Beyond Expectations (Mended Hearts Book 3)

by Sarah Markel

  The school gym had been one of the things that Alexander Walker, Jr. had prided himself on. In most schools, the gym doubled as the cafeteria, but not at Willowbrook. Alex’s father had designed the school’s gymnasium himself, giving careful attention to the fitness needs of growing children. On the far wall, opposite the entry doors, was a built-in rock climbing wall that went all the way up to a small landing below the ceiling. There were three different levels of difficulty, each a different color, used to promote coordination and upper body strength. The wall to the left held basketball hoops at varying heights, four different levels of chin-up bars, a climbing rope, and a stair block. To the right of the rock wall, massive shelves and storage bins held the copious amounts of sporting equipment used by the students. Sporting events, like basketball and volleyball, were held in the sporting arena at the back of the school.

  Alex looked around for a moment, not immediately noticing the group of people huddled in far corner off to her right. Noticing Alex’s confusion, Kelly pulled the woman toward the group. “I’m Dr. Kelly Walker, Marissa’s mom. What happened?” she asked, her tone firm and professional. One of the paramedics, a tall sandy haired man with thick black glasses, smiled at her. “Well, Dr. Walker, you’re looking much better than last time.” He said, pushing his glasses up his nose. Kelly looked blankly at him for a moment before recognizing him as one of the medics who had helped her when she had passed out. His eyes moved to her growing abdomen and the man stood, turning to face the women as he spoke.

  “Dr. Walker, are you squeamish?” he asked, intentionally blocking Alex and Kelly’s view of their daughter. When Kelly frowned at him, the man pointed to her stomach with a raised eyebrow. Alex snorted, pretending to cough as a cover, and Kelly punched her in the arm. Turning back to the man, Kelly shook her head. “Unless she’s covered in food, I’ll be fine.” She deadpanned. Kelly’s morning sickness had become decidedly picky of late, only rearing its head at the thought, sight, and smell of food. Running his hand through his hair, the medic let out a sigh and stepped aside. Rushing to their daughter’s side, both women gasped before staring down at the girl lying unconscious before them.

  “Holy shit, what happened?” Alex hollered, looking from Dej to Lauren, who was sitting cross-legged next to the girl, holding a towel in her hands. Dej was lying in a pool of blood that seemed to be coming from a nasty looking gash that took up most of her forehead. Angry that her child was lying in her own blood, Alex rounded on the medic standing next to her. “Why is she not on a stretcher and on her way to the ambulance?” she demanded coldly. Before the man could answer, Lauren stood and crossed to her. “Alex, they tried to get her onto the gurney. She was kicking and slapping at them, telling them she was fine and to leave her alone. She was alert and responsive until right before you walked in, when she noticed all the blood. She fainted.” Alex looked back down at her daughter’s motionless form, wondering why Dej would so adamantly refuse help. Pushing the thought away for later contemplation, Alex knelt down next to her daughter and laid her hand on the girl’s chest.

  “Dej?” Alex said softly, rubbing soft circles on the girl’s collar bone, just as she had when Dej was little. “Wake up, sweetheart.” Dej groaned softly, swatting at her mother as her eyes fluttered open. “What are you doing here?” she asked, looking from Alex to Kelly as she tried to sit up. “Bubba called us, sweetheart. You hit your head.” Kelly replied softly, placing her hand on Dej’s shoulder to stall her upward movement. Dej looked confused for a moment before gingerly pressing her fingers to the seeping wound on her head. “Oh yeah. Not my most graceful endeavor.” The girl chuckled, paling when she drew back bloody fingers. Lauren quickly pressed the towel to Dej’s forehead and held it while Alex spoke. “You can explain all about it later, right now, you need to let the medics take you to the hospital. You’re going to need stitches.” Dej whimpered and shot a worried glance to Kelly. “Can’t you just do them here?” she asked. Kelly smiled at her daughter and shook her head. “No, honey. I can’t perform any medical procedure on you because you’re my daughter.” Dej worried her lip between her teeth and turned to look at Lauren. “What about you?” she asked through the lump in her throat. Lauren shook her head. “Afraid not, Dej. You need to be checked out and those stitches are going to hurt without some pain medicine.” Reluctantly, Dej nodded and hung her head.

  *****

  “Okay, princess, just a few more. See, I told you it would be like a tickle.” Dej chuckled at that young doctor as he threaded the stitches through her skin. “Do you talk down to all your patients like that?” the girl asked, causing the man to pause and look at her quizzically. “Marissa Dej!” Kelly scolded, hiding the smile that tried to creep onto her face. “What? He’s talking to me like I’m five!” Dej defended. “I’m sorry about her, Doctor. English is her second language. She tends to forget herself and slip into her native sarcasm.” Alex apologized for her daughter. “No need to apologize, I’m used to cynicism. Just not usually from a toddler.” The man replied, intentionally goading the child. When she had been brought in, the doctor had looked twice at her file, not used to seeing a pre-teen half the height of his third grader. Dej glared at the man, ready to retort, before noticing his playful smile. “There you go, Marissa. All set.” He said, setting down his hemostats and handing her a mirror.

  “Gee, Doc. You sure know how to make a girl look beautiful. Good thing you didn’t go to beauty school. You’d have failed.” Dej replied, her smile playful. The doctor clapped his hands over his heart and gave her a stricken look. “Ouch. Your words have teeth, Ms. Walker.” He said with a chuckle. Kelly snorted and looked to Alex, who had taken a seat to avoid crowding the man. “Alright, girl-friend, let’s get you out of here. Keep those sutures clean and dry for a few days, and we will see you in ten days to remove them.” The doctor said, placing a loose dressing over the area to keep her hair from the wound. Standing, he offered his hand to Alex and Kelly before leaving the room. “What a nice guy.” Dej said, still gazing at her head in the mirror. “If this scar makes me look hideous, I’m going to key his car.” Alex looked at her daughter in astonishment. Dej had always been sure of herself, and proud of how she looked, but Alex had never heard her daughter say something so vain.

  “Dej, if that scar makes you look hideous, you have no one to blame but yourself.” She said sternly. Dej blushed and rolled her eyes. “I was just kidding, mom.” Alex shook her head and turned to Kelly. “Can you believe your daughter?” she asked with a smirk. Kelly chuckled and helped Dej from her perch. “I know, right. She’s twelve going on twenty-one.” Dej glared at her mothers and placed her hands on her hips. “Can we just go home, please? You two are killing me with your wit.” Alex snorted at the look of annoyance on her daughter’s face. “Sure, and when we get there, you can explain how you ended up making a masterpiece on the gym floor with your head.” Dej suddenly looked nervous, staring at her shoes as she shrugged. Time to spill the beans, stupid. She thought as she followed her parents out of the room.

  *****

  “Oh my word, Dej. Are you alright?” Willow Coleman shot off the couch when Alex and Kelly followed Dej into the house. Looking at the girl with concern, Willow guided Dej to the couch to take her seat. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just decided I was bored and needed to scare the crap out of my parents.” Dej replied with a nervous chuckle. The ride home had been a quiet one, with Dej trying to build the courage she would need for the talk she knew was coming. “Son, why don’t you take Willow out to dinner? My treat.” Alex suggested, looking pointedly at her daughter and handing her son some money. “We need to have a talk with your sister.” Zane looked from his mothers to his sister, wanting to know what happened, but also knowing by the look on Alex’s face that her suggestion had been more of a statement. Nodding, he took the money and stood, taking Willow by the hand and leading her outside. “Call me when it’s safe.” He whispered to Kelly as he closed the door behind him.

  Once Zane and Willo
w were gone, Alex and Kelly sat together on the love seat and looked at their daughter. “Dej,” Kelly began, leaning forward and resting her elbows on her knees, “what happened?” Dej, who had been staring at her shoes since she had sat down, looked up at the woman with a pained expression on her face. “I fell.” She said softly, rubbing her palms on her thighs and avoiding eye contact. Alex chuckled, “Well obviously. How did you fall, and why wouldn’t you let the medics help you?” Dej picked at some imaginary lint on her skirt and shrugged her shoulders. “Can I plead the fifth?” she asked with a smile. “Not in this courtroom.” Dej let out a breath and flopped herself back against the back of the couch. After a silent moment, the child placed her hands over her eyes and groaned.

  “Alright. Greg Bettis dared me to try and jump from the high chin bar onto the climbing rope.” Alex raised her eyebrow, “And you did it? You’re smarter than that, Dej, why would you take a dare like that?” Dej shrugged her shoulders and returned her gaze to her shoes. “I was trying to impress someone.” She said, her voice small and barely audible. Kelly smiled at her daughter, “Who was it that you were trying to impress, sweetheart?” Dej shrugged again, her face flaming as a blush made its way over her delicate features. “Dej, I’m only going to say this once.” Alex began, moving to the couch to put her arm around her daughter. “No boy is worth hurting yourself for, and why in the world are you trying to impress Greg Bettis? That boy has been nothing but nasty to you for years!” Dej snorted at her mother and shook her head with a grin. “I wasn’t trying to impress Greg, he can go eat a skunk for all I care. And I would never hurt myself for a boy, mom.” Alex shared a confused look with Kelly. “What do you mean? I thought you were trying to impress someone.” Kelly said gently.

  “I was,” Dej began, looking nervously between her parents, “Look, I’ll tell you who, but you have to promise not to get mad.” Both women nodded, wondering what the secrecy was all about. Dej stood and paced the living room, running her hands nervously through her hair. After a moment of internal contemplation, she took a deep breath and faced her mothers. “Carrie and I have started dating.” She said, glancing nervously around the room without meeting either woman’s eyes. After sharing another glance with her wife, Alex burst out laughing. Whipping her head up, Dej glared at the woman. “What’s so funny?” she demanded. Alex shrugged and pulled out her phone. “Is that why you didn’t want the medics to take you out of the school? Because Carrie would have seen it?” Dej nodded, the blush that had begun to fade coming back quickly. “Oh, sweetheart, why would we be mad that you and Carrie are dating?” Dej rolled her eyes and flopped back on the couch. “I don’t know, mom.” She said with exasperation. Alex patted her daughter on the knee and stood when Judy answered the phone. “Hey, Jude. Dej just told us something quite interesting about the little mishap at school today. Would you and Lauren mind bringing Carrie over here for a few minutes?”

  *****

  “So what’s up?” Judy asked, once she and her wife were situated on the couch with Alex and Kelly. Alex tried to hide her smile as she looked over to the love seat where Dej and Carrie sat next to each other. “Well,” she began, taking Kelly’s hand and sharing a conspiratorial look with her wife, “Dej explained what happened at the school, and she made an interesting revelation.” Judy looked at Lauren, then at the two girls, before raising her eyebrow at her friend. “And… what?” she inquired. This time it was Kelly’s turn to snicker and glance at the girls. “Ask them.” She said, amused at the looks of unease that washed over their daughters’ faces. Judy and Lauren turned their attention to the girls and waited expectantly. Both girls were studying their shoes, their ears bright red. Lauren laughed at the sight and urged the girls to speak up. Silently, Dej reached for Carrie’s hand and squeezed it gently before looking at her friend.

  When Carrie met Dej’s eyes, the women watched as the two communicated through raised eyebrows, slight tilts of the head, and encouraging smiles. After a moment, Dej turned to look at the four women, winked at Alex, and leaned in to kiss Carrie on the lips. At the collective “aww” from the adults, the two girls separated and blushed profusely. Alex laughed at the pair and patted Kelly on the knee. “Aww, baby, look! Our little girl is all grown up and killing it with the ladies. I’ve never been so proud!” she said, wiping an imaginary tear from her eye. Dej growled at her mother, glaring daggers at the woman. “Come on, Dej, we’re just messing with you. We’re fine with you two dating, just promise us that you won’t hurt yourself anymore just to impress your little lady.” Kelly said with a chuckle. Dej beamed at her, taking Carrie’s hand and kissing her knuckles. Her bright smile was immediately replaced by a death stare when all four adults began singing “Dej and Carrie, sitting in a tree.”

  Chapter 13

  “Dej! Get off of your girlfriend and go help mom!” Zane yelled down to his sister. Dej huffed and rolled her eyes, breaking the lip lock she had been engaged in. Carrie just laughed and shook her head. “Come on, I’ll help.” She said, dragging Dej off the couch. Together, the pair made their way into the kitchen and rested against the island. “Anything we can help you with, Dr. Walker?” Kelly smiled at Carrie and nodded, handing both girls a tray full of finger foods. When the girls took the trays outside to the picnic table, Kelly checked to make sure that there were no errant eyes on her and grimaced, rubbing her swollen belly. “Settle down in there, you’ve still got a few months before you can come out.” She said, patting her belly gently. At twenty-five weeks, Kelly’s body had stretched much further than she had expected. She was only half way through her pregnancy, but to anyone who didn’t know that she was carrying triplets, she looked ready to deliver at any moment. Her height made things worse; being only five-foot-three inches tall, her ever expanding belly was becoming uncomfortable and difficult to maneuver around. Sighing with relief when one of the babies shifted, Kelly turned back to the cutting board and continued chopping vegetables.

  *****

  Oblivious to her wife’s discomfort, Alex worked hurriedly to finish her task before their guests arrived. “Sheesh, mom, Dej and Carrie are practically joined at the tongue.” Zane said, coming back into the room. Alex snorted, dropping the Allen wrench she was working with. “Dammit, Zane. Don’t make me laugh. I’m almost done with this, and we only have about half an hour before every one gets here.” Zane shrugged and apologized with a smirk. He was excited about the gifts that he and Alex had been working on for the last three weeks, and he was eager to show them off to his expectant mother. “Do you think Mom will like these?” he asked, running his fingers lovingly over the image that he had painstakingly painted on the wood. Alex finished tightening the last bolt and dropped onto her ass on the floor. Removing the hair tie from her hair, she quickly scooped her hair back and reordered her ponytail. “Honestly son, I think she is going to love them. You did a great job with the artwork.” Zane beamed happily at his mother. “Okay son, go on down and ask Mom if she will run you to go pick up Willow. That will get her out of the house so I can get these downstairs.”

  When Zane left the room, Alex stood and wiped her sore hands on her jeans. She looked down at the objects that made up her baby shower gift to her wife. She had spent every day of the last three weeks locked in the soon-to-be nursery, from the time the kids went to school until the time they got home, working until her hands were too sore to continue. When she completed a piece, she would set it aside for Zane’s contribution to the gift. Alex had asked Dej if she wanted to be in on the surprise, but the girl had waved her off, saying that she and Carrie already had something ready. Now, alone in the room that their newborn children would sleep in, Alex took a few moments to re-examine the past three weeks.

  After Dej’s self-injurious stunt, Alex and Kelly had both settled into a comfortable routine. It was the first time that, aside from their honeymoon and their first ski trip, the two women had been in constant company with each other. Dej had gone back to school the day after her fall, and Angie had t
hings at the facility running smoothly. The first two days had been a battle of wills for the two women; Alex determined to keep Kelly from doing too much, and Kelly snapping at her whenever Alex questioned her actions. On the third day, which had been a Saturday, Alex and Kelly had had a yelling match at breakfast that had left Alex irritated and anxious. To help quell her irritation, she had gone to the home improvement store and bought the items she needed to transform the guest room into a proper nursery. She had warned Kelly, who had come upstairs to apologize, that she was not to set foot into the room until otherwise instructed, because of the fresh paint and wallpaper glue fumes. Kelly had agreed without argument, not sure if her stomach would handle the smell of the room anyway. Alex grinned to herself as she turned in place to get one last look at her handiwork.

  “Honey, I’m taking Zane to get Willow!” Kelly called up the stairs, pulling Alex from her inspection of the room. Stepping out into the hallway, she blew her wife a kiss and nodded. “Okay, babe. I’ll come down to wait for the guests as soon as I get changed.” She waited until she heard the car pull out of the driveway before running back into the nursery to collect her hand-made gifts. Carrying them down one at a time, Alex placed each item side by side before covering them completely with a large blue tarp. “Hey, girls, come over here for a minute, would you?” she called to Dej and Carrie, who were cuddled together in the hammock watching a movie on Dej’s phone. “I’ve gotta go take a shower and change before everyone gets here,” she began, placing two lounge chairs next to each other in front of the now covered items, “I want you two to sit here and if Kelly gets back before I am done, keep her away.” She instructed, once the girls had taken their seats. With a quick nod of agreement, the girls went back to their movie and Alex sprinted up to her bathroom.