A Fresh Start.
A/N. Tissue Warning, Perhaps. Please remember this is AU.
A few weeks had passed since the meeting the Plums had with their lawyer. School events were now upon them and this evening, Stephanie was staying overnight with her grandparents so Frank and Helen could attend open house for Valerie's class. It was scheduled for seven o'clock so they loaded the girls in the car and headed out.
Dropping Stephanie off at Harry and Edna's home on the other side of town, Helen gave her baby girl a big hug while she whispered in her ear, "You'll always be my little girl, Stephie, and no matter what, I do love you."
Stephanie gave her momma an equally big hug with her slender arms, "I love you, Mommy; make sure Valerie minds you and Daddy." Her blue eyes twinkled with mischief and Helen smiled down at her daughter. After kisses and hugs from both her parents and a hug from Valerie, Stephanie watched them leave, driving off into the rain.
"Grandpa? Ready to teach me that checker game now?" Stephanie called out, shutting the door.
Across town, Anthony Morelli was having a hell of a night. Storming out of his house, he could still hear the cries of his wife, Angie, and his two sons. He couldn't help himself for being in such a foul mood. Bills were due. The water was getting cut off unless he had the money tomorrow by five PM. To top it all off, his mother Bella was moving in tomorrow. It was bad enough that Angie was always nagging him for money. Groceries. Bills. Now he had to see his mother all the time?
Opening his latest bottle, he sped off in his car, not caring who was in his way...
"Row Row Row your boat, gently down the stream..." Helen and Valerie were singing together and Frank was driving cautiously; with the rain coming down so heavy he almost decided to pull over on the side of the road but instead, turned on the hazard lights so other drivers were aware of them.
Suddenly, around the curve up ahead, the brightest headlight beams glared out of an oncoming car and right into Frank's eyes. He was blinded by it, and the car seemed to be headed directly for him and his family.
Anthony Morelli thought about killing himself; if there was a way to do it tonight, it would be done. He was at the end of his rope; he had yet to tell Angie he lost his job...again. Her nagging would become even more unbearable. A man had his pride, and right now Anthony Morelli Senior was ready to end it all.
Taking the curve a little bit too fast, he pushed down harder on the gas pedal. Seeing the car in the opposite lane coming his way, he thought his prayers had been answered after all.
Helen Plum never knew that it was her best friend's husband at the wheel. All she could do was try and shelter Valerie from the crash about to happen. Screams were heard right before the impact; Frank took Helen's hand and held on tightly. For better or worse. Valerie was squeezed in the front seat with them: people still talked about just how she managed that.
"Stephanie..." The thought of their youngest daughter was the last for Helen and Frank Plum. Little Valerie clutched the stuffed animal she'd brought from home tight to her chest and squeezed her eyes closed, blocking her vision of what was about to happen.
Anthony Morelli Senior didn't feel a thing.
A few hours later, after Stephanie had her bath and donned her jammies, and after Grandpa read her favorite book to her, the phone rang.
Bad news came to the Mazur home and in the midst of the dark and stormy night, Harry Mazur had to go identify his daughter, his son-in-law, and his oldest granddaughter. All that was left of the car explosion Harry could find was a little tooth, belonging to Valerie Plum. Deciding right then and there, Harry had the Medical Examiner give him a box of ashes, following the wishes of his daughter and son-in-law. The Mazur/Plum family would hold their own service, in their own way and in their own time.
It was both his and Edna's job to tell their youngest granddaughter that instead of an overnight visit, she would now be living with them permanently.
Stephanie understood only in a way that a small child could, that her parents and sister were now watching over her from Heaven. One day she would see them again, but for now, they lived in her memory through the pictures Grandma and Grandpa brought from her old home.
There were other items collected for Stephanie, things that Edna knew would mean something to the little girl now in her care. But nothing meant more to her than the pictures. Frank in his military uniform, saluting the camera, right next to Helen's graduation picture from Trenton High School. Frank and Helen's wedding picture. Valerie at her birthday party, sitting next to Stephanie who was making faces at the camera right along with her big sister. Edna and Stephanie, along with Harry, helped put together the family album. Writing captions on paper underneath each picture was Stephanie's idea. Grandma and Grandpa were in the pictures too, holding onto each of the girls when they were born. Holiday dinners together, pictures of building mud pies with their grandchildren. Albums were built around those family pictures.
Her daddy's recliner came to Stephanie's new home, right along with her mom's sewing kit. They didn't forget Helen's cookbooks; Edna knew when she was older, Stephanie would cherish the handwritten notes in all the margins. Valerie's stuffed teddy bear, that never left the foot of her bed, was the last item retrieved before the Plum family home was listed and a 'for sale' sign appeared on the front lawn. A buyer was found quickly and Harry deposited the income from the sale into a savings account for Stephanie. Instead of continuing to work in the mill, Harry was now a stay-at-home parent, honoring the last wishes Frank and Helen had indicated in their will.
A new family was formed; slowly but surely their grief diminished and new pictures were taken...
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
A/N. Thanks to my silent Beta, and I'll see you next week with an update.
Have a great week.
All of the characters belong to the wonderful Janet Evanovich.