Link to Chapter 14Link to TOC15
Jonathan finished adding wood to the fire and then hauled himself off the floor in the family room, his knees aching from both the frigid weather and the long day’s work. His morning had started much too early, when Wayne had called to let him know the cows were out thanks to a broken fence rail along the back side of the far pasture. Because of that, he’d missed dropping Clark off at the school bus with Martha for Clark’s first day of school. Then, when his tractor had broken down in the early afternoon, he’d missed pickup as well.
He’d finally dragged himself inside in the late afternoon, just as the winter sun was dropping down past the horizon, only to find the fire nearly out in the fireplace and a note from Martha telling him she and Clark had gone shopping for a few extra school supplies.
He pushed away his disappointment at the fact that he’d have to wait longer still to see his family, and he headed off to the kitchen, washed up, and got started on chopping veggies to go with the pot roast Martha had cooking for dinner. He’d just finished when he heard the truck pull up outside the house.
A moment later, the front door burst open.
“Jonathan! Look! Look! I got a special ruler for school!”
Jonathan spun around just in time to see Clark bounding into the kitchen, holding up a plastic foot-long blue ruler and grinning so bright it was like the sun had come back up.
“Oh my, let me see that now,” he said as Clark stopped in front of him.
“Look!” he squealed, offering Jonathan the ruler. “See right there, it’s got twelve inches marked on it for a foot, just like yours in the workshop. My teacher, Mrs. Perkins, she says I need one for math so we can draw shapes and stuff. We learned what a hexagon is today! Do you know what a hexagon is?”
Clark was bouncing on the balls of his feet, his face lit up and excited. A smile tugged at Jonathan’s lips, and he glanced up briefly at Martha as she entered the room before nodding and then looking back at Clark.
“I sure do. It’s a shape with, oh what is it now…six sides, right?”
“Yes! Here, I’ll show you!”
Jonathan chuckled at Clark’s enthusiasm, his heart happy and light, and he followed as Clark took his hand and tugged him over to the kitchen table. Martha met them, and Jonathan wrapped his arm around her shoulders as they both stood and watched Clark open his new notebook up, pull a pencil out of his backpack, and give them a short lesson on all the different types of polygons he’d learned about at school. He used his new ruler to draw straight lines, his hand confident and sure as he held his pencil and traced along the edge of the ruler.
Martha’s arm tightened around Jonathan’s waist, and he tilted his head to look down at her. There were tears in the corners of her eyes, but she smiled at him. He bent down and kissed her forehead, and they both turned back to their boy, who was now trying to draw a circle. It ended up lopsided, though, and Clark frowned.
“Mrs. Perkins had something she used to help draw a circle, but she said we didn’t need one. I can’t…remember what it was.”
“I think,” Jonathan said, “it’s called a compass.”
“But a compass is for directions?” Clark’s eyebrows scrunched together as he looked up at Jonathan.
“Ah, yes. But this is a different type of compass. I don’t think we have one, though.”
Martha shook her head. “No, I don’t think so. But”—she stepped away from Jonathan and over to the nearest drawer in the kitchen—“I think I have something that might work pretty well.”
The lesson with shapes continued after Martha found a paperclip and a second pencil and then showed Clark how he could draw perfect circles of different sizes without needing a compass. Then Clark had an idea of his own, and he took off around the house on a mission to find as many circular objects of different sizes as he could to trace them.
As soon as Clark disappeared down the hallway to search his room, Jonathan huffed a laugh, turned to his wife, and pulled Martha up against him. He kissed the top of her head.
“I think he had a good day at school, huh?”
“Yeah. But this morning…” Martha shook her head and straightened up. Her gentle blue eyes shone, and she blinked back a tear. “He almost didn’t go.”
“He was scared?”
She nodded but didn’t elaborate except to say, “He’s such a brave little boy. I’m proud of him.” Then she leaned up against Jonathan again with a sigh. “And I’m tired. It was a long day.”
“Very.”
Martha chuckled and tilted her head back. “Everything okay with the cows?”
“Yup. I’ll tell you all about it later. Right now, I want you to go and rest, and I’m going to get those veggies roasting and finish up dinner, while Clark—”
“I found six more! I’m going to make them look like balloons of all different sizes!” The boy hopped his way back into the kitchen, his hands full of different objects. As soon as he reached the table, everything tumbled from his hands, and he laughed. “Oops! Jonathan, look! This’ll be perfect, right?”
Jonathan couldn’t answer for several seconds as he stared at the boy—their perfect little boy, grinning up at him, holding what looked like a large pin-back button he’d gotten from the library. Martha set her hand on Jonathan’s shoulder and squeezed it, and he knew she’d noticed too—the little moment, which, before, would have ended with Clark in tears, stuttering and apologizing for dropping all the things on the table and making a mess. Instead, Clark had laughed. Joyfully. Like a child excited about showing his parents something
should do.
It was a little moment, but not at all small in its significance.
“That…will be pretty perfect, buddy. Just the right size for a balloon!” Jonathan agreed, barely managing to keep his voice from shaking.
God, how he loved this child.
Clark grinned again, scooted back the chair, and settled down at the table with all of his circular objects, a pencil, and his notebook. “Martha, can you help me?” He looked up at the two of them, his eyes bright and cheerful.
Martha nodded and stepped away from Jonathan, taking a seat next to Clark. And Jonathan stood there for a few more minutes to watch them before heading back to the counter to finish up dinner, his heart more happy than it had maybe ever been.
***
Tuesday morning was calmer. No cows got loose, no tractors broke down, and although Clark had a moment where he clung to Martha at the end of the driveway before getting onto the school bus, he seemed much more confident than Martha had said he was the day before.
Jonathan stood with her at the end of the driveway, both of them waving until the bus was out of sight, and then they walked arm in arm back to the farmhouse. Martha was quiet but content; every time Jonathan glanced over at her, he saw it in her eyes and in her smile.
She positively glowed. Motherhood—something he knew she’d always, always wanted—had made her even more beautiful than the day he’d met her and the day he’d fallen in love with her and the day they’d gotten married.
“Martha Kent,” he said as they stopped at the top of the porch steps together, “you look lovely today. Might I take you out for lunch, maybe to Maisie’s?”
Her smile became teasing, and she stepped in front of him and slipped her arms around his waist. “Why, Jonathan, it’s been a long time since we’ve had a date.”
“Months, at least. Let me take you out?”
“I’d love that.”
“Good.” Jonathan leaned in and kissed her lips, and she smiled into him. When he pulled back, she was still smiling, and her eyes sparkled with happiness. He was about to lean in and steal another kiss when the telephone rang from inside the house.
Martha chuckled and shrugged, and Jonathan copied her, but then kissed her again anyway and reached ahead of them to open the door for her. The house was pleasantly warm, thanks to the fire going in the fireplace, and Jonathan quickly removed his coat before jogging over to the phone in the kitchen.
He picked up the receiver and answered with a quick, “Hello?”
“Mr. Kent, hi, it’s Emma,” came the voice from the other end. “Sorry for the early morning call. I’ve got a busy day, but I needed to check in with you and Martha and see how Clark’s first day of school went.”
“Ah, Emma, hi. Yes, it went well. Just one minute,” Jonathan said, and he pulled the phone away from his ear and covered the receiver with his hand. “Martha, grab the upstairs phone?”
With a nod, Martha turned and headed up the stairs. A moment later, her voice came on the line. “Emma, hi, it’s Martha.”
“Martha, good morning,” Emma greeted, and she repeated what she’d told Jonathan about needing to check in after Clark’s first day.
Jonathan leaned against the counter in the kitchen as he listened to Martha and Emma chat. Overall, Emma seemed pleased to hear that although Clark’s day yesterday had started out a little rocky, he’d come home excited and enthusiastic, and he had had a good day, had made new friends, and hadn’t felt lost or like he didn’t fit in academically.
“That’s just wonderful,” Emma said, a softness in her voice that hadn’t been there before. Jonathan straightened up and pressed the phone to his ear as she continued. “I do have another reason for calling too, and I’m glad I have both of you on the phone. Assuming this is still what everyone wants, I’m ready to recommend we start official adoption proceedings. I believe it’s in Clark’s best interests, and honestly, it’s been incredible to see him grow and thrive these last few months.”
Jonathan heard Martha’s sob through the phone, and he closed his eyes as his own emotions threatened to get the best of him. This was what they’d wanted—the call they’d been waiting for. He hadn’t really known whether to expect it this soon, only three months in, but he couldn’t think of any better outcome.
They’d be Clark’s parents. Officially.
God, how he wanted to hug his wife right then.
Jonathan gripped the counter behind him to keep himself steady. “That’s definitely good news,” he managed. He cleared his throat. “Just tell us what we need to do.”
“It’s a pretty straightforward process, and I’ll be handling most of it for you. Since I’m heading your way at the end of the week, let’s touch base then,” Emma suggested. “I’ll need to talk to Clark, and it’ll be easier to explain all the paperwork in person, I think. Does that work for you both? I think I’ve got you on my schedule for Friday morning at ten?”
“Y-yes, that’s right,” Martha cut in. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“I’m honored to be part of this with you,” Emma said. She paused, and there was a sound like rustling papers. “The process can sometimes take a few months, but I’m confident it’s going to be a pretty smooth adoption. You two have been so good for Clark, and every time I see him, I’m amazed at his progress. He’s such a happy child now, and that’s thanks to all the love you’ve given him.”
Jonathan reached up and wiped several tears from his cheeks, shaking his head. Martha must be a blubbering mess, too. “Thank you, Emma. We’re grateful. Truly.”
He could hear her smile through the phone as she said goodbye, and he hung up and hurried up the stairs to the bedroom. Martha sat on the bed, a handkerchief in her hand. She wiped her eyes, but as soon as she looked up at him, she started crying again.
He closed the distance between them, sat next to her on the bed, and pulled her into an embrace.
“Oh, Jonathan, it’s really happening,” she mumbled, burying her head into the crook of his neck. He rubbed her back and nodded, then planted a light kiss in her hair.
“It is. It is.” Jonathan was crying now too, and they clung to each other, joy and elation overwhelming them both. “He’ll be our son. Our boy.”
“He’s already our boy. I feel like I knew it that very first day. He was meant to be with us, Jon.”
The memory resurfaced—Martha cradling the tiny boy in her arms, rocking him as he slept. The sight had warmed his heart then, and now that they knew Clark and had seen him come out of his shell, had been there with him as he’d grown and thrived…
“He was always meant to be our son,” Jonathan agreed.
Martha tilted her head back, and when their eyes met, Jonathan couldn’t not smile. He reached up and brushed back a stray lock of her hair.
“I love you, Martha Kent.”
“Oh, Jonathan. I love you, too,”
He kissed her forehead and then pulled her up against his chest again. And despite the mess of emotions still trying to overwhelm him, Jonathan just knew everything was finally right. Everything was finally just how it was supposed to be.
They’d found it all—happiness, contentment, fulfillment—the day they’d found Clark.
And their family was complete now.
They were complete.
“So…still want to go out for lunch, my love?” Jonathan asked.
Martha laughed but nodded. “I’d love to.”
CommentsEpilogue
