Allison's pov:
"Okay, Emma, do you wanna hold this?" I hold up a small foil balloon with the words "Welcome home!" plastered across it in bold letters.
She nods vigorously and snatches the balloon out of my hand, waving it around proudly. The two of us wait side-by-side, I impatiently stare at the clock, while Emma rambles about how excited she is to see her dad and how much she's missed him. Relatable.
Finally, Scott emerges from the sliding doors with a bright red hard-shell suitcase rolling beside him.
"Daddy!" Emma shouts, jumping up and down.
He spots us, and puts the biggest smile on his face before jogging over to us.
He wraps his arms around the both of us and plants two kisses each, on our foreheads.
"Ugh, I've missed you both so much!" He exclaims.
"We've missed you more." I whisper, smiling into his chest.
"Well, shall we get going?" He suggests.
Emma and I both nod to each other, and wiggle out of his embrace. Scott grabs his luggage, and pulls it beside him, once again.
When we arrive home, he jumps into the shower right away, while Emma and I watch some kids' cartoons, snuggled up on the sofa. Eventually, Scott joins us with a bowl of popcorn, and we end up staying like this until 8 o'clock at night.
"Miss Emma Mae, it's past your bed time." I state, rubbing her hair gently. When no response is given, I giggle a little. "Em?"
I look down to find her fast asleep in my lap, curled up in a ball.
"I'll put her to bed." Scott smiles, scooping her up.
Within three minutes, he's sat back beside me, and we decide to watch Spy. About half way through, we pause it and talk, since he's been gone for three week.
"So, how was the trip?"
"Great. It was really nice to spend some time with the boys. We're still so close, it's like no one ever left." He laughs.
"You're lucky. I miss them." I sigh. Sometimes I wish that I'd made more of an effort to keep in touch with my high-school friends, but things got so hectic with Emma that it was almost impossible.
"They miss you too."
I could tell he wanted to say something. He was holding it back. I hated it when he did this, I never knew what to expect to come out of his mouth. It could be anything from "Do you think we could go out tomorrow night?" to "Can I go to Africa for three weeks without you?". Both real examples.
"Scott, just say it."
He furrows his eyebrows and gives me a perplexed look. "Say what?"
"Whatever it is that you want to say."
"I don't-"
"Scott, just say it. You know what I'm talking about!"
"But-"
"Say. It."
"Fine! I want to travel more. With Aiden and Ethan. There's so much in the world, and I want to experience everything this planet has to offer."
"You... What? Are you stupid? Let's put aside the fact that I am furious right now, and look at the financial side. How the hell are you planning on paying for this trip around the world?" I snip, using all of the self control in my body to contain myself from slapping him across the face. I never thought he'd really leave Emma and I, but he was going to. Of course he was.
"I have lots of savings, you know that. Anyway, can you stop being so over dramatic? Why are your so upset?"
"You're gonna leave me here all alone with Emma! After you promised not to!" I shout, tears stinging my eyes.
"It's only going to be a year, maybe two. I'll still be home for a couple days in between trips and stuff."
"But then you'll be gone for months. I'm not going to put our daughter through that emotional exhaustion! 'When's dad coming home?' 'Did dad want to leave?' 'Why did he leave? Am I not important enough to him?' That's all she's ever gonna ask herself! Did you hit your head or something, because you're being the biggest moron on the planet right now!" I scream, pacing back and fourth around the coffee table.
"Allison, calm down. Come sit-"
"No, Scott! Stop it! You either stay or you leave, the choice is your's, but I'm not gonna have you bouncing in and out of Emma's life, once every two months!"
"There's so much more life to experience than just this! You could come with me!"
"Scott, don't say that anymore. I have to work, and Emma's not ready for a trip around the world. If this life isn't enough for you, if we aren't enough for you, then I suggest you leave. I don't need to raise Em, thinking that she was a burden to either of us. Just go, Scott. Do us all a favour!" Tears were rolling down my cheeks now, and I was shaking. I couldn't believe this was really happening, he was really leaving us.
"Allison, we can work this out!"
"No, there's no working this out. I want you out by the morning."
"Allison, please!" He pleads. He was crying now, too.
"You can sleep out here." I state unenthusiastically, standing up from the couch. I saunter into the bedroom, slamming the door behind me, and flop down onto the bed, staring up at the ceiling. My gentle sobs turn into a full-on breakdown, and I place my hands over my mouth to muffle the sound.
I lay there for a while, gasping for breath as I begin to feel empty from all the tears. I crawl under the covers, and lie on my side, nibbling at the tips of my fingers as I try to calm myself down. After a few minutes, the door opens, and I'm expecting to be bothered by Scott, begging for forgiveness, but I'm not. He must think I'm sleeping, because he immediately leaves the room again, without a word. I cry myself to sleep that night.
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Author's note:
Are you guys surprised that Scott made this decision? Do you understand his side of the story more, or Allison's. His pov is coming up in the next chapter, so you might get a better idea of what's going on in his head. Sorry the update has taken so long, I'm currently visiting my family, and don't have much spare time. Updates will be back to normal soon :)