"You can tell they are not the original ones?" Zayn asked, looking at the plants, "I wasn't in the mood to do anything back then because I was so worried. When I finally came around, the plants and the fish had already died. I was afraid you might get angry when you saw it, so I asked them to replace everything with similar ones."
Zayn glanced at her before continuing. "I pored over the photos and videos just to make sure I know how these things looked like originally. It seems like I didn't do a good enough job. You realized it."
It's actually a job well done. Carla almost blurted out. For a moment, she thought they had traveled back in time to two years back.
She had yet moved into Giblo residence back then, and neither had she gotten married to Zayn. That was before she got sent to T Nation.
It was not until she saw the eagle on the balcony that she was shaken back to reality. I'm Carla Lierger now.
We can't go back to how things were now. There's no turning back, Carla.
"Why did you bring us here?" Carla questioned coldly after recollecting herself.
"I just want the kids to be happy, " Zayn replied patiently, "They had never been separated. This is too sudden for them. It might take a while before they get used to it. I just want them to know that no matter what happens in the future, we are always a family. I want them to know that we have each other's back. Our bond will keep them going no matter what they face in the future."
Carla felt ashamed listening to him. Zayn was a better parent than her.
"Go and rest for a bit. I'll make lunch."
Zayn took off his coat and rolled up his sleeves as he walked into the kitchen.
Now, since when did he know how to cook?
Carla suddenly remembered that Zayn once made a pot of vegetable beef soup with Randy and Josh, but that was still not telling of his culinary skills.
Carla tilted her head, thinking, as she walked back to her room.
Her room looked the same too. The orchids were Dunraing under the sun and her ledger book was still flipped to the same page beside her bed. Even her laptop was still on the webpage where she wanted to upload photos.
Carla did not expect Zayn to put so much effort into keeping this house the way it was.
She walked over and touched her table, her bed, her laptop, the ledger, and the flowers.
Her heart warmed.
"Mommy!"
Venus's voice pierced through the silence. Carla went over to open the door. "Venus."
"Look, Mommy! Deedee, Lulu, and Kiki are still here."
Venus showcased her Barbie dolls proudly.
"I accidentally broke Lulu's leg when I came here last time. I cried so much because of that, but now it's all fixed."
"Did Daddy fix it for you?" Carla asked gently as she squatted down, "You have to thank Daddy."
"I'll go now!"
The girl ran to the kitchen with the dolls in her hand.
Right after she went off, Josh came in. "Mommy, come here."
"What is it?" Carla asked as she followed Josh over to his room.
She was stunned when she went in. The Lego looked the same as when they left. It was a spaceship with a few missing pieces.
"I remember Randy and I were almost done with the model when we had to leave two years ago. We wanted to finish it before leaving, but Mrs. Borah said we could do it after we got back, " Josh recounted in a flustered manner.
"I remember when I came back during my last birthday, Randy and I wanted to finish it, but I messed everything up when I accidentally hit it off. Daddy said he would redo it for me because I was crying so hard. I can't believe Daddy did all this."
Share
