Summary: Everyone's greeted by a friendly familiar face at the office while Audrey learns a little more about how her parents coped after she went missing from Naomi while she hangs around the office.
"How…?" Addison started until she saw Pete smiling back awkwardly.
"I'm sorry, I didn't realize it was a secret," Pete chuckled.
"It's not…I…yes, I did date both Pete and Sam," Addison said, switching between talking to Pete and talking to Audrey.
"So…Cooper's the only guy you haven't dated here?" Audrey asked, thinking back on everyone she'd met this morning. Pete couldn't help but laugh, which made Addison laugh along.
"Yes. Apparently," Addison shook her head, chuckling.
"It took me a few years to figure out how to settle in here. I mean, professionally, I've always loved the job - it's why I stayed after moving here on a whim, but…the personal stuff? That took some more time to get a better grip on," Addison admitted.
Audrey nodded. She couldn't pretend like she could understand adult relationships, considering she'd never had a boyfriend or girlfriend or any kind of romantic relationship, so she took her mother at her word. It was also then that she realized the Sam she'd met this morning was the same Sam that Mark was talking about in the car when he was talking to Amelia months ago.
"Now, come on, enough about my…very messy love life. Let's get lunch," Addison chuckled, wrapping an arm around a smiling Audrey and leading her back to her office to grab her purse.
"Hey, you guys ready?" Amelia asked, poking her head through the door.
"Yup. Let's go," Addison said, grabbing her purse before she and Audrey followed Amelia back into the practice reception area and toward the elevator.
When the elevator dinged and the doors opened, an older man stood wearing a suit and tie.
"Sheldon!" Amelia exclaimed, as her face lit up.
"What are you doing here?" Addison asked, equally excited as Sheldon stepped out of the elevator and hugged Amelia first before getting to Addison.
"Well, I heard the good news. You must be Audrey," Sheldon commented, smiling at the girl.
"Yeah. Hi," Audrey said, looking at her mother and aunt, confused.
"Dr. Sheldon Wallace. He's an old friend and colleague," Addison smiled, introducing them.
"I also used to work here," Sheldon smiled warmly. Audrey nodded, smiling. It was an odd pairing, but it made more sense that they became friends while working together.
"Hey, welcome back," Pete smiled after walking over and giving Sheldon a half-hug. Sheldon just chuckled.
"How'd you know about Audrey?" Addison asked. Sheldon looked over at Amelia.
"I may have told him," Amelia admitted. Addison smiled and chuckled.
"Don't tell me you're back and didn't tell anybody," Charlotte said from the end of the hallway before walking over with a smile, hugging their old colleague.
"No," Sheldon chuckled.
"Well, your office is always there for you if you ever do want to come back," Addison said.
"I might just take you up on your offer," Sheldon commented, piquing everyone's interest. He'd always been much more adamantly against it in the past. Of course, that was back when Miranda was still alive, however.
"Retirement's boring. You can only travel around so much before wanting to come home," Sheldon said, making all of them smile wider.
"Well, we would love to have you back," Charlotte said before excusing herself to return to work.
"She's right," Pete said before going back behind the reception desk.
"Why don't you join us for lunch?" Addison suggested.
"I'd love to. My treat," Sheldon smiled before pressing the elevator button to return downstairs.
"Well, I won't say no to a free meal," Amelia joked as they all got behind the elevator doors.
"So, Pete must be happy behind the desk," Sheldon commented after the elevator doors closed.
"He's…doing much better," Addison replied.
"He hates it," Amelia snickered. Addison gave her a scolding look.
"He's been very helpful lately," Addison commented politely.
"That is when he's not trying to eavesdrop on our patient meetings," Amelia added. Addison gave her a scolding look again.
"What? If he's gonna come back, he should know what he's coming back to," Amelia said, defending herself. Addison shook her head and sighed, letting her continue.
"So, he hates it?" Sheldon asked mockingly, chuckling.
"He does, but I think he's gotten better now that he's focusing on making our office more eco-friendly. Dell tried years ago, but there just weren't as many affordable options back then. Now there are," Addison explained.
"Who's Dell?" Audrey asked, curious.
"Our old receptionist. He died a few years ago; he's also Betsey's dad. You'll meet her later, but Naomi took her in after foster care didn't work out for her," Addison replied.
"How is she, anyway?" Sheldon asked curiously.
"Good. She's about to start fifth grade," Addison replied.
"And how's Naomi with two kids in the house?" Sheldon asked, chuckling.
"Hanging in there. Betsey's great, but I think she's a little more concerned with trying to get Michael to take his first steps," Addison laughed, making the rest of them laugh with along.
When they got to the parking lot, they agreed to meet at a nice little Italian bistro nearby before getting in their cars. At the restaurant, they sat down before ordering their food when the server came back to their table.
"So, Audrey, how do you like L.A. so far?" Sheldon asked after the server walked away from their table.
"Good. I haven't been here that long, though," Audrey replied.
"Well, hopefully you like the beach. We've got plenty of it here," Sheldon smiled warmly.
"I heard things got a little complicated in Seattle," Sheldon started gently.
"Yeah," Audrey replied awkwardly. She wasn't sure how much Amelia and her mother told him, and she didn't want to say more than she needed to.
"It's okay; they didn't tell me much, but they told me why you're here now," Sheldon said, trying to make the girl feel comfortable.
"What are you trying to do? Shrink her?" Amelia asked.
"No, I just want her to know that she can talk about it. If she wants to," Sheldon said gently. Audrey looked nervous and confused, unsure of what she should say or do.
"You have any references?" Addison asked, knowing where Sheldon was heading. He was never great at beating around the bush.
"I do, actually. That is, if you're willing," Sheldon said.
"He's trying to set you up with a therapist. And I guess Addie is, too," Amelia informed Audrey.
"Only if you're open to it," Addison insisted, wanting to make sure her daughter knew she wasn't forcing her into anything she wasn't comfortable with.
"I mean…I guess I'm not not against it. I don't really know," Audrey admitted honestly.
"That's okay. You don't need to know right now. My friend; he also does family counseling if you and your ex are interested," Sheldon added, going between addressing Audrey and Addison.
"I can't speak for Derek, but I'm open to it if Audrey is," Addison said.
"I've been in therapy on and off over the years. First, after you went missing and a few years ago when I was trying to get pregnant. And then again when I came back to L.A. after Mark found you," Addison added, hoping it'd make her daughter feel more comfortable.
It wasn't something she talked about much, but she hoped that her talking about it would help her daughter understand the importance of it the way her colleagues had done the same over the years.
As they looked at Audrey, she thought about the idea of going to therapy as well as family therapy. She'd never really thought about it before, but she also felt like she didn't know much about the overall process other than what she'd seen in movies. Maybe therapy wouldn't be such a bad idea after everything she'd been through over the past few months.
"I'll think about it," Audrey said after thinking about it for a minute as Sheldon pulled a business card out of his wallet, handing it over to Addison.
"There's no rush. Just…take your time," Sheldon insisted, smiling warmly before the server came back with their food.
"Wait, why can't you be my therapist?" Audrey asked, confused.
"It's better to have a therapist who isn't your friend. A lesson people in our office never quite seemed to understand," Sheldon replied, making Addison and Amelia giggle.
"I feel like I've been everyone's therapist at one point or another in the office," Sheldon added, clueing Audrey in.
"We're a…tight-knit group," Addison commented.
"You could say that again," Amelia joked, as everyone chuckled.
"I came to him when I found out Bizzy was a lesbian," Addison said, laughing over it now. Audrey's eyes widened curiously.
"Pete did, too, after his heart attack," Sheldon added.
"And Pete went to Violet before he worked here," Addison commented, surprising all three of them.
"Of course he did," Amelia commented sarcastically.
"And somehow, he still went to work here," Sheldon commented, making them all laugh along.
"Can I ask a question?" Audrey asked after everyone's laughs subsided.
"Anything," Addison said.
"If I do go to therapy, does that mean my mom and dad will know what I say about them?" Audrey asked hesitantly.
"No. Your sessions, everyone's sessions, really, are completely private. You don't have to worry about anything getting back to your parents or anyone else unless your doctor thinks you're in danger of hurting yourself or committing a crime. And they'll obviously know in your shared sessions if you guys end up going to family therapy sessions," Sheldon explained patiently. Audrey nodded, understanding.
"So, Sheldon, what are you really doing back here?" Amelia asked, suspicious after giving it a minute to sink in. They'd kept in touch, and she'd called him after finding out about Audrey being alive, but he hadn't made a visit back to the practice since he'd worked there.
"You know, besides giving us your shrink spiel?" Amelia joked. They all chuckled.
"Honestly? I missed you; all of you. Retirement is…boring. And quiet. Put me back to work, Addison. Please," Sheldon said. Amelia's eyes lit up as she looked over at Addison.
"We would love to have you back, Sheldon," Addison smiled as their server came by with their food.
"So, how are you, Sheldon? Really?" Addison asked. She knew losing Miranda had been hard on him a few months prior.
"Traveling was great, and Miranda…I don't regret any of that, but I just…I'm trying to look forward. That's what we tell our patients, right?" Sheldon asked, chuckling. Addison and Amelia smiled back reassuredly.
"I just…I thought I was done; I don't wanna start all over again," Sheldon sighed.
"Well, if anyone knows how that feels, it's me," Addison said, putting her hand over his on the table.
"I thought my life was over, too, Sheldon. I didn't just lose a child, I lost a husband. In Manhattan, I was that woman; the one who lost a baby. In Seattle, I was the divorcee whose husband was dating an intern. I couldn't win, and it felt like I was stuck being this…version of myself; one that reminded me of the worst times of my life and one I didn't want people to see me as. I didn't want to be the woman with the missing kid and I didn't want to be some scorned ex-wife. I just wanted to be…me. All of me. So, I moved. I wouldn't be here now if I hadn't just…taken the leap, you know? It sucked - don't get me wrong, but believe me when I say that sometimes starting over is a good thing," Addison added.
Audrey took in her mother's words. She'd never really thought about that part of the kidnapping before; she knew it devastated her mother and that it took her a long time, but Audrey never realized that it wasn't just about losing her. It was also about how the people around treated her; her friends, her colleagues, her family. A missing kid, a divorce - it all screamed of pity. That's how people treated her mother; how they saw her.
Weak and contempt were not words Audrey would use to describe her mother; Addison was quite the opposite in her eyes, but perhaps after all that heartbreak and turmoil, how else would people describe her? No wonder she moved here, Audrey thought. If there was any silver lining to any of this, it was that her mother was happy here and that they were reunited as mother and daughter now.
"You also had plenty of reason to start over. I don't have half of that," Sheldon said.
"Sheldon, you have every right to want to start over. It's not a competition," Addison said gently.
"I know, that's not…that's not what I mean. I just…I don't even know where to start. And you went out of state; I'm…right back where I started. Well, not started, per se, but I'm back to…where I left off," Sheldon said.
"There's nothing wrong with that," Addison said.
"I'm also old," Sheldon said, half-jokingly. Amelia couldn't help but chuckle.
"I wasn't exactly young when I started over," Addison chuckled.
"Well, yes, but you were more than ten years younger than I am now. We're talking about starting over when I'm in my 50s," Sheldon pointed out.
"It doesn't matter, Sheldon. There isn't an age limit on starting over, believe me, I thought there was, too. I thought moving to LA to work for some little practice with my best friend in med school after working at hospitals for my entire career was crazy, but it ended up being the best decision I've ever made. I almost didn't come here and thought I'd go back to New York and just go to work at a different hospital or something, but I didn't. There's nothing wrong with starting over, no matter how old you are, and it's okay that it's not a complete do-over. I, for one, am very happy to get you back," Addison smiled.
"Thank you, Addison," Sheldon smiled back, appreciative.
"I second that," Amelia added.
They continued eating lunch until they finished, talking about everything that had happened with Audrey up to that point and more about Sheldon's travels over the past two years. Audrey had never done any traveling, really, other than when she road-tripped from Toledo to Seattle with Robert and Eleanor, and then when she flew on a plane for the first time, going from Seattle to Los Angeles.
The more they talked, the more Audrey realized her mom had been all over, making her wonder if she'd get to do the same someday. She hoped so. It'd always been her dream to go around Europe. By the sound of it, Addison had been numerous times, and Sheldon talked about how much he loved Barcelona, despite only knowing a handful of words and phrases in Spanish.
"Well, I guess I should let you girls get back to work. Or, well, at least you two," Sheldon said as they finished lunch and he paid the check.
"I'll get the paperwork started. You'll be back in no time," Addison smiled as they all got up from the table.
"Thank you, Addison. Really. It means a lot," Sheldon added.
"Of course. You're family, Sheldon," Addison said as they all walked out of the restaurant.
"Thanks for lunch," Audrey said.
"Anytime," Sheldon said before he got into his car, and Addison, Amelia, and Audrey got into Addison's car.
After they got back to the practice, Amelia went back to her office while Addison led Audrey back into hers. Addison had a patient coming in soon, so she gave Audrey the same spiel as before, saying she'd be back later, that she had her phone on her if she needed anything, and that the kitchen was open if she got hungry later. Audrey spent most of the day with her head buried in the books she'd brought, finishing the one she started last night and starting a new one within the first few hours.
Audrey moved from Addison's office to the kitchen later in the day to get a change of scenery and for a snack. She was minding her own business, eating some potato chips, and reading her book when she heard someone come in.
"Quit starin' at her, will ya?" Charlotte asked, looking back as she went straight for the fridge. Audrey looked up and saw Violet and Naomi coming in hesitantly.
"We're sorry; we didn't mean to stare. We were just…curious," Violet started.
"You look so much like your mom, and I haven't seen you since you were a newborn," Naomi added apologetically.
"Do you…do you remember anything? From when I was a baby, I mean," Audrey asked.
"I remember…seeing you say Mama for the first time. Derek somehow got it on video while trying to get you to say, Dada, believe it or not," Naomi chuckled, reminiscing about watching the video in her email for the first time.
"We had just opened here a few months earlier, and we were busy doing this and that - you know, just general…things you do when you start a business, and I just saw an email from your mom with the subject line, First word, with like five exclamation points. I watched it in my office over there, and I swear I was just giggling like an idiot," Naomi recounted, pointing out her office down the hall as she talked.
"I remember that! You went around to show all of us, too. You were a very cute baby," Violet added.
"Really?" Audrey asked, her face lighting up.
"Yeah. I remember when we came to visit after you went missing and…I tried playing the video for your parents to cheer them up and…well, Addie watched and couldn't get through it without crying, and Derek…he…walked away. Actually, he left. He couldn't even be in the same house. Sam went and found him outside," Naomi said, her voice getting quiet while recounting the memory. She didn't realize until halfway through the story that maybe she shouldn't be telling Addison's daughter this, but it was too late now.
~ 13 years earlier ~
"Derek," Sam said as his friend walked out the front door.
They'd just lost their child to some psychopath a week ago, and Naomi was just trying to make them feel better. And here his friend was, braving the Manhattan weather while leaving his wife alone inside. Well, not alone. Naomi was there, but without Derek, Sam theorized that Addison felt alone. Even if she'd been in a crowded room, she'd still feel alone without him.
"Derek, what are you doing?" Sam asked, seeing his friend standing in front of the steps of his and Addison's brownstone, rubbing his hands together for warmth. Derek didn't answer him.
"Derek. Your wife needs you right now. In there," Sam said, his voice sterner as he pointed toward the door they'd just walked out of.
"Nai's got her," Derek said, unable to stand still as he continued rubbing his hands together and breathed onto them to keep warm.
"Naomi's not enough," Sam said, keeping his tone stern.
"I just…I can't, okay? I can't," Derek said, being short with his friend as his voice wavered. Sam waited for the inevitable explanation.
"I can't watch that…goddamn video of my daughter laughing and smiling at me like…like she's still here. Like…like she's still alive," Derek said, his voice getting louder as he got angrier.
"It's only been a week. She could still be out there," Sam said encouragingly.
"You don't know that. You don't know where she went or why or if she's still out there; no one does. And I can't…I don't know if I can keep believing she still is. I can barely even be in that goddamn house, let alone watch that video," Derek said.
Sam didn't know what to say. He knew exactly where his daughter was and that she was safe with her grandparents. With his in-laws back in Pasadena. He and Naomi had called numerous times, double-checking or even triple-checking that she was there. Blame it on it being the first time leaving Maya for more than a day without them or blame it on one of their best friends losing their daughter a week ago. Take your pick. Either way, they found themselves becoming overly cautious parents over the past week.
"Addison still needs you, Derek," Sam finally said. There wasn't anything he could say to make him feel better. He couldn't get Audrey back, he couldn't find the man who took her, and he couldn't reassure him that she was alive. All he could do was trust the police could figure it out and hope that their little girl was okay by the end of it.
"I can't…I…I feel sick. That house…I…I bought that house for the three of us. It was supposed to be full of life and…love. It just feels…haunted," Derek said.
He knew exactly why his house felt haunted; it was like there was a ghost living there. Her ghost, he thought. But it was more than just her ghost. He and Addison felt like shells of themselves now. There was something missing in them now; they felt incomplete. This house they'd lived in since they'd gotten married didn't evoke the same love and warmth it used to. Instead, it just reminded Derek of the people they used to be and the little girl whose laugh used to echo off the walls.
"Addison is still in there. She is still your wife. Your family. You can't just leave her in there all alone. You do that and you'll lose her. I can't tell you I know how you feel because I don't. That would just be…disrespectful. If it were me and if it were Maya, I'd be right where you are now, but I'd…I'd stay; I'd stay and fight. I wouldn't leave Naomi alone in the house the way you are now. I know you've been through a lot this week, but you can't lose her, too," Sam said.
"Can you just…stay out here for another minute?" Derek asked. He wasn't ready to go back in yet.
"Yeah. I'm right here," Sam said, patting his back gently as they stood there in silence for a few minutes.
"Come on," Sam said, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder after a minute, and leading him back into the brownstone.
~ End flashback ~
"Wow," Audrey said. Naomi had told her everything she knew about what happened.
Sam hadn't told her much about his conversation with Derek outside, but he had told her enough. Maybe it was too much for her to be telling Audrey instead of her father telling her, but she couldn't not tell her now. At the very least, it comforted her knowing that Addison would want her to be honest with her daughter.
That night, she and Sam had called her mother, who had Maya with her. She was already getting ready for bed, but Sam and Naomi read her her bedtime story and stayed on the phone until her mother assured her she'd fallen asleep and that she'd keep her safe until they got back from Manhattan.
"I'm glad you came back," Violet commented, smiling.
"Sorry if that's weird to say; I just…I don't know, it felt right to say before it came out of my mouth," Violet said, chuckling awkwardly.
"It's okay. I…I'm glad I'm back, too," Audrey said, smiling back shyly.
"Hey, there you are," Addison said as she peeked into the kitchen door.
"We should…get back to work," Violet said as she and Naomi waved goodbye to Audrey before exiting the kitchen.
"I'm sorry you've just been hanging around the office all day," Addison started, sitting down next to her daughter at the island.
"It's okay. I've gotten a lot of reading done," Audrey replied, making Addison chuckle. She remembered being a big bookworm growing up, too.
"So, I was thinking — and I talked to your dad, too — but it's already August, so I started looking into some schools for you," Addison said.
"Oh. Yeah, that makes sense," Audrey said. She couldn't believe how fast summer had passed by. She'd barely been out of school when she road-tripped to Seattle with Robert and Eleanor.
"There's a few private schools that look good, but I'm gonna talk to your dad more tonight about which one we should go with. But, with that in mind, I thought maybe we could shop for some school supplies and maybe some more clothes," Addison suggested.
"Sure. When?" Audrey asked nonchalantly.
"How's…now?" Addison asked playfully.
"Really? Don't you have to work?" Audrey asked.
"Well, truth be told, I'm just doing half days this week. Just until we figure out more of a…system, or whatever," Addison replied.
"Oh. Right," Audrey said.
"Are you okay with that?" Addison asked.
"Yeah," Audrey replied.
"Great. Let's grab our things and we can go to the mall," Addison said, getting up from her seat, with Audrey following.
"Wait, what about Jake and Henry?" Audrey asked.
"They can meet us later for dinner," Addison replied.
After leaving the kitchen, they picked up their things in Addison's office before heading to the office supply store first. They found a backpack, pencils, pens, highlighters, notebooks, notecards, and pretty much any other school supplies they found in the store. After that, they headed to the mall, getting Audrey more shirts, pants, socks, pajamas, and even a few intimate items, including a few swimsuits so she could swim on the beach and possibly join the swim team in the spring.
Addison did her best to avoid embarrassing her daughter, discreetly asking if she needed any underwear or bras, but failed as Audrey's face turned red. Regardless, Audrey quickly chose a pack of each and buried them at the bottom of the bag before they moved on. They both felt embarrassed, but it also warmed a little part of them as they realized that they got to experience a little bit of mother-daughter normalcy for once without someone reminding them of their storied past.
A/N: Chapter title inspired by the song, Haunted by ken xox. Writing out that flashback really hit me hard, so I hope you guys enjoyed it, as well as the rest of this chapter. As much as we collectively strongly dislike (being a little friendlier here) Sam and Naomi, I have to believe they were Derek and Addison's friends for a reason, so I try to write them as better people when I include them just so there's some justification into why Addison keeps insisting Naomi is her best friend.
But I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, I definitely struggled writing parts of it sometimes, but I felt like it was important for someone, in this case Sheldon, to broach the idea of counseling to Audrey, who's had her entire life changed over the course of just a few months. I am, again, still writing this story and am a handful of chapters ahead writing-wise, but in an attempt to always have content to look forward to, I am trying to stay ahead so that when I do eventually get to finishing this story (and yes, I do have an ending in mind!), I can really focus on writing that out the way I want it to rather than feeling rushed to finish. Comments are always encouraged and you guys have all been very kind so far and I appreciate all of you. Thanks again to all of you for reading! 3
