The Sixty-Third Memory

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It seemed like all of five minutes had gone by since I'd dropped Laura off that she was "graduating" from preschool. The gave her a little diploma, and then she was off the stage and we skipped the rest of the ceremony.

Instead, we ordered a pizza and watched Nickelodeon.

"I wish I could drive on the sky," Emlyn said, marveling at Spongebob's amazing driving skills while he couldn't see.

"Don't be silly, Aunt Emmy," Laura said, taking a bite out of her slice. "You'd fall out!"

Emlyn laughed and I smiled.

"What about Daddy?" You asked. "Would I fall out?"

Laura shook her head. "You've got superpowers. You'd be able to stay in the car. Or boat. Mom, do we drive cars or boats?"

I smiled at how fast she went from one subject to another. "We drive cars."

"Well, why does Spongebob get to drive a boat? I want one."

"Because Spongebob is underwater, silly."

I shook my head and stood up, grabbing the empty pizza box and taking it to the trash.

Then, I headed to the freezer and grabbed five pints of Ben and Jerry's, one for each of us, even though we'd never finish it tonight. I grabbed spoons as well and then headed back into the living room, where Laura was setting her empty plate on the side table next to her seat. I handed her a pint and a spoon, and then one to you, and then one to Emlyn.

I remember thinking about how these were the days I lived for. The ones that we forgot about the next day, and just lived in the moment. The times when you'd roll your eyes at Emlyn because she'd show up at our house uninvited, or when she'd sneak into the house at night and sleep in one of the guest rooms just so she could steal Laura as soon as she woke up to take her to the zoo or something.

"What are you thinking about?" You asked, and I turned my attention to you.

"I'm thinking about that one time we went to wake up Laura, but Emlyn and her were gossiping about something they wouldn't tell us. And that time that you and I raced each other at the gas station to see who could drink their Slurpee fast. I'm thinking about days like these. Days where everything feels perfect."

"Why do you always find a way to bring up the Slurpee competition?" You groaned, and I laughed thinking about how you choked on it and we had to clean it up because the custodian refused to.

"Because it was one of the best days of my life."

"Even though we had to-"

"Daddy! Let Patrick speak! Don't interrupt him, you said that wasn't nice."

You turned your attention to Laura who was glaring at you with a pointed expression.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to."

Laura nodded curtly and turned her attention back to the show.

"I told you she was going to have your attitude," you murmured."

But she still heard.

"Daddy!"

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