Chapter 23

"It's 9:30 am already!"

"Adrianna what are you still doing?" an impatient Rachel groaned.

"She's always like that, she can never change" Melanie, Adrianna's sister said.

"She's good at wasting time" Stephanie added with a groan.

"I'm here", Adrianna said, she was battling with untangling the tiny gold necklace she had collected from her mother when she was,14, she had kept it away and it never rots. She finally untangled it, thanks to Melanie helping her.

"Thanks, sister," Adrianna told her.

"Here you can have this ", she stretched out a necklace to Melanie.

Melanie squealed in happiness. She reached over and gave her a kiss on her cheeks. "Love you sis"

"Love you more", Adrianna replied.

"Let me help you put it on", Rachel offered. "It's beautiful on you" She commented.

Melanie nodded and smiled at her, raising her phone to admire the necklace.

"What bout me?", Stephanie pouted folding her arms.

"Steph, you'll get yours when we get back" Adrianna rolled her eyes at her.

"You still have most of my stuff than Melanie".

The teenager was ready for her, "That's because you take Melanie for shopping most times". She fired at her.

"Stephanie!", Melanie slurred.

"Is that jealousy I smell" Elijah laughed, Adrianna smacked his shoulder.

"Baby sis, tell me what you want"

"I'm not answering you," Stephanie told her. She's one stubborn child and Adrianna knew better than to pester her.

Melanie and Rachel snubbed her and chats away with each other.

Elijah's parents acted as if they weren't in the same car with the children.

*********

"Hi mum" Stephanie greeted and hug her "mum, Adrianna gave Melanie a necklace and not me", she outed her lips.

Reina laughed alongside her husband Malcolm.

"Spoilt child, you know you still enjoy from her than your sister Melanie", Reina told her. Stephanie groaned.

Adrianna hugged her from behind. "I owe you a vacation, just me and you, how does it sound to you?"

"Yaayyy, she squealed", "it sounds so good"

"This girl never ceases to surprise me," Malcolm said as a matter of fact.

"You pamper her a lot" Reina accused him playfully.

"Do not accuse me of a woman she's just a baby" Malcolm defended.

"A baby like Rachel" Elijah's mother said looking away.

"Of course Rachel is a baby", Elijah and his father chorused together.

"Really?" Rachel bellowed aloud.

"Yes" everyone chorused together.

"You and Stephanie and the infant will be Asher," Adrianna said. "Where is he dad?"

"In his room" he pointed to the direction of his room and just then Eva Was seen coming out from there, "That's Eva," her father said.

She met Adrianna at the stairs and greeted her.

"I'm Adrianna' she introduced herself.

"Its obvious, Asher looks exactly like you, He's the male version of you"

"Thank you", she smiled.

"He's in his room" she pointed to his door "go on my dear" she nudges her forward.

Adrianna stood outside his door, her palms were getting soaked, she was nervous, she chewed on her lips. Heaving a sigh and blowing air through her mouth. She knocked and entered the room.

Asher looked up to see who came inside his room. He was stunned.

"Hi, Little brother" Adriana waved at him and smiled nervously.

"Hi, big sister" he smiled back.

Adrianna quickly rushed to hug him, kissing his head and Patting him, her eyes became teary, a tear escaped from her eyes and dropped on Asher's hair.

"Forgive me for leaving you all these years, I was so angry and jealous mom had you and you were going to take all the love" she cried.

"I know, Malcolm told me already" he shrugged his shoulders. "I'm not mad, I'm happy to see you"

She sniffles "I'm happy too" she kissed his forehead.

Asher took his sweatshirt on his bed, he had worn it last night, he used it to clean her tears. Adrianna chuckled.

"I wonder if mum didn't fall sick, would I have met you at all, I mean, mom is about to die and she's doing everything to make it right, maybe because of me and I don't even know, I've been thinking about it for a while" he slumped on his bed.

Adrianna didn't know how to answer him. He was kind of right. Smart boy! she thought.

"Ash, let's not think about it much, she started "let's be thankful that whatever fate has started off is finally coming out good for us. We've finally met ourselves and that is all that matters".

She smiled and winked at him. Asher smiled too. She reached over to him and started tickling him. Asher was squirming and laughing hard.

"Adrianna stoooooooppppp," he said amidst laughter.

Adrianna was laughing hard. She kept on tickling him, pinning him down with one hand, he finally got out of her grasp and ran out, Adrianna dashed after him.

He ran downstairs, running around the living room, with Adrianna hot on his trails. She caught him when he was about to run into the kitchen.

"Gotcha boy" she boohooed at him.

"Yeah you did" she carried him in her hand and held him tight.

"I'm never gonna let you go," she said to him.. "I'm gonna be with you every day and every day". she meant what she told him.

Asher looked at her, he made a funny face. Adrianna laughed and he took this as his cue to tickle her back and so he did. Adrianna started laughing again and held his hands.

"I'm pregnant Asher"

"Ooohhhh!" He exclaimed. "I'm gonna be an uncle" "whooo" he howled.

Adrianna got up from the floor, let's go meet the rest of the family.

"This is Elijah, my husband to be" she winked at Elijah.

"Nice to meet you bruh," Asher said, he stretched his hand out for a shake.

Elijah gripped his hand firmly in a shake.

"Nice to meet you too bruh" Asher cocked an eyebrow at him. I saw you yesterday but we didn't talk" "how you coping with my sister," he asked Sheepishly.

Elijah laughed and whispered "she's a bit handful"

"It's obvious," Asher said and Adrianna slapped his back. Asher "hmph" at her.

"This is Rachel, my sister in law and that's my mother and father in law" she pointed to Darmon and his wife.

Rachel smiled at him. "you're so cute"

"Are you tripping for me?" he said and flipped his hair in a cute way. Everyone laughed.

They stood in front of Stephanie and Melanie "our sisters, stepsisters though, Melanie is the oldest" she pointed to her and this one, she whispered to him "the grumpy one, she's Stephanie". Stephanie eyed her and hiss.

"Wait!!!!" he said, "like, I'm literally the only boy, among three girls." He slapped his face. "How on earth am I gonna cope?"

Malcolm smiled "you'll do just fine, we're both men, you and I."

"Ahhhh! Asher slurred on his words "I am a man, these girls got nothing on me" he was feeling himself.

"Heyyy, watch it" his three sisters chorused together.

"Calm down lioness, I'm your king" he stretched his arms outwardly. "Kneel before me, young ladies."

The sisters look at one another, each holding a pillow cushion and threw it at him. He missed all three., he stuck his tongue out at them.

"You see, we're all gonna get along so good" Melanie cooed at him, she ruffled his hair playfully.

Asher quickly holds her hand. "You're ruining my hairstyle Melanie!" he said annoyingly. Melanie purses her lips, she looked at him and scattered his hair.

"This particular lioness, I'll deal with you" he pointed a finger at her while Rachel helped him arrange his hair.

"We'll deal with you more" the three sisters chorused again.

"Is that a deal?" Asher asked in a threatening tone.

"You girls should leave my son please," Reina said to her three daughters.

Asher was enjoying the drama between him and his step and half-sisters. For those minutes, he was genuinely happy.

"Well, children enough of the drama. let's get to the hospital." Malcolm reminded them. "Its time for visiting hours"

"I'm going with Asher and my sisters in Elijah's car, including Rachel," Adrianna said and left

"So we parents should take the other car because it's parents' car, just wow," Reina said. They ignored them and left.

"See y'all at the hospital" Rachel grinned at them.