Chapter 149: His daughter, his precious daughter
Olivia, who had been asleep, woke up as soon as she heard that familiar voice coming from the living room but she didn’t know if it was a dream.
’It sounds just like Daddy’s voice,’ she thought, and then got down from the bed.
Was this a dream because she missed her daddy too much? Or was it someone else?
As a little girl, she didn’t need to worry about too many things and just lived as a child, but this little girl had far too many worries.
She worried for her papa, and worried for her daddy, who sounded so sad on the phone.
So, she prayed desperately that her daddy would come to her soon. Very soon.
She wished that this was the answer to her prayer and not just a dream.
"Is that really you, daddy?"
For some reason, Noah couldn’t bring himself to turn around. He couldn’t look his daughter in the face. He was... Ashamed.
"Daddy!" Olivia rushed and jumped on top of him, catching his neck from behind.
Despite his own shame, his daughter would not relent to jump into his embrace as soon as she could.
Just as he had been looking forward to this day, she, too, had been looking forward to this day.
"I’m so glad I can finally meet you, Daddy." She cried. "I really wanted to meet you."
Her words touched Noah and he held her, finally. Her soft skin made it difficult for him to hold her firmly, but he was scared that if he did not hold her firmly, she would fall and break, so he managed it somehow.
He held her arm and pulled her to the front, holding her up as he gazed into her eyes.
Ah, she was everything he ever imagined. Plus, she looked just like her picture.
His eyes grew teary and Olivia smiled.
"Daddy is also a crybaby." She said and he nodded.
"Yes, I am." How could he deny that fact when he was currently shedding tears in front of his daughter he was meeting for the first time? "It’s because Olivia is such a crybaby, so I, too, am a crybaby."
It was a reunion he had never taken into account because he came here abruptly.
"Daddy must’ve listened to Olivia and come right away." Olivia said and wrapped her little arms around his neck. "I’m so happy. I’m so happy that I’m crying, Daddy. Papa will be very happy as well."
The repeated words of his daughter made his heart melt and he held her, stuffing his face in her neck as she held his neck and cried.
His daughter, his precious daughter.
Alyssa watched this and then sighed in relief.
Just look at them crying in each other’s arms. They were a bunch of crybabies.
This family of three could finally be happy, it seemed.
Michael finally opened his eyes. He stared at the familiar ceiling in his room and wondered if it had been a dream.
He dreamt that Noah had walked into his flower shop, and the others saw him as well, so it wasn’t a hallucination.
But still, if he was waking up now, it meant it had been a dream, right?
It was painful.
But then why was he still getting Noah’s scent?
It was coming from... He turned his head and found a sight he never thought he would see.
Beside him, on the bed, was Olivia sleeping soundly on top of... Noah?
Shocked, he sat up right away but he wasn’t seeing things. It was really Noah, but this got him confused.
Was he still dreaming?
Noah was on the bed and Olivia was sleeping soundly on top of him.
Not only that, he had been using Noah’s arm as a pillow.
Still trying to understand if this was reality, Michael pinched his cheek but even when it hurt so much, he did not wake up.
What... What did that mean?
Doubt crept into his heart. He just couldn’t believe what he was seeing no matter how much he wanted to believe it.
It had happened too much in the past and it only left him disappointed.
"Papa?" He heard Olivia’s voice and watched as Olivia scratched her sleepy eyes.
"Olivia," Michael called but he didn’t know what to say next.
He was confused and filled with doubt.
He wanted to ask his daughter what she was doing on top of Noah but that question would seem weird. Then, he wanted to ask when Noah got here but still, why would he ask his daughter who was seeing her father for the first time, such a question?
He was confused and could only shove his fingers through his hair while he thought deeply about this.
"What’s wrong, Papa?" Olivia asked and then started getting down from Noah’s body.
This, of course, woke Noah up.
He had been very protective and feared that she would roll from his body and hurt himself so he kept his hard up, ready to hold her steady if she moved even a little bit.
This was the first time he was doing such a thing and since Olivia insisted, he just had to give her what she wanted.
Now, he had opened his eyes as soon as his defense mechanism kicked in, but his eyes fell right on Michael, who was still trying to make sense out of the whole thing.
"I... I’m not dreaming right now, am I?" Michael asked and Noah closed his eyes, understanding his doubt.
Even he had to stare for a long time, scared to even blink while watching Michael sleep, for him to assure himself that this was not a dream and he wouldn’t suddenly open his eyes and find himself in that cold and lonely mansion.
He watched Michael for quite a while, stroking his daughter’s hair till she fell asleep, and then, exhaustion took hold of him and he slept.
He hadn’t slept much since he arrived at Manchester because he was too excited and worried about meeting Michael.
He had been thinking long and hard about how to approach them as well as the words to say, as he got sleep-deprived.
Now in their midst, the warm bed he lay on, the warm breathing from Michael, and the warm child sleeping on top of him... All that warmth put him at ease and he finally closed his eyes.
He was glad that once he woke up, the first thing he saw were Michael’s eyes. Though he looked confused, it was better than seeing his eyes filled with hatred.
He had imagined it a few times but thankfully, that was not the reaction Michael had.
"It’s not a dream," Noah said, reaching his hand towards Michael’s face and caressing his cheeks.
Ah, his warmth.
Michael melted in it, dropping his face on his hand. How much he missed this warmth.
"It does feel like a dream," Noah said, "But I assure you, this is not a dream and I am right here with you."
A few droplets rolled down Michael’s cheeks as he heard that, and the word ’finally’ escaped his lips like a breath of relief.
He held Noah’s hand and then pressed it to his face even more, smiling at him.
"You’re finally here." He said. "What took you so long?"
"I’m sorry for making you wait so long, Michael." Noah said and the soft moment got Olivia, who was stuck in their middle to wonder out loud,
"Is this the part where you kiss?" She asked, and they flinched.
She was still just a kid. Where did she get that from?
"The prince always kisses the princess at the end and they live happily ever after, right? Daddy needs to kiss Papa so we can live happily ever after." She said and they paused for a moment before laughing.
So, it was just a silly child’s mentality. That was a close one. Her innocence was safe.
"Yes, that’s true." Noah said, patting her head. "Olivia is so smart,"
Olivia’s nose grew in pride as she folded her hands with a smirk.
"I am, aren’t I?"
"And not very humble." Michael added over a mutter but she heard it and gasped in shock.
"I can be humble when I want to be, Papa." She said. "I’m very humble."
But her reaction only caused them to laugh even more.
This laughter was hearty. And because it did not hold any weight from burdens, regrets, and pain, it felt as if everything had been put in place and nothing could ever destroy their happiness.
"Oh, by the way, why didn’t you give us a heads up that you were coming?" Michael asked. "And I don’t see Sebastian anywhere. Is he waiting for you at a hotel or something? Did you plan this as a surprise?" He asked, but Noah began to roll his eyes away as he had been caught in a question he could not lie his way out of.
"That’s... I ran away." He said and Michael took a moment to process his words before freaking out.
"What do you mean you ran away?! From who?!"
