The Honeymooners
The following story is under the sole ownership and copyright of J.L. Scott. Unauthorized copying and/or use is actionable in a court of law.
To borrow a phrase: ER no mine, no permission, no money, no sue...please?
"Abby, come on, I know you're great with kids. Please?"
"Luka!" Abby whined, "What if Kerry finds out?"
"You're not going to be in trouble, I will. What were you supposed to do, leave my kids on their own for two weeks?" Luka replied. Abby was the first person he'd called when he'd promised Ria that he'd find someone to watch the kids in the evenings while they were gone, someone she would trust.
"Come on, you can sleep here, you can eat my food, all you have to do is be here in case something happens" He'd been careful to ask her what shift she was shecualed for for the next 10 days. Thankfully she'd said mostly day.
"I don't know...." she said.
"Please? Do it for Ria?" That got her. She loved Ria, they were great friends, and Abby was always saying how she needed to get out more and have some fun.
"All right." she agreed grudgingly, "I'll do it. When do you guys leave?"
"The day after tomorrow. Thank you Abby, Ria will love you" Luka told her.
"Yeah, I'll bet." Abby answered.
"You should've seen her when I suggested it. She got all dreamy eyed" Luka said.
"Dreamy eyed? Ria?"
"It's true, she's practically glowing."
"Great. At least someone's going to be having fun" Abby said, "I'll come by tomorrow to talk to her. I'll see ya later"
"All right. Thanks. Bye" Luka hung up the phone. Ria came in carrying a basket of laundry.
"Abby said she'd do it" he told her. Ria's face lit up even more, if that was possible.
"She did? Oh that's great! I'll call Cory and Delia and Mark tonight. Allison and Bart were already canceled for the next week, so I'll just leave messages that we won't get back together until a few days after that" she said, running through her list of paitents in her head as she put the basket down and started folding shirts.
"Oh, I hope the kids won't mind. You did just get back after all" Luka hugged her from behind, she was always thinking of someone else.
"They won't mind. It'll be great." he kissed her cheek, "I'll go call for tickets" He came back from her office 40 minutes later with a hotel room booked and two round trip tickets to Venice. Ria smiled and dished a fork full of something that smelled great into his mouth. Her favorite, fettacini alfredo with chicken.
"Will you go get Ailleen up from her nap?" she asked as he chewed. So he went up the stairs to get is daughter.
"Watch Eggie Tales?" she asked sleepily.
"What?" Luka asked her mother.
"Veggie Tales. There's tapes under the TV" she informed him. He set Ailleen on the floor and opened the cuboard. A stack of tapes teetered and fell out, all of them brightly colored in neon orange and green and yellow.
"What is all of this?" he asked, searching for one that said "Veggie Tales" on it. There was Kipper and Winnie the Pooh, Dora the Explorer, and even a Elmo tape, which was red. Finally he found a green one that was Veggie Tales and popped it in. He knew they'd had tapes for the toddler to watch before he'd left, Ria didn't want her watching regular TV, but he didn't remember having so many.
"I got tired of the same three tapes over and over again" his wife said, rolling her eyes at the memory.
"Oh" Luka found himself unsure of what to do next. He couldn't cook, and besides Ria already had dinner half ready, and she'd already cleaned the dishes away. He could help with laundry but he was afraid he'd ruin something Caroline needed for a big dance or something or that he'd put too much soap in and it would explode all over the laundry room. Some of Ailleen's toys were strewn across the family room, but he figured she'd want them when her tape (singing vegetables with no legs or arms?) was over.
"Luka luv?"
"Hmm?"
"I bought some curtains for those empty rooms, but I'm too short to hang them. Will you do it for me?" Ria asked charmingly, like the dependant little wife in some sort of fairy tale. Luka would have laughed, but he knew she was serious so he just asked where they were and went to hang her curtains for her.
The following story is under the sole ownership and copyright of J.L. Scott. Unauthorized copying and/or use is actionable in a court of law.
To borrow a phrase: ER no mine, no permission, no money, no sue...please?
"Abby, come on, I know you're great with kids. Please?"
"Luka!" Abby whined, "What if Kerry finds out?"
"You're not going to be in trouble, I will. What were you supposed to do, leave my kids on their own for two weeks?" Luka replied. Abby was the first person he'd called when he'd promised Ria that he'd find someone to watch the kids in the evenings while they were gone, someone she would trust.
"Come on, you can sleep here, you can eat my food, all you have to do is be here in case something happens" He'd been careful to ask her what shift she was shecualed for for the next 10 days. Thankfully she'd said mostly day.
"I don't know...." she said.
"Please? Do it for Ria?" That got her. She loved Ria, they were great friends, and Abby was always saying how she needed to get out more and have some fun.
"All right." she agreed grudgingly, "I'll do it. When do you guys leave?"
"The day after tomorrow. Thank you Abby, Ria will love you" Luka told her.
"Yeah, I'll bet." Abby answered.
"You should've seen her when I suggested it. She got all dreamy eyed" Luka said.
"Dreamy eyed? Ria?"
"It's true, she's practically glowing."
"Great. At least someone's going to be having fun" Abby said, "I'll come by tomorrow to talk to her. I'll see ya later"
"All right. Thanks. Bye" Luka hung up the phone. Ria came in carrying a basket of laundry.
"Abby said she'd do it" he told her. Ria's face lit up even more, if that was possible.
"She did? Oh that's great! I'll call Cory and Delia and Mark tonight. Allison and Bart were already canceled for the next week, so I'll just leave messages that we won't get back together until a few days after that" she said, running through her list of paitents in her head as she put the basket down and started folding shirts.
"Oh, I hope the kids won't mind. You did just get back after all" Luka hugged her from behind, she was always thinking of someone else.
"They won't mind. It'll be great." he kissed her cheek, "I'll go call for tickets" He came back from her office 40 minutes later with a hotel room booked and two round trip tickets to Venice. Ria smiled and dished a fork full of something that smelled great into his mouth. Her favorite, fettacini alfredo with chicken.
"Will you go get Ailleen up from her nap?" she asked as he chewed. So he went up the stairs to get is daughter.
"Watch Eggie Tales?" she asked sleepily.
"What?" Luka asked her mother.
"Veggie Tales. There's tapes under the TV" she informed him. He set Ailleen on the floor and opened the cuboard. A stack of tapes teetered and fell out, all of them brightly colored in neon orange and green and yellow.
"What is all of this?" he asked, searching for one that said "Veggie Tales" on it. There was Kipper and Winnie the Pooh, Dora the Explorer, and even a Elmo tape, which was red. Finally he found a green one that was Veggie Tales and popped it in. He knew they'd had tapes for the toddler to watch before he'd left, Ria didn't want her watching regular TV, but he didn't remember having so many.
"I got tired of the same three tapes over and over again" his wife said, rolling her eyes at the memory.
"Oh" Luka found himself unsure of what to do next. He couldn't cook, and besides Ria already had dinner half ready, and she'd already cleaned the dishes away. He could help with laundry but he was afraid he'd ruin something Caroline needed for a big dance or something or that he'd put too much soap in and it would explode all over the laundry room. Some of Ailleen's toys were strewn across the family room, but he figured she'd want them when her tape (singing vegetables with no legs or arms?) was over.
"Luka luv?"
"Hmm?"
"I bought some curtains for those empty rooms, but I'm too short to hang them. Will you do it for me?" Ria asked charmingly, like the dependant little wife in some sort of fairy tale. Luka would have laughed, but he knew she was serious so he just asked where they were and went to hang her curtains for her.