So I've re-evaluated :)
The end of the Khary arc is in sight! It was further away but now it's closer because I smushed three chapter ideas into this one? But I also added a chapter so... Yeah. It's close, but there's still like three chapters after this one before the Khary thing.
In case anyone is wondering, GoGo is eleven weeks pregnant in this chapter!
Also, go read Heroes of Flowers because TheSparklyKitten is trying to get just 15 more reviews by chapter twenty, which really isn't a lot if like three more people went and reviewed five of the chapters from this point. It's so good and it's definitely worth the investment. Updates every Saturday, which is more consistency than you'll ever get from me. Also, better character descriptions than you'll ever get from me, haha.
It took Reese about ten minutes to pick out the table she wanted for the turtle she was getting and a cool, purple, egg-shaped swing chair and then she was done picking out furniture for her new room. Luca took more time than that. Reese didn't need anything more than her turtle table and the wall basketball goal that she already had. Luca needed his room to become party central. Or, more likely, model central. He'd already picked his gorgeous vanity/desk combo and was looking for a sofa bed combo to put by the door. He and Wasabi were arguing a little bit over things.
"Luca, you don't need a couch."
"Dad. Dad." Luca looked Wasabi in the eye, about to lay down a convincing argument, "I need a sofa bed. I want to have people over. I want to have a place for Scout if things get worse with Andrew. I want to have a space for my friends to sit and hang out in my room, a place for sleepovers, a place where I can hang out if I want to, maybe a place to watch movies with Reese. Having a couch in my room would be so good to expand my social circle."
"Your social circle is already massive, Luca. You can get a chair for your room but I don't think you need a sofa."
"Please, dad! I won't ask for anything else all year."
"You can't promise that, Luca. And I don't want you to. I never want you or your sister to think you can't ask for things but that doesn't mean I can get you everything you ask for."
"Listen, what if I found the cheapest couch here?"
"It's not a price thing, Luca! You don't have enough room in your new bedroom for a couch and vanity and your bookshelves and bed."
"Can I get a smaller bed?" Luca asked, trying to make things work, "or maybe I could get mounted shelves for my books? The couch feels important to me. I'd be willing to downsize anything else." Wasabi sighed, preparing to give in.
"Mounted shelves would work. We have to pick out this couch together though. I don't want you picking something that would be wrong for your room."
Reese and GoGo were peacefully picking out gender-neutral stuff for the baby room while Luca and Wasabi argued over a bedroom couch.
"You're getting several pieces of furniture on this trip, Luca, so we're going to hold off on getting decorations this time. Some other time, okay?"
"It's fine, I'll just make stuff to decorate with. Scout'll help me he's a good artist. A lot of my friends are, actually. I don't think you've met Zayne yet, he's crazy good at abstract, so maybe he'll help me with a wall piece."
"I'd like to meet this kid, then. You should have him over soon."
"Yeah!" Luca paused, "Though… He's a little…"
"A little what?" Wasabi asked, immediately concerned.
"Yeah, so, Zayne is like the opposite of Scout. But he's still a good kid, even if he doesn't act like it all of the time."
"If you can vouch for him, Luca, you can have him over. I trust your judgment." Maybe Luca's judgment wasn't sound, but Wasabi would still encourage him nonetheless. And if Luca was wrong, it was a learning opportunity. It had taken a lot of learning opportunities for Wasabi to learn to trust his kids. It was never without fear, but it was always with love.
"Cool. Thanks, dad. I think you'll like him. I'll see when he's free!"
"Awesome. So… Is this the couch?" They stood in front of a navy blue futon.
"This is the couch. My room is going to be awesome."
They'd moved in last weekend, with just their beds and the one desk between the two kids, which was now Reese's. It was nice for them to have their own spaces, they hadn't had it much, lately, or well, ever. They'd been here since last Saturday, a full week now. And time heals all wounds, but that didn't mean they weren't both aching a little bit from the distance.
Reese thought that distance would do them some good. After all, she wasn't the one who freaked out when she was alone. Alone was a breath of fresh air! Alone was excellent. So why was Luca the one who was coping so much better than her? Why did she feel so stressed out? Why was it so hard to fall asleep without nightmares?
She crept into Luca's room, just to see if he was awake. But he wasn't. Which was fine. She didn't need him. She was fine. She turned around quickly and her leg slammed into his futon, causing her to sputter expletives she wasn't supposed to know and drawing her attention to the brand new sofa. She noticed a pillow set out on the edge, and a folded up crochet blanket. Dad had made that blanket. She ran her fingers over the soft material, letting out a bottled up sigh. She glanced at Luca, who hadn't seemed to move from his spot in his bed, except maybe a knowing twitch. Then she gathered the blanket into her arms and settled in on the folded up futon.
"I think I heard something?" Wasabi said. He'd been so freaked out lately, especially as they moved into a new house in a new neighborhood and brought a new life into the world.
"Yeah?" GoGo said, thinking it was bullcrap and wishing that he would just let them sleep but appreciating that he was so concerned about their family.
"I'm going to check on the kids." Wasabi sprung out of bed. He didn't care that it was late, he didn't care that they both needed sleep. He didn't care about anything but their family. He would protect their family, no matter what. No matter how big their family got.
"Okay." He kissed her cheek and then he got up, hesitating one moment more to kiss the barely noticeable bump, causing GoGo to laugh in surprise.
"Dork," she mumbled to herself as she watched him leave, sinking deep under the covers.
Wasabi bee-lined for Luca's room, sure he'd heard someone in there. The door hadn't been cracked open earlier, had it? He cracked it wider, his heart racing. His fear settled when he saw that Luca was safe in bed, with Reese curled up on the futon. He kissed their foreheads and left, closing the door.
"It was nothing," he explained as he climbed back into bed, pulling her close to him and siphoning her warmth.
"Yeah? I guessed as much."
"Though I understand why Luca wanted that futon now…" GoGo merely snuggled into him, silently bidding him to go to sleep.
