(A/N: Added new pictures of the kids at the bottom of my profile. Hope you enjoy. :))
One man. Three kids. No mother. No life.
Christmas was approaching fast. Troy had only a week to go Christmas shopping for his kids. His parents were coming over to help out. Since Troy had finished college and had a job now, he was raking in more money than he ever imagined he would in his entire life. He had overloads of money. His kids were going to have a good Christmas, he promised himself that.
Whether Gabriella was in his life or not, his kids weren't going to suffer like she did. They were going to go to school, college, and make something of themselves.
Troy listened to nothing but empty wind and children playing. No birds but seagulls flapped their wings. Everyone was migrating south. The wildlife disappeared. But it was the best time to be in the park. It wasn't too hot or too cold. His fingers moved rapidly among the touch screen of his phone as he texted his mom.
"Are you on the plane yet?" She texted.
"No, I decided to take the kids to the park before we leave. It should wear them out enough to fall asleep on the plane."
"Are you bringing a lot of wrapping paper and tape? Your father and I went shopping too but the store is closed and we forgot to buy wrapping paper and tape."
"I sure did."
"Daddy?" Talon tapped Troy's knee.
Troy jerked his gaze away from his phone for a second to look at Talon. "What?"
Talon handed Troy a football. "Can we play?"
Troy smiled. "We have to get over to the airport, buddy. We'll play when we get to grandma and grandpa's house.
He looked back down at his phone. "Who's making Christmas dinner, you or I?"
"Neither. Your dad is making it."
"What about Gabi's parents? Are they coming to your house for Christmas or… ?"
"I don't know. I wouldn't expect them to."
"I wasn't. They are dead beat parents and dead beat grandparents. Jesus Christ, I'm generous enough to let them see their grandchild after what they did to Gabriella and they still don't want to see him."
"Some people are like that honey. I'm proud of you for sticking around your kids and being their father. Even when you were a little boy, with the attitude you had, I expected you to drop any kids you had on your father and I, but you're a good daddy. I'm very proud of you, Troy."
"I have to go find my kids and get going to the airport. I'll call you later. Love you."
"Love you too. Talk to you later."
Troy put his phone in his pocket and stood up. He turned around slightly, making sure his truck was still there. He quickly pulled his keys out, unlocked it, and went towards the playground.
He spotted Aubrey, running towards him with her hand held out. She was sobbing and tears were running down her cheeks.
Troy knelt down to size as she made the quickest effort to run to him. "Come here, baby… " He held his hand out.
Little Aubrey stopped right in front of him, her hand held out towards him. He touched her hand, gazing upon her palm, and noticed a little scratch with a spot of blood dripping out.
"Awh, Aubrey… " Troy took her hand in his and wiped the blood off her palm, then kissed it gently. "Daddy make it better, sweetheart?"
Aubrey's sobs slowed slightly.
"Did you cut yourself?"
"No… " She pointed with her other hand towards Lyle.
Troy stood up with Aubrey in his arms. "Hey, Lyle."
Lyle turned around.
"Did you hurt your sister?"
Lyle shook his head. "No!"
"Liar. Go get your brother and tell him we have to go home. Santa isn't going to bring you presents if you don't start being a little nicer."
As Troy was walking back to the car, he felt very strange, just simply standing there. Like someone was watching him.
He brushed the feeling off. He couldn't waste time on thinking he was being watched.
Aubrey was still sobbing as he got to his truck. He set her down in her car seat on the far left side of the backseat and strapped her down. He kissed the top of her head. "Daddy's going to put a band-aid on it… " He climbed in the front seat and reached in his glove box, where he kept a box of colorful, fuzzy band-aids.
"Fuzzies?"
"The pink fuzzy one? I saved that one for you, because you're the only girl in the house and you deserve some pink, right?" He gently placed the band-aid on the palm of her left hand and kissed it. "Better?"
She nodded.
He wiped her tears away from her eyes and kissed her forehead. "I love you, Brie."
"Love you, daddy." She sobbed.
Troy lifted Talon into his seat and then lifted Lyle into his seat. Talon was in the middle, Lyle was on the right.
Lyle was a sweet kid, but he had his bad side. He looked like Troy, but in the same sense, didn't. He had brown wispy hair and dark eyes. He always wondered why women sell themselves on the street. There are other ways to make money, other than selling your body to a complete stranger. That girl was in her teens when she got pregnant. Gabriella's age. And now, she has to wonder what ever happened to her little boy while a truck driver fucks her in the cab of his truck. And Troy was left with Lyle as a memory, a memory of how selfish people really are. He didn't look at Lyle as a bad thing, though. He loved Lyle like he loved his other kids. But he could never overlook what his real mother did. How she could just hand him over like that… It blew Troy's mind.
And Aubrey… She was just like Gabriella. She looked a lot like Gabriella, she acted like Gabriella, and she completely reminded him of Gabriella every day. Aubrey had light brown hair and beautiful brown eyes. She was sensitive in all ways possible. She didn't like other people at all, but she adored her daddy and Talon. She truly was the baby of the family, and surely acted like it. Not a word from her mother had been said. He didn't know who her mother was, nor did he care. He suspected that Gabriella was reincarnated into Aubrey, not that he ever believed reincarnation until Aubrey came along. He had not heard from Gabriella in years, and he believed that she moved on to heaven. He also believed that God gave Gabriella a second chance, and that second chance was Aubrey.
He just wished that Gabriella was Lyle and Aubrey's mother, not some whore, slut, prostitute, or whoever their mothers really were. Every time he looked at Aubrey, he asked himself 'How could someone leave such a beautiful little girl at someone's door?' Sometimes when he looked at Lyle, all he said to himself was 'He looks just like his slutty mother' or 'who could leave their kid and not know what happened to them?'
He jumped in the front seat of his truck and started it. "Talon, keep them awake until we get to the airport, okay?"
"I will. Can I ask you something daddy?"
Talon stopped at the busy intersection and turned towards Talon. "Yeah, go ahead."
"Can we go see mommy when we go to Ohio?"
