Dinner Catastrophe (Kia.)

[Jackson Haynes]

It hadn’t been that long since Jackson had found Kiara, and as promised, he had managed to secure himself a flat to live in. The move hadn’t been that difficult, seeing as how he had left a lot of old things in his old apartment. Walking into the startlingly white flat made Jackson come to a halt. There were no memories here, and part of him wished there were. Gabe seemed just as taken aback, his fingers in his mouth as he tried to decided which white spot was best to look at.

“Well, it won’t stay this way for long,” Jackson said to his son with a grin, kissing the top of his head before setting him down. “You gonna help daddy unpack?” Jackson asked, the little one already trying to climb on top of one of the boxes. Jackson put him near another one labelled ‘GABE’S TOYS’, and let the tot go to town ripping the box open and flinging everything all over the floor.

It hadn’t taken too long to settle in, but by the time Jackson was done putting most of the bigger things and necessary things away, Gabe was getting impatient for dinner. When his soft whimpers started, Jackson had only just found a fry pan. “Just give me a few minutes,” Jackson said as though he were reasoning with an adult. But the tiny person in the high chair was not going to put up with Jackson’s searching for something to stir with for more than two minutes.

With his little prodigy wailing in the background, Jackson called the only person he knew who could soothe Gabe while he tried to hold their tiny household together.

“Kiara? Hey, it’s me,” Jackson was scrambling eggs and looking for the bacon while Gabe sobbed. “I know it’s dinner time, but maybe you could swing by?” The man sighed, Gabe getting louder. “I can’t find any plates!”

[Deleted]

Kiara had not gotten into contact with Jackson again. She wanted to, for Gabe, but the second the cellphone ended up in her hand, hesitation struck. If Jackson would not pick up, if only because he wasn’t near his mobile, it would bring back too many memories and in turn it would make her reluctant to give it another go. Perhaps all of it had been a lie and her turning him down could have at last given him a decent reason to head back to Europe.

Until the man called her, which of course eliminated most of her fear. Nevertheless, it did not mean that the blonde more than eagerly answered the call. Instead Jackson was greeted with a soft ‘hello?’ despite her knowing exactly who it was on the other side of the line. She soon focused on the sobbing on the background though, standing up from the couch while her other hand used the controller to switch off the television. It actually was the main reason why Jackson’s words weighted so heavily, and even more so when the tot grew louder and the desperation in the man’s voice increased.

She said ‘yes’, for Gabe. After that Kiara asked for the address, and was out of the door within a minute. A note had been left for Henry, even though he probably didn’t care a lot. She even took a plate with her – also for Gabe -, securely holding it against her upper body with folding arms after having knocked the door of the apartment. The blonde figured this was the right place; she could faintly hear Gabriel whine after all. Whining that only grew louder as soon as Jackson opened up.

Kiara barely met his eyes as she held the plate out to him. And the moment he took it from her hand (and with him moving aside slightly), she cautiously stepped into the apartment. Once inside, however, the young woman was more confident to approach Gabe, almost fully ignoring the surroundings.

“Hey sweetie,” she whispered with a little wave at the young one.

[Jackson Haynes]

“Thank you,” Jackson had said, followed by giving Kiara the address and directions on how to get to his new place. The first thing on Jackson’s mind was calming Gabe down while successfully cooking some semblance of dinner. Breakfast for dinner, everyone loved that right? The second thing on Jackson’s mind was that he had no idea where the plates were, and that didn’t make any sense! The last thing on his mind, was that he probably didn’t look nice, and he wondered if Kiara would care.

After what felt like forever, Jackson heard a knock at the door. He opened it and cringed as Gabe grew louder. “I’m glad it’s you and not the neighbours,” Jackson said, giving a sigh of relief as he ushered Kiara inside. “I don’t know what’s gotten into him, he’s probably bored to death.” He said, glancing down at the plate pressed against him as Kiara went to the kitchen. That too, would be messy soon enough.

Going back to cooking, Jackson finally managed to get the bacon cooking, serving everything on the plates Kiara had brought. “Do you want some too?” He asked, gesturing at her with the spatula. Gabe seemed to be calming down at least and Jackson could feel some tension leave his shoulders. But Kiara seemed intent on ignoring him so he didn’t bring anything up that he wanted to.

Gabe was still whimpering softly, but he couldn’t decide if he was happy or still bored. “I’ll wash these once we’re done,” he said, slipping beside her to put some food in front of Gabe, who would mostly just suck on the bacon and actually eat the eggs.

[Deleted]

Kiara kind of felt ridiculous to have agreed to this. Surely Jackson would have managed, even if Gabe continued to be fussy. Having heard the little frogie through the phone, however, stirred those motherly feelings and she could not refuse. And seeing him sitting there in the high chair… It made that decision worth it. The blonde took off her coat and handbag, draping them on the chair next to the little boy where she sat down.

“No thank you.” She replied to Jackson at his question. Ki might not have eaten yet, but she didn’t intend to stay too long, nor to let him take care of her like that. After that, Gabriel received all her attention as her hand varied between tickling and ‘boop!’-ing his little nose. She was leaning forward in the chair, until Jackson stepped over which made her sit up straight again.

“It doesn’t matter.” It were just some plates. It wouldn’t make too much of a difference. Shuffling to have her back against the chair, blue optics rested on Gabe as he more than happy began to nom on the food. “Who kept an eye on him while you were molting?” Jackson had been gone long enough that it should have occurred around two times or so. It was a question she had wanted to ask that day in the park, and one she only brought up now in order to avoid at least some of the awkward silence that haunted them. Either way, if it had been a woman, Ki knew she would grow defensive.

“Last time I saw him, all his food still had to be mixed…” It drew a soft bitter chuckle from the girl. “He has grown up so fast.”

[Jackson Haynes]

If she didn’t want to be here she wouldn’t have bothered coming, right? At least that’s what Jackson was telling himself, even if it was for Gabe and not for him. He could enjoy the fruits of Gabe’s cuteness, right? Yeah he could have managed, but managing wasn’t the way to live life.

“Oh, alright…” Jackson said, belatedly noticing as he served up supper that there were only two plates. She didn’t intend to stay long. Jackson didn’t say a word as Kia interacted with Gabe, making him giggle and coo, even saying a few words like ‘play’, ‘up’, and ‘hi’.

“Kinda does,” Jackson insisted, “probably wouldn’t have been fun to eat off the counter tops.” He smiled despite the chilliness in the air. Kiara had always been warm – not anymore. At least she was still concerned over the tot. “There are metas in Europe too,” Jackson said, “and there are special daycares.” He had always been a man of few words, everything that he thought made sense in his mind didn’t always seem so obvious to those he spoke to.

Jackson fluffed Gabe’s hair playfully, making the little guy squeal with delight. “He’s a weed,” Jackson commented, before scarfing down his food, glancing between it and Gabe, sucking on the bacon as was predicted. Jackson touched Kiara’s plate for a moment, before standing again to rinse and soap it off…

If he could find the soap. “Maybe I can just… Replace them, or give them back once I find the soap.” There were still a few boxes left to unpack, odds and ends, but Jackson would bet the dishes were in there somewhere.

Gabe had eaten the majority of his food and was now looking at Kiara expectantly. “No eat,” he said simply, pushing his plate towards her. Jackson could feel his heart in his throat – god kids were good.

[Deleted]

Kiara was still a warm person – simply not towards him. If the circumstances were any different, she effortlessly would have returned the smile. Right now he received a small shrug before she looked over, almost as in disbelief. “He had to stay with strangers that long?” Because the molting did not just take a single day, and clearly Gabe had been left with people who couldn’t have known him the way she did. Sure, those people might have been metas, but that did not justify it in her mind.

But yeah, Gabe was a weed. Just like any kid was when you had not seen them for months. It was the little tot who received a loving smile as Jackson stepped away from the table. “Or just rinse them off with hot water.” Clean enough to take back home with her. She could easily go over them with soap once back at the apartment. It was of no real importance.

What was, however, was Gabe’s concern. It drew a genuine chuckle from her lips. She wanted to state that she was not hungry (despite the fact that it would be a lie), but the look on the little one’s face made her smile soften as she obediently tugged the plate a tad bit closer. “One a couple of bites then”, the blonde mused while picking up his plastic spoon to eat some (about three spoons) of the scrambled eggs. A slice of bacon followed as well, and then she pushed the plate back towards the toddler.

After having given him another smile, Ki rose off the chair and pushed it closer to the table. Then she took her coat. Gabe seemed to be happy enough, right? It’s why she turned to Jackson now. “You’ll manage now?”

[Jackson Haynes]

Jackson frowned. “They weren’t strangers, I got to know them pretty well,” he smiled over at Gabe, “and so did he.” Somewhere in the back of Jackson’s mind, he knew that Gabe would have his own powers to contend with, and his did just hoped they weren’t anything like his. Jackson was at least capable of being a good parent.

“Okay,” Jackson said feebly. So much for seeing Kiara again. It wasn’t like she really wanted to be here anyways and he wasn’t going to force anything on her. But it was the hope that maybe she did want to see him just a little bit that prompted him to get the flat in the first place. After meeting in the park, Jackson could’ve just gotten a hotel for the night and left again if Kiara really didn’t want to be in their lives.

Gabe was obviously content once Kiara returned the plate to him, and he was now happily playing with what was left. “Alright, that’s enough of that,” Jackson said, allowing Gabe to play with whatever eggs remained in his hand as he took the rest away.

After rinsing off the plates, Jackson put them in one of the many plastic bags from the move, handing them over to Kiara. Gabe was banging his spoon against the high chair as she grabbed her coat. “Always do,” he said, not sounding happy nor sad over the fact.

She knew the way out, and though he wanted to see her to the door, he wouldn’t. He wasn’t going to make her decisions for her.

[Deleted]

They were strangers… compared to her. Kiara kept that remark to herself though. This was not the moment to grow selfish. Or, well, she feared it might end up being interpreted like that. Her main concern was Gabe and the unstable life he possibly had been leading the last couple of months. But yeah, at least Jackson was a good parent. He got to prove that while Ki felt like she had abandoned him, unable to figure out where they had gone.

When Jackson stepped over with the plastic bag, Kiara took it from him. “Thank you” After that, the blonde turned to the little tot and placed a kiss on the side of his head, careful to not get hit by him banging the spoon around. He seemed to be quite okay with the fact, but deep down Kiara wished that he wasn’t. She wouldn’t admit it though. She would not admit that stepping away like this, without any objections, hurt.

“Okay”, Ki breathed out in a small sigh. Eyes settled on Gabe for another second before the young woman spun around and headed over to the door to let herself out. That’s the only reason she had come here, right? To calm Gabriel down and to provide some plates. No one or nothing ever stated her presence should exceed that.

Except for her own feelings.

She didn’t even reach the door before hesitation won, making her halt and slowly turn around again. Gabe had started to whimper lightly, and in her mind she justified her decision by blaming it on that. The blonde reluctantly moved back to the kitchen area, not sure if Jackson was aware she hadn’t left yet. “Can… I maybe stay a bit longer to put him to bed? Unless that’s weird and it might confuse him…”

Like usual, Kiara added a possible explanation for in case he said no. Jackson shouldn’t feel obligated to allow her to. “And maybe play some while you unpack those boxes?” A hand motioned at the pile as she bit her lower lip.

[Jackson Haynes]

Jackson managed a smile. "No, thank you. For coming here and letting us use your plates," he glanced at the boxes yet to be unpacked, "I'm sure I'll find everything eventually." He wasn't making any promises, he was pretty exhausted after today.

It wasn't that Jackson didn't want her to stay, he just figured she probably didn't want to. It didn't really matter what he wanted, he had crossed the lines and couldn't uncross them.

Gabe was whining for Jackson as Kiara hesitated, and Jackson only laughed softly at the tot. "You're silly," he said, tickling Gabe and making him laugh again, "none of that face." Unused to all the sounds of the new place, Jackson wouldn't have noticed if Kiara had left or not, but as she reappeared in the kitchen, both he and Gabe looked surprised.

Jackson's brow furrowed, unsure why that would confuse Gabe. "We'd be fine by that," he said, smirking as Gabe put his hands up in the air. The kid wasn't done, he knew it was bath time. And bath time meant airplane time.

"It's a race to the bath tub!" Jackson said, lifting baby Gabe over his head and half running, half walking to their new bathroom. It was gigantic, but at least there was room for all of Jackson's stuff, and all of Gabe's things, which were in the bathroom already.

Jackson laughed to himself and his giggling son. "Okay, you two have fun," he said as soon as Kiara caught up with them. Crossing the bathroom to leave, Jackson looked at Kiara and then back to Gabe. "I appreciate this," he said, resisting the urge to lean in close, and instead, simply leaving Kiara alone.

[Deleted]

Kiara feared it might confuse Gabe because it would not be part of their daily routine. Because she would tend to him now like a mommy would, only to disappear again afterwards. She didn’t want to cause that. The tot was too young to even reason like that, but she nevertheless feared that he might think she would abandon him.

Still, the girl felt some tension drop off her shoulders when Jackson approved. And a genuine smile actually tugged at the corners of her lips when he plucked Gabe out of the high chair, able to spot the pure happiness that appeared on his cute face as a train of childish giggles echoed through the room.

The smile lingered until she caught up to them in the bathroom. The moment she turned the corner, Ki adjusted it to a more casual expression and stepped over to the tot who was already dragging a towel to the bath tub. Jackson received a small nod to acknowledge his expression of gratitude. It granted her the opportunity to spend some quality time with the little one.

With Jackson out of the bathroom, the blonde closed the door ajar and squatted down in front of Gabe to help him undress. In the meanwhile water started to fill the tub, creating bubbles as Ki had gotten some soap in it as well. The diaper was put in the small trash can and then she carefully lifted him into the water after having checked its temperature.

Kiara sat on her knees to stabilize the toddler, to keep him from losing his balance on the slippery surface. One hand scooped some water onto his back. With arms draped over the edge, Ki rested her head against her right upper arm while gazing at Gabe.

“Never forgot that I love you.” She whispered before allowing her voice to drift off into a soft hum.

[Jackson Haynes]

With Gabe safe in the bathroom with Kiara, Jackson went back to the living room to continue unpacking. The sounds of splashing, giggling, and some talking on Kia’s part filled his ears. He looked around in the middle of taking out some glasses, hoping that soon this empty flat would feel like home.

Jackson smiled to himself as some bed sheets were found. He took the box to Gabe’s room, a baby monitor already set up by the crib. Soon Jackson would replace the crib with a little bed, but Gabriel wasn’t big enough for that just yet. Taking the watery blue sheets out from the box, Jackson lifted up the baby mattress easily, fitting the sheets on. They were already snug by necessity, but he made them more so to make it safe for his son to sleep on them.

A lot of thoughts went through his head as he unpacked a number of small kitchen utensils and put them away. The first being that Kiara was in his flat, bathing his son, and as sweet as that was, she wasn’t here for him. As much as he wanted her back, he didn’t know how to ask. But he couldn’t very well keep going, pretending like this was all okay when it wasn’t. It wasn’t okay that she didn’t think she was a huge part of his life.

Hearing the drain being unplugged, and Gabe being very quiet, Jackson knew it was bed time for the little guy. It also meant there wouldn’t be any excuse for Kiara to leave. Walking back to the bathroom, Jackson leaned against the doorframe, putting on a smile for their sakes. “You can put him to bed too, if you want to I mean.” Gabe was a tough little man. “He doesn’t like any blankets, just the frog in his crib.” Which Jackson had secretly named Ribbit.

[Deleted]

Getting Gabe into a dry diaper was more of a struggle than it had ever been. The tot wasn’t making it difficult on her though, she simply hadn’t had a chance to maintain those skills. Eventually she succeeded and also put on his cute pirate pajamas. Ki was just finished when Jackson spoke up and she cast a glance over her shoulder, once more replying with a simple nod before plucking Gabe off the changing cushion.

After having entered the nursery, she gently placed Gabe down in the crib. Then the girl reached for the frog, playfully nuzzling it against his upper body and neck while making a ‘ribbit!’-sound. She did that about three times while Gabriel giggled. Features had softened immensely as Kiara slowly sank through her legs to sit down next to the crib, able to caress his small hand through the safety bars.

Ki hadn’t switched on the light, but the opened door provided just enough light for her to be able to observe him as he seemed to be happy and relaxed. “Want me to sing you a song?” She whispered quietly while resting her left sleep against one of the bars, looking down at her little angel.

Gabe used to like that, but he had changed and the blonde wasn’t sure to which extent he was still the same. Nevertheless, soon her voice soothed him to drift off into a slumber as lyrics that had been written a couple of months ago rolled over her lips. After another minute of silence, Kiara slowly withdrew her finger from his little hand, quietly raising before casting another loving glance down in the crib.

“I love you,” she whispered.

(((Would sing till 1:30 ^^)))

[Jackson Haynes]

Since Kia was keen on not saying more than two syllable words at a time at a maximum to him, Jackson crossed his arms over his chest and nodded, turning on the spot to give them space. At least all the unpacking was finished now, and he’d have to figure out something else to do tomorrow. Not that Gabe couldn’t help him figure that out.

Jackson had paced back to the kitchen, took the plates out of the bag and actually washed them now that he had found the soap. Anything to keep himself bust was appreciated at this point. The water ran over the dishes as soft singing came from Gabe’s room. He stopped scrubbing. This whole thing wasn’t helping, it just made him miss her more.

It wasn’t just the way Kiara treated Gabe, it was Kiara herself that he wanted back.

Toweling off the dishes, Jackson put them in a new back and replaced them where Kiara’s jacket was, wiping at his face before going to sit on the couch. The singing had stopped, and Jackson stood again as soon as Kiara left Gabe’s room. He watched her go for her jacket, but stepped in front of her, blocking her exit.

Taking a deep breath, Jackson gritted his teeth and searched her eyes gently. “Kia, don’t go yet.” He gave her the bag, a painful half smile on his face. “I uh, I found the soap. They’re clean now.” Of course that’s not what he wanted to say, but… What if she didn’t want to stay?

[Deleted]

Kiara had stepped out of Gabe’s room, very carefully closing the door behind her to make sure it didn’t wake him up. Once positive that no harm had been done, she turned and moved to where her jacket had been draped over the chair again. She had seen Jackson get up from the couch, but no further attention was being paid until he suddenly stepped in front of her.

Taken aback, the blonde stood there, looking at him in slight confusion with a frown. Until, hey, he handed over the bag and she figured that was why the man interrupted her actions so abruptly. “Oh, right, okay. Thank you.” With yet another nod, the girl took the bag while her other hand tried to reach past him for the jacket. That did not seem to be as easy as imagined though, whether it be because she didn’t want to lean too close or because Jackson seemed to (subconsciously) maintain the blockage.

Straightening her back again, Ki gazed up at Jackson. “You’re… kind of in front of my jacket?” A weak nervous and uncomfortable chuckle joined in, not having had the intention to make it sound like a question. Of course he stood in front of it; that much was clear. Then she bit at her bottom lip, taking a miniscule step back to grant him more space to move again as well. Jackson did not seem too eager to move though.

Or perhaps that was how she wanted to interpret it.

She also could have stepped around him… but clearly Kia didn’t. With other words, he had another chance to voice his thoughts – if he could muster the courage.

[Jackson Haynes]

If he didn’t say anything now, Kia would assume that all this was okay. Maybe it was okay for her, maybe it was even okay with Gabe, but Jackson didn’t want to pretend, that’s not why he came back. At least if she was going to be here, she could just admit that she was over him instead of being so cold.

Jackson nodded, continuing to block the jacket to buy more time. He took a deep breath before speaking. “You really just want this to continue as is?” He had said the words, but he still couldn’t bring himself to look at her. He had no right to ask, no right in keeping her here. But he loved her, and love made people do stupid things.

Stupid things like leaving with her best interest at heart without even asking first.

This time would be different. He cupped her shoulders gently. “I don’t want to lose you again, and I’m sorry I did at all. But if you’re going to treat me like this, just say that you’re over me.” He pursed his lips tightly, his eyes turning reptilian from the stress of the moment. What if she said she was?