One of them has either roller skated off the boardwalk and the other is more than likely looking for the one that's roller skated off the boardwalk.
(sequel is up! There will be a slight change in the last few chapters of this book!)
HIGHEST RANK- n...
Beth holds a finger up to her lips as she enters the rental apartments bedroom. It's dark and she can barely see where she's going, but she can make out the lump shapes of her sons in the queen sized bed.
She goes to the left side and quickly kisses Jake's head. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you up. I just wanted to say I love you."
Jake makes a face. "Okay?"
She goes to the right side of the bed and kisses Logan's head, but she lingers longer. Her hand strokes softly over the side of his face, pale moonlight casting shadows on his skin, and she swears she can see so much of Paul in him.
"I love you."
She leaves the room with only a quick glance back at Aries boys in the bed parallel to Logan and Jake's bed, and then joins Aries in the small kitchenette.
Aries is sitting at the table, deck of cards in her hands while she shuffles them. The look on her face let's Beth know they're about to sit down and have some woman to woman talk.
"Take a seat, Bethany."
Beth huffs a laugh, but sits in there chair opposite of Aries. The black haired girl starts to lay the cards out between them, until the stack is all even between them. Aries leans back and sighs.
"You first."
Beth makes a face and picks up her first card. "6."
Aries draws from hers. "8."
The blonde girl sighs, a slight laugh mixed in. She's suck as anything with cards, she doesn't know why she let Aries talk her into this.
"Okay. I just took the boys to the boardwalk, because they're in their twenties and they're still stuck up my ass 24/7. I hoped they would go play some games, but by the time we got half way down, Jake started complaining about how hot it was."
Beth glances at Aries and she makes a gesture.
"So, I gave him the key so he could get him another shirt. He wasn't watching where he was going and this dude on a bike comes up and barely misses him."
Aries eyebrows go up, and she already knows where this is going. "Would this dude happen to be Logan's father?"
"Maybe."
Aries has to cover her smile with her hand. She can't believe Beth found Paul, and she's been a nervous wreck when she brought the guys up.
"Well, I didn't recognize him at first, but when I stood in front of him I did. I gave the boys some money to do stuff, and then me and Paul took... took a ride down to the cave so I could explain my... current situation."
"Did you–"
"Yes."
"Good, good. How did he take finding out he's, well... a daddy?"
Beth inhales and exhales heavy, her chest rising fast. She leans forward and laces her hands together.
"He actually took it okay. He didn't really understand why I couldn't let him see Logan while he was a baby, but... I was just scared. I hated being so afraid of Paul, because I love–"
Beth stops herself, and she looks down at her lap. She avoids Aries's knowing eyes, because if she looked up she could be convicted of it, and she knows it. She would rather go about the rest if her life ignoring what she feels.
She coughs. "You go."
Aries gives a chuckle, and wipes a hand down her face. Where does she start?
"I was just walking around, ya know. Ethan and Grayson had went off to do their own thing as soon as we stepped out the hotel doors. So, I was looking at the shops, seeing what was redone and what's been kept original. I was really starting to get bored."
Beth laughs lightly. "They don't have the cool shops anymore."
"I figured I might as well stop and see if Max's video shop was still there, and it is. It's just a DVD store now. I went in, and I decided I was going to find a movie we used to love, and scare the piss out of the boys. Well, I went to the counter for some help, and Dwayne... Dwayne works there."
Beth makes a face. "You mean to tell me Dwayne got a job?"
"Yeah. So, he got off work, we got some ice cream, and he took me back to his place. Apparently, he and the guys bought a house together. We talked for a while, and eventually we... kinda... did some things."
"Aries, you dirty bitch."
Aries lifts her hands. "What can I say?"
"So, how you feel? I mean, since we came back?"
Amazing, sad, and exhausting seemed like a good summary. She got to see Dwayne, confirm he's still alive, and Beth even got to see Paul. It took a while, years actually, but they made their way back home. They've done so much since they left, and yet it feels so little compared to the past few hours spent with the 2 people they had yearned to see for years.
It's almost like it's not real.
"Mom?!"
That sounded like one of Beth's.
The blonde sighs and holds up a finger. "I'll be right back."
While Beth disappears into the bedroom, Aries leans back and thinks. It's not long before she smiles and laughs, and for the first time in 22 years, Aries has a heart beat, although faint, it's there.
She's complete.
(A/N: Alrighty folks; that's a wrap! I hope you all enjoyed this fic, and I hope I did it justice!)
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This is honestly why I chose these band of idiots to be my OC's children. They just all seemed to fit!
