The song here is "Echo" by Foxes
Echo
The door creaked open and Clara stepped in as if not to disturb the fun. She smiled as Keara and Nikolai were playing with the Barbie dolls and her smile broadened as they noticed her. Keara's face lit up and it was clear to see she was having fun.
Nikolai, on the other hand, wasn't. He wasn't afraid to show his discomfort. It was like a cry for help.
"Bedtime will be soon, Keara. Clean up and go get ready." Clara said as she stepped into the room.
"Okay." Keara said and she began putting her toys away.
Nikolai stood up and walked over awkwardly, as if his legs were asleep. Clara met his eyes and she could see something was wrong, besides the fact that he had been forced to play with the Ken doll.
"Can I talk to you outside for a minute?" he asked and she nodded, leaving the room and when she turned, Nikolai gently turned her around and nudged her to continue. Apparently, just outside of the room wasn't good enough for him. Did he think Keara would eavesdrop?
When they were at a good distance, she crossed her arms over her chest.
"What is it?" she asked and Nikolai seemed to have a bit of difficulty getting it off his chest.
"I've been thinking for a while that there was something there, but brushed it off. You know, she has no friends, like at all. The only friend she has is me. But then, I started thinking that maybe I was onto something and I'm right, Clara." He said and she arched an eyebrow at him.
"What are you saying?" she asked, not grasping his ramblings.
"Before she was born, when you thought I was going to challenge Crowley, you said if anything happens to him, I'd be King." He whispered. "You then said that you'd arrange something between Keara and me." he added and Clara nodded her head, remembering that moment. She worried that Nikolai would challenge or, worse of all, kill Crowley. So she later then said he could be with her or with Keara when she's older to secure his place as King if Crowley should die somehow. Yeah, safe to say that it was the hormones. It felt like a stupid idea now. "You didn't go through with it, right?" he asked her.
"What? No." she asked and there was a spark of annoyance in his eyes and then he showed the back of his left hand. On his hand was a plastic ring. She glanced at it and then back at him. "It's a plastic ring." She said and his eyes were dull, as if he wasn't impressed.
"On what finger, Clara?" he asked.
When she looked again, the plastic ring was on his wedding finger. When she glanced back at him, she couldn't help but struggle against a smile that was trying to break free.
"It's not funny, Clara." He said and she couldn't hide it anymore.
"She likes you a lot." She said and his eyes narrowed as if he was becoming angry.
"That's an understatement." he replied and dropped his hand. "Do you know what she told me? She threatened me." he added and Clara let out a chuckle and then placed her hand over her mouth to hide her grin. "She told me that if I remove this ring," he said, showing the back of his hand again and pointing to the ring with his free hand. "I'll regret it." he concluded and Clara laughed a little more than she should have.
"That's a threat?" she asked him. "What's the worst she'll do? Throw a fit?" she asked and Nikolai placed his hands in his pockets, clenching his jaw.
"Flaring tempers do run in the family." He said and Clara's laugh and smile were cut short. When he met her eyes, she was now sharpening her stare on him. "You've got to talk to her. She's just a kid and I'm old enough to be her grandfather." He added and Clara lost her anger and looked like a mother would: concerned.
"She sees your vessel and to her, that's who you are. She knows demons aren't like Cambions, but she's two years old; it'll take time for her to really understand. And it's like you said: you're her only friend who so happens to be good looking." Clara said and then grinned. "My baby's first crush." She said and Nikolai turned around, clenching his jaw again as she giggled.
"Just great; Crowley's really gonna hate me now." He said and Clara laughed softly.
"I'm sure she'll grow out of it, but yes, I'll talk to her." she said and tapped him on the shoulder before going to check in on her daughter.
Nikolai stayed in place, trying to move the ring on his finger. As he played with it, he realized that Keara had nothing to worry about… because the ring was stuck on his finger.