THE FUTURE AHEAD

THE FUTURE AHEAD
Romeo

It was late evening, and we had just decided to lounge a little in the living room.

The fireplace crackled gently, casting shadows on the walls as I sat between Christopher and Marlene on the couch, the three of us bundled under one thick blanket.

It was just one of those times that we decided to just cuddle up and enjoy the simple things of life… you know like just enjoy each other’s presence.

It felt so nice, it felt like home.

“”What is the matter Angel?” I asked.

“What?” Marlene blinked up at me.

“Tell us what was bothering you” I said. They thought I never noticed all of these things but I always did… even the littlest details about them, nothing ever seemed to cross my radar.

Marlene was unusually quiet, her fingers tracing idle patterns on my wrist.

Christopher watched her, he also looked as concerned as I was, but he was never one to push, he would rather just wait for her to say what was wrong with her in her own her own time… but I could see it in his eyes, he was also just as curious.

“I’ve been thinking,” she said after a long pause. Her voice was steady, but I felt the tension in her shoulders. “About the future. About us.”

I gently squeezed her hand. “What about us?”

“Children,” she said.

Christopher’s breath caught a little. Mine did too.

“The last time we talked about it, I was not really sure if you both were joking or not…. But I – I really want to have children” she said.

She looked up at us, eyes wide and vulnerable. “Have you two ever thought about it? What it would be like to raise a child… together?”

The room fell into a heavy but not uncomfortable silence. It wasn’t the first time the thought had crossed my mind, but this was the first time any of us had dared say it out loud.

Not as a joke, or not as a passing thought…. Like really, really voice it out.

“I think about it more than I admit,” I finally said. “Like a lot a lot, especially now that everything had settled down… I want to know what it would be like to be parents and raise children with the both of you.” I said.

“I reckon that we would be fucking amazing parents” Christopher said.

I nodded “definitely”

Christopher shifted closer, his arm sliding around Marlene’s shoulders. “But to be serious, it scares me…. Having kids is a really big deal” he admitted. “But it also… excites me. I want that. I want a family with you two.”

Marlene exhaled deeply, like she’d been holding her breath for a long time. “Sometimes I worry I won’t be ready. That I’ll mess it up somehow.”

Her eyes looked sad and it hurt me to know that she would even think such a thing about herself.

Marlene was a really amazing person.

She was strong and kind… she was literally so beautiful inside and out. Pure fucking perfection if you’d ask me.

“You won’t,” I said firmly. “None of us will be perfect, but we’ll love them. We’ll give our little ones the life that they deserve and they will never be sad.”

“Stability. Protection,” Christopher added. “Unconditional love… we can definitely do that”

Marlene leaned her head on my shoulder, her voice barely a whisper. “Do you ever wonder if our bond will be enough? For a child?” she asked, and I know that she hated the uncertainty when she said “we are literally three would we be able to raise a child like this”

Christopher and I exchanged glances.

We understood what she meant and of course we knew that it was not from a place of uncertainty, or shame… she was just worried.

“It already is,” I said. “We’ve been through hell and came out stronger. That’s the kind of love that shapes a child into someone whole.”

“All we are doing is love each other Marlene, and that is not wrong” Christopher said.

“I want our kid to know they’re wanted,” Marlene murmured. “Every second of every day.”

“They will,” Christopher promised, his voice hoarse with emotion. “Because they’ll have the three of us. And I swear, we’ll make sure they never question that.”

I looked at them—these two people who carried pieces of my soul—and felt an overwhelming surge of gratitude.

No matter how unconventional our path had been, it was ours. And if this was the next step, I was ready to take it, hand in hand with them both.

I was grateful for a lot of things in my life, I mean it was not easy to come this far, after everything…. But one of the greatest gifts in my life was my mates.

I mean that the moon goddess could bless me with not just one, but two beautiful mates, whose souls radiated far towards the heavens…. They had made me to fall do deep in love with them.

I was lost, consumed, a sucker for love and I never wanted to be free.

“I think we’d raise the kind of child the world needs,” I said. “Loved. Brave. Kind.”

Christopher chuckled softly. “And just a little chaotic.”

I chuckled “I think the chaos part will be mostly from you” I said.

Christopher winked “of course, I mean a little spice never hurt anyone, did it?”

Marlene smiled through a tear. “They will be just like their parents, won’t they?” she asked.

I nodded “we would not have it any way else”

We all laughed then, holding each other a little tighter.

We kept on talking, about the future that lay ahead of us, with our future kids, I wanted eight of them even though Marlene said I was a total maniac.

It did not really matter though… whether it be eight or just one, they will be happy.

They will be raised in a fun family and there will never be a day to cry because there was so much love in our hearts...

And that was all that mattered.