Mr. Mom

25

"Daddy? When is Aunt Hermie gonna has the baby?" Ellie asks as FP tucks her in.

"Not for a few more months, honey." He kisses her forehead and is about to leave her bedroom when she asks him another question.

"Is it a boy baby or a girl baby?"

"I'm not sure. Aunt Hermie and Uncle Freddie will tell us when they know." She seems content with the answer. "Night night, Ellie. I love you."

"I love you too, daddy. Say night night to Allie for me!"

"I will sweetheart." He watches as she rolls over, a teddy bear tucked tightly in her arms and he smiles at the sight before walking out of her room. "Ellie says goodnight." He tells Alice when he walks into the living room.

"She's a sweetie."

"That she is." He joins her on the couch. "Hey, thanks again for coming up with a reason on the spot. I was lost, and really not wanting to have to explain to my toddler how babies are made. She's been scarred enough by her trashbag of a mom."

"Of course, I could see you guys were struggling so I said the first thing that came to mind. Of course, she probably thinks her Aunt and Uncle are wizards now."

"That's fine with me." He sighs. "Look I know the terms in which you came to live with us weren't ideal but I want you to know that I'm really happy you're here."

"I'm happy to be here."

"Thank you for all that you do, helping me take care of my daughter, helping cook and clean. Those aren't things you have to do but you do them anyway, just... thank you."

"I should be the one thanking you. You're letting me stay with you for free and as long as I need, the least I can do is cook and clean and help you take care of Ellie."

"You're welcome to stay here as long as you need. The last thing I want is for you to feel like you need to leave as soon as possible and then go back to living with your dick of an ex."

"God no, I would never go back to him. I'm sill amazed I had the guts to get out of there to begin with." She picks at her nails, uncomfortable at the mention of her ex. "I realized that there were decent people out there and that I was just trapped in this hellhole of a relationship when I could be treated like a decent human being elsewhere. So, I left."

"I'm glad you did. Frankly, in my books, any guy who lays a hand on their girlfriend is a piece of shit. Hell, anybody who lays a hand on anyone for no reason is a piece of shit."

"He was never the greatest guy."

"You wanna talk about it?" He places his hand over hers on her knee, giving it a squeeze.

"Thanks, but it's been such a good night, I don't really wanna ruin it by talking about all the shit he's put me through. Sometime though I'll tell you about it."

"I'm always here. If you ever need anything just let me know."

"Thanks FP." She smiles at him, lacing her fingers with his with his briefly. "I don't mean to be rude, but I'm exhausted, so I'm gonna head to bed."

He chuckles. "No it's not rude at all, I'm tired too."

She smiles and stands up, letting her fingers slips from his as she walks to his bedroom. "Goodnight FP, see you in the morning."

"Night, Al."