Loving Ashlynn (#Wattys2016)

Chapter 37 - Morality Fail, Not Personality Disorder (Faith POV) pt.3

Chapter 37 – Morality Fail, Not Personality Disorder (Faith Ashlynn POV) pt.3

Genetics were surprisingly becoming the most interesting mind occupying topic when I wanted to just not think about everything and anything else. Especially when it came to the Conrads, before in the safe house of course I had read about genetics but to actually see how it worked within a family, the possibilities physically was astounding to me. Not even counting the children, just looking at Ansel, Scotty, Angela, Macy, Trevor and Danny... their features were all so similar to their parents. Sure, Ansel had darker hair than all the other men, but it was the eyes, and bone structure that set them apart in my eyes.

I had seen Danny in pictures, wedding photo's, two sets of them in the albums Kalenah kept in the family room. There was a first woman, with dark brown hair, light bluish eyes, and olive like skin tone, Lia – the youngest girl from her – was the most identical in features. But she the first wife wasn't what had caught my attention when I was looking through the albums.

I could see it, over the course of two albums.

The pictures told a story, the happiness in Danny's eyes – a younger version of him self of course – was bright, undeniable. His young face, crinkled at his eyes, near his lips, his eyes were filled with emotion I hadn't seen in any movie, or in real life at all. Sure I knew that it was love... but it's hard to see just how much love he held in those eyes. Picture after picture, until there is a wedding, and he's holding a sign in front of a house the bold words 'sold.'

Pictures change, family I now knew surrounding them, until the woman in the white dress that filled his eyes with the unknown depth of emotion, is rounded out, pregnant. The pictures shift, more smiles, until the woman is a rounded, a large belly between her and Danny – separating them, but still the love is in his eyes. I could remember that almost near the end of the first album, he's holding a baby, and there are tears in his eyes as he gazes down at a pinkish, near blush bundle he's holding, and again the love is there but I had never experienced what I saw.

Someone so happy, so in love that they were crying and ecstatic – all at once.

I could see in the album when for a bit of time that light went dim in Danny's eyes, but it then came back but it's not until after six pages of pictures, where the first one of Cynthia and his family, Andy as well is in the album. It takes a few turns of pages, but I can remember that eventually, that deep love in his eyes look comes back. Now, as I blink lethargically, my eyes on Danny, he appears to be that man that lost his first wife, standing in my hospital room, he enters the room, awkwardly shuffling from foot to foot, his eyes tired, and red.

Rolling my head to follow him, I had nothing to say.

"I took Cynthia to a hotel, I'm here alone," he mumbled, his forehead wrinkled in thought. "I don't care where you took her," I answered boldly watching his eyes.

He shook his head, "You care, and if you didn't you wouldn't have hit her."

"I don't know how you found my family and wormed your way in," he said, his voice harsh, low and rough, "That's – that's what I want to say to you... I want to blame you, because you showing up, you've turned my life upside down within minutes."