One of Zein’s habits after they had the twins was to stand on the patio, staring at the vast sea mindlessly while the boys had their nap. It always fascinated him how the sky and the water could look different every time, and he would be reminded of what a blessing it was to survive his youth. ƒгeeweɓn૦vel.com
To be able to just stand there thinking about nothing but his energetic boys and what to ask his husband for dinner...young Zein would sneer if someone ever mentioned that kind of life to him.
He truly had come so far.
It got even more perfect when he felt a pair of warm hands circle his waist, and a pair of even warmer lips touching the skin of his neck. These slow, languid kisses were also a privilege; a blessing he was grateful for every day.
"You’re back already?" Zein reached back to pat the platinum hair tickling his nape.
"I missed you," the answer came with a soft kiss on the back of Zein’s ear.
Zein chuckled. "When have you never?"
"I know, right?" Bassena laughed softly, before getting back to whining. "I miss the day when I could just go to another floor to see you."
Zein laughed and stroked the platinum hair some more. Wouldn’t it be weird if he popped up too often? He was no longer a member of Trinity, after all. Besides...now that he understood the joy of living slowly--as slow as a parent with twin boys could be--he rather enjoyed just spending time with his sons and enough time to relax without thinking too much about work or saving the world.
Truly, his life was almost perfect.
"Honey..."
"Mm?"
"Do you really, really want a daughter?"
Zein chuckled and leaned back against the sturdy chest. "I really, really want a daughter," he replied with a smile. "But it doesn’t have to be soon just because there’s a new baby in the neighborhood."
"That lakehouse isn’t in our neighborhood," Bassena rolled his eyes. If it was, he didn’t have to be so stressed about the twins asking to go there every day, commuting for two hours each time.
Again, Zein just laughed. He laughed a lot these days--he laughed a lot after the twins were born. They were indeed adorable--even while acting rowdy at times. Whether it was because of them or because of the new, more relaxed lifestyle, Zein had completely shed the rough edges he brought when he first arrived in the green zone--only bringing it back sometimes when the twins were acting especially naughty.
But it was true that he looked happier with his children around. Not to say that he wasn’t happy with only Bassena, but in a way, the twins brought back the memory of living as a family with his younger brothers.
Bassena exhaled slowly as he leaned his head on the guide’s shoulder. "I took a nap earlier."
"In the office?" Zein raised his brow. "How rare; are you alright?"
"Yeah," Bassena tightened his hug so Zein wouldn’t turn around. Well, he wasn’t exactly alright before he took that nap, but that wasn’t the point. "I had a dream."
"...what dream?"
Bassena’s dream only consisted of two things; a dark sea or a blue sky and a cliff. Zein knew this, so when Bassena said he had a ’dream’, it would mean he saw something else.
"A field of flowers," Bassena said quietly, almost in a whisper. "And a flickering flame in the middle."
"Flame?"
"A sentient one, I think. It swayed and jumped around the field of flowers as if it was dancing," Bassena almost chuckled as he recalled the weird dream. "Didn’t burn the flower though, which is weird. Even the flowers seemed to be dancing around."
Zein raised his brows. It was a weirdly interactive dream for Bassena’s standard. Almost...prophetic. It reminded him of the dream he had inside the private plane they took to the Southern Kingdom.
Oh...
"Let’s try it," Bassena whispered, this time loosening his hold so Zein could turn around and look at him with those brilliant blue eyes, prettier than the sea and sky behind them. "Let’s get this daughter you want."
It was sufficient to say that the only thing preventing Zein from dragging his baby to the bedroom was because his other two babies were finally waking up from their nap.
* * *
"They are potty trained, aren’t they?" Radia asked again to make sure.
"Positive," Bassena nodded. "Even if an accident happens, Joon should have enough knowledge."
"He’s three decades out of practice," Radia clicked his tongue.
"You have the nannies anyway," Bassena rolled his eyes. "Isn’t it too late asking about this all when you’re here already?"
"Will this service be extended until the after-party?" Bassena asked expectantly.
"No, that’s your problem."
"Tsk."
At that moment, the chaos had finally subsided from the upstairs, and they could hear the twins running through the hallways and down the stairs, with Ayya and the nannies following behind.
"Uncle! Uncle!" Asa was practically dashing and rolling to the living room, tackling Han Joon who caught him well. "Ale we going to play in watel? Play with sand? Aca want to build plane!"
"Why plane? You should build a castle in the sand," Bassena tilted his head.
"Tsk! Baba not veli cleative!" Asa pursed his lips as Uncle Joon put him down. "We shud be able to cleate anything!"
Bassena the magician clutched his pained heart.
"Can we sleep with you, Uncle?" Kar held Joon’s hand and swayed it softly, staring at his uncle with sparkling eyes full of expectation.
"Sure," Radia replied, which surprised the twins’ parents. To think they would share their bed with children...how far they had come. "Let’s go right away. It’s not fun playing on the beach when it’s dark."
He snapped his fingers and a portal to the resort near the port city opened. With only a single ’bye bye’, the kids stepped into the portal while holding their uncle’s hands, followed by the nannies.
As their house suddenly became quiet, Zein blinked at the scene that reminded him of his dream. Was it Kar? The one standing in front of a dungeon gate?
"He sounded reluctant, but Radia actually pretty excited in the end, huh?" Bassena smirked.
"He’s an only child," Zein shrugged. "Subconsciously, some only child longed for siblings."
"Maybe," Bassena chuckled. "Talking about sibling--"
Before he could finish his words, Zein had already pulled on his collar and pressed their lips together.
No need for bedrooms. For the next three days, the whole house would be their bedroom.
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