Just Rent Me

36

Willow didn't know how broken she was until she sat in her office and let the words from earlier sink in her head. She couldn't stop herself from crying and she knew why. She knew why that statement hurt her more than she let it. She knew why her heart broke after hearing that statement.

She should have known that he would have moved on. What was she even thinking? That he would come back to her? That if she came back to him he would receive her with open arms? Was she that delusional?

"You're so stupid, Willow," she sniffled and grabbed a tissue from her tissue box to wipe her cheeks. She hated how she was feeling and she knew there was nothing she could do about it.

"I thought you said you moved on," she mumbled to herself and sighed. Her phone rang and she raised it to see that it was her grandma was calling. "Good afternoon, grandma," she answered the call.

"I heard everything. How does he look like? Is he taller and broader?" her grandma asked making her frown. "Are you drunk perhaps?" she asked in confusion. Her grandma scoffed, "As if."

Willow wasn't really surprised but this was not what she expected her grandmother to say. When she had told her about the breakup, grandma Marie did not blame any of them for it.

"Things like this happen to people almost every day, my love. Everything will be fine," was what she said and let Willow cry her heart out on her lap.

"Okay, let me be serious now. Does he want to file for child support or what?" her grandmother asked. "N-no, I think he wants us to raise the kids together," Willow quickly replied. "That's perfect! I've always known that that boy was mature enough. Wait, is he married?"

"No, but he has a girlfriend," Willow replied. "You met her? Is she nice?" grandma asked. "She's on the bitchy side of the line," Willow replied and the old woman scoffed. "I have no idea why I'm not surprised," she said and Willow smiled at her humor. "Well, I have to get going. Tell the kids I love them," grandma Marie said and hung up.

Willow sighed and rubbed her face tiredly. She needed to fix her face or someone would find out that she had been crying.

∞

"What do you guys want to eat?" Nathan asked his kids as they walked towards his car. "Wow, daddy's car is shiny and white!" Daniel left his hand and ran to his car. Nathan chuckled at his fascination. "Be careful," Wave said to her brother. Nathan was carrying her in his arms and it was obvious that she didn't want to get down from there.

"No one answered my question," he said to them. "Oh, chicken!" Daniel said with a grin. "Just chicken?" his father raised a brow. "Chicken burger, it's my favorite," the little boy said. Nathan smiled, he and his mother shared the same thing.

"He makes my tummy hurt a lot because he and mommy make us eat it almost all the time," Wave scowled and he laughed.

"We'll get chicken burger and then take you home. sounds good?" he asked and they nodded. After going through the drive-thru of burger king and getting them lunch, he drove them home.

Willow had already informed him that an extra key was in Daniel's bag so getting in wouldn't be a problem. "Eat and let's do your homework," he said to them when they sat at the island.

Wave groaned and looked away, her long brown hair falling out of her pigtails. "Don't force us like mommy does," she pouted. Daniel scoffed, "You're just lazy." Wave ignored him and turned to her daddy.

"The questions make me want to puke," she said and Nathan found it hard to hide his amusement. There was no doubt that the twins inherited their attitude from their mom. it was interesting see them converse.

"What do you do in your free time?" he asked them. Daniel bit out of his burger while his sister answered. "If we finish our homework on time, mommy lets us watch TV with aunt Lily."

"Do you like your school?" Nathan asked them. They both nodded. "Our teachers are nice," Daniel said and Wave nodded.

Nathan's eyes fell on the necklace around Wave's neck. He knew his heart was happy that Willow still kept it but he didn't know why. More like he didn't want to accept the reason.

"Daddy, is it true that I look like you?" Daniel asked. Nathan frowned, "Yes, you do. Why are you asking?"

Daniel was already done eating so Nathan went to get juice from the fridge.

"I heard that I look like another boy in another class and Waverly said I look like you. Is that boy my brother?" Daniel asked. Nathan laughed as he handed them a bottle of juice. "No, Daniel. That's your cousin, his name is Blake," he said. "Does that mean Kassie's my cousin? We also look alike," Wave asked him and he could see the hope in her eyes.

He nodded, "Yes, Wave. She's your cousin." She squealed and clapped her hands as if she was proud of herself.

He was so glad that he had cleared the rest of the day's schedule to spend time with them. They were like a breath of fresh air and he was more than happy. About an hour later, he had changed them into their pajamas and they were now in the living room watching TV.

He had discarded his suit jacket and untucked his shirt. "Daddy, why are you and mommy not staying together?" Wave asked her father as she snuggled into his chest. "Why do you ask?" Nathan quickly asked, trying to think of a good reply to her question.

"Stop asking those questions, Wave. Mommy already said he was busy," Daniel looked at her with an eye roll and turned back to what he was watching. Wave ignored him and spoke.

"Aren't mommy and daddy supposed to live together?" she asked and he smiled. "Just like Daniel said, I had a lot of work to do. Don't worry, sweetheart, I'm here for both of you now," he said and she smiled.

"Thank you, daddy," she hugged him and Nathan smiled.