Chapter 38
Jade
Jade felt awful. She was beyond exhausted and ready for a few days back home before making her way to New York for the US Open.
It had been a tough couple of days, and while she missed April with every fiber of her being, she knew that this was the right thing to do.
However much she hurt at the moment; she needed April to know that the decision was entirely hers to make.
She had kept herself busy helping injured athletes and living in the hotel gym when she wasn’t needed for work.
She worked out to switch her mind off. Trying every piece of equipment available to stop the spiral of thoughts running in her head like a hamster wheel.
Treadmill, bike, rowing machine, free weights, bench press.
Anything she could do to exhaust her body to the point where she at least would be guaranteed some sleep when night came.
The nights were the worst part. That was their time together. Her hotel room was too quiet, and sleep was the only way to avoid it. Video calling any of her family reminded her of the many video calls with April. That made her ache to hold her partner even more.
She decided to call the one person she knew would cheer her up.
“Auntie Jade!” Sophie’s excited face filled her phone while her niece moved her tablet around before finally sitting still for the call.
“Hey Squirt, how have you been?” Jade asked.
“I’ve been good! Auntie Cleo and Ivy took me and Willow swimming last weekend, it was awesome!
We went to a different place than usual, and this one had a million different slides to go down!
” Jade laughed at the sheer level of energy her niece was giving off as she spoke.
“Auntie Cleo was a scaredy-cat though and wouldn’t go down the biggest one with me, but Ivy did.
She sat on a big blow-up ring, and I sat on her lap, and we went whizzing down so fast we skipped along the top of the pool at the bottom! It. Was. EPIC!”
Jade laughed at Sophie, imagining the look of horror on her sister’s face, but glad that Ivy was brave enough to take their daredevil niece down the tallest slide.
“Did Willow go down that one too?” Jade asked, already knowing the answer about the quiet younger girl.
“No, she was too little for it, but she said it was ok because she’d just stay with Auntie Cleo. They went on two other slides while waiting for me and Ivy to come down the big one.” Sophie grinned, “then we went back to their house for movies and pizza.”
“Did you choose a good movie?” Jade asked, remembering the regular conversations and arguments between her sister and their niece over movie choices.
“Yeah, it was a really old one that Ivy said we’d enjoy.
It was way better than Auntie Cleo’s choice of watching Robots again though.
” They both laughed at that. Jade couldn’t count the number of times her sister must have watched the animated movie.
“It was about a boy in a library, and he goes inside different cartoon books. It was so fun, but Willow got a bit scared at one part, so she got to sit on Auntie Cleo’s lap for a while. ”
“Oh, I think I remember that one, it has the same little boy in it that’s in the Christmas movie you love with the bandits, doesn’t it?” Jade checked.
“Yes! That’s him!” Sophie practically shouted over the phone. “We then got to have a sleepover too. It was the best!”
"I’m glad you had fun. I’m looking forward to being home in a couple of days and seeing how much you’ve grown since I last saw you. Have you measured yourself recently?” Jade knew her niece was obsessed with everything science. So, she figured that human biology was included in it.
“Not since my birthday, but I was tall enough to go down the biggest slide at the water park. The lady said I was big enough with a little extra height to spare too.” Her niece announced with pride.
“That’s great, Soph! So, tell me, how’s that dad of yours doing? Behaving himself?” Jade knew she’d get an honest answer from Sophie, where Evan himself would always reply fine, obviously.
“He’s doing good, me and Willow got our sleepover at Auntie Cleo and Ivy’s house because Dad and Toni went to a hotel for the day and night for their anniversary.
When they picked us up, they came in Dad’s car, and we came back to our house where they told us that Toni and Willow were going to be moving in with us. Isn’t that great?” Sophie beamed.
“Oh, wow, that’s fantastic!” Jade was so happy for her brother. He’d been through so much and deserved every happiness he could find.
Sophie went quiet for a minute.
“Soph, everything ok?” Jade was concerned, Sophie seemed so happy about the move, so, why the sudden quietness?
“Well, I was wondering,” Sophie took a breath, “Auntie Cleo and Ivy moved in together near their anniversary, and when they had the party to celebrate it, Auntie Cleo asked Ivy to marry her.” Ah, Jade could see where this was going now.
“Yes, she did.” Jade said, letting her niece process what she wanted to say next.
“Do you,” Sophie pouted her lips and wiggled them from one side of her face to the other, the same thing she always did when deep in concentration. “Do you think that’ll happen to Dad and Toni?”
Jade let out a breath and smiled warmly at Sophie. “If it did, how would you feel about that?”
Sophie took her time before answering, it seemed to be something she’d thought about before, “I think Dad is really happy when he’s with Toni, and Willow feels like a sister already.
” She took a breath before adding, “I didn’t know my mom, but Toni seems like a really nice one. ” That hit Jade in her heart.
Sophie rarely talked about Taylor, her mom who she never got to know.
Jade couldn’t imagine a life without her own Mom, who was close with all of her kids.
Sophie had never even felt her mom hold her because Taylor had died giving birth to her.
Jade often wondered how that impacted Sophie’s view of Moms. More so now when a mom-figure was in her life for the first time.
“To be honest with you Soph, I don’t think it’s anything to worry about.
Moving in is a big enough step to take, and most people do that for a while before getting engaged.
Auntie Cleo was just impatient, as always,” she threw her niece a wink and got a giggle in return.
“You should see how living together goes, and if you feel you want to, have a quiet word with Dad, let him know how you feel about it all. He may be annoying, but we both know he’s really kind of great. ”
“He’s the best!” Sophie corrected her aunt.
“Listen, Squirt, we’ve been through this, my dad is the best, and he just so happens to also be your Grampy, so there.” She stuck out her tongue, and the pair descended into a fit of laughter.
“Auntie Jade,” Sophie eventually asked once she caught her breath, “when you’re home for Friday Night Dinner, will you bring April with you again this time? I really liked her. She’s so pretty.”
Jade smiled at her niece but saw the sadness in her own eyes looking back at her on the screen. “She’s busy training for the next big tournament, Squirt, so she won’t be with me this Friday.”
“Maybe next time though? I got a new dress that was just like hers, and I want to wear it when she’s next there.” Jade’s heart swelled with love for her niece’s open acceptance of her partner. That is if she’s still my partner by next week.
“I’ll let you know, ok?”
“Ok,” Sophie smiled at her.
Not long after they said their goodbyes and hung up.