Chapter 12 #2
Many hours (which felt like days) later, everyone had finally arrived, with Olivia’s family arriving last even though they had the shortest drive.
After setting out drinks and snacks, Carter, Eliza, and I snuck upstairs to get ourselves prepared. We changed into our outfits, then headed back down stairs as naturally as possible.
I tossed the onesie that matched our T-shirts over my shoulder. My mom was the first one to notice our wardrobe change. “Are those matching shirts?” she asked.
She put her glasses on to read the words that said “Official Member of the Miller-Cooper Clan.”
“That’s cute,” my mom said with a giggle, clearly not catching on to what we were getting at. When I laid the onesie down on the coffee table, her eyes went wide. They moved from me to Eliza and became even wider. “Wait. Does this mean what I think it does?”
That caught everyone else’s attention and we were soon surrounded by our families, who were reading our shirts and slowly figuring out what it meant.
I nodded in response to their questions. “Yes. We will be adopting Eliza’s baby, and unofficially, adopting Eliza into the family as well. They will both live here with us.”
“I’m going to be the really cool big sister,” Eliza added excitedly.
Our announcement was followed by an eruption of cheers, shouts, and hugs. Everyone congratulated us while also asking what they could do to help.
“Funny you should mention that,” I said with a laugh. “As much as we wanted you all here to tell you in person, there is another, more selfish, reason.”
“We need help!” Carter shouted out before I could.
I nodded. “We do. There’s a nursery that needs to be done. Plus, I’m sure Eliza could use some help getting her room to look exactly how she wants it.”
Olivia jumped to her feet. “I’m in! Tell me where you need me.”
“Me too.” Ronan kissed his muscles. “I’m here for all of your manual labor needs.”
Everyone else quickly agreed. The only problem now was who was left to entertain our nieces and nephew.
When Carter brought that up, Eliza raised her hand. “Since there’s not a ton I can do to help, I’d love to hang out with the kids. It’ll make me feel like I’m contributing.”
“Perfect.” I clapped my hands together. “Let’s get to work.”
With everyone working together, even though it took hours, we were able to complete the nursery in one day.
The walls were painted sky blue with fluffy clouds and rainbows. The crib was white with a gray fitted sheet and yellow blanket. There was a small dresser in the room that was also white. Above the crib, we left a spot to hang the baby’s name (once we figured out what that was).
After the work was complete, I ordered pizza and wings for everyone as a thank you. When I was done eating, my mom asked me if we could talk privately, so I took her into the backyard and we sat by the lake.
“What’s up?” I asked her as I stared at the sun that was setting behind the lake.
My mom put her arm around me and pulled me in close.
“I just wanted to tell you how proud I am of you. I’ve always been proud of you, but these past few years, you really exceeded all of my wildest dreams for you.
You moved to Maryland to help Carter with her grandma, own your own business, and are now providing a home to not just one, but two, children who need it. ”
I shrugged. “It’s really no big deal. I’m doing what is right.”
“What’s right isn’t always easy. You never were one to take the easy way though,” my mom joked.
“Right?” I laughed. “If I was, there’s no way I would be with Carter. That girl definitely didn’t make it easy on me.”
“But look at you two now.”
“Look at us now.” My voice was filled with awe, because I really was in awe of the life we had created together.
“I’m not just proud of you,” my mom said. “I’m also so, so happy for you. You’re glowing.”
I felt like I was glowing, but it was neat to know that I wasn’t the only one who noticed it. “Don’t they say people get a pregnancy glow? Maybe this is a pregnancy-adjacent glow.”
“I think this is the glow of everything coming together exactly as it was meant to.”
“I just wish Eliza didn’t have to go through so much to make this happen.” It still broke my heart and kept me from being 100% happy about where we had ended up. A young girl’s life had to shatter completely for ours to fall together.
“You know what I see when I look at Eliza?”
When I shook my head, my mom continued. “I see a young woman who has been imprisoned for years and finally feels like she can breathe again. I wish she hadn’t been given the family she had for the first sixteen years of her life, but I think the family she has now will more than make up for that.”
I used my sleeve to wipe the tears that my mom’s words had caused. “Thank you so much for saying that. I know I’m the more go with the flow one in my relationship, but that doesn’t mean I don’t question whether or not I’m doing the right thing.”
“You are doing the right thing and so much more.”
My mom and I continued to sit and chat until the sun was completely gone and the stars dotted the black sky. Eventually, she announced that she was getting tired and wanted to see what my dad was up to and headed back inside.
I continued to sit by the lake reflecting on my life. I was about to stand up when a hand landed on my shoulder and someone sat down next to me.
“So, two kids, huh?” Olivia asked.
“Two kids. Although, one is technically not too far from being an adult.”
“If my own life is anything to go by, she definitely won't stop needing you at eighteen. I’m mostly self-sufficient at this point, but even at thirty-five, I have no idea what I would do without my moms.”
I sighed as I thought about my own mom and the conversation we had just shared. “Me either. My mom and dad are my rocks. It’s one thing I hate about getting older. It means that they’re getting older too.”
“Eh,” Olivia waved her hand. “They have plenty of time, don’t worry. Their grandkids will keep them young.”
I stared at the night sky for a long time before speaking again. “When we were in college, did you ever think we would end up here?”
Olivia laughed. “I always hoped you would end up with my sister, but I never thought it would actually happen. No offense. You’re just the complete opposite of Marcie.”
Now I laughed. “Thank god for that.”
“To answer your question, this life is so much better than anything I could have imagined when we were in college. I’m married to the perfect guy and together we have an adorable daughter.
I live close to my parents. And my best friend is also my sister-in-law.
I’m not sure if things can really get any better than this. ”
“Let’s make a pact.”
Olivia looked over at me and quirked her eyebrow, clearly unsure where I was going with this.
“Let’s make a pact to do everything in our power to make sure things get even better from here. I know it’s hard, but with the two of us and our spouses and kids, I know we can do it.”
Olivia stuck her pinky out toward me as if we were two kids in elementary school making a promise on the playground. “I promise.”
I wrapped my pinky finger around hers. “To the best adult life anyone could ever dream of.”
“But not too adult,” Olivia added.
We giggled together like we used to back in college.
“What’s so funny over here?” Carter asked as she walked over to join us.
I was about to answer when Olivia put her hand up to stop me. “Top secret best friend stuff.”
“Ah. Okay, I get it.” Carter put both hands in the air. “No more questions, I promise.”
Olivia stood up and brushed off her legs. “I’m going to go check on my child and give you new moms some much needed alone time.” She lifted her eyebrows and pointed a finger at us. “Just remember that it may be dark, but we can still see you from in there.”
“She’s insane,” Carter said as she sat down beside me.
“She’s your sister,” I joked.
Carter shook her head. “We’ve been over this. I didn’t choose her. You did.”
I put my hand on my chest. “My heart chose her.”
Carter laughed and rested her head on my shoulder. “Today was such a good day.”
“It really was.” I yawned. “I can’t believe how much we got done.”
“We’re really lucky to have the people we do in our lives.”
“We’re really lucky for a lot of reasons.”
“We really are.” Carter cuddled even closer to me. “I love you so much.”
“I love you too, babe.” My heart tugged as I said the words, because I meant them with every last part of me.
“I can’t believe in just a few weeks, we’ll have a high school junior.”
Her reminder was terrifying and exhilarating all at once. “I have no idea how to take care of a newborn, let alone a fully grown person. How the hell do we do it?”
“The same way we do everything else.” Carter lifted her head to kiss my cheek. “With love.”
With love. My heart tugged even harder now.