Till The End

Thirty-One

It takes me two days to finally build up the courage to call Dylan and let him know I was okay with him getting to know Bella more. Two days of crying myself to sleep. I cannot believe Juan walked out on me as easily as he did. It breaks my heart into a million pieces every time I think about it, but I have to get myself used to the idea. We are no longer together.

Dylan seemed genuinely ecstatic to find out that I was willing to let him into Bella's life, which was a green flag in my opinion. Immediately, he wanted to come over, but since I had to work yesterday I told him we'd have to wait until today since it's my day off. He's on his way over for dinner with us at my place now.

"So," I smile wide as I plop down next to Bella on the carpeted floor. She's playing with a couple Barbie's in front of the TV. "I have a friend coming over today."

Her eyes light up. "Juan?"

My heart squeezes in my chest. I don't let my smile fade as I shake my head. "No, this is another friend. His name is Dylan. He's gonna have dinner with us, okay?"

"Okay." she nods hesitantly. "Dylan?" she asks.

"Dylan. He was at Grandma's house the other day, remember?"

"Oh." she nods. "Yes."

"Did you like him?" I ask, playing with one of her pigtails between my fingers.

She nods again. "He was nice."

"He's a very nice person." I nod, smiling. "I think you'll like him."

While I don't want to persuade Bella into liking Dylan right off the bat, I want her to know that the strange man coming into our home any second now isn't some creep who she should be afraid of.

She seems convinced enough, giving me a smile and shrug. "Okay." she turns her attention back to her dolls, dismissing me.

I smile, standing up. I walk over to the kitchen to check on the pasta I'd decided to cook us for dinner tonight. Being close with all the staff comes in handy at times, most of the chefs let me in on the recipes for some dishes at work. I enjoy cooking, so taking their recipes and recreating them at home is something I enjoy. Just as I turn off the stove, I hear a light knock on the door. My heart skips a beat, I take a deep breath before walking over to the door. I open it slowly and find Dylan standing in front of me, a nervous look on his face.

"Hi." I say.

He smiles awkwardly. "Hey." he pulls me in for a quick hug which I hesitantly lean into. It lasts only a second before we awkwardly pull apart.

I hold a finger up to his chest, stopping him from walking further into the apartment. "To her, you are my friend. Only my friend. For now, that's all she'll know you as, okay? Don't bombard her with any 'I'm your father' crap. We'll get there eventually but not yet, okay?" I look up at him with a warning glare. He cannot fuck this up.

"Got it." he nods. "I won't say anything I'm not supposed to."

I move out of the way for him to walk in. "Come in." I nod. "Bella." I call out to my little girl who's still playing on the floor. "My friend is here now." I say, gesturing towards Dylan who waves at her.

"Hi, Bella. How are you?" he asks her gently.

She smiles nervously. "Good." she nods.

"Can you teach Dylan how you like to play Barbies while I set up the table?" I ask.

She thinks on it for a moment before nodding. "Yes." she smiles.

"You'll really have to teach me, Bella." Dylan jokes, making his way towards her. "I don't know anything about dolls." he says as he takes a seat next to her on the floor.