It was one of those days you only hear about. It wasn't hot, the sun was shining with just enough clouds to give you shade. The wind seemed unreasonably calm for a Chicago day. It would have been a perfect day had Alicia not be sitting huddled as close to Will as possible.
They had decided to take Izzy and Lily to Navy Pier, they had lucked out with the weather, both girls were in great moods, and even Grace had come along to join in the fun. Alicia had thought she had seen an uncle spoil his niblings when Owen had broght Grace and Zach here years ago, but it was nothing compared to Will. They had barely been there an hour but both girls sported I Chicago t-shirts with their names printed on the back, a tiara made of feathers and flowers, and a stick of cotton candy. Alicia prayed Will would not come to regret the decision to give the girls cotton candy before lunch.
Will had demonstrated his pitching arm for both girls and won them stuffed animals at the milk bottle midway game and it was smiles all around. Alicia tried to remember these things as she sat huddled next to Will. She also couldn't help but think that while she was glad that Grace had decided to join them, it was almost entirely her fault that Alicia had found herself in her current predicament.
It had all started at lunch,
Will had asked the girls if they wanted to ride the Ferris wheel. The girls answered excitedly while Grace had suddenly beamed. Will asked her what she was so happy about and she announced that it had been years since she had been on a Ferris wheel. Then she had let it slip that she hadn't been on one because her mother was terrified of them. Grace had realized as soon as the words were out of her mouth that she had made a HUGE mistake. The look from Alicia only confirmed it. Will had smiled such a mischievous smile that Alicia had considered bolting from the table right then and there. But somehow she instead found herself being strapped into the seat of the Ferris wheel with Will on one side of her and the girls on the other. It started with just a little wiggle as the seat began its ascent, it was just enough to make the chair swing a little and had Alicia grasping at the bar in front of her, her right hand stating to slide closer to Will's. So he started to wiggle a little more, trying not to be obvious about it. The girls all seemed enraptured with the view, even little Izzy. Will gave a much stronger lurch causing a shudder from the seat and Alicia yelped and scooted closer to Will. Will would never admit it but the swinging was making him a little nervous too, but the harder he made the chair shudder the closer Alicia tried to get to him. It wasn't until they had started their descent that Alicia realized that the reason the chair had been moving so much was not the wind but in fact her mischievous husband. Of course this realization came after she had essentially tried to climb into his jacket with him and she feared that attempting to move would cause further rocking.
So this was how Alicia found herself on what should have been a very fun day. It seemed though that in spite of her fear and the terrifying ordeal that day wouldn't be written off as a waste. After they rode the Ferris wheel they had tried out the remote control boats with Izzy helping Alicia and Will manned his own boat and Lily and Grace worked together. You could tell she was loving it. She had never gotten to be the big sister and was having a blast with it during the time the girls had been with them. In a way it made Alicia sad, her and Peter had talked about a third child but the timing had never really seemed right. As she watched Grace and Will interact with Lily and Izzy she almost felt as if she had let down not just Will but Grace too. Timing was such a bitch sometimes it always seemed to be the wrong time when it was something you never knew you wanted. Alicia had only mere moments to ponder her said thoughts when she realized that Will was suddenly whispering in her ear, Alicia giggled as Will made her a bet and an offer that she couldn't refuse, although the mental image it provided made her blush from her toes to the roots of her hair. When they finished with the boats Will, Grace and Lily all rode the swings while Alicia and Izzy waited for them. It was almost 4:00 when the trip made their way back to the bench Alicia and Izzy had settled on. As they approached the bench Will didn't think he had ever seen something as beautiful as the sight before him. It seemed that Izzy had fallen asleep and she was nestled in Alicia's arms snoring softly as Alicia gently rocked her. Will didn't think she was even conscious of the fact that she was rocking the small girl. As she rocked there was a smile on her face but Will could see just a hint of sadness in her smile. He determined that even with his nieces in town, tonight would be an Alicia-centric night. He had seen far too much sadness in the woman's eyes and was determined to push out any hint of sadness at the first sight.
Later that night as Alicia lay curled against Will, their clothes a pile on the floor Will asked Alicia why she had been sad sitting on the bench holding Izzy. Alicia sighed and turned in his arms. She smiled a sad smile and brushed it off. But Will was insistent realizing that there was something lurking beneath the surface. As Alicia gently brushed Will's hair from the corner of his face she uttered the words quietly,
"please don't end up hating me"