"Puhleeeze Uncle Sonny?"
He looked at the sign, and then at Jesse's pouting face. Amanda watched with interest to see what he would do. Sienna was keeping Billie busy during all of this looking at the clouds above them.
"How long is this thing?" he asked finally.
"Half hour," Amanda said. "Shorter than the movie," she pointed out.
Another family happened to walk by and hear the conversation. The father cleared his throat. "If ah, you're having second thoughts about it, the two folks that are like the emcees sneak in some fun stuff for, well, older kids," he mentioned. "It's pretty fun."
Sonny looked at him. The guy looked completely serious. Sighing, Sonny looked down at Jesse. "Okay I'll make ya a deal," he said. "I go in there with you, and you talk your mom into Tower of Terror with me."
Jesse turned to Amanda instantly. "You're gonna go on Tower of Terror so Uncle Sonny will come to Frozen!" she informed her.
"Deal," Amanda said smoothly, grinning at the shocked look on Sonny's face. He hadn't expected her to agree so quickly. "Sonny, just let it go," she teased.
"Just for that, we're ridin' twice."
"Mama Carisi would have a heart attack if she ever heard me say this," Sonny said later, as they sat down with heaping plates at a booth in Hollywood & Vine. "But this macaroni looks almost as good as hers."
"How many rosaries is that blasphemy worth?" Amanda teased as she helped Billie cut up her chicken.
"We're not gonna find out." Sienna had disappeared off to some horror-themed eating place, so it was once again just Sonny and the girls. He and Amanda were both glad that Sienna was enjoying the trip, and she didn't know it, but they were planning on paying her for the babysitting time she'd put in at her regular rate, so she was going to get some extra souvenir money. "How's your potatoes, Jess?"
Jesse shot him a thumbs up. She and Billie were back in matching shirts. Sienna had made them for them with her mom's Cricut. They were bright yellow with a big black Minnie face and a giant red and white polka-dot bow.
"Been to a lot of buffets," Amanda said, glancing around, "but none of them have been quite like this."
"Truck stop food?" Sonny guessed. She nodded. "I mean, think about that one dive we ate at in Kentucky, that was pretty good though."
"Not saying anything was wrong with it," Amanda agreed. "Just saying that most of them wouldn't have kale or steak in the warmer!" She gestured with her fork to her steak and potatoes. "Also, definitely wouldn't get one of these," she added, saluting him with her mimosa.
Sonny grinned. "Might not wanna hold that up too high, Minnie might kick ya out," he said, pointing. He tapped Jesse on the shoulder and pointed to where Minnie Mouse was threading her way through the tables, waving and interacting with the kids that were seated around the room. "Hey Billie, look!"
Minnie walked by their table, and put her hands over her mouth as she pointed at their matching shirts. She patted her heart.
"Do you like our shirts?" Jesse asked, and Minnie nodded enthusiastically.
"Could the girls maybe get a picture with you?" Amanda asked. When Minnie nodded, Jesse and Billie climbed over the two adults and into the aisle. Sonny moved back against the wall and snapped a couple pictures of the girls with Minnie's arms around them. "Thank you!" Amanda told her. Minnie blew the girls a kiss and wandered on.
"Minnie!" Billie said. "We saw Minnie!"
Sonny flipped the camera around and showed her the picture. "And you'll remember it forever," he promised her. "We can put this one in a picture frame for you girls in your room."
"Yay!"
"Let's finish eating," Amanda suggested, trying to divert Billie's attention back to her food and off Minnie as she moved around the room. "I'm craving dessert, and there was a stand with those pineapple things around the corner."
Sonny checked his watch. "We better hurry too 'cause we told Sienna we'd meet her outside Tower of Terror in about twenty minutes." He grinned. "Can't wait."
Amanda sighed.
Sonny stared in disbelief through the 3D glasses at the final scores inside Toy Story Mania. He looked at Amanda, who slipped her blaster back into the holster with a grin. "Doesn't matter what kind of gun it is, you're Annie Oakley, huh?"
She nodded. "Georgia girl."
"Yeah, no kiddin'. This is payback for makin' you do Tower of Terror twice, right?"
"Oh it absolutely is." She kissed him on the cheek and slipped out of the tram, helping Jesse and Billie onto the platform. "Where to next?" she asked as Sonny climbed out and they made their way to the exit, Sienna behind them.
"I think you and Sienna need to ride it again," Sonny said. "'Cause this girl's got an eye!"
Sienna shrugged. "Few too many times at Coney Island," she said. "Plus, who doesn't love Toy Story?"
"Fair point," Amanda replied. She glanced at her cell phone. "Do we wanna start making our way over to the last show?"
"What last show?" Jesse asked, tugging on her mother's hand. "What show, Mommy?"
"The very last thing on our Disney to-do list." Amanda took her hand and started walking. "Fantasmic."
"Oh cool!" Sienna exclaimed. "I saw clips on YouTube. It looks so awesome."
"Last time I was here with family," Sonny said, "and it started rainin' right before the show, so Mom and Dad didn't want us to sit in the rain. We left early and never got to see it." He glanced up. "Don't think we'll have that problem today though." He dug into the basket on the bottom of the stroller and produced Billie's jacket, helping her into it. "Ready kiddo?"
Billie nodded, settling back into the stroller seat.
The girls were in awe. Sonny took a few photos with his cell phone of the looks on their faces as Mickey moved the water and the images danced on the waves. Even Billie, who was getting a little fussy with the late hour, was sitting stock-still as Mickey's dream played out.
And then the Evil Queen interrupted his fun dream, calling on all the villains to give him nightmares. As the villainous faces morphed and changed, Jesse was cheering Mickey on, shouting encouragement along with a few others in the crowd. "Go get them, Mickey!"
Sonny had been young when Fantasia had made a resurgence on home video. Not many things had freaked him out as a kid, but as a practicing Catholic, you didn't screw around with demons and things. The final part of Fantasia, with Chernabog summoning the dead for one night, had sent him diving under the blanket on the couch.
Tonight was no exception. The winged demon's face loomed over the little lake, and he felt a shiver go down his spine. He glanced over. Amanda was watching everything with rapt attention, and Jesse's jaw was nearly on the cement bleacher.
Two yellow eyes appeared through the haze, and the low lighting began to illuminate the giant silhouette of Maleficent's dragon. The giant animatronic grew larger, and fire spewed, coming toward the crowd.
"Daddy!" Billie yelped, and buried her head in Sonny's chest.
Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around her, but he barely paid attention to the next few minutes of show as he processed the word Billie had said. He looked over, to see if Amanda or Sienna had caught it, but both of them were caught up in the show.
"Hey, it's okay, Billie, it's all good," he whispered finally, gently peeling her fingers out of his Fordham hoodie. "Look," he said, shifting to turn her back toward the show, where a two-floor riverboat was coming around the bend, filled with Disney characters. "Look, Mickey won."
Amanda was taking a video of Jesse waving enthusiastically to the characters on the boat as it passed by. Mickey popped up near the bottom of the little mountain, and the words he spoke seemed to be spoken right to Sonny.
"Some imagination, huh?"
Yeah, Mickey. He looked down at Billie, who was watching the finale in a slightly more relaxed state. Some imagination.
"You're awfully quiet," Amanda whispered later as they lay in bed back at the hotel. The girls were sound asleep in the other bed.
"Hmm, what?" Sonny blinked. "Oh. Long day," he said. "Glad it's a later flight tomorrow."
"Tell me about it. I'm gonna have nightmares about Fantasmic for a month," Amanda said. She looked up at him and snuggled in. "But you'll be here to chase the nightmares away, right?"
Daddy.
"Yeah," he promised. "I'll be here."
