Esmeralda

Chapter 18

"Esmeralda?"

Her dad was standing in front of her, she couldn't believe it. He looked so much older, he had a few strands of white hair and his facial hair grew out but even if that were the case, she can still see her dad in the man standing in front of her.

"Hi daddy"

She said in a tiny voice, she felt herself morph into the little girl who always wanted her parent's attention. That little girl who just got her favorite present.

Both of their eyes started to sparkle with tears but their smiles were the brightest.

She hugged her dad tight, his arms radiated with warmth. She felt the piece of security that was taken from her before coming back and enveloping her fully.

All the worries her mind has been circulating inside her head like oxygen was nowhere to be found. There were just splashes of love and appreciation in every corner at that moment.

"Mom cried!" her younger brother, Daeniel, suddenly teased their mom whose eyes were red while bringing luggage inside. It helped lighten up the atmosphere.

"You're almost crying right now Era" he continued while also hugging their dad. He wasn't affected by their father's presence as much as her since he was little when their dad left.

"No, I'm not, you're the one that's a crybaby" she spoke sassily raising her left eyebrow after breaking her hug with their dad.

Their father just chuckled in reply and it looked like relief was shown across his face, things haven't changed much except that they all grew. Daeniel pouted because he knew what his sister said was true.

Other family members came and also greeted the man who came home to his family. Her uncle and dad joked comfortably with each other, having spent the most time with one another. They were best friends in college.

It's funny because her uncle kept on saying that he was the popular one in their friend group while her dad was like a lost puppy tagging along. That explains a lot about why her daughter turned out that way.

Her father saw her mom, who just went home before going back to her job in another city while coming to her uncle's house for a project. He was captivated by her and started to drive to the city that took five hours every weekend just to see her mom and give her flowers. Their life right now is the result of the courtship that kept on going for seven years.

It was truly like a fairytale that's too good to be true. Her mom wasn't like a damsel in distress though, she was more like a warrior who had to fight for her family and her dad wasn't like a prince charming, he was more like a wallflower who avoided being in the limelight.

Still, their love story ended with a happily ever after but that is if you think having a family is your happily ever after.

Esmeralda was looking at her parents who are clearly in love with each other and realized that their situation came back. They've been in a long-distance relationship before that's why they knew they could make it work even if they had to experience the pain of not having the one you love by your side the whole time once again.

Life has a very interesting way to play with someone and she's going to applaud for its effort even though it's extremely annoying.

She quickly went inside their bathroom to regulate her breathing and stop the tears created by joy from falling. The mirror on the wall reflected her expression, she was smiling. She bit her lip in excitement and walked downstairs to listen to whatever happened at the airport.