Yay! I just knew Simon and Lexie are going to be together forever. Great, great story Raia!
Woot! I'm glad they're both ok, and FINALLY together. Fantastic update 
Thanks so much!
Chapter 18 - Perhaps Love
SimFebruary 14th
Dear Diary,
Another year has passed, another Love Day with my beloved Leighton, our twenty-first together as man and wife, and he is still every bit the romantic that he was on the day we married.
In recent years, the holiday has become less about Leighton and I and far more about our children. Lazy mornings once spent in each other’s arms have given way to heart-shaped pancakes for breakfast and red and pink construction paper chains draped lovingly over our doorway. This morning we awakened to find a hand-drawn card slipped under our bedroom door with the words “I luv you Mommy and Daddy” scrawled in purple crayon along the bottom.
I just about cried. That little note from Abby is far, far more precious to me than any lazy morning. The way I see it, I have the rest of my life to spend in Leighton’s arms, but our children are only young for a very short, painfully fleeting time. I still have a hard time grasping the fact that Abby is in the second grade, that the twins are driving, and that Sam and his wife have already been married for six years.
Our babies are growing up.---
A quiet knock at the bedroom door caught Morgana’s attention. “Mom? Can I come in?”
“Sure.”
The door slowly opened and Justin stepped inside. “I was wondering if...um...I could borrow the truck for the afternoon. Les and I were going to go to the gym and practice our lifts, since we've got that recital on Wednesday.”
“Hmm, I don’t see why not,” Morgana answered. “I’m not planning on going anywhere for the rest of the day anyway, and your dad should be back in less than an hour.” She grinned. “Are you and Lesley planning anything special for Love Day, by chance?”
A slight blush flowered on Justin’s cheeks. “N—Not really. The restaurants are going to be crazy tonight, so I think we’re just going back to her place after practice. Her mom is making lasagna.”
“All right,” Morgana replied. “Have fun, be back by nine, and tell Lesley I said hi.”
“I will. Thanks.”
Morgana chuckled as her son left the room. When Justin started ballet lessons as a child neither she nor Leighton expected that it would turn into something like this. Dance was far more than just a hobby; it had become his lifelong passion. Justin had stated more than once that his dream was to one day join a famed ballet company and tour the world, and with his level of skill and dedication, Morgana had a feeling that he just might achieve it.
Of course, having a good relationship with his dance partner helped immensely...
...even if it did cause a bit of a distraction at times.
Justin had known Lesley for years, ever since they were in the same dance class in elementary school. That the two of them wound up dating came as little surprise to any of them, especially given their mutual love of ballet.
It was amusing, now that Morgana thought about it. She always expected that
Jeremy would be the first one to enter the dating scene, not his more shy and reserved twin. Indeed, Jeremy was still more outgoing than his brother, but any thoughts of romance were eclipsed by the allure of a game controller and a copy of the latest SkySim expansion.
Jeremy and his gaming buddies (the Fearsome Foursome, as Winter liked to call them) were more or less attached at the hip. Wherever one went, so did the other three...which was usually wherever they had easy Internet access and a steady supply of snacks.
Today that just happened to be their upstairs den.
Morgana didn't mind the invasion, truth be told. She enjoyed the fact that Jeremy had such a close-knit group of friends, and all in all they were good kids. A touch on the noisy side and probably a bit too hyped up on sugar half of the time, but good kids nonetheless. Plus, they gave her a good excuse to order pizza today instead of cook, and she wasn’t about to complain.
“Thanks for the pizza, Doctor S., you're awesome!” The red-head spoke up as Morgana made her way into the kitchen. She thought that his name might be Oliver, but she wasn't sure.
“Yeah Auntie Morgana, thanks a ton,” added Hannah. “So you're
sure you don't want to join us, Winter? We could really use you and your wizard character to get past that goblin guardpost.”
“Yeah, and if we manage to defeat the chieftain he's supposed to have one of the best swords in the game,” Jeremy chimed in. “And at least three-thousand in gold and other gems.”
Winter sighed and shook her head. “I’m sure. I promised Abby that I’d take her to the festival today for the egg hunt.”
“Aww, man.” Hannah snapped her fingers. “And here I was hoping that I wouldn't be the only girl for once. You know, with Brent leaving for University soon we're gonna need another player anyway,
hint hint?”
“Hey, just 'cause I'm graduating doesn't mean I can't still be part of the team long-distance!”
Winter giggled.
“Wait, this is the game where you guys fought that dragon and rescued that elf girl, right?” Abby asked. She looked up at Winter, her eyes beaming. “Can we do that instead? I really wanna watch!”
“You don't want to go to the festival then?” Winter asked.
“Well yeah...but if we go tomorrow instead then maybe I can go with Darin and Blaine too.
Please Winter? This looks like so much fun!"
Morgana rolled her eyes and laughed. “Thanks a
lot, Jeremy. You've managed to corrupt not one, but
both of your younger sisters.”
“Sweet,” Jeremy high-fived both Hannah and Oliver. “My work here is done.”
Not quite fifteen minutes later the five teenagers and one excited child had abandoned their meal and made their way upstairs. They left four slices of pizza behind and, much to Morgana's chagrin, quite a bit of clutter, but just as she was about to head up the stairs to talk to them she heard the familiar roar of Leighton’s motorcycle pulling up into the driveway.
The yearly team tryouts were today, something that had been weighing rather heavily on her husband’s mind for several weeks.
Lecturing Jeremy on his lack of cleanliness could wait.
Morgana took Leighton into her embrace as he walked in the front door. The expression on his face spoke volumes without him having to say a single word.
“Dare I even ask how it went?”
“I've definitely seen worse,” Leighton began, “but I've also seen much, much better. There were one or two players that we might give a shot on the minor league team, but otherwise...” He sat down heavily on one of the dining room chairs, seemingly oblivious to the mess.
“How does Marty feel about all of it?”
“About the same way that I do. We haven't seen anyone truly stellar since Michael Bachelor joined the team, and that was nearly eight years ago.” He sighed deeply. “It sort of makes me wish that Marty and I were still playing instead of coaching.”
Morgana should have known that was coming. Retiring from the sport had been one of the most difficult decisions that Leighton had ever made, one that he had constantly questioned in the eighteen months since. At fifty he was still in fantastic physical shape, but season after season of overuse had taken its toll on his shoulder muscles and he just couldn't throw the way he once had. Becoming a coach seemed like a natural fit for Leighton, and indeed he loved being able to mold the younger players, but Morgana knew that he missed being on the field.
Having a serious lack of new talent certainly didn't help matters, either.
“You know,” Morgana finally replied, “you
could always ask Lexie if she'll switch sports.”
Leighton chuckled. “Believe me, the thought has crossed my mind.” He grabbed one of the leftover pizza slices and took a bite. “But if I so much as mention the possibility her coach would have my head for it. Monika tells me she's one of the best on the team.”
The sound of footsteps on the staircase caught their attention, and Morgana turned around just in time to see Alexia trip off of the last step. Only her quick reflexes managed to keep her from falling flat on her face.
“Good heavens, are you all right?” Morgana asked.
“Yeah,” came Alexia's irritated reply. “I'm just not used to walking in heels.”
“Then why are you wearing them?”
“Because gym shoes don't go with a cocktail dress and my flats are busted.” Alexia balanced herself and straightened out her skirt. “How do I look?”
Morgana looked her daughter over and was nearly overcome with emotion. It was a rare occasion when Alexia wore something other than her workout clothes or jeans. Seeing her dressed up like this reminded her all the more that her little girl was not so little anymore, but a grown woman with a career and a serious boyfriend. “You're beautiful, Lexie,” she replied with a wistful grin. “Now where exactly is Simon taking you...?”
“I'm not sure, actually. All that I know is dinner is involved, but beyond that I have no clue.” She glanced out the window. “I can't believe he flew home just for Love Day—especially with midterms next week. Sometimes I wonder what's going on in that goofy blonde head of his...anyway, I'll probably be home late, so don't wait up for me.”
Both Leighton and Morgana struggled to keep a straight face as their eldest daughter made her way out the front door.
They knew
exactly why Simon flew home this weekend.
Two weeks prior...
“Hello? Oh hi Simon, how's University life treating you?” A pause. “Ah...no, she's at practice right now. She should be back...huh? Oh. Catch wind of
what, might I ask?”
A sudden shocked expression washed over Leighton's features. “Simon...are you
serious?”
Morgana closed her laptop, her curiosity getting the better of her. Why was Simon calling Leighton instead of Alexia? She edged closer to her husband as a bright smile crossed his lips. “Well, I would give you my answer...” Leighton glanced over at Morgana. “But my wife is right here beside me and probably needs to hear the question too.”
“Leighton, what...?”
“Hang on, let me put you on speaker...” Leighton fiddled with a few buttons on his phone and placed it on the table between them. “Simon, can you hear me?”
“Loud and clear,” came Simon's voice over the phone.
“Hi Simon,” Morgana greeted him.
“Hi there Doctor Sekemoto. So...I'm guessing that you're probably wondering what this is all about.”
“I must admit you have piqued my curiosity.”
“Well, I was just telling Mister Sekemoto that I am planning to fly home over Love Day weekend, but I haven't told Lexie yet,” he explained. The young man took a deep breath, then continued. “I plan on asking her to marry me, but before I do I wanted to ask your permission first.”
Morgana couldn't help the surprised gasp that escaped her throat. “Simon, really? Oh my word...” She looked over at Leighton, only barely containing her excitement. "I would have thought, though, that you already knew our feelings on the matter."
“Well yes...but there's no harm in asking regardless. Call me old-fashioned in that respect, I guess,” Simon chuckled. “So you really are all right with the idea?”
“Of
course!” Leighton exclaimed. “Simon, you know as well as I do that Alexia is crazy about you, and I know that you feel the same way about her.”
“We would love to have you as part of the family,” Morgana quickly added. “You've more or less been part of the family anyway given how long I've known your father. Does he know, by the way?”
“He does. It was kind of funny, actually. When I called him yesterday and told him that I was planning to come home that weekend he immediately asked me if I was going to propose. It was as if he already knew.”
“Good. That means I don't have to completely button my lips when I meet him for coffee tomorrow morning. But don't worry, neither Leighton nor I will breathe a word to Lexie.”
“I greatly appreciate that,” Simon answered. “I want to make this a Love Day to remember.”
Leighton smiled. “Believe me son...you will.”
Present Day, About Seven Hours Later...
Morgana leaned against Leighton's shoulder, her eyes half-closed as her favorite movie played on the television. Between her normal chores and having her son's friends over for most of the afternoon it had been a very exhausting day...and yet there was no way that Morgana was going to be able to sleep at this point.
Alexia told them not to wait up, that she would be back late...but the anticipation was about killing the both of them.
Finally at about a quarter past ten they heard a car pull into the driveway, and immediately Morgana's heart started racing.
“They're here,” Leighton quietly spoke, the tone of his voice betraying his own excitement. Two car doors opened and closed, then came the faint sound of a key being inserted into the door lock. The front door slowly creaked open, and two sets of footsteps made their way down the hallway, stopping just short of the living room.
“Somehow I
knew that you two would still be awake.”
When Morgana looked up at her eldest daughter her breath caught in her throat.
There, adorning Alexia's left hand, was a gold and diamond ring.
---
Author's Note: Lots of new faces in this chapter, all of whom are relevant in the coming chapters. 
A happy early Love Day Valentine's Day to everyone--and many, many thanks for reading!EDIT: Fixed a minor issue with one of the screencaps. Oops!
