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“Okay, you two. You have everything ready for when Mommy comes home?”
Sonia and Stephen’s eager heads nod, their hands clutching their surprises with the utmost care.
“Good. You know what you’re supposed to do when she comes in?”
“Surprise!” Stephen screams and starts jumping up and down.
“That’s right, bud. You love yelling ‘surprise’ don’t you?”
He just nods and continues to jump.
Ben looks over and calls out to Wesley who is standing watch at the front window.
“How you doing over there, Wes?”
“I see’d a squirrel.”
“Uhm, okay, but you’re supposed to be watching for Mommy’s car.”
“No car.”
Ben sighs to himself and checks over the large banner hanging in the living room for the thousandth time. Tonight had to be perfect. After everything, she deserved this–deserved it more than anyone.
After the initial excitement of winning the award wore off, crushing guilt took its place. He tried to refuse the award, but Leslie wouldn’t let him. He accepted it graciously, but did his best to make sure everyone knew that his wife deserved it more than he did.
Apparently it didn’t work much better this time than when Ron tried to do the same thing years ago.
So tonight is about honoring Leslie in every way she deserves.
Ben is pulled back to reality when he hears Wesley running across the house. “Car! Car! Mommy’s car!”
“She’s home?”
Wesley nods wildly, a little out of breath.
“Surprise!”
“Not yet, Stephen. When she comes inside.”
“Oh.”
Ben gathers the triplets in front of him in the foyer, and they wait as they hear Leslie unlocking the front door.
“Surprise!” the four of them yell when Leslie walks in, momentarily surprised until her look fades to one of confused happiness.
“What’s all this?” she asks with a smile after kneeling down to give her children a hug.
Ben steps forward and gives Leslie a soft kiss before taking her hand and leading her into the living room.
“Woman of the Year,” Leslie reads out loud, slowly. “I’m confused.”
“Well, I’ve been thinking about how you’ve been snubbed for that award–not once but twice, and instead it was given to people who were given credit for work you’ve done. We both know I didn’t deserve that award. You were the one with the great, empowering message, and the fact that I got this award because I’m a man and “allowed” you to use my platform is ridiculous. I know it’s not the same, but the four of us wanted to give you your own awards ceremony.” He looks back to the triplets. “Okay, guys, give Mommy her surprises.”
Leslie’s eyes glisten with tears as each of her children come up to her. Sonia hands Leslie a construction paper chain necklace, Wesley a paper crown, and Stephen a long sash that says woman of the year.
“I know it’s a little Beauty Pageant-esque, but each one chose what to make for you themselves,” Ben grins.
Leslie wipes away at the stray tears and plants big kisses on each of their three, cherubic cheeks. “I love them, thank you.”
“And this one is from me.” Ben hands her a plaque that looks almost identical to the one given to him merely weeks ago.
“The Sonia, Stephen, and Wesley Knope-Wyatt Woman of the Year Award,” Leslie reads and stars crying all over again. “Oh, my God, this is amazing, and really good quality.”
“I went to your plaque guy.”
“He does good work.”
“Speech, speech!” Sonia chants while clapping her hands.
“Oh yeah.” Ben goes into the dining room and drags out a podium. “No awards ceremony is complete without an acceptance speech. Now’s your chance to bust out your IOW speech.”
“Is that my practice podium?”
“Yeah, I pulled it out of storage.”
Ben sits on the couch in front of the podium, pulling the triplets up with him as they await Leslie’s speech with wide smiles.
She pulls out the speech that she still carries in her back pocket and lays it flat on the podium. But as she stares at it, she knows it just isn’t right. The IOW had their chance–several times, in fact.
No, this award is so much more important.
“You know what, I don’t want to read this.”
Ben furrows his brow. “Really?”
“Yeah, I just kind of want to speak from the heart, if that’s okay.”
“Of course. It’s your day.”
She takes a deep breath. “First of all, I want to thank you so much for honoring me with this award. Words can’t even begin to express how much this means to me, how much it means knowing that I have not only your love, but also your support. For a long time, I thought the greatest honor would come from being publicly recognized for all that I’ve done in trying to champion women’s rights. I thought that getting an award from the IOW would somehow validate me and my work, but I was wrong.
“And maybe I’ll never win the Woman of the Year award from them, especially not if they value the marketing or political aspects of it more than anything else. And you know what? That’s okay because I don’t need them to validate me anymore. Everything I’ve done has been because it’s the right thing to do.
“I love the four of you more than anything in this entire world, and just knowing that you believe in me is enough. Knowing that I’m helping build a world that won’t tell my daughter what her limitations are because she’s a woman, that she’ll grow up knowing she can do anything and be anything she wants to be without being held back, is enough. Teaching my sons to respect a woman’s voice, her body, her choices, is all I can hope for.
“And being there for my husband, not because it’s what’s expected of me as a good wife, but because I truly believe in him and want him to succeed in everything he does.
“The IOW have made their choices, and I’ve made mine, and I don’t regret any of them that have led me to this point in my life. Some women have chosen to focus on their careers, other’s choose to focus on their families, and some do both, all of them wonderful.
“But I don’t need the IOW to tell me I’ve done a good job. As long as I have all of your love and support, I’ll know without a shadow of a doubt that I’ve made the right decisions. Thank you, and I love you all so, so much.”
Ben claps and hoots wildly, a large proud smile on his face. The kids mimic his clapping even though they probably have no idea what just happened, but it doesn’t matter. One day they’ll understand.
Leslie comes and sits down next to Ben and the kids on the couch, Ben wrapping his arm around her and pulling her close while Wesley scrambles onto her lap.
“That was amazing,” Ben says quietly, leaning in for another kiss.
“I meant every word. And thank you for doing this for me.” She tickles each of her babies’ bellies. “And thank you three for making me these wonderful gifts.”
“There’s more,” Wesley exclaims from her lap.
“Yeah? What?”
“Daddy made pie,” Sonia tells her.
“He did?”
Stephen is already off the couch and running towards the kitchen. “Extra whipped cream.”
Ben sighs and chases after his son. “He’s been trying to get his hands on that pie since I made it. And it’s not a dessert calzone either.”
Leslie stands up and grabs Wesley and Sonia’s hands, following Ben and Stephen into the kitchen.
Sonia tugs on her hand. “Mommy?”
“Yes, sweetheart.”
“I love you.”
No, as much as she had wanted it, Leslie doesn’t need that award. Everything she could ever need is right here.