Chapter 4
Chapter Four
Ian was exhausted.
Between the kids, his brother who was over every day, and JP — he wanted to lie down and die.
The kids had him up at the crack of dawn, and by the time the house was cleaned, and laundry was done, and he had a glass of wine on the porch?
It was late.
“Daddy?”
He blinked at Peter, who was standing in front of him. “What, son?”
“I hafta potty.”
“Good boy for telling me. Let’s go!” He hustled Peter onto the potty. “Where’s your sister?”
“Wif da hockey-man.”
“What?”
“Hers in der.”
Dammit, he’d said not to bother JP.
He counted to ten, waiting for Peter to be done so he could go get Tori.
He got Peter redressed, and his hands washed. “Come on. Let’s get sister.”
He found her in the dining room on the bed with JP, showing him her little drill set.
“An’ you zhuzh it like dis, Dad.”
“That’s pretty cool, Tori. Show me how you zhuzh it again?”
“Gimme you hand. You learn by doin’.”
Ian rolled his eyes, but grinned. “You’re not supposed to be bothering him.”
She shot him a look. “I not! I’m playing wif him.”
“She has a point,” JP noted, giving him a look that was an awful lot like Tori’s. “And I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired and sleeping all the time, so the distraction is welcome.”
“Yous supposed to do it, Dad!” Tori pushed the drill into JP’s hand.
“Right. So like this?”
She watched him like a hawk, then applauded. “Good job, Dad. You do-ed it.”
Peter frowned and wiggled. “I wanna play. I went potty.”
“Did you? All by yourself?” JP asked, eyes wide.
“Uh-huh. I telled Daddy, and we went.”
“You did. I’m proud.” He let Peter go to the bed and look over, so curious.
God, he was exhausted, and he didn’t want to think JP was cute.
He was, though. It was adorable the way he was paying attention to the kids, looking like he was absolutely fascinated.
“Sister. I wanna play!”
Tori shrugged. “I climbed.”
She pointed to the walker.
Peter looked like he was trying to decide between climbing and crying.
“Come on up, Petey. There’sy room for you too.” JP patted the space next to Tori.
“Do you need help, baby?” He picked Peter up and put him gently on the bed.
One of JP’s eyebrows went up, but he didn’t say anything.
Tori on the other hand frowned. “That’s not climbing, Daddy.”
“It’s not. I don’t want you climbing on things. You know better.”
“It’s fun!”
“Uh-huh.” He didn’t want to hear it.
JP winced. “I didn’t know they weren’t allowed to climb.”
“Climbing. Is. Fun.” Tori shook her head. “I am not a baby.”
“I know, Tori. You’re very brave.” He sighed, shook his head. “My daredevil girl who tries everything.”
“Takes after her Dad,” JP said, looking proud.
“Yes. For better or worse, she does. And Peter is like me, huh? Kind and sweet.”
“That’s definitely not how anyone would describe me.”
Tori crossed her arms over her chest. “Do the zhuzh, brudder. Now.”
“Be nice, Victoria. Please.”
She wasn’t bad, but she had attitude for miles.
“I not bad!”
“Hey, nobody said you were.” JP rubbed her back. “But not everybody is as brave as you, and it isn’t nice to try and force them to do the same stuff you can do, you know?”
She narrowed her eyes, but she didn’t argue. She was a smart little who adored her brother.
Peter drilled one of the screws in, no stress at all. He was the one with the best manual dexterity between the two of them.
“That’s great!” JP said enthusiastically.
“Sister! Look!”
“Yay, Petey!”
Ian nodded. “That’s great. Yay wonder twins.”
“Wonder twins.” JP chuckled. “I like it.” Despite the chuckles and the good mood, JP looked like he was flagging.
“Okay, guys. Time to let him nap. We can watch a movie together?” Through their eyelids.
“We can watch with hims,” Tori announced, pointing at the TV.
JP shrugged. “Sure?”
“JP, are you—”
“Hims Dad, Daddy. Da-a-ad.”
Oh for fuck’s sake.
“I’m fine, Ian. We can watch whatever. I doubt I’ll make it very far through anyway.”
“Should I stay with you, then? Tori, do you need to pee?”
She nodded. “Please. And I need my dolfink.”
“Okay, come on. Are you okay, Peter?”
“Uh-huh. Playin’.”
“We’re good,” JP assured him. “Maybe just put up the side so he can’t fall back.”
“Will do. I’ll bring his walrus.”
Tori skipped to the bathroom, climbing up on the toilet. He grabbed the ancient dolphin and walrus. The kids had had them since JP left.
“Hims nice,” Tori announced, swinging her legs as she sat there.
“Is he?”
She nodded. “He likes me too.”
“Everyone likes you, bug.” Who couldn’t like her?
“Bug, bug, I’m a like bug.”
“You are a liked bug. My little liked lightning bug.”
“I loves you, Daddy.”
He helped her wash her hands. “I love you more. Let’s go watch our movie. Then snacks and we’ll go—”
“Skating!”
“I was thinking the park,” he chuckled.
She pondered that a minute then sighed. “Okay, but I want to see the hockey man skate.”
“Maybe, but he’s hurt bad, okay. Really, really bad.” That was the only reason they were back together in the same house, after all.
“No skating?”
“Not now, bug. Maybe after he’s gotten better.” If he stayed around.
“I will hep. I will be a good skater wif Dad.”
He wanted to cry. “I bet you will.”
“Okay. All finished with the pee and washed hands,” she announced, holding her hands up for him to inspect.
“Perfect. Let’s go watch our movie, sweetness.” He scooped her up, making her giggle.
When they got back to JP’s room, JP was dozing while Peter was building an elaborate box thing with the drill set.
“Wow…”
“I know, neat huh? Do you two want to move to the other room,” he whispered.
“Dad wanted to watch a movie with usses,” Tori informed him.
“Okay, well let’s be so quiet, okay?” He didn’t know what else to do. So he gave in.
“Uh-huh. You has to be quiet in a movie.”
She went over and took the drill set down off the bed. “It’s time for movie, Petey.” Then she climbed up next to him. She could haul herself up on that thing like a pro now, no walker needed.
“‘kay Sisser.” They settled together in the lee of JP’s arm, and he smiled in his sleep.
“What do you want to watch?” He bet they’d say “Cars”. They were on a kick, and it would be that one or “A Bug’s Life” for sure.
“Bugs, Daddy,” Peter asked, and Tori nodded.
He grabbed the remote and set the movie up for them.
JP woke up as the movie started, blinking at the kids and then him. “I fell asleep?”
“Shh…You’s okay. We gots you, Dad.” Tori patted his belly
Peter nodded and smiled at JP.
“What are we watching?” JP asked, focus on the kids, not the television.
“Bugs. You like it?”
“I’ve never seen it, so I don’t know. Ask me again after we’ve watched it, okay?”
Peter gave Ian a quizzical look.
“He hasn’t seen it yet,” Ian confirmed.
They both gaped at JP.
“What? I’m guessing there are a lot of movies that you know and love that I’ve never seen.”
“How exciting, huh? You’ll get to be the first ones to show him the movie.” Ian sat and found the movie on their streaming service.
“I’m ready to watch and learn all the things,” JP told the kids.
“Okay. Flik is a good bug.”
Tori nodded to her brother. “And Hoppy is bad.”
“There are good and bad bugs?”
“Uh-huh. So mean. He makes the other bugs so scared.” Peter’s eyes were the size of saucers.
“Does he? Now that’s a bully, and that’s not nice at all. I bet he doesn’t have any friends.”
“No. Him has…” Tori squeezed her face as she thought. “Uh. Other mean bugs that like to be mean.”
“Oh, like a gang?” JP asked. Though honestly he looked confused.
Tori glanced at him. “Daddy?”
He nodded. “Very much, yes.”
She smiled. “Very much, yes.”
JP chuckled. “Okay, let’s watch the bugs.”
“Daddy! Dolfink, please.”
He handed over her old stuffed dolphin, and then Peter got his walrus.
JP blinked at him. “Did I—”
“Yes.” It was the last thing JP had bought for her directly.
“Huh. Cool.”
Tori held up her toy. “This is my Dolfink. He sleeps with me.”
“that’s awesome. He’s been with you a long time, eh?”
“My best fren gave him to me. Daddy said.”
Oh, for fuck’s sake. “That’s enough, guys. Watch the movie.”
JP looked over at him, that stupid eyebrow raised up at him. “Best friend?” JP mouthed.
He shrugged. JP had been his best friend once upon a time.
JP stared for a moment longer before focusing on the movie, both kids curled up happily with him.
“I’m going to get some housework done. I’ll leave the curtain open so I can keep an eye on them”
“I’ve got my eye on them’”
Like JP wasn’t going to be asleep in ten minutes.
“Mmhmm. You two be good for your dad, okay?”
Tori was already asleep, and Peter was on the way.
“We’re good,” JP told him. “You should nap, too – you look tired.”
“Yeah.” He was. Bone deep. He needed a good hard cry, too.
“So nap. We’re good. You’re good. We can all just sleep for however long the movie is.”
“Yeah. Maybe.” He sat there, trying to force himself to get up, but his eyelids wouldn’t stay open.
At all.