Vincenzo's Lover

Nine

"No! Not. The. Tickle. . .monster!" She laughed, squirming and giggling. I lifted her up, holding her in my arms as I tickled. I stopped after a bit, allowing her to calm down. I sat on her strong bed, holding her small hand in mine. "Did you have fun yesterday?" She nodded, her breathing calming down. "The lady was very nice, papa. Can she come to the tea party today?"

April Grace was a clever girl. Her vocabulary was better than the average three year old child. Although at times she mispronounced words, she knew English well.

I never get let her know what I worked as or what I was involved in. As far as she knew, I was just a businessman and SuperDaddy, a new superhero that she had made up for me. She thought I always went on adventures in the night to save the world. April had a wild imagination. I tried to keep her away from work as much as possible, I wanted her to have a carefree life. To be happy, always.

"Well," I started, shaking my head. "Today we are doing something much better," she furrowed her eyebrows, confused. "We are going to the aquarium." She squealed, hugging me tightly. She was beaming, extremely happy at the news. April loved animals and said she wanted to live in a farm. I was planning on getting her a dog, but I wasn't sure on what breed. She needed a companion to protect her when I wasn't always there.

I got her clean and changed then combed her hair. She whined, telling me that I was hurting her. I apologised, trying to go softer but it was hard. April had curly, thick hair from her mother's side and it wasn't always easy to deal with. I decided to let it out and added some flowers into her hair before taking her into the kitchen for breakfast.

I fed her some porridge and fruit and then took her into the living room to play with some dolls.

She handed me a naked Barbie with blonde hair and pink lips that were stretched out into a smile. "Daddy, look, boobies." She giggled at this, handing me some clothes to put on her. I chortled, attempting to put them on as I sat beside her, in front of the large dollhouse. Once I finally got them on, we played a bit.

"Oh no! The baby is crying!" She made a loud crying sound, shaking the baby in its cot. "Papa!" She whispered, gesturing at me to move the doll. "Oh," I said, finally paying attention. "I'll go see the baby, everyone!" I said in a high pitch voice. April giggled, playing with the small children. I moved the Barbie's arms to hold the baby, cradling it. I fucked up by dropping the baby.

April gasped. "Daddy! You dropped the baby!" My eyes widened, I put the doll back into Barbie's arms. "We have to call the hospital!"

So we ended the 'episode' with the baby dying. There was a long and tedious funeral where April fake cried for the dolls and got the mother pregnant again by whispering abracadabra to her stomach. "Is that how babies are born, daddy?" I hesitated, before saying, "yes, that's how you were born."

"I knew it!" She whispered.

"Can we go to the aqwarium now?" She whined, bored. I stood up, bending down and holding her before kissing her cheek. "Not yet. We need to wait for the pretty lady." She giggled as I took her on the couch, switching on my large tv.

"Is she your gwirlfwiend?"

"Girlfriend," I corrected her, flipping through the kids channels. "And no. But she will be soon. Will you help me?" She clapped her hands, "yes." April knew me and her mother weren't together. When she was younger she figured it out, like I said earlier, she wasn't dumb. Bianca would often have on and off boyfriends which I and April didn't like. I didn't want other men around my daughter. April played with my lip ring while watching TV.

"The pretty lady is coming with us to the aquarium."

-Mia-

"The aquarium?"