Chapter Text
James could feel the cardboard box beginning to split at the bottom as he carried it up the stairs, he really should have splurged on slightly more expensive boxes for the big move, but it didn’t really seem worth it. He finally got to the top of the flight of stairs, Lacey had left the front door open for him, he dashed in and placed the box on the floor next to the fireplace where all the other boxes were piled.
“Yes!” He cheered, throwing his arms into the air as though he had just run a race and won.
“Yeah!” Gideon had been stood looking outside of the window waiting for James to bring up all of his boxes. He had been told he had to stay away from the front door while it was open, his mother was moving the boxes into one of the rooms so he had been told to stay reading his book, but he had been watching James instead. Gideon cheered when he saw James cheering, and as soon as James held his hand up Gideon ran over and high fived him, both of them were beaming.
“You officially moved in?” Lacey asked, her forehead was shining ever so slightly from the sweat of having moved several boxes of clothes and books and toys into the third bedroom.
“I am.” James continued to smile, he felt Gideon lean against his side and he ruffled his hair out of habit, he continued to look at Lacey. “I really can take the spare room, I don’t want to push things too far…” He trailed off when he saw the look on Lacey’s face, her eyebrow was raised and she looked as though she was trying her best not to smile.
“James. This is like the eighth time you’ve checked, I promise that I want to share a room with you.” Her smile appeared on her face, a small smile, and she softened a little. “If this is moving too fast…” Her voice had quietened slightly, aware that her four year old was right there.
“No. No, I want to, I swear, I was just making sure. I know you’ve been through things with other people.” His eyes flickered to Gideon who was looking around the apartment then back to Lacey. “I didn’t want to push too far.” He wanted to hold her hand, then reminded himself that he could do that now, he has been able to for months. He reached out and took her hand, her hand felt small in his, he was able to easily hold it and brush his thumb on the mountains of her knuckles.
Lacey went up on her tiptoes and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “Get your stuff into our room, Spencer.” She told him with a smirk.
James couldn’t help but roll his eyes, but there was an unmistakable smile on his face, he stole another kiss from her and smirked like a thief when he pulled away. “Yes ma’am.”
“Jamie I wanna help!” Gideon called to him, the kid was bubbling with excitement, bouncing on his toes.
“Erm…” James quickly rooted through the last box he had carried upstairs. He found a photo album he wasn’t sure he had ever even looked through. “Can you carry this through for me?”
Gideon took it and held it close to his chest using both arms. “Yeah, I’ve got it.”
“Thanks buddy, you’re the best.”
Lacey couldn’t help but smile as she watched her young son and her boyfriend interact. She was always so careful about introducing Gideon to anyone, even her friends, but with James, well it just felt right. She was still careful, of course, and James was even more so, never getting offended about if she had to cancel, volunteering to cover her shifts if she ever needed it, he had watched Gideon for her several times, and Gideon was always so happy to have him around.
Which was why, five months later, she was moving out of her crappy small apartment into this much bigger crappy apartment. There was currently a bucket in the corner as the ceiling was leaking earlier when it was raining, James had already messaged the landlord who would be by the next morning, it wasn’t leaking anymore but she left the bucket there anyway just in case.
The apartment was nowhere near the luxury of James’ house, well his father’s house, but it was miles better than her old apartment. This one had three bedrooms, which weren’t massive but there was in built closet space, and even a loft. There was new carpet in the bedrooms, and although the walls were bare with white paint, or white painted over brick, the landlord Mrs Wu told them that they could paint and even put up wallpaper so long as they didn’t damage it. There were already shelves up on the walls and in-built bookcases on either side of the old style fire, which was lucky as now there was plenty of space for the many, many books and vinyls James and Lacey owned. Even four year old Gideon had started to create his own collection of books.
They had been the most important thing Lacey had packed, along with a big old style standing record player she had found in a junk store, she had arranged for it to be delivered that day, along with the rest of the their furniture, all of it was second hand but they had all chosen it together and they could paint things if they needed it.
“Mama.” Gideon barrelled into Lacey’s legs and he was swooped up into her arms. He laughed, not because anything was particularly funny, but because it was an exciting day. “I helped move all the boxes. Can I do some colouring for my room?” He asked.
Lacey bit her lip. “Erm, well your things are in a box somewhere around here, I think we need to put some things away first though.” Her mind raced as she tried her best to think of something Gideon could do while they unpacked some of their things, she honestly wasn’t even sure that she had packed the old colouring books, they had been nearly finished and contained a younger Gideon’s scribbling.
“I was thinking,” James interrupted walking over to meet the two of them, “maybe Gideon and I should go to the grocery store to get some ingredients for our first meal in our new home, I know that I’d be lost if I tried to figure out what to get on my own, I’d have no idea.”
His tone of voice had taken on a style which was slightly louder as though he was trying to make sure that Gideon could hear him. He met her eyes and smiled when she started to smile.
A frown flickered upon James’ face and Lacey felt her heart flutter, he was so often concerned which had worried her at first, but she had grown to realise it was because he cared so much, even about the little things. “What’s up?” She asked softly, his frown softened when he realised she had noticed it.
“Are you sure you’ll be okay sorting out the deliveries alone?” He checked, he always respected her decisions, and she was the bravest person he had ever known, but he cared for her so much sometimes it hurt.
There was a couch being delivered, along with a dining table, chairs, and two beds, from the Goodwill. They had been assured that the delivery people would carry them up for them and set up anything which needed to be, and James wasn’t certain he could do much to help, he wasn’t out of shape but he also preferred libraries to gyms.
“I’ll be fine, it’ll be easy to put them into place, probably easier without you two underfoot.” She smirked. “And it’ll be nice to have a homemade meal. What are you both thinking.”
James looked at Gideon who shared a look with him. They both smiled.
“It’s a surprise.” James told her.
“Yup, you don’t get to know mama.”
“You know he was a mama’s boy before you came around, don’t you?” Lacey playfully glared at her boyfriend before helping Gideon into his jacket.”
“He still is one, trust me.” James told her in a hushed tone before kissing her. He took hold of Gideon’s hand. “Come on, big man, let’s go.”
James and Gideon arrived back home around an hour later, in that time Lacey had managed to set up both her and James’ bed and Gideon’s bed. She had unpacked some things in the kitchen, a few plates and dishes, cutlery, and the basics required for cooking. She and James had been buying these things together and storing them with her when he was still living in his father’s home. She was onto Gideon’s toys into a lid-less bug plastic box in the living room when the boys entered.
“Mama, we’re home!”
Lacey looked up and saw her son beaming, they had lived in an apartment before, across town, but this place really did feel like their first home .
Gideon was carrying a fern in a black pot, it was pressed to his chest with his arms wrapped around it. “We’re gonna make our own pizzas, we chose the things to put in it. And we got you presents!”
The fern was thrusted out to her and it was then that she realised that James had two in his own arms along with a few bags of groceries.
James pressed a kiss to Lacey’s cheek. “I know you didn’t have plants at your old place, for a good reason, but I know that you miss it. You can still have good memories, even if you hate the place now. Your mom was part of the florist too.” His voice was soft and cautious as though afraid she would fracture.
Lacey looked at the plants, a fearn, a leafy succulent, and a easter cactus, she remembered having one of those in her bedroom when she was a child. “I think that you might be right.” She admitted.
“Wow, I’ll make sure to write that down in the history books.” James smirked. He had hidden his sense of humor since David had fallen into a coma,sometimes he had felt like he had fallen into a coma as well, but there was something about Lacey which drew it out of him.
“Don’t worry, I’m sure it won't happen again.” She winked. She placed the plants in a row at the window. She remembered helping her mother water the houseplants in the mornings and she suddenly looked forward to doing the same with her child. She felt James take her hand as she stared at the plants for a minute. Then she finally broke out of her trance. “So, pizzas?”
The three of them decorated the ready made pizza bases with tomato paste, a couple of different types of cheese, meats, onion, peppers, Lacey chose to add mushrooms to hers while James went for olives. Gideon ended up with sauce all over him, somehow, and the three of them settled down at the wobbly table to eat.
The cloudy sky outside of the windows of Storybrooke General Hospital added a slightly grey dim to the ward despite the fluorescent lights.
The ward was not yet open to visitors but the lady moved from bedside to bedside, placing small jugs with daffodils on each table. She was a teacher, finally qualified and with her first class, yet she still volunteered at the hospital. She wanted to give back, she needed to, and the hospital seemed like the place to bet he ly had
David Spencer had been led in the same bed for six years. His hair was clipped short and he was clean shaven, the nurses took care of that often enough. He was only just an adult when he had ended up in a coma, he had come of age and grown from a slightly scrawny teenager to a slightly scrawny adult, without him batting an eye.
He was in a separate room, he had the best insurance money could buy, thanks to his father, yet he only ever had one visitor, twice a week, more during the holidays, his identical twin brother.
The volunteer, the teacher, Mary , moved into David’s room. “Here you go, Mr Spencer, something to brighten your room, it’s so warm outside yet it’s still grey skies. Perhaps you’ll wake up soon and the sun will come out.” She suggested lightly. “Your brother will be here tomorrow, so will I.” She promises, she didn’t know if he could hear her but she said it anyway.