A Chance for Normalcy

CHAPTER 38; failure

Liam's babbles in the morning wake you up and startles Max awake, not accustomed to the noise. Max rubs his eyes looking at the clock on the nightstand. 5:23am. You peel yourself away from Max's chest and walk over to the crib picking up Liam who smiles widely.

"Good morning little lamb." You say softly to him as Max falls back asleep snoring away. Rolling your eyes you grab your things heading back to your room.

Must be fucking nice.

......

Your alarm goes off several hours later after you've gotten Liam back to sleep and you groan rolling out of bed. You take your time getting yourself and Liam ready for the day, deciding to put some curls into your hair ordering room service for a late breakfast. Before you head off to the track, you stop in the lobby to grab a tea and run into Bradley who's grabbing a coffee for the road.

"Bradley, hey," you say tapping him on the shoulder.

"Arya, hey," he says giving you a quick hug. "How are you and the little guy?"

"Tired. He doesn't let me sleep much." You say chuckling. "How're you doing really? How's the wife?"

"Good. Good. All good. We actually have a daughter now, Ella she's only a few months old. She's keeping us busy that's for sure." Bradley says smiling at your son.

"Congratulations, that's so wonderful. We need to arrange a play date." You say chuckling.

"Are you heading off to the track?" Bradley asks and you nod, "just waiting for my ride." You say checking your Uber app to see how long it will be.

"Max and I are just about to head over if you want a ride." Bradley says gesturing as you see Max walking down the hall.

"No that's okay, I'll just wait for my ride. Plus, I've got his stroller, it'll take up a lot of room." You say taking the tea bag out and putting the lid onto your cup. 

"Are you sure? It's no problem at all. I'd sure Sara would love to see him again too. She's meeting us at the gate." Bradley says nudging you.

"Oh don't play the Sara card. That's not fair you know I love her." You say nudging him back.

"Who do we love now?" Max asks walking up with his bag ready to go.

"Sara." You say looking over at Bradley chuckling.

"Max, can you please tell Arya that giving her a ride to the track is fine instead of waiting for an Uber?" Bradley asks looking at Max who just stares at you.

"Why would you take a ride from a stranger?" Max asks looking at you.

"It's not like I'm standing out on the corner with my thumb out hitchhiking, it's the same as taking a taxi."

"Same thing. Why would you trust a stranger to take you somewhere?" Max asks again. 

"I don't know, because it's their job." You say annoyed.

"Cancel the Uber. We're giving you a ride. I'm not trusting some stranger with my son."

"Fine." You say pulling out your phone and cancelling the Uber ride. "Let's go before you're late."

"Yay! The band is back together." Bradley says.

"The band is not back together." You and Max both say following him down to the garage. You go to open the car door but Max beats you too it opening it for you and closing it gently behind you after you're in with Liam.

Man, it's hot then cold with him.

You talk with Bradley on the ride over and Max stays silent looking out the window. You know the press is about to have a field day with the pictures of you arriving with Max with a baby but honestly the last thing on your mind right now is your public image.