Autumn in Philadelphia Trilogy

The Return: State of Grace

"Love can change a person the way a parent can change a baby- awkwardly, and often with a great deal of mess." Lemony Snicket, Horseradish

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Friday was the start of a four-day weekend. Such weekends were typically packed full of extracurricular activities for his kids and his wife leaving Jonathan Turner with little time to think and even less time to relax. And yet he lived for these breaks from the mundane grind of work and dealing with adults who often acted like spoiled children. This weekend, however, was quite a bit different. Julia's figure skating lessons and freestyle skate had taken place far too early that morning and she was done until Monday. Grayson had stick and puck at 6 that evening, but that was several hours away. Because of the situation with Shawn, nothing else had been scheduled and the lack of activity was so unusual that it was beginning to bother Jon. He wasn't sure what to do other than worry.

The last time he heard from Audrey was early that morning. She had gotten back into town Thursday morning from her prenatal dance workshop in Chicago and they had spent the time after-school with Cory and Topanga tracking down Shawn. During that time, Grayson ran his mother's phone battery down playing Mine Craft. This wasn't discovered until she texted him that night to let him know she was with Shawn and that she didn't have a charger with her. She called from the Hotel just before they left for Julia's skating lesson that morning to tell him she had a few things to do before coming home. That was hours ago. It was now after two in the afternoon.

She's probably still with Shawn, he assured himself. He'll take care of her.

A loud howl in his ear distracted him from his concerns. He grimaced and resumed an attempt to rock his young daughter to sleep. The toddler wailed harder and physically fought him as he tried to lay her in a horizontal position in his arms. Though exhausted, the child was determined not to nap. Her lungs were strong and so was she.

I'm getting too old for this, he thought in dismay.

A noise from down the hall intermingled with the cries of weariness. He was unsure what it was he was hearing. He went downstairs, stepped into the family room, and looked around. The boys were watching YouTube videos, but it didn't sound like it was coming from that. He was about to return to the nursery with the still struggling toddler when the sound rang again. This time he heard it clearly.

It was the doorbell.

He frowned and tried to adjust Bella into a better, more secure position, but all he managed to do was get smacked in the cheek. This was not the time for visitors. Moreover, anyone he might want to see already had a key: the Matthews, his wife.

Audrey, where are you? he wondered. He considered ignoring whoever was at the door. Bella may not have wanted to take a nap, but he did. Upon turning around to head back upstairs, Jon found his sons looking at him inquisitively.

"You want me to get that, Dad?" asked Grayson, pausing the video he and his brother were watching.

Jamie promptly un-paused it.

"No, I'll get it," he said tiredly as the boys started to squabble over whether the video should be stopped or not. With his frustrated daughter on his hip, Jon opened the door with an expression that mirrored Bella's. His countenance froze as he stared at the unexpected visitor. Slowly, frustration dissolved into shock. He felt as though he had been rendered fully immobile. The person on the other side of the door was not one he ever thought he would see again.

The sudden shift in her father's demeanor caused Bella to stop crying long enough to see what was going on. She looked at the stranger with large brown eyes and a messy tear-stained face. She sniffled loudly. Sudden shyness overcame her and she buried her face in her father's neck, hanging onto him as tightly as she could.