Where The Sunflowers Rest

07 Wisdom

"What happened?" Gulf felt scared. He's never seen any of the kids cry before and now, only negative assumptions came to mind.

"I think Alex was bullied again."

Again?

"What do you mean?" Jimmy sucks his lip while contemplating if it was right to gossip about a child.

"Jimmy!" Gulf impatiently calls.

"Okay, It seems like Alex is being made fun of in school."

"For what?" He raised his voice. So far, Alexander behaves properly around him. He's very cute and adorable. He can't think of any reason why the kid would be hated on.

"Alex doesn't excel in class as much as Nat. He does kinda get bad grades. Alex is also teased for looking like a girl. He is a pretty boy and having Nat around to compare him with isn't doing any good for him. There was this one time he came in the car holding a wig. And behind him, I saw these little demons laughing at him. I really wanted to get out of the car and make them wear the fucking wig but I didn't want to be arrested for assault." Gulf clenched his fist just imagining the faces those brats were making while poking fun at Alexander.

"And there's one other thing. But please don't tell on me!" He held his breath before nodding. He just hoped he wouldn't hear anything worse.

"Rumor was, Alex and Nat's mom had an affair with one of the teachers there. Whenever Mew was away on a business trip, that's when she, you know... does her thing. Their forbidden relationship wasn't even that long but their mom ran away with the teacher and abandoned the kids. So yeah, these kids have it rough." It was unfortunate and despicable.

"Does Mew know about this?"

"The twins are very tight-lipped about it. I offered to tell for them but they said they didn't want their father to worry and that they're okay."

There's nothing okay about this. Gulf hated it. He hated how kids could judge harshly at a young age. He hated how the twins were acting all tough and strong to protect their father's feelings. But most of all, he hated how Mew didn't notice all of this.

It's been barely a week that the two of them met and yet Mew left the twins with him for two weeks. And now, he's hearing these stories of how Mew might not be a present father for his family at all. He has also set all of these rules and schedules for Alexander and Natasha to follow, making them into some kind of perfect robot children. Gulf found it utterly disappointing that this is what Mew perceives as the 'best' for them.

"Alex? Are you alright?"

"No!" Alexander hides under the covers of his Captain America comforter with his embarrassment.

"Come on, you can talk to me."

"No!" He objects. More resistant than before.

Gulf helplessly looked at Natasha, hoping she would be able to convince her twin to talk but she just shrugs.

A few minutes of persuasion didn't work on the young boy. He became deaf to Gulf's pleas and continued to take solace under his sheets.

"If you come out, we'll buy ice cream."

"But dad said—"

"He won't know if he can't see us, right?" Gulf tells Natasha and soon after Alexander was peering from under the covers.

"Let's go?"

☀️🌻

Gulf found amusement in watching Alexander and Natasha eat ice cream. Alexander was gobbling up his cookies and cream like it was going to disappear if he didn't eat it fast enough. Natasha on the other hand was taking a little piece of her strawberry cream at a time, savoring it to the fullest. Gulf took his phone out and took a snap of the moment.