Dusk & Dawn

Part IX

"We do sincerely apologise for the delay sir, would you like a glass of water while you wait?" One of the concierge asked, standing by Xavier. He shook his head, offering them a small smile.

"Thanks." He responded and they nodded, walking away.

After he'd left the outside of her place, he found the closest hotel. Unfortunately however, because he hadn't booked in advance, and it was outside check-in time, he had to pay an extra fee. He also had to wait for them to prepare the room for him in the meantime. He sighed closing his eyes. Mikaela was going to kill him when she found out how much money he'd burned through, but he was banking on her being understanding because of the gravity of the situation, and besides, he did say he'd reimburse the pack fund.

He'd even gotten the highest priced room on the highest floor specifically so he could impress her... Given that she said yes of course. He sighed, leaning back in the chair he was sitting in. The weight of everything was finally sinking in, as the reality was, the ball was completely in her court.

Kira on her end was swinging back into routine. After her conversation with Abi and Tara, they had gone to shower whilst she made Kaden's lunch. By the time she'd finished packing his lunch, straightening out his uniform, and making sure his backpack and his school supplies were sorted, it was five-thirty, which meant time to get him up and ready.

This, however, was the most difficult part of the morning routine.

"Kaden, wake up buddy." She cooed, gently shaking him, but he remained unresponsive. She sighed. Every day she hopes the gentle sbake would be enough, but that just didn't hold true for Kaden. The boy slept like a log.

"Kaden." She repeated, louder this time, shaking him with both hands. He stirred for a moment before falling asleep again. She sighed again. The reality was she knew the most effective way to get him awake, but she didn't like resorting to it.

She pulled the blankets off of him and carried him to the bathroom. Once there, she supported his body against her own from behind, opened the basin tap, cupped her hand under the running water and poured the cold liquid on his face. A single splash jolted him awake with arms flying out in every direction.

She'd done this enough to know to stand close behind him so she wasn't collateral, otherwise it would result in a beat down by a six year old.

"There you are." She said with a voice that fully revealed her fondness for him, crouching down and hugging him from behind just as he was coming to realise where he was. His sleepy eyes turned to her, face to face. He looked incredibly adorable with his messy bed hair. "Bath time." She said smiling, kissing his cheek. He whined, turning his body with the intention to hug her but she pushed him back, chuckling. "No no. Bath time Kaden."

She knew if she allowed it, he'd just rest his head on her shoulder and go right back to sleep. The push did help, as he now yawned and rubbed his eyes. A few weeks ago he would've fought harder to stay sleeping, going as far as laying on the ground, but it seemed as if he was finally starting to adjust to waking up early.

"Did you sleep well?" She asked and he looked at her with half open eyes, nodding. "Ready to brush your teeth?" She asked and he nodded again, yawning. "Okay." She responded and stood up, preparing his brush and paste. She then handed him the brush, watching him through the mirror that hung above the basin as he began the process.

By the time he finished, he was more alert. "Done!" He said, a wide smile on his face, looking at her through the mirror. She smiled back.

"Good job!" She responded, giving him a small applause. This made him smile wider, shooting her a thumbs up. "So do you want Didi to help you bathe?" She asked with a perfectly innocent smile, and watched the absolute terror enter his face. A year ago he wouldn't have minded, but ever since he entered school, he was a big boy who refused to get naked in front of his sister unless it was absolutely necessary.

"No way! I told you I can do it myself!" He raised his voice at her, turning to face her, causing her to chuckle.

"I'm just messing with you." She said, petting his head. "Don't take long okay? We need to be out of the apartment-"

"In thirty minutes." He said in a draggy tone, almost rolling his eyes. Kira's mouth fell open, scoffing with a half smile on her face.

"Are you mocking me, Kaden Batra?" She asked in a clearly fake menacing tone. He looked up to her with a cheeky smile crawling up his face and shook his head. She slowly leaned in with her hands reaching for him. He automatically giggled and squealed noticing them, wiggling as he looked for a way out. She captured him and started tickling. Laughter filled the apartment.

About ten minutes later, Kira had a hair dryer in Kaden's hair before going to make their breakfast. He did everything else by himself. Ten minutes after that, the siblings were sitting across each other at the small dining table, both eating instant noodles.

"And theeeeen, she said that she was fine with him taking her tablet as long as he gave her snacks. What kind of deal is that?" Kaden dramatically finished off the saga between his friend, Daniella, and her brother. They'd been fighting over her tablet ever since he'd lost his, and Kaden was outlining the events that led to her giving it to him every afternoon, which meant she was harder to reach. Kira scoffed and shook her head.

"That is crazy. How long is their agreement for?" Kaden groaned, clearly exacerbated.

"Two weeks. It's soooo loooong." He said and Kira gasped.

"Why would she even take that?" Kira asked, slightly leaning in.

"I don't know!" Kaden said, throwing his hands up. "It's so annoying." Kira sighed.

"Didn't you say she has a laptop?" Kaden looked at the table with a pouty face.

"She broke it." Kira chuckled.

"Oh wow." Kaden goes to a private school, which takes a large chunk of Kira's income. This means that most children he interacted with were from homes with a higher income bracket. The only reason why Kaden himself had a tablet was because it was supplied by the school for online usage and research, however, this was a small portion of all activity required for Kaden's grade given he wasn't even in the first grade yet, so most kids used them as they pleased. Most didn't even handle them with care because they could easily replace them.

"You should teach her how to take care of her stuff." Kira commented and Kaden sighed.

"She breaks everything. She can't even touch my tablet." He said shaking his head and Kira laughed at his disappointed disposition. Kaden had a vague understanding of their financial situation, so he was largely careful with his things and always made sure he didn't make things difficult for Kira.

"Finished eating?" She asked and he nodded. She got up, reaching for his bowl. "Let's go then."

Kira didn't have her own car, so she used Abi and Tara's car. In exchange, she filled the tank every Friday and paid for repairs when necessary. The drive to school took about fourty minutes. When they arrived, Kira kissed Kaden's forehead before watching him run from the car, only one arm through his backpack, and into the school through the guarded gate. After he'd made it, she smiled to herself, starting the car and driving off.

A/N: This should've been out sooner. Also, I have no idea what six year olds are like because I haven't interacted with one in so long, however, Kaden is a six year old because I said so