I opened my eyes in a flick with a louder than normal beating heart gasping for air, panting heavily. I looked at my surroundings to have found myself in the car still in that gorgeous dress while Vian pulled over to check on me.

"What's wrong? Was it a nightmare?" He asked, seeing my state, and brought his hands forward to my face and caressed my cheeks. He put his one hand on the back of my head and pulled me toward him, that my head was now peacefully resting on his shoulder.

"It was a dream?" I asked, perplexed by my state. He caressed my hair and hummed in response.

"There is something wrong with me? What if... what if I know where you're taking me... w-will you believe that there is something wrong with me?" I stuttered as I talked in between my uneven breathing.

"How could you know, love? We haven't reached our destination." The simple reply was easy to form where I was contemplating whether to tell him or not. The time I decided, that not to get him all worried up because of a simple dream, I should stay quiet for now. But I made it clear in my head that I will tell him everything at night.

But what was I going to tell him? That I see things which might get true some or the other way. The fact that I have hidden this thing from him is already eating me up. I should have told him earlier. Despite my mom and Xavier already knowing about this condition of mine, which I was unaware of, makes me even more curious as well as terrified.

After a while, when I got cooled down a bit. The directions of the road were making it more clear for me that we were reaching that palace. And once we reached there, I had to force a surprised face just as I had in my dream to show my genuine happiness and joyousness toward Vian for thinking all of this for me.

I saw Casey and I won't be lying if I knew that she was wearing a Cinderella dress with a small crown sitting on her head which I was aware of with specifications to be exact.

She blindfolded me after complimenting me of how pretty I was looking in that dress, and lead me to that big, massive door of the castle.

She opened the door and pushed me in and closed the door with a loud thud. I was afraid of pulling off the blindfold because I didn't want to witness what I had witnessed before. In that freaking dream. It feels like I'm living my dreams, and the thought of them living my whole life creeps me out.

I heard a pop sound which startled me. My blindfold was taken off by someone and I accepted my fate of what was ahead of me as I shut my eyes. Those hands felt familiar. Very familiar. Emotionally familiar.

"Happy birthday, Josephine!!" A group of people cheered for me with their voices complementing each other's as I opened my eyes and realized that it was indeed a castle and my eyes dropped to the person I didn't know existed? The most not promising person in this world who was the last person I had ever expected here to be.

"Dad..." I whispered. It was intended to be resounded like his ears could listen to my voice, but that very own word 'dad' didn't leave my mouth. It barely came out as a whisper, and I was sure it wasn't audible.

My heart clenched seeing him. He was standing right in front of me with my mom and my aunt at the back with the whole squad and some other friends from my neighborhood and college as well.

A sudden silence took over. "How?" I asked, my voice choking as I inhaled a deep breath to calm my senses. New tears ran down my cheeks, I didn't even realize when the old one came and dried up too.

"Josephine, my little girl," my dad spoke, and hearing his voice after so long pierced through my heart. "Stop, don't come any closer," I said, but I knew I didn't mean it.

A part of me wanted to turn back, open the door and just leave from here and not see his face again. I accept, I accept the fact that I was mad at him. So mad. But another part of me wanted to run toward him and hug him tight and never leave him.

I want to help. Go and hug him. Before I lose my temper, patience and cry out loud.

I heard my inner voice and without thinking I took a step toward him. Before I could reach him, he engulfed me in his embrace and stroked my head multiple times. "My daughter, Happy birthday, my daughter," he said in his wrinkly voice. The sound of me crying could be easily heard as I couldn't stop myself from falling apart. The feeling of his hug felt different yet familiar, it felt new yet old. I felt at home yet begging him to not seal the home forever.

It's been years since he left mom and me. How was he here? What would mom think? I thought and immediately spoke out loud, "Mom?!" I shouted and broke the hug. I looked at her, who was trying to control her tears, but was failing miserably at it.

"How?" I asked. I didn't care if these many people were there, but I just wanted to know everything. Where was he all this time? Why did he leave us? So many questions were in my mind that I couldn't agree on which one to ask first.

"I'm sorry Josephine, our company got bankrupt, I had nowhere to be, it was for the best to leave you to be so that the lenders wouldn't annoy you. I had to leave. Please, forgive me," he started to explain.

What even... is this even a valid reason to leave their wife and daughter?

"We were in this together, dad," I spoke, looking at the light above my head. I didn't want eye contact with anyone at that point.

"Why are you back now?" I asked, trying to compose myself. The anger that was building within me got out of control, making me drop venom out of my mouth. It was not how I wanted to behave especially on this day in front of everyone, yet all those emotions kept hidden in the corner of a small place of my heart wanted to suddenly blow out like there was no tomorrow.

"I thought you couldn't find me here, so I took a flight with the leftover money and reached Sweden. A few days back, I was at the convenience store working my shift when a guy approached me, he knew me. But I didn't. He knew I was your father and brought me here." He explained.

"Please forgive me, please, I knew I made a mistake, but I got afraid, I never wanted to break our family," he pleaded and folded his hands in front of mom and me in guilt. He was genuinely speaking because I know dad couldn't lie. He doesn't know how to lie. He could never.

"I have forgiven him, Jo, but I won't force you into this. Listen to your heart." Mom said and held dad's hand with her eyes sparkling with tears yet a small smile tugging at her lips.

A few minutes passed of them looking at me and me at the other people who were oblivious to the fact that I just reunited with my father.
I smiled at him, and we did a family hug. Xavier squished himself in, and we all cried while laughing.

"Who is this guy? Your boyfriend?" Dad asked me, playfully wriggling his eyes at me after I hugged him again.

"No, he's Xavier, after you left, he took care of me and mom, sometimes like an elder brother, sometimes like a best friend, and sometimes like a nagging younger brother," I told him smacking at Xav's arm.

"Aunt Bella!" He whined and his nagging started.

"Don't say anything to my kid," she said to me. And I lost it.

Let's go, we are homeless.

"Your mom told me about Xavier, I was talking about that guy, who brought me here. And set up this special arrangement for you."

He pointed at Vian standing at a lost corner looking and smiling at my small reunion with my father. He immediately turned around and softly wiped at his eyes. He turned to us again and walked with a smile.

"Vian..." I said, as he made his one arm wrap around my waist while bowing at my dad and mom again.

"How's the surprise?" He asked me, and I was at a loss for words again. He made mom and aunt fly here from New York, he found my dad and reunited our family. What could I expect more? I fell in love with him all over again.

"Come here, son," my father said and pulled him into a big hug. Vian was smiling at being called son and I couldn't stop myself from grinning a big toothy smile.

"It would be an understatement if I just say a thank you to you for all this you have done for me. It's the best birthday ever. I'm still in shock," I said to him.

"Don't thank me now, there's a bigger surprise as well," he chimed.

What could be bigger than him doing all this for me? Time passed by and the time toward nigh came after I got a lot of Déjà vu from roaming in the castle in astonishment. I cut the cake in the end and my birthday wish was all the happiness for my loved ones, especially, Vian.

"Wait! The party is not over yet!" Vian said into the mic.

He walked towards me slowly, and his footsteps echoed with each step he took. I was standing in the middle with the dim lights and a spotlight falling on my face. He bent on his one knee and asked me to dance. I held his big veiny hand with my small one, and he twirled me into his embrace immediately.

A slow soft song played in the background and my eyes and mind towards only the person who was standing this close to me.

We were standing this close that his breath was fanning over my face, sending sparks of electricity to my whole body. He took both my hands and kept them on his shoulders. His hands traveled down my waist, and we started swaying to the music. It felt like nobody was watching us, only we were there in our own special moment.

He was looking ethereal, and my heart fluttered by just his deep gaze falling into mine. I removed my one hand from his shoulder to tuck my hair strands behind my ear. But he held my hand and kept it back. He leaned more forward and blew on the hair strands, moving them from his lips to the side, and kissed my forehead.

"You look so beautiful," He whispered into my ear.

I couldn't stop blushing and whispered back, "You know how to be romantic, Mr. Marshall."

The song had stopped, but it didn't affect our rhythm. Just seeing in his brown eyes was the melody for me to dance on.

"Excuse me love birds, sorry to disturb you, but I think the song has stopped," Kia said from the back and everyone laughed.

Vian's face was red as a tomato as we moved back. He had his head low and glanced at me with a slight smirk on his face. Everyone in the family started chattering about Xavier and Casey, when Vian took my hand in his and dragged me somewhere. We were in this dark room away from everyone when he pulled out a box and wished me a happy birthday once again.

"What's that?" I asked.

"For you, your highness." He said, making me feel like I am a queen or something.

I took the box and opened it. It had two bracelets in it. One was with a lock charm and the other with a key charm.

"You are the only key to my heart, and I wish to be locked and loved by you only. The day I saw you I felt something in me like I have gained a reason to live. I had this urge to protect you, to keep you safe, and never let you go. I was afraid that I might lose you, that my destiny has nothing good planned for me. But I couldn't stop myself from loving you, from falling for you and I promise that I will bring this dream to reality, I promise."

But this is reality, right?

His words made me emotional, I knew I loved him and I promised him that I will stay by his side no matter what.

He tied the key charm bracelet on my arm, and I did the same with the lock one on his. It was so thoughtful of him that I couldn't help but sob. He told me that it was not just a simple bracelet but it had something specially designed in it that he would tell me later.

How my life was so happy? Only if I knew, that later was never supposed to come, that his last surprise was going to be life changing, that it was going to vanish what was ahead for me to come.

─•~❉᯽❉~•─

Thoughts?🦋