Adventures of Sinbad and Layla

Father's Worry

Sinbad was going through the royal decrees in his office. It wasn't the most fabulous part of being King but still incredibly important. His duties often kept him away from his wife and daughter but everything he did was for the betterment of their future. He also had to keep everything in place so that Esra would be able to take over with ease once he was gone. She was only 11 and there was still a long way to go until then but everything he did now would benefit her when she eventually becomes queen. Even though he and Layla didn't have a son, Esra would take over Sindria one day.

He didn't want to think about it but one day she would be old enough to get married and have children of her own. The thought of his little girl growing up really upset him. As he thought about how quickly the past 11 years had gone by, he found it more and more difficult to concentrate on his work. But then he became completely distracted when Layla entered the room.

"Hey, Sin," she greeted cheerfully as she walked over to his desk. "How's your work coming along?"
He breathed out and rubbed his hands over his face as he leaned back in his chair. "It's sort of coming along."
She stood beside him and looked at the paperwork. "Yeah, I can see what you mean by 'sort of'. Sin, I said I would help you."
"I know but I'd rather you spend time with Esra." He dropped his hands and looked at her. "Where is she?"
"She's with Yamraiha now. They're planning a prank on Sharrkan."
"Sounds fun." He took her hand and pulled her down onto his lap before wrapping his arms around her. "I miss you," he said tiredly as he rested his head on her chest. "And I miss your boobs."
She laughed. "I miss you, too."
"Anything new happen while I've been in here?"
She ran her fingers through his hair. "Not really. Esra was telling us about school and her friends. She wants to know if her friends can come over for a sleepover and I said I would have to ask you first."
He closed his eyes. "Any boys?"
"No."
"Then that's fine with me."
"Oh, but she did tell us about this boy who has a crush on her."
His eyes shot open wide as he lifted his head. "She has a boyfriend?!"
"You're such an idiot," she said as she rolled her eyes. "A boy has a crush on her."
"And who is this boy? He's only 11. That's a bit too young for someone to have a crush."
"Uh, I had a crush on you when I was 9."
He nodded. "And that's too young."
"Sin, Esra is a beautiful young girl. And it's normal for kids around her age to start finding others attractive and such," she explained. "They're almost teenagers. And when they see each other almost everyday and get to know each other, feelings start to develop. You remember how it was with us, right?"
"We were a little older than 11. And feelings?" Sinbad repeated in disgust. "How dare this boy have feelings for my daughter. I was with you all the time and I didn't have feelings for you until I was 14."
She rolled her eyes. "Not everyone is as dense as you."
"I'm going to have a word with Esra and make sure she stays away from this boy and I'm going to get her to point him out to me so-"
"She said she finds him icky," she interjected.
He blinked in surprise. "She does?"
"Yes."
He smiled proudly. "That's my girl."

She rolled her eyes again and sighed. She didn't know how he would react when she eventually did start being attracted to boys and begin to develop feelings. She adjusted herself on his lap so she was straddling him on his seat.

"Sin, what would you do if she fell in love with someone at 14?" she asked curiously as she held his face.
His hands went to her hips as he leaned back and thought. "Hm, let me see... I would probably ground her."
She frowned. "What? Why?"
"I don't want her falling in love with random guys. Even at 14, she'll still be way too young."
"I was 14 when I knew I love you," she told him. "How is it suddenly wrong if she feels the same way about someone at that age?"
He sighed. "That was different. You loved me and we grew up together. I trust me. I don't know if I can trust some guy with my daughter. I would ground her to protect her."
"Sin..." She brushed her fingers through his hair. "You can't just hide her away from the world. Don't you want her to live how we did?"
"Yes, but... She's my girl. I don't want her to get hurt."
Layla pecked his lips. "You're so cute. But don't forget that your girl is extremely intelligent. And not only is she bright, she's an incredible fighter. She's learned from the very best. She'll hurt anyone who even thinks about hurting her." She smiled. "And we will always be there to protect her too."
He breathed out deeply and returned the smile. "You're right. I don't know what I'd do without you."
"I'm simply that amazing," she joked with a light laugh.

He chuckled as he wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her against him fully. Their lips locked together and they shared a deep and loving kiss. As their lips moved together slowly, they suddenly heard a loud scream, causing them to jump apart. Turning to the door, they saw Esra standing there looking completely horrified.

"What are you guys doing?!" she screamed in disgust. "This is an office!"
Layla quickly climbed off Sinbad's lap. "Don't overreact, Esra. It was just a kiss. I kiss your dad all the time."
"Ew!"
Sinbad stood up. "You've seen us kiss before."
"But that was just a peck or something. You guys were using...tongue," she retched. "Old people aren't supposed to that."
Layla raised a brow. "Excuse me?"
"Seriously save it for the bedroom."
"Esra, that's enough," Layla said firmly.
"Yeah," Sinbad said as he wrapped his arm around Layla's waist. "Where do you think you even came from in the first place?"
Layla slapped his chest. "Shut up!" she whispered.

Esra looked like she was going to throw up before she quickly ran off again. Layla breathed out in frustration while Sinbad laughed.

"What's so funny?"
"This is great," he said. "That should put her off boys for a while."