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“It’s hard for me to believe it’s already been three years,” Elliot said to Olivia over breakfast. She had just asked how his week had been, and his reply made her remember that it was around the anniversary of Kathy’s death. It felt like a long time ago to her, but she was sure that to him, it still felt like yesterday.
“How are you and the kids doing?” Olivia asked.
“Better than I expected, actually. I think now that it’s been a few years, everyone has learned to mark the day in their own way. Not to mention, after I went through all the firsts without her, I just felt a lot less pain and stress. Our wedding anniversary is still bittersweet, though. You always think you’re going to grow old with someone, and now I wonder what will happen in 20 or so years if I’m living out those years alone. I think I’m close to my kids but there are no guarantees.”
“Well, we can always go through that together. At this point in my life, I don’t think I’ll ever find someone to settle down with. I’m crossing my fingers Noah stays around long enough. They say you shouldn’t have kids because you’re relying on them to take care of you, though. Although that’s not why I adopted him. I always thought that once the adoption was official that the rest would take care of itself. It’s not the traditional way of having a family, but I always tell him there’s more than one way to be a family.”
She paused. “Are you thinking of dating again?” she asked him. “I’m sorry if that’s too forward. But I can tell. You seem a bit restless lately and have been talking a lot about family and relationships. We’ve been spending more time together. Maybe I’m reading this totally wrong, or you’re into someone else and not me. Or you’re missing Kathy more. Which is fine. You’ve never really mentioned it before anyway.”
“No…” He shook his head. “It’s fine. I don’t want to sound cold and say three years is long enough to be on my own. I’ll always be a widower, and I’m not going to forget about the family Kathy and I created or how much we loved each other. But I have a lot of life left to live, and it can’t hurt to have a companion to go on the ride with me. What do they say, two heads are always better than one.”
“Whether we want to admit that or not, I think it applied pretty well when we were partners.” Olivia said with a laugh. “And you know, sometimes I feel like getting back on the market too now that Noah’s getting older. I mean, Ed’s been gone for a while. Things didn’t work out with Brian. I had feelings for Peter, but that relationship that never made it out of the starting gate. I’m disappointed I never got married, but just like families come in all shapes and sizes, there’s no wrong way to have a wedding either if I ever take a step in that direction.”
“You have to find a partner first.” he reminded her. “Don’t get too ahead of yourself.”
“We all start somewhere, that’s for sure.”
“I know it may sound weird to switch gears like this,” he said. “But it won’t be long now before it’ll be 25 years since we first started working together, if you can believe that. I still remember you telling me how you’re never home because you’re always with me. And here we are now. Still friends, and it’s crazy to think about everything we’ve been through and are still experiencing today. I hope this doesn’t sound too out there but…we should go out. On a date. Not just meet up for coffee or a quick lunch at work, but have dinner. Or just a breakfast date on a weekend.”
“I’d say that sounds like the kind of date where I tell Noah I’ll be back in a few hours and he can go hang out with Amanda, but he’s too old for that now.”
“That’s OK. So are my kids.”
“We need lives.” Olivia told him. “We shouldn’t worry about what our kids will think about us having a little romance. All we need is each other.”
“I’ve always had you. So, how’s next Saturday?”
“I can do that.”