Homecoming | Gantz Crew
Seeing her, a silly grin lit up Darren’s face. It never got less exciting to see her, especially after he’d been gone for a few months. Phone calls and Skype were just never the same as the real thing. In person, he got to experience her. When they stood this close he could smell her, see all the little changes and wrap his wife in an embrace if he wanted to and never left go.
His wife. Nearly twenty-five years after their vows and the words still brought butterflies. It had been a bit of a surprise when she’d said yes and he still couldn’t believe they’d somehow made everything work. All it had taken was four months of dating for Darren to know Spencer was the one. More accurately it took ten years and four months before Darren brought up the idea of a proposal, but all that mattered to him was it had now been twenty-five years with her by his side. Until death do they part.
“Well-” he started to give an explanation when he was stopped by the squeal of his daughter rushing to give him a hug. As she came closer he wrapped his arms around her, spinning her around. It was a favourite greeting of his that, despite both of them getting older, Darren wasn’t ready to give up. He would always want to keep his daughter as young as he could.
“Letting Jack be surprised seems like a terrific idea. I’m starved. Georgia, could you grab me something to eat? Airplane food never completely satisfies” he complained, wrapping an arm around his wife. When Georgia left he turned to his wife, taking all of her in. “I’m really glad to be home. Is this a pretty good Christmas present? Or should I have added a bow?” he asked, making his way into the living room with Spencer and leaving his suitcase by the door. He’d pick it up on his way upstairs later in the night.
“How have you guys been doing?” Darren asked, settling into the couch and resting his arm on the backrest. “Is Georgie getting busted for all those wild parties she throws in Pemberly?”
There was something in the way he looked at her when there wasn’t a computer screen between them, when his arm met her waist, his cheek brushed against hers gently, and there was a particular warmth to his expression, one she’d caught glimpses of as teenagers, but had softened. Their high school days were spent with smiles momentarily replacing scowls, of arguments littered with pauses, bitter tones and apologetic kisses. But this look was a memoir of those moments, of acknowledging that they’d happened and they were better for it. She wouldn’t have traded their past decisions if this was where they wound up, but for too long, their relationship lacked smooth sailing.
She was too stubborn, a virtue in her law career, but made for messy relationships, frequently starting arguments with her now husband over the littlest things and then thinking he was at fault. She knew better now, had apologized for her past behavior, wondered countless times why he’d managed to come back around and how he was crazy for loving her. But she was grateful for it, for the twenty five years spent between them, for their home and two children. The end result to their old bickering selves was unexpected, but exactly what she’d needed, she realized, watching Darren interact with Georgia before she left to make due on his request.
“I was half expecting a car, that or German chocolates, so I’ve got to say, I’m a little disappointed,” she replied teasingly, letting herself settle in beside him, her fingers immediately finding his and intertwining them together. “We’re okay, I think. Jack’s dating this new girl who seems nice enough to approve of, Georgie’s calmed down a bit from becoming head—no ragers just yet, but you never know with those Easton kids.” A smile fit her lips as she reminisced the parties held during their high school days, the pair’s attendance and different experiences. “She seems to be doing a little better in calc. Remy’s been tutoring her, I believe,” she mused, trying to recall the nature of their relationship. “You remember him, right? Ollie’s kid?”
