Owen wriggled and kicked his feet until Cal sat him in the water. It came up to the baby's waist. It seemed scarily deep for the ten month old. But for five year old Lewis it was probably a bit shallow. Nevertheless, he was the one who wanted to have bath time. And Gillian was having some alone time. So Cal was on bath duty. And that meant both of the boys in together. When Cal had to fly solo parentally, it was easier to keep the boys in the same place.
"Sit down Lew," Cal told his eldest, gripping the first two fingers of his right hand over the extended first two fingers of his left hand. Owen could sit up on his own but he couldn't take the apnoea monitor into the bath with him so there was another reason why Cal wanted them together. He couldn't go running after Lewis and leave Owen. There was the added bonus of him potentially falling over into the water. Cal was half tempted to get in with them. That would ease the ache in his back from leaning over the plastic. Not a lot of room though with three bodies of various sizes and a whole bunch of bath toys.
Lewis dutifully crouched in the water and sped a boat around in front of him, towards and then away from his little brother when the baby went to grab for it. Owen splashed himself in the face instead. Cal grabbed a wash cloth and started going over his youngest's skin, particularly in the creases created by extra weight. The kid was storing energy in preparation for walking. Or crawling. Though Cal didn't think he was going to crawl. He didn't seem to have the interest. He liked to get up on his feet though.
Lewis opted for a monster next, letting the boat drift on the waves Owen created by constantly shifting around and waving his arms. He made little 'oh's' when something came close that he could reach for but Lewis was always quicker. Cal worked the soft baby washcloth into the curve of the ten month old's ears, which made him squirm in protest. Cal had a hand on his shoulder to keep him upright. The ache of leaning over the edge of the bath had started in his back and shoulders. He finished quickly and sat back to rinse the cloth out, draping it over the edge of the bath down the end, out of the boys' reach.
Owen slapped his hands down against the surface of the water. Lewis simulated an explosion. Cal realised they weren't playing together. He shifted to sit on his knees so he was leaning over the edge of the tub again. "How about playin' with Owen?" He said to Lewis, making 'Y' hands and twisting them at the wrists.
"He's too leetle for playing," he made a 'small' gesture.
Cal blanched. Where did he get that from?
"Nah," Cal told him lightly, shaking his head, purposefully taking the boat Lewis had been essentially teasing his younger brother with and moving it closer to the baby so he could grab it. Cal glanced over at Lewis who had gone still, watching. The kid didn't look happy, though he wouldn't defy his father. He needed to learn to deal. Like most of his lessons, Lewis seemed to learn the best when it was by example. So Cal let Owen take the boat and found the water mill and stood it up right in the water. "You show Owen," he encouraged, pointing to his left palm, them moving both hands, still joined, towards Lewis like the dot Cal was gesturing to was what Cal wanted to show him.
Lewis seemed to sigh, though it wasn't audible, and searched around him for the cup that had always paired with the wheel. He found it behind him and scooped up some water. He tipped it into the top of the water wheel and set the first one, which was yellow, turning one way. The red one beneath it immediately turned in the opposite direction and Owen's blue eyes went wide with delight. He grinned and gave an excited 'oh', throwing the boat against the side of the bath and reaching forward for the water wheel, knocking it over.
"See, he ruins it?" Lewis noted. He started with his palms open and his hands apart, then brought them together harshly, with an angry expression, bunching his hands into fists, then pulling them away again to his original position.
"No," Cal corrected gently. He signed 'help'. "We just have to help him to learn. He doesn't know how to use his muscles like we do." Cal righted the water wheel and used a hand to gently sit Owen back. He moved the toy closer, so it was within his son's reach. He hung on to it even as Owen grabbed it and tried to pull, his movements jerky. "Your turn Lew," Cal directed him, encouraging with his other hand.
The boy shuffled closer and scooped more water. Cal watched as Owen went still with anticipation. As soon as the water started to fall he was squealing and wiggling away, kicking his feet under the water and waving an arm, a hand connecting with the surface to give a slight splash. Lewis gave a giggle and Cal grinned to himself. That was better, seeing his boys playing together. He sat back again and this time Lewis held the water mill upright so Owen couldn't knock it over with his poor motor control. When that got boring Lewis showed his brother how the water came out of the whale's mouth. Cal relaxed further and let them play, listening to the little suggestions of Lewis and the little murmur's of Owen. Lewis signed to his brother though it was obvious the baby didn't understand him or respond.
Cal figured he'd give them another five minutes before taking Owen out. The water would be getting cold, it wasn't overly hot to start with, and it would be easier to dress the little one before dealing with the big one. And Lewis still needed to wash his hair. "Hello," Gillian murmured from the doorway.
Cal looked over to see his wife come. "Hi. What are you doin'? You should be takin' advantage of alone time." But still, seeing her made his heart suddenly feel light. The surprises were the best, when he least expect it.
"I did and then I missed you," she gave a funny little pout. "I came to see if you needed help," she gestured to the bath, then crossed the room.
"Oh hi Mum," Lewis greeted loudly, obviously spotting her. "We're playing with the water," he made a 'W' and brought it to his mouth, his index finger touching his lip.
"I can see," she enthused.
"Oh! Ahp Mmm," Owen cried out, slapping his hands against the water again, throwing droplets up and out.
Cal collected a few, where he was sitting on the bath mat. "It's just about time to get out," he noted. "And Lew still needs to wash his hair."
"I'll take the little one," Gillian offered, turning to the rack to get the smaller white towel.
"Typical," Cal huffed. Owen let out a squeal and Lewis giggled loudly. Water splashed. Cal decided to shift away rather than wear it.
"What's that?" Gillian asked approaching again.
"Sure, take the easy one," Cal grumped.
She shot him a smile. "I can always go back to reading." She didn't wait for an answer, reaching out for Owen. Cal snatched the towel from where she had balanced it over her legs. "Time to get out sweetheart," she told the baby, reaching in with her hands. She lifted him under the arms. He gave another loud squeal as she picked him up. She brought him over the edge of the bath to the mat, where his father wrapped the towel around him. He bounced up and down on his feet for a second until Gillian swept him up in her arms and headed for the door.
"Aw," Lewis pouted. "We were playing." He made 'Y' hands.
"Time to wash your hair," Cal told him. He used 'clean' and 'hair'.
"Aw," Lewis complained again, but he sat in the water, on his backside this time, hugging his knees up against his chest. Cal knelt by the bath and reached for the cup. He curled his hand over Lewis's forehead, right up by his hairline and tipped water against his scalp, guiding it back with his free hand. Cal wet his son's hair entirely, commending him for sitting still, then told him to get the shampoo from the end of the bath; it was too far away for either of them to reach from where they were now.
"Did you have fun with Owen?" Cal asked, brushing his fingers against his nose and then down to his left hand. Lewis settled back into position and Cal popped the cap to squirt a coin sized amount of liquid soap into his palm. Lewis nodded. Cal wanted to add a 'see, told you so' but sometimes the situation didn't warrant it. Cal massaged Lewis's short brown hair and quickly got a lather. He made sure to get around the base of his skull and behind his ears, making his entire head foamy, being careful so none of it got in his son's pale blue eyes. Lewis closed them and his facial muscles relaxed. Owen gave a squeal from the other room that Lewis didn't hear. Cal focussed on his work then reached for the cup again to rinse. He was extra careful and attentive with the soap this time.
"I like Wen," Lewis suddenly announced, signing 'like' but finger spelling his brother's name 'O', 'W', 'N'. He had clearly been thinking about it for the last few minutes. "Even though he's leetle." 'Small' again.
"That's good to hear," Cal told him, giving him a 'thumbs up', making sure his son could see his hands. "Because he's your brutha. And he always will be."
"Will we be friends when we growed up?" He linked his right index finger around his left.
"I hope so," Cal noted. He finished rinsing and set the cup on the edge of the bath.
Lewis seemed to realise the experience was over. He let his knees go and straightened out his legs in front of him, hiding them beneath the bubbles on the surface of the water. "Do I get to teach Wen other things?" He brought his hands to his head like he was removing a hat and placing it down in front of him.
"Of course," Cal encouraged with a nod.
"Like what?"
"Uhm," Cal thought for a moment. "You could teach him how to tidy your room!" He leaned forward to tousle the kid's wet here.
Lewis screwed his face up and ducked out of his father's reach. "Can I teach him how to ride his bike?" He moved his hands like he was pedalling a bicycle.
"Lots of things," Cal agreed. Probably not riding his bike though. Hopefully that was one thing Lewis forgot about as he got older. "Time to get out," Cal told him. He used 'finish'. "Teeth and pyjamas and bed."
"Story?" He signed 'book'.
"Yes," Cal agreed. He got up from the tiled floor, feeling old and stiff and went to get Lewis's towel. The boy stood and shivered, then took careful steps towards the end of the bath to pull the plug. Cal wrapped the towel around his skinny shoulders and lifted him from the tub. Lewis gave a pleased laugh but Cal had to put him down again on the mat to get a better grip. The bedroom was empty when they reached it. Gillian had already finished with Owen and was probably feeding him in their bed to put him to sleep. Cal helped Lewis dry off and dress in his pyjamas. He rinsed out the bath while Lewis scrubbed his teeth. Then Lewis was allowed to pick two stories for bed time and they headed down to the master bedroom to read them.
Gillian looked over as they came in quietly and gave a slight smile. Owen was against the mattress and tried to sit up sleepily to see what was going on. Gillian pushed him back down again, shushing him softly, refocusing him on her breast. Lewis climbed up on the bed and settled next to his brother, lying obsessively still, his hands down by his sides, arms and legs straight and stiff, like he was in a coffin.
Sometimes the kid fully cracked Cal up.
"All right," Cal said softly, once he was leaning against his pillow. He took the first book and opened it to the title page. "Thomas and Friends," he started to read.