Epilogue - 5 Years Later
Lucy sat on a hard, plastic chair in a familiar waiting room. As she waited for her name to be called, she was scrolling through photos on her phone. The most recent photo she had taken was just that morning. It was a picture of her youngest son sitting in his highchair with oatmeal all over his face including in his hair. He had a big smile on his face and a mischievous twinkle in his eye. Lucy couldn't help but snap a picture of him before she cleaned him up.
Robert Jackson Bradford was two and a half. He had his mother's dark hair and his father's eyes. He added a certain love and chaos to their lives that Lucy hadn't even known she was missing. Alex was an incredible big brother, helping out when necessary and desperately wanting to teach Rob how to play baseball. Tim was an even more amazing father. He was determined to be the kind of father his own father had never been. He was there for every important moment. Lucy couldn't have asked for a better support system.
Lucy scrolled back in time on her phone even further. She came across the pictures of Alex's adoption ceremony. This time it was Tim who was legally adopting him. It happened a year after Lucy and Tim got married. After doing all of the necessary paperwork as soon as they wed and letting it go through the court system, Alex walked into the courtroom without a legal father and walked out with one. The pictures of Tim and Alex dressed in matching suits with green ties that matched her green dress made her smile. It had been a very good day. A large picture from that day of Tim and Alex together hung in Alex's bedroom.
As she continued to look through her camera roll, passing by dozens of shots of Alex at baseball, Tim and her eating at food trucks, and various other random pictures, Lucy stopped at her wedding photos. After getting engaged on Christmas Eve, Lucy and Tim were married that next spring, exactly one year from the day they had met in the parking lot of the little league field. It was a relatively small ceremony with only close friends. Alex was Tim's best man and Genny was Lucy's bridesmaid. Coach Chuck who got ordained online performed the ceremony. Angela, Wesley, and little Jack even made the trip. It had been the perfect day and Lucy liked to remember it often. If anyone had ever told her that she would meet the man of her dreams, fall in love, and marry him all within a year, she would have thought they were crazy, but life had a funny way of working out and she had never felt happier.
"Lucy Bradford," a technician called.
Lucy put her phone away in her purse and followed the technician into a small exam room. The technician took some of Lucy's vitals before asking her to lay back on the table.
"So, is this your first?" The technician, whose nametag said Gloria, asked.
"No. My second pregnancy. But my third child. My oldest son is adopted."
"All boys, then?"
"So far," Lucy answered.
"Will anyone be joining you for your exam today?"
"No, my husband had to work."
"Ok, let's get started. This might be a little cold."
Gloria squirted some gel on Lucy's stomach. Using the wand of the ultrasound machine, she spread the gel out and began to search the monitor connected to the wand to find the baby. A black and white image of the baby growing inside Lucy popped up on the monitor. Lucy was about five months along and although the image on the screen looked more like an alien than a baby, Lucy was already in love. A thumping sound rang out.
"We've got a good, strong heartbeat," Gloria announced.
Lucy listened to the little thumps and it brought a tear to her eye.
"Do you want to know the sex?" Gloria asked.
"Oh…I…I don't know. We found out with my last pregnancy, but I don't think I should find out without my husband here."
"Well, I'll tell you what, I can write it down on a piece of paper and seal it in an envelope and then you can decide if you want to find out with your husband. I know gender reveals are all the rage these days."
"I don't think we'll be going that far, but thank you. That would be very kind of you."
When Lucy's appointment was finished, she was pleased to know that everything was going well. The baby was growing as it should and there were no concerns. She was told to just keep taking care of herself and to return for her next appointment in six weeks. Lucy had the envelope Gloria had given her tucked safely in her purse as she drove home.
As she walked in her front door, the first thing Lucy heard was yelling. Only she could tell by the tone that it was playful yelling. The sounds were coming from the backyard. Lucy went out back and saw Alex tossing a wiffle ball at Cora, Ashley's daughter. Alex and Cora were now both twelve. They had actually become close as they got older. They were in most of the same classes together and they continued to play on the same baseball team through the years. Lucy was pretty sure that the young crush Cora once had on Alex was now mutual.
Swinging her wiffle bat hard, Cora made contact with the ball and it went sailing over Alex's head. Their dog, a large pitbull mix, named Kojo was chasing after the ball with his tongue hanging out of the side of his mouth.
"Homerun!" Cora was chanting as she ran around the backyard. Kojo started playfully barking and chasing Cora as she ran the imaginary bases. The whole scene made Lucy smile.
As Lucy watched, a spectator in her own backyard, Ahley came out of the French doors carrying Rob.
"I thought I heard you come home," Ashley said. "Rob was just using the bathroom."
"I did pee pee all by myself!" Rob announced proudly as Ashley put him down. He walked over to his mother and hugged her legs.
"Good job, sweetheart," Lucy said, leaning down to give him a kiss on the cheek.
"Eww!" Rob declared as he raced off in bare feet to chase after Alex, Cora, and Kojo who were still running around in the grass in circles.
"How was your appointment?" Ashley asked, sitting down at the same outdoor table Tim had bought for Lucy years earlier.
"It was good," Lucy answered, joining her. "The baby's healthy."
"That's great. Are you ready for tonight?"
"I think so. I know Tim's excited."
"He should be. He'll be great," Ashley commented as she looked down at her watch. "Look, I hate to run, but Henry is taking Cora and I into the city tonight to see a show and I want to get all dolled up."
"Of course. Thank you so much for watching the kids."
"Anytime."
"You and Henry have been dating for what? Over a year now?"
"Fourteen months," Ashley told her. "But who's counting?"
"Any wedding bells in your future?"
"He's brought it up a few times. But I'm…a little nervous since my divorce. I know it's been years, but I don't want to go through that again."
"I'm going to tell you what you told me five years ago. I saw you two at the gala last month and the way that man looks at you…the way he treats you and Cora. He's a keeper."
Ashley nodded. "You're right. Tell Tim I say congratulations."
"I will."
The two women hugged and Ashley shouted for Cora that they were leaving. Lucy scooped up Rob and she walked her guests to the front door. Once they left, Lucy shouted for Alex. They had a few things they needed to do to get ready for the evening.
Later that night, Lucy was sitting in a folding chair in the front row of an auditorium surrounded by dozens of others. She was wearing a new black dress that wasn't the sexiest thing she ever owned, but it was comfortable and practical. Lucy had to admit that she was a little annoyed that her favorite green dress didn't currently fit due to the baby belly she was currently sporting, but she knew Tim wouldn't be disappointed. Alex was on one side of her and Rob was miraculously sitting quietly on the other side. Genny, Greg, and their mixed brood of three kids were next to Alex. Coach Chuck and his wife as well as other police officers and members of the community were in attendance. Tim, dressed in his police uniform, was seated on the small stage in front of them with Chip standing at a podium, speaking.
"I've worked for this department in this city for forty-two years," Chip was saying. "The last eighteen of those years as chief. It's been my pleasure and honor to serve this great city. I was never sure I was going to get the opportunity to retire because I never felt like I could trust this very important job to anyone else. Much less an outsider." The crowd chuckled. "But then I met this man. Tim Bradford. I basically accosted him at the arcade five years ago, begging him to teach a much needed gun safety course. He did that and more. And since then I've gotten to know Tim. He's a good man with good values and a good heart. He's a family man who stands for justice and does whatever it takes to protect the people and community that he loves. He may have started off as an outsider from the big city out west, but he's not an outsider anymore. I am proud to name Tim Bradford as the new Chief of Police."
The audience erupted into applause with Lucy clapping the loudest.
"Go dad!" Alex shouted.
"Go, daddy, go!" Rob chanted, mimicking his brother.
Tim smiled at his boys as he stood up and walked over to the podium. He shook Chip's hand and Chip pinned a new star on Tim's uniform.
"Thank you," Tim said as Chip stepped back from the podium in order to give Tim the chance to speak. "It has been truly an honor living in and serving this community for the past five years and I am both humbled and excited to become the new chief. I don't know if I will ever be as good as Chip, but I promise to work hard every day. I want to thank Chip for asking me that day in the arcade to teach that gun safety course and for giving me the opportunity to prove myself. And I want to thank my family. My wife and my boys and the new little one we have on the way, I wouldn't be here without your love and support. Thank you so much."
Tim stepped away from the podium and back to his seat. Lucy had tears in her eyes. Rob hopped right out of his seat and took off for the stage. Before Lucy could stop him he had climbed up the steps and went right over to Tim.
"Hi daddy," he said.
"Hi, buddy," Tim replied with a great big smile.
Tim scooped him up and put him in his lap. The entire audience laughed. Rob waved at Lucy with his tiny little hand and she waved back.
"What did I tell you, folks?" Chip continued. "He's a family man." The audience clapped again and Rob began waving to all of them as if he were a famous celebrity on stage.
"Hi, mommy!" He exclaimed. Lucy waved to him again.
"Well, before we're overtaken with cuteness overload, we have one more person we'd like to honor tonight," Chip announced. "This person has been working to bring awareness to mental illness to the forefront and has been working on better training for our officers as well as making herself available for free counseling to victims of domestic violence and other crimes. I can honestly say that she has changed my view on how we deal with offenders. And she just so happens to be married to our brand new chief. Lucy Bradford, come on up here."
The audience clapped and Lucy gasped. She had no idea what was going on. Tim stood up, carrying Rob with him. He went over to the set of steps and gestured Lucy to come to the stage. She stood up slowly.
"Go, mom!" Alex exclaimed.
Tim extended his hand out and Lucy took it. He helped her up the steps and he walked her over to where Chip stood with a plaque.
"Thank you for all you've done for our community, Lucy," Chip said, handing the plaque to Lucy. She gave him a quick hug and then turned to Tim.
"Congratulations, honey," he said, giving her a quick kiss. The entire audience cheered. Lucy wiped tears from her eyes.
"Why is mommy crying?" Rob asked.
"Happy tears, baby," Lucy responded.
"Let's get a photo op," Genny said from her seat. "Alex, honey, jump up there."
Alex didn't need to be told twice. He hopped right up on stage and Genny took at least a dozen photos of them all.
When the fanfare had died down, people started mingling and a cake was brought out. Lucy settled the boys in their seats with cake.
"Can you watch them for a few minutes, Gen?" Tim asked his sister.
"Of course," Genny said.
Tim took Lucy's hand and brought her over to a quiet corner.
"I'm really proud of you," he told her.
"I'm supposed to be the one saying that to you," Lucy replied. "This was supposed to be your night."
"But it's so much better being our night. And for the record, this whole thing wasn't actually my idea. Chip came to me and said he wanted to honor you as one of his last acts as chief. I couldn't have agreed with him more."
"Well, it's very sweet. I was so surprised."
"Yeah, I made sure not to tell Alex about this surprise," Tim commented with a smile.
"Good thinking."
"I just want you to know how proud I am of all of the good you're doing out there, Lucy."
"I'm proud of you, too, Tim. It takes a village to keep a community safe and healthy."
"It does. And, by the way, you look gorgeous tonight."
Lucy put her hand on her bulging stomach. "I already feel huge."
Tim covered her hand with his. "You're beautiful." He leaned in and kissed her. Even after five years together, he never got tired of kissing her. That's when they both heard Rob's voice over the crowd.
"Cake on the floor!" He shouted loudly.
Tim and Lucy broke apart, both laughing. They left their quiet corner to go tend to their family.
Hours later, after the cake had been cleaned up off the floor and Tim had been congratulated by everyone and Lucy gave an interview to a journalist about how important mental health is and how police departments should be working with therapists and mental health experts, Lucy and Tim returned home with a sleeping Rob and a tired Alex. Tim put Rob to bed while Lucy made sure Alex was ready for bed, too. She no longer needed to stand there while he brushed his teeth or to make sure his night light was on, but she still liked saying goodnight to him. And she was pretty sure that even if he didn't admit it out loud, he liked it too. Kojo jumped onto Alex's bed and curled up at Alex's feet as he did every night.
Tim and Lucy met up in their bedroom once the two boys were asleep. Lucy had changed out of her dress and was standing in the bathroom in a lightweight robe, washing her face. Tim came up behind her, putting his arms around her. He placed his hands on her stomach.
"I think he or she is sleeping," Lucy said, not able to feel any movements from the baby. Lucy yawned. "Which is what we all need to do."
"Yeah, it's been a long day."
"But a very good day," Lucy added.
"A very good day," Tim agreed, kissing her on the side of the neck.
With her face clean and free of makeup, she turned around. His arms were still around her.
"There is something I need to tell you," Lucy said.
"What's that?" Tim responded, feeling a little confused. It wasn't like either of them to keep something from the other.
"I had an ultrasound this morning."
"What?" Tim asked, shocked. He wasn't angry. Just surprised. "Why wouldn't you tell me that? You know I like to go to all of your appointments and…"
"I know. But this was just routine and I knew you had a busy day today with it being Chip's last day and you transitioning to becoming chief. I had to cancel my last appointment last week because Rob got sick and this was the only day they had availability so I wanted to fit this one in. Don't be mad."
"I'm not mad. But, what did they say?" Tim asked. "Is everything ok?"
"Yes, everything is fine. I'm fine. The baby's fine."
"Ok, good."
"But the ultrasound tech was able to determine the sex."
"What?"
"I didn't find out," Lucy said quickly. "I want us to find out together. So…"
She slipped out of his hold, walked out of the bathroom, and went over to the table next to her side of the bed. She slid open a small drawer and grabbed the envelope that Gloria had given her.
"What's that?" Tim asked, following her into the bedroom.
"Inside it'll tell us the sex of our baby. We don't have to open it, but…"
"Open it!" Tim exclaimed.
Lucy laughed. She sat down on the bed and he sat beside her. She opened the envelope and pulled out the paper. It was folded in thirds.
"Take my hand," Lucy said.
Tim took her hand. She unfolded the paper and they both read the words.
"It's a girl," Tim read out loud.
"It's a girl," Lucy echoed.
Tim was shocked. "It's a girl," he said again. "We're having a girl."
Lucy turned her head to look at him. He looked completely shell shocked.
"Are you happy?"
"I'm just…I thought…I assumed we'd always have boys. I don't know why…I just…we're having a girl. I'm going to be a girl dad."
"You are."
Tears sprang to Tim's eyes. He hugged Lucy tightly, which, in turn, made her cry.
"I'm so happy," Tim stated as he continued to cry. "A girl. We're having a little girl."
"And you are going to be one hell of a good girl dad."
"Hell yeah, I am."
He kissed her, slowly at first and then with more fervor. She reciprocated, letting the paper she was still holding flutter to the floor. Tim undid the belt of her robe, revealing her nakedness underneath. She began to unbutton the buttons on his police uniform.
"Have I ever told you how sexy you are in this uniform?" Lucy practically growled.
He responded by kissing her.
As the sun started to come up, Lucy opened her eyes. She was only centimeters from Tim's face and he was staring at her. He had a hand on her stomach and he reached over his other hand to brush some of her hair aways from her cheek.
"Were you watching my sleep?" She asked.
"It's one of my favorite things to do, " he responded.
Lucy felt the baby move and Tim smiled. He had felt it too.
"The baby is hungry," Lucy stated.
"I'll make my famous pancakes. But first I just want to lay with you for a few minutes."
"Mm…I'd like that."
She nuzzled her face into his neck.
"Tell me your somedays," Tim said.
Lucy sighed happily. It was a little game they had played many times throughout the years.
"I don't have any," she answered honestly. "You've made all of them come true already."
"I have one," Tim said. "Someday, when our kids are grown and have gone off to make a difference in the world in whatever way they choose to, we're going to be here…still in love, just us. Just together."
"I like that."
"And maybe still making love against those French doors."
Lucy laughed. They kissed longingly and both felt at peace because they no longer had to wait for their somedays to come true.