Mummy

Hannah pulled Penelope away from the aquarium as she was sure it was going to fall over and break if Penelope kept touching and moving around it.

Raymond stood aside with the other two people as he spoke a few words to them and collected the keys to the house. He looked around the house and nodded in satisfaction, making a mental to praise axel later.

"Do you like the house"? He asked, as his eyes roamed around and finally landed on Hannah to see her nodding.

"Let's get settled in then". He said as he walked towards them. "Your luggage will be brought soon. In the meantime, you can look around the house and pick a room for yourselves". He said and walked away, leaving Hannah and Penelope behind. They followed his lead and started looking through the various rooms together. The house had two rooms in it and they were well furnished.

Hannah stopped in front of a room and went inside. The room had grey walls, with blue curtains draped by the sides of the window. She walked to the window and looked out to see the small garden just outside. She stood there for some time as she watched the butterflies fly around from flower to flower and the birds chirping happily. She brought her head back inside and walked around the room. The room looked more spacious and beautiful compared to the other one she had seen before. By the side of the bed was a small stool which had a small, blue lantern on it. In all, the room gave out a masculine vibe but she loved it.

She had decided. This will be her room! She walked out of the room to look for Raymond and make her choice known to him, but she didn't see him or Penelope. There were standing nearby when she went in, she thought.

She walked along the corridors, looking for Raymond and Penelope and she stopped when she heard whispering from the other side. She traced the sound and it led her to an open space at the back of the house and saw Raymond squatting in front of Penelope who had a sad look on her face.

She walked in and parted her lips to speak but stopped to listen to what they were whispering about.

"She doesn't want to be my mommy". Penelope said in a small voice Raymond raised his hand to touch her cheek, and that was when Hannah noticed the tears on her face. "Don't cry, Penelope". Raymond tried to console her. Penelope sobbed silently and the sight of it made Hannah's heart squeeze in pain. She could also feel tears stinging in her eyes and before she knew it, she was already walking toward them.

Raymond heard her footsteps and stood up to face Hannah. Hannah walked to Penelope and squatted in front of her. She used her palm to wipe Penelope's tears and pulled her into a hug but Penelope's sobs got louder as tears poured down her face.

"Don't cry, Penelope". Hannah cooed, as she continued to Pat Penelope's back with one hand and used the other hand on Pat her head which was resting on her shoulders.

Penelope's sobs didn't cease and tears kept streaming down her face.

Hannah couldn't bear to see Penelope crying anymore and spoke. "I will be your mommy, Penelope". Hannah declared and the place immediately fell silent as the wind blew in the open space.

Penelope raised her head from Hannah's shoulders and looked at her with wide eyes. "You are going to be my mommy's right?" Penelope questioned and Hannah nodded.

Gone was the sad child that was crying minutes ago as she had been replaced by an extremely happy Penelope. She threw her hands around Hannah's neck as she squealed happily.

Hannah pulled Penelope from the hug and used her hand to smoothen Penelope's hair which had been ruffled by the wind, making several strands fall on her face. She stood up from her squatting position and pulled Penelope up with her.

"So can I call you mommy now?" Came Penelope's sudden question as she stared at Hannah's face with hopeful eyes.

Hannah looked taken aback by the sudden question as she didn't expect it. "Of course Penelope, you can call me mommy now". Hannah said, trying not to sound nervous.

"Promise?" Penelope asked

"Promise!" Hannah replied, making Penelope's smile wider.

"Cough cough…." Came the small sound behind them and Hannah turned to see Raymond standing behind them with a huge grin on his face. Realisation dawned on her as she saw the grin on his face and she threw him an accusing look. He raised his hand in surrender, trying to act scared but the grin on his face gave the slip.

"You did this didn't you?" Hannah asked, narrowing her eyes at Raymond. He walked to her and spoke, "I thought you needed a little push to tell Penelope that you are now her mother and I got help from this little angel here". Raymond said, sending a smile at Penelope and she returned it with a mischievous one.

Hannah stared at both of them, smiling at each other and a sigh escaped her lips. Though she was upset that they had tricked her, she was happy that she had finally told Penelope. Raymond was right, she thought. All she needed was a little push.

She looked at Raymond to see him smiling at her. She stared at him for a few seconds and saw his lips moving. She focused and read his lips, "You are welcome", was what she read and she tore her gaze away from him.

She returned her gaze to Penelope and held her hand. "Let's go to your room, Penelope". She said but Penelope quickly withdrew her hand. "I want to stay with you. I don't want to stay alone, uncle Raymond can have that room". She blurted out and Raymond's eyes widened in shock but turned to a smile in the next second. This child never ceases to amaze him.

Hannah turned to face Raymond and saw him smiling again wider this time. She looked back at Penelope and said, "Raymond would not be staying with us! He has his own home". She said as if she was totally against the idea of Raymond staying with them.

"I don't want to stay alone, I get very scared at night". Penelope said. "You don't have to stay alone, we will be staying in the same room". Hannah said and a smile etched itself on Penelope's face. "Now let's go and settle inside okay?" Hannah said and grabbed Penelope's hand once again.

The two of them left the veranda, leaving Raymond standing there alone with a smile on his face.

Time passed and as Raymond said, their things were brought to them and they were settled in, placing everything where it should be. They sorted out their things in the room and by the time they finished, it was already dusk.

"I think you should leave now Raymond". Hannah suggested, seeing that it was almost night.

" Can I speak to you for some minutes?" Raymond asked, peering into her eyes.

"Sure?" Hannah responded.

"Your leave will be over in two weeks and you will have to come back to the basement and resume your work. I just wanted to remind you in case you have forgotten". Raymond said and Hannah nodded.

"I will resume when Penelope has fully recovered. She still has to take her medicines". Hannah stated and Raymond nodded. There was an uncomfortable silence between them, both of them not having what to say.

Hannah stared hard at Raymond. "You know, don't you?" She inquired suddenly.

Raymond looked at her with a slightly shocked expression. He cleared his throat and spoke, "what do you mean". He looked away from her, trying to act oblivious but Hannah was not buying it.

She sighed hard and spoke, "My annunciator, you know about it, right?" She asked again and this time, it was Raymond's turn to sigh. He raised his head and looked above her head. "How did you find out?" He asked, but got no response. Instead, Hannah raised her hand, hesitating a bit, and placed it on his shoulder. His eyes widened and it looked like his eyeballs were going to pop out of their sockets. And as if the shock wasn't enough, she said, "Thanks a lot Raymond, for everything". He could feel the sincerity in the way she spoke to him.

He stared at her and slowly, a small smile crept up his lips which only widened as it kept increasing by the second.

Hannah felt uncomfortable under Raymond's gaze as he kept staring at her unblinkingly. Her eyes darted everywhere except his face and it fell on her hand that was placed on Raymond's shoulder. She withdrew her hand as fast as lightning as if she has been burnt and looked down.

Another awkward silence ensued afterwards as none of them had anything to say. Raymond kept smiling like a Cheshire cat while Hannah kept her head down. The atmosphere around them was relaxing and as the minutes passed by, a chilly wind blew past them.

"It's late, you should get going now". Hannah suggested, looking back at Raymond who still had a smile on his face. She wondered what it was that was making him smile so much.

He nodded at her and she turned to go back into the house, but she paused after taking three steps. "Tell Lucas to stop following me. I will be fine by myself" she said and continued walking inside.

Raymond's smile grew wider as he stood by the entrance. All of a sudden, he laughed softly, his eyes twinkling with unknown joy and satisfaction. Hannah touched him today and even thanked him. To others, it may seem like a simple gesture, but to him, it was way more than that. Hannah was finally warming up to him and nothing could make him happier. He raised his hand which had his car keys which were around his index finger and he started rotating it around his finger as he walked to his car.

He wondered how she found out that he knew about her annunciator. He had specifically told Lucas to be as discrete and silent as possible and he was sure that Lucas would obey him. Maybe Hannah felt his presence around her, he thought and stopped in front of his car.

He turned around and looked around the estate, his eyes resting on the building where Hannah and Penelope now resided and he couldn't stop the smile that crept up on his face. He turned back and opened the door to his car and got in humming a happy tune as he ignited the engine and drove out of the estate.