mama's broken heart.

Jason disappeared quickly behind the counter and popped back up with a mini heater, setting it up by them. He plugged it in and turned it on. “It’s a good thing my kiddos get cold or I wouldn’t have this here…kinda odd for a bakery.” He said with a laugh. “Sounds good and please don’t try to pay me. I would just find a way to get it back to you. I have to take care of my favorite customers, right?” He said as he got the coffee and cupcake ready, bringing them over and setting them in front of Hailey and Sophie. “So…I was thinking and I would uh, love to take you out to dinner or something? You know, like a date…?”

“Thanks, Jase.” She said with a warm smile, scooping Sophie up into her arms and holding the child in front of the heater with her. “You mean you don’t just stick ‘em in front of an oven?” She teased with a laugh. “Alright, alright. But the next time we see a movie it’s on me, okay?” Peeling the wrapper off of the cupcake before handing it to Sophie, Hailey picked up the mug of coffee and brought it close to her face, inhaling the scent before blowing gently on it and taking a small sip. “What?” She asked, surprised by the question as her eyes went slightly wide and she took another sip of her coffee to hide the smile that was forming. “I mean, I’m sorry you just surprised me. But.. yeah,” She said after a short pause. “Yeah, I’d like that.” 

Jason looked up from behind the counter. “I can see that.” He said with a smile before disappearing behind the counter quickly, coming back with two towels. He handed one to Hailey and smiled, kneeling down next to Sophie. “Can I help you dry off?” He asked with a soft smile, wrapping the towel are here and rubbing it against her skin. He looked up at Hailey. “Need a heater? I don’t want you two getting sick on me now.” He tilted his head to the side slightly before standing up and lifting Sophie up with him. He had known the two for awhile now and was comfortable enough to pick up the young girl. “Let me get you some sweet stuff and coffee, on the house of course.”

Laughing sheepishly, Hailey shook her head and took the towel with an appreciative ‘thank you’ as she began to dry off, mentally kicking herself for not checking the weather report before they left the house. “Yes,” Sophie said as she held her arms up and allowed Jason to dry her off with the towel, Hailey watching the two with a warm smile as she dried her hair off. “A heater would be great if you had one, I don’t want us gettin’ sick either.” She chuckled, wrapping the towel around her shoulders as she followed him to the counter. “I would love some coffee and I’m sure Sophie wouldn’t turn down a cupcake.” Smiling, Hailey took a seat down at the counter and watched the man with her daughter. “It doesn’t have to be on the house though, Jas. I’d be happy to pay.”

Holding Sophie in her arms, Hailey ran into the bakery with water dripping from both her and her six year old daughter. She’d been caught completely off guard by the rainstorm so her and Sophie were without an umbrella and completely soaked to the bone. “I’m so sorry mija.” She sighed, setting the young girl down and looking around for Jason and avoiding the pitiful stares she was getting from the other customers. “I’ll get you dry in no time, okay? I promise.” Taking Sophie by the hand she made her way towards the counter, an apologetic look on her face as she approached the owner. “So I didn’t read the weather report this morning and now we’re here, dripping on your floor and wondering if you have a towel or two you could lend us...”

Theo raised an eyebrow as he looked over towards her. “I mean, probably not the smartest but I am letting a three-year-old use a frosting tube. I mean…she can’t even color in the lines yet.” He said as he looked over, spotting frosting everywhere. He shook his head some. “I think we both have some clean up to do.” Theo said as he moved over to where Hailey was, leaning on the counter next to her. “I can’t believe that it’s almost Christmas.” He said and shook his head. “Time flies.” He added.

“She was so cute when she asked, though. Did you see her face? How could I have said no?” She said with a chuckle, shaking her head as she watched Lucy frost the cookies, Sophie trying to help the younger girl get the frosting on the cookie rather than the counter. “Mm, yeah. We will. Most definitely.” Turning her attention from the girls back to Theo, Hailey nodded her head. “God, I know. It’s crazy.” She agreed, reaching up to gently run her thumb over his cheek, getting some flour off of it. “Have you gotten all your shopping done, yet?”

Theo looked down at the two girls, as happy as can be as they walked with their arms linked. He smiled to himself as Hailey kept their hands intertwined. He didn’t want to push things too far or make Hailey uncomfortable in any way. He looked up as the girls ran up to the first house. This was the first time that Lucy was able to go up to a house by herself and he loved watching the little girl have fun. He looked over towards Hailey while their kids were getting candy. “So um…” He started, not sure where he was going or why he was suddenly so nervous, butterflies in his throat.

Watching the girls run up and ring the doorbell, the chorus of ‘trick or treat’ ringing out through the night, Hailey smiled. She was usually the one going up to the doors with the six year old, so watching her run up on her own with Lucy caused a bit of a knot to form in the pit of her stomach. Sophie was growing up so fast. She was pulled out of her thoughts, however, by the sound of Theo’s voice. Turning her head to look at him with a soft smile, Hailey let out a soft chuckle. “They grow up so fast, don’t they?”

Maisie looked up at the clock and sighed. “It can’t come soon enough. I don’t know how I am even standing right now.” She said with a laugh, her own cup of coffee in her hand, taking a sip from it. “Just gonna do like movie night or something?”

“Right?” Hailey said, adding sugar and cream to her coffee before stirring it up and taking a long drink from it. “Yeah, curl up on the couch with Soph and probably order a pizza. Just stay off my feet and go to bed early. It sounds so lame but I’m so ready for it.” She chuckled. “What are your plans when you get off?”

“Look at mommy, Soph, look. Look.” Nate whispered, index to his lips, knee going still where he had been previously rocking Sophie on his lap as they both watched her mother try to flip the skillet, couldn’t help but erupt in laughter and a round of applause at her success. If anything, Sophie’s own enthusiasm was too contagious and he couldn’t help but laugh and smile at the scene. “Bravo! Yes! She did it!” His hands were up in celebration, the girl imitating his cheers. “Alright, alright. You get flipping pancakes, Hales… I’ll make you a Mickey Mouse shaped pancake. How about that?” 

Raising her hands up in the air triumphantly, Hailey had a wide grin on her face as she ran around the kitchen island to scoop Sophie up in her arms and spin her around a few times before setting her back down on Nate’s lap and going back to tend to the pancakes on the stove. “Micky Mouse shaped pancake, hm?” Hailey asked with a grin, pouring more batter onto the skillet after removing the cooked pancake to a plate next to her. “Are you one of those pancake artists in your spare time, Natey?” She teased.

“Don’t worry about it.” Oscar replies, shaking his head a bit. “How’s Sophie? Besides stubborn, that is.” He asks, laughing softly. “Just wait until she’s a teenager. Teenage girls are the worst. I’ve only been here a few minutes, don’y even worry about it.” Oscar says, giving Hailey a smile. “How’ve you been?” 

“A diva.” She said with a laugh of her own, a laugh that was accompanied by an affectionate and proud smile. “God, please no. She’s already growing up too fast. I swear that just yesterday she was taking her first steps. Now she’s in school...” Sighing, Hailey crinkled her nose. “Okay good. I’ve been well, though! Working a lot and spending as much time with Soph as I can. How about you? What have you been up to?”

“Excuse me.” Hailey said with a warm smile, holding on to an excited Sophie’s hand, “My daughter had decided she’s old enough to begin reading the Harry Potter books... but wants the illustrated version.” Chuckling, Hailey shook her head slightly, looking down at Sophie for only a moment before looking back at Stevie, “Do you guys have it here?”

“Hey girl,” Hailey said as she walked into the nurse’s lounge and began to pour herself a coup of coffee. She was on the tail end of a very long shift and was looking forward to going home and snuggling with her daughter on the couch. “I cannot wait for eight o’clock to come around. I’m so ready to trade my scrubs for sweats.”

Walking into the mall with Aniston, Hailey looked around before turning towards her shopping companion. “Okay, so nothing too expensive and nothing too revealing... other than that, I just need help freshening up my wardrobe. So please, point me in the right direction.”

“Shit, shit, shit. I’m so sorry I’m late!” Hailey said, practically falling into the chair across from Oscar as she put her purse strap over the back of the chair followed by her jacket. “I got off work late and then Sophie wouldn’t for the life of me figure out what she wanted to wear over to Lucy’s... that girl is going to be the death of me I swear.” She chuckled, finally settling down into the chair and looking across the table at her friend with an apologetic smile. “I hope you haven’t been waiting too long.”

“Okay, so I know you do this for a living and everything... but I’m absolutely horrible with this stuff. So please, don’t laugh too hard, okay?” The young mother asked as she looked up at James, eyebrows raised with a bit of a chuckle. She’d bought Sophie a set of bunk beds for her room and had called James in to not only help her get the boxes up the stairs, but to also help put it together. “Especially when I hit myself in the hand with a hammer... because it always happens.”