Trick or treat
˝So, goober, you excited for Halloween? ˝Kate asked the little blonde boy sitting on his chair and munching on a peanut butter & jelly toast she had made him for breakfast.
Aaron nodded, picking up a bit of jelly fell down on the table with his index finger and then licking it clean, making her smile.
˝Have you decided what you want to be? ˝she asked, joining him at the table with a bowl of cereals and a glass of fresh orange juice. Jack had a surgery on a critically ill 12-year old scheduled for that day, so he had left early in the morning, promising he would do his best to be home for dinner. ˝Batman, Ninja, Sponge Bob? ˝Kate smiled, listing some of his current obsessions. At 3,5 years old, he was fascinated with all types of action characters out there and, willingly or not, Jack and she had been dragged into the world of cartoons, knowing each character by name.
That was why she was very surprised to see him shaking his head no.
˝You don´t want to be Sponge Bob? ˝she asked, incredulous – even his bed covers were yellow character themed.
˝Nope. ˝he replied, shaking his head one more time. He swallowed down the last peace of toast; then announced, grinning proudly: ˝I wanna be doctol like Jack. ˝
Kate laughed. ˝A doctor like Jack, huh? ˝
˝Yep. ˝
She smiled. Of course. Aaron idolized Jack and, in her opinion, it was all well deserved. ˝Okay…Dr Aaron it is. ˝she said, picking him up; both of them giggling as they went upstairs to get ready for preschool.
*****
He wiped off the plate with a cloth; placed it down in the dryer; then picked another one; his gaze sad and pensive, staring into nothingness. Kate had gone upstairs to tuck Aaron in; and he offered to do the dishes; needing something to keep his mind away from certain thoughts, but failing.
He was so wrapped up in his thoughts that he didn't hear her return; jumping a bit, startled, as he felt her arms wrapping around his waist; followed by a small kiss as she pressed her lips on his shoulder.
˝Hey. ˝she said softly, leaning her cheek against his shoulder.
He closed his eyes, allowing himself the briefest moment to forget all the worries and just enjoy her closeness before opening them again; wiping his hands with a cloth and then turning around, putting his hands on her hips and greeting her with a soft peck on lips. ˝Hey. ˝ He lifted his hand and gently tucked a piece of stranded hair behind her ear; then leaning back against the counter, his hands still on her hips. ˝Is he out? ˝
Kate smiled, remembering how fast the boy collapsed. ˝Yeah. The moment his head hit the pillow. ˝
Jack offered a smile too, but she noticed it didn't reach his eyes. She had been watching him from the doorway and she could see that something was troubling him; that he was once again in one of his moods when his body was present, but his mind wasn´t; when he was blaming himself for something he had no control over.
She wrapped one arm around his waist, bringing the other one up and gently touching his cheek. ˝Hey… ˝He looked up at her; his deep, brown eyes gazing at her sadly. ˝What´s wrong? ˝
She managed to catch a brief trace of pain before he composed himself. ˝Nothing. ˝he said quickly – a little too quickly – trying to shrug it off.
˝Jack. ˝
He sighed. She knew him too well. He gently pulled away from her, put down the cloth on the counter; then headed off towards the living room – with her on his heels – placing himself down on the armchair and leaning back with a heavy sigh. ˝It´s nothing, it´s just… ˝he paused, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. ˝I was thinking about my dad. About our relationship. How lousy it was. ˝he said sadly; his eyes so sad and pensive she wanted nothing more than pull him into her embrace and hold him there until everything was right again. ˝And I…I don't want to make the same mistake with Aaron. ˝He looked up at her, then down again, as if embarrassed. ˝I don't want him to look back one day and me being at the hospital all the time to be the only thing he would remember. How I wasn´t there for him, how…˝he paused, unable to speak anymore. He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned forward, closing his eyes and resting his head against her stomach.
They stayed like that for a few moments; her gently stroking the back of his head with her fingers; him breathing in and out, eyes still closed, finding her presence oddly comforting.
She gave him a minute or two more; then gently tugged on his shirt, pressing into his chest and pushing him back until he was leaning against the back of the chair again. ˝Hey…
˝she said, putting her hands on his shoulders and climbing up on him, until she was straddling him. ˝You know what he told me this morning when I asked him what he wanted to be for Halloween? ˝
Jack shook his head, not knowing what that had to do with everything, but playing along nevertheless.
˝He told me he wanted to be a doctor like you. He said he wanted to, I quote – she said, making quotations mark with her hands - »fix boo-boos like Jack«.
Jack smiled, visibly touched.
Kate smiled too; then turned serious again, locking her eyes with his and adding: ˝So don't worry, Jack. In his eyes, you´re…you´re like Superman. ˝she laughed, trying to cheer him up. But it had a totally contrary effect.
His eyes went grim again, and he said, sadly: ˝I´m not a Superman, Kate. ˝
She looked at him sadly, knowing exactly what was going on through his mind. He was thinking about the island, about everyone they´d left behind, about everyone that had lost their lives. And, as always, blaming himself for it.
She leaned forward and kissed him softly; then pulled away a bit, her eyes locking with his. ˝Maybe not. But you´re our Superman. ˝she said sweetly, making him smile; then leaned in again, capturing his lips in hers; starting slow and soft then deepening it, trying to pour all the love she felt for him in that one kiss.
When the need to breathe became too much to ignore anymore, she slowly pulled away, gently stroking his cheek with her right hand. ˝You are good at this, Jack. I promise. ˝she said quietly; then added: ˝Yes, you work a lot, but you also make sure to find enough time for Aaron. For us. You might not be with us 24/7, but you´re there every evening to talk to him, play with him, to listen to his jabbering. You´re there every night to tuck him in, read him stories and, whenever you´re away, he talks about you non-stop. ˝She was relieved to see him smile, and she smiled too; then continued, getting serious again: ˝I know you had issues with your parents. God knows I had too. And yes, we make mistakes. And we will make them more. The important thing is, though, that we´re trying. ˝she said; then added: ˝Heck, half of the time I don't know what I´m doing too, but we´re obviously doing something right, ´cause upstairs sleeps the sweetest and kindest boy, who loves us both dearly. And that counts something, don´t you think? ˝
Jack smiled; his smile this time reaching his eyes. He put his hand on her cheek; then leaned in, kissing her softly. ˝I love you so much, you know that? ˝
She smiled shyly; then leaned in to kiss him again, murmuring softly against his lips. ˝I love you too. ˝
She felt him smile against her; kissed him once more time; then pulled away, getting up. ˝I´m gonna go get ready for bed, okay? ˝she said, knowing he needed some time for himself.
He smiled, nodding. ˝Okay. ˝
He watched her cross the living room; then stop as she reached the stairs.
˝Don't make me wait too long. ˝she said, grinning mischievously and he shook his head, laughing.
˝Yes, Ma´am. ˝
He watched her disappear; then leaned back, closing his eyes and thinking about what she said. He remembered her words - ˝fix boo-boos like Jack. ˝; then smiled; shaking his head, amused; then got up, taking one last glance at the room before turning the lights off and heading upstairs to join her…
*****
He was standing in the hallway, looking at the reflection in the mirror and feeling somehow silly: a white loose-fitting shirt under dark blue hip-length short coat, brown pants with two leather belts and a scarf around his waist, a pair of stout buckle shoes, a cocked felt hat and a plastic toy sword completing the pirate look. Kate had ordered their family costumes weeks ago, but since Aaron was stubbornly insisting to go as doctor-Jack; they were a pirate short; going as two pirates and a doctor – as sync as that sounded.
He was still deciding if he looked cool or stupid when he heard her footsteps echoing through the upstairs floor; but when she stepped on the stairs, coming into his sight, all thoughts about looking silly or not vanished from his brain. Stunned, with mouth half open, he watched her descend the stairs. She was wearing a brown corset-looking coat, with loose-fitting shirt color beige underneath and black leggings that were framed with knee-length brown leather boots. Her hair was loose too, brown curls freely falling down underneath stylishly looking cocked hat, adorned with long red kerchief. There was something in her whole posture that rendered him completely speechless, making him unable to move; just standing there and watching her approach.
˝Close your mouth, Jack. ˝she said, amused, coming to stand in front of him.
He looked embarrassed for a moment, but quickly composed himself, wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her closer to him. ˝Well, I´m not the one to blame. ˝he said, pulling back a bit as if taking her in; then added: ˝You look…really sexy, Miss Austen. ˝
She giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck and lifting on tiptoes, her mouth right next to his earlobe as she added, in a seductive whisper: ˝You look quite sexy yourself, Captain Shephard. ˝
˝Oh, yeah? ˝he said hoarsely, the warmth of his breath on her skin making her dizzy.
˝Oh, yeah. ˝she replied, closing her eyes as his mouth swallowed hers in a long, wet and passionate kiss.
They were just getting into it when they heard loud sound of little footsteps, soon enough followed by a small voice screaming: ˝Mummy! Mummy! Jack! ˝
She heard him murmuring ˝Always something. ˝before finally pulling away from her; having just enough time to bend down before something small and blonde launched into his arms, wrapping his tiny arms around his neck and giving him a quick peck before pulling away.
˝Look, Jack! I´m a doctol like you! ˝the boy jabbered, turning around to show Jack his costume, that consisted of green children-sized scrubs, matching hat, white face mask and a toy stethoscope. ˝Am I a good doctol? ˝he asked, looking up at Jack with worried expression on his face.
Jack smiled, picking him up again and tweaking his nose with his finger. ˝The best out there, bud. ˝Aaron´s face immediately lightened up. ˝Now…are you ready for trick or treating? ˝The boy nodded enthusiastically. ˝Then go get your bucket and we´re off. ˝he told him, putting him down and smiling as he watched the boy running off into the living room. He turned around to see Kate smiling at him; then reached his hand and pulled her closer, pressing a small kiss on her temple.
˝You know…I´m really looking forward to this. ˝he said, watching Aaron excitedly coming back, a small pumpkin shaped bucket in his hand. ˝I´ve never really done it and…˝
Kate cut him off, incredulous. ˝You´ve never been trick or treating, Jack? ˝
He smiled sadly. ˝No. My dad thought it wasn´t appropriate for people ˝our range˝. ˝he explained, rolling his eyes; and Kate smiled compassionately at him.
˝Then we´ll show you exactly how fun it can be… right, Aaron? ˝she asked the boy, picking him up and placing him on her hip.
˝Wlight. ˝the boy replied, nodding.
Jack smiled; opening the door and then, shrugging his shoulders; added: ˝What are we waiting for? ˝
*****
Jack laughed happily, cradling sound asleep Aaron in one arm; his other one wrapped around Kate´s waist, as they slowly walked down the Panorama Crest. Bright s mile adorned his features: this whole trick or treating with Kate and Aaron showing out to be much more fun than he´d originally thought it would.
They had spent the last two hours going from house to house, the boy´s natural blue eyes/blonde hair combination coupled with genuine sweetness and him telling everyone who wanted to hear that he was ˝weal doctol like his Jack˝ melting everyone´s hearts and encouraging them to add extra candies in his already full bucket; so that, by the time they reached the last house, they had to use their pirate hats to host the rest of the sweets, much to Aaron´s delight. All the walking, however, completely worn him off, so that he was out before the last house lady even closed the door properly.
˝You know…I really had a great time. ˝he suddenly said, looking down at Kate .
˝I noticed. ˝she said teasingly. ˝At times, it seemed you were more into it than he was. ˝
Jack laughed, pulling her closer and playfully kissing the top of her head. ˝You´re adorable, you know that? ˝
*****
She watched him carefully lay Aaron down onto his bed, pull up the covers; then lean down and gently press his lips on the boy´s forehead, kissing him goodnight; a small, soft smile adorning her face.
He casted one last look at the boy; then turned around, turning off the lights and stepping out of the bedroom.
He wrapped his arms around her and gently kissed the tip of her nose. ˝Tired? ˝
She smiled. ˝Yeah. ˝
˝It´s been a long day. ˝he agreed, cupping her face in his hands; then bending down and kissing her softly, sweetly.
The kiss gradually grew more and more passionate and soon their tongues were dueling for attention; her fingers resting comfortably on his chest as he cradled her head in his hands; neither of them willing to end it, using every bit of oxygen still left until they were finally forced to pull away, both breathless, resting their foreheads against each other.
˝You know…˝she said, breathing hard; wrapping her arms around his neck.. ˝I´ve always had a thing for pirates. ˝
˝Yeah? ˝he said, playfully brushing his nose against hers before capturing her lips in his again; her moaning into his mouth as the kiss became more intense.
He felt her hands tugging on his shirt, feverishly trying to get it off; teasing grin appearing on his face as he finally pulled away, finding her hands and taking them in his.
˝I thought you were tired. ˝he said, teasing; but she didn´t care.
Ready to attack his lips again, she mumbled, breathlessly: ˝Not for this.˝, before pushing him into their bedroom and closing the door behind.
*****
p.s. Happy Halloween, Jaters! *hugs*
As for treats…reviews would be nice :p