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Chapter 27

Chapter 27: Match-making.

"Dad!" Angelina shouted, hugging her father tightly.

Her dad kissed her forehead lovingly, hugging her back.

"I missed you, kiddo." He said, stroking her hair.

"I missed you too. But now you've come. So, up for some scrabble?"

                                  ***

"That is definitely not a word!" Angelina said, pointing to the very strange lettering her father had set up on the board.

"Well, you might be reading books, but I know my English!" He laughed.

"But–"

"Woah, what's going on here?" Natalie asked, appearing from the kitchen, and taking a seat beside Edward, Angelina's father, on the ground.

"Dad says that quetzal is a word." Angelina huffed.

"Because it is." Her dad stated.

"Well, to stop this banter, I'm going to search this up." Her mom concluded.

"Yeah, go ahead." Angelina encouraged.

It definitely can't be a word.

Her dad looked at Angelina, feeling proud of what a beautiful and talented woman she had become.

But she still had the childish side inside her, that made him laugh.

Like right then, quetzal was a word. But it was laughable to see her debating and bickering like a kid.

"It's a word!" Natalie exclaimed.

"What?" Angelina said, dumbstruck.

"Well, what does it mean?" She asked, softly this time.

"It's a bird." Her mother replied.

"Alright then. You can take the point." Angelina said, trying to behave like it was no big deal.

"I will." Her dad chuckled.

"I heard you met your favourite band? Who are they? Some British band?" He asked, casually.

"The British-Irish band, Dad. And yes, I met them!" She said, the excitement taking over.

"So, tell me something about them." Her dad insisted, pushing the board game away.

"Well, what do you want to know?" She asked, trying not to fangirl.

"Uh, Who's your favourite?" He asked.

"Niall." She answered as a reflex.

But talking about him to someone else always got her cheeks red.

She hoped her parents wouldn't notice.

"Is he cute?"

"Dad!" She whined.

"What? You must like him because of something right?" He reasoned.

"Yeah, He is. He is really really cute. And Angelina loves him." Her Mom answered for her.

"Mom..." Angelina said, in a harsh whisper.

"Woah. That escalated quickly. I need to meet this guy, my daughter is in love with!" Her dad joked.

"Millions of girls love him. I'm just one of them." Angelina answered.

And for some reason, saying that out loud, it sounded more realistic and her impossible fantasies and dreams felt like they just shattered.