Chapter 14 - Birthday Bash and Drama

Everything had settled into a predictable routine. It was exhausting for Delia. She was taking care of three boys while Francisco worked longer and longer hours so she didn't have to try to hold down a job.

Birthdays continued – the boys are just growing up so fast. After the "Darius Birthday Fire" as they called it, Delia was a little afraid to hold Duncan and help him blow out candles, so Francisco did the honors.

Duncan looks even more like his father than Daniel did. He is by far the sweetest
and calmest of the three boys and finds joy in all things such as throwing his food in floor to see if he could make someone pick it up.

Daniel, on the other hand, was turning 16 and he wanted party. So a party he would have! Delia invited over several of his friends from school and they had a very fun birthday party and lots of chocolate cake.

All Daniel can talk about is the Prom coming up soon and which girl he will invite.  Girls were no longer 'stupid' and there quite a few girls he would certainly like to get to know better.
Yes, her babies were growing up too fast.  And when he wasn't talking about the girls, he was hounding his mom to teach him how to drive. They had the cool 'Wilbermobile' as they had affectionately named their huge black Van. Delia told him he would have to wait and have his father do that, she simply didn't have the time and she wasn't going to haul a toddler and 8 year-old with her.  

Taking care of the family was definitely a full time job for Delia and she loved every minute of it. She thought back to when she was a young girl and had only her mother's company. Francisco just took all of this for granted. How could he forget that she was alone when they met? She started to feel a little anger over his absentee fatherhood.  He was working really hard.  But he stayed late – a lot. And that was hard. Delia missed him and the boys did too.

One night he came home a little tipsy after supposedly being at an important client meeting - again. That set her off. She loved him very much and was more hurt than anything. That night, Francisco slept in Darius’s bed after a very heated argument.    

The next day he apologized to Delia and promised to do better. Daniel's bed was comfortable enough, but it wasn't the same as snuggling up next to Delia!  He made sure he helped out with Duncan. Remembering the fun they had when Daniel was little at the Summer Festival, he promised to take the family to the fall festival as soon as the rain stopped. 

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