Always Been You

~Lola’s POV~

I woke up early today because it’s my kids’ first day at school. I decided to look for a live-in tutor after their tragic experience two years ago, and Grant has been really helpful with the kids. Grant is a middle-aged man who has been working as a tutor for the better part of two decades. His teaching technique is unique, and believe me, he is amazing. Grant will continue to be their tutor. I’m not going to let him go. He is unrivaled. I ripped open the blanket and made my way to the kitchen. I was freezing. When I looked out the window, it was snowing. I sighed, knowing I’d have to make soup to keep my kids warm. So I ended up settling for butternut soup. After I was done preparing breakfast, I noticed my kids coming down.

“Good morning, Mom.” Tyler greeted me as I was preparing breakfast for them.

“Good morning, sweetie,” I said, as Mia walked up and kissed me before sliding into her chair.

“Hey, Mama.”

“Morning, sweetheart. How was your night?”

“Great mama.” I began to serve them, but then looked up to check if Kai was coming down. But he wasn’t.

“Where has Kai gone?”

“Mom, he’ll be down in a second. Could I please have the soup?” Tyler gave me a puppy dog look. While I was busy dishing out breakfast for them, Kai came running down and leaped up to kiss me.

“Good morning, mother.”

“Hey, baby, you look great today.” He smiled and ran his fingers through his hair.

“Always mom. Always.” I laugh at how cute he is while trying to play cute. Kai is quite a charmer. His words can melt any soul.

They all started eating while I waited for them to finish so I could take them to school.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“Did Dad love butternut soup, Mommy?” I went completely limp. My little girl has always been the inquisitive type, constantly wanting to know what happened to her father. She was curious about everything about him. I opened my mouth and closed it.

“Eat your food, Mia!” Kai forewarned.

“I’m sorry, brother.” Kai and Tyler are like mature people. They don’t act like people their age. While my little Mia is a curious soul full of questions, when they were done eating, I went inside to put on a jacket. I opened the door and the bitter cold stung my eyes as I stepped onto my porch. My legs were blown up by a gust of wind. I sighed. It was bitterly cold. Thank goodness it wasn’t too chilly, and the snow wasn’t too deep. I hate driving in snowy weather.

“Kai, Tyler, and Mia hurry up; we don’t want to be late on your first day at school,” I called out to them as I went into my garage to bring the car closer. I parked the car in front of my porch and waited for them. They all emerged in less than 5 minutes, but they had changed their attire and were not wearing gloves. Kai opened the door for Mia, who went inside, while Tyler crept in through the other door. I had to ask them after Kai slid into the car because it was extremely freezing and there was no way they were going to make it through the day. “Why did you go and change to dress lightly and you don’t have your gloves? It’s freezing outside.” I raised my concerns at that point, and Kai was quick to answer.

“Oh mom, it will only snow for 30 minutes and the weather won’t be too cold after that.”

“Where did you get that from?”

“Don’t worry, Mom, we will be fine.” Tyler chimed in. I sighed and started my car. I chose to drive gently because I couldn’t see much of the road. I drove by a traffic light near my house, muttering to myself about how I was going to make my kids late for their first day of school. I decided to take them close to Lolitta hotel. The name was changed a few months back. It used to be known as the Ozark Central Hotel. The teachers at the kindergarten are professionals, so I am confident that my children would love the school. My vision began to fail me. I could see the traffic signal’s dim red light. I checked the time and decided to pick up the pace a little to make it to the traffic light on time, but I collided with another car that I hadn’t seen. I yelled along with the kids and checked to see whether they were okay. To my surprise, my kids were just fine and staring right back at me, asking me if I was fine. I couldn’t answer. I chastised myself silently for driving. I slammed my head on the steering wheel and breathed a sigh of relief when I realized my children were safe. I went down to check on the car I hit. As Kai said, the snow had stopped and the sky was becoming clearer. As I took a step toward the car in front, the front door of the car opened and a slender man came out of the car.

A sports car? Holy shit, that must have cost a fortune.

I mentally slapped myself for being so careless. The man didn’t make a fuss. He took a step closer and came to a complete stop.

“Are you all OK, ma’am?” In a deep, raspy voice, the man questioned. He made no movement. He just asked without moving an inch. I looked up to respond to the man, but he was looking in the back of his car. Then he spoke again, “It is not severely damaged. I can still drive it.” Then he cocked his head in my direction, and the world came to a standstill. I want to run, but my legs can’t even move.

Dante!

Dante was standing in his glorious flesh, staring right at me. What exactly is he doing here? He didn’t move either. He looked at me and took a step back. Standing for a couple of moments with my eyes squeezed tightly shut, praying that when I open them again, Dante won’t be there, that this will all just be a horrible nightmare. It feels like it is. That, though, would be cliched and far too fortuitous. After almost 4 years and a few months of not seeing each other, all I could see in his eyes was dread. I quickly took in his appearance. His blue orbs were staring at me, and he looked deadly. His jet-black hair was smoothly combed into place. His shoulders had grown larger and more muscular. One could tell he was a gym person. He stood tall, wearing all black. While I was still taken aback by his unexpected appearance, Kai rolled down the window and yelled,

“Mama, are you hurt?” I headshot to meet Dante’s gaze while screaming at the back of my head that Kai didn’t step out of the car, but my boy stepped out and started assessing me. It’s as though God wanted my children to meet their father today. Both my sons had the same hairstyle as their father. Dante’s eyes landed on Kai, and I was secretly praying that Kai wouldn’t look at him, but knowing my son and his overprotectiveness, there was no way.

“Sir, I’m sorry. My mom is always careful while driving. It may be the snow. I apologize on her behalf.” As Kai called me ‘Mom,’ Dante remained expressionless, as though he knew Kai was his. Kai then looked up, and the father and son exchanged their first gaze. There was no denying it. Kai’s gaze traveled first from his father to me, then back to his father, who was still frozen in one place.

“Mom, why does he look like Tyler? Is he our father?” I froze, wishing the earth would open and swallow me whole.

“Kai, is mommy, okay?” Tyler asked as he opened the door, trying to come down.

“No! Stay in the car!” I shouted, looking at Dante, who hadn’t moved an inch, then back at the car so that Tyler wouldn’t come down, but of course, the two remaining in the car were both worried. Tyler came out of the car along with Mia, who ran to me while clutching my leg, crying. I leaned down to stroke Mia’s hair and wipe her tears, assuring her that her mother was OK.

“Are you okay, mama?” Tyler asked, and I saw Kai trying to walk toward Dante. Panic took over me. Dante hasn’t moved an inch, most likely because he’s in shock.

“Kai! Get back to the car now!”

“But mother! He is my father!” I froze. It’s over. It’s all over. I needed to act quickly.

“Who told you that?” I yelled at him while I was still having both an external and an internal breakdown. Mason’s car came to a halt, and he called out to the kids as he got out of the car. He quickly took them inside his car and came back to drag me into his car.

“Are you all right, Lola? You must be really shocked,” Mason asked. I couldn’t find my voice. It’s as if I was programmed to speak for a particular amount of time and then couldn’t. He closed the door, and he went towards Dante. The vehicles were not far apart. I could hear everything.

“I am so sorry, sir. I need to get them to the hospital first. I’ll return to discuss the damages. Could you please take this?” Mason stated as he put his business card in Dante’s hand. “Kids first. I hope you understand.” I watched as Dante checked Mason out and scoffed.

“I understand. How old are your children?” Dante asked with the same expressionless face.

“Oh, no, they aren’t…” He paused and continued, “They are four, sir.” Dante’s gaze traveled to me. My heart started pounding in my ears while my pulse thundered in my neck, making it hard to swallow.

“Don’t worry about the car. You can go ahead.” He said as he eyed me.

“Are you sure, sir?” Dante gave a nod.

“Thank you very much, sir!” Mason said joyfully and dashed back to his car, where he drove away. When I peeked out the window, I saw Dante smirking devilishly at me. I knew it was all over right then and there.

He found me.