Forever Tied to you

61

Sophie

"I know you haven't been at school Sophie." Alan whispered as we walked away from Mason towards the front doors of the restaurant. "So do you want to tell me why you disappeared? I give you my word that it won't change the decision I made tonight. You look good together. He's happier with you and as much as I love Sierra, Mason is like the son I never had."

I took a deep breath. We were supposed to do this together, but as Alan eyed me closely I knew this was a test, one I needed to pass to get his approval- although for what I still didn't know.

"I was pregnant." I blurted. "I was sick and I couldn't do a whole lot without getting dizzy so I was pretty much on bed rest." I sighed.

"I see." He let out a long sigh. "Do you have a picture of the little one?" He asked and I nodded cautiously. Dinner was civil but I still didn't know if I could trust him.

"That's Christopher, and that's Harleigh."

"Twins?" He asked skeptically.

"Yeah, we didn't know until I was giving birth that there was more than one baby. Every scan I had been to said it was just one and then two babies came out!" I explained as the faintest smile ghosted his lips.

"Can I be completely honest for a second?" He asked as I looked upon the man that had only ever stirred uneasiness. "I was never going to force Mason to marry Sierra. I knew what happened the first time around and while she is my daughter, her entitlement is getting out of hand." He sighed as I stood uncomfortably unsure of how to respond.

"So why did you tell Mason you were going to do all that stuff?"

"I needed it to be believable. I have tried to teach her the easy way, tried to teach her the hard way, evidently the only way left is by painfully showing her the repercussions of her actions." He sighed.

"You know, you're not as bad as I thought." I smiled at him just as a glimpse of Mason walking towards us caught my eye.

"Shh, don't need the secret getting out!" He shot me a sly wink.

"Everything okay!" Masons arm slipped around my waist as he pulled me flush to his side.

"Yeah your wife was just telling me that congratulations are in order!" He leaned forward and pulled Mason into a hug.

When they pulled away Mason mouthed what appeared to be 'thank you' to Alan before we went to our car and he went to look for Sierra.

"You know you're amazing right?" He smiled as we pulled away from the restaurant. "I watched you for a while before I interrupted and I've never seen Alan so taken by anyone so quickly before." Mason pulled my hand up and kissed the back of it.

"I just told him the truth." I shrugged.

"Exactly, even though you knew it may be dangerous you told him the truth. Alan has always valued honesty and loyalty, something that his daughter lacks."

"Well now the dinner is over, how about we don't talk about your crazy ex?" I grinned. "Besides I'm ready to get home so these babies can empty out their milk jugs and Sierra doesn't exactly relax me."

He rolled his eyes at that but didn't bring her or Alan up again. Not when we thanked Mia and Steven for watching the kids, not when Harleigh and Christopher drained every last drop of milk from my body, and not when he took me upstairs and curled me into his chest as we laid down to sleep.

For now we were both content to just be.

Be husband and wife.
Be parents.
Be a family.
Be us.

That's how we spent the next couple of days, blissfully wrapped in the bubble of family life. We started the days feeding the twins, changing them and preparing for the day. By lunch time they were napping and then we would play and soak up as much of their infant lives as we could before we collapsed together at the end of the day.

Tiring.

It was so tiring and yet so very, very rewarding. The small periods of time we didn't spend with the kids were spent cleaning, doing laundry, making sure the house didn't fall apart. By the time we crawled into bed there was barely enough energy left to discuss the next day, much less time for anything else.

I couldn't help but wonder if this was all life would be? Diapers and feedings and chores? Mason would be returning to work soon, and if I was this tired with him helping, it had to be more tiring without him here.

The likelihood of me actually making it to school anytime soon seemed to be slipping further and further from my grasp, and while most of the time it didn't really bother me, sometimes it felt like I had lost the very part of me that made me, me.

The feeling only got worse when Mason went back to work. Most of the time we stayed pretty busy. The twins were learning to hold up their heads, and their smiles and baby laughs were a serious addiction. Still in the quiet times when they slept I felt empty, alone.

I usually talked to Mason about everything, but this wasn't something I thought I could tell anyone. He was already stressed about leaving us to work, and I didn't want to add to that. Besides, I didn't really want to get pressured into seeing a doctor just to pump me full of pills I didn't need.

It was a phase.

One that would pass in the blink of an eye.

Mia had held herself together and Steven worked just as much as Mason. I just had to suck it up. This is what I wanted after all. A husband, kids, a home full of love.

So why does it feel like it isn't enough anymore?