The next morning, Emily got up and went to the kitchen to make breakfast. She planned to make sandwiches and prepare milk and fruit.
At this time, she heard someone coming from upstairs, and then she saw Aaron walking down.
He seemed sleepy. He rubbed his eyes, and his hair was a little messy.
When he saw Emily, he pounced over and hugged her legs.
"Aaron, you're awake. You can sleep for a while longer." Emily put down a plate.
Aaron shook his head. Emily was not sleeping beside him, so he did not want to sleep anymore.
"Did you sleep well yesterday?"
Aaron nodded.
"I'll take you to wash your face first," Emily said and took him to the bathroom.
While Aaron was washing up, Emily returned to the bedroom to take a look and saw that Chris and Diane were still asleep. She did not wake them up.
"Aaron, this is for you," Emily said as she placed the sandwich on the plate on the table.
Aaron held the sandwich to Emily's mouth. Emily smiled, "Aaron, this is for you. I've already had one."
Aaron began to eat, looking as cute as a little squirrel.
Emily remembered that Aaron was very good with numbers, so after breakfast, she took out Chris's new Legos and gave them to Aaron.
Aaron hurriedly nodded. He liked Legos.
"Mommy." Chris and Diane also woke up. They had already freshened up.
"Good morning, my sweeties." Emily heated their breakfast and brought it to the table.
After eating, Chris and Diane played Legos with Aaron.
Although Aaron didn't say anything, his face was red. He was very happy. He liked to play number puzzles, and Ian wouldn't play with him. So, he had been playing alone all this time. Now, he felt the joy of playing games with Chris and Diane.
They soon finished making a building with Legos. Diane cried out. She had never completed it so fast. She wanted to place it somewhere for display.
"Alright, put it in the cabinet. This is the work of the three of you. Go wash your hands and come back for some strawberries," Emily said as she walked out with a plate of strawberries in her hands.
Diane quickly washed her hands and went out. When Chris was about to go out, he discovered that Aaron was still washing his hands.
"Aaron, stop." Chris frowned. "Your hands are already red. You rubbed them too hard."
Aaron stopped in frustration. He tried to endure it and stretched his fingers. In the end, he could not help turning on the tap and washing his hands again.
Chris remembered that Aaron had mysophobia. He was afraid that Aaron would hurt himself. Although Aaron always wanted to steal his mother, which made Chris upset, Chris liked Aaron, so he decided to accompany Aaron.
When Aaron finally stopped, Chris helped him open the door. Then he said, "Aaron, you should wash your hands more gently. They've turned red already."
Aaron knew Chris cared about him. He nodded and stroked Chris' head.
"We're the same age, okay? Only Mommy can touch my head like that." Chris dodged Aaron.
"Chris, Aaron? Have you washed your hands?" Emily asked.
They quickly ran over.
By the time Derek arrived, Aaron had already fallen asleep, leaning against Emily.
They played on the lawn in the morning and watched some insects and squirrels.
Aaron had never seen these things before. For the first time, his life became fun.
Derek looked at Aaron sleeping soundly with a relaxed face. He didn't sleep well last night, and now he breathed a sigh of relief.
When Derek returned yesterday afternoon, Ian was so angry that he cried. Ian just woke up from his nap, yet Derek and Aaron were gone. Ian felt that he had been left alone.
No matter how Charlie coaxed him, Ian did not stop crying until Derek returned.
When Ian looked at Derek with red and swollen eyes, Derek felt that his heart was broken.
As Ian knew that Aaron was going to stay at Emily's house for a night, he also wanted to come over. After being rejected by Derek, Ian began to cry again.
This time, Derek had no other choice. When he woke up this morning and saw Ian run to his bed to look at him, Derek felt helpless for the first time.
"Emily." Ian suddenly poked his head out from behind Derek.
There was a flower in his hand. His hands were dirty. It seemed that he had gone to pick the flower.
"This is for you. Thank you for taking care of Aaron," Ian said earnestly.
Derek couldn't help looking at him. Yesterday, Ian cried and said that Aaron didn't want him anymore. He was jealous that Aaron was so dependent on Emily. Today, Ian even gave a flower to Emily.
Ian didn't know what Derek was thinking. He really missed Aaron. They had never been separated. After Derek fell asleep last night, Ian was still crying silently. However, Ian told himself that Aaron would recover faster with Emily around him. In the end, Ian cried and drifted into sleep.
When Emily saw Ian's eyes, she knew that he had cried. She gently put Aaron down. Aaron moved, but he didn't wake up.
Derek was very surprised because it was easy for Aaron to wake up. This was the first time he had seen Aaron sleep so deeply.
Emily took Ian's flower and hugged him. "Thank you, Ian. I like it very much."
"Aaron made a building with Legos yesterday. I'll take you to have a look, okay?" Emily said gently to Ian.
Derek found that Emily was very sweet to Aaron and Ian as if she were their mother. But to Derek, Emily was very cold.
Looking at Emily getting along with Ian and Aaron, Derek felt happy inside. He enjoyed this feeling.
He stared at Emily's face in a trance. He recalled that night five years ago.
No. He told himself that Rose was Aaron and Ian's mother. He shouldn't let his thoughts run wild. This was disrespectful to Rose and Emily.
Ian smiled happily by Emily's side.
Derek raised an eyebrow. He didn't want to admit that he was jealous. After all, he was the father.
He looked at his watch. "Ian, time to go."
"Aaron is still sleeping. Be careful not to wake him up." Emily wrapped Aaron with a blanket.
Derek took Aaron and placed him in the car. His movements were gentle, so Aaron did not wake up.
Ian tried not to make a sound. He sat next to Aaron and was happy that Aaron was back.
This time, only Emily was seeing them off. Chris and Diane were taking a nap.
Derek felt a little regretful. For some reason, he wanted to see Chris and Diane, especially Diane. The little girl was very cute, making him want a daughter.
At this time, his phone rang. He picked it up and saw that it was Rose calling.
Aaron frowned as if to be woken up.
Derek quickly hung up.