Olivia knocked on the apartment door as she tried to juggle a diaper bag on one shoulder and her two-year-old on her other hip.
"Why isn't it my favorite little human," Munch greeted the pair. Ellie reached her chubby arms towards the old man, eager to be held by her friend. He wrapped his weathered hands around her chest, picking her up by her underarms as he hoisted the toddler onto his hip. "Good morning Ellie." The girl closed her eyes and leaned against his chest as she continued to suck on her thumb.
"Thank you for agreeing to watch her," Olivia responded as she entered her friend's apartment. "Daycare won't take her with the rash since it's highly contagious amongst kids, but not between kids and adults." Olivia wandered into the kitchen, setting the diaper bag on the counter for use later.
"It's not a big deal, Olivia. I am happy to watch her." Munch stroked the little one's back as she nestled into his embrace, drifting off to sleep.
"I know, but it means a lot. There are snacks, diapers and pull-ups, a spare change of clothes, her stuffed rabbit, and some crayons and coloring pages. I have some meetings this evening at 1PP, so Elliot will be by to pick her up."
"I see the new position of captain has you on your toes."
"You have no idea." Liv rolled her eyes. She had received the promotion only 3 weeks prior following Cragen's retirement, Elliot's promotion to lieutenant soon following. "The official ceremony is next weekend. I know it's for employees and their spouses, but I was able to talk them into allowing a retired officer like yourself to attend."
"I wouldn't miss it, isn't that right Ellie? Mom and dad are getting fancier titles and further into the politics of law enforcement." Olivia let out a chuckle.
"Please don't completely corrupt my daughter in a day."
"If by corrupt you mean enlighten her, I make no promises," the old man smirked. He saw Olivia out before carrying his little friend back into his home. She was out cold, so he carefully laid her down on his bed so that she could rest a little longer.
An hour after her nap had started, Ellie sat up on the bed, her untamed brown hair a mess as she rubbed her eyes groggily.
"Good morning sleeping beauty," Munch greeted again as she crawled onto his lap, laying against his chest as she continued to wake up, her thumb once again in her mouth. He stroked her back lightly as she gained more energy. "Do you want to go get some breakfast?" The little girl nodded in response, not lifting her head off of his chest. "How about some waffles." She looked up at him, pausing her suckling as if to ask really?. "Let's go make some waffles." The man hoisted the little girl onto his hip, carting her out to the kitchen to her highchair where he secured her in. He rummaged through the diaper bag until he found some puffed cereal. "Do you want to start with these?" The little girl grinned her approval. Once Ellie had two fist-fulls of snacks, John began to cook breakfast for his little friend. He had no children of his own, so he took every opportunity to spoil this little girl.
"For the fine young lady, a half of a lightly tanned, fluffy, waffle and some juicy sliced blueberries," Munch detailed in a fancy voice as he served Eleanor. She giggled at her friend as he presented her the food. She quickly took hold of the child-sized fork and began stuffing her face, devouring the meal at a surprising rate.
"More please," she asked once her tray was clear.
"More?" Munch questioned, giving her a silly look leading her to giggle some more. "Here are some more blueberries." He deposited more sliced berries onto the little girl's tray, which she promptly scarfed down.
"All done Munch" Ellie declared; her plump cheeks stained blue from the fruit.
"Was it good?" John asked as he wet a paper towel and wiped the toddler. She nodded happily as she was released from her prison. "Do you want to color a picture for mommy and daddy?" The little girl nodded happily as she climbed onto one of the chairs. Munch sat a piece of paper and the crayons in front of Ellie while he cleaned up the kitchen. Eleanor scribbled on the page, 100% focused on her masterpiece. John meandered over to the table, taking a seat next to his friend. "What did you draw?" he asked, examining the chaos of blue, green, and yellow lines.
"Mommy!" she stated, her chubby index finger pointing to the left side of the paper. "This daddy!" She pointed to the middle. "And Ellie!"
"Wow! I see we have a Picasso amongst us. Can I draw with you?" She nodded as she grabbed a new sheet of paper. Munch drew a cartoon dog, rabbit, and cat on his piece of paper while the little girl continued to scribble on hers.
"Munch look!" She pointed to her second artwork. "For you!" She shoved the canvas to him, waiting for a reaction.
"For me? Thank you Ellie."
"Munch and Ellie!"
"It's you and me?" Eleanor nodded; a smile plastered across her face. "I love it. Thank you. Do you want to put it on the fridge?" The man picked the little girl up and placed her on his hip as they made their way into the kitchen. John handed Ellie a NYC cab magnet while he held the paper against the metal appliance. "Put it right there," he instructed, tapping the top of the paper with his finger. She released the magnet, a loud clink as it stuck to the surface. "There we go! Now I will be able to look at it every day!" They stared at the display for a moment before the old man started tickling the little girl, the apartment erupting into laughter.
"Daddy!" Ellie declared when she saw her father at the door, her little feet smacking the ground, arms outstretched as she ran to him.
"Hey honey!" Elliot exclaimed as he scooped his daughter up, swinging her in the air before depositing her on his hip. "How was your day with Munch?" The toddler giggled and nuzzled into her dad, suddenly acting shy. "Did you have fun?" The little girl nodded before burying her face in her dad's neck. Elliot let out a chuckle. "Thank you, John, for watching her today."
"Like I told Olivia, I am more than happy to watch the littlest Stabler," the older gentleman explained as he handed the diaper bag to his friend.
"Can you say, 'bye Munch'?" El asked, looking down at his toddler. She looked up at him with round blue eyes, then over to John.
"Bye Munch," Eleanor replied, her little hand opening and closing to wave goodbye.
"Good bye Ellie. I will see you later," he rubbed the girl's back as they parted ways.
"Thank you again, John."