[Spirit of Lust 2] Chapters 657 & 658.

Chapter 657: To the park.

Sarah and I were well aware that going to the theme park with her siblings meant the experience was 100% meant for them to enjoy, not us. The most obvious part of that is that you have to be over 1.60 meters tall to get on most rides. If you’re not, then there are the kid’s rides, which are on the other side of the park. It wasn’t a problem for Robert and Violet, in fact they were pretty excited about it. The issue was that Cola really was getting closer to that awkward age where it’s embarrassing to enjoy ‘kid’s stuff’, but you’re also not old or tall enough to experience the stuff for grown ups. The kid had grown taller, yeah. He used to reach around my chest when I first met him, but now he reached a little past my neck. Talk about a growth sprout, but even then, he still wasn’t tall enough to get on the bigger rides.

Families walked past us, mothers and fathers with their kids riding on their shoulders, holding hands, running ahead… You know, the usual. I looked around out of curiosity, but I didn’t see any other people our age around this sector. Not that it was weird. I just noticed.

“Do you guys want to get on the roller coaster?” Sarah asked them, pointing to it as we walked closer.

“Yeah! Yeah!” Robert said, jumping in excitement.

“Is it too fast?” Violet asked nervously.

“Not much. Only in that drop. See?” The roller coaster in this case was small, with short climbs and drops and soft curves.

“Th-Then yes, I want to go!” Violet said, giggling.

“...” Cole sulked quietly, hands in his pockets as he looked at the ride. “I’m good.”

Sarah sighed. “Cole…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll stay with him while you three get on. I’ll record you.”

Sarah smiled. “Thanks.”

They got in line to wait while Cole and I waited behind the railing, watching the dragon-shaped train. “Don’t like roller coasters?” I asked him.

“This one’s for kids,” he said, confirming my suspicions.

“Yeah, but the ones for adults are a little too intense for me,” I told him. “Still, give it another year and you’ll be able to get on those.”

“...”

“Where do you want to go next?”

“All the stuff here is for kids. It’s all boring,” he said, almost pouting.

“Are you sure? The bumper cars don’t have a height restriction, and you’re tall enough to get in one on your own.”

“...I forgot about the bumper cars.”

“And we’d have to go all the way back to the adult area, but there’s this one where you get on a raft and go down a huge water slide. You can fit six people in the raft, so we could all go together.”

“...Could we get wet? It’s kinda hot today.”

“You’re right, it is. But if you want to get wet, then there’s this spot at the end of one of the rides that splashes a huge wave of water that leave you drenched from head to toe. With how hot it is, we’d be dry in 20 minutes.”

“Oh, I want to go to that!”

“Cool, me too. Let’s try to convince your sisters,” I told him, grinning.

“Yeah, Robert will join us immediately. Violet might get scared.”

“What do you feel like eating later? I hear the hamburgers here aren’t very good.”

“...Can we have pizza?”

“Sure. There’s a food court, so we can all order whatever we want. Seriously, though, don’t get a hamburger. I trust my sources.”

My source in this case being Kevin. He told me he had a hamburger here and got sick just 10 minutes after. Lena teases him that he threw up because of the rides, but Kevin insists it was the hamburger. Whatever the case, not taking risks.

Sarah, Violet and Robert got on one of the carts, all three of them together in a single one, and soon after the ride started. I got out my phone and recorded them as they went past us. I sent the video to Mr. and Mrs. West immediately. Mrs. West answered with a heart emoji, while Mr. West asked me how Cole was doing. Told him he was beside me and that he wanted to go to the bumper cars next. He thanked me, which was unnecessary.

Violet and Rober exited the ride, jumping and giggling. “What’s next? What’s next!?” Robert asked.

We went to the bumper cars, just as promised. I got in a car with Robert while Sarah got in one with Violet and Cole was allowed to drive his own. He made it his mission to chase his sisters, while Robert and I hit whoever was in a bad spot.

After we got out, we went to that spot I mentioned before, the place where a wave of water splashed people after a big raft drove through.

“Be careful,” Sarah said. “The water hits a bit hard. Stand firm so you don’t fall.”

Violet looked nervous as the raft approached, so I stood behind her and held her shoulders. “Don’t worry. Just close your eyes. I’ve got you.”

She nodded at me and closed her eyes shut. The wave hit us, leaving us dripping. We waited for another one to splash us on our backs, then went over to the water slide.

I don’t think Cole even noticed when he started to have fun. We tried to earn some prizes at a shooting game, we rode a train that circled the entire park and then went to the food court to eat. I warned everyone about the hamburgers.

When we were close to finishing eating, Sarah sneakily sent me a text. I checked it.

-Sarah: This seems like a good opportunity. Want me to give you a moment alone with them to talk?

I felt my chest freezing, but I met Sarah’s eyes and nodded her way. Right after, she excused herself to go to the restroom and left me alone with her three siblings.

************

Chapter 658: Heart-to-heart.

It was hard to bring it up to them. We were sitting at a table in the food court, with people, families, walking past us and sitting around us. Not only that, but we still had a few hours left here, if we wanted to. Bringing it up now… Well, didn’t matter. If this didn’t turn out well, the day would be soured anyway.

“Hey, guys, can you… give me a moment? There’s something I need to talk to you about.”

Violet and Robert looked up from their plates, looking up at me curiously. Cole, however, tensed up. He likely had a feeling what this was about. Still, none of them said anything.

“Your big sister and I… Some time ago, I asked her if she’d live with me in my new house and she said yes. I know she told you already, but Sarah and I will be moving in together some time soon. Or… That’s what I hope, at least. I wanted to ask you what you thought about it, hopefully get your approval?”

Rober’s face fell and Violet looked down to hide her grimace. Cole kept looking at me with a scowl.

“Our approval?” Robert asked, his voice soft.

“I… I don’t want Sarah to go away,” Violet said.

“The thing is… Your sister loves you three. She loves you so, so much. And it’s obvious how much she means to you, too. I realized I made a mistake. I should’ve asked you three how you felt about it. See… Your sister… She means a lot to me as well, but I don’t mean to take her away from you.”

“B-But… But she’s going away…” Violet said, holding back her sobs.

“Why does she have to move out?” Robert asked, looking at me with genuine confusion.

“We’re… about to enter university. It’s a stage in school where people our age start to learn more about living on our own. Your sister and I, when we were talking about what we’d do, we came to the conclusion that if we were going to move away from our homes, then we would like to stay together.”

“So… She’s going to go anyway?” Robert asked, his mouth turned upside down.

“Even if it’s not with you?” Violet asked.

“In the end, it really is up to her. But what I wanted to tell you is… I know you three love your sister, and I wanted to ask you if you’d let me love her with you. I won’t ever take your big sister away from you, but… can I love Sarah, too?”

I felt lightheaded. I wasn’t sure if my feelings were getting through, I worried that I was being too vague for them. Talking to kids about something as complex as love… I was out of my depth. But despite that…

“...Sarah would be sad if we said no,” Cole said, looking down at the table. “B-But you have to treat her well!” he told me firmly.

I nodded. “I promise.”

“Will… Will she come back to see us?” Violet asked, rubbing the tears out of her eyes with her wrist.

“Of course. Just ask her. And you can visit her at our house whenever you want.”

“Really?” Robert asked, eyes brightening.

“She’d love to have you. And so would I, really. I like hanging out with you guys.”

Robert and Violet looked at each other and giggled. “Then… It’s okay,” the girl said. “I don’t want her to leave, but if she has to…”

“It’d be great if you could tell her that yourselves. She’s been feeling really guilty lately. She doesn’t want to leave you, either. If she had your approval, she’d feel a lot better.” I looked at Cole as I said that, and I think he understood.

He was quiet, which got me a little worried. Actually, that none of them said much made me think they didn’t fully understand what I was saying, but… Maybe they did and simply didn’t know what to say. I know what that’s like.

Sarah came back a moment later, and this time I was the one who excused himself to go to the restroom, leaving her some room to talk to them. Maybe we should’ve talked to them together, but I didn’t want them to feel like two ‘grown ups’ were ganging up on them and forcing them to accept something.

I still felt my heart racing, but after I went back to them and we exited the food court, Sarah gave me a quick kiss on the cheek while her siblings weren’t looking. That said a lot.

“I don’t know what you told them, but I think they’re more comfortable with the idea of us moving in together now,” she told me.

“I don’t know. I feel like I blurted out too many things and was worried I confused them.”

“Hey, they’re my brothers and my sister. They’re smart.”

I chuckled. “I suppose they are.”

“It’s not like they’re suddenly over it, but as time passes they’ll come around to it. I’m sure the first few months will be hard on them, but… You told them they could visit?”

“Yeah. Of course they can.”

Sarah smiled. “Thanks.”

Thankfully, the mood wasn’t totally ruined. After going on a few more rides, the kids had mostly forgotten about the conversation and were just focused on having fun. Cole tried to play the part of the brave older brother and insisted we go into the haunted house. Robert and Violet didn’t dare to go, so I took that as my excuse to stay away from it, too, while Sarah and Cole went in.

Sarah didn’t say anything, but given her smirk, Cole had bitten off more than he could chew. We didn’t tease him, though. 

We left when the sun started to set. They dropped me off at my house before they returned to theirs. Then, as I was having dinner with my family, I got a text from Mr. West.

-Mr. West: Thank you for today. The kids can’t stop talking about everything they did.

-Oliver: It was my pleasure. They’re good kids.

-Mr. West: Feel free to visit whenever you like, okay?

At least knowing I had her parents’ blessing was a huge weight off my shoulders.