𝐬𝐮𝐠𝐚𝐫. [𝐥𝐫𝐡]

chapter two: "kiss mommy."

"mommy?"

the boy appears to be alone. he isn't wearing a uniform, so he couldn't be one of the middle-schoolers, and the front of the store is empty other than me and ashton.

i crouch down to his level, so i can talk to him properly.

"i'm sorry, baby, i'm not your mommy. but i can help you find her if you want?"

his bottom lip begins to quiver. "w-what do you mean, mommy? do you not l-love me and daddy anymore?"

my heart breaks at the sight of his teary eyes. this boy could probably make anyone cry for him.

i feel bad for his actual mommy, she's probably incapable of saying no to him.

tears continue to pour down his face, small sobs breaking past his lips. i wish i could help him, but i have no idea how. i can't try to convince him i'm not his mom, because he might get even more upset...

choosing to avoid the topic of his actual mommy, i pick him up gently, balancing him on my hip. his tears seem to temporarily stop at my action, and he cuddles into me like a small puppy.

"what's you name, sweetie?"

"louis, but daddy calls me lou..." his voice comes out quiet and soft, almost timid, but not quite.

"well, louis, where did you last see daddy?" if he remembers where he saw him last, we might be able to find him.

his face drops once more, and his eyes begin to water again. "w-we were by the ice-cream store... i was h-holding his hand one second, a-and then suddenly, i-i wasn't! i tried to look f-for him, but daddy was gone."

the ice-cream store... that's not far from here. we can get there easily.

"we're gonna go back go the ice-cream store, okay? daddy will probably come back to look there, i'm sure he's trying very hard to find you."

i hope he is. i have no idea what to do with a lost child. i can barely take care of myself, how the hell would i take care of a child until child services show up?

"cam?" ashton calls from the other side of the store, "do you need some help?"

i shake my head. "we'll be fine. me and louis are gonna go find his daddy, aren't we?"

i direct the last part towards the child, who rapidly nods his head in response.

"w-we're gonna find daddy, and then we're all g-gonna get ice-cream together!" he exclaims, his voice still slightly wobbly.

i doubt we'll actually end up getting together, but for now, i'll let the boy dream.

- time skip, sponsored by everyone's favorite inactive admin: sofi. -

against my will, i end up carrying louis all the way over to the store. every time i tried to put him down, he'd start to cry again, and give me the puppy dog eyes.

i'm a sucker for puppy dog eyes.

he started telling me about his friends at kindergarten, and how much he hated his teacher, miss. allen.

apparently, she made the children paint with brushes instead of their fingers, and for some reason, louis thought that was ridiculous.

when he wasn't crying, he seemed to be an extremely energetic child. he definitely talks a lot, that's for sure. i bet he could talk for hours about anything, and everything. it's kinda cute.

"here we are, lou. we can sit on that bench over there, and wait for your daddy to show up. it won't be long, i promise."

i sit down on the old bench, and louis shifts from my side onto my lap. for some reason, he's still refusing to let go. i don't really mind, but if he still doesn't want to let go when his dad arrives...

things could get complicated.

suddenly, louis scrambles off of my lap, and onto the ground. he jumps up and down, pointing towards two people talking outside a coffee shop.

"mommy, mommy! look, it's daddy!" he shouts, drawing the attention of some people nearby, who merely 'aww' at him.

he grabs my hand, and with surprising strength, starts to pull me in the direction of the pair.

as we draw close, bits of their conversation become clear.

"he was right here one second, and he was gone the next... i didn't even look away... oh god, what if i don't find him!"

"i'm sure you'll find you son, sir. but i haven't seen h-"

"i have to find him, he's all i have left..."

louis begins to get more and more excited by the second, and when we get within a few feet, he lets go of my hand, and sprints towards one of the men. he tackles his legs with speed, head on.

the man appears to be momentarily confused, but when he realises who it is, his entire face lights up.

he grabs louis and pulls him up into his chest, holding him tight. louis buries his face in the man's shoulder, and wraps his arms around his neck.

"lou... you have no idea how worried i was... i looked everywhere for you... i thought i'd lost you forever." the man, who i'm assuming is louis' 'daddy', speaks lovingly.

i wonder what it's like to love someone that much...

"i got lost, daddy, and i ended up in a candy store! a really pretty lady helped me find you. she's over there, daddy!" louis points towards me excitedly.

my eyes widen. i really don't feel like talking to his dad, he looks intimidating...

he's also kinda hot, but that's irrelevant.

louis wiggles in his dad's arms, trying to get him to let him go. after a few seconds, he does, and louis comes running straight to me.

once again, i find myself being dragged off by a small child, who'd barely putting any effort in.

if i'm that easy to move, i really need to go to the gym more...

"this is my daddy! say hi, daddy." louis demands.

his dad gives me a once-over, before smiling politely at me. "hi, i'm luke, louis' dad. but i'm sure you've already guessed that by now..."

oh my fucking god. his voice.

i'm in complete awe. this man... might as well be a god. his eyes , his face, his voice, his smile...

beautiful.

louis interrupts my private little fangirl moment with a tug of my sleeve.

"you have to say hi back! that's how convernsations work." he states informatively.

internally, i 'aww' at his mispronunciation. he's just so fucking cute...

"uh, hi. i'm carmen. your son came up to me when i was at work... he told me this was the last place he saw you, so i brought him here."

my feet shuffle awkwardly. i'm incredibly uncomfortable under luke's gaze. why does he seem so intense?

louis butts in once again, this time trying to push both of us together.

"great! now you've had a convernsation...

daddy, kiss mommy."

─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───

yes, that was a direct attack @ sofi.

maybe if she CONTRIBUTED to our ACCOUNT i wouldn't HAVE TO DO THESE THINGS.

- e