Grandparents

"Mommy. Daddy. Wake up."

Jane peels open his eyes with a sharp intake of breath, blinking a few times so that he is able to focus on his son's worried face, his bottom lip is out as he presents a pout, and the sight has the father quickly gaining full cognitive function. He doesn't want his boy to be upset. Ever. "What's wrong Theo?" He asks his four-year-old son who is stood on his side of the bed, his little hands ringing together whilst he shiftily averts his gaze to his small bare feet. The sorry image has Jane frowning and inelegantly flailing his arm to the right in attempt to grab the attention of his wife who groans at the light contact on her abdomen. "Teresa, wake up." He adds, hoping this is enough to pull her back to consciousness and she does start to rise, evident by the rustling of the sheets. "Talk to me."

"Theo baby, what's wrong?" Lisbon pitches in as she props herself up against her pillows, rubbing one eye lethargically. It is six o'clock in the morning and even with two kids and years of getting up at an unsociable hour when working in law enforcement, it is still tough to wake at such an hour. She and her husband share a concerned glance before he takes matters into his own hands and leans out of the bed to scoop up his son, pulling him onto it and plonking him in between his parents. The pair of them spent years getting the truth out of criminals, learning of whatever is on their young child's mind shouldn't be impossible.

The young boy's lip starts to wobble as if he is on the verge of tears and he anxiously pulls at his mop of dark curls, twirling a lock between his fingers. The dark circles lining his eyes are a clear indication to his parents that he has been awake for some time which just increases their worry for him. Like his parents though, he is one to bottle up his emotions, a particular gene that neither of them wanted to pass on. They know it is unhealthy which is why they have become much better at being open and honest, but things are easier now in that regard, their sole focus is their family, nothing else. Patrick never returned to the FBI after the wedding, not even to consult on the odd case and although she did return once her maternity leave was up, when she fell pregnant for the second time, she decided that enough was enough much to her husband's delight. She wouldn't change her life for anything. Her doting husband and wonderful kids are her world… even if that does mean stupidly early starts. "Theodore Patrick if you don't tell us what is wrong then how are we meant to help?" She carefully broaches and gently strokes the soft skin of his forearm, hoping that it puts him at ease.

Briefly, she considers that she isn't get anywhere whilst Jane notices his son's demeanour altering slightly, giving signs that he is ready to reveal all. "Why don't I have any grandparents?" Theo asks out of nowhere, the subject instantly making the two adults uncomfortable. "Abi's grandma is having a birthday party this weekend, but I don't have a grandma."

"No." Lisbon sadly mutters, thinking about how great a grandma her mother would have been if she had the chance. Her partner sends her a small smile of encouragement which she just about catches over the top of the four-year-old's head, and it makes her find some poise. "Your grandparents aren't around anymore monkey. They passed away a long time ago, before mommy and daddy even knew each other."

"Were they… nice?" Jane looks heavenwards at this question. He really didn't think he would have to talk about his parents today. "I want to know about them."

Teresa peers at her husband and notes how awkward he appears in this moment. It is a rare thing to see, him unsure of himself but truthfully at this time he has no idea how to handle this situation. He and his wife don't even talk about these people, ever, it is too painful and doesn't seem worth it. However, he never wants to disappoint his boy and if he wants to know about his grandparents then it wouldn't be fair to keep the information from him. And anyway, it can't be more difficult that the first conversation they had about Charlotte last year. Thankfully though Lisbon takes the lead and as soon as she opens her mouth, he is feeling guilty for not immediately understanding how tough this is going to be for her too. His father may have not been the greatest, he messed with his head and talked down at him like he was nothing at times, but hers was physically abusive and the thought makes him sick. "My mom, her name was Annabeth." She begins and straightaway all of Theo's focus is on her, his blue eyes wide with expectation. "She was a nurse and loved to look after people. Whenever I was poorly, she would do her best to make me feel better."

"Like you and daddy do to me!" Jane smiles at this, glad to have left such a positive impression on his son.

"Yes." She chuckles but the joy starts to dissipate when she thinks of what is next. "She got hurt when I was twelve years old, and she died." The child already has a general understanding of death because of the conversations about his deceased sister and then there was the passing of the school's pet hamster too. He probably has a better grasp compared to most children of his age. "But she lives in here." Lisbon touches her shirt-clad chest where her heart is, feeling it pound under her fingertips. "My father was a firefighter so that's pretty cool." She somehow manages to find a positive about her father which she is glad about. "His name was Thomas." And she doesn't know what else she could possibly say about the man without pulling at the stitches of old wounds, so she decides not to. "Your other grandparents were Alex and Delia. They were carny folk just like your dad." She explains but when she looks to her other half, she notes how he appears fazed and that could be because of the early hour, but she suspects that it is more to do with the topic of conversation. "Right Patrick?"

He had no idea that his attention had drifted until he hears his name, and he is snapping out of his daydream with a curt shake of his head. "Hm? Yeah, that's right." He agrees and Theo's concentration shifts to his father whilst his mother affectionately plays with the curls on his head. "I don't really remember my mother but my dad we used to travel everywhere together in a trailer. One week we would be in California and the next we could be in Nevada and the next Arizona. Always moving about."

"How did you go to school?"

"I didn't."

"Then why do I have to go to school?!" His son exclaims and both adults chuckle at his obvious displeasure. He is only in his first year of school and it is already clear which parent he takes after when it comes to his academic attitude…

He finds some subjects fascinating but his attention span is short, and he enjoys being the clown of the class, getting the other kids' attentions. They have already been called in for meetings with teachers a handful of times and Lisbon is silently praying that her daughter takes a bit more after her. "Because that is the way of life kiddo." Jane says just at the young boy produces a large yawn, one so big that it almost engulfs his face. "You look tired. Hey, it is the weekend so about you go back to bed. If you have anymore questions then you can ask us later, yes?"

He languidly nods as he begins to crawl in the direction he came, clambering over his dad's body and twisting himself around so he can cautiously lower himself to the wooden floor with a light thump. He then turns to leave, his independence making both his parents proud when he stops in his path near the door. Theo glances back to his mom and dad who are watching him intently, waiting patiently for his next move but his following question is almost too much for his father to bear. "Are they all in heaven with my sister and her mommy?" The query silences Jane who lets his head hit the pillow behind him, suddenly feeling defeated by this whole scenario.

"Yes monkey." Lisbon replies with a reassuring smile. "Now go back to bed."

This appears enough to calm his mind as Theo then scurries out of the room, leaving his parents to snuggle up together in bed, closing the four-year-old sized gap between them. Jane pulls his wife into him by snaking an arm around her form, wanting her to be as near as possible. It is fair to say even the thought of his parents makes him unsettled and the emotion of adding Charlotte to the mix too is quite hard. "Are you okay?" Lisbon delicately asks her husband as she links their hands together lovingly under the sheets.

"Yeah, thanks for taking the lead on that." He mumbles and gives her hand a gentle squeeze as a way to show his appreciation. "Are you okay?" He returns her question, and she wearily hums.

"Tired, but okay."

"We can have a lazy Saturday morning." He confidently decides making her hum once more. She nestles closer to him and smiles against his bare chest, something that of course he picks up on and he is smiling too, now feeling nothing but relaxed. The moment is interrupted by the sound of wailing coming from the next room. "Issy is up." Jane unnecessarily announces with a sigh. "So much for a lazy morning." He grumbles as he starts to manoeuvre away from her, allowing his wife to roll away from him and tuck herself back into bed.

"Hey, you wanted another one." Is all he hears as he walks out of the room.