My Perfect Soulmate

Chapter 21

Chapter 21

*Aaron*

The Valentines stare wide eyed at their daughter. She completely blindsided them. I'm sure they never thought Grace would push them away like this, despite how they've treated her. I just wish she'd done this earlier. Better late than never.

"Grace, you're speaking nonsense." Mrs. Valentine says with a shake of her head. "We're your parents. We love you and Sophie."

"Enough, mom." Grace waves her off. "For the first time in a while I'm making sense. Let's just try to get through the rest of this day and tomorrow on good terms. For Sophie's sake."

Before her parents can say anything else, Grace grabs hold of my wrist and pulls me away. She stops by a nearby tree and lets go of my wrist.

"I'm really sorry." She apologizes as she keeps her eyes towards the ground. "I should have listened to you in the beginning. I could have avoided this situation. I should have known they'd never change." She shakes her head.

"Don't apologize." I put my finger under her chin and tilt her head up so her eyes meet mine. "They're your parents and you wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt. You handled the situation perfectly. A lot better than I would have." I give her a small smile. "I think you made the right decision." I say on a serious note. "They're not good people and the way they've treated you is proof of that. It's best if they watch Sophie from a distance. She doesn't need people like that in her life constantly. She'll be better off now." I know it'll take Grace a while to get used to this new way of living, but not having her parents around will be the best for all of us. "I don't have much to offer, but if you need any help moving, finding a suitable job, or anything really, I'm here to help."

"Thank you." She smiles. "You're the bestest baby daddy, best friend a girl could ask for." She lets out a small laugh.

"Funny." I say as my smile grows. "Come on, let's find Sophie and Vicky."

We find Vicky and Sophie on the ice. Sophie holds onto Vicky's hands as she's guided along the ice. Despite her unstable balance, the large smile on her face still reaches ear to ear. She talks with Vicky with bright eyes. She loses balance and Vicky swiftly steadies her. My heart at the sight of them. No matter the situation, Vicky never fails to make Sophie smile. I love her for that, among many other reasons.

Vicky finally looks in our direction and I wave her over. With a slight night, she leads Sophie in our direction. When they reach the edge of the rink, Grace and I help them off the ice.
"Everything okay?" Vicky asks me, a slight look of concern in her eyes.

"Yeah, for now. I'll explain everything later."

"You guys hungry?" Grace asks. "We can find a place nearby."

"I could eat." I reply with a shrug. "How about you, Vicky?"

"I'm starving. Just let me get these skates of first."

"I'll go tell my parents." Grace says a bit half-heartedly.

While Grace goes to find her parents, I help Sophie and Vicky switch out their skates for their snow boots. As they sit on the bench, I kneel down and slip one skate of Sophie.

"Did you see me out there, Daddy?" Sophie asks me excitedly. "I could actually stand up this time. I didn't fall. Not even once."

"Really?" I ask with a smile, her excitement rubbing off on me. "That's amazing Soph. I told you practice makes perfect. Before you know it, you'll be skating circles around all of us." I slip her skates off and replace them with her snow boots.