Ariana could admit she truly didn't like days like this. Her father Hoagie, sat beside her primped and strait as if he himself was the child in school already accustomed to the monotonous hustle and bustle of everyday class life. He did not move, he did not speak but only gave a gentle but pulled smile to the other adults and children in the classroom. And for Aria a child who loved to be so different from everyone else felt numbed at seeing her father behave- just like an adult.
From afar Ariana caught sight of another child. A girl, a very pretty although naïve child with dark cottony hair who clung onto her very plump though glowing mother. Patting the woman's stomach affectionately as she introduced the woman to all the students nearby. She approached pulling her mothers pale fingers to follow her as she planted herself in front of a trembling unusually quiet Ariana Gilligan.
"My brother is in there." She said happily poking her mother's stomach sweetly. The little girls knees knocked together in excitement as her mother ran her hand over her un-tamable hair.
"Lily..." Her mother giggled pulling the girls hair every which way. Despite the roundness of her belly and soft silky summer dress the woman seemed rather boyish. Pulling her daughters hair and blowing raspberries above her head. "I remember quiet a while ago when you though he was going to be a watermelon."
Said girl blushed at her mother pushing her face into her mother armpit in embarrassment, "Mommmmm... stop telling people that story." Lily mumbled blushing before her finger found their way wrapped around her mother stomach again.
Nodding her nose into her daughters hair the woman laughed haughtily, "I didn't mean to tease you." The girl in response gave her mother a stern face before her expression dropped into a petulant though cute turn.
"It's okay." Smiling at her mother once more. The scene was far to much for young Ariana to watch drawing the smaller girls attention she called out.
"Lily!" Turning away from her mother the cotton haired girls hands fell away from the round belly."Daddy this is my classmate." Ariana introduced demurely. A confidence her voice usually held absent without the strength of her father's hand in her own to make her feel secure. The other child a small but bubbly thing engulfed Ariana into a sweet hug.
Tugging her mommy's hand the other little girl squealed, "This is Aria mommy. She's so cool!" Ariana's face pulled bitterly but remained pointed and sweet to the world.
"Lily is really cool too." Ariana returned touching her father's hand in her owns flinching when he softly pulled his hand away.
"That's nice honey." Hoagie replied softly almost solemnly unaware of how much his daughter missed the cold warmth of his large hand. After a few minutes the quirky classmate not knowing the tension but understanding it left with her mother and not yet born brother to have a discussion with the music teacher.
Her little heart squeezed. Ariana felt bitterly alone under the gaze of imposing parents and the doting but far away eyes of her father who kept her at a distance. They left the room all to soon. Ariana began to walk down the halls trying to clasp her father's hand in her own showing him the many artistic expressions of ten year old children. But every time her fingers ghosted his the man would only pull back and walk behind her at a distance, as a shadow as a figment who almost wasn't there.
Feeling pushed back the small hands grappled her father's holding onto his wrist as she looked at him with almost bewildered eyes, tears close to her eyes. His fingers swept close to her face instinctively wishing to brush back the pain from his daughters face but unwilling to submit to the embarrassment who knows he causes for his daughter.
"Mr. Gilligan." A succulent voice of Nathan Dersey's very single young mother grappled for the attention of her local neighbor. A lonely woman whose young ten year old son saw her as drab, being to much like a child and an embarrassment for his ten year old popularity to handle, walking the halls alone her dear Nathan nowhere near.
He smiled softly, "Ah Ms. Dersey." His posture brittle, strait and uncomfortably unwelcoming to a woman he often held conversations with.
She did not return his awkward behavior and instead stood to advance what was a man she knew as one of the only enlightening and entertaining lifeforms of such boring things as parent's night. "So hows the wife, are you guys expecting again?"
What would usually be a laugh between the two almost friends almost companions the man only returned, "Uhmm not today at least, Were not picking up anymore packages anytime soon..."
The woman turned from her parent night companion detered from what was usually welcoming conversation, "Well I see then. It was...goo-"
"It's okay." Hoagie said. Bidding the woman away with a comtenplative wave. The woman looked at the child beside him who seemed bristled and finding understanding between the two. She gave a what she hoped was a comforting encouragement in turn of a expression not yet a smile neither a baring frown. She knew all to well the pain of having a child who didn't want to love you anymore. It could become a lonely life.
"Daddy." The little girl gurgled.
A pregnant pause sat between the two in a way it never had. He knew his daughter was growing older she didn't want to be coddled or treated like a child anymore and he had to respect that regardless of how he wished for her to be little his Nana for ever. Unknown of how long they remained in the emptying hall the two were approached by a teacher.
"Hello there little Ms. Aria, and who is this fine gentleman with you?" Aria looked at the face of her kindly, young teacher who had on many occasions met both her mother and father, parents who were never shy of attending her recitals, spelling bees and talent shows.
Ariana looked from her teacher to the strange man beside her, bristled indignant of the game her ather played with her heart she responded,"I don't know."
"Isn't this your father?" The teacher asked. A trail of confusion slowly drifting onto her face.
"No." The little girls voice wavered a biting instinct of tears started to crawl up Aria's tear ducts as she stood there between her teacher and her father trembling, "I don't know who this is." Her voice shook then burbled before she could stop it the tremble that was only a quiver turned into a ferocious shake and her vision became stripped by salty streams. Turning away at being the spectacle of what was an empty hall the little girl took flight and ran down the halls.
"Hey what's wrong." Ariana looked up into the dark hooded black eyes of young Ms. Deresy.
"Uhmm...nothing..." She gurgled wiping her snot and tears onto the bottom side of her nice dress shirt.
A sleeve of a sweater attacked her face the itchy felt material massaging her nose as all the snot was removed off her face. "Don't call it nothing." The woman said tending Ariana's face. "It's obviously something."
"I don't like it when you flirt with my father. I don't like it when anyone flirts with my... dad." Ariana responded to the woman looking back into her eyes with ghostly gray blue eyes.
Her fingers dug into the child's curly but soft locks scratching gently against her scalp in a calming massage. "I'm not and won't flirt with father. He doesn't belong to me. I just get lonely sometimes with all these adults all the time. Sometimes it feels nice to be a kid again." Spreading her legs out the woman's head fell against the back wall.
"If you want." Ariana obliged feeling strangely happy at the woman's admittance but also called to her quiet detached voice. "We can share my daddy only for a little bit. Okay."
She snorted in laughter, "That sounds...nice."
"Mom." Young Nathan combated after some few minutes of what felt like hours to any impatiant ten year old child found his mother. Said boy stood in front of his mom, "What are you doing?" He blushed slightly. "I was looking for you."
"Were you?"
He grabbed the waif woman's hand, "Yes."
"Aria-" The woman said gently
"Nana." Aria looked past the woman past young bratty although very handsome ten year old Nathan to her father.
He smiled at her with a goofiness she missed all to much. She burst into tears. Springing from her sit and launched herself around her father taut stomach. "I love you daddy." She giggled into his stomach. He squeezed her back.
"I love you to my Nanabanana!" He squeeled up like a little child and spun her around several time while frizzying up her head.
"daddy! Don't call me that!" She cried exasperated but snuggled under his hand as he patted down down the hair he mussed up.
"What's got you to acting like best friends." A skeptical Abby questioned. Stunned but rather amused at the sight of two pseudo-drunken children tottering into the room or more so a tottering hulking six foot three giant with a ten year old frazzled haired child glued to his back screaming with grocery bags and tubs of ice cream in their hands.
Grinning like twin chershire cats they both recapped in unison, "nothing at all."
Sorry about the lateness of this one it may have come off more serious than the previous couple of chapters sorry about that but in the end I liked this. For elaboration Ms. Deresy doesn't have a crush on Hoagie in the slightest she is just a neighbor and talks to Hoagie during parent meetings and school events. I wanted to present her as a woman who despite being very young and very beautiful doesn't have many relationships and is struggling with the relationship of her son.
As well I was trying to portray that Ariana didn't feel guilty that her father wasn't showing her affection but missed it since he is always affectionate with her and hadn't realized it while Hoagie thought she was aggravated because he was still trying to coddle her.
Lastly her name is Ariana everyone calls her Aria although at home everyone calls her Nana except Hoagie who calls her Nanabanana.
Well I hope I got the initial feel I wanted for this out to everyone. As a sidenote I also think you can never grow up to fast and it makes parents feel lonely when their children don't want them interfering with their lives anymore.