Chapter 172: Are you really fine?
The next morning, Olivia was getting ready for school and humming happily as Noah and Michael were the ones to take her to school.
For the first time, her Papa and Daddy would take her to school. She was so happy.
"By the way, Daddy," Olivia called as Noah buckled her up in her booster. "I have a question." She asked in a sweet innocent tone.
"What is it, Liv?" He asked, brushing his hand over her hair.
"Daddy is such a big wolf. I don’t think there are other wolves as big as Daddy is." She began. "Does this mean Daddy is the leader or something?"
"Hm, that’s quite intuitive. You’re right." He said and smiled at her. "Daddy is the leader of a pack."
"What’s a pack?"
"For a know-it-all like you, this must be a new topic that’s got your curious bell tingling, am I right?" Michael asked as he got into the car.
"You’re right. I wanna know all about Daddy and his pack."
"Well, you’ll learn that later." Noah said and then shut the door, looking at her through the window as he said, "For now, why don’t you focus on learning what the teachers have to teach you?"
"Okay." She said and started swinging her legs. And then she mumbled. "But my teachers don’t teach me a whole lot of things though."
Noah walked around and got into the driver’s seat.
"Are you ready to leave?" He asked Michael who nodded.
"It would’ve been nice if we could carry Ven with us." Olivia suddenly said, peering towards their seats but was restricted by her seat belts.
"Sweetie, you know you can’t take pets to school." Michael said, looking at her through the rearview mirror. "And even if it’s allowed, you know he’s not very familiar with you yet. He might get a fright, run off somewhere, and even get stepped on."
Olivia gasped in fright.
"Yeah, you don’t want that, right? So don’t think of sneaking Ven to school at all or you might have to hold his funeral sooner than expected."
"Papa," Olivia called, sinking into her seat. "That’s very harsh of you." She claimed.
"Well, better to be harsh now than regret not giving you a heads-up later." He boldly said. "But don’t worry a thing, okay? Your Aunty and uncle are at home and will look after him till you get back."
"Yay!" She lifted her arms in excitement and then Michael turned to Noah.
"I’ll set the coordinates so you can follow the GPS to her school." He said, touching the screen above the stereo.
Noah looked into the rearview mirror, looking at Olivia as she stared on with her lips wet from licking them a little.
He never thought he’d see the day.
He could proudly take his little girl to school now.
The pride and joy in his eyes reached Michael’s attention and he smiled gently.
He liked this.
Even if he said this over and over, it wouldn’t change anything, and it wouldn’t add to the joy at all, but just telling himself this was an assurance that this was not a long, sweet dream that was eating away at his rationality.
He woke up several times in the night after having a nightmare that Noah just picked himself up and walked away, never looking back and never returning.
It was a horror he wished to never live so there was still a bit of unease in his heart.
"Are you okay?" Noah asked Michael, who snapped out of his thoughts, and Michael forced out a smile.
"Yeah, I’m fine."
But Noah’s gaze did not falter from him.
Each time Michael woke up, sitting up in fright as cold sweat dripped down his body, he would equally wake up, as if he had that same nightmare and hold Michael in his arms.
"Are you really fine?" Noah pressed gently, one hand still on the wheel while the other reaching out to brush Michael’s knuckles which looked to be slightly trembling.
Michael let out a soft sigh, glancing at Olivia who was now humming some random tune in the backseat.
"I just keep thinking," he admitted with a low voice, tuning away from Olivia to meet Noah’s eyes. "Sometimes it feels too perfect. Like it could vanish if I close my eyes for too long. Or if I blink for a certain number of times. It’s like you would leave without a trace and I have no way of getting back to you."
His voice was soft and low but Noah could feel the trembling anxiety laced in them.
Noah gave a small, understanding smile and squeezed his hand.
"I know the feeling," he said quietly. "But this is real. I don’t know how long I’m going to take to convince you that the reality you see right now is not a mirage, but know that I will be with you from now on, every step of the way. Olivia and I. We’re here. I’m not going anywhere and neither are you."
Michael nodded, feeling comforted but that odd ache still lingered at the edge of his chest. It was hard to just shake it off completely but he would try something. Anything... To be free in this reality and not let the shackles of torment hold him down.
From the backseat, Olivia piped up, oblivious to the tension just seconds ago.
"What are you two whispering about? Don’t leave me out of it." She said, her voice eager to know.
"You can’t join in anyway since it’s adult stuff," Noah said, finally turning on the engine and hitting the main road.
"Is it kissing stuff?" she teased, her eyebrows etching up playfully with that knowing smile on her lips and Michael gasped in disbelief.
"Young lady, you..." He was at a loss for words and she giggled gleefully.
"I saw you kissing Daddy last night! Twice!" she squealed as she held up two fingers.
"You were supposed to be asleep, young lady." Michael ranted.
"I was, but then I woke up to pee and I saw youuu~" she sang, then covered her mouth while giggling loudly.
Michael turned around slightly with a mock glare.
"No more spying on adults, Missy."
"Okay, okay!" she giggled again. "But I liked it. You and Daddy look like that prince and princess in my storybook when the prince kisses the princess and they live happily ever after."
That made both of them quiet for a moment.
What broke that silence was Michael’s exhausted sigh and Noah’s laugh.
"She’s just too much for her age," Michael mumbled, and then Noah reached for Michael’s hand again. This time, Michael didn’t flinch.
"See?" Noah murmured, eyes soft. "We’re not dreaming."
Michael closed his eyes briefly and smiled.
He guessed the details were awfully too much for it to be a dream.
Unless someone had cast an illusion spell on him then this was all reality.
Olivia glanced from one to the other, and when she saw that they were both smiling with no words, as if communicating with their eyes, she sensed something was going to happen, and her eyes glinted.
She felt like a detective.
"I feel Papa and Daddy want to do that adult stuff again." She mumbled quietly, but both had good hearing, so they heard it.
"Young lady, quit it with the adult talk," Michael grunted and Noah laughed even more.
They were such funny characters pitched together.
Guess this was what you get when you put their two genes together.
"But I know about a lot of adult stuff," Olivia murmured while pouting her lips.
They both paused and then looked back at her.
She wasn’t exactly sure of what she was saying, right?
"Anyway, does this mean I’m going to have a sibling soon?" She asked. "I heard that if your parents kiss a lot then they’ll give you a sibling soon."
Noah cleared his throat, cheeks flushed from that innocent reasoning.
"It seems I’ll have to have a little talk with that teacher if yours," Michael mumbled under his breath and Noah burst out laughing.
"Oh no, my teacher knows nothing of this." Olivia said. "She’s far too innocent to teach us stuff like this."
"Then where did you learn this from?" Noah asked.
"Honey, don’t tell me it’s from the internet again," Michael said, leaning his head on his hand as if looked like he was getting a headache.
"No way." She shook her head. "Uncle said he’d give me several water shots if I dared to search such things on the Internet. So he told me himself."
"Your uncle?" Michael asked, looking back at her.
Roland said that?
What exactly did she ask him?
"What was the question?"
"I asked how to make babies." She innocently asked, but this question shocked them both, and Noah’s hands tightened on the wheel, nearly losing track, but he immediately pulled the brakes and then took in a deep breath.
"And why would you ask that?"
