Burden

*~ chapter thirty-six~*

Waking up early, I walk out of the guest room and make my way towards the kitchen. Hearing noises, I look around the corner and see the girls strategically trying to climb the shelf to get the Nutella from the top.

Quickly moving forward before they hurt themselves, I call out, "Girls, what are you doing? You could've hurt yourselves!"

"Sorry," Melissa says, looking down.

"Well, I'm not. I'm hungry," Lucy glares at me as I put her on the ground.

"Well, then you should've come and woken up your brother. He would've helped," I respond, moving to grab the Nutella and bread. I start making the girls a slice of toast each.

As I spread the Nutella on the toast, I glance back at them. "Next time, just ask for help, okay? I don't want you getting hurt."

Melissa nods quietly, and Lucy huffs but eventually relents. "Okay, fine."

I hand them their toast, watching as their expressions brighten with the first bite. "Better?"

"Much better," Lucy mumbles with her mouth full, while Melissa simply nods, a small smile on her face. "Mae," Melissa says, tugging at my shorts.

"Yes, Mel?" I respond.

"Can you help me sit up there?" she asks, pointing at the breakfast bar.

Nodding, I grab her plate and place it up there, then lift Melissa into the chair. "There you go," I say, making sure she's settled.

"Thanks, Mae," she says with a bright smile, happily digging into her toast.

"You're welcome, sweetie," I reply, smiling back at her before turning to check on Lucy. who is sitting on the floor in front of the window as she watches the birds outside. 

"Mae!" Lucy squeals, her voice echoing through the kitchen.

"Yes, Lucy?" I reply, turning my attention to her.

"I want to go outside," she declares, her eyes wide with excitement.

"It's a bit early, isn't it?" I ask, raising an eyebrow. The sun is barely up, and the air outside still has that crisp morning chill.

"Fine, whatever," she huffs, clearly annoyed by the suggestion. She gets up and stomps away down the hallway, her little feet making a dramatic thumping sound.

"Where's she going?" I whisper to Melissa, who is still sitting at the breakfast bar, happily munching on her toast.

"Probably going to wake up Jasp," she whispers back with a giggle, her eyes sparkling with amusement.

I chuckle softly, imagining Lucy's determined little face as she marches toward Jasper's room. "Well, I guess he'll be getting an early wake-up call," I say, shaking my head. "Let's just hope he's ready for it."

Melissa nods, her smile widening. "Lucy always knows how to get what she wants."

"Alright, let's see if we can get her back before she completely wakes him up."

We both move quietly down the hallway, following the sound of Lucy's determined footsteps. As we reach Jasper's door, we hear her little voice calling out, "Jasper! Wake up! I want to go outside!"

I can't help but smile at her persistence. "Lucy," I say gently, stepping into the room. "Why don't we let Jasper sleep a bit longer? We can find something else to do for now."

She pouts, looking up at me with her big, imploring eyes. "But I want to play outside."

"I know, sweetie. But let's wait until it's a little warmer, okay? We can do something fun inside in the meantime."