few hours with Derek and his family while Mark met with contractors and whatnot, but spending the night - fourteen of them, actually - is a whole other ballgame and he's not quite sure how she'll handle it.
Finally Emme turns and settles into the seat, her small hand finding Mark's. "I'm not gonna see my house any more," she announces sadly.
"No, you won't. But you'll have a bigger house in Seattle, with your own room, and a yard to play in. And Derek is right down the road. You'll have two houses. That's way better."
"But Aunt Savvy and Uncle Weiss won't be there."
"I know, but you can FaceTime with them whenever you want. And remember last night mommy promised Aunt Savvy we'd come visit for Thanksgiving? And then they'll come visit us in the spring."
"But I won't know anyone in Seattle!"
"You know Derek, and Meredith, and Riley. And you'll make tons of new friends when you start school and dance class in the fall." He kisses the top of her head and rubs her back. "It's gonna be okay, Em. Everything is going to be just fine. You'll love it out there, I promise. You trust me?"
Her voice is small and unsure, but she nods. "Yeah. I trust you."
…..
They make it to the airport with plenty of time to spare. He buys her a blueberry muffin and a green juice to wash down her Dramamine once they go through security, and they kill time perusing the newsstands and gift shops. Finally it's time to board.
She still hates flying and squeezes his hand tightly when they take off. Minutes later, despite the Dramamine, he's holding a bag while she vomits. This is why we're moving, he thinks. He can't imagine this piece of his heart alone on a plane for six hours, with only a flight attendant to comfort her when she gets airsick, every time she goes to visit Derek. Nor can he bear to think of her waking in the middle of the night with an earache or a sore throat and crying for a mother who's on the other coast.
Emme's a mess by the time they land. He texts Derek to tell him they'll be later than expected and drives to the new house instead. An hour later Emme's bathed and in clean clothes, and he brings her to the brand new California king bed in the master suite - they never could have fit one in the brownstone, and it will be perfect for Sunday morning family snuggles, he thinks.
"Daddy, you're gonna be here, right? When I'm at my dad's house?" she asks as she scoots closer to him, working her way under his arm and resting her head on his chest.
"Emme, we went over this. I'm going back to New York." This isn't entirely true. He'll be staying in Seattle for the weekend, just in case, but he knows that if Emme is aware of that, he'll be picking her up in the middle of the night.
"But I don't want you to! What if I don't want to stay with my dad?"
"Em, I have to help mommy finish packing. But you're gonna have so much fun here, you won't even miss me."
"How do you know?"
"Because, when I was your age, Derek was my best friend. We played together almost every day. He knows tons of fun games, and I bet he'll take you all kinds of cool places. Remember how much you liked the aquarium?"
"Yeah."
"Maybe he'll take you back there. Or to those museums we read about in the travel guide. There's so much to do here, you won't even have time to think about us."
He rubs her back until she falls asleep. They nap until early afternoon, then head over to Derek's house.
"I'm gonna ring the bell," she announces bravely as they walk hand-in-hand up the stairs. However, the door is flung open before she reaches the top step, and in the blink of an eye Derek has her in a bear hug.
This is why we're moving, Mark thinks as Derek swings Emme around, while Meredith and Riley wait nearby for hugs and kisses. Mark hasn't exactly forgiven Derek for abandoning Emme, but he can acknowledge that the other man is trying to make up for the past and is sorry for what he's done. Meredith is grateful to Emme for saving Riley's life, and Riley, though unsure about sharing her father's attention, clearly adores and looks up to her big sister. Emme deserves to be surrounded by both of the families that love her, and starting over in a new city will be worth it if it helps her heal after a difficult year.
Meredith invites Mark in for lunch. Afterwards, the adults catch up while the girls play. Finally Mark stands up. "Okay, love bug, I better get going."
She runs to him and wraps her lanky arms around his waist. "No, don't go!"
He kneels down and pulls her into a hug. "Emme, I have to. But remember what we talked about. You're going to have so much fun here, and in two weeks we'll all be here together. Can you be a brave girl for me now?"
She sniffles and wipes her nose on her sleeve. "Yeah."
"Good girl." He hugs her again and kisses her forehead. "I love you."
"I love you, daddy."
It nearly breaks his heart to watch her stand on the porch crying as he backs out of the driveway, but an hour later Derek texts him to say she's doing just fine. He calls at bedtime, just like he promised, and is relieved that she sounds happy. There will be some rough times, he's sure, but he knows she's going to be okay.