Home and Holidays

chapter 28

Noah Hollington.

That was Noah's name now, and he couldn't stop grinning as he stared at it on his adoption certificate a couple days later in his room. He was getting ready to go on a date with Ella, but while he was waiting for her to arrive, he had become distracted by looking at his adoption certificate. He could still barely believe how David and Lisa were his actual parents now, happiness filling him at that thought.

"Noah Hollington. Noah Hollington. I'm Noah Hollington." he quietly repeated to himself, seated on the edge of his bed, just testing out the name and loving the way it sounded. Especially since it meant that he wasn't going to be alone anymore.

Just then, he heard a light knock on his room door, which was already slightly open. "Hey, sweetie. Ella just got here. Are you almost ready?" Lisa asked him once she walked in. But she paused her speaking when she noticed that he was holding his adoption certificate.

He looked up at her with a smile. "Oh, yeah, I'm ready. Sorry, I just got a little distracted." he said, standing up to go put the document safely back in it's envelope and into a drawer in his desk for now.

Lisa watched as Noah sighed contently afterwards, staring at the drawer that held the important piece of paper. She walked over to him, giving him a fond smile as he looked up at her.

"It's just so surreal.... I'm part of a family. I just- I feel like I don't even deserve-" Noah started to say, but Lisa was quick to cut in.

"Don't even finish that statement, Noah. You do deserve this. You deserve everything good in the world, alright? I mean it." she told him, giving him a quick hug and a kiss on the top of his head, making him smile.

"Ok. Thanks, Lisa. I love you." he replied to her, but his expression quickly turned into a concerned one as he worried about what he had just said. "It's um, it's ok for me to say that to you and David now, right? That I love you guys? I know I said it on Christmas, but I just want to make sure it's alright...." he cautiously asked her.

She felt like crying at the fact that he felt the need to ask that. "Noah, of course it's ok. And I love you too. So much. David and I both love you, we loved you even before we adopted you, and we love you now." she reassured him, causing him to smile in relief. "Now, we should get downstairs to Ella. She's waiting for you." she suggested.

"Ok." Noah agreed, he and Lisa both heading downstairs into the living room.

"Hi, Ella." Noah greeted Ella once he entered the living room and saw her sitting on the couch next to David.

"Hi, Noah!" Ella happily greeted him, walking over to him.

"Wow, you look beautiful." Noah told her, his eyes scanning her outfit before looking back up at her face, her cheeks bright red as she blushed.

"Oh, thanks. You look great too." she reacted. "So, are you ready for me to beat you in a game of bowling?" she jokingly asked, since they were going to the bowling alley for their date.

"Yeah, except I'll be the one winning." Noah claimed, playing along.

"Oh, I don't think so. I'm definitely gonna win." Ella countered.

"What makes you so sure?" Noah teased.

"It's a scientific fact that girls are better at bowling than guys." Ella said, smirking at him.

"Oh really? I've never heard of that scientific fact before." Noah said, mirroring her playful smirk and taking a step closer to her.

"Well, that's because it's a newly proven theory." Ella replied, moving even closer to him as she held eye contact as if she were in a staring contest with him. Her face was so close to his, that David and Lisa almost felt as if they were interrupting something by standing in the room, watching this flirty exchange.