I Loved You | CHONI |

One

'I am so sick of having this argument with you Toni' Cheryl huffed as she changed into her pyjamas.

'Could you keep your voice down the kids are asleep' Toni said rolling her eyes as she pulled on her serpent jacket 'I have to go Cheryl, the serpents are my family and they need me'.

'We're your family, remember? Your wife and our two children' Cheryl said as she crawled into bed looking at the brunette and shaking her head.

'Cher come on' Toni sighed 'I don't want to fight'.

'Toni I'm not trying to stop you from living your life but I need you to be the partner you promised to be when we got married. I barely see you anymore, as soon as the kids are in bed you're gone' Cheryl said sadly.

'What do you want me to do huh? You know what I can't do this right now' Toni huffed as she walked out of the bedroom leaving the redhead in bed alone.

Cheryl threw herself back against the pillow, she tried to remember when their relationship had gotten so bad that they couldn't even speak to each other without it being an argument or disagreement.

'Mommy?' A small voice whispered from the door 'are you and Mama fighting again?'.

'Hey' Cheryl said looking at their small children both of them a perfect mix of her and Toni.

They both had caramel skin like Toni but bright red hair like Cheryl's, small freckles dotted around their nose and cheeks.

'We're not fighting' Cheryl gave them a small smile patting the bed so her son and daughter would come and take a seat next to her.

'Then where's Mama?' The little girl asked.

Cheryl and Toni had tried a new fertility treatment when they conceived their children that meant they were both biologically the children's parents, the redhead carried and unsurprisingly they found out they were having twins.

'She's had to go and take care of something' Cheryl said wrapping her arms around the children 'but you two should be asleep, you have school in the morning'.

The children pouted at her and she couldn't say no to them, the same way she couldn't say no when Toni looked at her that way.

'Fine, lay down but don't blame me when Mama comes home and you two get squished in the middle' Cheryl said, letting out a little giggle as the pair dived under the blankets and snuggled in close to her.

'Sleep well my babies' Cheryl said as she kissed them both on the forehead before laying down herself and switching off the lamp on the nightstand.

***

Toni and Cheryl were so excited when they found out they were having twins, one of each, a little boy and a little girl.

They got married at the early age of twenty one after being high school sweethearts and they couldn't wait to start their own little family.

After Cheryl's nana died they sold Thistlehouse and moved into a house that they both loved and wanted to raise any future children in.

They ran the maple business together, Cheryl painting in her spare time and Toni became the serpent queen, something she had wanted since she was a teenager.

Everything seemed perfect, they had their home, well paying jobs and two amazing children, it wasn't until a few years later when things started to get rocky.

Cheryl and Toni's twins were now seven years old, Aaliyah born first by six minutes, something she holds over her brother Phoenix's head every time they disagree but they were also inseparable.