𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒃𝒐𝒅𝒚 𝒕𝒂𝒍𝒌𝒔, 𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒂 𝒎. ¹

𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘴𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯. 𝘣𝘺𝘦 𝘣𝘺𝘦

olivia had just gotten home from church, she still had james in her arms while she watched her brother pack the car. it was sunday again, time for them to go. she wasn't going to change before leaving, she wanted to make a stop by aria before she went home to get changed.

"what are you gonna do when we go?" she asked, her right arm wrapped around his small body.

"sleep." he smiled, he didn't seem to talk much but his words did sound really good. "oh, you're a sleepy boy." she smiled softly, "well, so am i." she explained as the boy played with the ring on her middle finger.

"this is gonna be your ring one day," she told him, resting her head to his, her cheek on his. she could still remember when he was so small that he could barely keep his little head up by himself.

"it was my dad's," she felt herself whispering, her voice couldn't go up. "he told wes to keep it safe until i was sixteen and ill keep it for you when you're sixteen." she laughed softly.

"how old will i be then?" she sighed softly, the little boy shrugged. "i think id be thirty one, ew." she scrunched up her nose and he laughed, he didn't even understand what she had said but her face was so funny.

she laughed with him when she saw ezra wave her over. it was time to go. "im gonna miss you," she placed her lips to his cheek, kissing him three times without moving away.

"miss you," he said and she turned him so he could face her properly. "you're gonna miss me?" she couldn't hide the surprise from her voice. did he even know her?

"miss you." he repeated, placing both of his small hands to her cheeks. "don't leave." he said, his bottom lip pouting slightly as she met his gaze. "i have to go, i live in rosewood."

"i miss you." and her heart broke again.

"you have mama," she reminded him, he wasn't alone.

"i want livy." he sounded very sure about that.

he didn't want diana or his nanny or even ezra and wes, he just wanted to be with olivia.

"you'll understand when you're older." she brought him to her chest and he started crying. she hated it but she had to go.

"don't cry, say goodbye." she rubbed his back softly, trying to soothe him. she wanted to cry too but she knew she had to go. she had school the next day and the day after and the next and the next. she couldn't take him with her because she couldn't take care of him.

"james, please don't make this harder than it already is."

james clung tighter to olivia, his small hands gripping the fabric of her dress. his cries softened but didn’t stop, his face buried in her shoulder.

“i promise i’ll see you soon,” olivia whispered, her voice trembling as she tried to steady herself. “it’s not forever, james. just a little while.” she kissed the top of his head, inhaling the soft, powdery scent of his baby shampoo.

ezra approached with a quiet, apologetic smile. “liv, we really have to get going.” his eyes darted to james, who was still holding onto her for dear life.

“i know,” olivia said, her voice barely above a whisper. she pulled back just enough to look james in the eye. his cheeks were streaked with tears, his little nose red.

“james,” she said gently, brushing his damp hair out of his face. “i need you to be a big boy for me, okay? you’re so brave, and i know you can do this.”

he sniffled and rubbed at his eyes with his tiny fists. “i don’t want you to go,” he said, his voice small and broken.

“i know,” she replied, her own eyes brimming with tears. “but you’re gonna have so much fun with mama, and i’ll call you all the time. i’ll even send you pictures, okay?”

james hesitated, his bottom lip trembling. “pictures?”

“yes, lots of pictures. and when i come back, we’ll do something special, just the two of us. maybe we can go get ice cream. how does that sound?”

his little face lit up just a fraction, a glimmer of hope breaking through his sadness. “strawberry?”

“strawberry,” she confirmed, smiling through her tears. “with extra sprinkles.”

“okay,” he mumbled reluctantly, finally loosening his grip on her.

olivia handed him over to ezra, who took him gently but firmly. “you’re gonna be okay, buddy,” ezra said, bouncing james lightly in his arms. “liv will be back before you know it.”

“bye bye, james,” Olivia said, her voice cracking as she gave him one last wave.

“bye bye, livy,” he said softly, his small hand waving back.

she turned quickly, unable to bear the sight of him any longer, and headed toward the car. the weight in her chest felt unbearable as she climbed into the passenger seat.

ezra handed james to his mother sliding into the driver’s side. as they pulled away, olivia couldn’t stop herself from looking back, watching james through the window. he was still waving, in diana's arms as she watched him.

“take me back,” she whispered, her voice thick with emotion.

“liv,” ezra said softly, his grip on the steering wheel tightening. “you know you can’t.”

she leaned her head against the window, silent tears streaming down her face. “i hate this,” she muttered.

“i know,” ezra said quietly, his eyes flickering to her before focusing back on the road.

and as the distance grew, olivia could still feel james’s small hands on her cheeks, his broken little voice echoing in her mind.