Empathy

Bluerose921 asked for a oneshot of Emma babysitting Ella and Thomas's daughter Alex- who also has dyslexia and realising that if things had been different they would have been best friends able to help each other. Both Justices and a guest asked for Neal having ADHD. I hope they don't mind but I've combined the two different prompts otherwise there'd be two very similar chapters.

Wow! Four hundred chapters! I can't thank you call enough for your amazing support. This story wouldn't exist without people to give me their ideas :)

"Follow it down with your finger like this." Emma suggested, taking the little girl's hand and following the shape of the large letter s on the sheet of paper. Emma was babysitting both Alex and Neal to allow their parents to have a break. It had been discovered that Alex too had dyslexia and Neal had ADHD. She knew it could be tiring for her parents, Neal was just so full of energy. He was currently playing with some playdough while Alex did her homework with Emma. Emma realised why her parents were so tired. Someone constantly had to have an eye on Neal. He was just so impulsive. If he wanted to jump from the counter tops he jumped. There was a reason he'd been to the hospital more times than anyone else in his class. Thankfully, he seemed pretty amused with his playdough for the time being. It allowed Emma to concentrate more of her attention on Alex. Ella and Thomas had asked Emma if she wouldn't mind helping Alex with her homework while she babysat, knowing Emma also had dyslexia. Wanting to make sure nobody ever felt as stupid as she did, Emma jumped at the chance to help. Right now, Alex's focus was making sure all her letters were the right way round. Once she'd traced the large letter a few times, Alex had a go at writing some on a mini whiteboard. She showed Emma her little row nervously, only relaxing when Emma smiled at her. "Great job Alex, all the right way." Alex grinned proudly, picking out the T.

"You're a good teacher." She said simply. "You get it." Emma felt really touched to know that she was helping the little girl. "Mommy said you had it too." Emma nodded.

"Yeah, I do." She confirmed. "Don't worry, it gets easier. And you've got lots of people here to help." Emma encouraged her.

A thought occurred to Emma. She and Alex were meant to be around the same age. They should have grown up together. If things had happened differently, they would have gone through these struggles together. Emma thought that would have been nice, to have a friend by your side who understood the frustration. Wanting to be able to read properly and your brain just not allowing you to. Emma thought her brother must have similar frustrations. She knew he felt bad when he couldn't sit and do his work or interrupted someone when they were talking. It made it hard for him to keep friends at school, the children weren't old enough to be patient with him. All except Alex, she stayed by Neal's side through thick and thin. They were a good team. Alex didn't feel self-conscious around Neal like she did other children, and Neal didn't feel anxious around Alex like he did around his peers. Emma was glad they had each other. She was glad neither grew up the way she did, with nobody there who understood or cared. Never staying in one school long enough for them to pick up on it and develop strategies. They both had a good shot in life. Sure, on one hand it made Emma a little jealous seeing how wonderful her parents were with Neal- always fighting his corner when they weren't there to fight hers. But they were now, making life as easy for her as possible. Seeing if even as an adult there were things they could do to keep her dyslexia from affecting her day to day life as much as possible. Alex had Ella and Thomas, who were fantastic with her. Sure, Emma wasn't their age now to grow up with them and face their struggles together, but she could be a great voice of experience.