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“Can Mark spend the night?” Cole looked at his dad, and it was easy to see he needed his best friend as much as Mark needed him.
“Of course, son.” He looked as relieved as I did, and I knew he’d answer all our questions later. Sue then surged forward and wrapped Mark in a big hug. She had to scurry out of the way as Abby rushed in to check him over herself.
“Mark, go upstairs with Cole and get some clean clothes, and I’ll reheat some dinner for you boys.” Her voice was brisk, but I saw her dash away a tear as she turned to the stove. Once they were out of earshot, Sue comforted Abby. “I wonder where he was.”
“It doesn’t matter now. He’s back.” Sue hugged her hard.
The following night, we got a call from Daniel to come for supper, as a family meeting was needed. A big decision had to be made, and we gathered in the living room to talk.
“Life shouldn’t be this hard at such a young age. It’s just horrible what happened to his mother. In spite of her lack of care, she was still his mom. He told me they took him into care and explained they had some people who might be willing to foster him.” Abby expressed her concern while we all sat around the fireplace. “He refuses to talk about what happened, and I don’t want to press him. He’s still traumatized.”
“It must have been awful for him, poor kid,” I agreed, and Daniel murmured his agreement.
“That little boy is incredibly smart, loving, funny, and he adores Cole,” Abby continued. “I mean, they’ve been attached at the hip since the day he showed up here.” She looked at Sue. “I understand how big it is to bring another child into the family, but he needs us.” She wiped a tear from her cheek, and Sue handed her a tissue.
Meg and I knew Daniel and Sue had been trying for the past five years to have another child, but it just didn’t seem to be in the stars for them. I knew the idea of adopting someone like Mark would be just what they needed.
“Abby,” Sue reached over and took her hand, “you don’t need to sell us on Mark. We love him, too, but the question is, does he want to live here?”
“Only one way to find out.” Meg shrugged and motioned toward the other room where the boys were playing. I grinned at her. I knew she was as excited as Daniel and Sue that we just might be about to get another child to love. Abby’s face was a story in itself as she stood and beamed at all of us.
“Another child under our roof,” she breathed and put a hand on her chest as she called the boys. It sounded like a stampede as they burst into the room.
“Mark.” Abby patted the seat next to her while Cole shot me a worried look. I caught his eye and smiled to assure him everything was fine. Nothing got past Cole. He read a room like there was writing on the wall. He took in the vibe and relaxed.
“Am I in trouble for eating the last chocolate chip cookie?” Mark’s big brown eyes looked around the room with worry.
“Of course not, dear.” Abby wrapped a loving arm around him. “We just want to ask you something.”
“Oh.” Relief washed over his face.
“Mark, we know we could never replace your family,” Sue said with glossy eyes. We could all see how vulnerable the boy was. “We wonder, given the circumstances, if you’d like to come live here with us instead of going with the foster parents you mentioned. We could talk to the social worker about it.”
“You mean you want me to stay here? And not leave?” His face lit up when we all smiled. “Like, live here and be a part of the family?”
“You’re already a part of the family, Mark.” Daniel smiled and took Sue’s hand. “You can have the room next to Cole’s.”
“What do you say?” Sue was next to tears.
“I say thank you.” He sprang from the chair and leapt into Daniel’s and Sue’s arms. He then ran into Meg’s, then mine. Abigail was now blubbering, and he ran back to her and flung himself at her. She stroked his hair and kissed him on the head. “Will you adopt me, Abigail?” Tears rimmed his eyes, and we knew he was trying to hold it together. His hand flexed on her shoulder while her chin quivered, and she cleared her throat. We all knew what those words meant to her. Sue and Daniel had their son, and now it was time for Abby to raise one, too.
“I would love to adopt you, Mark.”
Tears streamed down Sue’s cheeks as she smiled at Daniel.
“Can we go back to playing now?” Cole made us all laugh, and Daniel nodded at them to leave. The boys raced off, leaving the rest of us amazed at how quickly children could adapt to whatever came at them. We all took a moment to think about how much we had just impacted that child’s life.
“Do I want to know what I just walked into?” Doc Roberts stood in the entrance of the room, and Abigail jumped to her feet.
“Well,” she reached out for Sue’s hand, “we’ve decided I’m going to adopt Mark, and we’ll all raise him here together.”
I caught Doc’s face when it slipped for a half a second then morphed into a wide smile. “My goodness, that’s amazing, Abigail. Congratulations,” he looked around the room, “to all of you.”
“It just happened. Is that…” Abigail stopped herself, and I saw a look go between them. Doc Roberts just smiled, and she cleared her throat. “Thank you.”
I glanced at Daniel, and he signaled that they were dating. Yikes. I sure hoped Abby’s decision wouldn’t change anything for the two of them.
“Come on, Ed, Daniel, we’ve got work to do.” Sue pushed Abby toward the doctor and motioned for us to leave them be.
