Chapter 16 #2
“Then we’ll make sure it’s done right. I’ll call you back in a few hours once I’ve done some research. In the meantime, take care of that little boy.”
After Arthur hung up, Chloe and I sat in silence for a moment, processing what had just happened.
“So,” Chloe said finally, a small smile playing at her lips despite the seriousness of the situation. “We’re taking Leo home.”
“If you’re okay with that,” I said, searching her face. “This is happening fast. This morning we were talking about co-parenting arrangements, and now—”
“Now he’s ours,” Chloe finished, and the certainty in her voice made my chest tight. “Arthur said take him home, so we take him home. We’ll figure out the rest as we go.”
I reached for her hand. “Are you sure?”
Chloe looked toward the door, where we could hear Leo’s excited voice explaining something to Sarah. When she looked back at me, there was no hesitation in her expression. “I’m sure,” she said simply. “Let’s go get your son.”
We opened the door to find Leo sitting exactly where we’d left him, now teaching Sarah the proper way to hold a puppy without waking it up.
“You have to support the bottom,” he was explaining with utmost seriousness, “and be very, very gentle. Dr. Chloe says puppies need lots of sleep to grow big and strong.”
“You’re an excellent teacher,” Sarah said, catching our eyes over Leo’s head. The question was clear: Everything okay?
Chloe gave a small nod.
“Leo,” I said, crouching down beside him. “How would you like to come home with Chloe and me for a while?”
Leo looked up at me with those brown eyes that were so much like mine. “Can I bring my truck?” He clutched his backpack protectively.
“Yes, you can,” Chloe said gently. “And we’ll make sure you have everything you need.”
“What about the puppies?” Leo’s face fell slightly. “Who’s going to make sure they’re okay?”
“Sarah will take very good care of them,” Chloe promised. “And you know what? You can come visit them tomorrow if you want. They’d love to see you again.”
Leo’s face brightened. “Really?”
“Really.” Chloe held out her hand. “Ready to go?”
Leo took her hand without hesitation, then reached for mine with his other hand. And just like that, we walked out of the clinic as a family.
The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur of logistics and small moments that felt monumental.
We stopped by the store to pick up essentials – pajamas in Leo’s size, a toothbrush with cartoon characters on it, underwear, socks, and a few simple outfits. Leo was quiet through most of it, clutching his truck and watching everything with wide, cautious eyes.
When we reached the shirt section, Chloe crouched down to his level. “Would you like to pick some shirts you like?” she asked gently.
Leo’s eyes widened slightly, as if he hadn’t expected to be asked. “I can pick?”
“Show us which ones you like,” Chloe replied.
Leo carefully selected three shirts – one with a dinosaur, one with a dog, and one with stars. Simple choices, but the way his face lit up when we put them in the cart brought tears to my eyes. I blinked them away, looking down at the cart.
At home, Chloe showed Leo the guest room. “This can be your room for now,” she said. “We’ll make it more comfortable for you tomorrow, okay? Maybe get some things to decorate it how you like.”
“It’s nice,” Leo said, sitting on the edge of the bed with his truck. “Mommy said you’d take care of me. She said I’d be safe here.”
The casual way he accepted it broke something in me. Like being handed off to relative strangers was just another day in his short life.
“You are safe here,” I said, sitting beside him. “We’re going to take very good care of you, buddy.”
Leo nodded solemnly. “When is Mommy coming back??”
I looked at Chloe, who’d settled on Leo’s other side. We hadn’t discussed how to handle this question, what to tell a four-year-old about abandonment and parental rights and legal processes he couldn’t possibly understand.
“Your mommy had to go away for a while,” Chloe said gently. “But you’re going to stay here with us, and we’re going to make sure you’re happy and safe. Is that okay?”
Leo thought about this, his small face serious. “Will she forget about me like Daddy David did?”
“No, buddy,” I said, my voice rough. “She won’t forget about you. Sometimes grown-ups have to make really hard choices, and your mommy decided you’d be happiest here with us.”
“Okay.” Leo accepted this with the resilience of a child who’d already learned that adults were unpredictable. “Can we have dinner? I’m hungry.”
We made spaghetti – or rather, Chloe and I made spaghetti while Leo sat at the kitchen counter telling us about each of the puppies, which he’d named while we were talking to Arthur.
“Trouble is my favorite,” he confided. “She’s the smallest, but she’s the bravest. She always climbs out of the basket first.”
“Sounds like someone I know,” Chloe said, meeting my eyes with a small smile.
After dinner, we watched a movie curled up on the couch – one of those animated films about talking animals that Leo had mentioned wanting to see. He fell asleep halfway through, his head on Chloe’s lap, his truck clutched against his chest.
“He’s out,” I whispered.
“Let him sleep,” Chloe said, her hand gently stroking his hair. “He’s had a big day.”
We sat there in the flickering light of the TV, neither of us willing to move and disturb him.
Eventually, I carefully lifted Leo and carried him to his room. He stirred slightly as I laid him on the bed, his eyes fluttering open.
“Sam-Sam?”
“Right here, buddy. Just getting you to bed.”
Chloe appeared with the new pajamas we’d bought. Between the two of us, we managed to get Leo changed and tucked in, his truck placed carefully beside his pillow.
“Will you be here in the morning?” Leo asked, his voice drowsy.
“We’ll be right down the hall,” Chloe promised. “And we’ll make pancakes for breakfast if you want.”
“With chocolate chips?”
“If that’s what you want.”
“Okay.” Leo’s eyes drifted closed. “Night, Sam-Sam. Night, Dr. Chloe.”
“Goodnight, Leo,” we said together.
We stood in the doorway for a moment, watching him sleep. His small chest rising and falling, his face peaceful in a way it hadn’t been all day. Safe. Protected. Ours.
Downstairs, Chloe and I collapsed onto the couch, exhausted.
“So,” I said after a long silence. “We have a kid.”
“We have a kid,” Chloe agreed, then let out a slightly hysterical laugh. “This morning I was worried about being back at work too soon. Now I’m a… what am I? Stepmother? Guardian?”
“You’re Dr. Chloe,” I said, taking her hand. “And apparently that’s exactly who he needs.”
She was quiet for a moment, her thumb tracing circles on the back of my hand. “I meant what I said. About being sure. But Sam, this is happening so fast. What if I mess it up? What if I’m not good at this?”
“You were amazing with him today,” I said. “The way you talked to him at the clinic, the way you let him choose his own clothes, the way you answered his questions about his mom without lying but without scaring him. You knew exactly what to do.”
“I was making it up as I went along.”
“So was I.” I pulled her closer. “But we’re doing it together. That’s what matters.”
Chloe rested her head on my shoulder. “What happens now? With the legal stuff, I mean. Arthur said it would be complicated.”
“He’ll call when he knows more. But in the meantime, we just… take care of Leo. One day at a time.” I paused. “Are you really okay with this? With everything changing so fast?”
She looked up at me. “We’re his family now.”
“We’re his family now,” I repeated, and something settled in my chest.
We sat there in the quiet house, Leo sleeping upstairs, the future uncertain but somehow less frightening than it had been this morning.
We didn’t have all the answers. We didn’t know what tomorrow would bring, or how long the legal process would take, or what challenges we’d face as instant parents to a four-year-old who’d been through more upheaval than any child should.
But we had each other. And we had Leo.