Chapter 26

#Chapter 26 – Slumber Party “Slumberrrrrrr Partyyyyy!” Ian yells, bursting in the back door of Victor’s house, a huge backpack of toys and pillows on his back. He spreads his arms out and zooms around the kitchen, pretending to be an airplane.

Alvin follows his brother, laughing, his arms equally filled with supplies. Beta Edgar follows both, shutting the door behind them and giving Victor a cheerful nod, letting him know that all is well.

Victor smiles his gratitude and then kneels down, laughing with the boys. “What is all this stuff?” he says, taking an armful of toys from Alvin so that he can chase his brother.

“It’s our SUPPLIES,” Alvin says, unhelpfully, grinning. “Everything we need for the slumber party!”

“But you have toys here,” Victor says, confused as he looks through the assortment of toys, books, and blankets that Alvin has brought. “Everything you have at your moms house you have here –“

“Nooooo,” Alvin whines, running back and wrapping himself around Victor’s leg. “We neeeeeed it.”

Victor laughs, giving in. “Fine, whatever. Are you ready to take it up…to your new ROOM?!” The boys gasp, pleased shock all over their faces.

“We have a new ROOM?!”

“That is awesome!” Alvin jumps with his hands up in the air like an ecstatic little frog. Victor smiles down at them, pleased to make them so happy. Until now, the room had been a stuffy guest room for Victor’s family, when they rarely chose to visit. But with a few changes, it became a little boy’s paradise.

“Where is it?” Ian says, looking around the first floor as if a new door would materialize out of nowhere.

Victor laughs.

“It’s upstairs. But first, you have to say thank you to Amelia – it was her idea,” he puts out a hand to Amelia as she walks into the room, beaming a smile.

“Oh, you’re here!” Amelia says, pressing her hands together. “I’m so excited to play with you!” The boys immediately stop jumping and sneer at her.

“Oh. Hello, Amelia.” Alvin says, narrowing his eyes.

“Whaaaat,” Ian whines, his body going limp as he falls onto the floor in despair. “You didn’t say SHE was coming to the slumber party!”

“She lives here, Ian,” Victor says, shaking his head at him. “Don’t be rude, get up and say hello. Both of you need to thank her for your new room.”

Ian picks himself up and walks over to Alvin, communicating with him silently. As one, they turn and sullenly say “thank you, Amelia,” without an ounce of real gratitude in their words.

“You’re…welcome,” Amelia says, working hard to keep her smile on her face.

Victor’s phone pings on the counter, and he picks it up.

Evelyn: Did they get there okay?

Victor: Yes, it’s all fine.

Evelyn: Okay, have fun! I’ll be here if you need me, just across the yard.

He clicks the screen off, confident that he won’t need to contact her. All is prepared for the night – the first real night that they boys would be staying at his house without their mom. Victor wouldn’t admit how excited he was to finally have the boys to himself – a dream come true. Luckily, the boys match his spirit and enthusiasm.

“Can we go, can we go see our new room?!” Ian says, perking up.

“Sure, it’s upstairs, last door on the right,” Victor says, gesturing upwards. The boys fly up the stairs, climbing with their hands as well as their feet like little pups scurrying off on an adventure. They laugh as they go, an infectious sound.

Amelia takes Victor’s hand as they go, squeezing it. She knows that Victor believes her about the parade, and she feels finally secure again, like things are returning to normal. They reach the top of the stairs just in time to see the boys rush through the door to their room, the new wooden “Alvin & Ian”

sign banging behind them.

“Wow!!!”

“Incredible!”

Victor smiles wide and hurries his steps, eager to see his boys’ reaction to the room. When the adults arrive, they find Alvin and Ian standing in the middle of the room, spinning around to take everything in, their old toys forgotten down in the kitchen.

“I love it so much, daddy!” Ian says, climbing to the top bunk of the new bed, which is designed to look like a rocket ship. The rest of the room continues the space theme, with black walls decorated with glow-in-the-dark stickers that will light up in the shape of constellations overnight.

“Thank you, thank you!” shouts Alvin, kneeling by a book shelf that is packed with fresh books on every subject imaginable. Victor leans against the wall, filled with new-dad pride, so happy to finally be able to give his sons a home.

“I’ll let you guys play,” Amelia says softly. “I’ll put the pizzas in the oven. Give it about…half an hour,”

she says, hugging Victor and then slipping downstairs.

“Did she say pizza?” Ian’s head pops out from the covers of his new bed, his wolf hearing picking up on everything.

“Yes, pizza for dinner! And then all the ice cream you can eat!” Victor says, coming into the room and opening the French doors to the balcony. “Did you guys see out here yet? There’s a telescope on the balcony.”

“What!?”

“You’re kidding me!”

Half an hour later, Amelia returns with a pizza in each hand. She hasn’t heard a word from any of the boys, though she did hear a lot of laugher and thumps from upstairs. I know I’m supposed to think it’s charming, she thinks, all this boyish ruckus. But frankly, it’s just…loud.

She steels herself, putting on her patented Amelia smile, and then walks into the bedroom. “Pizza’s ready!”

“Thank you!” Alvin says, peeking his head out from a massive fort that the boys have constructed from the blankets, sheets, and furniture that they’ve dragged to the middle of the room.

“You can leave it by the drawbridge!” Ian’s voice comes from inside, not bothering to surface.

“Now now,” Amelia says, working hard to be motherly. “We can eat in the room, but everyone needs to come out and wash their hands, like civilized people.”

“But we are WOLVES!” One of the twins howls from inside, she can’t tell which one. “We have dirty paws! We eat with our teeth, we tear and scratch!”

Amelia can hear Victor laughing from inside and stands awkwardly, not knowing what to do. “Um, Victor?” She calls.

Victor pushes open the blankets at the front of the fort, revealing himself to be tousled and red-faced and….well, happy. Happier than perhaps she had ever seen him. “What’s up, Amelia? Is the pizza ready?”

“Yeah,” she says, gesturing towards the pizzas she holds.

“Okay,” he says, “come in! Let’s eat!” Amelia smiles, starting to move towards the entrance, when she hears –

“No! No GIRLS allowed!,” one of the twins protests.

“Yeah!” Says the other.

“Come on, boys, it’s Amelia’s house too,” Victor’s deeper, more sensible voice pleads.

“But it’s our first nighttttt,” one whines. God, were they always this whiny?

“And she didn’t help to build the fort! No GIRLS!”

Victor peeks his head out again, abashed. “Amelia…” he says. “Do you mind? Just for tonight?”

Amelia smiles wider, her cheeks aching. “No problem,” she says, playing it cool and placing the pizzas by the fort’s entrance. “Maybe you can come down in a little bit and have ice cream with me?”

“Sure thing,” Victor says, giving her a handsome wink and a smile before he pulls the pizzas into the fort. As soon as he disappears, Amelia lets her smile drop into a scowl and heads down the hallway.

“Fat chance,” she hears a twin say as she walks away, “we’re having ice cream in HERE later. All we can eat.” The other twin laughs.

“You know, if mommy wanted to come in, that would be okay.”

Amelia clenches her fists as she walks down the stairs, intent upon a glass of rosé. A big one.