Chapter 4
Bobby smiled as he woke up and saw Athena peacefully sleeping next to him. Then he felt a smaller body move next to him and saw Evan had joined them at some point during the night. It was something new, but something he couldn't complain about. It had been a long and exhausting day for Evan yesterday full of anxiety and new things. He wasn't surprised that they had become his comfort. Athena was the next one to wake up and was confused at first but then saw Evan still out for the count in between them. "Good morning, I didn't even notice he had joined us last night," Athena tells him as they kiss without squashing or waking up the youngster in between them.
"Good morning, me neither until he moved. I don't mind it though it is very sweet," Bobby says. The sandwiches are in the fridge ready to be packed into the lunch bag, all that was left to prep for their trip was the drink bottles and plenty of snacks. First on the agenda of the day though was breakfast and to wake the kids. Then a thought popped into his head as he turned to Athena in bed. "Do you think we should get a stroller on the way? Just in case little man can't cope with walking the whole time," Bobby says. It was something they didn't have yet, and Evan was on the smaller side for a six year old, so he could fit quite comfortably in a stroller if he needed it.
It would also give him a safe space in case everything became too much. "Yes I think so, we can tell Evan he doesn't have to use it if he doesn't want to, but it would be better than you ending up with a sore back carrying him sleeping with that cast if he gets too tired," Athena says. She knows Bobby wouldn't mind carrying him if he needed to, but not for long periods of time. It was decided then, they'd stop at Walmart or Target on the way to the zoo and get a stroller and let the kids buy an extra snack or something as they had eaten the ones they chose a week ago. They don't know what the plan for the day is which is good, Bobby had the tickets all sorted though.
As the morning got started the excitement was building for Bobby and Athena. Both kids woke up at a decent time so they could get their plan in action. Bobby and Evan made breakfast of waffles with different fruit toppings. Athena helped Evan get dressed whilst Maddie helped Bobby pack. She was allowed to know where they were going but for Evan's first ever zoo trip they wanted to capture the excitement when he realized where they were. It left a bittersweet feeling that they had already done and were about to do more firsts with Evan that potentially should have been done by now. It will be so interesting to see his reaction to seeing animals in person rather than all the animal documentaries he had been watching with Bobby.
Even Maddie seemed to agree with her foster parents on the stroller option for Evan should he need it. She was upset that she couldn't take Evan anywhere, but she is only a teen and that was unfair. "We'll make plenty of fun memories for both of you together and one on one. You're a teen about to start high school next week, it's not fair on you to be the parent for Evan," Bobby tells her. It is only Friday morning, so they had a whole weekend before the second week starts full of meetings to try and place the children into schools suitable for them. The zoo should be fairly quiet as well as it is a school day so there wouldn't be many people around.
It was the best time to take Evan really. He was doing pretty well last night when they went to the restaurant, but Bobby knew it was very overwhelming for him and he did cling to them and Maddie when he felt he needed it. Athena had Evan in her arms as Maddie and Bobby were taking things to the car once everyone was ready to go. Yesterdays anxieties were still bothering him, especially seeing bags being packed into the back of Bobby's truck. "We're going on a surprise fun trip today Evan. I think you're going to like it baby," Athena says to reassure him. First they were going to Walmart to get a couple of extra snacks and a stroller their small six year old would fit in. It wouldn't be too hard to find one as he was light and small for his age.
If Athena and Bobby didn't know their background they would be very concerned about Evan's height and weight. Years of abuse and neglect have stunted his growth a little but nothing Bobby's cooking wasn't already working on fixing. It had been 8 days, but he was starting to gain a little bit of weight. "Yeah Evan after we're done in Walmart we're going on a fun adventure. Heather said you're not going anywhere any time soon," Bobby says, as they get him buckled into his car seat. He definitely benefited from the now and next system when it came to things like this. At breakfast was when Bobby told him now we go get dressed then next we are going to Walmart. Now it is going to Walmart to get some stuff and then going to the mystery adventure.
Lion was coming with them as always; it was like he had become the fifth member of their little family. It seemed very fitting considering where they were going. Bobby's trusty camera was in his bag to take as many photos as he could. Now that the bruising had all gone he didn't feel as guilty taking memory photos of Evan. He didn't want the kid to have reminders of the hell he had been through, but maybe they could use it to show him how much happier he was once he was in their little family. Bobby has some notes for the meeting on Monday and was more confident that they were going to be adopting them and they'd become Buckley Grant-Nash.
Walmart was a great success. They had found a stroller that Evan was going to be comfortable in and it was all assembled ready to go. Los Angeles Zoo wasn't too far away, so with some extra snacks and drinks on board they are on their way. Evan was watching the world pass by through the window as usual. He was still none the wiser until they got to the zoo parking lot, and it had all clicked in his head where they were, and Athena got a picture of the excitement on his face. They got out of the truck and set the stroller up, for now it was just going to house their backpacks and Evan decided Lion needed to be in the seat. He had a tight grip on Athena's hand, not that he was much of a flight risk if at all. He wanted to be close to them.
They got in and Athena just smiled, it was definitely the best decision they could have made for today. It filled their hearts with joy seeing both children excited and happy. Maddie couldn't hide it even though she tries to be the strong teen protecting her baby brother. This was her chance to enjoy her teenage years and not have to be mom to Evan. Athena and Bobby were mom and dad now. The first animals they saw were the Californian Sea Lions and the Harbor Seals. Bobby watched as Evan got as close as he could, and he was just fascinated by everything. The time they could come here, and he would be able to read and speak would be amazing.
For now Bobby read out some facts and he took them all in like his brain was a sponge. Athena put herself on camera duty as there weren't that many photos of Bobby and Evan being like father and son so far. Even Maddie joined in and was helping her brother get a good view of the animals. Bobby noticed and made Athena take at least one picture with the children, it was important for their family album that it was equal as both children loved both of them equally. They walked around for a good hour and a half before Evan's legs were getting tired. Bobby scooped him up and had him on his shoulders as they reached the big cats. He didn't want to get in the stroller yet.
They didn't have lions, but they had tigers, snow leopards and ocelots and Evan was excited about them all. Oh how they all wished Evan felt comfortable enough to vocalize his excitement. The rational part of Bobby's brain told him to keep being patient and Evan would speak on his terms. If they rush him to speak now, then he will close up and that little voice that would have so much to say will be lost to them forever. For now he could feel the excitement as he lowered Evan from his shoulders so he could get this new burst of energy out as he was with his favorite animals of all time. It was the look on his face as he ran to Maddie excitedly pointing towards the Tiger that was getting closer. "Hey Evan, look at that tiger," Maddie says as she takes his hand.
There was definitely the possibility of Evan picking up a tiger stuffie to go with his lion one once they got to the gift shop at the end. Currently it was almost lunch time, and they were getting hungry. Bobby took the moment to get some sibling photos whilst Maddie picked Evan up so he could get a closer look at the tigers. He could have done it from Bobby's shoulders, but he wanted to get down as his legs were rested and he felt like he could walk for a bit longer. The stroller was still an option if he felt like he needed a nap or something later on. There is a play park near to the tigers so they could go and eat and let Evan play before they go further on to the monkeys, giraffes, and elephants as well as other animals they haven't seen yet.
Maddie turned around to look at Bobby and Athena with Evan in her arms with the biggest grins on both their faces. Athena snapped more photos of them before she made her way over to her foster parents with the now hungry Evan in her arms. "Let's go eat some lunch," Bobby says. Evan holds Athena's hand as they make their way over to the nearest picnic area. The day was going really well so far. They hadn't seen many people so far and the children were having the time of their lives. What surprised the parents, which with an afterthought shouldn't have was that Maddie was excited by the play park, but Evan had no reaction to it. He definitely led a very sheltered life before the DCFS intervened.
He hasn't done anything a normal child his age would have done by now. He had done a lot of firsts with Bobby and Athena already. Like going to the grocery store, restaurants and now the zoo. All things which are taken for granted usually. Bobby had a plan to take Evan to another play park nearer to their house later on this week and Michael was coming over on Tuesday to get to know the children so he could be the cool uncle he was destined to become. Once they know more about Evan and what he hadn't done the more they want to fill their time with as many fun activities as they can which will extend to however long the children stay in their care.
Evan sat in between Athena and Maddie while they ate their lunch. He was enjoying himself and Lion came to join them for lunch. Evan was a little disappointed there were no lions in this zoo, but it was okay because they would go to another zoo on a different day and that one might have lions in it. He wasn't ungrateful by any means because he was still having the best day ever at this zoo and loved the tigers, ocelots, and snow leopards he had seen. They had finished their lunch and Evan stayed seated between his foster mother and his sister. He was curious about the play park but didn't dare move from his seat. Bobby and Athena waited a while for their food to go down before Bobby took Evan's hand and walked with him over to the play park.
Maddie went off and played and let loose a little and Bobby showed Evan around. He put him into the swing, and he was having a blast laughing and smiling and even agreed a sign for higher. Evan started getting more confident as they explored the play park. Bobby had even allowed him to go off on his own to climb about as he was watching his foster son closely. With this confidence boost they did see the reckless side to him, but he didn't fall or hurt himself. He would be quite the little daredevil once this cast came off that was for sure. He did slip over once on his way back to his parents, but he had fun and he had burned some energy off which was good.
They walked around for a bit once the children were done playing and went to go and see more animals. Somewhere between the lemurs and the giraffe enclosures Evan had climbed into the stroller which was leaned back and had the sunshade on and fell asleep. Bobby only noticed when a zookeeper had come up and asked if the little one wanted to feed the giraffe and he was fast asleep holding his lion stuffie. "Think he wore himself out at the play park," Bobby says. Everyone they had come across on their journey so far had been so nice to them. The zookeeper said, "That's okay, if he wants to when he wakes up come and find me." It was a little unusual but maybe they knew it was just how kind the zookeeper was.
There was no way they could have known about the ongoing abuse case. The press were not allowed to show photos of the children or to release any details about it. The news had gone quiet about it other than that one thing the day after where they were told that Margret and Philip Buckley moved from Hershey Pennsylvania to Los Angeles California and had been arrested by police after the DCFS had been investigating them for child abuse of their son and daughter. That was all that was able to be said mainly for the children's sake as they knew that going to a new school was going to be challenging enough especially with their surnames already being in the news. It wouldn't be hard to put two and two together for people to figure out that Maddie and Evan were the children involved.
That was another thing Bobby had on his list to bring up with the case worker on Monday. They would need to give the children some level of protection when it comes to having their past known. It might be that for now they are introduced as Maddie and Evan Grant-Nash and if the adoption ever comes that they could chose whether to keep Buckley or to drop it. There is no rushing into it now. Bobby was just enjoying sitting down in the shade with Evan sleeping in the stroller so far. Athena and Maddie were having some one on one mother and daughter time walking around nearby. There was a café and the bathroom near as well. Evan discovered hand dryers in a frightening way and Bobby had to hold him to calm him down and then show him they weren't out to hurt him.
He napped for about an hour. Then he was pretty chill when he crawled onto Bobby's lap to let the man know that he was awake now. "Good nap buddy?" Bobby asks, and Evan nodded. The zookeeper just happened to come back around, and Bobby saw her. She had been going up to a few families and allowing them to feed the giraffes. Bobby suggested the idea to Evan who seemed nervous but then decided to give it a go. Athena was on hand for photos as Bobby took Evan's hand and told the lady Evan wanted to do it. He picked the kid up and the lady handed him an Acacia branch for a giraffe to eat. Evan laughed as the tongue of the giraffe tickled his hand as it took the branch from him.
Once the experience was over they went over to the elephants and Evan watched as the baby elephants played with each other. Maddie was with him, and she talked to him about it and how they were cute. The next animals they went to see was the orangutans and the gorillas. Evan kept trying to talk but no words were coming out, he was so excited seeing all of the animals up close. Bobby, Athena, and Maddie were talking to him as if they knew what he was talking about. Hopefully the more that they made Evan feel comfortable the more likely it was that they would get him to say his first words to them. "Hey that gorilla looks like dad don't you think?" Maddie asks Evan who giggles.
Bobby pretended to be offended by it as Maddie was talking about him when he said dad. Her biological dad was just Philip now. The same went for Margret and Evan was going along with it too. Evan had looked at the gorilla Maddie had pointed out and then back to Bobby and nodded whilst he was giggling. "What have you two found so funny?" Athena asks as she walks over to the duo. Maddie explained it to her, and she ruffled Evan's hair as she listened to the explanation. Evan's giggles turned into full on belly laughs as Bobby used this opportunity to monkey around and pretend to act like a gorilla in front of them. It would hurt his back in the morning but the joy it brought his children was more than enough for him.
"Daddy is so silly," Athena says, as they call start calming down. They walked around some more and looked at the Zebras for a bit. Evan was starting to get a little frustrated with himself as he tried to get Maddie's attention to look at the baby animal without tapping on her leg. The last time he tried to get someone's attention by tapping on their leg it ended with a beating and it still haunted the small child. He took a moment to walk away from the situation for a moment and Athena noticed. She went up to him and crouched so she was eye level with him. She took his hands into hers and he looked into her eyes. She could see the emotions swirling like a storm.
"It's okay baby, do you want Maddie to look at the baby Zebra with you?" she asks, she had been watching him and how his hand would go as if he was about to tap Maddie on the leg, but it went away just as quickly, and he'd shake his little head. He nods and she takes him over to Maddie. He was amazed at how his foster mom understood why he was frustrated, and he didn't get told off or beaten for it. He felt validated and she helped fix the problem he was having by whispering to Maddie that he wanted her to look at the baby zebra with him. She looked around and spotted a second baby zebra near to the one that Evan had spotted earlier.
"Hey little brother, look at that other baby zebra over there," she said, crouching down and taking him into her arms. She felt bad that he did feel that frustration, but she knew why. He feels safe being around her and his new mother and father and he couldn't understand why the words weren't coming out of his mouth like he wanted them to. The baby zebra Evan spotted went up to the other one Maddie had spotted and a game of chase ensued. She watched as Evan followed them as they raced around the paddock. They watched them play around for a while before they decided to move on. They didn't have that many animals left before it was the gift shop time then home.
Overall it has been a really good family day out so far. It was about to get even better though nobody thought it possible. "Daddy look," Evan suddenly said as he pointed to the African wild dog they just walked past. Bobby had to hide his sudden urge to cheer for his kid who all of a sudden spoke. "Yeah buddy, that's an African wild dog," Bobby says, picking him up so he could get a closer look. He was gentle and slow with his movements to keep the kiddo calm and maybe it would get him talking more. Athena had tears in her eyes and Maddie had the biggest grin. She knew she would hear her brother's voice again and it was only a matter of time before it was unleashed.
There was a point on their walk around the last few exhibits where Evan became separated from them. It was for less than a minute, but Athena was on guard. "Mommy" Evan shouts as he ran into her legs when he had found them again. Athena picked him up and held him close. She had noticed they had been separated from him, but knew they were going to find him. Bobby and Maddie rushed over and joined in on the hug. "Hey baby, I'm right here," she tells him. Oh this kid was so adorable; Athena couldn't wait to hear what he had to say. He had gone quiet again but there were a lot more people around than there were a few minutes ago.
They were close to the entrance now and there were more people coming in. It was okay though because it was gift shop then home time. Bobby was making spaghetti bolognaise for dinner and everyone was excited for it. They were quite relaxed about the rules of the gift shop. No surprises when Evan bought a tiger stuffie to join the lion that had been relaxing in the stroller for most of it and Maddie bought a notebook and pen. They walked to the car and Bobby put Evan into his car seat as usual. "This was the best day ever," Evan tells him. His own cute little way of thanking them for the day. Bobby couldn't hide the grin that appeared as he buckled his son in.
There was no denial now, Evan and Maddie are their children. "I'm glad you thought so Evan. There will be a lot more fun days in the future," He tells him. Him and Athena put everything into the back of the truck and take a minute. They were in a bit of shock; they thought it would have been at least another week and they would have been at home before Evan decided to bless them with his first words. They could hear Maddie talking to Evan about how proud she was that he was talking again, and he was probably smiling at her. He just wants to do what most kids his age do and make the people in his life happy. It broke their heart to know he felt like he was failure.
"Athena I can't believe our little man is talking," Bobby says as she hugs him. They were definitely proud. They could also agree with their little buddy that today was the best day ever. It didn't mean that he was going to be chatting one hundred miles a minute, but they were grateful for every little word he spoke. They were both excited for the moment that he would start talking one hundred miles a minute about everything that is interesting him at the moment. It will be nice for him to know what animal facts or just general facts Evan had learned from him. "Me neither, I thought it would have been at least another few days and definitely not outside the house," she says.
They didn't even bother correcting the children when they said mommy and daddy repeatedly throughout the day. That was what they were to them as far as they were concerned, and foster felt wrong. It felt temporary and they knew that this situation was headed down the road for permanent. There was no way that the justice system could look at all the overwhelming evidence they had so far and think that the children would be better off in the care of their biological parents. They might have jumped to conclusions a little bit but with their conversations with Heather yesterday they cannot help but feel more optimistic about it all. "Yeah but maybe in that moment when he first spoke all he could see was us. The second time he was scared and wanted to feel seen," Bobby says.
It was probably true. When they were at the African wild dog enclosure it was only them and maybe one other group of people around. The second time he had been separated from them for a minute and the third time he was in the car with just them around. Regardless of that they were just happy that Evan felt comfortable enough to verbalize how he feels which means that they were doing a good job. They got into the truck to go home, and Maddie was singing along to whatever song was on the radio and Evan was just bopping his head. Clearly he wasn't ready to unleash the probably angelic singing voice he has inside but like they did and will still do with his talking they are not likely to push it.
Evan was still a little worn out from the big day out adventure and had fallen asleep in his car seat on the way home. Lion was in one hand and his new tiger friend in the other. Bobby carefully lifted him out of the seat and carried him into the house to lay down on the couch for the rest of his nap. It was the first time he had ever been out like this in his life, so his little body was bound to be exhausted. Bobby grabbed a blanket and covered him with it as Athena and Maddie brought the picnic stuff inside to clean it all. Bobby helped with it as Evan was peacefully sleeping. It was good for them to have this family bonding moment especially as they had tried to divide their time between the children equally when they were at the zoo.
The difficulty with it was that there was that 8 year age gap between both children, so it meant they both needed different things. Maddie is about to start high school and all of the challenges that come with that, and Evan is about to start elementary school for the first time. "How do you feel today went?" Athena asks Maddie. They were going to do some one on one things too when Bobby takes Evan out. Athena was thinking of taking Maddie to the mall this week and get her some more clothes and things that were more her style than the basics they had to buy them both a week ago. It would be a good way for the girls to bond as well. She always imagined she would have children a little closer together in age than this, but she wasn't ungrateful.
"It's been really good. I don't remember the last time I went to a zoo, but it would have been before Evan was born and before Daniel got sick. We never did anything fun once the cancer diagnosis came around. Never even took Evan to the beach even though that was what Daniel wanted. They would always make excuses of Daniel being too weak to go anywhere even though it was his bucket list," Maddie says. It was clearer in Bobby and Athena's mind that Maddie stopped considering Margret and Philip as her parents for longer than first thought. She was basically Evan's mother and father combined into one too it seemed. This was so messed up.
It had been a rollercoaster of a week for them both. Evan seemed better at hiding it from them than Maddie but only because of the child instinct to make them happy. He knew that him being hurt made them all upset, and he didn't like it. That first Target trip was the only time he allowed himself to cry, which led them to go with the theory that he knew and understood far more about the situation than he could tell them. There was no doubt in their mind that he trusted them with his life and his care, but his emotions were a closely guarded secret. "Well, you are always welcome to tell me and your dad where you want to go and we can have as many family outings as you want," Athena says.
She didn't feel as guilty as she did that first day referring to herself as mom and Bobby as dad, as they are for all intents and purposes Evan and Maddie's legal guardians. They just don't have the little piece of adoption paperwork to give them the mother and father titles. "Thank you moma. It is nice to be a kid again and not have to worry about what I would get for dinner for us both and things like that," Maddie says. Athena thinks that Maddie is very brave for opening up like this to them. Evan was still fast asleep on the couch while they talked, which was good because she didn't want the youngest member of the family to worry about things like this.
"As long as you are under this roof with our family you will never have to worry about being mom and dad to Evan," Athena tells her, and hugs her gently. They didn't want her to stop opening up to them. It was a way for her to get her feelings out and they also had a window into their lives before LAPD and the DCFS got involved and decided to get them out of there. The more Maddie told them and the more they had gotten from the case worker the clearer the picture was of the Buckley household. They could fully understand why Evan acted the way he did around them and how under that cute boyish exterior was a child who was terrified.
He was terrified of being ripped away from Maddie, of being hurt again and not being loved by the people who should have loved him anyway. Those emotions are sitting there bubbly away under the surface. Just waiting for the right moment to explode. Bobby and Athena were determined to let it happen in a controlled manner. Today had been a lot on them both full of firsts and traumatic memories brought to the surface. It will all be okay in the end though as Athena and Bobby will be there to comfort him when he needs it. Bobby heard movement from the couch and knew that Evan was probably waking up soon. He doesn't usually nap for very long.
Bobby took his usual spot near to Evan on the couch and watched as he stirred in his sleep. The day's events looked like they were catching up with him in his dream form and it wasn't going very well. They were expecting this if they were being honest, maybe it was why Evan was in their bed this morning. It wasn't fair for them to expect him to go through his entire life so far full of trauma and not have any repercussions. Maddie had that outlet that she had evening conversations with Bobby and Athena were she could process her trauma with them. Evan doesn't have that yet on the count of him being non-verbal and nobody having a clear picture of how much of his own trauma he knows and understands. "I'm right here buddy," Bobby says.
He wasn't going to risk calling Evan by his name just in case he made things worse. Couldn't tell what the youngster was having a nightmare about, but it wasn't good for them to watch. He woke up with a start and crawled on the couch over to where he knew Bobby was sitting. The tears were flowing, and Bobby held him in his arms. "Let it all out buddy," Bobby says. The last thing he wanted was to destroy the trust he had in them to be himself around them and that included being upset and even frustrated and angry. The sobs were emotionally painful for Bobby to hear but he knew Evan needed this moment. Athena was with Maddie in her room as she had asked to do some crochet or something.
She was upset by her brother's distress but also knew he had been bottling up a lot of emotions and they needed to be released. She had her moments when he was asleep when they were still in that hell hole where she'd cry and cry for her brothers. Athena was teaching her to deal with her anger towards Margret and Philip in a healthy way. Like right now for instance she was angry that she and Evan were ever hurt, and Athena was redirecting it in a healthier way. The teddy bear she was crocheting was turning out super adorable. She didn't know if she was going to give it to Evan or keep it as a memory of it being the first thing she ever crochet.
She didn't have to think about it though as the bear wasn't quite finished. Evan was finally calmer and was holding onto Bobby's shirt tightly as he tried to take deep breaths through the last of the sobs. Bobby was quickly forming a plan in his head for how he could still make dinner with Evan now clinging to him. He could get Evan to help making the sauce with him in a safe way. He could put the ingredients into the pan or Bobby could supervise and hand over hand help him chop some vegetables. He would find a way to make it work because his son needed him right now. "What got you so upset kid?" he asks. He wasn't expecting an answer honestly, but at least he could get the point across that he was there.
Evan didn't answer, only gripped his t-shirt tighter and buried his head as much as he could into Bobby's neck. "It's okay you don't have to tell me, but I'll be here to listen when you do," he tells the kid. He got a little nod and then he stood up and span around with Evan still in his arms. Evan was confused but he had stopped crying. Athena was in the doorway; she was worried about her son and how her partner was coping with it all but was relieved to know all was okay. "I need my little chef to help me make dinner tonight. Do you think you can do that?" Bobby asks his son. He nods and Bobby points towards the kitchen and Evan naturally copies.
"Quickly, to the kitchen," Bobby says with the most serious face which soon disappeared when he rushed to the kitchen with a now giggly Evan in his arms and Athena following with a big smile. She was loving this new fun fatherly side to Bobby. He was being a little bit goofy with Evan and didn't have to be so serious all the time. There was three sides to Bobby she knew of, fire captain, husband and now father and she loved all three of them equally. Bobby did one more spin before placing Evan on the barstool, so he was able to reach the worktop to be the best little assistant. They washed their hands together and Bobby started getting the ingredients out of the fridge.
The spaghetti was going to be the last thing cooked so they were working on the bolognaise sauce first. Bobby did go for the hand over hand method in the end as his left hand was helping keep the carrot steady and he thought it would be easier this way. Evan was trying his hardest to focus on it as well which made the moment even more adorable for Athena to watch. Maddie had even come in to check on her brother and she had been roped into helping make the dinner. If Bobby could make pasta on his own the whole meal would have been from scratch but mostly was good enough for him. Maddie was tasked with making the garlic bread to go along with it which would only be cooked for about the last five minutes. Athena was just sitting and watching.
Her whole world was right in front of her working together in seamless harmony. She knows all mealtimes are not going to be like this, but she was going to savor all of the family meals she could. She could imagine Evan being really interested in Bobby's secret recipes and him teaching them so they could pass down the generations the way they were meant to be. She opened up her phone to text Michael about meeting on Tuesday and where they should do it. Their house would probably be the best bet as it gives Evan that feeling of security, and he knows he can go to his room or the backyard if need be. He's not going to be best friends with Michael straight away neither is Maddie, but they will get there eventually.
Dinner was ready and on the table once the location and time had been agreed between Athena and Michael. "Why thank you, this looks and smells amazing," Athena says as they all sit down to eat. It was definitely up there on the mess scale for Evan, but he enjoyed every last bite of the meal he had helped make, which was all that mattered in the end. They weren't fussed, in fact the more mess the better because he was enjoying himself in the moment and he could easily be cleaned in the bath later on. Maddie and Athena tag teamed on the dishes whilst Evan and Bobby were on bath time before bed duty. Bobby was going to start introducing a cup of milk and a cookie before story time and bedtime as a new bedtime routine.
He couldn't let Evan go to sleep without brushing his teeth after drinking milk and eating a whole cookie. He has some friends who became dentists, and he would come after Bobby for letting his son ruin his teeth. Bath time was a lot of fun as Evan got more confident in splashing and Bobby had to change his t-shirt before he was going to bring in this new part of the bedtime routine. He wasn't angry with Evan; they had a little splash war, and it got the laughter going so it made it worth it. He knows firsthand about how quickly life could be taken away, so he was going to make every little moment count. Evan was still tired, but he followed Bobby to the kitchen and watched him prepare everything with curious eyes.
He then followed Bobby to the couch where they spent an hour snuggling whilst he drank the milk and devoured the cookie. Bobby wasn't sure what Athena and Maddie were up too, but Evan was going to find her in a little while to say goodnight before he went to bed. "Do you want to chose tonight's bedtime story?" Bobby asks, and he got his nod. He was a little disappointed that Evan wasn't talking anymore but he knew it would come back. He was doing a lot better in that department than anyone was expecting, and they were happy with their system. Evan brushed his teeth and went and gave Maddie her goodnight hug before racing to his room to chose his bedtime story.
This time Evan was super tired and fell asleep halfway through his story. Bobby took some extra time to make sure he was tucked in and gave him a kiss on top of his head before going to join the girls for their evening television or movie. He loved his little family and every part of their routine. It is not going to be the smoothest ride, but then again parenthood never is, and he knew that. He was just going to do the best he could to make sure that he was there for all the highs and lows, the happy moments, and the mini dramas/tragedies. Evan and Maddie are going to be loved for as long as he breathes.
That's the end of another chapter. Hope you liked the zoo and cya next time.
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