Autumn in Philadelphia Trilogy

Saudade: Reservations

Apologies for the delay. New puppy in the house has really rearranged my schedule and time for writing! Still trying to figure out the balance.

In this chapter is shout out to Pod Meets World and that time machine they're working on. XD

Song lyrics- Human Touch by Bruce Springsteen

Audrey's friend that's mentioned is a fictional version of Mary Helen Bower, the creator of Ballet Beautiful and Ballet Baby.

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Bella, who had been happily smashing block buildings, burst into tears the moment she saw her father and wailed as though he'd been gone for a few days rather than a few hours.

Jon picked her up from the couch and cradled her against him. Her hot breath and tears pressed against his neck triggered memories of holding Audrey after he found her in the bathroom all those years ago. Past emotions washed over him and tangled with the ones caused by his daughter's reaction to his absence. This caused him to unnecessarily reassure her that he'd always be there for her.

In response, she dug her chubby fingers into the hair at the back of his neck with a handful of curls in each fist now that it was long enough to clutch. Bella, like her mother, was obsessed with his hair and liked it long. The last time he got it cut, she was inconsolable for two days, going back and forth between demanding he put his hair "back" and crying while hiding from him.

Grayson and Jamie burst into the living room soon after, chirping loudly as they alternated between bickering with each other and talking to their parents. Jon knelt to their level while Bella shot her brothers dirty looks for butting in on her time with their father.

The medley of voices grew louder when Auggie charged through the door and joined the chatter. All the noise brought in Maya and Riley who ended up shouting their plans for the night at Julia to be heard over the younger children.

Amy leaned into the living room to see what the cause of the commotion was and saw Jon surrounded by kids, several of whom were crawling all over him. He struggled to stay upright with Bella pulling him down and Jamie and Auggie leaning on his back. She smiled at the familiar scene until she caught Audrey's expression.

She recognized that thin lipped, pinched look.

Audrey also had this quirk that came out under stress where she would take the nail of a finger and press it under the nail of her thumb to push back the quick. She was now doing this to the thumbs of both hands. Quickly, Amy put herself in the middle of the chaos and whistled the group into silence.

Jon, free of the weight on his back, stood up with Bella still gripping his hair. His head felt strange as he straightened up. He was extremely tired and very dizzy all of a sudden.

Amy saw the look on his face and knew Audrey had too. "Hand her over, Jon," she ordered beckoning with her fingers for Bella to come to her.

Bella refused then loudly protested the great indignation of being taken away from her father. She scowled at Jon in a way that broke his heart as Amy carried her off to the kitchen to make playdough. The boys, curious if she made playdough the way their mothers did, followed her.

Julia lingered for a moment then popped her earbuds in and headed outside where Shawn was. This left Maya and Riley with Jon and Audrey. Maya took the opportunity to wrap Jon in a hug and pull him over the couch as she talked a minute about her day.

Riley, on the other hand, hung back and watched her aunt with concern. She could tell Audrey was unhappy with Maya's attention on her husband, which could only mean that Uncle Jon was not completely well.