Riptide: A Christian Yelich Story

Twelve

The second month of their separation was kinder to Amelia than the first. Jonah had stayed for a week, giving her a sense of confidence she hadn't felt since the night before it all started. In the past month, she'd gotten her sleep under control and she got a job.

She had a bachelor's degree in Psychology from the University of Miami, so her accepting a job as a school psychologist at a local public high school only made sense. And she loved it... but it meant daycare for Nathaniel, which she didn't love.

She kept track of the Brewers schedule, even if Christian had only spent time with Nathaniel twice in the last month, so she knew he had a day off today.

Nathaniel had a cold, which meant she wanted that boy nowhere near a daycare... Which left Christian to babysit.

Do you want to spend time with Nathaniel today? He misses you.

Civility. Co-parenting successfully meant maintaining civility.

***

The last road trip in Toronto saw Christian sleeping with another woman. When he woke up, regret slammed into him like a truck. The woman looked almost exactly like Amelia.

What the fuck was he doing?

Coming home for a day off meant he was left alone. Thinking about how much he missed his wife. Travis only glared at him lately, which only left him guiltier.

Christian looked around the basic apartment, drowning in the emptiness. He was alone and it was his fault. His phone buzzed on his nightstand and he grabbed it, heart clenching when he saw who it was from.

Nathaniel. His sweet sweet baby boy. God he was perfect... and Christian missed him. Just thinking about how much he's probably missed made his heart clench harder and tears spring to his eyes.

He had to see them. He needed to hold his baby... his wife if she'd let him.

I'll be there in 20.

And he was. A coffee for Amelia in one hand as he knocked on the door.

Fuck. She looked amazing.

"Hi," Christian said softly, breath catching in his throat when he saw how immaculately she was dressed. Black trousers, an ivory silk shirt, and a blush blazer was an outfit he never thought he'd see as sexy, but the reaction in his pants told him otherwise.

"Hi. He has a bit of cold, just a heads up. He may not want to go down for a nap, and he'll be fussy. I can pick him up around 5 if you need me to," she said softly, gently handing Christian the diaper bag and the extraordinarily clingy boy.

"Dadadada," Nathaniel sniffed, his chubby hands clutching his dad's sweater.

"Mils," Christian gulped, holding Nathaniel close, tears springing to his eyes. "I... Um this is for you," he handed her the coffee. Fucking coward.

"Thanks," Amelia smiled a bit and took the coffee. The pet name made her feel something akin to anger, but she didn't show it. "Text me if you need anything."

"I will... but I've got this. Is it okay if I have him overnight? It's a night game tomorrow... Did you want to come? I can get him a pair of those noise-cancelling headphones," he suggested, his long fingers playing with Nathaniel's hair where it curled at the nape of his neck.

"You can have him overnight... We'll see about the game," she shrugged. "I have to get going. Thanks again," she whispered, following him out the door and driving to work, begging herself not to cry.

Why did he have to do this shit right when she was feeling better?

***

Amelia clocked in 14 seconds before the clock said 9am, meaning she barely made it on time. She fixed her hair and straightened herself out before heading back to her office, grabbing her mail along the way.

She had an appointment with a sweet freshman named Rowda in an hour, so she needed to set up. She had downed the coffee Christian got her, so many emotions running through her mind and causing her to pause. He was being kinder to her than he had been in two months.

It was all so confusing.

Her mind was still lingering on that as she walked to get the copies she printed, meaning she was distracted when she collided with Mr. Harris, the psychology teacher.

"Sometimes I get lost in thought thinking about psych research, too," he smiled, handing her the fresh copies.

Amelia blushes harshly, biting her lip. Objectively, Mr. Harris was a very attractive man. Strong but lean build, light brunette hair that seemed to wave perfectly, and crystal blue eyes that always seemed to be sparkling with delight.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Harris," she apologized, making sure he didn't get any coffee on him. "Thank you for grabbing my copies."

"Not a problem. And it's Steven, Miss Yelich," he smiled softly, helping her relax.

"Well, Steven. Thank you, and it's Amelia. You should get going, though. Classes are about to start," she looked into his eyes, tucking her hair behind her ear.

"I suppose you're right, Amelia," he said softly, gently brushing past his shoulder on his way to his class.

What was that? And why did Amelia feel this way after he said her name like that?