Begin Again (Andy Barber x OC)

21

There's a knock on my door and I huff, knowing that it's probably going to be Andy trying to come and apologise again. Marching up to it, I throw it open. "Andy I've already told you tha..." I cut off abruptly on seeing Jacob standing there. "Jacob?"

"Please don't break up with my dad!" He blabs quickly and looks at me in desperation.

I usher him in and close the door. "Did your dad send you over here?" 

"No but..." 

"Jacob...I know you mean well but..." I start but he cuts me off. 

"Please! listen – just hear me out!" He seems more upset than he was when we brought him home after his little runaway stint at the weekend.

My face softens and I nod for him to carry on. I could at least let him explain seeing as he's actually come over on his own accord. "Okay. Go on."

"When me and dad came here, we were getting away from mom, and it was only gonna be the two of us – and he was just really worried about me and everything, and then you came along, and you made him happy again. You made us both happy. You've been a better kind of mom to me than mine. I mean once upon a time she was nice but that was before the accident. But that doesn't matter..." He's still talking fast, afraid that if he stops then i'll just kick him out. Not that I'd ever do that. "I just...if you break up with dad, then he's just gonna go back to being really low again. After the accident? When I was in hospital he wasn't in a good place..."

I look at Jake with surprise. "He never told me that."

"He didn't wanna...at one point he was even contemplating, y'know, ending it if I didn't make it..."

I sigh with a small groan, "Oh god." 

Now that was something that Andy hadn't confided to be about. It doesn't surprise me though. To go through all that he was going to have some struggles coming to terms in the aftermath.

Jacob carries on, "When I woke up he got better but he was just pretty miserable about everything with mom and then there was the whole divorce stuff. But then we came here...and he met you. He's the happiest I've seen him in ages. To be honest? I've been pretty happy too." He now looks at me seriously. "Dad really didn't mean to say those things to you, and even I know that."

"I guess I kind of overreacted too."

"You were both looking out for me, I get it."

"Your dad was right though. I'm not your mother – I shouldn't dictate to him how to parent you. It's not my place."

Jacob shrugs. "But you are my mom – in some sense. Like a temporary mom? Does that even make sense?" I smile lightly and try to not cry on hearing this. The fact that Jacob sees me as that is really flattering in some sense. Even though I never set out to have a relationship I seem to have gained far more than I expected. And it's quite possibly the best thing to have happened to me. "You don't really wanna break up with my dad do you?" He asks me hopefully.

"No." My voice cracks. I really don't want to lose Andy. Not like this. I love him too damn much to ever give him up. "No I really don't want to."

"Please come home?"

Home.

Even though this is technically my house. My true sense of home is with Andy and Jacob next door. I get up and beckon him in for a hug. "Come on..." I say to him, and we head next door.

"Dad!" Jacob yells when we walk in, and within moments Andy appears from the living room, then seeing that I'm with Jacob.

I don't care, I just run to him and kiss him, and within that moment all is forgiven and forgotten.

"I am so sorry sweetheart." He whispers as he pulls away but keeps a tight hold of me, close to him. I keep my arms fixed around him. 

"I know", I whisper. "What you said was really shitty but I know you didn't mean it, just like I didn't mean everything that I said either. I'm so sorry." By now I'm sobbing into his chest. 

He keeps his face buried in my hair as he holds me, "Even though you're not his mom, you're still one to him in his eyes. And mine. I love you Nor." 

"Love you too..." I whisper.

I never ever want him to let me go. I just want to stay this way forever.