Part 6
The Hart Remembers – Part Six
Previously: The phone rang.
“Hello”
“Hello, may I speak to Jennifer Hart please” a man’s voice asked.
“This is Jennifer Hart speaking”
“Oh, hello, Jennifer this is Peter Donner”.
“Oh, Peter hello how are you?”
“I am fine Jennifer how are you? I heard that you had been injured. Is everything ok now?”
“Yes, I am quite recovered. How are Simone and little Max?”
“Well, that is what I am ringing you about. I…..” he seemed to catch his breath.
“Are you alright Peter?”
“I really need your help Jennifer and it may be a really big ask, but I am hoping you will say yes” he said with desperation in his voice.
“Ok Peter, I’ll help if I can, you know that” Jennifer said.
“Yes, it’s just that…..” she heard him take a deep breath “Simone has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She’s very sick and has been hospitalized”
“Oh I’m so sorry Peter. Is there anything that Jonathan or I can do for you?”
“Well as you know we are in the process of adopting little Max. He is such a great kid, Jennifer. But with Simone being so sick we have had to put that on hold. In fact, I’ve had to send him back to the orphanage. I really didn’t want to but I had no one to take care of him while I am at the hospital with Simone all the time.”
“Poor little fellow. I imagine that was hard on him” Jennifer said sympathetically.
“Yes, he didn’t like it very much but what could I do?” he paused for a moment “He really hates it there Jennifer and…..” he paused again searching for the right words “well I was thinking that perhaps you and Jonathan might be able to take him in and look after him. It would be a great load of my mind and Simone’s to. She feels so terrible about it all. I keep telling her it’s not her fault she got sick and Max had to go back to the orphanage. It would only be while Simone gets better. The doctors think she has a good chance of recovery”
“Peter I…”
“I know it’s a lot to ask, but it would mean the world to him. He loves both you and Jonathan and if he can’t be here with us I know he would love to be with you”
“Peter I would love to take him in but I would really need to discuss it with Jonathan before I said yes. You do understand don’t you?”
“Yes, of course Jennifer, I do understand”
“This is a big decision, there is a lot of responsibility attached to looking after a child Max’s age. I do realize though that it would be much better for him to be with us than in the orphanage. But I do have to talk to Jonathan first.”
“Yes Jennifer of course you have to talk to Jonathan first” Peter paused for a moment “but can you please talk to him as soon as possible. It just breaks my heart to see Max back in the orphanage. He has been such a little trooper but I can see the light going out of him because he thinks that the adoption isn’t going to happen.”
“Yes Peter I’ll speak to Jonathan almost immediately. I will ring you later today and let you know what we have decided. I won’t keep you hanging I promise. Please give our best wishes to Simone and tell her we are thinking of her.”
“Yes I will. Thank you Jennifer, I knew I could count on you. Bye”
“Bye Peter”
As she hung up the phone she pondered what it would be like to have a young boy around the house. She wondered what Jonathan would think of it. It was at this moment that the dream she had of big Max some time ago came to mind. She recalled what he had said to her:
“Ok, so tell my why it is so important that I get my memory back now? What is the decision that I am going to have to make?”
“Well, I can’t tell you the decision you have to make exactly. In a few weeks somethin’ will happen. Somethin’ devastating will happen to some people you know, one of whom is very special to you. You have a special bond with this person and he is gonna need your help. You will need to have you memory back so that you can remember him and what he means to you so that you can make the right decision concernin’ him.”
“This is all very cryptic Max. I haven’t a clue who you are talking about and I really don’t like the sound of all this.”
“Don’t worry. If you get your memory back the decision will be easy for you to make. He’s really gonna need you. Will you try really hard to remember?”
It was all clear to her now. Big Max had been talking about little Max as well as Peter and Simone. Wow, so maybe it hadn’t been just a dream. Maybe she had really talked to Max. She wandered over to the window but she wasn’t seeing the scene before her she was thinking about big Max and little Max.
All of a sudden she knew what she had to do. Jennifer needed to speak to Jonathan right away. She went back to the phone and picked it up but decided that this discussion needed to take place face to face so she picked up her keys and headed out to see Jonathan at his office.
————————————-
Jonathan was restless. The day was taking much too long to go. He was in his office sitting in his chair, looking out of the window. But he wasn’t really seeing the view, he was thinking about Jennifer.
Uh, so what else was new, he thought to himself. Jonathan found himself thinking about her all the time. He smiled. He was crazy about her, even after all these years. And ever since she had gotten her memory back they had been like a couple of love sick teenagers. They simply couldn’t keep their hands off each other.
He heard a soft knock on his door and then it opened to reveal the woman of his thoughts. His face broke into a wide smile and he got up and went to her and pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately.
“Jonathan!” she squeaked “what are you doing?”
“I am saying hello to my gorgeous wife, whom I haven’t been able to get out of my head all day. I was just thinking about you when you miraculously appeared”
Jennifer laughed. He was in a very good mood. And if she wasn’t mistaken, he was feeling very amorous too.
“Well, that’s nice, it’s sweet that you think about me” she said as she kissed him softly on the lips. As he was about to deepen the kiss, she pushed him slightly away. Jonathan gave her a puzzled look.
“I came here for a reason Jonathan” she said at which he lifted his eyebrows in a suggestive manner “but it wasn’t for that, so settle down, ok?” He looked disappointed and pouted a little so she continued “But, of course, there is nothing to stop us from continuing this later on.”
He grinned at her, that mischievous grin that always made her melt inside. Jennifer grabbed his hand and led him to the sofa.
“I have something very important to discuss with you”
As they sat down Jennifer turned to Jonathan and, still holding his hand, she looked at him seriously. He began to get worried by her expression. He could tell it wasn’t good whatever it was.
“I got a call from Peter Donner a little while ago” This wasn’t what Jonathan was expecting so he relaxed a little and smiled.
“How is Peter… and Simone and little Max too?”
Jennifer looked distressed and Jonathan started to worry again.
“Things aren’t that good with them Jonathan. Peter had some distressing news about Simone” she paused for a moment. The news of Simone’s sickness, and what it meant for her, was just starting to sink in. She looked at Jonathan with tears in her eyes.
“Simone has breast cancer” she whispered
Jonathan gasped. He wasn’t expecting to hear something so bad.
“Peter is beside himself. He has had to send little Max back to the orphanage because there is no one to look after him while Peter is at the hospital with Simone.”
Jonathan felt sympathy for Peter. He couldn’t imagine what he would do if Jennifer were to get a diagnoses like that. And after having almost lost her not so long ago he could fully understand the terror Peter must be feeling. And little Max, he could empathise with him also. He had had a taste of what having a family would be like only to have it taken from him.
Jennifer was watching Jonathan closely. She could read the emotions crossing his face and knew exactly what he was thinking.
“Is it very advanced?” he asked.
“Apparently the doctors are optimistic that she will recover, but she is very sick at the moment.”
Jonathan got up and walked to the window. Once again he wasn’t seeing the view. He was deep in thought. Jennifer just watched him silently. She knew him very well and knew when to keep quiet.
He suddenly turned to look at her and she jumped slightly. He came back to her and sat down.
“I can’t help picturing that little boy alone. He must be devastated. He had a family within reach and now it is gone. Even if it isn’t gone for good he must be thinking that it is.”
Jennifer smiled. This was just like Jonathan. He could put himself in little Max’s place because he had been there himself. If it hadn’t been for big Max his life probably would have been much different and not in a good way.
“I think we should ask Peter if Max can come and stay with us…” Jonathan stopped talking when he saw a huge smile break out across Jennifer’s face.
“What?”
Jennifer launched herself into his arms and squeezed him hard.
“You know, Jonathan Hart, you are the most wonderful man in the whole world and I love you more than anything. Do you know that?”
Jonathan was completely confused but he returned the embrace and said “Well, I don’t know, but if you say so then it must be true”
“Oh, you” she said as she lightly pushed him. She had tears in her eyes once again which confused him even more.
“So are you going to tell me why I am the most wonderful man in the world?”
Jennifer smiled at him through her tears and said “Because, my darling, the reason Peter rang me today was to see if we could take Max in and look after him until Simone is well again. You, being the wonderful man that you are, suggested we do just that without me even asking you” Jennifer pulled Jonathan in towards her for another hug.
——————————————-
“So, Peter I have spoken to Jonathan and we will be happy to have Max stay with us until Simone is well and back on her feet again. In fact Jonathan suggested it before I even got around to asking him”
She could hear Peter release a breath. “I am so glad you and Jonathan feel that way Jennifer. I will make the arrangements and let you know. Thank you so much. You don’t know what this means to us”
“Peter it will be our pleasure. Talk to you soon. Bye”
“Bye Jennifer”
“Well Peter seemed pleased.” Jennifer said as she hung up the phone in Jonathan’s office. But before she could turn around and look at him she felt his arms encircle her from behind. He pulled her back to fit flush against him and nuzzled her neck.
“So, now that we have that out of the way, what about that promise you made me earlier” he whispered into her ear.
“What promise would that be” she said smirking, knowing full well what he meant.
“Oh, that little promise of there being nothing to stop us from continuing later on with what I wanted to start earlier. Well by my reckoning it is now later on” and as he said this he ground the lower half of his body into her bottom so that she could feel the effect she was having on him.
“Why, Mr. Hart, you seem to have a very large protrusion in your trousers there. It must be very uncomfortable for you” she said playfully as she turned around in his arms.
“You better believe it baby. What’re going to do about it?” he said as he pulled her tighter to him.
“Well I can think of a couple of solutions to your problem…..” she began but was cut off by his lips capturing hers in a blistering kiss. That was the end of any talking for a long time.
—————————————-
The Harts were enjoying an after dinner brandy when the phone rang. Jonathan answered it and had a short conversation with the person on the other end. He came back to the sofa and sat down with a huge smile on his face.
“That was Alan Taylor. He wants us to come and have a look at the Willow Pond house tomorrow. Apparently it’s almost finished.”
“That’s wonderful news. I haven’t been there in a while. They had just finished the framework the last time I saw it. I can’t wait to see it can you darling?”
Jonathan smiled and nodded. “I am very excited about this. Wouldn’t it be great if we could get moved in before Max comes to stay?”
“Yes…” Jennifer said with some hesitation. Jonathan looked at her and waited for her to continue. “Darling, have you thought about what it will be like to have a nine year old boy around the house?” she paused and then said “I mean really thought about it?”
Jonathan moved closer to her and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “You’re not having second thoughts about having Max stay with us are you?”
Jennifer leaned into him and said “No, no I’m not. It’s just….. well we haven’t really had a lot to do with children of his age… well children of any age actually. I guess I am a bit apprehensive that’s all. I don’t want to get it wrong.”
“You won’t my love, you’ll see, we’ll be fine. Max isn’t used to having parents either remember so we will be learning together.”
“Yeah, you’re right. But we aren’t really going to be his parents are we? We are just going to be some people he is staying with for a while.”
Jonathan didn’t know how to soothe Jennifer’s worries about this because he had been thinking the same type of thoughts. He was also scared of messing up. They just had to believe that they would get through it without anything major happening. It was too late to back out now. Jonathan was sure that Peter would have told Max what was going on by now. He didn’t want to disappoint that little boy. He had been disappointed enough lately.
Jennifer was very quiet and he thought that she had drifted off but when he looked down upon her he found that she was looking off into the distance miles away from him.
“Penny for your thoughts” he said as he nudged her.
“Oh, I was just thinking about the dream I had of big Max. You remember I told you about it?”
“Yeah, I remember. It was where you remembered the name Willow Pond which eventually led you to get your memory back”
“Yeah that’s the one, but there was more to it, that I remembered later. Max told me that this situation with little Max was going to happen. But he was very cryptic about it and it wasn’t until I got the call from Peter this morning that I realized what the dream meant. If it was actually a dream”
“What do you mean? Don’t you think it was a dream?”
“I don’t know. It seemed so real, I think I was actually talking to him. But how can that be?”
“I don’t know sweetheart. I guess there are some things we just don’t know” Jonathan dropped a kiss on her head. “How about we head off to bed and maybe continue what we started in my office this afternoon”
“Oh Jonathan you have a one track mind” Jennifer said with a smile.
“Yeah baby, I know, but I can’t help it. I can’t think about anything but you and making love to you. Is that so bad?” he said with a pretend pout.
“No it’s not bad at all. What would be bad is if you didn’t think of me and making love to me at all. That would be hard to live with.”
“Well speaking of hard….” He said with a leer. Jennifer laughed out loud at him and grabbed his hand to drag him off to the bedroom to continue on from their afternoon activity.
———————————
Later the following day Jonathan and Jennifer headed out to go and have a look at the Willow Pond house. As they were rounding the bend in the driveway up to the house they both gasped as they took in the new house.
“Wow, it looks great, don’t you think darling?” Jennifer said as the car came to a halt.
“Yes, they’ve done a wonderful job. It looks just like the original. Let’s take a look inside” his excitement was apparent.
They headed inside the house. It was almost exactly as the old house had been but some of the windows had been extended to let in more natural light. Some of the darker colors had been replaced with more neutral colors but the basic sense of the house was exactly the same. Even the original fire place had been utilized.
Jonathan and Jennifer spent a lot of time just wandering through the house. Eventually they left the inside to go outside and have a look at the back of the house. Here things were a bit different. They had opted to install a hot tub on the back deck because they had gotten used of having one at the beach house.
As they were about to take a stroll around the grounds before going back to the beach house they were stopped by a young man in workman’s overalls.
“Mr. Hart, Mrs. Hart how are you?”
“Oh, hello there Alan, we’re great, thanks. You have done a wonderful job with the house. It looks fantastic.” Jonathan said with much enthusiasm. Jennifer just smiled at the young man who always seemed to be nervous around her. He blushed profusely. She didn’t mean to do it but she got the feeling he was a little intimidated by her. Jonathan looked at her and rolled his eyes.
“So, the house looks like it is almost finished. When do you think we can move in Alan?”
“Mr. Hart as of today the house is finished. The boys are just putting the finishing touches on couple of little jobs that were left to do. Gary is filling the hot tub and testing it out now. You can use it today if you want to. In fact, you could move in today if you wanted to” he finished with a smile.
“That’s really great Alan. We can’t wait to move back in here. It’s been too long, hasn’t it darling”
“Yes, much too long” Jennifer said quietly as she looked at Alan who blushed again.
“Well, I better get back and finish up” said Alan as he was moving off towards the other workmen.
“You are bad you know that” Jonathan said to Jennifer with a grin.
“Me! What did I do? I hardly spoke to the man. I don’t know why he acts like that around me. I’ve never done anything to make him feel uncomfortable” she protested.
Jonathan laughed, loud and hearty. “My darling you just don’t know what you do to men. You really can’t see it can you?”
Jennifer just looked at him puzzled with her eyebrows scrunched up into a cute frown. Jonathan was still smirking at her so she turned away from him and walked off in a huff.
—————————————-
Jonathan and Jennifer spent some time strolling around the grounds. As they were working their way back towards the house they stopped at Max’s Rose garden to look at and smell the roses. They were both remembering the afternoon they spent among the roses making love. They looked at each other with a knowing grin but didn’t say anything out loud. Sometimes they just didn’t need words to communicate.
Eventually they got back to the house. All was quiet as the workmen had left for the day. It was very peaceful and the only sounds they could hear were the chirping of the birds and the bubbling sound of the water in the hot tub.
It was a beautiful warm evening. The sun was slowly setting and the sky had a rosy hue to it. Neither Jonathan nor Jennifer was in any hurry to leave. They stretched out on the grass as there wasn’t any patio furniture to sit on yet.
“So, when do you want to move in?” Jonathan asked a relaxed Jennifer.
“Can we move in now? I really don’t want to go back to the beach house, I want to stay here” Jennifer said as she rolled over on to her tummy.
Jonathan felt his mouth go dry at the sight of her firm round bottom. He couldn’t help it. She was just so darn sexy. He smiled.
“You’re staring at me again. I can feel your eyes on me” she said as she looked back at him over her shoulder.
“I’m not staring. I’m looking. I like looking at you”
Jennifer rolled over onto her back, stretched and closed her eyes. Jonathan nearly came undone at the sight. He could feel himself growing hard and he felt an urgency to be inside of her. He needed to be one with her right now. He moved over closer to her and pressed his lips softly against hers. Then he had an idea.
“What do you say to us christening the hot tub?”
“We don’t have any bathing suits here”
“Who needs bathing suits?”
“Ooh. I like the way you’re thinking Mr. Hart. Sounds like a fine idea”
“Great let’s go then”
They got up and headed for the hot tub. They quickly stripped and got in, settling back against the edge of the tub.
“Mmm this is nice” Jennifer sounded like she was almost purring as she relaxed into the water.
Jonathan was mesmerised by her beauty. Sometimes it felt like she took his breath away. Just then she glanced over at him and found him looking back at her. The look in his eyes told her what he was thinking.
Jennifer made her way over to him. She leaned in and captured his lips in a soft kiss. He responded immediately by pulling her closer to him and pressing his lips harder against hers. Jennifer moved to straddle him. She could feel his hardness between her legs pressed up against her intimately. Jonathan groaned.
Their kisses became more intense as she parted her lips and he slipped his tongue inside. As their tongues duelled Jennifer lifted herself up a little and positioned him at her entrance. She then slowly slid down onto him.
The feeling of him inside of her was incredible. It was always like this. He filled her so completely. Soon she was moving. At first slowly but then the pressure began to build and before long she was riding him with abandon.
——————————
Billy Bob Jackson always loved this time of day. The sun was just slipping over the horizon and the sky was glowing blood red. Billy was on the roof of the Harts new house. He had been putting on the finishing touches. He knew his fellow work mates had all gone home. It was so quiet now compared to during the day when work was in full swing.
Billy was just sitting and thinking. He really should retire from this job. He was getting too old to do this now. He ached something fierce each night after work. But there was something satisfying in seeing a house take shape.
He looked at his watch and realized he had been sitting on the roof for an hour. He started to collect his tools together in readiness to climb down. He was kind of sad that this job was finished now. He had enjoyed working on this house. They just don’t build them like this anymore.
He slowly made his way down the ladder and then folded it up. He picked up his tool box and started to make his way out to his truck. As he came around the corner of the house he stopped dead. For there in the hot tub were two people engaged in some loving.
At first he felt embarrassed by having witnessed this but then he got angry. How dare these people come in uninvited and use the Harts new hot tub. Well, they had made a big mistake. He dropped his tools and ladder and started to march over to the pair, who were totally oblivious to his presence as they seemed to be reaching the climax to their lovemaking. As he approached he heard the woman scream out in ecstasy and the man yelled something a couple of seconds later.
But as he got closer he realized that he was actually the one who had made a big mistake for he now recognized the pair – Mr. and Mrs. Hart. On no, he wasn’t sure what to do. He was so close now that he couldn’t really make an unnoticed retreat because Mrs. Hart had spotted him.
Jennifer pulled back from Jonathan slightly as she was startled to see a man looking down on them.
“What’s wrong?” Jonathan asked. Jennifer just pointed upwards. Jonathan looked in the direction she was pointing and was also startled to see a man looking down on them.
There was complete silence for several long seconds while the three remained completely still. Jonathan was trying to shield Jennifer, as best he could, from the man’s eyes which seemed to have glazed over.
Billy realized that he was staring and started to move backwards. “I’m really sorry Mr. Hart, Mrs. Hart. I thought that you were a couple of trespassers. Please forgive me, I wasn’t spying on you, really I wasn’t…”
Billy turned and ran as fast as his sixty three year old legs would take him. He didn’t stop until he was at his truck. He quickly opened the door and got in. Once he had the vehicle started he took of as quick as he could. Never in his life had he been so embarrassed.
Meanwhile back in the hot tub, Jonathan and Jennifer looked at each other and they both burst out laughing.
“Fancy getting caught like this” Jennifer said when she had calmed down a bit. “Who was that man anyway?”
“I think he was one of Alan’s workmen” Jonathan laughed again.
“Well, I hope he’s not scarred for life. He looked pretty shocked.”
“Yeah, I hope he is alright. Maybe we should get out and go back to the beach house and have some dinner. Or we could eat out if you want.”
“That’s a good idea darling, except for one minor problem.”
“What’s that?” Jonathan couldn’t think of any problem they might have.
“Well we are all wet…..”
“Yes, we are, so?”
“We don’t have any towels!”
“Oh, right. Well I guess we will have to get out and air dry before we can go and get some dinner” Jonathan said with a smirk.
“Well let’s hope that there aren’t any more workmen still lurking about to catch us” Jennifer replied with a smirk of her own.
————————————————-
The next week flew by lightning fast for the Harts. They moved into the Willow Pond house early in the week. That night they had a marathon love making session to celebrate their new home. They made love in several rooms before ending up in the bedroom.
The celebration spilled over into the next morning and when they were finished Jonathan was too exhausted to go to work. Instead they spent the day in bed together sleeping and cuddling.
The next day Jonathan and Jennifer decided to go shopping to buy a few essentials, like bedroom furniture, for young Max. Peter had rung a couple of times and told them that everything was on track.
All the paperwork had been submitted and the fact that Jennifer had been Max’s donor the year before was making things much easier than they normally would have been. Peter was optimistic that Max would be with them before the end of the month.
Jennifer started to feel panicky again. So she decided to tackle this as she would any project she took on, with copious research. She spent hours on the internet and at the library reading every parenting book and article that was ever published. By the end of the week she thought she had a good idea of what being a parent or guardian was all about.
On the following Monday she had a lunch date with Marcia. It was purely social as Jennifer had told Marcia all about Max and that she wouldn’t be taking on any assignments for some time.
“Hi Marcia how are you?” Jennifer greeted her friend as she arrived for lunch.
“I’m good. I won’t ask you how you are, I can tell already. You look fabulous. But then you always do.”
“Oh Marcia you do exaggerate” Jennifer said with a grin.
As their lunch progressed Jennifer told Marcia about all of the research she had been doing on parenting.
“I was getting worried that I wouldn’t be able to do this. But now I feel a bit more confident about it all”
“That’s great Jen, that you are trying to learn as much as you can…” Marcia paused.
“I hear a ‘but’ coming on” Jennifer said.
“Well yeah, but you can only learn so much from reading. It gives you a basic idea. Nothing will give you a parenting education like actually doing it. Every child is different. So what may work for one, may not work for another. Do you see what I am getting at?”
“Yeah, I think so. So every child is different, that makes sense. But don’t the parenting principles apply to all of them?”
“Yes I guess so. But you have to be flexible also. You may get a child who is quiet and unobtrusive, like my Lucy. She can sit for hours just reading or writing and sometimes I forget that she is even there. Then you may get a child who is loud and craves attention all the time, like my Julia. She lets you know she’s around all the time. She is never quiet except when she is asleep.”
“Ok. Well, you have given me a lot more to think about. So what you’re saying is that the main thing is to be flexible? Mould the basics to suit the child?”
“Yeah, pretty much”
“Ok, thanks Marcia. I may need to call on you some more when Max gets here”
Marcia laughed at that. Soon conversation had turned to other things and they spent a pleasant couple of hours together talking and laughing.
—————————————
The days passed and the end of the month was drawing near. Jennifer was at her desk doing some of the household paper work when the phone rang.
“Hello”
“Hello Jennifer”
“Oh, hi Peter, how are you? How are Simone and Max?”
“I am fine and Max is fine. Simone is not so fine” he said with sadness in his voice “she just seems to be getting sicker. The doctors are still saying that she has a good chance of recovery but I am not so sure. I am a doctor too and I can see the life draining out of her”
“I’m so sorry Peter.”
“Thank you Jennifer. Actually what I am calling about today is to do with little Max. Finally, all of the paper work is done and you and Jonathan have been approved as Max’s temporary guardians.”
“That’s great Peter. So when can we expect him?”
“I have him booked on a flight on Thursday. He should get in about 6pm Thursday night. Now I have arranged for an interim guardian to travel with him. This man will have paper work for both you and Jonathan to sign. You will have to meet him at the gate as he will not be permitted to set foot on US soil.”
“Right, it all sounds fairly straight forward.”
“Yes, there shouldn’t be any problems. I have to go now. Simone is due for another of her treatments and I like to be with her. She gets very frightened by what is happening to her, but she never complains. I just wish I could take her place and be the one who is sick”
“I am so sorry you are having to go through this Peter. Goodbye for now and please give our love to Simone and tell her we are thinking of her.”
“Yes, I will do, thank you Jennifer. Bye for now”
Jennifer hung up the phone.
———————————————
Thursday came quickly. Jonathan and Jennifer were at the arrivals gate waiting for young Max. His plane was supposed to be on schedule and expected to land on time.
Jonathan put his arm around Jennifer’s shoulder and said “So how are you feeling about this now? Are you still apprehensive?”
Jennifer smiled up at him and said “I am still a bit scared, you know, but I had a long talk with Marcia the other day and it helped a great deal. I am trying not to stress out too much about this. How about you, how do you feel now?”
“I think we will do ok” he said as he smiled back at her.
They waited in silence as they took comfort in each others company. Jonathan checked his watch and saw that it was almost 6pm.
“He should be here any time now” he said.
Just as Jonathan finished speaking the call came over the loud speaker that Max’s flight had landed.
“Great. We’d better keep a close eye out now. We have to go to them. They can’t come to us, remember” Jennifer said quietly.
They moved closer to the gate. The door opened and the passengers started to trickle out. Jennifer was tense as she scanned the disembarking passengers. And then there Max was with his temporary guardian. He looked a little taller than she remembered. Just as she was about to call out to them Max turned towards her and saw her. His face broke out into a massive smile. He started running towards them.
“Jennifer! Jonathan! I am here at last” he yelled at the top of his voice.
Jennifer laughed and turned to Jonathan who was watching Max and smiling.
As Max reached them he pushed through the gate and launched himself into Jennifer’s arms. He held on tight and she returned the hug just as tightly. Jonathan looked at them and could see that Jennifer had tears in her eyes. His heart swelled. He knew they were going to be alright.
Max let go of Jennifer and went over to Jonathan and stood in front of him. He held out his hand in an offer to shake Jonathan’s hand.
“Why so formal with me Max?” Jonathan said a little puzzled.
“Well, I thought that men didn’t hug each other. I didn’t want you to think I was a sissy”
Jonathan laughed “Hey it’s ok for men to hug sometimes. It’s been so long since we have seen each other that I think maybe a hug is in order, don’t you think Max?”
Max contemplated this for a moment and then slowly moved closer to Jonathan “I guess it would be alright just this once” and proceeded to hug Jonathan who hugged him back.
After they had talked a little bit longer together about what sort of flight Max had and how he was doing, they moved over to the man who had travelled with Max. He had been waiting just inside the gate for them to finish saying hello. They signed all of the paper work he had for them. Jonathan and Jennifer both thanked him for looking after Max. And then Max thanked him and said goodbye. They watched the man reboard the plane for his flight back home.
Jonathan then turned to Max and Jennifer and said “Well Max let’s go home”