I Missed You
Chapter 14: I Missed You
“Momma? Five more minutes, please?”
Tawan was almost out of breath as she ran up behind Star which made Sammy giggle into his hand causing her to poke her tongue out at him in jest.
On Thursdays, she plays soccer with the kids to both bond with them and help them practice since it was the only sport they played at the same time. Star was her - pun intended - star striker while Sammy did well on the defensive backline. Tawan would play as the goalie which helped Sammy become familiar with his position as a center back and helped Star excel at launching bombs into the back of the net.
Star was practically pushing into the front of Tawan’s legs with her hands clasped in prayer as she begged for a few more minutes. Tawan put her hands on her hips and looked up at the sky, the sun setting in the distance but the red, pink, purple, and yellow glow of the sky giving them more than enough light. She took a deep breath then put her hand over her face to playfully push her back before heading back to the net to stand between the goal.
Tawan stretched her hands out and spread her legs to get low to defend her post.
“Five more minutes then you guys go take a shower and get ready for dinner,” she instructed, smiling at them when they started cheering.
“I’m going to score five more goals, Sammy,” Star half teased and dribbled back some to give them space.
“Remember to stay low and keep you eye on the ball, Sammy,” Tawan yelled to him.
Sammy turned to her and nodded determinedly. “No, you won’t, Star,” he smirked as he looked to his sister.
Star rolled her eyes as she stood with one foot on the ball and hands on her hips, making Tawan laugh to herself. Ira was right about her mimicking her mannerisms.
They played for almost ten more minutes before Tawan had to separate them when Sammy executed a clean slide tackle that sent Star tumbling. She immediately shot up and rushed him, and Tawan barely made it to them in time to put her arm across her chest to spin her around and away from him. Sammy was running around and cheering for himself because it was rare when he was better at soccer than his sister, the star athlete of the family next to his beloved uncle.
“What did I tell you?” Tawan warned, trying to hide her amusement. “You beat your brother all the time, so when he does something good let him enjoy his moment.”
“But he tackled me!” Star argued, trying to look and point behind her. “He hit my foot.”
“You and I both know that was a clean tackle, kid,” Tawan chuckled and made her look at her. “In order to be a good winner, you have to be a good loser. You remember me telling you that?”
Star huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “Yes,” she grumbled, looking off to the side annoyed.
“You should be cheering for him,” Tawan went on, eyeing her expectantly. “You make him better when he practices with you.”
Star looked at Tawan like she was just telling her what she wanted her to hear in hopes of convincing her. She looked so much like Ira when she would pout when Tawan called her out on something that she thought she had been hiding well. Tawan had to bite back a laugh as she picked her up to kiss her cheek and hold her on her hip to carry over to Sammy. He had stopped running around and plopped onto the grass on his back to look up at the sky, a triumphant smile on his face as he spread out like a star.
“Good job, Sammy,” Tawan congratulated, smiling widely as he sat up and extended her hand.
“Thank you, Momma,” he said out of breath, smiling back as he gave her a high-five.
Star still had her brow furrowed as she looked down at him, so Tawan whispered something in her ear that made her look at her when she pulled back. She gave a look of contemplation then sighed in both defeat and knowing. Star started to squirm out of her mother’s hold and Tawan set her down.
She walked up to Sammy and held her hand out to him which he grinned at and took it so she could help him up. He immediately engulfed her in a hug, thanking her for showing him how to best complete a side tackle.
Tawan smiled down at them, hands on her hips as she proudly watched them talk animatedly about how to avoid getting tackled in the future. Star grabbed his hand to lead him back over to the ball so they could practice how to recover from a slide tackle, and Tawan inhaled a deep breath as she looked up at the sky. If she did not have to work so much, she would have loved to coach the twins.
All she had to tell Star was that if she wanted to be the best player then she would have to be the best teammate for her to not be so upset.
“Alright! Time to go shower and get ready for dinner,” Tawan announced and clapped her hands to get their attention.
The twins turned to her, and though they wanted to continue playing more, their stomachs needed fuel and they were losing energy by the minute. As they ran past Tawan, she held her hands out for them to high-five then turned around to follow them in. She locked the back door then proceeded to pick up the few toys that were strewn around the living room to put them away before heading to the kitchen.
Tawan had already prepped most of the meal when she got home, so she put everything in the oven then ran to quickly take a shower herself.
“What are we eating?” Sammy asked as he entered the kitchen.
“Chicken with veggies and rice,” Tawan said as she plated their food. “Is your sister almost done?”
Sammy nodded and she told him to go to his seat at the dinner table to get ready to eat. Tawan listened to him talk about his day at school as she finished dinner and walked it over to the table.
Just as she set their drinks out, Star came running over to the table and hopped into her chair eagerly. Tawan chuckled as she got them situated before sitting down herself to get ready to eat. As they talked about their week together, it seemed that Star was the most hungry out of the three of them as she wolfed down her food and asked for a little more.
“What should we all do together as a family when Mommy gets back?” Tawan posed to them, forking the last of her chicken.
“We should go back to the movies,” Sammy answered as he ate some rice. “I want her to see the Minions.”
Tawan chuckled around a bite and nodded. “I know she would love that,” she agreed.
“Maybe go to the park?” Star suggested. “Mommy loves taking pictures in the park.”
Tawan smiled warmly at her and nodded again. “Mommy does love the park. Good idea, baby,” she praised.
They started talking about other activities they could include in their weekend plans that Ira would love. The twins, mostly Sammy, were starting to adjust well to Ira being gone which made Tawan’s heart flutter at how well she was doing and relax in anticipation to let Ira know she can stop worrying about having to take more work trips.
Nothing fazed their children and they always adapted so well when it came to change like wind under their wings.
As the twins talked animatedly to one another about their favorite cartoon, Tawan smiled at them with a love and admiration that permeated every corner of their lives.
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Tawan was exhausted from work and playing soccer with the twins, so as soon as her head hit her pillow she was out like a light.
She can never figure out why, but playing with her children always tired her out more than any workout her trainer or kickboxing coach could ever produce. Blaming her almost 35 year old body was not enough of an excuse as to how she would get so worn out given she had a strict work out regiment.
As she drifted off to sleep, half laying on her side and stomach, she felt a warm sensation at her back and at the front of her chest. It was so comforting that she cuddled and nuzzled into it, even going as far as to reach her hands up to rest under her chin. She felt something and then a hand grab one of her hands to hold at her chest.
Just as her smile started growing wider at how comfortable she was, something else pierced her mind through the lulls of her sleep.
“What the fuck?!” Tawan shrieked and jumped, falling off the bed.
There was laughter coming from the bed that suddenly became familiar to Tawan in her sleepy state. She rubbed her butt and elbow she hurt on the way down then she slowly stood and came face-to-face with none other than Ira, who was rolling on their bed in silent laughter. Tawan, still very sleepy and not fully awake, grumbled as she sat back on the bed and pushed the covers away to get back under them.
“Babe,” Tawan grumbled and laid back down, facing away from her. “I’m tired-,”
Suddenly, Tawan realized who she was talking to and the time she was talking to her. It was not only almost 2 AM, but it was still almost two days before when Ira was to be due back.
Yet, she was here in their bed right next to her which made Tawan shoot up and look at her. Ira was smiling sweetly at her as she laid beside her and looked up at her as it all registered. She giggled as Tawan’s eyes adjusted under the dim light from her bedside lamp she had turned on, on her way in, blinking a few times as if she did not believe what she was seeing.
“Y-you’re here,” Tawan squeaked and touched her face gently.
Ira held her hand against her face as she sat up beside her to lean over to join their distant, longing lips together.
“I decided to come home early.” Ira murmured near her mouth, looking between her eyes and her lips. “I missed you guys.”
“Babe,” Tawan sighed lovingly, pulling her in and pecking her lips a few times making her giggle. “Wait. Y-you should have stayed the whole time. I don’t want you to miss anything.”
“I did everything I wanted to do already,” Ira told her and smiled assuredly. “Besides, Mali stayed behind. She was still having fun.”
Both women laughed as they pictured Mali having the time of her life in Paris by herself now.
Tawan’s once droopy and red eyes were now a little more lively, but Ira could see she was exhausted from the week. Ira pulled her down to rest in one of their favorite positions - Tawan’s head on her chest so she could kiss and smell her head while she held her and played with her hair and rubbed her back. Tawan closed her eyes, still awake, and smiled as she got comfortable.
“We were going to surprise you at the airport,” Tawan mumbled sleepily. “The twins were going to make signs and jump out of the backseat when you came out.”
“Awww,” Ira cooed, raking her fingers through her hair. “Well, there’s always next time. I guess I get to surprise them this time.”
“They’re going to lose their minds,” Tawan mused, a small laugh escaping.
Ira chuckled then kissed the top of her head before settling into her spot to get comfortable. She started telling her wife about her trip back home and the last things she did in Paris before heading back. Before she quietly made her way down to their bedroom to sneak into bed with her and surprise her, she had stopped by their children's room to quietly kiss them goodnight.
Tawan fought her sleep to be attentive, but she was always so relaxed and comfortable hearing her wife talk about anything and nothing. It was like ASMR for her except Ira was just passionately raving about whatever topic she wanted you to know about. Tawan loved when people were passionate or heavily engaged about the thing they were discussing, and this was even better when it was Ira because she always learned something new about her.
“Are you asleep?” Ira said and scratched her head gently. Tawan had been silent for the last five minutes.
Just as Ira was about to repeat her question, a faint snore answered her and she pursed her lips in both amusement and defeat.
Though she was still operating on being behind six hours in Paris, back at home it was going on 4 AM. Rather than shaking Tawan awake to spend some more time with her, instead, Ira kissed the back of her head and continued running her fingers through her hair. She looked to their bedroom window, the early morning darkness providing the illusion of an earlier time than what was actually reading on the clock.
Ira smiled as she stared out the window, the reality of her time away leading to this very moment and the future that awaits.