"Dad, why do you have to come in with me?"
"I told you Brad, there were some forms that didn't get filled out correctly, so I'm getting that taken care of right away."
Brad let out a over-dramatic huff. "I'm not a little kid. Do you know how embarrassing it is to be walked in to middle school by your parent?"
Nick subtly shook his head at his son's protest. "First of all, I'm your father so I get to embarrass you whenever I please. Secondly, we transferred you to this new school district to give you a fresh start. It's just easier for me to get all the paperwork sorted out since I'm here already."
"I mean seriously, you are taking a day off work to fill out some forms. Then you are going to go to a Dodger game without me? What is that all about?"
"Quit your whining kid. I have taken plenty of days off to catch a game with you before."
"Yeah, but only when the worthless Cubs are in town."
"Watch your mouth kid."
"It's not my fault they haven't won a World Series since 19-diggity-2," Brad mocked.
"It was 1908," Nick grumbled.
Nick had many exchanges like this with his only child. Perhaps in another life, he would have been harder on him for sassing so much. He really didn't mind though. Brad normally reserved it for when the two men were talking sports. Brad, much like his father, had tough time dealing with one parent being absent after Natalie left them both. Nick knew all too well what that was like.
Pulling his car into a vacant parking spot denoted with a "Visitor" sign, Nick and Brad exited the vehicle and started walking together to the entrance. This was going to be Brad's first day of seventh grade at a new middle school. Nick remembered hating middle school himself, like most people did. Still, he was hoping that Brad would have a little better time of it at this new school, away from his previous bullies at the last school.
The main admin office appeared just in front of them as they walked through the main doors, flanked by banks of familiar lockers. Walking into the main office, Nick spotted what he assumed was a receptionist and introduced himself.
"Hello, I'm Nick Miller and this is my son, Brad. Today is his first day here, and I had some forms I still needed to fill out."
"Well hello Mr. Miller," the receptionist greeted them. "What I'll do is grab your needed paperwork, and one of our other Admins will give your son a brief tour of the school before showing him to his new classroom." Getting up from her desk, the woman walked over to another office door and sneaked her head in. "Oh, and actually, I will have you meet the new principal. She always loves meeting the new students. Right this way!" The woman motioned the two guys over to the door, who obliged her and followed her to the office.
As Nick stepped foot into the office he noticed a petite woman behind a desk who was hunched over sorting through her file cabinet. Seeming to find whatever she was looking for, she looked towards her two visitors as she stood up, preparing to greet them. Nick almost stopped in his tracks when he recognized the face of the woman.
"Guys, this is Principal Day," the woman introduced them. "Jess, this is one of our new students Brad, and his father-"
"Nick!" Jess was as shocked to see him as he was her. The receptionist took the principal's exclamation as her cue to leave. Jess walked around her desk gave Nick a nod before greeting Brad. "We are very happy to have you are our school Brad. I think you will find this place to be very welcoming. I know I have."
Brad replied to Jess' greeting with a less than enthusiastic "Okay…thanks."
"I'm new here too, so if you need something my door is always open. I'll probably have to ask someone else to find whatever you are looking for, but my door is always open."
After Jess' greeting, another admin came in to take Brad to his first class, leaving Nick and Jess alone in her office.
"I had no idea you moved back to LA. When did that happen?" Nick inquired while taking the site of his old roommate in. Father Time had been kind to her it seemed.
"Just this year. I'm still swamped by all the catching up I have to do. It's kind of a madhouse in here."
"Well I understand, and I don't want to be in your hair." Nick was reluctant to see if she was in the mood for reminiscing. Seeming to read Nick's mind Jess broached the subject on his brain.
"Now isn't the best time but, I would love to catch up with you. Are you free sometime later today?"
"Yeah," Nick answered, trying to quell his enthusiasm. "I'll have to drop Brad off at soccer practice, but I am free after that."
"Cool, I found a little coffee shop not too far from here on 19th street."
"I know the place, 4:30 work for you?"
"Sounds great Nick."
...
Jess sat in her chair, staring out her office window. On the window's ledge was a picture of her with her two kids. It was a recent photo taken at one of her favorite beaches. Her kids were surprisingly receptive to the idea of leaving Portland to live in LA. Jess assumed it was the promise of less rainy days that finally sealed the deal for them. The smiles on their faces at the beach seemed like clear evidence to that point. After Nick had left, Jess spent the day busying herself with any task she could find, but she had finally found herself with some time to take a breather. If she was being honest with herself, she was dreading any down time that gave her ample opportunity and time alone with her thoughts.
Jess continued to stare outside, searching for nothing in particular. She closed her eyes and thought back to one of her more vivid memories of Phil...
"So the doctors said they are going to try another round of treatment."
"Jess, sweetheart, there is something we need to talk about."
It was never unusual for Phil to talk to her with a very sobering tone these days, but somehow she knew she wasn't going to like where this was going.
"If this treatment...doesn't work, I need you to promise me something."
"Anything Phil, what is it?"
"Promise me that you will do things that make you happy, that you want to do."
"I thought you were going to say something about always being there for the kids or something," Jess joked. She wanted nothing more than to divert from where he was headed.
"Please, I have no fear you will do everything for them. I'm talking about you. Promise me you will make time for yourself, that you will make plans to take care of your own happiness."
"I'm sorry, I don't like thinking about this..."
"I don't either, but I need you to understand that all that would matter to me if I was gone is that you will do everything in your power to be the woman I fell in love with. That woman would not spend the rest of her life mourning her husband." Phil reached for both of Jess' hands. "If a man comes along who respects you, treats you like you deserve, and puts a smile on your face, don't shut him out of your life on account of me. Don't beat yourself up or feel guilty-"
"Phil, I can't even imagine-"
"Promise me, Jess. Promise me that you will live your life to the fullest, however you want to do it."
"Okay...I promise."
Jess sniffed and wiped a few tears away as she thought about that day just over four years ago. After blinking away the last remnants of moisture, she pulled open one of her desk drawers and rummaged through until she reached the bottom corner. Pulling out the object of her search, she nodded slightly to herself as she stared at the coin Nick gave to her all those years ago. Tightly grasping it in her hands, she closed her eyes and took a few steadying breaths.
"Okay Phil," she said to her empty office, "I'm going to hold myself to that promise."
...
Entering the coffee shop, Jess spotted Nick at a small table near the front window. He noticed her entrance and gave her a small wave.
"Hey," Nick greeted her as she walked over to the table. "I took a shot in the dark and assumed you still drink tea."
"Of course," Jess replied, taking the cup of Chai from Nick. "Sorry if I kept you waiting."
"No worries. I got here a little late as well. I'm happy to report that Brad said he enjoyed his first day...for the most part."
"For the most part?" Jess questioned worryingly.
"Yeah, he said one of the science teachers smelled funny. I honestly didn't catch the name."
Jess didn't try to hold back the smile forming on her lips. "I'm betting it was Mr. Donaldson. I never enjoy his visits to my office."
Nick laughed at Jess' dig of her employee's hygiene. "So what made you decide to move back to LA?"
"Well,I was trying to move up from Vice Principal in the Portland school district, but the opportunities weren't presenting themselves. After Phil passed I decided to open my search, geographically speaking. Finally, I got offered the position at this district."
Nick made a half-turtle face at the mention of Jess' deceased husband. "I really regret not being there for you when that all went down," Nick said somberly. "I should have been a better friend, but I...the cracks in my marriage were starting to show around that time..."
Jess listened intently while Nick recalled what had to be a tough time for him as well. "I heard about...what she did to you, but I never heard anything specific."
Nick sighed heavily. He didn't expect the conversation to get so heavy so fast, but they definitely were catching up. "It's the old tired cliché'. I was in training in Dallas, came home early, and there she was with another man. I mean, there absolutely were problems before then but..." Nick trailed off, staring through the table.
Jess reached across the table and grabbed his left hand, gently grasping it. "We don't have to talk about it if you don't want to...I'm sorry."
"No...it's okay. It's just that the worst part about it all is that she doesn't want to be a part of Brad's life. I'm a grown-ass man, I can handle getting hurt. But Brad, he's just a kid, a good one at that. That's what pisses me off more than anything." Finally looking at Jess again, Nick felt more at ease. He saw the familiar look of his friend who just wanted to help everyone.
"Well, I can say I've walked a mile in your shoes about the cheating part, although Spencer feels like ancient history anymore."
"I have to be honest Jess. I thought about you a lot in the days after that. I thought about how, eventually, you picked yourself up carried on with life. I really needed to do that and not wallow in my pity. I had to be strong for Brad." Nick got nervous, thinking he may have crossed a line. "I'm sorry, is that weird?"
"No! No, not at all. Sometimes we need inspiration from our friends."
"Yeah, inspiration from you and your damn optimism."
Jess chuckled lightly at Nick's banter. "Well I'm glad to know I helped in my own special way."
The pair laughed together, almost like it was two friends busting chops back in 4D. Jess tried to quell her nerves as she thought about her next question.
"So are you...seeing anyone?"
"Nah. I uh, been on dates, but never anything too serious. What about you?"
"I'm kind of in the same boat. I always ended things, nothing ever felt...right."
Jess took the site of Nick in. Here was a man who had been hurt multiple times. By Caroline, by his dad, by his ex-wife, and by Jess herself. She thought back to when they fought about their fake future. She thought about how she always told herself how they had nothing in common. Watching Nick finish off his cup of black coffee, it was hitting her like a sack of potatoes how much they had in common, she was just too scared to see it. She never regretted marrying Phil, but now she couldn't help feel a little guilty for how adamant she was about them having nothing in common.
They both had fierce loyalty to their friends.
They both had been hurt by people they trusted.
They both had lived the lives of single parents.
They both had loved the other.
"Jess...thanks for meeting me here. It was good to catch up."
Promise me that you will live your life to the fullest...
Gathering her resolve, Jess mentally dug deep. It was time to take a risk, and keep a promise.
"Nick...would you be willing to give me that second chance?"
Nick's eyes grew bigger than Jess had ever seen. "Um..."
"Would you like to go on a date with me, Nick?"
"Ye...ye...yeah sure," he stammered out. "I'm sorry, you caught me off guard. I...I wasn't expecting that."
"Well...I thought I would make it easy on you. You never were very good at asking me out," Jess teased.
"For god's sake, you were wearing a towel."
Jess didn't bother hiding her pleasure in flustering Nick. "Yeah, and that make's you 0-for-1. My point stands." Jess missed this part of their relationship the most. She hadn't giggled this much in what felt like ages.
After cleaning up their trash, the pair walked outside and said their goodbyes. As Jess walked towards her car, she turned around and gave Nick one last wave. Nick surprised himself by how eager he was to reconnect with her, knowing full well how bad it hurt to lose her once. After finding Natalie with another man, he didn't know if he could ever open himself up to another woman again. The more he thought about it, it made perfect sense though. When things ended with Jess it hurt bad, but both of them were at fault. She wasn't Natalie, Jess didn't betray him like Natalie did. It just...ended. Seeing that sparkle in those blue eyes made it perfectly clear to Nick.
She would be worth the second chance.
Thank you for reading. I know there is some heavier stuff in here, but it felt appropriate. Plus, kind of a happy ending.