Hiraeth [GxG]

Chapter 12

I decided just to cook something simple; grilled chicken, rice, and some green beans. I put the kids' plates of food on a big tray along with four cups of blood. Mila and I ate human food purely for looks and to make it seem more like a family dinner. Since we aren't having dinner all together, there was no reason to put ourselves through the torture of that bland-ass food.

I stopped at Aleksey's room first and knocked on it. I heard a sigh followed by small footsteps leading to the door. He opened up the door and looked surprised to see them.

"Here you go. When you're done, you can take down your dirty dishes, rinse them off, and put them in the dishwasher." I handed him his plate and cup, made my way over to Alyx's room, and repeated the same process.

"Here's some food and blood. Once you're done, just take the dirty dishes downstairs, rinse them, and put them in the dishwasher." She just looked down at her food and looked back up at me with a sad expression.

"Does momma hate me?" I felt my expression soften. I sat the tray on a small table we kept in the hallway and bent down to Alyx's level.

"No, sweetie. She doesn't hate you at all. She just raised her voice because your behavior was out of line, and your vampire side took over." She placed her food on the floor and launched herself at me, hugging me.

"I didn't mean to. I'm just so concerned about Asha and her grandma. I feel so anxious that I have no idea what's going on." I hugged her a little tighter. She's too young to be this stressed.

"It'll be okay, sweetie. You'll be able to talk to Asha soon, but let her come to you about what's going on. Don't force her to tell you. Momma and I love you and Aleksey very much. Go ahead and eat now. After you're done eating, you and your brother come to momma's and my room." She nodded and retreated into her room. I grabbed the tray and made my way into our room.

"Alyx is super upset. She thought you hated her." I handed Mila her cup and sat on the bed beside her.

"I could never hate her." You could hear the concern in her voice.

"I told her that. Once the kids are done with their dinner, I told Alyx to bring herself and Aleksey in here. We'll all talk. Now drink your blood." She looked down at the cup and seemed reluctant, so I raised her hand that was holding the cup up towards her mouth.

"Drink." She didn't fight me on it and did as I had asked.

Soon I heard little footsteps making their way to our room. Mila and I exchanged looks. I reached out and grabbed Mila's hand, reassuring her that everything would be okay and she wasn't alone. She gave me a grateful look. She took a deep breath steadying her nerves a little more, just as the door was opening.

"Hey there, my little bears. Come up here on the bed, with mommy and me. We're going to watch your guy's favorite movie." Both of the kids' eyes widened, and they started running towards the bed. They both leaped through the air, crashing onto the bed. Then they made their way to the middle of the bed and under the covers.

I sat on the right side of them closest to the door, while Mila sat on the left side. We hadn't had a family movie night in a while, and after the day we've all had, I think it was a good suggestion by Mila. Once we got all cozy, I grabbed the remote and turned on the tv heading to the Disney plus app.

"You know I love you both very much, right? I'm sorry for raising my voice." Alyx snuggled into Mila's side, and Aleksey gave Mila a very short-lived hug. Still, a hug, though, which caught us all by surprise.

"We know, momma. We're sorry for how we acted today... Especially me." Mila kissed the top of her head.

"It's okay. Your guy's friend is going through a lot. I would be upset too." Mila is very understanding and nurturing. Those are some of the main qualities that I love about her. She's helped me grow so much over the years, especially when it came to expressing my emotions.