Sierra
I know he was joking. I'm well aware that Atlas was just trying to play along and get my blood boiling. Not in anger, but in frustration because I barely manage to throw him off too much.
But here we are.
Three girls and one Atlas Storm sitting on the couch in the living room, wearing fruity face masks. I even managed to make him wear a rope, to get the spa-feeling.
Truthfully, I've never been to a spa, so I have absolutely no idea what that feeling feels like, but this is all I could think of.
And the girls seem to like it very much.
What they love even more, however, are the cucumbers that I told them to lay on their eyes. They never got that far. Once the cucumber was in their possession, they've eaten them.
Allie's excuse for eating her slices was "That's food. Daddy said food doesn't belong on the face." So gone into her stomach the cucumber was. Vienna followed suit, of course. Always gotta do what her older sister does.
Oh, did I mention that we're watching a movie? Atlas's "favourite" movie?
No? Well I am mentioning it now.
We're watching Falling Inn Love. Yes, yes, he sure does love it. I mean, there is a thin line between hate and love after all, right? So every gag and scrunched up faces, frown and huffs, they sure mean he loves the movie. Otherwise I'd tell him he doesn't love me cause that's what I got for the first couple of months of us living together.
Maybe I didn't get the gags, but let's just say they're here to...make his hatred seem realistic.
Yes, that's what we're going to say.
As soon as I let Atlas know it's time to take off the masks, he's the first to grab Allie to rush them both to the next best bathroom.
I chuckle to myself as I hold my hand out for Vienna to follow my husband into the bathroom. When we enter, he's already finished washing off Allie's face and half-way done his.
How long did we take to walk over here?
I know I'm not the fastest when it comes to walking while being pregnant, but what the hell?
Once Atlas finished his face, he picks up Vienna and seats her down on the counter to wash her face. Unfortunately for me, that means I have to do all the work by myself as my husband prefers to wash our daughter's faces instead of mine.
Like, honestly, how dare he? They can wait another minute or two.
"We do this again, right, mommy?" Allie asks, just casually jumping off the goddamn counter. I almost have a heart attack thanks to her.
"Definitely, cheeseball."
"Like tomorrow, right?"
Atlas shakes his head at me, his eyes screaming no.
"Yeah, sure," I say, grinning. My husband's eyes narrow, killing me with just his stare. Unfortunately for him, I'm immune by now.
Marrying Atlas Storm meant adjusting. A hell lot of that.
Adjusting to his weird, far too healthy foods that I still do not even touch. Adjusting to his moods, his grumpiness. Adjusting to the way he speaks to his employees in comparison to his family. Adjusting to his looks and figuring out which one means what even though they're almost identical at all times.
There are differences. Like, the looks he gives me...no matter how mad he is, he never leaves out the spark in his eyes that says how much he loves me. And that little spark, it suddenly makes him looks less scary.
"I think it's time for you to go to sleep, don't you think?" I ask the girls, though they don't have a choice anyway. It's past eight by now, and when they don't get to go to sleep any time soon, Atlas and I will have to deal with two very moody toddlers.
And moody is pretty much the death penalty. Atlas is their father after all.
"What time is it, mommy?" Allie asks, ready to negotiate. I just know, if she ever wants to follow her father and take over his company one day, her employees will have to deal with an even worse Storm.
"20:34," I tell her, though I don't know if that's true. But I do know it's past eight.
"Woah." Her arms drop, mouth opening. "But one more story and then we sleep, okay, mommy?"
Of course...She wouldn't be Alison Storm if she wouldn't demand a bedtime story even if she was supposed to be asleep good fifteen minutes ago.
—
Our lives have been back to normality for a short while now.
People on the streets no longer try to go after Allie and Vienna. They no longer call Atlas or me a bad parent. I mean, I suppose there are still people out there that just hate us for god knows what reasons, but at least the rumours about Atlas and I abusing our children have died down. Especially after tons of Atlas's employees made public statements, saying how wrong the tabloids are. And not to forget, after the one website was forced to speak the truth about us otherwise there would have been far worse consequences for them.
I can now go outside without having to fear some angry mother trying to snatch my daughters from me. Or push me off somewhere in hopes that it'll hurt the baby as I "don't deserve to have another one since I abuse the two I have already."
Not that it's truly possible anymore now...said baby was born just two days ago.
I'm still at the hospital, exhausted as fuck, but still bored out of my mind.
As we know Atlas by now, he didn't leave this room once. Not. Once. He declined every single business call, barely even responded to private ones. If one of us is the crazy one, it's definitely him. Even though he keeps insisting I am crazy for always being in a good mood.
At least when I'm not pregnant and filled with more hormones than I can deal with.
Sucks for him though, that's what he signed up for when we demanded I marry him. Not that I regret getting married to him. And I know, deep down, he wouldn't exchange marrying me for the world. Someone could literally tell him he'd own the entire universe if he gave me up, and he'd chose me.
At least I hope he would. If not, I'd murder him.
"How are you feeling?" Atlas asks, pushing me a bit over in my hospital bed only so he could lie down next to me, taking me into his embrace. Atlas presses a soft kiss to the side of my head, then leans his right on my shoulder as we both look down to our son.
"I want to leave this room."
He chuckles but shakes his head. "Not for another day, sweetheart."
"Shove that 'sweetheart' up your ass, Storm. You're not the one being bound to your bed."
Just like that, the baby starts to cry. Why does every child of mine hates it when I'm angry at their father? Like, Allie did the exact same thing. I talk just that tiny bit ruder, and boom, she cried. Vienna started to cry too. And now Connor does the same.
"Cody called while you were asleep," he says, ignoring what I've said before. Like it surprises me anymore. "Vienna and Allie drew a picture for their brother. He sent it to me, wanna see it?"
"Uh, yes."
Again, Atlas chuckles, then takes out his phone to show me the picture.
It's not very good, but I doubt any painted picture from toddlers really is. Allie was kind enough to write our names above the heads of the stick figures. She probably got Cody or Athena to help her. Or even Hunter, who even knows?
But I know for sure she got help. The only know she can write is her own. And she tends to misspell it.
Sometimes it's Alliesson. Sometimes Aliesen. And god knows what other combinations of the same letters.
"He also said that Allie doesn't look forward to meeting Connor."
"Doesn't look forward?" I repeat, making sure I heard that right.
Atlas nods. "I quote, 'Allie thinks having a boy at home will be against your no-boys-near-you rule. So now she's crying because she fears you kicking her out.'"
Honestly, that's totally something that Allie would fear. "Call Cody," I tell my husband. "I want to talk to my girls. Or better yet, let them come over. Atlas, I'm dying of boredom."
"They were here just this morning."
"But Connor wasn't because your mother decided to take him on a walk through the hospital. Which, by the way, I really didn't appreciate. I don't want him—"
"I know, I know, sweetheart. You don't want to risk him getting an infection. I'll talk to her." He presses another kiss to the side of my head, instantly easing my nerves. "She's just excited about her new grandchild."
"She has plenty of them. No need to do a happy dance through the hospital with our newborn. You heard what the doctors said, he's not as strong as the girls were because he's been born two weeks too early." How does his mother not get it? I've been wondering that ever since she fucking sneaked the baby out of this room while Atlas and I were both asleep.
Don't get me wrong, she can visit. But not like that. Not without asking to stop by first. And definitely not when she steals my goddamn baby for two hours without even letting us know. The hospital called out Code Pink because of her, that's how clueless Atlas and I were.
"Sierra, sweetheart..."
"No, Atlas. I swear, if she tries to get close to Connor in the next two months, I will go on a vacation with just the girls, him and I so she can't fucking steal him."
His arms around me tighten. "She won't steal him."
"And what the hell would you say she did then? She did steal him. She took him without letting either of us know, let alone ask if that was okay. Connor isn't her son, he's ours. She doesn't get to make decisions."
Ever since Atlas and I had this one huge fight, she's been distant to me. Like she no longer trust me with her son. Just the day I gave birth, his Elaine went as far as to give Atlas an ultimatum because she doesn't think he should be with me since I'd do it all again.
Threaten to get a divorce, I mean. Which, for her information, I never did. Getting a divorce was never even on my mind. Maybe a fleeting thought, but it was so absurd to me, I didn't even let the thought evolve.
Sucks for her though. Atlas is old enough to make his own decisions. And he chose his kids and me over his mother.
Though, I did tell him I don't want Atlas to choose. I don't care what kind of vendetta his mother hold against me recently, but I do want Atlas to be happy. As much as Elaine despises me at the moment, I know Atlas cutting her off won't do him any good.
I don't need him to stay away from his own mother. I know, even if she was serious with making him choose, Atlas would always choose his children and me. His mother may have raised him, but he has a family of his own now.
Imagine her surprise when I said no to seeing her the second Connor was born though.
Atlas strokes his hand up and down my arm. "Everything's going to turn out alright, sweetheart," Atlas says. "She'll stay away until her common sense kicks back in and she's ready to apologise to you. And you do not have to worry about anything, alright?"
I'm still not quite sure what I did to get myself an Atlas Storm, but as it seems, all the choices I've made were all the right ones. Even when I should've made other ones along the way here.
Here's the thing tho...
These past few months have shown me that life really fucking sucks. There is always going to be unexpected people entering your life, surprises negative and positive ones. Positives can turn negative, but it works the other way round as well.
No matter how difficult life gets, it's far easier with my husband and children in it.
"I love you," I say as I lean into my husband, letting go of every drop of anger inside of me so I can cherish this moment the way I'm supposed to.
"I love you, sweetheart."