THE INEVITABLE │ t.h

TWENTY SIX

"Venus, you must swing with me!" Evelyn playfully proclaims in a thick British accent, sticking out a hand for the aforementioned woman to take.

"Why not take Tom?" Venus teases, glancing his way with amusement in her eyes. Tom chuckles, shaking his head, meeting her eyes.

"I believe my daughter wants to swing with you, m'lady," Tom spoke, giving a half-assed bow as he sat beside Venus on a bench that overlooked the park.

"You're an ass," Venus snorts, taking Evelyn's hand, allowing the little girl to tug the younger woman toward the swingset with anticipation buzzing in her ears. "Evie, slow down, you know I'm clumsy."

Eventually, they were both sat on a pair of swings, Venus looking at her feet as she swung gently back and forth. Evelyn followed suit.

"Do you love my daddy?" Evelyn asks, her eyes continuing to boar into the side of Venus's face. She giggles at the intense heat that overtook Venus's once cool-toned cheeks. "So, you do."

"Evelyn," Venus sighs, both frustrated and defeated. There was no other way for her to play this out — Tom hadn't told her she could tell Evelyn of their relationship yet. "You can't tell anyone, okay?"

"I promise," Evelyn grins, holding out one of her pinkies. Venus chuckles softly, wrapping a pinky of her own around Evelyn's. "You'd make my daddy very happy if you told him, though."

"Oh yeah? How do you know that?" Venus questions, genuinely curious. Had Tom done what she was doing right now and played it off as only him having a simple crush on her? Or had he just all-out confessed an undying love for her to his daughter? Okay, maybe she was getting a bit too hopeful.

"It's just... the way he looks at you," Evelyn responds. "It's like you're the only thing going on in the world." Guilt overtook Venus.

"Evelyn, I hope you know your father would never abandon you for anyone else," she defends. Evelyn laughs, nodding as she turns her eyes to her feet.

"I know," she hums. "He just cares for you in a different than he cares for me..." Venus gulps, keeping her eyes on Evelyn so she could detect any ounce of sadness. "... Which makes me really happy." Venus exhales a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Evelyn doesn't pay any mind to the nervous energy Venus radiated, nor the woman's sweaty palm when she grips the little girl's hand.

"He loves you with every ounce of his being, Evie," she softly speaks.

"And I love him the same," Evelyn responds, her eyes downturned as she returns her gaze to the young woman's, whose held so much compassion. "So please, I'm begging you, Venus..." Evelyn takes a staggered breath in and out, "... don't hurt my daddy."

Venus bites down on her bottom lip hard, surprised she hadn't broken any skin. Tears wished to be pooled around her eyelashes, but she didn't dare let them fall, in fear Tom would come over immediately and comfort them. "I promise I won't, Evie."

Evelyn smiles, lifting a huge weight off of Venus's chest. The little girl embraces the young woman, repeating the same relieved, "Thank you"s until Venus can't hold back her tears any longer. And as expected, Tom rushes over.

"Are you guys okay?" he asks, kneeling to Evelyn's height and flickering his eyes between Venus and his daughter.

"Oh, yeah," Venus chuckles, breaking away from Evelyn and wiping her tears. Evelyn did the same. "Just some girl talk."

Tom's heart fell as he recognized the hiding of information, feeling a tug at his repaired heartstrings. This felt similar to a situation with Evelyn's mother... and we all know how that one ended.

But he didn't realize that this wasn't a sad discussion, it was just a soft moment, that left Venus forever vulnerable to Evelyn. She wasn't leaving Tom and Evelyn behind. Evelyn wasn't crying like she was losing her mother — she was crying because she was gaining one.