Only a few hours after Ianto Jones had woken back in his flat and just as Jack was toasting with Duggie, Doctor Joseph Fischer let out a painful howl. It was a sunny morning in Manchester but Fish's day was getting off to a rough start. He rubbed his stubbed toe muttering curses at wood, the English and just about anyone else he could think of.
"Livie!? Where the bloody hell are my trousers?" Fish shouted from the bedroom.
"They're hanging behind the door!" his wife, Olivia, called up from the kitchen, exasperated.
"Bugger!" Fish swore loudly. He looked around the room and there were his trousers, hanging behind the bedroom door. He ripped them off of the hanger and nearly fell over trying to pull them on.
He sat down on the bed to regain his balance. He was so bloody late and Joseph Fischer hated being late. He bolted down the stairs, nearly tripping over… a pair of child size trainers? For a minute he couldn't understand why there'd be child's trainers on his stairs and then…
"DAVID! How many times do I have to tell you not to leave your things on the stairs?!" he shouted.
"Sorry, Dad!" the young boy shouted from the kitchen.
Bloody hell… What in God's name was wrong with him this morning? His son was always leaving his things everywhere. How could he forget? It was one of the pitfalls of parenthood. He and Olivia hadn't planned on ever starting a family but Olivia's unexpected pregnancy had been the best thing that had ever happened to them. The boy'd been born less than a year after he and Olivia had gotten married. Fish smiled at the memory of holding David in his arms for the first time as he headed for the front door to get the… paper? Why would he be getting a newspaper? Who the bloody hell got newspapers delivered in this day and age? Daft… Fish shook off the strange feeling and headed towards the kitchen. Olivia was holding his coffee mug out to him. David was in his school uniform. He was ignoring his half touched breakfast, his nose buried in his father's iPad.
"Sorry, Livie, I'm late," Fish said as he took the mug from his wife. "Hurry up, kiddo, you don't want to miss the bus. I need that back now. And for the last time, stop mucking about in my bag!"
"I want one of my own at Christmas!" David whinged as his father took back the tablet.
Fish sighed as he saw a few more icons on the screen. The pitfalls of passing on his genius intellect continued to haunt him daily. Even though the iPad was locked, David perpetually guessed his code. The boy was constantly stealing the device to play games and was always installing new ones. Again, Fish had no idea how the boy kept guessing his passwords.
"Oi! Keep stealing mine and buying apps without mine or your Mum's permission isn't the way to make that happen, young man," Fish snapped. Christ, I sound like my father…
David immediately looked chastised, staring down at his uneaten breakfast. "."
Fish snatched a piece of toast off his plate.
"Hey!" the boy shouted.
"Early bird, kiddo," Fish said with a wink, chewing the toast down in a few bites.
"Joe! Slow down! You'll make yourself sick," Olivia scolded.
"No time," Fish said, gulping his coffee as fast as he could.
"You show up an hour early to work every day," Olivia said, her hands on her hips. "If you leave now, you're still in before nine. How are you running late? You could sit down and eat breakfast with your family for once."
"There's a reason I like to get there an hour early, Livie," Fish said, not rising to the baiting. "Do you know how much e-mail I get every day? I can't concentrate if someone's popping round to ask me a fucking question every five minutes."
"Joe!" she hissed at him, glancing at David. She hated it when he cursed in front of their son.
"Sorry, Livie. I'll see you later," he said, kissing her on the cheek.
"I'll be here," Olivia said with a smile. "Don't forget about tonight!"
"Tonight?" he asked as he picked up his messenger bag. He stowed his tablet in it. "What's tonight?"
"Our 'homework'? The art exhibition?" Olivia replied, indignant. "I've gotten a sitter for David."
"I don't need a sitter, Mum!" the boy protested.
Bugger all! "I'm sorry, Livie. I forgot," Fish said, honestly apologetic.
Six months ago, Olivia had sat him down to talk seriously about having a second child. The discussion had started out civil but had quickly blown up into a row of epic proportions. Fish loved David, he really did, but he and Olivia had never planned to ever have any children, let alone two. Remaining childless was something they had discussed at length before they'd gotten married and had mutually agreed upon. In fact, the two of them had been so against the idea of children that Olivia had been at a near panic when she'd told Fish about her pregnancy. David's conception had been a complete accident. It was wonderful and amazing but, it was something that Fish had no intention of repeating.
The difference of opinion had caused a schism in their relationship, completely dividing them. They just weren't the same. They were bickering and fighting almost daily and their marriage was falling apart. It had been a solid relationship that the two of them had built on a sturdy foundation of years but it was crumbling in a matter of months. The rift between them had grown larger and larger until, a few months ago, Olivia had suggested counseling. Fish had agreed even though he hadn't been too keen on the idea.
He really didn't think it was going well. Most of the time, Fish felt these sessions were nothing more than a tool to wear him down on the idea of having another child. The therapist was clearly on Olivia's side, often treating Fish as if he was completely mental for not wanting another child. He also felt these 'homework assignments' were meant to make him feel that their relationship was in a good place for another child when everything was far from it. There was no middle ground or compromise in this situation. Olivia wanted to have another child and Fish didn't and he could feel the rift between him and Olivia widening every day.
The therapist had suggested all manner of daft things to make them feel more 'connected'. One that Olivia had embraced fully was doing new things together they never would have thought to do before like taking in a play or a wine tasting… or going to an art exhibition. It was driving him a bit mad. These 'homework assignments' felt fake and forced.
"You're still coming aren't you?" Olivia whinged.
"Yes, I said I would," he said with barely restrained patience. "Bye, Livie."
Fish bent down, kissing David on the head. The boy rubbed at his hair where his father had kissed him. "Dad! Stop!"
"Bye, kiddo. Love you, have a good day at school," Fish said and then stopped in his tracks. He looked at David for a minute as if he'd never seen him before. Wonder and awe filled him. The boy was his spitting image. He's mine… this is my son… he thought with a smile. He reached down and scooped David up into his arms, despite the boy's protests. He hugged him tightly, feeling tears stinging his eyes.
"Oi! Dad! Gerrof!" the boy cried, his voice muffled by his father's sport coat.
Fish put him down and ruffled his hair playfully. "I love you."
"Yeah, yeah," David said, returning to his breakfast. "Bloody hell."
"Oi! Watch your mouth!" Fish scolded. Olivia was right. He needed to mind what he said around the boy more. David may have inherited his genius but the last thing Fish wanted him to pick up was his sailor mouth. The boy was well on his way.
He waved at Olivia and then bolted from the house. He got into his car and drove off. At the end of the street he turned right. Blast! He should have turned left! What was the matter with him this morning? Fish got to work over a half hour later than usual. He went through his day. He checked his e-mails. He checked up on his intern, who was still trying to seduce him. It wasn't until the afternoon when he finally managed to get into the lab. By then, the queer feeling had left him and the world seemed to be far more at rights. He settled into his work and by the time he looked up, it was well past when he was supposed to be home. Fuck all!
He bolted out of the lab as fast as he could, apologising to his intern for leaving the clean up to him. He raced back up to his office for his bag and then drove home as fast as he could. Livie's going to kill me…
