A/N Just a short little chapter. Don't forget to watch for subtle time passages. And quick reminder – Krystal is Izzy's girlfriend, Leslie lives downstairs and Molly is Mark's little sister.

Chapter 88

"I'm home."

"Hey Baby." Cass called from the kitchen table they bought when they baby got big enough for his high chair.

"Hey." He kissed her as Collin banged on his tray and laughed at Roger. "Ewww, you're a mess!" He laughed at the baby.

"Please! He's got food in his hair and everywhere." She laughed, putting another spoonful of green baby food into Collin's mouth as he spit part of it back out. "Now stop that." She fussed at him as he started laughing and smacking his hands in the food on his tray.

Roger started laughing at both of them as Cass wiped the splatter off her own face. "You were the one that was all excited about him eating real food."

"Oh shut up." She laughed. "And stop laughing at him. It's not funny." She told him still laughing.

"Here. Let me do it." Roger told her, taking the dish of food. "You're a mess buddy!"

"Did you get Izzy and Krystal all moved?"

"Yeah. The big stuff at least from Krystal's old place. Most of the stuff at Izzy's she's making him toss." He laughed, giving Collin a spoonful of food.

"I've seen Izzy's stuff. Most of it shouldn't be just tossed, it should be burned." Cass laughed. "How's Krystal?"

"She's okay." He scoped up a spoonful of food off Collin's chin. "She says she was no where near as sick as you were."

"How's their new place?"

"Okay." He shrugged. "Decent sized. I don't know why they didn't move in together before."

"Krystal said if she moved in with Izzy she'd never get him to marry her. As it was it took almost ten years."

"Yeah." Roger laughed. "Ten years, him knocking her up and a trip to Las Vegas to finally get married." He kept laughing.

"You're terrible!" She laughed at him as the phone started to ring. "Hello? Hi Sweetie. Yes he's right here." She handed the phone to Roger. "It's Mark."

"What's up?"

"Nothing. How's the kid?" He asked, hearing Collin laughing in the background.

"Sticky. And covered in green goo."

"Um, lovely. Are we still going out tonight?"

"Hang on." He shifted the phone. "Cass are we still going out tonight?"

"Yes, eventually. After I get a shower. And he gets a bath."

"She said yes. Why?"

"There's this film, at the little independent theatre."

"And you want to go see it?"

"Well, yeah, sort of."

"As long as there's no subtitles. And we go someplace after."

"Yeah, yeah, no subtitles. And we'll get you a beer afterward."

"Yeah, fine. I don't care."

"Cool. See the guy that wrote this one, is looking for a new director for his next film and I've got a meeting with him next week."

Roger could hear the excitement in Mark's voice. He hadn't been this excited over a film project in a long time. "That's great. What do you think your chances are?"

"I don't know. I don't know how many people he's meeting with."

"You'll get it." He smiled at the baby as he fed him more food, scraping the extra off his chin with the spoon. "Are you coming home?"

"I need to pick up Mo first on my way home. You want me to pick up a pizza?"

"Yes. Get meat on half."

"Definitely. Those two and their veggie tofu pizzas." He said in mock disgust. "Half meat. No problem. I'll see you later."

Roger hung up the phone and finished feeding the baby. When he was done he picked him up and walked into their bedroom.

"Did he eat everything?" Cass asked, wrapping her hair in a towel as she got out of the shower.

"Everything he didn't wear." He grinned. "He needs a bath."

"Trust me, I know." She smiled, turning on the water to fill the tub. "What did Mark say?"

"He's gonna bring home a pizza." He stripped off Collin's clothes and diaper, setting him in the tub. "He wants to go see some independent movie. He's got a meeting with the guy who made it next week. He's looking for a director." He told her sitting down on the floor next to the tub.

"That's great!" She dried her hair with the towel.

"Yeah. I think he's real excited. That's got to mean he's got a good shot at it. He hasn't been real excited about a film project in months."

"I know. I hope he gets this, he needs it."

Roger let the baby play in the water for a few minutes, splashing at him to make him laugh. "You think he's okay?"

"Mark?"

"Uh huh. Hand me the shampoo."

Cass handed him the baby shampoo and watched him soap up Collin before pouring water over his head. "He just needs to get somewhere. I think he feels like, maybe like he's swimming."

"Swimming?" He lifted Collin out of the tub and wrapped him in a towel.

"Uh huh. I mean think about it. For so long he was swimming, treading water, but just on the edge of drowning, actually slipping under. Well, he's come a long way, but he's still only treading water, not moving forward, stuck in the same place."

"I really hope he gets this." Roger said setting the baby and the towel down on the bed.

"Me too." She sat down behind him, wrapping her arms around his chest and resting her chin on his shoulder. "Me too." She watched Collin play for a minute. "He needs clothes."

"He likes it naked."

"Shocking." She grinned at him. "But if you don't at least put a diaper on him, make sure he stays on your side of the bed."

"Oh right." He laughed, getting up for a diaper and putting it on Collin. "Is Molly babysitting him tonight?"

"Um, no." Cass pulled his pajamas over his head. "She's sort of got a date tonight."

"With who?" He laid back on the bed, letting Collin sit on his stomach.


"Scott." She told him hesitantly.


"My drummer! Are you nuts?" He sat up, moving the baby to the bed next to him. "He's, he's, well a drummer!"

"And you're a guitar player." She smiled.

"That's different."

"No it's not."

"Does Mark know?"

"No. And we aren't going to be the ones to tell him either."

"You realize this is not a good idea."

"It's fine. Don't worry."

"Don't worry? Do you know what drummers are like? I'd never let my kid sister date a drummer."

"You don't have a sister."

"Molly's close enough."

"What's so bad about drummers?"

"You just never date a drummer." He gave her a mischievous grin. "I'll have to talk to him."

"You're so cute, all overprotective and stuff. Just don't scare him off."

"I suppose." He reached over and grabbed his acoustic guitar from the corner and started picking out tunes. Collin stopped playing on the bed and immediately crawled over to Roger, reaching out for the strings.

"He's really starting to get around fast."

"Very fast." Cass told him. "And he's pulling up on everything. We need to remind everybody not to leave anything out they don't want him getting into."

Roger laughed as Collin pulled on a string then sat back and laughed when it made a sound. "So who is babysitting him?"

"Leslie."

"Okay. Right buddy? You like Leslie?" He picked out a few more cords for him and let him pull at the strings for awhile longer while Cass finished getting dressed. Eventually they heard the front door open.


"We're home. With pizza." Mark called to them.

"Remember, no mentioning drummers!" Cass whispered as she grinned at him. "And no sleeping through Mark's movie."

"Oh you just want it all tonight don't you?" He grinned back at her.


"Maybe." She grinned. "Just maybe." She leaned over and kissed him.