What I Should Have Said

40

It had been a month since Mason's passing. Alex moved out of their apartment but always made an effort to visit and check up on her from time to time. It felt weird having to get used to living alone. She grew up feeling alone when her mother abandoned her and she was practically left fending for herself and trying to keep her father alive. This was the first time she was truly on her own, the first time she would finally be living life on her own. Not worrying about anyone else, just herself.

The choices were all up to her now. She wished things didn't all end this way. She only wondered what life could've been like if everything was different.

"Ready for the airplane?" Mason asked. The child in his arms nodded. "Time for takeoff!" Mason shouted as he tightly gripped the child in his hands and spun around lifting and moving the child around like a plane. The child was in fits of laughter as Mason smiled and lovingly admired the child. He used to do the same thing for Betty when she was smaller.

She smiled and watched how her father played with the child. He looked happy and healthy again. She looked over and watched Scott and Andrea sitting and laughing as they watched Mason play with the child. She felt a pair of arms wrap around her from behind. Elizabeth grew tense. "We have a pretty great kid don't we?" Taylor whispered. Elizabeth relaxed as soon as she heard Taylor's voice and smiled. She turned to look at Taylor and softly smiled. She admired her face in silence. "What?" Taylor asked. Elizabeth immediately turned around and tightly hugged her.

Elizabeth tightly gripped the steering wheel. The tears she was fighting back slipped down her cheeks. She took a deep breath and tried to compose herself as she made her way to her father's home. Elizabeth felt her stomach in knots with nerves. She dreaded going back to that home. She parked in the driveway and made her way up to the front door. She went to check the mail but saw it was empty.

She held onto the door handle, hesitant to open it. She took a deep breath and opened the door. She entered inside and looked around. It didn't look the same. The house was organized. The old dining room table was no longer covered in dust. She looked around confused and entered the living room. Her father's old liquor cart was gone. The house wasn't the same. She walked out toward the backyard and saw someone working in the garden, a sun hat making it difficult to tell who it was.

The garden was clean again. There was a beautiful array of dark red, orange, white, and pink carnations planted. Elizabeth silently admired the flowers and watched the stranger who continued to clean up the garden. "Can I help you?" Elizabeth asked. The stranger looked over slightly startled. Elizabeth's eyes slightly widened unsure if she was imagining everything or if this was all real. The stranger stood up and took off her hat. It was Taylor.

"W-what are you doing here?" Elizabeth asked. Taylor looked around at the garden and looked back over at her. "I needed time to think about everything and maybe I'm the stupid one for coming back here again and risking another heartbreak. But I remembered what your dad told me. He said you were worth fighting for. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when he passed. I do know he loved you and only ever wanted to see you happy. It was what he told me when I told him I loved you and wanted to marry you."

Elizabeth's face slightly softened as she listened. "I also know you've never been able to step foot back here without being reminded of every painful memory you left behind. I remembered how much you loved this garden and what it meant to you. I know it's not the garden you had with your mom, but it could be our garden. We can do it all differently this time. Let me replace every painful reminder and memory with a new one." Taylor continued.

Elizabeth immediately wrapped her arms around Taylor's neck and held her close. Taylor held her in her arms. "I'm just glad you're back." Elizabeth whispered. Taylor smiled and held her tightly. This is what she wanted. She knew that now. "So does this mean yes?" Taylor asked. Elizabeth slightly pulled away. Her hands gently cupped Taylor's cheeks and pulled her face in and kissed her. The butterflies they once felt the first time they kissed were still there. Even after 20 years they were still there. Elizabeth slowly pulled away and leaned her head against Taylor's.

"Yes." She softly smiled. Taylor smiled, lifted Elizabeth in her arms, and spun her around.