[backdated to last Tuesday]
Jessi looks mildly peeved as she steps towards the bowling alley. No, her brother hasn't done anything at all; he's been very good since she ran into him. She's just having a hectic day, and while Kaden's being good, she's far too aware that he's not happy about her going on a date at all. She doesn't even want to think about all of that right now
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When he sees them by the counter, he walks over, sending Jessi a look and reaching out to grab her hand before the person at the counter can take the card.
"Hey, I thought we had a deal." Danny gives a very pointed look her way and then follows it with a smirk.
He waves at her son and smiles. "Hi, Justin."
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"Hi Mr. Danny," Justin, says, puffing out his cheeks. "I've never been bowling before."
"Yup," Jessi says, reaching down and squeezing her son's hand. She realizes that all of her hands have been captured. She could use a third arm. "Bet you're better than me." She glances up at Danny, shrugging. "I'm horrible at bowling, just to warn you. Mrs. Gutterball."
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"Really? Well, that's too bad," Danny says to Justin. "You're in for a treat. If you like tossing a ball and knockin' things down, you'll like this."
He carries their shoes to some open seats so they can put them on.
"Wouldn't know. I haven't been bowling in awhile. Don't think I'll be much better," Danny explains to her and smiles. "We'll put up the... the things that block the gutters so we all feel like we're bowling champions."
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The last time she went bowling was in high school, she suddenly realizes. It kept her out of PE; there was no way she would have survived a real physical education course. Luckily, prep schools were more interested in education, and less interested in making sure you ran laps and climbed ropes.
She picks up Justin, propping him up on her hip as she walks over towards the chairs to put the shoes on.
"Gutter guards are a brilliant idea," Jessi agrees. "But you know, we just need them up for Justin. It's not like we need them."
Justin wriggles out of Jessi's grip as she sits down, staring wide eyed at a man who is rather good at bowling. Yes. He definitely likes the noise bowling makes.
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Damn bowling shoes never look cool or badass at all. For once, Danny isn't really concerned with looking either way.
It all makes complete sense to him. Also, it sounds like he's been working on this theory for a long time. He hasn't. Danny winged it. Isn't everyone proud of how knowledgeable he sounds?
"Yeah, exactly. It's his first time so we're using it just for him," Danny says, looking at Justin and smiling at his expression when the pins fall down. His shoes are already on so Danny gestures at the desk, hand resting on her shoulder for a moment. "I'll go get us a lane, okay?"
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She leans over, attempting to put Justin's shoes back on, but he squirms, whining, "I want shoes tooooo."
Rolling her eyes, Jessi pats the top of her son's head. "They don't make you wear the ugly shoes," she points out. "You're lucky. Luckyyyy."
Justin squirms as his mother plays with his hair, letting out an annoyed high-pitched noise. "I'll be there in a second," she says, giving a big smile at Danny.
Justin, on the other hand, is running after Danny in his sock feet. Oh well. Jessi leans over, tying her shoes. They really are ugly.
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He looks back in time to see Justin following him, and he slows down so the kid can catch up.
"You really are lucky. those shoes of yours back there are a lot cooler than mine," Danny says. He looks down at the ones on his feet and makes a face of disgust.
Danny pays for a couple games on lane three, which is open and then he turns around and points Jessi in the right direction. "And here comes the most important part of bowling. Picking out your ball."
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Justin, on the other hand, is finding it pretty amazing to touch all of the balls. They're cold and smooth and heavy. He can't really pick them up. Which is why it's a good thing there are children's balls.
He glances down at Danny's shoes and thinks for a second. "They are ugly," he agrees, as if they were still on the same conversation.
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They'd get in a lot of fights.
He laughs when Justin finally agrees.
"Yeah, you don't want to be wearing these. They don't make you look good. Find a ball you like? Gotta make sure you can lift it so you can knock all the pins down in one throw."
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Justin, on the other hand, seems to be completely immune to his mother's spazz. He stares at her for a long moment, but then looks back at the balls. Mommy spazzes enough as it is. It doesn't usually mean anything. "I can lift this one," he says, finding a children's ball and pulling it into his lap." He topples back, taking the ball with him and grins up at Danny.
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"It's okay," Danny says, looking up at her and managing a smirk. "I don't... know either. We're winging it together, remember? It's cool. I don't really think too far in the future mostly."
Danny smiles down at Justin. Yeah, the kid is cute, and Danny has a soft spot for kids in general, but he likes Justin more than most kids that he's met. "Yeah, you sure can. So all you gotta do is set it on the floor and push it at those pins over there," he says, walking over to lane 3. "You wanna try first? Or you want to watch me to see how it's done?"
Like he's some kind of bowling expert.
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It took forever for Mariah to convince her daycare was okay. Maybe she could utilize Danny as a babysitter someday. He really is fantastic with Justin. Although, the idea of what the apartment would look like when she got back... Oh, she can't even think about that.
She sits down in one of the chairs, smiling as she watches the two of them.
Justin puffs out his cheeks, thinking about it while making little huffy breaths through his nose. One the one hand, he would probably look really cool if he tried and was awesome. On the other hand, he has no idea what he's doing. "You try first," he says eventually, nodding his head quickly.
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There are more than monsters out there that can kill a person. He's aware of that, but he doesn't like to think about death much, unless it's someone else's. He doesn't really like thinking of her or Justin stumbling around the bend and into a monster.
He would like to babysit Justin, and he would pick up most of the mess that was made as a result. Honest.
Danny nods when Justin tells him to try first.
"Okay, now there's a lotta ways you can go about this. You gotta find your own way. You can put your ball up here like this." He demonstrates, setting it down at the start of the lane. "And then push it as hard as you can. Or you can hold on to the ball and throw it down the lane like thisHe puts his fingers into the holes of the bowling ball, pulls the ball back, and steps forward, throwing the ball down the lane. All Danny can say is thank God for gutter protection. Five pins are ( ... )
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Either way, it's nice, being able to spend time with him like this. She hasn't had a moment like this in a long time. Just lazy. Happy. Happy. She's put so many things before her own happiness lately. Well, at least losing her job has made things like this easier. Her schedule's slightly more open. Of course, a lot of that is going to be put towards studying. And Kaden. Her brother is a piece of work. She needs to make sure he starts taking better care of herself. That is her job now ( ... )
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