On Tuesday morning as Richie woke up he reached out to pull Sarah closer to hold but his hands only found a much smaller person. Regardless, he pulled him closer to cuddle him instead. Next to his wife, getting some Daniel cuddles was a close second. He finally opened his eyes to see if they were alone and found it was indeed just him and Daniel in bed. Lifting his head, he read the alarm clock on Sarah's nightstand. Past 10am, he had missed making breakfast for his teenagers before school again. He supposed he had a decent excuse not to get up. In his arms, Daniel seemed comfortably asleep, his mouth slightly open as his poor little nose was stuffy. He felt the same way but didn't want to disturb his son to get up and find some Tylenol's for himself, even if he'd feel better if he did, Daniel needed his sleep. Half of last night has been spent awake by Daniel being fussy, keeping his parents up as they tried to get him back to sleep.
A few minutes later he could hear the bedroom door opening, he looked up to see Sarah walk into the room. Seeing her made him stir inside his boxers regardless of how he felt. Her long blonde hair fell over her shoulder as she pushed the door closed behind her and continued on into the bedroom. She always looked so lovely and today was no different.
Sarah placed a plate, bottle and a mug on her nightstand before looking over at her husband and son.
"How are you feeling?" Sarah watched as Richie very carefully let go of their son to reach for the iPad on his own nightstand.
He unlocked the screen and opened up the notepad app he had been using since the day before. He cleared it before touching the screen to write out his message with his fingertip.
OK
"Yeah?" Sarah asked, not being too sure of that. "I brought you some peppermint tea with honey. The peppermint will help your stuffiness and the honey will sooth your throat."
He gave her a little smile as an answer.
"Have you taken any meds this morning?"
Richie shook his head slowly and added onto the iPad JUST WOKE UP.
"Okay." Sarah got up from the bed slowly as to not wake Daniel up. She watched the little boy snuggled up against his dad, his mouth still half open as he slept.
A few moments later she returned with the little container of Tylenol cold and flu, this time the daytime variety.
Repeating Sarah's actions, Richie slowly let go of Daniel entirely so he could arrange his pillows and sit. He accepted the pills Sarah gave him, along with the mug of tea she passed. Having noticed her little boy earlier, Sarah reached for the container of Vaseline she had for him and carefully applied some to his lips.
"Poor boy." She said, looking up at her husband. "Maybe later you and Daniel can take a steamy hot shower." She suggested.
His eyebrow raised in question.
"The steam would clear his nose, and yours." Sarah pointed out. The medication only did so much after all.
He nodded his response, a shower would feel pretty good.
"I brought you breakfast." Sarah remembered, reaching for the plate she had brought up. "Just some toast with jam."
They both looked down when they heard rutling sheets between them as Daniel stretched and looked up at both of them.
Richie took the plate that was offered to him to free Sarah's hands so she could pull her little boy into her lap. As she sat against the pillow covered headboard, she pulled up her knees so Daniel was snuggled close against her.
He took a bite of toast as he watched Sarah give Daniel his medication, rather making sure he was comfortable than letting him announce when he was feeling bad. He chewed his second bite as Sarah reached for the bottle of milk to pass to Daniel. He didn't often had milk anymore unless he needed soothing before bed or now, when he was sick.
Richie watched as Sarah held their son close as he drank. She stroked his hair out of his eyes, then continued stroking the soft brown locks that were only growing longer. Her face was full of love and care as she did so. He could always read it off of her and it was something he would always admire. The way she looked always gave away how she felt and he loved when she looked at him with the same expression. With Sarah, he always knew he was loved. That was a feeling he would always return.
When Daniel offered his empty bottle, Sarah placed it back on the nightstand, then looked over at her husband with a gentle smile.
"How was your toast?" She asked when she noticed the crumb filled plate already on his nightstand.
AMAZING he wrote on the iPad, making sure she could read it.
Sarah raised an eyebrow at him. "Yeah? Toast with jam was amazing?"
He pulled up the keyboard onto the iPad instead of using his finger to type out "anything you make is amazing."
Sarah read it before looking up at him. "I think you're just being sweet. Maybe later I will make you some chicken noodle soup."
DELICIOUS
Sarah scooted closer with Daniel in her arms and reached in to kiss her husband.
He pulled back after a few seconds to grab his iPad again. YOU'LL GET SICK.
"I'll take the risk." She smiled before giving him a quick peck again.
It was a little before noon when Sarah decided to go ahead and make lunch for her husband and take a break from the morning TV shows they had been watching to keep themselves and Daniel somewhat entertained. Before she left, Richie headed to the bathroom where he caught himself in the mirror. He had seen himself in many shapes but sick was never a good look. He could really use a shower right now, plus Sarah had said it would make him feel better.
"I think I'll take a shower while you make lunch." He said when he walked back into the bedroom, his voice was still hoarse but not as bad as it had been the day before. It was coming back, Sarah's teas with honey had helped a lot. It was only a cold, he knew that.
"What about Daniel?" She asked.
"The steam will help him too, right?"
Sarah nodded, it would. "Yeah, I'm sure he would appreciate his nose clearing up too."
Richie could only agree to that, congestion was always annoying. He picked Daniel up from the bed, kissed his wife quickly and carried his son to the bathroom. Making sure the door was closed behind him, he started up the shower, turning it to it's hottest setting to steam up the room before turning it down to a tolerable temperature for showering. Meanwhile Daniel found his bath toys.
When she finished preparing some chicken noodle soup with toast, Sarah started a kettle with hot water to make a new cup of tea for Richie. She heated another bottle of milk for Daniel and added a small amount of honey for him as well. Once everything was ready to go, she headed up the stairs to their bedroom. They'd mostly stuck to their bedroom the last two days but she could see Richie was getting bored very quickly of that.
The bathroom was filled with steam when she walked into the room, he sure had taken the steamy shower seriously. "I've got lunch ready." Sarah said as she walked in and closed the door behind her again, not letting his steam escape.
"Soup?" Richie asked, not very excited at the prospects.
Sarah grabbed a towel from the rack as she watched him turn off the water. "Yes, chicken soup is good for you."
"Lots of other things are good for me too." He said as he opened the glass shower door, letting Daniel sit and play a little longer as he accepted the towel from Sarah and patted himself dry before tying it around his waist.
"Such as?"
He quickly pulled her close and kissed her deeply. "My beautiful wife." He answered once he pulled back again.
"Maybe once you're better." Sarah pointed out as she grabbed another towel to get Daniel out of the shower as well.
"I'm sure I'm better already." He claimed quickly.
Sarah looked up at him as she held Daniel wrapped in his towel in her arms. "In the last half hour?"
"Definitely."
"Maybe, it's just the steam clearing your head too much." Sarah joked.
Giving in, he started to put on the pj pants he had been wearing. "We'll see tonight."
After lunch, the three of them moved to the living room, which was a nice change to the bedroom of the last two days even though they watched the same TV programs as they would in bed.
Before he knew it, Daniel was asleep on his chest again, something he was very grateful for and had been for the last week.
Their TV show finished and when Richie didn't ask if she wanted to watch something else, Sarah looked over to see he had fallen asleep as well. Just as she had done before, she pulled a blanket over him and turned the TV off to grab a book. Taking the quiet as the perfect time to get some pages read.
The front door opening, made Sarah look over the back of the couch to see who was entering. There were only two possibilities and they'd be together anyway. "How was school?" She asked when Ava walked into the living room and Noah headed upstairs.
"It was alright, nothing exciting." Ava sat down in her dad's chair, dropping her bag onto the floor next to it. "How are dad and Daniel?"
Sarah looked at them both asleep as well. "I think your dad is starting to feel better, Daniel's a little slower."
Ava frowned in thought at that.
Sarah noticed it right away, she knew what she was thinking. "It's just a cold. The doctor said he'd be fine in a couple days." She assured her.
Ava nodded. "Do you want me to make dinner?"
Sarah felt quite pleased with how much she had been able to read. It wasn't always easy to squeeze in time where she could just sit and read her book but with Daniel comfortably asleep in his dad's arms, she had to peace of mind she needed to relax. Ava had gone upstairs and Sarah had continued her book until she heard her husband start to snore next to her. Feeling bad for him, she got up and made him another cup of tea and found him the Tylenol's for when he woke up.
"What's for dinner?"
Surprised, Sarah looked up at him, she had just reached down to put his mug on the coffee table. She shook her head and answered. "That's your first thought when you wake up? Are you just always thinking of food?"
"No, sometimes I think of you."
Sarah chuckled and rolled her eyes as she sat down next to him, reaching for Daniel. "Maybe you are starting to feel better after all."
"You're right, it's just the meds." He said as he reached for the pills now that Sarah was holding Daniel.
Sarah reached out to feel his head as he sat back after taking the meds, holding his mug of tea. She frowned a little, "you do feel a little hot still."
He nodde, knowing how he felt and sipped his tea.
"Should I wake him up?" Sarah looked down at her son. "It's almost 5."
"No."
When Daniel finally woke up and had another dose of medication, he made his way off of his mother's lap and crawled over to his toys to keep himself entertained. Toys always made him happy but with his parents watching him, he looked over at them once in a while. Seeing how mommy was half paying attention to a book as daddy laid down on the couch with his head in her lap, watching TV and him. Mommy's fingers absentmindedly playing with daddy's hair as she tried to read. She did that to him too.
"Dinner's ready." Ava announced as she walked into the living room with a large stack of grilled cheese sandwiches and extra plates an hour later.
Having had such a long nap, Daniel wasn't as tired after dinner as he usually was. To him, it didn't matter if his parents wanted to sleep, he wasn't ready yet.
Relenting, they gave up on trying to settle him down with them and let him play a little longer.
"Are you feeling tired yet?" Sarah asked her husband next to her.
"Not yet." He said even though he could easily fall asleep if he wanted to.
"How's your throat? You've been talking most of the day but you don't sound too bad."
"It's alright. The tea you keep making really helps."
That made her feel good about herself. "You'll be able to sing in two weeks then?"
He nodded. "It's just a cold baby, not vocal chords." He pointed out.
They finished their last TV show when Daniel finally crawled over to the couch. He didn't bother with pulling himself up to demand to be picked up but just sat down, waiting for the same result. His parents were quick to catch on and Sarah picked him up to take him up to his room. Richie followed her but went to say his goodnights before meeting her in the bedroom.
He pulled off his warm socks before getting into bed. "Where's Daniel?" He asked.
"I thought he could sleep in his own bed tonight. I want to cuddle my husband." Sarah replied as she did exactly that. "He claimed he was feeling better earlier."
Richie sighed, holding her closer. "I'm sorry sweetheart, I'm really tired, I just want to sleep."
She pulled away a little to look up at him with a knowing smile. "I know. I was just bugging you."
"Meanie."
"I love you too." She said before reaching in for a quick kiss. "Go to sleep."
Thursday, October 31, 2019
Saturday, October 26, 2019
Chapter 102
"Hey Sarah?" He asked from inside Daniel's room. It was Saturday night and he was getting Daniel changed and ready for bed. He had had a busy few days. Yesterday they took him to a playgroup so he could play with other children his age and with Ava and Noah home today, they went on a family outing.
"Yes?"
He could hear Sarah down the hallway, putting away towels in the linen closet. "Come here for a second." He clarified, sitting Daniel up on his changing table, ready to change him to pj's.
"What's wrong?" Sarah asked from the hallway, before she joined him in the bedroom. "What's wrong?" She repeated in the room as she had not gotten an answer before.
She must have been able to read the worry on his face. "Does he feel hot?" His question made Sarah frown in worry as well.
Sarah reached over and felt his forehead too.
Richie watched her in question, waiting for her judgement.
"Yeah, kinda." She agreed.
"Where's that fancy thermometer?"
Sarah pulled open one of the drawers on the table and took out the infrared thermometer she had stored there before using it on Daniel's forehead. "101.8." Sarah read the thermometer.
Richie frowned at that, feeling a little more worried about his son. "Should we get him something to bring it down so he can at least sleep?"
"Yeah, probably a good idea." Sarah agreed, picking up her son and walking out of the room.
Richie followed her to their bedroom where Sarah sat down with their son on their bed. Richie proceeded to the bathroom to look for some baby medication, safely out of reach from Daniel. He pulled open the cabinet and looked through the little boxes on the shelf but wasn't able to find anything there for Daniel.
"I don't think we have anything." He said as he walked back out of the bathroom. "I can go to a drugstore and go get some." He suggested.
"Okay." Sarah agreed even though she had already gotten comfortable on the bed with Daniel, if he fell asleep before then, he fell asleep. "At least we'd have it for later."
He certainly agreed to that, he walked over and gave Sarah a quick kiss before walking out of the room. He hurried down the stairs and to the front door where he started to put his shoes on when Ava walked past from the kitchen.
"Where are you going?" She asked.
"Just to the drugstore, Daniel's got a fever."
"Can I come?"
Her request made him frown for a second. "I'm just going to the drugstore but sure."
As he parked the car outside the drugstore, he reminded Ava that this was an in and out stop, no browsing the store, making sure she agreed with that before he got out of the car.
Then, as soon as they were inside the store, Ava left his side and wandered off. Richie sighed and searched for the aisle he needed, then browsed the section of children medication until he found what he needed. He quickly grabbed a box and headed over to the register, spotting Ava by the drink coolers and called her over, loud enough for her to hear him but not loud enough to be disturbing to other shoppers around them. She looked over her shoulder before reaching into the cooler and joining him in line at the register.
"What are you getting?" He asked her.
"Just a soda." She said, her eyes wandering to the checkout items. She picked up two KitKats, adding them to their purchases.
"Two?"
"One for Noah." Ava pointed out.
"In that case," he reached over and grabbed another one, "for Sarah." He clarified.
In the car, Ava unwrapped he chocolate bar, as she looked up to her dad next to her. "Want to share?"
He smiled at her consideration even though he could have gotten his own if he wanted one. "Sure, thanks."
"You're welcome." Ava broke the KitKat in half and passed him the two joint bars.
Back at home, he followed Ava up the stairs, saying good night to her as he turned to the left while Ava went to the right towards her own bedroom.
"Got it." Richie announced when he walked back into the bedroom.
Sarah looked up at him, Daniel still comfortable in her arms. "Thanks."
"And I got you a KitKat." He said as he placed both items on the nightstand next to the bed.
He quickly looked down at Daniel, he was still awake, his cheeks a little flushed compared to earlier. It didn't seem like he was feeling all that great. "Just been cuddling?"
Sarah nodded. "Yeah, I thought he'd fall asleep but he's just been cuddling."
He shrugged at that. "That's not bad. At least we can give him some meds then." He sat down on the side of the bed next to Sarah and opened up the medication, using the syringe to measure off how much he needed to give him."Get him to open his mouth?" He asked.
Sarah helped him so he could give Daniel his medication. Afterwards, Richie put it back on the nightstand and got up to move to the other side of the bed. He moved a little closer to them so he could rub Daniel's back, hoping it would make him feel better soon. Seeing his son feel unwell always made him remember the first time Daniel had been very sick. He knew something like that happening again was always possible, even if it was most likely just a common cold or teething. The memory of it always popped back into his mind. With that, he also knew Daniel would be sleeping with them for the rest of the night.
It was very early morning when Daniel woke up crying, waking up his parents that were sleeping on either side of him. Both of them sat up to console him. Richie pulled him closer to comfort him and to try to stop him from crying any longer as Sarah reached to the nightstand for the thermometer, assuming the meds had worn out by now.
"102." Sarah stated as she read the thermometer again.
"That's higher than it was when he went to bed." He slightly made his hold on Daniel looser when he stopped crying.
Sarah looked over at her phone quickly. "It's been nine hours though." She placed her phone back on the night stand and picked up the bottle of medication again.
Richie held him and stroked his back, hoping he'd go right back to sleep. 5am was not a time he wanted to get up, he could use another couple hours himself. He made eye contact with Sarah, both of them frowning in thought at the situation, unsure of how Daniel was feeling. The boy had stopped his crying and was comforted by his father's hold, his eyes were heavy and closed once again. Soon enough he would be back to sleep.
He woke up to his face being poked by tiny fingers, when he opened his eyes, Daniel's expression changed to happy. Before Daniel could continue, he reached out to grab his hand and pulled him closer for cuddles. Glad to see he was at least feeling better, his cheeks still had a pinkish flush on them. It wasn't until he sat up that he realized his head was pounding. He groaned and laid down again but it didn't relieve it.
Sarah woke up next to him not much later, most likely due to the movement on the bed. He watched her stretch and smiled at her, waking up next to her still made him happy every morning.
"Morning baby." He said quietly, it wasn't that early but the house was still quiet.
Sarah gave him another short smile. "Good morning. How'd you sleep? How's the little man?"
"He seems alright. We've just been cuddling, waiting for you to wake up so we could have breakfast with you instead of alone."
"That's nice of you." Sarah sat up and checked her phone for the time, then got up from the bed to go to the bathroom. When she returned, she started getting dressed. "What about that breakfast?"
Food certainly got his attention. He sat up again, this time expecting the pounding in his head to start over but tried to ignore it. Not bothering to get dressed, he carried Daniel downstairs in the pj pants and tshirt he had slept in since Daniel had shared their bed.
Once in the kitchen, he really couldn't be bothered to be making breakfast. Yesterday he had gone all out and made waffles for everyone but right now he just wanted to sit down with his son.
Sarah watched him walk over to the coffee machine to turn it on and brew a first cup of coffee for the day. "How about I make breakfast for once?" She asked him.
He was so relieved she suggested it but tried not to make it too obvious. "That'd be great." He agreed as he pressed the button to start his coffee.
"Go sit down with Daniel, I'll finish your coffee for you so I can get started here." She urged him to get out of the corner she needed to get a pan out of the cabinet.
"Alright." He took the hint easily enough and went to sit down at the table with Daniel still in his lap.
It wasn't until mid morning when Daniel started to fuss again while they watched TV in the living room. He crawled over from his toys and wanted to be held again. It made Richie frown in thought when he pulled Daniel into his lap again.
"Guess he isn't feeling better after all." He concluded when Daniel simply cuddled against him, looking for comfort.
Sarah reached over to feel Daniel's forehead. "Still got that fever too. Maybe he caught something while we were out Friday?"
Richie shrugged, that was possible. "Maybe, there were a bunch of other kids there too."
"Exactly. Guess we'll take him to a doctor tomorrow."
"Probably a good idea." He agreed.
There was no way they'd be able to see his own pediatrician on a Sunday and going to the ER was a waste of resources. So far Daniel had been manageable so there was no need just yet. Besides that, the pounding in his head had finally subdued a little and he didn't plan on moving in case he risked it it to start again. He looked down at the little boy in his arms, thinking he perhaps felt the same way but probably worse than just a headache. Not much later he noticed Daniel dozing off in his arms, Sarah sat next to him, leaning against him, he felt so perfectly comfortable that he closed his eyes and relaxed.
He woke up to a kiss brushing against his lips. Instinctively, he kissed back as he opened his eyes, a smile forming on his face.
"Hey sleepyhead, you dozed off." She teased gently.
"I'm sorry, didn't mean to fall asleep."
"It's alright." Sarah said, reaching her hand over to his forehead. "You feel hot too."
He gave a little chuckle at that. "Thanks."
Sarah just rolled her eyes at his cockiness. "Not the kind of hot I meant."
"I'm going to take it that way anyway." He insisted on it.
She frowned a little as she watched him, looking worried. "Do you feel okay?"
"Yeah, just a little hot." He said but it didn't seem as if Sarah was convinced to believe him. "Just a bit of a headache and my throat feels scratchy. It's nothing." He tried to convince her again but knew it would be futile to even try. She wasn't going to accept it that easily.
He watched as Sarah got up from the couch and left for the kitchen, most likely to start on lunch. Daniel was still asleep in his arms and with Sarah gone, he carefully moved his legs onto the couch so he could lay down with Daniel. The boy needed his sleep and maybe he'd get some too. Sarah was right, he didn't feel all that great.
The living room was quiet when he woke up, he noticed right away Daniel wasn't in his arms anymore and a blanket was covering him. Slowly he sat up, looking for anything that would indicate what time it was. He couldn't have slept all that long either. As he pulled the blanket off of him, he got up from the couch to go look for Sarah and Daniel. A groan escaped him as he stood up and felt the pressure in his head worsen. It settled after a few seconds and he headed up the stairs to go check the bedroom.
He found Sarah and Daniel sitting in bed together, the boy looked pretty perky but his red cheeks gave away that it was just the medication making him feel better. Sarah took a break from the book she was reading to their son to look up at her husband and inquire about how he was feeling. As Richie joined them in the bed, he did his best to wave it off and convince her that he was just fine. He took Sarah continuing to read the story to Daniel as a good sign. Maybe she finally believed him after all.
When she finished the story, she passed him the book. "Why don't you read a little to him, he likes when you do the voices." She pointed out.
Richie took the book and moved to sit closer to them, arranging his pillows behind his back so he could lean against them. He opened the book again and found a different story, making sure Daniel was able to see the pictures as he read the story for him. Having Sarah lean in against him as she held Daniel in her lap, he felt happy to be so close to her and have a little family moment like that. It wasn't until the third page that his throat started to feel scratchy as he read the words out loud. Knowing it was keeping Daniel happy, he cleared his throat and continued on. Until the fifth page when his voice cracked in the middle of the sentence. He cleared his throat again and made it to the middle of the next sentence when his voice cracked again, this time it made him cough.
Sarah looked up and reached over to rub his back. "Alright?" She asked carefully when he finally caught his breath again.
He nodded before he tried to answer. "Yeah." He was surprised at how his voice sounded.
Sarah frowned at him. "Maybe I'll read the book." She reached over and picked it up.
A few hours later, after having finished watching a movie with Ava and wishing her a good night, Sarah asked him again how he felt.
"Crappy." He finally replied honestly, hearing how hoarse he sounded.
Sarah sighed and reached over to feel his forehead again. "I can imagine. I'm sorry you're sick too."
"I'm fine." He insisted although he could hear he didn't sound anything like fine and felt far from it.
"Why don't you take some cold and flu meds?" Sarah suggested. "It'll at least make you feel better so you can sleep all night and feel better in the morning."
"I guess."
"Come on big man." Sarah stood up from the couch and held out her hand to help him up.
"Yes?"
He could hear Sarah down the hallway, putting away towels in the linen closet. "Come here for a second." He clarified, sitting Daniel up on his changing table, ready to change him to pj's.
"What's wrong?" Sarah asked from the hallway, before she joined him in the bedroom. "What's wrong?" She repeated in the room as she had not gotten an answer before.
She must have been able to read the worry on his face. "Does he feel hot?" His question made Sarah frown in worry as well.
Sarah reached over and felt his forehead too.
Richie watched her in question, waiting for her judgement.
"Yeah, kinda." She agreed.
"Where's that fancy thermometer?"
Sarah pulled open one of the drawers on the table and took out the infrared thermometer she had stored there before using it on Daniel's forehead. "101.8." Sarah read the thermometer.
Richie frowned at that, feeling a little more worried about his son. "Should we get him something to bring it down so he can at least sleep?"
"Yeah, probably a good idea." Sarah agreed, picking up her son and walking out of the room.
Richie followed her to their bedroom where Sarah sat down with their son on their bed. Richie proceeded to the bathroom to look for some baby medication, safely out of reach from Daniel. He pulled open the cabinet and looked through the little boxes on the shelf but wasn't able to find anything there for Daniel.
"I don't think we have anything." He said as he walked back out of the bathroom. "I can go to a drugstore and go get some." He suggested.
"Okay." Sarah agreed even though she had already gotten comfortable on the bed with Daniel, if he fell asleep before then, he fell asleep. "At least we'd have it for later."
He certainly agreed to that, he walked over and gave Sarah a quick kiss before walking out of the room. He hurried down the stairs and to the front door where he started to put his shoes on when Ava walked past from the kitchen.
"Where are you going?" She asked.
"Just to the drugstore, Daniel's got a fever."
"Can I come?"
Her request made him frown for a second. "I'm just going to the drugstore but sure."
As he parked the car outside the drugstore, he reminded Ava that this was an in and out stop, no browsing the store, making sure she agreed with that before he got out of the car.
Then, as soon as they were inside the store, Ava left his side and wandered off. Richie sighed and searched for the aisle he needed, then browsed the section of children medication until he found what he needed. He quickly grabbed a box and headed over to the register, spotting Ava by the drink coolers and called her over, loud enough for her to hear him but not loud enough to be disturbing to other shoppers around them. She looked over her shoulder before reaching into the cooler and joining him in line at the register.
"What are you getting?" He asked her.
"Just a soda." She said, her eyes wandering to the checkout items. She picked up two KitKats, adding them to their purchases.
"Two?"
"One for Noah." Ava pointed out.
"In that case," he reached over and grabbed another one, "for Sarah." He clarified.
In the car, Ava unwrapped he chocolate bar, as she looked up to her dad next to her. "Want to share?"
He smiled at her consideration even though he could have gotten his own if he wanted one. "Sure, thanks."
"You're welcome." Ava broke the KitKat in half and passed him the two joint bars.
Back at home, he followed Ava up the stairs, saying good night to her as he turned to the left while Ava went to the right towards her own bedroom.
"Got it." Richie announced when he walked back into the bedroom.
Sarah looked up at him, Daniel still comfortable in her arms. "Thanks."
"And I got you a KitKat." He said as he placed both items on the nightstand next to the bed.
He quickly looked down at Daniel, he was still awake, his cheeks a little flushed compared to earlier. It didn't seem like he was feeling all that great. "Just been cuddling?"
Sarah nodded. "Yeah, I thought he'd fall asleep but he's just been cuddling."
He shrugged at that. "That's not bad. At least we can give him some meds then." He sat down on the side of the bed next to Sarah and opened up the medication, using the syringe to measure off how much he needed to give him."Get him to open his mouth?" He asked.
Sarah helped him so he could give Daniel his medication. Afterwards, Richie put it back on the nightstand and got up to move to the other side of the bed. He moved a little closer to them so he could rub Daniel's back, hoping it would make him feel better soon. Seeing his son feel unwell always made him remember the first time Daniel had been very sick. He knew something like that happening again was always possible, even if it was most likely just a common cold or teething. The memory of it always popped back into his mind. With that, he also knew Daniel would be sleeping with them for the rest of the night.
It was very early morning when Daniel woke up crying, waking up his parents that were sleeping on either side of him. Both of them sat up to console him. Richie pulled him closer to comfort him and to try to stop him from crying any longer as Sarah reached to the nightstand for the thermometer, assuming the meds had worn out by now.
"102." Sarah stated as she read the thermometer again.
"That's higher than it was when he went to bed." He slightly made his hold on Daniel looser when he stopped crying.
Sarah looked over at her phone quickly. "It's been nine hours though." She placed her phone back on the night stand and picked up the bottle of medication again.
Richie held him and stroked his back, hoping he'd go right back to sleep. 5am was not a time he wanted to get up, he could use another couple hours himself. He made eye contact with Sarah, both of them frowning in thought at the situation, unsure of how Daniel was feeling. The boy had stopped his crying and was comforted by his father's hold, his eyes were heavy and closed once again. Soon enough he would be back to sleep.
He woke up to his face being poked by tiny fingers, when he opened his eyes, Daniel's expression changed to happy. Before Daniel could continue, he reached out to grab his hand and pulled him closer for cuddles. Glad to see he was at least feeling better, his cheeks still had a pinkish flush on them. It wasn't until he sat up that he realized his head was pounding. He groaned and laid down again but it didn't relieve it.
Sarah woke up next to him not much later, most likely due to the movement on the bed. He watched her stretch and smiled at her, waking up next to her still made him happy every morning.
"Morning baby." He said quietly, it wasn't that early but the house was still quiet.
Sarah gave him another short smile. "Good morning. How'd you sleep? How's the little man?"
"He seems alright. We've just been cuddling, waiting for you to wake up so we could have breakfast with you instead of alone."
"That's nice of you." Sarah sat up and checked her phone for the time, then got up from the bed to go to the bathroom. When she returned, she started getting dressed. "What about that breakfast?"
Food certainly got his attention. He sat up again, this time expecting the pounding in his head to start over but tried to ignore it. Not bothering to get dressed, he carried Daniel downstairs in the pj pants and tshirt he had slept in since Daniel had shared their bed.
Once in the kitchen, he really couldn't be bothered to be making breakfast. Yesterday he had gone all out and made waffles for everyone but right now he just wanted to sit down with his son.
Sarah watched him walk over to the coffee machine to turn it on and brew a first cup of coffee for the day. "How about I make breakfast for once?" She asked him.
He was so relieved she suggested it but tried not to make it too obvious. "That'd be great." He agreed as he pressed the button to start his coffee.
"Go sit down with Daniel, I'll finish your coffee for you so I can get started here." She urged him to get out of the corner she needed to get a pan out of the cabinet.
"Alright." He took the hint easily enough and went to sit down at the table with Daniel still in his lap.
It wasn't until mid morning when Daniel started to fuss again while they watched TV in the living room. He crawled over from his toys and wanted to be held again. It made Richie frown in thought when he pulled Daniel into his lap again.
"Guess he isn't feeling better after all." He concluded when Daniel simply cuddled against him, looking for comfort.
Sarah reached over to feel Daniel's forehead. "Still got that fever too. Maybe he caught something while we were out Friday?"
Richie shrugged, that was possible. "Maybe, there were a bunch of other kids there too."
"Exactly. Guess we'll take him to a doctor tomorrow."
"Probably a good idea." He agreed.
There was no way they'd be able to see his own pediatrician on a Sunday and going to the ER was a waste of resources. So far Daniel had been manageable so there was no need just yet. Besides that, the pounding in his head had finally subdued a little and he didn't plan on moving in case he risked it it to start again. He looked down at the little boy in his arms, thinking he perhaps felt the same way but probably worse than just a headache. Not much later he noticed Daniel dozing off in his arms, Sarah sat next to him, leaning against him, he felt so perfectly comfortable that he closed his eyes and relaxed.
He woke up to a kiss brushing against his lips. Instinctively, he kissed back as he opened his eyes, a smile forming on his face.
"Hey sleepyhead, you dozed off." She teased gently.
"I'm sorry, didn't mean to fall asleep."
"It's alright." Sarah said, reaching her hand over to his forehead. "You feel hot too."
He gave a little chuckle at that. "Thanks."
Sarah just rolled her eyes at his cockiness. "Not the kind of hot I meant."
"I'm going to take it that way anyway." He insisted on it.
She frowned a little as she watched him, looking worried. "Do you feel okay?"
"Yeah, just a little hot." He said but it didn't seem as if Sarah was convinced to believe him. "Just a bit of a headache and my throat feels scratchy. It's nothing." He tried to convince her again but knew it would be futile to even try. She wasn't going to accept it that easily.
He watched as Sarah got up from the couch and left for the kitchen, most likely to start on lunch. Daniel was still asleep in his arms and with Sarah gone, he carefully moved his legs onto the couch so he could lay down with Daniel. The boy needed his sleep and maybe he'd get some too. Sarah was right, he didn't feel all that great.
The living room was quiet when he woke up, he noticed right away Daniel wasn't in his arms anymore and a blanket was covering him. Slowly he sat up, looking for anything that would indicate what time it was. He couldn't have slept all that long either. As he pulled the blanket off of him, he got up from the couch to go look for Sarah and Daniel. A groan escaped him as he stood up and felt the pressure in his head worsen. It settled after a few seconds and he headed up the stairs to go check the bedroom.
He found Sarah and Daniel sitting in bed together, the boy looked pretty perky but his red cheeks gave away that it was just the medication making him feel better. Sarah took a break from the book she was reading to their son to look up at her husband and inquire about how he was feeling. As Richie joined them in the bed, he did his best to wave it off and convince her that he was just fine. He took Sarah continuing to read the story to Daniel as a good sign. Maybe she finally believed him after all.
When she finished the story, she passed him the book. "Why don't you read a little to him, he likes when you do the voices." She pointed out.
Richie took the book and moved to sit closer to them, arranging his pillows behind his back so he could lean against them. He opened the book again and found a different story, making sure Daniel was able to see the pictures as he read the story for him. Having Sarah lean in against him as she held Daniel in her lap, he felt happy to be so close to her and have a little family moment like that. It wasn't until the third page that his throat started to feel scratchy as he read the words out loud. Knowing it was keeping Daniel happy, he cleared his throat and continued on. Until the fifth page when his voice cracked in the middle of the sentence. He cleared his throat again and made it to the middle of the next sentence when his voice cracked again, this time it made him cough.
Sarah looked up and reached over to rub his back. "Alright?" She asked carefully when he finally caught his breath again.
He nodded before he tried to answer. "Yeah." He was surprised at how his voice sounded.
Sarah frowned at him. "Maybe I'll read the book." She reached over and picked it up.
A few hours later, after having finished watching a movie with Ava and wishing her a good night, Sarah asked him again how he felt.
"Crappy." He finally replied honestly, hearing how hoarse he sounded.
Sarah sighed and reached over to feel his forehead again. "I can imagine. I'm sorry you're sick too."
"I'm fine." He insisted although he could hear he didn't sound anything like fine and felt far from it.
"Why don't you take some cold and flu meds?" Sarah suggested. "It'll at least make you feel better so you can sleep all night and feel better in the morning."
"I guess."
"Come on big man." Sarah stood up from the couch and held out her hand to help him up.
Monday, October 21, 2019
Chapter 101
Towards the end of the week Richie started to figure out his daily schedule. Finally he had caught up on sleep and had been able to get up to make breakfast on Wednesday. It wasn't much but he took it as an achievement because he could. Besides that, it was nice to get Daniel out of bed and get him dressed and ready for the day. He enjoyed picking out his clothes for him, making sure he had a cute tshirt to wear every day.
With Sarah following behind him, he carried Daniel downstairs to the kitchen where he passed him over to Sarah as he continued into the kitchen. He pulled open the fridge to grab a carton of eggs out. He looked around but wasn't able to find any bacon, must have used the last the day before. He started on the eggs and started making toast for everyone. As he waited on both, he started a cup of coffee for himself. Breakfast was easy, he enjoyed making breakfast on weekdays, simple with some eggs, bacon, when he had any that is, and toast. On the weekends was when he went full out with pancakes, waffles or french toast.
"Morning."
He looked over his shoulder to see Ava, as her voice had given away, as she went to join Sarah and Daniel at the table. "Good morning angel." He wished her, glad she looked all ready for school.
Ava dropped her backpack and sat down next to Sarah.
It was the easiness of family time that he loved to listen to, Ava talking to Sarah. Daniel patiently waiting for toast. Once the eggs were ready, he used his spatula to divide them and move them to plates before taking them to the table for Sarah and Ava. As he got his own, he stacked the slices of toast on a separate plate. On his last trip he got his own plate of eggs and Noah's.
He gladly sat down with the rest of the family when Noah finally walked in. Richie knew his own bedhead could look pretty impressive when he first got up in the morning but at least he straightened it out, unlike Noah who just left it as a mess. Kids.
"Am I driving you guys to school or are you driving?" He directed his question to Ava.
"I can drive but I have cheer after school. Noah can come hang out if he wants to and wait with some of the boyfriends." She suggested to him.
A resolute "No." sounded.
Richie frowned at his response. "I'll pick you up." He assured him, maybe they'd have a chat.
After breakfast he helped Sarah clean up the kitchen and said goodbye to Ava and Noah. He didn't mind all that much not getting to drive them to school. Ava could handle it on her own and he was proud of that.
In the living room, he turned on the TV and found a morning news show, ready to catch up on current events while watching Daniel play on his own. He looked up when Sarah sat down next to him, he leaned away a little to pull his arm back and hold her against him. "I love you." He reminded her.
She smiled back at him and reached in for a quick kiss. "I love you too."
It was an hour before Daniel crawled over to the couch and pulled himself up to look up at his parents.
"Hi DanMan." Richie said as he reached down to pick him up. "What's up?"
Of course, he didn't get a response but he was happy as his son settled in his lap and watched TV for a little while before getting fussy all together.
"Alright, alright." He stood up and walked back to Daniel's toy area. "I get it." He sat down with him and grabbed a couple toys. They played together like Daniel wanted, getting the attention he had been seeking. He played with him, trying to coax him into repeating words or trying to get him to stand up but each attempt he made at either was futile as Daniel simply refused.
He heard Sarah chuckled behind him, it make him look over his shoulder. "What?" He asked.
"I don't think he wants to talk."
"I know," he sighed, "but I just want him to say something. Mommy, daddy. Anything really, ball, car, block, cookie." That one caught Daniel's attention, making him look up.
"He understood that one." Sarah pointed out.
Richie smiled back at his son. "Cookie?" He asked, trying to coax him into saying it but Daniel made no effort. "If you want a cookie, you've got to say cookie."
"Bribing him, are you?" Sarah teased.
In response, Daniel just grunted frustrated.
"You can say cookie." Richie tried again. "Otherwise you don't get a cookie." He regretted it almost as quickly as he said it and watched Daniel's expression change and tears appeared in his eyes. "No, no." He started quickly. "Don't cry, you can have a cookie." He got up and headed to the kitchen.
"You're easy." Sarah said when he walked back in with a cookie.
"He was going to cry." He pointed out as he gave Daniel the cookie to eat.
"And you taught him that starting to cry will get him what he wants."
"I'll live with the consequences."
Not much later Sarah changed the TV to a movie to watch before she went and made sandwiches in the kitchen for lunch. Leaving the toys on the floor, Richie picked Daniel up and moved to the couch with him. The movie would keep them busy during lunch and would put Daniel to sleep easily enough. He knew Sarah would let him nap in his own bed but since he had been home, he had gotten used to letting Daniel nap on him while he watched TV.
Daniel woke up from his nap just in time for Richie to get ready to pick Noah up from school, not wanting to let him wait for over an hour until Ava was ready to come home.
"Do we need anything from the store?" He asked Sarah as he moved Daniel over.
"I don't think so unless you want anything."
"We're out of bacon." Richie clarifying why he was going in the first place. "Figured I'd go get some if you needed anything else."
"You can get a fresh salad bag if you want, some milk would be handy too."
"Okay." He got up from the couch and looked for his phone. "Anything else we need?"
Sarah shook her head in thought. "I can't think of anything else."
He gave her a quick kiss before heading out the door.
His drive to school was short and he got there just in time to be far enough away from the doors that most likely no one would notice him, the safest way for teenagers. He texted Noah where he was and just waited for him to either reply or show up as he browsed on his phone.
He looked up when he heard the door handle on the passenger side being pulled. Quickly, he pressed the button to unlock the door so Noah could try again.
"Hey." He said as Noah sat down next to him. "How was school?" He shifted the car into drive and pulled out of the spot he was parked in.
"Fine."
"Sounds like a lot of fun." The sarcasm was obvious but what else was he supposed to do to get a conversation going. "Anything interesting happen today?"
"No."
"Wild." He drove out of the parking lot and got onto the road. "We're going to the grocery store and pick some things up for you mom."
"Alright."
"If you're good, I'll let you pick out a snack." He could see Noah frown from the corner of his eye.
"I'm not 4."
Richie shrugged. "I was going to pick out a snack." What was wrong with getting a snack?
At the grocery store he got the few items he needed, then sneaked down to the aisle that had cookies. Couldn't ever go wrong with some oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.
"Do you want anything?" He asked Noah behind him.
Noah looked up at him with a question on his face. "No, I'm fine."
"You sure?" Richie asked, he wouldn't mind anything.
"It's alright." Noah decided.
Back at home, he parked the car in the driveway and got out, grabbing the bag of groceries from the backseat before following Noah into the house. He watched as Noah kicked off his shoes and headed up the stairs. Richie shook his head in thought and headed to the kitchen to put everything away. Once he got to the pack of cookies, he pulled it open and took a few out. Sure he'd have to share as soon as he got to the living room with them.
"Welcome back." Sarah said when he walked back into the room. "Did you get the salad?"
"Yeah." He sat down next to her and passed one of the cookies over as he bit into his second one.
Sarah took the cookie and took a bite as well. "Did Noah go upstairs?"
"Yeah, he wasn't very talkative on the way home."
"I'm sorry." Sarah frowned. "I don't know what's up with him. I thought after he was in school for a few weeks he'd figure it out but he just seems down."
He could only agree to that. "I know. He doesn't want to talk about it though."
"Don't take it personally. He's probably just trying to figure himself out. I understand."
Richie chuckled at that. "You understand being a teenage boy?"
"Maybe not exactly but I understand life can be frustrating when you're a teenager."
As breakfast was his specialty, dinner was Sarah's. During which he gladly occupied Daniel's time a little longer while Sarah worked on dinner. Ava had just gotten home and had headed upstairs to shower and get changed for dinner.
Richie looked up when she walked into the living room and sat down next to him and joined in with Daniel and him. He loved watching them together. The way Ava played with her little brother and made him happy was priceless to Richie.
The family had dinner in the kitchen together. Sarah and Richie took turns giving Daniel bites from his dinner, sitting between the two of them in his highchair, happily eating away each time food was offered to him. Dinnertime conversation was mostly led by Ava, as it usually was.
After she finished dinner, Ava helped out by taking Daniel back to his toys in the living room as Sarah and Richie tidied up the kitchen.
"Do you want tea?" Richie asked once he finished loading the dishwasher.
Sarah smiled at him. "Yes, please."
"I'll bring it out. Go see Daniel." He urged.
A few minutes later, he carried two cups of hot tea to the living room, placing them on the coffee table before sitting down next to his wife. Ava was still on the floor with her little brother but watching a TV show rather than playing with him.
"I'll start homework after this show." She said when Richie walked into the room.
The show finished a few minutes later and Sarah changed the channel to something she wanted to watch instead. Ava said good night as she headed up to her bedroom.
Now all alone with his toys, Daniel dropped them and crawled up to the couch, pulling himself up once again, wanting to be picked up. Richie placed his cup of tea back on the coffee table and picked him up. Their day was coming at an end and he knew Daniel would fall asleep on him in only a few minutes.
Sarah's drank her tea with sips and finished it when her show ended. "I can take him to bed if you want." She offered. The commercial block with give her enough time to do so.
"Sure." Richie kissed the top of his head and let him go, picking up his own cup of tea again.
Before going to bed, he made his usual rounds of the upstairs bedrooms. At the top of the stairs he turned to the right and stopped at Ava's room first. He knocked softly before pushing the door open.
"Ready for bed soon?" He asked her.
Ava got up from her bed, her books and paper sprawled out over the covers. "Yeah, almost done." She walked over to him and right into a hug.
He did the same as he did to Daniel and kissed the top of her head. "Good night. I love you."
"I love you too." She said before letting go and getting back to her homework.
Richie pulled the door closed behind him and walked down the hallway to Noah's room where he also knocked on the door softly before pushing it open as well.
"Getting ready for bed?" He asked Noah.
Just like Ava, Noah was on his bed but instead of homework, there was a laptop on his lap. "Soon."
"Alright." Richie agreed. "Don't stay up too late." He warned him, making sure Noah made eye contact with him before he left. "Love you." He said when he finally got it.
He made his last stop at Daniel's room, walking over to his crib quietly. The boy was still comfortably asleep, snuggled up with a stuffed animal. He reached down carefully and stroked his soft brown hair.
Carefully he got up, trying not to make a sound even though Daniel was a deep sleeper. A gift he had gotten from his dad. As he walked out of the room, he pulled the door halfway closed. Then walked into the room across the hall.
"Everyone asleep?" Sarah asked when he walked in the room, closing the door behind him.
"They will be soon enough."
He made his way to the bathroom to get ready for bed before joining her in the bedroom again. He stopped by the chair in the corner and pulled his tshirt over his head, dropping it on the chair, letting his jeans follow a moment later. His socks were thrown into the hamper, leaving him in his boxer briefs.
"Ready for bed?" Sarah asked when he got into bed and moved closer to her.
Richie shrugged. "I've got time for something else." He pulled her close against him and kissed her deeply.
With Sarah following behind him, he carried Daniel downstairs to the kitchen where he passed him over to Sarah as he continued into the kitchen. He pulled open the fridge to grab a carton of eggs out. He looked around but wasn't able to find any bacon, must have used the last the day before. He started on the eggs and started making toast for everyone. As he waited on both, he started a cup of coffee for himself. Breakfast was easy, he enjoyed making breakfast on weekdays, simple with some eggs, bacon, when he had any that is, and toast. On the weekends was when he went full out with pancakes, waffles or french toast.
"Morning."
He looked over his shoulder to see Ava, as her voice had given away, as she went to join Sarah and Daniel at the table. "Good morning angel." He wished her, glad she looked all ready for school.
Ava dropped her backpack and sat down next to Sarah.
It was the easiness of family time that he loved to listen to, Ava talking to Sarah. Daniel patiently waiting for toast. Once the eggs were ready, he used his spatula to divide them and move them to plates before taking them to the table for Sarah and Ava. As he got his own, he stacked the slices of toast on a separate plate. On his last trip he got his own plate of eggs and Noah's.
He gladly sat down with the rest of the family when Noah finally walked in. Richie knew his own bedhead could look pretty impressive when he first got up in the morning but at least he straightened it out, unlike Noah who just left it as a mess. Kids.
"Am I driving you guys to school or are you driving?" He directed his question to Ava.
"I can drive but I have cheer after school. Noah can come hang out if he wants to and wait with some of the boyfriends." She suggested to him.
A resolute "No." sounded.
Richie frowned at his response. "I'll pick you up." He assured him, maybe they'd have a chat.
After breakfast he helped Sarah clean up the kitchen and said goodbye to Ava and Noah. He didn't mind all that much not getting to drive them to school. Ava could handle it on her own and he was proud of that.
In the living room, he turned on the TV and found a morning news show, ready to catch up on current events while watching Daniel play on his own. He looked up when Sarah sat down next to him, he leaned away a little to pull his arm back and hold her against him. "I love you." He reminded her.
She smiled back at him and reached in for a quick kiss. "I love you too."
It was an hour before Daniel crawled over to the couch and pulled himself up to look up at his parents.
"Hi DanMan." Richie said as he reached down to pick him up. "What's up?"
Of course, he didn't get a response but he was happy as his son settled in his lap and watched TV for a little while before getting fussy all together.
"Alright, alright." He stood up and walked back to Daniel's toy area. "I get it." He sat down with him and grabbed a couple toys. They played together like Daniel wanted, getting the attention he had been seeking. He played with him, trying to coax him into repeating words or trying to get him to stand up but each attempt he made at either was futile as Daniel simply refused.
He heard Sarah chuckled behind him, it make him look over his shoulder. "What?" He asked.
"I don't think he wants to talk."
"I know," he sighed, "but I just want him to say something. Mommy, daddy. Anything really, ball, car, block, cookie." That one caught Daniel's attention, making him look up.
"He understood that one." Sarah pointed out.
Richie smiled back at his son. "Cookie?" He asked, trying to coax him into saying it but Daniel made no effort. "If you want a cookie, you've got to say cookie."
"Bribing him, are you?" Sarah teased.
In response, Daniel just grunted frustrated.
"You can say cookie." Richie tried again. "Otherwise you don't get a cookie." He regretted it almost as quickly as he said it and watched Daniel's expression change and tears appeared in his eyes. "No, no." He started quickly. "Don't cry, you can have a cookie." He got up and headed to the kitchen.
"You're easy." Sarah said when he walked back in with a cookie.
"He was going to cry." He pointed out as he gave Daniel the cookie to eat.
"And you taught him that starting to cry will get him what he wants."
"I'll live with the consequences."
Not much later Sarah changed the TV to a movie to watch before she went and made sandwiches in the kitchen for lunch. Leaving the toys on the floor, Richie picked Daniel up and moved to the couch with him. The movie would keep them busy during lunch and would put Daniel to sleep easily enough. He knew Sarah would let him nap in his own bed but since he had been home, he had gotten used to letting Daniel nap on him while he watched TV.
Daniel woke up from his nap just in time for Richie to get ready to pick Noah up from school, not wanting to let him wait for over an hour until Ava was ready to come home.
"Do we need anything from the store?" He asked Sarah as he moved Daniel over.
"I don't think so unless you want anything."
"We're out of bacon." Richie clarifying why he was going in the first place. "Figured I'd go get some if you needed anything else."
"You can get a fresh salad bag if you want, some milk would be handy too."
"Okay." He got up from the couch and looked for his phone. "Anything else we need?"
Sarah shook her head in thought. "I can't think of anything else."
He gave her a quick kiss before heading out the door.
His drive to school was short and he got there just in time to be far enough away from the doors that most likely no one would notice him, the safest way for teenagers. He texted Noah where he was and just waited for him to either reply or show up as he browsed on his phone.
He looked up when he heard the door handle on the passenger side being pulled. Quickly, he pressed the button to unlock the door so Noah could try again.
"Hey." He said as Noah sat down next to him. "How was school?" He shifted the car into drive and pulled out of the spot he was parked in.
"Fine."
"Sounds like a lot of fun." The sarcasm was obvious but what else was he supposed to do to get a conversation going. "Anything interesting happen today?"
"No."
"Wild." He drove out of the parking lot and got onto the road. "We're going to the grocery store and pick some things up for you mom."
"Alright."
"If you're good, I'll let you pick out a snack." He could see Noah frown from the corner of his eye.
"I'm not 4."
Richie shrugged. "I was going to pick out a snack." What was wrong with getting a snack?
At the grocery store he got the few items he needed, then sneaked down to the aisle that had cookies. Couldn't ever go wrong with some oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.
"Do you want anything?" He asked Noah behind him.
Noah looked up at him with a question on his face. "No, I'm fine."
"You sure?" Richie asked, he wouldn't mind anything.
"It's alright." Noah decided.
Back at home, he parked the car in the driveway and got out, grabbing the bag of groceries from the backseat before following Noah into the house. He watched as Noah kicked off his shoes and headed up the stairs. Richie shook his head in thought and headed to the kitchen to put everything away. Once he got to the pack of cookies, he pulled it open and took a few out. Sure he'd have to share as soon as he got to the living room with them.
"Welcome back." Sarah said when he walked back into the room. "Did you get the salad?"
"Yeah." He sat down next to her and passed one of the cookies over as he bit into his second one.
Sarah took the cookie and took a bite as well. "Did Noah go upstairs?"
"Yeah, he wasn't very talkative on the way home."
"I'm sorry." Sarah frowned. "I don't know what's up with him. I thought after he was in school for a few weeks he'd figure it out but he just seems down."
He could only agree to that. "I know. He doesn't want to talk about it though."
"Don't take it personally. He's probably just trying to figure himself out. I understand."
Richie chuckled at that. "You understand being a teenage boy?"
"Maybe not exactly but I understand life can be frustrating when you're a teenager."
As breakfast was his specialty, dinner was Sarah's. During which he gladly occupied Daniel's time a little longer while Sarah worked on dinner. Ava had just gotten home and had headed upstairs to shower and get changed for dinner.
Richie looked up when she walked into the living room and sat down next to him and joined in with Daniel and him. He loved watching them together. The way Ava played with her little brother and made him happy was priceless to Richie.
The family had dinner in the kitchen together. Sarah and Richie took turns giving Daniel bites from his dinner, sitting between the two of them in his highchair, happily eating away each time food was offered to him. Dinnertime conversation was mostly led by Ava, as it usually was.
After she finished dinner, Ava helped out by taking Daniel back to his toys in the living room as Sarah and Richie tidied up the kitchen.
"Do you want tea?" Richie asked once he finished loading the dishwasher.
Sarah smiled at him. "Yes, please."
"I'll bring it out. Go see Daniel." He urged.
A few minutes later, he carried two cups of hot tea to the living room, placing them on the coffee table before sitting down next to his wife. Ava was still on the floor with her little brother but watching a TV show rather than playing with him.
"I'll start homework after this show." She said when Richie walked into the room.
The show finished a few minutes later and Sarah changed the channel to something she wanted to watch instead. Ava said good night as she headed up to her bedroom.
Now all alone with his toys, Daniel dropped them and crawled up to the couch, pulling himself up once again, wanting to be picked up. Richie placed his cup of tea back on the coffee table and picked him up. Their day was coming at an end and he knew Daniel would fall asleep on him in only a few minutes.
Sarah's drank her tea with sips and finished it when her show ended. "I can take him to bed if you want." She offered. The commercial block with give her enough time to do so.
"Sure." Richie kissed the top of his head and let him go, picking up his own cup of tea again.
Before going to bed, he made his usual rounds of the upstairs bedrooms. At the top of the stairs he turned to the right and stopped at Ava's room first. He knocked softly before pushing the door open.
"Ready for bed soon?" He asked her.
Ava got up from her bed, her books and paper sprawled out over the covers. "Yeah, almost done." She walked over to him and right into a hug.
He did the same as he did to Daniel and kissed the top of her head. "Good night. I love you."
"I love you too." She said before letting go and getting back to her homework.
Richie pulled the door closed behind him and walked down the hallway to Noah's room where he also knocked on the door softly before pushing it open as well.
"Getting ready for bed?" He asked Noah.
Just like Ava, Noah was on his bed but instead of homework, there was a laptop on his lap. "Soon."
"Alright." Richie agreed. "Don't stay up too late." He warned him, making sure Noah made eye contact with him before he left. "Love you." He said when he finally got it.
He made his last stop at Daniel's room, walking over to his crib quietly. The boy was still comfortably asleep, snuggled up with a stuffed animal. He reached down carefully and stroked his soft brown hair.
Carefully he got up, trying not to make a sound even though Daniel was a deep sleeper. A gift he had gotten from his dad. As he walked out of the room, he pulled the door halfway closed. Then walked into the room across the hall.
"Everyone asleep?" Sarah asked when he walked in the room, closing the door behind him.
"They will be soon enough."
He made his way to the bathroom to get ready for bed before joining her in the bedroom again. He stopped by the chair in the corner and pulled his tshirt over his head, dropping it on the chair, letting his jeans follow a moment later. His socks were thrown into the hamper, leaving him in his boxer briefs.
"Ready for bed?" Sarah asked when he got into bed and moved closer to her.
Richie shrugged. "I've got time for something else." He pulled her close against him and kissed her deeply.
Wednesday, October 16, 2019
Chapter 100
God, he thought to himself, his bed was so comfortable. For it being an object, he had missed it way too much but being able to lay down in it right now was wonderful. They'd just gotten home from the airport and the bed was the first thing he had to try out again to be welcomed home. He'd pick Ava up in a little while.
The last show had been amazing, most of them were but being the end of a leg or the beginning was always a time to impress the audience. He could easily imagine standing on that stage again, a guitar over his shoulder as he started off one of their songs. The opening lyrics were all his, not until the chorus did Jon join in with him, he gladly let him take the spotlight he wanted back. For now anyway, before he knew it he was lost in his guitar solo.
Whenever he played that guitar he felt good, everything became better once he picked up his instrument and was able to turn off his mind and simply play what he was feeling. Being lost like that was what he loved so much. He could feel his own passion as he moved on to the next song.
Being able to play his guitar on stage in front of everyone, sharing the love he had for the music he had created was a feeling that he could closely compare to sex. He did both with passion. Not the exact same kind of feeling but if a foodgasm was now a thing, then a musicgasm has been a thing for him for many years because that was exactly what he felt when he got to perform.
An hour into the show, he shared some banter with Jon before trading his mike stand for the famous white one. As he was more occupied with singing than getting lost in the moment, he relied more on Bobby to keep up with guitar. For now anyway, he picked up whenever he heard the need to do so.
During the solo, he felt his shoulder being shaken, his play being interrupted. "What?" He asked confused when he opened his eyes to reveal his bedroom to him.
"You fell asleep." Sarah said gently, as she sat down next to him.
He rubbed his eyes, getting rid of the sleepiness he felt before he sat up. "Guess I was tired."
"I'm sorry." Sarah apologized. "I'd let you nap but you were going to pick Ava and Noah up from school. If you hadn't insisted, she would have driven them home."
"I know." He stretched a little, remembering how he had convinced her to get a ride to school so he could have the honors of picking her up like he used to do. "Are you staying here with Daniel?"
"He thought he'd do the same as his daddy and fell asleep so I just took him to bed, that's when I came in here."
"He's a smart boy." Richie got up from the bed, which was safer than staying in it if he was feeling sleepy. "I might get a coffee." He considered, knowing Ava would love it if he picked her up something as well.
Changing back to a pace at home was strange, around dinner time he started to feel antsy, as if he needed to do something but other than cleaning up after dinner, there wasn't anything he needed to do tonight. After weeks of touring, the tour schedule became his regular pace and changing back to something more relaxed felt strange to him.
After dinner, he took Daniel to the living room to play with him before bed and to tire him out, maybe it would still work for himself as well. He doubted it. On tour he had been able to spend his daytime with Daniel but usually on the way back to the hotel Daniel would have fallen asleep in the car. It was nice to sit on the floor with him and drive around cars or building a block tower, just so the little boy could knock it down. While on the road, he didn't have as many toys, here he had a whole bunch to keep him busy.
When his son became fussy, he picked him up and carried him to the couch to sit down with him, stroking his back to calm him down. It always worked and it didn't take Daniel long to go to sleep.
"Do you want to take him to bed?" Sarah asked once their TV show ended, she was ready for bed herself.
"Yeah." Richie looked up at her. "Are you tired too sweetheart?"
She nodded. "I think I'll head to bed as well." She admitted.
"Do you want me to come with you or do you mind if I stay up a little longer?" He asked, it was only 10, there was no way he'd be able to sleep right now.
"You can stay up." Sarah said as she reached to pick up Daniel. "I won't mind."
"Okay." He let go of his son but reached in to capture Sarah's lips in a kiss before he let her go upstairs.
He watched her walk out of the living room and up the stairs. Figuring he was alone for the rest of the night, he got up and headed to the kitchen. From the cabinet he grabbed a bowl, a spoon from the drawer, then headed to the freezer. He had to move some things around but found a box of ice cream. Back in the living room, he changed the TV channel and found a late night show to watch.
Sarah reached out on the bed as she woke up but came up empty handed. The warmth she expected to find next to her wasn't there. She turned around and opened her eyes to read the time on her alarm clock.
Surely he would have gotten tired by now.
Slowly, she pulled herself out of bed and out of their bedroom. Once she was heading down the stairs, she could hear the TV but instead of a show he would be watching, she recognized it as one of those infomercials that played during the night time.
She walked into the living room to find her husband asleep on the couch, ignoring the bowl and the pack of cookies on the coffee table, she picked up the TV remote and turned the TV off. Then, she sat down next to his sleeping figure on the couch and stroked his arm to gently try and wake him. She chuckled when his head straightened up as he woke up in surprise.
"Want to go to bed?" She whispered.
The next morning Richie tried his best to wake up early but after Daniel had woken up, he made the mistake of laying back down in bed with him which lead to him sleeping later than he had intended. Once he got downstairs to the living room, Sarah was alone with Daniel playing on the floor.
"Did they go to school already?" He asked a little disappointed in himself, already knowing the answer.
"Ava and I agreed we should let you sleep if you're tired." Sarah said, watching him as he sat down on the couch instead of with her. "She doesn't have cheer today so she'll be home earlier."
Richie nodded, then yawned. "Sounds good. What do we do today?" He reached for the TV remote to turn on the TV.
"Play with Daniel mostly. I just kept him busy while you were away. We play, watch some TV, nap, wait for Noah to come home."
The first day of being home always felt a little strange. After having a long time with a specific routine, it was strange to adjust to one where he got to occupy himself all day. There was no need to go to the gym, be ready by 3.30pm, soundcheck, dinner and show. All he had to do now was wake up in the morning and then figure out what he wanted to do all day. No set schedule that was going to tell him. Tomorrow he would try harder to get up earlier, even if Ava wanted to drive to school he'd at least get up to make them breakfast. Which would mean waking up before 10am.
When they finished lunch, he picked Daniel up out of his high chair and carried him to the living room. This was something he would gladly make a routine of. He grabbed the TV remote again to find an afternoon show to watch, as he sat down in his chair and reclined it, making sure Daniel was comfortable on him for the next two hours or so. He situated him with his head on his shoulder so he would still be able to watch TV and keep himself occupied as he cuddled his son to sleep. Not much later Sarah sat down next to him on the couch.
"What do you do while he naps?" Richie asked, looking over at her.
Sarah shrugged. "Watch TV or study, depends on the day."
"You're going to be studying forever aren't you?" He asked curiously.
Sarah smiled at that, he was probably right. "I like learning new things and it's a very useful subject. It also keeps me busy and gives me something of a social life."
He looked over at her in question. She was studying at home, online courses. "How so?"
"There's chatrooms and forums on the online courses in case anyone needs helps with any kind of subject so I'm able to connect with other people as well."
"I didn't know that."
"I also take Daniel out to playgroups." Sarah pointed out. "He needs it too."
He looked down at his son, he knew that was true. "He needs some friends and people to talk to."
That make Sarah look up as well. "People to talk to?"
"Well yeah, he'll catch on eventually. He's not going to be quiet forever." He pointed out, although Daniel hadn't said a word so far.
Sarah smiled at that thought. Both of them were looking forward to hearing that first word come out of him.
"What about your friends?" Richie asked, he knew there weren't many but Sarah had made a few friends at the job she held for a couple months.
Sarah frowned.
After leaving her job at the hospital she hadn't seen much of anyone until Daniel was born and then again when he was in the hospital, which was now six months ago. Occasionally she still texted them but without having work to relate over, she felt like she had grown apart from most of them. It wasn't easy to maintain a friendship when you had a child needing your almost constant attention.
"You could meet up with them, you know?" Richie told her, sounding hopeful. "I can watch Daniel if you ever want to go hang out with someone like..." He paused, thinking fast. "That girl Taylor. She was nice and she liked Daniel too."
"Maybe I will."
A few minutes later he felt Daniel relax more into his arms, he looked down to see his closed eyes as he slept comfortably. This was exactly what he needed.
The last show had been amazing, most of them were but being the end of a leg or the beginning was always a time to impress the audience. He could easily imagine standing on that stage again, a guitar over his shoulder as he started off one of their songs. The opening lyrics were all his, not until the chorus did Jon join in with him, he gladly let him take the spotlight he wanted back. For now anyway, before he knew it he was lost in his guitar solo.
Whenever he played that guitar he felt good, everything became better once he picked up his instrument and was able to turn off his mind and simply play what he was feeling. Being lost like that was what he loved so much. He could feel his own passion as he moved on to the next song.
Being able to play his guitar on stage in front of everyone, sharing the love he had for the music he had created was a feeling that he could closely compare to sex. He did both with passion. Not the exact same kind of feeling but if a foodgasm was now a thing, then a musicgasm has been a thing for him for many years because that was exactly what he felt when he got to perform.
An hour into the show, he shared some banter with Jon before trading his mike stand for the famous white one. As he was more occupied with singing than getting lost in the moment, he relied more on Bobby to keep up with guitar. For now anyway, he picked up whenever he heard the need to do so.
During the solo, he felt his shoulder being shaken, his play being interrupted. "What?" He asked confused when he opened his eyes to reveal his bedroom to him.
"You fell asleep." Sarah said gently, as she sat down next to him.
He rubbed his eyes, getting rid of the sleepiness he felt before he sat up. "Guess I was tired."
"I'm sorry." Sarah apologized. "I'd let you nap but you were going to pick Ava and Noah up from school. If you hadn't insisted, she would have driven them home."
"I know." He stretched a little, remembering how he had convinced her to get a ride to school so he could have the honors of picking her up like he used to do. "Are you staying here with Daniel?"
"He thought he'd do the same as his daddy and fell asleep so I just took him to bed, that's when I came in here."
"He's a smart boy." Richie got up from the bed, which was safer than staying in it if he was feeling sleepy. "I might get a coffee." He considered, knowing Ava would love it if he picked her up something as well.
Changing back to a pace at home was strange, around dinner time he started to feel antsy, as if he needed to do something but other than cleaning up after dinner, there wasn't anything he needed to do tonight. After weeks of touring, the tour schedule became his regular pace and changing back to something more relaxed felt strange to him.
After dinner, he took Daniel to the living room to play with him before bed and to tire him out, maybe it would still work for himself as well. He doubted it. On tour he had been able to spend his daytime with Daniel but usually on the way back to the hotel Daniel would have fallen asleep in the car. It was nice to sit on the floor with him and drive around cars or building a block tower, just so the little boy could knock it down. While on the road, he didn't have as many toys, here he had a whole bunch to keep him busy.
When his son became fussy, he picked him up and carried him to the couch to sit down with him, stroking his back to calm him down. It always worked and it didn't take Daniel long to go to sleep.
"Do you want to take him to bed?" Sarah asked once their TV show ended, she was ready for bed herself.
"Yeah." Richie looked up at her. "Are you tired too sweetheart?"
She nodded. "I think I'll head to bed as well." She admitted.
"Do you want me to come with you or do you mind if I stay up a little longer?" He asked, it was only 10, there was no way he'd be able to sleep right now.
"You can stay up." Sarah said as she reached to pick up Daniel. "I won't mind."
"Okay." He let go of his son but reached in to capture Sarah's lips in a kiss before he let her go upstairs.
He watched her walk out of the living room and up the stairs. Figuring he was alone for the rest of the night, he got up and headed to the kitchen. From the cabinet he grabbed a bowl, a spoon from the drawer, then headed to the freezer. He had to move some things around but found a box of ice cream. Back in the living room, he changed the TV channel and found a late night show to watch.
Sarah reached out on the bed as she woke up but came up empty handed. The warmth she expected to find next to her wasn't there. She turned around and opened her eyes to read the time on her alarm clock.
Surely he would have gotten tired by now.
Slowly, she pulled herself out of bed and out of their bedroom. Once she was heading down the stairs, she could hear the TV but instead of a show he would be watching, she recognized it as one of those infomercials that played during the night time.
She walked into the living room to find her husband asleep on the couch, ignoring the bowl and the pack of cookies on the coffee table, she picked up the TV remote and turned the TV off. Then, she sat down next to his sleeping figure on the couch and stroked his arm to gently try and wake him. She chuckled when his head straightened up as he woke up in surprise.
"Want to go to bed?" She whispered.
The next morning Richie tried his best to wake up early but after Daniel had woken up, he made the mistake of laying back down in bed with him which lead to him sleeping later than he had intended. Once he got downstairs to the living room, Sarah was alone with Daniel playing on the floor.
"Did they go to school already?" He asked a little disappointed in himself, already knowing the answer.
"Ava and I agreed we should let you sleep if you're tired." Sarah said, watching him as he sat down on the couch instead of with her. "She doesn't have cheer today so she'll be home earlier."
Richie nodded, then yawned. "Sounds good. What do we do today?" He reached for the TV remote to turn on the TV.
"Play with Daniel mostly. I just kept him busy while you were away. We play, watch some TV, nap, wait for Noah to come home."
The first day of being home always felt a little strange. After having a long time with a specific routine, it was strange to adjust to one where he got to occupy himself all day. There was no need to go to the gym, be ready by 3.30pm, soundcheck, dinner and show. All he had to do now was wake up in the morning and then figure out what he wanted to do all day. No set schedule that was going to tell him. Tomorrow he would try harder to get up earlier, even if Ava wanted to drive to school he'd at least get up to make them breakfast. Which would mean waking up before 10am.
When they finished lunch, he picked Daniel up out of his high chair and carried him to the living room. This was something he would gladly make a routine of. He grabbed the TV remote again to find an afternoon show to watch, as he sat down in his chair and reclined it, making sure Daniel was comfortable on him for the next two hours or so. He situated him with his head on his shoulder so he would still be able to watch TV and keep himself occupied as he cuddled his son to sleep. Not much later Sarah sat down next to him on the couch.
"What do you do while he naps?" Richie asked, looking over at her.
Sarah shrugged. "Watch TV or study, depends on the day."
"You're going to be studying forever aren't you?" He asked curiously.
Sarah smiled at that, he was probably right. "I like learning new things and it's a very useful subject. It also keeps me busy and gives me something of a social life."
He looked over at her in question. She was studying at home, online courses. "How so?"
"There's chatrooms and forums on the online courses in case anyone needs helps with any kind of subject so I'm able to connect with other people as well."
"I didn't know that."
"I also take Daniel out to playgroups." Sarah pointed out. "He needs it too."
He looked down at his son, he knew that was true. "He needs some friends and people to talk to."
That make Sarah look up as well. "People to talk to?"
"Well yeah, he'll catch on eventually. He's not going to be quiet forever." He pointed out, although Daniel hadn't said a word so far.
Sarah smiled at that thought. Both of them were looking forward to hearing that first word come out of him.
"What about your friends?" Richie asked, he knew there weren't many but Sarah had made a few friends at the job she held for a couple months.
Sarah frowned.
After leaving her job at the hospital she hadn't seen much of anyone until Daniel was born and then again when he was in the hospital, which was now six months ago. Occasionally she still texted them but without having work to relate over, she felt like she had grown apart from most of them. It wasn't easy to maintain a friendship when you had a child needing your almost constant attention.
"You could meet up with them, you know?" Richie told her, sounding hopeful. "I can watch Daniel if you ever want to go hang out with someone like..." He paused, thinking fast. "That girl Taylor. She was nice and she liked Daniel too."
"Maybe I will."
A few minutes later he felt Daniel relax more into his arms, he looked down to see his closed eyes as he slept comfortably. This was exactly what he needed.
Sunday, October 13, 2019
Chapter 99
Travel days were always stressful as they were being rushed from one place to another, trying to get everyone there smoothly but it always felt much more hectic than how they had planned it to be. Early morning they had said goodbye to his mom, after assuring her that she could stay home and they'd get a car service to New York. No reason for her to make a 3 hour drive just to drop them off at the airport, although he couldn't blame her for wanting more time together. Somehow he ended up being the first one to arrive at the airport, at least they had a lounge to wait in where they could get some peace and quiet before getting onto the plane.
Having his wife and son on the road with him definitely was a benefit. It was nice to have Sarah close to him and he didn't have to miss out on time with Daniel. He didn't want to miss any time of him growing up. When Ava had been this small, he had spent a lot of time at home with her as well. Besides his short solo tour in '98, he hadn't really gone back to work until the year after when they started working on Sex Sells. Until they changed it to Crush anyway. That was a good album title though he thought to himself.
The only struggle of having his family on the road for an extended time instead of just a show here and there was messing with Daniel's bedtimes and lugging around a car seat from place to place but that was absolutely worth it. How was he supposed to leave that precious little face at home?
His thoughts dispersed when the door to the lounge opened up, Jon finally walking into the room. He frowned down at him. "You're already here?"
"You're late." Richie pointed out to him. "We leave in like half an hour."
Jon still frowned. "We got pushed back, we've got another hour."
That made Richie confused in return. "Thanks for letting us know." He said sarcastically, not appreciating that at all.
"I texted you last night." Jon said, dropping his bag and sitting down on a chair across from Richie.
He did not remember that. "I didn't get that."
"Have you been here long then?"
"Not really, twenty minutes or so." He said. "It's alright, at least Daniel gets some time to play before being cooped up in an airplane."
It wasn't much longer before they were boarding the plane and finally on their way to Toronto. He knew as soon as they'd land there would be more rushing. Unless plans had changed, they'd be going straight to their venue for tonight to start soundcheck and prepare for the show tonight. He wouldn't get to see his hotel room until after the concert. In about a week, he'd see his own room again.
The next morning, he happily woke up next to his wife, the bed they were in was so comfortable he didn't want to leave it just yet. Instead, he pulled her closer and possessively put his leg over hers as he held her close.
"Glad to be back in Canada?" He asked her.
Sarah shrugged shortly. "I don't know, I haven't been here before."
Richie frowned at that. "I thought you had. Your family lives here."
Carefully, she turned around in his embrace. "My family lives in Alberta. I haven't been to the East Coast before. For that matter, I haven't even been in Vancouver."
"How have you not been in Vancouver baby?" Richie asked surprised.
She looked up at him, trying to figure out if he was serious or not. "Because I lived in Montana and Vancouver is probably over 12 hours away if we drove there."
He considered that for a moment. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
"I'm not even sure if I've even been outside of Alberta so Ontario is entirely new to me."
That got him a little excited. "Does that mean I should plan some sightseeing around here? There's some good places I can show off to you. Want to see my name in the hall of fame?"
"You're in a hall of fame in Canada?"
He shrugged at that. "Why not? We sold out like 10 concerts or something when they inducted us into that."
"Do we have time to sight see?"
He would make time to sight see, that was the whole reason he was taking Sarah on the road with him. Getting her "to see" list of places and countries shorter. There were still so many places he needed to show her so if he had a chance to do, he would make the time to ensure she got to see something new.
The next day was a day off before they'd be travelling to Philadelphia and have a day off there as well before having two back to back concerts and heading Canada again. It'd be hectic but he would make sure Sarah was his priority.
He tried his best to not sleep in as late so they'd have more time to explore Toronto but when his alarm rang at 8am, he remembered going to bed at 3am. Thinking he had pressed the snooze button, he put his phone back on the nightstand and pulled the sheets up to his chin again, snuggling into them to sleep.
Three hours later he was cursing hotel beds for being so damn comfortable. He noticed Sarah wasn't in bed anymore, which made it much easier to get out of bed. He stretched as he sat up and looked around for some clothes. At least he'd still have most of the day.
"Good morning." Sarah said happily when he walked out of the bedroom into the main room.
"I'm sorry I slept so late." He apologized when he walked over to join her on the couch with Daniel.
Sarah frowned at him for a second. "Why are you sorry? I thought you were tired so I'd let you sleep, it's your day off after all."
He picked up his son to cuddle him. "Yeah baby, but I had plans for today. So many things to see and do."
"I didn't know. I would've woken you up then." Sarah apologized in return. "Do you still want to go out? Do we have time?"
"Yeah, let's go." Now eager to go and hopefully still fit everything he wanted to do into their time. "We can get something to eat on the way."
It had been hard to pick out what to do but he knew the essentials they had to see. Most of the things he had shown Sarah, had been entirely new to him as well. Without her, he would have stayed in the hotel most of the time, hanging around, bugging Jon and David. With Sarah, he had had a lot less downtime but it had been much more enjoyable to go out and about to see and explore places than sit around or sleep most of his days away before a concert. So far, this leg of the tour had had a bit more of a routine than he usually had. Then again, Daniel made sure they got up.
Around noon he got his first text from Jon but ignored it, it wasn't anything important, just asking what he was up to. He decided he was too busy to reply and turned his phone off for the rest of their day trip.
Once in the car on their way back to the hotel after dinner, he turned his phone back on to text Ava and ask her how her day had been. Before he was even able to do so he, he noticed the half a dozen texts he had gotten from Jon throughout the day. It didn't seem like Jon got the hint when he didn't get a reply to a text. He looked over to Sarah who was trying to keep Daniel awake, before he texted Jon back, not wanting to impede on their time off together if she wasn't occupied.
The next day he was knocking on Jon's hotel room door an hour after they had arrived at the hotel. Did he need more time to settle in? Considering it, he didn't really care. He had made plans for him and Sarah, if Jon wanted to join in, it'd be on his terms.
Richie had already picked out most of the places he wanted to visit today and show Sarah, the places he had been before and actually knew. At least Philadelphia wasn't a strange city to him, he loved when he was able to show her around to places he had visited before and where he had some memories he could share with her. Now that Jon was joining them, it was handy to have an extra adult, even better when he was able to convince him to push Daniel's stroller so he could walk with Sarah and hold her hand instead. In return, he was a good model when Jon wanted to take photos. He knew he'd get those photos in the end anyway, even if Jon didn't prefer taking photos of people, there surely would be a couple cute ones of Daniel.
Before they even knew it, they were back on their way to Canada. One more show, Montreal, before going home for a while. Thanksgiving would be in a few weeks and he was more than ready to just be dad again for a few weeks before heading off to Japan and Australia. Soon enough it would be Christmas again and a new year would start.
Having his wife and son on the road with him definitely was a benefit. It was nice to have Sarah close to him and he didn't have to miss out on time with Daniel. He didn't want to miss any time of him growing up. When Ava had been this small, he had spent a lot of time at home with her as well. Besides his short solo tour in '98, he hadn't really gone back to work until the year after when they started working on Sex Sells. Until they changed it to Crush anyway. That was a good album title though he thought to himself.
The only struggle of having his family on the road for an extended time instead of just a show here and there was messing with Daniel's bedtimes and lugging around a car seat from place to place but that was absolutely worth it. How was he supposed to leave that precious little face at home?
His thoughts dispersed when the door to the lounge opened up, Jon finally walking into the room. He frowned down at him. "You're already here?"
"You're late." Richie pointed out to him. "We leave in like half an hour."
Jon still frowned. "We got pushed back, we've got another hour."
That made Richie confused in return. "Thanks for letting us know." He said sarcastically, not appreciating that at all.
"I texted you last night." Jon said, dropping his bag and sitting down on a chair across from Richie.
He did not remember that. "I didn't get that."
"Have you been here long then?"
"Not really, twenty minutes or so." He said. "It's alright, at least Daniel gets some time to play before being cooped up in an airplane."
It wasn't much longer before they were boarding the plane and finally on their way to Toronto. He knew as soon as they'd land there would be more rushing. Unless plans had changed, they'd be going straight to their venue for tonight to start soundcheck and prepare for the show tonight. He wouldn't get to see his hotel room until after the concert. In about a week, he'd see his own room again.
The next morning, he happily woke up next to his wife, the bed they were in was so comfortable he didn't want to leave it just yet. Instead, he pulled her closer and possessively put his leg over hers as he held her close.
"Glad to be back in Canada?" He asked her.
Sarah shrugged shortly. "I don't know, I haven't been here before."
Richie frowned at that. "I thought you had. Your family lives here."
Carefully, she turned around in his embrace. "My family lives in Alberta. I haven't been to the East Coast before. For that matter, I haven't even been in Vancouver."
"How have you not been in Vancouver baby?" Richie asked surprised.
She looked up at him, trying to figure out if he was serious or not. "Because I lived in Montana and Vancouver is probably over 12 hours away if we drove there."
He considered that for a moment. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
"I'm not even sure if I've even been outside of Alberta so Ontario is entirely new to me."
That got him a little excited. "Does that mean I should plan some sightseeing around here? There's some good places I can show off to you. Want to see my name in the hall of fame?"
"You're in a hall of fame in Canada?"
He shrugged at that. "Why not? We sold out like 10 concerts or something when they inducted us into that."
"Do we have time to sight see?"
He would make time to sight see, that was the whole reason he was taking Sarah on the road with him. Getting her "to see" list of places and countries shorter. There were still so many places he needed to show her so if he had a chance to do, he would make the time to ensure she got to see something new.
The next day was a day off before they'd be travelling to Philadelphia and have a day off there as well before having two back to back concerts and heading Canada again. It'd be hectic but he would make sure Sarah was his priority.
He tried his best to not sleep in as late so they'd have more time to explore Toronto but when his alarm rang at 8am, he remembered going to bed at 3am. Thinking he had pressed the snooze button, he put his phone back on the nightstand and pulled the sheets up to his chin again, snuggling into them to sleep.
Three hours later he was cursing hotel beds for being so damn comfortable. He noticed Sarah wasn't in bed anymore, which made it much easier to get out of bed. He stretched as he sat up and looked around for some clothes. At least he'd still have most of the day.
"Good morning." Sarah said happily when he walked out of the bedroom into the main room.
"I'm sorry I slept so late." He apologized when he walked over to join her on the couch with Daniel.
Sarah frowned at him for a second. "Why are you sorry? I thought you were tired so I'd let you sleep, it's your day off after all."
He picked up his son to cuddle him. "Yeah baby, but I had plans for today. So many things to see and do."
"I didn't know. I would've woken you up then." Sarah apologized in return. "Do you still want to go out? Do we have time?"
"Yeah, let's go." Now eager to go and hopefully still fit everything he wanted to do into their time. "We can get something to eat on the way."
It had been hard to pick out what to do but he knew the essentials they had to see. Most of the things he had shown Sarah, had been entirely new to him as well. Without her, he would have stayed in the hotel most of the time, hanging around, bugging Jon and David. With Sarah, he had had a lot less downtime but it had been much more enjoyable to go out and about to see and explore places than sit around or sleep most of his days away before a concert. So far, this leg of the tour had had a bit more of a routine than he usually had. Then again, Daniel made sure they got up.
Around noon he got his first text from Jon but ignored it, it wasn't anything important, just asking what he was up to. He decided he was too busy to reply and turned his phone off for the rest of their day trip.
Once in the car on their way back to the hotel after dinner, he turned his phone back on to text Ava and ask her how her day had been. Before he was even able to do so he, he noticed the half a dozen texts he had gotten from Jon throughout the day. It didn't seem like Jon got the hint when he didn't get a reply to a text. He looked over to Sarah who was trying to keep Daniel awake, before he texted Jon back, not wanting to impede on their time off together if she wasn't occupied.
He rolled his eyes when he locked the screen. It was his day off, he should be allowed to have some time to himself without his boss wanting to know where he was all day. He wasn't going to let that make him angry and unlocked the phone again to send his own snarky reply.
The next day he was knocking on Jon's hotel room door an hour after they had arrived at the hotel. Did he need more time to settle in? Considering it, he didn't really care. He had made plans for him and Sarah, if Jon wanted to join in, it'd be on his terms.
Richie had already picked out most of the places he wanted to visit today and show Sarah, the places he had been before and actually knew. At least Philadelphia wasn't a strange city to him, he loved when he was able to show her around to places he had visited before and where he had some memories he could share with her. Now that Jon was joining them, it was handy to have an extra adult, even better when he was able to convince him to push Daniel's stroller so he could walk with Sarah and hold her hand instead. In return, he was a good model when Jon wanted to take photos. He knew he'd get those photos in the end anyway, even if Jon didn't prefer taking photos of people, there surely would be a couple cute ones of Daniel.
Before they even knew it, they were back on their way to Canada. One more show, Montreal, before going home for a while. Thanksgiving would be in a few weeks and he was more than ready to just be dad again for a few weeks before heading off to Japan and Australia. Soon enough it would be Christmas again and a new year would start.
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Chapter 98
"What do you want to do today?" Sarah asked as she sat up in bed next to her husband, still enjoying that time before Daniel called them.
Richie looked up at her. "I've got some errands to do for mom."
"Oh?" Sarah asked curiously.
"Just want to make sure everything's good for her. Take her car for an oil change, get that contractor in to look at the foundation of the house like she asked. That kind of stuff."
"The helpful son kind of stuff." Sarah clarified with it.
He smiled at that. "Yeah, I guess. You can join me baby but it'll probably be boring."
She reached down to kiss him quick. "Being with you is never boring."
"I don't know, oil changes and tire rotations aren't exactly the pinnacle of fun."
"But I'd be with you, which is fun." Sarah reached in for another kiss. "I also think Daniel would love some time with grandma."
"Yeah?"
"Or grandma would love some time with Daniel."
He chuckled softly. "You're probably right about that."
They had breakfast with Joan and Daniel leisurely, sitting around the kitchen table talking about the last few months and the prospects of the next few months. Thanksgiving would be soon and Joan would simple have to join them in California for a few weeks. Richie would be home for a short while before leaving for Australia and it'd be the perfect time to visit, he'd suggest it later. The only person missing would be Caleb, who would be stuck in Canada, not celebrating Thanksgiving at the same time the rest of the family was but that's where the kid wanted to be.
After breakfast, Richie insisted on cleaning up the kitchen while Sarah got Daniel ready for his day. He knew it wouldn't take long to do either. He hadn't planned much for the day but he did want to get all his errands done before they had to leave tomorrow. There was no way he wouldn't make sure his mother had everything she needed before he left. Taking care of those kind of things was his responsibility now.
"I love doing the simple things with you." Sarah said as they waited in the car in a line to get the car's oil changed.
"Yeah?" Richie asked.
Sarah simply nodded. "Shows that you're a regular guy just like anyone else."
"Did you think I was unusual then?"
"You know what I mean." Sarah said. "Lots of people just see you as a rock star, sadly they forget that you do the same things every day as they do."
Richie disagreed on that. "I don't go to a 9 to 5 job every day."
"Neither do all of them." Sarah pointed out quickly. "Maybe some of them have fancy jobs too."
"Maybe they do. What kind of fancy jobs do they have?"
She gave him a little push. "You know what I mean. They're waving you over." Sarah pointed at the person waving at them.
"But I like bugging you." He looked over to the person waving at him and directed the car towards the empty bay. "I do it out of love."
Sarah enjoyed their day spent together, any time she got to spend with her husband was a good time according to her. She didn't need much else than that to be happy. Surely he had finished all the errands he had to take care of before they'd leave tomorrow.
"One more stop?" Richie asked Sarah as they got in the car again. "Maybe two." He said as he sat down in the car, looking over at her.
"Sure."
"It'll be quick and then we can head home for lunch." He assured her as he started driving.
His first stop had indeed been quick, he'd stopped at a flower shop and had only been inside for a few minutes before he returned to the car. Sarah hadn't bothered to go with him as he assured her it would only take him two minutes, even though she was curious, she trusted he wouldn't be long.
"That was quick." Sarah said as he passed the flowers over to her.
"I'm a quick one."
Sarah raised an eyebrow at him in question. "Are you?"
He frowned for a second before catching on. "Not in that way." He said quickly as he started the car again. "In that way I take very long."
"You have a dirty mind."
"Sure, just me." He said.
Their drive took them to the other side of the town, Sarah started to recognize where they were going and clued in when she noticed one of the direction signs. She looked down at the flowers in her lap, knowing where he was going now, she felt a little sad but was sure he did too. He didn't have the opportunity often so she understood what he wanted to do.
Richie pulled into a small parking lot, surrounded by trees. There was only one other car in the small lot, a family walking up to the car as he and Sarah walked away from their own car. He opened the gate for her before taking the flowers from her and walking into the cemetery. The gravel path underneath their feet was dusty as they walked down the main path before turning onto a smaller path. He knew where he was going, it was one right turn, then the sixth row.
He found it easily and stood silently for a moment when they reached the grave.
He was aware visiting wasn't the same for everyone. For him, it was quiet. He reached down to place the flowers in the middle, making sure it looked neat and tidy, brushing away some dead leaves from the surrounding trees. It was all internal when he arrived here. It gave him some time to think and remember.
Sarah watched him, they hadn't known each other's fathers but the few times she had come to visit Richie's father always made her think of her own who she didn't get to visit. She didn't feel the same emotional need that Richie did. Her father was buried in a different state before they moved to California and she was okay with that. She knew Richie liked to come here to reminisce in the peace and quiet. Quietly, she respected his needs, watching him to make sure he was alright.
After he brushed off the dried up leaves and made sure again that the flowers were nicely in the middle, he stood up and grabbed Sarah's hand, giving it a short squeeze.
Sarah looked up at him, not needing to ask a question as Richie nodded and they both turned around back to the path.
They didn't speak until they were back in the car and the music from the radio broke their silence.
"Okay?" Sarah asked quickly, making sure he was but he nodded his answer instead of answering. "We could stay longer if you wanted to."
"It's alright." He said. "I just like making sure it looks nice. I've got him with me."
Sarah nodded in return, that's how she always thought about her own father.
The drive back to his mom's house didn't take them long at all. By now Daniel would surely be hungry enough for lunch and if he wasn't, Richie sure was.
Joan happily greeted them when they walked into the living room, Daniel playing with his new toys as she watched him from her chair. "Did you get everything done?" She asked her son.
"You're all set to go. Just the contractor stopping by later to check out the foundation before they start on that next month. You'll just have to come stay with us while they work on it."
"Next month?"
"Yeah." Richie said, unsure if his mom would be alright with it or not, he hadn't exactly asked.
"Then I may as well stay for Thanksgiving."
He smiled at that. "Sounds like a plan."
As always when on a short tour break, it went by much too fast. He was glad he had gotten to see his mom but was sad he would have to leave again. At least the tour wouldn't be much longer and soon enough it would be time for Thanksgiving, and soon enough after that, they'd be celebrating Christmas.
The next day they went back to New York and joined the band on the plane to Toronto, ready for another few shows before their Thanksgiving break. He looked forward to it already.
Richie looked up at her. "I've got some errands to do for mom."
"Oh?" Sarah asked curiously.
"Just want to make sure everything's good for her. Take her car for an oil change, get that contractor in to look at the foundation of the house like she asked. That kind of stuff."
"The helpful son kind of stuff." Sarah clarified with it.
He smiled at that. "Yeah, I guess. You can join me baby but it'll probably be boring."
She reached down to kiss him quick. "Being with you is never boring."
"I don't know, oil changes and tire rotations aren't exactly the pinnacle of fun."
"But I'd be with you, which is fun." Sarah reached in for another kiss. "I also think Daniel would love some time with grandma."
"Yeah?"
"Or grandma would love some time with Daniel."
He chuckled softly. "You're probably right about that."
They had breakfast with Joan and Daniel leisurely, sitting around the kitchen table talking about the last few months and the prospects of the next few months. Thanksgiving would be soon and Joan would simple have to join them in California for a few weeks. Richie would be home for a short while before leaving for Australia and it'd be the perfect time to visit, he'd suggest it later. The only person missing would be Caleb, who would be stuck in Canada, not celebrating Thanksgiving at the same time the rest of the family was but that's where the kid wanted to be.
After breakfast, Richie insisted on cleaning up the kitchen while Sarah got Daniel ready for his day. He knew it wouldn't take long to do either. He hadn't planned much for the day but he did want to get all his errands done before they had to leave tomorrow. There was no way he wouldn't make sure his mother had everything she needed before he left. Taking care of those kind of things was his responsibility now.
"I love doing the simple things with you." Sarah said as they waited in the car in a line to get the car's oil changed.
"Yeah?" Richie asked.
Sarah simply nodded. "Shows that you're a regular guy just like anyone else."
"Did you think I was unusual then?"
"You know what I mean." Sarah said. "Lots of people just see you as a rock star, sadly they forget that you do the same things every day as they do."
Richie disagreed on that. "I don't go to a 9 to 5 job every day."
"Neither do all of them." Sarah pointed out quickly. "Maybe some of them have fancy jobs too."
"Maybe they do. What kind of fancy jobs do they have?"
She gave him a little push. "You know what I mean. They're waving you over." Sarah pointed at the person waving at them.
"But I like bugging you." He looked over to the person waving at him and directed the car towards the empty bay. "I do it out of love."
Sarah enjoyed their day spent together, any time she got to spend with her husband was a good time according to her. She didn't need much else than that to be happy. Surely he had finished all the errands he had to take care of before they'd leave tomorrow.
"One more stop?" Richie asked Sarah as they got in the car again. "Maybe two." He said as he sat down in the car, looking over at her.
"Sure."
"It'll be quick and then we can head home for lunch." He assured her as he started driving.
His first stop had indeed been quick, he'd stopped at a flower shop and had only been inside for a few minutes before he returned to the car. Sarah hadn't bothered to go with him as he assured her it would only take him two minutes, even though she was curious, she trusted he wouldn't be long.
"That was quick." Sarah said as he passed the flowers over to her.
"I'm a quick one."
Sarah raised an eyebrow at him in question. "Are you?"
He frowned for a second before catching on. "Not in that way." He said quickly as he started the car again. "In that way I take very long."
"You have a dirty mind."
"Sure, just me." He said.
Their drive took them to the other side of the town, Sarah started to recognize where they were going and clued in when she noticed one of the direction signs. She looked down at the flowers in her lap, knowing where he was going now, she felt a little sad but was sure he did too. He didn't have the opportunity often so she understood what he wanted to do.
Richie pulled into a small parking lot, surrounded by trees. There was only one other car in the small lot, a family walking up to the car as he and Sarah walked away from their own car. He opened the gate for her before taking the flowers from her and walking into the cemetery. The gravel path underneath their feet was dusty as they walked down the main path before turning onto a smaller path. He knew where he was going, it was one right turn, then the sixth row.
He found it easily and stood silently for a moment when they reached the grave.
He was aware visiting wasn't the same for everyone. For him, it was quiet. He reached down to place the flowers in the middle, making sure it looked neat and tidy, brushing away some dead leaves from the surrounding trees. It was all internal when he arrived here. It gave him some time to think and remember.
Sarah watched him, they hadn't known each other's fathers but the few times she had come to visit Richie's father always made her think of her own who she didn't get to visit. She didn't feel the same emotional need that Richie did. Her father was buried in a different state before they moved to California and she was okay with that. She knew Richie liked to come here to reminisce in the peace and quiet. Quietly, she respected his needs, watching him to make sure he was alright.
After he brushed off the dried up leaves and made sure again that the flowers were nicely in the middle, he stood up and grabbed Sarah's hand, giving it a short squeeze.
Sarah looked up at him, not needing to ask a question as Richie nodded and they both turned around back to the path.
They didn't speak until they were back in the car and the music from the radio broke their silence.
"Okay?" Sarah asked quickly, making sure he was but he nodded his answer instead of answering. "We could stay longer if you wanted to."
"It's alright." He said. "I just like making sure it looks nice. I've got him with me."
Sarah nodded in return, that's how she always thought about her own father.
The drive back to his mom's house didn't take them long at all. By now Daniel would surely be hungry enough for lunch and if he wasn't, Richie sure was.
Joan happily greeted them when they walked into the living room, Daniel playing with his new toys as she watched him from her chair. "Did you get everything done?" She asked her son.
"You're all set to go. Just the contractor stopping by later to check out the foundation before they start on that next month. You'll just have to come stay with us while they work on it."
"Next month?"
"Yeah." Richie said, unsure if his mom would be alright with it or not, he hadn't exactly asked.
"Then I may as well stay for Thanksgiving."
He smiled at that. "Sounds like a plan."
As always when on a short tour break, it went by much too fast. He was glad he had gotten to see his mom but was sad he would have to leave again. At least the tour wouldn't be much longer and soon enough it would be time for Thanksgiving, and soon enough after that, they'd be celebrating Christmas.
The next day they went back to New York and joined the band on the plane to Toronto, ready for another few shows before their Thanksgiving break. He looked forward to it already.
Monday, October 7, 2019
Chapter 97
Sarah was quite comfortable on the couch in her husband's arms. His arm draped around her, his hand on her waist and she leaned against his side, happily watching Daniel was kept busy as they watched a little TV. Just being able to relax on their days off.
Joan happily played with her grandson from her chair. Daniel brought her the toys he wanted to play with and drove his cars around on the carpet as she watched him.
"I've got that lovely birthday cake ready for him as soon as we're ready to give him some presents." Joan reminded them gently, dinner had been a while ago and soon enough it'd be bedtime.
"Sounds good ma, after this show?" He asked, his thoughts were elsewhere as he watched Sarah's thumb moving over his hand.
She made small strokes with her thumb over the small tattoo on his hand. The little star being hidden and peeking out again as her thumb moved over it slowly.
Sarah's unconscious gesture was making him think about the tattoo. It was his first, small, to see how much it hurt before he decided he wanted more tattoos. Besides that, he liked stars. A star on his hand, stars on a guitar, stars on baby clothes. Stars were a good design for many things.
A small tattoo was easy enough to start out with and it hadn't hurt nearly as much as people made out it would, so others were added soon enough. Perhaps it was time to add another one. Or maybe three. It wasn't long after Ava was born that he made the choice to ink her name onto his skin forever. It'd be there for just as long as he'd love her.
His thoughts left him when Sarah moved next to him as she sat up, looking at the birthday cake Joan carried over to the coffee table.
"Time for cake?" He asked happily, ready for something sweet. Dinner had been a while ago after all.
Joan passed him a box of matches. "If you'd light the candle." She said, having her own memories of a first birthday cake. "He looks so much like you did at this age."
Richie looked up at her. "Yeah?" He was a little curious but he had seen pictures to make the comparison. He knew she was right but he would gladly indulge her.
"Oh yes," Joan said as she sat down again, "the brown eyes, the way they get that little sparkle when he's happy."
Sarah chuckled, listening to Joan as Richie reached over to light the candle. "I love that sparkle." She simply said, having seen it in both sets of eyes just as well.
"And those soft brown hairs on his head, the little face just like yours." She said as she compared her grandson to her son.
The commotion at the coffee table caught Daniel's interest enough to make him crawl over and check everything out. As he pulled himself up on the table to hold on to it's surface, his eyes sparkled as he looked at the small birthday cake, a single candle standing in the middle of it. He looked up as dad got up from the couch and walked around to come join him on the other side of the coffee table.
Richie crouched down as he held on to Daniel's waist, instructing him to blow towards the candle but not getting much effort out of Daniel. When he did blow, the hair on top of his head moved in the little breeze he created, making his dad laugh out loud, leaving Daniel confused in return.
"You've got to blow at the candle not up." Richie pointed for him, to show him where he had to blow, although he knew his son was most likely too little to really understand him.
"Need some help?" Sarah asked as she leaned forward on the couch.
Richie looked up, smiling. "Yeah, I think so." He said, then looking to his left. "Help us out here, ma."
They waited for Joan to join them around the coffee table before counting down to blow again.
"Three, two," Richie counted down, still pointing his instruction for Daniel. "one."
The four of them finally blew out the half gone candle.
"Does this mean we all get to make a wish?" Sarah asked.
His eyebrow raised in thought. "I think so, as long as we wish for Daniel." He answered. "Seems fair to me."
He reached over and started cutting the cake, ready for a taste of it. The first piece went to his mom, then a piece for Sarah and a tiny piece for Daniel before he took his own slice of cake. Not hesitating to finally take that bite.
"Ready for birthday presents?" Joan asked as she placed her empty plate back onto the coffee table.
Richie looked up, mid-bite. "You got him presents?"
"Of course I got him presents." She said as she got up from her chair to go grab them.
Sarah and Richie became curious when Joan walked out of the living room to retrieve the gifts she had gotten for Daniel.
As soon as she walked back into the room, Richie got up to help her out. He lifted the smaller boxes off of the largest one she was carrying, putting them down before taking the large box as well.
"We're going to need an extra suitcase for just gifts." Richie joked as he sat down on the floor with Daniel.
"I couldn't help myself." Joan said. "If you can't take it, I can always just mail it or keep it here for when he visits."
"We'll see." Richie said, reaching for one of the smaller gifts first and passing it to Daniel. "Let's open them first."
He helped Daniel to unwrap his first present, revealing new clothes. Surely that would still come in handy on the road.
"I did try to get gifts you could use while you were away from home." Joan explained as Sarah thanked her for the clothes.
"Next one." Richie said excitedly as he helped Daniel again with his next gift.
A few minutes later Daniel had some new bath toys and a large collection of children's bedtime stories and his last present left to be opened up. The biggest gift to finish off all his birthday gifts.
"This is huge, ma, I think he's going to love this one."
Daniel caught on to the gift opening and helped ripping the paper off of the box, excited when he started to reveal what it was.
Richie watched him reveal his gift, excited for him. "Mom, that's awesome." He said as Daniel ripped the last pieces of paper off of the cart.
"I thought it was so cute." Joan said as Richie reached to unbox it for Daniel. "There's building blocks underneath the seat and the back is high enough so he can walk with it or just ride it."
"That's pretty cool." Richie said again as he finally got it out of the cardboard so Daniel could explore it.
"I think he likes it, thanks Joan." Sarah said, happily watching her son enjoy his present.
"You're welcome. I know, you can't take it on the road but really, I'll just mail it. I couldn't leave it when I saw it at the store."
"Oh no, this is going on the road." Richie said surely. "This is awesome."
Sarah looked over at Joan with a smile. "I think he likes it too."
Joan happily played with her grandson from her chair. Daniel brought her the toys he wanted to play with and drove his cars around on the carpet as she watched him.
"I've got that lovely birthday cake ready for him as soon as we're ready to give him some presents." Joan reminded them gently, dinner had been a while ago and soon enough it'd be bedtime.
"Sounds good ma, after this show?" He asked, his thoughts were elsewhere as he watched Sarah's thumb moving over his hand.
She made small strokes with her thumb over the small tattoo on his hand. The little star being hidden and peeking out again as her thumb moved over it slowly.
Sarah's unconscious gesture was making him think about the tattoo. It was his first, small, to see how much it hurt before he decided he wanted more tattoos. Besides that, he liked stars. A star on his hand, stars on a guitar, stars on baby clothes. Stars were a good design for many things.
A small tattoo was easy enough to start out with and it hadn't hurt nearly as much as people made out it would, so others were added soon enough. Perhaps it was time to add another one. Or maybe three. It wasn't long after Ava was born that he made the choice to ink her name onto his skin forever. It'd be there for just as long as he'd love her.
His thoughts left him when Sarah moved next to him as she sat up, looking at the birthday cake Joan carried over to the coffee table.
"Time for cake?" He asked happily, ready for something sweet. Dinner had been a while ago after all.
Joan passed him a box of matches. "If you'd light the candle." She said, having her own memories of a first birthday cake. "He looks so much like you did at this age."
Richie looked up at her. "Yeah?" He was a little curious but he had seen pictures to make the comparison. He knew she was right but he would gladly indulge her.
"Oh yes," Joan said as she sat down again, "the brown eyes, the way they get that little sparkle when he's happy."
Sarah chuckled, listening to Joan as Richie reached over to light the candle. "I love that sparkle." She simply said, having seen it in both sets of eyes just as well.
"And those soft brown hairs on his head, the little face just like yours." She said as she compared her grandson to her son.
The commotion at the coffee table caught Daniel's interest enough to make him crawl over and check everything out. As he pulled himself up on the table to hold on to it's surface, his eyes sparkled as he looked at the small birthday cake, a single candle standing in the middle of it. He looked up as dad got up from the couch and walked around to come join him on the other side of the coffee table.
Richie crouched down as he held on to Daniel's waist, instructing him to blow towards the candle but not getting much effort out of Daniel. When he did blow, the hair on top of his head moved in the little breeze he created, making his dad laugh out loud, leaving Daniel confused in return.
"You've got to blow at the candle not up." Richie pointed for him, to show him where he had to blow, although he knew his son was most likely too little to really understand him.
"Need some help?" Sarah asked as she leaned forward on the couch.
Richie looked up, smiling. "Yeah, I think so." He said, then looking to his left. "Help us out here, ma."
They waited for Joan to join them around the coffee table before counting down to blow again.
"Three, two," Richie counted down, still pointing his instruction for Daniel. "one."
The four of them finally blew out the half gone candle.
"Does this mean we all get to make a wish?" Sarah asked.
His eyebrow raised in thought. "I think so, as long as we wish for Daniel." He answered. "Seems fair to me."
He reached over and started cutting the cake, ready for a taste of it. The first piece went to his mom, then a piece for Sarah and a tiny piece for Daniel before he took his own slice of cake. Not hesitating to finally take that bite.
"Ready for birthday presents?" Joan asked as she placed her empty plate back onto the coffee table.
Richie looked up, mid-bite. "You got him presents?"
"Of course I got him presents." She said as she got up from her chair to go grab them.
Sarah and Richie became curious when Joan walked out of the living room to retrieve the gifts she had gotten for Daniel.
As soon as she walked back into the room, Richie got up to help her out. He lifted the smaller boxes off of the largest one she was carrying, putting them down before taking the large box as well.
"We're going to need an extra suitcase for just gifts." Richie joked as he sat down on the floor with Daniel.
"I couldn't help myself." Joan said. "If you can't take it, I can always just mail it or keep it here for when he visits."
"We'll see." Richie said, reaching for one of the smaller gifts first and passing it to Daniel. "Let's open them first."
He helped Daniel to unwrap his first present, revealing new clothes. Surely that would still come in handy on the road.
"I did try to get gifts you could use while you were away from home." Joan explained as Sarah thanked her for the clothes.
"Next one." Richie said excitedly as he helped Daniel again with his next gift.
A few minutes later Daniel had some new bath toys and a large collection of children's bedtime stories and his last present left to be opened up. The biggest gift to finish off all his birthday gifts.
"This is huge, ma, I think he's going to love this one."
Daniel caught on to the gift opening and helped ripping the paper off of the box, excited when he started to reveal what it was.
Richie watched him reveal his gift, excited for him. "Mom, that's awesome." He said as Daniel ripped the last pieces of paper off of the cart.
"I thought it was so cute." Joan said as Richie reached to unbox it for Daniel. "There's building blocks underneath the seat and the back is high enough so he can walk with it or just ride it."
"That's pretty cool." Richie said again as he finally got it out of the cardboard so Daniel could explore it.
"I think he likes it, thanks Joan." Sarah said, happily watching her son enjoy his present.
"You're welcome. I know, you can't take it on the road but really, I'll just mail it. I couldn't leave it when I saw it at the store."
"Oh no, this is going on the road." Richie said surely. "This is awesome."
Sarah looked over at Joan with a smile. "I think he likes it too."
Friday, October 4, 2019
Chapter 96
Out of everyone in the house, Daniel was most likely the only one that had a great sleep during the night. He was all too eager to announce that he was now done and would like some breakfast as 9am was approaching and his belly was empty.
Still feeling tired, Richie got up from the bed and went to get him. Six hours of sleep after a concert was not enough especially on his day off where he could sleep in. Instead of going downstairs, he took Daniel back to their bedroom, laying him on the bed where he gladly cuddled with Sarah.
"Dan the man is awake." Richie said as he also got back into bed.
Sarah smiled at him. "Dan the man?"
"He is a little man." Richie pointed out, "and his name is Daniel."
"You've nicknamed our child."
He looked a tad confused. "Was I not supposed to?" He asked her.
Sarah shook her head as she answered. "No, I'm just bugging you. I just like his full name."
"Me too but I'm not calling him Daniel Isaac unless he's in trouble."
"It's a good name." Sarah reminded him. "They have perfect meanings for him."
"Yes, but full names are for trouble only. Besides, eventually someone would start calling him Dan or Danny or he might prefer that when he's older."
Sarah sighed. "I know."
"He's my little man." He reached out to pick Daniel up and cuddled him in his arms.
"How about my big man makes us breakfast?" Sarah teased.
Richie looked over at her again, "Maybe if you ask me nicely."
"Will you please make us breakfast." Sarah asked sweetly, reaching over to kiss him quickly.
He gladly returned the kiss before pulling back and yawning. "Sure."
Sarah frowned at that. "Are you still tired?"
"Yeah but I'll be fine once I get up."
"No." She shook her head quickly. "Go back to sleep, I'll take care of Dan the man."
"Are you sure?" He asked as he released his snuggly hold on Daniel.
She smiled at him and nodded, "yeah, I'm sure. Get some more sleep."
Sarah got up from the bed and dressed before picking Daniel up and heading out of the door. Ready to make breakfast for everyone with Daniel's help.
In the kitchen she let him down on the floor so she could move around and start making breakfast. She took the liberty of rummaging through the fridge and taking everything she needed out to start making some scrambled eggs with bacon and toast. As she started cooking, she decided to let her husband sleep and simply prepared breakfast for herself and Daniel. When Richie or Joan woke up, she could always make more.
After breakfast, she moved to the living room and showed Daniel where the toys were. Not nearly as many as he had at home but he didn't need more than what he had here. He was happy enough with the cars and toys he had. Sarah turned on the tv and relaxed back on the couch, watching him play.
She looked up when she heard footsteps on the stairs, judging by the noise, she knew it wasn't Richie. His big feet were noisier than that.
"Good morning." Sarah said when Joan joined them in the living room. "Daniel woke up so I took him downstairs to let him play while Richie sleeps."
"Oh," Joan said, "was he not feeling well?" her voice had a bit of concern.
"I don't think so, he didn't say anything."
Joan sat down in a chair and watched Daniel play too. "Okay, he tends to get sick after being on tour."
Sarah nodded, she did remember last time when he got back from London, right before Daniel was born and then March after that. Richie'd been sick both those times but she had not made the connection to touring being the cause of it.
"Did you have breakfast?" Joan asked.
"Yes, we did, I hope you don't mind." Sarah said. "I can make you some eggs too." She quickly offered.
Joan simply waved it off. "Don't worry about me."
Joan turned on the TV and searched for one of the morning shows she watched as Daniel played in front of the TV, happy with his toys.
"I got him a lovely birthday present, I also got a cake, I thought we could do a little celebration again."
"That'd be lovely." Sarah agreed.
Joan got up from her chair once they show ended. "I've got a lovely idea for Daniel to do." She said as she walked out of the living room and into the kitchen. A moment later she returned with a loaf of bread in it's bag. "How about we go feed some ducks in the backyard. They'll be hungry right around now anyway."
It wasn't an idea Sarah had expected but she gladly agreed. "I'm sure he'll love that." She said as she got up to pick Daniel up and take him to the hallway to put his shoes on, although she knew she would be carrying him.
They went outside through the sliding doors in the kitchen and walked down the deck onto the grass that was met by the river, some ducks swimming in the water, quacking about.
"Oh." Daniel pointed at them when he noticed the ducks and their noises.
With that Joan grabbed a piece of bread and tossed it onto the grass, not wanting to get too close to the water while they had Daniel with them.
When one of the ducks hopped onto the grass, Daniel let out an excited squeal, making Sarah happy for him.
Joan passed Sarah a slice of bread so she could help Daniel.
Once she had torn off a small piece, she handed the bread to Daniel who happily tossed it as far as he could, waiting to see what would happen.
It was excitement Richie liked to see when his family was together, he followed their path and joined them on the grass.
"We're feeding ducks?" He asked once he was close enough.
Excitedly Daniel turned around in Sarah's arms and reached out to him.
Richie gladly took him and reached in to kiss Sarah. "Good morning."
Still feeling tired, Richie got up from the bed and went to get him. Six hours of sleep after a concert was not enough especially on his day off where he could sleep in. Instead of going downstairs, he took Daniel back to their bedroom, laying him on the bed where he gladly cuddled with Sarah.
"Dan the man is awake." Richie said as he also got back into bed.
Sarah smiled at him. "Dan the man?"
"He is a little man." Richie pointed out, "and his name is Daniel."
"You've nicknamed our child."
He looked a tad confused. "Was I not supposed to?" He asked her.
Sarah shook her head as she answered. "No, I'm just bugging you. I just like his full name."
"Me too but I'm not calling him Daniel Isaac unless he's in trouble."
"It's a good name." Sarah reminded him. "They have perfect meanings for him."
"Yes, but full names are for trouble only. Besides, eventually someone would start calling him Dan or Danny or he might prefer that when he's older."
Sarah sighed. "I know."
"He's my little man." He reached out to pick Daniel up and cuddled him in his arms.
"How about my big man makes us breakfast?" Sarah teased.
Richie looked over at her again, "Maybe if you ask me nicely."
"Will you please make us breakfast." Sarah asked sweetly, reaching over to kiss him quickly.
He gladly returned the kiss before pulling back and yawning. "Sure."
Sarah frowned at that. "Are you still tired?"
"Yeah but I'll be fine once I get up."
"No." She shook her head quickly. "Go back to sleep, I'll take care of Dan the man."
"Are you sure?" He asked as he released his snuggly hold on Daniel.
She smiled at him and nodded, "yeah, I'm sure. Get some more sleep."
Sarah got up from the bed and dressed before picking Daniel up and heading out of the door. Ready to make breakfast for everyone with Daniel's help.
In the kitchen she let him down on the floor so she could move around and start making breakfast. She took the liberty of rummaging through the fridge and taking everything she needed out to start making some scrambled eggs with bacon and toast. As she started cooking, she decided to let her husband sleep and simply prepared breakfast for herself and Daniel. When Richie or Joan woke up, she could always make more.
After breakfast, she moved to the living room and showed Daniel where the toys were. Not nearly as many as he had at home but he didn't need more than what he had here. He was happy enough with the cars and toys he had. Sarah turned on the tv and relaxed back on the couch, watching him play.
She looked up when she heard footsteps on the stairs, judging by the noise, she knew it wasn't Richie. His big feet were noisier than that.
"Good morning." Sarah said when Joan joined them in the living room. "Daniel woke up so I took him downstairs to let him play while Richie sleeps."
"Oh," Joan said, "was he not feeling well?" her voice had a bit of concern.
"I don't think so, he didn't say anything."
Joan sat down in a chair and watched Daniel play too. "Okay, he tends to get sick after being on tour."
Sarah nodded, she did remember last time when he got back from London, right before Daniel was born and then March after that. Richie'd been sick both those times but she had not made the connection to touring being the cause of it.
"Did you have breakfast?" Joan asked.
"Yes, we did, I hope you don't mind." Sarah said. "I can make you some eggs too." She quickly offered.
Joan simply waved it off. "Don't worry about me."
Joan turned on the TV and searched for one of the morning shows she watched as Daniel played in front of the TV, happy with his toys.
"I got him a lovely birthday present, I also got a cake, I thought we could do a little celebration again."
"That'd be lovely." Sarah agreed.
Joan got up from her chair once they show ended. "I've got a lovely idea for Daniel to do." She said as she walked out of the living room and into the kitchen. A moment later she returned with a loaf of bread in it's bag. "How about we go feed some ducks in the backyard. They'll be hungry right around now anyway."
It wasn't an idea Sarah had expected but she gladly agreed. "I'm sure he'll love that." She said as she got up to pick Daniel up and take him to the hallway to put his shoes on, although she knew she would be carrying him.
They went outside through the sliding doors in the kitchen and walked down the deck onto the grass that was met by the river, some ducks swimming in the water, quacking about.
"Oh." Daniel pointed at them when he noticed the ducks and their noises.
With that Joan grabbed a piece of bread and tossed it onto the grass, not wanting to get too close to the water while they had Daniel with them.
When one of the ducks hopped onto the grass, Daniel let out an excited squeal, making Sarah happy for him.
Joan passed Sarah a slice of bread so she could help Daniel.
Once she had torn off a small piece, she handed the bread to Daniel who happily tossed it as far as he could, waiting to see what would happen.
It was excitement Richie liked to see when his family was together, he followed their path and joined them on the grass.
"We're feeding ducks?" He asked once he was close enough.
Excitedly Daniel turned around in Sarah's arms and reached out to him.
Richie gladly took him and reached in to kiss Sarah. "Good morning."
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Chapter 95
Once the plane was in the air for their short flight, it was fairly quiet. Each family huddled in a group, catching up on the last few weeks before heading home and spending time together. The same went for Sarah and Richie, they sat in the back so Daniel could sleep in his father's arm.
Sarah looked over at her husband, thinking of the conversation she had overheard before they had left for the airport.
"What did Jon mean when he said more women than he could count?"
Richie met her gaze, slightly worried. "He meant that he can't count." He tried to dismiss the conversation with a slight joke but according to Sarah's look, he wouldn't be able to do so. "He shouldn't have said anything." Richie added on.
"But he did." Sarah pointed out just as quickly.
"Yeah, but that was decades ago when I was like 26 years old, being an idiot with a lot of spare time and a rock star title with probably a little bit too much weed and booze."
She frowned at him, not really sure what to think.
"We weren't all in college, going to medical school." He reminded her.
"I guess." She shrugged, a little unsure of what she thought. "Could you even count how many women?"
"Honestly? I wouldn't have a clue, plus, it's not like I remember those days clearly." After all, there had been a lot of weed and alcohol. "It was a long time ago." Richie tried to make her not worry because that time was very far behind him after all. "I've got a loving wife, I'm good."
"Yeah, I guess."
He sat up a little so he could look at her while he tried not to move Daniel. "What?"
"It just made me think you've been with a lot of women and I've only been with two men."
"So?" Richie asked confused by now, what did it really matter at this point in their relationship?
Sarah shrugged in thought. "I don't know, it just made me think."
"Doesn't mean I love you any less." He clarified, making sure she really did know that. "You're the only woman I'd ever need."
Not much later the airplane started their descent to the airport in New York. Having been on so many planes, he could sleep as soon as he was on one until they landed but with Sarah, he stayed awake, knowing he'd have to hold her hand as they landed. Which he would always happily do.
Their driver had offered to take Daniel's car seat to the car as soon as they had walked into the terminal, Sarah now carrying their son. Richie gladly passed the seat to the driver and assured Sarah to go ahead with Daniel so he could sleep while he'd get their bags. He didn't mind waiting with Jon, David and Tico, it gave him some extra time to bug them before not being able to for a couple days.
Their bags didn't take all that long to be taken off the plane and brought to the carousel. Everyone stood waiting, ready to head home in the middle of the night. Their drive to Point Pleasant would still take them another hour, by then, everyone else would be home. At least they weren't flying to the West coast.
Richie, now on his own, pushed his cart with suitcases outside, finding their driver waiting for him. As soon as he walked up, the driver hopped out and loaded the bags for him so he could go sit with Sarah and Daniel. He was glad to see Daniel was still asleep but a little surprised Sarah was as well, he tried to shut his door as quietly as possible.
"Sarah?" He asked gently an hour later, they had just turned onto his mother's street and would pull up to the house in just a moment. "We're here." He told her quietly, not wanting to wake Daniel up just yet. If he could get him out of his seat and into his bed without waking him up, he'd prefer that.
Sarah blinked a few times but as soon as she looked outside the window she recognized the driveway they pulled into. The lights in the living room window were still on, as well as the little outside light that would guide their path to the door.
"Your mom's still awake?" She asked, a little surprised, it was two in the morning after all.
"Or she left the lights on for us." He looked over at Daniel, checking if he was still sleeping. "I'll take him to bed right away, you can head upstairs too and I'll help the driver."
"Are you sure?"
As he carried Daniel to the front door, he realized it wouldn't be that easy as the door was being opened for them.
His mom smiling cheerfully at them. "Hi sweetie." She greeted him as he walked into the hallway and kicked off his shoes, knowing better than not to.
"Hi mom." He said quickly. "I'm taking Daniel to bed quickly and I'll be right back." His words left him as he went up the stairs.
Sarah wasn't able to follow him as she followed Joan to the living room, not having the heart to tell her she wanted to go to sleep. Instead, she accepted the drink Joan offered her and sat down on the couch.
A minute later, they could hear Richie come back down the stairs, straight out the door to help carry their bags inside. They were all dropped in the hallway before he joined them in the living room, plopping down with a satisfactory sigh on the couch next to Sarah. Glad to finally be home, overnight travel was always more stressful but being at home with his mom in Jersey was worth it.
"Why are you still awake?" He looked over at his mother.
"I couldn't go to sleep and let you arrive to the house without me here to greet you." She told him sweetly.
"You must be tired though."
She smiled at him. "You're worth it, I can always get more sleep."
Sarah looked over at her husband, thinking of the conversation she had overheard before they had left for the airport.
"What did Jon mean when he said more women than he could count?"
Richie met her gaze, slightly worried. "He meant that he can't count." He tried to dismiss the conversation with a slight joke but according to Sarah's look, he wouldn't be able to do so. "He shouldn't have said anything." Richie added on.
"But he did." Sarah pointed out just as quickly.
"Yeah, but that was decades ago when I was like 26 years old, being an idiot with a lot of spare time and a rock star title with probably a little bit too much weed and booze."
She frowned at him, not really sure what to think.
"We weren't all in college, going to medical school." He reminded her.
"I guess." She shrugged, a little unsure of what she thought. "Could you even count how many women?"
"Honestly? I wouldn't have a clue, plus, it's not like I remember those days clearly." After all, there had been a lot of weed and alcohol. "It was a long time ago." Richie tried to make her not worry because that time was very far behind him after all. "I've got a loving wife, I'm good."
"Yeah, I guess."
He sat up a little so he could look at her while he tried not to move Daniel. "What?"
"It just made me think you've been with a lot of women and I've only been with two men."
"So?" Richie asked confused by now, what did it really matter at this point in their relationship?
Sarah shrugged in thought. "I don't know, it just made me think."
"Doesn't mean I love you any less." He clarified, making sure she really did know that. "You're the only woman I'd ever need."
Not much later the airplane started their descent to the airport in New York. Having been on so many planes, he could sleep as soon as he was on one until they landed but with Sarah, he stayed awake, knowing he'd have to hold her hand as they landed. Which he would always happily do.
Their driver had offered to take Daniel's car seat to the car as soon as they had walked into the terminal, Sarah now carrying their son. Richie gladly passed the seat to the driver and assured Sarah to go ahead with Daniel so he could sleep while he'd get their bags. He didn't mind waiting with Jon, David and Tico, it gave him some extra time to bug them before not being able to for a couple days.
Their bags didn't take all that long to be taken off the plane and brought to the carousel. Everyone stood waiting, ready to head home in the middle of the night. Their drive to Point Pleasant would still take them another hour, by then, everyone else would be home. At least they weren't flying to the West coast.
Richie, now on his own, pushed his cart with suitcases outside, finding their driver waiting for him. As soon as he walked up, the driver hopped out and loaded the bags for him so he could go sit with Sarah and Daniel. He was glad to see Daniel was still asleep but a little surprised Sarah was as well, he tried to shut his door as quietly as possible.
"Sarah?" He asked gently an hour later, they had just turned onto his mother's street and would pull up to the house in just a moment. "We're here." He told her quietly, not wanting to wake Daniel up just yet. If he could get him out of his seat and into his bed without waking him up, he'd prefer that.
Sarah blinked a few times but as soon as she looked outside the window she recognized the driveway they pulled into. The lights in the living room window were still on, as well as the little outside light that would guide their path to the door.
"Your mom's still awake?" She asked, a little surprised, it was two in the morning after all.
"Or she left the lights on for us." He looked over at Daniel, checking if he was still sleeping. "I'll take him to bed right away, you can head upstairs too and I'll help the driver."
"Are you sure?"
As he carried Daniel to the front door, he realized it wouldn't be that easy as the door was being opened for them.
His mom smiling cheerfully at them. "Hi sweetie." She greeted him as he walked into the hallway and kicked off his shoes, knowing better than not to.
"Hi mom." He said quickly. "I'm taking Daniel to bed quickly and I'll be right back." His words left him as he went up the stairs.
Sarah wasn't able to follow him as she followed Joan to the living room, not having the heart to tell her she wanted to go to sleep. Instead, she accepted the drink Joan offered her and sat down on the couch.
A minute later, they could hear Richie come back down the stairs, straight out the door to help carry their bags inside. They were all dropped in the hallway before he joined them in the living room, plopping down with a satisfactory sigh on the couch next to Sarah. Glad to finally be home, overnight travel was always more stressful but being at home with his mom in Jersey was worth it.
"Why are you still awake?" He looked over at his mother.
"I couldn't go to sleep and let you arrive to the house without me here to greet you." She told him sweetly.
"You must be tired though."
She smiled at him. "You're worth it, I can always get more sleep."
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