"Daddy came back after that and worked on it the whole night, " Randy added.
"I know he fixed my invention too. One of the screws went missing so I couldn't put everything together, but when I looked at it just now, everything was intact. It must be Daddy. He must have found that missing screw."
"Daddy…" Josh began to sob.
Randy did not say a word but lowered his head. He looked at the model he invented. His eyes turned red and a tear dropped from his eyes.
He quickly turned away so Carla would not see him crying, but it was too late.
Carla felt guilty looking at her children.
She knew all they ever wanted was a complete family, but that was what Carla could not give them.
It was not just about holding the family together in a superficial sense. They needed a lot of reconciliation on the emotional level too.
The only thing Carla could do now was to minimize the hurt she would bring to them.
She bent down and smiled at them. "Daddy loves y'all a lot. Y'all should be grateful for that."
Josh nodded and went out to look for Zayn.
Randy had his back to Carla as he stood before the study table in his room, looking at the model in his hand.
Carla went over and ruffled his hair. "You can stay with Daddy if you want to, Randy. Mommy's fine with that."
She knew full well that the children would not be happy around her. They should be given a choice.
"I won't change my mind, Mommy, " Randy said, turning toward her, "I just miss Daddy."
Words failed Carla. She did not know what else to say.
"It's okay, Mommy, Daddy can still find us in Erihal. You'll bring me back to Aymo City to see Daddy, right?"
"I might never come back to Aymo City again, Randy, " Carla said softly, "But I will not stop you from seeing Daddy."
"Mommy…" Randy surveyed her expression before he asked the burning question. "Are you marrying Sir Lucas?"
Zayn's hand stopped just as he was about to knock on the door.
"Maybe, " Carla said vaguely, "But I still love all of you. Nothing can replace y'all in my heart."
"What about Daddy?" Randy looked at her in the eye. "Do you still love him? Not even the slightest bit?"
Zayn cocked his head and looked at Carla with mixed feelings.
He had always wanted to ask this question, but Randy beat him to it.
Despair grew in Carla's eyes, but she finally got a grip on herself. A bitter smile curved on her lips. "Things will never be the same between us again."
There was resignation and regret in her voice.
Zayn lowered his gaze. He felt his heart was gripped and shattered.
"Daddy…"
Randy spotted Zayn at the door.
Carla whipped her head around in alarm. She would be lying to say that she felt nothing when she saw his dejected face, but this was for the best. She should snuff out every lingering hope he had as soon as possible.
"Randy, I've made some pizza. Do you want to go grab some with Josh and Venus?" Zayn quickly put on a smile.
"Alright." Randy put down his stuff and put on his shoes before running out.
"Wash your hands first, " Zayn reminded him as he walked out.
"Yes, Daddy."
Randy cleaned his hands and joined his siblings in the dining room.
"You should eat a bit too. Lunch is almost ready, " Zayn said to Carla before going back to the kitchen.
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