A/N: Not quite sure what my plan is for the ending of this story, but I'd like to think that I'm at about the halfway point in this story. My goal is forty chapters, but it may extend to fifty. I'm not completely sure, but I will try and you keep you all in the loop. I hope you enjoy! xx Mariah
Ned's meeting with his recruiter had gone well. He'd passed the tests and was accepted into a Basic Training program in Georgia. He was even given a date for when he'd leave for
He'd be shipped out on April 2nd.
Their plans had been for him to go to basic in the summer, but when Ned was offered a program that would give him the entire summer with Katie he couldn't say no. It just wasn't what they had planned. It was much sooner than either of them had imagined.
There was the noise of a key in the lock and then the door swung open, Katie stood in the kitchen dancing with Jace and Hannah could be seen fast asleep on the couch.
Ned came in, holding his acceptance letter and checklist. He had five weeks to put on ten pounds of muscle and get ready for basic. He was ready for this. He was just worried about how Katie would react to how fast things were going.
"Well aren't you a playful little one, aren't you?" Katie giggled, spinning around with him. "Your mama is fast asleep so you're stuck with me."
"Katie, I'm home." He said, tossing his keys into the dish near the door before kicking off his shoes.
"Your uncle Ned is home!" She exclaimed and ran to greet him with a hug, Jace grabbed his ear and tugs on it softly. "Hey, baby. I missed you. How was your meeting?"
When he'd seen her this morning, she'd been asleep. He'd kissed her goodbye and she'd waved sleepily before tossing onto her stomach. She'd looked like herself, her hair was long, flowing over her shoulders like always.
Except now. Her hair was just past her chin in her usual natural curly form with new side-swept bangs. In the back, it was layered and overall she had added a blonde ombré for a fresh look.
"Your hair? What happened to it?" He laughed and ran his hand through the much shorter length. "I didn't know you were cutting it."
"I needed a change." She sighed, shrugging slowly. "My stylist said it was an option and I think it looks really good," she explained and then smirked. "What do you think?"
"I've just never seen you with such short hair, but I kind of love it." He smiled and then shook his hand loose.
"I'm really glad. I was a little worried you wouldn't like it as much as my long hair," she kissed him softly then. "Could you do me a favor?"
"And what would that be?" He asked, pulling away as Jace squeezed his face. He took the seven-month-old into his arms. "Hey, bud. It's been awhile since I've seen you."
"You should bring Hannah to one of the guest bedrooms. Her back is bad enough as it is, she shouldn't be sleeping on that stupid old couch." She said, taking him back. "Also, we need to get a new couch once we have the money."
"Yes. I'll bring Han upstairs," he said and went over to the couch and picked her up. "When did she fall asleep?"
"Not long ago. Probably an hour and a half," she replied. "Jace went down for a nap in my arms, so we were watching a movie and she knocked out. And then this little man woke up and we've been having a swell time since, haven't we bud?"
"Yes! Yes!" He didn't know many words, but yes was one of the few.
"Are you hungry sweetheart?" Ned made his way upstairs as she turned to walk into the kitchen.
"Dadadada..." Jace cooed and lightly tugged on her hair.
"Do you miss your daddy, Jacey." She speaks in a soft tone with him as she sets him in the highchair. There had been several useful things she'd kept that was supposed to use with her and Ned's son. Jace used the highchair and different toys and things they didn't really need anymore. Sometimes Hannah would take them home, to lower the number of unneeded baby objects they owned. "How about some blueberries?"
He giggled and then pounded his little hands on the plastic tray like it was a drum.
"Jacey," she sang as she grabbed the container and washed the berries with fresh water. "Almost clean." He responded to her singing with precious baby giggles that made her laugh and kiss both of his cheeks once she turned to face him. "Ok handsome," she laughed, ticking his chin. "I've got your blueberries right here." She poured a handful of berries into her hand and held one to him. "You want these?" She teased him and he squealed, pounding his little hands on the tray. "Here you go."
She brought one to his mouth and he grinned at her, and her heart twitched with sadness.
Sad sounded so childish, like something flimsy, something one should be able to cast off with a happy reflection or the smile of a friend. But "sad" was nothing of the sort.
It sat inside her like the germ seed of depression, just waiting for the right conditions to grow, to send out roots to choke the hope out of her heart. It was the tough enough seeing that bedroom door closed every day and she could never be mad at Hannah for being a mother. For having a beautiful son, but she couldn't always hide her jealousy.
She wanted her son, to be able to hold him and give him berries in his highchair. To see him smile and call her mommy and learn to crawl and walk these hallways.
He would've been a month old today.
"You okay?" Ned asked, walking into the kitchen.
"I'm fine," she brought a smile to her face as she looked up at Ned with a happiness on her face that didn't quite meet her eyes.
"Penny for your thoughts," he said and his hand slid over her back softly.
"He would've been a month old today," she muttered, pain in her eyes, holding back tears.
Make it all go away, she thought, rampant thoughts in her head, her heart aching from the weight heavier than lead.
"I know." He murmured the words in the dark, voice full of sympathy and a throbbing pain from his heart.
He wished he could make it all go away and bring him back for her. For himself. For both of them, he thought, biting his tongue, wishing he could protect her from the darkness before it overpowered her again.
"I love you, Ned," she whispered back, he pulled her closer then and whispered his return in her ear. She pressed her face into his chest. "So much."
He tried to give her the love he knew she lacked. He filled up all the gaps she didn't quite understand, pretending he could take her thoughts away with a gentle touch of his hand.
The tears in his eyes weren't for himself, she understood that now. He hardly cried for himself, he cried for her, for their son.
"I love you," he said and kissed her forehead. "I got my date."
"Your, what?" She asked, looking up at him.
"The date for basic, in Georgia, I leave April 2nd." He said smiling at her, proud that he was accepted so quickly.
"That's great. That's really great, Ned. I'm proud of you," she whispered and wiped her tears away before she left the room, climbing the stairs quickly. "I'll be right back."
"I'm really dumb," he sighed, smiling at Jace as he fed him another berry.
Jace ate the berries Ned fed him and he giggled and smiled at him. He was so smart for seven months and he knew that it was because his wife was so involved with him, even now. Even after everything she'd been through, this little boy had her wrapped around his finger.
He was such a cute kid, and was so intelligent.
She liked to say it's because she read him books and played learning games with him. Hannah always agreed and says she and Brandon were never that smart, and Brandon always chimed in saying he got it from his mom which earned him and kiss and smile from Hannah.
He knew when she put him in Charlie's crib for a nap today that it set some sort of alarm in her head that it wasn't right. That their son should have been the one to sleep in it first. And then she'd put him in his highchair too.
"Hey, Ned…" Hannah yawned and walked into the kitchen. "Hey, Jacey. Mama's awake."
"Mama!" Jace squealed, his grin was purple, from the berries which only made Hannah's smile grow bigger. "Mamamamama!"
"Did Auntie give you berries? That's so sweet of her," Hannah cooed and kissed his forehead. "Your daddy gets off work soon. We'll go pick him up."
"Daddee!" Jace squealed.
"Yes. Your daddy," Hannah said, touching his cheek before looking to Ned. "Where's Katie?"
"She went upstairs," she sighed and then raked his hand through his hair. "She left when I told her I was leaving for basic in April. I didn't want to leave Jace alone."
"So she's most likely freaking out because she's going to be alone here now. Her son is gone and now you're going to be gone too," Hannah muttered, looking back to Jace. "She'll say she's happy for you and whatever to make you feel better, but she doesn't want to be alone. No one does."
"She's not going to be alone," he sighed. "She has her family and you and Jace and Brandon!"
"It's different. No one is grieving Charlie like the way you both are. Not the same way. Without you, she'll have to do it on her own. Now go," Hannah said softly, pointing out of the room. "I can take care of him. Go after her."
"You sure?" He asked. "You still look pretty tired."
"Jace is my son, Ned. I'm always tired. I'm the mom of a seven-month-old," Hannah laughed. "Go after her."
"Don't leave before she comes back down." He said walking toward the stairs. "She's going to want to say goodbye to both of you."
"We won't. Promise," Hannah said bending down to wipe the berry mess from Jace's cheeks. "And Ned?"
"Yeah?" He stopped to look back at her.
"She wants you Ned. She doesn't want you to leave, who wants their husband to leave?" Hannah asked.
He knew Hannah was right and he hated it.
She sat on the rocking chair in the nursery. It was the first time she'd been in here since January. Since her son died.
Her finger traced over the notebook that was on her lap. It was closed. The papers untouched. She hadn't written since before Charlie.
Life was fast and lately, she couldn't write it down, not even for a second, because words were slow and come when it's time and lately she hadn't got any. For the first time, she couldn't write her thoughts down. There were too many, too many rampant thoughts swirling in her mind.
"Katie?" Ned called out. "Baby?" She felt her walls crack, her tears freely rolling off her cheeks. "Oh there you are," he said quietly as he walked into the room.
He'd never seen Katie sit like that, so deflated. Her loose shoulders shook, her hands hung low, making no attempt to conceal or even wipe away her own tears. Aside from her reddened face, she looked broken. He'd only seen someone cry like that a handful of time and in every case, it was a transition from a person with hope to one without.
It was how a victim cried when she recounted her story on how her husband had been shot in front of her; it was how his mom cried the day his dad passed, and it was how Melinda looked when she thought Katie had killed herself.
It was a kind of crying that showed the child underneath.
"Oh babe," he kneeled before her and took the surprisingly empty notebook from her grasp before pulling her into his arms. "I'm not gonna go. I'll go when you're ready."
"No. You're not gonna give up this for me, you've given up too much for me." She sobbed into his shoulder.
"I can't leave you like this. I won't," he reminded her. "You're so strong babe, but you're so fragile at the same time."
"You're not giving this up. It's going to be hard without you for ten weeks, but I'll be fine." She tried to reassure him as she looked up at him. "I'll be okay."
"Katie..." He sighed.
"Don't do that Ned. I'll be okay." She said. "With time, I'll be okay again."
"Maybe we should take this room down… maybe it's what we need." He suggested.
"No," she said immediately. "Not yet. It's all we have left of him."
"You're right," he whispered.
When the words did not come, the tears did. As much as he tried to hold it in, the pain came out like an uproar from his throat in the form of a silent scream. The beads of water start falling down one after another, without a sign of stopping.
She sat next to him on the floor and held him close.
"I'm here," she said softly. "Let it out."
A single tear slides down from her warm, butterscotch eyes, followed by another one, and another one, until soon, a steady stream of salty tears flow it's way down her blotchy cheek. She pressed her mouth to his cheek and rubbed his back.
"He would've been smart, so smart like you Katie. You would've taught him how to read, write and speak like you do with Jace." He sighed. "I would've loved to see you with him. To watch you him teach him about ghosts one day."
"And he would've been a good athlete and protective like you," she smiled. "You'd be his hero. He'd be a cop for his first halloween and we'd come in to the precinct that day and get a picture. It would've been the cutest thing ever."
"Yeah," he laughed, knowing his wife would go above and beyond for every single one of his first holidays. "It would've been my favorite picture ever."
"Ned... I love you." She said and pressed her forehead against his.
"I love you too, girl." He whispered and stroked her cheek before pulling her into his chest. "Hannah's gotta go soon. You should go say goodbye."
"We both should," she replied and stood up, holding her hand for him.
He smiled up at her and took her hand in his as stood up.
"We'll be okay?" He asked. "Even if it's ten weeks."
"Yes," she nodded, hugging him. "We'll be just fine."
They walked into the store hand in hand, the night before ending better than it began. He pulled her in for a kiss, leaning her up against the front counter and dining the bell in the process.
"How can I help... Ned?" Melinda asked walking out of the back with Jim. "Where's Katie? I swear if you're cheating on her after everything you two have been through in my store... I'm gonna kill you."
"I would never cheat on Katie," he said stepping away from her.
"Then who the hell is that? That is sure as hell not my daughter's hair." Melinda scoffed, her sentence ending in an uneasy laugh. "Katie's hair is very long, thick and dark."
"Mom there is such a thing known as a haircut," Katie turned to face her mom. "What are you doing here? Hi dad."
"Hi sweetheart," Jim said, smiling at her. "I like what you've done with your hair. It's a nice look on you. Very mature."
"Katie? Your hair... um, I wanted to check on you and you weren't here." Melinda stuttered.
"We woke up a little late." She said and fixed her hair a little. "Oh. My hair, do you like? I wanted to change it up a bit."
"More than a bit, don't you think sweetheart?" Melinda hugged her a moment later. "I do love it though. I cut mine like this for a period of time, but you were probably too little to remember."
Her mom pulled her in for a tight hug and then Ned before going to the back and coming out with a stroller.
"Where are you three off too?" She asked walking behind the counter.
"Oh we have some things to do to," Melinda said and pulled up the cover to check on a fast asleep Emma. "Oh good. She's still asleep."
"Ghostly?" She asked, peeking at her little sister.
"No. We're gonna go and see your grandma Faith." Melinda explained simply. "She's been having some trouble with her hip again and we thought she'd enjoy the visit with Emma while we help her around the house."
"Well stop by on your way home. Maybe we could grab some lunch?" She asked as Ned wrapped his arms around her waist. "I feel like we haven't talked in forever."
"Yeah. That sounds like a good idea." Melinda replied, smiling at her daughter. "Our treat."
"Oh, mom..." Ned butted in. "You don't have to."
"No. It's our treat. You two are tight on money and we aren't." Jim said, holding the door open for Melinda. "Don't worry about it."
"If you insist," she smiled. "We'll see you at Lento's then? Let's say at two?"
"Make it two thirty," Melinda hugged them both one more time. "Love you both."
She turned the sign to open and pushed Ned toward the counter. He pulled her to him and kissed her deeply, but she pulled away after a minute.
"We're working," she laughed and she felt his hot breath on her neck, then the tender brush of lips, which burned as they made contact with her neck. A hand ran through her hair, as the kisses became harder and more urgent. Another hand slid around her waist and pulled her close to his pine scented body. His kisses were now on her shoulders and collarbone. "Ok. No.. I need to teach you how to work the register." She moaned and pushed away from him. "As much as I love how you kiss my neck, we have to get started."
"Fine," he sighed and followed her.
An hour or so later, Katie was in the back doing her mother's invoices as Ned took care of the floor. There hadn't been that many customers today and she knew he would do fine. He had a knack for getting people to do things with a tender smile.
She was distracted from her work by Ned's laughter. Maybe she should go out and check on him.
"Well, this piece is from the 80's. Rumored to once glance the neck of Audrey Hepburn," Ned explained to a young woman who probably wasn't even paying attention what he was actually saying. His muscles rippled under his plaid button up, and he flashed her a sweet smile. "And it's only fifty bucks. A steal, am I right?"
He'd actually listened to her when she rambled on about how the history side of objects could get a customer to buy an item.
"Well that's a good price," the girl said and reached out to touch his arm lightly, squeezing it. "It's quite beautiful."
Ned gave her a tender smile, and when the girl returned one back, it made her suddenly very protective.
"Uh, I can check you out up here." She said walking toward the counter, turning the register on.
"Well I think Ned can check me out just fine," the girl laughed at her own joke and Katie rolled her eyes. "Right Ned?"
"He has things to do. We're very, uh, busy." She said, flashing her ring as she tossed her hair a bit, biting her lip as she looked over the empty store. "Especially with cataloging at this time of year."
"I'm the only customer here," the girl said taking the necklace from Ned's hand.
"I've got it," He said, rubbing Katie's back. "Come on, Vanessa. I'll get you all squared away."
His lips were light on her cheek like a dew freckled petal caught in a breeze as she turned around and sat back down at her mother's desk.
A few minutes later Ned came into the room and leaned against the doorway and crossed his arms.
"What was that about?" He asked.
"She was flirting with you," she muttered under her breath as she glanced up from her computer.
"A lot of women flirt with me, but you see... I wear this ring on my finger that symbolizes that I am the husband of a beautiful young woman whom I love very much," he said walking closer to her and leaning down, capturing her in a sweet and short kiss. "I don't pay attention to anyone, but you."
She hesitantly looked up at him as he pulled away, the swirls of emotion she saw there made her grin, her lips turning up and spreading to show her smile.
Before she could ponder about it further, he yanked her to him and covered her mouth with his in a hungry kiss. As their lips crushed together, the front door opened and closed quietly. It was magic, the way his lips connected with her. His mouth was so warm, the caress of his lips was soft and she opened her mouth with a low moan as she pulled him in closer.
"So I'm working with lovebirds, one being my son." Delia sighed, taking off her coat.
They parted and she smiled up at him before he excused himself, side hugging his mom on his way out.
"Katie, how are you?" Delia asked, seeing her hair. "I love the new style. Definitely you."
"I'm doing better. I needed a change so I changed something that I've never really changed before, you know?" She explained. "How was your doctor's appointment?"
"It went really good. I'm as healthy as an ox they say," Delia said as she went over to the coffee pot and poured herself a cup. "How's today going?"
"I taught Ned the ropes and he's sold a few things. I got a little jealous when a girl was flirting with
him, hence what you walked in on." She blushed, looking back at the computer as she began typing away. "I should get back to doing the invoices. Are you going to work the floor with him?"
"Yeah." Delia replied. "I have some things to chat with him about."
"He has some things to tell you as well." She replied and looked down at her excel spreadsheet. "I should really get back to this. I have a lot to get done."
"Well I'll leave you to it," Delia said and closed the double doors behind her, giving her the peace and quiet she needed.
She read over her mother's neat handwriting on the next slip of paper and slowly began to type up what it said into the spreadsheet.
Ten down, fifty to go.
Katie was home by nine o'clock and was dead tired.
Delia and her were swamped at the store with a late tourist rush and she'd promised Hannah they would go work out after her shift was over. She hated that she'd let Ned go run errands after lunch, she could've been home earlier if he'd been there to help through the crowd of people.
"Katie? Come up here," Ned called from upstairs. "I've got a present for you."
"I'll be right up." She said sliding her coat off. "Could you start me a bath and maybe light some candles? I'm tense and need to relax."
"Workout go less than good?" He asked.
"No. It went good. I'm just sore," she laughed and began to climb the stairs.
She took a minute or two, but when she got to the top of the stairs, she was met with a kiss by her handsome and shirtless husband.
"Well I can give you a massage too," he said smiling at her. "Now come on. You've got to see what I got you."
"Like last time?" She asked and took his hand. "You better not have bought me anything too expensive."
"It was free actually," he replied and opened the bedroom door.
The kitten looks softer than any department store toy.
"You got me a kitten?" She squealed and looked up at him.
"My coworker Casey, her cat had three little kittens last month and they weren't getting anyone interested in taking one of them off there hands. I asked if she'd give us one of the little guys for free and she was happy to get one off her hands. She even gave me all the stuff for him. I thought it would be a nice for when I go away." He smiled. "He could be your cuddle buddy."
"That's where you went after lunch, isn't it?" She said and hugged him. "So the kitten's a boy?"
"Yeah, and I promised Casey's daughter we'd keep the name she gave him," he laughed. "And that she could come visit him. I hope that's not a problem."
"No. That's not a problem at all," she said, taking the little kitten into her hands. "What's his name?"
"Stitches," he said.
"That's so cute," she gasped, kissing his little cat chin. "And of course she can come see him. Ned, he's so cute."
He's still so small. His little meow, was still so newborn, right? And the way he felt, that downy tabby fur, softer than any commercial toy. She brought him closer so she could see his eyes, bluer than glacier water. Along the outside of his irises, reminded Katie of spring grass. His fur had faint brighter stripes of white, while the rest of him was gray. And his whiskers, so white and soft.
She plopped down on the bed and let him crawl over her, taking her smell in as he rubbed again her. When he trotted along her stomach and up to her chest where he plopped down, his tail was right up in the air.
"I adore him," she squealed and smiled up at him. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," he whispered and kissed her.
They were interrupted by the meow and soft pawing from Stitches and burst into laughter.
"Best gift ever," she whispered, petting him as he kissed her neck.