Zayn's POV
He better not. I swear to God, if someone lets this slip to Charlie before I have the chance to, all Hell is going to break loose- promise you. "I'd expect Genevieve to tell her, maybe even Lou to let it slip, but not you. That'd be so fucking shitty and you know it."
"No, it'd be shitty for you to go on and play Little House on the Fucking Prairie after you've put your dick in everything and now it's finally catching up to you being that someone else is pregnant. And lest we forget your decision to not tell the girl you intend to marry," he says. "But go ahead; continue to tell me how shitty I am. Please."
"Whatever."
"Look. I get it; it was before Charlie, well...during Charlie, whatever the hell, but, she still deserves to know...like, right now...so therefore, I'm looking out for one of my friends," he continues, butting out my blunt. My blunt. "Well, both of my friends, really."
"Or you're jealous..." The words slip out before I can stop them.
He turns to look at me with the most murderous glare I think I've ever seen in my life. "Oh, I'm jealous? So being a decent human being and trying to stop somebody-who's already had a shit ton of shit thrown their way, mind you- from facing something else is now called jealousy?" he spits. "Well if it is then I must be one jealous son of a bitch."
"I fucking told you I'd tell her, now drop it!" I shout, slamming my hands on the railing. I'm a petulant child, I know it, but fuck it.
"Yeah well you better pull your thumb out of your ass and do it before someone else ruins the fun and you're left holding an engagement ring in the palm of your hand instead of it being on her finger where it belongs."
*
Harry left not too long ago; one of the 'joys' of our relationship is that we can curse each other out and everything always blows over by the end of the day. I know deep down he only wants what's best for me and that's Charlie; she's my entire world and then some, and I know he only wants to protect that.
So now here I sit by my lonesome-the babies have long gone to bed. Charlie's still not home yet, and I'm exhausted now more than ever, but I wanna stay up and wait for her.
I've known about this kid for a week and he's the only thing I can think about. I know I need to get a test like Harry said, obviously, but I'm scared I guess is what it comes down to; there's so much at stake, and it's almost easier for me to just accept it, if that makes sense. You know when you've pseudo-accepted something, but it's a completely different kind of acceptance than when it's actually proven to be true? Yeah, that's me right now.
I haven't brought the idea of a DNA test up to Genevieve, and that's only because she was hammered when she revealed him to me that night and I didn't want to add insult to injury. And can we be honest? She's gonna get pissed when I demand one. But she has to see things from my perspective: what guy wouldn't take a test, especially in this kind of situation? I mean, I even took a test after I came to my senses with Charlie, and I know she wouldn't just pin a baby on anybody.
God, why was I such an idiot back then? (I'm still an idiot, but like...less). But seriously? I would smack the shit out me two years ago if I could. But then I think about how if I didn't sleep around, I never would have met Charlie. And I don't know where I'd be now if I hadn't hooked up with her that night, I suppose.
"Daddy, I can have some juice please?" I wouldn't have my son, that's for sure. I look to the bottom of the steps, finding Marley rubbing his eyes with his dark hair sticking up in every direction.
I get up, leading the way down the hallway to the kitchen. "What about water?"
"Okay." I help him climb on the chair situated at the island before going to the cabinet and getting a cup and pouring him some water.
"Good?"
He drinks every last drop of the clear, cool liquid. "Yes. Where mummy? I was looking for her in da room."
"She's not home yet, bud."
"Where she go?"
Oh boy. "She went to see grandpa."
His eyes go wide. "And she did not take me too?"
I give him a small smile. "She told me she'll take you next time."
"Okay because I really gots to show him all da last ones of my cars. And-and we gonna play and drived dem too."
"Oh, and not me?" I pretend to be insulted. "You forgot about your baba?"
He giggles at that and leans back in the chair, throwing his legs up. I've been trying to teach them a few things here and there, so that they're aware and will hopefully speak the language one day, or at the very least, understand it. My prick of a best mate tells me learning a new language sticks better when a person's younger (which explains why he's trying to teach his two year olds French...hey, at least he's putting his major to use.) "No!" He squeals as I smirk at him. "You da best baba. I love you da mostest."
Well, good to know I've done something right. I've raised two beautiful kids who have a relationship with their parents that I could have only dreamed about having with my own. "I love you a hell of a lot more, Marley."
I smile at the thought of my two kids...my three kids? My three kids. Swallowing thickly, I remember the mess I'm in. How are Marley and Liyana gonna react? And how the hell am I even gonna tell them? Will they understand?
Mar smiles and slings his arms around my neck as I pick him up, offering a faint, pained grimace-like smile. "How about we tuck you back in, yeah?"
"No, I gonna watch dacartoons. You gonna watched dem with me? I gonna see if Arfur's on. You like dat one and me too." And what twenty two year old doesn't want to watch cartoons on a Saturday night with his three year old?
"Fine, you got me. Come on."
I flip on the television as I sit myself back down on the couch, mindlessly scrolling through the channels; I automatically go for PBS -when's the last time I've watched anything else, honestly?
The dad in me shouldn't be this fucking excited when I find that Arthur is indeed playing. "Daddy, where dat thing in your nose go'd?"
"It's there, I just put in a smaller one," I tell him, pointing to my nose stud. I think it might have started to get infected or something-probably from the kids touching it all the time. So I took the hoop out for a couple of days and put the piercing stud back in. We'll see what happens.
"Oh. Dose is your glasses?" He points to the glasses on the table, next to my stack of work folders. That reminds me, I've got a boatload of work to do.
"Yeah, I need them to read sometimes."
"Oh. I gonna weared dem too?"
"Nope," I tell him, popping the p.
"Oh. Okay. And why your hair dat color? You like dat one?" He points to my gray hair that's growing out. I've been experimenting with it for a while now, and I think I've found something I like since this is the second time I'm going back to it. Hair's hair. Who knows; I'll probably buzz it off again next week.
"It's fun to change your hair color," I explain. "And I like this color."
"I can maked mine dat color too?" I didn't know he wanted to come down here and chat it up.
"Maybe. We gotta ask mum though, yeah?" Don't think Charlie will take too kindly to me just randomly dyeing Mar's hair gray. "You know she makes the rules." I nudge him to which he grins.
My phone dings in my pocket, and I immediately fish for it, hoping it's Charlie. And I know it's selfish to ask, but I'm hoping she's coming home soon.
From: Genevieve
Hey babe
I think tomorrow we should go out as a family
I'm thinking a walk in the park? Maybe go to a baseball game and get some ice cream?
I shift uncomfortably. Is this what my life is going to be like now? Having to coordinate between my life with Charlie and my...whatever with Genevieve?
From: Zayn
You're not in my family.
The kid's a different story
From: Genevieve
The "kid" has a name. It's Adrian, remember?
So if you could like, not be a dick about this, then that'd be great
So what time tomorrow?
From: Zayn
And if I have plans?
From: Genevieve
Then you cancel them. He's more important, don't you think?
From: Zayn
How do I even know it's my kid?
Shit. Shit. I probably shouldn't have-
My phone starts to ring in my hand almost immediately; I hesitantly pick it up, expecting the worst. "Are you fucking kidding me?" She blurts into the phone. Okay. "Are you really gonna question that? He looks just like you!"
"Look-"
"Why the hell would I make this up, Zayn? What do I get out of that?"
"Dat's mummy?" Mar looks up to me and asks, and I shake my head no. He cuddles further into my side focusing on the television.
I don't fucking know, but...ugh. This is so annoying. "I'm not saying you're making it up, but I'd like to get a test, especially before...I um, I tell Charlie."
"Of course." I can picture her rolling her eyes. " Look, I'm not trying to impose on your perfect little relationship, but-"
"You know what? What the fuck is your problem?" I fire into the phone. Marley looks alarmed at my outburst. "Why can't you get along with her? You've done nothing but start trouble since you've come here and for some reason, my assistant claims I can't fire you, as much as I want to." And for some reason that I'm sure is gonna fuck me over, I happen to trust his judgment. "Now, like it or not, Charlie and I are going to get married. So fucking deal with it."
"Whatever. If you want the damn test so bad, then fine. We'll do it. But you can't not be in his life while you sit on your ass and wait for the positive results to come back," she says. "And I certainly am not going to watch those other two get all of your time. Which brings me to my next point. What the hell was that, kicking us out today? All I did was try to bring him to see you."
I'd love to tell her to fuck off, I'd love to. But parents not being around for their kids is a touchy subject for me, so I swallow it down and sigh, conceding to her point. "Meet me at the cafe, the one up the street from the office at two tomorrow, and we'll take it from there." And with that, I hang up.
"You okay, daddy?"
"Fine, bud. Everything's fine."
//
My eyes pop open for some weird reason. And naturally, it's daylight outside. Fuck, I must have fallen asleep.
And I can bet I missed Charlie. Or did she even come home?
And when did I lay down? I try to get up, but can't because Marley and Liyana are perched right on top of me. I squint in an attempt to look up at them; Liyana's holding a juice cup between her hands as she sits right on my abdomen staring at me, and Marley's sprawled across my feet and legs, focusing intently on some PBS Kids show. Oh, okay, cool.
"Daddy!" Li grins with the cup still stuck to her mouth, as she begins bouncing.
"Hey, hey." I grab a hold of her as she sinks all of her weight onto my stomach area. Charlie must have come home; there's a blanket wrapped around me and the kids had to get up here somehow. "What are you doing up there?" I croak, tickling her. What time is it?
I reach for my phone, finding it on the nightstand, only to see several new texts-most from Charlie and one from Genevieve. It's not two yet, so what does she want?
From: Charlie
Went out for a little, so I brought the kids down by you
I didn't want to wake you last night when I got home, so I tucked you in instead :)
Love you<3
P.s. you're quite adorable when you're sleeping :)
I smile, typing out a response. It's much easier to be a softy over text.
From: Zayn
Checkin me out, aye?
Creep :)
BIG love babe : )
I open the other message from Genevieve.
From: Genevieve
Why's Charlie out with some guy?
Charlie's POV
"Thanks for meeting with me Charlotte."
I blink, still trying to fathom why I agreed to this.
"Okay. So...how are...things?" He continues. My lukewarm coffee sits in front of me, untouched for the last fifteen or so minutes that we've been sitting across from each other at this table at a small cafe.
I open and close my mouth what must be about ten times. "I...what? Why?" I look at the man sitting across from me, still trying to process the information I was given yesterday at the barbecue. For one, out of all the places, why there?
"How are you, Charlotte?" I look through him. "Look. I know this is strange for yo-"
"Strange? Strange? Strange was going away to college for the first time. Strange was having a house and then not having a house. Strange was starting my first adult job. Seeing someone who abandoned me twenty two years ago out of the blue just suddenly pop up? Sorry, but that surpasses strange."
"And I know you're confused," my father says. My real father. Oh yeah, me too. I don't even know how he found me. There are so many questions and I don't know if I want the answers to them. And that's the strange part. What do you say to someone who has missed out on most of, if not all of your life and suddenly wants in?
And I wouldn't have believed him yesterday when he approached me at the barbecue claiming to be my biological father, but my God, if I don't look like him. He's fairly young, which makes sense when I think about it, given that him and my mom were in their late teens when I was made; he's gotta be in his early forties. He has short, dark brown hair and light brown stubble that grazes his cheeks and upper lip and his buff, fit physique makes it more than obvious that he was involved in sports. Soccer star at Fordham, I think my mom said. He's handsome, and it's easy to see why she fell for him, for sure.
He's not threatening in the least, however, even though he's sitting directly across from me and waiting for me to say something-anything at all.
"Wouldn't you be confused?" I do manage to say with a nervous chuckle after a while. "How did you even find me?"
"Well...that's a good question." He fiddles with his fingers as he places his elbows on the table separating us. "I know people who are pretty good at finding out information, so, I was able to track you down. I was glad to find that you were still in the city," he chuckles. "Imagine if you-"
I furrow my eyebrows. I just..."Well if you didn't dump me off like some fucking bag of trash over twenty years ago then you'd know exactly where to find me."
All traces of humor leave him then, the crinkles next to his eyes fading as the moments pass. "Charlotte-"
"It's Charlie," I grit. I'm surprised he even knows my name is Charlotte.
"Charlie," he concedes. "You don't underst-"
I hold my hand up, closing my eyes. "No, don't say it. I do understand, and I know that I could never ever do that to my child." What, he didn't have time? He was a big soccer star and a baby was only going to get in the way of this whole plan he had for himself?
"It was complicated," is his response. Typical. I knew this was a waste of time. But I guess part of me knew that I'd be coming here today to hear him out. Maybe that's what I wanted on some level. But maybe I came here to get some sort of closure on a relationship that never even began.
And I think my anger is warranted, especially when I remember how he said he could never love me. Even though I was barely a year old, it hurt. It hurts. How can you feel that way toward a baby? A fricking baby? "That's no excuse. Everything is complicated. If people just fessed up and faced the complicated stuff, then we'd all be a lot better off."
"But I..." I know he's racking his brain for a good reason- a justification, if you will. I just don't get how you can justify that. Maybe it's a mom thing. Maybe it's because I lived it; I fricking lived him and my mom's life, so I know...
My God. I fall back in my seat, my back hitting the chair.
Holy...I lived it. I am my parents.
"Charlie?" I look up at the mention of my name, still lost in my revelation. "Hey, sorry. I just...well, I saw you and I wanted to come over and say hi."
Great. Why do people I don't like speak to me?
"So..." I notice Genevieve's eyes keep shifting towards my father. Eric, I think he said. I don't even know his name. God, this is so...why. "How are you?"
I notice she has a child with her, and I think she sees me staring at him, when a wide smile takes over her face. "This is my son, I don't think you've ever met him." I didn't know she had a kid... "His name is Adrian."
I look at the little boy who can't be any older than two. I'd say he's definitely younger than Marley. He's a very cute kid, and I'm curious as to why she's never mentioned him before.
"What time is it?" She looks at her watch before shaking her head and chuckling. "You know, I think Zayn's actually gonna be meeting me here at the cafe in about an hour. We're supposed to have lunch together, probably hang out for the rest of the afternoon. Bossman will be paying, of course!" she laughs, adjusting Adrian on her hip.
Oh are you now? "Cool," I tell her, though I am bothered. So I think that's my cue. I stand up from the table, both my father and Genevieve's eyes trained on me as I gather my things, slap some money down on the table and walk away.
Zayn's POV
The door slams shut, followed by someone talking. It sounds like Charlie...well, a very pissed off Charlie. I hear pitter-pattering coming down the hallway towards the kitchen. "The nerve! The fucking nerve!" She fires, heading towards the island. But instead of sitting down, she starts pacing back in forth in front of it. Oh shit.
The three of us stop making lunch to stare at her. She doesn't seem to pay us any mind, continuing to grumble about stupid assholes.
"Mummy, why you sayin dat?" Marley asks her. She stops and looks at him, his little fingers covered in pizza sauce. She softens, finally taking a seat across from us at the island. She's permanently stressed and I think I need to plan a vacation-just us two. Maybe the French Riviera? Or Dubai; she'd love that.
The more I think about it, the better an idea it seems. We need time alone- no work, no kids, no prying best friends, no dumb fucks to get in the way. Just her and I.
And then maybe I can tell her while we're on vacation? She can't get too pissed if we're in another country, right?
The longer she sits here playing with the kids and not saying a single word to me, the more nervous I become. "I didn't know Genevieve had a kid," she goes with eventually, without looking up. I swallow, my throat all of a sudden dry.
"O-oh?" I try to keep it casual. I don't know what she knows, or how much.
"Yeah I ran into her at the cafe," she continues, looking up briefly at the word cafe. Ohfuckohfuck. Of all the cafes in the city, she had to go to that one. Which reminds me, I'll have to ask her who she was with. But that's on the backburner for now. "Cute little boy. It's interesting that she never said anything about him."
I'm beaming holes into her head, but she's helping Li put the cheese on our homemade pizza. "Y-yeah, I um. I um, I just found out too. It's weird."
"Yeah, pretty weird. She mentioned something, though..." She trails off, her eyes now focusing on me. Fuck. That's it. I'm done. We're done. Nothing's scarier than Charlie staring through my God damned soul while being so calm.
"O-oh?" God, could I play this off any worse?
"Mhmm, so I'm guessing," she leans in a bit close and I swallow once more, "that you should probably go get ready for that lunch date right about now, since it's almost two. Oh, and for the rest of the afternoon you have planned together."
I feel like a fish, the way that my mouth opens and closes but I produce no words.
"Eat!" Liyana bellows, disrupting the tense silence. Charlie walks around me, grabs the pizza and shoves it in the oven, seeming to have dropped the topic. Or waiting for me to respond.
"I'm not going-I won't go," I rush. I actually forgot all about it, but I have no desire to go anyway, so.
Charlie feigns interest, raising her eyebrows as she pours herself a glass of water. She sighs, setting the pitcher down and fluttering her eyes closed. "You know, I'm tired. I'm stressed to the max and I don't want to fight or argue with you." She turns to face me then. "And I really don't want her to break us apart. I can feel it happening and I love you too much to just let you slip through my fingers. And maybe it's my fault. I know I'm not around constantly like I used to be, and I'm hardly here mentally, but I can try, I promise." She starts to tear up and it breaks my heart for more than one reason. "I just...don't leave me please," she sobs. "I'm gonna get back to normal, but it's just so h-hard right now and-"
"No, God. What? " Fuck me. "It's not you. Why would you...Jesus, Charlie." I pull her to me. I feel her eyelids flutter against my thin shirt and I just hold her even tighter. "Let's get out of here, yeah? Just you and me, okay?"
"I can't, I-my dad...and...it's...I want to, I do, but..."
I'm making the arrangements. I know she doesn't want to leave her dad, but we need this. We have to get back to how we were, especially if I want any chance of her staying with me through this shit with Genevieve.
The doorbell rings then, and I reluctantly pull apart from her-but not without placing a lingering kiss to her lips and wiping the tears from under her eyes.
I'm annoyed as I make my way to the door; I swear I'm getting rid of my cell phone and I'm moving so no one knows where the hell to find me. "What?" I spit, just as I swing the door open.
"Um, is Charlotte here?"
"Who the hell are you?"I answer his question with a question of my own. Look here, buddy, I live here, so you explain to me before any of your questions get answered. But when I really look at the guy, I remember him from yesterday; he was the guy talking to Charlie at the barbecue. And knowing he made her upset then, he's definitely not seeing her now, not until I get some answers. "Wait a minute. You were here yesterday."
"Yeah. Look, can you just tell her I'm here and that I'd really like to speak with her. I don't like how we ended things today."
What? "No, but you can answer my fucking question. Who the fuck are you?"
He looks taken back by my tone, before the smallest of smirks finds its way to his lips. "You must be her boyfriend."
"Fiance, actually." His eyes widen at that. "Now I'm not gonna ask you again. You're trespassing on my property, so unless you'd like to find yourself laying at the bottom of these concrete stairs, I suggest you-"
"I'm her father."
A/N: I'm so sorry for the wait, I was swamped with schoolwork and actual work :( I hope you enjoy the chapter; I posted a picture of Charlie's father on Instagram...he's played by Gerard Butler!
So please vote, comment, check out the page, follow, etc. And HAPPY HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I'll try to have an update ready :)