Fitz was putting the laundry on the washing line when his phone rang out into the peaceful, sunny afternoon. He cursed quietly at the disturbance of the tranquility and sighed when he saw it was a video call of all things. He wasn't young anymore and socialising in general tired him out. Not that that wasn't the case when he was young either, but still.
He slid the icon up.
"Hi." He greeted unenthusiastically.
Alya's joyful voice filled his ears. "Dad!" She exclaimed between laughs. "I need your help!"
The camera on the other end was shaking, and Alya seemed to be running from something. Fitz watched in confusion as Owen's angry face appeared in the corner of the screen for a split-second.
"Don't listen to her!" He heard him exclaim from further behind. "She's delusional!"
The couple then broke into laughter again, and Fitz was even more confused. "What's going on?"
Alya was breathing heavily from running, and he heard the patter of her feet rushing down the stairs with Owen hot on her heels.
Softly, from a distance, Fitz heard the familiar, heartwarming sound of his grandson's only word. "Mama!"
As annoying as Baby Deke could be, he couldn't deny that he loved him to pieces. It was odd being so close to a baby after so long and not being present for its development. He and Jemma truly had been blessed with Alya, an angel of a child, and he did not regret missing the chance to raise a child on the other side of that spectrum. The case in point: Deke.
But still…
There was utter chaos on the other end.
"No no no!" Alya was shouting to someone off-screen. "You stay there! Don't come over here."
The camera was then pointed towards the little boy sitting on his play mat with a teething ring hanging out of his mouth. Along with a long dribble of drool.
"Deke honey," Alya said, "who's this?"
Deke looked uninterested in whatever commotion Alya and Owen had wrapped themselves up in. "Aga." He babbled before turning away.
Gently, Alya used a hand to tilt his head back towards the camera. "No sweetie, look again. Who is this?"
Fitz quickly took a subtle screenshot of the look of utter disgust on Baby Deke's face.
"Baba."
It took Fitz a moment to process what was just said.
"Good boy!" Alya was saying, kissing her son on the cheek.
Owen grunted from somewhere. "He's saying 'papa'." He grumbled.
Alya scoffed. "No he's not! When have we ever used the word 'papa'?" She turned back towards Deke. "Okay monkey, I want you to choose now. If you mean Daddy, then say 'Papa'. Or if you mean Bobo then say 'Bobo'!"
Deke looked at the camera then, and Fitz could've sworn that he was somehow looking him straight in the eyes. He seemed to think something over deeply before replying:
"Bobaba. B-Bada… Babo. Bobo."
Thunderclouds began to form over Owen's head, and Fitz could hear the poor, defeated man storm off.
Alya herself was speechless. She turned the camera back towards her, and he saw the tears forming in her eyes. She took a deep breath.
"Did-"
"I did." Fitz replied, only just realising that he himself was beaming from ear to ear. It shouldn't be such a big deal, just the second word of his infuriating grandson…
...but still…