Chapter 18: First Day of School
1216 Words
The morning of kindergarten started at 5:30 AM.
With chaos.
“Mom! I can’t find my dinosaur backpack!” Lucas yelled from his room.
“Lily has it,” Lily yelled back from the bathroom. “It’s mine now.”
“It’s NOT yours! It’s for BOYS!”
“It’s for PEOPLE who brush their teeth!”
I stood in the kitchen in pajamas and coffee, watching my life implode.
Aiden walked in, already in a suit at 6 AM. Because of course he was. CEO energy doesn’t sleep.
“Morning,” he said, kissing my forehead. “First day of school. How are we feeling?”
“Like I’m going to cry,” I admitted.
“Same,” he said. Then louder: “LUCAS. LILY. BACKPACKS. NOW.”
The CEO voice worked. Two seconds later both twins came running.
Lucas in dinosaur backpack. Lily in unicorn backpack. Both matching navy uniforms. Both missing one shoe.
“We’re ready!” they said in unison.
Aiden looked at me. I looked at him.
“We did this,” he whispered. “We made these tiny humans.”
“I’m proud and terrified,” I whispered back.
---
The school was Hale Academy. Of course it was.
Aiden donated the new library last year. His name was on a gold plaque at the entrance.
The other parents stared. Cameras flashed. Because when Aiden Hale drops his kids off, it’s news.
“Daddy, why are they taking pictures?” Lily asked, hiding behind my leg.
“Because they’re nosy,” Aiden said. Then, softer: “But you don’t have to smile for them. Only for me and Mom.”
She nodded seriously. CEO’s daughter.
The teacher, Ms. Rivera, came out. Kind eyes. Been teaching for 20 years.
“Mr. and Mrs. Hale? The twins?”
“That’s us,” I said.
“We’re so excited to have Lucas and Lily. We just ask... no security detail in the classroom?”
Aiden sighed. “Understood.” He turned to the two bodyguards. “Wait in the car.”
Lucas grabbed my hand. “Mom, what if I forget how to read?”
“You won’t, baby. You taught Lily.”
Lily grabbed Aiden’s tie. “Daddy, what if no one likes me?”
Aiden knelt down. Eye level. “Baby girl. You’re kind, you’re smart, and you have the best laugh in the world. Anyone who doesn’t like you doesn’t deserve you.”
I was crying. Of course I was crying.
“Okay,” I said, kneeling too. “First day rules: Be kind. Try your best. And if anything happens, you tell Ms. Rivera, okay?”
“Okay,” they both said.
Then the hardest part. Letting go.
Lucas hugged me tight. “Love you, Mom.”
“Love you more, bug.”
Lily hugged Aiden. “Love you, Daddy.”
“Love you most, princess.”
And then they walked in. Holding hands. Two tiny people in a big building.
I didn’t breathe until the doors closed.
---
In the car after, it was quiet.
Aiden reached over and took my hand.
“You okay?” he asked.
“No,” I said. “They’re so little.”
“I know.” He squeezed my hand. “They’re also so strong. Just like their mom.”
We drove in silence to Hale Industries.
Aiden had a board meeting at 9. I had my art studio opening at 10.
“I hate leaving them,” I said.
“Me too,” he said. “But we raised them to be brave. Now we have to be brave too.”
He dropped me at the studio. “Text me when you hear something?”
“Every hour,” I promised.
---
The studio was small. Mine.
Paint on the walls. Canvases everywhere. My name on the door: ZURI HALE STUDIO.
My first solo exhibit. “One Night That Changed Everything.”
All paintings of us. The club. The contract. The kitchen. The balcony.
People came. They looked. They bought 3 paintings before 11 AM.
My phone buzzed. Aiden:
`Ms. Rivera sent pics. They’re okay. Lucas made a friend. Lily is bossing kids around. Proud of them.`
Me: `Send me the pics NOW`
He did.
Lucas with paint on his face grinning. Lily standing on a chair directing art class.
I cried in my studio. Happy crying.
---
3 PM. Pick up time.
Aiden and I both showed up. Together.
The doors opened and two tiny tornadoes came running.
“MOM! DADDY!”
Lucas had a paper crown. Lily had glitter everywhere.
“How was it?” I asked, kneeling.
“Good!” Lucas said. “I made a friend named Max. He likes dinosaurs too.”
“I was the line leader,” Lily said proudly. “And I told a boy he can’t take my crayons.”
Aiden picked her up. “That’s my girl.”
On the drive home they talked nonstop. About snacks and recess and how Ms. Rivera read a story.
Normal kid stuff. The stuff I thought we’d never get to have.
---
That night after dinner and baths and 3 stories, we put them to bed.
Lucas: “Can Daddy read?”
Aiden: “Always.”
Lily: “Can Mom sing?”
Me: “Always.”
So Aiden read Goodnight Moon. I sang them a lullaby.
Lights off. Door cracked.
In our room, Aiden and I collapsed on the bed.
“Exhausted,” I said.
“Best day ever,” he said.
He pulled me close. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“For giving me this. For giving me them.”
I turned to him. “Thank you for choosing us. Every day.”
We didn’t say much after that.
Just laid there. Listening to the quiet house. Two kids asleep down the hall.
Five years ago I was bartending at Club Vex.
Five years ago he offered me a contract.
Today we watched our kids go to kindergarten.
Life is weird. And beautiful.
---
At 2 AM I woke up to crying.
Lily. Nightmare.
I ran to her room. Aiden was already there.
“Hey baby,” he said, picking her up. “What’s wrong?”
“Bad dream,” she mumbled into his shoulder.
“You want Mom or Dad?”
“Both,” she said.
So we took her to our bed. Between us.
Lucas rolled over and grabbed her hand in his sleep.
Aiden wrapped his arm around me. “Family bed,” he murmured.
“Family bed,” I agreed.
And for the first time since they were born, all four of us slept through the night.
---
Morning came fast.
Pancakes. Lost socks. More glitter.
Aiden was on a call but still helped Lucas with his tie.
I was packing lunches but still braided Lily’s hair.
“Ready for day 2?” I asked the twins.
“Ready!” they shouted.
As we walked out the door, Aiden stopped me.
He tucked a piece of hair behind my ear.
“I love you,” he said. Simple.
“I love you too,” I said.
No contract. No cameras.
Just us. On a Tuesday morning.
Taking our kids to school.
The End of Chapter 18.
- Writer
