It was a good day today. I went with Hannah to Jack’s house for the first time since Lily has moved in—he invited her to join them for dinner. While he claimed that the invitation was Lily’s idea, the girl was not the only one waiting at the door when Hannah came up.
“Hi, Dr. Valdez!” Lily said, pushing open the screen. “My Uncle Jack said that you were coming to visit us.”
“I just had to come and see your new house. Are you liking it?”
“I love it! Do you want to see my room?”
“Absolutely I do,” Hannah said, sharing a warm look with Jack, who was laughing.
I can see the humor in it—it was a very different kind of date, in which Hannah toured the entire house with Lily, then played ponies with her until Jack told them that dinner was ready. Over the meal, they did get a chance to talk a bit, though both of them were careful to include Lily in the conversation as much as possible. The real communication between them, however, was shared without words—light touches of the hand, significant glances, sweet smiles, all saying the same thing. You are important to me. I am glad that we are not separated any more.
After the meal, Jack sent Lily to get some of her homework done, and he and Hannah worked on the dishes together. As he washed and she dried, she told him about her career decision, and how the transition is going for her.
“I’m further along than I thought I’d be,” she said, setting one of the plates on the counter. “It’s funny—it’s like I’ve been moving this direction for ages without even realizing it. And it just took meeting Lily, making a deeper personal connection with one of these patients, to realize that this was what I wanted.”
“I’m happy for you,” Jack said, pulling the plug in the sink. “Really, Hannah. We’ve talked about your job a lot, but this is the first time that you’ve seemed excited about it.”
She sighed and turned to rest her back against the counter. “It’s a shame that my dad can’t see that.”
“Have you spoken to him since he confronted you?” he asked, drying his hands.
“Nope. I’ve seen him in passing, but he hasn’t called me. But that could mean anything. We’re not what you might call close.”
“No, but he’s your father, Hannah. He should understand what’s important in your life.”
At that moment, Lily came running in, holding up a paper. “Look, Hannah,” she said, “I finished my science worksheet. You have to be good at science to be a doctor, right?”
“That’s right,” Hannah said, brightening immediately and crouching to put an arm around Lily’s shoulders. “Are you going to be a doctor someday, Lily?”
“Hey,” Jack protested. “I thought you were going to be a lawyer like me.”
“That was last month, Uncle Jack,” Lily said, shaking her head at her uncle’s foolishness. She turned back to Hannah. “Is your mom or your dad a doctor, too, Hannah?”
Surprised by the question, Hannah nevertheless answered honestly that her father was, in fact, a doctor.
“I bet he’s nice,” Lily said. “Doctors like to help people, don’t they?”
Hannah opened her mouth, but did not know what to say. “Well, that’s why I’m a doctor,” she said finally.
Seeing that Hannah was bemused, Jack stepped forward and took the worksheet from Lily’s hand. “Come on, kiddo, let’s go over these answers, and then Hannah is probably going to have to go.”
“Go?” Lily protested. “But you haven’t kissed her yet!”
Both adults stared at her, and then they burst out laughing. “Oh, don’t you worry, Lily,” Jack said when he had his breath back. “Just as soon as Hannah says it’s okay, I’m going to do just that.”
And he did, with Lily looking on, hardly able to conceal her joy. For Hannah, though it was not quite the kind of kiss she was used to, still it was one of the best she’d ever had. When she left, with Lily blowing her kisses out the window, she felt that she was a part of something truly precious.
I know that it is early yet, but I hope the same for them. I hope that they can help and care for one another, as a family should, and that they will bring light to one another’s lives.