HIRAETH

Ten

"Hey mom, I'm gonna need to call you back." I say quickly when I hear what sounds like Sebastian yelling across the hall.

"Alright, love you." She says and I hang up.

I jump off the couch and quickly head out my door and across the hall, I grab the door knob and thankfully it's unlocked.

Swinging the door open, I see Sebastian standing in the kitchen, he's dancing to "Yeah" by Usher. He hasn't noticed me and I peek around him to see his phone.

Is he recording this?

My God he is.

I cover my mouth to keep him from hearing me laugh as I watch him move his hips to the music.

God. The man can move. I'm doomed.

"Mimi!" Aurelia yells and runs toward me when she comes out of her room. She wraps her arms around my legs and I bend down to kiss her head.

"Hey, girlie." I laugh and look back up to Sebastian who has now stopped recording and put his phone back in his pocket.

"What are you doing?" He asks, trying his best to act like I didn't just see what he was doing.

"I thought I heard yelling. Turns out it was just a small midlife crisis." I say laughing.

"Ha. Ha." He says sarcastically, moving towards me and getting a little too close with Aurelia being in the room. I widen my eyes and slightly shake my head at him. He looks down at his daughter, who is still hugging my legs, and quickly backs up.

"Are you here to play, Mimi?" Aurelia asks, looking up at me with those big blue eyes.

"Yeah, I can play for a little while." I say smiling. " Head on into your room and I'll be there in a second." Aurelia smiles and takes off running to her room. When she is out of sight, I walk over to Sebastian and wrap my arms around his back.

"Did she sleep okay last night?" I ask.

"Yeah. She just wanted to be in her own bed." He says as his own arms wrap around me.

"Good." I say as I smile up at him. "Have you heard from Alexia?"

"No. She hasn't called to check on her own daughter. She hasn't even texted. I'm ready for court to be over with." He sighs and leans his head onto mine.

"It'll be over soon." I say, closing my eyes and breathing in his cologne.

"Mimi!" We hear Aurelia yell from her room.

"You better get in there before she comes out swinging." Sebastian says laughing quietly.

"I know," I say laughing, "she probably has a mean right hook."

Sebastian laughs and I smile at the sound. He gives me a quick kiss and slaps my ass as I walk toward Aurelia's room.

"Sebastian." I say, turning around to look at him.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." He says nonchalantly and I roll my eyes.

Aurelia wanted to play with her dolls, like usual. She dressed up in her yellow Beauty and The Beast dress and sat down to fix her doll's hair. I sat and watched, occaisionally doing a braid or two for her dolls. She really is the sweetest little girl ,and very motherly to be a four year old. I don't know how something so precious could be made by someone so spiteful and rude.

Alexia hadn't seen Aurelia since the party, and even then she didn't speak to her.

I became happier everyday knowing that I was giving her some type of positive female influence. not only that, but she also made me feel like I had a purpose again.