Kingdom Come Undone

Kiss It Better

A/N: Hi everyone! I hope you all had a great holiday season and that 2022 is treating you all well thus far. It has been brutal for me, so I'm sending good will y'all's way. Enjoy this chapter and see you all at the end. :)

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Even with Alison attempting to make sure I felt anything but left behind that Sunday, I still woke up alone. My eyes still opened, looking at her side of the bed, and saw nothing there. Reaching out toward her pillow was cold, sending another drop into my stomach. But as I scooted toward where Alison typically laid to see if her phone was still plugged in or if any remnants of her still being present were in our home, I immediately hit a warm spot in the middle of the bed right next to me. Placing my head into her pillow and inhaling, the smell of Alison's shampoo was absent, but turning my head to the left found her scent on mine. As though she had been glued to my side throughout the night. My brain headed into immediate panic due to the circumstances. But as my thoughts swelled, I started to hear the faint sound of music coming from downstairs. She was here. I wasn't alone.

Sliding on pajama bottoms, I quietly made my way downstairs to find Alison and Jacob both seated at the table. Jacob was wearing his glasses intently staring at the bowl beneath him, whisking with a spoon as Alison cut up onions, cheese, and ham onto separate plates next to him. They both had their tongues barely sticking out while soft indie music played in the background. My eyes wandered to the kitchen countertop as they focused, finding a small bouquet of flowers near the sink. And as I reached forward toward them, Alison looked up to find me.

"They're for you." She smiled gently before looking back down in front of her.

Here's to rewriting February 26th. You never deserved to wake up alone then, and I promise to never allow it to happen again. I don't know what emotions come up for you today, or how you've spent today in the past. But I'm available for whatever you need to process. I won't lie to you; I'm still frustrated with you, and I'm still working shit out with us myself. But I love you all the same, Emmy, and we are figuring this out together. Come join us wherever we're at with making breakfast. Can't wait to spend today with you.

Love forever,

Ali

As I finished reading, I felt Jacob hugging the side of my leg, his arms wrapped tightly around my upper thigh. "Hi, Bug." I whispered to try and cover up the air bubble trapped in my throat from Alison's note.

Resting his chin on my leg, he stared up at me to speak, "Mommy teld me today was a hawd day for you, so we were bery quiet this morning. We make you omelets and potatoes."

I squatted down to eye level to kiss him on the forehead, "Thank you, J. You both are very sweet." He smiled sincerely at me as I rubbed the side of his head. "I missed you a lot while you were visiting everyone. How did it go?"

"It was fun most times. But I happy to be back wif you and Daddy, too." His hands reached forward to hold my face, "Nex time you come wif us?"

His hands forced my head to nod as I laughed, "Yes, sweetie. I'd like that a lot more than staying here."

We wrapped each other in a short hug while my hands settled at his waist to pick him up. As we popped back up over the counter, Alison was now standing, organizing the plates for breakfast on the counter next to the sink. "Morning, Emily." She reached her hand forward.

"Good morning." I squeezed her fingers in my palm, my eyes closing at her touch. "Thank you for the note."

She nodded before letting go of my hand to walk around to the oven. There was a tension in the air that neither of us was meaning to introduce. Things were still difficult and unsure and unknown, but all of it was palpable.