The morning felt very short for Viona. All night her eyes were awake. Her mind was full of the sad story of Major General Kenneth's revenge. She could only close her tired eyes at dawn and the woman only slept for two hours, before waking up again to carry out her new duties as Sammy's nanny and Joe's assistant.
Viona wore sweatpants and an oversized t-shirt. Her hair was tied in a ponytail, and her appearance made her look fresh and relaxed.
Viona started walking towards Sammy's room and opened the door slowly. Viona's smile widened when she saw that Sammy was awake and sitting on the sofa holding a MacBook and earphones in his ears. From what it looked like, it looked like Sammy had showered and was fresh.
"Hi..." Viona said with a sweet smile, and her greeting managed to break Sammy's concentration who was busy watching his MacBook.
"Aunt Bee, are you here?"
Viona nodded, "Didn't I promise I'd come back? And from now on I will stay here and accompany you to play."
Sammy immediately hugged Viona with joy.
"Come sit here, Auntie." said the little guy while patting the sofa next to him. Viona followed the instructions and sat down.
Sammy put Viona on her earphones and invited her nanny to watch his favorite hero in cartoon form–Bumble Bee.
The two of them laughed together watching the cartoon. Sammy accidentally glanced to the side, noticing Viona who was smiling cheerfully.
"What is it? Why do you keep looking at me?" Viona, aware that the little one was watching her, now faced Sammy.
"So, now what should I call you? Since I am your nanny now, how about I call you a Young Master? How?" Viona asked without losing her smile.
"I don't want to be called that, Auntie." The little guy protested while pursing his lips. He turned to lay his head on Viona's lap, "Just call my name, Auntie. Just Sammy."
"That is wrong. I work here as your nanny. Automatically you are my employer. So, even though you are still small, I still have to call you Young Master Sammy." Viona explained while stroking Sammy's hair.
Sammy shook his head, "You are my friend, Auntie."
"What if Mr. Joe scolds me?"
"If Dad scolds you, just tell me!" With high confidence, Sammy answered firmly, and it looked funny in Viona's eyes.
"Okay, okay… It's up to you," she answered.
"Auntie, I'm sleepy. Wake me up in a bit, okay..." Sammy said after yawning and his eyes looked droopy.
Viona reflexively glanced at the digital clock on the table next to Sammy's bed, "It's still half past seven. It's normal for you to be sleepy. What time did you wake up, Sammy?"
"I didn't look at the clock. I woke up when I felt my bed was wet and then I immediately took a shower. At first, I wanted to wake my daddy because it seemed like the ceiling in my room was leaking and soaking my mattress."
"But I think I forgot, and I remembered that I didn't watch my favorite cartoon last night, Auntie."
Little Sammy told the chronology of his morning awakening in a voice that was already slow because his sleepiness was no longer suppressed. In just a matter of seconds, Sammy had entered his dream world.
Viona stifled a laugh. She had to cover her mouth because she was afraid her voice would wake Sammy again.
"It's not your roof that's leaking, Sammy. That's called bedwetting, hihi." Viona muttered softly and still held back her laughter.
***
"Sammy, come on, get up. You have to go to school, son."
Ben, wearing neat office clothes, entered Sammy's room without warning. His gaze was still focused on the cell phone in his hand.
"Sammy, you've showered, right?" he called again because he didn't get a response from his nephew.
"Hey, who are you?"
Ben was stunned when he saw his nephew sleeping on a woman's lap and looking very sound asleep because he was gently stroking his head. The uncle was even more surprised when he found out that the woman was Viona, the woman his brother was courting.
"Miss Viona, what are you doing here?" Ben asked in surprise. That's understandable because he hasn't been told anything.
"Good morning, Mr. Ben. I'm working in this house starting today." Viona answered.
"So, you've decided to be Sammy's babysitter? But why didn't Joe say anything to me?" Ben muttered in surprise.
"You can ask Mr. Joe yourself."
"Okay, I'll go to his room. So, are you ready Sammy? He had to shower and go to school immediately. Are you sure you can take care of my nephew and can I entrust him to you starting today?" Ben asked another question.
Viona nodded, "Yes, I'm sure. And Sammy has also showered. I'll wake you up after this to go to school. He just needs to be tidied up a bit because he is already very handsome." she answered.
"Are you sure? He's too lazy to get up early, you know." Ben commented again.
"It doesn't matter because that's my job now."
Viona's answer made Ben nod and leave the little one's room in silence. But it seemed Viona couldn't hold back her sleepiness. She, who had only slept for a few hours, became sleepy again and fell asleep in a sitting position.
Without her knowing, after only a few minutes Ben came out, instead, Joe entered the room.
Just like his younger brother, Joe was also stunned when he saw his son sleeping in Viona's lap. The man chuckled when he realized that Viona was also asleep with her mouth slightly open.
Joe, who was already neat, rolled up the sleeves of his jacket and adjusted his son's sleeping position to move to the other sofa. Joe's hand reached out to gently stroke his son's hair.
"Mommy…'
The mumble came from Sammy's mouth and made Joe freeze. He couldn't remember how many times his son had called his late mother in the last few days. But what is clear is that Sammy's change in attitude occurred after he met Viona.
***
The morning went well. The feeling of family warmth emerged again with Viona's presence there.
Currently, at the dinner table, it is not as quiet as before. Sammy's cheerful laughter colored the atmosphere of their breakfast. Both Joe and Ben could feel the happiness of their little one who had long lost the loving figure who was supposed to accompany him from the morning he opened his eyes until he closed his eyes at night.
Viona also looks relaxed accompanying Sammy and taking care of everything about the little one. As if she was used to it and was very independent, Viona didn't even ask anything about Sammy's needs after Joe explained everything about his son completely.
"Sammy, in half an hour the school bell will ring, so let's go now," Viona said to Sammy which immediately made the little one react.
"You've tidied up your textbooks for today, right?"
Viona asked and Sammy nodded, "Yes, Auntie."
"Good, let's go now. Monday is a busy day but that can't make us lazy. Get up and give your father and uncle a morning kiss before we leave."
Sammy obediently obeyed Viona's firm but gentle orders. And the little guy's obedience made Joe and Ben smile in amusement. The brothers didn't make any sound and just looked at the obedient Sammy.
"Daddy, Uncle, I'm leaving first!" said the little one cheerfully after giving Joe and Ben a short kiss on the cheeks in turn.
Just like Sammy, Viona also said goodbye to take Young Master Clayton to school.
"It looks like you didn't choose the wrong nanny for Sammy this time. Look, both Viona and Sammy, they both look close and tend to look like mother and son." Getting a whisper like that from his younger brother made Joe speechless.
A faint smile appeared on the handsome widower's lips, "I'm just trying to do my job as a good father to Sammy." Joe just answered calmly. But his calm demeanor was surprisingly difficult to endure when his heart was pounding so fast at the moment.
Joe didn't know exactly what he was feeling right now. He only knew that he liked this kind of warm family momentum that had disappeared after his wife died.
"Hey, why do you keep smiling alone like a crazy person? Don't tell me you also like Viona like Sammy likes her?" Ben teased his brother again. He likes teasing Joe, who lately seems random and tends to smile.
"Don't talk too much and leave quickly. I smiled not because of Viona. What father wouldn't be happy to see his son's smile again?"
"Yeah yeah yeah, I understand. Let's end this morning's wonderful breakfast and let's go to the office. There are piles of files waiting to be signed." Ben answered.
"You're right, so hurry up." Joe gave a short response which made his younger brother confused because instead of heading towards the main door, his older brother walked towards his room.
"Where are you going? Does he mean I was the only one who rushed?" Ben asked and Joe nodded.
"I didn't go to the office. I will have a virtual meeting with a client from London. I don't want to be bothered with lots of files on my desk at the office. I want to talk calmly with the new client," he answered completely before walking again, leaving Ben who was now standing still.
"You crazy brother. Just watch out, huh?" Ben cursed, feeling like he was being bullied by his brother. But he still went to the office, cursing along the way.