"Amateurs." Billy scoffed under his breath, as the reporters on the little kitchen TV recounted details of the latest body that had been found.
"Babe, I've done all I can with this thing." Stu, who was in a now obviously losing battle with a broken coffee maker at the other end of the kitchen, complained. "I'm fighting a losing battle, over here."
"Not you!" Billy scoffed, trying to stifle back an actual chuckle. "..talking to the TV over here….myself, more accurately."
"Do I even wanna know how the latter is supposed to make you sound less psychotic, Babe?" Stu laughed.
"Who said anything about sounding less psychotic?" Billy snickered back. "Now where's the fun in that?"
"Well, I hope you don't expect me to answer that." Stu giggled, crossing the kitchen to lovingly wrap his arms around his husband's neck from behind the chair he was sitting in.
"Certainly not." Billy teased back, taking his husband's hand and kissing it. "What do you think I love about you?"
"Yeah. Among other things, I hope." Stu giggled again, turning to kiss Billy on the lips.
"Mmmm…" Billy smirked. "...too many to count."
That got another giggle out of Stu. "Too many to count, he says."
"...and I mean every word of it." Billy teased back, playfully swatting at him when he heard the familiar tread of footsteps making their way down the hall.
He took a sip from what little coffee the stubborn coffee maker had allowed him to make with it as he looked up, slightly concerned at the sight of his daughter.
"Everything okay?"
"Yeah…" Sam sighed, barely looking up from her phone.
Something that, while not entirely out of character for her...especially this early, particularly grabbed Billy's attention today from how anxiously she appeared to be checking it.
"...it's just Tyra…" She explained. "...I can't get a hold of her. I was supposed to give her a ride to school this morning. First day, and all."
"...Tyra Mornay?" He asked, glancing back at the TV
"Don't know a lot of other Tyras." Sam scoffed, pouring some fresh dried food into the dog dish.
Asami, her beloved Tosa mix, came practically sprinting in at the sound of it.
Something that, even in her concern, Sam couldn't help but smile a little at.
"I don't think she's gonna be needing a ride today." Stu joked under his breath.
Billy elbowed him in the ribs for it before Sam could connect the its, herself.
"Ow! Mean." Stu whined.
"Baby." Billy muttered back at him.
"What are you- " Sam started to ask.
But the joke either went straight over her head or the TV wiped it straight from her memory as she looked up to the screen to find the answer she'd been worrying about earlier for herself.
Her phone slipped out of her hand, plummeting to the floor beside her as she speechlessly tried to gather her thoughts on the matter.
"Sam…..Sam!" Billy finally called, after she'd been spaced out a while.
She jumped at the repeat of her name. "What?"
"...You okay? You wan- would it make you feel better if you stayed home?"
"What? With what they're gonna do to the house over this?" Stu interjected.
"Kids are like animals."
"Would you- ?!" Billy started to warn, just barely missing as he swatted at him again.
"What? He's not wrong." Sam scoffed. "I'm just surprised they haven't done anything already."
"Yeah, well he doesn't have to say it." Billy pointed out.
"Would it make it better if he didn't." Sam pointed out.
"Yeah." Stu teased back, mockingly.
Billy just shrugged this time.
"Really, it's fine.." Sam sighed. "I could use the time to myself, anyway."
"Are you sure?" Billy asked, shooting another glare at Stu.
"Yep." She sighed, picking up her phone and bag and leaving Asami with a little head pat.
"See you, guys."
"Love you!"
"You too!" She called back before the door swung shut behind her.
Billy gave another, more irritated, sigh as he stared toward the door.
"...she's right, though." Stu reiterated, interrupting his train of thought. "I'm not wrong."
"Yeah, I know." Billy muttered, taking a last sip of his coffee.
He rested his head over his hands as Stu took the seat next to him at the table.
Stu glanced over at the now empty coffee mug that sat in front of Billy.
"...you wanna go out and get a new coffee maker?" He asked.
"Yeah, that's the problem." Billy smirked, reaching over to mess up Stu's hair even more than what it already was, as he got up. "Go get dressed, I'll take you out for breakfast."
Stu grinned at the request. "Now, you're talkin."
"I know." He smirked again, watching as his husband left to go up the stairs.