Bonus Chapter: Part 13

**Bonus Chapter: Part 13**

**“Welcome, sir!”** the staff was quick to respond to the door opening and welcomed them, staggering on her feet. She looked at her newly arrived customers with a wide smile on her face. She could notice behind them were a few men holding large cameras and several other people, and she immediately knew they were recording for a movie or television episode. She had to keep her best attitude to provide her store with free promotions.

“Please show me your clothes for three-year-olds,” Hades immediately asked.

“Yes, sir. This way please,” she stretched out her hand to the said section and guided them inside.

While his father was busy picking out new clothes for him, Friso decided to wander around the shop for a bit, scrutinizing every nook and cranny his eyes could land onto. He went on the spot near the window wall, and boy oh boy. There he saw a boy standing on the platform by the window, skin porcelain-pale and smooth. He stood on his spot unmoving, blankly staring at the view outside with his hand on his sides.

"Hewwo..." Friso spoke to the stiff boy but he was given silence for an answer. The latter didn’t even spare a glance at him!

"Why you dwessed like that?” Still, no answer.

“Summew’s close to bye-bye!" he said, forgetting about the word for “end.” Nevertheless, the porcelain boy was still not answering.

“Friso, where are you? I found some new clothes y…” Hades came to Friso whose face was wet with tears, standing beside a mannequin. "Dada, why isn't he moving?" the child asked, his voice croaking, "Why isn't he answewing?"

“He’s a mannequin, Friso,” the man tried to soothe him, patting the boy’s back.

“A man… quin?”

“That’s right, a mannequin,” he bit his lower lip, trying to think of a way to explain the object. He had his fare share of experiences like this, it was a lot more challenging than brainstorming for new products. “He’s plastic so that’s why he can’t talk to you.”

“He’ll be stuck like that forever, dada?”

“Yes.”

“That’s sad,” Friso pouted. “He’ll get hurt if he keeps standing and not talking.”

“He won’t. We’ll ask the miss to make him sit down,” his father said, and immediately, his face lit up. “Now, come on, let’s get you your new clothes,” Hades then urged, and he obediently followed to the dressing room to change his clothes.

"Now I want to go and see Vannie,” Friso mumbled while wearing the clothes he and his father thought to suit him best, licking a cone of cookies-and-cream ice cream with the add-ons and toppings he liked. It was given to him by Camilla off cam.

"Who's Vannie?" Haroun asked from the other line as they walked to the cashier to pay for the clothes.

"He's talking about Vanessa, the child of our neighbor next door. He’s quite fond of her,” Hades answered while handing over his card to the cashier, and with one swipe, they were now good to go and go back on track.

Hades didn’t let any second go to waste any further after that. As soon as the new set of clothes was paid, and the old ones were packaged, the father and son headed to the place where Friso had been aching to go: the playhouse. They then had their first archery lessons, and short kiddie clay-making classes, and accomplished some challenges given by the crew per the script.

"You look tired, should we take a rest?" Hades asked as they sat on a bench to take a rest. He took Friso’s bag and fished out the towel Allison told him about and a baby powder, attempting to wipe the kid’s damp back and sprinkling the powder on it to keep it dry.

"No.” The child shook his head as he raised the part of his shirt that covered his back. He considered today his as the best day ever. He got to have a lot of fun all morning long. "Fri can sti..." he wasn’t able to continue what he was about to say when his tummy erupted a loud growl.

"Oh,” they gasped in unison as Haroun shouted, “Cut!”

They went to Popeye’s for lunch with the crew, of course, and then proceeded to spend the rest of the afternoon playing on the mini-challenges made by the production. They got to go to a swimming pool, battled with water guns and balloons, climbed a climbing wall, and had themselves locked in a trapped escape room.

"Dada,” Friso called for his father. They were now sitting at a bench located at Riverside Park, eating scones paired with coffee for Hades and cocoa for Friso while watching ducks waddle on the waters. The sun was setting, giving off a beautiful hue of orange in the sky, and the cool autumn wind began to blow over direction. It was unprecedentedly relaxing.

"Yes?"

"Rock, paper, scissors,” he was holding out a hand balled into a small fist resting on top of the other’s palm, looking at his father like he was asking to play a game.

Hades was quick to realize what the boy was asking and did the same hand gesture. "You want to play? Let's play?" he said and they began to chant: “Rock, paper, scissors, shoot!” he made a rock, while the child made a paper. The latter won.

"Friso win!" he cheered happily, then made a heart with his hands, shooting it like he was acting he shot a love bazooka. In retrospect, Hades staggered and acted like he was hit. “Ah!” he gasped loudly to add a dramatic effect. They made another round again, and it ended with Hades making a scissor and Friso making a paper.

"Ah, dada won,” Friso mumbled and closed his eyes, ready to be flicked on the forehead but to his surprise, he didn’t feel his forehead being hit instead, something soft and warm landed on his lips in such a gentle touch. The boy opened his eyes and right there and then, he realized his father kissed him on the forehead.

"I love you, son,” Hades told him tenderly when he pulled away, his grey eyes which were usually stoic and cold looked at the child with indescribable warmth like he was a treasure unfolding.

"I love you too, dada,” Friso responded with a wide smile on his face.

“Cut!”

"We ended our shooting in just a day! We only have the confessional and hosting scenes left for the martini shot!” Haroun declared and everyone cheered.

"Can we do the confessional a bit later from now? I think we should have a bit of a rest first. It’s been a long day after all,” just as the man said that Friso yawned in exhaustion. He had been playing all day, his energy bar had already dropped past the lowest bar.

"Oh yes, yes. Of course, Mr. de Vries,” Haroun nodded profusely. Even though they were tired from the shooting, it was worth it.

“Let’s head back to the estate, everyone. Dinner’s on me,” he then announced which made everyone cheer. “And I heard from Allison that she has a gift for the entire crew as her token of appreciation for everyone’s hard work,” the cheer had become louder. He smiled at the back of his, knowing what his wife had planned to give to them as a token of thanks.

As everyone began to pack up for and prepare to go back to the de Vries’ residence, Hades took his son in his arms and began to walk to his car. "Dada,” Friso called for his father who trudged slowly. He was now feeling drowsy and then his eyelids were too heavy to keep them up.

"Yes, son?" his father asked, opening the car’s door with one hand effortlessly.

"I love you,” he mumbled, sleepiness seeping into his system. A smile broke out on Hades’ lips.

"I love you too."