Chapter 60

“Make a wish,” I said to him as I carefully touched the vanilla cake that I didn’t want but he wanted.

Everyone was just staring at us, in the spacious Living Room at Zaffiro’s house we just celebrated his 36th birthday and invited whoever wanted to go. We even heard Lucas taunt us. I widened my eyes at Zaffiro who was just shaking at what was happening.

“Is that necessary?”

“Of course! Make a wish.” I approached it and then squatted down.

“There’s just no gift for me later when you don’t blow it,” I smiled as he laughed even more.

It stared at me and our children who were also just waiting for what would happen. He looked back at me and then smiled sweetly. All this time, I thought wrongly about him, he was now far, far away from the Zaffiro I had met. He laughs and smiles a lot but I’m sure he won’t be like Lucas.

I don’t know how I was able to turn the road towards him. I thought my whole life I would regret everything.

I stopped when he suddenly blew out the candle causing the others to shout. I shook it to kiss my forehead then lowered the cake.

“What’s your wish?” I asked then he put his mouth to my ear.

“I hope no one bothers us.” Then he bit my ear.

We laughed at the same time because of what he said, several times something happened to us but it didn’t end because of their mess. I just looked at the others who were greeting him, I went straight to my two children who were arguing about what was delicious in the two cakes on the table.

“What is it really?” I asked but they didn’t say a word, Van just took an apple and then sat down with his cousin Gale.

“Pa!” Inah left me and then quickly ran to her father.

I just stared at them and then signaled to my uncle if he was going to eat, but he just shook his head and pointed at the cake he was holding and we laughed at the same time.

“Hey, I’m leaving,” Nikasha whispered behind me so I turned to look at it.

“Ha why?”

“I’ll just leave Gale, here, my husband has no guard,” she said then glared at me.

“Okay. Be careful, don’t cry, Nikasha isn’t crying,” I reminded her as she frowned even more.

“So, when Veron, always moaning? Like that?”

“Damn,” I whispered then he left me standing while holding the banana which I immediately released.

Her courage is still there. How many times have I seen her cry and I felt like I was being crushed, I thought I was the one with the most heavy burden. Because their fate is so bad, I didn’t know that my sister’s life would come to this point.

I just went upstairs because everyone still seemed to be having fun. I’m also drowsy because of the amount I took care of and I didn’t get much sleep last night. They won’t notice that I’m not there, e. I just lay down and stared at the big picture of where the four of us were. I just smiled before finally falling asleep.

I just woke up because of small voices talking. I deliberately did not open my eyes to hear more of what they were talking about.

“Why don’t you?” Van’s voice and then I felt my bed sink.

“Mom will be angry.”

“She’s supposed to wake up, so we can leave,” Van insisted, then I felt the weak softening of my cheeks.

“Ma? Wake up,” she said softly but I kept my eyes closed.

“There’s papa, go ahead,” Inah complained.

“Still sleeping?”

“Yes.”

“Wait for us, you’re close to mom,” Zaffiro’s voice then I noticed the door close.

I heard its sigh then I felt its warm palm caress my waist and slightly pinch that part. “I know you’re awake,” he whispered.

Disappointed, I forced myself to get up from the bed and angrily threw the pillow at him. He even laughed when he caught it and shook it to adjust the polo that he had not worn before.

“You left me on the chin,” he said holding me in his arms.

“I’m sleepy, eh. What time is it?” Astonished,

I looked at his appearance and looked back at him. “Why are you dressed like that?” But instead of answering he just pulled my hand and walked with me, I heard him singing softly and pinched my palm.

I don’t know where we’re going especially since I’m not ready yet, I’m just wearing the maxi dress I’ve been wearing before. My hair is also untidy and let the wind blow. I couldn’t help but ask because I was still drowsy. I noticed that there were no children in the back of the car. I just knit because of Zaffiro’s silence.

“Your children? Nelly? Van?” I called but no one answered.

Zaffiro just helped me get in the car and then it headed somewhere. It was late at night and I noticed there weren’t too many people on the road.

“Zaf? What’s going on? We’re leaving late at night?”

“We have to date,” he said seriously to me which made me even more surprised.

“Are you stupid? What time is it, I wish we had just done it this morning. Where are your children? Huh?”

“Garden,” he said sparingly and I didn’t answer.

I don’t know what went into his brain and why he just thought of dating me now, the only thing we talked about was that I would give it to him now, then touch it, maybe we can do it in the garden.

It only took a few minutes and I was shocked because we went to the mansion itself, I don’t know if I would laugh because it was so dark, even the houses outside didn’t seem to be awake. It supported me on the descent, but we were still far from the house itself, we were just in the middle of a vast hacienda and trees gently dancing because of the wind.

I was just holding his hand when he suddenly turned my waist closer to him. It sang softly as I laughed looking in the other direction, like I was mad because of what I was doing. Zaffiro just squinted as his cheek pressed against my head.

“I don’t know where do I start.” He kissed my forehead and then the lights coming from the tree turned on.

“I hate you,” he whispered then I heard his weak laugh.

My eyes literally widened and he pushed quickly but he grabbed my hands again and turned me around, causing him to land on my back and then hug me.

“You are too noisy, when I’m doing something, then you make trouble. You even gave me flowers in front of my family, in school, in my room, even when I’m in Cr, just to give me those white flowers,” its faint narration as I could already hear the faint ringing coming from nowhere.

I rolled my eyes but still no one was there. They don’t.

“Zaf—”

“I wanted to court you when you were a college student, but I didn’t know, how. Plus, your uncle, I see your dad with your uncle, so I’m sorry, I’m just… scared.” We laughed at the same time but what happened next was that he was kissing me little by little.

“Eleven years, I badly loved you for eleven years but I have no chance to confess. I told myself before that I won’t like you, that I can’t, because I don’t want to be noisy, you’re messy, but for the two of us, you’re the brave one, I’ve seen it that’s why I hate myself… “

I slowly wiped away my tears because it was as if he was bringing me back to the past, those things that I had not seen before he was telling me. I even laughed a little because of what he said that the security guard almost arrested him in our building because he was staring at me there.

“I’m sorry for everything, Veron. I made a mistake, I ran away from what was happening, I wasn’t by your side when you were suffering. I didn’t take care of our children, I didn’t even raise them. I wanted to start again, the you waited a long time, I hid you a few times, you forgave me over and over again. Honestly, you are not my ideal girl, nor wife. But my heart chose you, you got me in the first place.”

My eyes continued to rain as it slowly knelt down on me, gently picking up something I had never expected. He was the only one I wanted, I didn’t care if he would marry me, I just wanted to be loved by a Zaffiro.

“I hid this blue stone just for you, just for the right time, Veron. Will you accept my offer Veronika? To become my wife exclusively and be Arcus for a lifetime?” smiling he said as the grain of his tears slowly fell.

Instead I answered and slowly bent down to kiss his forehead and his lip. At the same time is the cold thing that penetrates my finger. Laughing I stood it up and was greeted with a hug.

It was only then that I noticed the people important in my life standing behind Zaffiro and smilingly staring at us. My two children just waved at me.

“Where’s my gift?” he asked as I got away from him.

I frowned at it and then laughed at him. “Gift? Shall I open my legs here? Right in front of them?” I said widening his eyes.

“Your words,” he whispered and then blushed.

I even bit my lip when I saw Von laughing looking at us like he heard that. I just shook my head and then went to the two children who were busy eating fruit. Others are busy teasing Zaffiro. I noticed that it was only dyes, they meant to talk to the others to turn off the light ‘when we arrived.

“We’re family now?” Van asked me fixing my hair.

“Of course.”

“So you’re getting married?” Inah asked as I nodded again.

“I’m getting married to your father,” I whispered then turned to the man I had been waiting for so long, and I almost undressed in front of him just so he would notice.

I couldn’t help but smile especially when I saw my siblings smiling at me, except for Nikasha who still raised her eyebrows at me. If there was a chance that our story would be written, I would not trust my sister who is a writer, it might not end like this.

But now, I’m contented. We’re both okay.