"Son, come sit down."

Johnny looks at his father and sits down again. Johnny takes his mug and drinks some coffee. His father is watching him with a smile.

"I'm happy to see you're changing, son, but you should know, I've always been proud of you, and I still am."
"I don't believe that."
"It's true, you're my son, and even though you have experienced so many bad things in your life. I've always known that you'll do great in this world."
"But my behaviour."
"Wasn't always good, true, but I do understand now, and I haven't always been good too. I became selfish by only thinking about my own feelings after I walked in on your mother that time."

Johnny is thinking about that time, or he tries to. I am standing at the kitchen counter, eating the cereals while I am listening to them. It is better to leave them be for now. There is clearly are a lot of unspoken words needed to be said. Especially about that time from when Johnny was eight.

"When did you walked in on her?"
"When you were eight. I found her with that culprit in my bedroom at home, but the fact of the matter is that I wanted to protect you so bad that I've been holding things back from you and I thought by distancing myself a little, you would not get exposed to what truly was going on."

Johnny is getting confused, and his father sees the confusion. Ron inhales deeply.

"But what I did wrong was that I never listened to you. I kept pushing you away, and it's my fault that you started to seek affection elsewhere in the form of sex."
"It's not your fault, dad."
"It is, don't try to smooth this over, I need to live with this guilt."
"Dad, please…"

Ron holds his hand up and leans in a little. He takes Johnny's hand into his own and kept looking at his son's face. Johnny looks at his father's face and sighs.

"What am I about to tell, it will be something big, please don't get angry with me."
"What do you want to tell me, dad?"
"Baby, come here, please."

I put down the bowl and came to the table as I look at Ron. He gives me a nod, he let Johnny's hand go and sits straight. I sit down next to Johnny and take his hands. He looks at me, I can see his confusion. Ron takes the picture out of his pocket. I look at him and start to smile.

"I know you have a period that's vague from when you were eight. I never told you why, and I should have. Please don't be angry with me, or with Baby."

Johnny looks from his father to me. I see his frown.

"Dad told you?"
"Yes, yesterday before we went for lunch, remember? And I told Penny when she freaked out when she heard us talking about the date. I've asked her not to say anything until your father has told you."
"So, everyone knows stuff that I don't know?"
"Johnny."

I see him getting frustrated about this. He keeps looking in my eyes. I let his hands go and lay mine on his cheeks. He inhales deeply. I start to smile, and I see that smile appearing again. I lean in and give him a soft kiss, he inhales deeply and I see the frustrations going away.

"It was big news for me too and I think you'll like to hear this."

I see a frown appearing again. I give him a kiss again and he looks at his father who is still holding the picture. I smile as I let Johnny go.

"May I?"
"Go ahead."

I take the picture from Ron and look at it with a smile. Johnny became curious. I look at Johnny and take his hand. Then I gave him the picture. He looks at my face, still seeing my smile as he carefully takes the picture and looks at it. Ron and I are watching his reaction. I see his eyebrows going up. After several moments a frown appears again.

"I can't remember this."
"I know, and I should've shown you this picture years ago."

Johnny looks at his father, then at me and then back at the picture again.

"When was this?"
"It was taken during your vague period."
"I can see that I'm eight on this picture, who's the baby?"

He looks at his father. Ron looks at me with a smile and nods, Johnny looks at me and I am still smiling. I see Johnny getting even more confused.

"That's me."

Johnny looks at the picture again. I see his astonishment growing. He looks back at me, he lays the picture down and looks at his father.

"How?"
"Baby's grandfather told you about the private dance session I used to give him, right?"
"Yes, for their fortieth anniversary."
"It happened about a month after that. You were in bed, fast asleep. It was late at night. You didn't wake up at all that night, that's how deep you slept."

I see Ron inhaling deeply. I guess telling the story again makes him to think about it again and I can see it is still somewhat sensitive for him to talk about this.

"What happened that night, dad?"
"It was the night I walked in on her. It happened late at night when I had a dinner meeting with potential partners for the company."

I can sense Johnny tightening up. I take his hand to try to calm him down.

"We had a fight. It didn't stay with screaming only. I wanted to throw your mother out."
"What do you mean?"
"It became a physical fight. Your mother wanted to get you and leave, but I didn't let her. I didn't want my son to be with someone who is an actual bad influence. Your mother has always been a bad example of a mother."

Johnny looks down as he thinks about this childhood. He used to love his mother a lot, but he remembers as well that she was not much around before that age, and after neither. Then he discovered his half-brother, and discovers that his mother wanted to poison him via his half-brother, he started to truly hate her.

"I blocked the way to your room, she attacked me."
"What did she do?"
"She stabbed my leg with a letter opener. The culprit was still there and saw it happening, he grabbed her, giving me the opportunity to go to your room. I lifted you up on my arms and went downstairs via the servant stair. I woke up Harry and we left the house."

I see Johnny getting angry, but mixed with distress, worry and fear. I guess reality came in hard. I see him eventually getting relieved.

"I'm glad you got away, dad."
"Me too, son, when Harry asked me where to go, the first thing that came into my mind was Baby's grandparents and we were brought there."

Johnny thinks about the day we went there. When he stood in the doorway looking inside, the feeling he got. He inhales deeply. I squeeze his hand a little and he looks at me. I keep smiling at him, he looks in my eyes. Ron can see it is a lot for his son to take in.

"Leo got the doctor to come, to get the letter opener out of my leg and stitch the wound. Elizabeth took you upstairs to a room."
"And the picture?"
"Was made a few days after we arrived. Marge came with Baby and Lisa to visit."
"And Jake?"

Johnny thinks about how Jake has been reacting to him when he came to their place for hiding from his mother. Did Jake already knew who he was? I can see he is getting a lot of questions now.

"Jake was in Houston for a month at that time. He heard about us being there, but he never met us."

Johnny looks at his father and nods.

"Marge helps us a lot as well. I'm still so thankful for the help, they have saved our lives."
"How long did we stay there?"
"About a month."

I take the picture and smile as I look it. The more I look at it, the more it makes sense for Johnny and I to be together. Does that sound weird? Johnny looks at it as well and starts to smile now. I look at his face and smile at him.

"You met me the first time when you were eight."
"How old were you, Baby?"
"Almost twelve months."
"You're the most beautiful baby I've ever seen."
"That were you first words when you saw Baby the first time."

Johnny looks at his father who is smiling again. It makes Johnny to smile wider as he looks back at the picture.

"That smile."

He nearly whispers it.

"That's your special smile."

He looks at me and I giggle about his face.

"You only smile like this at me, not at anyone else."
"Weird."
"Might be, but your father, Penny and my family have seen it too."
"I see."

Maybe he finds the thought about this weird, that he has hold me when I was a baby. But I think this is fate. I look in his eyes. Then he grabs my head and kisses me as if it would be the end of the world. I kiss him back while I hold my breath. This kiss is really taking my breath away. Ron is watching us with a smile. Johnny stops the kiss and I open my eyes. I see his eyes are closed and his mouth open.

"I love you, Baby."

I grab him into a hug, and he holds me tightly. I close my eyes.

"I love you too."

Ron clears his throat a little, we look at him and see he is having tears in his eyes again.

"Dad, are you okay?"

Ron nods and smiles, he wipes the tears away with his handkerchief.

"I am, son, I'm so glad I've told you this."
"I'm happy you told me, but I do have questions."
"I know you do, but I'll answer them with time, let's not rush anything, okay?"
"Okay."
"I'm proud of you, son, I really am."
"Thanks, dad, that means so much to me."

I stand up and Johnny looks at me.

"You know."

We look at Ron who is standing up.

"I'm going to leave you two, I want you to enjoy the time together. I won't stand in your way."
"You don't have to leave yet, dad, you can have lunch with us."
"It's all right, son, I'm going to have lunch with your uncle today, he has asked me yesterday."
"We'll be having lunch together very soon, okay, dad?"
"Sounds great, looking forward. I'm going now, have fun you two."

Johnny stands up and went to hug his father. Ron smiles as he hugs his son back. He looks at me and I wave a little. I am not dressed to hug him.

"I'll tell your grandparents I'll visit them soon."
"They'll love that, I'm sure."
"Have a good weekend."
"You too."

We watch him going away. I look at Johnny who sits down again and takes the picture. He looks at it with a smile.

"Who would have ever thought this is happening?"
"What do you mean?"

He looks up at me, still smiling. I see his eyes.

"I think it's fate, Baby."

I went closer to him and straddle his lap. He looks at the shirt and bites his lip. I let my fingers run through his hair and he looks at my face.

"I had that feeling too when your father told me yesterday."
"Is that why you wanted a date?"
"Yes and no."
"Explain please."
"Yes, because it all made sense, and no because I really wanted to date you since the day I came for the interview."

He is smiling a little wider as we keep looking at each other. I see the picture again and he looks at it as well.

"I want to frame this."
"Then you should look for a frame."
"I'm so happy, Baby."
"I know, do you know how I got my nickname?"

He looks at my face again as he lays the picture down on the table. I move a little and lay my arms around his neck. He inhales deeply.

"No, how did you got it?"

He whispers, I feel his hands going beneath the shirt.

"You gave it to me."
"Really?"

I guess he is a little distracted to be surprised about hearing this.

"Yes because you couldn't pronounce my name, so you started to call me Baby instead and it got stuck."
"Good."
"Hmm, really?"
"Yes, because that means I've always been with you."

He is getting sentimental now, but I think it is cute. He will soon be a real romantic. He leans in and softly starts to kiss the base of my throat. Right on my button. I hold my breath. His hands went up and pushes the shirt up. I help him by taking it off.

"You're so beautiful, Baby."
"You too."

He looks in my eyes and I kiss him.