The Gangleader's Gem ✅

29

"I'm going to catch you!" Mrs. De' Santos or Shan as she had begged us to call her, yelled as she chased the toddlers around the backyard.

The children ran in glee, Shan not too far behind them and as she neared the twins, they giggled before splitting up. Having evaded her grasps, Shan tried to reach for little Joey who yelped as she grabbed him in a hug.

"¡No! ¡Ayuda!" he cried playfully and Shan's eyes widened as the horde of toddlers stomped their way towards her.

"¡Salva a Joey!" the twins cried as they chased Shan, the other ten children not far behind.

"That's not fair Ellie and Mellie! There are so many of you and one of me!"

The girls laughed joyously as they caught Shan and she fell onto the green grass in hysterics, playfully crying for help. The children laughed and dove on top of her. Shan laughed, tickling the little munchkins and I smiled as I watched them from the shade provided by the large tree.

The sun was blazing hot today and majority of us were outside, enjoying a drink in the shade or playing at the mistress of the orphanage was with the kids. The only relief from the scorching heat were the strong breezes that ruffled our hair and cooled our heated flesh.

The hot days would soon fade with fall and winter approaching bringing rain and snow. The winter season was always the children's favourite but they had never gotten the real feel of the Christmas season. This year would be different, better.

We were hitting two weeks since the meeting and Giovanni's demise. The older children had fell into a solemn mood, still mourning the loss of their friends while the younger ones were ignorant to the situation, keeping us afloat with their cheerful moods.

Now, I saw what was meant when they said ignorance is bliss...

"She's good for us. The both of them," PJ stated as she sat beside me, a weak smile on her lips.

Dimitri had now joined the fun but instead of saving his wife, he joined the mob, tickling her until she snorted.

"They are," I agreed looking at my usually cheery friend.

Her green eyes were droopy, her skin pale and her hair dull. She wore a thin, grey T-shirt with matching cotton shorts similar to me but I wore black shorts instead. My tattoo visible to all.

"Have you decided on what you're going to do?" she asked as she rested her head on my shoulder.

I had told her about what my parents said that day when I had visited she, Artemis and Orion in the infirmary. They didn't want me to leave but they understood that I had a family that missed and loved me, they didn't want to be selfish.

"I'm waiting on Vanni to wake up... I want to know what he thinks..." I stated as I caught sight of my parents making their way into the backyard.

My father pulled my mom into his lap after sitting against a tree before kissing her forehead. They smiled at each other before looking around the yard and waved when they spotted me. I waved back with a smile.

The past week had made me grow attached to them. The way they fussed over me, tried to spend every second with me yet gave me space when their actions became suffocating. Mom made it her duty to tuck me in at night and sing our song. Even though I was no longer a child in need of it, I basked in the affection I had missed for so many years. We had dinner together and talked about all that had happened over the years, mostly them talking and me listening intently and asking questions.

In the days, dad would try to bond with me and it was awkward at first but overtime we found something we both enjoyed doing, 'working out'. He handed my ass to me a few times on the mat but not without a fight and those moments brought a smile on my face.