The morning settled over their bedroom like a warm hush, the kind that wraps itself around tired bodies and refuses to let them rise. Eight o'clock, but the world outside felt impossibly far away.
Kairo was glued to Sara, his arm locked around her waist like a sleepy fortress. His face was buried in her hair, breath steady, body limp from exhaustion. Last night had drained him to the bone: the party, Vector's stunt, the moment Sara had trembled in his arms afterward, their small hours of whispered comfort, their soft, aching intimacy, and finally their 3 AM chatter where neither wanted to be the one to end the night. They had fallen asleep somewhere between a kiss and a promise.
Sara was just as gone, sleeping with the serenity of someone who had no energy left.
But their tiny hurricane had other plans.
"Mumma…" A little voice warbled into the silence.
Zayn rubbed his eyes with balled fists, blinked around the big bed where his parents were knocked out cold, and climbed out of his crib-shaped bed and crawled toward Sara like a determined baby soldier.
"Mumma…" he tried again, leaning close to her face.
A low grumble came from the other side. Kairo shifted, lifting his head with the dedication of someone being dragged back from another dimension. He blinked one eye open.
Zayn stared at him.
Kairo stared back.
"What happened, my son…?" he asked, voice deep and hoarse from sleep, warmth lingering in every syllable. "You're up so early…"
Zayn didn't answer. He crawled into Kairo's chest.
A tired smile tugged at Kairo's lips as he wrapped an arm around the little body and flopped back onto the bed, sandwiching his son between him and Sara.
"Don't wake Mumma… she's tired," he murmured, brushing Zayn's hair. "Come, sleep a bit more."
Zayn snuggled in.
Kairo's eyes shut.
And peace lasted for all of eight seconds.
A tiny pat landed on his cheek.
"Dada…"
"Hm?" Kairo hummed without opening his eyes.
"I'm hungry. Feed me."
That got both eyes open, lazily.
Kairo inhaled like a man bargaining with fate. Then he looked at Zayn's sleepy-round face, and the irritation dissolved immediately.
"Come," he whispered, sitting up and ruffling his hair, forcing himself to reality. "Let me feed my baby boy."
Zayn wrapped his arms around his father's neck as Kairo lifted him, careful not to wake Sara.
The kitchen lights blinked awake. Kairo dragged his half-sleeping body across the floor, shirtless, pants hanging low, hair a stormy mess, voice low.
"What do you want to eat, my son?"
"Omelet," Zayn declared.
"Omelet it is," Kairo said with a sleepy grin. "Okay. One for you, one for me, and one for Mumma."
Zayn beamed.
Kairo placed him on the counter, squeezed his cheeks, making him giggle, grabbed the pan, and began working on the eggs. Zayn watched him from the counter, legs dangling, swinging like a pendulum. He talked about how his mumma used to make omelets for him before Dada came into their life, spoken with pure innocence, unaware of how those words hit Kairo's heart with guilt.
But Zayn's excited little face softened the ache.
When the first omelet was ready, Kairo tore a piece and held it out. Zayn opened his mouth wide, chewed with visible joy.
The next bite, Zayn proudly held toward Kairo.
"Dada."
Kairo leaned and took it, pressing a kiss to his son's tiny fingers.
Just like that, the kitchen became their little morning cocoon, soft chatter, little laughs, Kairo flipping omelets while Zayn alternated between feeding himself and feeding his father.
"Come, let's feed mumma too," Kairo murmured.
"Yes…" Zayn echoed with enthusiasm.
Kairo chuckled, scooping his son into one arm and balancing the breakfast plate in the other. The two of them tiptoed back to the bed, a tiny army on a mission.
"Slowly… we wake her up very slowly, okay?" Kairo whispered.
Zayn nodded obediently.
Kairo set the plate on the nightstand. Both father and son climbed onto the bed, hovering over the love of their life. Then, in perfect sync, they leaned down and placed soft kisses on her cheeks from both sides.
"Wake up, mommy…" they whispered into her ears.
Sara didn't even twitch.
They exchanged a dramatic look. Round one: failed.
They tried again.
"Mumma and Dada made breakfast. Wake up," Zayn said, gently shaking her arm.
A muffled voice came from under the blanket. "Hmm… mumma is sleepy, baby. You eat breakfast."
Both men blinked at each other again like betrayed puppies.
"She's sleepy," Kairo confirmed.
"But she needs to eat," Zayn said, brows scrunched with deep, dramatic concern.
Kairo nodded seriously. "You're right. Let's try again."
It took several rounds, whispers, kisses, a little shaking, and more whispers.
Finally, Sara yanked the blanket down and glared at them with a murderous, sleep-drunk expression.
Both men offered identical innocent smiles.
Zayn crawled onto her and kissed her cheek. "Morning, Mumma."
Her glare melted just a bit. "Morning, baby…" she sighed, finally smiling.
She slowly sat up, keeping the blanket pulled to her chest. Zayn immediately launched himself into her arms and peppered her cheeks with kisses.
"Mumma, eat breakfast, then sleep," Zayn coaxed sweetly. "Dada and I made breakfast for you."
Her expression softened immediately. Then she glanced at Kairo.
Kairo leaned in next, stealing a quick kiss from her lips. "Morning, baby…" he whispered.
She wrapped an arm around his neck and pulled him closer for a proper one. His smile turned soft and warm.
"Sorry for disturbing you. Eat breakfast and then rest again. You need it," he murmured against her cheek.
"What about the office?" she mumbled.
Kairo kissed her cheek again, slow and teasing. "No office today. You overworked last night, so your boss is giving you a leave. Family day. Phones are switched off too, so no office calls."
She slapped his arm weakly and giggled, half-drowsy. "Asshole…"
He just grinned and lifted a spoon to her lips, feeding her the first bite. She accepted it without protest.
"Dada… let me feed her too!" Zayn demanded.
Kairo happily handed him the plate. Zayn scooped a tiny bite and held it carefully to her mouth.
"Mumma, here."
Sara smiled and ate it. "Thank you, baby. I love you."
Zayn giggled as she'd just given him the moon.
Kairo fed her another bite. She chewed quietly.
"You didn't thank me, like you did to him," he said, narrowing his eyes at her dramatically.
Sara looked him straight in the eye. "He's cute. You're not."
"But I'm hot," he muttered, feeding her again. "Consider that."
Sara glared playfully while chewing.
"Later, I want a special thank you. A hot one," he murmured, slipping another bite to her lips.
She shook her head, smiling as if she'd already accepted his nonsense long ago.
He kept feeding her patiently, bite after bite, until the plate was empty and her sleepiness had softened into warmth.
By 10 AM, the room was still warm with shared breath and that sweet tangle of lazy limbs. Zayn was the busiest one in the cuddle pile, waving his little hands as he narrated a heroic tale about a dinosaur who saved a cookie from a dragon. Sara listened with half-lidded eyes, her cheek resting on Kairo's shoulder, while Kairo stroked her hair with a peace that tasted like safety.
None of them had checked their phones. The world outside might as well have been asleep.
But the world wasn't asleep.
Somewhere else, screens were lighting up like wildfire embers. Notifications clanged through devices. Comment sections erupted. The blind article spread like gasoline on dry ground.
HEADLINE: "Kairo Valen, director of NovaCore, impregnated his college girlfriend and abandoned her, now caught up having an affair with a married employee."
The article sprawled in poison-coated paragraphs:
"Kairo Valen, director of NovaCore and heir to the founder, is alleged to have impregnated his college girlfriend and heartlessly abandoned her. Sources claim she begged him not to leave, but he did. And he has now been seen repeatedly with a woman believed to be one of his employees, who is reported to be married and has a child, referring to her as his wife at places to avoid suspicion. Hidden sources suggest he has an affair with a married woman and is pretending to be her child's father."
A blurred photo of Sara and Zayn was posted, with him captured secretly.
"Despite being considered one of the most desirable men in Belvaria, his character appears tainted. Reports say he was a well-known playboy in college, engaging with multiple women sexually. He was seen engaging in inappropriate acts in clubs and private parties."
There were blurry photos. Old party clips. Cropped inappropriately.
"Recently, quality issues in NovaCore's products have already been trending, and shaken customer trust… and now the prince of NovaCore appears to be a spoiled brat, a Casanova, and a manipulative womanizer."
People were reposting, commenting, insulting, digging, and speculating.
The entire internet was on fire. And inside the quiet bedroom, Kairo was playfully poking Zayn's cheek, making dinosaur sounds, and Sara was laughing into the pillow.
Blissfully unaware.
Blissfully unprepared.
Blissfully seconds away from the world crashing into their morning softness.