The Darkest Minds FanFiction

The Treehouse

Liam pulled into the driveway in his black minivan. From the front door, I could see the planks of wood filling the open trunk, almost spilling out of it completely as it hung over the edge. Liam spotted me and smiled, and I smiled back. It didn't seem like that long ago when that smile was almost impossible to bring to his face. It didn't seem like that long ago when our world had gone to hell.
I walked out towards him as he got out of the car.
"Hey, Darlin'. Anything happen during my trip to Home Depot?" I shook my head no, while leaning in and kissing him, the stubble on his chin tickling me. I hummed against his lips, and he smiled against mine. He pulled away and stared at me, smiling, eyes shining. I'd never forget that look. Not after so many years of trying to find it.
"Come on, help me take the wood to the backyard." And so I did.
It took all of fifteen minutes to unload the wood and carry it to Lee's workstation. He loved his projects, always had, loved being able to build something new, or repair something. Make something old new and usable again. And that's what we looked for when we first bought the house.
The moment Liam first saw it, the run down treehouse that, if even a squirrel passed through it, would break apart, you could see the ideas blooming in his mind. He had smiled that day, too, ready to take on another project, fix something new. I'd been three months pregnant then. And by the time we had settled on buying that house and having all the papers signed, I was seven months pregnant. By the time we really moved in and knew every nook and cranny of the house, I was going into labor. There hadn't been time for either of us to focus on rebuilding the treehouse, but Lee was determined to fix it; one day. And now, our daughter, Lizzy, of course named after the Beatles song Dizzy Miss Lizzy, was three and getting her own treehouse. And Liam was happy to build it for her. And I was happy to help.
                     And so, after a week of hard unending labor, in which Lee called in sick at work, the treehouse was finished...and now required decorating. Of course, Lizzy had taken after some of her mom's style, but she absolutely adored Aunt Zu's style of pink, pink, pink. And so, as I was the one to decorate the small aerial house, I laid out little pink plastic chairs, a low white table, tiny pale pink drapes, and invited Mr. Teddy Bear and Mrs. Giraffe up to the treehouse. I even laid out little pink blankets and throw pillows all over the floor next to a small stereo that Liam had taught Lizzy to use. When I came down and told Liam it was all ready for Lizzy, he nearly jumped in joy. It was almost hilarious to see Liam so happy and so childlike. He went to Lizzy's room, where she was doodling with crayons. He picked her up and swung her around, and she just giggled and giggled, shrieking,"Mohr, Dah-ddy, mohr!" 
               "You want more, hmm? How about up, up, up?" She screwed her face up in confusion, and Liam continued, while walking out towards the treehouse.
                  "How 'bout up into the treehouse Mommy and Daddy made you?" She squealed in excitement. As Liam carried her to the ladder he made, as she started climbing up all by herself, Liam right behind her incase she fell, I went and gathered the crayons and paper she was using. When I climbed up into the treehouse, the sight of Lizzy slack jawed in awe greeted me, along with a beaming Liam. I couldn't help but smile myself.
                  "You like it, Little Liz?" She nodded, wide eyed, and I couldn't help but remember Zu's expression in that Walmart where we saw the frilly pink dress so many years ago. Lizzy came out of her stupor and ran first to Liam and then me, giving each of us a big hug in turn. I handed her the crayons and paper, and she began to doodle again, drawing furiously. She sat in the little pink chairs and drew upon the little white table. Liam and I watched her, his arms wrapped around my waist, his chin in the crook of my neck. When she was satisfied with her drawing, she brought it to us, beaming with pride. It was a drawing of Lee, Lizzy, and I, smiling in front of a tree with a little pink glittering house high above us. I hung it on the fridge for two years, until the three of us turned into the four of us.