When You Try Your Best, But You Don't Succeed
~
June 12th, 2019
Massachusetts, New York
Ezio's Penthouse

Ezio's P.O.V.

9:23 pm.

       "What the hell, Eva. I don't even know how to change a diaper!" I exclaimed, rubbing my temples rather aggressively.

Evalena scoffed and rolled her eyes as she handed the diaper bag to me. "You'll be fine. Search online on how to do it if you and Cambria don't come around tonight. Plus, I don't have a last-minute sitter tonight, so please?" She clasped her hands, giving her familiar puppy-dog eyes I've gotten used to, yet to resist.

"Why not mom and dad?" I asked, crossing my arms. "They already dealt with us enough. Let them enjoy retirement together." She scoffs.

I pinch the bridge of my nose, a groan following. "You're lucky I'm free tonight," I muttered distastefully. She grinned ear-to-ear before handing all the items she brought along with her.

I wanted to watch the sports channel tonight with a beer and peace of mind, but apparently, my sister had other plans. I needed to get my mind off of some things, especially the argument with Cambria.

Evalena handed me a black piece of item that looked like it could be strapped to a body. "This is a baby carrier, Ezio. She tends to fall asleep when she's laying on someone. Use this and you can multitask by doing whatever is you do and put her to bed at the same time." She explains. I grimace before letting go of the carrier onto the floor.

Finally, she gently pushed the bassinet stroller that held my niece who was peacefully sleeping.

"She's napping right now, so I'll text you the schedule what to do once she wakes up. Thank you so much, Ezio. I owe you." She says, leaning up to kiss my cheek. I shrugged. "It's not like I had a choice," I muttered.

She smirked before leaving a soft kiss on Ilyssa's round cheeks. After saying goodbye, Evalena disappeared behind the elevator doors. I glanced back down to all the bags that were overpacked to the brim. I left them there as I strolled Ilyssa through my penthouse. I left her stroller next to the couch where I was going to spend the next couple of hours watching my game.

Reheating my takeout, I heard the elevator ding. "Eva, if you're here to check on us, we're fine! We haven't died yet." I raised my voice enough for her to hear, but not to wake up Ilyssa. The thunder stroke loudly, but I didn't hear a cry from Ilyssa who was resting in the living room. The sound of the rain pelting against my windows unwinded my nerves.

I paused my actions when I didn't get a response. My eyes didn't leave the kitchen doorway that connected with my living room, where Ilyssa was. My hands slipped into the drawer next to me, grasping onto the deadly weapon. My eyes flickered between Ilyssa's bassinet and the direction of where the elevator was.

I unloaded the gun, checking to see the bullets were in the magazine. I felt my heart pound as I managed my breath, not admitting that I was scared of what I am about to approach with my niece nearby. My eyebrows furrowed, hearing faint sounds down the hallway.

My eyes followed the familiar figure that stood in my dim-lit hallway. I sighed, sliding my gun in my pants as I approached my brother who was found dripping wet.

"Aleksander? You scared me, man. What are you doing here?" My eyes flickered between his strange behavior and the towel I was grabbing out from the chest nearby.

His empty eyes barely met mine, and I felt chills down my spine. I held up the towel in his direction, and he grabbed it after a few eery seconds. "Alex?"

He shrugged in response, not choosing to respond to me verbally. From anyone's eyes, they could tell that my brother had things going on. I never have seen him before like this. He was that cheerful and playful guy everyone knew and loved. He brought everyone else's mood up by just being in their presence.

"What brings you here?" I ask him, receiving no response other than a shrug. His eyes were blank which spiked concern. "What the hell happened?"

He shrugged in response again. I decided to leave him at that, not wanting to push him further until he chose to open up to me.

I don't want to seem selfish, but it seems like I wouldn't get the peaceful night that I hoped for, alone.

"You want some food? I ordered—made Chinese food." I attempted to slip up on my joke, but he didn't react which was strange of him. He shrugged again which made me sigh internally. I wish I knew what was going on with the kid.

"I'll go warm up some food for you. You go ahead and dry up in your room. I got some spare clothes you can borrow in my room. You already know where it is, right?"

He didn't respond by using his words. He turned to walk down the hallway where the bedrooms were, disappearing into one of the guest bedrooms that I turned into his own.

Aleksander occasionally stays with me when we haven't seen each other in a while. I've been traveling for the past year with modeling gigs and business opportunities, and I've just got the chance to settle down for a bit. Sometimes, when my parents become too much for Aleksander to handle, I offer for him to stay with me.

I walked back into the living room to check up on Ilyssa. She was sound asleep. Her chunky thumb that she was once sucking on fell out of her mouth along with some drool. It was a bit disgusting if I'm being honest. I pulled the blanket to cover her chest before tucking it in, wiping her drool with her blanket because I was lazy to get a cloth.

As promised, I warmed up Aleksander's plate. I walked into the living room, seeing Aleksander walking in at the same time as me. "Here's your plate." I offered. "What do you want to drink?"

"Water is fine." He mumbled. I nodded, a bit satisfied with his first worded response. I slipped into the kitchen to grab our drinks, grabbing myself a beer.

I noticed Aleksander's eyes on Ilyssa, probably wondering what was she doing here. "Last minute babysitting by yours truly," I said, catching his attention. Sitting next to him, I placed our drinks down on the coffee table.

"You can talk to me when you're ready. I won't force you." I wanted to add. He nodded, but his eyes were focused on his fiddled fingers.

Eating in silence, I couldn't pay attention to the game. My mind was worried about my brother who never acted this way before.

I heard Ilyssa's cries from her bassinet. Luckily, I was close to finishing my dinner. When her eyes met mine, her cries softened. "Hi, Ilyssa!" I grasped her chunky small hands into my larger ones. I fiddled with them, making goofy faces as she calmed down, sniffling as her marble eyes were widened to see me.

"Can you grab her diaper bag, Alex? Her bottle is in there." I picked up Ilyssa who gurgled her saliva from excitement. I grimaced before Aleksander handed me her bottle. Thanking him, I took a seat as I attempted to sit Ilyssa straight on my lap.

I was about to put the nipple in her mouth, but Aleksander protested. "That's now how you hold a baby to feed them." He mumbled. "And you forgot her bib. Her clothes are going to be soaked in milk by the time you're finished."

I glanced between the bottle and how I was holding her. "Well, how else am I supposed to hold her?"

He leans over, picking her up before placing her lying down with her head supported. "She's still a newborn. Her body is all sensitive and wobbly."

I stared at him, astonished. I was surprised to see how he was more skilled at taking care of a baby more than I was. He did see Ilyssa more often than I did though.

"You're going to be a great uncle," I mumbled as he clipped on her bib. Ilyssa's big hazel eyes were burning at the bottle in my hand.

"What do you mean? I'm already an uncle." He mumbled, sitting back.

Suddenly, I realized who I didn't tell. I told my family and Cambria, but I forgot to tell my brother. I assumed he was aware since he's been hanging with Vera a lot recently.

"Alek, I have to tell you something." I placed the nipple of the bottle into Ilyssa's mouth who accepted eagerly. She sucked hard enough for me to fight to hold the bottle.

He waited for me to respond, but I wasn't sure where to start. Even if I liked it or not, I was going to be apart of their life. I couldn't have Aleksander force himself away from Xavier.

"Remember how Vera and I met at the beginning of the year? You introduced us?"

He nodded but didn't respond. "And I didn't come home that night." His eyebrows were furrowed at this point, but he didn't respond, letting me continue.

"We did some things and now she's—" I paused, not sure how to confess. He grimaced. "That baby is mine." I blurted. As if on cue, Ilyssa plopped out the nipple, taking a breath. She gave us a wide grin, showing off her literal toothless grin. She began jumping in my lap.

"So you're telling me that you guys had sex—" I flinched internally at the word. "—and now she's carrying your child. You're telling me this now? I'm going to have a niece and nephew? Who else knows?"

I hesitantly answered all the questions he was blabbering out. Ilyssa continued to finish her milk as I did.

"And I told her I don't want to be apart of their life—"

"You what?" He raised his voice and I clenched my jaw. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

"What am I supposed to do? She kept it knowing that it'll drag me back in. I have a life to live and I'm not letting a baby pull me back." I complained.

Aleksander looked at me with disgust which had me roll my eyes. "How could you say that while carrying her?" He pointed at Ilyssa.

I glanced back at her who was finishing up her milk eagerly. Her hazel eyes looked at mine silently, aggressively sucking on the nipple of the bottle.

"Whether I like it or not, I'll be involved somehow. Eva is becoming friends with Vera and you're friends with Xavier. I won't ask for you to stop talking to him because—"

"He's gone, anyway." He muttered, not looking my way anymore.

"What?"

Ilyssa spits out the empty bottle from her mouth. "You have to burp her now. Here." He fosses me a small towel on my shoulder. I was aware of how to burp a baby, so I let her rest on my chest, patting her back gently.

"What do you mean he's gone?"

Aleksander shrugged. "They lost the case, so they lost custody of Xavier. He's with his biological family who didn't allow him to have any connections with us anymore." He explained softly.

That's why Vera wasn't feeling well. That's why her parents had worried-filled eyes. That's why I didn't see Xavier at all today.

"I'm so sorry," I mumbled, hearing a burp from Ilyssa. He didn't respond. "I doubt Eva will get closer to Vera since I'm not hanging out with Xavier anymore, so you'll get your wish."

I shake my head. "No, I can—"

"What can you do, huh? You can't bring him back." He crossed his arms, speaking harshly.

I sighed. "So you're just going to forget about them all?"

Aleksander didn't respond.

Throughout the night, we stayed in silence, only speaking when I needed help with Ilyssa. I struggled to change her diaper. I felt nauseous when I unstrapped her diaper, seeing her waste. She giggled when I grimaced. Aleksander pushed me aside before helping me change her diaper. He cleans her skillfully which amazed me.

Ilyssa kicked her feet energetically as I struggled to put her asleep. "Come on, Ilyssa. I got things to do tomorrow." I glanced at the clock which displayed 2:03 am. I kissed her chunky cheeks which caused a wide grin to spread. Walking down the hallway, I checked on Aleksander who was sound asleep in his bed.

I saw Aleksander's phone on his bedside table. I gently shushed Ilyssa who seemed to comply without any problem. I tip-toed into his room, unlocking his phone by typing in his obvious passcode. I sent Vera's number to me before locking his phone.

Reaching my room where I lied pillows as a barrier, preventing Ilyssa to roll down and fall. I tried to have her sleep in her bassinet, but whenever she would fall asleep and I would place her in there, she would wake up crying immediately.

Placing her on my bed, she stared up at the ceiling, still wearing the grin. I couldn't sleep the way I usually did tonight, which was sleeping in my underwear. I grabbed pajama pants and slipped them on and took off my shirt.

She noticed my bare chest and she started to pound her hands against it as I picked her up. "Please, sleep, otherwise I'll go to sleep without you," I mumbled.

She calmed down her jumps, gazing into my eyes. Her fist landed on my lip and I jokingly captured it by my lips. She let out a roar of giggles before I shushed her, letting out my chuckles along the way.

I took her into the bathroom. With one hand, I successfully got toothpaste on my brush. She glared between us in the mirror. I couldn't help but keep on chuckling at her actions. She was too adorable.

Once I finished with my short night routine, I walked into my room. Her head was laying on my chest as her mouth to be aching on sucking her thumb. I grabbed her pacifier before placing it in her mouth.

Her eyes began to fall which had my sigh in relief. Laying on my bed, I had her lay on my chest. Soon enough, we both fell into a deep sleep.

• • •

hi guys i'm back again hehe.

now i know i just posted the last chapter a day ago but here's the second part to it hehe

i hope you guys loved this chapter bc I DID!!! i love ilyssaaaaa she's so adorableeee <33 she's added to my favorite characters!! also, i have an insight on how aleksander is feeling about xavier's verdict of the case ): my precious bean is so sad i love him ):

ezio is living as always but look at him trying to be a good uncle but aleksander is better hehe. it's so cute to see them take care of a baby!!

also, thank u for the huge amount of love last chapter! you all welcomed me back and said that this is one of your favorite stories on here and it really made my heart flutter guys <333 thank you so much i love y'all with all my heart :))

Don't forget to Vote, Comment, and Share!

- alli