Home to You

“You ladies did fantastic!” I praise the class, clapping my hands together. “I can tell you’ve been working hard at home.” A sea of little heads nod up and down, giving me an array of toothless grins for the praise.

“Miss Haven, is it time for pizza?” Chloe calls out.

“You bet,” I assure her. “I’ll see you all next week. Remember, practice your balance.” It’s something I tell them every class. Most of them are still clumsy and finding their footing. Practice will keep them active and only improve their movements with time.

“Miss Haven.”

I feel a tug on my too-big T-shirt. Looking down, I see Lucy. She’s one of the shyest kids in the class. I kneel down to her level. “What can I do for you, Lucy?”

“I’m pwacticing weally hawd,” she whispers.

“That’s great. I’m so proud of you.”

“I’s still fall awot.” Her voice is sullen, and the sadness on her face pulls at my heartstrings.

“Oh, Lucy, we all fall, sweetheart. That’s why we come to class. We have to practice to learn.”

“I wanna be wike you when I get big,” she says, her big brown eyes staring at me in adoration.

I can’t resist pulling her into a hug. “You can be anything you want to be. You have to work hard and never give up.” That earns me a hug, her little arms wrapping around my neck.

“Thank you.” Her mother smiles fondly. She’s one of the few who don’t hit on Sebastian when he’s here. I like her on that alone.

“You’re welcome. Lucy, I’ll see you next class.” She gives me a smile that washes away the sadness from just minutes before. I take the next ten minutes, passing out hugs and waves of goodbyes. It doesn’t slip my notice that my smile is wide and genuine. It’s been years since I’ve been this relaxed and happy. I think the last time was when I was here, when I was home with Sebastian.

“Finally,” Sebastian says, wrapping his arm around my waist. “I didn’t think they would ever leave.”

“Hey.” I smack at his chest. “Those are my students you’re talking about.”

“Your students?” He raises his eyebrows.

“They’re mine for now,” I explain. I don’t tell him that with each passing day, I want this to be my life. Everything I ever thought that I wanted isn’t what I want at all. It took coming home for me to finally admit that to myself. I have a lot of decisions to make about my future.

“Pizza!” Chloe cheers.

“Come on, Chloe, let's do something else.”

“Aw, Dad,” she whines.

“Pizza is fine with me. But I have an idea.” I motion my index finger for Chloe to come closer. Bending down to her level, I whisper in her ear, “What if we take it to the park?”

“Oh, yes!” She jumps up and down in excitement.

“What are you two scheming?” Sebastian laughs.

Chloe looks at me for permission, and I nod. “The park! Miss Haven says we can eat the pizza at the park.”

“Good idea. Fresh air and she can run off some of that energy that seems to always be dancing on the balls of her feet.”

“I was the same way. Even as a teenager.”

“I remember,” he says, his eyes softening.

“Come on.” Chloe grabs each of our hands and begins to pull us toward the door.

“Hold on, let me grab my things and lock up.” I rush to the small office, gather my things, and hit the lights, before meeting them at the front door.

“To have an ounce of her energy.” I laugh as Chloe runs from one swing to the next at the park. I’m not sure why she needs to switch every few minutes. They all look the same to me.

“You and me both,” Sebastian agrees as his phone rings. He glances at the screen. “Sorry, this is Trina,” he says, placing the phone to his ear. “Hey, Trina.” He listens and nods even though she can’t see him. “Sure, that’s not a problem. We just had dinner at the park. I’ll drop her off on my way home. Okay. Bye.” He ends the call, setting his phone on the picnic table between us.

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah. That was Trina. Her sister, Tracy, has extra passes for the zoo tomorrow. Since there’s no preschool and Trina is off, she wanted to take Chloe.”

“She’s going to love that.”

“Yeah.” He nods, smiling at his daughter.

“You guys do that a lot? Change the routine?”

“Pretty much.” He laughs. “Trina’s schedule is crazy, and we adjust as needed. It’s nice that we’re in the same town and school district.”

“I’m in awe of the two of you and the ease that you raise Chloe. It’s truly amazing how well you get along.”

“We tried, you know? We wanted it to work for Chloe, but we’re both happier apart. She’s going to forever connect us, and I will always care about her, but that’s where it ends.”