"Good morning my loves." I whispered as I watched my two four year olds turn away from me. "You're not going to give me a 'welcome back' hug?" I pouted as Emerson squinted his eyes open and looked at me in confusion before shaking Elle awake. He looked unsure if I was really here or not.
"Daddy it's too early." She groaned as she pulled her blanket over her head.
Three.
Two.
One.
"Daddy?!" She yelled as she threw the blanket off and looked at me in shock.
The two of them wasted no time throwing themselves at me as I burst into a fit of laughter. Wrapping their arms around my neck, I held them as tight as I possibly could. I haven't held them in an entire week and it's the one thing I missed the most. I went from holding them twenty-four hours a day and cuddling them whenever I wished, to not being able to hold them for seven full days.
"Don't go for that long ever again." Emerson mumbled as he pulled away and kissed my cheek before hugging me again.
"I thought you guys didn't miss me." I pouted as they both pulled away and rapidly shook their heads. "Okay fine, I believe you." I grinned as I peppered their faces with kisses.
"Why didn't you tell us you were coming?" Elle glared as she pulled away from me and crossed her arms. "We had a whole entire big surprise planned for you." She groaned as Emerson nodded in agreement.
"Because I wanted to surprise you both." I said as I rolled my eyes in amusement and picked them both up in my arms and carried them out of Everly's old room and down the stairs.
"Gigi, did you know daddy was coming home today?" Elle asked accusingly as Athena shook her head and slid three plates in front of us filled with small pancakes, half of an omelet, and toast.
"You kids have been eating good." I gasped as I dumped them to the side and dug into my breakfast.
"After you've eaten, go upstairs and get some sleep. You must be exhausted." Athena frowned as she sat with us and started eating while I cut up the twins pancakes.
"No can do, I have seven days to make up for." I said, winking at the twins who could barely sit still in their seats.
"Daddy, we have so much gossip to spill." Elle said with a mouthful of toast.
"It's not gossip, Elle. Uncle Noah said it's called 'spilling the tea'." Emerson corrected as he rolled his eyes while Elle waved him off. "Dad, did you drink tea in London? Uncle Max said England people have tea in their bodies instead of blood." He asked. I almost choked.
"No sweetheart, British people don't have tea in their bodies instead of blood." I chuckled as he shrugged his shoulders and sipped on his apple juice. "Now what 'tea' do you have to spill." I asked in amusement. I missed this more than anything else.
"Well, Elle and I were playing in the backyard with Aunt Rach and I heard Emma tell Elle that she had a boyfriend. A whole boyfriend, dad! And I remembered that you said boyfriends are bad so I told East because you said that brothers protect their sisters from bad things. So East and me and Kai made Ari spill the beans and you'll never guess who it was." He said dramatically while Elle smirked in her seat.
"Who was it, love?" I asked, unable to stop the smile on my face.
"It was Justin from next door!" He yelled as I gasped in shock.
Justin is the same age as Emma, Easton, and Ariana. Their family moved in just a year ago and the kids absolutely adore playing with him. They all welcomed him with open arms and he's probably the shyest and sweetest kid I've ever met, after Ariana of course. The rest of the kids in our family are crazy.
"Justin?!" I gasped as Elle shot me a glare.
"Daddy, you can't take his side because Emmy has a girlfriend too and you said that boys and girls should be treated the same and I also seen a girl talk about femnenism on the TV with Nana." She huffed.
"It's feminism, my love. And Emmy has a girlfriend?" I asked with a raised eyebrow at Emerson who simply turned red and shot Elle a glare.
"Yes he does, her names Charlotte but I decided to call her Lottie. She's really nice and she's so pretty and she has hair like Rapunzel but it's not as long as hers. But I told Emmy that he can't be her boyfriend because on TV boyfriends always forget about their sisters." She pouted as Emerson rolled his eyes and silently mocked her.
"She's not my girlfriend, we're just friends." He blushed as Athena put a hand over her mouth to stop herself from laughing.
Getting up from my seat, I picked up our four empty plates and started washing up while they both not so silently argued with each other on whether or not Emerson has a girlfriend.
"Kids, why don't you both go get dressed for the day so you have more time to spend with daddy?" Athena suggested as they both nodded and rushed up the stairs.
"How's my favourite mother-in-law been?" I asked once they were gone.
"The truth, not very good honey but I've got two kids keeping me going every day." She sighed as she started drying the dishes. "I didn't expect you to come home so soon, that too alone." She pointed out.
"I have to be in three different places at once, but I can only be in one. It's already been seven days, four days longer than I had planned. I can't just drop everything here and stay in London." I sighed as she wrapped an arm around me.
"I know how you feel, honey. How was everything when you left?" She asked as she leaned against the counter and waited for me to answer her question.
What do I say? The guys were a mess? They've locked themselves in their hotel rooms? They barely eat their meals? They don't sleep?
"I managed to get Ben to pull himself together so he can make a few phone calls for an idea of mine. Aiden's decided to spend his time at the construction site. Austin and Elijah have been sitting in their hotel rooms trying to get as much information as possible." I told her as she picked up a photo frame of the five Carter's from a long time ago. Back when Everly was only a kid.
"She's been here this whole time and not a single person had a clue. My poor baby girl." She sniffled as she turned away from me and wiped her eyes before putting the photo frame away.
Drying my hands with a cloth, I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her as tight as I could. She hasn't had anyone to comfort her because the one person that does isn't here. She's been too busy with Elle and Emerson to process everything and I can't help but feel bad.
"I'm sorry, Athena. I really wish things were different. I wish she was never taken to begin with." I mumbled as she pulled away and wiped her eyes.
"I wish that were the case too. Now stop being sad, you've got two kids that have been waiting for you for a while." She said as she pushed me towards the door.
Before I had the chance to even leave the kitchen, the two troublemakers came rushing down the stairs. Elle was wearing a yellow top with a pink tutu, while Emerson was wearing his dinosaur costume from Halloween last year.
Rolling my eyes, I quickly took a picture of them before picking them up in my arms and carrying them back up the stairs. Despite their many protests on not needing to change and how I was ruining their fashion statements, I managed to get them changed into actual outfits before carrying them back down the stairs.
"Gigi, do you want to come with?" Emerson asked as Athena rushed passed us up the stairs.
"Sorry babies, I've got a surgery." She yelled as the three of us shrugged our shoulders and made our way out of the house.
Buckling them into their car seats, I got into the drivers side and started the car before driving off.
My flight had landed at nine in the morning and I wasted no time in coming to my kids. I didn't go home to get changed, or shower, or nap, or even put my luggage away. I got a cab to home, shoved my things in the trunk, and drove right to them.
Realistically speaking, there was no chance I was staying in London for as long as I needed because it wouldn't work. I wasn't about to leave my kids for possibly weeks or months on end trying to get Everly's memory back. It's a lot more complicated and my priorities are different.
"An Arcade?!" Emerson and Elle yelled at the same time when they saw the bright yellow sign in front of us while I parked the car in the parking lot.
Getting out of the car, I helped them both out and held their hands while leading them inside. I had asked the girls to bring my nieces and nephews over so the kids could enjoy a day out while they relaxed. Everyone's been stressed out about this whole situation and since it's only been three days since everyone found out, it doesn't make it any better. Three days is a lot of thinking time.
"Tina!" Elle squealed as she ran to her cousin and wrapped her arms around her as tight as she could. "I missed you so so much." She grinned as a ten year old Valentina hugged her just as tight.
"I missed you more." She giggled before hugging Emerson and rushing over to me.
"How's my favourite ten year old." I grinned as she rolled her eyes and wrapped her arms around me. "Im sorry I missed your birthday, but today we're going to make up for it." I promised.
It was Valentina's birthday two days ago and she turned double digits. I made sure to wake up early enough to call her at exactly midnight and wish her a happy birthday. It didn't matter that she was half asleep and could care less about her birthday at that moment in time, but she made sure to call me nine hours later.
Missing her birthday was definitely something I didn't want to do, especially now that she turned ten. However I have a feeling that her birthday present will too everything else she has. The only issue is that I can't give her her birthday present till god knows when.
"It's okay, Mase. Mom threw a cute party for me and all my friends came and we had so much fun." She reassured me as I kissed her cheek.
"Okay kids, let's get playing." I grinned as all seven kids cheered in excitement and ran off.
Unfortunately for me, the older twins weren't able to make it with the excuse of 'too much homework to catch up on'. My ass. They knew I'd end up dumping them with a group of kids each to make my own life easier. Little shits.
"Daddy, can you win me a panda?" Elle yelled from somewhere deep in the arcade.
"Of course I can honey." I yelled back as I made my way over to the four kids surrounding the claw machine.
——————————————————
One hundred and thirteen dollars.
I have officially spent one hundred and thirteen dollars trying to get this damn panda from this rugged claw machine and I am seconds away from breaking the glass and grabbing it myself. The kids got bored after my fifteenth try and went to entertain themselves with the other games while I stayed rooted to the spot. I sent a kid crying away when he asked to have a go but there's no chance I'm going without the damn panda.
"I'll pay you fifty bucks for that panda." I said to one of the workers who fixed the machine next to mine.
"Sorry dude, no can do." He shrugged as I narrowed my eyes at him. "Stop being a sore loser and move on." He snorted and all I wanted to do was wipe the smile off his face.
"Get the damn panda out before I shove you in the machine and poke your eyes out with the claw." I glared as he nervously laughed and shuffled over to me.
Moving to the side, he unlocked the screen and pulled out the large pink panda and handed it to me before locking it again. He didn't bother taking the money, instead he ran off to the counter on the other side of the arcade while I happily made my way back over to Elle.
"Look what I won." I sang as Elle turned to face me form the super mario cart race and instantly jumped out of her chair when she saw the large pink panda that was bigger than her.
"You won it? You're the best daddy ever!" She squealed as she wrapped her arms around my legs before taking the panda from me.
Showing it off to her cousins, they got back to their games with the four foot tall panda sitting on display. Staring at the evil panda, I sat down in one of the empty gaming chairs and watched them all have the time of their lives running around.
Emma and Ariana decided to play a fashion show game. Both my kids were still racing on mario cart trying to beat the other. Easton and Kai were playing with the basketballs. And last but not least, Val was having the time of her life chatting away with one of her friends that she ran into.
It's nice. I love moments like this. Moments where all the kids are together and are having fun playing with one another. Everly and I spoke about times like these all the time. She had always said, since she was seventeen, that when she got old enough and had a job, she'd take her nieces and nephews out anywhere and everywhere and spoil them rotten.
I'm doing it for her, and I'll continue to do it for as long as I need to.
Before I knew it, the kids were surprisingly tried from all the games. They each played every single game in the arcade at least three times and I'm surprised they didn't go for a fourth and fifth round. I gathered them all around the table and watched as they dug into the pizzas I had bought not too long ago. Thankfully the arcade had a party area making it so much easier to sit them all down and have them eat in front of me.
By the time they were done, the workers had brought out the cake for Valentina and we were all singing happy birthday. Her cheeks burned bright red as the ten candles brought a golden glow to her face. Emerson had to physically put his hand over Elle's mouth to stop her from blowing out the candles while she closed her eyes and made a wish.
The smile on her face slowly dropped as she reopened her eyes and looked over at me. Once she blew out her candles Emerson let Elle go who instantly cheered as loud as she possibly could.
"Cake time!" She squealed as one of the employees started cutting up the cake in small slices for the kids.
Valentina didn't wait around for a slice, instead she shuffled over to me and wrapped her arms around my neck. I leaned down so she wasn't stood on her tiptoes and hugged her back. It didn't feel like a 'thank you youre the best uncle' hug, but more of a sad one.
"What's wrong, love?" I asked as I tried to pull away to see her face but she held on tighter.
"Uncle Aid said birthday wishes always come true, but I made the same wish for four years and it still hasn't come true." She sniffled as I furrowed my eyebrows in confusion.
"What's your wish, baby? I'll make it come true." I promised as she shook her head.
After successfully pulling away, I frowned at her tear stained face and gently wiped the tears that fell from her eyes. Her nose turned pink and her cheeks were redder than before.
"But you can't make it come true." She sniffled as she wiped her nose before rubbing her eyes.
"Why don't you tell me, and I'll try my very best?" I suggested as she shook her head once again.
"You can't bring people back to life." She hiccuped. Oh.
A small smile made its way to my face as I pulled her to my chest and gently rubbed her back trying to calm her down as much as I possibly could. She's right, you can't bring anyone back from the dead, but she never died and she will be back.
"I'm sorry, Mase. I k...know you m...miss Vee so so m...much too, but I...I still wish s...she was here. But d...dad said she's an a...angle so I...I guess that's cool." She said as she pulled away and wiped her eyes while trying to muster up a smile.
"Don't be upset, love. I promise you won't have to make the same birthday wish next year." I promised as I kissed the top of her head.
Emma and Ariana came rushing over and whisked her away with them while she thought about what I said. She's a clever kid, she knows a lot of things, more than anyone realises. Not only her, but they're all as smart as each other. They can read the room very well and keep majority of their thoughts to themselves.
While the kids dug into their cake, I grabbed my phone from the table to see a single angry face emoji text from Everly. Tapping on the call button, I held my phone against my ear and kept an eye on the kids while waiting for her to answer the phone.
"You didn't tell me you were leaving!" She yelled the second she answered the phone. "I expected a cute 'good morning' text like every other day but instead it said 'sorry for leaving so suddenly, don't miss me too much'. Like what? I thought maybe you were held hostage in an underground sewer and needed saving or something so I didn't make the mistake of calling you in case you secretly had your phone with you. But then I became way too impatient and called you anyway and you didn't pick up so then I did a little stalking and saw Aiden and he said you really did go back to New York. Like excuse me? How dare you? I thought a week was long enough to get to know a person but clearly not. Because if you really did know me then you'd know that I'd loved to be packed in your suitcase and come with you!" She said all in one go while I simply grinned to myself.
A stupid, ridiculous, silly fucking grin on my face as I heard her go on and on. Listening to her voice because it's the one thing I'll never get sick of hearing.
"Oops." I chuckled as I heard an exaggerated gasp on the other end.
"Oops? All you have to say is oops? Not even a 'I am terribly sorry, your majesty for the heartache I've caused by not shoving you in my suitcase and taking you with me to the most beautiful place in the whole wide world'?" She said as I burst into a fit of laughter.
"I am terribly sorry, your majesty for the heartache I've caused by not shoving you in my suitcase and taking you with me to the most beautiful place in the whole wide world." I repeated.
"Apology accepted I guess. Anyway, how was your flight? And the kids? Did you surprise them? I bet they were so happy." She asked all at once.
"My flight was good, I slept as much as I could. The kids are good too, they were upset I didn't tell them but I took them to an arcade with their cousins to make up for it." I told her. "East, careful kiddo." I yelled as Easton shot me a sheepish grin and stopped trying to climb into the basket ball game.
"Sorry." He yelled back. We both know he's going to try again.
"That sounds so fun, I wish I could join you. I'm a pro at the claw machine." She said proudly. No she's not. She's absolutely horrible at it.
"Mhm, I won a four foot tall pink panda." I bragged as she gasped on the other end.
"No. Way." She squealed as I rolled my eyes in amusement. Oh yeah, Elle Rose Black is most definitely this woman's daughter.
"Daddy, who are you talking to?" Elle asked as she tugged on my shirt.
"I'll speak to you later, I've got seven kids on my hands." I chuckled as she crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at me.
"Okay, no problem. Have fun and play lots and lots of games!" She said before quickly hanging up.
"What's up, love? Need anything?" I asked Elle as I crouched down in front of her and put my phone away.
"Who was on the phone?" She repeated, the small frown on her face only deepened.
"No one baby, let's go play." I said as I took her hand and lead her back to her cousins.
I hate lying. To her, to the kids, to everyone. All I can do right now is hope that everything goes our way, but then again when has that ever been the case?