Jo sees Alex with the kids and she realizes that she really does love him.
I jiggle with the key once it's in the lock and turn it with a little bit of force, since that's what I've got to do to get in my house these days. The lock to the loft's door has been malfunctioning for a while and Alex wore that he was going to get somebody to fix it. We first realized that it was broken last month and it's still broken, so that goes to show how well that's working out. I slide the door open and slither inside the house without a word.
Usually when Alex gets home from work before I do, the place is in shambles. I'm halfway expecting to walk into a house filled with screams from the baby, whines from Lyla and downright ignorance from Alex. On the days that I get home from work at 5:00 like I did today, the kids are usually starving and Alex is cranky from having to listen to their whines. I'm always expected to come through the door and go straight for the stove because as soon as the food is on its way to being done, everyone is happy. That is what I usually come home to, and that's what I'm expected. But today, however, is different.
I kick my shoes off at the door and put my purse down on the counter, mindful to not make a lot of noise. I'm not sure what's going on in this house of mine, but all I know is that it's quiet and I'm not about to disturb that. It's quiet, which means the kids are probably asleep or dead, one of the two. It's hardly ever quiet in this house and I want to cherish that, even if it's only quiet due to the kids being asleep. I softly pad over to the living room and peer inside to see what's going on. They must not have heard me come in, because the three of them are still on the couch undisrupted and to my surprise, they're not asleep.
Alex is sitting on the couch with his feet kicked up on the coffee table, Lyla is sitting next to him with her head on his shoulder and little Alex is content, sitting on Alex's lap and gnawing on a teething ring. The Lion King is playing on the TV screen and all three of them seem to really be into it, and to further my understanding of why they're all so silent and not patiently waiting for me to start dinner, I see a box of pizza on the loveseat and an empty bottle on the floor. My nose involuntarily turns up at the way he's letting the baby's bottles lay on the floor and the fact that the pizza box is on the furniture, but my annoyance quickly fades. At least he fed them for me and the sight of all of my babies sitting on the couch and watching a movie together is honestly very sweet. I can't stay annoyed when I look at that.
"Hey," I announce my presence by whispering because I still don't want to disturb them.
They're so peaceful and content…it'd be a pity if I came in here and bothered them. Alex turns his head and looks up at me, raises his eyebrows and goes right back to watching the movie. Lyla wrinkles her eyebrows when I speak, which indicates that she's trying hard to pay attention to the movie and listen over my talking, and Alex doesn't even budge. He shoves his teething ring further into his mouth and that's that. I must admit…even though I had a really busy, tiresome day at work today, I missed my babies…and I'm kind of disappointed that they're not as happy to see me as they usually are. Lyla's usually hanging all over me and telling me about her day, Alex is usually reaching for me and grinning and other Alex is usually waiting for a kiss. But not today…and that makes me a little bit sad.
Sighing, I take the empty spot on the couch next to Lyla and kick my feet up too. Instead of paying attention to the movie like everyone else, I turn my head and look at Lyla. Her head is nestled between the back of the couch and Alex's shoulder and her legs are tucked underneath her body. She's still wearing the pair of blue jeans and the long-sleeved black t-shirt I made her wear to school today, but the black and silver sparkly headband I put on her head this morning is gone.
"Lyla," I call her name and she wrinkles her brows again. "You wanna cuddle?" She ignores my question. "La, come here. Come cuddle with me. I want a hug." She sighs hard, but she finally scoots over towards me. A satisfied grin cracks across my face as I wrap my arms around her and pull her closer to me. I stroke her hair back and away from her face, plant a kiss in the middle of her forehead and put my hands on her butt. I feel bad for disturbing her and making her come and cuddle with me when she seemed so content to lay on Alex's shoulder but I needed at least one of my babies to cuddle with me. I needed at least a little hug and Lyla's cuddly. She's a big, fat teddy bear and I knew she wouldn't be able to resist my offer to be cuddled.
"You just come in here and disturb the peace," Alex mumbles, turning his head towards me. "Pizza's on the couch though…if you're hungry."
I roll my eyes at him with a smile and mouth "thank you" to him. He nods at me and puts his head down to look at the baby, who's just sitting quite nicely on his lap. I watch him brush his fingers along Alex's toes and press his lips to the top of his head. I've never met someone so tough and strong, yet so gentle and soft…especially when it comes to the kids. Alex is probably the most callous, hardened person I've ever met but when it comes to the kids, he's so loving and protective. He's like a different person with the kids and it's truly an amazing thing to watch. I honestly don't think anything is better than coming home after a long day of work and finding the three most important people in your life sitting all on the couch together.
I really don't think life gets much better than this.
