(Anj’s POV)My eyes were glued to my children as they packed their own backpacks with their toys and books, the things they wanted to bring to the island. If only I could tell them I hadn’t heard of him since he left the nursing home.This is what I wanted, for him not to show up and for us not to see each other anymore, but this would be the first time I wished I didn’t have to say something terrible or morbid to my girls.“Mommy, what time will Daddy come?” Selene turned to me.I blinked.If my daughter asked what chemicals made up the sky, I could answer her right away, but as to what time or whether Sky would come, I do not know the answer.“Daddy said to ask Aunt Anya and Uncle Dylan to come, and we should bring only our favorite toys,” Leyanne said. “But Mommy, we also bring some books.”I smiled nervously. “You can bring anything you want, baby.”Lyra Helene went to the window, propped her elbows, and pressed her cheeks in her arms. “Why aren’t you preparing, Mommy?” she asked
(Anj’s POV)Finn was drinking champagne as he sat comfortably in his seat.Anya was busy taking pictures, and maybe before we reached our destination, she would be done covering all parts of the plane, with different poses in her camera except sitting on the pilot’s seat while we were still on the flight. Dylan pretended to be busy reading a magazine he found on the seat but constantly stole glances and checked on me. After that kiss on the Ferris Wheel, we never got the chance to talk again because, first off, I made sure I never stayed in one place alone with him, and second, I hardly went home to Aunt Rose’s home.My kids were on the bed, playing with Nitro, short for nitrogen, the name they gave the puppy. The dog was a ‘she’, and the entire drive to the airport, they argued many times about what her name should be. In the end, they settled on the largest chemical composition of the sky. When they finally had the name, there was a bit of argy-bargy on how she should be called. Si
(Anj’s POV)“This is life!” Anya exclaimed as she sat on the oversized hanging swing on the porch. She propped a pillow to the edge of the swing and lay down. I sat on the other swing, just across from her. I imagined the waves crashing into the ocean by just listening to their sound.Dylan joined us. “This place is so big, the kids could get lost,” he said, sitting beside me.Anya raised her eyebrows. “Relax, Dylan. You’re not the dad. No offense, dude!”He sighed. “Don’t dude me, Anya. I have lots of work, but you dragged me here.”She got up. “Dylan, let’s relax for a while, okay? Even if we work our asses off, we won’t get to own this place. So please…” She pouted when Dylan shook his head.“Anya’s right. Let’s just relax, okay?” I said, putting my feet up and hugging my knees. I tilted my head to check on my kids playing with Nitro. It must be Sky’s idea to give them the puppy so they won’t remember him.Maybe it was for the best.“Ohhh….” Anya moaned as she closed her eyes. “P
(Anj’s POV)After that conversation with Dylan, I knew the night would be long, and it would be difficult to stop my brain from thinking.For six years, I always settled with tea and books to calm me, but now, with all the lies, Sky and Dylan, and wanting my children to be happy, they were all confusing my brain. I stopped by the bar next to the kitchen, got the same bottle of Vodka Sky and I drank years ago, and walked to the bedroom. My children were sleeping in the most oversized bed I’ve ever seen that even if Dylan and Anya joined us in the bed, there would still be space for Sky and Finn.Sky. Why do I always think of Sky when he doesn’t even think of me?I scoffed and walked to the closet room. I opened the cabinet and saw shopping bags inside with a note. There was nothing special to it, just the scribbled message For Anj. My lips curled into a sneer, but I opened them since I had no plans to wear the same clothes, the only ones I had.A small sigh slipped my lips as I pulle
(Anj’s POV)Earthquake!The bed was shaking, moving up and down, and I could hear my three girls screaming and something whining.My eyes opened wide, and when I gazed at the unfamiliar ceiling, my heart panicked and thumped inside my chest. Fear that my children were in danger made me get up immediately, but perhaps I fought with gravity so much that my blood seemed to pool in the lower part of my body, making me feel dizzy.“Argh!” A short and hushed groan escaped my mouth as my hands held my head, throbbing in pain. I blinked, almost brushing off the little thing sitting on my lap because I was startled and had forgotten that my kids have a puppy. Nitro yawned and whined. “I know,” I almost growled and turned my head, seeing the cause of the earthquake in the bed.“Mommy! Mommy, you’re finally awake!” Leyanne beamed, already panting from jumping as if she was on a trampoline.I had to squint to see the girls better. “Girls, stop. You might hurt yourself.” I opened my arms, and they
(Anj’s POV)My three girls, plus their puppy, running in circles and giggling happily, made the beach much more colorful as if truly completing the wonderful sunny weather. As we enjoyed our smoothies, it went the same with our eyes watching the blue sea, with little waves rocking back and forth on the shore.Despite irking at the thought of being here instead of working, Dylan couldn’t deny he was enjoying himself. I wondered when the last time he relaxed or took a vacation because ever since I met him, he has always been putting his nose at work.Anya herself was happy, humming as she sipped on the straw of her pineapple smoothies. After an hour of arguing about wearing the swimsuit, I finally convinced her we wore the same spaghetti strap top; hers was red, and mine was green. Whoever prepared the clothes inside the shopping bags must have thought I wouldn’t want the colors that they put two or more colors of the same style.It was a waste of money, but Anya called it some sort of
(Sky’s POV)I watched Angela move fluidly in the family room as if she had lived here for a long time. With Anya’s and Dylan’s help, they were able to decorate the room in time for the small celebration. With Anya’s talent, being a school owner herself, she made a cut out of Happy Birthday, while Dylan helped Angela tie up the balloons almost everywhere.The most challenging job was given to me, and that was watching out for the girls. Anyone could get confused with the three of them sitting on the swing together, wearing the same clothes, shoes, and hairstyles.Angela braided the few strands of our girls’ hair the same way, making it more difficult to identify them. Anya wanted to put a name tag on them because she still gets confused with the triplets, but Dylan, perhaps like me, could identify the girls quickly.“Daddy,” Leyanne called, making me look at her. “Why did you leave last night?” She asked as she rubbed Nitro’s fur.I almost chuckled. “You saw me? I thought you were slee
(Anj’s POV)An hour on the beach with everyone exhausted me already, but my children never seemed to run out of energy. I had to sit on the mat Sky placed on the sand before we all immersed and enjoyed the water.Either one of us was a traitor for extending or recharging my kids because they never lost the energy to play in the water. Now it was already Dylan’s and Anya’s turn to play with Leyanne and Lyra Helene on the water. When I came out of the water, Selene clung to me and continued to play, digging in the sand as she tried to follow the small crab she found a while ago.Sky emerged from the water, and as he walked toward me, water was dripping off his body. Biting my bottom lip, I couldn’t stop following his every step, and though I knew he would be coming my way, I still smiled and waved at him.“How did you manage to raise these three kids?” He laughed as he sat beside me. “They seemed to have lots of energy.”I chuckled and handed him the towel. “I don’t bring them to the be