Remy was relieved when Jacqueline was fine with watching Vinny while he prepared the guest room in their moderate four bedroom apartment. He'd put fresh sheets on the bed, and actually put blankets on it. Since he never really had the need for the room, he'd never really made the bed at any point. It meant that the room was a little dusty, so he needed to dust, vacuum, and put sheets and everything onto the bed.
He knew that when he went to leave Jacqueline at dance he would have to stop at the store for a toddler bed for little Charlie. He heard that, at the minute, Charlie was sleeping in her dads' room with them. She had to be in the same room as them, her fear of abandonment too strong to let one of them far for long, much less both of them. Of course he would have to figure out how to transport it, since he'll have to have Vinny with him. Unless he talked to Logan about bringing Charlie's, though that would possibly make her panic that she was going to be left behind…
Remy groaned lightly, stretching with a sigh. At the moment he needed to be thinking about lunch for the kids, and if he had time he would eat something with them. But then he had to quickly get laundry down, because it was honestly a little sad that he was this far behind. He sighed with relief when his back cracked. He relaxed and walked out of the guest room, humming lightly as he eyed the living room, finding Vinny laying on his back taking a mini nap while Jacqueline rubbed her eyes tiredly.
"Hey, Jackie, want papa to make some lunch?" He asked, he saw Jacqueline look over at him, blinking tiredly as she nodded. He walked in, carefully picking Vinny up to lay on the couch. He took care to make sure that, should Vinny wake up, he wouldn't fall off the couch unless he was nearly fully awake. And Remy knew that Vinny knew how to crawl off the couch semi safely.
"'ot 'am an' cheese?" Jacqueline asked, rubbing her eyes as she pushed herself up and climbed up onto the couch. Remy moved and helped tuck her in a bit as she wrapped herself in her own blanket. "'artoons?" She asked as she moved to lay on her back.
"Hot Ham and Cheese and Cartoons?" He asked, and Jacqueline nodded as she wrapped her arms around the stuffed animal that Remy offered her, it had been under the coffee table from her last nap in the living room. "Do you want to nap first?" He asked, because if she did, he could get laundry at least started.
"Mhm…" Jacqueline hid her face against the stuffed animal and the pillow under her head. Remy kissed her temple before getting up and grabbing the remote. Currently it was on one of the movies that she'd seen and had wanted to see again. But when she wanted to take a nap, her cartoons are what helped her go to sleep for at least a little bit.
"Okay," He found her 'Little Einsteins' and let the opening theme begin playing as he moved back towards his own room. He began to just pick up clothes and throw them in the laundry basket. He would make a trip to the laundry room at the bottom of the apartment building in a few minutes, but he needed to make sure he had all his own laundry and his kids.
Embarrassment was not a feeling he liked feeling, especially when it involved one of his old friends seeing him like he is now. He was a long, long way from the thief that had pissed off the Wolverine every change he got.
He was a long way from the Prince that knew his place in the world. And he was struggling to carve a new place for himself that felt comfortable for himself. He took a breath as he leaned against the wall, his hands already shaking.
"Don't think like this, Remy." He let his head fall back as he took a deep breath. Laundry and then lunch for Jacqueline and Vinny. Hot Ham and Cheese was relatively easy and was a mindless task sometimes when Jacqueline decided that's what they were going to eat. He hummed as he pushed off the wall and grabbed his hamper, eyes scanning his room to see if he'd missed anything, even taking the moment to check under his bed just in case something got kicked under.
He nodded when he found that there was absolutely nothing that he could be embarrassed about in his room that Logan could possibly find when he inevitably snooped at some point. He walked out of his room, humming quietly as he made his way to the door. He paused long enough to check on Jacqueline who was already out like a light and to check on Vinny, who was still napping happily.
He opened the door, locking it behind him as he made his way to the elevator. A quick stop to the laundry room and he would be back upstairs to get his kids clothes too. And then he had to finish dishes that he had started after breakfast. He bobbed his head as he continued to hum, his eyes closing momentarily.
He flinched when someone touched his arm, a woman with a toddler on her hip.
"Long day?" She asked. It took a moment for him to recognize her, Jean Grey, owner of the apartment building alongside her husband. It was only because of her, and her bleeding heart for single parents, that he was able to get this place.
"Long week." Remy sighed, pushing off the wall and checking what floor he was on. "Have a friend coming so I can sleep a bit." He informed her, sighing a little in relief when he saw that he hadn't missed his stop.
"Oh? Who?"
"Uh, Logan and his husband, Kevin, and their daughter, Charlie." He informed, cracking his neck as he forced himself to stand up straight. He wasn't losing more time because his eyes needed to close. Jean rested a hand on his arm before her son required her attention.
"Oh, I haven't seen Logan in years. You know Logan?" Jean sounded surprised, bouncing her son on her hip as she checked the floor. Surprise ran through him, and he was quick to look over at her. He was unaware that she knew Logan, or that Logan knew Jean. "Can't believe he has a kid now, and did you say husband?"
"You know Logan? And, uh-" Remy looked at the floor number and sighed. "Yeah, Logan… Logan and I go back a long, long while." Remy laughed lightly, "Adopted daughter, she's about Jackie's age, and Kevin sounds amazing for him. Keeps him stable." Remy joked lightly, earning a laugh from Jean.
"I hope to see it. You said they were coming by later today?" Jean asked, and when the elevator stopped at the ground floor, where the laundry room was, she got off with him. This was unsurprising, as sometimes if they caught each other they would walk and talk for a little bit.
"Yeah, around 3. Lo's gonna be picking Jackie up from dance. She doesn't know yet." Remy told her as they walked. Jean snorted, letting Nathan play with one of her bracelets as she stopped him from falling over one of the stairs to the laundry room. "Thanks."
"Where are the kids? They normally follow you everywhere." Jean asked, catching the bracelet and handing it back to Nathan with a quiet chuckle. "It's rare to see you alone."
"Napping, nightmares still, all night." Remy sighed, stretching as he started to move clothes into the washing machine. "Laundry needs to be done so Remy don't feel embarrassed at not being able to handle single father life. And then he's making hot ham and cheese for lunch." Jean huffed a breath of laughter again.
"Sometimes that's all we need. A little kick in the butt to get going. Even if it's just the promise of a break afterwards." Jean set Nathan on one of the closed washing machines, making sure that he wasn't going to lose her bracelet before glancing towards Remy. "When's the last time you slept, Remy?"
"A couple hours last night… three maybe?" Remy sighed, setting the washer and then realizing. "I forgot the laundry detergent." He groaned, staring at the filled washer with a feeling of dread. "I had a feeling that something was missing." He sighed, letting his head fall back.
"There's some spare under the cabinet." Jean pointed towards the ironing cabinet. "And I know Jackie and Vinny are allergic to most detergents, so I found the one you use. Third to the left." She informed him and Remy stared at her and he knew that there were stars in his eyes. "Remy, anyone could see you and know that you're running on fumes."
"Merci." Remy breathed a sigh of relief, running towards the cabinet and opening it, spotting the exact brand that he used. It had been a panic attack and a half when he first learned that he couldn't hold his daughter because of his detergent.
Finding the brand he used, which was a lot more comfortable for himself too, had been a miracle. An expensive miracle, but one all the same.
"I'm glad you asked Logan for help, Remy." Jean sighed lightly, and Remy smiled at her.
"It's… hard." Remy told her. "How's Nathan been? Your husband?" Remy asked, setting the washer timer. His hamper was empty, and he set it on top of the washing machine. He knew from experience that most people in the building don't touch a hamper or basket if it's on the washer.
And Remy's name was on the side of it.
"Asking for help is always hard." Jean told him. "Scott could tell you a number of stories where he was too uncomfortable to ask for help, and when it was forced on him." Jean told him, picking up Nathan who squealed happily as he waved his arms excitedly, the bracelet in his hands shaking.
Remy caught the bracelet when it went flying, much to Nathan's confusion and Jean's shock.
"Quick reflexes." Jean commented as Remy passed it back to her. "Thanks."
"Lived on the streets a long time, mon ami." Remy informed her. Jean's face saddened as understanding passed through her emotions. Remy wished he could ignore feeling emotions from others. "How's Scott?" He moved and put the detergent back, making a mental note to grab his own so he didn't rely too much on Jean's kindness. His rent was probably the lowest in the entire building.
500 a month was doable with the job Remy had gotten himself.
"Scott's… stressed from work." Jean nodded, slipping her bracelet back onto her wrist. "He's working through some things. Hey," Remy paused, feeling her emotions waver slightly. "Don't tell Scott that Logan's coming over for a few days."
"Logan an ex?" Remy asked, and Jean nodded. Remy's eyes widened as he stared at Jean momentarily. Nathan kicked his feet and Jean winced, her hand coming down and blocking Nathan's feet from her stomach.
"For both of us." Jean sighed, rubbing her stomach as she bounced Nathan.
"Ah," Remy nodded, giving her another look as they got back to the elevator. "How far are you?" Jean sputtered, eyes wide as she stared at Remy in confusion. "Jeanie, Nathan kicked and you blocked your stomach."
"Scott doesn't know yet." Jean sighed as they stepped into the elevator. She hit her floor, two floors above Remy's own. He hit his floor button too, and Jean leaned back against the back of the elevator.
"Don't wait too long," Remy chuckled lightly. Jean laughed lightly. "Now, Hot Ham and Cheese, and praying I don't forget laundry… again." Remy laughed, sighing in relief when they stopped at his floor. "Have a good day, Jean, and tell Scotty I said hey."
"He's still offering for you to get laid, by the way!" Jean called out after him. Remy actually considered it as he looked back and waved her off. He had a toddler's lunch to get started.