After a few days of minimal activity, and Jayden on an emergency business trip, I finally gained enough energy to leave our house. Although I was still tired, no one could keep me in bed today.
I went downstairs with Addie in my arms and found Chris and the twins eating breakfast at the kitchen island. I gave them a broad smile before kissing each of them on the head. "Are you ready for the new year?"
Chase sighed, "I wish I could go to the opening day for the twins."
"You are in 11th grade, Chase. And you're on the track to graduate this year! You can't miss your first day."
"Do we have to go?" Archer asked with a sigh.
I tilted my head slightly, "of course you do. I thought you were excited to go!"
Ashley's lips pouted, "we have to be away from Addie if we go to school."
"All she is going to do is sleep, kids. You won't miss anything."
They both quietly ate their toast before getting up and putting their things together. As we went out to the car, Chase rushed to the dark sports car on the driveway. He opened the door, dropped his bag inside, and rushed back over. Chase kissed the twins on their heads before coming over and hugging me loosely so he did not hurt Addie.
"Be safe, okay?"
Chase nodded before rushing back to the car as Emit waved to me. As they left, I got the twins and Addie into the car. As I drove towards the school, I felt my nerves flooding over me. I fought for them not to show as we finally arrived and got out of the car. I held Addie in one arm as Ashley took my hand. Archer took Ashley's other hand as they followed me inside. I was surprised when a man and his young son headed straight towards us.
"Ashley, Archer!" Isaiah called as he rushed over. He gave the twins a cheeky smile as they stiffened. Being kindly greeted was foreign to us and likely terrified them as much as it would scare me. I quickly rushed to try to dissolve their worry, even though I had more worry than them.
"Good morning, Isaiah! You look very handsome in your uniform!"
I could only imagine two outcomes: he looked to me in horror and ran or he looked to me and the twins with distaste. The shocked face he met me with made a shiver go up my spine. Here it comes; I'm ruining their school lives again.
The smile that came to him made my heart skip, "you had the baby!"
I fought tears as I looked to the boy and the twins. In that split second, their fears dissapeared and joy filled them. "Her name is Addie!" Ashley sang as she bounced slightly.
I rushed to crouch and smile to the boy. "Would you like to meet her?"
Isaiah nodded vigorously as Archer and Ashley turned to present their pride. "She looked at you!" Archer cheered as Isaiah's eyes glistened.
"She looks like her dad," the giant male Alpha near us said. I quickly felt overwhelmed and rushed to my feet. I forced the smile on my face as I met his intimidating gaze. The kids all looked up to us and seemed to hold their breath.
"Matt," I began as I fought to exude confidence, "it is good to see you. Jayden sends his regards."
"I'm surprised he missed this."
"It was a hard choice, but we agreed that his job is more important than just one day that will happen every year they are in school."
He smirked slightly, "I'm surprised you came here without him."
I gulped before smirking back, "why wouldn't I?"
His eyes narrowed, "I just worried you would not feel safe in a place filled with Alphas."
I scoffed but kept my smirk, "don't worry about me. I'm from an entire lineage of Alphas. They don't scare me in the least. But thank you for your concern." I looked to the kids with a smile, "let's get you inside."
The kids followed me into the school and to their classroom. Their teacher froze as she saw me come into the room and watched us come towards her.
"Good morning, ma'am," I began with a kind smile. "It is nice to meet you. I am the parent of Ashley and Archer, Will Maurer."
She stared at me, "I have Jayden Peter's as the father of Ashley and Archer."
I paused as I realized she didn't have a clue. I noticed that she was a female Alpha and quite dominant based on her pheromones. I fought my smile to stay, "yes, ma'am. Jayden is their father. I am their other parent."
Her eyes widened, "so you..."
I felt my stomach drop, "yes, I gave birth to them."
Her face flushed, "oh my gosh, I'm so sorry," she whispered and seemed sincere. "I had no idea. I apologize, I meant nothing rude. I just thought you might be a step parent or something."
My face softened, "don't worry about it. I know it can be quite surprising," I sighed and smiled to the twins as they looked to me with worry. "Especially in this world." I smiled confidently to them, "well, why don't you two go find your seats, okay?"
They both pulled on my shirt and I crouched down. They each kissed my cheek before hugging my shoulders. "I love you Momma," Archer whispered.
"Do we have to stay?" Ashley asked with a gulp.
I chuckled before using my free hand to ruffle their hair. "This is your time to shine!" I encouraged with a broad smile, "remember, you are stronger than they could ever dream. Show them what you can do and how confident you are. Your dad and I love you."
They both gave me a smile before kissing Addie on the head and rushing off to their desks. Isaiah rushed over to them and began talking with them keeping his big smile.
I stood up and smiled to the teacher again, "I hope we will not cause any problems." I sighed deeply, "we had to leave their last school because they were teased about me." I looked over to them, "if you could let me know if anything happens, I would appreciate it. They are amazing children and I expect them to be on their best behavior and do their best. If that isn't the case, please let me know. Also, if there is anything we can do to support your classroom or their learning, please don't hesitate to contact us."
She gave me a sad smile, "I really meant nothing by it. I have no prejudice at all. My brother is actually the same gender."
I looked to her with surprise, "what are the odds," I said with a chuckle. "Well thank you for understanding."
She blushed again, "is this your daughter?" I nodded as she cleared her throat, "may I?"
"Of course." I gently handed Addie to her and she beamed as she held her.
"What's her name?"
"Addie Dalia Peters."
"Dalia? I've never heard that before."
I fought not to blush, "it means fate or destiny in my families native language." I replied before gulping, "their father and I are destined partners so it seemed fitting."
Her head shot up to look at me with surprise but we both paused as a set of parents and a child hovered nearby. She handed Addie back to me before I gave her a large smile and moved away. I waved to the twins before leaving the room.
"Will!" A gentle voice called as I walked down the hallway towards the school entrance. I turned in surprise to see Emit's aunt, Luther's wife, rushing over to me. She was breathing hard when she reached me but I quickly focused on what was behind her.
I was relieved that Luther was not there but where is he? I looked around me with concern and let out a hard sigh of relief as I didn't find him.
"He's not here," she stated quietly, "he doesn't care about these kind of things." I looked to her with surprise and saw her teary gaze go from me to Addie, "could we talk?"
"Elizabeth, I don't think..."
Her eyes darted to mine and showed desperation, "just for a bit, please."
I sighed before nodding, "we should probably go somewhere else."
Her face brightened, "if you're up to it, there's a coffee shop down a block from here."
I nodded hesitantly, "sure."
She began walking and turned to make sure I followed. When she saw I did, I noticed her ears turn red. I felt a sad smile come to me as I remembered how she would do that any time we were alone. We walked quietly but Elizabeth stopped when Addie whined.
"Shhhhh," I whispered as I positioned her so that she laid on my chest near my heart.
Elizabeth's jaw tightened before she looked away and continued walking. When we got to the coffee shop, Elizabeth held the door for me and we walked in. She went to a two person table and gestured for me to sit across from her. I got into the chair and repositioned Addie as she quietly slept.
"You look well," she whispered as I met her gaze. Tears began to swell in her eyes as she quickly looked out the window next to us. "I was surprised to see you at the kid's school. Let alone us having kids in the same class."
I smiled slightly, "it was shocked me too." I said before clearing my throat, "how long have you been married to Luther?"
I noticed her hands turned to fists, "since our second year in college."
"You went to college." I said with a slight chuckle and she looked to me with hope, "for pottery, right? You always had a passion."
She smiled sadly as her hands loosened, "I did but, after I got pregnant in our third year, I dropped out to take care of the baby."
I sighed as I looked to her wet eyes again, "that's too bad. You could have made a large career out of your talents."
She patted her eyes with a tissue from her purse before taking a large breath. "Where did you end up going to school? Did you become a surgeon?"
I scoffed as I looked down to Addie, "no, uh, that wasn't in the cards for me." I sighed, "I worked in a lot of different jobs to get by to take care of the twins."
She looked to me with surprise, "Mr. Peters had you work and take care of your kids?"
I scratched my head as I felt my emotions rising, "no, actually I was a single parent until just recently."
"Then he isn't their father?"
I sighed again, "he is but we were out of contact for a few years. I didn't tell him about the kids until we met again recently."
"Are..." she began crumpling the tissue in her hands, "are you married?"
"No," I replied and she suddenly looked to me with a sense of happiness in her eyes. "We're co-parenting right now."