章節 16: Picnic With The Lindens
"Hey, you guys have come," Elios said. He painstakingly arranging a few glasses and syrups and cakes. Beside him were a number of books.
Nicolae could see how much his brother enjoyed a quiet life with his family. He was happy to see Elios happy. Now that the two youngest children were getting older, Elios and Aleksis were not too tired with taking care of babies, and their lives seemed happier and easier.
"It's fun to have a picnic here," Nicolae said, as he laid his body on the thick grass and closed his eyes.
Elios just smiled at Nic's words. "The weather is very nice today."
One by one, the children joined on the picnic blanket and began pouring drinks and taking cakes and fruit. Nicolae was still lying down with eyes closed. He always loved being among his brother's family. After he got over his awkwardness with Aleksis six years ago, he was able to spend more time with them.
He loved Elios and his adorable niece and nephews. Of course, Altair and Vega were even considered his own children because he helped raise them since they were 5. They even still call him Daddy until now.
Then there are the adorable identical twins, Ireland and Scotland. Ever since they knew how to walk and talk, they always clung to him. The four kids made Nicolae super happy. Sometimes, there was a tinge of jealousy and sadness because he had lost his unborn child six years ago together with it's mother..
Ahh ... that event had passed a long time ago. Nicolae could only remember Marie, the woman he loved, on his own because he did not want to make his family worry. He kept photos of Marie in his room until today. Gradually, his sadness diminished because he spent a lot of time with Elios' family.
Since he lost Marie and their unborn child, Nicolae rarely smiled. He seldom went out on dates, although Terry set him up with lots of pretty girls. Even at the university, countless professors and students were trying to captivate his heart. But Nicolae realized he would only be interested in dating a few women because they had physical similarities with Marie.
He was well aware, as long as it was still happening, then he still could not forget Marie and move on.
"Altair and Vega will go on a study trip to Paris after the semester exams," Aleksis said suddenly. "I am thinking of going to Paris to be with them. Do you want to come too?"
Nicolae opened his eyes and looked at Aleksis with a frown. "Is it not excessive? They are growing well now and need to experience a trip with their friends abroad. If you keep hovering around them, how can they be independent?"
"That's true," Elios nodded. "My wife is too worried. That's all."
"They are only 16... They have never traveled on their own like that," protested Aleksis.
"Uhm ... they will not be alone. You always provide them with bodyguards to watch them everywhere," Nicolae said, shaking his head. "You don't don't want Altair and Vega to grow up being spoiled, sheltered kids, do you?"
"That's not what I mean ... I just feel more comfortable if we have some adults from among us who could watch over them," Aleksis said again.
Nicolae took out his cellphone and checked his schedule. "At the end of the month, I will have a break from teaching. I could stop by Paris before going home to Grosetto. So, I will be able to check on Altair and Vega for you guys. How about that?"
"Ahh .. do you mind? I will be very happy if you can be there for them ..." said Aleksis in a thankful tone.
"All right. In that case, I'll stop by Paris to watch them," Nicolae said. He grabbed an apple and took a bite,
They had a nice picnic for an hour, enjoying food, drinks, games, and reading books. At 6 pm, when the sun was still high in the sky, they ended their picnic. Nicolae excused himself about to visit Terry for a drink before he returned to his apartment.
Altair and Vega would stay in Manhattan until Monday when they return to school.
***
When Altair and Vega returned to school on Monday, many of their female friends asked about the handsome man who had come to school to accompany Altair during his fight with Charles.
A small number of friends, who had been to their house and knew Nicolae was their father, had told others who he was, but most of the students didn't believe them. They wanted to hear directly from Altair and Vega.
"It's true. That's our daddy," said Altair with a proud face. He knew Nicolae was very handsome, and he was always happy to brag about his father. "Why?"
"Oh ... I see. Well, I thought... I thought he's your brother or cousin because he looks so young and cool. I couldn't imagine he is your father."
"I just realized that you both actually look similar."
"Wow ... you're so lucky," said another one. "That means when you turn 40 like him, you will also look that young. Gosh! Such good genes."
Altair only smiled at that. His school friends did not know how old Nicolae really was and that Altair would also look young forever.
"I am indeed lucky," Altair responded.
"Oh, by the way... then what happened at the police station? We haven't heard anything about the case with Charles. Was he finally willing to settle?"
"Oh ... well, he finally realized his mistake. We agreed to settle and promised never to discuss it again," Altair said with a shrug.
Since his school friends had to ask him what had happened at the police station, Altair suspected that Charles was keeping it a secret. He would be ashamed if people found out he was utterly humiliated at the police station.
Ah ... it's better this way. Altair would prefer his friends not to ask further questions so they wouldn't suspect his and Vega's identity. Altair also chose not to discuss it again. He told his friends that he was eager to focus his attention on the coming exams and did not want to look for a fuss.
***
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