"Now remember, I expect you back here within a week for a follow up, absolutely no heavy lifting, and-" Evelyn cut the young doctor off with an exasperated sigh.

"Shay, you keep us here any longer and you're going to be the one not able to do any heavy lifting!" She growled.

Shay didn't look worried by Evelyn's threat, if anything she looked amused. I meanwhile, was worrying the shit out of myself because Evelyn was scary as hell.

The doctor met my gaze and raised her brows. I caught the message loud and clear. "Yes ma'am." She nodded in satisfaction and bid us a wave before she floated away, her white coat fluttering behind her.

Evelyn sighed and rubbed her temples before facing me. A small smile formed across her lips. "Well, are you ready to go?" I glanced down at Charlotte beside me, before looking back up at her. "Yeah, I think we are."

Evelyn went behind me to push me down the hallway. I hated that I had to have a wheelchair, but my incision was still healing and the doctors didn't want me to strain it anymore than I had to. Plus when I tried to be resilient and walk the other day, Shay nearly keeled over.

The cool Seattle air was welcome against my hot skin. I felt like it had been forever since I'd seen the outside of a hospital. The sun made the tall buildings glitter. Seattle was not notoriously known for being pretty, but sitting there with Evelyn at my back and my daughter by my side, I found it absolutely stunning. A wine-red Ford Escape pulled up, and Evelyn pushed me closer. I recognized the tall figure of her father, and the slender one of her mother as they got out to greet me.

Collin's handsome face lit up with a smile. "Hey there, little one. How are you feeling?"

His smile was so open and kind that I couldn't not smile back. "Well, all my limbs are intact." He boomed with laughter. His attention switched to Evelyn, who moved from behind me to stand in front of him. Collin's face grew sad as he stared down at his daughter. But then the most amazing thing ever happened. Evelyn's slender arms came up to wrap around his neck, her face buried in his chest. Collin's mouth dropped open in shock, he didn't seem to know what to do. But then his arms wrapped around her and his face fell to her shoulder. I could see tears rolling down his cheeks. Evelyn's mother gasped, tears falling from her eyes as well.

I lost control of my tear-ducts when Evelyn hugged her mother. Lucille cupped her daughter's face in her hands, her eyes running over every feature. "I forgive you." Evelyn whispered, her voice thick with tears. They hugged and cried, and I cried just watching them. Charlotte tugged on my sleeve, momentarily breaking my attention from the moving moment.

"Mommy? Why are they sad?" Her big blue eyes widened up at me.

I smiled back and gently pushed the hair out of her eyes, kissing her forehead. "They aren't sad baby, they're happy."

Her features screwed up in confusion. "But why are they crying?"

I pondered her question as I looked down at my daughter. Charlotte had been through so much already, but the innocence that clung to her was so bright and pure. "Because when people find home after so long of being lost, they're happy, but their souls are still sad, because they miss their old home."

Charlotte nodded, like anything I said made perfect sense. Honestly I had no idea what shit just spewed from my mouth.

It took us about 20 minutes to get in the car, 15 of which were spend trying to figure out how to fold the damn wheelchair up, but soon we were off, and I was huddled in the backseat, Charlotte on one side of me, Evelyn on the other. Her fingers were loosely tangled with mine. I leaned over and rubbed my nose into her neck.

"I love you." I murmured.

She turned and I could feel her lips curl into a smile. "I love you."

My heart leapt in joy as I rested my head on her shoulder and closed my eyes. I felt like it had taken forever for us to get our happy ending, and even though our story wasn't even close to over yet, I felt hopeful for the future for the first time in a long time.

I wasn't sure how long the drive took, because the next time I opened my eyes, the city was far behind and we were surrounded by green grass meadows and forest. "Where are we?" I yawned, untangling myself from Evelyn and rubbing the sleep from my eyes.

"Just about home." Evelyn replied as we turned down a lonely dirt road. Lucille turned in her seat and flashed me a soft smile. "Sleep well, sleepyhead?"

I smiled back at her. "I must've, because I don't remember falling asleep!" She laughed.

I watched the trees go by outside, and soon the view opened up into valleys and tall grass fields filled with cows and grain silos. I never knew a country-like place existed just outside the borders of Seattle. I absolutely loved it.

The road we were following lead us straight a picture perfect view. A large white farmhouse came into light, taking my breath away. It was absolutely beautiful, with a wrap-around porch and with the closer we got, a beautifully crafted porch swing. There were also three large barns off to the right of the house, all lined up together. I could see panel-fenced pens attached to each outside stall door, and there were a lot of them. Big shapes turned their heads and swiveled their ears at us as we neared the house.

Horses. I breathed, almost unable to comprehend it.

Charlotte and I had always been amazed at the agility and beauty of the magnificent creatures, from what we saw on tv, of course. We've never seen one in person. I glanced down at my sleeping daughter, a smile curving on my lips. She's totally going to freak when she sees this place.

Collin parked the car in front of the house, before turning to look at me from the front. Lucille turned, offering me a wide smile. "Home sweet home!" She climbed out of the car a second later, already grabbing my bags from the back seat. Collin laughed and shook his head. "That woman will be the death of me."

We laughed and climbed out after her. Cool air greeted me, along with the scent of freshly cut hay. It was refreshing, I felt calm. The horses whinnied, drawing my attention once again to the barns. "Mommy? Are those horses?" Charlotte's excited squeal chased away any lingering drowsiness.

"Woah there love," Evelyn laughed and grabbed her as she went to take off towards the barns. "There's plenty of time to see the horses, let's get you some good first." Charlotte's little shoulders fell, but she wasn't too disappointed as she followed Lucille inside. Evelyn paused and I felt her lightly cup my face, turning it towards her. Her grey eyes matched the clouds perfectly, shocking me with how well it appeared she fit in here.

"Thank you."

I blinked. "For what?"

A small smile curved across her full lips. "For listening, for being exactly what I needed even before I knew I needed it."

I brought my hand up, curving my fingers around her jaw, feeling the silky softness of her skin against the roughness of mine. "Always."

She pulled me to her and wrapped me in her arms, resting her chin on my head as we faced the barns, the setting sun washed over us, bathing the fields in soft light.

I felt at peace, standing there with her, which I knew was how it should be. My forever was just starting, and this time I was going to let myself enjoy it.

😂

🎉😇😘

Enjoy this snowy view of my animal! 🦄