We Promised Forever

Emily had distanced herself from Paige in the days following the divorce. She didn't want to be around anyone while she was grieving the loss of someone else. It felt selfish, and in a way, she knew that getting back together with Paige had been selfish in general. She wasn't ready, and she was unsure if she ever would be. Paige was familiar, easy—she knew Emily.

Emily knew Alison was coming for the girls' birthday, and her only thought was how she was going to react to seeing her for the first time. She hadn't realized the week had gone by so fast until she received a message from her ex.

Alison: "Hey, I'm headed up now to come visit with the girls. Just landed. You can expect me in the next few hours."

Emily looked at the text for a while before pulling herself together to gather a response.

Emily: "Okay, drive safe. See you soon."

She was seeing her soon, and that terrified her to no end. Paige had been trying to reach Emily all day but was left unanswered. Emily tore through her closet trying to find the perfect outfit—something that would impress her now ex-wife. Part of her knew Alison probably did the same earlier that day before she left.

Emily straightened her hair and put on a light makeup look. Both Lily and Grace had been in her bed watching YouTube videos on their tablet. She decided on wearing mom jeans with rips on each knee, a long black sleeve shirt, and a sleeveless jacket over top.

They planned to go to the girls' favorite restaurant, followed by a trip to the arcade. The girls rushed down the stairs and waited for their mom to arrive. Meanwhile, Emily paced the kitchen anxiously.

"Mommy!" Emily heard the girls shout and saw them run outside as soon as the car pulled into the driveway.

Emily inhaled sharply and pulled herself together, watching as Alison immediately got out of her car and ran to hug the girls. She noticed Alison's hair looked a bit different, parted in the middle with soft waves. Emily couldn't take her eyes off her; it was almost as if she was looking at the Alison she fell in love with when she was only twelve years old. Her face was glowing, her smile as big as it could get—she looked so full of life.

Emily blinked quickly, almost as if she was seeing a ghost. She cleared her throat, grabbed her coffee cup on the counter, and slid her sunglasses on top of her head to pull her hair back from her face.

She walked to the doorway, and Alison immediately looked up at her, the smile on her face remaining. Emily smiled back and walked out to where they all were hugging. Lily clung to Alison as if her life depended on it. Grace was just too happy to even stand still. Emily suddenly became speechless as she stood in front of her first love. It felt weird—not knowing what to say or how to act. Alison looked up at Emily and visibly examined her entire face, her hair, her body, which made Emily tense. Ali had a way of looking at her that made the brunette feel so vulnerable. She had been crouching down to hug both girls while Emily stood over them.

"You look so pretty, Mommy," Lily said, touching Alison's face. Alison looked over at the little girl beside her and smiled, "You look even prettier, Lily."

Alison stood back up and smiled again at Emily. "The outfits are cute," Alison said to Emily. "Say that to Grace, she picked them out." Emily smiled and looked down at the girls, unable to hold eye contact with her ex-wife.

"I could've guessed that. She does love dressing like her mom," Alison mumbled, also looking down, her face turning red for some reason. "Come in, I, um—I made some coffee if you want some." Emily stuttered, and Alison nodded, softly brushing her hand on Lily's head.

Alison grabbed her bags from the car and walked into the house she used to call home. There were some unfamiliar things added; she took mental note of everything she saw new. It was spotless, which wasn't always the case when they were married.