Night Changes

13.

Finishing the first game of the season strong the crowd erupted into cheers. Putting my arms up in victory our team assembled a line to give the opposing team high fives. I forgot how much I love being out here on the field after the long summer break. I forgot the roar of the crowd when you won a game, the entire summer I worked away at a job as a waiter.

In the summers when school and lacrosse wasn't a factor I worked away. I worked for every penny so that I could quit and be able to get myself by for the rest of the year. There was no way between lacrosse and school I could hold down a job. Now I had a new addition along with those two factors and that happened to be Asher.

Gathering as a team in a circle we all raised our sticks and did our chant before breaking after the coach gave us a speech about how well we played tonight. I was hyped up from the win running up into the bleachers to find Eleanor sitting with my family and Asher. I couldn't imagine he liked the loud chanting and screaming very much, loud studded noises scared him most often. He would fling his arms and legs out and start to cry.

"Congrats!" Eleanor stood up as I picked her up in my sweaty uniform, spinning her around until she squealed.

"Harry stop! You stink!" She called laughing once I put her down to hug both my parents.

"You did great out there tonight!" My dad said hugging me as I let go to see Asher sucking on his binkie staring at me.

"Thanks, I feel great!" Normally after a win like this the boys and I would head out to the bar and celebrate with booze and girls but this time was different. This time there was no booze because I had responsibilities and priorities and the girls mixed in with booze was not on that list.

"Was he alright with the crowd?" I asked my mum who took the car seat into her hand as we all walked to the parking lot to retrieve our cars.

"He wasn't the biggest fan but once your dad played patty cake with him he was fine." My mum responded to me as I walked along side Eleanor.

"You should come by and celebrate with me tonight!" I thought telling Eleanor and hoping she would respond with an "okay".

"What did you have in mind?" Len asked with a smile as she looked down at the ground. Her brown straightened had curtailing her smile while her eyes down casted.

"Movies, hot coco, tea, a traditional night in." I smiled as Eleanor and I walked a little in front of my parents. I wanted to catch up with Len since it had been so long since we actually got to talk.

"Okay, I'll meet you at your apartment then!" Len looked up pushing hair from her face to reveal her rosy cheeks that rose from the chilly air of a fall night. Her nose turning a little pink as well when her brown eyes faced my own.

"Okay! I'll see you in a minute!" I waved to her once we walked a short distance longer to her car. Her legs defined in those skinny jeans driving me crazy, she was even more beautiful than I remembered.

"It was nice seeing Eleanor again! She's so lovely, you could use someone like her in your life again, she's good for you." My mum told me handing me the baby carrier, taking it into my free hand I held it.

"Yeah, I've really missed her. I think she's coming over for a night in."

"That's a good idea. you know it's only been a few weeks but I'm proud of you, you have managed to shape up nicely for the baby." My mum went in for another hug, kissing my cheeks as she patted my back leaving.

+

"Come on bud, you need to go to sleep." I told Asher after I had changed his diaper and dressed him in his blue pajamas.

His blue eyes playful once I lifted him up off the changing table my mum had invested in that day at target. My room looked more like a nursery than I man cave these days.

I wanted Asher to be asleep by the time Eleanor came over, not only was it his bedtime but also I wanted to be alone with Len. I wanted to talk to her without any distractions. That would only happen if Asher decided to lay down and fall asleep, which I prayed he would. It would be a dream if he went down easy tonight.

Sticking a binkie in his mouth I grabbed the blanket from inside his crib and laid it over him while I positioned him on my shoulder. Rocking back and forth and patting his back I walked around the dark room that only bore a small night light in the very corner. I could feel him grasp my t-shirt which I have said before I never liked because when I tried to lay him down he always woke up when I tried to pry him off.

Not before too long I heard his breathing steady out, he became more limp now with his hands not so tightly fastened to my shirt. Hearing his binkie fall to the ground I placed him in the crib very carefully, picking the binkie up from the floor and setting it on the changing table I closed to door behind me.

A knock resonating on the door that I could only assume was Eleanor since Liam and Louis would have just walked in. Taking in a deep breath before opening the door I saw Eleanor standing in the light of the hallway in her pajamas. She wore red shorts with gingerbread men as the print and a white t-shirt, her hair in a high ponytail as she looked up from her phone when I answered the door.

"You know it's not Christmas for another couple months right?" I asked her smiling as she walked inside my humble abode.

"It's never too early to be festive!" I remembered her favorite holiday was Christmas and every year she went all out. Her parents house was always immaculately decorated during the holiday seasons.

"We haven't even celebrated Halloween yet! Which by the way, we should do something, throw a party or something!" I encouraged seeing her put her hands on her hips.

"Throw a party with a baby in the other room? Number one dad award right there!" Eleanor giggled finding her way over to the tv where she found the Apple TV Remote and made her way to our movie collection.

"Well obviously I would have Gemma or my parents watch him, throwing a party with a baby in the other room would be irresponsible." I sat down next to her smirking while she rolled her eye till they reached back to the tv screen.

"Okay we are watching this!" Len told me pressing play on the Hangover. We had sat in my downstairs basement countless weekends and watched this laughing our lungs out. So many fond memories came from this movie and they were flooding back now as the movie buffered.

"So how have you been? It's been so long that I can't remember the last time I asked you that." Grabbing blankets from the basket to the side of the couch she threw me one as well as got one for herself.

"I've been good, busy with school and work but I can't imagine how busy you have been. With just school and lacrosse alone, I hear your name come up every now and then on campus." Eleanor explained. She had gotten a scholarship to Columbia University and me, NYU. At first it was hard not seeing her everyday but once the whirlwind of life went into play that all soon faded.

"Fine, just a lot of school work and stuff like that. What have you been up to, I'm sure your life has been way more interesting then mine." That was one thing I loved about Len, she was always more interesting in talking about other rather than herself. She would much rather hear how my life had been rather then give me the history of hers.

"Well I had school and Lacrosse and just recently a baby!" I felt like I had summed it up pretty nicely, leaving out all the details of going out drinking and having s*x night after night. I didn't want to tell Len any of that.

"And you have no clue as to who the mom is? Not even in the slightest?" Eleanor asked me pulling the blanket up over her shoulders. Her legs are crossed Indian style as she listens to me.

"I got ahold of the birth certificate and the name on there says Valerie Clements." I explained to her seeing a puzzled look on her face.

"Doesn't sound familiar..." She trailed in deep thought while I told her more about how weird the situation was.

"Which is weird because the note that came with the baby the night he was dropped off was signed with a K. So I'm just all over the place with what I'm going to do to find her, I think she did it on purpose because she doesn't want to be found." The movies played in the background while we both talked about the possibility of that being the case.

"Well I think you should try finding her, for Asher's sake. And for you as well, I bet you have more questions than I do about all of this." By now Eleanor and I were both sitting across from each other Indian style going into deep conversation until an idea popped into my head.

"You should help me find her!" I blurted out as soon as the idea rose into my mind. It would be an amazing journey I wanted to share with Len, it was something that I could add to our rap sheet of adventures.

There was no one else I would rather do this with than her. "What?" She answered with a confused expression as if she thought it were funny I was asking her.

"Yeah! Come on! I'm going to need all the help I could get in finding this girl. Plus I know you have FBI level skills when it comes to finding whoever! Remember when you stalked the kid from a few schools away? I swear by the end of the week you knew everything you needed to know about him." I thought back to Junior year when Len had a crush on a guy but only had his name alone to work from. After countless hours of searching she had finally found him.

"That was junior year!" She chuckled widening her eyes at me.

"I'm just saying, I would love your help." I shrugged looking at Eleanor's beautiful brown eyes that held all those memories I would never forget. They were sweet like honey every time you looked into them.

"You know for you I would do anything. You're my best friend." She told me coming over to embrace me as I held her body for a few seconds. Embracing her I smiled as her arms wrapped around my neck, I missed Len. I couldn't wait to be spending more time with her.

note// looks like they are going on a baby momma hunt! Pack your bags and fasten you seat beats kids because it's going to be a bumpy ride!;)