Gonzales

24

Aurelio's footsteps pounded down the hallway as he sprinted into the kitchen. His tiny arms were stretched out in front of him, holding something that looked suspiciously like a plastic spoon, covered in what appeared to be chocolate sauce.

"Mommy! Daddy! Look what I found!"

"What did you find, my little adventurer?" Evelyn asked, a soft smile tugging at her lips, though she already had an idea of where this was headed.

Aurelio's eyes twinkled with excitement. "I was just looking for a snack. It's my secret snack!" He giggled mischievously.

Alessandro, looking over his newspaper, couldn't help but smirk. "Your secret snack, huh? What's that supposed to mean?"

"I ate it!" Aurelio declared proudly, showing off the evidence smeared across his face and hands.

Evelyn raised an eyebrow, her expression a mix of amusement and exasperation. "Aurelio, you got into the chocolate again, didn't you?"

"Nooo," Aurelio said, shaking his head furiously, his messy hair bouncing with each movement. "I didn't! I didn't! The chocolate just jumped out at me!" he insisted, as though the chocolate had somehow launched itself from the pantry in a fit of rebellion.

Alessandro laughed, setting down his coffee cup. "Oh, it jumped out, did it? Maybe we should call the chocolate police." He exchanged a look with Evelyn, who was trying to suppress her laughter.

Evelyn wiped her hands on a towel and bent down to his level, trying to maintain a stern face, though her eyes were twinkling with affection. "Aurelio, we told you not to eat the chocolate by yourself. You're going to get a stomach ache if you keep doing this."

"Promise!" Aurelio beamed, crossing his little fingers in a way that only made him look more guilty. "But it wasn't me! It was... the spoon!" He pointed dramatically at the utensil, as though it were the true culprit.

Alessandro let out a chuckle. "Ah, so the spoon did it, huh? Should we give the spoon a time-out?"

Aurelio nodded sagely. "Yes! The spoon is naughty!"

Evelyn couldn't help but laugh at her son's antics. "Okay, okay. The spoon can have a time-out, but I think we need to clean you up first." She gently took his sticky hands in hers, already mentally preparing herself for the chaos that would come next.

"But I don't wanna get cleaned up!" Aurelio whined, pulling his hands away in protest. "I like being sticky! Sticky's fun!" He started to spin around in circles, causing a mess of chocolate fingerprints to decorate the kitchen.

"Alright, I see where this is going," Evelyn said, glancing at Alessandro. "We're going to need reinforcements."

At that moment, Romeo, Matteo, Marco, Luca, and Leo—who had all heard the commotion—came rushing into the kitchen. They'd learned to make themselves scarce whenever Aurelio was on a rampage, but when they saw the state he was in, it was clear they had no choice but to step in.

Romeo, the oldest, rolled his eyes. "Oh boy, here we go." He turned to Aurelio. "Dude, why do you look like a chocolate factory exploded on you?"

"I'm the chocolate monster!" Aurelio declared proudly, his chest puffing out as he struck a dramatic pose.

Luca and Leo both started laughing. "Chocolate monster!" they echoed, clearly delighted by the new nickname.

Aurelio continued spinning around, laughing, as the older boys groaned in unison. It was like this every day—Aurelio had a way of turning the most mundane moments into complete and utter chaos, but they couldn't help but laugh along with him.

"Alright, you little chocolate monster," Matteo said with a grin, stepping toward Aurelio. "Let's get you cleaned up before Mom turns into a monster herself."

"Mommy already is a monster," Aurelio said seriously, pointing at Evelyn. "She eats all the chocolate and then says I can't."

Evelyn feigned shock. "Me? A monster? I'm not the one who decided to cover myself in chocolate!"

Aurelio giggled. "You're a monster because you say 'no' too much."

Evelyn bent down to Aurelio's level again, her face softening. "You know, I say 'no' because I love you, little one. I don't want you to get sick from too much chocolate."

"But I'm tough!" Aurelio declared, puffing out his tiny chest. "I can eat all the chocolate!"

"Uh-huh," Alessandro said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "And then you'll have a tummy ache for a week."

"Can't have a tummy ache if I'm running around like a superhero!" Aurelio said, suddenly striking a pose as if he were ready to leap into action.

The older boys groaned in unison. "Superhero?" Marco asked. "More like a chocolate-covered tornado."

Luca's eyes sparkled with mischief. "What if we made him a superhero costume—out of chocolate?" he suggested.

Aurelio's eyes widened. "Yes! Yes! Chocolate superhero!"

"No chocolate superhero costumes!" Evelyn said firmly, though her voice was tinged with amusement. "Alright, enough with the chocolate nonsense, little one. Let's get you cleaned up before you cause any more trouble."

Alessandro stood up, setting his coffee aside. "Let me take him to the bathroom. You can supervise the chocolate cleanup operation from here."

Aurelio immediately went limp in Alessandro's arms, pretending to be a ragdoll as he was carried to the bathroom. "I can't walk, Daddy! I'm too tired from being a superhero!"

"Oh, really?" Alessandro asked, raising an eyebrow. "So the superhero can't even walk to the bathroom?"

"Nope," Aurelio answered seriously, snuggling into his dad's arms. "Superheroes need naps."

After a brief but amusing struggle, Aurelio was finally scrubbed clean, the chocolate wiped from his face, and his hands no longer sticky. However, as always, he found a new way to cause mischief. As Alessandro dried him off, Aurelio spotted a towel hanging on the hook and decided it was time to play "hide and seek."

"I'm going to hide now!" he declared, sprinting out of the bathroom with a towel draped over his head.

"Oh no," Alessandro muttered, chasing after him. "Here we go again."

The family, now fully engaged in the day's antics, gathered in the living room. Aurelio, still hiding under his towel, stumbled around the room like a tiny ghost. "I'm hiding! You can't find me!"

Leo, ever the enthusiast for Aurelio's antics, joined in. "I found you! You're under the towel!"

"Nooo!" Aurelio screamed in mock terror, running away as best he could with the towel still over his head.

The older boys all started laughing as Aurelio, in his unique brand of chaos, managed to tumble into the coffee table, knocking over a stack of magazines in the process. "Oops!" he squealed, looking up at everyone with wide, innocent eyes. "I didn't mean to!"

Evelyn, who had been watching the entire scene unfold from the doorway, shook her head with a smile. "I can't believe we're doing this again. You're going to give me gray hairs."

"I think he's already given us some," Alessandro quipped, winking at her.

Aurelio, now completely oblivious to the mess he'd made, raised his arms triumphantly. "I'm a superhero! I can do whatever I want!"

And in that moment, the chaos and mess didn't matter. The family was together, laughing, loving, and embracing the wonderful, crazy, whirlwind that was their youngest son. Aurelio's energy and joy were infectious, and though they were all running on empty by the end of the day, they wouldn't have had it any other way.