Chapter 69: Cool for the summer

Selen knew that the entire mood of the kids, this fragile, beautiful joy they had just recovered was currently depending entirely on her next word. If she said no, the light in the room would vanish.

She took a deep breath, trying to inject a voice of reason into the excitement. "I will have to think about it, kids. Your sister still needs to be under supervision at all times and close to a hospital, and you all still have school to finish too."

David, always the strategist, stepped forward with a counter argument. "Our teacher said that school closes this week, Mummy. Can we go after them? During the summer?"

Selen looked at David, then turned her gaze back to Diana . The recovery was a miracle, yes, but miracles needed to be protected. "But Diana," Selen asked gently, reaching out to brush a stray hair from her daughter’s face, "do you really think you can stay in the sun and the heat for so long without getting sick again?"

The room went entirely still, everyone waiting to see how Diana would answer the ultimate test. "I think so. And if I am ever tired, I promise to stay in the shade and communicate with you or whoever is with me" Diana said.

"Hmph" Selen let out a heavy breath. How could she deprive them of that? "Of course, sweetie. We can make plans for that when school closes and I see very good grades and exemplary remarks from your teachers" she added.

The last part was just so it would not be as though she gave in easily. She knew how smart her kids were and good grades was a norm in their house.

"We? Does that mean that you will be going with us, mummy?" Daniel asked her. She had not thought about it yet. But it seemed like what would have ended up happening anyway.

She would not be at ease knowing that the three kids were left alone to be catered and watched after by just Clancy and Sarah. She slowly nodded her head, yes. "Yes, I will be going to the beach with you guys too. I have also not been to any beaches in Spain" she said.

Clancy could not control the small smile that made its way to his lips. As the kids asked her, he had hoped that she would join in. But she was an unpredictable woman.

He needed an excuse to spend more time with his entire family. And one that was outside of the walls of Selen’s home seemed like a lottery win.

He did not say anything else after that and just hung out with the kids. Selen had caught the smile on his face but ignored it as what sheer excitement for their plans. She watched the kids finish their food and hurry to hang out with Clancy.

She sat down for a while and watched them do whatever they did that made them laugh and giggle uncontrollably.

They really just liked hanging around Clancy and that was not a father and children bond she saw everyday. Maybe it was because he was not there from the beginning, so now he is like a fun little addition to their family. Or they always wanted a dad and she had not realised it.

A message notification came on Selen’s phone and she opened it to reveal a text from Newton, "Hey!" it read. She did not notice when the small smile appeared on her lips. It was not the kind of smile that came from trying to hide a blush. But one that came with familiarity.

And it made her even more confused about what she would call their current relationship. Since the last time he confessed his feelings, on the night after Clancy ruined their dinner, he stuck to his word of being there and not pressuring her. But she was feeling the pressure that she was putting on herself.

Newton did not mind slow and steady, as long as when she came to him, she was sure and ready. As she typed back a response, she noticed a pair of eyes stuck on her.

Clancy, who had noticed when she took out her phone and smiled as she typed back, was jealously watching her. "Oh, so now she responds immediately. But when it’s me checking in, she ignores me" he said to himself as he kept his eyes on her.

Their eyes met. They both looked at each other, with no one giving way for the other. Selen was having an awkward stare when she caught him looking at her. And Clancy was staring at her like she had just shown him a secret that he did not like knowing.

Selen looked away when Clancy’s lower lip began to bend into an involuntary pout and went back to her phone, which luckily had a new message waiting for her.

"What are your plans this summer? Any vacation plans?" Newton asked her. Selen thought about an answer, making sure that she was not forgetting anything. "None right now. Besides the kids having a beach day at the beginning of the summer, we have nothing else in our calendar for now. Besides work for me" she said back.

"Beach day? Can I come along?" Newton asked her. If it was just her and the kids then she would have been the one inviting him first, but she did not want anything that would cause the air to be filled with tension. So, she told Newton no and explained why.

"That sounds like family time to me," he said and the jealousy could be felt through the text. "No, the kids just want to go to the beach and spend time with Clancy. I do not want to be the reason their smiles are taken away from them" she explained.

Selen looked up at the kids, who were engrossed in a game of monopoly with Clancy. They had just begun and were already trying to change some of the rules of the game, causing Selen to forget about her phone for a while and laugh loudly.