Chapter 4
Teddy
“Yep.” Daddy Levi was just silly. “Lots.”
His grumbly Daddy sigh was cute but he was still a meanie who needed to be nice. “We’ll come back to that.”
That was Daddy talk to distract a little, but I’d remember.
“But I am sorry about how mean I was.” Daddy Levi made a big-big Daddy sigh. “I’ve been taking out my…my frustration on everyone around me.”
“Yep.” That wasn’t nice. “Be mean to the meanies, not me.”
Daddy Levi scrunched up his face. “What…”
He paused, needing thinking time.
“How…”
More thinking time.
Daddy Levi was like the dogs in the button videos.
I liked dogs.
I liked buttons and thinking-time circles too.
Maybe he needed to go in circles?
“Come on.” Taking his hand, I remembered to shut the door so no one would yell at me and I took him through the house. No meanies and no bugs. “Thinking time.”
Round and round we go.
Where we went…nowhere.
“Thinking time, huh?” Daddy Levi finally made a kind of laugh when we went through the kitchen and around to the tiny door that went back to the living room, but it was too small to really be happy. “This layout is insane.”
“Yep.” I shrugged and made him start again. “Round and round.”
“No kidding.” Daddy Levi made more thinking sounds but groaned when it was time to go again. “We’re going to keep walking until I’ve thought about what I have to say, huh?”
“Yep.” I shrugged. “And about being a meanie.”
“Ugh. This is like corner time for Doms.” Daddy Levi grumbled as we got back to the kitchen. “Fine. Okay. What was I going to say?”
Nothing.
Stop.
Start.
Stop.
Start.
“This is ridiculous.” Daddy Levi kept grumbling but he held my hand and kept walking. “Okay, I need to make it up to you because you’re right, Daddies shouldn’t be meanies.”
I gave him a big nod since he was being a good boy now.
“And?”
But he had to keep going and going.
So we went round and round again.
That got more Daddy sounds from him and more mumbles and grumbles, but he kept walking because he knew he had to be a good boy. He was ready to try again when we found the living room one more time. “How can I make it up to you?”
Hmm.
“Christmas.”
Yes, then he’d be happy and then he’d be nice.
More big Daddy grumbly sighs and huffs but he reached over and fluffed my hair. “That’s really making it up to your mother, Chipmunk. What can I do to make it up to you?”
It was my turn to make a big sigh like a Daddy.
“We need to go around again so you can think this time, don’t we?” Daddy Levi made dramatic sounds but he was a good boy and kept walking when I nodded. “I thought so.”
Yep.
Round and around again.
And again.
“I gotta be selfish, right?” I thought that was the plan but Daddy Levi made big sounds and looked up like he was talking to Santa or the spirits or God.
Hopefully one of them listened.
Oh, hopefully he knew who he was talking to…it’d be rude to talk to God when Santa was listening.
“It’s not selfish to make sure I remember to be nice to you.” Daddy Levi frowned and didn’t seem to believe it, but he was kind of stubborn. “The Christmas stuff would be making it up to your mother since I was inadvertently rude to her.”
“You’re a good Daddy and will be nice.” He’d remember now. “But I’ll help.”
Yes, I was a good helper.
“Playing.” Yes, he was a Daddy so he could play with me. “You have to play with me.”
Daddy Levi tripped over something invisible but he caught himself and didn’t crash. “Playing?”
“Yep.” Playing was a good way to remember to be nice. “You have to play with me.”
It wasn’t selfish to give him what he wanted…even if that was consequences.
“That’s…that’s fair.” Daddy Levi’s frown said we had to go round again, so we did and he thought and thought. “How…how many times?”
“Lots. Ten million billion trillion times. You were a meanie when I wanted to say hi. I’m nice, so I should get to say hi to the Daddy I know.” I was so smart Daddy Levi groaned and rubbed his face again.
“I was mean to a little.”
Yep.
But since he knew he’d been naughty I didn’t say it out loud.
“Okay, yes, playing is fair, but ten million billion trillion times is way more than a lot, so let’s say ten times to make up for it.” Daddy Levi kept walking, so he knew how to be good once he’d learned his lesson.
“Ten times.” What could we play? We needed a plan. “I want cartoon times and movie times and a nugget dinner time and coloring time and…and more playing.”
Yes.
That was a good plan.
Daddy Levi tried not to laugh but he made a funny sound. “That’s a good list. And nuggets are much better than soup.”
I giggled when he tried to give me a frowny face. “Soup? I wasn’t that mean.”
Daddy Levi hated soup.
He was so funny.
His face scrunched up and he grumbled.
But he learned to be nicer, so it was worth the soup.
“You were naughty.” I shrugged when he scrunched up his face. “Big naughty but you learned your lesson.”
Rolling his eyes made Daddy Levi look silly. “I still think that was torture, not a consequence of being mean.”
Daddy Levi sounded like a naughty little.
“You’re a good boy now.” I patted his head and made him laugh. “Good boy.”
He groaned and made a funny face. “I’m a good Daddy, not a good boy.”
I gave him my shrug. “I don’t know…gotta see if you’re a good Daddy.”
He huffed and puffed like the wolf who ate the pigs. “I said sorry and I’m going to play and make you nuggets. That’ll show you I’m a good Daddy.”
Daddy Levi liked to win.
“Gotta see.” He’d have to show me he was a good Daddy. That was just how it worked. “Christmas will make you a good Daddy too.”
Big, big groans that time…but he didn’t tell me no. “You’re kind of evil, you know that? I always thought…well…I didn’t realize you were an evil little.”
Ha.
Daddy Levi thought I was boring and from the weird people.
I was funny and from the weird people.
And I was smart.
And I could color good.
And I was good at making him do what I wanted.
Yep, I was smart.
“I’m helpful.” And I was nice because I ignored Daddy Levi’s snort.
“Let me guess…you’re helping me be a better person.” He made more sounds when I nodded. “Well, at least it’s not candles and meditation.”
Whew.
Daddy Levi laughed. “You’re going to have to tell your mother how nice I’ve been and that I’m a happy person when she asks how I’ve been doing. I’m not dream journaling over Christmas.”
I shrugged. “Then be a good boy.”
Daddy Levi’s eyes went round and round. “Fine. I’ll be a good Daddy.”
He was so silly.
“I don’t know…gotta see if you’re a good Daddy.” I sighed and pretended to be not sure. “You gotta show me first.”
“I don’t appreciate being manipulated…even if I was a pain in the butt.” Daddy Levi tried to look frowny but I gave him a big sigh. “You’re so…”
Ha.
“I’m going to be a good Daddy and not finish that sentence.” Daddy Levi huffed. “I’m a good Daddy. You’ll see. We’re going to watch a movie and color, and later, I’ll make you nuggets.”
Hmm.
“I got soup.” I shrugged when Daddy Levi groaned. “My friend gave me soup. Nobody eats the soup.”
“Ugh. You know someone at that godforsaken restaurant.” Daddy Levi looked kind of green as he dug out his phone. “Grocery delivery for the win. No more soup.”
He ate all the soup.
Okay, maybe Daddy Levi learned his lesson.
“Alright, do you need help picking out a movie?” Daddy Levi started pushing the buttons and mumbling about delivery stuff. “Do you need Daddy help?”
“Hmm…no.” I stopped us in the living room. “Here.”
I was helpful again.
“Fuck.” Daddy Levi crashed into the couth and glared at me. “You need…supervision.”
Ha.
Daddy Levi was going to say spankings.
“I’m helpful.”
Shaking his head, he looked at his phone again. “I’m not sure you know the meaning of that word.”
Big smiles for Daddy Levi…’cause that made him crazy.
Ha.
“I’m assuming your help means you can pick out the movie?” Daddy Levi got a happy face when I nodded. “Good. Because I don’t know what you’d want to watch.”
And he found his frowny face again.
“All I know is that you like nuggets and coloring.” He tried not to laugh but I could see his silly peeking out. “And that you like soup.”
Ha.
Daddy Levi was funny.
“No more soup.” All done. “Mac-n-cheese?”
Daddy Levi groaned.
“Are you part of that club too?” Daddy Levi looked tired.
Oh.
“No.” Not really. “I go. I look. I leave. I’m all done.”
His face scrunched up. “So you went to one of the meetings and then didn’t go back? Why?”
Grumble.
Grumble.
Grumble.
“Yellow cheese is the best.”
Grumble.
Grumble.
Grumble.
“White cheese is best.”
Grumble.
Grumble.
Grumble.
“Oh…fancy stinky cheese is best.”
Grumble.
Grumble.
Grumble.
“Fancy milk is best. Heathens.”
Grumble.
Grumble.
Grumble.
I collapsed on the couch next to Daddy Levi who was laughing and laughing. “So tired.”
“That sounds ridiculous and like something Dante would do.” Shaking his head, Daddy Levi sighed and smiled. “I bet that was exhausting for Professor…ugh…Ruslan.”
“Huh?”
Daddy Levi groaned. “Dante is dating the professor that runs that club. I keep calling him by his last name and everyone thinks that’s going to make him feel weird.”
“Oh. Sub. Yes.” I nodded and scooted closer to Daddy Levi. “He plays toys too. Lots of play toys people.”
Daddy Levi chuckled. “Evidently. Are there a lot of Daddies? I haven’t joined that kind of stuff much.”
I shrugged and leaned in to whisper. “Shhh…they’re hiding in the trees. No one sees the wild animals.”
Ha.
I was funny.
Daddy Levi laughed and laughed again. “They blend in like wild animals, huh? Yeah, too many people running around trying to look normal, I guess.”
“They like hiding.” It was hard to find a Daddy. “I like talking but not asking.”
Daddy Levi’s head turned and he looked like a puppy. “You don’t like asking them if they’re a Daddy?”
“No.” That wasn’t fun.
“Isn’t there some kind of social media group everyone belongs to? I know I heard something like that…oh…and that BDSM group one of the professors run?” Frowny face and thinky face.
“Yes.” I pointed to me. “Just littles.”
“Oh.” Daddy Levi got a shocked face. “The Daddies aren’t online?”
“Nope.” I pretended to look around like we were in the woods. “Hiding.”
Groaning, he shook his head. “We need to fix that, but later, we’ll solve that problem once we pick a movie and get nuggets delivered.”
He waved his phone. “Quality nuggets, cheap nuggets, or fish-shaped nuggets?”
“Fish nuggets?”
Daddy Levi laughed. “No. Chicken nuggets shaped like fish and dolphins.”
Oh…
“Fish dolphins chicken, it is.” Daddy Levi was doing his silly smile again and shook his head. “I should’ve known.”
Yep.
“Naughty Daddy.” Hmm. “Eleven million billion trillion times. Oh well.”
He was funny when he groaned.
“We’re not adding days every time I screw up.” His glary face was funny. “That’s not reasonable.”
Think.
Think.
Think.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
“Tapping your chin does not make you look smarter, Chipmunk.”
But it made frowning Daddy smile.
“Limits. I got limits.”
Ha.
He groaned.
I won.