53.

~ Norma had wanted to be with Dylan on his first day of school and felt that nagging sting of neglectful mother bite at her when it was Alex who was meeting with her son's kindergarten teacher instead of her. All mom's met the teacher on the first day. Not mom's boyfriend. Surely the gossip would spread like wild fire now about her and Alex.

Still, she had managed to get Norman an early appointment in to see the highly respected Doctor Bloch and she couldn't let it go. She would have to meet Dylan's teacher tomorrow and tell her what happened then.

Besides, she was sure that Dylan was over the moon with having Alex drive him to school in the police SUV and walking him to class. All the other kids noticing Alex's uniform and being just as impressed as Dylan was.

Norma couldn't compare to that in the eyes of a six year old. Not even if she rode up on a flying unicorn.

She checked the clock again and saw that her appointment time had come and gone and that Doctor Bloch was running behind schedule. Norma had even arrived early to fill out paper work since they were new patients. Doctor Bloch had better be spectacular since his co-pay was outrageous. Norma pushed aside the idea of asking Alex for help with bills this month. It was embarrassing to admit that she was falling behind with everything the boys needed now that the weather was getting colder. They would need new shoes and jackets and Dylan needed new pants for school.

Alex had offered, may times, to pay for things like groceries and gas for her now wrecked car. He'd loaned her the farm truck to take Norman to the doctor's office today and that was all the help she was willing to take from him.

They weren't married and they had only been a couple for a few months now. It wouldn't be right to accept anything from him aside from the occasional dinner out or the much appreciated home repairs he did without asking.

"Emma, leave the lady alone." came polite voice from the other side of the waiting room.

Norma had been so lost in her worries about winter clothes for the boys and her future with Alex that she hadn't noticed the dark haired little girl was attempting to crawl into her lap.

"Oh." Norma gasped in amused surprised when the girl, about Norman's age but with brown eyes, large and looking like she hadn't slept enough, tried again to climb onto her lap.

A man, thin and balding was walking over to them.

"Emma." he scolded.

"It's okay." Norma said quickly and felt the need to laugh at the affection this wayward child seemed to need.

"She had a rough night." The man explained. He fumbled with the intake paper work and sat across from them as Norma easily scooped the girl, Emma, onto her lap and rested her there.

The man eyed his daughter, ensuring she would behave, before he went to work filling in the paper work.

"Must be something in the change of weather." Norma commented when Emma rested her head on her chest. She noticed the little girl was too thin and her dark hair was limp and lacking the normal shine that was expected in children her age.

Emma's hands wrapped around Norma's fingers as if she were still a baby and Norma found them to be cold despite the fact the little girl was well dressed for oncoming fall and sudden rain storm outside.

"Must be." the man commented. "Sorry if she's troubling you." he added.

"No trouble at all." Norma smiled and rocked Emma gently as if she were still a baby. The little girl impassive to the world around her and Norma sensed that something more than the weather was very wrong with her.

"I hear doctor Bloch is very good." she told Emma's father.

"I hope so." he said. "Woke up in the middle of the night and she could catch a breath. Ran the shower tap on hot to create steam. Thought it might help her cough up whatever it was causing her breathing troubles." he shook his head. "Still nothing. Now she's all cold in the hands and feet."

"Kid's have strange illness all the time." Norma assured him. "I'm sure it's nothing serious."

She was silently thankful Dylan and Norman had never had such traumatic health crisis before. Dylan's worst health scare had been a mild cold when he was three and he shook it off in a day. The chickenpox hadn't even slowed him down and he'd complained loudly that he couldn't go outside and had to stay in bed.

Norma glanced down at her youngest who was playing with the crate of waiting room toys. Since he'd been so rudely removed from his mother's bed the other morning, Norman had been giving her the cold shoulder lately. He pretended he just wasn't interested in her and Norma found that hurtful.

Emma's father nodded to Norman.

"He's lovely." he said.

"Thank you." Norma smiled happily. "His name is Norman and he just turned four."

"My Emma is four as well." he said.

"Oh that's nice." Norma nodded. "I'm Norma Bates."

"Will Decody." he said.

"I have my son at the daycare and sometimes I do a shift to help out. Will Emma be there?" she asked.

"I like to keep Emma at home with me." Will explained slowly.

"Oh, well, it's a lot of fun." Norma told him. "She could meet other kids."

Norma smoothed over Emma's hair and felt the little girl want to snuggle closer to her.

"I like having Emma at home with me." Will explained again sadly.

"Emma?" a nurse called.

Will looked up and Emma stirred reluctantly at being summoned.

"Well if you change your mind about day care, it's a great place. The Red School house. It's run by two very nice ladies." Norma explained setting Emma gently on her feet and smoothing out her little dress so she would be presentable.

Emma took her father's hand and Will nodded a polite thank you before leaving to see the doctor.

Norma watched them leave and felt a nudge from a warm little hand. She looked down to see Norman scowling angrily at her before climbing on her lap the way Emma had done just moments before.

"Oh, I see how it is." Norma said dryly. She picked her son up and allowed him the comfort of being held like a baby to. How many more times could she do this anyway? Might as well enjoy it.

She held him close and smiled at the smell of his clean dry hair.

"You were just jealous? Is that what it takes to get you to notice me again?" she teased her son.

Norman didn't say anything. He simply wanted more affection from her and to be babied and spoiled as if they were the only two people in the world.

~ "It's not uncommon for a child his age to have a small seizure." Doctor Bloch explained. Norma watched as the large man, at least six four and with just as impressive weight, felt Norman's throat and examined his eyes and ears.

"He's never done it before and neither has my other son." Norma insisted.

"Tess Wilson did the right thing." Doctor Bloch told Norma nonplused. "If a seizure lasts less than two minutes, it's not serious. Roll the victim on his side and allow him to come out on his own. He will usually need a lot of sleep after it's happened. Not remember much."

"That's a baby." Norman pointed to an anatomical chart of a pregnant woman with a fully developed fetus inside.

"Hey, young man." Doctor Bloch scolded with a warm smile. "Who's the doctor here?"

He pretended to be confused for a second and Norma smiled as he put the stethoscope on Norman's ears so he could listen to the doctor's heartbeat and then his own.

"Well, I think you'll live, young man." he said at last.

"What about the seizure?" Norma asked.

"It's just the one. If this has been happening a lot then that's cause for concern. Children's brains are active things and I don't want to medicate them unless absolutely needed. If it's a real worry, I recommend no television. Intense flashing lights can trigger seizures. Also fresh air and an early bed time never hurt anyone." Doctor Bloch told her.

Norma felt herself relax a little at the idea that there was no medication involved. The large man reached into a drawer and produced a small plastic toy for Norman and paper children's book for Norma.

"Maybe he's too young, and maybe not. It's a good kids book about where babies come from." the doctor said in a soft whisper while he avoided Norma's eyes. "I've given them out to parents so they can explain things to the little ones in a language they can understand. Not smutty. I promise."

Norma felt herself blush slightly at the child friendly picture book with simple words explaining the basic idea of procreation.
"Oh… thank you." Norma stammered.

"You know, I delivered Alex Romero." Doctor Bloch said in his normal voice. "Quite newborn. Very small. Hardly cried at all."

"Alex told me." Norma smiled.

"The Old Bear was very proud." Doctor Bloch said. His ruddy face suddenly becoming darker when lost to memory. "Very proud." he added sadly.

Norma shifted uncomfortably.

"I understand your an OBGYN?" she asked.

"I understand correctly." Doctor Bloch smiled at Norman.

She felt odd about talking about this kind of thing in front of her son but the doctor spared her the trouble by opening the door of his exam room.

"Sarah? Will you take the little one here to our special play room while I have a sit down with Mrs. Bates?" he asked.

A small, small by Doctor Bloch's size, appeared in the exam room and smiled brightly as she helped Norman off the table.

"We have a nice play room for you and your mom will be out if just a second." she promised.

When the door was closed and they were alone, Doctor Bloch was frank.

"I'm assuming you want to discuss birth control?" he asked.

"Yes." Norma breathed. Thankful she wouldn't have to explain that she was sexually active.

"What are you using now?" he asked.

"Alex and I… just condoms. We're careful." Norma assured him.

"Good." Doctor Bloch nodded. "What have you used in the past?"

"Nothing." Norma admitted.

The large man looked at her and she shrugged.

"Norman… I nursed him for a long time. I wasn't ovulating. Dylan, my other son, was the same." she explained feebly. "I wasn't in a relationship that… well I wasn't seeing anyone." she told him quickly.

"Pap smear?" Doctor Bloch asked.

Norma shook her head.

"When was the last time you saw a doctor?" he asked.

"When Norman was born." she admitted.

"So you'll rush your child to the doctor for something minor but haven't taken yourself to a doctor for several years?" he asked. "Good mother but bad patient." he scolded gently.

Norma wanted to explain, but decided not to tell him about how there'd been no money for the luxury of doctors before, and there still wasn't.

"We're going to get your vitals, get a pap smear and blood work today, Mrs. Bates. If all comes back good, I can start you on a very safe very effective oral birth control in a week." he told her.

"How much is all this going to cost?" Norma asked. She could feel the anxiety creeping in.

"We can work out a payment plan." Doctor Bloch assured her. "For you and for Norman. I'm not in the business of neglecting the health of women and children."

~ "How was your first day of school?" Norma asked when Dylan jumped into the cab of the farm truck. She had forgotten that her oldest still had a slight sunburn on his nose from yesterday.

Dylan looked winded and tired but very happy. He held up a drawing of a cowboy holding a gun next to a dog and a truck.

"We had to draw what we're going to be when we grow up." Dylan explained.

"You're going to be a cowboy?" Norma asked with a grin. She made sure Dylan was buckled up before she pulled into traffic and away from the school's parking lot.

"No, I'm going to be police man like Alex." Dylan said eagerly. "Everyone thought he was my real dad and I told them he was."

"What?" Norma gasped in panic. "Dylan! Alex is not your dad. You know that."

Dylan looked guilty but said nothing.

"You told the other kids that Alex was your dad?" Norma demanded when her son hung his head low. Norman watched them from his booster seat in the back. His eyes curious and alert.

"Why?" Norma asked feeling the hot sting of embarrassment by proxy.

Dylan refused to answer her.

"Dylan you answer me!" Norma demanded harshly.

"He's better than my real dad. Better than Sam." Dylan explained sadly.

"Dylan." Norma sighed and drove slowly home. "You lied to your new friends. You told a lie. Alex is not your father."

"If you got married-"

"If we got married he still wouldn't be your father." Norma said harshly. "You need to understand that."

Dylan's face flushed hot and he looked angry.

"Your father's name is John Massett and I know he doesn't want anything to do with us, but he's your father and that won't ever change." Norma snapped. "If Alex and I ever got married he would be your step dad and nothing more."

"No." Dylan argued.

"Dylan." Norma sighed.

"I don't remember my real dad and he's not here. He wasn't here today and he never has been here." Dylan told her. His lower lips starting to tremble slightly as they pulled into the driveway of their home.

"Dylan." Norma sighed.

"I don't want to talk to you!" her oldest son shouted. His face red with sudden anger that made her think only of Caleb. All she could see right now was Caleb when Dylan was this full of rage.

~ "We need to sure up the house." Alex said when he got home. Norma had watched him pull sand bags from the back of the police SUV and what looked like a new and expensive looking machine into her garage.

"What?" she asked.

"Weather report says we've got flooding coming our way and it's going to be bad." Alex sighed heavily. "We've got to put those sandbags around the foundation so that water doesn't get in. You're on high ground, but there's a valley just bellow you that will flood pretty quickly. If it rains as much as the report says it will-"

"We need to talk about Dylan." Norma interrupted.

Alex looked at her curiously.

"Can it wait?" he asked. "There's still daylight and I want to get the house surrounded before it rains again."

Norma looked at him curiously.

"This isn't Arizona, Norma." he told her. "Flooding here is serious. Water levels get dangerous very quickly and then there's the water temperature."

Norma rolled her eyes in frustration and nodded.

"Okay." he said. "We'll talk at dinner. Dylan!" he shouted.

~ Many hands made light work and with the size of the house and the unexpected help of two willing boys, the chore was done in less than an hour.

"What was in the box?" Norma asked. "That thing in the garage?"

"Generator." Alex told her. "You'll lose power."

Norma felt anxious at the idea of losing power long enough that she would need a generator.

"Should I go to the store?" she asked.

"No." Alex told her calmly. "You've got enough food."

He suddenly seemed indifferent to the potential of life threatening flood waters.

"I just wanted to get you and the boys ready because I won't be here for a few days." he said. "I'll leave Graceland."

"What?" Norma asked once everyone was back inside and Dylan was helping Norman pull off his rain boots.

Her oldest giving her an angry look.

"I'll have to be with the department. When a big storm comes in, there's always a lot for us… to do." Alex said awkwardly. "I've got some wood and I'm going to cover that broken window on the back door." he added.

"Okay." Norma conceded sadly.

~ Rather than tell him about Dylan, she decided to cook dinner as Alex went around the house and secured things against the potential flood. Dylan went with him, to help out and Norma noticed the sky darkening sooner than usual and the rain falling heavier that normal.

"It's okay." Alex said when Dylan brought new heavy duty flashlights into the house.

"Are sure?" Norma asked. She'd never been is a real flood before. Not one that needed this much preparation before.

"I'm sure." Alex told her calmly.

"What about the farm house?" she asked suddenly remembering that lovely old car and his mother's elegant greenhouse.

"It's on high ground I've already secured it. Besides it's been there for a hundred years already. It's not going anywhere." he told her.

Norma nodded and remembered his rental house.

"My landlady already has it taken care of." he assured her.

"Okay." she said nervously. "What if the streets flood and we can't get out?"

"I will come and get you." Alex told her. He shrugged and nodded to Graceland. "Can't leave my dog, can I?"

"Alex!" she whispered and tried not to worry when the rain started to fall heavier.

"Norma, the whole department will be on call for at least a week. I want you and the boys here where it's safe. I've got flashlights and some really powerful walkie talkies that are tuned to a special frequency so we can keep in touch incase the phone lines go out. You'll be fine." he told her.

Norma looked down at her cooking and realized her hands were shaking. She lowered the flame on the stove before she burned the pasta.

"Dylan told me what happened at school today." Alex said. Norma felt his hand press into the small of her back when he moved closer.

"I'm sorry. He shouldn't have done that." she whispered. That feeling of embarrassment creeping up all over again.

"Nothing to feel sorry for. It's hard for other kids to understand. Maybe he didn't want to explain." Alex offered.

"It was a lie. He knows better." Norma said feeling angry again at how Dylan had behaved.

"I thought you'd be more upset that his teacher was hitting on me." Alex said with that mischievous smile that was all Simon Romero.

"I'd only be upset if you were hitting on her back." Norma grinned.

"Oh, no." Alex shuddered and looked slightly repulsed. "I can do a lot better."

Norma giggled slightly and remembered the real problem.
"We need to talk to Dylan about this." she told him.

"I know." Alex agreed. "But it's not a big deal."

"Yes, it is. This is how big problems get started, Alex." Norma sighed.

"People here know I'm not his real dad and if Dylan wants to think of me that way I have no problem with that." Alex told her.

Norma turned off the burner just as the power flickered, but stayed on.

"We've only been together for a few months now." she said softly. "We're talking very seriously about a life together, a family together."

She shook her head.

"My kids are getting really attached, really fast. Especially Dylan." she added.

"And?"

"I mean, it's not just you and me. It's not just our lives. It's his life. It's Norman's life. If this ends between us, it would upset Dylan. Especially if he thinks of you like a real father. He's already lost so much confidence in men." Norma admitted.

"You always think the worst is going to happen." Alex shook his head. "You're always so ready for it. So prepared for it."

The power snapped off and the house went dark.

Alex lazily picked up the new flashlight and a safe bright beam illuminated the kitchen just as Dylan and Norman came rushing into the living room with their own flashlights. Both of them shouting in excitement.

Norma looked around at her newly flood proofed home.

"I'm not the only one who prepares for the worst." she told him.

Doctor Bloch's name is modeled after Robert Bloch who wrote "Psycho".