Page 14 of Returning to Everton

“Not a problem but next time you wanna interrupt me when I’m saying something important, I just may have to stop you,” I wiggle my fingers at him in warning, and he steps back with his hands in the air, chuckling.

“Alright, Quinn, point taken. Have a good night. Be careful walking home.”

“Night, Hud. And I can take care of myself, remember,” I wiggle my fingers at him again. He laughs as he closes the door behind me.

I walk home with a smile on my face. Things are finally coming together for my bff. And she can just get over it because it’s time I start meddling.

6

Rowen

Violet wakes me up bright and early by jumping in my bed, yelling, “Get up! Get up! It’s moving day!!” I love this girl, I really do, but it is way too early for this level of excitement.

“Okay, baby girl, tone it down a little. Do you know what time it is?”

“Ummm, time to get up?” she says in her cute little voice.

I look at my phone and groan. “Violet, baby, love of my life, apple of my eye. It is five o’clock in the morning. It is not, in fact, time to get up. Go back to sleep. Mommy’s tired. The movers won’t even be here for three more hours, sweetie. We made sure everything was ready for them last night. There is nothing for us to do until they get here. So, let mommy get some more sleep, please,” I beg my daughter.

She huffs at me, “But Mommmmy, I can’t sleep. I’m just so excited!”

“I know you are, baby. But be excited quietly so mommy can sleep.”

We stayed up late last night, making sure everything was ready to go. All the boxes are filled, sealed, and labeled. We double-checked every nook and cranny of this house to make sure we didn’t forget anything. We could not be more prepared for this move. Now, of course, being the old lady I am, getting to sleep late means I need to sleep later in the morning. Unfortunately, that is not how it works for little kids. I swear the later kids go to sleep, the earlier they wake up the next morning. Why? Why does it work like that? You would think the later they go to sleep, the later they wake up. You know, like a normal person. Instead, it’s like they take some crazy cat nap, get a few hours of sleep, and are even more energized than before. It’s just not fair.

She plops down on my bed, and I pull her into me. Maybe I’ll get lucky, and some snuggles will get her to fall back asleep.

“Come cuddle with me, Violet. It’s been so long since you laid down with me and let me just hold you.”

“Okay, Mommy. But only for a little bit. I’m a big girl now. Big girls don’t cuddle,” she pouts but allows me to hold her close.

“Not true. Big girls love to cuddle. I’m a big girl, and cuddling is one of my favorite things,” I defend.

We lay there in blissful silence for a while. I think she fell back to sleep, but I’m too scared to look. I'll just lay here and hopefully go back to sleep. Next thing I know, I’m being woken up by my alarm going off. Oh, my god. It worked! Violet starts to stir, so I kiss her head and say, “Now, it’s time to get up.”

She rolls over and stretches while she yawns. “I’m sorry, Mommy. I was just so excited.”

“I know, baby. I’m glad we were both able to get a little more sleep, though. Today’s going to be a busy day. Let's get up, get dressed, and pack up our bedding. Then we’ll be all ready for the movers to get here in a half an hour.”

“Okay, Mommy!”

While Violet runs off to her room to get dressed, I go to my bathroom and splash some water on my face. It’s going to be a long day. I use the bathroom and get dressed, then start stripping my bed. All the blankets and pillows will be coming with us in the car, so I just fold them up and set them in a pile on my bed. I go to Violet’s room to check on her and find she’s done the same. She looks up at me and smiles when I chuckle.

“What’s so funny, Mommy?”

“You’re just so much like me, Bug. I folded all of my blankets up and made a pile with my pillows on my bed too.” She giggles at that.

“Alright, why don’t we take our stuff out to the car while we wait for the movers to get here?” I suggest.

“Okay, Mommy!”

Since we have too much stuff to carry, and because, let’s face it, it’s way more fun this way, we fly our bags and blankets down the hall, out the door, and into the garage. I open the garage door, so we can see when the movers get here, then open the trunk of the car so we can put our stuff in.

“You might want to keep a blanket and pillow with you, sweetie. It’s a long drive, and that’ll make you more comfortable.” I open the back door, and she flies them in. I flick my hand, and the trunk and door close. Just as we’re heading inside, the moving truck pulls up in front of the house and starts backing into the driveway.

“Mommy! Mommy, they’re here!” Violet jumps up and down.

We stand in front of the garage and wait for the movers to approach us. Two guys in their early twenties get out of the truck. They’re both good looking guys. One has short-cropped dark brown hair and dark eyes, definitely the tall, dark, and handsome type. If he were a few years older, that is, early twenties is a little young for me. The other guy is his opposite, he’s the light to his dark. Still tall, but with shaggy blonde hair and blue eyes. They can see my little girl is excited to see them, so they smile as they walk up to us.

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