Mistakes We Made (Wattys2016)

Chapter Two

Emma's POV

I pulled into my drive way and let out a sigh of relief. It was good to be back home. My place was tiny, it had two bedrooms and one bathroom. The kitchen and living room were together in one open space. The laundry room was a little room off to the side of the kitchen and living area. It was cramped, but it had a big yard, which made up for the fact that the house was so small.

The house wasn't technically mine, my grandparents were the ones who owned the house. They had a few different places all over town that they rented out. When John was born, they offered to let me move into one. I picked the smallest and the oldest, because it was the cheapest. My grandparent's cut down the rent to about $200 a month, even though I offered to pay the full price. I didn't want them to lose a lot of money by letting me live in one of their houses. Besides, it was just John and I, we didn't need much space.

It was built in 1955, the white paint was chipping, I was gonna need a new roof in another year or so, and the steps to my back porch needed new nails, because the boards were coming loose. It was in desperate need of repair, there was no doubt about it, but I did my best to make it look nice. I kept the grass cut, I planted flowers, I tried to keep John's toys in the shed if he wasn't playing with them. Even though it was old and slightly ugly, I loved it. It was our home.

When I stepped through the front door into the kitchen and living area, I found John and MK playing with his trucks and tractors. However, when John saw me, he hopped up and toddled over to me. "Ma, up." He lifted his arms.

"Hey Little Man!" I swung him up into my arms and kissed his cheek. "I missed you."

"Ma, me candy." He pointed to himself.

"Has Aunt Mk already gave you candy?" I asked him. He shook his head no.

Mary Kate let out a laugh, "Yes I have. I gave you chocolate earlier."

"More?" He asked her.

"No more." I told him, shaking my head. He hung his head in defeat, very disappointed that he could not have more chocolate. Then he looked up at me.

"Ice cream?" He sounded hopeful. I shook my head no again. The look of disappointment came back. "Down peas."

I set his feet on the ground and held him still so he could get his balance, then watched as he went to his toy box in the corner. That little munchkin was something else. He wasn't even excited to see me, he just wanted something sweet to eat.

"Thank you for watching him." I turned to MK.

"You're welcome. I'll see you in the morning at church." She replied, before going to give John a kiss. "By Buddy. I'll see you tomorrow." He didn't pay her any attention, he just kept playing.

"I'm feeling the love." She muttered, before giving me a hug and heading home.

Rae arrived, unannounced, about thirty minutes later. She plopped down across my sectional with a sigh. She was a mess. Her strawberry blonde curls were piled on top of her head in a messy bun. Her blue eyes were blood shot and puffy from crying and she looked pale. She was wearing a ratty short sleeved T-shirt that was too big and a pair of soffe shorts.

By that time, I had already changed out of my black dress and put on a pair of gym shorts and a tshirt. I sat down next to her, while John continued to play on the floor. We didn't say anything for a few minutes. I just let her lay there. She would talk when she was ready.

"How was it?" She finally asked, staring at the wall on the other side of the room.

"Hard." I let out a sigh. "I can't believe he's gone."