A/N: Well I am going to add in probably my first note ever that I listened to "Shadow of the Day" by Linkin Park while writing this and I have come to consider it "Randy's song." It sort of reminds me of him now. Well here we go...
Riza got up early to wake her kids...or more specifically to wake Randy. Randy was too much like his father in that way, he would sleep through a tornado if left alone. Rory had no trouble waking up at all. Riza had to resort to firing one of her guns out the window at a tree nearby to wake Randy. "Okay mom...I'm waking up." the eight year old mumbled with not a trace of bad attitude. Randy rubbed his eyes and yawned. School would be fun, sure but he simply hated waking up. He climbed over his dad, as he had slept in his parents room that night. Rory was already gone, probably eating breakfast. Randy stretched and yawned again, glancing at his dad. "Lucky." Randy muttered under his breath.
Just then his mom walked in the room. "Roy...you told me you were waking up." she said loud enough to wake his sleeping father back up. "Five more minutes..." Roy mumbled. "Roy we've been through at least fifty cycles of 'five more minutes'. Now wake up." she said, shaking him a little. When he didn't stir, Randy saw his mom pull out a squirt bottle and turn the knob until it was set to spray a concentrated blast. Rory entered the room. "Do me the honor of helping me wake your lazy father up." Riza said to him. "Uh oh Dad...you're gonna get shot." Randy teased. Rory was a sharpshooter at his age, able to hit targets from far off with deadly accuracy and he was talented with moving targets too. Last time Randy had held a gun his only success was in being inches from destroying a birdhouse. Rory pulled the "trigger" and a blast of water hit Roy in the face. Now he was awake. "Damn..." Roy mumbled, rubbing his face. Riza left the room with Rory, who was going to finish breakfast.
Randy, still in his pajamas, hopped onto the bed and hugged his dad. They were very close to each other...probably because of how similar they were. Roy hugged his son back. "Mom can I not go to school today?" Randy begged when Riza reentered the room. "No." she said. "Please mom...I need to let myself fall behind a bit so I actually have something to do at school." Randy explained. This was true, Randy was such a prodigy that he finished all of his work almost as soon as he got it. "Just for today." Riza said. "Don't worry Mom, Dad and I will walk over to the school to escort Rory and the other kids home." Randy said cheerfully.
Randy and Roy waited until Riza headed out to the Rockbell house to go back to sleep. Randy cuddled with his dad. "Just what we wanted, huh Dad? More sleep." Randy yawned. He turned to look at his Dad, who was already asleep. "Good idea Dad." Randy mumbled, moving as close to his dad as he could.
Randy woke up about an hour or two later. His dad was sitting down on the bed, looking as if he had been awake for only five minutes. Randy hugged his dad again and hopped off the bed. He pulled open his drawer and picked clothes and he and his dad changed right there and then. Usually Riza would make Randy and Rory change in the bathroom but it did not make sense to him so he just changed there.
Randy went with his dad to Hughes' house, where he found both Mr. Hughes himself and Michael. Michael was there because for some reason Maes wanted him to be home-schooled. "Extra Father-Son bonding" Hughes had called it, although it was probably because of the small boy's health. Michael Hughes had even worse asthma than Randy did and he was also small and skinny for his age. Michael's asthma was so bad that he needed a home asthma nebulizer, something Randy had only needed at the age of six and stopped using at seven. Michael has had his nebulizer since he was two or three. Michael was also not allowed to play certain sports that required a lot of physical activity such as football. Michael couldn't even do track if he got older.
Randy played with Michael the whole time. They played with his toys except for an hour when Michael had to use his nebulizer. Randy left happy though and he could tell that Michael was happy too. Randy held his dad's hand as they walked to the school and from there they walked the other kids home. Rory told them about the coloring project he was doing in Kindergarten. He had partnered up with Selim for the project. It was a Friday thankfully so no school tomorrow anyways. Randy and Roy dropped Rory off at Selim's house because Selim had invited Rory to spend the night. Then Randy and Roy went back home. Riza was waiting for them there. Randy flopped onto the couch while his dad kissed his mom...a lot. Randy rubbed his eyes and took another look at his parents. Still kissing. He looked away, rolling his eyes. He folded his hands and sat politely on the couch. He waited another minute and glanced at them. Still kissing. "You done yet?" he asked and they suddenly remembered he was here. "Oh uh yeah...sorry." Roy said. Randy rolled his eyes at them in plain view. "You're both weird." he said, walking off.
Later in that day would come Randy's favorite part...bath time. He was a very clean kid and so he ran to the bathroom and slid inside, shutting the door behind him. Roy was taking a shower but Randy didn't care. He turned the knob which changed it from shower into a bath. "I was taking a shower." Roy said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Good for you." Randy said teasingly as he unchanged. "Then you can join me for my bubble bath." As soon as his clothes were off Randy climbed in. "Well sit down. You can't take a bath standing up." Randy said, pulling down on Roy's arm until he was sitting too. "Hey mom I'm ready!" Randy yelled. "B-but.." Roy said. "Too late." Randy said, turning to grin at him as Riza walked in. "Uh...Roy." Riza said, looking embarrassed. "He's taking a bath with me today Mom. You should like that." Randy said, grinning slyly as both of his parents turned red.
Riza started washing Randy. "Thank you mom." he said when she was done. "You missed a spot." he said, jerking his thumb backwards at Roy. "Er..." his mom said. "I-I can wash myself." Roy stammered. "Nuh-uh. That's against the rules of bubble bath time." Randy said, grinning at him. "You better clean Dad too or I'll splash both of you." Randy said. "Fine..." Riza said and she started to wash Roy. Randy started laughing. Roy turned really red, which in effect made Randy laugh harder. "Clean Dad all the way Mom...we can't afford to have him dirty." Roy turned very red again. "Hey Dad you're blushing more than Elicia was that time I gave her a flower." Randy pointed out, feigning innocence. "Uh..." Roy said, still quite red. Then Riza pulled him into a kiss. Randy smiled, amused and started playing with his bath toys.
"Okay mom you can wash my hair now." Randy said, still grinning. She did of course and Randy got no soap in his eyes. "Now all you have to is wash Dad's hair and we're done." Randy said, smiling at them. Riza washed Roy's hair too and Randy decided to pay no attention. When she was done Randy climbed out, taking with him the only towel. "Whoops." Randy said. "Come on Dad." Randy said, pulling him along behind him. After he dried himself off, which he took his time about, he dressed in his pajamas and tossed the towel on the bed. "Well I'm gonna go play outside." Randy said, pulling his red bathrobe over his small blue striped pajamas. Randy flung the door open and began to run outside. The field was beautiful, looking so perfectly green in contrast to the slowly setting sun. He saw every other door fling open and all of his friends came running out. Even Hughes arrived, following Elicia with Michael in his arms. Behind his back Randy had a flower, even more beautiful and special than any other he could find. It took a lot to find it but it was a very unique one. He ran over to Elicia and gave her the flower. Elicia was so happy she hugged him right there and then. Everyone was running to the hill now to watch the sun set. Randy got there first and he was so awed by the sight that he fell to his knees. He let the warmth of the sun envelop him. Every other kid ran to the hill and got to their knees like he did, as if they were an army assembling together, uniting as one entity altogether. Selim and Rory sat beside him. "Wow..." his little brother said, and he said nothing. He was lost for words.
Randy sighed. He just couldn't express himself like how that sunset did. The golds and pinks and reds and oranges and even a tinge of blue...he could never express himself in that many ways. Anyone else there could but him and he felt like he was being cast into shadow. "No you're just thinking too much." he thought to himself. He rose and walked over to his parents, hugging his mother and then content to stand with his father. His mother walked over to where Rory was to sit with him and Randy took his father's hand and pulled him closer to the sunset. Randy sighed. He was not like any of those kids...he was capable of holding adult conversations and doing the paperwork equivalent in age to that of a seventeen year old.
He saw a stranger on the path. He had the dark hair and the same kind of "squinty" eyes that Ling Yao had, as well as Xingese features. Randy noticed a dark crimson stain on the front of his shirt. "I...need help." he gasped, staggering over. Hughes spotted him first, running over to help him. He spoke in a rough but higher pitched voice, like that of a boy before voice maturation. He started speaking in another language rapidly. Hughes ran off. When he returned May Chang was with him. She proceeded to use some of her alkahestry. The strange youth was freaking out. He was crying but still rapidly speaking in his foreign language.
Randy went to see him later that night. "What's your name?" Randy asked him. He understood that at least. "Jay-Yo No." he said in his rough accent. Randy liked his accent. Randy liked his native language even more, when he wasn't speaking rapidly it sounded like he was speaking in a soft melody. He was only seventeen.
Later that night Randy yawned and stretched. Bed time. He leaned back on the couch. Roy saw Randy near to falling asleep on the couch and carried him to the bedroom. Randy got comfortable as soon as Roy put him in the bed. Lazy like his dad. Roy grinned looking at his son before he flopped down beside him, stroking the little boy's hair. It didn't last long. Soon Roy was asleep too. Like father, like son.