"But Daddy, why do we have to move? I really like California." The little blonde girl asked her father, looking up at him with bright blue doe eyes.
"I know sweetheart but Daddy's got a job on New Alexandria now. I'm sure you're going to like it there, there's much more space for you to run around. You'll even make some new friends, no doubt." Javier told his little girl as she stopped colouring in to give him a disapproving look. She held a green crayon in her hand as she crossed her arms and pressed her lips into a thin line.
"I like my old friends." She replied. She reminded him so much of her late mother. She had her big eyes, although hers were slightly more teal than her mother's. She had her sunny hair and every time she gave him that look, he knew he was in for a fight. She was so much like her, in a way it made him miss her less. Allison may have gone but she'd left a piece of herself behind and he would treasure her till his last days.
"Oh come on Diana, this'll be good for us, a fresh start." He sat down beside his daughter and slung an arm around the back of her chair. They had been sat in their cramped kitchen while he went over some files from work while she coloured under his watchful eye.
Even though he didn't want to leave his home planet, this could be good for them. He knew Diana wouldn't want to move again, she'd really liked Texas too but with Leonard there he knew they couldn't stay. Even if he'd wanted to, Church wouldn't have let them. He supposed he was glad in a way that Diana couldn't remember her half sister Carolina it only would have made this harder.
The move would be good for them, Earth was far too overpopulated now anyway. Javier and his little girl had been crammed in some shitty studio apartment right by the highway and miles away from the closest park. There was no space for Diana to run around outside and even if there was the neighbourhood was so dangerous that he'd be a fool to let her play outside.
No, New Alexandria would we good for them and he wasn't going to change his mind on this. It may be a little hard for her to adjust but she would grow to like her new home, on a new planet with a fresh start. Plus the pay was much better so he could afford to get her all the toys she wanted and then some.
"Why do I need a fresh start? I'm 6." She responded and he couldn't help but laugh. She was definitely smart for her age, witty too.
"Will you tell me a story?" Diana yawned, sleep still calling at her tired body.
"What do you wanna here?" North asked her as she rubbed her eyes softly.
"Something about you. What were you like when you were a kid?" She asked, rolling onto her side to look at him as he sat in her bedside chair.
"A little shit sometimes. I was only good half the time when I was little. Other half I was spoiled. Not as much as South though." He replied honestly. It was hard for her to imagine him as anything but the team dad.
"That's funny. You've never really struck me as the spoilt type." She responded, smiling softly at his equally tired face.
"I guess you think I've always been nice, mature and devilishly charming." He flirted with her, growing comfortable with her being more than just his fellow soldier.
"Oh yes, I had also assumed you're naturally a brunette." She replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes at his attempt at flirting. Just because they were getting together now didn't mean she'd be swooning all over him, well maybe it did, she loved him. Shut up.
"Come on, tell me, what were you like as a kid?"
"Me? Well.."
"Hey." She poked the little boy sitting on the ground in front of her. He had his head on his knees and was sobbing quietly. "Hey!" She poked him harder to get his attention. He turned to look at her, tears sliding down his bright red face, eyes puffy and swollen.
"What?" He cried.
"Why are you crying?" Diana asked, sitting beside him on the step. She leaned over her knees to pick up a stick that was on the ground and started drawing in the dirt.
"Why do you care?" He wailed, covering his face with his hands.
"Why shouldn't I?" She replied stopping drawing to look at him for a moment. "I can't help you if you don't tell me what's wrong." She tried using one of her dad's lines, as it always seemed to work on her.
"I-I-I I hurt myself." He started, a perfectly reasonable reason to be crying actually, she couldn't fault him there. "The, the other boys Thomas and Michael were being mean to me and when I asked them to stop they said if I could beat them in a race around the basketball court. I-I was winning but then Thomas tripped me and I lost. I really hurt my shin and they won't stop picking on me now because I didn't win the race."
"What's your name?" She asked, nodding along to everything he said, listening intently.
"D-david." He told her, wiping away some of his tears.
"I'm Diana." She shook his hand. "Let me see your leg." She ordered and he put his foot in her lap, extending his leg. She examined it, seeing a big red mark that was sure to bruise. "You should go to the nurse about this. Don't worry David, I'll take care of Thomas and Michael."
"B-but how? They'll hurt you too." He worriedly asked, his new friend mightn't be his new friend for long if she got pummelled by his bullies.
"No they won't." She stood up, dusting herself off. "I'm a girl and boys can't hit girls."
"Naive. I was really naive. And for a while kind of shallow." She replied eventually. Thinking of her childhood and teenage years.
"I was wrong." She plopped down beside him on one of the chairs in the office, right near the sick bay. "Turns out boys can hit girls."
"They shouldn't" David replied, looking at his slightly bruised new friend. She had a big red mark on her left arm and a cut on her cheek.
"It's okay though, I got them." She pointed over to the two boys sitting across from them the she'd busted up, they were bleeding and bruised in many places and glaring at her. She poked her tongue out at them and waved.
"How?"
"Hey! You!" She marched up to the two terrors in question and pointed at them, standing firm and putting her hands on her hips. "Why are you picking on David?"
The two turned from whatever they were doing in the dirt to look at her. She raised a cocky brow at them and waited for them to answer.
"None of your business." Thomas replied turning away from her.
"Yes it is." She told him grabbing his shoulder. He towered over her, being one of the taller 8 year olds of the school.
"Why? You're just some girl." Michael asked, confused as to why anyone cared about David the weird kid.
"I'm his friend you meanie." She replied pointing accusingly at him. "And you're going to stop being mean to him."
"Or what?" Thomas scoffed. She didn't reply in words, instead she punched him square in the face. She gripped Michael's shirt and used it to pull him towards her as she slammed her knee into his stomach. She then grabbed their heads and slammed them together. Of course them being boys were stronger than her and got in a couple of punches but she had skill, her daddy taught her well.
"Or I'm going to keep shoving your face in the dirt," she replied kicking his legs out from under him and rubbing his freckled face into the ground. "Until you stop."
"What is going on here?!" Diana looked up to see a very cross looking Mrs. J. staring down at them as she was making Thomas eat the dirt.
"Nothing." She replied innocently.
"Nothing?' Mrs. J. replied in disbelief.
"Yep." She answered with a nod,
"Principal's office, now." She ordered, grabbing Diana by the scruff of her neck and dragging her off of the two boys.
"Oh you know, I just asked them nicely."
"I don't know what the god damn problem is!" She screamed. "I just want to have a sleepover at my friend's house!"
"What did you just say?! Don't you dare use language like that Diana! I didn't raise you like that!" Her father yelled back at her. "And the problem, he's 2 years older than you. I just think you're getting too old to be having sleepovers at boy's houses. Why can't you just hang out with him tonight, I'll pick you up and then you can play with him again tomorrow?"
"It's not the same dad. We were gonna stay up late and look through his telescope." She sighed, leaning on her hand and she slumped her shoulders at the dinner table. "He's been showing me all the constellations of this planet and tonight there was gonna be a meteor shower."
It was Javier's time to sigh this time. His daughter was nearing the age of 10 and she's been friends with David for about 2 years now. Each year filled with the two of them getting in nonstop trouble. He really didn't want to get in the way of her happiness, and she had been talking a lot about the stars recently, it could be good for her. The problem was she was getting a little old to be having sleepovers with boys. Why couldn't she have a girl friend?
"Okay alright. You can go. But just this once. And only because of the meteor shower." He replied eventually, mulling it over. "But I'm picking you up at 2 tomorrow and you're going to be ready straight away and no arguments. You're coming straight home and no 'please daddy's or 'just five more minutes'."
"Deal." She grinned, rushing off out of the room to go and pack.
"Behave yourself, okay?" He leaned down to ruffle his daughter's hair one more time and kiss her on the forehead, saying goodbye as he dropped her off at her friend's house.
"I will." She tried to shove him off of her, embarrassed at his fussing.
"See you tomorrow at 2." He stood up straight and saluted David's mother, Karen, before marching of back to his motorbike. "I love you." He called to her.
"Love you too Daddy." She replied, heading inside, holding the straps of her backpack. She trotted inside and up the stairs to meet her friend, who was sitting at his desk, going over books on constellations.
"Nerd." She chuckled, plopping down on his bed, dropping her bag on the floor.
"You came over here specifically to watch a meteor shower, who's the nerd now?" He responded, noticing her presence.
"Still you." She replied with a wry smile. "You're the one who invited me."
"About that." He turned his desk chair around to look at her with a guilty expression. "There's something I've got to tell you."
"Did you get the wrong date?" She asked preemptively.
"No. This isn't about the meteor shower." He shook his head. "Look I invited you over so we could have one last sleepover before I move."
"You're moving house?" She asked, lifting her foot up to her chest and tugging off her shoe.
"More like planet." He responded.
"You're moving planet? Seriously?" She looked at him heartbroken. He was her only friend and she his. "What am I going to do without you?"
"I'm sorry."