scarred//myg

epilogue

an// ahh!! we're done!! it's been a crazy journey writing this book and growing in the army community on wattpad :) i appreciate everyone who's read so far and would love it if you'd follow me for more books in the future! i'm so close to six hundred! and thank you for almost 5k reads! i love you all and i'll be continuing to post the five bonus parts after this!

~

"Careful," you whispered. "He's asleep-- see?"

"Uh huh." Layla reached her hand to let the baby grasp her finger. She giggled. "Teeny."

"Mhm."

"Teeny too?" the two-year-old asked, pointing to herself with her other hand. You smiled.

"You were even smaller." She gasped. "We all thought you'd be way bigger."

"Daddy too?"

"Your daddy thought you were gonna be a boy." She frowned, crossing her arms. That was probably not a good idea to bring that up. Especially with the birth of the teeny human she pretended to despise, also known as her baby brother.

"Daddy silly," she whispered. 

You laughed a little. "He's pretty sill--"

"Tucker you have to throw the ball to me!" Esther screeched, running across the yard to get it. "Not at the birdies!"

Tucker giggled. "Birdie."

"No-- to me!" She huffed and the six-year-old ran back to her cousin, handing him the ball. "Now throw it to me please."

Tucker threw it at the bird again. The pigeon glanced at it before nudging it with its head.

"Looks like the bird wants to play too, Esther," you said gently. She crossed her arms and stomped her foot.

"But I wanna play with Tucker!" You smiled and Layla brought her finger to her lips.

"Shh," she said, pointing. "Baby sleeping." You nodded and Esther frowned.

"Where's daddy today, honey?" 

She let out a dramtic sjgh. "Daddy had to go to work again!" You smiled. "And today's a holiday day-- it's thanksgiving!"

"Well--"

"So that means I don't have to go to school but daddy can't stay home and since he said I'm not big enough to stay home all by myself, I had to come here!" She plopped down into the grass. "And now I can't play with Tucker because he's playing with a birdie!"

You looked over to see Tucker who was, in fact, holding his hand out to the bird who hopped right on. The three-year-old prince turned to you, giggling. You smiled and Layla gestured Esther over.

"Come play with baby," she said with a giggle. Esther stood with another dramatic sigh and sat on the other side of you. She then pushed herself up to be standing on the rock instead of sitting. A hand on your shoulder, she peered at the baby.

"Lay?" you turned to see Tucker running over, a dandelion in hand as he held it out to his friend. The other three-year-old took it.

"Tha-k you, T!" she giggled.

"Welcome."

The little prince ran back to his bird-- birds, another having joined the party. You wiggled your eyebrows at the little girl as she rolled the stem of the dandelion between her fingers. She held it up for you to see. You smiled. 

"It looks like Tucker has a crush on you," you whispered. She frowned.

"No, no."

"Yes, yes." She giggled and buried her face into the side of your arm.