[advent 08] december five
Oh my god, I am so tired, Internet, and I haven't even finished baking yet D: D: D:
Anyway. Um. Here is today. It is almost all dialogue, but it is on a subject DEAR TO MY HEART. Also, it takes place after the Advent from a couple days ago where Danny went to the hospital. There are babies, but mostly Tristan being ridic. Also, Muppet Family Christmas was my favorite as well, and my childhood doll was named after Doc Boy for some unfathomable reason. The ending to this is really bad, but I am so tired I don't care. I just want to go to bed so i can get up and do laundry and bake tomorrow D:
Oh god, I am so tired D:
***
advent - day five
original - haul out the holly - in which Tristan has a present for Kira.
***
It had been a long night, but it felt like an even longer afternoon. When they got home from the emergency room at three-thirty in the morning, Doug was asleep on their couch and Kira was asleep in her bedroom. Alan had called Rose, Kira's nanny, as soon as it became apparent they weren't going to be home at eleven like he had previous told her. Doug agreed to babysit for them, but even then he had hoped to be home not long after midnight. The doctors in the ER, however, had other plans. Alan graciously sent Mr. London on his way around two, and they released Danny closer to three, exhausted and strung out, but breathing easily.
It had been a horrendous night, but someone had to get up with the baby. It was impossible to explain to an eight month old that her fathers had been up into the wee hours of the morning dealing with anaphylactic shock, but he had tried anyway, as he sleeplessly tried his best to feed her breakfast and then dropped her into her jumper. She busied herself with the toy suction cupped to the tray and Alan sat down on the floor, trying hard not to fall asleep.
He thought he had, when he first heard the knock at the door. He was leaning with his back against the wall, eyes closed, singing the Wonder Pets theme song over and over again as Kira banged a teething ring on the jumper's tray. He paused, mid-verse, when the knock sounded again, but it took a third knock for him to fully absorb what was going on and get to his feet, stumbling towards the door.
Tristan was on the other side, smiling brightly and holding a shopping bag.
"Hey!" he said.
"Hi, Tristan," Alan said. They stood there for a moment, before it occurred to Alan to step aside and let Tristan into the house.
"You look pretty bad," Tristan said, squinting at him as he lead the way to the couch. Kira seemed to be losing interest in her jumper. He wondered, briefly, where they had stashed the walker and really hoped it was on the first floor. Climbing the steps seemed like it required more energy than he had left.
"It was a long night," he said to Tristan, lifting Kira out of her jumper and taking her over to the couch. "Danny's still asleep."
"What happened?" Tristan asked.
"Let me tell you something about my husband," Alan said.
"This isn't going to be some kind of weird sex thing, is it?" Tristan was only half-joking.
"What--no, I--what would even make you--No, just that he's an idiot who thinks that he knows what's best for himself without thinking about the larger picture or the consequences or how things will--he thinks he knows everything, sometimes, and... it's incredibly exasperating and horrifying and sometimes I just want to hit him."
Tristan was staring at him.
"Yeah," he said, "but I already knew all that and I'm not sure how that equates to you having a bad night."
"Right," Alan said, wiping the drool off of Kira's face with the edge of his shirt. "Um, you know Danny's allergic to shrimp, right?"
"Yeah," Tristan said. "But not a lot, right? I mean, you're always telling him to stop because it might get bad, but it's not yet, right?"
"It is now," Alan said. "As of--" He glanced at his watch. "About fifteen hours ago."
"Oh man," Tristan said. "Is he all right?"
"He's fine," Alan assured him. "He is. Thank god. After five of the most harrowing minutes of my life he was fine, but we were at the hospital until almost three in the morning. I'm exhausted. But relieved."
"Yeah," Tristan said. "Seriously. Wow. Did you at least get to say I told you so?"
"In the ambulance I was too busy sobbing, at the hospital I was too busy decompressing, but I'll be sure to mention it a few times once he wakes up." He glanced down. Kira was chewing on his collar. He tried to summon up the will to care. "Anyway, what's up? What's in the bag?"
"Oh!" Tristan picked up the bag from the floor and put it on his lap. "This might be a bad time, but... well, it's Christmas and this is your first Christmas as parents, so I thought there were probably some things you were lacking." Out of the bag he pulled a stack of DVDs and set them on the couch between them, smiling broadly. He was familiar with most of the titles--Rudolph, Frosty, Charlie Brown, Miracle on 34th Street, The Grinch--but there were definitely a few that were new to him.
"Tristan... you know Kira's only eight months old, right?"
"It's never too early," Tristan insisted. "Really! I mean, you need to start her down the right path now! I threw in Muppet Family Christmas and Mickey's Christmas Carol and A Muppet Christmas Carol. Oh, and the Garfield Christmas special. That was my second favorite when I was a kid. I really liked Doc Boy for some reason."
"That's... great, Tristan," Alan said slowly. "You didn't spend a lot of money on all of this, did you? I know what you make, and there's gotta be a dozen DVDs on this pile."
"I didn't spend any money!" He looked thrilled. "I made them from all of my DVDs. That makes it more authentic, you know? Growing up, we just had all our copies taped off of television, and this is just like that."
It really was very sweet on him, and Alan was touched. Christmas was his favorite time of year and he and Danny were really trying to make Kira's first as amazing as possible, but that was something they had overlooked, even if her attention span was barely long enough for an episode of Wonder Pets.
"Oh, Tristan, this is great," he said. "Really. This must have taken forever. Thank you."
"We can watch one now!" Tristan said eagerly. "Just to make sure they all work."
Alan laughed. "That's a great idea. Why don't you pick?"
By the time Tristan had put a DVD in the player, Alan was already feeling his eyelids droop, and by the time the Muppets made it to Fozzie's mother's farm, he was fast asleep.
***
When Danny came downstairs, he was expecting to find Alan feeding the baby or reading the paper, or maybe unconscious in his breakfast.
What he wasn't expecting was Tristan McGreavy holding his daughter, sitting in front of his teevee, and laughing uproariously at something flickering across the screen.
"See," he said to Kira, "they keep slipping on the front porch because it's icy, and even though someone warns them, it's always a second too late."
"What's going on?" Danny asked, wandering into the living room. Kira looked over at the sound of his voice and gurgled happily, reaching over for him. Danny took her from Tristan, and finally noticed Alan curled up and asleep on the couch. "How's my best girl, huh? You having fun with Uncle Tristan while Daddy takes a nap?"
"I brought over some movies for the baby," Tristan explained. "Christmas movies, I mean. Alan fell asleep."
"I see that," Danny said, brushing Alan's hair off his forehead. "He deserves it after the night we had. And getting up with Peanut, here, probably didn't help any."
"I heard," Tristan said. "I'm glad you're not dead from shrimp. That would be a terrible way to die."
"Thanks," Danny said, laughing.
"Anyway," Tristan continued, "I can go if you want. I just thought that Alan probably deserved some sleep, and someone should watch the baby..."
"It's fine," Danny said. "Really." He nudged Alan aside and sat on the couch between him and Tristan. "We could use a little holiday cheer after last night. Remind us what we're thankful for, blah blah blah..."
Tristan grinned and hit the play button on the remote, just as another Muppet fell prey to the ice on the front porch and, after wiggling around in Danny's arms for a moment, Kira nestled down and followed her father into sleep.
Anyway. Um. Here is today. It is almost all dialogue, but it is on a subject DEAR TO MY HEART. Also, it takes place after the Advent from a couple days ago where Danny went to the hospital. There are babies, but mostly Tristan being ridic. Also, Muppet Family Christmas was my favorite as well, and my childhood doll was named after Doc Boy for some unfathomable reason. The ending to this is really bad, but I am so tired I don't care. I just want to go to bed so i can get up and do laundry and bake tomorrow D:
Oh god, I am so tired D:
***
advent - day five
original - haul out the holly - in which Tristan has a present for Kira.
***
It had been a long night, but it felt like an even longer afternoon. When they got home from the emergency room at three-thirty in the morning, Doug was asleep on their couch and Kira was asleep in her bedroom. Alan had called Rose, Kira's nanny, as soon as it became apparent they weren't going to be home at eleven like he had previous told her. Doug agreed to babysit for them, but even then he had hoped to be home not long after midnight. The doctors in the ER, however, had other plans. Alan graciously sent Mr. London on his way around two, and they released Danny closer to three, exhausted and strung out, but breathing easily.
It had been a horrendous night, but someone had to get up with the baby. It was impossible to explain to an eight month old that her fathers had been up into the wee hours of the morning dealing with anaphylactic shock, but he had tried anyway, as he sleeplessly tried his best to feed her breakfast and then dropped her into her jumper. She busied herself with the toy suction cupped to the tray and Alan sat down on the floor, trying hard not to fall asleep.
He thought he had, when he first heard the knock at the door. He was leaning with his back against the wall, eyes closed, singing the Wonder Pets theme song over and over again as Kira banged a teething ring on the jumper's tray. He paused, mid-verse, when the knock sounded again, but it took a third knock for him to fully absorb what was going on and get to his feet, stumbling towards the door.
Tristan was on the other side, smiling brightly and holding a shopping bag.
"Hey!" he said.
"Hi, Tristan," Alan said. They stood there for a moment, before it occurred to Alan to step aside and let Tristan into the house.
"You look pretty bad," Tristan said, squinting at him as he lead the way to the couch. Kira seemed to be losing interest in her jumper. He wondered, briefly, where they had stashed the walker and really hoped it was on the first floor. Climbing the steps seemed like it required more energy than he had left.
"It was a long night," he said to Tristan, lifting Kira out of her jumper and taking her over to the couch. "Danny's still asleep."
"What happened?" Tristan asked.
"Let me tell you something about my husband," Alan said.
"This isn't going to be some kind of weird sex thing, is it?" Tristan was only half-joking.
"What--no, I--what would even make you--No, just that he's an idiot who thinks that he knows what's best for himself without thinking about the larger picture or the consequences or how things will--he thinks he knows everything, sometimes, and... it's incredibly exasperating and horrifying and sometimes I just want to hit him."
Tristan was staring at him.
"Yeah," he said, "but I already knew all that and I'm not sure how that equates to you having a bad night."
"Right," Alan said, wiping the drool off of Kira's face with the edge of his shirt. "Um, you know Danny's allergic to shrimp, right?"
"Yeah," Tristan said. "But not a lot, right? I mean, you're always telling him to stop because it might get bad, but it's not yet, right?"
"It is now," Alan said. "As of--" He glanced at his watch. "About fifteen hours ago."
"Oh man," Tristan said. "Is he all right?"
"He's fine," Alan assured him. "He is. Thank god. After five of the most harrowing minutes of my life he was fine, but we were at the hospital until almost three in the morning. I'm exhausted. But relieved."
"Yeah," Tristan said. "Seriously. Wow. Did you at least get to say I told you so?"
"In the ambulance I was too busy sobbing, at the hospital I was too busy decompressing, but I'll be sure to mention it a few times once he wakes up." He glanced down. Kira was chewing on his collar. He tried to summon up the will to care. "Anyway, what's up? What's in the bag?"
"Oh!" Tristan picked up the bag from the floor and put it on his lap. "This might be a bad time, but... well, it's Christmas and this is your first Christmas as parents, so I thought there were probably some things you were lacking." Out of the bag he pulled a stack of DVDs and set them on the couch between them, smiling broadly. He was familiar with most of the titles--Rudolph, Frosty, Charlie Brown, Miracle on 34th Street, The Grinch--but there were definitely a few that were new to him.
"Tristan... you know Kira's only eight months old, right?"
"It's never too early," Tristan insisted. "Really! I mean, you need to start her down the right path now! I threw in Muppet Family Christmas and Mickey's Christmas Carol and A Muppet Christmas Carol. Oh, and the Garfield Christmas special. That was my second favorite when I was a kid. I really liked Doc Boy for some reason."
"That's... great, Tristan," Alan said slowly. "You didn't spend a lot of money on all of this, did you? I know what you make, and there's gotta be a dozen DVDs on this pile."
"I didn't spend any money!" He looked thrilled. "I made them from all of my DVDs. That makes it more authentic, you know? Growing up, we just had all our copies taped off of television, and this is just like that."
It really was very sweet on him, and Alan was touched. Christmas was his favorite time of year and he and Danny were really trying to make Kira's first as amazing as possible, but that was something they had overlooked, even if her attention span was barely long enough for an episode of Wonder Pets.
"Oh, Tristan, this is great," he said. "Really. This must have taken forever. Thank you."
"We can watch one now!" Tristan said eagerly. "Just to make sure they all work."
Alan laughed. "That's a great idea. Why don't you pick?"
By the time Tristan had put a DVD in the player, Alan was already feeling his eyelids droop, and by the time the Muppets made it to Fozzie's mother's farm, he was fast asleep.
***
When Danny came downstairs, he was expecting to find Alan feeding the baby or reading the paper, or maybe unconscious in his breakfast.
What he wasn't expecting was Tristan McGreavy holding his daughter, sitting in front of his teevee, and laughing uproariously at something flickering across the screen.
"See," he said to Kira, "they keep slipping on the front porch because it's icy, and even though someone warns them, it's always a second too late."
"What's going on?" Danny asked, wandering into the living room. Kira looked over at the sound of his voice and gurgled happily, reaching over for him. Danny took her from Tristan, and finally noticed Alan curled up and asleep on the couch. "How's my best girl, huh? You having fun with Uncle Tristan while Daddy takes a nap?"
"I brought over some movies for the baby," Tristan explained. "Christmas movies, I mean. Alan fell asleep."
"I see that," Danny said, brushing Alan's hair off his forehead. "He deserves it after the night we had. And getting up with Peanut, here, probably didn't help any."
"I heard," Tristan said. "I'm glad you're not dead from shrimp. That would be a terrible way to die."
"Thanks," Danny said, laughing.
"Anyway," Tristan continued, "I can go if you want. I just thought that Alan probably deserved some sleep, and someone should watch the baby..."
"It's fine," Danny said. "Really." He nudged Alan aside and sat on the couch between him and Tristan. "We could use a little holiday cheer after last night. Remind us what we're thankful for, blah blah blah..."
Tristan grinned and hit the play button on the remote, just as another Muppet fell prey to the ice on the front porch and, after wiggling around in Danny's arms for a moment, Kira nestled down and followed her father into sleep.