Visitation Rights.

[heartofcourage]

Jessica sat down on the couch as he turned on the movie. It had been a long time since she had seen Halloween and she knew that Mark was always a fan of the horror genre. As she sipped her wine and the movie started, she decided that there was simply too much room between them and she remedied that by scooting against his side and snuggling up against him.

"If this is too much, let me know. I missed having someone to snuggle with." She said, a hand reaching out for one of the chocolates to nibble on.

Mark was always there for her with a hug when she was feeling blue. When the divorce had happened, she had simply decided that his hugs weren't enough anymore. Now, she had decided that a hug from Mark was really all that she needed and wanted.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

"No danger of that, Jess. I very much enjoy doing this, curling up with you to a movie. Just like old times, you know," Mark spoke with nostalgia.

"I've missed this sort of thing a lot, babe. I am quite happy now."

They settled in to watch the film, but Mark made a point of hugging Jess like the old days. Just a hug. No expectation or implication of anything beyond that. Just his arms around Jess, inhaling her scent and lightly brushing her hair as they ate, watched the film, and clinked glasses.

Yes....for once, at least, they had gone back in time. As if the divorce and the six years in between were nothing but a nightmare and they had awakened from it.

 

[heartofcourage]

It was nice to slip back into the role she had lost with Mark. Jessica sighed softly as he looked his arm around her and she pressed against his side. He was warm, he was familiar, he was the love of her life. It was a breath of fresh air in her otherwise dark life. It was all her own doing and she would be trying to make up for that mistake for the rest of their lives together.

Before the movie credits even thought about rolling, she was asleep against his shoulder. She had a habit of never making it to the end of the movie. She had been that way since she was young. There was something about being next to Mark that made her relax and she dozed deeply, content with her life.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

Mark awoke from his sleep to find Jess still on his shoulder, which made his arm fall asleep, but he didn't disturb her. She was just so angelic, so beautiful like this, just like the good ol' days.....so far apart from the angry, bitter wife who had kicked him out. Thankfully, that resentment and hostility was nowhere in evidence.....just the sweetheart of his youth.

He didn't even think of waking Jess, he just let her sleep a bit longer and watched her, even dozing off a couple of times now and then himself, but always waking up to watch Jess in her beautiful, peaceful slumber.

Just like old times....

 

[heartofcourage]

Jessica woke up just before dawn, groaning softly as she straightened up and realized that she was sore from sleeping in an awkward position. She was also surprised to see Mark still there. He had stayed with her all night long, just as he use to before she had forced him out of her life. That thought made her smile slightly as she slipped away from his side and into the kitchen.

It was incredibly early, but she was going to fix them breakfast. It had been a long time since she had fixed her entire family a good, homecooked breakfast. Usually Chelsea was so busy that she would just grab a banana on the way out the door to whatever activity she was doing next. Today, Jessica was going to make eggs, potatoes, and pancakes with maple syrup. She wanted to remind Mark of what she was capable of and what she was willing to do for him.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

Mark finally opened his eyes and saw that Jess was absent from the living room sofa....so he rose and wandered to the kitchen, curiously to see if she might have gone there.

Sure enough, there she was....Jess. His lifelong love. Despite 6 years divorced from her, she still held his heart....she could still make him stop breathing for a moment or two in sheer excitement and get a lump in his throat when he saw her. He could now put a finger on the emptiness and loneliness in him for the past six years....it was her absence, very keenly felt. Mark was still very much in love with Jess....and he would never not be. It couldn't be helped. She had stolen his heart in his youth and never returned it. Broken it, yes, but never gave it back.

"Well, what do you have here? Our own regular domestic goddess. Jess....is it still Prentiss? You know, all these years, I never asked if you went back to the old name. I think that I feared to know the answer. I know that all official listings kept the Prentiss name, but I wasn't sure if that was for convenience or something else," Mark spoke up from just inside the kitchen as he walked inside it.

 

[heartofcourage]

"I figured I could fix you a good breakfast this morning. Chelsea isn't due to be home until after lunch." Jessica said, glancing over at him as he asked what her last name was.

It was a tricky subject. She had thought about getting her maiden name back when she first filed for divorce. However, Chelsea was so young and she wanted to do what would make her daughter the most comfortable. That was why she had kept her husband's last name.

"It's still Prentiss. I decided that I wanted to do what was best for Chelsea. Since she is still a Prentiss, I kept the name too." She commented, shrugging her shoulders as if it wasn't a big deal. "It just made things so much easier."

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

Mark smiled at hearing this, "Well, that is a good reason for sure. Anyway, I am glad that you never changed it. If the best scenario happens, it will make it much easier on the paperwork."

"Breakfast smells great. Should I wait for it, keep you company in kitchen, or help you out?" Mark asked Jess.

He didn't know how she felt about it, so he would leave that up to her.....and he was still very flattered and honored that she never changed her name back.

 

[heartofcourage]

"You hoping that we get remarried?" Jessica teased her ex-husband, liking that idea more than she cared to admit. "Because I kind of like that idea too."

She laughed softly as she turned to get started on the pancakes. "How do you want your eggs? Scrambled still or have you moved on to more adult tastes?"

She liked having him there to talk to and she liked being able to smile and tease a man without feeling self conscious. She had never felt anything but comfortable with Mark at her side.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

"Yeah, I'm hoping that. So sue me. If it all turns out right, that is. Obviously, it can go either way. But if it goes right, I do hope for remarriage. A chance to make a fresh, clean start," Mark grinned at Jess.

"And hell, yeah, I still like it scrambled. With cheese, of course. I haven't changed at all about that. Why should I? I like what I like," Mark admitted.

"What about you, still like it with the runny yolks?" he teased her back playfully.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Of course I do. Because I'm adult and I can eat my eggs without cheese." Jessica teased back, laughing as she looked over her shoulder Mark. "And if you want cheese on your eggs, you'll have to pull it out of the fridge for me."

She knew everything about Mark. He liked gooey cheese on his eggs, maple syrup and butter on his pancakes, and strong coffee. He always sang in the shower when he was happy and hummed when he brushed his teeth. He was the best lover that she had ever known and she still got weak at the knees thinking about him between the sheets.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

Mark chuckled at that, looking through the fridge for the cheese, only to find it just where Jess left it. Right next to the tortillas, as always. Leave it to Jess to put the two together. Mark laughed even more when he saw how little she had changed, just like him.....and he loved knowing that she was still the same old Jess, whatever small changes occurred, that he had known and loved for so long.

"Next to the tortillas, just like old times. Then again, you've always loved your quesadillas," Mark grinned as he closed the fridge door and brought over the shredded cheese.....predictably Cheddar Jack....Jess loved her mixed cheeses and quesadillas, but for some reason, was never a fan of cheese on her eggs.

He then located the orange juice and poured each of them a glass.

"To finding out just how little we've changed," he toasted.

 

[heartofcourage]

"To finding out how little we've changed." Jessica said with a smile, picking up her glass of orange juice to join him in that toast. "And how much we remember about one another."

Once everything was cooked, she dished up plates for each of them and they settled in at the kitchen table to eat their breakfast. It was nice having someone there in the mornings that wasn't a moody teen who couldn't be bothered to talk more than a few words at a time.

"You're not going to find another person on this earth who knows more about you than I do, Mark. Not even your mother." Jessica boasted, smiling at her ex-husband as she poured a little dab of syrup on her pancakes before she cut into her eggs and took a bite. "From your favorite movie to the fact you like to get a little kinky in bed sometimes."

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

"Well, we were married to each other for so long, and I admit that I haven't changed much at all. I'm still the same ol' Mark, so you got me pretty well pegged. Yes, I still like my surf and turf, too. I still like sardines in a can with olive oil. I still like to spank a girl, but frankly, it wasn't as much fun with other women. Probably because I knew that they didn't love and trust me. Oh, it was some fun, just not as much. I still like to go to the range. I still like Deep Space Nine. Blame Major Kira for that one," Mark laughed at himself, "Odo and she have a strange sort of fascinating sexual tension between them."

"What about you? Still like blueberry cheesecake and tiramisu?" Mark asked Jess, "still fond of Starbucks?"

 

[heartofcourage]

"Starbucks at least once a day, blueberry cheesecake on my birthday, and tiramisu when we go out to that Italian restaurant that I like." Jessica commented back, their answers coming fast and furious as they continued to eat breakfast. "I still enjoy watching documentaries, reading murder mysteries, and talking about getting a dog. Remember...we talked for ten years about getting a dog."

She paused for a moment as she thought about on their life together and how it had ended. They had been strained for so long that she couldn't remember being happy with him. It certainly wasn't like this at all. The day that he was served with the divorce papers, she had planned on being out of the house. She hadn't thought they would be in bed making love when the guy came to the door and served Mark with the papers from her lawyer. She had been so embarrassed and that embarrassment turned to anger when Mark had asked her why.

"You know, that day that the papers came...I know you felt used and betrayed. I hadn't planned on being here at all that day. You had absolutely every right to be mad. Hell, if those papers hadn't come until the next day, I would have reconsidered everything." Jessica said softly, bringing up a painful memory in their lives. "Being there to see you made things so much worse. I was so embarrassed. My heart hurt and I got angry."

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

Mark smiled as they discussed their tastes in food, their hobbies, and the dog that they never got....

He really enjoyed the breakfast, of course. Not to mention time alone with Jess....his Jess, who wanted him back. What had happened he wasn't sure, but she had changed her mind. They were happy again. They clicked again. She was no longer bitter at him nor he against her.

It was just like the good ol' days.

And then Jess brought up that awful day. The day that absolutely floored and crushed him, broke his heart completely. Just as surely as she had suddenly begun to restore their relationship the other day. For some reason, with Jess, the end had come as quickly as the new beginning.

Mark had been in a happy, lazy mood, after making love to his darling Jess....his angel. He had never anticipated that the process server would show up and deliver the notice of the filing for divorce. He had gone from contented and pleased with his world to utterly destroyed. In just a few minutes. His world had crashed around him and he very nearly fainted with shock. He had felt dizzy, nauseous, even. He had run to the restroom after Jess had turned suddenly on him and he had thrown up his breakfast, he was so abruptly sick at his stomach.

As Mark recalled that day, some six years ago, his face became ashen again. His stomach had tied itself up in knots. He felt a moment of panic again at that memory, more than a little whoozy as the awful memory came to him in a flashback. That awful, horrible day....the day that after he recovered, because Jess had also served him with a restraining order, he had to leave.....and he packed up his bags to move to the motel until he could find a place to stay.

Mark suddenly felt the urge to go to the john again, being so absolutely upset at that memory. It had been the cruelest, most depressing, most absolutely horrible day that he had ever known. The day that Jess became a stranger to him and he had reeled from the blow ever since. To his pride, to his heart, to his mind....he had never been the same man again....at least until she sprung this latest surprise on him.

Mark clutched his stomach and managed to keep his gorge by sheer willpower...his eyes glazed over and his face was totally drained of all color. He couldn't breathe for a second.

 

[heartofcourage]

"Mark?" Jessica asked softly, watching as he suddenly went pale and looked like he was going to be ill.

She was up quickly, moving her chair towards his own and gently touch his face. She had no idea what was wrong, but he was quiet and felt clammy.

"Mark? Sweetheart, are you alright?" Jessica asked him again, her face full of concern for the man that she loved so much.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

Jess approached Mark with surprising speed and compassion, given how harshly she had treated him from the incident six years back...

Mark shook himself a bit and fought back tears in his eyes as he heard the kindness in Jess's voice, such a contrast to how she sounded back then....

"I am better now, I think....it was just....a memory. A flashback. To that day. That awful day. The memory still hurts like hell," Mark began to get just a little color back into his face as he felt her touch.....so caring.....so much the Jess that he married, not the one who wanted to toss him out on his ass.

 

[heartofcourage]

Jessica felt horrible that the divorce still haunted Mark so much. She had been selfish and only thinking of her own wants and needs when she had filed for divorce. She had spent so many months convincing herself that everything that was wrong in their marriage was because of him and not her.

"I'm so sorry, Mark." She said softly as she pulled him into a tight embrace. "I'll spend the rest of our lives together making it all up to you."

She would too. She swore that she would make him happy and do everything in her power to erase the thoughts of that horrible day from their memories.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

"I'm so sorry, Mark." She said softly as she pulled him into a tight embrace. "I'll spend the rest of our lives together making it all up to you."

Mark held Jess for a good while and enjoyed her embrace, before touching her chin softly and pushing back her hair from her face.

"I know, Jess. I know. For the record, whatever I did to so anger you, it was never deliberate. I don't think that it was you...not any you that I remember. It was like suddenly facing a stranger and a hostile one who just happened to inhabit your body. I say that not to make you feel bad. I hope that it doesn't. More to say that I don't see that stranger anymore. I thankfully haven't seen her in a long time. I hope to never see her again. I see the old Jess that I've always loved, never stopped loving, once more. I see her and it is her that I trust.

"I don't know if you ever felt that way about me at all, that I was a stranger at times to you. If you did, I understand. I was a bitter, angry man for a good while. You banished that demon the other day, or what was left of him. The pain is still there, but you drove that phantom away. Sorry to ramble. Not sure if it makes sense to you, but that is how I have felt. That day....the Jess that I loved became a doppelganger and I didn't like who I saw. I was physically ill that day as I packed up and left.

"I'm not mad at you anymore, but I admit that I was for a long time. It took me a while to accept it all. Even then, for whatever reason, I simply couldn't move on. I don't know why, but I just couldn't. Physical intimacy, sure, but anything else was doomed. But that day that stranger appeared and took your place, and then just the other day, I knew for sure that she was gone....that you were back....and I've been reminded of just how much I still miss and love you."

Mark held Jess for a while longer before touching her hair with his fingers and her cheek with his.

 

[heartofcourage]

Jessica held her ex husband tightly, her cheek pressed tightly against his own as he confessed that he was just as bitter and angry as she had been. She had no idea where they had gone so wrong, but she was determined to make it all up to this wonderful man. She had him back and she wasn't about to let him go again.

"All I need now is you. I know that now." She said softly as she pressed her lips against his cheek by way of a peace offering.

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

Mark held Jess in turn and stroked her hair as she kissed his cheek.

"Well, now that we have cleared the air and know how we feel, perhaps it will be easier for us. Anyway, thank you for surprising me with breakfast. That was very nice of you. Sorry to ruin it for a moment there. I've needed and missed you for a while, but we are working our way back together, and I think that is what counts here. What do you think?"

He took a slight risk and lightly pecked her lips with his own, forgetting that he still had a little orange juice on them.

 

[heartofcourage]

Jessica was a little startled as he kissed her lips and the tang of orange juice was suddenly there. She gave him a soft smile as he thanked her for breakfast and then told her about what he was thinking.

"I think you're right." She said softly, returning his kiss gently before she pulled away and simply looked him in the eyes. "As long as we end up together. That's the most important thing to me. Back where we're comfortable with one another without thinking about the bad things that tore us apart in the first place."

 

[SEVERUSMAX]

Mark Prentiss

"Yes, I like where this is going so far. Sure, this morning had a setback, but it has been mostly pleasant surprises and notable progress. We still have more to do, however, to get where we want to be. You have done a lot this morning to heal the pain. Thank you, Jess," Mark smiled warmly at his ex-wife.

"I want badly for us to make this work. We still have more to do, but you have been amazing, and this road to reconciliation was begun by you. I'll never forget that you reached out to me first," Mark added as he helped clear the plates from the table.

 

[heartofcourage]

Jessica simply smiled as Mark helped her to clear the table of their breakfast. It was just like old times. She could almost forget that they had been divorced for nearly six years as they worked together to get everything put away and the dishwasher filled.

"Why don't you go and pick up Chelsea? Spend the day with her. I'm sure that she would enjoy having some extra with you." She said, giving him the opportunity to spend the day with their daughter. "I can make dinner for the three of us and have it waiting when you guys get back."