Breakfast the next morning was different...to say the least. Mica was being his usual quiet self, Julie was trying to encourage him to eat his food and Quinn was rambling on about a dream she had to Leo. Although it was different to any breakfast he ever had before, he liked it...just a little.

 

"Mica why aren't you eating?" Leo questioned the small boy. He just shrugged and pushed his plate further way from him. "Would you like something else?". He only shrugged again. Leo started to understand what his friends had to endure from him. "What do you usually have for breakfast and we'll see if we have it ok?"

 

"I like Nutri-Grain"

 

Leo felt relived at the small sentence from the little boy's mouth. Right, he knew he didn't have Nutri-Grain at his house...he didn't even know what that was. He couldn't say that though.

 

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

"Nutri-Grain?" Leo questions, making sure that he knew what to get. Mica nods for what felt like the 1000th time this whole conversation. Leo looked at the crowded shopping centre from where his car was parked and swallowed hard. Leo rarely ever went to the big supermarket; there was a Convenience Store just down the road that he went to for his every day needs - milk, bread and so on. Although that store didn't have much to offer in the food department, he had grown to like the taste of their hot chicken and bread rolls.

 

"Ok let's go guys"

 

Quinn immediately gripped onto Leo's hand and smiled up at the man. He grinned softly back at her, trying to not let his nerves show. Leo hated crowded spaces, he was claustrophobic. Mica griped onto Julie's hand and the pair walked just behind Leo and Quinn.

 

"If we get separated, just meet at the car ok?" He mumbles to Julie who just laughs and shakes her head. "You sound like we're going into war. It's just the shopping centre Leo". Leo says nothing back. He knows she's right, but his heart doesn't think it's strong enough to go through all those people himself; let alone with three children.

 

The four began to walk  forward, Leo having to pull Quinn out the way of a mother pushing a trolley full of her children and groceries. Sweat began to form on his brow and he wiped it off with his spare hand while still trying to manoeuvre through the crowds of people.

 

And this is outside the shopping centre, he thought .

 

The group reached the doors and walked in, sighing as the cool air hit them. Julie was thanking her lucky stars for the invention of air conditioners. Leo tried to remember where the closest grocery shop was, and remembered a Woolworths {Woolworths is an Australian grocery shop}  was about a five minute walk East of where they were standing.

 

"This way guys"

 

The group followed him as he ducked and weaved through the packs of people. Chattered buzzed through his ears, faces blurred passed him and the sound of Julie yelling cut through all that. He spun around in an instant, trying to look for the teen; finally spotting her in the embrace of a stranger. Mica looked lost behind the girl, looking around frantically with that look of utter confusion written on his small, fragile face.

 

Leo pulled Quinn along until he was standing right beside Julie and Mica dived onto hold his other hand. Mica began to squeeze his hand unbelievably hard. "Julie" Leo breathed out her name and she turned, a grin as wide as the sky on her face.

 

"Leo this is my best friend Joseph! Joseph this is Leo, he's the man that adopted us yesterday"

 

Leo felt his skin crawl as he looked at the boy. He would have been older than Julie by maybe two years? Something about him made Leo feel uneasy, something about him made Leo feel cautious around the boy.

 

"Thank you so much for taking these guys out of that place, they deserve so much better than to be alone in this world" the boy's hand was extended out, waiting for Leo to shake it. The older didn't like shaking hands, let alone with someone who made him feel  jittery.

 

Leo said nothing.

 

"He doesn't talk much" Julie explains to Joseph, her arm intertwined with his. "That's fine, it must be weird huh? Having these three so suddenly"

 

"I enjoy their company" Leo mumbles softly, "They're lovely human beings. No-one should be left like they had been" Leo believed in what he was saying. His guilt had subdued over the day he had been with the children. He generally felt protective of the three of them. He had just had a heart attack when he thought Julie was hurt. He was sure that these feelings would grow over time.

 

"So you're an emotional man then?"

 

What was with these questions? Who the hell came up with these?

 

"We have to go" Leo says sternly, his infamous glare reappearing for the first time in two days and being aimed at this annoying excuse for a teenager.

 

"It was so good to see you again Julie! I'll see you around yeah?" Julie nods frantically and gazes off after the boy - Joseph. Girls these days, always so interested in boys and being social.

"I don't like him" Leo states almost instantly.

Julie pouts at the man, unsure of why he's saying that. What's not to like about Joseph? He was smart, tall and in Julie's eyes - absolutely mesmerising. Yes he may be two or three years older than Julie herself, but still - age doesn’t matter right?

 

"Why not?"
 

Leo doesn't reply but continues to guide the three children through all the clumps of people until they finally reach Woolworths. The older sighs in relief as he slows down to a stop. He walked forward, still having Mica gripping his hand and Quinn looking around - speechless at the sighs before her.

 

The quiet man grabbed a trolley; letting go of Mica's hand unwillingly. The man didn't know why Mica had only decided now to be close with him, but he sure as hell wasn't going to reject the small boy. The young boy almost whined as his hand was let go.

 

Leo hated the pained sound that escaped from the small boy's mouth and hurried up collecting the trolley. Quinn instantly started squealing as Leo picked her up and placed her into the metal carrier. Leo smiled at the happy sound and offered his arms out to Mica, who just shook his head and latched onto Leo's hand again.

 

"I don't see why we need a trolley, I thought we were only getting Nutri-Grain?" Julie questions as the lot of them walked into the actual grocery store. Leo shook his head, "I thought I may as well buy you all something nice for dinner"

 

A nice dinner, thought Julie, we never got many of those in the orphanages.

 

"What are we having?" Julie asks, excitement rising in her.

 

"Whatever you want" Leo replies shortly turning the trolley to go to the cereal aisle. He doesn't come here often, but he comes here enough to know which aisle the necessities of life are in...plus one of his best friends work there. He prayed Sanghyuk wasn't working today, he wanted to introduce his new family to his old family in a more sophisticated and Taekwoon type of way. Not in this place of complete and utter terror.

 

"Leo? Why are you named Leo?"

 

The older man looks down at the little girl with furrowed eyebrows, "What do you mean Quinn?". He didn’t really know where the name came from, his friends just started calling him that one day. "How come your parents named you Leo?"

 

He didn't want to dampen the girl's spirits by telling her that Leo wasn't his real name.

 

 

"They must have thought that it suited me" he shrugged simply. The young girl nodded her head softly and turned back around, her eyes roaming around the new big area of the shopping centre.  Mica kept a strong hold on Leo's hand.

 

"Here it is!" Julie exclaims going to the other side of the aisle and lifting the box of cereal up. Mica's face lit up at the sight of the yummy breakfast treat. Leo looked at his watch and sighed. It was 11:30am. Too late for breakfast, so brunch maybe?

 

Taekwoon wasn't much of a cook aside from the simple toast and cereal so what was he going to do? The quiet man devised a plan inside his head, praying that it would work. He'd be killing two birds with one stone if he was able to go through it.

 

So after buying what they  - Julie, Mica and Quinn - wanted for dinner, they headed home; much to the relief of Taekwoon. Big crowded places really weren't his thing. After placing the sausages in the fridge he turned to see all three children looking at him expectantly.

 

"We're going to go to my friend's house for brunch, so Mica you can eat something there" Leo states, feeling extremely nervous and three sets of eyes stared blankly at him. Mica only nodded as Julie smiled brightly. "That sounds lovely! Shall we go and watch TV before we go then?"

 

Leo nodded at the teenager and she took hold of the younger children's hands as she took them to the living room. As soon as they were out of sight Leo sighed in exhaustion. He'd only spent a day with these children and he already felt tired. Was this what parenthood was like?

 

He took out his phone and scrolled through his contacts list, finally finding the name and trying to decide if he should call or text; coming to the conclusion that texting was the best way to do it, his friend new him inside out and would be able to hear that something was up just by hearing his house.

 

 

 

He didn't even put his phone down, knowing that the reply he wanted wouldn't be more than a minute away.

 

 

 

Leo felt relieved that his friend had said yes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Leo put his phone back into his pocket and moved like a ghost towards the living room where he popped his head in and saw Julie sitting on the couch with Mica and Quinn sitting on either side of her; all their eyes glued to the screen as some music show was playing.

 

"Five minutes and then we'll be leaving" Leo speaks up quietly making all three children jump. Julie nods with a smile on her face.

 

"Both of you go to the toilet" she says nudging the twins. Quinn groans but gets up nonetheless and makes her way to the toilet, Mica following.

 

Leo watches them walk off and wants to ask Julie if they'll be ok, but it's like she's read his mind as she answers his mental question almost immediately.

 

"They'll be fine, they're all grown up" she smiles at him but something in her smile is concerning. Her expression not only shows that of care and love, but sadness. Julie has to grow up far too quickly and that can only mean the same with the children.

 

Mrs Peterson from the orphanage had told Leo that the children had been here since Mica and Quinn were six months old and that was more than four years ago - the twins were five - and so that meant that Julie was fourteen- ten when she was sent to the orphanage. Her mother died during childbirth and her father was a drug addict who eventually passed away from his addictions. Mica and Quinn's parents, Mrs Peterson told him, were forced to give them up as the mother was 16 and her parents where extremely religious.

 

Taekwoon - now - wanted nothing more than to bring these three children up in a home where they were loved unconditonally and could reach their full potentional in all things. It was his new life goal and it was a promise he had made to himself the moment Mrs Peterson told him what he needed to know. He wouldn't care about his own needs anymore, they were so petty compared to the children's.

 

"We're ready Leo!"

 

Author's Note: Im extremely sorry for the massive wait on this, please forgive me?

Not Edited.

LOVE YOUR COMMENTS SO PLEASE COMMENT. LOVE YOU GUYS XX