Colby's POV
"Colby, are we gonna die?" Juniper asked as we drove to get ice cream. "Eventually, yeah. Not any time soon though." I said and focused on the road and our surroundings.
I wasn't exactly happy about bringing the kids out when things were so dicey but I had brought some extra protection so we would be totally safe.
"Can we sit and eat it there? I'm not ready to go back into hiding." Jenna said as I shrugged.
"We'll see." I said then pulled into the parking lot.
I felt bad that the kids have been cooped up for so long but it was for their safety and I wasn't going to change a thing about that.
This was a special occasion.
"Alright. I need you guys to really listen to me. You don't leave my sight for even a second." I said and turned to look at all of them.
"What if I have to pee?" Jenna asked as I blinked slowly. "Either you hold it or we all go." I said blandly.
"Jules said you can't be mean to us." Carter said as I rolled my eyes. "Me taking your safety seriously is not mean." I said then got out of the car.
Once all the kids were out, I took Juniper's hand then led the way inside.
I didn't usually get nervous about stuff like this but having the four kids out by myself when I knew how much they meant to Julia made me nervous.
If anything happened to them we would be devastated.
"Get whatever you want, guys." I said as the kids ran to look at the ice creams.
It was nice to see them get so excited about something as simple as ice cream.
Seeing how it happy they were made me feel excited to be a dad. I knew how dangerous it was to have a baby in this business but I already loved my daughter with my whole heart.
I knew I would do anything to protect her.
"Colby." Juniper said, breaking me from my haze. "Yes?" I asked and looked down at her. "Can you order for me?" She asked with a shy look on her face.
"Yeah, of course. What do you want?" I asked as she hummed, standing on her tiptoes to look at the flavors.
"Bubble gum." She decided after a minute. "Okay. Any toppings or anything?" I asked as she giggled. "Gummy bears." She said with a smile.
"Okay, kid." I said with a laugh then looked up at the girl taking our order. "She wants a cup of bubble gum ice cream with gummy bears." I said causing the girl to nod and start working on it.
"Should we get Julia something?" Sam asked as I nodded. "Yeah, we'll get her something when we leave. You guys can pick it." I said as Carter laughed.
"She's pregnant so she's gonna want something crazy." He said as I nodded. "Pickled flavored ice cream or something." I hummed then started walking to the register.
Once I paid and the kids got their ice cream we went to sit down.
I could almost feel the stress and fear melting away from the kids the longer we sat there.
It was nice getting to just see them in a stress free environment.
"Do you guys have any questions about what's been going on? I don't know how much I can tell you but I know it's been stressful." I said as the kids started eating.
"Are we ever gonna go back to school?" Sam asked as I sighed. "It's tricky. I obviously want you guys to have a normal life but it's hard. I don't know if we'll ever go back to Texas again." I explained, folding my hands in front of me.
