Generation 1- Chapter 10

“Hello my little grandbaby! Grandpa loves you! Oh, won’t you come out to say hello?” As usual Charles was talking and cooing at his eldest daughter’s tummy. He couldn’t believe she was already 9 months pregnant.

“Dad, do you think…do you think I’m going to be a good mom?”

“Maddie, why would you ask that? Have you forgotten that you practically raised Bent and Aubree when your mother and I went…”

“Yea I know,” Madison said, stopping her dad from reliving a past she didn’t want to remember. “I’m just scared that I won’t know what to do when it cries or gets sick?”

Charles held his daughter’s hand, “Mad, you do exactly what me and your mother did…you freak out and then call your parents. We’ll always be here for you.” He smiled and kissed her on the cheek. “Anyways don’t you have your final appointment today before the baby is born?”

“Yea, it’s in a couple hours, but I’m going to meet with Shellie Adkins first.”

“Well baby that’s great! I’m sure you two will have a lot to talk about. Since you can’t drive anymore, I’ll have the driver take you wherever you need to go.”

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Shortly after Madison was with Shellie Adkins, another one of Victor’s victims, at a local bistro.

“Aren’t you that famous guy’s daughter? The magician guy?” Shellie said, her electric yellow eyes almost piercing through Madison.

“Yea, Charles Mason is my father,” she chuckled. “I’m surprised you know about him!”

It was Shellie’s turn to chuckle, “I’ve seen a couple of his late night shows. He’s pretty decent..and cute”

Madison blushed, “Late night shows? How were you able to sneak out to see them?!? I wasn’t even allowed to see them!”

Shellie thought hard before speaking, “Look Madison, there’s something you should know about me. I’m a…I’m actually a….a vampire.”

This revelation didn’t phase Madison much. She was in love with Edward Cullen and he seemed pretty cool. She was confused about one thing however. “If you’re a vampire, why didn’t you fight back? You could have killed Victor!”

Shellie grimaced, “I could have ripped him to shreds, I should have, but he attacked me from behind and used a paralytic of some sort. My powers were useless after that. Us vampires are not meant to feel any emotion, but that night I felt something…embarrassment and a strong hatred for him. And now an innocent baby is gonna to be brought into this cold world…a world it didn’t ask to be brought into.”

“Do you know what you’re having?” Madison asked.

“No, because of my…circumstances, I can’t exactly go to the doctor and find out. I don’t even know when I’m due, but I know one thing- this baby is coming soon. I’m not a doctor but it’s been almost 10 months since the attack. Do you know what you’re having?”

Madison shook her head, “Nope not a clue, but I kinda like the suspense of it all. At first, I didn’t want anything to do with this baby but now, I dunno, I’m kinda warming up to the whole thing.”

Shellie smiled, “well I’m really happy for you. I’m trying to feel some type of emotion, but I don’t feel anything. I just hope I’m capable of loving it.”

Madison smiled and got up from the table, “Shellie, trust me, if you don’t feel anything now, you will when you see your child for the first time! Those feelings will develop, I just know it!” With that, she said goodbye to Shellie and made her way over to the hospital for her final prenatal appointment.

Lanya met Madison at the hospital. She was adamant about being at each appointment to make sure the baby was “ok.” Secretly, she just loved seeing her little grandbaby growing from the inside. She was sure she saw some of her features in the baby, but there would be no telling until the baby was born.

Soon enough a doctor entered the examination room, “Hello Mason family! I’m Dr. Barajas and I’m a resident OB/GYN here. I’ll be replacing Dr. Cuoco.”

“Where is Dr. Cuco,” Lanya said, starting to panic.

“Oh, she actually gave birth a few days ago…a beautiful baby girl!” Dr. Barajas beamed.

“I didn’t even know she was pregnant,” Madison smirked. Imagine that…

“She probably wasn’t showing much the last time you were here,” Dr. Barajas replied. “Believe it or not, there are actually 4 pregnant doctors at this hospital alone!”

How lovely…Madison thought to herself.

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The examination was going as routine until all of a sudden the monitor charting the baby’s heartbeat started beeping wildly. “What’s going on?” Madison said alarmed.

“Ms. Mason, I need you to calm down if possible. The baby seems to be in some sort of distress. Usually this could be due to stress from the mother, or more than likely because they want to come out. After checking your cervix, I think it’s safe to say….this baby will be here by tonight.”

“TONIGHT?!?!” Madison screamed. “But I’m not ready to be a mom yet. I thought I would have a month to get ready. This is fair!” Big tears started to fall from her eyes.

Lanya rushed to her side, “Sweetie, don’t worry you’ll be fine. I promise.”

Dr. Barajas pushed a tray beside the bed, “Alright, well I’ll get an epidural started and I’ll also be giving you a medicine that will encourage labor in order to get the little tyke out sooner.”

“Sweetie, I’ll call your father,” Lanya said running out the door. She couldn’t believe this was happening.

By the time Charles got to the hospital, Madison was in active labor. "Dad!” Madison gasped as he ran over to her bed.

“Honey, how are you? How’s the pain? Doc, are you giving her something for the pain?” he rambled.

Dr. Barajas walked over and said, “Yes, Mr. Mason. Madison is being given top of the line treatment. In fact she seems pretty close to delivering. If you would just excuse me to check her dilation again.” Charles moved beside Lanya as the doctor motioned for Madison to move towards the edge of the bed.

Madison winced in pain as the doctor was checking her cervix. Her parents winced as if feeling the same pain. The doctor simply said, “Oh dear.”

“Oh dear?” Charles, Lanya and Madison echoed.

'”Yes, Madison you are completely dilated and well, the baby’s head is crowning. That means, a couple good pushes and the baby will be here in no time!”

Her parents sighed anxiously as they watched the doctor gear up for the delivery. Dr. Barajas positioned herself and said the simple command, “Push”. Madison pushed, then pushed again and then pushed again. She pushed consistently for 10 minutes, although it felt like hours. She wondered how many times she would have to push before her baby would finally enter the world….

Generation 1- Chapter 9

After Madison dropped the bomb that night at dinner, everyone tried to create some normalcy in a world that seemed to be continuously turned around. Lanya was able to finally finish a book entitled “The Seer.” However, it wasn’t popular enough to get on the bestseller list. That didn’t stop her from writing another book!

Charles took up yoga. Ever since finding out about Madison’s pregnancy, he had been having nightmares about finding Victor Chasm and murdering him in cold blood, so a friend (his former sponsor) suggested doing yoga to release the negative energy.

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“We just don’t know what to do Lorie! That creep got our daughter pregnant! How are we supposed to deal with that, huh? How is Maddie going to deal with that? SHE’S TOO YOUNG!” Lanya sobbed to their daughter’s lawyer, one night over dinner.

“Don’t worry Lanya, we will put this guy to justice. The good news is, we’ve at least had a sighting of him in Starlight Shores. So we know he’s on the move; it ‘s just a matter of tracking him down. Once we do that, we’ll be able to prep Madison for trial,” Lorie said reassuringly.

Lanya overcome with grief, got up and busied herself with putting their dirty dishes in the sink. “Here let me help you,” Lorie said getting up with her plate.

“Hey, Lanya, really don’t worry. I know this is probably easier said than done, but I will be here with you and your family every step of the way. Another one of Chasm’s victims, Shellie I believe is her name, was also found to be pregnant. I think it could be a good idea for her and Madison to meet up. Maybe they could support each other, what do you think?”

Lanya thought for a second, “Well Maddie could use all the support she could get right now, so maybe it could be a good idea. We’ll have to have her over for dinner one day.”

Lorie smiled, “Sounds good! And Lanya, I will get this guy and he will pay for what he’s doing to your family—even if I have to hunt him down myself.”

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The next morning while Lanya was fixing breakfast, Madison stalked in looking sad. “Good morning sweetie!” Lanya smiled, “Why so glum? Not craving French Toast this morning?”

“Mom, I just can’t do this! I’ve gained 2 more pounds this week. I can’t fit any of my clothes. In fact the only thing I look good in are tights. I just want my body back! I didn’t ask for this!” Madison said, her eyes tearing up.

Lanya wiped her hands off and pulled her daughter in a hug, “Sweetheart, nobody would have asked for your life to be like this. But, for some unknown reason, these things happen. I can’t explain it away, but I will always be here for you, ok?”

Madison nodded while still holding her mom, “Mom, will I ever be a normal teen again? I don’t know if I’m ready for a kid. None of my friends have babies, I’ll be the first one. It’s like I’m all alone.”

Suddenly Lanya remember Shellie, Victor’s other victim, “Maddie, I completely forgot! One of Victor’s victims, Shellie, is also pregnant! I’m not sure how far along she is, but she is also a teenager. Me and your father think it would be a good idea for you two to meet, but only if you’re up to it.”

“Mom, I think that’s a great idea! It would be great to be able to talk to someone who actually knows what I’m going through!” Madison smiled. Inside, however, she wasn’t sure she was ready to bond with another girl over unwanted circumstances.

Generation 1- Chapter 8

Following the attack, Lanya and Charles decided it would be better for Madison if she was homeschooled for a bit. After a month of homeschooling, Madison couldn’t stand being at home so she convinced her parents to let her go back to school. Going back to school proved difficult at first, with everyone gawking at her and whispering, clearly having read the newspapers or watched the coverage on TV.

Ever since the night of the attack, Lanya and Charles would meet with Madison’s lawyer, Lorie Roberts, to discuss the case against Victor Chasm. Victor disappeared the night of the attack but, because of all the media attention the case was getting, 4 more girls came forward admitting they were attacked by him as well. It was a frenzy and Madison simply said she wanted nothing to do with it, so her parents did everything they could legally do on her behalf.

Ever since that day, Madison took more of an interest in cooking. It started as being her distraction from thinking about that night, but slowly it became a part of her daily routine. She would invent new recipes for the family to enjoy. And boy did they enjoy! Everyone in the family gained a few pounds since Madison took over the kitchen.

One night while the family was eating another one of her creations, Madison all of a sudden jumped out of her chair and grabbed her stomach, moaning loudly. “I knew you were trying to kill us Mads! Your plan backfired didn’t!” Aubree teased.

“I’m gonna…I’m gonna…” Madison cringed and ran off to the bathroom. When she finally made it back, the entire family was staring at her.

“Honey, how much cheese did you put in this casserole? You know you’re lactose intolerant!” said Charles.

“No, baby, I think this might be that flu that’s be going around,” Lanya chimed in. “A couple of my friends have gotten it too. But, Maddie, you’ve been vomiting for more than a week now! Maybe we should go to the hospital, just to make sure you haven’t caught a serious virus. We’ll go tomorrow, ok? I’ll call the school in the morning to let them know you won’t be coming.”

Madison just nodded. She was actually petrified of hospitals, but in exchange for a day off school she was willing to go.

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Meanwhile, Charles aged into an elder! He decided ahead of time that, considering all that had happened recently, he wouldn’t make a big deal about his birthday.

Becoming a senior made Charles realize he was tired of being in the limelight. He decided retiring for good would be the best thing for himself and his family.

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The next morning Lanya and Madison went to the hospital. Madison was dreading it the whole night, especially because she knew she would have to bring up being raped and she didn’t want to have to talk about that anymore. As they sat impatiently in the waiting room, Madison tried to calm herself with reassuring thoughts. Get it together Mad, they’re just going to give you a prescription and send you home…no biggie, right? Right?

“Madison!” Lanya tapped her on the arm. Madison snapped out of it and noticed her mom and a woman staring at her. “The doctor is ready for you sweetie.”

"Hi Madison! I’m Dr. Cuoco,” a blonde woman said smiling. “Would you mind coming to the back with me please? Mom, don’t worry we’ll be done in about 20 mins. Feel free to help yourself to some coffee in the lounge.”

Madison looked over at her mom. Lanya got up and hugged her reassuringly before turning her back towards the doctor. Madison took a deep breath and followed the smiling doctor to an awaiting room.

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An hour and several tests later, the doctor finally had an answer for Madison…and it was not what she wanted to hear. “Don’t worry Madison, I’ll give you some medicine for the vomiting and try drinking some oregano tea for the cough! I’ve heard it’s very effective. Come back in a few weeks and we’ll see how you’re doing ok?,” Dr. Cuoco said smiling. Madison got up in a daze and walked back to her anxious looking mother. “Well Mads, what did she say? Was it the flu?”

Madison started for the door, “Mom, I just want to go home.” Lanya had no choice but to follow her, knowing she would open up in time.

Later that night, the family sat together eating dinner. The room was silent, not one person speaking. Bentley couldn’t stand the lack of noise, “So Mads, what mutant disease do you have huh? Is it contagious?”

Madison looked at her plate and slowly said, “No…it’s not…contagious.”

“Well sweetie, you never did tell me what Dr. Cuoco said, but I’m assuming with the oregano tea, it must be some kind of cold right?” Lanya said.

“Ummm…kinda…not really. I don’t know,” Madison sighed.

“Well Mad, spit it out already! What exactly do you have?” Charles chuckled.

Still looking at her plate, though now slightly trembling, Madison barely whispered, “I’m…pregnant.”

Generation 1- Chapter 7

**Note this chapter covers something pretty gruesome…although it’s not described in a gruesome way, it is something that is taboo to talk about in stories. However, I decided to tell this story now because it something that I have indirectly experienced in my lifetime…with that said…enjoy :)

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“WAKE UP EVERYONE!!!!'” It was early Sunday morning when Charles paraded through the house banging a pot. Slowly but surely the rest of the Mason family trickled out into the hallway, yawning and rubbing their eyes.

“What’s up Dad? It’s like earlier than my clock can count right now!” Bentley said stretching.

“Yea, babe what’s this about?” Lanya said trying to quiet a screaming Aubree.

“Grab your jackets, get your shoes on, we’re going on a road trip!” Charles said smiling.

“Can I at least shower first?” Madison said pouting.

“Nope no showers, no packing, no nothing. Meet me at the door in 2 minutes” Charles said as he dashed down the stairs.

The kids looked at their mother, who shrugged equally as confused. But they did what they were told and met Charles at the door. They followed him out the door where a taxi was waiting. As they all piled in, Lanya asked Charles again where they were going, but Charles wouldn’t say a word as the taxi drove off.

An hour later they arrived in front of a beautiful vista in Westerberg. Lanya looked around and saw there was a car in the driveway…someone was home. “Charles we are hardly dressed for house visits!” she shrieked. Charles smiled as he got out of the taxi and motioned for them to follow him towards the house.

“Dad who lives here? This house is beautiful!” Madison said taking in all she could of the house.

“Oh, a really nice family. Husband, wife, a few kids” Charles said as he punched the code in at the gate.

“Well are they expecting us? We can’t just go in unannounced!” Lanya said.

“Oh we’re expected, babe. How else would I have the code?” Charles smirked. That’s true, she thought and followed him towards the door. The house was truly beautiful, this was exactly the type of house Lanya wanted to look for when they moved to Westerberg.

“So, what was the name of the family that lives here again? Friends of yours?” Lanya asked.

Charles faced his family, took Lanya’s hand in his and said “The Mason’s” as he pushed a set of keys into Lanya’s hand. She gasped and almost fainted while crying hysterically.

“Dad, did you just say the Mason’s as in our relatives?” Bentley asked.

Charles had the biggest smile on his face as he said, “Kids, welcome to your new home!”

The kids started cheer as they ran past their weeping mom to check out the house.

Top floor: Master bedroom with ensuite bathroom, 2 bedrooms and a nursery/kid’s bedroom.

Main floor: Open floor plan with Living room, kitchen and dining room; full bathroom, exercise room and a special room (top left).

There is a pool and playground in the back (not shown here) and a pool with bar and hot tub in the front.

As Bentley and Madison walked around the house “ooo-ing” and “ah-ing”, Charles took Lanya by the hand and led her to a room that was almost tucked away out of sight. “What’s this room Charles?” she asked, amazed by the state of the art decor.

“This is your office, honey” he said kissing her lightly on the cheek. “I’ve already accomplished all my dreams and I know having kids put a bit of a hold on your accomplishing yours, so I designed this office just for you, so you could have a quiet place to work on your writing.”

Tears were already falling from her eyes as she barely whispered “it’s beautiful” and squeezed Charles’ hand.

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A week flew by in their new house and the kids were loving it! Bentley and Madison especially loved spending all day lounging in the pool. One day while splashing around in the pool, Bentley swam over to Madison. “Hey Maddie, they’re having an all ages party at that club downtown. You wanna go?”

Madison, usually not the one to go to a bar or club said “Bent, I don’t know about that. I mean downtown Westerberg is so creepy at night and we’re still new in this town. We don’t really know anyone!”

Bentley splashed her and said “Come on Maddie! This is how we’ll meet people! Besides, a few guys I met at school are going and they’re bringing people so you’ll probably know at least one person. So what do you say?”

Feeling as if she had already lost this battle she agreed. But for some reason, she felt like she had made the wrong choice.

Less than a few hours later, Bentley and Madison had gotten ready and told their parents they were catching a flick downtown. Lanya and Charles would have never let them go to a club, even if it was for an all ages event. When they got to the club, Madison was shocked to see that there were hardly any teens there! Apart from a few boys that Bentley knew (and ditched her to hang out with), everyone seemed to be late 20s, even 30s. Very uncomfortable with the situation, but not wanting to leave her brother, Madison decided to suck it up and wait by the bar until the end of the night.

“Ahem, excuse me miss. You’re in my seat.” Madison turned around to tell the guy, there were plenty of chairs to go around, when she saw the most dreamiest pair of brown eyes attached to an even dreamier man.

Flustered, she muttered, “I’m sorry?” The man managed to hold his stern look for a few seconds, before bursting out laughing. Madison was more than confused.

"I’m kidding! Hi, I’m Victor Chasm,” the man said extending his hand. Madison slowly slipped out of her chair and extended hers as well. “I’m Madison Mason, nice to meet you.”

“Mason eh? Any relation to that magician that just moved into town? Charles I think his name is?”

“Yea, actually, he’s my father” she blushed.

“Really?!” Victor gushed, “I’ve seen his performance on TV before; he’s pretty good!”

“Yea, he’s amazing!” Madison said, starting to warm up to this seemingly harmless stranger.

After chatting for almost an hour, Victor asked Madison to go outside with him while he called a cab for himself. Madison looked over to see her brother still at the bubble bar and decided it would be ok.

Once outside, Victor slipped his arms around Madison. She jumped, arms flying high in the air. “Are you ok?” Victor asked, not releasing his grip on her.

“I’m sorry Victor, it’s just, I don’t really know you…enough for you to have your arms around me that is.”

Victor growled, “You don’t need to know me sweetie, but you’re going to give me what I want” and with that he grabbed her arm, twisting it hard. Madison screamed, but to no avail…there was no one outside to hear her desperate cries.

Madison tried to run, but it was no use. Victor pulled her back by the arm. “What do you want!?!” she screamed.

“I want you to shut up, and perhaps you wont get hurt…much” Victor grunted, throwing her to the ground.

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Meanwhile…

It’s Aubree’s birthday!!!

Where are Bentley and Madison? Charles thought to himself. He specifically remembered telling them to be home before 8 for Aubree’s birthday and it wasn’t like them to stay out without telling either himself or Lanya what time to expect them. Either way, the show had to go on! Charles bent Aubree low over the cake and helped her blow out the candles.

It’s clear that as she continued to age, Aubree was the spitting image of her father. Except she has a perfect blend of her mother and her father’s skintone. As soon as her birthday celebrations were finished she rushed upstairs to try on the new outfit her aunt Lindy (who decided to move to Westerberg as well!!) bought for her. She also tried on the lip balm her mom finally let her have. She was a real beauty!

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“Please if you want money, I can get it, I swear! Just don’t kill me please!”

“Listen you little bitch, just shut up!” he yelled punching her right in the face. Madison just saw him reaching for his belt buckle, before she passed out.

When she finally came to, she was propped up against a dumpster. Her pants were still undone…she began to fear the worst. She noticed Victor was standing beside and put her head down. She didn’t want to see him or have him see her crying. Victor was hardly interested in her tears, “Thanks for that! If you tell anyone, I will come to your house and murder everyone in your family while you watch.” Madison started to cry. Victor laughed, “Oh by the way, I hate magicians” he said, spitting on her head before walking away laughing. Madison waited until she could no longer hear his footsteps before getting up and running as far away as she could from the club.

It was nearly 5am before Madison finally got home. And Lanya was up the whole night waiting by the front window. She had already sent Charles out to look for her with the police along with Bentley, who told them everywhere they had went. How mad she was when Bentley arrived home without his sister was nothing compared to how mad she was now to see Madison casually hanging out in the front yard, as if she had not caused the whole house alarm. Lanya angrily walked towards her daughter trying her best not to lose it.

“Madison Mason, turn around right now! How dare you come home at this time of night..of morning! Do you know how worried we’ve been!” Madison didn’t answer. This only riled Lanya up more, “Turn around I said! NOW!”

“Mom, no, l-leave me a-alone,” Madison sniffled. Lanya wasn’t accepting that, she reached out and turned Madison around by her shoulder.

What she saw was enough to make her heart stop. Madison’s face was puffy, her lip was swollen and her mascara was running down her cheeks, an indicator that something was majorly wrong with her baby. Her clothes were ripped, as if someone tried to tear them off. “Oh no, Maddie, sweetie, what happened? Tell me….please tell me!” Lanya pleaded crying. Madison wouldn’t say a word.

Lanya begged and pleaded with Madison some more, but when she realized Madison wasn’t going to say anything, she knew she had to give up or risk pushing Madison away even more. She took out her phone and called Charles, “Hey honey, she’s here…umm no…you might want to bring that police officer back.”

Generation 1- Chapter 6

The morning after their night of passion was one of confusion for Charles. What did I just do?!?! And why do I want to do it again? He took a quick glance at Lanya, who was gently snoring, and turned to face the window. I love this woman, but we’ve had a very volatile past. I just don’t want to ruin the progress that both of us have made in our sobriety. What the hell should I do now? Charles searched around the room for paper and a pen and jotted down a quick note saying he would be back later. He then kissed Lanya on the head and left.

“WOOOOAHHHH!!! Mads, please tell me you just saw Dad leaving the house too! Did he sleep over? Where did he sleep?”

Madison looked at her brother and chuckled, “Bent, you’re not a kid anymore. Where do you think he slept?”

Bentley scratched his head as he thought about it. “Oh…OH…EWWWWW!”

Madison let out a laugh, “This is why I love you little brother. I just don’t know how I feel about our parents seeing each other again.”

“Why not? I think it would be great!” Madison didn’t answer. Of course Bentley would have been too young to remember the constant late night arguing and alcohol abuse.

Over the next few weeks, Charles was sleeping over 4 nights out of the week. Bentley and Aubree were over the moon to have their dad around, however Madison just couldn’t bring herself to join on the excitement. “What if mom relapses? What if they start arguing again? I just can’t live through that again!” she exclaimed one night while her Bentley and Toby were doing homework.

“Mads, chill man…they’re adults. They can think and act for themselves,” Toby said.

“Yea and we’re supposed to be moving and I bet Mom will just be so depressed when this fling she has going on is over with. I love my parents, but I just don’t see how this will work when we’re in Westerberg,” she sighed.

“Maybe we should talk to them,” Bentley said.

“Yea and say, what? ‘Hey us kids just wanna make sure you guys don’t become winos again’ “ Madison said sarcastically.

Meanwhile outside…

“Charles, what’s going on between us? We’re going to have to tell the kids eventually…I’m sure they already know.”

Charles shrugged, “Lane, I honestly don’t know how to explain this. At first I truly hated you, I wanted you dead…or at least dead to me. But seeing you that night at the party changed everything.”

Lanya turned her head, “Well you do know we’re moving to Westerberg right?”

Charles smiled, “Yea the kids told me a while ago. I want to come with you guys.”

“Charles, I’m just worried that everything that went wrong is going to go wrong again, if we tried this. We’re both recovering addicts, is it really such a good idea for us to put ourselves in the same situation again? Isn’t it too soon?”

“Lane, I believe things happen for a reason. We were meant to reconnect at this moment in time. But I understand what you’re saying, that’s why I got this.” He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a pamphlet and handed it to Lanya.

“’Westerberg Oasis Centre, Home to all your recovery needs’. What is this Charles? I’ve already went to rehab,” she said while still looking through the pamphlet.

“I got my sponsor to help me find us a good therapist in Westerberg. Her name is Dana Deville and she’s been practicing for over 10 years. Westerberg Oasis also has an amazing outpatient program and they’re saving us 2 spots for whenever we arrive. I just want to show you that I’ve changed Laney and I will support you in any way that I can with recovery. What do you say?

Lanya smiled and said, “Well it looks great! But I need to think about this some more ok?”

That night Charles stayed over for dinner, which was not uncommon lately. However, Madison felt it was finally time to say something to her parents. “Mom, Dad, I’m going to be blunt, what is going between you two? Like are you guys together or what?”

Lanya almost choked on her food. Charles swallowed his last bite hard and stared blankly ahead. “Maddie, your mom and I will always love each other, but we’ve been through alot. These things take time to figure out.”

“But you’re moving to Westerberg with us, right Dad?” Bentley chimed in and Madison nodded excitedly.

“Ok guys, calm down! I love your father and he loves me, and we’re just taking it slow. We’re kinda getting to know each other again. Don’t you two think it’s too soon for him to move back in?”

Madison and Bentley started laughing, “Mom you guys were already married and you have 3 kids…I think you know each other well enough,” Madison roared nearly crying from laughter.

“You know they’re right Laney” Charles whispered. “I know” Lanya said in disbelief.

“Ok kids, quiet down. I want to say something to your mother while you’re all here.”

“Laney would you come over here please” Charles said as he held out his hand to guide Lanya over to a more open area. Still holding her hands in his he said, “I just want you to know that I love you with all my heart. I have put this family through a lot these past few years and I am more than grateful to you for not only forgiving me, but inviting me to share in your presence again. I promise you that if you let me, I will prove to you that I can be the same man that you fell in love with the first time.”

As Charles bent down on one knee the whole room went silent, until Madison let out a squeal of excitement. “Laney, would you do me the honor of being my wife…again?” Lanya was equally shocked, and took a moment to think before speaking. Should I say yes? Is this right for me and the kids? He’s changed, I just know he has. “Yes Charles, I will marry you again!” Bentley and Madison jumped up and down with delight, even Aubree started to clap.

Charles and Lanya opted for a private ceremony, right then and there, with their children as witnesses. They said their vows to each other and slipped on their old wedding bands. It was a very meaningful ceremony, that encompassed their entire life journey together as they finally opened up to their kids about what they had been through, By the end of it, Madison and Bentley were happy their parents were back together and even more excited to move to Westerberg and start a new life as a family again.

Extra photos!!!!

“MOMMY, DADDY STOP KISSING AND PICK ME UP!!!”

The happy couple

Reading the little princess to sleep.

Madison at the spa. Looking beautiful!!!

Madison’s prom picture! How she got into her everyday clothes while at prom is a mystery lol! She was voted Prom Queen!!!