Forever my Marine

Chapter #40

Chapter 40

Louri’s POV
Once we arrived and got the twins situated in their strollers, we started walking around the zoo. No particular destination in mind since we have been here so many times, yet it feels like the first time coming here. The atmosphere just seems calm and fun. Scarlett and I hold Devon’s hand as he walks in between us and Robbie and Lizzie offer to push the girls in their strollers. We get to the Lion exhibit and notice a Lioness giving a baby Lion a bath. It was so cute to see. We take some pictures of the other lions and Scarlett walks up to the window as one of the lions walks by and stops and looks at her. I think it realizes she’s pregnant and nuzzles the window with its nose and puts a paw up. I’m so glad I decided to record the interaction on my phone. We continue through the exhibit and make our way outside. We decide to make our way to the giraffes and pay some money to feed them. We each get a cup of long carrots and celery and walk up the stairs to the viewing dock. The worker tells us to hold out our cups and one by one the giraffes come by and eat from our cups. It was such a cool and fun experience. We also see a baby giraffe wobbling around which was adorable to see. We make our way down the steps and put the girls back in their strollers. We decided to make our way to the cafe to get something small to eat. We find a table and I take everybody’s orders and walk over to the counter to order since my wife and her best friend and her husband are celebrities, I don't want to attract too much attention to them. Once I get the trays of food, I carry them back to the table and luckily we are able to eat in peace.

Lizzie’s POV
“So Devon, where do you want to head next?” I ask him as we finish eating. Can we go see the bugs next?” He asks, making me shiver a little. I do not like bugs, but when your nephew wants to go see bugs, I guess you gotta put your big girl pants on and go see the bugs. “Yeah we can go do that,” I say, hoping the wavering in my voice doesn’t give away me being scared. I notice Louri smirk at me and I shake my head. We get up and throw out our garbage and head over to the exhibit with the insects. I take a deep breath before we head inside. They’re behind glass, it’ll be fine I remind myself. We walk in and my grip on Robbie’s hand tightens, making him look over at me. He knows I hate bugs but gives my hand a gentle squeeze reassuring me everything will be ok. Devon walks around excitedly reading all the plaques about the different bugs. At one point I feel something on my back and I jump and scream a little, making Louri laugh. She had run her fingers up my back. “Not funny Louri,” I say, tilting my head at her. “I’m sorry,” she says in between laughing and then quickly straightens up when she sees my head tilt. I huff at her and look over to Scarlett who shrugs and shakes her head. I grab Robbie’s hand again and continue walking. Thankfully we made it to the end of the exhibit and we walked back outside, I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. “Aunty Lizzie, are you ok?” Devon asks. “Yes, I’ll be fine sweetie,” I tell him, making him nod. He reaches out for my other hand making me smile and take his hand and we continue walking.

Louri’s POV
That was so funny scaring Lizzie. Hopefully she won’t stay mad at me for too long. We continue walking and come up to the penguins and I smile. They are my favorite. I walk up to the glass and get mesmerized as they swim by. “Beautiful, aren’t they?” Scarlett asks from beside me. “Yes they are,” I say in return. We watch as one jumps up from the water onto one of the rocks and waddles around. I wish I could have a pet penguin, I know it’s not logical but they are just the cutest animals. Louisa and Maya seem to also enjoy the penguins as they point at different ones and giggle as they swim past the glass. We continue walking and come up to a kiosk that sells stuffed animals. The girls look over to Lizzie with pleading eyes and I smile at this interaction. She always has a soft spot for them so she easily gives in, buying them each a stuffed animal penguin. “Girls, Devon what do you say to Auntie Lizzie?” I ask them. “Thank you Auntie Lizzie!” They exclaim. “You’re welcome,” she says as she smiles and scrunches up her nose. Scarlett and I mouth thank you to her but she waves it off. She would do anything for the kids and we greatly appreciate her and Robbie.

We continue on going through different exhibits and finally get to the exit. What a long day at the zoo. But thankfully the kids seem tired, so that’s a plus. We head back to the car and load up and head home. I think it was a very successful day. We head home and get the kids to bed. Scarlett and I head to the living room where Lizzie and Robbie are and decide to relax and talk with them. Great ending to the perfect day.

A/N: hey everybody Chris here, hope you liked the chapter. See you all in the next one