Anhedonia

"Aki, don't go there princess." Jerry stopped the five year old kid who was running near the pond. "Your mom will get upset if you fall on that." He added while pointing at the pond full of Koi fish swimming peacefully under the almost green water. "But I'm not going to fall." Akisha, who is now all grown up with a resemblance of Liam's face except her heart-shaped lips that she got from Hayley, said. "You can't say that, accidents happen." Jerry said softly and picked up the kid. "Urgh, your Dad is taking too long." He said while wandering his eyes around the park. "Do you want to go home and just wait for your parents in my house?" "But I still want to play." The kid whines, pouting her lips cutely. Jerry chuckled and pecked the kid's cheek before putting her down. "Ok, where do you want to play?" He asked. The small fingers curled on him and tugged him near the swing. "Here!" Akisha said giddily and stretched her arms. "Pick me up uncle! I want to try this." Jerry chuckled but picked up the kid to put her gently on the swing before walking behind her and pushed the swing slightly. "Harder!" "Nope, you're gonna fall if I push you hard." "Bummer.." Akisha sulked and just enjoyed the moment watching her feet hang in the air. "Uncle Jerry." She called softly when the guy just stood behind her and staring at the sun that started to set, the skies painted with orange hues. "Hmm?" Jerry hums as a response, too tired to tear his gaze away from the mesmerizing skies. "When will aunt Rosie be back?" Jerry froze and blink his eyes before shaking his head furiously to compose himself. "I don't know." He mumbles softly, he can even barely hear his own voice. "Why don't you know? She's your girlfriend right?" The kid asked again, Jerry giggles on how nosy the little Liam was. But like a great rush of water, memory came back to him vividly. Surely he misses the tall blonde but what can he do besides reminiscing about Rosie. Nothing.. "It's getting late Aki, let's go?" Akisha nodded her head eagerly and spread her arms and the guy tugged down the little Liam. "I'm hungry Uncle Jerry." Jerry looked down at the little girl and smiled, showing his gummy smile. "You just ate a lot of biscuits." "That's just only my snack, but now. It's dinner." Jerry laughs and ruffles the kid's hair. "You really remind me of someone." "Was it my mom or dad?" "Your Dad's best friend." "So you mean Aunt Rosie?" Jerry smiled wryly before holding the little girl's hand. "Yes." He answers while they're both walking back to his car while Akisha skips and jumps a little. "I miss her too." The kid said back and tugged Jerry's index finger, causing the brunette guy to look down at her. "I don't actually get a chance to know her because she left when I was one year old." "Then how can you say that you miss her too?" Jerry asked, giggling. "Because Daddy Liam always does, there was a time I saw him crying and when I asked him why he was crying, he told me that he misses his best friend." Jerry froze and stopped on his tracks, his heart clenching inside his chest, the guilt that once rose up again, the feeling of blaming himself for what happened four years ago was now taunting him. Poking his heart with a pointed knife, twisting his intestine and the smile that he last heard from the younger girl keeps rattling inside his mind, and that is all because Akisha told him the reason why Liam cried. He swallowed hard and clears his throat before flashing his fakest smile to the kid. "Let's go home, I'm sure your parents are waiting for you." "But how about my food?" The kid asked with her lower lips sticking out and the corner of her lips curving downward. Jerry couldn't help himself but to bend over to kiss the little girl's cheeks before picking her up, settling her between his arms, short limbs wrapped on his waist and tiny arms tangled on his neck. "For sure mommy Hayley cooked for us or maybe aunt Juhyun." The smile came back to the child's lips and nodded her head eagerly before burying her face against Jerry's neck. "I love mommy's cooking and Aunt Juhyun's." "How about mine?" "And yours too, except uncle Mook and uncle Seul-ki, especially Daddy Liam." The kid said with a huffed, making Jerry to giggle and kissed her cheek again. "Does Aunt Rosie know how to cook?" The smile on Jerry's lips became small but there's still genuineness on it before nodding his head. "She's the best cook," he tells her. "Really? Is that the reason why you fell in love with her?" "I love her without any reason, but that's one of her skills that I like about her." "Why would you love a person without any reason?" The kid asked naively. "If there's a reason why you love a person, then that's not love, that's admiration, because real love doesn't have a specific reason." "I don't understand." "You don't have to understand it, you're still too young to understand anyway." "But is it true that aunt Rosie is really that good at everything?" Jerry's smile grew wider this time before saying the words how he always describes his girl. "She's perfect." "Wow! now I am more furious to see her and to know her, be her new best friend and I might steal her from you and she'll be my girlfriend." "What?" Jerry laughed the word's out before opening the shotgun seat and gently put down the kid onto the baby car seat that Liam attached on her Carrera Porsche 911 and buckled her seatbelt securely before running on the driver seat. "Does your mommy know that you like girls?" "Isn't it normal for me to like girls?" The kid asked adorably and naively, tilting her head on the side to see Jerry's face clearly. "Uhm, how can I say this, it doesn't matter whether you like girls or boys but the problem is, you're still a kid. And if mommy Hayley finds out that you are talking to me about liking girls, she would probably kill me and your Daddy Liam. Do you want that to happen?" "That's impossible, my mom loves Daddy very much and she's scared of killing bugs, what more a big and a talking bug." Akisha tells him nonchalantly, causing Jerry to throw his head and laugh obnoxiously. "Why did you call your Daddy a big bug?" "I heard mommy Hayley calling him like that, 'stop what you're doing Liam or I'll stomp you, you nauseating bug!' that's what I heard." She tells him with a shrug, trying to copy her mom's husky deep voice and Jerry laughs more loudly, resulting in tears forming on the edge of his cat-like eyes. "That's funny." Jerry blurted out while wiping his tears of joy. "It is, but not until Daddy Liam will whine like a kid and mom needs to drag him away from Leo and Luca just to help her to clean the house." "When did it happen?" "Last week I guess? Before you came back from Australia." The kid replied. "That was really hilarious, what a waste that I didn't get to witness that." Jerry said before maneuvering the car and starting to drive home. When the two arrived at the Manoban's house, who decided to stay in Korea and Liam let his cousin to take the crown for ruling the Thailand, Jerry parked his car beside Liam's car and quickly hopped out from his car and ran on the other side, picking up the kid and they both went inside the house, wherein Liam and Hayley are preparing for their dinner. "We're back." Jerry announced when he stepped inside the house, still carrying the kid between his arms. Liam first exited the dining area and flashed his wide smile when he saw the two small humans. "How's the date?" He asked while walking towards them, getting the kid to Jerry. "We had fun!" The kid answered enthusiastically and kissed her dad's lips before wiggling her body, wanting her Dad to put her down so she could run to the kitchen where her mommy was probably still cooking. "That's nice, now go and greet your mom and Aunt Juhyun." Liam said and put the kid down who ran quickly to the kitchen, leaving them with a smile while following the kid with their eyes. "So how are you Tiny?" Liam asked when Akisha finally entered the kitchen. Jerry shifts his eyes at Liam, smiling. "I'm fine dumb dumb. How's life after nauseating my best friend for four years?" "b***h, she's having the best time of her life since the day she met me." Liam snorts but not forgetting to hug the brunette guy. "You're still small." He mumbles, earning a punch on hks stomach but he just laugh it off and retracted himself from the brunette. "You're still dumb and it's just for a week." Jerry scoffed and wrapped his arm around Liam's shoulder before they both pad back inside the dining room. "Hey." He called out to get Hayley's attention from her child who keeps talking about their date to her mommy. "Jerry." Hayley calls and pad towards her best friend, engulfing the brunette into a tight hug. "Sorry if Liam didn't make it, he just came back from work." "It's fine, besides, he'll ruin our date if ever he does come." Jerry said, making Liam frown at him and Hayley laugh. "Hey Jerry." Juhyun greets and hugs the brunette guy. "Mrs.Kang." Jerry greets back, hugging back the older girl slightly, not wanting to squeeze the little creature inside Juhyun's bump. "Where's dumb dumb two?" "Still at work." Juhyun said while caressing her swollen tummy. "He should be filing a leave by this month, our little Seul-ki will come out any time soon." Jerry said as he bent over to give a peck on Juhyun's bump before caressing it. "He already did, this coming Friday will be his last day at work." "That's good because I don't want to face another panic Liam in case you give birth and Seul-ki ain't here." "Shut up Jerry, you also panicked that time, I wasn't the only one." Liam scoffed with an eye roll before picking up the kid and put her above the counter top. "How dare you have a date with your Uncle Jerry but never with me?" Akisha scoffed and crossed her arms. "You're spending more time on your cats than your daughter." "That's not true!" Liam exclaims and cupped the kids face. "And they are not just cats, they are your brothers, how come you treat Dalgom as one but not the two other boys?" "Liam, stop forcing my daughter." Hayley rebukes, swatting Liam's arm before shifting her gaze back at Jerry. "So Jerry, any news?" Jerry smiled, but not the smile he used to flash, it was timid and his teeth hiding behind hisblips, before shaking his head disappointedly. "Nothing." "It's ok, don't worry." Hayley assures him with a slight squeeze on his hand. "It's hard to find a person who doesn't want us to find her." Jerry exhales and sits on the high stool across the kid. "Just give her time Jerry, maybe she's still trying to process everything that happens." Juhyun tells him. "That was what? Four years ago, and she's still trying?" Hayley looked at Liam meaningfully and her husband quickly understood what she's trying to say. Liam nodded his head before facing his daughter again. "Come on princess, let's change your clothes." He said as he carried his daughter between his arms and quickly went out of the kitchen. Hayley looks back to Jerry who's now sulking in his seat and burying his face in his elbow. "Jerry, you know it's not easy for Rosie to forget what you did, just give her time." Hayley said calmly, rubbing her best friend's back to soothe him. "It's my fault." Jerry mumbles, sulking even more. "It is, but.." Hayley trailed off her words, causing Jerry to snapped his head at her and looked at her ludicrously. "...we can't do anything but wait till she finds her way back here." Hayley finishes, ignoring the glare she's receiving from the brunette. "Hayley is right, perhaps she still needs time to heal herself. After all, what you did to her isn't that easy to accept." Irene chimes in, flashing her warm smile to soothe the guy for dissing him but assuring him at the same time. "Fine, I'll give her more time but if she doesn't come back after a year, I'll forget her." "What a load of bullshit." Liam scoffed behind them, his arms folded as he's leaning against the door frame. Hayley quickly searched for her daughter if she's beside Liam but she sighed in relief when she didn't see Akisha. "Do you think that she'll get back easily after what you've done? And what did you say? Have you ever thought about how she waited for you to come back? How many times did she beg just for you to come back? And now you're telling us that you'll give her one more year and that's it? You haven't done anything to win my best friend back." "I know Liam, I know. It's my fault, stop shoving it down on my throat!" Jerry said hardly, his voice raised a little bit, making Hayley squeeze his shoulder lightly to calm her best friend, hoping that her daughter wouldn't hear them or she'll ask again why Liam and Jerry bickering again. "Damn I know! And I'm regretting all of that, I regret that I did that to her, I regret that I became stupid, I regret that I didn't see how much she loves me, I regrets everything!" Jerry said, standing abruptly from his chair and raking his fingers through his hair frustratingly. "It's my damn fault why she left!" "Then stop complaining like it was her fault." Liam tells him through his gritted teeth, jaw clenching and hand curling into a tight fist ball. "I'm n-not, it's j-just that.." Jerry trails off, lowering his head at the same time his voice. "I miss her Liam." He mumbles, before shooting his head's up, his eyes glisten with tears that formed on his eyes. "I miss your best friend so damn much and it h-hurts." He added, letting the tears dripped down on his face. Liam quickly pad towards the smaller guy and pulled his body to hug him. "That's it, repent Jerry." He said, while rubbing the latter's back. "I already did, since the day she absconded with my heart." "You became anhedonia, that's why she left." The doe eyed guy tells him chuckling. "I don't know if I should smack my husband because of his words, or hit Jerry because he's accepting Liam's words easily." Hayley said, shaking her head in disbelief. "You should be, by now, used to them. Right?" Juhyun asked, laughing. "What did I miss? Am I just hallucinating due to exhaustion or I'm really seeing the enemies hugging each other?" Seul-ki asked them, confused about what's happening inside the kitchen, while carrying little Liam in his arms. "Uncle Jerry, are you crying?" Jerry immediately wiped his tears, using Liam's shirt and the latter huffed an annoyed sigh. "I'm not." "You shouldn't be crying, not until I stole Aunt Rosie from you." The kid tells him, causing the elders to exchange glances before bursting out into loud laughter. "I'm serious." "Ok then, home wrecker. Let me feed you your favorite gamjatang." Liam teased his daughter before getting her from Seul-ki. "Yes please." "Pppft, how can a girl who's still being fed by her dad can steal a woman from me?" Jerry asked mockingly. "I'm still a baby, but that doesn't mean that I don't have the power to steal her from you." Akisha said with certainty in her voice and a proud smirk tugging on the corner of her lips. "That's my girl!" Liam beams and they both did a high five. "You should be ready Jerry, my little girl will be your rival." Jerry snorted a laugh. "As if she'll get on my level." "Please tell me that Liam is not persuading my five year old kid to steal Rosie while Jerry provoking her and picking a fight with a five year old kid!" Hayley exclaims frustratedly. Looking at them in disbelief. "Isn't that the reason why you love them?" Akisha asked while giggling, covering her mouth with her tiny hands. Hayley just shook her head and get the kid from Liam. "Not gonna deny that, but you're not going to steal anyone and stop fighting with your uncle." "But mom, it's Aunt Rosie's decision." The kid whines. "Ok fine, but that is just in case she comes back." "She will, trust me." Jerry said, grinning at the kid with his teasing smile. "And this time, I won't let her go away again." _______