By the time the sun was rising, morning birds were chirping and coffee was brewing, Stevie opened her eyes slowly as a deep yawn escaped her. "Linds?" She whispered, one hand falling on his empty side of their bed.
With the comforter pulled up to her chest, she slid up the headboard as another deep sigh escaped her.
She was certain that he'd left... Gone back to Levy's in the middle of the night, which really didn't settle well with her.
She knew that she had been the one to ask him to leave, but she regretted it... of course, she did. She was mad at him at first, but her point had been proven and she was ready for him to be back home, where he belonged.
It felt better when he was there, with her. It was safe.
"Up early?" His voice caused her to flinch as he stood in their bedroom door.
His hair was a mess, two cups of coffee in hand and a smile that caused her heart to nearly skip a beat.
"I thought you left me." She admitted as a soft smile trailed across her face.
It was a sigh of relief to see him, coming back to bed.
"Why would I leave you?" He gave her a soft smile, handing her the cup of coffee before he crawled back into his spot.
She shrugged lightly, eyes scanning over his face as he got situated next to her. "I figured you'd gone back to Levy's, while I was asleep." The moment those words left her mouth, she knew better.
She knew that he would never do that to her, not after all their years together.
He smirked softly, wrapping his arm around her shoulders to pull her in closer. "I'm way too in love with you to just leave." Even after fifty years, he still knew exactly what she wanted to hear and when she needed to hear it.
Leaning to one side, resting against the headboard, she nodded. "One day, we'll have it all together." She whispered as she shook her head in disbelief.
Looking down at her, he left a soft kiss on her temple. "We always figure it out, baby girl."
They had, every time. Life had never been rainbows and butterflies. It was work- their life, their marriage, their children... nothing was simple for them, but somehow they did it.
For five decades, they'd been figuring it all out together and nothing... not a single thing was bad enough to destroy what they shared.
They stayed in bed for a couple of hours, watching the morning news and sipping their coffee as they laid cuddled up. And after his hand got lost in her long curls, she even fell back asleep for a few minutes before the sound of foot steps coming down the hallway caused them both to sit up.
"Mom?" Everleigh's hand met the door softly. "Dad?" She let her knuckles hit the wood once as this gentle tone lingered in her sweet voice.
Pushing herself up, Stevie's eyes traveled down to her husband, who was also sliding up the headboard. "You can come in, honey." She let off a gentle smile as she watched the door slowly creep open.
Evee was standing in the doorway a second later with two braids down to her sides, bunny slippers on her feet and her old stuffed bear in hand.
Suddenly, she looked like she was five again, standing there on Christmas morning, begging her parents to hurry downstairs to open gifts... when life was simple.
"Can we have chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast?" She wondered as she stared right into the brown eyes that she'd adored her entire life.
No one in the world could ever compare to Everleigh's mom...
