Chapter 172 - Its Hard Being This Popular (1/2)

Abby ended up stuck at the playground for another few hours but children slowly trickled away as time went by. The older ones who had managed to get away from their jobs long enough to participate in play practice had to go back to work eventually.

Some of the younger ones got tired or needed to do chores at home. By dinnertime the only ones left were Adam, Hagan, Iida, and Lirael's four children under the age of six.

Keeping an eye on that many children by herself had been exhausting, though for a while some of the older kids watched out for their younger siblings and that helped. Mountain heat had nothing on Arizona but she had been outside for hours and would kill for an ice cream cone.

Since coming here she had tasted ice cream exactly once when Sia's family busted out some precious ice to make it for everyone at the festival. It was no Baskin Robbins but she still nearly cried. Katie gave her a knowing look, understanding her pain in a way no one else could.

”It's time for us to go,” Abby called.

Since they had been here nearly all day, the children came obediently. They were tired and hungry and some of them had missed their afternoon naps.

She had them form a chain of linked hands and walked Lirael's children back to her house since it was closest to the playground. A chorus of small ”thank yous” warmed her heart as they went inside. Lirael had taught her children well.

Hagan and Iida were both cranky and didn't want to walk so Abby was forced to carry them, which of course, didn't make Adam happy. He wanted to be carried too but it was physically impossible for her to carry three toddlers on her own.

Katie, who was chatting with a woman outside of the carpenter shop, spotted her distress and excused herself to help. Aza was strapped to her chest in a makeshift baby sling but despite her tiny frame she was able to give Adam a piggyback ride at the same time.

He was quite pleased with the arrangement since he hadn't seen his mother most of the day. He ended up falling asleep on her back before they even made it home.

”Rough day?” Katie asked with a raised eyebrow when she saw the state of Abby's hair.

She grimaced. There were so many wildflowers in there now that her hair had to be full of dirt. She needed a bath ASAP.

”It's hard being this popular,” she replied flippantly.

Her sister rolled her eyes. She understood that problem completely but it was usually a.d.u.l.ts who wanted her attention rather than children. That was what happened when you became heavily involved in a small village like this.

Katie's expression grew more serious once she had put Adam down on his bed and settled on the couch to feed Aza. ”So. I heard the Warriors made it to town. Was Blaise with them?”