Shattered By Broken Dreams

21 years ago

Matt’s POV

She won the hand. That had to be the dumbest idea I ever had. I should have known better, I was the one who taught her to beat me, but I never thought she would.

I knew she loved me and that this was only a break, but how long was this supposed to last? The babies were good, they hardly cried and I was grateful for that. The last thing we both needed was more stress.

I’d asked her to stay in the house and offered to give her my room, but she said she would stay in the guest room and she did. We agreed that one week I would get up at night to feed the kids and one week she would get up and that is how it would go. There were those nights though, that I lied and got up. I would find her in the nursery feeding one of the babies while the other slept and would lie to her face telling her that I forgot and thought it was my turn to get up, just so I could be alone with her for a simple moment.

“What are you doing here?” she said softly holding our son in her arms while he drank from the bottle of formula.

“It’s not my turn?” I asked and she saw right through me.

“You used that excuse last night” she smiled.

“Ok you got me” I threw my hands in the air and walked over to her and knelt down to look at our son. “I just wanted to be close to them” I lied, I wanted to be close to her.

“I think he looks just like you. He sure can eat like you” she smiled.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She laughed. “Lets just say he has a healthy appetite”

Seven started to cry over in the crib and I stood up. “I’ll get her”

I picked up my daughter and walked back over to Sydney taking the bottle that was waiting on the table. “She is just like you”

“How so?”

“She only has to look at me to have me wrapped around her little fingers”

“Oh, are you saying she’s already spoiled?” Sydney asked

“Oh you have no idea how I intend to spoil her” and I did.

One year later….1st birthday

It had been a year since the twins along with Zacky’s son were born and today there was a big party at the house. It had also been a year since we separated and there didn’t seem to be any hope of us getting back together.

I tried and she rejected my advances and when she tried, I rejected her. It was that stubbornness in both of us that was hurting us most and turning us against each other instead of bringing us back together.

“Matt, can you get Seven she’s eating the cake with her hands and it’s all over her.” Sydney yelled from the sink where she was cleaning the cake off of Lyric along side Aubrey with Blade.

“Yeah, I got her.” I walked over to the high chair where Seven sat with a face full of cake. She had more on her then in her.

“You made a mess” I said when I picked her up out of the high chair. She kissed my cheek and got cake all over my face. “Thanks for sharing” I laughed and I walked her over to the sink. Syd was finished with Lyric and was drying him off with a towel. Our hands touched when I reached for the washcloth and she turned her gaze back to our son. I saw the sadness in her eyes when she looked up at me. Had I not been holding our daughter I would have reached for her chin and kissed her.

She picked up Lyric and brought him upstairs to get him ready for bed. Our little moment had come and passed. I was beginning to think that we were over or good.

Present Day

“Matt?”

“Matty?”

“MATTHEW!” Sydney yelled from the bed. I walked out of the bathroom and over to where she sat.

“What is it, Sydney?” I smiled sitting down beside her knowing exactly what she was going to say as I had been through this routine before.

“I love you” she smiled and put her arms around my neck.

“I love you too” I laughed. She moved the covers of the bed so I could get in beside her and she showed me just how much she loved me. With her lips, her hands and her body she showed me how much she loved me.

Afterwards, she lay with her head on my chest tracing a finger over my tattoos.

“Matt?”

“hmm?”

“Please talk to Seven” I was a little caught off guard.

“I will.”

“Tomorrow? Please. I don’t want to lose my daughter because of this” she looked up at me with those big green eyes and it was impossible to say no to her.

“Ok” I nodded.

“She’s in good hands with Legend and I know some part of you believes that. Please give them your blessing. You know you wouldn’t be able to live with yourself if she went off and eloped.”

She was right. I nodded and tried to keep my emotions from coming to the surface. “Ok” I whispered.

“OK?”

“Yeah, Ok. Now stop pushing it before I change my mind”

She laughed and kissed me once more. “Thank you”

“You’re welcome, now go to sleep” I winked and kissed her back.

When the morning came I got up and Syd was already showered and getting dressed. I sat up in bed watching her pull her shirt over her head. Even after all these years, she was still stunning to me. Some days I actually found myself staring at her without even realizing it.

“I called the kids and told them that you wanted to speak with them this morning. I hope that’s ok.”

I nodded and got up out of the bed and pulled on my jeans. After kissing my wife good morning I walked into the bathroom to wash up and told her I would be down in a bit.

When I came out of the bathroom, Sydney wasn’t in the room. I had assumed she was already downstairs waiting for me with Seven and Legend. So, once and for all, it was time to go down there and get my heart broken.

I walked into the living room and there was no one there. “SYD?” I called out to her.

“In the kitchen, baby” she yelled back and I followed her voice through the kitchen door.

Seven and Legend had brought breakfast with them and they were seated at the counter with Sydney.

“Hi daddy” my little girl smiled warmly and I walked over and kissed her. “Hi, princess”

I sat down at the empty stool next to my wife and took the cup of coffee that she had waiting for me. After taking a sip, I looked up at both kids sitting across from me. It was then in that moment that it was evident they were not kids anymore.

“I want the wedding to be here at the house at my expense and I will walk my daughter down the isle, but I will never give her away. I want the entire family there and your honeymoon will be my gift to you anywhere you choose. I want Jimmy and Tera to be a part of the planning process, as will your mother and I. If you want my blessing, then those are my conditions, take it or leave it.”

Seven got up from her stool and came around my side of the counter and put her arms around my neck. “I’ll take it” she said and kissed my cheek. “I love you!”

“I love you too, princess.” I smiled although inside it was killing me.

“Thank you” Legend said from the other side of the counter. I nodded all the while knowing that he loved her and now that she was marrying him, she would no longer need me.

Seven grabbed Legend’s hand and dragged him out of the kitchen to go find his parents so they could tell them the news.

“Are you ok?” Sydney asked me and I grabbed her hand and kissed it. “Yeah, I’m fine”

She smiled at me and rubbed my back in a loving way. A thought had occurred to me as we sat there having breakfast.

“Marry me, Syd” I said looking at her seriously.

“We’re already married, silly” she smiled

“Marry me again, lets renew our vows”

“Are you serious?” she asked me. “You are serious!” she smiled. “Ok, lets do it.”

“We’ll go away, just you and me some place warm” I said.

“How about that place in Mexico where you took me for my 20th birthday?”

I nodded. “Yeah, we’ll go there and we’ll get married again.”

She put her arms around me and kissed my lips. “You are just full of surprises today aren’t you?”

“mmm hmm, and the day has just begun” I didn’t elaborate on that, I left her to wonder what else I had in store for her.