Chapter49:Chapter 49

Chapter 49 XENOIS The silence in the study room was broken from the sound of the pencil on paper and the frustrated sighs of the boys as they worked through their assignments. I sat at the large mahogany desk, helping Troy with his mathematics problems while Lake and Soren worked independently on their homework. "Dad, you're really good at this," Troy said, looking up at me with eyes that reminded me of Celeste. "How come you know all the answers?" I smiled, ruffling his hair gently as I replied to him. "Because I went to school once too, buddy. A very long time ago." "Were you as smart then as you are now?" Lake asked from across the room, not looking up from his science worksheet. "Probably not," I admitted. "I had to study hard and practice, just like you're doing now." It was strange in a way to be seated here with my sons, feeling so familiar with this role, especially when everything else about my life felt like I was constantly trying to catch up. The boys had been ge