Dark Paradise

Emma let out an exhausted sigh as she returned to the apartment later on in the afternoon. Jon was with Luca at the park while she ran to the store for a few things after work. Without bothering to kick off her heels, Emma walked straight back to the kitchen to put her bags down. As she entered the kitchen, the brunette noticed TJ rummaging through the fridge with his back to her. She quietly set her bags on the closest counter and tip-toed out of the room, hopefully going unnoticed. The teacher grabbed her briefcase from beside the door and sat herself down in the living room.

She did her best to concentrate on grading quizzes while TJ most likely shoved his face with food. As she entered more grades into the grade book, Emma heard a soft cough behind her. TJ stood behind the couch with a sheepish look on his face. His cheeks were flushed and rosy the way they did when he just finished a work out. There were small sweat stains on his t-shirt which used to drive the brunette crazy.

“Hey.” He said, awkwardly raising his hand to wave.

Emma smiled at the notion, “Hi. Can I help you with something?”

TJ shook his head, “I heard you come in and figured I’d seek you out and say hi.”

“Oh,” Emma felt her heart do somersaults as she watched him ran a hand through his hair, “Well, you said hi. So if you don’t mind, I’ve got a bunch of stuff to grade.” She pointed half heartedly to the small pile of papers before her.

“Right... you’re a teacher now. Great for you, that’s really great.” TJ stumbled over his words, “Well, congratulations.”

The brunette nodded, “Yeah. You too, on the wedding. Must be nice to be married to someone you really love, huh.”

The hockey player frowned slightly, but deserved the direct hit, “Can we talk?”

“About what?” Emma put down her pen and closed the grade book. She stood up and still seemed to come up short, despite the heels she wore.

Emma walked back into the kitchen with her ex-husband hot on her trail. Being alone in the apartment was the last thing she ever wanted to happen. She pulled her cell phone out of her purse and sent Quinn an ‘S.O.S’ text. TJ didn’t say anything, still trying to figure out how to approach what he wanted to say. He watched as the brunette frantically put away all her groceries. It reminded him of a fond memory of when she had first moved in.

The cool air conditioning smacked the couple in the face as they unlocked the door and walked into their condo. They had just spent the afternoon in the park enjoying the fabulous weather Saint Louis was offering before being stuck in the car driving up to Grand Forks. Emma still had a decent amount of things that still needed to be moved. The brunette skipped into the kitchen and opened up the fridge to an unpleasant sight.

“Don’t you have any lemonade or something?”

TJ shrugged and hopped up on the counter, “Whatever I’ve got in there is it.”

Emma frowned and put her hands on her hips before suddenly, the brunette began opening all the cabinets and drawers to see empty space, “How long have you been living here and you still don’t have anything?”

“I gave most of it to Bergie. The poor guy is still a bit space cadet on his own.”

The brunette nodded and thought for a moment. It was a sad, but true, fact about her favorite Swede, Patrik Berglund. He had already been in the country for a year and a half, but still didn’t know his way around anywhere. His english was still relatively poor and always needed help with stuff that had always seemed like simple tasks, “That silly foreigner.” Emma giggled, “Well, I’ll go to the store tomorrow and fill up this place and really make it feel like home, how about that?”

TJ nodded, “Home, I like that. Emma smiled and began humming to herself as she grabbed a napkin and began jotting down all the things she would need to fill the kitchen as she opened up all the utilities once again. TJ couldn’t help but admire how cute she looked, “I’m going to marry you one day.”

“You look good.” He said cooly, leaning against the counter.

Emma nodded and bit her lip, “Yeah, you too.”

There was an awkward silence before TJ spoke up again, “Are you seeing anyone?”

“It’s none of your business.” She said sharply.

TJ frowned heavily, “It is if you decide to bring men here. Luca doesn’t need to be confused about why Mommy brings different guys home.”

The brunette scoffed loudly and stood opposite the hockey player, crossing her arms over her chest angrily. Emma couldn’t believe the fact that TJ was going to question the type of man she would go after had she tried dating after the divorce. “What the hell kind of mother do you think I am? Just because you have low standards in women, doesn’t mean I’m the same way with men.”

“Hey, don’t insult my wife and mother of my child!” The hockey player argued without thinking.

Emma raised an eyebrow, “That used to be me... and I still am the mother of your first born son.” Her composure wavered a bit, “The son that you only come to visit twice a year. The son who carries your last name and continues you’re family. You’re flesh and blood.”

“Don’t try to pull some guilt trip on me. I love Luca just as much as I love my daughter. You’re not my wife anymore though. My wife is a beautiful, talented, and caring woman.” TJ took a step closer, “For all I know, you bring those random sum bags here when Jon and Quinn are gone and expose my son to them.”

“You’re right though, he shouldn’t be exposed to scum bag guys. Why do you think I didn’t stay in Saint Louis?”