@Imperfect_Autumn group
“Hm…” Devon hummed as she glanced over the menu. “This duck soup thing looks good… Have you had it before?”
“Hm…” Devon hummed as she glanced over the menu. “This duck soup thing looks good… Have you had it before?”
Sebastian nodded, taking hold of Layla's small hand and gently kissing each fingertip. "It's really good. My personal favourite is the rice stir fry, the one with the beef."
Layla giggled and tried to pull her hand away.
“Oh, that one looks good, too,” Devon mused as she looked over the menu again. “Hm, but what should I get Layla…?”
"Any one of the soups that don't have the little pepper thing next to them?" Sebastian suggested, continuing to kiss Layla's fingers in an attempt to make her laugh more.
Layla’s laughter bubbled out as Sebastian kissed her fingers. Devon practically melted at the sight of him playing with her, but she was careful to keep it hidden. He didn’t need to see her like that. Not yet, at least…
“All right. Then I’ll get the duck soup, and I’ll get Layla a mild one,” she said, glancing up at him with a smile.
Sebastian was 99% sure he was going to melt into a hoppy puddle every time Layla laughed. Or smiled. Or breathed. He hadn’t felt this way since….. since Arya. A dark shadow crossed his face, but he quickly dispersed it. Better to focus on the present.
"Bahstin! Bahstinbastinbastin!" Layla burbled happily, poking him in the cheek.
"It seems she's found a new favorite word," Devon mused with a light laugh.
Sebastian made a tiny sound somewhere between a squeak and an exclamation of happiness, his cheeks flushing. “She’s so cute oh my god!”
Devon bit her lip to keep from laughing. This was a new side of him that she hasn't seen, and she actually really liked it. Like, a lot…
She blushed at the thought but didn't pay any attention to the heat in her cheeks. So what if she thought that it was sweet that he liked her daughter? She could think that about anyone.
Layla continued to be bubbly and happy for a while, and Devon even ordered their food while the kiddo was distracted. Soon, though, the toddler's hungry belly got the better of her, and she started to get irritable.
Trying to cheer her up, Sebastian began bouncing her up and down on his knee, occasionally picking her up and making whooshing noises. He glanced at Devon to make sure this was okay, smiling apologetically. “Sorry, I’ve been talking more to your kid than to you. How was your day?”
"That's perfectly fine. Don't worry about it. Kids are very distracting; I should know," Devon said, laughing a bit. "My day was pretty good, actually. I got to spend the day home with Layla because the daycare was closed due to some sickness outbreak, and I couldn't find anywhere else that would take her on such short notice. So we just got some Mommy-Daughter time together at home. What about you? How was your day?"
“Aw that sounds cute.” Not used to exposing this soft side of himself, Sebastian tried to hold back, for fear of being too vulnerable. “My day was okay,” he lied. “Not very eventful. Until now.”
"Hm. Yeah. I suppose we all have days like that, huh?" Devon hummed, brushing some hair out of the toddler's eyes.
Layla still wasn't very happy about not having food, and she looked like she was about to cry. Devon, like the prepared mom she was, had food in her backpack, but she didn't want to just give it to her because then it would ruin her appetite for lunch.
Sebastian glanced back at Layla, and immediately started bouncing her up and down again. “Whoosh~” he told her teasingly, lifting her ‘high’ up into the air like an ‘airplane’,
Layla still didn't look very happy, and Devon chewed on her lip. She couldn't give in to all of her daughter's wants because it would just spoil her, and Devon didn't want to do that to her. It wouldn't help her in the long run.
"When is the food going to get here?" she muttered under her breath.
As if on cue, the waitress came back bearing three plates laden with food. A delicious aroma wafted into the air, making Sebastian’s stomach growl, he hadn’t actually eaten since lunch yesterday…. “Thank you,” he told her, shifting Layla over to her mother’s Lap.
Devon thanked the waiter for the food before thanking Sebastian for handing Layla back. Hearing his stomach growl, she smiled a bit.
"I guess Layla wasn't the only hungry one, huh?" she chuckled as she started to feed her daughter.
The tips of Sebastian’s ears turned pink, but he nodded. “Yeah, I had a small breakfast.” Small as in nonexistent, of course. Smiling a little, he raised a forkful of stir friend rice and beef to his mouth.
Devon chuckled as Layla tried to take the spoon from her to feed herself. "No, honey. Mommy's going to donut this time," she said quietly, smiling at her.
She'd eat when she was sure Layla didn't need any more food. That could be a while, but she was used to it…
Sebastian’s eyes shifted sideways to Devon, noticing that she wasn’t eating. “Are you not going to eat?” he asked, voice saturated with concern.
"No, I will. Just as soon as I'm done with Layla," Devon said, keeping her gaze on her daughter. She didn't quite trust her with the easily-spilled soup yet…
Sebastian nodded, taking another bite of the delicious stir fry. He racked his brain to come up with a conversation topic, but nothing came to mind.
"So, Sebastian. I don't think I ever asked what you do for work," Devon mused, glancing at him for a moment before she looked back at Layla.
Sebastian’s smile faltered for a moment, and he looked away, trying to regain his composure. “My dad owns a car mechanic place, I help out there,” he admitted, faking anther smile,”.
Devon’s gaze flicked across his face. If anyone could detect a fake smile, it was her. She’d had a lot of practice with them…
“Oh. Sounds interesting,” she said, finally feeding Layla the last bite of her soup. With a relieved sigh, she moved the toddler’s bowl out of the way and pulled her own bowl closer. She lifted the spoon to her lips, only to have Layla wiggle and ask to get down.
“Not yet, Layla. Mommy needs to eat first,” Devon sighed.
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