New Beginnings

Chapter 4

"Hey, sleepyhead," Marley smiled, bending over his sleeping colleague.

"Marley...let me sleep in."

"I mean, you could since it's Saturday, but Shai would love to go out with her family,"  Marley grinned.

"Shut up," Alexander blushed, getting up from the couch. "Where are we going?"

"To the park! It's cold out today, so borrow some clothes of mine." Marley walked to his bedroom, finding something for Alexander to wear.

The cold wind brushed against their skin as they walked to the playground. Alexander put his hands in the pockets of the hoodie Marley gave him. The air he breathed out was visible; the cold turned his nose red.

Marley gently took Shai out from the baby carrier, and the three walked to the slide. "Want to go on the slide, Shai? Papa will be at the bottom to catch you, okay? I'll push you down slowly."

He let go of her, allowing her to swoop down the yellow slide. Alexander's hands caught the girl, and she squealed with excitement. "Was that fun?"

"Bring her up to me. I'll push her down again."

Shai, once again, sat at the top, watching Alexander stand near the bottom. As she went down, her shoe caught on something, making her tumble over face first. "Shai!" Alexander picked her up, seeing tears fall from her brown eyes. "Hey, it's okay. Papa's here."

He gently held her, patting the back of her head. "SHAI!" Marley called, running down the stairs back to the ground. "Is she okay?"

"Yeah. She'll be okay."

Marley sighed. "Thank goodness." Shai clung to Alexander, wailing at the shock of falling. Alexander gently placed a kiss on her forehead, continuing to rub the back of her head. "Thank you, Xander. You're helping me out a lot. I'm glad there's someone experienced with this for me to go to."

"It's fine. You two feel like a sort of family to me."

Marley smiled. "We are a sort of family."

Alexander looked down. "When will Shai be going back to her real family?"

"Depends when my sister is reading to take care of her again."

"Right..."

"I only saw Shai a few times when my sister first had her. So, in a way, she feels like my child. I don't know how to feel about Shai being taken away. She's not my child, however, so I have no control over where or when she goes."

"It'll be okay, Marley," Alexander replied, smiling warmly.

Marley's eyes widened as his face turned pink. "Let's go to that cafe over there!" Marley pointed, beaming.

The three crossed the road, making it safely to the other side. Alexander now had the baby carrier with an excited Shai in it. They found a suitable table outside the cafe and a high chair for Shai.

"What do you feel like?" Marley asked, eyes on the menu in front of him.

"Hmm. Maybe the-"

"Hey, Marley."

Marley looked up, seeing Carter, April and Amara. "Oh, hi, guys. What are you doing here?"

"We were going to get food from a cafe up the road. Wanna come?" Carter asked.

"I'm eating with Alexander?"

"Aw, come on. We'll have fun!"

"I'm not going to ditch my friend so I can hang out with you guys," Marley said with anger.