002 – Bedtime snacks and double dads
"You enjoying your desk job?" Reyes teased as he placed two cups of coffee on the low table covered in documents and books
Morrison huffed and grabbed the mug, taking a giant gulp of the scolding drink and coughing; "It's not a desk job, but of course you wouldn't understand, when was the last time you decided it would be a good idea to play father figure to a government official's orphaned daughter?"
Reyes look offended at Morrison's sudden snap, "Apparently the coffee isn't the only bitter thing here tonight."
Reyes had always enjoyed teasing Morrison, it had become something he took immense pride in for the last seventeen years. He had noticed Jack seemed to be on edge a lot more since Hana joined the family, it had been six years since the tiny girl was brought into his tiny apartment, and Jack seemed to be getting older and more bitter every day.
It was true, Reyes had no knowledge on parenthood and didn't plan to. He knew Jack was struggling to get through the day, and Hana was such an energetic little thing it was hard to keep track of her. Reyes looked over to the little girl playing "Bunny Commander" a game she made up herself where her favorite toy rabbit was an astronaut exploring the galaxy. She seemed happy with herself, and was enjoying her own company.
She was usually incredibly understanding of her dads work. When it came down to nights like this, with coffee at 10pm and documents scattered across the living room; Hana had no problem staying quiet and by herself. Sometimes she would even help the two men put away the books and documents that turned the room into a paper wasteland. She was small, and kind of chubby in her belly and legs, so she would often stumble along, trying to keep the books from falling all over the floor. Reyes usually took three of the four books from her anyways, and still walked slowly behind her, ready to catch anything and prevent it from hitting her tiny naked toes.
Reyes snapped out of his daze and looked at the documents on the table, he sighed deeply to himself when he realized their most important document was MIA.
"Jack, you're not gonna like this." He rubbed his hand on the back of his head, smiling nervously and trying to avoid Morrison's dagger eyes.
"What did you do now?" Jack boomed.
Hana looked up from her game, alarmed at her dad's change of voice. Reyes smiled at her and turned to Morrison, "the document we actually need is back at the office. You know, the one with the mission details and targets?"
Morrison got up and grabbed his coat from the back of the couch. As he was putting it on he commanded Reyes to stay put and watch Hana, and put her to bed. Reyes objected, and insisted he would go instead, but Morrison silenced his pleas and explained that only he had the cornea recognition to get into the office. No military facility would keep top secret documents in the open.
Morrison left the two alone.
Reyes was furious, he had no idea how children worked. It was hard enough for him to smile at the thing to keep her from crying when her dad freaked out. Hana got up and walked over to the couch, she put both hands on Reye's knee and looked him straight in the eye, her big brown eyes were sparkling and she revealed a big smile that was missing a tiny tooth.
Reyes laughed and picked her up, placing her on his knee. "You know, I remember you in diapers, barely crawling like it was yesterday, Did I say you could grow up so fast?"
Hana turned around and snuggled on to Reyes chest, "I'm a big kid now, I start school soon."
A brief moment of enlightenment flashed over his face, Reyes clapped his hands together and took Hana by her tiny shoulders, "you're absolutely right! And we should celebrate this passage of maturity." Hana looked excited, her eyes sparkled, "What's something your dad doesn't let you have before bed?"
Hana thought about it, and started bouncing when she realized what the answer was. She jumped off Reye's knee and ran to the kitchen, yelling "ice cream!"
Reyes got out two bowls, a plain white one for him and a small pink one decorated in white rabbits for Hana. He wasn't actually that happy or proud of the kid for going to school, but instead was getting back at Jack for leaving him here alone, and what better way to do it than getting the kid hyper on sugar before bedtime?
He dished the ice cream out and Hana instantly took off for the couch. She jumped onto it, and wiggled her little butt in the fabric to make herself comfier. She put her feet up on the table and grabbed the remote, turning on her cartoons and sitting in silence as she covered her face in the pink goo. It was moments like this that Reyes was shocked that Hana wasn't Morrison's actual daughter, this exact thing used to be routine to Morrison before welcoming her into his household. Reyes was sure he would be proud of the spectacle, but also yell at the child for having her feet on the table.
Reyes sat beside Hana, they exchanged mindless conversation about the cartoons playing on the TV. Hana explained any and all storylines of her favorite shows, books and even games. They continued their banter for another forty five minutes or so, before Reyes received a text from Morrison, stating that he had been held up by some newbies trying to play pranks on headquarters and was currently disciplining him, he wouldn't be back until morning and begged Reyes to take care of Hana until then.
It was a nuisance, but Morrison had helped Reyes out in many situations, and would continue to do so the next time they had the opportunity to share the battlefield together. Reyes texted back, agreeing to Morrison's pleas; he got up and took the two empty bowls from the coffee table and put them in the sink. Hana was wide awake and bouncing, Reyes couldn't help but laugh at how his revenge backfired on him. He went back to the couch and turned the TV off, Hana whined about it for a few minutes but stopped when Reyes picked her up, threw her on his shoulders and took her to the bathroom.
He started running the bath as Hana stripped out of her clothes; he poked her belly causing her to giggle loudly. "Did you actually eat any ice cream, or did you think it would be better to rub it all over yourself?"
Hana smiled and climbed into the bath, "you too." She said, pointing at the man in front of her.
Reyes sighed and undressed, he couldn't say no to someone so innocent. He climbed into the tub across from her and instructed she get closer to him, Hana slid down the bath and nested between the man's legs, it never ceased to amaze him that children were so open and innocent.
He washed her hair, which was already to her shoulders and a deep auburn color. Hana messily washed what little hair he had on his head, and gave him a bubble beard. After the fun of playing in the bubbles, Hana rested herself on the man's bare chest, luckily Reyes caught the girl falling asleep before she fell into the water, he picked her up and removed her from the bath. Wrapping a towel around her, he pinched her cheeks gently to wake her up enough to get ready for bed. Hana sleepily put on her pajamas, and barely made it into her bed before passing out.
Reyes sat on the side of her bed, watching the small girls chest move with each breath she took. He listened to the noises she made as she dreamt, and imagined she was dreaming of Commander Bunny. Or maybe it was her exploring the galaxy in the space suit, maybe she was fighting alongside her dad, or maybe she was dreaming of the unknown. Reyes admired the young mind, and regularly wished he could go back to the imaginative age, where everything was a fun mystery to be solved.
He wish he could be young like her again, without his hands stained with blood, or his heart covered in scars and wounds that never quite went away. He wished that he didn't allow himself to break so easily, and wished Hana wouldn't make the same mistakes he did.
He leaned over and kissed the girl on the head, "grow up to be healthy Hana, don't do what your father and I did, don't join Ov-" before he could finish, Reyes had passed out beside the girl, his dreams intertwining with hers as the two breathed quietly and dreamed vividly.