CHAPTER 52: BACK TO REALITY

"Hello, Mommy~!"

Lola and Silo’s minds went blank for a second, staring at the adorable duo inside. Second and Chacha were waving at them with smiles so bright they could’ve lit up the darkness inside the van.

"That — that —" Silo stuttered, looking at Lola, ready to defend himself. "I swore I locked the door!"

"No, you didn’t, Uncle Silly~!" they chimed in unison, making the man gasp in horror.

Lola cast Silo a dead look. "Silo, I swear, one of these days we’ll get carjacked, and just so you know, that’s another task on your plate, not mine." After saying that, she turned to the twins and smiled happily.

"Babies~!" she cheered as she hurriedly climbed inside the van to join the twins. Her enthusiasm made the twins giggle, climbing onto her lap the moment she sat down.

"Mommy, we missed you so much!"

"Oh," Lola pursed her lips and tried to hide the blush on her cheeks as they moved closer for a hug. With such adorable kids, she didn’t mind holding them.

Their little bodies were soft, and with the cologne lingering on them, Lola felt like she was being healed by their presence and warmth. Considering how her day went and the last ambush from Melissa, this was truly a cleansing she never thought she needed.

As for Silo, his face contorted as he watched Lola embrace the twins.

"What is going on?" he blurted out. "Twins, didn’t you leave yesterday?"

Hearing that question, Lola and the twins paused and looked in his direction. The twins tilted their heads to the side, confusion clear on their faces.

"No, we didn’t," they said, earning a loud "huh" from him.

"Right..." Lola cleared her throat, about to tell Silo what happened, when she sensed someone’s eyes behind her. She froze as the hair on her nape rose, making her shiver momentarily.

The van was dimly lit, and with the twins in the first row, she hadn’t noticed anyone in the back. Now, however, she could finally sense this intense gaze drilling a hole in the back of her skull.

"Lola, what is going on..." Silo trailed off as he caught a silhouette from the corner of his eye.

Slowly, he slid his eyes to the figure, catching sight of a person seated in the back row. Despite the darkness, he could make out the outline of a man’s figure, and he could feel his gaze on her.

Deep lines appeared between his brows, utterly confused about this. After a moment, Lola and Silo heard the man’s crisp yet calm voice.

"Let’s go."

"Huh?" Silo blinked in confusion, feeling a hand grab the back of his neck and pull him away like a doll. At the same time, the door slid shut with a sharp bang.

Before Silo could process what had happened, the van sped away, leaving him behind.

"???" His mouth opened and closed as he watched the van drive off. Everything had happened so fast that the next thing he knew, he was alone.

"What the —" he abruptly stopped, turning to see who had grabbed him. But when he did, all he saw was a man’s chest. He had to slowly tilt his head back to see the man’s face.

"A giant," he blurted out, staring at the imposing figure behind him.

The "giant" stared down at him emotionlessly before gesturing with his hand. Silo instinctively followed the gesture, his eyes widening when he saw a luxury car parked nearby.

"You... want me to... ride in there?" he stuttered, looking back at the giant in a suit and tie. "That car?"

The man didn’t answer, standing like a statue with his arm extended towards the vehicle.

Silo: "???"

Mr. Giant: "..."

Silo: "!!!!"

But just as Silo panicked and was about to flee, the man grabbed the back of his collar. And with that, he swiftly lifted Silo off his feet and carried him like a princess in distress.

****

Meanwhile, Lola stared wide-eyed at the window. She had just seen someone pull Silo away and shut the door. It felt like a scene where a parent gets ambushed while kidnappers take away their child.

The thing was, her ’kidnappers’ were sweetly telling her, "Mommy, we worked hard today~!" Chacha cooed by her side, watching Lola slowly look down at her.

Then, Second added, "And we told everyone to stop wasting trees... we did it very politely too!"

"Mhm!" Chacha giggled. "Mommy, we did very, very well! You can ask our Father Sir!"

"Father Sir is our witness!" Second declared. "He promised to tell the truth and nothing but the truth! He also has proof that we all worked hard, so you don’t feel sad anymore!"

"..." Lola tried to speak, but no matter how flexible she was in every situation, this was something she had never imagined before. "Your Father Sir..."

She slowly looked back until she could see the man seated behind them. They had just hit the road, and the side road lamps cast light on the side of his face while the other half remained in shadow.

She gulped, about to ask him why he was here, but he spoke before she could.

"They’re telling the truth."

That’s not what I want to ask!

Lola gasped in disbelief, reminded of the racks of clothes in her walk-in closet filled with their stuff. She had tried not to think about it all day, telling herself to focus on the present. But now, with them, the realization she had been denying resurfaced, hitting her like a truck.

"Dinner?" he asked, checking the time. "Those two didn’t want to eat anything without you."

He asked so casually, as if this were something they did regularly. "Where would you like to go?"

"Uh." Lola’s mind went blank, failing to register his words.

"Where?"

"Back to reality," she blurted out, only to see him tilt his head to the side. Even the twins tilted their heads, looking at her curiously.

And in unison, the father and the twins said, "That’s a weird name for a restaurant."