Post by kris1907 on Aug 22, 2006 16:17:42 GMT -5
Chapter 7
Picking up the little girl, Marlena cooes at her gently as she lifts her up to her shoulder. Patting her back, she attempts to sooth her slightly fussy granddaughter. “Now now… its okay. Your mommy just went for a walk with… well little one, what is he going to be called huh?” Looking down at her, Marlena smiles and attempts to make the baby laugh, “Is he a grandpa? Cause that would make me a grandma. I’m okay with that, but what about… hmm… he would be a cute papa, don’t you think?”
At Claire’s laugh, Marlena lets out one of her own, “You are a precious little thing, aren’t you? So why don’t we try out papa today and see how it goes. We’ll decide who I am later. Oh baby girl…” She cradles her close to her chest and breaths in deeply, “I love you so much and I am so… so very sorry that I haven’t been here like I should have been. You had us all scared there for so long and both you and your mommy needed me, but I’m here now and forever.” Stroking her cheek, Marlena runs a finger from her cheek up to her forehead and then back down to her chin. Running her finger back and forth just under her bottom lip, she waits for a smile, “You are stuck with me. You have such a great life ahead of you, little one. What do you say that we go- -“
Marlena cuts off abruptly when she hears a shriek of laughter from outside. Looking at Claire, “And what on earth do you think those two are doing out there, hm?”
Walking towards the window, Marlena boosts Claire up on her hip, to allow the baby to see outside. A smile immediately appears on her face as she sees John running after Belle. A quick step by the father, allows him to grab a hold of his daughter and throw her over his shoulder. Marlena and Claire simply watch in silence as John spins and then allows her to fall from his shoulder into his arms before he nearly drops her to her butt. Both females let out a snort sounding laugh at the scene, causing Marlena to look quickly at Claire and laugh happily at the similar action.
John continues to laugh at his daughter, but as he moves away from her, Belle stands up and runs to jump on his back. “Oh no… Belle is in trouble now. You’re poor mommy.” Just as Marlena says this, John uses Belle’s momentum to flip her over his shoulder. He bends so that she doesn’t hit the ground too hard, but she doesn’t let go of him and John loses his balance and tumbles to the ground in a hard heap.
“You know, baby girl, your mommy and papa and have playing like this all her life. I always thought that they would outgrow it but I am so glad that they haven’t. She is very special to him, as are you. Know that your papa will do anything for you, even when you don’t want him to. He’ll protect you, but he will also make you smile so many times.” She glances back out at the two rolling on the ground, but notices that Claire is still looking at her, as if she is waiting for her to continue the story. “My favourite memory of the two of them was when your mommy was just a little bit older than you are. Papa would take her down to the lake to feed the duckies. She would get up on- -“
Five year old Belle climbs up on the park bench and waits for her father to bend down in front of her. John squats down and the little blonde haired girl puts up leg over his shoulder, followed by the other. “Okay, hang on.”
“My crackers!”
“I’ll get them for you when we are standing, hanging on?”
“Yep!”
“Okay, up we go.” John slowly stands up, making sure that his daughter is properly balanced on his shoulders. Leaning over slightly, he picks up the roll of crackers. Taking out one, he holds it up to Belle, “One for Belle, one for daddy. Ooo… Belle, see all the boats? Look at the one with the big sail.”
“Daddy… I want a boat!”
“You want a boat?”
“Yep.”
“What colour boat?”
She takes a bite of her cracker, “Pink!”
Rolling his eyes, “She have guessed. Okay, we will ask mommy if we can get a pink boat. Who is going to sail it?”
“You silly!”
“But I don’t know how to sail a boat.” He lifts another cracker up to her, “One for you. One for the ducks. One for daddy.” He slips the cracker into his mouth just as Belle tosses the cracker as close as she can to the ducks.
“Look at the duckies run daddy! Look at them run! They go quack quack quack. Oh no… that one stole the cracker!” She giggles out a “That isn’t nice!”
Laughing with her, “If that isn’t nice, then why are you laughing Belle?”
“Because he walks funny!” She starts to tip side to side on his shoulders singing, “Waddle waddle waddle…”
John reaches up quickly to hold onto her butt and keep her from falling backwards, “Careful there girl. Cracker for you. One for the ducks. One for daddy.” He crunches down on another cracker as he watches, with his daughter, the ducks run towards the fallen cracker and fight over it.
“Another one daddy!”
“What do you say?”
“Another one please daddy!”
“One for you. One for the ducks.” He watches the cracker float to the ground and takes a step back as the ducks run towards them to attack it.
“One for you daddy!”
Putting another one into his mouth, he mumbles, “And one for daddy.” Her high pitch giggle causes a smile to naturally appear on his face. “I like the little guy over here… see the small duck? Think mommy would let us bring him home?”
“Where would he sleep?”
“In the bathroom. One for you. One for the ducks. And one for me.”
“In whose bathroom?”
“Well yours and Brady’s of course.”
“I don’t want him in my bathtub! He’ll see me naked daddy!”
John laughs quietly, “Okay, he can sleep in mommy’s bathtub and he can see her naked.”
Her giggle warms his heart and he steadies himself as she bends over, in an attempt to look him in the face. Instead she whispers in his ear, “Mommy would be very angry with you daddy if a duck sees her naked in her bathtub.”
“You think so?”
“Yeah, that’s a fact.”
“Is it?”
“Uh huh… it is. Cracker please.”
Holding one up, “One for you. One for the ducks. Two for daddy.”
Belle attempts to bend over and keep him from eating both crackers at once, “No daddy! Only one cracker…” Her constant giggles and his deep belly laughs causes him to drop both crackers…
Marlena looks down and realizes that her story has lulled her granddaughter back to sleep. “Shh… naptime and we’ll go for a walk later.” Kissing her forehead, Marlena lays her down and kisses her forehead gently. Walking out of the bedroom, Marlena glances out the window once more to see the empty field, before she goes to the kitchen to make herself a sandwich and clean up the breakfast leftovers.
Picking up the little girl, Marlena cooes at her gently as she lifts her up to her shoulder. Patting her back, she attempts to sooth her slightly fussy granddaughter. “Now now… its okay. Your mommy just went for a walk with… well little one, what is he going to be called huh?” Looking down at her, Marlena smiles and attempts to make the baby laugh, “Is he a grandpa? Cause that would make me a grandma. I’m okay with that, but what about… hmm… he would be a cute papa, don’t you think?”
At Claire’s laugh, Marlena lets out one of her own, “You are a precious little thing, aren’t you? So why don’t we try out papa today and see how it goes. We’ll decide who I am later. Oh baby girl…” She cradles her close to her chest and breaths in deeply, “I love you so much and I am so… so very sorry that I haven’t been here like I should have been. You had us all scared there for so long and both you and your mommy needed me, but I’m here now and forever.” Stroking her cheek, Marlena runs a finger from her cheek up to her forehead and then back down to her chin. Running her finger back and forth just under her bottom lip, she waits for a smile, “You are stuck with me. You have such a great life ahead of you, little one. What do you say that we go- -“
Marlena cuts off abruptly when she hears a shriek of laughter from outside. Looking at Claire, “And what on earth do you think those two are doing out there, hm?”
Walking towards the window, Marlena boosts Claire up on her hip, to allow the baby to see outside. A smile immediately appears on her face as she sees John running after Belle. A quick step by the father, allows him to grab a hold of his daughter and throw her over his shoulder. Marlena and Claire simply watch in silence as John spins and then allows her to fall from his shoulder into his arms before he nearly drops her to her butt. Both females let out a snort sounding laugh at the scene, causing Marlena to look quickly at Claire and laugh happily at the similar action.
John continues to laugh at his daughter, but as he moves away from her, Belle stands up and runs to jump on his back. “Oh no… Belle is in trouble now. You’re poor mommy.” Just as Marlena says this, John uses Belle’s momentum to flip her over his shoulder. He bends so that she doesn’t hit the ground too hard, but she doesn’t let go of him and John loses his balance and tumbles to the ground in a hard heap.
“You know, baby girl, your mommy and papa and have playing like this all her life. I always thought that they would outgrow it but I am so glad that they haven’t. She is very special to him, as are you. Know that your papa will do anything for you, even when you don’t want him to. He’ll protect you, but he will also make you smile so many times.” She glances back out at the two rolling on the ground, but notices that Claire is still looking at her, as if she is waiting for her to continue the story. “My favourite memory of the two of them was when your mommy was just a little bit older than you are. Papa would take her down to the lake to feed the duckies. She would get up on- -“
Five year old Belle climbs up on the park bench and waits for her father to bend down in front of her. John squats down and the little blonde haired girl puts up leg over his shoulder, followed by the other. “Okay, hang on.”
“My crackers!”
“I’ll get them for you when we are standing, hanging on?”
“Yep!”
“Okay, up we go.” John slowly stands up, making sure that his daughter is properly balanced on his shoulders. Leaning over slightly, he picks up the roll of crackers. Taking out one, he holds it up to Belle, “One for Belle, one for daddy. Ooo… Belle, see all the boats? Look at the one with the big sail.”
“Daddy… I want a boat!”
“You want a boat?”
“Yep.”
“What colour boat?”
She takes a bite of her cracker, “Pink!”
Rolling his eyes, “She have guessed. Okay, we will ask mommy if we can get a pink boat. Who is going to sail it?”
“You silly!”
“But I don’t know how to sail a boat.” He lifts another cracker up to her, “One for you. One for the ducks. One for daddy.” He slips the cracker into his mouth just as Belle tosses the cracker as close as she can to the ducks.
“Look at the duckies run daddy! Look at them run! They go quack quack quack. Oh no… that one stole the cracker!” She giggles out a “That isn’t nice!”
Laughing with her, “If that isn’t nice, then why are you laughing Belle?”
“Because he walks funny!” She starts to tip side to side on his shoulders singing, “Waddle waddle waddle…”
John reaches up quickly to hold onto her butt and keep her from falling backwards, “Careful there girl. Cracker for you. One for the ducks. One for daddy.” He crunches down on another cracker as he watches, with his daughter, the ducks run towards the fallen cracker and fight over it.
“Another one daddy!”
“What do you say?”
“Another one please daddy!”
“One for you. One for the ducks.” He watches the cracker float to the ground and takes a step back as the ducks run towards them to attack it.
“One for you daddy!”
Putting another one into his mouth, he mumbles, “And one for daddy.” Her high pitch giggle causes a smile to naturally appear on his face. “I like the little guy over here… see the small duck? Think mommy would let us bring him home?”
“Where would he sleep?”
“In the bathroom. One for you. One for the ducks. And one for me.”
“In whose bathroom?”
“Well yours and Brady’s of course.”
“I don’t want him in my bathtub! He’ll see me naked daddy!”
John laughs quietly, “Okay, he can sleep in mommy’s bathtub and he can see her naked.”
Her giggle warms his heart and he steadies himself as she bends over, in an attempt to look him in the face. Instead she whispers in his ear, “Mommy would be very angry with you daddy if a duck sees her naked in her bathtub.”
“You think so?”
“Yeah, that’s a fact.”
“Is it?”
“Uh huh… it is. Cracker please.”
Holding one up, “One for you. One for the ducks. Two for daddy.”
Belle attempts to bend over and keep him from eating both crackers at once, “No daddy! Only one cracker…” Her constant giggles and his deep belly laughs causes him to drop both crackers…
Marlena looks down and realizes that her story has lulled her granddaughter back to sleep. “Shh… naptime and we’ll go for a walk later.” Kissing her forehead, Marlena lays her down and kisses her forehead gently. Walking out of the bedroom, Marlena glances out the window once more to see the empty field, before she goes to the kitchen to make herself a sandwich and clean up the breakfast leftovers.