Epilogue 2 - Trent
Three years after I proposed to my wife in this very house and life was a whirlwind in the best possible way.
Kat had officially graduated from medical school, making the transition from head athletic therapist to sports medicine physician for the Kodiak’s.
We’d had a busy couple of years, balancing her schooling, my expanding responsibilities within our family business, and planning a wedding that felt like us.
It was a quiet Sunday morning in late autumn. I was sitting at the kitchen island, a mug of dark roast coffee between my hands, scrolling through permits for a new residential build, when I heard the bathroom door down the hall click open.
Kat walked into the kitchen, her steps unhurried. She wore an oversized grey crewneck, her dark hair pulled back, and a radiant, breathtaking smile lighting up her face.
She stopped in front of me, reaching out to set a small white stick on top of the napkin beside my mug. Two bold pink lines stared back at me.
"We're going to need to plan a nursery," Kat whispered, her hazel eyes shining with tears.
I stood up so fast my chair scraped loudly against the restored hardwood, and before she could even laugh, I caught her by the waist, lifting her right off her feet and spinning her around the sunlit kitchen.
"Are you serious?" I rasped, setting her down gently and cupping her face in both hands. "Kat... for real? Truly?"
"Truly," she laughed, pressing her hands over mine on her cheeks. "We're adding to our family, Trent."
I pulled her into my chest, burying my face in the crook of her neck, holding her tight as the sheer, overwhelming joy washed over me. No panic or secrets. Just complete, pure happiness.
We hadn’t been trying all that long, but every month that it didn’t happen, I got a little nervous, and I would share my worries with Kat, and she would reassure me with medical facts and sweet words.
But now, we would have a mini version of us running around the house we lovingly brought back to life together.
Our house was filled with the sound of laughter, clinking glasses, and the smell of Kat’s favourite casserole that she had been craving and my mom was all too happy to make on demand.
Gideon was standing near the table holding a tray of vanilla cupcakes, looking like he was about to burst with nervous energy. "Alright, everyone! On three, the parents bite! If it's blue raspberry inside, it's a boy. If it's strawberry cream, it's a girl!"
Leo was sitting on dad’s lap, a yellow party hat slightly crooked on his head, swinging his legs.
Kat stood beside me, her small hand wrapped securely in mine. Her belly was showing now, a rounded bump beneath her fitted green dress. I picked up a cupcake, Kat picked up hers, and Gideon started the countdown.
"One... two... three!"
Kat and I bit into the cupcakes at the exact same time. Bright, vibrant pink strawberry cream filled the centre.
Gideon threw his hands in the air, letting out a deafening roar. "YES! A GIRL! I'm getting her a tiny hockey stick tomorrow!"
Beside him, little Leo crossed his arms over his chest and huffed loudly. "Pink isn't my favourite colour," he complained, making mom burst into laughter as she rubbed his back. "I wanted a baby brother to play trucks with!"
Dad laughed, correcting Leo, “You will be the baby’s uncle, and she will be your niece.”
Leo scrunched up his nose in confusion, as Gideon did a happy dance around the table.
I dropped the rest of my cupcake onto a plate, turned to Kat, and pulled her flush against me. I rested my forehead against hers, my thumb gently tracing the curve of her cheek as tears blurred my vision.
A girl.
I would finally get to meet her.
The hum of the hospital room monitors was the sweetest sound I had ever heard.
It had been twenty-two agonizing hours of labour.
Kat had fought through every brutal contraction with the fierceness she brought to everything in her life, refusing to give up even when exhaustion threatened to pull her under.
I hadn't left her side for a single second, holding her hand, pressing cold cloths to her forehead, and whispering how much I loved her into her hair.
Now, the room was quiet in the early morning light. Kat was sound asleep, her face pale but completely at peace, her dark hair spread across the white pillows.
I was sitting in the armchair beside her bed, holding a tiny, six-pound bundle wrapped tightly in a pink blanket.
Our daughter had a light tuft of dark hair, long eyelashes, and tiny, perfect fingers wrapped around my pinky finger.
"Hey there, Maya," I whispered softly.
I lifted her tiny hand to my lips, pressing a gentle kiss to her warm knuckles.
I looked over at Kat sleeping peacefully, then back down at the little girl in my arms.
"Your mom is the strongest, most amazing woman in the world," I murmured into the quiet room, watching Maya’s little chest rise and fall.
"I dreamed about you for a really long time, little one.
But you are so much better than anything I could have ever imagined.
I promise I'm going to take care of you both for the rest of my life. "
"Kat! Are you two ready yet? Everyone's out back!" I called out from where I was standing in the living room, adjusting the small banner over the fireplace that read: Happy 1st Birthday, Maya!
"We can’t start the party without the birthday girl!" I added.
Footsteps sounded down the hall, and then Kat walked into the living room, holding Maya on her hip.
I turned around, and the breath completely left my lungs. Tears immediately brimmed my eyes, burning hot behind my eyelids.
Maya was wearing a custom, miniature Summit City Kodiak’s hockey jersey with PRESCOTT and the number 1 stitched across the back.
Layered underneath the jersey was a fluffy, bright pink tulle tutu, and matching little white sneakers on her feet.
Her hazel eyes were bright and curious, identical to her mother's, and she had a wide, two-toothed smile plastered across her face.
It was the exact outfit, the exact image, I had pictured in my head years ago during those dark, confusing months.
Kat stopped a few feet away, her soft hazel eyes taking in my tear-filled gaze. She knew.
Over the years, on quiet nights when we lay wrapped in each other's arms in our bed upstairs, Kat would ask me to tell her about the family I had envisioned. She had listened to every detail of the child I had grieved, gently helping me turn those memories into our real, shared future.
Kat stepped closer, resting her free hand against my chest, right over my hammering heart.
"She wanted to dress up for her dad," Kat whispered, her voice laced with affection.
I reached out, wrapping my arm around Kat’s waist and pulling her and Maya tight against me. I leaned down, burying my face in the soft crook of Maya’s neck, making her let out a high-pitched, delighted giggle, before kissing Kat deeply on the lips.
"Thank you," I murmured against Kat’s mouth, as I looked between my wife and my daughter. "Thank you for giving me another chance, Kat. Thank you for our life."
Kat smiled, reaching up to wipe a stray tear from my cheek with her thumb.
"This is the only life I want to live, Prescott," she whispered softly. "Now come on... let's go give our daughter some birthday cake."
Holding my wife’s hand and our daughter snuggled into her side, I walked out into the warm afternoon sunshine, my heart full, grounded, and completely home