Taming the Bitch (COMPLETED) Wattys2018

Chapter LIV - NURSERY

"And they lived happily ever after..." reading to Veronica every night before bed has become one of Gabrielle's most favourite things to do with her daughter. Holding the hard bound and colourful book in hand as she lies her back on the pillows against the headboard, Gabrielle peeks at the pretty little angel whose eyes are still fixed on the illustrations on the book. Sometimes, Veronica would even mouth the lines she's reading. Doing this with her every night, at the age of 21 months, Nic already knows most of the letters and she's memorized most of the words written on the book. Although on this particular night, she didn't mouth any word of the fairy tale with her and thus, just kept on asking questions about the meaning of certain words and required her to explain furthermore what was happening in the story of the Sleeping Beauty.

"Mommy...?" Nic calls on her softly as she looks up so she can see her mother's face who is right beside her on the bed. Slowly, she sits up kneeling beside her mom as she stares intently at her face like weighing whether it is the perfect time to ask whatever question she has in mind again.

"Hmm...?" Gabrielle reaches for her daughter's curly hair that is framing the right side of her face and pushes it to the back of her ear before softly touching her warm rosy cheek with her thumb.

"Mom... does dada loves us...?" She suddenly asks just when Gabrielle though she would just ask about the meaning of this word or that. The question made Gabrielle just stare at her daughter's blue eyes realizing that Veronica is starting to look more like him...or maybe because she saw him again and looking at her daughter's blue eyes now that she has taken from him, Gabby's starting to see his face on her. For a moment she was drawn on staring at her daughter's face before the question sinks in and she frowns.

"W-why are you asking that, love?" She asks as she smiles sadly at her... not knowing what to answer.

Again, Gab realize how ironic it is that the person you are so trying to forget and run away from is the very person you can see every day on the face of the angel you love the most.

Nic pouts as she looks at her forefingers that she is absentmindedly touching with one another.

"Hmmm...?" Gab lifts Nic's chin seeing the sadness in her eyes. She wonders what all of these sudden appearance of Vincent and learning that he is her father actually means to her daughter. She wants to know what is going on in her head.

"Because, dada wasn't with us untiw now... is dada mad at us mommy?" Again, her blue eyes are intently staring at her warm chocolate eyes like she is extracting the very raw answer out of her soul.

"Come here..." Gabrielle sighs reaching out to hold her daughter's hands as she pulls her back to her arms. Her fingers playing with Nic's curly hair as she now lies on her tummy on top of her mother's chest. Gabrielle then kisses the top of Nic's head before she finally speak.

"There are lots of things that you won't understand now... but there will come a time when you would know the reasons why..." Nic looks up to her and pouts as she narrows her eyes like she's thinking of something. Gabrielle smiles kindly at her daughter before touching her little nose with her forefinger.

"As per your question... I think you will know the answer if you look and feel here..." she touches Nic's chest as she says this. Then her palm rests on top of where her little innocent heart beats can be heard.

"What do you think?" She asks smiling at Nic who smiles back before embracing her waist tighter.

"I think dada woves us... he wouldn't come here if not... and he cooked for us... he pwayed wif me too..."

Gabrielle tried her best not to shed tears for what Nic said... She just doesn't want to spoil anything for her and to be honest, she wants to be fair to Vincent. Much as she can no longer trust the man or his feelings and whatever he is showing now to them because of her very dark and painful experience in his hands, she still doesn't want to brainwash Nic on believing that he isn't what she thinks he is... after all, what he was to her is not what he is or will be to her daughter....