Touching the Heart of Ace

She was waving something... a paper in her hand and was running towards me.

I was not dreaming it, was it?

Tiny arms hugged my weak knees and her giggles were now muffled because she was squishing her face on my thigh.

I dropped to the floor and she happily climbed up my thighs chatting my ears off.

I had no idea how I would manage if this was a dream. I would die of heartbreak if this was not real.

"H... hey Baby..."

"an... an... miss say we go... hear Davey... we go fishie... an an... Davey say yes an... we go... miss say show Davey and Little Baby show Davey..." She waved the paper in front of my face.

I took that from her and she started humming a song after making herself comfortable on my lap... like she used to do a six months before.

I looked down at my daughter and saw her talking to her fingers.

I pecked her head which she ignored.

Good.

This was how she was supposed to be.

"Davey... Lia go? Pease pease Davey... petty fishie Davey... Lia go?"

The father in me pushed the sucker in me away and decided to read the paper instead of agreeing to it, just because my daughter wanted something.

It was a permission slip for Lia to go to the aquarium two miles away with two of her teachers and four caretakers. All the twenty kids in her day care are allowed to go if they brought the permission slip signed by a parent. Four parents had already volunteered to the trip and their phone numbers were at the bottom.

I had to call them before signing this.

"Lia go Davey... Fishie petty Davey... Lia gwood... Lia haf ta go..."

"I will tell Daddy when he comes home and then Lia can go to see fishie tomorrow, yeah?"

"Yaaaaayyyyy!!! LUB YOU DAVEY!!!" She screamed before peppering my whole face with kisses.

I closed my eyes, feeling her tiny feet digging on my thigh, her tiny palms twisting my shirt and her tiny lips leaving wet marks on my cheeks.

I crushed her to me and she giggled before kicking out of my hug.

Fuck!

I wanted that to happen for a very long time.

I gave out a watery chuckle when she did that.

Then I sniffled once more when she gave me a mischievous smile before opening her toy cabinet.

Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!

She gave me a shy giggle before starting to taking all of her toys and throwing them around.

"Lia..." I warned only because I was supposed to warn.

She had not done this in an eternity and dammit I wanted her to stomp on her toys and make a mess.

"Flip waying... Davey... We pay Davey... We pay feefball..."

"Then only take the football Lia. Put everything else back."

Please don't obey, baby... fight with me, Lia... Please...

She cackled before running to me... "Nuuu... Davey... Lia play... Lia play feefball... petty pease..."

"Lia..." I wiped sweat off her forehead before pecking her.

"PEASE PEASE PEASE PEASE..."

"Fine... this one time... okay?" And all the other times too... "But... Lia... no Baby... wait... Lia... after you eat something... come on, Davey made you strawberry short cakes..." "Bu... bu... Flip waying Davey... We feefball..."

I pulled her to my lap and my heart soared when she wiggled a lot to get down.

My heart was so full that it would break.

She swatted away my hand and tried to stuff all the food in her mouth at once. I was too happy to correct her...

I let her pour milk down her frock, I let her chew with open mouth... I let her play me like a fiddle...

I wanted to follow her to the playground but... she had to do this.

She had been following me like a little shadow for all these months, I wanted her to be independent again. I wanted her to fight me for her freedom.

I kneeled down at the door and hugged her in guise of brushing off crumps from her too dirty and wet frock.

"Lia... Little Baby... stay with Flip all the time, yeah? Don't hit other kids, okay. They only want to play and... and... come home before it gets dark and listen to Flip and Winny okay?"

I kissed her cheek and she gave me a dimpled smile.

She ran to Philip with her plastic football in her too tiny arms.

"FLIP!!! Davey say yes... We pay feefball... feefball Flip!" She giggled. "Kem home befownighty night... Davey say... We pay Flip feefball..."

I had not heard her rambling in so long.

I waved when they turned around to say good bye to me. I closed the door and cried my heart out with palm clutched to my heart.

She was okay.

She was getting okay.

I called Tati right away. "You were right... Thank you... Thank you... Dear god! She was... Tati you had to see it... She was so... Tati... My baby she is okay... I saw it, Tati..."

I heard sniffles from the other side too... "Oh my god, Dave... Oh my god... I... have no idea why I did what I did... but when I was done talking it was a veil was pulled off from her face... Dave... Are they... are they... in the playground? I have to see, Dave... Are you coming with me?"

"No." I wiped my tears. "No. She had been way too attached to me these days. I want her to do this. I want..." I sniffled.

"We got you, Dave. We got you. I know I am not her mother but..."

I nodded though Tati could not see me. "I will be here... I will wait..."

Of course I would wait for my baby girl and god when she came home, it was like Christmas.

Davey this, Davey that.

She did not stop talking about feefball while I bathed her, wiped her, powdered her and dressed her.

'Davey, I kicked the ball so high, Flip had to climb a mountain to get it.'

I nodded. There were no mountains where we lived but oh well...

'Davey, Flip cried when he lost the game to Lia.'

Of course, a 44 old man crying for a game he lost with a toddler.

'Davey, tomorrow fishie get to see Lia.'

Right... not the other way round at all.

But then when Daddy came home I knew how much he knew my baby girl was not herself all these days. He had been hiding himself and me from the truth.

"DADA!!!" Lia ran to him and the man literally kneeled down to the floor because he felt so weak like I had.

She had only been shyly peeking out her playroom all these days and this day for her to call out 'DADA' and run to him was a dream come true.

"H... Hey... Baby Angel."

"Flip and Lia pay feefball an Flip cwy coz Lia gwood... Lia go fishie... an fishie see Lia tomrow coz Davey say yes an... Davey give Lia kay an cookie and Dada pay feefball with Lia an Flip no offsie day an thas ee... bye... oh... I lub you, Dada. Kissie... bye. I go pay now."

Robbie laughed but his eyes were wet. "Come here you. I love you so much Little Girl. Dada loves you so so so much." He kissed him and my watered when she giggled before pulling off from his hug and tried to run away.

I did not have it. I jumped on her way and picked her up to throw her to the air.

She fell back into my arms with a loud shriek and happy giggles.

"Ageen ageen ageen."

And again I did; laughing.

I had missed this so much.

"I love you, Angels." Robbie laughed still on floor. So, I also sat next to him with a giggly Lia on my lap.

"Say love you daddy, Lia."

"Lub you Daddy."

I smiled.

"I love you, Davey." Robbie said with a teasing smile and I gulped. Normally, I would just glare at him and take my baby girl away but this time I just kept on looking at him.

"I love you really." Robbie told me a bit more seriously.

I sighed and looked at my Lia who was blushing a bit.

"What?" I jiggled her a bit and a peel of shy giggle fell from her baby mouth. "Whaat? Lia..."

She cackled and whispered to my ear. "Daddy lob Davey."

"Really? Uhuhuh... an an... Flip lob Tati... He her boyo." She whispered conspiratorially.

"Aw..." I smiled.

"I love you." Robbie told me once more and his eyes were twinkling with mischief. My Lia threw her head back and giggled hard.

My attempt to hide my blush was futile.

"DADA LOBS DAVEY!!!" Lia screamed before hiding her mouth behind her palm.

"Yes he does and Davey loves Daddy too. I love you, Daddy." I admitted. God this was difficult but Lia stopped laughing and frowned.

"Nu..." She glared at Daddy.

"What?" I chuckled at her glare. "Davey cannot love Daddy?"

"Nu." I could hear the duh in her statement.

"Aw! Why not?"

She squeezed my head to her tiny chest and glared once again at Daddy. "Davey lob Baby." She stated.

I laughed. "That is true but... Daddy needs some love too, remember?"

"Uhhuh. Lia lob Daddy."

I did not mean to snort but damn it was so funny and cute. I shook my head when Daddy started recording this with his phone.

Still the old habit of recording stuff that he had no business by recording. I tried to swat it away but when had I ever succeeded. According to Lia, Daddy was given enough love by her that he should be satisfied by that and stop being greedy and leave Davey to Lia. God, I love my babies so much.

"But look at him. He looks so sad." I pointed my finger to Robbie and he showed us a very exaggerated pout.

Lia gave my head one more squeeze but I could see her melting. The stubborn brat turned her face away before Dada's pout could affect her more.

"Aw... Lia... Baby... look at Daddy... he is going to cry. Don't you think Daddy should be loved by Davey?"

She huffed on my shoulder still refusing to look at him.

"Come on baby..." I gently twisted her face to Daddy and she sighed finally.

Such a diva! What would I do with her; what would I do without her? "Okeey... ba... ba... Davey lub Lia mo." She glared at Daddy from my lap.

"Of course Baby Angel... Davey loves you the most." Robbie pulled his child from mine and then kissed her chubby cheek. "And thank you for letting Davey love Dada too. That is very kind of you."

Lia sighed before standing up on his thigh. She took his too big head in her too little palms and stared right into his soul.

"Lia lub you. I not sayee fun. I lub you. Lia wan Daddy happy. Dada happy?"

Jesus! What in the name of fucking ever loving mother of God was that!

Robbie gulped. "Just a bit sad... but... but... Dada will be happy, soon, baby girl."

She nodded, understanding it perfectly. "Davey make Dada bedder. Lia go glita." She climbed of his thigh, gave a cute bum wiggle and ran off to her playroom.

"Did she..."

"Did she..."

We both started together and trailed off together.

"That was..."

"That was..."

I agreed.

"Wow!"

"Wow!"

Wow indeed.

Where the hell did she learn that from?

"We are wasting 2500 dollars a month for that therapy. Should have just talked to our little girl and saved some money!"

Robbie snorted and the spell was broken.

"Come on. Up!" I stood up and tried to pull him up by yanking on his arm.

I loved it when Daddy tried to amuse me.

He groaned and wiggled his knees.

"You are getting old." I teased and picked up his briefcase.

"I will show you old tonight. You heard our kid. Make Daddy better, Davey."

"Please stop. My daughter has very different idea on how to make you feel better. Ohh... you might wanna hold off your shower a bit more longer. Lia went to get some glitter."

"Goddamit!"

"Hey! You better appreciate it, mister."

"Yes, Angel."

"She is way too silent for some time.

I am going to check before she adds

oil to the glitter and..." Daddy winced and I giggled handing him his briefcase and pushing him towards the stairs.

It had happened before. It was not so fun when the loofa came back glittery and only smeared them more.

I shook my head but frowned when I saw a paper lying on the floor.

'Must have fell off from his jacket when Robbie was sitting on the floor.'

I picked it up and my frown deepened when it was an unopened mail from a mental health and behaviour research centre.

What was it doing here?

"Robbie?" I called out as I climbed up the stairs after checking on my daughter who was just painting Dada a picture.

"Yes, Pretty?"

"Ummm... there was this mail on the

floor. You might have dropped

it...

from Lively mental health and behaviour research centre..." I chuckled. "Such a shady name it...

uh...is an invoice on a patient... Jennifer?"

Robbie was way too silent.

"Daddy?"

"Uhh... changing... changing... yup... I am changing clothes."

I laughed. "What? Why are you sweating? Changing clothes a crime now? Why are you holding up a suit?"

"Ummm... haha... just uh... uh..."

I shook my head and handed him his nightwear. "Oh, you can shower. Lia was painting some pictures for you. You are safe from glitter."

I handed him the mail and helped him undress.

"What does it say? I did not know we were funding any hospitals? Are we? We have not replied to that children with cancer foundation yet. Can we, please?"

"Yes, Angel. Jason is checking the authenticity of their claims."

I nodded and peeked into the letter he was reading.

He closed it off before I could even properly get a glimpse.

"She is someone Gabe knows... yes... yes... so I uh... pitched in some amount. That's it. Yup!"

I smiled.

"That is remarkable, Robbie." What did he think I would be mad only because he forgot to mention that to me?

Come on! I was petty but not that petty.

I kissed my man before sighing at Lia's screams of my name. "Come down fast. I need help with dinner."

I did not but... I wanted to see my family whole, perfect and happy.

I sighed and breathed in the cool air.

It was like life finally understood that no matter how hard it pushed me down I would crawl up from hell only to be with my family.

Well, then I had Robbie; life could not do much.

Peace.

Happiness.

Love.

And I somehow knew it was going to stay this way for a very long time.

And this time, I was not wrong.☐☐☐☐☐☐☐☐