Unwanted Surprise

Chapter 18

"Mommy!" Axel ran out his grandparents house and towards my outstretched arms. I scooped him up, peppering kisses all over his face.

"Hi, baby! Did you have fun with grandma?" I asked, putting him back down. For a four year old, he was really tall. Just like his......his dad. I pushed away the thought immediately.

"Yes! We baked cookies and a BIG cake--" He opened his arms wide when he said big. "--and we read a lot of books." Axel explained, his dark hair falling into his eyes.

"He behaved himself very well. Reminds me of Daxton at that age." Mrs. King came out with an apron on. I smiled through the pain that squeezed my chest. Ever since Axel was born, my relationship with Daxton's mother became less and less rocky.

"I'm not surprised." I chuckled, grabbing his little hand. "Say bye to grandma."

"Bye, grandma!" He waved vigorously behind him as we walked to the car. "See you tomorrow!"

I drove off to our house and grabbed his book bag before opening the front door. Axel zoomed in, excited to tell me something.

"Ax, what do you do when you come through the front door?" I asked. He slinked back, a sly smile on his face.

"Take off my shoes. Sorry, mommy." He apologized while unlacing his shoes and slipping them off.

"It's okay. Just remember next time." 

"I have to show you the picture I drew in class." Axel grabbed my hand and dragged me into the kitchen. I chuckled and let him lead me.

"Okay, okay. This must be important, huh?" I asked, when he let me go and dug through his book bag. He nodded.

"Very important. We had to draw family pictures and mine was the best! Miss. Johnson even said so herself." He said proudly, yanking out the portrait. He put it on the kitchen counter and kneeled down on the chair to get to my height. "Do you like it, mommy?" He asked. 

I nodded, gazing at the beautiful picture. There were three people in the drawing. I was first and he drew me with long yellow hair and blue filled-in circles for my eyes. He was the second one, obviously, because he was the shortest. He drew himself with shaggy dark hair and silver eyes.

"Who's the last person, Ax?" I wondered.

"It's Daxton! My daddy!" He said excitedly. My heart clenched and just the mention of his name made me want to go and cry forever in my room. 

In the drawing, Daxton was a giant, towering over both of us. He had long hair that reached the back of his neck and bright green eyes. In the background was a big house, six cars, and a pet dog. He drew the sun in the corner of the paper and the clouds were shaped like disfigured cotton balls.

"His eyes..." I whispered, touching the drawing as if I could touch him though that.

"You said his eyes were really green so I used the greenest green ever!" Axel frowned suddenly. "When do I get to meet my daddy? All the other kids have daddies and I don't." He pouted.

I closed my eyes, trying to think of what to tell him. "You will meet him one day." Was all I could say.

"Okay. I'm hungry, mommy. Let's eat some cake!" The topic of Daxton was quickly forgotten, thank god, and now his second favorite subject, food, was on his mind.

"Um, no sweetie. You can have cake after you eat your dinner. Wanna help me cook?"

"Yes, yes, yes! Can we cook mac and cheese? Please mommy please?" He begged. Mac and cheese was his favorite....just like his dad. I nodded and smiled when he jumped for joy. "Whoa." He caught on to the counter when he almost fell off the chair doing his victory dance.

"Be careful, baby." I called, taking out the macaroni from the pantry. It took about thirty minutes to cook the entire meal, which consisted of mac and cheese, broccoli, and pieces of steak.

"Mmmmm vis ish foohhhh goooo." Axel said with a mouthful of food.

"Ax, don't talk with food in your mouth. You could choke. What do you want to drink with this?" I asked, getting up to go to the fridge. 

Axel made sure to swallow his food before answering. "Fruit punch!" He took another big bite of his food, munching happily. I handed him his drink and devoured my food. I looked up when I heard Axel giggling uncontrollably.

"What?" I asked, smirking. He pointed at me, laughing.

"You're eating too fast, mommy. Take your time. You tell me that everyday." He found that to be hilarious. He even pounded on the table. He brushed his hair out of his eyes and grinned. "Race ya upstairs?" Before I could move, he took off.

"Oh no you don't!" I yelled, running after him. He squealed and took off upstairs, towards my room. I followed closely behind him and when I caught up, I scooped him from the ground.

"Mommy! You caught me!" He screamed with delight.

"Sure did!" I blew on his belly and jumped on the large bed with him in my arms. He was laughing so hard, his face was turning red.

"You win, you win!" He giggled, giving up.

"Oh, yeah. Uh huh I won." I got up and did a happy dance, swinging my hips around in a circle.

"I can do that too. Watch." Axel jumped off the bed and started mocking me.

"Last one to brush their teeth is a rotten egg." I said, racing to the bathroom.

"No fair! You got a head start!" Axel whined padding behind me into the bathroom. 

"Okay, here." I put toothpaste on both of our brushes and handed Axel's his. "Ready, set, go!" We both brushed vigorously, trying to get every corner and trying to win at the same time. Axel spit in the sink, washed his hands, and ran out, jumping on my bed. 

"I win, I win! You lose, mommy." His hair flew as he continued to jump, grey eyes shining with happiness. I smiled at him before finishing.

"Alright, time for bed little one." I walked to him and he jumped into my arms. I stumbled back a bit and carried him to his room next door. He had everything from the headboard to the dressers with The Flash on it. He was obsessed. I put him down and he ran to his bed, getting under the covers. After I came and tucked him in, he grabbed my hand before I left.

"Wanna know who I'm gonna dream about tonight?" He asked softly.

"Me?" I joked, chuckling.

"No. I'm gonna dream of daddy."