Chapter 11
1510 Words
{VICTORIA}
"JACKSON?" I called out his name as he finally stopped his car in front of my house. This has been our daily routine. He picks me up from my house every morning, and together we both go to work, and he drops me off back at my house after work.
"Hmmm?" He turned towards me with a smile.
"I have something to tell you," I said in a low voice. I almost didn't want to say it to him. But I had to. Demi's future depended on it.
Jackson's smile grew wider. "I have something to tell you too," he faced Demi, who was peeking at us from the passenger seat. "Demi will be surely happy about this," he said and playfully pinched our child's cheek.
Demi chuckled. Their laughter was the only thing I could be heard inside the car. And here I am, once again contemplating what I should do. It's hard to ruin Jackson's mood. I don't want to see him disappointed because of me.
"What were you going to say?" I asked him, trying to smile at him despite the heaviness in my chest.
"Tomorrow is Sunday, right? Let's go to church. Dad will come with us, and you should invite your Dad too. Then afterwards, Dad wants to bond with your Dad over drinks, while the three of us would go shopping for our outfits for the grand ball," he explained at length.
I was taken aback. I was about to say something about it, but I was interrupted by Demi hugging Jackson's neck.
"Yay, I'm very excited to go shopping, Daddy Jackson!" Demi happily exclaimed.
I became even quieter. I didn't speak until Demi and I got out of Jackson's car.
"Hey, is there any problem? You look pale," Jackson asked me with concern. Demi went inside the house first and was immediately greeted by Dad.
Jackson and I were left outside in front of his car. He gently cupped my face.
"Maybe I'm just tired. It's nothing," I forced my voice to sound lively.
He kissed my forehead, just like he always did. "Okay, get a good rest, wifey!" he said lovingly.
He took a step back and started waving goodbye with a smile.
"Where's my kiss?" I pouted.
He laughed and came back to me. He quickly kissed my lips.
"Take care," I said to him before he finally got inside the car. I remained standing outside our gate until he completely left.
As he disappeared from my sight, I let out a sigh. I didn't have a choice anymore. I'm sure there would be a lot of people there, and it would be impossible for Liam and me to cross paths. I hope that's how it turns out. I hope the whole night passes without our paths crossing, especially for Demi's sake.
"DEMI, stop running!" Jackson's dad scolded my child. We were currently at the park in front of the church, where we had just come from.
Jackson and I were sitting on a bench, with my head resting on his shoulder. His hands were wrapped around my shoulders. We watched Demi playing with her two grandfathers. My dad, along with Jackson's dad, seemed to be thoroughly enjoying themselves, taking care of Demi and playing with her in the park.
I looked up at Jackson. He was always smiling when he was with me, and I was so glad.
"Jackson?" I called his name.
He looked at me. "Yes, wifey?" he asked with a smile.
"Can you tell me about your mom?" I asked, still smiling.
I saw him pause. I could tell from his eyes that he was hurt when I mentioned his mom, but that emotion quickly disappeared. He smiled at me again. He gently squeezed my shoulder and then looked back at Demi. I did the same.
"My mom was beautiful just like you. But she was the opposite of your personality. My mom was delicate and never hurt anyone," he said seriously, but then added a teasing remark towards the end. I playfully slapped his thigh.
"Behave yourself!" I scolded him. He just laughed.
"But seriously, wifey, that's the truth," he insisted.
I glared at him. "I didn't ask!" I pretended to be annoyed, which made him laugh even more. He always teased me, and he seemed to enjoy it even more when I got overly irritated with him and his unending jokes.
"If you want to get to know Mom, you can visit her painting workshop. I'll give you the address," Jackson said seriously after a while.
I furrowed my brow. "Aren't you coming with me?" I asked him, puzzled.
"I can't. She can't know about me because it might ruin her life. She's doing fine without me and Dad now. When we were still with her, accidents kept happening to her, and I don't want that to happen again," Jackson explained at length. I could sense the weight of his emotions in his voice.
It wasn't apparent to him that he was going through something like this. It's true what they say, that the happiest people often have the most painful struggles in life.
"Don't worry, I'll visit her. Wait, what if I enroll Demi in her workshop since the vacation is coming up?" I suddenly thought.
"Hmmm, that could work. I'm sure she'll be thrilled to have her grandchild there," Jackson agreed with a nod. The way he treated Demi as if he were the real father truly touched my heart.
"WHY are you sad, baby?" I asked Demi. She approached us, pouting her lips. Jackson immediately scooped her up in his arms.
"It's like I want all the dresses here. I can't choose just one," she said.
Jackson smiled at how cute Demi was. "Go ahead and pick as many dresses as you want. We'll buy all of them, and you can wear them," Jackson told my daughter.
Demi squealed in excitement. She hugged Jackson around the neck and planted a sweet kiss on his left cheek, three kisses to be exact. "Thanks, Daddy. You're the best!" Demi said happily and gave Jackson a thumbs up.
Jackson put her down and let her choose her dresses. There was a female staff member assisting her. Jackson looked at me again.
"Have you made your selection?" he asked me.
He told me that I should choose my ball gown first, as he would then choose a matching formal attire. The ball didn't have a fixed theme. They just said to wear the most beautiful wedding gown and suit we could ever have.
I looked at all the gowns in the boutique once again before finally settling on a light violet ball gown in a classic style. It had a tube-style top, and the entire gown had a glamorous and dazzling look. It was a sight to behold.
"How about this? What do you think?" I asked him, pointing to the ball gown I had chosen, displayed inside a glass case.
"It looks beautiful, but it will look even more stunning when you wear it. I'm sure I'll have the most beautiful partner at the ball," he said with a grin.
I immediately felt my cheeks warming up. He always said things like that to me, but it still made me blush.
After instructing a female staff member to take care of the ball gown I had chosen, we proceeded to the men's section. Jackson quickly picked out his attire. He settled on a matching suit that perfectly matched my ball gown. It was the only suit available in the color light violet.
Afterwards, we went to the counter to wait for Demi and for Jackson to pay for everything we had chosen. It didn't take long for Demi to return with the staff member named Marie, as I read from her nameplate. Marie was carrying six little gowns for Demi. I looked apologetically at Jackson because I knew those dresses must have been expensive. But Jackson just smiled and assured me that it was completely fine with him.
"Mom, Dad, I also have a violet dress!" Demi exclaimed, jumping up and down, and she pointed to one of the dresses that Marie was holding.
Jackson and I exchanged glances and laughed. "Do you also want to wear violet like me and your Dad?" I asked Demi, feeling amused towards my daughter.
"She saw both of you choosing violet, so she picked one for herself to match and be a family goal. Your daughter has such a cute way of thinking," Marie said, smiling at us.
"Thank you for assisting my daughter!" I smiled and thanked her.
"It's my duty since she's our customer," she replied with a smile.
The clothes we chose were then packed at the counter. Jackson paid for everything. I didn't ask him about the total cost because I might faint from the price. After that, we headed to Jackson's car together with the numerous shopping bags carried by the three male staff members from the boutique we had come from.
- Writer
