Chapter 86
Year of the Sprout

There had been a storm in the night. Great big claps of thunder, bright lightning, gusts of wind to rattle the windows, and the lash of rain without pause, the whole thing leading to a power outage they had expected as soon as it had all started. The dogs would not be calmed, and the boys, oh... They did not like this, no not one bit.

They had fallen asleep in the early morning hours, after what felt like a shot of adrenaline, tending to their frightened household. Somehow though, it might have been the deepest and most restful sleep they'd had in a long time. It was this alone which even kept Maya from canceling this week's appointment with Dr. Eisley, her third over-all. The one hitch here was that she couldn't make herself leave Elliott or Noah.

Seeing as Dr. Eisley had told her, right on the first day, that she could bring them if she needed to, Shawn drove his daughter and grandsons to her office. Katy was home, tending to her own fretting boys after that storm.

"Text me when you're done?" Shawn asked as Maya settled Elliott into the stroller.

"You're going shopping, aren't you?" she asked, almost accusing.

"Can't a guy treat his grandson on his first birthday?" Shawn innocently asked.

"Oh, sure, sure. Just remember he's one kid, and you could wave a blank piece of paper in his face and he'd get excited about it if you played it right."

"So you're saying you won't get him anything?" Shawn baited back.

"Well I'm his mom," she squinted at him, her face soon relaxing into a thankful smile. Now she could head into Dr. Eisley's office just a bit more at ease.

To no surprise, the introduction of the boys into the garage did not go unnoticed. Dr. Eisley's sister and receptionist, Judy, set down the folders she'd been about to return to the small cabinet next to her desk, at once moving to greet Maya and the boys. Maya had mentioned them the first time she'd come in, just needing to be able to talk her way out of her nerves. So, when she'd come back the second time, Judy had asked after the boys, and Maya knew that if she hadn't had them with her today, she would have asked after them, too. Getting to meet them in person, now that was even better.

"Would you like me to keep an eye on them once you go in? You might find it easier to say what you need to say without your attention being so divided," Judy offered, and for a moment Maya considered it, but then the whole point for bringing them along was due to the storm and how much it had shaken them up.

"I, uh… I think I'll take them with me and… if it doesn't work, then I'll take you up on the offer?"

"Of course," Judy smiled, understanding perfectly well. "Please have a seat."

There was no sight of Nadia Su, the waiting room empty, but then there was Ariel's backpack, so Maya guessed her mother was either in the office with her or in the bathroom…

"Alright, how are we doing here? Uh? You good?" Maya quietly asked, releasing Elliott from the stroller and bringing him to sit in her lap. He was almost silent this morning, just sitting there and leaning against her, playing with her hand when she went to take his. On the one hand, it was good as far as not being too loud in a public place, but then she knew he only got like this after a bad night's sleep or a big fright, and last night had definitely been one of those. "I know, bud, I got you," she whispered, kissing the top of his head.

A minute later, Nadia Su came out of the doctor's office and moved to return to her chair. Seeing her in the second or two before she noticed her back, Maya could only see concern in the woman's face. But then she looked up, and she saw Maya with Elliott and she shifted into an easy smile.

"Now this is a nice surprise," she came along, giving a wave to Elliott. In return, Elliott only stared back at her, imitating her gesture without moving any further.

"Sorry, he's a bit closed off today," Maya breathed, brushing at his hair. "The storm last night really did a number on him."

"Oh, I know, that was really something, wasn't it?" Nadia breathed, getting a look of the stroller now and gasping at the sight of Noah. "Two of them in the middle of all that, how much sleep did you all get?"

"Not a whole lot when we were supposed to, but the part we got was really good," Maya reported, making the woman laugh as she looked on to the baby, offering her finger and smiling when Noah grabbed on. "There's really nothing like when they're this little," she hummed. Maya wasn't sure where her head had gone off to, likely thinking about her daughter, but it made it hard for her not to speak up.

"Is everything alright with Ariel?" she asked, and Nadia looked back at her.

"Oh, yes, she just…" Nadia shook her head, looking back to the office door. "I thought she was doing better, and…" she started, pausing after a moment and turning back to Maya. "Well, Dr. Eisley wanted to talk to the both of us together," she went on. Whatever she'd been about to say, Maya didn't push for her to reveal anything she didn't feel she should.

"Do you have any others besides Ariel?" she asked instead, redirecting the conversation to a safer place, and Nadia responded gladly.

Dr. Eisley ran overtime a few minutes before she finally escorted Ariel out into the waiting room and had her usual discussion with Nadia Su. Much like her mother had done, Ariel came out with her eyes full of thoughts before spotting Maya and the boys and moving in their direction.

"They're so cute," she laughed, and maybe for having been in here for a little while now, Elliott seemed to perk up a bit at her arrival. It helped that she remembered his name from hearing it the week before. When she greeted him with it, he reached out for her.

"Alright, hey, that's more like it," Maya smiled before setting him down on his feet. Ariel crouched and then knelt on the carpet, offering her hands for support. Elliott accepted these at once and Ariel happily watched him teeter along.

"Oh! I have something!" Ariel remembered now. Making sure he wouldn't fall if she let go, she scooted over to get her bag. Elliott followed after her and she laughed. Ariel reached into her bag now and pulled out a small, thin book. "I wasn't sure if you'd have this one already, but if you didn't then I wanted you to have it," she explained, holding it out to Maya.

"We don't, actually," Maya blinked, taking hold of the book and looking it over. It was not new, but it had the look of a well-cared for volume. "This is yours?" she asked, and Ariel nodded. "Oh, I couldn't take it from you, I…"

"I used to read it to my cousins, but they're too old now, and I don't think there'll be more. It should go where it'll be used. It's really good, especially if you can do the voices," Ariel smiled. Maya considered this with an intrigued look before extending the book back to her.

"Can you do the voices?"

When Nadia Su and Dr. Eisley came from the office again, they found Ariel sat on the ground in front of Elliott Friar. The boy's blue eyes were zeroed in on the girl as she read from the small book in her lap, voices and all. She'd clearly done this enough times that she barely needed to look at the text anymore, but she used the book anyway, as it was part of the show. They let her finish the brief story without interruption. Judy had been taking in the performance as well, from where she sat at her desk, and she joined in on the applause that followed, making Ariel and Maya look over.

"Here," Ariel gave Maya the book again, thankfully not losing her smile for being observed. "See you guys next week?" she asked, looking to Elliott, who was now trying to get a look at the book in his mother's hand.

"Should do, yes," Maya nodded. "Say bye, Elliott? Bye?"

"Bye?" Elliott repeated, adding a wave when Ariel waved at him before following her mother.

"Melly said you were going to be a teacher," Dr. Eisley came up now, looking in on Noah in the stroller. "I'd say you're right on target with that," she smiled back to Maya, nodding to where the Su girl had gone.

"Yeah… that's the plan…" Maya looked to the book now. For the first time in a long time, it did get to feel like she saw that goal on her horizons again.

When Maya and the boys returned home that day, Lucas got one look at his wife and all he could think was that there was a definite change in her. It wasn't as though all was well all of a sudden, but it must have gone particularly well at Dr. Eisley's office for some reason. Elliott was put in Pappy Joe's company, just in time for a bit of television story time, and Maya carried Noah upstairs, nodding for Lucas to follow along.

"How was it with them over there?" he asked as she put Noah down in his crib.

"Oh, well, he slept most of the time," Maya looked to the baby. "I thought I might have to leave Elliott with Judy, Dr. Eisley's sister, but he just sat in my lap, and we were good. I might bring them again some other time."

"And the appointment?" Lucas nodded.

"Not as rough as last time, but still had some more difficult parts," Maya breathed out, a smile gaining on her a moment later. "Oh, but there was something else," she looked back at him now, and Lucas took a step closer to her, curious to know what that something was. Clearly, it had affected her in some positive way and he wanted to know why that was.

"What is it?" he asked, smiling back.

"I don't think I need to wait until the end of the year. I know what I want to do."

"Yeah?" Lucas chuckled, finding this return of excitement to be wholly infectious. "And what's that?"

"Same thing I was going to do… mostly," Maya told him.

"Okay… Where's the 'mostly' going to come in?"

"I still want to be a teacher, still art," she nodded along. "But I think I might go after middle school instead of high school. I know why I wanted to go with the older kids before, but I really think if I can get in with that one little pocket, seventh and eighth grade… it could be good, no?"

"It would be really good, more than good," Lucas agreed. Maya looked thrilled to hear it, and she stretched up to kiss him. He kissed her back, keeping her close afterward. Today had been a good day. He didn't imagine either of them assumed the bad ones had been banished from existence just like that. But this one had been good, they'd lived it, felt it, and in the long run it could be something to build on, especially with what was coming in a couple of days. "Do you think you might handle cake duties this time?" he asked her, and Maya laughed into his shoulder.

"I'll have my best people assisting," she promised.

X

I dreamed of you… I know your face and I know your heart. It's been beating inside me, beating with mine… I dreamed of you…

"Dada!"

"Hey, buddy," Lucas smiled as he lifted his elder son from his crib and held him in one arm while flattening his golden hair from its sleep styling. "You know what today is? Today's your birthday. You are one whole year old," Lucas told him, holding up one finger for him to see. Elliott reached out and grabbed hold of it. "Yeah, happy birthday, Sprout," Lucas laughed lightly, kissing the side of his son's head. "So, I think today, if you'll let me choose, I know what leaf we need. This one, right here, see?" he reached across the crib so he might touch the leaf marked with Elliott's name. It was green, next to the newest addition, a yellow leaf with Noah's name. "Today, I get to tell you the story of… you," Lucas smiled. His son looked up at him, a goofy little grin on his face, and his heart felt like it could burst for the love of him.

Carrying him across the hall, he found Maya had gone and taken Noah from his crib before bringing him back to the bed for his feeding. Birthday or no birthday, it was starting out as any other day did with a newborn in the house. They were definitely finding their rhythm again as far as nights went, but it didn't mean they were suddenly fully rested and clear headed. Still, there was something to be said for adjusting, and for making it through days, and weeks, and being reminded that they were still standing, that their boys were happy and thriving.

Noah… It would already have been a month since he'd been born, just days from now. It had been a rollercoaster of a month, no doubt to it, and very challenging. It would continue to be that, as the weeks continued moving forward, they both knew it. And for all that, he knew even Maya would not trade a minute away. There was still so much ahead for them to experience with their Bee, as they followed him through his first year as they'd done Elliott. They would get to see what kind of person he would grow into, and they'd see how their boys evolved together, as brothers. That might have been the thing they looked forward to most of all.

"Birthday Sprout…" Maya smiled as she looked up again and spotted them there after she'd finished with Noah. Elliott greeted her with an eager 'Mama!' as Lucas carried him closer. "Trade you?" Maya asked him. He put Elliott on the bed, taking up the baby, all the better for Maya to get hold of the one-year-old. "Little big boy," she whispered, hugging him close.

"I was going to tell him his story for today, thought I should wait for you on this one," Lucas explained.

"Oh, should I pretend to be asleep like I used to do?" Maya asked, closing her eyes so that Elliott's poking fingers didn't end up in there.

"No, actually, I think I'll need your input," Lucas explained.

"A collaboration? I'm honored," she laughed.

"It was definitely that," Lucas smiled, watching his wife and son. "It's his story," he explained. "Elliott Lucas Friar… the year of the Sprout."

"It's a great story," Maya agreed, settling Elliott down in her lap. "I hear the sequel is going to be even better."TO BE CONTINUED

See you next week! - mooners