To Have A Love Like This

Sam POV

“I’m so glad to see you!” Emily swung her arms around me. As soon as she had spotted me and Sydney she squealed and ran the few feet that were apart from us. “It has so been so damn long since I saw you!” She pulled away looking at Sydney who was clinging to my leg. “Oh my God, look at you.” Emily kneeled down next to her.

“Hello,” Sydney spoke quietly.

“You must be Sydney. I mean look at you, you look just like your father.”

“That means I’m going to see him today?” Instantly, Sydney went from her shy self to acting like they were the best of friends. Emily looked at me worried.

“No, no honey I was just saying you look like him.” Her face fell. An awkward silence passed before I noticed David was standing a few feet behind Emily.

“Oh my God, David!” we hugged. “Look at you, three years pass and you still don’t get a tee wee bit cute.” Emily smacked my arm.

“Shut up, I find him very hot, thank you very much.” Sydney grabbed onto my shirt indicating that she wanted me to grab her. I did what she asked.

“What does you guys’ luggage look like?” David asked.

“I have a light gray one with a dark stripe running down the middle and Sydney’s is a SpongeBob one.”

“Can I go with him to go get them, momma? He doesn’t know.” I looked at David. He nodded holding his arms out as if he was going to grab Sydney. I was hesitant to give her to him.

“It’s not like I’m going to take her and run out the airport,” he teased. I glared at him. “Fine, then, I’m not going to let you hold my kid, no matter how cute he is.” Emily scoffed. Sydney laughed holding her hands out to him. I was surprised she was trusting of him. I handed her over and they walked away to the baggage.

“We almost had to bring Erik with us.” I looked at her with wide eyes. “Don’t worry; he’s still at the garage. I don’t think he’s going to our house later since he’s working late once again. I swear one day he’s going to over work himself-”

“Emily,” I interrupted. “I really don’t want to hear about him right now. I don’t know what the hell I’m going to do to keep Sydney away.” She pursed her lips.

“What are you going to do if he sees her? Say that she’s a friends’ daughter?” she asked. I smiled looking at her. “Please do not tell that’s what you’re going to do.”

“I love that you’re my best friend.” I smirked. “C’mon let’s go help David, he wasn’t always the brightest.” She gave me narrowed look. I put my hands up in the universal sign as surrender.

“Speaking of which, Sydney looks like she’s really smart.” We started walking. I looked out the window at the scenery I had last seen almost four years ago. Nothing had changed. Or at least from what I had seen.

“Yes I used that one program that we used to make fun of. It actually works.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” We stopped beside David. Sydney was now standing back down on the floor holding hands with David. Her concentration was fully on the bags coming out.

“The one where they send you books and stuff. I forget what it’s called. But it worked anyway because Sydney here is very advanced compared to the other kids she is at the daycare with.”

“Look, Dave! It’s right there c’mon!” Sydney pulled David to get the suitcases. I looked at Emily and mouthed ‘Dave’?

“He’s damn lucky the girl who called him that is three.”

-

We pulled up the driveway. Another car was parked but I didn’t think much of it. Emily turned to David in the front seat, “I thought he wasn’t coming tonight.” It didn’t take long for me to figure out who it was. My heart raced and my mind was racing with thoughts of where I could go.

“Mommy, are you okay?” I looked down at Sydney.

“Yes, I’m fine sweetie.” Emily turned back to me.

“I asked him and he said no. I don’t see why it’s such a bad idea for you to see him. I mean it has been a long time-” David cleared his throat. He shook his head at Emily. The car was turned off and none of us moved.

“Maybe you should just wait until we get in, then I’ll say I left something and come back, and I’ll tell you where you hide until he leaves. Does that sound good?” I nodded my head sighing in relief. Emily obviously didn’t like the idea but went along with it anyway. Once both doors were closed and they walked to the steps a figure stood. My breath hitched in my throat.

Three years is a long time and a picture can only hold so much justice to a person. I didn’t think it was possible for Erik to get any better looking than he was in high school. Man, oh man, was I wrong. His body filled out. Muscles tightened in his shirt as he stretched his arms in the air, all that leading down to his still slim waist. Dark stains littered his pants that covered his legs.

Finally, I looked at his face. His blonde hair stuck in different ways as if he’d been running his hands through it, bags were forming under his eyes, and a five o’clock shadow that screamed ‘I just got out of work!’

“Who is that?” Sydney asked. I covered her eyes with my hand.

“That is…a friend of Emily and David. I’m not sure who it is.” I bit my lip. I most definitely knew who that was.

“Then, why can’t I see him?” She tried to move my hand with her tiny little ones.

“Because if you do then you won’t get any dessert for the next month,” I threatened. She didn’t say a word after that. As they were going in Erik looked toward the car. He made a step to come but Emily held him back. A few words were exchanged before he followed them in the house but not before looking back one more time.

I let out the breath I didn’t know I was holding. I sat back taking my hand away from Sydney’s face. She stared at me her lips moving every once in a while. I couldn’t tell what she was thinking and that scared me a bit.

Erik POV

There was someone out there and I know it. It doesn’t matter that David or Emily denied it many times when I confronted them with it. I could feel it. It was some kind of attraction that made me want to look in their car, as crazy as that sounds. It could have been my tired eyes but I had seen someone move in the car.

It’s been a couple days but I still can’t get it out my head. It was with me as I ate breakfast, worked, ate dinner, took a shower, and now lying in bed. What the hell is wrong with me?

Sam POV

Scott was just the cutest thing ever. His smile and eyes could make you do just about anything. That is if he could pronounce full sentences. He would point at something and mutter something incomprehensible. When Sydney saw him she instantly started pinching his cheeks and baby talking with him.

Emily and I sat on the floor in the living room with her laptop in her lap. Sydney and Scott sat playing with toys a few feet away from us, their giggles filling the room. “What exactly are we looking for?” I asked Emily. She shrugged.

“I don’t know, you see I don’t know a thing about planning. And I want Scott’s first birthday to be special.”

“He’s turning one, are you going to do the same thing when he turns thirteen and eighteen and twenty-one?”

“Why would I do a big party on his thirteenth birthday?”

“His first year of being a teenager.”

“I don’t see how that’s important.” She looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

“Well my momma cared about me and made me one,” I stated matter-of-factly. She bit back a smile.

“Your mom is a weird one.” I lightly smacked her arm.

“No, she isn’t, she just loved me lots.”

“That’s what she made you think.” We started laughing when I heard the front door open. I stopped laughing and stilled. Sydney noticed something was wrong and didn’t do anything either. I guess she remembered the threat of no dessert.

“Hey, Emily, it’s me and Erik,” David called out. His tone sounded normal enough but I could hear the warning in it. I stood up slowly motioning for Sydney to follow me. She started walking when Scott let out a squeal grabbing onto her shirt.

I felt like my heart was about to burst out of my chest. My palms were starting to sweat. Emily gave me another worried face before going to meet Erik and David. Scott wouldn’t let Sydney’s shirt go. I tried to pry his fingers off but they were clasped on with a death grip.

“C’mon Scotty let her go. I promise she’ll come back,” I whispered. He thought it was a game since he started to giggle, loudly.

“What is that?” Erik asked. I heard his footsteps make their way toward us. Sydney looked at me with wide eyes and I feared mine was the same way.

Erik POV

When I rounded the corner, Scott sat on the floor about to cry. His arms were still in the air like he was grabbing something and it was token away. I walked toward him, picking him up. “What’s wrong, little buddy?” He wrapped his arms around my neck lightly sobbing. David and Emily stood by the end of the couch looking nervous. “Why do you guys act like you keep hiding something?”