There were two people in the living room when Axel walked in. One of them was Penelope and the other was someone who he had sent to look after her when he was away. What surprised Axel was that he had told the boy to stay hidden and only watch Penelope from a distance since he was worried that Penelope would be scared of strangers but here they were, having the time of their lives.
At least Penelope was…
They were both on the floor, with Penelope straddling the shirtless boy. Axel couldn't help but be reminded of what happened between Hannah and him. The only difference was that the boy's upper body was covered with the marks made by Penelope's markers. It extended to his arms and even his jaw but despite that, Penelope still found a spot to paint with her markers.
Axel decided to make his presence known since the two of them were absorbed in whatever they were doing. He walked closer to them and bent down beside Penelope, not forgetting to glare at the boy laying on the floor.
When Penelope saw him, her eyes shone brightly as she jumped at Axel. He happily hugged her and carried her in his arms before standing up.
"Uncle Axel!" Penelope called happily as her tiny arms wrapped around his neck. She did not forget to look behind him and ask for her mommy. "Where is Mommy?"
"She will be here soon". Axel answered. "Who is this?" He returned to the boy who was now standing looking like a rainbow had spat on him.
Penelope turned around and looked at the boy for a while before turning to Axel. "I don't know him". Penelope answered truthfully. She had seen him hiding behind the tree close to her house so she brought him in to play with her. "But I like playing with him".
"You do?"
"Yes very much!"
"Then he will be here every day to play with you!" Axel declared much to the delight of Penelope but the boy on the other hand looked sullen. He thought Axel had called him here for some important work but he became a child's playmate instead?!
He was eighteen years old, not some six years old boy!
But he had no choice. Axel had said it and now he was a child's playmate…
"But he would not tell me his name". Penelope grumbled and Axel frowned at the boy before looking back at Penelope with a smile.
"That is not a problem. His name is…"Axel appeared to have forgotten the boy's name and his brows creased as he tried to remember. In the end, he gave up trying and asked the boy directly. "What is your name?"
The boy almost stumbled when he heard that question. Axel forgot his name? Really?
"... Leonard… my name is Leonard ''. Axel's eyes widened and the crease in his brows disappeared as he came to a realization.
"Leo. You should call him Leo. You will play with him every day from now on!" Axel said to Penelope and she grinned at him.
Leonard was speechless...
Just then, they heard footsteps and Hannah appeared. She was wearing a yellow dress and Axel recognized it as the same one he gave her the last time she fought. Her hair was brushed neatly and was left to fall on her right shoulder. There was still a hint of red on her face and Axel knew that she was still angry.
He smiled when he saw Hannah. He never thought that she would listen to him and wear colours. But there was still a problem with it, and that was the black jacket hung on Hannah's arm. She was holding two jackets in each arm. One was pink, which undoubtedly was Penelope's, while the other was black, which was Hannah's.
Was it too hard, parting with that colour?
"Wow! Mommy is so pretty!" Penelope commented as she cupped her cheeks with both hands and her eyes open wide.
Hannah thought that Penelope's expression was a little bit excessive and only ignored her but when she saw Axel staring at her intently, her face turned redder. She lifted her chin and glared at him as if telling him that she was still angry and he should not try to mess with her but Axel being Axel would not pay attention to her warning. He dropped Penelope on the couch and walked to Hannah.
Hannah instinctively wanted to take a step back but she thought, 'Why?'. The closer Axel got to her, the more she felt her face burn and her neck shrunk as she tried to hide her face.
Of course, Axel noticed it and when he got to her, the first thing he did was tease her. "Has your neck always been this short?"
Hannah glared hard at him but he only flashed her a wry smile. He took Penelope's jacket and helped her put it on but when it got to Hannah, Axel tugged the jacket out of her arms and directly flung it into the aquarium.
Hannah was so mad that she thought she was going to faint from it. Her condition worsened when she heard Axel's insincere "Oops". She looked at Axel, her eyes telling him to die immediately.
Axel looked apologetic and he walked inside the room to bring his suit jacket. When he came back, he hung the suit jacket over Hannah's shoulders and smiled in satisfaction.
Hannah, however, was displeased. She shook the jacket off her shoulders and stepped away from him. She was only being nice because Penelope was here; otherwise, her living room would be covered with Axel's blood. "I have another one!" She said and began to walk away but Axel stopped her.
"Yours are ugly. You should just stick with this". Axel said such words righteously that Hannah was beginning to think that he was trying to annoy her.
"You…"
"It's time for dinner. Let's go!" Axel declared and went to carry Penelope in his arms.