New Life : A Second Chance

When Beatrice opened her eyes, she was startled to realise that she had fallen asleep. A blanket had been placed over her and she got up, feeling a bit embarrassed for having fallen asleep.

The house was rather quiet, and Beatrice wondered where everyone was. Then, she started feeling a bit guilty because she felt that her presence there in the living room had most likely disturbed their normal routine. If she had known that she would fall asleep, she would have gone into the guest room to do so.

What she didn't know was that everyone had been ordered sternly by Anton to be quiet so as not to disturb her sleep. 

Beatrice got up, and folded the blanket neatly, putting it on one side of the sofa. 

It was only then that she realised there was something on the coffee table. She got closer and her eyebrows furrowed when she saw what they were.

She took them gingerly, turning it left and right, in a little bit of a state of shock and surprise.

"Ah! You're awake!" 

Beatrice was so startled that she squeaked a bit and the items in her hands were accidentally thrown out. 

Anton pursed his lips at that, trying hard not to laugh but couldn't help himself.

Beatrice's face went beet red to have been caught holding those things and looking at them so intently. 

Chen picked up the items and handed them to Anton, making Beatrice even more embarrassed.

"These," said Anton, taking Beatrice's hand and putting the items into her outstretched palm, "is for you."

"Grandpa!" Beatrice said, her eyes widening, "This … this …"

"Yup, just the thing you need to discipline those boys of yours," Anton replied, "Do you want me to show you how to use them?"

Beatrice placed the items on the table nervously, saying, "Grandpa, I … I mean, I appreciate your gesture but … isn't this just a little bit too much?"

She waved her hands at the table, asking, "A whip? And … what? A thin baton?"

Anton rubbed his hands gleefully. He picked up the thin cylinder piece of metal that was about five inches long. It was flat on one end and was more rounded on the other end. Something like a small ball, or sphere.

He held the sphere and pulled, making it much longer now, about the length of her arm to the elbow.

"This, is a rotan," Anton said, "Or, rattan but made out of thin metal. It's strong and durable, and lightweight. You can carry it everywhere you want since it is retractable."

"And this," Anton said, picking up the other item, "Is a specially designed cat o' nine tails." 

Unlike a normal whip that was a strip of leather or length of cord fastened to a handle, there were nine strips attached to the handle. 

"Unlike a real cat o' nine tails that has things like knots and spikes in plaited into these strips," Anton explained, "these are just normal braided strips. The material is also special for it only looks tough but is actually quite soft."

Beatrice's head was still spinning, and she asked with a slightly hoarse voice, "Grandpa, why do you have these things?"

"Why, to discipline the boys, of course! You don't know how mischievous those boys had been when they were younger!" Anton said with a huff.

"You … you used those on Zack and Yuri?!" Beatrice couldn't help but gasp out.

"Yes! Eh, no! I mean, yes, but not these. I used my trusty cane,"" Anton replied, "These, I had gotten just for you."

Beatrice barely managed to squeak out, "Me?"

"Yes!" Anton said proudly, "I got the idea earlier, when you said you were upset with the boys. Giving you a cane isn't good, because you're a girl. You need something smaller, and easier to use."

He waved the cat o' tails (or cat for short) about.

"See? This is light, and scary looking," Anton said gleefully, "I never knew such things existed but Chen found them for me very easily. I just told him what I wanted and he had gotten them while we were asleep."

Beatrice's turned to look at Chen, who looked back at her with the most innocent face she had ever seen.

Anton used the cat on himself, "It stings, but it's not painful. Well, it can be, I suppose, if you use enough force, but the point is, you don't need to! Just whack whack the boys with these things and they'll toe the line."

Beatrice's eye twitched.

She may be straight-laced and to some, a prude, but even she knew what these things really were.

She glared at Chen again, who still kept up with his innocent-looking face.

Beatrice looked back at Anton, who was really innocent in this and looking so happy to have the items for her. He placed them back into her hands and she couldn't reject him.

"Good girl," Anton said with a smile.

At that moment, she heard the sound of a car in the driveway.

"The boys are back!" Anton said gleefully.

Beatrice looked at the items in her hand and quickly grabbed her handbag, stuffing it in. The last thing she wanted was for the twins to see them. 

What would they think?!

She looked at her watch and noticed that it was just 5pm. They were back so early? Was it really them, she wondered.

She got up nonetheless and couldn't help the smile that came to her face when the two handsome men walked through the door. It almost felt like she was the little wife welcoming her husbands home.

Zack and Yuri smiled upon seeing Beatrice in the living room. 

Zack's face split into a huge grin while the corner of Yuri's lips went up. Both had such different smiles, but Beatrice could feel the love and happiness from them.

Both were also as dashing as ever in their smart casual suits. They must have had a business meeting, for this was not their usual style of dressing.

"Beatrice," Zack said softly as he got close, and then wrapped his arms around her waist before kissing her on the lips softly.

"Sweetheart," Yuri said in a low, sexy voice as he came to her right, placing his hand on her back and kissed her right after Zack did.

Beatrice didn't protest and kissed them back, thinking, 'I could get used to this.'

"The moment we knew you were here," Zack said, kissing the side of her neck.

"We just had to come home as fast as we could," Yuri said in her ear, kissing her earlobe.

Beatrice placed her hand on both of their chest and pushed them away, saying rather breathlessly, "Behave. Grandpa is watching."

Zacki and Yuri laughed under their breath, and ignored her gentle push as they hugged her on both sides.

"Do you really think he minds? He is probably standing there, clapping his hands in happiness and counting the days for his great-grandkids to appear," Zack said.

Beatrice looked up and true enough, Anton was standing there with his hands behind his back and grinning so widely that you couldn't see his eyes anymore.

"He's not clapping," Beatrice pointed out needlessly.

Zack and Yuri kissed her on the cheek at the same time before letting her go.

"Figuratively speaking," Yuri replied.

Anton came by and stood in between them then pushed the two boys aside. He took Beatrice's hand and announced, "Scoot scoot! She's sitting next to ME at dinnertime."

"Grandpa!" Zack and Yuri protested.

"Humph! I took her home, so I get to keep her by my side," Anton declared proudly, his chest puffed out, "If you want her to sit next to you, YOU bring her home next time."

Yuri smiled, and said to Beatrice, "You hear that, sweetheart? Grandpa has spoken. You need to come home."

"We should make a bigger room, actually," Zack mused.

"Or just a bigger bed," Yuri suggested.

"But it's not fair if she stays upstairs with you! You guys should move downstairs," Anton said in an aggrieved tone.

"But we might be too noisy for you, Grandpa," Zack said, "You would need peace and quiet to have proper rest."

Beatrice looked at the three of them helplessly, with her face becoming beet red at what Zack was alluding to.

"Boys boys!" Beatrice shouted, taking her hand back and putting it on her waist, "What nonsense are you all spouting! I'm just here to accompany Grandpa for the day, not move in!"

"We're just planning for the future," Yuri said with a smile.

"Oh?" Beatrice said with a smile, her voice so dangerously low, "You're so confident about that now, huh?"

"Just a few kisses and you're already making such plans, hmmmm?" Beatrice asked sternly, glaring at them.

Zack and Yuri looked at each other, seeing that displeased look on their beloved's face and they knew that they had messed up badly. 

Anton, seeing this, slowly backed away.