Alice was hard at work on her home work at the table when there was a knock on the door. "I got it mom." She called back towards the hallway.
"Remember to ask whom it is before you open the door Al." Her mom's voice called back.
Alice got out of the chair, and rolled her eyes. Yes Mom I remember. I am eight years old now after all. She sighed as she knew that all adults were like this with children. She stopped in front of the door. "Whom is there?" Her voice rose so whomever was on the other side of the door could hear her.
"Fraiser Crane." The male voice replied.
A huge grin lit up her face; and she quickly unlocked the door. She paused before she opened it through. "If you are Fraiser Crane then prove it." She waited. Her mother's lessons for opening the door was paying off.
"I came to your second birthday party, and ordered the cartoonist to draw my face, and leave you out of the picture." Slight laughter was in Fraiser's voice as he replied.
Alice threw the door open in her excitement. "Uncle Fraiser!" She yelled as she rushed into his waiting arms. Wrapping her arms around his waist, and holding tight.
"Hello Alice." Fraiser's soft voice spoke in her ear as he hugged the eight year old girl to him.
Roz walked into the living room, and stopped in her tracks. "Fraiser." She breathed out at the sight of Fraiser at her door hugging her daughter.
Fraiser gently straightened still with Alice against his chest. He smiled. "Hello Roz. Surprise." He smiled softly at the sight of the woman whom truly was one of his best friends in the entire world.
"I didn't know you were planning on coming back to town." Roz wrapped her arms across her chest as she felt her heart race.
"I wanted to surprise everyone." Fraiser replied following Alice into the apartment. He looked down at Alice. "You have grown since the last time I actually saw you Alice." He couldn't believe that Alice was eight years old all ready …. he remembered holding her at her birth …. supporting her head carefully againt his body as he admired what Roz created.
"How long are you staying for Uncle Frasier?" Alice asked as she moved back towards the table, and her homework.
Fraiser smiled. "I'm honesty moving back to Seattle."
"That's great Frasier. A slot is opening up at the station." Roz grinned ear to ear.
Fraiser held up his hand. "I'm not actually going to go back to the radio; Roz. I'm finally going back to private practice."
Roz moved towards the couch. "That's great. That's real great. I'm happy for you. I'm sure that Charlotte is also."
Fraiser moved over, and sat next to Roz on the sofa. "Actually Charlotte and I broke up." He held up his hand to forstall Roz from speaking. "We finally realized that we truly weren't meant to be together. We ended on very peaceful terms." He leaned back against the couch.
"Oh Fraiser." Roz frowned gently at the older man.
Fraiser tilted his head. "It's better this way. At least we managed to remain close friends … and that we will always be close to one another. If we stayed together, and tried to make it work … then it would have destroyed our friendship."
Roz nodded. "That's what Rodger finally told me when he and I finally talked things over." She laid a hand on Fraiser's shoulder. Her first physical contact with him in months. "The end for Rodger, and me honesty felt like when I had to break Bob's heart when he told me that he was falling for me."
Fraiser sighed. "I'm getting the condo back in order."
"Can't wait to get back there." Roz smiled. She knew that both of them needed the turn to lighter conversion …. not that they couldn't talk about the heavy stuff … but Alice was in the room. They had agreed to try not to discuss very heavy issues with Alice in the room until Alice was much older. "So have you told Fredrick?"
"Fredrick is actually here with me." Fraiser nodded.
Alice's head lifted from her homework. "Freddie is here!" She looked excitedly over at her mother and Fraiser.
Fraiser nodded. "He can't wait to see you again Alice. But he is going to be busy for a little while. Not only helping me get my condo back in order … but he has a few school assigments to work on while he's in Seattle."
Alice nodded and went back to her homework.
"I'm glad that you are back in Seattle full time Fraiser; although I'll miss you at the station. But I am happy that you are going back into private pratice." Roz's hand lowered to her lap.
"Thank you Roz." Fraiser smiled. "I have finally come to realize that Seattle truly is my home."
Roz softly smiled. She was relieved to hear that he wasn't planning on leaving again.
"Fredrick has informed Lilith and myself that he accepted Seattle University offer." Frasier smiled a thin line. "Although both Lilith and I always held onto the dream that he would attend Harvard ... or god forbid Princeton." He shook his head. "But our son is one stubborn young man. He told us that he wanted to attend a non ivy league school for once in his school career." He rolled his eyes. "He said that with my moving back to Seattle ... he decided that he wanted to be close to me for the next few years. That he had a lot of time to bond with Lilith ... that he wanted to spend equeal time to bond with me."
"That's sweet of him." Roz's heart grew warm at the thought of Fredrick wanting to spend time with his father even through he was eighteen; and turning into an adult. Most kids that age wanted to be as far from their parents as they can.
Fraiser couldn't keep the proud light from his eyes. "Yeah that is sweet of him." He smiled. "I am disappointed of course that my son doesn't want to follow me to Harvard; or any Ivy School at that. But; if I'm being compeltly honest with myself I'm quite pleased that my son wants to spend his early adulthood with me his old man." He smiled. "Matter of fact Fredick told me that he's not even going to live at the dorms. That he'll share the condo with me."
"I bet it will be nice to have your son next to your bedroom." Roz thought of Martin's old room.
"Actually Fredrick has all ready claimed Daphne's old room." Fraiser waved his left hand.
"Yeah he did." Alice giggled.
"Alice." Roz spoke in a warning voice.
Fraiser blushed at what the eight year old implied.
"What?" Alice turned her eyes from her homwork over to where her mom was sitting. "We all know that Freddie always had a crush on Aunt Daphne when he was younger. How he loved to always being around her whenever he came to visit Uncle Frasier." She giggled. "How he always loved to torture Uncle Niles."
Frasier laughed. "All this took place before you were even born Alice. Also you were much to young to know about it first hand." He looked at the side of Roz's face. "Been filling Alice in hmm."
"Mom didn't tell me. Freddie told me." Alice replied. "He told me that he knew that his Uncle Niles always had the hots for Aunt Daphne; but he was still married to Aunt Maris ... but we don't have to call her aunt any longer seeing how she and Uncle Niles aren't married anymore. But anyway Freddie told me that even after Uncle Niles finally divoced Aunt Maris ... he still didn't tell Aunt Daphne that he was truly and hopelessly in love with her. So Freddie decided to take matters into his own hands; but flirting with Aunt Daphne in Uncle Niles's face." She shrugged. "He had great fun in that."
"Don't tell Uncle Niles that Alice." Fraiser warned in an undertone.
"That's between him and Freddie." Alice went back to her homework.
Roz turned back to face her friend. "Sorry about that Frasier. Alice is getting quite chatty lately."
Fraiser waved it away. "It's nice that she and Fredrick have become friends.
"Finish your homework Al." Roz spoke with a sigh.
"But mom." Alice whined.
"No but mom Alice May Doyle." Roz frowned over at her daughter.
Alice sighed. "Fine." She turned back to her homework.
Fraiser stood up and walked over to the table. He sat down in the chair to the left of Alice. He looked at her homework. "Need any help?" He offered.
Alice turned her eyes to meet the very understanding eyes of the man next to her. "I could use help on this one area Uncle Fraiser." She turned back and pointed at the section.
Roz watched as Fraiser helped her daughter with her homework. Her heart grew warm that Frasier understood right away that Alice needed help; so that was why she was trying to get away from her homework. She leaned her head on the back of the couch as she listened to the low gentle voice of her best friend; and her daughter. She had missed this. Fraiser bonding with her little girl.