Anna || HS

Anna 2- CHAPTER 60

*** A/N: Eyes Closed came out and when I listened to the lyrics, I knew it would be the song for the last chapter. So, feel free to play that for the whole time if you would like to. BUT, there will be other songs throughout this chapter, too, because you know how I use music to inspire what I write.

It got to be WAY TOO LONG, so this is just the FIRST HALF of the last 15,500 words in the Anna series. So, BE SURE TO KEEP READING because CHAPTER 60.5 will be posted just 15 minutes after this chapter.

~February 2023 to July 2024~

Anna- 28/29
August- 6
Robin- 5
Florence- 3-4!
Hazel and Milo- 2-3!

~February 27th, 2023~

Anna POV:

We have houses in Norway, Los Angeles, London, New York and South Carolina, so I had plenty of options for places to go after the funeral, but I knew that walking into any one of those houses would be like walking into a time capsule of the day before I lost Harry. So, for the last two weeks, I've been holed up at Anne's. The kids want to be around her and I can see how good having them around has been for her, too. Plus, staying here allows me to prolong the inevitable of having to deal with the time capsules because I'm just not ready yet. I always have been a devoted procrastinator, which always annoyed Harry.

Robin, though still very angry with the world, is finally doing a little bit better. I have Anne to thank for that because she still wants nothing to do with me. Each time she runs away it breaks my heart a little more, but she is dealing with the loss; talking to Anne and to her therapist. To be honest, I can't do Robin and figure myself out right now. It wasn't until the last couple weeks that I realized how much Harry had been a buffer between the two of us, and Anne has stepped in to take on that role for the time being.

All of the kids are handling Harry's death in their own ways. The twins will ask where daddy is, never dwelling on it for too long, but Hazel seems to be more aware if his absence. Their young age makes them less sad about it, which is refreshing while living amongst so many people trying to get a little less sad every day. They ask the questions you would expect a young child to ask after someone they love dies. I'm just not great at answering them right now, so once again, in steps Nana Anne. After she answers, I'm always amazed that they move on quickly and I've grown jealous of their ability to do so.

After getting over a little freak out about not seeing a Harry again, Auggie has been putting his energy into Florence. He's been making sure that she is always surrounded by her favorite stuffed toys, playing softly with her or reading to her. I think loving on her helps him keep his mind off everything. The worrisome thing about him, to me, is that he has stopped coming to me even though I know he still cries himself to sleep at night. I recognize his avoidance and though I'm also living in the midst of it, I'm not in so deep that I can't realize we all need some professional help.

So, once again, in steps Dr. Holcombe. She reached out the minute she heard about the crash. We had a two hour video session, just she and I, three days after Harry's death. I can honestly say that I credit her for my ability to marginally function, and parent, through the week before Harry's funeral. I also credit her with medicating me just enough to make being around my beautiful babies hurt less.

It's a blessing that she knew both Harry and I so well, because that means the woman who is going to help the kids and I walk through the next six months, or more, knows intimately the human that is now absent in each of our lives. Jeff insisted that he hire her to exclusively work with our family, but she asked to continue with a few other clients via virtual sessions. She did, however, move to be totally available to us most of the time.