Zayn's POV
"Daddy! Get up, it's here! It's da day of my party, daddy! Come on!"
I blink open my eyes, trying to focus my vision. When I finally do come to, I realize I'm face to face with Marley's wide eyes and messy hair. He's sat right on top of my midsection as I lay on my back in the bed.
"Daddy, come on we have to leave right now!" I search around for my phone on the nightstand; it's only six in the morning. "We gonna miss it."
Yeah, I don't think he realizes the party is at three, and even then, the earliest I was planning to get to the park was around one o'clock. Charlie and I actually planned for me to go and set up, while she brings the kids just before it's set to start-you know, cause the theme is a surprise.
"Good morning, Mar." He ignores my greeting, opting to climb off of me and start working on getting Charlie up. It's been two weeks since she found out about the paternity test I had done on Adrian, and not too much has changed. We speak to each other, but it's rigid and forced at times, and it sure as hell doesn't feel like the relationship that she claims we're still in. And there's absolutely no touching, kissing or anything even remotely intimate, which fine, but it kills me that our conversation is kept to a minimum.
But I did manage to start sleeping in the bed again, so there's that.
Marley's much less successful in waking up Charlie; she's been working a lot more so I know she's exhausted. And while I'm sure it has a lot to do with the huge project going on at Michael Kors, I know part of it is so that she can avoid me. She ruffles his hair and mumbles something, which leaves him a little pissed, I think.
I've been doing little things over the past couple of weeks so that she knows I'm not just gonna give up on her and us; I did breakfast in bed, I've made dinner just about every night before she had the chance to, and I've kept the fucking bathrooms without a spec of dirt, dye or hair anywhere, only to name a few.
And even though I know she notices and appreciates it, it's not enough; I can see it in her face. But that's not going to stop me from doing all of those things and then some.
Oh, but the icing on the cake? The results still haven't got to me yet. Apparently a higher number of people than usual are questioning paternity. Interesting.
"Come on daddy. I wanna take a bath and den I gonna pick out my best outfit to wear to da party." He grabs my hand and literally tries to pull me off the bed.
"How about," I rub my eyes and try to sit up. "We eat breakfast, watch a little cartoons, maybe, and then we'll get ready for your party, okay?"
"We not gonna miss it?" He looks up at me with his lip poked out.
I smile. "Not a chance in hell I'd let that happen, Mar."
"Okay."
//
"Fuck. fuck. Where the fuck is the cake?"
"Will you relax. It's only 2:30 and there's definitely traffic at this time on a Saturday," Harry reassures me. But that doesn't stop me from lighting cigarette after cigarette and pacing the lawn.
"And Charlie texted me a few minutes ago, telling me she'll be here in about fifteen minutes. And the God damned cake isn't here yet!" I shout, ignoring him. All I asked for was his birthday party to go off without a hitch. But no, apparently that's too much to ask. Though is it all that surprising considering the downward spiral of my life?
"And worst case scenario is that the cake arrives after Marley. No big deal, babe." Harry's really shit at calming me down.
"It is a big fucking deal because I want the surprise to be the whole party put together- not the party with shit missing!"
