Winter Gatherings | Series Crossover

20. Artemis

Chapter 20: Artemis

       "How come Atticus has been scowling for the whole day?" I asked Seb once he and Atticus returned from getting hot chocolate for all of us. He sat down beside me on the couch and handed me a cup.

       Seb shrugged. "Beats me."

       "So....you haven't asked him yet?" I asked.

       "Uh, you haven't asked him yet either," Seb said. "I'm not his only parent." He then called Atticus over. "So, what's up? You seem mad."

       "Because I am mad," Atticus said.

       "Why?" Seb asked.

       "Because there's a girl who keeps bugging me," Atticus said. "And it's not my fault. Even though I may or may not have tugged on her hair."

       Seb raised an eyebrow. "Why would you tug on her hair? Do you know her?"

       "No," Atticus said. "But she's pretty."

       "Alright there, Romeo," Seb said with a chuckle. "You are six. Worry about girls later. You probably won't even see her again after we leave the ski lodge."

       Atticus sighed. "I know. Now I'm sad. She could have been the love of my life...."

       "Well, if she really is the love of your life, then you'll find her again," I said, only so he wouldn't spend the rest of Christmas all sad. He was six. He didn't have to worry about finding the love of his life now and I was pretty sure that once we got home, he would forget all about her.

       Atticus smiled at the thought. "Maybe."

       "Just....don't go tugging on her hair," I said. "Girls don't like that."

       "I just wanted her attention...." Atticus said.

       "Then find something else that will get her attention," I said. "But not something that will hurt her or get her mad. Something nice."

       "Yes, but worry about her later," Seb said. "It's Christmas and you're spending it with your family."

       "But Dad, she's so pretty," Atticus whined. "I want to go talk to her."

       "You can talk to her later," Seb said. "Like I said, right now, you're spending time with us. How about you go pick a board game for all of us to play when Dax, Isadora, and Wilder come here."

       Atticus sighed longingly. "Fine. I guess I'll go get a board game." He trudged over to the bag of board games we had, digging through them before coming up with his favorite board game.

       It didn't take long for Dax, Isadora, and Wilder to come to our suite, and for Gemma and Marcus to return from whatever it was they were doing in the lounge. Most likely arguing. Gemma and Marcus sure loved to argue.

       Seb and Dax told me that yesterday, they even broke up for, like, two minutes just because Gemma took his cookie.

       "Hey," Seb said to Dax. "How are you feeling?"

       Dax shrugged and sat on one of the chairs. "Just the same."

       "Same as in everyday, or same as in every Christmas?" Seb asked. Dax didn't reply as he looked down. "Did you see her?"

       Dax nodded. "Yeah. I thought this time I would be able to convince myself that she wasn't real, but....Well, you know that it's my brain telling me she is. Even though Isadora tried convincing me otherwise, it wouldn't work...."

       "I'm sorry," Seb said.

       "Don't be," Dax said in a quiet voice. "I'm used to it happening and I kind of expected it more since I forget my medication at home."

       Wilder jumped onto the chair Dax was sitting on and sat on his lap. "Daddy, are you okay?" 

       Dax gave Wilder a thin smile. "Yeah, I'm okay now."

       I started setting up the board game with Atticus, and it wasn't long before we started playing the game. Dax was sitting out for a bit, but he shortly started playing after Isadora and Wilder were losing.

       There were only four pieces, so it was me and Seb on a team, Evelyn and Atticus, Gemma and Marcus, and Isadora and Wilder. Dax wasn't happy that his wife and son were losing, so he joined in and got a bit too competitive; cursing at anyone who made a negative move on them.

       He really needed to relax. I swear, he was probably ready to flip the board at any moment.

       He ended up flipping the board anyway. Right as Gemma and Marcus moved their piece to the winning square, Dax flipped the board off the table, muttering a string of profanities under his breath.

       Isadora sighed. "Yes, continue swearing in front of children."

       "Thanks for giving me permission," Dax said. "Gemma and Marcus obviously fucking cheated."

       "Uh, no, we're just awesome," Gemma said. "And you suck at the game."

       "Fuck you."

       "Daddy, that's a bad word," Wilder said.

       "Yes, I know, and I don't care," Dax said. "I'm in a bad mood because we didn't win."

       "It's just a game, Dax," Seb said. "You don't have to win."

       "Uh, this is me we're talking about," Dax said. "I'm amazing at this game. There's no way those two little babies could have won when all they do is argue all the time.

       "We don't argue all the time," Marcus said. "We're not arguing right now, are we?"

       "Whatever," Dax muttered before leaning back in the chair.

       "Don't be sad, Daddy!" Wilder said, running over to the chair. "Be happy! Like this!" Wilder gave Dax a big smile, which only made Dax smile back.

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Atticus has always wanted Orchid's attention. cx

We're finally getting a POV from one of the Protector characters in the next chapter. cx

So, if you're ever re-reading this or something, I mistook Atticus's age. He's actually six in this, not eight, so that's why there's a change.