EZEKIELAlright. To be honest, we hadn’t planned any trip, but it was the first thing that came to mind, and I was sticking with it.“A trip?” my mom asked, raising an eyebrow. “Since when?”“Since today,” I said, trying to sound convincing. “It’s kind of last-minute, but we figured the kids needed a break, and so do we.”I glanced at Vivienne, secretly asking for a back up so she nodded and said, “Y-Yes. We did.” “Really?!” Vera clapped her hands, excited about the idea. “Are we going to the beach, Dad? I want to go to the beach!”I smiled at her, relieved she was going along with it. “Maybe, sweetie. We’ll see,” I said. Since she’s already excited, I might as well make it come true, I guess.Vince, however, wasn’t as excited. He just went back to his puzzle, focused and uninterested. I knew he didn’t care much about the trip itself—he just didn’t want our grandparents to stay.Emily didn’t look pleased, but she nodded. “Well, I suppose if you’re going on a trip, there’s nothing w
EZEKIEL Vivienne was watching me and Vince closely, her arms crossed, clearly caught off guard by where this conversation was heading. I could see she hadn’t expected the lie to turn into an actual plan, but she didn’t say anything to contradict me.Vince thought for a moment, then slowly nodded. “Okay,” he said quietly, turning back to his puzzle, though he wasn’t as focused on it as before. I could tell the idea of a family trip had caught his interest, even if he was trying to play it cool.As for me, I felt like I’d just made a split-second decision that could either end in disaster or turn into something good. I glanced at Vivienne, trying to read her expression. She looked back at me and she was probably wondering how I was going to pull this off.Before we could say anything more, Vera came rushing back downstairs, her arms full of clothes, toys, and who knows what else. “I’m ready, Dad! When are we leaving?” she asked, her face flushed with excitement.I chuckled, feeling
VIVIENNEIt was a sudden and impulsive decision to have a vacation but Ezekiel actually made it happen for the kids’ happiness. The very next day, we drove to his private resort, which I never knew he had. As soon as we arrived, I could already hear the waves crashing softly in the distance. The car pulled up to the entrance, and I saw a group of staff standing in a line, ready to greet us. They all smiled warmly, especially at Ezekiel. It was clear that they had been expecting us.“Welcome back, Mr. Lancaster,” one of the staff members said, stepping forward. “We’ve closed the entire resort just as you requested.”I raised an eyebrow at Ezekiel, who just shrugged casually, like closing an entire resort was no big deal. Of course, it wasn’t for him. He had the kind of resources that allowed him to do things like this without a second thought.“Thanks, Steven,” Ezekiel said, nodding at the staff member.Vera, on the other hand, couldn’t hold back her excitement. As soon as we got ou
EZEKIEL“Vera, hold still,” Vivienne said gently, smoothing the lotion over Vera’s arms. Vera, who was in the middle of bouncing up and down, giggled. She was wearing this cute little swimsuit covered in bright flowers, her hair tied back into a ponytail that swayed with every movement.“I’m holding still, Mom!” Vera insisted, though she clearly wasn’t.Vivienne just smiled and finished applying the sunblock, then turned to Vince. He was more patient, standing still while she worked. Vince was wearing simple board shorts and these aviator sunglasses I’d bought him a while back. “Don’t forget to put it on your face too,” Vivienne reminded him.“I know, Mom,” Vince said, but there was no frustration in his voice. Just calmness. He always kept it cool like that, even as a kid.I watched from a few feet away as Vivienne knelt beside the kids. She was focused, making sure Vera and Vince were well-protected before letting them run off to the shore again. I stood a little further back, wat
VIVIENNEAs soon as Ezekiel finished rubbing the sunblock onto my back, I finally let out a breath I didn’t realize I was holding. His touch had lingered a bit longer than necessary, and there was something about the way his hands felt against my skin that made me feel warmer than the sun itself. I wasn’t sure why, but every time he got close, I felt this... heat. Okay. Get a grip, Vivienne! I shook the feeling off, reminding myself that this was just Ezekiel. We had done this a thousand times before. But still, something about today felt different.Before I could think too much about it, Vince caught my attention. He was walking toward me, holding something in his hand. His face lit up with pride as he stretched his arm out to show me a shell he had picked up from the sand.“Mom, look what I found,” he said.I took a closer look and smiled. The shell was beautiful, a rare spiraled one with light pink and white stripes. “Wow, Vince! That’s a beautiful shell. It’s really rare to fi
VIVIENNE“Vince…” I said as I tried to reach out to him. Unfortunately, he stepped backHe was clearly upset! His words hit harder than I anticipated. He never said something like that to me even before. So, hearing him talk about his real feelings was making my heart ache. I felt a lump forming in my throat. Vince wasn’t the type to express himself openly, so the fact that he had spoken up now meant that his feelings were strong. It hurt knowing that we had let him down like this, and I hated that he felt overlooked, like he was less important than Vera. The last thing I ever wanted was for one of my kids to feel unloved or left out, yet here we were, with Vince telling me exactly that.How did we not see it? How did I not notice sooner?I stood there, unsure of how to respond right away. Ezekiel seemed just as taken aback as well, his mouth opening slightly as if to say something, but nothing came out.“No. You’re always telling me to let it go. Always telling me to be patient beca
EZEKIELThe accusation of favoritism—it stung.Vivienne and I were standing side by side and I could tell from her expression that she was just as shaken as I was by what our son had said. After a moment, we finally decided to approach Vince. We started walking slowly toward him, who had wandered down the shore. He was sitting on a huge rock, throwing small pebbles into the sea one by one. He didn’t look back as we approached, but I could tell he knew we were coming. I glanced at Vivienne. We both knew this wasn’t going to be an easy conversation, but we had to make things right.When we got closer, I noticed the slump in Vince’s shoulders, the way he was staring out at the water. He looked frustrated, maybe even a little sad. That hurt. It hurt a lot to see my son like that, especially knowing that we were the cause of it.Vivienne was the first to speak. Her voice was soft but steady as she said, “Vince, can we talk for a minute?”He didn’t look at us, but he stopped throwing the
VIVIENNE“I found the best shell today,” Vince said, holding up a small, shiny shell he had placed on the nightstand. “It’s so smooth, and look at the colors. You won’t find anything like this back home.”As we tucked the kids into bed, Vince and Vera were still overflowing with excitement about the shells they had found. Vera, not wanting to be outdone, crossed her arms and pouted. “Yeah, but mine is way cooler. Look how big it is! And it has all these little ridges on the side. You didn’t find anything like this.”Vince rolled his eyes. “That’s because yours is broken on one side. It’s not even rare.”Vera frowned but then grinned cheekily. “Doesn’t matter. It’s still prettier than yours.”“Is not,” Vince shot back, but he smiled too, clearly not that bothered.I smiled, watching them bicker lightheartedly. "Alright, you two, time for sleep. You can argue over whose shell is the best tomorrow."Vince and Vera giggled, still whispering about their shells as they started to drift o