The Football Player's Unknown Children

05

|6 years later|

Today is the ten-year reunion of my graduating class. I am now married! I married the extremely handsome boy I dated in the fifth grade. His name is Nile Malm. We got married a year after I had the triplets. We have a two-year-old daughter, Annalise, and we also have identical twin boys on the way. We don't know what we're naming our sons yet. Athena, Dalton, and Tatum all look like their dad. They look so much like their dad. A lot of people ask if they're adopted because they look nothing like me. The only thing that they have of mine is their eyes. They are 6-years-old and the most energetic tiny humans you'll ever meet.

I wonder if Braden will be there. I haven't seen him in person since the day we broke up, but I see him on magazine covers in the grocery store all the time. He has a pregnant girlfriend and he also has 3 other children with another woman. It's not me if that is what you're thinking. This other woman also had his triplets. So basically he has 7 kids but only knows about 4 of them. I desperately wish I could tell him about ours, but I can't take the risk of him taking them away from me.

Nile and I aren't bringing the kids because my parents agreed to watch them for us. We don't want to have to worry about 4 kids the entire night. Plus, I think if Braden saw them in person he would put two and two together.

Since I was the valedictorian, I get to, actually more like have to, give a speech at the reunion. I get to talk about what I have been doing since high school and I also get to show a Powerpoint about my life. I'm nervous because even though the triplets won't be there, in the slideshow there will still be a picture of my kids and they look so much like Braden. I hope he isn't there. I don't know what I'll do if he asks questions or worse.

|Day of reunion|

"Nile are you ready?" I shouted to him upstairs. "Yeah, baby! I'm coming!" I see Nile coming down the staircase as he says that. "Are you nervous?" "No, not at all. I'm only 7 1/2 months pregnant and I'm about to see the father of my first 3 children and he doesn't know about them. Why would I be nervous?" I said sarcastically. I started breathing heavily and then Nile pulled me into a hug, well as much of a hug as he could give me, and kissed my head and whispered lovingly to me "baby, you're going to do fine! I love you so much and Braden is just a nobody, he doesn't have an influence in your life anymore."

I nodded at his very, very true statement and then we started kissing and we started making out and then heard three little voices say "Ewwwwww! Mommy, daddy, stop it!" We just continued kissing and we both smirked and then we broke apart and put our hands out. They knew what was coming and they ran from us. Nile got the boys and I caught Athena. I think she purposely let me though. We started tickling them and screamed, "the tickle monsters are here to get you!"

"Stop it!" They all screamed in unison while laughing. "Nope!" Nile said laughing as we continued to tickle them!

We continued tickling them until the doorbell rang. I knew it was my parents so I got off the floor, with the help of Nile, and went to open the front door. I was engulfed in a group hug right after I opened the door. "I missed you so much!" My mother screamed a little too loudly into my ear. "Mom I literally saw you less than 72 hours ago!" I said laughing. "Oh! I don't care! You're my baby girl! Now, where are my beautiful grandchildren?" She screamed and after that, I saw a stampede of little people running towards us. "Mimi!" All of them screamed, even Annalise.

After a while, I realized it was time to go. "Nile, baby, we have to go or we are going to be late!" "Coming babe!" After I hear him say that I head out to the car. After Nile got in the car he looked at me and said: "you ready?" "I'm as ready as I will ever be. I have a feeling that tonight is going to be a bad night." "No matter what I'm here baby!" He said and smiled reassuringly and then put his hand on my thigh.

|Braden's POV|

Today is the 10-year reunion of my graduating class. I figured out that Scarlett is giving a speech about what she's been doing with her life from an old high school friend who was also giving a speech on the same topic. I wonder what she has been up to. She blocked me on on all social media websites about 3 weeks after I left for Wisconsin. I don't blame her. I wish I was with her and things had gone differently, but they didn't and I feel there was a reason for that.

If that hadn't happened I wouldn't have my 3 amazing kids and a wonderful woman by my side who is carrying my 4th child. The mother of my first 3 children died because of complications during the c-section with the triplets. It hurt after she passed. We were supposed to get married 6 weeks later, but that obviously didn't happen. People always ask me if I blame the kids and I did for a little while. I hated them. I couldn't look at them. I legitimately thought it was their fault. But, after 2 months I realized it wasn't their fault and she would have died some other way. I believe everything happens for a reason, good or bad.

My kids' names are Jacob Tate Parker, Luna Maria Parker, and Nicole Lee Parker. Their mom's name was Maria Nicole Tate. They each got a part of her. They also all go by their middle names, except for Nicole. She goes by Nikki. They all remind me so much of their mother and I think that makes me love them even more. Their mother was the second love of my life. I was going to spend the rest of my life with her.

My new girlfriend's name is Olivia Inkwell. She and I started dating 2 and 1/2 years ago. We are having a son. We didn't plan this baby. He was a surprise, but nonetheless amazing. I thought I didn't want any more kids after Tate, Maria, and Nikki, but I know without a doubt that I'm going to love this baby with all of my heart. My sweet baby boy's name is going to be James Trevor Parker.

Olivia and I are bringing the kids with us to the reunion. We only just moved back to Minnesota and I didn't trust anyone enough yet to watch my kids. I'm really protective of them. I can't lose them like I did their mother.

It's weird living back in Minnesota, but I guess I better get used to it because I just signed a contract with the Minnesota Vikings. It hasn't been announced to the public yet, but it will be released halfway through the reunion. I was always a Vikings fan growing up and it was my dream to play for them. My dream was finally coming true and I couldn't be more excited.

|At reunion|

Livy, the kids, and I just pulled up to my old high school and then as the driver parked paparazzi swarmed around the car. Can't I have one private moment! Ugh! I got out and was bombarded with questions like "are the rumors true" and "is the baby actually your's." It is so annoying being in the spotlight.

As I got out I saw a pair of eyes and I knew exactly who they belonged to. They were the bluest eyes I have ever seen, still to this day and those blue eyes just happened to belong to my first love, Scarlett. I looked over at her and she was talking to her best friends from high school. She didn't see me staring, thankfully. I was looking down her body and then my eyes landed on her stomach. She's pregnant. Wow, I didn't see that coming. I mean, I knew it would happen eventually, but... ugh. I didn't even realize it, but I had stopped walking and was clenching my fists. Why doe the fact that she is pregnant make me so angry?

That is when a guy showed up behind her and put his arms around her. She turned around and kissed him and that is when I saw the wedding ring. She's married? I always thought that when she got married it would be to me, but I screwed that up. I'm happy for her, I guess. I wonder if this is her first child. I finally tore my eyes away from her and looked at Olivia. She looked between Scarlett and I with a sad look. I felt bad, but it has been a long time and I didn't realize I was staring for as long as I did.

I finally took Tate and Maria's hand while Olivia took Tate's other hand and then Nikki's hand. After that, we pushed past the annoyance that others would call the paparazzi and headed into the school. Everybody else, except for the paparazzi because they weren't allowed inside, headed into the school. Let the reunion commence!