The Choice

31) Ali

"The Lord of The Rings, Gone Girl, Wolf man, The Walking Dead!" Joe scoffs as Aurora blurts a series of movies enthusiastically.

"Belle, these films are oddly different from each other in the plot, how is this all of them?!"

She shrugs, "I don't know, I'm trying my luck!" she says laughing.

Elianna cackles as Aurora jumps around pissing Joe off. I am smiling too and Omer is at the couch watching them with amusement, a smile on his lips with mom at his side leaning her head on his shoulder as if she's scared he'd go away if she left him. We all are, but after today when I came back to find them at home meeting each other, that fear piped down a bit.

Joe again mimics the movie I told him, and she blurts another series of rom-coms this time. This time he himself bends over laughing, he is mimicking using a sword in a fight scene. No one of our team is helping her because we're enjoying her and Joe go head to head with each other as if they bet who will make us piss our pants from laughter.

"Wait!" she looks back at me and Elianna then jumps between us on the couch causing the three of us to tangle together. She hugs both of us to her as she literally whisper yells, "is it Jack the Giant Slayer!?" I snort out a laugh and Elianna doubles over her laugh echoing loudly.

"Belle, we can hear you and it's not Jack- Joe says he too cuts himself laughing because he cannot say the name of the movie.

"Dove." Omer calls to her smiling broadly and pats his thigh, she untangles herself from us and rushes jumping in his lap as he whispers in her ears something.

"THE MASK OF ZORO!"

She yells and Joe groans, "this is cheating, Omer."

Omer shrugs and wraps an arm around her waist. Aurora pokes her tongue at Joe, but he shakes his head laughing.

We take turns suggesting movie names and one of us mimics them silently as the others try to guess what is it. Hours pass as we jump from one activity to the other.

Now we're all sprawled in the living room; Joe and Aurora are on the floor sticking their noses in Joe's phone as he shows her I don't know what. Mom is asleep on Omer's lap as he watches Aurora silently. And Elianna is dosing off too next to me on the couch. I cover her and my mother with blankets when Omer gestures for me to join him on the couch. I sit next to him and he gives me a small smile before asking, "are you happy with your job?"

He remembers, I always hated being a lawyer. Each of us hated the major that we were forced to study. Dad made sure to suffocate us with his choices with the desire to make us fight each other. Omer, foreign languages and literature. Me, law. Joe, medicine. Omer was the only one with another field, another major in mind. Me and Joe didn't get to think it over before the roller-coaster of events hit us.

I give him a nod then shake my head as he gives me his typical tilt of head that makes me blurt out everything. "I don't, but it's better from law. I teach English language." He nods, "I know that." I quirk a brow and he says quietly, "I didn't forget I have a family, Leo."

I smile, "tell me, are you happy?" I ask and his gaze instantly finds Aurora as she slaps Joe's hand away preventing him from taking back his phone. He looks back at me then nods twice.

I pat his back and he looks at mom then frowns a bit.

"I want to tell you something." He says and I nod, "I'll be leaving soon. Back to London. Me and Aurora." I feel my heart fall, but nod in understanding. He feels it and starts explaining, "I – will send for you to come stay with us for some time. But I have to go, you understand I can't stay here a lot of time." I do, "will we be on contact?" I ask afraid he'll say no, but thankfully he nods. He goes back to watching Aurora and I do with Elianna.

He nudges me jerking his chin towards her, "did it falter?" I shake my head, I understand what does he mean. The love I had for her since high school. I tell him quietly, "not for one bit, it grew." He smiles and I do too.

"bitch!" Aurora hisses as Joe flanks her nose.

"Joe, leave the girl alone." I quip stretching my legs. She crawls next to my leg laying her head on my knee as she rubs her nose. I sit up leaning above her inspecting her nose then hit Joe with a pillow in the head.

"Why?!" he asks and she giggles softly. "her nose is red, you jerk!" I say that and Omer stretches a long arm above my lap to the other side where Aurora lays gripping her face to look at her nose. She beams at him then lays against my knee again. Joe pulls at her toe from the other side and she flips him off.

I snort and Aurora yelps as Elianna crawls down the couch right into her lap. "I like your short hair, cut it for me." Elianna slurs and Aurora snickers, "nope, I won't." she says and Elianna bites her thigh, "fuck! Fine I'll do it!"

"Girls, don't cut your hair. It's useful." Joe says and both of the girls exchange glances before looking back at him.

He looks up at me and Omer then leans in whispering to them, "later, we'll have our girly talk." They both laugh and nod.

Omer clears his throat muttering my way, "we should do something about this prick." I nod in agreement, "he needs to learn a lesson." Omer nods again.