The Grean Household

12: Putting Up a Facade

When Sarah got home, she put them in the nursery, watching as Willow continued to thrash, her reflexes in Sarah's womb coming out into the world. She would throw punches into the air, gurgling and cooing as she did. Samuel would only lay there, staring up at Sarah with a fascination of learning. Then, when she'd get closer and tickle his belly gently, he'd smile and laugh, body jolting to stop the tickling.

Sarah continued schooling, taking care of her new set of twins. Soon, they began crawling, becoming more vocal. Willow would take things from Samuel, who would then fight to get it back. He rarely cried, often trying to babble his way into making a peace treaty with his sister. When Willow would resist, he'd stare at her, frowning. It was his expression that made Sarah laugh.

Oliver was beginning to work more, and so was Sarah, often leaving her mother to watch the plentiful of kids that Sarah had. She'd never hear the end of it from her mother. 

Emma's the boss. She reminds me of you. Astrid would laugh, recalling how Emma would console Samuel, then scold Willow into giving him a toy that he asked nicely to play with.

The years started to go by without incident, and Oliver didn't seem to notice his two youngest. Willow was sassy, gaining a bossiness from Emma. She was a quick learner, her immediate solution being to talk people out of whatever they were doing. 

She's going to be a problem. Sarah's mother said, watching as Willow took another thing from Samuel.

I doubt it. Sarah muttered.

It was when her twins were 5 did she have a fright for her life.

They were eating at the dinner table. Oliver, at the head of the table, was looking skeptically at the twins, taking in their features. Sarah noticed the differences long before Oliver began to realize, and she knew that the only thing she could do was pray that he couldn't figure it out. It was 2029, the year that Sarah realized could be their last.

Oliver stared at Willow as she ate, squinting as he examined her. Maybe he was just now noticing her differences from Emma. They were the odd ones out, but the differences were subtle. If he wasn't looking for them, he wouldn't notice. Sarah just feared that he began to recognize the small distinctions between the siblings.

Oliver pulled her aside after that dinner, waiting until the kids were all asleep. Sarah could feel her fear, so much that it seemed to muffle her hearing. She grabbed onto the small knob of the kitchen drawer, backed up into a corner as Oliver hissed and growled at her. First, it was about nothing at all, then he moved onto wealth.

She held her breath as Oliver growled, hands on his hips, staring down at the floor as he spoke. 

"I know what you did with the ring." Sarah began to watch as this unfolded, remembering how he made a big deal out of it back in 2023. She remained silent, watching as he seemed to come to the conclusion. 

"You sold it." He hissed, looking at her. Maybe it was the way the color was draining from her face, or maybe it was how she hesitated, but he turned back around, grumbling underneath his breath.

"Oliver-I told you! I don't know what happened to it-!" He swung. The knobs on the drawers dug into her back as she fell onto the hard floor. Her shoulder crashed into the wood and a pained gasp escaped her. Sarah cradled her cheek, feeling the warmth and stinging of the slap.

"Don't lie to me!" He boomed. Sarah slowly pushed herself up, gasping back tears from the pain as the bruise began to form. She planted her hand on the counter, helping herself up. Her shoulder was aching, her chest heaving. 

"But that seems like it's the only thing you can do." Oliver shook his head, disgusted with her presence.

"What are you talking about?" Sarah groaned shakily, seeing that his eyes were getting darker by the minute.