Leave the World Behind

Epilogue

It was two days before Christmas. It was our turn to host. Martha, Spencer, and their little girl Ruby were staying with us. "So, what is it like having a pet raccoon?" Martha stirs the hot chocolate that she was making for everyone. Martha ended up becoming an author, whose hobby was mixed martial arts. She was on the bestseller list multiple times for her series about an adventurer named, Dr. Smolder Bravestone. Her latest novel was called, Jumanji.

"It's like having another toddler. Right when you're about to explode because they won't stop touching everything, they do something cute that makes your heart melt." I brought out mugs for everyone.

Anthony, or Fridge as Spencer still calls him, became a zoologist. He was a freelancer, so he works for the zoo, farms, and a bunch of wildlife rescues. Six months ago, he came home with a raccoon that didn't have any front legs. He told me about how he couldn't get rehabilitated back into the wild and he needs a forever home. Once the kids saw him, I knew he was going to be a part of the family.

"How does he touch when he has no front paws?" She pours the hot chocolate into the mugs.

"With his mouth or his feet, trust me, he finds a way." I put a few tiny marshmallows in each of them. I put them on two trays with crackers, extra marshmallows, and napkins. "Come on, Rocket," I called the raccoon who was napping under the dining room table. He got up on his hind legs and followed us outside.

"Hot chocolate!" Martha calls out.

"Mommy, mommy, mini-fridge hit me in the face with a snowball." Connie, my five-year-old daughter, came running up to me. She had snow all over her face.

I stop myself from scoffing at the nickname Spencer gave my oldest kid coming out of her mouth. I put the tray down on the picnic table. I grab a napkin to wipe off her face.

"It was an accident mom, I swear." Franklin, who was seven, came running up after her.

"I'm sorry. It's my fault I shouldn't have ducked." Ruby, who was the same age as my son, hung her head. She was like Spencer in the sense that she always said sorry and she had his curly hair.

"Is he going to get punished?" Connie stomps her feet.

"Should you get punished for accidentally stepping on your brother's foot yesterday?" I ask.

"No." She shook her head.

"Alright then, sit down and enjoy your hot chocolate." I had them take a seat at the table before they got their drink.

"Amazing job, babe," My husband wrapped his arms around my waist and kissed me on the cheek.

"Were you hiding in Rocket's enclosure?" I turn around in his arms to look up at him.

"No. I came out now and not before because we were almost done installing the heater in his little house." He pointed towards the enclosure that took up half of the backyard. I see that there was a little gray machine hooked up to the dog house.

"That maybe, but I know you didn't want to settle that fight." I reach up to poke his nose.

"I can't help it. I'm just a mouse while you're cutthroat." He kissed me. Our son pretending to gag made us pull apart laughing. We took a seat at the table next to our kids.

"Dad, how come Rocket has to get locked up on Christmas?" Frank asks.

"He doesn't have to, he might. We don't know how he's going to react to all those people around him. It's for his and our safety." The one thing Anthony always lectured the kids and me about was that Rocket was an animal that had different behavioral instincts than us. I honestly had a harder time grasping that than the kid. I find it difficult to treat him like he's a wild animal when I hand feed him, bathe him, and play with him.

"How's the bakery doing?" Spencer asks from the spot between his wife and daughter.

"Doing well, I had to turn down orders for the Christmas Yule logs." It was always nerve-racking when I put out a new recipe. While most did well, this one did the best. I have my little taste testers to thank for that.

"I helped. I'm the reason there's cinnamon in it." Frank points proudly at himself.

"I helped too. I helped mom pick the design." Connie chirped.

"Teamwork makes the dream work." I bent over to give them a kiss on the forehead. Frank wipes his off while Connie beams up at me.

Anthony picked Rocket up and put him on his lap to feed him a cracker. "He's so cute, like a tiny furry person." Spencer stares down at the raccoon in his best friend's lap.

"I know. Bethany is going to lose her mind when she sees him." I giggle, remembering how she coos over him when I facetime her.

"When is she getting here?" Martha asks.

"Her plane lands tomorrow. She finished shooting yesterday," I told them. Bethany was nature photography. A lot of her work was to raise awareness. Her latest project was about garbage and pollution in the ocean.

"Is Alex coming?" Spencer asks.

"Yes, he is coming." Anthony sneers.

"What's wrong with you?" He narrows his eyes.

"Did you know he offered to be my wife's backup boyfriend?" He hissed.

"What? When?" Spencer's jaw dropped.

"Uncle Alex is your boyfriend, mommy?" Connie looks up at me with curiosity in her eyes.

"No." I shook my head at her before turning to Spencer. "When we had detention together, that makes it about 15 years ago. The man is coming here with his wife, children, and grandchildren. Let it go." I said the last part to my husband.

"I only found out two days ago." He put up two fingers.

"Why did you even tell him?" Martha snickers.

"Because of your book, Missy, he wanted to know why Seaplane and Cutthroat were together." I blamed her.

"It was more than that. You both said there was a pull to one another. Alex felt it for the other one too. My theory is because the characters were supposed to be together." She explains why she put them together.

"Uncle Spencer, are you going to make a video game out of Auntie's book? I think it would be awesome." Frank asks. The kids loved the books because they thought the characters were named after them.

"I don't know. I feel like it would be more stressful to play than fun." He ran a hand through his thick curls. Spencer was a videogame designer. He has been getting that question a lot lately, especially since he made games for the other books.

"I don't know, I think some great things would come out of it." Martha throws a knowing look at her husband.

"I think some great things already have." Fridge wrapped his arm around my shoulder and kissed my temple. We, adults, share a laugh while our kids look at us confused.