Broken Descent (Bruno Mars)

Just Like You

After the wedding, two families of twos joined to become one family of four. Between the wedding and the honeymoon, it was Bruno's idea for the four of them to go to Disneyland as a family. He and Charlotte hadn't been there in years, for obvious reasons. Her nightmares had subsided. This time, Bruno was especially excited because she was old enough and willing to go on roller coasters.

"You excited 'bout this one?" Bruno asked as they scanned the cart, looking for seats. Kim and Madison opted out of this particular ride.

"Yes!" Charlotte exclaimed.

They had a hard time finding a seat, so the ride attendant showed them the two remaining seats available at the very front of the ride.

"Uh oh," Bruno said in a goofy voice. "We're in the front."

Charlotte's eyes widened and her feet stopped moving.

"C'mon...you'll be fine," Bruno said, still a few feet ahead, extending his hand. "Don't leave me hangin'."

Taking one more breath and sigh, Charlotte took his hand and they sat down in the front row. They waited for the bars to come down. Charlotte's hands got fidgety; she couldn't find a comfortable spot to grab. Excited and nervous at the same time, she kicked and swung her legs as they dangled.

"You're okay. I promise. Here," he said, sticking his hand out in front of her. "...take my hand."

When Charlotte reached for his hand, she quickly jerked hers away, making a disgusted face. "Eww...Nevermind. Dad your hands are so sweaty. You're more scared that me."

"Hey I'm not scared. It's just really hot out."

"Liar," Charlotte said with a sarcastic tone, rolling her eyes and looking ahead.

"Well at least I'm not scared of scary movies," Bruno mocked.

"Dead people ARE scary...and besides...you're scared of scary movies too. You don't even look at the TV. You put your hands over your eyes...scaredy-cat. Just don't pee in your pants...that would be SO embarrassing," Charlotte laughed and shook her head as the ride began.

"Wait...embarrassing for me? Or you?"

"For me," she giggled.

"Oh don't you worry...I got plenty more years to embarrass you....and I will..believe me."

The two of them began to hear the clicking of the carts approaching a steep incline. Bruno and Charlotte were the first ones to get toward the top of the first, very steep part of the roller coaster where it dropped off at the steepest point. Their nerves built up quickly and intensely.

"Dad," Charlotte blurted looking over to Bruno. "I need your hand."

"Oh," Bruno said, holding his hand away for a second. "I thought my hands were too sweaty and gross."

"Dad!" Charlotte yelled as she smiled. "Give me your hand! Please!"

Bruno grabbed Charlotte's hand and squeezed it tight. He winked at her just before the drop. He never let it go through the whole ride as they went up, down, and around in the air and near the ground. They sped through trees and even above people are they walked throughout the park, screaming and laughing. They approached a camera and they held up both hands including the ones holding each other. When the ride finished, they were very out of breath, but they ran to the booth anyway to see the picture on the screen.

"Can we get stuff?" Charlotte begged, looking at all the merchandise in the booth.

"Absolutely. I love it...I'd get a tattoo of it if I could. Let's get some prints...and maybe keychains too."

By the end of the day, they were all exhausted. Bruno drove them home, occasionally looking at everyone in the car who had fallen asleep. He used to have recurring nightmares about Charlotte taken at Disneyland, and he was glad that those bad memories could now be replaced.

A few days later, Bruno and Kim dropped the girls off at Phil's house so they could leave for their honeymoon in Fiji.

"Alright," Bruno said, setting Charlotte and Madison's suitcases down on the floor. "We're already a little bit behind schedule so we should probably get going."

Bruno and Kim headed out toward the door with Phil and the girls still following them.

"Now," Bruno said. "You girls cause any problems, you know Uncle Phil's gonna let me know."

Madison nodded her head, but Charlotte looked to Kim instead.

"And you," Charlotte said putting her hands on her hips, "let me know if Dad causes any problems."

"Oh excuse me," Bruno said dramatically, playfully putting his hands on his hips and taking a step forward. "What kinda problems are you talkin' 'bout?"

Charlotte laughed and stepped back.

"Where ya goin'?" Bruno asked. "Don't I get a goodbye hug and kiss?"

Charlotte sighed and gasped a bit before coming forward to give her dad a big hug.

"Do they have Lucky Charms in Fiji?" Charlotte asked.

"Yeah," Bruno nodded. "I'm pretty sure they're everywhere."

"Well we're gonna have to have," Charlotte said, looking up to think. "Like...14 bowls when you come back."

"All at once? You're gonna rot your teeth out that way."

"Well then I guess I'm gonna have to call you to make sure you're eating them."

"Deal," Bruno winked, before giving her a kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too. Don't forget to wear sunscreen...and...and don't forget to send us pictures...and don't forget to call...and don't forget to buy us presents..."

"Wow," Phil began to laugh.

Bruno laughed, double-checking something in the trunk. "I won't forget anything...and most importantly I won't forget you. We'll find the best presents we can find for both of you."

Charlotte dragged the goodbye on for a little while longer, asking question after question, before Bruno and Kim left for the airport. In the car, they began to talk about the girls like they always had, laughing at the different stories.

"Charlotte's hilarious," Kim said.

"Yeah I know. Isn't she? She reminds me so much of myself, especially as she's getting older and learning so much. Sometimes she says something and it was something that I was just thinking."

"Was she like that when she was little?"

"No, she definitely turned into me. When she was little, especially around strangers, she was so different from me. When I was little, I hogged every second of the spotlight, even when it was on my dad for the shows he used to do...but I'm glad Charlotte wasn't that way. I don't know if I could have handled a little kid like that every second. I'm glad that her personality is becoming bigger now and not then."

Kim began to speak about what Madison was like before she and Charlotte became friends. She talked about different traits she noticed that Madison took from herself and then others that were clearly Marcus.

"I'm glad that she takes after me so much...I guess the genes didn't matter all that much for her personality."

"It's because she loves you and admires you...because she's been looking up to you for all these years. She wants to be just like you...Bruno...what if I told you that we'd been having a kid that looked and acted a little bit like the both of us...a little bit Bruno and a little bit Kim?"

It took Bruno a while to let the hint sink into his head. Kim laughed as she watched him slowly figure it out once she put her hand on her stomach. He laughed, looked down at his lap, and then cried a little, almost at an instant.

"Wait," he said, bringing his head up, smiling, and taking Kim's hand. "Really? So you're saying that..."

"Bruno, I'm pregnant," she smiled, speaking softly.