8 months, 1 week:
"Thank you for doing this, Aaron." Jess said as he arrived at the house.
It was Jack's first day back at work and Aaron had been the one to put it all into action. Jack had been dying to get back but his PTSD had been holding him back and preventing him from feeling as though he could fight the trauma.
However, Aaron knew that he needed that extra push from him and the guys to actually get him there. So to help in the process, Aaron was driving to work with him and also had a surprise waiting for him at the garage.
"It will be good for him. He'll be out of your hair after today." Aaron teased.
It had been weird for both Jack and Jess with him being home all the time. He had enjoyed getting to spend more time with her and kids but it wasn't natural to them and their old routine worked for them so much better.
"I think he will go crazy if he doesn't." Jess laughed before loud screaming was heard from upstairs causing Aaron's eyes to widen.
"What the hell?" He chuckled as he looked to the staircase.
"Jack's got the glorious job of getting Addie ready and currently she absolutely hates it." Jess explained. "She refuses to have a bath or put clothes on so you might be waiting here a while."
"Lucky him." Aaron teased before Jess began guiding him through to the kitchen.
"You are free to wait and have coffee with us while he deals with it." Jess said as she swept her arm over to where Gemma, Connor's fiancée was sitting.
Connor and Gemma were currently down for the weekend and while Connor was out catching up with his dad, Gemma had come to Jess' to get up to date on the wedding planning.
Jess had been helping her every step of the way however, due to the distance between Brighton and London it wasn't easy to meet up whenever they wanted. Therefore, most of it had been done over call, facetime and text yet they had still managed to have it all under control.
"Hey, good to see you again." Aaron said as he pulled Gemma in for a hug.
"You too. How is everything? I heard you and Sophie are a thing now." She grinned in a knowing manner causing a smile to spread across Aaron's face; he couldn't hide it.
"Yeah... we're a thing." He smirked. "How are the wedding plans going? I'm sure with Jess at hand it's got to be under control."
Looking across at Jess who was making coffee, she then turned around and circled a halo over her head with her finger.
"She's been my rock. Connor doesn't understand the importance of the small details so without Jess our wedding would be a hopeless mess."
Connor was much like Jack in that as long as he got the woman he loved at the church with a ring on her finger, he didn't care about anything else. He just wanted to be married to her and all the glamour of weddings was just that to him, glamour. He understood the fun of doing it and celebrating with those you cared about but he also wasn't all that bothered by the hours that went into making it that kind of perfect.
"I'm certain you'd be better off without him getting involved anyway. Lawrence's don't have an eye for detail unless it has an engine." Aaron teased just as Jack walked into the room.
"I'm going to take that as a compliment." He raised his brows before looking to Addie who was resting on his hip.
"Something like that." Aaron chuckled. "I see you got her dressed then."
"It was a challenge but it was definitely my biggest success of the week."
Making his way over to Jess, he placed a kiss to Addison's head before handing her over.
"I'll be home around 7ish, depending on how busy it is." He said so casually but everyone in that room knew it was going to be much more challenging than that.
He first had to get through the drive to work and then ensure he was in the right mind frame to make it through the day. However, they all had faith that he would be capable of doing it. With the surprise they had lined up alongside the support of the guys, it wasn't possible for Jack to fail.
"I love you." Jess reached out for his hand to urge him closer.
"I love you, too." He breathed as his free hand cupped her cheek and his lips pressed to hers.
*
"Knew you could do it man!" Aaron said the moment Jack reached the garage.
The whole journey Jack had progressed from a panicked mess back into the confidence he used to hold while in a car. It just took getting over that initial fear for him to realise that the cars were not the issue; it was all just in his mind.
"You don't realise how fucking good this feels." He breathed as he brought the car to a stop and fell back against the seat.
Being away from his car for so long had been beyond difficult. Cars were his life and always had been since he was a child; he had been brought up around them.
His job also meant the world to him too and as much as he had enjoyed being home with his family more, he had missed the garage too much. He wanted to be back at work and back in control of something he loved and the fact he was finally doing that gave him nothing to complain about.
As both he and Aaron got out the car, Aaron held back and walked a little behind Jack to prevent him from getting distracted from what the spotlight needed to be on.
As Jack entered the garage not only were all the employee's stood there with a badly made banner that said 'welcome back', but two boys stood off to the side beside one of Jack's cars.
"No way." Jack's hand flew to his mouth as he began to laugh and his body felt with love.
Harvey was stood there, dressed mimicking Jack's usual attire with a cap on his head while he held a pair of keys in his hand. Then beside him stood a boy he had not seen in so long, a boy he had built a bond with only for it to be torn down when the truth was revealed.
Stood beside Harvey was Kian. Jazmine's son that had spent so much time with Jack and Jess when Jazmine had lied and claimed he was Jack's son.
He was stood beside Harvey mimicking the same grin that the five year old held and waved as Jack's eyes met with his.
"No way." Jack repeated once again before crouching down and holding out his arms towards both boys.
Watching the grins spread over their faces, Harvey and Kian both ran to him before they were enveloped into a hug. In this moment no words needed to be spoken, every emotion was expressed though the warm embrace they were all sharing.
Jack had been excited to come back to work to actually get back into the routine he loved however, coming back to be faced with not only his employee's but Harvey and Kian waiting for him just topped it off. He could not find the words to describe his happiness in this moment.
"How?" Jack then turned to look back at Aaron is reference to Kian.
"Jess managed to persuade Jazmine to help get him over here. She may be a bitch but she agreed, for Jess' and your sake."
Aaron's words left Jack completely stunned for a moment. He could not quite believe that Jazmine would have agreed to help. After all she had done and her awful relationship with Jess he didn't think it was possible for her to do something that didn't benefit herself.
Therefore, it gave Jack every more reason to cherish this moment and make the most of every second he was going to get with Kian today.
Having Harvey and him together again was something he never thought he would experience however, it was now happening and it felt like a dream. Even though Kian wasn't his son he had built up a strong bond that made it difficult to just forget about him. Also seeing him with Harvey and seeing how well the two got on despite not understanding what they were to one another was yet another beautiful sight to see.
"How have you been, man?" Jack then asked Kian and he grinned.
"Good. I missed you though." He replied and Jack's heart filled with love at his words.
"Me and Kian made your car look cool." Harvey then spoke up as he grabbed Jack's hand and began guiding him over to the car they had been stood beside.
Following him over Jack stood back and peering at a car he recognised yet one that had polished with a new look. The guys from the garage had helped Harvey and Kian spray paint over the vehicle and make it look brand new however, they had also allowed the boys to add their own touch. Over the matte black was an area along the side of the car where Harvey and Kian had taken over with gold to sign it off as their own job.
The amount of love he felt for these two boys alongside everyone in this garage right now and his family was indescribable. It had taken time but with everyone's help he had fought through the memory loss and even though he was still battling with the PTSD, he was kicking its arse and pushing himself through the challenges.
Growing up Jack had always wanted to be the strong, masculine guy who had the job of both the protector and provider of his family. However, it had taken the traumatic experience for him to realise that wasn't all he had to be. He could be vulnerable at times and rely on both Jess and others around him to help him out and it was clear now how easy it was to do due to the love each and every single one of them showed.
*
1 more chapter and then this part of the fast forward is done!