Was…was… it even a…a… dweam? - May 2038
Do you know what was TWAUMATIZING for a 2-year-old? NOoooooo, it wasn’t that dad had decided to give Aidan mushy veggies for lunch. Noooooo, it wasn’t accidentally leaving legos on the floor and daddy cuwsing after stepping on them… it was… that was an accident OKAY and dad had told him he wasn’t cuwsing at him so it was… okay… maybe… hopefully daddy wasn’t yelling at him he didn’t mean to 
but… that’s not the point. What was twaumatizing was not having your mom around. Aidan DeLowhrey could tell you firsthand how hard that was. It was… absolutely tewwible. One day his mom was here and evewything was amazing and then… well the next day she disappeawed and Aidan didn’t wreally understand what happened. His daddy kept telling him and older swsters Zoe and Shay that their mom had to work… but… but where was she working that she couldn’t come back? Like… like when dad left, he called EVERY SWNGLE day. Mommy used her phone and he always wished them good niwght but mom… she just… left. 
Compwwred to his swblings… Aidan had always been… a little shyer… letting his swisters ask dad where mom was while he lwistened in for the answer but it was always the same. Where was she and whyyy wasn’t she coming home ? What if… what if she fo…forrgot about him? Aidan pwomised to be good if mommy came back home and he made a lil wish every night but nothing. That’s what he hoped again tonight… maybe… maybe it would come twue? At the current moment, Aidan was holding his dad’s hand as his dad put things away to get ready for the night. One hand was tightly holding on to his dad’s finger and the other was hugging his toy monkey that daddy had got him the last time he left. Aidan had followed his dad everywhere around the house - from… from picking up his toys, to bringing the doggies to their sleep area, to to um to the bathroom where they all bwused their teeth, and finally, his dad held him in his arms (practically falling asleep) as he led Aidan to his bed. Even sleepily, Aidan held his dad’s hand tightly, not wanting him to leave Aidan alone in the scawy dark room even though there were night lights everywhere.
“It’s okay buddy, remember there are no monsters hiding here.”
“C…can y…you L…look ag…again?” Aidan asked, barely above a whisper, and even as his eyes kept closing, there was a comfort in his dad looking in the closet and showing him there was no one and… and then looking under the bed and showing him there was no one too. “But…but if… if there are no… monsters… where… where did mommy go?” That was the last thing Aidan got out before his eyes closed and he found he was no longer awake.
Co…co…cold…it was…so…cold. Aidan opened his eyes and found that he was no longer sweeping in the comfort of his bed. No… he was… why was he outside…alone? WHERE WAS HE? DID THE MONSTERS TAKE HIM AND PUT HIM HERE? Where… where was his daddy? Where… where was his swisters? Where…where was his monkey and his bwanket?. Suffice to say… he was scawred. Aidan found himself all alone surrounded by snow in the middle of a… a park?
Getting up off the pile of snow, Aidan shivered the snow off his jacket that he was now wearing and walked forward to where the sidewalk was. There were pweople walking around him, but Aidan had always been too shy to go up and ask for help. He just… he just wanted his mommy and daddy…. Where were they? And… and… and daddy had told him never to talk to strangers so… what… what was he swupposed to do? Okay… he was going to cry. Aidan already felt the tears bubbling in his eyes as he looked around for someone… anyone he recognized but nothing. So that’s exactly how Aidan ended up sitting on the floor, crying hoping his parents would find him.
“Oh shut up Daniel. I’m bloody great at ice skating. Don’t even start.”
“Sure, if you consider falling every three seconds great, I totally agree with you cuz.”
“Excuse you. I was BORN and RAISED in London. I know how to bloody handle snow and ice don’t you even sta… hey there’s a kid crying”
“Well… um… give… him…a cookie? I don’t know… I never bloody understood kids,”
“You know you were a kid once right…,”
“We don’t talk about the dark ages, Jess.,”
“God you’re an idiot. Just give me a minute,”
Aidan remained crying as a women came up to him, bending down to meet his height but Aidan wouldn’t know that because his eyes remained closed as tears ran down his eyes.
“Hey buddy, you don’t need to cry. What happened darling?”
Aidan struggled to open his eyes, but once he did, his tears calmed down seeing his mother right in front of him. He didn’t even wait before wrapping his arms and legs around her, holding his mother tightly as a few more tears fell down his eyes. “Mo…mo…mom…mommy the…mo…mon…monsters… b…bwou…bwought me…here” he got out through his sobs and stuffed his face in her shoulder. Maybe if he was looking at her, he would have seen the confusion on her face, or even the way she turned to Uncle Dan to give him a confused huh look. “It’s okay sweetheart. No more monsters.” he heard his mom whisper, patting his back with care. “Why don’t you help me find your parents okay? Is your dad here? Your mom?”
Huh? Wh…why was… why did his mommy ask that? It wasn’t the time to be jowking around? DID YOU NOT SEE HIM CRYING? It wasn’t funny mommy. He slowly moved his face away from her shoulder to look at her with his bright blue eyes, tears still brimming in them. “Mo…mommy” He whispered in confusion, holding her tighter. He wanted his mom to hug him and kiss him and tell him everything was going to be okay but all she said was “Okay buddy let’s look,” and started walking. Keeping his head stuffed in his mom’s shoulder, Aidan did peak out to his Uncle walking behind her on his phone. “I’m looking through text messages of people in the area, and I don’t see anything about a lost kid so far. Probably just happened.”
Aidan reached his little hand out to his uncle. Why was Dan joking too? . “Dwan…Uncle Dwan” he whispered in confusion and watched as Dan looked up at him for a second. Confusion meeting his eyes as he looked at Aidan. “I swear, I almost thought this kid said my name… Names Daniel, kid. What’s your name?,”
WHY WERE THEY ALL PRETENDING LIKE THEY DIDN’T KNOW HIM. WHAT WAS GOING ON
Instead of answering, Aidan just held on to his mother tighter, more sobs leaving his little body. “Hey buddy I need you to look around okay?” but he didn’t move. He already found his mom so WHY would he look around?
“Oh god… Jess you probably don’t want to hear this but…”
“Alright Dorian, that’s perfect. Keep that pose,”
A loud sound of clicking was happening nearby, and Aidan slightly moved his head to see what was happening because he heard is daddy’s name. Near the three of them, he saw someone taking pictures, and behind him was… “DADDY,”
“You have to be kidding me why the f… flip is Dorian here?”
“Maybe he has to feed his ego more by taking photos of himself in places no one wants him?”
“Still… clearly the photographer is this kids dad… so… god damn it.”
He still held on to his mother, ignoring what she was saying as he looked at his dad taking photos with a soccer ball in his hand. He heard his mother say something about going there and then he found her walking towards those two and putting him down. “Excuse me sir, I think I found your son”
But Aidan didn’t let his mom finish before running to his dad and jumping to grab the soccer ball. His dad seemed distracted seeing his mom, so he easily grabbed the ball out of his hand and then dropped it so that HE could hold his dad’s had. Aidan > soccer ball. Duh.
“What the…hell,”
He saw his dad look down to him, clearly not expecting a kid to hold his hand but that was ignored because AIDAN FOUND BOTH OF HIS PARENTS WASN’T HE AWSOME?
“I think you’re mistaken, I don’t have a kid.,”
“What the…hell,” “D…daddy I…I found mommy,” [/color] he told his father wiping the tears on his jacket as he held his hand tighter.
Dorian gave Aidan another… stwange look… before walking towards his mom, picking him up, and putting him back in his mom’s hands. “This is literally the second fcking time you’ve done this. Get it through your fcking head, Jessica. I’m not having kids with you. Ever. You’re a Psychopath. Where the fck do you even get these kids to pretend for you?”
“Oh my god your psychotic, Dorian. He’s just a kid that’s lost, trust me, I don’t bloody want to see you and I wouldn’t do anything that would make me spend even a second longer with you,”
“It’s cute how you try to act like the one who’s being stalked, Idiot. I mean, fcking look around. You’re in London, not in thtat god awful place you’re supposed to be – aka fcking Florida,”
“And what? Daniel? You looked at my schedule to figure out when I was in London so you could arrange this? Don’t act like you haven’t done this before, Jessica. I haven’t forgotten the whole we had kids in another life thing you pulled 4 years ago”
“OH FCK OFF that never happened. I must have been fcking drunk to ever go to you and say that. You’re delusional.,”
Okay now Aidan was confused… cold… and… and scared. He was still in his mom… was she his mommy? Yes she was… he knew the difference between his mommy and Aunt Anna now… so why where both his parents being like this. All Aidan could do was… cry…
Aidan woke up cwying and shaking in his sleep and he found his dad rushing inside which made him jump because the last time he saw his dad he was being MEAN to him :(. “Hey buddy… hey it’s okay. What happened champ?”
Mo…mom…mommy do…doesn…doesn’t m…memb…member me" Aidan started as his dad hugged him. “Y…yo…you d…did…didn’t me…mmember me…”
It was already 6 AM when Aidan woke up crying, so Daddy had spent the next few hours reassuring Aidan that he and mommy would NEVER forget him and played with him all day. First they made breakfast together with Aidan in daddy’s hands, and then… then they played soccer but…but Aidan was still scawrd. What if…what if like in the dream his mommy had forgotten him? Daddy remembered but…but what about his mom?
After a few hours his daddy said he had an idea and soon him and his swister Shay and his swister Zoe were bucked in their car seats as Daddy drove them somewhere for a surprise and GUESS WHATT??? DADDY TOOK HIM TO THE ZOO TO SEE THE MONKEYS LIKE HIS BEST FRIEND and the bears like Zoe’s toy and and and girraffeeys like Shay’s toy. Once they realized where they were going, Aidan forgot to be sad and instead was just exciitteeeed.
WOAH. Did you know that Monkeys could jwmp REALLY REALLY high? Could Aidan jwmp that high? AND THEY COULD STAY ON A TREE WITH ONE HAND TOO. Note: Will have to twy that one day. Annnywayyys, they were getting ice cweam and then they were going to go to the aqwa…aqua… WHERE ALL THE FISHES WERE.
Aidan was sitting in his stroller waiting for his ice cweam when he saw… was that his mom? Everyone was turned away from Aidan but that was DEWINITLY his mom. She was wearing weird clothes and glasses but…. But that was… THAT WAS HER.
After a lwitte struggle, Aidan pushed the lil button that let him out of his seat and carefully got down and started following her. He had his thumb in his mouth as he… trailed behind for a second not sure if he should go up to her or not because… because what if she acted like she did in his dweam? But…but that was his mommy and daddy said his mommy would never forget him so… “MOMMY”
After yelling that, Aidan ran up to his mom, lifting his arms up to be held by her. But… but do you know what she said? “ Hey…kid. I think you’re mistaking me for someone else… where are your parents?” Oh…oh no… no this can’t…no… Mommy don’t… please… don’t. YOU’RE MY MOMMY.
A weird lady came up to him and picked him, but he was too busy looking at his mom with a sad pout. His little heart was racing, and he wiggled out of the weird lady’s arms to go back to his mom and… and well “Mommy…up”
Aidan could feel tears brimming once again as his mommy… didn’t recognize him. IT WAS HIM, YOUR MUNCHKIN YOU SAID HE WAS . He was crying as his mom held his hand looking for his dad. WHAT IF HIS DAD DIDN’T REMEMBER EITHER? “M…mommy u…up” he cried again. He just wanted his mommy back. If this wasn’t her where was she? Aidan didn’t know where they were going, all he knew was that he was crying, and he just wanted his dad back.
BUT BUT BUT THEN. HIS MOMMY RECOGNIZED HIM. Looking up, Aidan found that they were in a bathroom and his mom was kissing him and hugging him AND TICKLING Him and… she rem…remembered him!! And and and she even wanted to play a game where they both pretended. Aidan loved playing pretend and she knew that see SHE WAS HIS MOMMY.
Kissing his mom back, Aidan smiled as he laid his head on her shoulder whispering “I luw you mommy,” (okay so he wasn’t the best at playing the pretend game). But anyways, she was his mom and he loved her.
He didn’t even care about how his mommy acted when they got back to daddy because GUESS WHAT his mommy knew who he was. But…but then she put him down. Why was she putting him down? He finally had his mom back… she couldn’t leave NOW. Aidan’s dad was holding his hand when his mommy started leaving and he couldn’t go after her. The words that left his mouth were almost instantaneous “MOMMY DON’T LEAVE” He just… why was she leaving again. Did she… what if she didn’t want to be his mom? That was… why?
Let’s just say… well… Aidan, Zoe, and Shay were crying for the next few hours. Dad tried to tell them that was their mom’s job but who…who had a job like that? All Aidan wanted was his mom to rwemember him – and that’s exactly what he wished again at night for the millionth time, hoping his mommy would come back home .