Chapter 38: Chapter 38

As I make my way down the hallway, I stop to look at some of the artwork. There is the one with my dad and his parents, a picture of Alyanna and me on our wedding day, a picture of what I believe to be the birth of our child even though I have no idea what her name is, and a picture of Alyanna, the young girl, and me with another baby.

"Do you have a second child?" I ask out loud.

"Daddy?" I overhear a weak and worn-out voice saying.

I look around and notice a little boy standing there. I keel down. "What's up, Landon?" I make another effort to open my eyes wider. What if it's not even his real name? I ask myself.

"Where is mommy?" he yelled. He questions it while scratching his eyes.

"You can find her in the kitchen." I say freezing.

What about Milly?

"In her room with Lexi," the text reads. Lexi just snuck out. It's possible that we don't call each other that, but I can't say for sure. Nonetheless, I was finally able to discover the name of my child.

"Can you bring me to mama?" He questions while holding up both his hands. I let out a breath that I wasn't even aware I'd been holding for so long. I give him a slight nod and then pick him up to take him downstairs.

"Have a look at who just woke up." I say attracting Alyanna's attention.

"How's my big boy?" She wants to remove him from me when I'm holding him.

I can hear someone rapping on the door. "I'll fetch it." I'm saying to head over to the entrance. "Hello Chris, Maddy." I am in favor of admitting them.

Everyone makes their way into the kitchen. So, Alyanna, have you started preparing the meals for tomorrow yet? It is clear that she is agreeing.

"What are you doing tomorrow?" I ask.

Everyone stares at me as if I've lost my mind. "You sure you're ok?" Alyanna asks. "Because it's Thanksgiving the day after tomorrow."

It usually takes me a few moments to come up with a response. "Haha! Got you guys." I make an effort to mislead. They start laughing, but not all the way through it.

I fall asleep during the entire course of the meal. What the devil could have caused that? I can still vividly recall all of the meetings, the FaceTime conversation with Alyanna, getting in the car, and racing through the red light. I start to sit back down.

"Hon you ok?" Alyanna asks, taking my hand.

"Yes, you're right. I just realized something." I say. Even though I have no idea what constitutes normalcy at the moment, I do my best to maintain my composure and act normally. I believe that it would be best if I did not speak up at this time.

Currently, Alyanna, my children, and I are all gathered together on the couch to watch a movie. Whoa, I found that to be very strange. Alexis is the last one remaining, and at this point I'm not even paying attention to what's happening on screen.

"Time for bed." Alyanna stands up and lifts Landon into her arms.

"But mother!" Milly is a complainer.

"Pay attention to what your mother says." I say pulling her up along with Lexi and flinging them over my shoulders, which causes them to burst out laughing in fits of hysteria. I give Milly a hug and kiss before tucking her in for the night. Once more, it just felt right at the time.

"Goodnight papa, I love you." Milly says with a grin on her face.

"I adore you too." I say. After that, I enter Landon's room, where he is already sleeping, and give his head a gentle kiss.

I get a glimpse of Alyanna entering the room that used to belong to my grandmother, so I follow her. "Are you sure you're ok? Since you arrived home from work, you've been acting really strangely." The question is posed by Alyanna as she climbs into bed. I head over to the dresser and open the drawer on the right in order to retrieve the sweat trousers. After donning them, I head to the nearest restroom.

"Yes, it's just been a really strange day," he said. My response is that I will join you in bed.

"Don't tell me, another one of the nurses hit on you again," the doctor said incredulously. As a joke, she asks the question.

"What! They actually do that?" I was taken aback by that. And who are these nurses?

"Yes, once I show up with my art stuff and the kids shift their attention to me, the nurses find a way to get closer to you while you continue to play that guitar," she said. "Oh, that's how it is every time." It is clarified by her. I'm still pretty lost. What she is talking about is completely beyond my understanding.

My mind immediately conjures up the image of a non-profit group that would travel to various hospitals across the country to teach art and music to patients. The following thing that happens to me is that I get a strange vision in which I am singing with a group of children who are undergoing treatment for cancer in a hospital.

"Nothing at all from the workplace. At the very least, not quite." I say sighing and leaning back.

"Oh, don't worry about it, Thanksgiving is tomorrow," the speaker said. I return her smile with a quivering one of my own as she looks up at me. "I adore you Mark." She says.

On the inside, I feel my eyes opening wider. On the surface, I give an even wider smile and reaffirm my affection for you by saying, "I love you too." Although I am fairly certain that we have discussed the fact that we now have children in the past, the current occasion makes me feel as though I am hearing it for the very first time. It's a relief to get it out in the open.

When I first open my eyes, I check my phone. The 28th of November, 2024. Once more, the corners of my eyes bulged. "I'm 28! Did I time travel?" I mutter softly to myself. I am not surprised to see that Alyanna is not there when I turn around to check on whether or not she is there. "I suppose that she still gets up at an early hour." Why do I always end up having these conversations with myself?

After getting out of bed and going downstairs, I discover Alyanna preparing breakfast. "Hello." Getting her attention is what I mean.

She jumps. "I have warned you numerous times not to act in that manner." She says while heaving a little chuckle.

Her comment makes me chuckle to myself. "Why are you preparing breakfast if you are already preparing dinner?" I encircle her waist with my arms and ask her the question.

"The youngsters have to have something to eat." She justifies keeping her distance from me while she continues to prepare.

I approach her from behind and tell her to halt. "Give me a moment to wrap this up while you take a break and put your feet up." I recommend making her stepaside and taking over.

"How about I sit here on this stool and watch you?" She says this while seated and supporting her weight with her arms. I let out a chuckle and proceed to finish my breakfast.

"Bacon!" As the girls come down the stairs, I can hear them yelling at each other. Just now I was setting it down on the table.

"Her sense of smell must be similar to yours." I remark to Alyanna as I sit in my place. She is making a tongue-out gesture toward me. "Where are you looking for your brother?" I inquire as they take their seats and start digging in.

"He was confined to his room. Even though he doesn't want to get up, he is quite hungry. He is at a pivotal point in his life." Milly masticates on a slice of bacon while making her statement. She has a lot of wisdom for her age, which is four.

"I'll get him." I respond by getting to my feet and walking in the direction of his bedroom. My previous room whenever I stayed at that location. Also the room where my father grew up when he was younger.

"What's up, pal?" I say opening the door and coming to sit on his bed once he has finished his business.

"Daddy." He smiles in a drowsy manner.

"Happy Thanksgiving." I say as he wraps his arms around me in an embrace. "Are you interested in going downstairs to eat?" I inquire as he confirms my suspicions and climbs up into my arms.

I lead him into the kitchen and place him in the chair that is reserved for him there. I get him a plate and help him sample a bit of everything that's there. A piece of bacon, a portion of eggs, and half of a pancake for breakfast.

"Can't you find the honey?" Landon asks. I turn my attention to Alyanna.

"I'll fetch it." It's possible that the honey we sell isn't actually honey at all; I'm not entirely certain. "Here it is." She brings a bottle of genuine honey with her and places it on the side table. It is something I need to keep in mind. I turn my attention to the food on Milly's plate. She has eggs that are runny and fried, butter on her pancakes, and chunks of bacon on her plate. Even if I don't need to remember it, I suppose it's still useful information to have.

After finishing my breakfast, I head to the second floor to take a shower and get ready for the day. Alyanna is putting on new clothes and taking off her shirt as I leave the room. "Sorry!" I suggest making a quick turn around.