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Ava doesn't remember her dad. She was too young to have any actual memories. So all Ava had were the photos mom had, and the stories she told Ava.
When Ava was little she would dream of her dad just showing up. He would be ever knock at the door, every man with brown hair, or every figure at the back of the room.
It would always crush Ava a little more every time it wasn't him.
Then Ludo came in.
At first, he was just mom's friend.
Ava thought he was funny and nice.
Then, he became mom's boyfriend.
And he was around a lot more. And even though he and mom always insisted that he wasn't replacing her dad, Ava couldn't help but think of him as one of her dads.
It wasn't like she meant to. But Ludo was the closest thing Ava ever had to a dad.
Ludo would take Ava and mom out for dinner, or he would even cook. He'd take Ava to the park or to get ice cream. He even would play the knight or the King in her games. He never missed an opportunity to attend one of her tea parties. They would always watch a movie together when he slept over.
Ava remembers the first time she drew Ludo in one of her family drawings. Ludo had cried and hugged her tightly. It was hung on the fridge for a long time.
Then mom had Elliot.
Ava found out that babies make a lot of noise and take up a lot of time.
Too much of her parents time.
So Ava had started acting out. She'd throw tantrums, and throw Elliot's things out. She wouldn't listen to mom or Ludo, sometimes she would even go as far as doing the opposite. And she stopped eating her vegetables.
Mom was really smart, so it didn't take her long to piece together what the problem was. But she had waited, hoping that Ava just needed time to adjust and that she would stop on her own.
She didn't.
She got worse.
So mom and her had a conversation while Ludo took Elliot out for a walk.
Mom apologized for making Ava feel less important than Elliot. She then explained that Elliot being there didn't take away any love she and Ludo had for Ava. That love wasn't something that ran out, there was always more. That Elliot was taking up so much time because he was a baby, but it would eventually settle. And that from now on mom and Ava would do a couple of activities that were just the two of them. Mom also asked if Ava wanted the same thing with Ludo, which of course she did.
All she wanted was her parents back.
After that, things settled into something happy, but also new and fragile.
Turns out, all it took to break was Ludo trying to clear up a misunderstanding with a stranger.
Ludo had taken Ava and Elliot shopping and a woman had coo'd at how cute Elliot was. She had asked if Elliot's mother was blonde like him. When Ludo confirmed that mom was, the woman remarked that Ava must have inherited his hair color instead.
Ludo was quick to correct her. To tell her that Ava was his step-daughter, and that she got her looks from her real father.
Real father.
Cause Ludo wasn't her real father.
No matter how much Ava wished he was.
Ludo would always be Elliot's dad first, then mom's boyfriend, then her step-dad.
It made Ava's insides hurt. She started crying, and she didn't stop until she passed out from exhaustion.
From then on Ava pulled away from Ludo. It wasn't fair for her to take him away from Elliot.
Mom and Ludo were both really worried. They tried talking to Ava, but she just wouldn't answer.
Ava still had mom. That was enough.
But as Ava and Elliot grew up, Ava couldn't help but notice how little she fit in with them. Mom and Elliot were both blonde and fair skin with blue eyes. Ava was tanned, with dark brown hair and eyes. But more importantly, as she got older Ava noticed more and more that she also didn't have the same brain thing they did. Or really any of the same interests as them. It made her feel more and more like she was always out of step with them.
So when Ava was 13, she came up with a partial solution. She convinced mom to let her bleach her hair. That way she'd finally match with mom. That way photos of the two or the ones with Elliot wouldn't look so weird. She'd finally fit in with her family.
Of course Ava told mom none of this. Instead, Ava lied and said she just wanted to try it, that she thought it would look good.
Thankfully, mom said yes.
Maybe she could tell what it really meant to Ava. Or maybe she agreed because mom always gave her kids the freedom to express themselves. Either way, Ava couldn't have been happier.
The first photo Ava took after leaving the salon was a selfie with mom. In the photo Ava's smile was huge. Now she finally looked like mom. It would be years before she realized they had the same smile.
Elliot and Ludo loved her new hair. Ludo said it really suited her, and Elliot pointed out that now they had the same color hair. So Ava took a selfie with her brother as well.
Then mom and Ludo had another child.
A little girl this time, Chloe.
Ava was happy to have a sister. And she was happy for mom.
It just hurt to think that Ludo finally had a real daughter. But Ava was still happy for him. She knew that he would be a great girl dad. The practice he did with Ava proved that.
Then mom and Ludo officially broke up. For real this time. But Ludo was, of course, still around for his two children.
And Ava tried not to drown in her jealously.
Finding their new normal took time.
But like always, it didn't last long.
Mom got a job with the police as a consultant. She took the job so that they would look into her dad running off on them.
And now Ludo was around a lot more again. He was the new nanny.
Mostly Ava ignored him. He needed to be there for his children, she could take care of herself. It became easier to be around Ludo once Ava realized that her dad hadn't abandoned her. That something had happened to him. She couldn't wait for him to be found. Even if it was dangerous. Though Ava did have what she considered a reasonable amount of anger at her dad, and the situation as a whole. And she does feel a little bad about ruining one of his murals. Ava was trying to work through the conflicting emotions, but it was still hard. Because even if he left to keep her and mom safe, he still left and that still hurt. Mom was always there for her to talk to though.
So now, Ava was back to dreaming about her dad coming back. It had a bittersweet feeling now, because she found out her dreams had come true. Her dad had come to one of her recitals, and he drew her. She just didn't know until Arthur gave them her dad's backpack.
Ava often found herself watching Ludo with Elliot and Chloe. Ava wondered if her dad would be like Ludo with her. She was too old for tea parties, but they could still get ice cream or something together.
Ava also watched mom with Elliot and would get excited. When her dad came back, she would finally have a parent she could bond that way with. They were both artists. Maybe they could even paint a mural together?
Ava would then have to take a couple of deep breaths. She would be getting too excited. They had to find her dad first. Then make sure he was safe. Then she would get a dad.
But Ava was getting impatient. She knew it would take a while to find him. He'd been successfully hiding for 15 years. But, like, it was taking forever. Especially since her dad knew they were looking for him. So you'd think he'd just come and talk to them.
But apparently not.
Though something happened that surprised Ava.
Adam Karadec.
At no point could Ava have ever thought that someone like Karadec would ever fit into their lives.
But he did.
Technically, the first time Ava spent any time alone with Karadec was after Ava helped Tom out of the police station when they were held hostage.
Though Ava doesn't really remember much. Just panic and the deep fear and anxiety in her stomach. But she does remember that before Karadec left to go look for the dude, and before Ludo came, Ava had to stop herself from reaching out to hold Karadec's arm. He was almost as worried as she was.
When Ludo arrived on the scene Ava finally allowed herself to get comfort. Ludo might not be her dad, but he did love mom a lot and he was the closest to understanding Ava's fear.
That first night Ava, mom and Elliot all slept in mom's bed. Ava ended up sleeping in mom's bed for a good week. Thankfully, mom was completely okay with it.
After this Karadec, and the rest of the team, started being around a lot more. Though it was mostly Karadec, because he was her actual partner, and he came by to pick her up, or drop her off. He'd even drop off case files sometimes.
He was pretty okay.
Ava and Elliot thought the faces that Karadec pulled when he touched something sticky in the house was hilarious, even though he never hesitated to hold Chloe or help mom with things. Ava did notice that mom kept a lot more hand sanitiser in the house now, multiple bottles in different rooms.
And Ava was grateful that Karadec helped get her and mom out of trouble when Ava ruined her dad's murial.
Their relationship changed the first time Karadec complimented Ava. She is sure he didn't realize what he had done.
Karadec was picking mom up for work cause their car was being difficult, and Ludo had an early morning driving appointment.
Karadec was sitting at the kitchen island feeding Chloe while Ava scrolled on her phone as she ate breakfast.
Apparently Karadec didn't like the silence. He filled it by awkwardly asking how school was, how Ryder's going, and other small talk questions adults ask teenagers. Ava answered with as little words as possible. Though she was surprised when Karadec asked about her art. Karadec surprised Ava further by seemingly being actually interested in her answers. In the beginning Ava assumed that his interest was to fill the silence, but he asked real follow up questions.
When Ava explained some of the linocuts she was doing in class, Karadec asked if she had any photos. Ava was hesitant to show him, but that worry quickly vanished when she showed him the series of photos and he was actually impressed by them.
Ava's art teacher said they had to focus on nature with the linocuts. So Ava had created a series that focused on nature taking over an abandoned play ground. As Ava explained Karadec nodded along and asked questions, and praised her attention to detail using specific parts of her art as examples. It made her chest feel warm and fuzzy.
Karadec was the first not-family member or teacher to praise Ava's art. It was a really good feeling. His final compliment was asking to buy a copy of the finished piece. At first Ava thought he was joking. But nope, he was serious. He said he wanted to hang them on his wall. At his house.
Ava couldn't believe him. And while she seriously doubted he would even keep it, let alone hang it up, Ava told him $30. Karadec agreed with a firm handshake.
Ava couldn't stop smiling the whole day. She had made her first official sale as an artist.
Ava spent a lot of time making Karadec's copy. She needed it to be perfect. Ava tried to get mom to take it to Karadec, but mom insisted she should drop it off to him herself.
Karadec said he loved the final piece, and paid her in full. Ava watched as he carefully wrapped it back up and placed it in his bag.
Daphne, Oz and Soto all complimented her work as well. Ava was a little breathless fro all the praise and made a quick escape.
From then on Ava couldn't help but show Karadec whatever art she was working on when she saw him. Karadec always complimented her work, he even remembered the small details she would tell him. It was weird, but nice. Ava kept waiting for him to lose interest, or for him to tell her to leave him alone. But he never did. He got impatient and snappy with mom, but with her kids he seemed her have a never ending well of patience.
Even though their conversations always started with Ava talking about her art, they did talk about other things as well. Turns out Karadec liked sports, mostly baseball, and he really enjoys puzzles and board games like Scrabble. So for Karadec's birthday Ava made him a set of Scrabble tiles using his favorite teams colors.
Karadec had actually laughed with joy when he saw it. Then he thanked her profusely for the gift.
It was weird for Ava to notice how much she trusted Karadec now. Like Ava trusted him not just with mom, but also with Elliot and Chloe. And she trusted that between mom, him and Soto they would find her dad.
The second big time Karadec complimented Ava it changed their relationship just as much.
Karadec was driving Ava and Elliot home after their school had to close early for the day.
Someone had tried to flush a hoodie and had broken the toilet, so they had to shut the water off to fix it. Rumor had it that Kylie had done it.
So Karadec offered to pick them up and drive them home, while mom continued to go through evidence for some case they were working on.
While they were stuck in traffic Ava was recounting the drama between Kylie and Macy to Karadec. Elliot wasn't listening, and was reading a thick book on some random topic in the back as Ava talked. Apparently Macy was sending not nudes, but not not nudes to Kylie's girlfriend, Stephanie. And it was Stephanie's favorite hoodie that Kylie had tried to flush. And Kylie and Macy had got into a physical fight the day before that ended with Kylie pulling Macy's hair extensions out of her head.
Like always Karadec was listening, and he was even asking follow up questions. Like where did Kylie and Macy fight (before school in the car park), and did they get in trouble (yes, they both get detention for a week), and are Kylie and Stephanie still together (no, it was an epic breakup, Ava's sad she missed it), and are Stephanie and Macy now dating (no, though Macy clearly wants to).
Once Ava was finished, Karadec's only comment was a heavy sigh, and to say that he was very glad he was no longer in high school. It made Ava laugh.
Then Karadec once again shocked Ava by complimenting her new hair. Ava genuinely didn't think he'd notice that when she got her roots touched up, she got her whole head a few shades darker than normal.
Ava was experimenting. She still wanted to look like mom and her siblings, but maybe she was thinking about having slightly darker blonde hair. Ava didn't want to go completely back to her natural dark brown hair. But she was also thinking that maybe she didn't have to physically look like her mom as much. They did already share an amazing fashion sense and they enjoyed the same type of music, and humor. It was really nice to have someone compliment her hair. It was like having Karadec compliment her changing as a person. Like he was complimenting that Ava was getting more comfortable with the physical differences between her and her family and how she was more focusing on the personality similarities.
Ava knew she was blushing, so she was looking out the window as she thanked Karadec.
Elliot chose the silence that followed to launch into explaining his book to Karadec, who listened just as much as he listened to Ava.
Mom finally realized how much Ava trusted Karadec on a random Saturday.
Ava wasn't going to make it home for curfew. Though in Ava's defense something happened to ruin the bus schedule, so she ended up not being about to catch the right bus.
Normally, Ava would call mom, but she technically didn't tell mom where she was going with friends. And this would be the second time this week that Ava missed curfew. It was a combination that resulted in her getting at least grounded. And Ava wanted to avoid that if she could.
So Ava called Karadec.
He answered in a panic.
But he slightly calmed down when Ava explained that she was okay. She just needed a ride home to make her curfew. This made Karadec sigh, but he did agree to help her. On the ride home he explained that while he was happy to help, and he always wanted her to feel comfortable calling him, he would have to tell mom about this. He wouldn't keep this from her. Which Ava understood, but she did really hate it.
Mom obviously panicked when Ava walked in with Karadec. But they were quick to calm her and Ludo down.
Mom sent Ava to her room, after a quick once over to make sure Ava was okay. She was sent with the promise that they would talk once Karadec left.
Ava really hoped Karadec would move in or something. But Ava knew she wouldn't be that lucky.
This was proven by Karadec staying for less than five minutes.
True to her word, mom came to talk to her once Karadec's car was out of sight.
The talk was mostly mom telling Ava that next time Ava should call her. But that she is very happy that Ava is safe. Mom reiterated that she would always have Ava's back, especially when she was doing something that she maybe shoudn't be doing.
Ava knew this, but it was still nice to hear again. And Ava promised that next time she would definitely call her.
There was a silence before mom asked Ava why she called Karadec specifically, and not say Ryder.
Ava's answer was simple. But she couldn't really look at her mom as she said it out loud. Ava knew she was safe with Karadec and trusted that he'd get her home safely and on time.
Mom was shocked by Ava's answer. She was just surprised that Ava trusted Karadec that much, she knew they had gotten close. Karadec had kept his word and had hung Ava's linocuts next to the rose Lucia had drawn him. But still this was a lot of trust for her eldest daughter to have. And she knew what that trust meant to Ava. It made her feel happy, like she made the right choice in having Karadec as her partner.
From then on, mom watched Ava and Karadec with a fond small smile.