Girl
Kai - 3 yo
Nya - 1 1/2 yo
Kai & Nya's mother - Mary
Father - Lucifer
Lars - 4 yo; Kai and Nya's cousin (Mary sister)
Annabelle - Lars mom

"I'm going to go work in the shop for a bit, is that alright?" Lucifer asked his wife.

Mary waved her hand in the air. "You go ahead. I'm just finishing up in the kitchen. My sister and her family are coming over in just a little over two hours, so don't spend too long in there."

"I won't." Lucifer turned to his children, who were playing on their special toy mat. "You two behave for your mother. I'm looking at you Nya."

Nya giggled as her father placed a kiss on her forehead. When he tried to do the same to his son, Kai leaned backwards out of the way. Unfortunately, for Kai, he leaned too far back and ended up falling over onto a pile of his toys. Lucifer helped him back up and kissed the boo-boo on his son's head.

Mary turned to her two kids after Lucifer left the room. "I'm going to be in the kitchen working with sharp knives and hot ovens. You two need to stay in this room, understand."

Kai nodded his head up and down before turning his attention to his stuffed animals. Nya, on the other hand, protested, "NO!"

Mary gave a sigh before turning to her oldest. "Kai. Watch your sister and make sure she doesn't get into any trouble."

Kai nodded again. He placed a few blocks in front of his sister, which immediately captured her attention. Mary smiled at her kids and left to go finish preparing dinner.

Once she left, Nya got a bit more restless. Kai attempted to keep her occupied, which wavered from working to a complete disaster. This worried Kai a bit. Being the older child, Kai felt it was important to help out his parents, especially if it involved caring for his younger sister. Nya, on the other hand, started talking at eight and a half months and hasn't shut up since. When she did, it was often because she was getting into something she shouldn't. Luckily, she mostly listened to people when they asked her to do things. The only problem was that Kai never spoke.

"Story, I want story." Nya pulled on her brother's sleeve, rejecting yet another toy item.

"Can't read," Kai signed simply.

"Story, story, story, story," Nya demanded.

Kai thought for a minute. He signed, "Pictures. Draw some please?"

Nya nodded her head in a maniac manner. She pushed herself to a shaky and Wobbly standing position and ran to the little table filled with paper and crayons across the room.

Kai watched as she grabbed the red crayon and started scribbling determinately on the paper. When Kai was satisfied that his sister was completely engrossed with her work, he turned to the toys scattered everywhere and started placing them in the correct bins. The two stayed like that for a while, both quiet and busy, until...

"Girl."

Kai looked up from his block building, a puzzled look on his face. "What?" He signed.

"You're a girl."

Kai's face quickly changed to one of horror. "No."

"You're a girl." Nya's words were like daggers in Kai's heart. "Girl, girl, girl."

"No I'm not." Anger filled the little boy's heart and tears threatened to spill from his eyes. "I'm boy! Boy!" He was signing furiously now.
Nya didn't care for her brother and continued her teasing. "You're a girl."

"MOMMY!"

Mary ran in from the kitchen, worry filled her heart. She turned to her oldest "What's wrong?"

Kai wiped the tears out of his eyes and pointed to Nya, signing out his complaint. "She called me girl."

Mary gave a sigh of relief, glad it was something petty. "Kai, are you a girl?"

"NO!"

"Then ignore Nya, she's just trying to get on your nerves." Kai nodded at his mother's words. Mary then turned to Nya. "Nya, honey, Kai is a boy and he doesn't like you calling him a girl. Can you please stop?"

"Okay."

"Thank you Nya." Mary started her walk back to the kitchen.

"Girl."

Tears fell from Kai's eyes again, he struggled to wipe them away and sign his message, "No. Mommy said boy."

"Girl."

"Nya, that's not nice. Please stop."

Nya didn't listen to her mother's words. Instead, the young child continued to torment her brother. "Girl, girl, girl, girl girl, gi-"

"THAT'S ENOUGH! Nya Elizabeth Smith, I have asked you to stop and you haven't, we are going to time-out." Mary picked up the young toddler, who had started screaming and hitting her mother to avoid punishment. She walked to Nya's bedroom and placed her in her crib, closing the door so the screams were quieter. "Kai dear, can you pick up your toys and put them away? Your cousin is going to be here soon and we don't want a mess."

Kai nodded quietly. He placed all his toys in their respective bins and put all his special toys in a secret hiding spot in his room, that way his cousin wouldn't get them.

-

Lars, Nya, and Kai were all playing together in the living room while their parents sat

on the couch and chatted. Mary and Annabelle were chatting about the kids and Mary occasionally looked over at them to make sure they were all right.

"I'm worried about Kai." Mary signed to her sister.

"Why?" Annabelle adjusted her hearing aid, since her sister wasn't the best at sign language.

"He doesn't talk like most kids his age are. Just today, he only said one word, and that was to call for me. Do you think I should take him to see somebody?"

Annabelle thought for a minute. She didn't have to deal with a problem like this when Lars was Kai's age. "Does he still communicate with you in ways that aren't talking?"

"Of course, at dinner he signs what he wants 'more please, all done, yes, no, thank you'. But I know he's not deaf because I can talk to him, without him looking at me, and he understands what I say."

"What if he's like Sam, where he wants to be called by his middle name?"

"You see, I've tried that but it doesn't always work, he still signs instead of talks." Mary signed watch to her sister and then turned toward the children. "Ash, come here for a second."

Kai perked his head up when he heard his middle name. Lars and Nya, whose backs were turned to the adults, let out a small chuckle, since your middle name was only used when you're in trouble. Kai ignored them and took a few hesitant steps towards where his mom was sitting.

"Yes, mom? What wrong?" Kai signed, his hands trembling. Mary shot a 'see-what-I-mean' look.

"Can you go wash up for dinner? We're going to be eating soon." Mary said a silent prayer that her son would speak.

"Okay mom," Kai signed, relieved that he wasn't in trouble. He walked off to the bathroom to clean himself off.

"Maybe he's scared." Annabelle suggested.

"But why? I don't understand. Like I said, he was talking earlier."

"Well, either he's scared, or he doesn't feel comfortable. They're two different things that spark the same reaction. Perhaps it has to do with Lars."

Mary looked wide eyed at her sister. "Why would you say that?"

"The two are so similar that they fight. Don't lie to yourself Mary, they never really got along before. I'm sure Kai put his favorite toys in his room before we came over."

Mary said nothing, but nodded her head. "Well — forget it. But that doesn't explain why he needs to have things a certain way. Earlier his sister was teasing him and he got really upset over it."

"What was she teasing him about?"

"She called him a girl, and the poor kid looked like somebody told him that his dad died. I've never seen him get so upset."

Annabelle stared at her sister for a minute. "You might want to have him tested for OCD or some other mental illness."

"I hate that phrase, mental illness. It sounds like a crazy person."

Annabelle only gave her sister a shoulder shrug. Lucifer brought their conversation to an end by proclaiming that it was time to eat.

-

Everybody sat peacefully at the table. Lars and Nya chatted about anything and everything. The fathers were continuing their conversation from before, over which team is better and the pros and cons of each sport and player. Mary and Annabelle kept an eye on the kids, but would also butt into their husbands' conversation when they felt they were forgetting something (or to keep them from cussing when children were around).

Across the table, Kai had snuck underneath to pick up the Mac-n-cheese that his cousin and sister dropped.

That was when Nya decided to annoy Kai again. She leaned down as far as possible, so Kai could see her, and pointed a finger at her brother. "Girl!"

Kai jumped from his spot under the table and hit his head. He crawled out and to his mom, who had heard the exclamation and bump of Kai hitting his head. "Nya, what did we talk about?"

Nya didn't listen other mother and tried to say girl again. She was stopped when her father picked her up and carried her to her room, proclaiming that she was done eating and needed to be alone. Lars father shot his son a glance, daring him to make a remark.

"I'm a boy," Kai stated clearly.

Mary smiled, since her son had talked and not signed. "Yes, yes you are."