Waking up the morning after Noah had had his first permitted sleepover, Tim felt uneasy. He didn't feel comfortable in his own home and that scared him. This teenage boy had changed how he felt in his own home by simply impregnating his daughter. Tim delayed getting out of bed as long as he could; he heard laughter and music emanating from the kitchen and it made him happy and sad. Chloe used to laugh like that when she was little girl and he took her to the park; now another man was making her laugh.
Tim got dressed and made his way into the kitchen. He saw the two teenagers cooking. Chloe walked over to him, "Good morning daddy." She wrapped her arms around him and squeezed, he kissed the top her head. "Hey Mr Riggins, want some breakfast?" Tim nodded back at Noah and proceeded to sit at the table after pouring himself a cup of strong coffee hoping to wear off the restless night's sleep. He stiffened as Noah sat next to him; but softened watching his baby girl making pancakes. She was changing right in front of his very eyes; she was becoming a mother (and even if he didn't want to admit it: a wife) and he was loving how happy and bubbly she was. "So Noah what are your plans for the day?" Tim asked. Noah answered momentarily, "I'm going to go home; check on what my parents are doing, finish my assignments," Chloe nodded in agreeance, not surprised by his answer. Tim sighed in relief, thankful his house would be empty once again.
Hours later Tim listened to the deafening silence of his house. Chloe had shut herself in her room as soon as Noah left and had not resurfaced for food or company. He knocked on her door and heard what he thought to be a grunt. "Hey baby girl, what have you been doing? You've been in here for hours?" He walked into the pitch black room and blinked; thinking he may not have opened his eyes. Chloe sat up slowly and wiped her eyes before turning on her bedside lamp; Tim saw that her eyes were red from fresh tears and rushed to her side. "What's going on baby?" He looked into her eyes and tried to smile and ran a hand down the side of his face. "I, um, I was just having a moment, you know?" She smiled at him "Do you think that Noah and I will be together -forever?" Tim gulped and waited to answer, trying to think of the right thing to say. "Uh, well, I think that if two people can raise a human being together successfully and still like each other at the end, yeah you could be in with a chance," Chloe squinted her eyes at the response but slowly nodded and laughed, "That was perfect dad, I can't believe someone hasn't asked you to write a book or at least have a reality show." Tim faked offense and laughed with her. "Yeah because Keeping Up With The Rigging's would be such a hit." He rolled his eyes at her, "Now after all of this fatherly advice I am starving and I'm sure my grandchild is too, so how about some sandwiches, popcorn and Netflix? I've heard that Making A Murderer show is good." He cracked her a cheesy grin before helping her out of bed and pulling her into a long hug. "You know that no matter what happens between you and Saracen, I've got your back and I will always be here." Chloe nodded and hugged him back before following him out of her bedroom and into the kitchen. "So what do you reckon you're carrying boy or girl? Because I am really hoping for a boy; Tim Saracen has a good flow. And I am sure we could train him up to be star on the field." Tim began making sandwiches while Chloe set up Netflix. "Yeah, we were talking last night and Noah reckons it's a girl but I want a boy." She sits down and rubs her belly sighing, "But I guess I should say I just want it to be healthy." Tim laughed at his daughter's answer thinking about how much she had changed back to her old self within a simple night of family time. "Here, eat up." He passed her a sandwich and saw her begin to eat out of the corner of his eye. "So this Steven Avery guy kinda reminds me of Billy," Chloe spat the bread she was chewing out "Dad that's so mean, Uncle Billy at least has better hair." He threw a rug over the two of them and wrapped his arm around her shoulder settling onto the couch.
Hours later, Chloe's phone buzzed and she checked it before slipping it away quickly. "Who was that?" Tim quizzed her confused about the sudden secrecy his daughter had just displayed. "Noah, he, uh, wants me to go to this party at one of the other players house." She nodded at Tim before returning her attention to the TV; acting like it never happened. "You could go, you know, if you wanted to, you're a good kid and you're already pregnant. How much more trouble could you get in?" She stared at him weirdly before nodding and walking to her room.
20 minutes later, a beat up pickup arrived in his driveway; giving him flashbacks of his own high school days with the mother of his child and many others. He strolled to the door and met Noah Saracen. "Hey Noah, come in; I think she's just about ready but you never know with women." Noah laughed and followed him inside. "Chloe, Noah's here." He shouted down the hall and sat back down on the couch before staring at Noah directly in the eyes before nodding; the pair came across a silent agreement just as his daughter came out of her room. "You look amazing, babe." He wasn't just saying that; dressed in black dress that accentuated her bump and perfectly contoured face that hosted a beautiful smile. Tim smiled and kissed her cheek, "Home by 12:30 okay?" The pair nodded and left, leaving Tim with a sinking feeling in his gut and an empty house for the first time in almost 16 years.
Tim drank a beer and passed out in front of the TV well before 12:30 but was awoken by a door slamming and his teen daughter sobbing uncontrollably. He jumped from his position on the couch and ran to her, where she was sitting against the door, makeup ruined by tears. "Hey, what happened? Did someone say something about the baby or did they do something to you?" Tim paled at the thought of his girl being hurt by someone and him not being there to protect her. "You could say that, I guess, Noah acted as if I didn't exist and then he got shit faced drunk and told everyone I wasn't pregnant, just fat." Tim tensed as he ran a comforting arm up and down her back. "It's okay sweetheart, we didn't need him anyway."
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