Everybody and anything familiar belongs to Janet. Mistakes are mine alone. Big thanks to everyone who has continued to read and review Olive's story. You've all helped her reach the ripe 'ol age of two. :)
"Hey, I know you keep claimin' you don't like me, but I heard that the flower I gave the birthday girl a few weeks back got dried out and kept." Atlas paused and then unwisely snorted in advance of his next statement. "So much for you wanting to trash it and any sign of my presence."
"I know this will be impossible for you to do, but this is Olive's day. Can you focus on her and stop thinking - and talking - about yourself for once? That was a rhetorical question, so don't bother answering it," my wife responded.
I know she wants to hold on tightly to her grudge, but I've felt her wall cracking almost daily after he'd combated her mother. I'll always have her back, so I let her keep this act up until she's ready to let go of her anger and let him completely off the hook. I played my part and pretended that I needed to diffuse the situation by kissing my daughter's cheek and bringing her into the conversation.
"Can you show us how old you are today?" I asked my baby.
As Steph and Julie have coached her to do, Olivia looked at her hand and debated which fingers to hold up. This time, it was a thumb and pinky.
One Shot studied her for a beat. "Sure, you can 'hang loose' today, but maybe you should go the two-handed route and do this instead," he said, giving her a double thumbs-up.
Our wavy-haired mirror gave it a shot.
"Looks like Olive approves of her party, Steph," Julie told her, exiting her conversation with three Uncles, my little brother included in the mix, to wander back over to our group.
"How can she not?" My wife asked. "It's like her ocean party but flipped on its head … under the sea to above the earth."
"I bet it didn't hurt that her Mama's goal in life had been to be an Intergalactic Princess," I teased.
"I'll admit, it may not be a total accident that our birthday girl gets to be one today."
That was said while she straightened the skirt on Olivia's baby ball gown. Being Stephanie's daughter, that purple 'Birthday Baby' dress was paired with a rocket backpack. The pack has two zippered 'fuel' pockets on the back and fires already lit under them thanks to the trim sewn around the edge of each 'fuel canister'.
"Hey, Atl," Julie said to Atlas, "have you seen what Olive's special backpack can do?"
My eldest had welcomed One Shot into the fold with a nickname based on a weapon called an Atlatl, which I suppose sounds similar to his name to her. Evidence that she's spent too much time around her RangeUncles over the years. She's giving him a chance solely because no one is going to tell her how Atlas appeared on my radar. To take a page from Shakespeare's book, my daughter may be little, but she be beyond fierce. She shot Scrog for shooting me. And One Shot may not fare much better if she learned that he was told and paid to do just that.
"I thought it was just a decoration for the kid," he said to Julie.
"Nope," she said. "Dad, show him what you did upstairs. Olive, what's today's secret word?"
Steph leaned towards us and whispered what Julie wanted her sister to say into Olivia's ear.
"Ivvv ob," she said.
She then mimicked what we did in our apartment when Steph had slipped the straps of the 'rocket pack' onto our daughter's shoulders. She shot her arms straight up as I got a hold of her around her little tummy and lifted her towards the ceiling … or sky in this case since we're now outside.
"See?" Julie said. "With her backpack and a liftoff request, she goes airborne … with a little help."
"With a lot of help, Jules," Steph said. "If it wasn't your Dad or a muscle-bound Uncle providing the fuel, Olive wouldn't defy gravity."
Atlas stepped back and observed the two smiling Manoso females and the wriggling and giggling one still in my arms.
"You're all crazy," he concluded.
Steph snorted and pinned him with a glare. "Like you'd know normal if it snuck up and shot you."
"Come on, admit it. You must like me a little, since my illegal flower has been framed."
"You're not going to let this go, are you? Fine. If you need to know, Ella is solely responsible for that. She thought what you did was sweet and believed it'd make a fun story to tell Olive when she's older, that has nothing to do with me."
"Except you didn't tell your Ella not to bother. And you also didn't chuck it when it was in your possession and she was gone."
"Despite what some people believe, I put my kids before anything or anybody else, with the exception of Ranger and Grandma Mazur. Olive liked the flower, so we're keeping it because it makes her happy. You didn't factor into that decision at all."
The idiot grinned. "I'm wearing you down, I can feel it. I knocked out blood and the sweat already getting my hands on the thing, so I'm guessing it'll be tears that'll get ya."
"Keep bugging me and I'll cause some," my wife warned, but there's no heat behind the threat.
I'd say that I think the two of them are enjoying this bickering back and forth, but I'd like my balls to stay where they are.
"We invited you to Olive's party so you wouldn't feel left out," Steph was saying, "don't make me regret it."
He saluted. "Yes, Ma'am."
Julie nudged him. "Um, Atl? Steph does not like being called 'Ma'am'. You'd better think of a gift, bribe, or comment she'll appreciate ... fast."
He thought about it as he glanced over our shoulders. "I'm really glad your grandma's okay," he decided on. "She seems like a cool lady. A little out there, but cool."
Steph appeared to almost deflate with relief that Edna is back home and okay. "Thank you. I'm glad she's alright too."
"You talkin' bout me?" Edna asked, leaving Frank on his own with Woody and Vince to venture over with Valerie, likely just to kiss mine and Olivia's cheeks again. "I saw you all eyeballin' me."
I've lost track of how much attention I've received today. My skin is already feeling chafed and the party has only just begun.
"We were talking about you, Grandma," my wife answered. "We're glad that you're okay. You can't scare us like that again."
"Why not? I got me lots of well wishes and a whole slew of new admirers. I may just call up and get me a lift to St. Francis every week."
Steph's eyes narrowed. "Don't you dare. I'll have Ranger hire a live-in doctor if you try ... and we'll subject you to daily physicals. I don't like being that nervous."
I let Olivia go so she could run to the planet-themed ball pit where Eddie's demons are making the planets orbit around the cleared parking lot instead of staying contained where they were supposed to stay put. As they are prone to do, once my arms were free they reached for my wife.
"I know you hate being scared, Babe. I'll hire two doctors if it'll make you feel better."
"Bet you'd like to take back that threat now. Don't you, Grandma?" Valerie asked.
"Nope. I already got me a date on the thirteenth outta this."
"It's called a follow-up appointment, as in it's a requirement. It's not a date/date," Steph said, with a commendable amount of patience.
"Is my doc a handsome young feller?"
I felt my wife cut her eyes to me. "I'm not allowed to answer questions like that. They make Ranger cranky."
Valerie shrugged. "Albert doesn't care who I think looks good, so yes … Dr. Spentner is pretty cute."
Edna beamed and adjusted her dentures. "He's not as cute as those youngins' that brought me in, but he'll do in a pinch."
One Shot is clearly disturbed by Edna's libido and wanted to talk about anything but. "Why aren't you telling her to focus on the party?"
"Grandma Mazur has lived for almost eight decades, so she gets to torture us however she sees fit as long as she promises to make it to her ninth and another after that," Steph told him.
Edna smiled. "I'll do what I can. Shindigs like this one sure gets a girl feelin' good."
We all spared a moment to glance around Rangeman's entire parking area that my women, plus Ella, Valerie, Mary Lou, and Shirley, had decorated for this day. An outdoor venue and mandatory quarantining and testing, have altered the usual planning and excitement we feel towards a birthday, but celebrating our daughter is something that even the end of the world can't stop.
There's a rocket ship-shaped piñata to destroy later hanging near one of the cameras so the men on duty can be in on the action while still doing their jobs. I learned that Saturn's rings are actually made of doughnuts or onions just from a quick pass by one 'refreshment' table. And it was clear that everything needed to be glowing … balloons, the front of the building, and the flying saucers hovering at six foot intervals all around us that Louis built special for the occasion. The fact that the underground garage is typically 'creepy and dark' as Steph says, helped all the decorations, and glow stick-lined tables, shine brighter than the afternoon sun.
Thankfully, the only alien life forces present are Lester, Albert, and Kane.
"Your mother is going to regret not seeing this," Frank wandered over to say to his daughters.
He had a full plate equally divided between galaxy party popcorn, cheese stars, and chocolate moon rocks, and he appears to be genuinely happy. I won't lie ... I wished him back with my men after hearing him say that.
"You really think she would?" Steph asked him.
"Mom said she wouldn't take a test even if she had been invited, Dad," Valerie informed him. "Which means she'd choose to skip her granddaughter's birthday party just to get back at us. I'm starting to believe she thinks this virus is an excuse for people to hide from her."
"I've been hiding in plain sight for exactly a year now," Steph said. "So she can't blame a pandemic for that. It's all her, and her attitude, nothing else."
"Put my daughter outta your head, Stephanie," Edna instructed. "You don't need her here when you got the world's best grandma helping you celebrate little Olive. I'm twice the guest my stick in the mud daughter would be."
"More like a hundred percent party-improvement over my mother-in-law," I told her, crouching down and holding out my arms when I noticed my daughter heading in our direction. She was alone in dragging an Olivia-sized unicorn stuffed animal that I'm going to have to beat up her GodTank for later.
I felt the impact of her tiny body crashing into mine clear down to my soul. I love who she is at two-years-old, but I already miss the past seven-hundred-and-thirty days of getting to be her Daddy.
"How's my girl?" I asked.
"I'm great," Steph and Julie answered simultaneously, getting a laugh from everyone who heard them.
"Sucks to be you," Atlas noted.
Like most of the men I hire, he feels that he's missing out on an important part of life. He had a woman who wanted to save him, now he just needs to find one who'll give him his reason to live.
"You'll get there someday," I assured him. "Listening to Stephanie and taking my advice will steer you in the right direction." I pointed to where Kane, Harper, and Angel were talking to Raphael, Aubrey, Cal, and Kenzie. "The couple with baby Angelique met before Steph and I happened, but they're now regulars here at Rangeman because of my wife. The pregnant couple, and the newly-married one, occurred here. If Valerie had held out a little longer … I feel confident in saying that she likely would have a husband instead of a pet."
"Hey, my cuddle umpkins isn't that bad," Val said.
Atlas ignored her. He nodded and glanced to where Angie and Mary Alice were chiding Albert for inadvertently letting one of the rocket balloons go. "That Kloughn guy? I was wondering what his deal was."
"His deal is he loves Val," Steph answered for me. "I have no idea why you love him back, Val, but I know you do. He also loves my nieces, which makes him more tolerable."
"The idiot seriously thought he had a shot with Steph," Lester added, trying to cajole Olive to let go of me and go to him with an 'Earth cookie'. "Can you believe it?"
Olivia dug her fingers into my T-shirt and rested her cheek on my shoulder as if to prove she's comfortable where she is and isn't inclined to move. She likes screwing with Lester as much as her mother does. One Shot started laughing, which had one of my girls suddenly bolting upright again to laugh with him, and another glaring at him.
"What's so funny?" Steph asked.
Atlas waited until he'd wound down and was wiping his eyes free of tears before answering her. "You would've killed him. I thought of myself as a badass, but I'm man enough to admit … you scare the shit outta me. Even someone like Ranger has his hands full with you."
My wife was trying to decide how to answer that. She didn't want to say 'thank you' for the compliment just yet, but it's clear she liked his answer ... so she ignored both and focused on Olivia.
"We try not to swear in front of Olive," she grumbled, though we all can tell that her heart isn't in it the reprimand.
"My apologies," he said around a grin.
"Where do I get me a headband like my boys are wearing?" Grandma Mazur asked, glancing at Mo and Gunny as they made off with two more of the ball pit planets.
We'll have an entire universe to pick up by the time 'the boys' get tired of their covert capture game.
"There are two extra pairs on our sideboard, Grandma," Steph told her. "Olive wanted to decorate them for the party, but I was worried one or both would rebel and destroy anything she put on them, so I ordered extra three-eyed-alien headbands just in case. I can run up and get you one."
As she turned to leave, our baby got a fistful of her Mama's curls. "Change of plans, Babe. Olivia, like myself, want you to stay close."
She smiled as she unwound each tiny finger from her hair. She kissed all of them before slipping her hands under Olivia's arms to pull the two feet of purple tulle in for a hug.
"I'll go," Frank offered. "Anything else you need while I'm up there?"
"Maybe two of the bones from their toy box so Gunny and Mo will leave Olive's toys alone. We'll have more than enough to clean up after the Gazarra and Stankovic monsters are done 'playing'." My wife glanced at me. "It's clear that you hadn't met them before you called me 'Destructo'. Anyone can take down a fire escape, but that group can turn something as innocent as a freakin' marshmallow into a weapon of mass destruction."
"I would grin," I replied, "but I have to agree. Seeing the carnage close up, I'm surprised you ever made it through a night of babysitting alive."
"Not to steal Angel's name, but our baby is a friggin' angel compared to those barbarians," my wife said. "Isn't that right, Olive? You and your big sister set the kid-bar pretty high."
"Thanks, Steph," Julie told her. "You're pretty awesome too."
"I try."
"You aren't just trying, Stephanie. You've succeeded. You're nothing like that," I said, pointing to the street where Helen's Buick is suddenly turning onto.
"Guess she heard that we're having an outdoor party."
"Sorry. My fault," Valerie said. "I warned her not to show up or even drive by, because the party is outdoors and we'd see her."
"What she does is on her, Val," Steph told her. "I had been wondering how she was going to have intel to pass along to the Burg bigmouths aside from what we cleared Shirley to say. I doubt she'd ever admit that she wasn't invited and doesn't know anything."
"You knew she wouldn't let this go, especially with Dad and Grandma here," Valerie added. "She has to have something to report."
"I know," my wife said on a sigh.
The burst of air got Olivia's attention. And our daughter trying to catch what she can't see put an immediate smile back on my wife's face. She may have lost her mother, but she's so loved so much more here.
"You want her gone?" Atlas asked her, happy to assist any way he can.
It was reassuring and also upsetting how much he needs to feel accepted. Telling him that he already is isn't the same as giving him an opportunity to show it.
"Yeah. Preferably before my Dad gets back down here," Steph answered, noting the same 'need to help' thing about him.
"No problem. You guys enjoy the party. I'll take care of this. It's the least I can do."
He sauntered over to the security gate, grabbed the top railing, hooked a leg over it and dropped to the other side as he gestured for Helen to stop. Not being able to stand being excluded from an important event, she did pull up to the curb and power the passenger's window down, allowing Atlas to speak into it. The whole transaction between the two of them took a total of forty-three seconds. Helen made her window go back up, almost taking Atlas' nose off in the process before she sped away.
He wasn't at all offended if the cocky grin he was sporting, as he re-climbed the gate and headed back to us, was anything to go by.
"The last time a guy made an annoying Burger who was bugging me disappear that fast, Ranger made a promise that he more than kept not long after. What did you say?"
I kissed Steph's curls as we waited for him to decide what he could share. I did get Joyce to go home by saying Steph and I would be busy as I ruined her for any other man. It was a surprise to learn she wielded the same kind of power over me. I wanted her ... and I haven't looked back since. Atlas shrugged at Steph's question, like this is old news. For him, dealing with a 'Helen' had been an everyday occurrence for him once upon a horrible time.
"Just told her I'd spend the rest of my life making hers miserable if she didn't hightail it outta here. Ranger has a moral code he sticks to, but you could say I made it clear that I don't follow anything of the kind. You hurt my people, and I'll hit you back twice as hard."
Helen may hate me, but she knows I won't off her for Stephanie's sake. With Atlas, she must have sensed that he would put a bullet in her in a second ... and only care that questions about her murder could make him miss out on family gatherings like this one.
