92

Alfred.

"Sebastian?" I prompted when he didn't immediately answer, my eyebrows raised in silent question as I anxiously awaited an explanation for this extraordinary scene.

"I've been paying very close attention to what makes you truly happy these past three years," Sebastian explained with an uncharacteristically tender sigh. "You've mentioned several times that you sometimes felt our small family of just the two of us could be bigger and more complete with children's laughter filling our home."

His thoughtfulness touched me deeply - the fact that he'd noticed and remembered such casual comments showed how attuned he was to my happiness.

"So I arranged for these wonderful children from the city's orphanage to visit today," he continued, gesturing toward the excited group surrounding us. "They're all waiting for loving homes, and I thought perhaps you might want to choose one of them - whichever child speaks most to your heart - and we could begin the process of legally adopting him or her to become a permanent part of our family."

I was momentarily speechless, overcome by the magnitude of what he was offering. This wasn't just any anniversary gift; this was a life-changing decision, a commitment to expand our family in the most meaningful way possible.

"Sebastian, I—" I began, but words failed me as I looked at the hopeful faces around us.

"I want to make you completely happy, Alfred," Sebastian continued softly. "To help complete our family in whatever way you envision. But I also want you to know that my own family was already made perfectly complete the day you became my husband. I don't personally need anyone else or anything more to feel fulfilled."

His honesty was touching, making it clear that while he was open to adoption, he was doing this primarily for my happiness rather than from his own desire for children.

"Is this real?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper. "We could really choose any of these children to adopt?"

"Yes, the choice is entirely yours to make," Sebastian nodded encouragingly, his expression softening as he watched me interact with the children. "I've already handled all the preliminary paperwork and background checks, so whichever child you connect with can come home with us permanently as soon as next week."

I felt my eyes widen with excitement and wonder as I looked at each of their faces, trying to imagine which one might become part of our family. They were all so beautiful in their own ways, each with unique personalities already evident in how they interacted with us and each other.

"Really? I can actually choose any of them?" I asked again, still struggling to believe this was happening. My heart felt like it might burst with happiness at the possibility.

"Absolutely," Sebastian confirmed with gentle certainty. "My only goal is to make you happy and to help complete our family in whatever way feels right to you."

I knelt down to speak with some of the children at eye level, immediately feeling connections beginning to form. One little girl with bright eyes showed me her favorite doll, while a quiet boy nearby carefully studied a book that seemed too advanced for his age. My heart was already tugging me in multiple directions.

"I know the perfect way to make this decision," I said suddenly, standing up with newfound determination. "I want those three specific children over there."

I pointed confidently toward a small group playing together in the corner - a girl of about seven and two boys who appeared to be five and nine.

Sebastian's composure finally broke as shock registered on his face. "What?! Three children at once? That seems extremely excessive!" he exclaimed, his jaw literally dropping as he struggled to process my unexpected choice.

"No, it's perfectly reasonable," I countered with a playful smile, my excitement growing as I warmed to the idea. "Think about it - it's our third wedding anniversary today, so adopting three children makes perfect symbolic sense! Three years, three children - it's poetic, really."

I was partly teasing him, testing his limits, but the more I considered it, the more right it felt. The three children I'd pointed to had something special about them, a bond already forming between them that seemed important to preserve.

Sebastian furrowed his eyebrows, his expression becoming stern in the way that still intimidated his political opponents but had long since ceased to affect me.

"Three children is a major responsibility," he cautioned. "The noise alone would be..."

"We have a seventeen-bedroom mansion," I reminded him pointedly. "And more staff than most small hotels. I think we can handle it."

Sebastian seemed torn between his desire to make me happy and his practical concerns about suddenly becoming parents to three children simultaneously. After a moment of internal debate, his expression shifted from resistance to resignation, then unexpectedly to enthusiasm.

"Then pick one more," he demanded suddenly, his tone brooking no argument.

I blinked in confusion, completely thrown by this unexpected turn. "Huh? Why would we need four? That seems like a rather odd number."

"Because," Sebastian explained with surprising sentimentality, "I met and fell in love with you a full year before we finally got married. Remember? That year of separation counts in our total time together too."

His reasoning was so unexpectedly sweet that I felt my heart melt a little. This was the Sebastian few people ever saw - the romantic hiding beneath the powerful, sometimes ruthless exterior.

"You always end up spoiling me completely, don't you?" I laughed, unable to resist pulling him closer for a proper hug.

"Only because you deserve it," he replied simply.

"I love you so deeply, Sebastian," I confessed with heartfelt sincerity, softly kissing his hand in a gesture of profound affection. "My entire life with you feels like I'm constantly living inside the most beautiful dream imaginable, one I never want to wake up from."

The children had been temporarily escorted to another room for snacks, giving us a rare moment alone. Sebastian used this opportunity to turn my body to face him directly, tenderly cupping my cheeks in his hands and allowing his fingers to trace a gentle path down to my neck.

"I love you infinitely more than your imagination could ever comprehend, Alfred," he responded, his voice thick with emotion. "And there's something important I've been waiting for the right moment to tell you - a little secret I've kept buried in my heart."

The unexpected seriousness in his tone captured my full attention, making me wonder what revelation could possibly be coming after three years of marriage.

"What is it?" I asked softly, curious but not alarmed.

Sebastian placed his hand solemnly over his heart, as if physically connecting to the truth he was about to share, and released a deep, meaningful sigh before speaking.

"I didn't just fall in love with you when Liam did, all those years ago at school," he admitted, his eyes never leaving mine. "The truth is, I was attending that school play specifically to support Liam, but from the very first moment you stepped onto that stage in the main role, everything in my world shifted permanently."

His expression became distant, lost in the memory. "The instant my eyes first landed on you under those stage lights, I fell hopelessly, irreversibly in love with everything about you - it was immediate and absolute, like being struck by lightning."

The raw honesty in his confession touched something deep within me, making my heart race with the knowledge that his feelings had run even deeper and longer than I'd ever realized.

"So you truly didn't lie about that?" I whispered, my eyes widening as this new understanding settled over me. His words from years before suddenly carried new weight, new meaning that resonated with my own experience of falling for him at first sight.

"No, I've never lied about my feelings for you," Sebastian insisted earnestly, his expression completely open and vulnerable in a way few people ever witnessed. "And now I want to show you something I've kept hidden but treasured for years."

He reached into his jacket pocket and withdrew a worn leather notebook that looked well-handled and frequently referenced.

"What you saw in the past was Liam's collection of information about you, but this is my personal file," he explained, handing me the small book with an almost reverent care. "I've kept it safe and updated it regularly for exactly nine years now, ever since that first sighting of you."

I carefully opened the notebook, stunned to find detailed observations, small sketches, and even pressed flowers from places we'd both been. Unlike Liam's more stalker-ish collection, this felt more like a love letter extended over years - the chronicle of a heart quietly loving from a distance.

"During all that time, I had to hide my deepest feelings safely tucked away inside my heart," Sebastian continued, gently ruffling my hair as he spoke. "I truly loved you with every fiber of my being, with every inch of my body. You became the air I breathed, the reason for everything I did. I watched you every single day from afar, never believing I could actually have a chance with you."

His confession was both beautiful and slightly heartbreaking - the thought of him silently loving me for so many years while believing his love was impossible.

"So it really was a love that began from a distance," I observed thoughtfully, rubbing my chin as I processed this new information, deliberately teasing him a little to lighten the intensity of the moment.

"It was the purest, most authentic form of true love - a love that finally came true against all odds," Sebastian replied earnestly, his voice growing more passionate with each word. "A love that continuously fed my self-esteem during difficult times, steadily increasing both my passion and what some might call my obsession toward you."

He leaned his face so close to mine that I could feel his warm breath against my lips, his intense gaze fixed unwaveringly on my mouth as he whispered his final confession: "The truth is, Alfred, I'm completely and irreversibly addicted to everything about you..."

The naked vulnerability in his admission left me momentarily speechless. After three years of marriage, he could still surprise me with the depth of his feelings. In response, I found myself whispering a truth I'd come to understand through our journey together:

"Love comes in two distinct forms, Sebastian," I responded softly, my voice barely audible even in our close proximity. "One kind spreads through your life like an all-consuming addiction, growing stronger with each passing day. The other kind fades away as quickly as the speed of sound, disappearing at the first sign of trouble."

I placed my hand over his heart, feeling its steady beat beneath my palm. "I'm thankful every day that what we found was the first kind."

Sebastian's eyes shone with emotion as he pulled me into his arms, holding me as if I were the most precious thing in his world - which, I finally fully believed, I truly was.

THE END