𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐓𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐰

56 - Eclipses (EP. 01)

He looked happy.

The sight was almost enough to obscure over her thoughts—nothing short of how beautiful, frost-blown and silly he looked as Claire stood on a kiddie bench, her tongue between her teeth, and her beanie sheathing her scrunched brows. Their laughter reached her, stifled but surely went past the windows of her bedroom. The lack of fog allowed the window to display even the enticing Roses surrounding the pair playing in the snow, all dimly red and surviving the rigidity of winter.

Elsa’s gaze landed on him.

But there were also Daisies.

Perhaps that was the first time she finally got something decided with her so called ‘planning.’ Blankly, she crossed out the word flowers and glared at her laptop screen. She rubbed her temple with a groan, since she forgot the idea for a moment, replaced by the prior events back at headquarters that chased away her concentration.

Damn you, Garrett, she inaudibly cursed. While Heine did approach the press, armed with a lovely paycheck she signed to make sure that the video will be off the public eye, the deal was simple and successful yet wasn’t enough to drag her encounter with the former board member out of her mind.

Plaything.

She shivered.

The word itself has alarmed her, awakened her so harshly—it nearly felt like an electrocution when her hand came colliding with the man’s face. Then it echoed, repeated, got stuck, somehow wouldn’t stop, and why the hell do they look at him like that?

He still looked happy. He still looked fine.

He was also right there, returning her stare with worry disguised with the smile he bore for Claire.

•••

“Sooo,” Claire trailed off with a large grin whilst she hopped off from the stool that allowed her to match Aiden’s sitting height, “Do you like it?”

Aiden smiled, nodding as he snaked a hand around his rigid scalp. It was an irresistible, generous offer extended by the little girl truly, so it was impossible for him to turn her down. Loombands—if he assumed correctly—gathered the soft, raven strands of his hair either unevenly or sloppily, but he knew it was already an effort done by the child.

Pressing on Portrait Mode on his phone, he made sure to capture the moment he and Claire quirked their faces together in sync.

After performing a few other silly poses, Aiden chuckled lightly, “Well, I can certainly say you have a good eye. The pink just clashes with my hair, don’t you think so?”

“Yeah! And we’re now twins!” Claire exclaimed, patting her two pigtails that sprouted from her sandy-blonde head.

“Indeed,” Aiden agreed, before ushering her towards the entrance from the garden to the main hall of the mansion, “I’m afraid it’s getting a bit dark, and it’ll be warmer inside.”

“Warmer andddd cookies are waiting in the dining room!” A particular redhead sing-songed from the end of the hall, receiving her grinning niece dashing to her direction to accept her aunt’s invitation.

Anna winked, “You’ll have to get used to this, Romeo. Sudden sugar jumps are common among us Arendelles, and you’ll soon be marrying one.”

“I can already see that, as I know Elsa have already taken a hold of our wedding cake flavor,” Aiden laughed, “You two go ahead, we’ll join you soon.”