See the Joy - Chapter 9

From home to home, and heart to heart, from one place to another

The warmth and joy of Christmas, brings us closer to each other. – Emily Matthews

Kate bites her lip, watching Lily come trudging out of her classroom. She'd been warned in an email from Lily's teacher that the girl was in a funk and had been since sometime around mid-morning, but seeing the evidence of said mood is certainly compelling.

"Hey, Little Flower, what's that face for?" she asks, tilting her head. Lily is usually the spunkiest, most bubbly force around, especially at this time of year (because, though she resembles Kate in physical appearance, she truly is Richard Castle's mini-me in spirit).

"Nothing," Lily mumbles, walking past her to pick up her art projects from her designated space on the wall.

Kate exhales, knowing that's not at all true. "It's just me today, Lil," she murmurs, moving to help her gather the treasures. "Daddy's getting your brothers, and he has Eva, too. So, what do you say we get a hot chocolate, and you can tell me what's on your mind?"

Lily shakes her head. "Nothing, Mommy."

Another refusal to accept that is on the tip of her tongue, but she licks her lips and lets it go. Lily will tell her when she wants to; there's no amount of prodding that will make it happen sooner. In that respect, she's exactly like Kate.

"Can I help you carry all of that?" she asks instead, holding out a hand.

Lily hesitates for a moment before nodding and allowing Kate to take some of the art projects from her hands.

Kate holds them delicately, following Lily to the school doors and then reaching for her hand to cross the street to get to her car.

It's the smaller of the two vehicles they have, her father's old jeep, while Rick drives the newer – larger – car they'd bought before Eva was born. It's functional, less flashy than the other one, but Lily always seems to love riding with her anyway.

"Brought your future car today," she says, swinging Lily's hand. That gets a smile from her little girl.

"I love my car," Lily sighs dreamily.

Kate chuckles, thumbing the back of her hand. "I know you do, baby."

Lily instructs her to be careful storing the artwork as she climbs into the backseat and buckles herself into her car seat. She's almost too big for it, Kate realizes, watching her squirm out of her puffy pink coat to get comfortable; they'll have to switch her to a booster seat soon. For now, though, she's fine. Safe. Settling in while Kate rounds the car and climbs into the driver's seat.

"Whatcha think, Little Flower?" she asks, looking back at her daughter in the mirror. "Should we get a treat and relax for an hour before going home? Or do you wanna go straight home and cuddle and rest?"

Lily rests her chin on her chest. "A treat, please?"

"Sounds great, honey. Warm or cold?"

"Warm."

"Let's do it," she says, winking. "You get comfortable and we'll be there before you know it."

Kate glances back, making sure the car behind her isn't too close before pulling away from the curb. She watches as Lily sinks deeper into her seat and turns her head to watch the sidewalk disappear in a blur.

A sniff breaks the silence, loud over the Christmas music Kate's been rationing listening to for the last two (more, to be honest, since it started about a week and a half before Thanksgiving) weeks.

"Hey, hey," she murmurs, reaching her hand back and hoping she'll be able to make contact with Lily's knee. "What's going on?"

Lily's fingers grip hers tightly as a sob falls from the girl's mouth. "Is Lexi going away forever?"

Kate winces. Damn it, they should have seen this coming. Two nights ago, Alexis had called and broken the news that she is not coming back to New York for Christmas this year. Between a crazy work schedule and an invitation to spend the holiday with her fiancé's family, she won't be making it back to the loft until at least a couple of days after Christmas, closer to New Year's.

"No, sweetheart. She's not going away forever. She's just…"

"She's not coming this year!" Lily wails. "For Christmas! 'Cause, 'cause, 'cause, she has a new family!"

Kate shifts in her seat, giving her shoulder socket a little bit of relief as she steers toward the little coffee shop not far from the park. "Lily," she starts, dragging her teeth over her lip. How to explain to an almost-seven-year-old that her much older sister is getting married, and all that entails. "Alexis is adding to our family, not getting a new one."

"No, Mommy, s'a all new one."

"Well, it is going to be a new branch of our family, but Liam and his parents aren't replacing any of us."

Lily starts to argue, but Kate squeezes her hand first, indicating that she needs to think about her words before she speaks.

"There's nobody that could ever replace you, or Jake, or Reece, or Eva. But because Alexis is getting married to Liam, that means there will be times when she spends holidays with him and his mom and dad, and maybe even his brother and sister, too."

"But why?" Lily cries softly. "She's my Lexi. My sister."

Kate thumbs her hand again before taking her fingers back long enough to turn the jeep into the small (ridiculously small, just a few spaces; there's a reason they usually walk here) parking area behind the coffee shop. It's a tight squeeze, but she manages to park and keep them from having to walk a few blocks.

She slips out of the car and rounds to get Lily, opening the back door and leaning against the seat.

Her fingers brush her daughter's forehead and move down her cheeks, swiping at the tear tracks.

"I know it's hard to understand, Little Flower. But Alexis loves you so much; she wouldn't want you to be sad at all. You'll miss her at Christmas, I know. But we'll see her a few days later, and there'll be so much time to tell her everything we got up to on Christmas Day. Plus, you'll have Grampa, and Gram, and all the fun things Daddy's planning. Plus, I think Uncle Kevin and Aunt Jenny are bringing everybody over on Christmas Eve, too, and you'll get to play and have fun."

"I miss Lexi," Lily whispers, lifting wet eyes to meet Kate's. "She's never coming home again; she's been gone forever. I wish she could come home forever and ever."

Kate kisses her forehead. "She'll come home again, baby. Just not for Christmas this year. Next year, she and Liam will be with us. She told me so. She's not going anywhere forever. Just splitting her time."

"You promise?" Lily asks, sniffing pitifully.

"I promise, doodlebug. We can call her when we get home and she'll tell you herself, how's that?"

Her daughter nods, swiping at her eyes and rubbing a hand under her nose.

Kate grimaces. She loves her kids, but oh, could she do without the snot. Instead of commenting, though, she reaches into the center console for a tissue and holds it out to her daughter.

Lily blows her nose, equally as loud and dramatic as this entire outburst has been.

Kate rubs her knee, giving her a few minutes to compose herself. Once her tears have dried and her breathing has returned to something resembling normal, Kate unbuckles her seatbelt and holds out her arms. "Why don't we have our treat now and then we'll go home and call your sister?"

Lily snuggles into her arms, heaving an exhale. "Okay, Mommy. Ca' I have a cake pop too?"

Kate huffs a laugh into her hair. "Of course. Come on."

Hefting Lily into her arms, she carries the girl through the parking lot and into the coffee shop. She's almost positive that she's not going to be able to make one of her daughter's wishes come true, but she can manage cake pops and hot cocoa.

Thank you for reading. I appreciate your patience as this week has taken so very much out of me. Just one more day, though!

Prompt: Wishes