CHAPTER FIVE

"Daddy are you awake yet?"

It's 9 in the morning and Damian had the day off. His original plan was to sleep all day but then the plan wasn't really going to work because for one, he has kids that needs his care and attention, and two, he's hungry and would go for some killer breakfast right now.

Damian laid on his stomach, half-awake with no shirt on, because he felt more comfortable sleeping like that, when he felt tugging on the side of the bed and cute groans of frustration from a certain puppy like child that Damian could only guess was trying to climb up the bed.

Damian was about to doze off again when felt a weight on his back, followed by his son's cute giggles before two little hands began shaking him awake.

"Daddy wake up! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!" Maverick continues to shake his father awake and his voice only got louder when Damian didn't even bulge.

"Wake up you lazy butt!" Maverick took one of the smaller pillows and began hitting Damian with it.

Damian was trying so hard not to smile and focused on staying still just to annoy his son even more. He had been awake the first second Maverick barged into the room but being the tease that he is, didn't move and pretended to be asleep. Eventually, Maverick's arms grew tired and Damian felt the weight on his back disappear.

Frowning slightly when he heard three cute sneezes from Maverick, Damian shifted to his side and felt his heart melt at the sight he saw. Maverick laying on his side facing him, hugging a pillow with both arms and legs. He let out tiny yawn, rubbing his eye with one hand and whined as he continue to snuggle into the pillow. Damian placed a gentle hand on the child's forehead, careful not to wake him up. When the child felt a little too warm than normal, Damian frowns in worry and moved his hand to the child's neck where the child felt warmer.

Damian carefully left the bed and went to his bathroom, only to come out few seconds later with a thermometer. He flicks the small device and it turned on, then as careful as he could, placed the device between Maverick's lips. The child only whined but remained asleep.

It was the most excruciating two minutes for Damian but he waited patiently until the device finally beeps. Letting out a loud sigh, Damian carefully removes the small device as Maverick squirms a little, whines softly and hugs the pillow tighter. Damian knows not to worry too much because it could just be a side effect of his son's rhinitis. It had had happened before.

But being a parent, being worried cannot be avoided especially when he saw his son's recorded temperature on the thermometer. It read 39°C. Definitely a fever.

It's a good thing that Damian have the next three days off, he just hopes that his son will feel all better by the time he goes back to work. Sighing again, Damian slip the thermometer in his pajama pocket. Pick a random shirt from his pile on the chair and left to the kitchen to start making breakfast.

"Good morning boys," Damian greeted when he found his sons already sat at their breakfast bar. Diego momentarily looks up from his coloring book and smiled a small smile before returning to his coloring.

Luca sat beside his brother with school books stacked in front of him and his nose buried deep in his biology book.

"Someone’s getting a head start." Damian chuckled as began collecting the ingredients needed for the killer breakfast he has been craving.

"I’d rather read than die of boredom" Luca muttered under his breath without looking up from the book.

"Yeah? No wonder you’re so smart."

"Whatever."

And nothing more was said after that. That's how their conversation would usually go nowadays, just a few words here and there then, nothing. Luc would soon lost interest and stop talking, and in return, Damian doesn't bother him anymore. It’s not that that they were not in good terms or anything, but rather, there seem to be causing a strain in their relationship. Damian was starting to have a hard time communicating with his eldest son. Like an invisible wall was separating them. Luca, on the other hand, was starting to grow distant.

Damian was not blind not to see that his son has built stone walls around him. Not allowing anyone to see through his facade and when Damian looks at his son's eyes, all he sees are two black pools void of any emotions. It scares Damian and he doesn't know what to do. Damian wouldn’t want to have a strained relationship with his eldest son.

"Daddy where is Mavy?" Diego’s quiet voice breaks the tense silence in the room.

"He's not feeling well monkey, that's why I'm making him soup." Damian stirred the said soup as he turns to give his youngest a gentle smile.

Diego pouted, sad at the thought of his older brother getting sick. Then suddenly his eyes lit up. He excitedly grabs a blank paper and began scribbling with his crayons. Damian frowns in amusement as he watch his son scribble......something......with his blue crayon.

"What are you doing there monkey?" Finally setting his book down, Luca moves closer to the younger one and peeked over his shoulder to see Diego’s drawing.

"I draw puppy for Mavy" Diego answered without looking up. He looks so adorable concentrating on the drawing with his tongue poking out a little.

"A puppy?" Luca softly chuckles as he stared at the deformed figure now known as a puppy according to Diego. But really, it was just random squiggly lines merging with imperfect circles.

But if Diego says it’s a puppy then it’s a puppy. End of discussion.

Soon breakfast was prepared. Damian poured the soup in two separate bowls. One bigger bowl for him and Luca to share then a much smaller bowl for Maverick. Then he neatly plates the sandwiches and placed it in front of little Diego who was still busy making a get well soon card for Maverick with Luca helping him write the words in red crayon.

He carefully set Maverick's breakfast on a tray, filling one of his son's favorite Sippy cup with milk and also placing on the tray are his son's medicines that he bought last night. He placed a soft kiss on Diego's head before leaving the kitchen with Maverick's breakfast in hand.

"Daddy?" The child called the moment Damian entered the room. The man smiled a sweet smile as he carefully set the tray down on the night stand before getting into the bed with Maverick who didn't waste a second to climb up his father's lap and snuggle into his chest.

Damian wrap his arms around Maverick and hugged the child closer to his chest, pressed a soft kiss on the child's forehead. "How are you feeling pup?"

Maverick softly groans, rubbing his eyes with his tiny hand," I feel tired Daddy, Can I sleep all day? Pwease?" And he gave his father that puppy dog eyes, with pouty lips, that he knows his father can't ever resist.

"Sure pup, but first you have eat breakfast and medicines," at the mention of breakfast, Maverick's eyes lit up and an excited smile appeared on his lips but when he heard the word medicine, he frowned and pouted.

"I no like medicine, it’s yucky!" Maverick made a look of disgust that Damian just finds adorable. Maverick was never a fan of medicines unlike his younger brother, Diego, who takes them with no complains.

"But then if you don't eat your medicines, no one will feed Charlie because you would be too sick to do it. I guess I could ask Diego to do it instead. What do you think?" Damian said referring to the puppy they met at the pet shop a few weeks ago.

Maverick fell in love with the puppy the moment he laid his eyes on it. He's been asking his father to adopt the puppy and unbeknown to Maverick, Damian had already adopted the puppy and was only waiting for the right time to bring the puppy home. He wants to surprise, not just Maverick, but all of his three sons. So in the meantime, the puppy stays in the shelter and they go visit him on the weekends.

Maverick stared at his father in horror, his mouth wide in shock, and in the blink of an eye, he scrambles off his father's lap and began pushing Damian off the bed but the man didn't budge and that annoyed the seven year old.

"Get me my breakfast, you lazy butt!"

Damian couldn't hold it anymore and burst into laughter as he got off the bed with a pouting Maverick sitting crisscross apple sauce on the middle of the bed with his arms crossed against his chest and a pout on his cute face.

Among the three boys, Maverick would be the only one who would start calling his father the nicknames in return. He was, after all, the most playful in the Charleston household. A little daredevil and just honest to a fault. Damian loves that about his son, his strong personality and nicknames doesn’t really bother him, as he also has his fair share of nicknames for his sons.

Luca is little sporty genius, Squirt,

Diego is his adorable shy bean or Monkey and Maverick is Pup. The word pup is an endearment an Alpha wolf use to address his children and since Maverick looks like an adorable puppy, the nickname fits him perfectly and he loves it. And also because Maverick can be as hyper as puppy. Always running around the place like the ball of energy he is.

Breakfast went by with a breeze. Maverick loved the soup and ate it till the last drop. Then ate the two sweet egg sandwich that were supposed to be shared with his father but the man didn’t mind and just lets his son eat then drink his milk. The medicine part was kind of tricky but in the end Maverick drank the medicine that he immediately drowned with milk.

After burping twice, Maverick laid back down under the covers and snuggled with his bunny plush Mr. Tomnus that Luca brought in a while ago along with the get well soon card Diego made. Diego couldn't give the card himself with the reason that he didn't want to catch his brother's fever. But Maverick loved the card nonetheless and asked his father if he could frame it so he could hang it in his room.

Leaving the door ajar, Damian left to the kitchen to start cleaning the dishes. Diego was no longer in the kitchen but is sat in the living room with cartoons playing on the television. His coloring papers neatly stacked on the coffee table with his box of crayons laying on top of it. Not a single thing out of place. A tidy child he really is, the total opposite of Maverick who was a messy and clumsy child.

But Damian loves them both equally, quirks and all.

Affectionately ruffling the child's hair, Damian proceeded to the kitchen and started with dishes. As he soaps the plates, Damian's mind began to wander.

Life hasn't been easy in the Charleston household and to make matters worse, His wife, the light of his life, died on the operation while giving birth to their youngest, Diego. She died of blood loss and the doctors were barely able to save Diego. Born premature, Diego had complications which leads to weeks of staying at the hospital until he was strong enough to go home. His wife’s funeral was held during those weeks but Damian did his best to stay strong, not just for himself, but for his two other son as well. Luca was probably the most devastated as he was the closest to their mom. Maverick was still too young when it happened so he really didn’t understand the concept of death, and thought his mommy was just moving to a new place. To the heavens. Then there’s little Diego who was only a week old when his mommy placed six feet in the ground. Of course, Damian didn't put the blame of his wife’s death to his newborn son. That was just unfair for baby Diego and Damian was not a heartless person. Instead he puts a strong mask on and did his best to raise the boys on his own. It wasn't easy at first.

Between juggling work and taking care of Diego, Damian had to double his efforts and his patience. Just taking care of a newborn already took most of his time and he almost began neglecting his other sons.

It was a great struggle balancing work and family for sure, and there was even a time that Damian almost gave up but for his sons, Damian managed through it all. He started working from home to keep a better eye on the boys. He slowly got Diego into a schedule and the schedule helped a lot because he was able to manage time equally to his boys. Maverick grew healthy and happy, while Luca was growing distant.

Now four years later, they are happy as a family can be. Damian began permanently working from home as a restaurant chain owner and everything was good. Luca is in his 11th grade in high school, Maverick is enjoying second grade and Diego will be starting primary school next school year. Life is good for the Charleston household now and Damian couldn't ask for anything better.

Placing the last plate in the dishwasher, Damian wipes his hands on a dishcloth and left to the living room where the television was still on but his son is nowhere to be seen. Damian frowned and looks around, picking up his son's plush carrot from the carpeted floor when he heard his son's distant voice.

Still holding the carrot plush, Damian followed his son's voice and found him, seconds later, holding the front door open talking to someone.

"Monkey what did I tell you about answering the door?" Damian said slightly startling his son but he just ruffles his son's hair and opened the door wider.

The person on the side of the door is a messenger boy who looks to be in his early twenties. He looks very timid by the way he was clutching his sling bag. He just stood there for a second before realizing Damian's presence and he hastily began searching inside his bag, handing Damian a little red envelope with shaky hands a few seconds later.

Damian accepted the letter, thanking the messenger boy who bowed in return and walks away. The older man tried not to cringe at how awkward and stiff the boy was. He must be new at his job.

Damian closed the door and walks back to the living room with Diego happily skipping in front of him. They got on the couch and Diego got on his father's lap, facing the man with a pout on and a guilty look on his face.

"Daddy, I sorry for answering door wif no permi......uh....uhm..." A cute frown appears on Diego's face as he thinks of the right word.

"Permission," Damian said, helping the child who's frown and pout was too adorable to ignore and not smile to.

"Permitition?" Diego frowned cutely.

"No, It's Permission. Per-mi-ssion." Damian syllabicates the word for his son to understand better.

"Permitition!" Diego giggled loudly, clapping his hands like a seal causing Damian to playfully roll his eyes and dig his fingers on the child's sides causing another eruption of giggles from the child.

"You silly little monkey!"

Luca was walking down the hallway to get something from the kitchen when he heard the laughter coming from the living room. In curiosity, he went to check the source of the laughter and he couldn't stop the pain that he felt when he saw the sight.

Luca has managed, for the past years, to hide his true emotions and the bottle within him already over flows with the amount of emotions he had been keeping in in him. Words he could not say outloud, Tears he couldn't let fall and the pain he has been at bay under his mask. The facade he has been putting up was starting to break and the emotions he has been trying suppress now threatening to erupt.

He didn't want to be seen vulnerable, He was not weak but as the time goes by, his heart slowly began to tire out. Just seeing his father bond with his two younger siblings triggers the darkest of emotions Luca hides behind his crumbling facade.

Luca is jealous of his younger siblings. Yes it sounds stupid and quite childish but its how he really felt. Now he doesn't really hold a grudge against Maverick or Diego, not anymore at least, but........it's just that........when Luca was still an only child. He was happy.

He had both of his parents' love and attention. It was perfect until it wasn't. When Maverick was born, Luca was forced to learn how to share the love and attention. But Luca was only a child then so he really didn't understand the concept of sharing and so he made his parents' life unintentionally complicated, worst even.

At the first two years of Maverick in the family, Luca hated him. Damian knew how his son felt but he shrugged it off as a child stubbornness. At age 3, Maverick began feeling the hate but because of his persistence and cute charm, Luca eventually grew to love him. Another two years passed and everything was perfect again.

When Luca found out that his mother was pregnant again. He was scared. Scared that he might treat the baby the same way he did with Maverick. He was scared that he might end up hating the baby too. But for the sake of his parents and Maverick, Luca taught himself to love the baby as early as he could and he did love the baby. He never left his mother's side, always there to help her and at some nights he would talk to the baby inside his mother's tummy.

Luca thought everything was going to be fine, that he finally got rid of the hate but how wrong he was because when the baby was born, It's all he felt. Hate.

Their mother died giving birth to the baby. She lost a lot of blood and her heart collapsed. When 13 year old Luca found out what happened from his own father who was a mess that time, he didn't cry. No emotion crossed his face. He was blank but deep within him, a part of him died with his mother.

Luca was filled with hate and anger but he pretended that he was okay for the sake of his father and maverick. He pretended to love his new baby brother and the little attention, and love, that Damian had for him was taken away by the baby, making Luca hate him even more. And the distance between him and his father grew further.

Years passed, Diego grew completely unaware of his older brother's hate and anger towards him. He was unaware that his older brother blames him for their mother's death. He was unaware that his older brother didn't really love him. He was......unaware and that's what hurt Luca the most.

By the time Diego was 3, Luca was already 17 and his way of thinking matured where he came to realize that what he had been doing to Diego for the past years, the cold shoulder and constant ignoring, was wrong and stupid, and so childish of him. Guilt washed over him like a waterfall. He felt foolish to have done that to an innocent child who didn't do him any wrong at all. Luca was just so angry at the world for what happened to his mother and he needed someone to blame. Diego, unfortunately, became that someone. Luca deeply regrets letting emotions rule over him, making him hurt his little brother in the process. But no more. Never again.

Now all the anger and hate once directed to Diego, now Luca directs to himself. That and the guilt that has been gnawing at him. He stopped blaming Diego for what happened and he shouldn't have had in the first place.

Luca now knows how immature he was to have done those things and he could never forgive himself for that. Diego is now 4, turning 5 in three weeks, and Luca has been doing his best to show his love for the little guy.

This time..........A real love.

No more hate.

But still Luca yearns for the day that he and his father will have a healthy relationship again.

He misses his father so much.