Their New Beginning (Oh Captain, My Captain 5)

She never asked either. I came home, she said, “Hey. You got home safely.” I said, “Yep,” and that was the end of that conversation. We fall quiet once again until we get to the store. When we walk around the front of my car, I reach for her hand, easily intertwining our fingers. Avery squeezes my hand when I open the door for her and I smile at her.

“Sadie loves Hello Kitty and Frozen, so if we can find something with that, we’re set,” I tell her as we head toward the girl toys.

“Maybe they’ll have a microphone or something for her to sing or play with Reed,” she offers an idea.

“Yeah, let’s look for something like that.”

We walk around for half an hour before we find a little, pink piano. On our way to the boys’ section to see if they have a kid’s drum set or if we’ll have to go somewhere else, my phone rings.

“Hey, Reed,” I answer. Even though my caller ID says Brooke, I’m sure it’s him.

“Hey, Uncle Jax! Mom let me stay up to watch your game. Congrats on the hat trick! It was awesome!”

I laugh, my eyes finding Avery as I smile. “Thanks. I thought so, too. How’s school?”

Reed talks for about ten minutes about school, chicken nuggets, and Sadie. Avery finds a set of drums and I tilt my phone away from my head. “Those look good, right?” I ask quietly, but Reed still hears me.

“Aren’t you listening? What are you doing? Who are you talking to anyway?”

“Didn’t your momma teach you not to be so nosey, Reed?” I don’t give him a chance to answer. “I’m shopping with your Aunt Avery.”

“I hate shopping with Mom; it takes forever. Tell Aunt Avery I said hey.”

I do and then say, “She said hey. You wouldn’t hate shopping if you knew I was out shopping for you.”

The excitement quickly grows. “You are? Am I getting a package soon? What am I getting? Tell me, Uncle Jax, please,” he begs.

“It’s a surprise.”

“Oh, okay.” He sounds so sad and defeated that it makes me smile. “Mom says I have to go, but she wants to talk to you.”

“Tell her to call later then.” I’m not particularly in the mood to talk to Brooke, especially in the middle of a shopping trip. After saying our goodbyes, I hang up and turn to Avery. “All right, let’s get our shit and get out.”

She laughs, leading the way. Once we’re back in the car and on the way home, I thank Avery for coming with me. She gives me one of her smiles that has always taken my breath away. It’s a bit of relief it still does.

~ ~ ~

“Hello?”

“Hey, Jax. It’s Avery.”

I laugh. “I know it’s you. Your name popped up on my phone.”

She ignores me. “I’m doing well, thank you. Glad to hear you are, too. I was calling because I had a really good time the other day and I would like to take you out again if you have the time.”

I’m in the laundry room, about to start a load, but I stop to lean against the doorframe. “Hmm. Where would we be going?”

“It’s a surprise, Jax. So, what do you say?”

“I’d love to. What time?”

“Thirty minutes?”

“Sounds perfect,” I smile.

“Great, see you then.”

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