CHAAPTER FORTY FIVE
It was seven forty, and there was still no sign of Alex. Mia sighed as she glanced at the entrance for the nth time and then chuckled to herself.
What exactly was she doing? Keeping hopes? Expectations? Just because he said he would be early didn’t mean he was asking her to wait for him.
With another sigh leaving her lips, she got up and checked on Bryan, who seemed to be sleeping soundly.
A smile formed on her lips, knowing he was going to be up later in the night and give her a hard time.
But that’s how babies are innocent and carefree. Growing up was sure messed up.
A few moments later, as she stood on the terrace watching the bright city lights, the breeze flowing through created a sense of calmness inside her.
“I guess you like the terrace more than any place in the house.” She was startled as she turned around and found him leaning on the wall as he stared at her.
“How long have you been here?” She questioned him, and he shrugged as he pushed himself off the wall and walked towards her.
“Not too long.” Alex stuffed his hands inside his pockets and stood by her side as she continued staring at him.
“I know I’m pretty handsome, but try not to stare at me for too long.” He commented, and Mia grew red from embarrassment.
“I wasn’t staring at your face.” She cleared her throat, trying to cover her embarrassment.
“Sure, you weren’t. Have you eaten yet?” He turned to look at her, and she did the same, only that her face held a big question mark.
“What are you doing? Are you sick? Did you hurt your head somewhere?” She questioned him as she continued to stare at him in disbelief.
“Why? Is it unusual for me to act like this? Does it make you uncomfortable?” He questioned her back, and she shivered deliberately.
“Of course you’re giving me chills, so please stop behaving so nicely towards me.” She looked away, and he chuckled softly.
“What exactly do you want? If I am cold towards you, you complain of me being rude and a jerk. Now when I’m being a little nice, you don’t want that either.” His stare made her squirm, but she didn’t show it to him, instead, she looked back into his eyes and answered.
“I don’t want you to change because you have to, do that if you really want to. And about treating me, I’m fine unless you don’t take away the only important thing in my life.” She said it sincerely, and they continued to stare at each other for a few more minutes.
“I’m not going to separate you from Bryan.” He stated this as she searched his eyes for something.
“That’s good, then.” She smiled and turned to the front again.
Both grew silent, but it was a comfortable one before she decided to break it.
“Have you eaten?” She asked
“I did, with a client.” He answered.
“That’s good, I did as well.”
“Well, I thought you would prepare something for me since I mentioned coming early today.” He joked, and she scoffed.
“Don’t flatter yourself, I was just going to sleep early today.” She lied, and he nodded with a hint of a smirk on his face.
“What? You don’t believe me?” She said it defensively, watching his smile.
“Also, can you stop being like this? Gosh, I feel like you’re not the Alexander Ian I know.
Perhaps you are his twin brother? Or his clone?” She asked, and Alex just ignored it all as he stared at the city lights ahead.
It was noisy and annoying, yes, but somehow he had started liking the noise.
After a while, they went to sleep. Mia frowned as she opened her eyes and sat up when she heard Bryan crying.
She got up, moved towards Bryan’s crib, and picked him up. But something was not right. Her sleep flew away at once when she felt Bryan’s body burning up. He seemed to be crying more than usual, and it worried her.
“Alex,” She shook him lightly, but that was enough for him to wake up.
“What’s wrong?” He asked in a groggy voice as he stared at her and then at Bryan, who was crying in her arms.
“He’s burning up and has a cold as well. It’s three in the morning, no doctor will be available, but I’m worried. He won’t stop crying.” She explained as she kept rubbing Bryan’s back.
“I’ll call a doctor, don’t worry. Just stay with him.” He said that and picked up his phone as he moved out of the room.
Half an hour later, the doctor was there and checked Bryan’s health while Mia looked at him in worry.
Alex stood there waiting for the results, but he was anxious as well.
“It’s nothing serious, just a common cold, which led to the fever. Just make him drink lots of water, and make sure you give him a bath with lukewarm water. He’ll be fine soon.” The doctor assured her, and Mia let out a sigh of relief.
“Thank you, doctor, for coming at this hour.” She thanked him, and he smiled.
“That’s no problem, I’ll take my leave.” He got up, and Alex led him out while Mia adjusted the quilt over Bryan’s small body.
She waited until Alex came back and asked him to sit beside Bryan before she went out to prepare for the wet strips.
“Alex, you can go to sleep. I’ll take care of this.” Mia said as she came back with the bowl of water in her hand.
She sat on the other side and dipped the cloth in the water before squeezing it and placing it on his tiny forehead.
Instead of saying anything, Alex sat there with her and watched as she repeated the procedure without being tired.
When it was more than an hour, he asked her to rest and took her place instead, despite her protests.
Almost four hours later, taking turns and being worried, Bryan’s fever had almost vanished.
It was a huge relief for both of them, and then Mia noticed that it was almost nine in the morning.
“Alex, it’s nine already, you’re not going to work?” She questioned him as he walked out of the bathroom in his casual clothes.
“I’ll stay at home today.” He declared, and she nodded, even though she wanted to say something.
Half the day passed with both of them taking care of Bryan, who was much better and playing around.
Alex worked from home but would check on Bryan from time to time.
Mia mostly stayed by Bryan, not wanting to take his health lightly.
“Mia, stop worrying so much, or else you’ll get sick as well.”
Alex said as he noticed her getting worked up even when Bryan would cough a little.
“I’m fine.” She said, but her tired eyes said otherwise.
Alex sighed and took Bryan in his arms before he turned towards her.
“Go sleep, I’ll take care of him.” He ordered, and she opened her mouth to protest, but his cold look was already present, which made her shut her mouth and do as he said.
Honestly, she felt much better as soon as she lay down on the bed and was asleep in no time.
A few hours later, as Alex came in with Bryan asleep in his arms, he placed him in his crib before he settled himself beside Mia.
The three of them slept until it was dinner time, and Mia was the first one to be awake, not because she wanted to but because she felt some weight on her waist.
When she opened her eyes, the first thing she noticed was Alex’s face, which was extremely close to hers, and it made her heart stop.
She tried to get away, but his left arm, which was around her waist, prevented her from going anywhere.
She pressed her lips tightly and held his hand to take it away, but much to her surprise or shock, he pulled her closer and snuggled closer.
For a minute, she couldn’t understand what had happened until he moved again and she got her senses back.
Without thinking anything else, she pushed him away and got off the bed, running into the bathroom.
Her heart felt like it would leap out of her chest any second as she stood leaning on the door.
Alex opened his eyes when he felt a push and looked at Mia’s side of the bed, confused.
Who the hell pushed him? With a frown, he went back to sleep after pulling the quilt over his head.
Mia peeked out and felt relief when she found him still sleeping. She checked Bryan’s temperature and was thankful when it was normal.
She quietly moved out of the room and decided to prepare for their dinner.
At around eight, Alex walked out of the room and found Mia reading a book on the couch. He thought of something and moved towards her, catching her attention.
“You’re up.” She stated it with a smile, and he nodded as he sat opposite her.
“Did you, by any chance, push me while I was sleeping?” At his question, her eyes widened slightly before she composed herself.
“No, why would I?” She lied through her teeth, and he narrowed his eyes.
“Strange. I’m sure I wasn’t dreaming.” He was deliberately eyeing her with a suspicious look, and it annoyed her.
It wasn’t her fault to begin with! He was holding her in the first place.
“Whatever! I’m going to wake up Bryan because it’s dinner time.”
She frowned and closed the book with force as she got up and left from there. Alex was surprised at the change of events.
What did he do now?
After dinner, as if it were their routine, both of them were on the terrace, but this time, Bryan was there as well.
He was quietly watching the view while in his father’s arms.
“Is my baby sleepy?” Mia cooed as she watched him rub his eyes twice after a while.
Bryan just rested his head on Alex’s shoulder and watched his mother, who did the same with a smile on her face.
When he closed his eyes, Mia mouthed to Alex about it, who nodded and left the terrace.
When he came back and stood beside her, she said nothing, and neither did he, but when ten minutes passed, Alex decided to break the silence.
“I was four years old when my parents passed away.” It felt as if she was frozen on her spot when she heard him.
She didn’t move, nor did she make a move to say anything, afraid that she would make a mistake and he would return to his shell.
“It is something I can never forget, even if I wish to.” Alex sighed, and this time she turned to look at him.
He was staring straight ahead, but there was this coldness on his face, which scared her.
“Do you have your memories of when you were four years old?” He asked her.NôvelDrama.Org exclusive content.
“I do. Clearly.”