The Storm

Epilogue

Atlas

         Three years later

"Stop crying, sweetheart," I whisper, laying my hand down on my wife's thigh as soon as we're back in the car after dropping Allie off.

"Stop trying to stop me from crying."

"It's just her first day of school, she'll be fine."

"EXACTLY!" She falls back in her seat, groaning while sobbing and laughing all at once. "She's growing so fast."

No arguing that.

I swear, just yesterday Allie was born, and now she's six years old, having her very first day of school. Not for long, just a couple of hours, but that's still...huge.

"She won't be gone for long." She's been gone longer for daycare than she will be gone for first grade.

She didn't go to kindergarten as she had a private tutor, and we were thinking about keeping Allie home for the rest of her school life, too. Well, unless she eventually wanted to go. But Allie is far too excited to meet people, so it would be cruel if Sierra and me not to let her experience school-life.

Vienna will be a whole other story. With her anxiety and phobia of people, like her mother, there's a huge possibility that it's better for her to be homeschooled.

But she still has a year to go, let's not rush that part, please. One child being old enough to go to school is bad enough.

"Would you feel better if we went to taget for the while being?" Going home would be useless anyway. Sure, Allie's school is in Medina still, but even for two hours going home isn't worth it.

Okay, it would be, I admit. But I took off work today only to be here, so might as well do anything but sit at home, right?

Sierra didn't have to take off, she's no longer working for my company at all. She still hangs around a lot though. Not that she's ever been working ever since Allie happened.

I don't mind her being around, not at all. In fact, I tend to enjoy work far more with her there to distract me.

And what a distraction she is. Think we all remember the first time Sierra and I had sex after Vancouver...yeah, that kind of distraction.

Not that I mind it.

Cody is back at being COO, took him long enough to realise he still got time for his family despite working for me.

"Sweetheart, look at me," I say, bringing my fingers to her chin to make her look at me. "Allie will be fine. We'll ask her what she thought about being there once she's back home, and if she hates it, we'll pull her right back out of school, okay?"

She sighs heavily. "It's not that, Atlas. Kids are cruel. They might not be now because they're all so young and don't know who you are, but when she's older..."

Yeah, when she's older.

I'm really not looking forward to that day. And trust me, I know it'll come. I know because being rich might have it's perks, but people automatically have high expectations of you.

I intertwine my hand with Sierra's bringing them up to my mouth to plant a tender kiss to the back of hers. "We got this, okay?"

Sierra shakes her head. "I don't want her to hate us. I don't want Allie to think we've done this to her."

"She won't think that, sweetheart. Allie is a smart little girl. And the older she gets, the more she'll understand why certain things are happening." Or I hope so. Allie for sure wouldn't blame us for putting her into school and risking her to get hated on, right?