Word
By Mickey
Status: Completed 05/26/2009
Content Warnings: Cuteness alert!
Word Count: 1,233
Author's Notes: Written second, but chronologically, takes place before "Haircut". Thanks to Annie and Cheryl for the beta!
Waking early, as he usually did, Jack decided to let Sara sleep in for once and retrieved their son from his crib. Charlie, as always, was already awake and was cuddling his favorite stuffed dog, cooing happily and blowing "baby bubbles", as Sara had dubbed them. Knowing the boy like he did, Jack immediately went to the changing table. Gently, he laid Charlie down and removed his sleeper, tossing it to the side. Crinkling up his nose, Jack said, "Ewwww!" As soon as he'd removed the sleeper, the strong odor of poop had hit him.
Wow, that's a ripe one! Pulling the straps aside and the front of the diaper back, Jack groaned. "Gross," he muttered as he used the diaper to clean up as much of the mess as possible. "How come you always rip loose with the huge, gooey, nasty ones when I change you, huh?" he asked. "You never load 'em up like that for Mommy."
A hearty laugh was Charlie's only response.
"Yeah," Jack began as he used several wipes to clean up what he couldn't get with the diaper, "you think this is funny, don't you? A regular riot, huh? Just one big joke?"
Again, Charlie simply laughed.
"You would." Noticing the little splotches of red on his son's rear end, Jack grabbed the tube of ointment and applied a generous amount before grabbing a clean diaper and putting it on. Once his son was clean and in a fresh diaper, he grabbed the blue camouflage-colored "Major Trouble!" onesie from the bottom of the changing table and quickly dressed the baby. That done, he picked his kid up and headed downstairs to get the boy some breakfast. Just like his Daddy, Charlie was almost always hungry.
Upon entering the kitchen, he placed Charlie in his high chair, secured him with the safty straps, attached the tray, and went to the cabinet. Pulling out a box of Charlie's favorite cereal, Cheerios, Jack decided to forgo the bowl and spoon. Charlie refused to use the spoon for its intended purpose anyway and Jack was tired of picking it up off the floor every ten seconds. That was a new game Charlie had "invented" while he'd been away -throwing his spoon on the floor, then waiting for someone to pick it up and give it back to him, just to throw it back down again and laugh his head off. Jack poured a generous amount of cereal directly onto the tray. Charlie dug in instantly, picking up a handful and stuffing them into his mouth, fingers and all.
Jack smiled at Charlie. Charlie was growing so fast, it seemed like he changed everyday. Just over a month ago; the little boy had started crawling. Unfortunately, Jack had been away on a mission and had missed the big event. He'd been very upset when he'd talked to Sara few days after it had happened and she excitedly gave him all the details. Luckily, Sara had the video camera ready -as she always did when Jack was away- and had grabbed it in time to catch the child on tape just as he'd started to push himself onto his hands and knees. It wasn't the same as being there, but it was better than not seeing it at all.
"Easy, Little Man," Jack chuckled as Charlie shoved another little handful of cereal into his mouth. Putting the cereal back in its proper place, Jack grabbed the milk from the refrigerator and filled Charlie's sippy cup. He put the milk away then put the cup on the highchair tray. Charlie gurgled happily as he picked up the small cup by both handles, raised it to his mouth and took a long drink.
Chuckling, Jack ruffled the boy's downy hair and said, "I'm thirsty too." As Charlie munched happily on his breakfast, Jack set about making a pot of coffee. Measuring carefully, he dumped the coffee grounds into the filter. Sara always washed the pot each night then put a clean filter in so it was ready for the next day. Then he added the appropriate amount of water, put on the top and plugged it in. Leaving the pot to percolate, Jack sat at the kitchen table and picked up the morning paper. Turning right to the sports section, he listened to Charlie babble.
"Dddddd."
Jack's head popped up. He looked at Charlie, who was staring back at him. Although he was unsure how, Jack just knew today was going to be a big day. Charlie was going to say his first word! He could feel it. "You're going to talk today, aren't you, Little Man?" Nodding, Jack said, "Yeah, you're going to talk to Dada. You know Dada is only going to be home for two more days then he has to go away for a few months, so you're going to say 'Dada' for me." Pausing, Jack waited for Charlie to try to talk again.
Instead, Charlie merely stared back at Jack for a few seconds before shoving another handful of Cheerios into his mouth.
"Come on, son, say 'Dada'." Jack smiled at the child as he chomped on his cereal. Charlie looked up at Jack, but said nothing as he smacked his hands happily onto his tray -something Sara had informed him when he returned home a few days ago, that Charlie had recently started doing to entertain himself- sending Cheerios flying in every direction. Ignoring the pieces of cereal that landed in his hair, Jack urged his son again. "Say 'Dada'."
Staring intently at his son, Jack waited. Charlie seemed to concentrate. "Ddddd."
"That's it, Charlie, say Dada." Jack turned and gave his wife a mock glare as Sara giggled loudly.
"I told you yesterday, Jack, he's a little young yet. Most kids don't say their first word until around twelve months old or so. Charlie is only seven months old. He'll start talking when he's ready."
Jack being Jack, he stuck out his tongue as he turned to his wife, who was leaning on the doorway between the kitchen and living room, smiling, and then he said, "Not my kid. He wants to talk. I can tell." Proudly, he added, "Besides, our boy is not," Jack paused, making quote marks in the air, "just average!" There was another pause then he asked, "And just how long have you been standing there, hmmm?"
"Long enough," Sara replied, still smiling.
Jack stuck his tongue out again then turned his attention back to his son. He heard Sara's soft laugh and smiled. "Come on, kiddo. Say Dada! Daaadaaa."
"Dddd. . . . Aaaaa!" Charlie exclaimed as he slammed his hands onto his tray again. More Cheerios went flying.
Jack paid no attention to Sara as she muttered incoherently and cleared the remaining cereal from the child's tray. He half watched her as she went and dumped the handful of cereal into the garbage then went to the closet, pulled out the broom and dustpan and started sweeping up the mess their son had made all over the floor.
"Come on, Little Man, you're getting there. Say Dada."
"Ddddd . . ."Charlie gave a frustrated sigh. Just when Jack was sure the boy had given up, Charlie smiled and blurted out, "Dog!"
Stunned, Jack stared at his little boy. Then beaming, he turned to Sara and said, "See, told ya! The kid's a genius!"
THE END