HIRAETH

Eleven

"Hey. How's work?" I ask, answering Sebastian's call.

"It's good. Everything is getting done fairly quickly so I may be home in time for dinner." He says. I can hear people talking in back ground and the sound of some kind of machinery beeping.

"Oh, good." I say, smiling as Aurelia hands me a teacup.

"How's my girl today?" He asks. He had been very attentive since Aurelia's panic attack a few days ago. He was worried that with court being tomorrow she may have another. So, far today she seems unfazed and happy as ever.

"She's good," I tell him, "we are currently having a tea party with a very important octopus named Mr. Squiggles." I laugh a little as Aurelia sets her toy on the edge of the table and makes it "sip" from its cup.

"Ah. Mr. Squiggles is very important." Sebastian laughs on the other line of the phone and I hear a bell ring. " I gotta go. Tell her I love her and I can't wait to get home."

"Okay, see you soon." I say and we hang up. "Aurelia, your daddy says he loves you and can't wait to get home and see you."

"Ew." she giggles and I laugh at her. "Daddy is so smooshie."

"He really is." I say laughing with her.

We continue playing tea party until its lunch time. We eat Aurelia's favorite, peanut butter sandwich and apples. After lunch, Aurelia asks if we can watch Frozen until nap time and I agree. At this point, she can practically say the movie word for word and sing every song. I love listening to her belt out the songs as loud as she can while she spins around the living room. I always take videos of her and send them to Sebastian. He usually replies with something along the lines of "That is definitely my child" or "She clearly gets her acting and singing skills from me." I always tell him him her singing skills were more likely pulled from thin air.

Sebastian talked to his lawyer a few days ago about taking full custody of Aurelia. His lawyer agreed and after they talked for a while, he said that Sebastian had a solid case against Alexia.

That was before a video came out last night of Alexia in a bar fight.

Sebastian showed it to me after Aurelia went to bed. We both knew she was sinking her ship, slowly but surely. It gave us hope that it would be easy to sway the judge our way.

Aurelia brought me out of my thoughts at the end of the movie when she crawled on top of me on the couch.

"You ready to go lay down?" I ask her as the end credits roll up the screen.

She nods her head and slides off me, taking my hand "helping" me off the couch. I take her to her room and tuck her in, after kissing her head I walk out and quietly shut the door behind me.

There's a knock at the door and a bad feeling settles in my stomach. I know it's not Sebastian, he would've just strolled in. No one else ever really comes by.

I walk quietly to the door and peek through the peep hole.

The audacity of this bitch.

She knocks again and I pull my phone out and turn on the audio recorder before putting it in my pocket and opening the door.

"Alexia. This is a surprise." I say flatly.

"Shut up, bitch. Where's my child?" She says as she tries to walk past me into the apartment, but I put my hand on the door frame to block her.

"She's sleeping. Is there something I can help you with?" I say trying to keep my composure. My blood boiling by the second.

"I want to see MY daughter. You do realize you are just the nanny, right? You aren't her mother." She snarls at me.