Disclaimer: The characters of Supernatural do not belong to me.
A/N: Hello again! As I explained in my last story, I have been moving for the last few weeks and it's taken most of my energy. But I am fully in my apartment now and am hopefully able to get into more of a routine.
I want to make a note here. Kayla's thought patterns may seem advanced for a baby of her age, but I personally have always believed that babies can understand a great deal more than we ever give them credit for. Pay attention and notice that what Kayla actually says pretty closely matches the usual abilities of a sixteen-month-old, while she fully understands everything going on around her. I've always wondered if babies just thought faster than they're able to speak, and that's why they appear to not know very much about the world.
This story is also based on a semi-true story, and involves a slap to the face of a toddler (not by Sam or Jess or any of the adults in my usual Kayla stories).
Sam had always been eager to give people chances. He never really believed that someone's first impression just had to stick around. It was hard to change that first impression, sure, but with work it was possible to form a better relationship with someone who just rubbed you the wrong way at that first meeting.
Lila was one of the first exceptions.
His first hint had been the change in Leslie's mood when she found out her sister was coming. Leslie was a bright, vibrant woman who never failed to light up the room she was in. So for her to suddenly become nervous, jumpy, and cranky set Sam up to not like Lila before he even met her.
Sam had a few days off for Christmas. He was a fairly new lawyer, and it was one of his first Christmas gifts that year. Most of the lawyers in his office were older, and their children were adults now with families of their own. Sam had been on call for Thanksgiving, so his boss and five of his coworkers had surprised him by giving him the week of Christmas off with pay.
The day finally came. Sam had tried to help Leslie with some of the preparations, but she was so nervous that she was continually cleaning and straightening things that had been cleaned and straightened already. Sam tried again to get a clear answer from Jess as to why her mother and aunt didn't get along. Jess had simply sighed and given him the same answer she'd given him before.
"I'm not trying to avoid the question, I just don't really know. Aunt Lila never came around much when I was little, but when she did, Mom was always nervous and clammy around her. Lila seems nice enough to me."
So, the night before, Sam had decided to just keep his original plan for his vacation week. Play with Kayla as much as he could, help Leslie when she asked, and enjoy his Christmas. And that was exactly what he'd been doing when the doorbell rang.
Kayla was playing on the floor with some large plastic building blocks. She would hand one to Sam, who would add it to their tower, or place it herself and look to him for approval. After stacking the tower approximately as tall as she was herself, Kayla would grin, reach over, and knock it over, sending the tower tumbling to the floor. At the look of mock annoyance on her father's face, Kayla would giggle and double over in laughter. It was a sound that Sam never tired of.
At the sound of the doorbell, Kayla's attention immediately left the fun she was having with her father and zeroed in on the visitor. Kayla was going through a phase of stranger anxiety, and as her mother and grandmother went to the door, she stuck her thumb in her mouth and looked over at her father. Sam often marveled at how expressive Kayla was. She wore her emotions clearly on her face, and Sam read her message loud and clear.
I don't know who this is, Daddy. Don't go anywhere.
Sam smiled and held out his hands, Kayla's invitation to come to Daddy. "Don't worry. Daddy's right here."
Kayla crawled to Sam and clung to him as Leslie reluctantly answered the door. It didn't help to see that her grandmother and mother looked unhappy. When her parents and grandparents were unhappy, Kayla knew there was no chance she would be happy either. But at least Daddy seemed okay, so maybe Kayla would give the visitor a chance. Then she got an idea.
"Dada. Papa."
Sam was shocked. Kayla hadn't asked for her pacifier in weeks. He and Jess were trying to wean her off it, and for the preceding month, everything had gone well. Kayla had only asked for it so far when she had been sick with an ear infection two weeks earlier, and after that, it had stayed in the kitchen drawer.
Sam looked to Jess, who had heard Kayla's request and was nodding. Sam agreed without having to say a word and carried Kayla into the kitchen to retrieve it. Kayla was only sixteen months old. If the only time Kayla needed her pacifier was when she was sick or anxious, he counted it as a win. Kayla gratefully accepted the pacifier, and the two of them returned to the living room.
Cruella DeVille was the first thing that Sam thought of when he came to the living room. Lila was a very thin woman wearing a large fur coat. She was smoking, something which immediately set Sam on edge. Jess was nodding along with something that her aunt was saying, and Leslie was putting away Lila's coat by the door. Her voice was a high pitched one, and Sam felt Kayla lay her head down on his shoulder. Reflexively, he rubbed Kayla's back and moved slightly side to side to calm her.
Lila stopped talking the second she spotted Sam and baby Kayla in the doorway. Leslie was just shutting the door, and Lila immediately walked over to Kayla, going straight for her and almost completely bypassing Sam. Sam could feel Kayla's grip tighten on him, and she let out a small whine that increased in volume the closer Lila got.
"Well, aren't you just about the cutest kiddo I've ever seen?" Lila said, reaching a hand over and grabbing Kayla's cheek.
Kayla's response was swift and decisive. She grabbed Lila's hand off her cheek, shoved it away, and said clearly, even with the pacifier still in her mouth, "NO!"
Lila was stunned. Sam imagined she wasn't used to being told no by anyone, much less from a baby that she just met. Lila's face started to transform into a blanket of rage, and Sam felt the hair on his neck stand up. He prepared himself to stand up for Kayla, to let Lila know that if Kayla wasn't comfortable with Lila touching her, Lila had to respect that. Luckily, he didn't have to say anything.
"Lila. Leave Kayla alone. I told you if you're going to come and stay, you couldn't smoke in here. So put the cigarette out and don't light another one while you're in my house."
Lila's expression crossed from stunned to offended. "Fine."
"Aunt Lila, I just made lunch. You want some?"
"Sure, honey." Lila said sweetly, though she threw a nasty look to Sam and to Kayla. "You must be Jess's husband. Tom?"
Sam had never forced himself so hard to smile. "Sam."
"Sam." Lila repeated, as if the very name was poison that she wasn't able to spit out. "Would it be too much trouble to ask you to take my bags to the guest room?"
"Of course not."
"Thank you." Lila said, then immediately turned to Jess and Leslie to resume speaking.
Jess walked into the kitchen with her aunt, Lila talking the entire time about her life in the four years since the two of them had seen each other. Leslie walked past Sam and squeezed his hand, grateful that Sam had kept his cool with Lila. She mouthed a quick I'm sorry before walking into the kitchen. Sam picked up the suitcase at the door and walked down the hall to the usually empty bedroom.
As he set the suitcase down on the bed, Sam noticed Kayla was looking up at him intently. She seemed to have a question on her mind she couldn't quite articulate. Or perhaps a question that she was too afraid to articulate. Sam took a seat on the bed and, for what was far from the first time, wished he could open up Kayla's head and see what she was thinking in a way he could fully understand.
"What are you thinking about, Kayla bug?"
Kayla carefully took her pacifier out and asked her question slowly and carefully. "Kay'a nooty?"
A confused Sam tried to process the question before he asked Kayla to repeat herself. "What?"
"Kay'a nooty?"
It somehow occurred to Sam what Kayla was trying to ask. Whenever Kayla misbehaved, her mother, father, and grandmother would be very clear with her about what she'd done wrong and tell her that what she had done was 'naughty' and to not do it again. Kayla had apparently caught on and was wanting to know if something she had done was naughty. It took a moment to realize what Kayla was asking about. She wanted to know if she was naughty for telling Lila no. Instead of answering, Sam took his hand and approached Kayla slowly. The anticipation of the upcoming tickle attack immediately made Kayla forget her worries and watch her father's hand closely. Her entire body shook with giggles less than five seconds later, and Sam wished the two of them could go somewhere and avoid Cruella in the kitchen for the entirety of her two day visit.
It seemed that Sam and Kayla had made a lasting sour impression on Lila, and Sam found it impossible for him to care. Lila ignored the two of them, talking endlessly about herself and only taking a passing interest in her sister and niece's life. Jess attempted to show her aunt pictures from her and Sam's wedding, pictures from Kayla's life, and while Lila was polite enough to look, she would change the subject as quickly as she could.
The following night, Sam realized something. His father John and brother Dean were coming over for their semi regular dinner, and were likely bringing John's best friend Bobby with them. An amused Sam wondered to himself how his family would get along with the icy Lila. No matter what happened, it would be an interesting night.
A day after Lila's arrival, Kayla still wasn't sure how to feel about the stranger in her grandma's house. She wasn't friendly towards Kayla, and Kayla hadn't done anything wrong that she knew of. Her mommy and daddy weren't mad that she'd said no to the lady the day before, but both of them seemed to be unhappy. Kayla stayed close to her daddy, as her mommy and grandma were stuck with the lady. Whoever this lady was, her mommy had assured her as Kayla went to bed the night before, she'd be gone soon and everything would be back to normal.
Kayla was a smart kid. She knew that anyone who rung her grandmother's doorbell was a stranger. Her grandma hated her doorbell. When anyone knocked, it was a friend. And there was one knock Kayla recognized every single time. It was a hard knock, and always happened three times in a quick succession. When Kayla heard that knock on this particular night, she knew exactly who it was. Her suspicion was confirmed just seconds later when her grandfather walked in, her uncles Dean and Bobby right behind him. After a quick greeting to Leslie, Sam, and Jess, John turned to the grinning Kayla sitting on the floor.
"Hello, my sweet girl." John said, leaning down to pick up and embrace Kayla.
"Gampa!" Kayla lifted her arms and clapped her hands. "Unca Beanie!"
"What am I, chopped liver?"
"Unca Baby!"
"Well, it seems she can smile. Who knew?"
Lila's sour words immediately set Dean on edge, who was now taking his turn cuddling the playful Kayla. "And who are you?"
"Dean, Bobby, John, this is my sister Lila." Leslie explained. "And she will be polite for the rest of the night. Right?"
Lila reluctantly agreed, though she appeared to want to argue her point. Sam wondered if Leslie had had words with her sister in one of the many moments that day that Sam had taken Kayla somewhere. Kayla, who was now soaking up every ounce of attention that she could get from Bobby, was finally happy, and the family sat down to dinner.
Dinner was pleasant enough, though Sam couldn't help but notice that the atmosphere was considerably lighter when Lila chose not to speak. Kayla was in her high chair, happily feeding herself the bite sized portions of fish and vegetables her grandmother had cut up for her. She eventually moved into Dean's lap, where she giggled every time Dean 'snuck' a piece of dessert to her, thinking that she was being sneaky and getting away with something her parents knew nothing about.
The pleasantness came crashing down in a hard way.
Leslie was standing at the sink doing dishes. Jess sat at the table with Dean, Bobby, and John, playing peekaboo with a nodding off Kayla. Sam was drying dishes with Leslie and trying to cheer her up. When Jess mentioned something about giving Kayla a bath, Kayla got an idea.
There was one cookie left from dessert. Kayla had been given two, but she was so full of dinner that she had only eaten one. She took a look at the mean lady and wondered if sharing her cookie would make the lady be nicer to her. Kayla grabbed the cookie and reached over to give it to the mean lady. But there was a cup of milk in the way, one that was more than half full, and Kayla's slightly chubby arm hit it, causing it to spill right onto the mean lady's lap.
Spills were something that mommy and daddy never got mad about. They made Kayla help clean them up and then everything was okay. Had it been any other night, Kayla would simply have said 'uh oh' and taken a washcloth from her grandmother to mop up the mess. But she didn't get a chance.
Kayla never saw it coming. The mean lady jumped up and was yelling something real loud, making her grandpa jump out of his chair and her uncle Dean pull his arms around her real close. Kayla squirmed to try and get down, to go to her daddy and get a cloth to help clean up the milk. But she heard a loud cracking noise and suddenly her face hurt. Hurt a whole lot.
Just as Kayla was letting out a scream, as much from fear as from pain, uncle Dean grabbed her and practically ran to the other side of the room. Lila was still screaming about how much of a brat Kayla was, Sam was inspecting Kayla's cheek and trying to comfort her, Jess was screaming back in her aunt's face, and the room was generally in an uproar. The sound of a second slap brought the room to a deafening silence.
At Lila's slap of baby Kayla's cheek, Leslie had calmly dried her hands, walked across the room, and slapped her sister's cheek in exactly the same way. A stunned Lila could only hold a hand there and stare as Leslie calmly spoke.
"Get your things. Now. Get them together and get the hell out of my house and don't you ever come back."
"But…I'm your sister…" Lila tried weakly.
"And they are my family. You have never been my family. You come in my life when you want to, and only when you want something. I've been nice and patient every time I've seen you because I promised mom I would take care of you. But you don't get to assault a baby in my house and expect for things to stay the same. Get the hell out of my house now. And if Sam and Jess decide to call the police, you better damn well believe that I will support them."
"You'd…"
"Get out of my house, Lila. Now. If you're in my face in five more seconds, I will not be responsible for what happens next."
Lila stomped out of the room and down to the guest room, making entirely too much noise than was necessary to simply be packing her bags. Leslie took a breath and turned, softening the second she noticed the still screaming Kayla. Leslie approached slowly, not wanting to startle Kayla, and gingerly touched the crying toddler's cheek. A faint pink hand mark was there, and Leslie's heart sank when Kayla flinched.
"Grandma's so sorry, Kayla bug. That mean lady's leaving now. I promise."
"Good riddance." Bobby sourly said from the kitchen table.
"You ready for your bath, Bug?" Sam asked.
Kayla's arms jutted out for her father, who Kayla kept a tight hold on for the rest of the night. Though his impulse to hurt Lila the same way she'd hurt Kayla was still there, it was partially quashed by Leslie's stunning display just seconds later. Holding Kayla as she drifted off to sleep that night, still sniffling and needing cuddles that Sam was more than happy to give her, Sam made a promise he could only hope he'd be able to keep.
"Go to sleep, Bug. I'll never let anyone hurt you again."