Chapter 6

4/11/2041

When Luca turned on his laptop, he had just finished feeding the twins.

"You have one new email," the screen said. As Luca opened his Gmail, he held his breath. When Luca realized it was from his father, he exhaled slowly.

Dear Luca,

I am overjoyed to hear from you. I'm glad you're doing well. I apologize for my actions that resulted in the death of your child. I'm overjoyed to learn that I have grandchildren. You don't have to explain why you and your boyfriend broke up. So long as you are content and healthy. I'd love to meet your adorable children.

Your father,

Carl

Luca responded back, telling him thank you . "I am having a party on Friday," he added to the reply. Luca put the twins into their carriers and headed to the living room. Adrian and Thomas noticed Luca's perkiness in his footsteps.

"Did something happen?" Adrian asked. Ken walked in and sat down on the couch.

"I heard back from my dad," Luca said.

"What did he say?" Ken asked.

"He apologized for his behavior," Luca said. "And he wants to see the twins," he said.

"Did you tell him about you and Patrick?" Ken asked.

"Not in detail," Luca said, nodding his head. "But he knows that we're not together," he said.

When footsteps approached from behind, Luca instinctively glanced over his shoulder.

"Hello, Patrick," Luca said.

"Hello, babe," Patrick said.

"Patrick, please don't call me that," Luca said. "You know my name, so use it," he said sternly. Patrick narrowed his eyes and huffed softly.

"I wanted to give you a birthday present early," he explained.

"Thank you, but it's not until tomorrow," Luca said.

"I'd like to give it to you right now," Patrick said.

"You can give it to me while you see your children tomorrow," he said.

Patrick glared at Luca, who backed away and knelt down to check on his babies.

"So you told your father about us?" he asked. Luca nodded his head and said, "Yes,"

"Why?" Patrick asked in a confused voice. "After he hurt you?"

"Because I wanted to try to have a peaceful relationship with him," Luca explained. "

"I don't want him here," Patrick crossed his arms over his broad chest and said.

"Patrick Brown, I can see who I want," Luca said forcefully. "And he has a right to see his grandchildren," he said. Luca glanced at his watch and said, "I don't have the time to debate this," Luca said. "I have a customer in thirty minutes," he said, walking out of the room.

Luca gathered his art supplies and went to his art studio. A well-dressed couple in their twenties stood there, glancing at his sketches.

"Hello, I hope you didn't have to wait too long," Luca said, shaking their hands.

"That's fine," said the sandy-blonde man.

"We were just admiring your work," the redheaded woman explained to Luca.

"How can I help you today?" Luca inquired.

"We're getting married this Sunday and were hoping you could draw us," he explained.

"When and where is this happening?" Luca inquired. The address and time were given to Luca, who checked his calendar.

"I should be able to do it," Luca said, nodding his head.

"Thank you very much," the couple smiled at him and said.

Luca marked his calendar with a 1 p.m. appointment on Sunday. This would be the first time he had to go to a venue to draw people. Luca returned to the living room to inform the others.

"Dad, could you guys watch the twins for a few hours on Sunday?" he asked.

"Sure," Ken said as he rocked Elena, who had begun to fuss.

"I wouldn't leave my babies," Luca explained, "but I have a couple who want me to draw them on their wedding day."

"That's fantastic," Thomas said, smiling at Luca, who took Elena from Ken and cuddled her close.

"You can make good money from that," Adrian said.

"That will also help your reputation," Ken said.

Elena cried out in hunger as Luca held her.

"I'm going to try something new," Luca said as he walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. He reached inside and took out a bottle of breastmilk. Luca placed the bottle on the counter and poured water into a pan. He placed the bottle into the warm water and heated it up. Luca sat down and placed the bottle's nipple on Elena's lips. Before sucking, she whimpered for thirty seconds. She finished half the bottle before letting out a small yawn.

"All I need now is for your brother to take the bottle," he said with a smile.

Luca's blog has been updated with new photos of his twins, who were his pride and joy. Luca realized he had received a remark from a nickname, TR.

"Your little ones are so cute," said the message. Luca responded because the nickname piqued his interest.

"Thank you," Luca blushed as he pressed the send button, "they're my little angels." Then Luca noticed Tyson beginning to cry. "I have to go because Ty wants his mommy," Luca explained before logging out.

Luca was curious about this TR person, so he clicked on his name to view his profile. The profile picture showed a young man in his twenties holding a little girl's hand in a park. Luca was drawn to the man's brown eyes, which appeared to smile at him. The little girl in the picture appeared to be two or three years old. Her hair was thick, and she wore it in a small ponytail. Luca skimmed the rest of the profile. He noticed that this man was a widower. Alicia was born on March 29th.

"That's the day after my babies were born," he thought to himself. Luca noticed TR was 23 years old and his birthday was on August 4th. The fact that they lived in the same town as Luca and his twins piqued his interest. Luca was unaware that they would meet the next day, changing his life forever.