Chapter 42 Tricked
NOVA
I stood on my front porch for a long time before I decided he wasn't returning. I must have imagined that determined look on his face, and those words he uttered. Dashiell would never say those words. I know how much Lilith meant to him. She was his first love and the reason he despised me those years ago. He felt I was robbing him of the opportunity to wed the woman he loved, which was why he never liked me.
"Mummy? Why are you standing here? Where's Mr Dashiell?" River's question interrupted my thoughts, stepping out of the house with Willow in tow.
"Um-"
"Mum, is it true he looks like me?" Willow demanded, her voice low as she stared up at me, blinking.
My heart skipped at the question. I couldn't think of the right response to give to that, so I just nodded, hoping they wouldn't pursue the matter any further, but they did. "Really? I thought I looked like you! Uncle Brion said I did."
"Yeah, you do." I squatted in front of her, smiling as I reached out to pat her hair. Ever since Willow saw a video of a woman with box braids, she had been disturbing me to make her hair similar to the gorgeous goddess on TV, and I had to do that. Even though I sucked since it was my first time, I knew I pulled it off neater than I expected. Watching YouTube videos until late at night helped a lot. "But River said the man has my eyes. I assumed it was more like Uncle Brion's eyes, but River claimed it was Emerald!"
God.
I puffed out an exasperated sigh, as I once more thought on how to steer the conversation to a more neutral ground, knowing my baby would have my head should I not explain well to her.
"It's normal, darling." I smiled, hoping they wouldn't notice how forced it was from the normal one I always sent their way. "Haven't you noticed there are more people with grey eyes and blonde hair like River? Of course, you will meet others who look like you."
"Just like Africans and Asians?"
"Yeah." I nodded with a smile, patting River's hair. "Most of them have black hair and black eyes. That doesn't mean they are related, are they?"
They shook their heads.
"Exactly. People can have the same skin, eyes, and hair colour without being connected."
"That's true!" They exclaimed, their faces turning serious, as if they were just realizing it now.
I couldn't control the smile that broke out on my face when I realized I had once more escaped from the trap they set for me.
"But I would love to meet him. River said he's more handsome than my crush! I want to know if it's true." Pouting, Willow folded her arms. "I want to meet Mr Dashiell! I need to know if he's as handsome as Rover said he is."
God!
I mentally facepalmed. How the hell did I think they would let the topic die?
"That's not true, darling. Pat is the most handsome boy on earth. Don't mind your brother. Your crush is more handsome than Mr Dashiell," I said with a smile, hoping it would appease her. If there was one thing Willow hated, it was being told that someone was more handsome than her crush.
"Mum's lying. Mr Dashiell is so handsome, you won't know what to do in his presence. He's like that big bad wolf in Little Red Riding Hood, but more handsome!" River stubbornly said, folding his arms as a small smile played on his lips.
When I saw his expression, I noticed what he was trying to do. Riling his sister up was his favourite pastime. He loved getting on her nerves.
"Mum!"
"It's not true, darling." I hugged Willow, who looked like she was about to cry. "Pat is the most handsome man on Earth, okay?"
"If you say so, mummy." Sniffing, she hugged me tighter. "Mum, I feel hurt."
"It's okay, darling. He's just playing with your feelings. You should know how much your brother pranks you."
"It still hurts," she argued, her sobs slowly escalating.
"It's okay."
"I need ice cream to calm me down," she said, making me lift an eyebrow. Breaking from the hug, I frowned at her. "Why ice cream?"
"Those on the TV said you need chocolate ice cream whenever your heart gets broken. Mum, my heart is cracked!" She wailed as tears rolled down her cheeks. "I need some ice cream to calm me
down."
I was torn. Seeing the tears on her face and how broken she sounded made me want to promise her an ice cream cone; however, I couldn't help the thought that they planned this.
"Okay," I said at last, sighing. Like always, they got me to give in to them. "Let's go get some ice cream."
"Yeah!" The wailing girl wiped the tears off her face and turned to hug her brother. "It worked!"
"What??!" Stunned, I watched them jumping in glee, knowing they had played with me.
Nova, when will you learn?
This wasn't the first time they had done this, yet I always fell for their tricks each time. Having promised them ice cream cones, I knew I had to fulfil it. Otherwise, they will tag me as the worst mum in
the entire world.
"Let's go get our shoes!" Willow said as she dragged her brother into the house before I could say anything. She must have seen my expression and knew what was coming for them.
Puffing out a breath, I ran my fingers through my hair, wondering where my kids had learned to be mischievous.
Well, I can tell. Having someone like Brion next to them was what caused this. He spoiled my babies rotten, always giving in to their wishes. I bet my babies would have turned out differently had he not been in the picture. Yet I couldn't think of a life without Brion. Without him, I wouldn't have been here. Who knows, Lilith would have caught up with me and dragged me back to the hospital to
complete her task.
Just thinking of it makes my head ache.