Little Of Loure II

15 - Back to The City

Dedicated to ScalRise for your sweet comment in the last chapter. Really made me realize that writing is something I should love and not feel any pressure about. Thank you, darling!

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I love you, Dylan.

That was all Dylan could think about after leaving the cottage.

Lincoln said it, he finally said it. Dylan couldn't help but smile at the memory. Just that small gesture made it a little easier for him to leave. He felt this solid feeling in their relationship after hearing from Lincoln that he loved him back.

Although Dylan had calmed down slightly from their farewell, Abby hadn't.

She was currently straddling his waist in the back seat of the car with her head resting on his chest. She was still sniffling softly, but other than that she had stopped crying.

'Shhh, it's going to be okay.'

Abby stood silent and continued to tremble.

'What do you want to do when we get home? Hmm?' Dylan tried to start a conversation.

'We can go to the park, daddy can push you on the swing and we can play for hours.'

Abby shook her head gently.

'Hmm...what about...we go swimming? You like swimming, don't you? Daddy's place has a pool.'

'I want Lincoln daddy.' her voice was barely above a whisper, but Dylan caught it.

It did hurt him slightly that he wasn't enough for Abby, but it was understandable considering Lincoln is her main caretaker.

'I know. I miss him too already.' Dylan said and placed a small kiss on her head.

He wondered if she was going to feel this way for a while. Few days? Few weeks?

He really didn't know.

'Why don't we write to him? You can draw pictures and write him a letter. I'm sure he would appreciate that.'

This suggestion made Abby lift her head up from his chest to stare at him.

'Can we do that?' she whimpered.

'Of course, we can.' Dylan said and tucked her hair behind her ears before wiping her tear-stained cheeks with his thumb.

Dylan didn't know if it was possible to send letters to Lincoln. But he knew that just the act of writing down her feelings would help Abby a lot with processing her emotions. It was the only way he knew how to keep her from going berserk.

'Okay.' she looked down and played with her fingers.

'Close your eyes and have some rest, darling. We're still far from home.' Dylan said and patted her head.

Abby listened and laid her head on his chest, listening to his slow heartbeat. She found herself wondering about Lincoln. Was she going to be okay without him? The last time she and Lincoln spoke he had insinuated that it wasn't safe for her to be with him anymore. Did that mean that he was in danger?

What was he doing? Did he miss her? Is he feeling okay?

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'Mr. Lincoln?'

Isaac stood at the doorway of the cottage house that he had previously visited. His hand held three bags of groceries that he had agreed to bring over to the prince's home.

'Sir?'

Isaac pushed the slightly gaped door open to reveal a shocking scene.

The home was destroyed. Glass littered the floor in shards, some were covered in blood splatters. The curtains were torn and lying on the ground.

Isaac couldn't quite see anything since the lights were all off and it was dark outside, but he knew the place was trashed.

'Sir Lincoln?' Isaac called out again, in hopes of getting a response. This time, he heard a low groan.

'What do you want?'

Isaac turned towards the voice. Behind the overturned sofa was the prince, who sat hunched forward. Long strands of his hair were dangling in front of his face.

'What happened here, sir?' Isaac asked gently. He slowly navigated his way into the house, careful not to step on any glass.

'Just put the bags in the kitchen. You may leave.' Lincoln replied, ignoring his initial question. His voice was low and raspy. As though he hadn't drunk water for a long period of time.

'Sir, I can help you with anything you need.' Isaac said. He was afraid to leave the prince alone in such a state. It was clear that the situation could potentially be dangerous.

'I said go.'

'P-please, sir.'

'f**k! Are you an i***t? Leave!' Lincoln screamed and threw a lamp in the direction of Isaac. The lamp shattered as he hit the wall where Isaac stood in front. Luckily, he wasn't harmed by it.

Isaac set the bags down and squatted down on the ground where he stood.

'What are you doing?' Lincoln asked.

'You can talk to me when you're ready. But I will not leave you in this state.'

Lincoln scrunched his brows in confusion. What the f**k was his problem?

'Where is the human girl? And the other pureblood?' Isaac asked, after a few seconds of silence.

'They left.' he simply replied.

'Where did they go?'

'Home.'

'Why aren't you home with them?'

'f**k, do you always ask this many questions?'

Isaac stood silent, not answering. He didn't know what he could say to make the prince feel better. But he knew that he didn't want to leave him alone either. So they sat in silence. Neither one is talking.

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When Abby opened her eyes, the view outside the car was now filled with tall high rises and buildings. There were also many more cars and highways. She felt a small smile graze her lips as the familiar surroundings set in.

She turned her head to the other side to find an empty seat next to her. That was when she remembered Lincoln wasn't there.

The smile on her face went as quickly as it came. She lowered her head before turning to look at Dylan, who had his eyes closed. He was asleep.

Abby didn't want to wake him, so she laid her head back on his chest but kept her gaze out the window. Her fingers played with his sleeves gently to keep her nerves at bay.

She didn't recognize the road they were on, which told her that they probably were not on the way back to the home she shared with Lincoln.

It also didn't seem like they were going to Dylan's apartment. It was a new neighborhood with different trees and buildings.

'Daddy...' Abby patted Dylan's shoulders gently. She wanted to know where they were going.

Dylan slowly opened his eyes and squinted at the sunlight that came through the slightly-tinted window.

'Yeah, baby?'

'Where are we?' Abby asked.

Dylan looked out the window again to see that they were on the boulevard that leads to his second apartment.

At first, he wondered why they weren't being dropped off at La Lair, which is the condominium that Abby and Lincoln visited him at. But the more he thought about it he realized that his mother probably had a say in this and had most likely instructed him to be sent to their private apartment that was on the edge of the city, where it was very secluded and quiet. Away from the city buzz and prying eyes.

Dylan appreciated this too, since his family very rarely ever went to this side of town and the apartment was mainly reserved for property investments and nobody lived in the complex other than a few business moguls that value privacy.

'We're almost home, honey.' Dylan replied Abby, who seemed nervous to be in a part of town that did not look familiar.

'How will daddy find us? Does he know this place?' she questioned. At the back of Abby's mind, Lincoln was going to join them one of those days. She wasn't sure when, but she figured he would come and live with them soon and they would be together again.

'I'll text him the address. Don't worry about it.'

The car pulled up at the lobby of the apartment. There was a sign at the front of the building made of expensive-looking bronze material. Abby read the sign and the familiar name caught her eyes. 

Folley Residence & Suites.

'It has your name on it, daddy.' Abby remembered seeing the name Folley on a lot of Dylan's items, like his medical bag as well as his equipment. 

'This building was built by my family a few years ago. We rent it out to people in the city who are looking for a more private place away from the city.' Dylan explained.

'Away?' Abby asked.

'Yeah. The location here is much more secluded compared to the other apartments in the city.'

When the chauffeur opened the door, Dylan held Abby tightly before exiting the vehicle, careful not to hit her head on the hood of the car. 

Once they were out, he placed Abby on the ground and fixed her dress that was wrinkled from the ride.

Abby looked around their surroundings to see that Dylan was right. The design of the place was created to look like a hidden industrial building with greenery everywhere. It sort of reminded her of the garden she had at Lincolns penthouse where the plants wrapped around the home like a giant blanket.

At the thought of Lincoln, Abby found herself feeling down again. 

'Are you okay, Abby?' Dylan bent down to her eye level and caressed her cheeks. Her eyes were glossy and her lips in a small pout.

'I know you're sad, honey. I miss him too. But I need you to be strong, okay? You can be a big girl for me, can you?' Dylan asked with a smile to try and make her feel better.

Abby sniffled softly before nodding and blinking away her tears. Dylan pulled her in for a hug and made sure to give her a tight squeeze before letting her go.

When Dylan stood back up he saw a bellhop walking towards them in quick strides.

'Young Master. It had been a while since we have had the pleasure.' the bellhop greeted them with a polite bow.

'Good Afternoon.' Dylan replied with a smile.

'I presume the penthouse would be your preferred choice of unit for this stay?'

Dylan thought about it and, since his family rarely came here, he didn't find the need to leave the penthouse to anyone else. 

'Yes please.' 

'Do you require a crib to be installed, sir?' the boy asked when he set eyes on Abby, who hid behind Dylan the entire time.

Dylan looked down at Abby, who stood silent. He had never seen her sleep in a crib before. She had always slept in Lincoln's room.

Whenever he visited the prince's home and even back at the cottage, she slept with them on the bed. 

'No need. Leave the room as it is.' 

'Understood.' 

It wasn't only that which made Dylan decide not to give her a crib, he was also hesitant about treating Abby too much like a stereotypical Little. He hadn't had the opportunity to really discuss it with Lincoln, but he did bring it up a bit at the cottage.

He didn't know if it was right to treat Abby a little when she was never meant to be one, to begin with. Her level of maturity wasn't of her choice and if she wanted to grow as a person, it wasn't right to stop her from doing so.

'I will be in charge of your belongings this afternoon.' 

'Thank you.' Dylan said and pulled Abby close to him to let the boy access the trunk. The bags were halfway being unloaded by the chauffeur.

'Please have a seat in the lobby, we will inform you once we are done unpacking.' the boy said with a polite bow.

Dylan turned to Abby and lifted her into his arms.

'Are you hungry, sweetie?'

Abby nodded.

'We will be at The Loaf. Take your time unpacking.' Dylan said, referring to the small restaurant in the building that was by the pool.

It was a convenient spot where the residents go to have their meals, since the place was quite a distance from any other city cafe.

Dylan reached over to grab his work bag and, with Abby, he descended the stairs up into the lobby.

The lobby was slightly cold due to the air conditioning, which was nice since the weather outside was pretty sunny. It was pretty empty inside with only a couple of people in the seating area and some waiting for the elevator. 

Dylan made sure to avoid any eye contact as he made his way to the back of the building where the restaurant was. 

'Daddy, can we go there?'Abby pointed to a small park located on the left side of the building. The place had a swing, a slide, and a small canopy where people could sit and just relax.

'Sure, but later okay. Let's get you some food first, alright. Then we can spend the day doing whatever you want.' Dylan said and kissed her forehead, which made her smile softly. 

When they arrived, a man stood outside the restaurant in a waiter's uniform.

'Good afternoon, sir. Table for two?'

'Yes. By the window please.' Dylan said. 

As they followed the man into the restaurant, Dylan felt his phone start to vibrate in his pocket. He had almost forgotten completely about this device since Lincoln kept it from him at the cottage. It was only returned that morning when Dylan was getting into the car but his mind was so occupied with everything that he didn't even think to check or look through it.

Dylan placed Abby on the chair once they had reached their table and quickly answered the phone, forgetting to look at the caller ID.

'You've reached the apartment. How are you?' 

Dylan sighed out loud when he heard his mother's voice on the phone.

'That's not the greeting I was looking for.' she said, sounding slightly upset when she heard her son's displeased noise.

'I'm okay, mother. How did you know I just got here?' Dylan said. 

Knowing her, she must have informed the staff to alert her of his arrival.

'That's not important. I want you to report to the main hospital tomorrow. Come see me first thing in the morning.'

'Really? You're not going to come here?' Dylan said and opened the menu to look at the choices.

'Don't get sassy with me. I am caught up in an important meeting today, so I won't have any time to go down to the city. First thing tomorrow, Dylan.' she said and hung up the phone. 

Dylan scoffed and threw his phone on the table, shaking his head. 

Judging by the tone of her voice, it was like she couldn't figure out if she was worried about him or angry at him. Dylan knew she just couldn't wait to ask about everything that happened while he was gone, but they both knew that it wasn't something that they could just talk about over the phone.

'Deedee?'

Dylan looked up from his menu and saw that Abby had picked something from the menu.

'I want this.' Abby said, pointing to a picture of a sundae ice cream.

'Abby...' Dylan started hesitantly. 'Isn't there anything else you want? You know you can't have ice cream before you eat a main course, you're going to have a stomach ache.'

Abby pouted and stared at the menu a little longer.

'No, I don't want anything else.' 

Dylan sighed after a few minutes.

'Fine, you can have that just this once, alright.' Dylan said, which made her perk up with a smile. 

'Yay.' Abby softly said under her breath.

Dylan chuckled slightly and thought about how if Lincoln was here there was no way he would allow it. But the doctor didn't mind being the permissive daddy while leaving the stricter side to his partner. Plus, after the morning she had had, she deserved to have something that would cheer her up.

After looking through the menu for another 5 minutes, Dylan settled on his choice of meal before placing his order with the waiter.

'Abby, I've got some work to do in the next few days. Do you mind following me around?' Dylan said while he opened his work bag and took out some paperwork. 

He left a lot of work unattended since being 'kidn*pped' by Lincoln and a lot of his patients must be late for their regular checkups. He has to call each of them and schedule a new appointment and report to the hospital. Although he wasn't sure about the status of his job now, since the news of his disappearance was plastered all over the news. Maybe it was a good idea to go meet his mother just so he would know what to do in terms of his job.

'What do you need to do, Daddy?' Abby asked curiously. 

'I have to go meet some patients. Other littles like you. And I need to go to the hospital.'

'I can follow you.' Abby said. She remembered that she had to be a big girl for her daddies. And even though the thought of going around and meeting new people sounded like a nightmare to her, she didn't want to make it harder on Dylan by refusing.

'Thank you, honey. Now let's eat and go have a long nap upstairs.' Dylan said as he saw their food arriving.

He didn't know what to expect now that he had Abby and he had to find a way to integrate her into his busy lifestyle. But he was going to do everything he could to make it work. Because he loved Abby, and he loved Lincoln.