Just Another Family.

Alex & Elsa: one

Alex & Elsa, married 8 years.  

Elsa: How long have we been married? 8 years now. I met Alex when I was freshman in high school, he was a senior, the star quarterback on his way to play for the Duke Blue Devils football team. I had just made the cheerleading team when he came up to speak to me.  

Alex: I was always the bold and confident one out my friends.... 

Elsa: When we first met, It wasn't one of those high school sweethearts kind of story that you think of. You know where the quarterback marries the cheerleader because they've been together and everyone thinks that they're perfect together.  

Alex: She didn't give into my charms as easily as the past girls had done. When my senior year was over, I still hadn't a date with her at all, we were just friends and that's where we left off. It wasn't until she 17 years old in her senior year and I was in my Senior year at Duke when we ran into each other again over winter break, I was home for Christmas and she had just won Snowflake queen and a beauty pageant. Well I guess you could say that we had changed and we hooked up during my father's annual New Year's Eve party, she was my date.  

Elsa: I got pregnant that night, I know what you're thinking typical stereotype of cheerleader getting pregnant still in high school. But I didn't find out that I was pregnant until the week of my graduation, I was already my way out of school and enrolled at a local university to study literature...Telling my parents was hard and telling Alex was simpler than telling his family, his sister, Bella accused me of getting pregnant to get the money that Alex was going to get when he went Pro. That wasn't true at all, I came from a family where struggling wasn't a popular word, we lived well, I had my own money to spend, I didn't need his.  

Alex: My sister, Bella is a hard ass. Sometimes she thinks she's protecting the family but she's not. I know she means well but most of the time its unbearable. At first, Bella hated Elsa, she didn't want her around but after Elsa gave birth to Derek, our son, she came around.  

Elsa: She only came around because I was so deeply depressed from the tribulations of what had become my life, such as working, going to class, and having spats with Bella that I almost died giving birth and Derek almost died because he was a month early due to the deep depression that I was having.  

Alex: I was in New Orleans training for the Saints after I had been drafted from college when I heard that Elsa was in labor and she had been taken to delivery room, I was already packing my things up to jump a flight later to be with her. Then I heard from my sister in law, Melissa that Elsa was losing a lot of blood and the doctors didn't know if she or the baby was going to make it because Elsa was in such a demolishing state. That made me even more nervous that I just dropped everything and jumped on a plane back home. Thank god, Derek was a strong baby.  

Elsa: Me, on the other hand, I slipped into a comatose state for almost two days, when I woke up my baby was two days old...my baby was born out a conflict in our lives and with him being born, it slowly resolved. Bella apologized for things that she had put me through, we're better now.  

Alex: Yeah, better now. I knew from that day and on, I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. But we decided to get married three years later when Derek was three and Elsa was twenty, I was twenty four and had been with the Saints for almost three years. Sometime between settling into a new married life with Elsa and traveling from city to city for a game, I decided to retire from football entirely. I had studied business when I was still in college; I also took some art classes on the side. My best friend, Jake asked me if I wanted to help him in a business deal, cofounding a startup tattoo parlor with him. So I went and learned the skills to become licensed as a Tattoo Artist. That was 8 years ago, now I own over 8 different but successful tattoo parlors in seven different cities.  

Elsa: Like I said before...We're better now.  

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Alex flopped down on the couch, kicking up his sneaker clad feet onto the glass coffee table. He grabbed the lavish silver television remote, flipping on through the channels. He settled on the sports channel, he smiled lightly as he listened to the sports update. His son, Julian was playing with his blocks in the corner of the nicely decorated but big living room. Elsa's soft footprints slowly walked down the staircase, walking into the focus of the living room. She smoothed down her pale pink Opening Ceremony double layer chiffon dress. She put her hands onto her hips "Alex, I told you to change Julian's clothes...he can't go over to your brother's house with Julian covered in finger paint" She spoke softly to her husband, Alex only nodded his head as he kept his eyes glued to screen. She walked over to their youngest child in her Rachel Zoe Katia Platform Sandals; she bent over and picked him up, resting the toddler on her hip. "While I change him, Alex can you please make sure that Derek and Lily have on decent clothing?" Elsa asked him softly, she knew her children too well, Derek had a habit of pranking people but sometimes his pranks backfired like yesterday when he tried to pour green slime on his sister's bed but dropped the bucket all over his clothes. And Lily, she's not messy like her brothers but she at the age where she doesn't want her parents, mainly her mommy, dressing her anymore. Elsa let the 5 year old pick out her outfit yesterday and she came downstairs in a long sleeve purple shirt hello kitty shirt and electric blue with rainbow socks and white high top converses. The blonde man looked up at his wife of 8 years and rolled his blue eyes before groaning "Elle, we both know that Lily and Derek don't want us to help them with their clothes" he turned back to the television. Elsa sighed softly as she adjusted their youngest child in her arms. Leaning over the backside of the couch, she came into his hearing distance "If you help Lily and Derek, then I'll help you later tonight" She whispered softly in his ear, she regained her posture just as quick as her husband shut off the television and rose to his feet. "I'll get right on it" Alex said smirking. He raced upstairs to his help his eldest children with their clothes, Elsa smiled lightly at her husband's actions, glancing down at her youngest child in her arms. Julian played lightly with the sterling silver Tiffany 1837 interlocking circles pendant that hung onto a sterling silver chain around his mother's neck. He lifted his blue eyes and smiled brightly at his mommy "Daddy's silly, mommy" he spoke softly. Elsa smiled and kissed her son's forehead "Yeah, daddy is silly isn't he?" she said softly, she held tightly onto him as she climbed up the stairs that had just been occupied by Alex just a few seconds before. Julian smiled and giggled lightly, his giggle always warmed her heart, and he nodded his head in reply to his mother's question. Elsa and Julian spent the rest of the afternoon getting ready for dinner later this evening.