The flight across the pond to Ireland was ten long hours, ten grueling hours, most of which Colby, surprisingly to his wife, slept on her shoulder.
He looked at the scenery as she drove from the airport down the winding roads of Dublin. He took in everything around him.
"Are the kids going to be at the house?" He asked quietly, and his wife looked over at him and then back to the road
"They're still at school right now, but they should be home within the hour," she said, and he nodded.
"Do I need to be there when they get there?" He asked
"Colby, where are you going to go?" She asked with a small laugh. "There's nothing but acres of land around us.. what are you going to do? Go walk around the trees until I call you?"
"If you think that would be best," he shrugged, and she rolled her eyes
"You're their dad; whether they like it or not, they will get used to you being there, it's not going to be an easy transition, but they will get used to it."
Another twenty minutes passed, filled with small talk; before they pulled into the gravel driveway, Rebecca opened the large iron gate before driving through it with the passcode.
Colby felt the nerves increase as they drove down the drive towards the home at the end of the trail. He felt everything becoming real. He was going to see his children. He would be home; he would try and figure out what his new normal was.
As the car stopped, Rebecca looked over at her husband as he fidgeted with his hands.
"It's okay," she grabbed his hand, and his eyes met hers. "It's going to be okay" she nodded.
As they got out of the car, the house's front door was opened quickly, and Rebecca saw her mother come out quickly.
"Colby!" She let out an excited squeal as she walked toward him with her arms out. "Welcome home, dear!" She said as she wrapped her arms around the much larger gentleman
"Wow," Colby shook his head as he hugged his mother-in-law, "I thought you would be the angriest person."
"I'm angry with that ignorant judge you had the first time and that lawyer of yours that didn't come up with this self-defense case in the first place," Annette stated as she pulled away from him.
"Mother," Rebecca said as she walked over to her mother and wrapped an arm around her, "We've talked about this.."
"Yes," Annette stated, "but we wouldn't be in this situation in the first place if he had a better lawyer!" Annette argued, and Rebecca rolled her eye as she looked at her husband
"Ann.." Colby said, and the woman looked at him. "Do you still make that honey tea?" He asked, and the woman's eyes softened as she looked at her son-in-law
"The best honey tea you'll find around here" Annette nodded "would you like me to make you a cup?" She asked with love and hope in her eyes as she folded her hands in front of her torso
"I would love that" Colby nodded.
"Lovely!" She exclaimed as she turned to go back into the house quickly
"Suck up," Rebecca said to her husband as she moved to grab the bags from the backseat of the car before she felt herself being pulled away from the bags and lifted off the ground
"You don't lift bags anymore," he whispered in her ear. "Your husband is home now" he kissed her neck. "That's my job."
"I'm gonna like having you home."
