Bad Habits

Chapter Twenty Five

𝐸𝑛𝑧𝑜 ☽

Aurora and I were eating dinner together on the dining table. Her parents still weren't back, and Flora, Derek and Flynn were all asleep.

So, it was just the two of us, alone, and eating together. You could only hear the clatter of our utensils, nothing else. It was peaceful, I quite liked it.

Once we were done, Aurora picked up our plates and walked back into the kitchen to rinse them and put them in the dishwasher.

"Hey, is there anymore dishes in the living room?"

I walked into the living room and grabbed a couple of glasses that we had left there earlier. I returned the items to Aurora and presented them to her. She rinsed them and placed them in the dishwasher, which she then closed and started.

I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and opened my music app as she was wiping her hands on the towel hanging on the stove. I searched for a few seconds before finding and clicking on the music I wanted.

She stared at me, puzzled.

"What are you doing?"

I slid my phone back into my pocket and took a step closer to her. My hand rested on her waist, while the other grasped her hand. Aurora reached for my shoulder with her free hand. My heart erupted into flames because she was smiling like crazy.

"May I have this dance, love?" I asked.

"Of course, you can." She whispered.

We began swaying slowly to the music's pace, and I gradually pulled back and spun her around a few times. Her laughter reverberated across the room. She then whirled me around, and I laughed for the first time in a long time. Not the delicate, subtle chuckles, but the loud laughter's.

A shrill ringing sound cut off the music. It was my ring tone, so I let go of Aurora's hand in order to see who it was.

It was facetime call from the boys. I drew Aurora in closer and handed her the phone.

"It's the kids, want to head upstairs so we can answer them?"

"Aw, yes! I've missed them so much."

I wrapped my arm around her waist and pointed her towards the stairwell. We strolled upstairs and into our room together. We sat in each other's arms on our bed. My arm was still stretched over Aurora's waist, and her temple rested on my shoulder.

I quickly answered the call and stuck the phone out so they could see both of us.

"Hi boys!" Aurora said with a quiet gasp.

"Aurora! Hi!" Matteo said. His eyes lit up when he saw her. My heart flipped at the sight of her toothy grin.

"Where's Nico?"

"Oh, he's on the floor. He's trying to do a handstand."

Matteo flipped the camera to show a struggling Nico. He was in a crawling position, with his hands planted firmly on the ground. He was grunting as he tried to push himself up.

"Hi Nico! Don't hurt yourself!"

"Aurora? Is that Aurora on the phone?" He immediately stood up and ran over to his brother. Matteo flipped the camera again to show a curious Nico staring at the screen.

"Oh my gosh it's Aurora! Hi!"

"Hey Nico," she beamed at their smiling faces.

"So, how are you guys? What's been going on?"

The boys went on a full rant about everything that had been going on when we were away. My mother and father seemed to be having a good time together, and the boys were warming up to their father.