A/N: This one is in celebration of Father's Day.
It's not necessary to the plot but just for the sake of convenience, the second heist never happened in this storyline.
To fathers,
The unsung heroes of our lives,
"Our kids are having a day!" Raquel exclaimed.
"Are they now?" Sergio looked at her suppressing a smile.
He was finishing up the laundry when he was interrupted by a very frustrated looking Raquel, holding up her hands in resignation. She was out to pick their girls up from school that afternoon and had come back clearly after dealing with two cranky kids. It wasn't unknown to Sergio how difficult those girls can get at times.
Good thing Sergio and Raquel were a team and took turns dealing with them. He could not even imagine how single parents handled these things and thus had immense respect for them. However, it was still amusing to Sergio how it wasn't only him who could rile up Raquel to such length.
"Yes, a very ugly one."
"Oh, those are hard."
"They are!" Raquel whined, on the verge of crying.
That was the face that could make Sergio turn the world upside down for her. He patted his arms dry on a cloth and walked up to her at the laundry room's door. Snaking his arms around her, he offered her a smile, one that let her know it was alright for her to have breakdowns along with their girls. That she need not always remain the stronger one in the family and that she was correct in coming to him to vent.
Raquel knew all that but she needed the affirmative smile from him nonetheless. Circling her arms around his waist, she came to rest her head on his chest, drawing strength from him. Every time it was a struggle to swallow her pride whenever she ran to him to seek comfort after these seemingly mundane, yet entirely overwhelming interactions with their kids. Every time she needed to remind herself that it was alright to ask her partner to help, that Sergio was sometimes more capable in connecting with their daughters than she was.
It was a struggle but she was getting better at it. She was getting better at depending on him, without losing her self-esteem.
Sergio ran his fingers through her hair, soothing her, "Do you want to walk me through what happened?"
"Mm.. sure," Raquel raised her head from his chest to look into his eyes, their arms still linked around each other.
"Let's see," her voice got agitated, "First, Phoenix came running up to the car when I arrived outside their school gate."
Sergio imagined their six-year-old little girl running towards the car, her pigtails flailing, her glasses hanging on her nose, sweat glistening on her forehead, an unmistakable smile on her face…
"I could tell she had been crying," Raquel interjected his thoughts.
The words broke his heart, giving way to a desperate need to know what had gone wrong and how fast he could bring the smile back.
"Seconds later came Paula, half pushing Phoenix out of the way to sit in front of the car beside me, which of course, made Little P break out into another bout of tears."
Well, no surprise there. Fighting over car seats was a regular thing between the sisters and Sergio could picture their Paula shoving her blue hair out of her face trying to tell Phoenix that only big girls get to sit in front. Paula in her mid-teen was quite the spirited, sharp-tongued girl. He knew exactly what followed next.
"And then Phoenix screamed 'Mamáaaa'. Ugh if I have to hear 'Mamá' one more time!" she tore herself away from him to rub her aching forehead.
"I know, Raquel. It's so frustrating."
"You have no idea! Then they got into the car finally and Paula told Phoenix that apparently the real reason Phoenix couldn't sit in front was because she was collected from the trash."
"Which made her scream further?" Sergio confirmed.
"Yes! When I tried to scold Paula, she complained about how I always take her sister's side. I mean there's no winning with these two!" Raquel sighed heavily.
"Something must have been bothering Paula too, she wouldn't lash out at Little P or you like that if she herself wasn't troubled."
Raquel offered him a small smile, grateful for his never-faltering faith in their Big P, a nickname that Paula wholeheartedly despised.
"I think so too, so I asked her what was bothering her. You know what, rather than answering me, she simply declared that she isn't going back to school ever again."
"What? Why?"
"God only knows! As soon as she said that, Phoenix cooed in with her declaration from the back seat that she isn't going back to school ever again either. After that, both of them crossed their arms and stared out of the windows the entire way back home, not uttering another word."
"Well, they are at least on the same page there."
"Sergio!" she slapped his arm, "Today was just their first day back to school after summer. I can't deal with so many tantrums on the first day itself, provided they even continue school."
"They will continue going to school," Sergio smiled at her.
"You can't say that for sure!" a panic rose in her voice.
"Hey! Raquel, hey!" Sergio cupped her cheeks to make her look him in the eye, "I will take care of it, whatever it is, and I'll do it for each day of the rest of the year if that's what is needed. We can do it. But for now, you go freshen up and relax. You trust me to handle it well, right?"
Raquel pursed her lips assessing her partner for a moment and concluded that there is no one better suited for the job. She rose up on her tiptoe, put her arms around his neck and planted a kiss on his lips, "I trust you, yeah."
"Good," he said, wrapping his arms around her before she could withdraw and pressed his lips more resolutely against hers. He rubbed his palm on her lower back, coaxing her to relax and it soon had the desired effect.
She loosened her muscles and leaned into him, smiling and kissing him back. There was a solace in being able to make his woman smile that never failed to make Sergio warm and blissful. He held her tighter, letting her know he would never fail her, that he will do his absolute best to bring peace to her heart.
He kissed her in an unhurried yet persistent pace, grateful to have gained the confidence over the years that he could ease her troubles, that he could make her smile, no matter what the world or their little monsters threw at them.
The house was unusually quiet when Sergio went inside to look for his girls, especially since they just had a meltdown. Phoenix's galaxy themed room was deserted, her school bag left discarded at the foot of the bed and though he realised Paula was in her room, she had locked it from inside. Sergio decided not to bother her at the moment and gave her the space she needed to calm herself down.
He tried thinking like a six-year-old and how she'd react when she is sad and hurting. However, all he could come up with was how he would react when he is grumpy. He would shut himself in his study. Or, he would stand by the ocean, brooding. It was either a closed room or open nature, no in-between.
Thus he walked out to their private beach and sure enough found Phoenix sitting on the sand facing the ocean, still in her school uniform, her wavy black hair almost reaching her waist. Even when Sergio knew she was miserable, her back was straight, ready to take on the world at a moment's notice, like another strong woman Sergio knew rather well.
But Sergio also knew Phoenix had inherited a few of his traits that made her more vulnerable than other kids her age. It had always worried Raquel and him how she would cope with the realities of school and peers, being the shy, quiet girl she was. Phoenix was resolute and determined, at the same time she was a little tricky, a girl who took time to let people in, but when she did, she loved them fiercely. Hence, Sergio was always extra careful while dealing with her, he didn't want to treat her too softly, no matter how much his heart ached, but he also did not want to dismiss her big feelings just because he or Raquel would have reacted to the same situation differently.
Sergio walked up and gingerly sat down beside her on the sand. As soon as Phoenix realised her father was there, she looked up and gave him a big toothy smile, her eyes twinkling behind her purple oval-shaped glasses, a smile that always stopped Sergio's world. Her smile was infectious, he smiled back, taking notice of the dimple on her chubby cheeks.
"What are you doing here, Little P?"
"I'm making a sandcastle," she declared, proudly pointing to a heap of sand with her toy shovel.
"That's such a huge task and you're doing it so well," Sergio ruffled the top of her hair.
Her face darkened, the smile fading out and he had no clue what possibly he could have said wrong.
He tried a different tactic, "Do you want some help to make it look better?"
She nodded her head subtly, her eyes fixed on the sand, scribbling on it with her shovel.
Sergio got down to work at once, moulding the sand with his hands, forgetting to care about the mess. He asked Phoenix to bring seawater with her toy bucket which she promptly obliged. Sergio knew they were too close to the ocean for the castle to stay upright for long. But his daughter sitting on her knees, observing him, helping with her little palms, full of enthusiasm gave him all the motivation he needed to continue.
After a good thirty minutes, Phoenix plopped down on the sand, tired and sweaty. She leaned into his side and said in a dejected voice, "The ocean is eating up our castle."
"That doesn't mean we'll stop building it. Every effort we put in it will be worth it, I promise."
Phoenix clearly wasn't so confident and her wish to continue decreased to the point that she refused to even put her hand on the castle, the rather crooked castle.
Realising that he needed to prod her again, Sergio turned to her, "Hey, our castle is amazing and we need to believe it, Little P. Alright?"
"No. Our castle is fat, short and ugly. It's a loser!"
Her eyes were still downcast. She had not even screamed any part of that sentence but each of those words pierced through Sergio's heart. He was so taken aback by her choice of words that it took him several moments to recover.
"Why.. um.. Why would you say it is a loser?" he asked, baffled. He could not remember if had ever heard his daughter say 'loser' about anyone before. He didn't even know she knew that word.
"Because I am a loser."
Sergio gaped at her. Life as a father was a source of constant surprises. He usually looked forward to experiencing the different stages of growth of his kids through them. But this was not one of those moments. Definitely not. He had never wanted to be here. He had never wanted his daughter to think even for a second that she was a loser. The strength of that absurd word struck him all over again.
He stuttered, wondering if he was feeling this terrible about it, then what torment it was causing in Phoenix's little heart, "Did... did... you hear it... somewhere? Did someone tell you that?"
"No. I know I'm a loser."
"Oh, Little P… my dear… that is the silliest thing I've ever heard. You are nothing short of magic."
Sergio realised she had started weeping. She was trembling and he remembered how hard it was for Phoenix to accept a compliment. She was built in a way that made her always look for flaws in accolades. It pained Sergio, but he knew he was never going to get tired of reminding her what a wonderful girl she was.
He raised her chin with a finger to make her look at him, "You are not a loser. You need to believe me when I say it. You are anything but a loser."
"But my friends said that I am."
Sergio tried his best to keep his voice firm, "Then they are not your friends."
"They saw my glasses for the first time today and said that… that I've become a nerd this summer," her little lips quivered from the force of another sob forming in her throat, "When… when I asked what a 'nerd' is... They told me a nerd is a loser. That I'm a fat, short loser, a crybaby. Why am I not big like you, papá?"
The sob took over and tears spilled out on her cheeks. Sergio let her cry for a while, rubbing her back intermittently. If only she could cry it all out, she would be able to smile freely again. He kept reminding himself that if he reported those snotty kids to the Principal it'd only make things worse for Phoenix. That she needed guidance to face her own battles.
"You are big!" He knew Phoenix had meant why isn't she 'tall' like Sergio, but he still used 'big' to state his point to her, "You are big... here," he pointed his index finger to her heart, "And that is all that matters."
Phoenix looked down at her heart, calming down a little.
"Do you know why we named you 'Phoenix'?"
She wiped her eyes and cheeks with the back of her hand, suddenly excited to exhibit her knowledge, "Because you love city names and Phoenix is a city in Arizona in the United States of America."
"Correct!" Sergio patted her on the back, "But did you know there's another meaning to it?"
When she shook her head, he continued, "It's the name of a bird that only lives in the books. But it's a very special bird because it never dies. Rather it burns out and rises anew from its ashes. It fights back against all odds to retain its beautiful feathers. Much like you and the castle here."
"Like me and the castle?" Phoenix couldn't help a small giggle, filling her father's heart with joy.
"Yes, you will rise from your ashes every day to show the world what a great lady you are and how big your heart is!"
"I will!" she replied, without even properly grasping the gravity of it all, "And the castle?"
"For that I'd need you to call your sister here. But before that, I'd like to share with you one secret thing I do when people call me a nerd."
Dropping her voice to a whisper, she asked, "What secret?"
"I nudge my glasses up my nose like this," he used his thumb and forefinger to show her his tic, "And it makes them think I am a very serious stately person and that they should never cross me."
"Really?" her eyes widened at that revelation. "Like this?" she asked and proceeded to push her thumb up her nose. It had no effect.
A few more attempts and the glasses came sliding down her nose, rather than going up. Sergio then helped her get the exact angle with her little fingers. After practicing a little, she mimicked him so well that Sergio could swear his heart was going to burst out of his ribs.
"Just like that," he stated.
Phoenix then ran off towards the home and came back in no time, with Paula's arm around her shoulder, the earlier rift between them forgotten.
"Nic said that you wanted to show me something?" Paula queried.
"Yes, Paula, can you tell us what that is?" Sergio pointed at their misshapen castle.
"A castle," she answered without taking a beat. Paula looked from Phoenix to Sergio and asked, confused, "Isn't that obvious?"
"It is," Sergio replied, "I just wanted to tell Little P that even when the ocean washed away most of our work, even when it's slightly crooked, it's still a castle and a beautiful one no less. If you believe in yourself, girls, you can be your best selves even when people say otherwise."
"Mm-hm," Phoenix said, shifting from one foot to another, her face shining both in sweat and in glee, "Can I go bring Mamá and Abuela now to show them?"
"Oh, sure!"
Paula also started going back to the home after Phoenix.
"Hey, Big P! Wait a minute," Sergio knew her dislike with that nickname yet for some reason it had become sort of a code between them. Paula would get flustered but often wasn't able to hide a smile knowing she was the only one in their household who Sergio easily teased and joked around with.
They had built up a unique understanding over the years. One that Sergio realised that millennials would call 'buddies'. Paula was his buddy.
Paula turned around scrunching her nose, "Ugh. Don't call me that."
Sergio only shrugged his shoulders, smiling.
"What'd you want, cleanliness freak?"
She did not lose a chance to tease him back either. It always reminded Sergio of her mother, not giving up one opportunity to get back at him. He shook his head fondly at that thought.
"Would you go on a date with me tonight?" he asked, dawning a more serious expression.
There was a pact in their home where each month one parent took turns to take one girl out on a date. Raquel and he had decided, back when Phoenix was a toddler, that there was an increasing need to spend one on one time with each girl. That both of them needed to feel comfortable and loved by each parent. Also for both Raquel and Sergio to grow their own distinct bonds with the girls.
"You and me? Tonight?" Paula furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.
Her confusion wasn't baseless. That month was assigned to Raquel and Phoenix's date and the rest of the outings were supposed to be as a family. Sergio definitely was not one to break a self-made rule or so he continued to believe. Once there was that personal relationships rule; he had broken that one at the very sight of Raquel. Oh well, might as well put himself in the exception bracket while making the next rule because he sure didn't stand a chance in front of his women.
"Yes. I'm making an exception."
"Why?"
"Because I could really do with some conversations over ice cream with you."
"Hm?" Paula was not convinced, but she was not going to cross his answer and turn him down either. She loved her dates with Sergio a bit too much. However, neither of them ever said it's a 'father-daughter' date out loud, both too scared that they'd jinx it.
"Yeah, I guess it wouldn't hurt to have some ice cream."
"Cool then."
Paula pressed her lips together trying to suppress a snort that involuntarily left her mouth every time she heard Sergio use any modern lingo. "Cool," she said.
After that Raquel and Mariví joined the party with Phoenix and they went on to make four more twisted, deformed castles, one for each of them. It was all sand everywhere and a whole lot of hullabaloo, splashed water, sand in the eyes, tears and laughter, so much laughter. In between all that madness, Raquel peered at Sergio, eyes filled with concern. He only nodded his head, conveying he had everything under control. Raquel, still just a little bit worried, smiled at him in appreciation and went back to castle making tasks.
The designated seaside cafe was scattered with a few guests when Sergio and Paula arrived there after sunset. String lights were hanging from the trees, giving the place a quaint glow. Paula sometimes pretended she was too cool for such subtle places, but Sergio kept insisting that they go to this place. She liked how he could tell the difference between her real likes and dislikes from her pretended ones.
Sitting at the table with the waves occasionally grazing their feet, Paula felt calm for the first time that day. It had been such an overwhelming day for her and there was nothing more she wanted than to lock herself up in her room for the rest of the year. She had had a good time by the ocean making castles, but the feeling of unease in her heart hadn't left for a second even then. But being at the cafe, sitting across from Sergio who had now taken one look at the menu and was ready to order his usual food, she knew she had made the right decision to come out tonight.
"I'll take a plate of grilled salmon with lemonade," Sergio said to the waiter. He never drank alcohol while out on dates with his daughters, "Are you ready to order, Paula?"
She perused the menu for a moment, before looking up with a mysterious glint in her eyes. Sergio immediately knew she was up to something that would involve tormenting him.
"What'd you say if we experimented tonight?"
"With food?" he replied, horrified. The trap was always right in front of him, yet he never knew how to get out of them.
"Yeah, with food!"
"Uhmm.." Sergio tried loosening his tie a bit to release the creeping anxiety.
"Think fast, Sergio. Act fast. YOLO."
Oddly enough Sergio now knew what that acronym meant.
"Uhm.. experiment.. umm," he stuttered, glancing at the menu card again, without a clue what he could possibly eat beside his salmon.
"Sergio! Think fast. "
He darted his eyes all over the menu.
"You know what, let me order for both of us. You trust me, don't you?'' she looked at him insistently.
"I.. yeah... yeah.. I do."
"Good," she said, before proceeding to order a whole range of food Sergio had only ever heard the names of. Well, at least for ice cream he could have his usual hazelnut. Sergio already looked forward to that.
The food had so many different shapes and colours that his first instinct was to leave Paula there and bolt. There were lumpia, pancit, kare kare, sinigag, arroz caldo and more. Sergio knew them all to be rather famous in the Philippines but never had the courage to try them before. He sat still in his chair, trying but failing to muster up the courage to eat anything.
"Oh come on! Start eating, Sergio."
He gulped, "I.. umm.."
Paula put a bowl of stew in front of him and barked at him, "Start with that."
Looking at her rather content face while eating her own stew, Sergio finally took a spoonful of it and the buttery texture of it in his mouth was unexpectedly delightful.
"This is good," he remarked, surprised that something she had ordered for him could be that good.
"I told ya," she replied, moving on to the spring rolls and noodles now.
Sergio joined her with more vigour this time. Trying out the foods, keeping the panic aside and loving each food more than the one before.
After savouring his porridge, he finally got into the matter at hand but tried his best to be tactful about it, "So how was the first day back to school, Big P?"
Paula stopped eating at once, her posture suddenly turning defensive. Sergio hated that he had to pour cold water on her elated mood, but he reminded himself that he was doing it for her after all. He needed her to face whatever it was that was bothering her earlier that day.
"Mom didn't tell you anything?"
"Well.. she said that you seemed upset."
"I made Nic upset too," she said, her eyes downcast.
"I've talked with her. She's going to be alright."
"If you say so…"
"I know how much it makes you feel bad. Why did you snap at your sister then?"
Paula put down her spoon and looked at him, her eyes sad and vacant.
"I don't know. I just… really don't. I was so… so mad at everything and she was just there and you know, she just seemed like this person I could get my anger out on. It sucked. I'm a terrible person. I'm a terrible sister.. I… Does she hate me? Would she stop talking with me? We should go back... I need to apologise to her right now…"
"Oh no, no, please sit," Sergio held up a hand to gesture to her to remain seated, "I assure you she is alright and holds absolutely no grudge against you. Honestly, I think it's good for you two to fight every now and then. My brother and I used to bicker all the time, even as adults. You two get along too much."
She snorted at that, "That's on Nic though. She's just too good a sister."
"You know, if there was a debate as to who is the better sister, I'd be team-Big P."
"Team-Paula you mean?" she said, resuming to take a bite of her food.
"Same thing," he shrugged.
"I saw Aiden at school today," Paula said, sighing. There was no point beating around the bush anymore. Honestly, she was glad it was Sergio and not her mother who confronted her about this. She had an amazing connection with her mom, but sometimes Sergio, her quite insightful friend, understood her more than her mother.
"Aiden?" Sergio did a double-take at that declaration, "Your ex-boyfriend Aiden?"
"The one and only," she sighed again.
"Wasn't he supposed to go to a different school this year?"
"Apparently not," she said, a small ache starting to form in her head. She continued to eat her food, not meeting Sergio's eyes.
"That freaking sucks."
Paula looked up to snort at him, his urban vocabulary never failing to amuse her.
"There's more. He's got a new girlfriend. A dumb leggy blonde. He's been walking around in front of me all day, rubbing it in my face. A new girlfriend, can you believe it?"
"I certainly cannot," Sergio shook his head, "How long has it been since you two broke up? Five minutes? And he has already landed another girl?"
"I know, right? He's such a…" Paula stopped herself before saying 'scumbag', just because Sergio was comfortable with the new generation dictionary, didn't mean she should use such slang in front of him, "God! I had dyed my hair blue to move on, to have a new me."
Sergio remembered that decision-making day during summer rather well. Raquel was bothered beyond measure looking at her hair, yet she had tried her best not to say anything to Paula. He remembered her muttering under breath 'She has the right to do what she wants with her hair. I can't stop her. I shouldn't stop her.' Though all of them had eventually gotten used to it, he couldn't forget how Raquel would sigh looking at it at the beginning, but not being able to say anything, giving Sergio reason to laugh quietly at the corner.
Paula continued, "I liked my hair so much and now I hate it. I absolutely hate it," her voice broke, "It stinks. It doesn't go with any of my outfits! It makes me look so stupid in front of his hot girlfriend. I want to chop all my hair off!"
"Well, it might not matter to you but I think you've never looked prettier."
It did matter to Paula, "You are just saying that to stop me from crying," she said, calming down just a notch.
"That and the fact that it's true," he shrugged, taking a spoonful of rice in his mouth, trying to remain calm while all his being wanted to sucker-punch that Aiden kid.
"He wasn't supposed to come back. I wasn't supposed to face him again after he dumped me," her voice was quiet, almost a whisper, not willing to admit that she got dumped.
"But he is here, Big P and we have to deal with it. Whether we like it or not."
"How would you feel if you had to see mom hanging around with another guy? Every day?"
"I would be devastated," Sergio replied without thinking.
"I feel the same," she said, wiping her hands in the napkin, "Shall we order the ice cream? And don't you dare order hazelnut again."
Sergio grimaced. He was then instructed to order something new for himself because Paula had already chosen his meal for him. Without really noticing the menu, he ordered something called 'morning mystery' flavour for himself and hoped for the best.
"Let's continue from where we left off," Sergio said as if he was in one of his classrooms, "I'd be devastated to see Raquel with another man.. ever... But you know, if there's something that your mother has taught me, it is to have a goal for myself; a goal bigger than my partner. Yes, we belong with each other and yes our souls are... um... you could say connected… but my goal is myself… to preserve my well-being, my sanity and to sharpen the skills I have. And I know now that in no way does it make me selfish. So what is your goal?"
She took a minute to ponder before answering, "To be genuine I guess… and patient. I need more patience."
Sergio thought, slightly amused, that he couldn't agree more, "Those are such perceptive goals. Paula, I know you're hurting and seeing his face again is like salt being rubbed on your wounds, but you need to know only you can control your emotions. Do not hand out remotes to everyone around you to let them control how you feel or how you react."
She listened to him with all her attention, trying to soak up every word. To memorise them in her bones, to feel in control of her being again.
He went on, "You need to continue going to school to achieve your goals. Goals bigger than the rest of us. New goals might get added to that list and you'll achieve all of them. I can see it happening… clearly…" his voice cracked in pride, "So clearly."
Paula's eyes moistened hearing those words as well and she was grateful to the waiter for bringing their ice creams right before they were a crying mess. When Sergio took a bite of his odd-looking blue-green experimental ice cream, his face contorted in disgust. That made Paula laugh out loud despite the circumstances.
Once back home and after wishing Paula good night as she went off to her room, Sergio first went to Phoenix's room. She was fast asleep, with one leg wrapped around a side pillow. He tiptoed over to her side in the semi-dark room, moon and stars stickers aglow on the ceiling. Bending over he placed a featherlight kiss on her unruly hair. It was only then did he notice that she had fallen asleep with her glasses on, yet again. His hands shaking just a little, in a bid not to wake her up, he took her glasses off and placed it on the bedside table. Placing one last kiss on her forehead, he left her room, hoping his sensitive little girl would find the strength to fight against this rather cruel world.
He folded his shirt sleeves up to his elbows as he walked across to their bedroom. Their home was dark and silent by the time he and Paula had returned from the dinner which was odd since they weren't out that late. When he entered the bedroom, he was surprised to find Raquel already dozed off, on his side of the bed. The sheet half covering her legs, she was lying in her usual Palawan attire: thin cotton shirt, loose pants, and his favourite part: no bra. The sight of her peacefully sleeping on the bed, her arms and legs outspread like a kid was too much for Sergio. He uncharacteristically jumped in the bed without wasting another minute.
She stirred as soon as he got into the bed. Moving closer to her, he raised her left arm just a bit to put his head on the crook of her shoulder. He made himself comfortable by her side, sneaking his hand under her shirt to rest it on her midriff. They didn't often sleep in this position but that didn't mean he loved it any less, especially since it gave him such easy access to her neck.
Her neck. He gazed at that place greedily, debating with himself whether he should make a move or not. Ultimately his sane mind lost the battle and he placed one soft kiss on the side of her neck, followed by several insistent licks. She hummed in appreciation, starting to wake up. Sergio did not even feel guilty as he proceeded to nibble on that exact spot.
"You're still dressed," she said in her muffled voice that made his head dizzy.
"Mm..hm.. You taste so good…" he whispered, "Especially after that abominable ice cream."
"What?" She was amused.
"Paula made me experiment with food."
"Did she? I've taught her well then," Raquel turned to him and tugged his hair softly to place a kiss on his mouth, "I'm sorry I fell asleep before you guys returned. I felt so tired today after dealing with all those meltdowns earlier."
"Don't worry. I figured you'd be exhausted," he said, peering at the soft features of her face, needing to kiss her again.
"How did it go, cariño?"
"It went really well actually. She was bothered about her ex and his return to school."
"Oh? That scumbag is back?" she asked, concern etched in her voice.
"Don't worry. I think she understood the advice I gave her to deal with the situation."
He then cradled her face and pressed his lips against hers, attempting to wipe away the despair from her mind. He broke apart to say, "I promise she'll be alright. I know her, Raquel."
"I really hope she'd be. I'll always worry, you know," she said before returning his kiss, slipping her tongue in his mouth, eliciting a low moan from him. It amazed her how every kiss she shared with him still caused goosebumps to appear on her skin, even after all these years.
When they came up for air, she mumbled, slightly out of breath, "Phoenix seemed in a much better mood this evening," she squeezed his arm, "You have become such a great father. You just… I'm just so glad to be able to witness it. You know, my dad would've been so touched if he could see you being so amazing to his granddaughters."
She laid her head back on her pillow, suddenly overtaken by memories of her father, by the wish that he could be a part of her beautiful family. The onslaught of such powerful emotions caused her tiredness to return.
Her eyes were getting heavy when she heard Sergio saying in a low voice, "I really wish I could meet him, Raquel. It'd have been such an honour."
He shifted closer to her, feeling drowsy, yet needing to finish his sentence, "And you've no idea how much I wish you could meet my father. He was my guiding force. And Moscú… you'd have liked Moscú… such a sweet burly man… I hope I can be a father like them one day… someday…"
He then drifted off to sleep, still fully dressed, in Raquel's arms.
Classes hadn't been so bad thus far, well at least till the time Paula sat down with her lunchbox at the school cafeteria. Yeah, yeah, she didn't know how or why but she did come back to school although she had sworn she never would, just the day before.
She was just about to open her lunchbox when a rather familiar voice asked her, "Hey, blue head, can we sit here? All the other tables are full." It was Aiden, her sick ex-boyfriend, accompanied by that dumb blondie.
Oh, that peace was short-lived. He looked so infuriating that Paula swore she could wipe that smug smile off his face in just one slam of her fist.
Don't hand out remotes to everyone around you to control your emotions. You get to control your feelings. Not them.
She took one deep breath as Sergio's words rang in her ear. There were several school years ahead when she'd have to tolerate Aiden's pesky ass. Might as well start now, on a day that she had been feeling good about herself so far.
Straightening her back, she looked him in the eye and said in a neutral voice, "Yeah, sure. No problem."
Aiden was definitely taken aback by that reaction and sat down somewhat unsure. Paula shrugged him off of her mind right that moment and proceeded to open her box. Those feelings for him might take a while to fade, but her confidence and self-belief were here to stay and that was more than enough.
There was a note in her lunchbox, she noticed. It could be from her mom reminding her not to discard the fruits from her meal. She rolled her eyes. But unfolding the piece of paper, Paula recognised the handwriting not to be of her mom, but of her dad… of Sergio… well she called him dad in her head anyway. No matter how much she hesitated to do it to his face.
Paula slowly read the precious few words in that note, her smile growing wider and wider. She was so grateful that he was the father she got to keep.
Looking up from the note she darted her eyes across the cafeteria looking for her sister. Nic was seated across the room with a book and her lunchbox open in front of her. Their eyes met and Nic's face lit up in glee. She matched Paula's smile with her own toothy grin.
It was a silent moment when two sisters were connected in a bond that no one else could perceive around them, but it filled them both with immense joy and pride. Paula knew Nic had received the same simple note from their father.
"You are one brave big girl."
It was an affirmation. Affirmation of his faith, pride and love for them. Those small words spoke volumes.
Paula then saw her sister nudging up her glasses with her thumb and index finger, a move Paula had seen their father do countless times. The fact that Phoenix was absorbing the essence of Sergio just as much Paula had been, filled Paula's heart with warmth and she finally dug into her food.
Everything was right in her little world again.
A/N: Thank you for reading this one. :)
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