Here's the next chapter! The triplets thank you for an amazing birthday. We hit 250 reviews, and that made my day! :D I love you guys, and the triplets love you, too!
Disclaimer: Triplets? Mine. Dimitri and Rose... Weeeell, no, they're not mine.
The triplets lunged for the chocolate immediately. Thankfully, Lissa grabbed Jeremy around the waist and pulled him away from the chocolate. "Not yet, silly," she teased. He sighed heavily and nearly rolled his eyes. Then he smiled good-naturedly. Dimitri and I looked at each other. A mutual agreement passed through us, and we both knew that the Adrienne and Sabrina could not be allowed near that sugar. Not now, at least.
I dove for Sabrina and caught her, lifting her into my arms. "You have to wait, Sabrina," I murmured as she whined and pushed against me, wanting the candy. I watched as Adrienne was still running for the candy, undeterred by the fact that her siblings had fallen. Dimitri caught her around the waist, pulling her into his arms.
"Daddy!" she screamed angrily. Dimitri clapped a hand over Adrienne's mouth.
"Adrienne, sweetheart, you have to be quiet, okay?" he soothed. She was pouting and on the verge of tears as he kissed her head.
"I want candy, though," she insisted. "It's my birthday."
"I know, angel, I know," Dimitri sighed. He hated denying his children anything, but this was really for the best. They didn't need that kind of sugar this late. Maybe a little after they had calmed down, but not while they were this worked up about it.
She began to silently cry, and Dimitri winced. "Shhh, Adrienne," he breathed, stroking her hair tenderly. "Don't cry, sweetheart, please don't cry. I'm not saying you can't have any at all. Just not right now. Don't you want to enjoy the party Aunt Lissa planned for you?"
Adrienne gasped in soft breaths, tears still flowing down her cheeks. Dimitri rested his forehead against hers and kissed her cheeks and forehead repeatedly. "Don't cry, Adrienne, please. You know I love you," he whispered desperately.
Our oldest and most dramatic daughter sniffed and nodded. "I love you, Daddy," she said quietly, hugging him tightly.
Liss cleared her throat, trying to diffuse the tense atmosphere. We'd all been drawn to Adrienne and Dimitri's conversation, and it was like time had stopped for them to fix their small issue. Sabrina was resting her head against my shoulder, watching her sister. Jeremy was having a blast, trying to worm his way out of Lissa's grasp. She would pretend to drop him, then catch him at the last second.
"Jeremy, Andre wants someone to play with," Lissa murmured, trying to bait him. Jeremy took it hook, line, and sinker. A broad grin lit up his face, and he nodded eagerly. I swore, Andre was like the brother Jeremy didn't have. I was eternally grateful to him for giving Jeremy that.
Lissa put Jeremy down, and Christian appeared with his son in his arms. Andre might have only been two, but he knew his best friend when he saw him. Andre smiled hugely. They began to wrestle a little bit. I set Sabrina down, and Dimitri did the same. I met his eyes, and they were upset.
I pulled Lissa aside and asked if she would watch the kids for a moment while I talked to Dimitri, and because she is an incredible friend, she insisted it was fine. I made my way to Dimitri and took his hand, squeezing tightly.
"Come on. We need to talk," I murmured, tugging his hand a little.
He looked at me curiously, then nodded. We went outside and stood on Lissa and Christian's front porch.
"I made her cry," he whispered, anguished. "I made her cry because I wouldn't give her what she wanted. Because -"
"Dimitri, shh," I soothed, holding his face in between my hands. I made him look at me. Ours eyes locked. "She was just being Adrienne, Dimitri. You know that. She loves you, Dimitri, and that won't ever change, okay?"
His eyes fell. "She'll hate me," he whispered. "She'll loathe me for what I am. And if she doesn't, then she'll despise me for lying to her about it. I can't win, Rose."
"Dimitri, Dimitri, calm down," I soothed, coaxing him into looking at me. "Calm down, okay? I'm here. I'm here, and so are your children, okay?" I knew how this went. Strigoi could get very emotional, and it had happened before. It was the reason he was so easily worried by his children rejecting him for being what he was. I kissed his cheek. "Dimitri, we're here," I breathed. "We'll always be here. We're your family, all right? Family doesn't go away, no matter what."
He looked up at me, and his eyes were wide. "I love you, Rose," he breathed. He pressed his lips to mine gently. He pulled away after a short moment. "Just don't go anywhere. I couldn't live if you left," he whimpered.
I hugged him tightly. "I love you, Dimitri. I'm not going anywhere. You know that." He had to understand. I had to make him understand. I wasn't going anywhere. He took my hand and squeezed tightly. I squeezed back. "Let's go enjoy our children's party, hm?"
He smiled a little and nodded. We went back inside, and I grinned at the sight of Lissa slightly panicking as Sabrina and Adrienne tackled Jeremy and Andre, wrestling with the boys. The girls might like princess movies and scream when they saw bugs, but they were tomboys all the way, and everyone knew it.
"Adrienne, Sabrina, please stop beating Jeremy and Andre up," I chuckled. The two emerged from the small fight unscathed, grinning broadly.
"I'm a good fighter, Momma!" Adrienne announced proudly. Dimitri's eyes softened, and he smiled.
"Yes, you are, Adrienne. So are you, Sabrina," he said, giving each girl a hug for her effort in the fight.
"So," Lissa murmured, pausing dramatically. "Presents?"
Yeah, I know it's short this time. But better than nothing, right? *Closes eyes and prays* Please be better than nothing, please be better than nothing.
The triplets want reviews... Or else Adrienne will cry. :'c
- J.C.
