These two chapters are a bonus to celebrate the new collection received , and I will stand by my word and release two extra chapters for each new collection received 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳
Bonus Chapter(1/2)
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"Do you think this shade washes me out?" Aria asked, holding up a soft lavender blouse against her front, eyeing herself in the mirror.
From the nursery, the sound of a baby cooing—then another grumble—floated through the apartment. Leon's voice followed, calm and melodic, "No, sweetheart. You could wear a paper bag and still look radiant."
Aria snorted, her reflection raising a brow. "That's not helpful. This is our first family photo. I want us to look like we have our lives together."
Leon appeared in the doorway a moment later, Elias in one arm, Amara resting her chin on his shoulder like a sleepy queen surveying her kingdom. "Darling," he said dryly, "we don't have our lives together. But we're surviving. And they're fed and happy. That counts."
She sighed, letting the blouse fall onto the bed. "I just… want it to be right."
"It will be," he said, crossing the room and brushing a kiss to her cheek. "Even if Lila spits up on me mid-shot and Amara tries to escape frame like the tiny criminal mastermind she is."
Aria smiled reluctantly and took Elias from him, nuzzling the top of their son's silky hair. "I think Elias will be the only one who behaves."
Leon nodded. "He's a professional. Took after his father."
She burst out laughing. "Says the man who tried to button Lila's cardigan upside down."
"She was wiggling like a fish! And glaring at me. Fiercely."
They began trying out outfits that afternoon—tiny floral dresses for the girls, one in pastel peach, the other a gentle sage green. Elias had a tiny suspender set that Aria nearly cried over when she held it up.
"Who made these this small?" she whispered. "Was I out of my mind when I ordered these?"
Leon smiled faintly. "Yes. You were sleep-deprived and nesting."
As for their own outfits, Aria leaned toward something elegant but soft, eventually choosing a pale blue wrap dress that hugged her just right. Leon tried on a few shirt options before settling on a classic white button-down and grey slacks, rolled at the sleeves—simple, timeless, and entirely him.
The real battle came with getting the babies used to the idea of sitting still. Lila would have none of it, chewing on her frilly sleeve and shrieking with delight every time someone tried to straighten her headband. Amara was determined to lie sideways. Elias, true to form, sat upright like a solemn judge, watching his sisters with mild disdain.
"We need to rehearse," Aria muttered, standing behind the phone tripod Leon had set up. "Maybe if we practice the poses, they'll get used to it?"
Leon gave her a long look. "Darling. They are three weeks old."
"Still. Exposure therapy."
He laughed, setting the camera to timer mode and sitting beside her on the floor. One by one, the babies were passed to laps and positioned as best as possible. The first few test shots were a chaotic blur—half-blinks, flailing limbs, Leon blinking, Aria mid-sneeze.
By the sixth try, Leon just sighed and reached to tickle Amara's foot. "All right. We'll bribe them with cuddles. Let them nap after. You get the shot you want, and I'll accept that one of them will be blurry."
Aria leaned into him, laughter spilling from her chest. "You're really taking this well."
"I've been peed on twice this week and negotiated a merger while holding a screaming baby. Nothing phases me anymore."
They didn't get the perfect picture that day—but they did get something better: Aria and Leon looking at each other with raw joy, babies nestled between them in various states of fuss, love smeared across every pixel.
Aria looked at the photos later that night, curled on the couch with Leon beside her.
"They're perfect," she whispered.
He kissed the top of her head. "So are you."