Chapter 34

Epilogue

10 years later…

“AVERY, DO YOU KNOW where Mia’s pink cleats are? I can’t find them anywhere!”

“They’re in the laundry room by the vent since they were wet after the last practice,” his voice called back.

Hailey pumped her fist in triumph as she entered the laundry room and saw the little shoes sitting on the windowsill above the air vent. Mia, one of Hailey and Avery’s current foster kids, had her first game that day and she was absolutely exhilarated to get to it.

“Found ’em, thanks!” she yelled out to Avery who was upstairs getting the kids ready. She just had to put the final touches on everything they needed for the day. Mia’s bag of soccer equipment was ready with an extra pair of socks. They always came in handy. Three chairs in matching carry bags already sat in the trunk along with their offering to the after-game picnic at the park.

Now, she just needed her team. Grabbing a quick glance at her watch, she saw they had about five minutes before they had to leave. “Alright people, let’s get going. It’s game time!” she shouted up the stairs.

A minute later, Mia was running down the stairs with two slightly uneven black pigtails on either side of her head. Avery followed slightly behind with a sheepish expression on his face.

“I tried my best, but that’s as even as I could get them,” he said.

“Look, Hailey, Avery put pink ribbons in my hair to match my cleats,” Mia said while beaming and squeezing Hailey’s hand.

She knelt down to get closer to Mia and gave each of her tails a little tug. “You look so beautiful, sweetie. And I have a feeling these ribbons are going to make you extra fast on the field.”

“I’m gonna go so fast, I can’t wait for you to see!” Then, her eyes grew even wider and her eyes ventured back toward the stairs. “And Trevor! Trevor, are you coming?”

They all heard a bedroom door shut upstairs and heard Trevor’s feet make their way down the steps.

“Wouldn’t miss it, mini-Mia,” Trevor said with a tiny smirk. The two of them had been staying with them for a few months now, since their father had had an accident, and their mother couldn’t take care of them at the moment. Hailey and Avery weren’t sure how long they’d get to have Mia and Trevor in their lives, but they were excited to finally share their home with kids.

Hailey had tried for a baby twice, and after two miscarriages combined with Avery coming home and telling her about ways he wish he could be there for the kids at work more, they came to the decision to stop trying for their own biological kids and help take care of children that needed it. If the situation was ever perfect, they might adopt, but Mia and Trevor were their first kids so they were trying not to get their hopes up.

Trevor was a quiet kid and had pretty much been taking care of Mia himself since she was born. Since he was only fourteen, he hadn’t been enjoying much of his childhood and Hailey was hoping her and Avery could give him some more things to look forward to. First up, Mia’s soccer game and a picnic with their closest friends.

Everyone grabbed their things and they made their way over to the nearby recreation fields where the rest of Mia’s team would be.

Hailey was driving with Avery in the passenger seat and Mia and Trevor in the back, Mia was in a booster seat since she was only six and still fairly small. They looked so much alike with their inky black hair and dark brown eyes. When Hailey peeked at them in her rearview mirror, she could see Trevor smiling at Mia as she rattled off every best friend she had on her new soccer team. All of them. They were all her best friends.

When they pulled up to the field, they could see a golden retriever wearing a red jersey standing by their field.

“Looks like Cole brought Wrigley to the game today!” Hailey said brightly before turning to Trevor. “Looks like that’s his niece holding Wrigley, too. Isn’t she in your grade, Trevor?”

She could see a bit of pink travel up his cheeks as he muttered an affirmative and they all made their way to the field.

“Mia,” a loud voice bellowed across the field as they all turned toward the noise. “You are practically late to your first game ever. That’s going to cost you.”

Cole closed the rest of the gap between them while keeping a stern gaze on Mia, who was bouncing on her feet she was so excited to play.

“What will it cost?” asked Mia carefully.

“I’m afraid it’s dire. Because of this flagrant assault on all of our precious time, Avery will be required to lose his dignity and work as the ball boy for the entirety of the game.”

“Wha-what’s fragrant mean?” Mia turned to Avery and asked.

“It means Coach Cole is being silly. A silly goose that goes honk,” Avery said, lightly squeezing Mia’s nose at the same time he said honk. She giggled and then ran off to see the rest of the team.

“I can’t believe you would resort to calling your oldest friend a silly goose. The betrayal,” Cole said while clutching imaginary pearls against his neck.

Avery and Hailey started cracking up and Hailey took a minute to survey the field. Mia was kicking a ball back and forth with her twelve new best friends and Trevor was petting Wrigley while making hesitant conversation with Cole’s niece. Well, niece by marriage.

“You ready for today, Coach?” Avery asked Cole. Cole fanned his face and said, “God, I love it when you talk dirty to me. Can’t believe you’d do it in front of your wife, but damn.”

Hailey backhanded him lightly across his shoulder, “What about your wife, huh mister?”

“Oh, well he can do that in front of her, too.” He’s such a little shit. And we all love him for it.

“Anyway,” Avery interrupted, “everything is ready for after. I’ve got the permit so we can use the gazebo in the park. Can’t believe we’ll finally get to see Abby after so long.”

“I know, right? Feels like it’s been years even though it’s only been like four months this time.” Hailey added.

“I can’t wait to see all their pictures. Forget this game and let’s just go right to lunch!” Cole pleaded.

Abby had been backpacking across South Asia with her husband. Years back, they decided to take time off to travel and decide what to do with their lives when Abby’s travel blog went viral. Now, they got paid to travel and produce these web videos to help other people plan their vacations.

Hailey was doing just as well for herself. Her first book was a big hit and she ended up writing an entire series to follow it. Now, she was working with an artist about possibly turning it into a graphic novel series. And Avery was her biggest fan.

“Dude, your kid is in this game, too, remember? I think they’d like it if they got to play. Along with Mia,” Avery pointed out. Cole may have been a little shit, but he certainly loved kids.

“And that is why you’re the voice of reason in our relationship,” Cole offered.

A kid with dark brown curly hair and bright blue eyes ran up to them at that point, grabbing Cole by the arm. “Dad, where’s my inhaler?”

Cole gave a quick look of concern to the boy and then seemed to relax when he realized his son wasn’t currently needing the inhaler, he just wanted to have it ready for the game. Cole bent over so his eyes were at the same level as his son’s and he said, “Brooklyn, see that super hot woman over there.” He lifted an arm and they all followed where he was pointing. “The one in the green top, with the silky black hair and beautiful smile? Oh, nope, now she’s glaring, but she’s still beautiful.”

Brooklyn turned to Cole with a disgusted look on his face. “Dad, that’s Mom.”

“Damn right it is. Anyway, she’s got your inhaler.”

He ran away confused as the adults were left behind laughing.

“Did you ever think we’d all be here like this?” Hailey asked Cole and Avery. They both looked at each other and shared a smile before turning back to Hailey.

“Yes,” they said at the same time, except Avery also slid a hand behind her back and pulled her into his side, placing a kiss on her forehead. He was worth the wait.

The End