Adventures in Babysitting (1/1)
Adventures in Babysitting (1/1)
Author: Amy (ABandt)
Rating: G
Paring: None - Orlando and Sean are both in it though. This is *not* a pairing fic…that would be squicky.
Disclaimer: I can safely say this never happened
Warnings: AU. Fluff, pure unadulterated, Fluff. And silliness and cuteness.
Summary: Sean gets roped into babysitting detail for the son of his new neighbors.
Author’s Notes: I don’t know…it’s a mystery. That pretty much sums up the feelings about where the hell this story came from. Trying to wrangle my muses into cooperating…why is it that they hear deadline and they hide. This is what came with me when I was thinking of a distraction.
Author’s Notes #2: Okay ages…Samantha and Lorraine are the same age....17ish maybe. Orlando is 4 and Sean is 21. (playing with the ages…well Sam’s)…a lot but its AU. I think its doubtful Sean was still living at home when he was 21 but…whatever.
Author’s Notes #3: This is sort of taking place in modern times…I didn’t feel like doing the research to find out what sorts of electronics a Sheffield home in the early 80’s would have. I was only 3 at the time so I don’t know what a US home had in the early 80’s I have a vague recollection of having remote controls by the mid-late 80’s but when exactly they came into existence I couldn’t say for sure.
* * * *
“Sean! Wake up!”
Sean grunted and pulled his blanket a little tighter around his head trying to block out the bright sunlight that was streaming through his bedroom window. There was another hard shake, the blankets being wrestled from his head and the continued high-pitch whine that was his younger sister’s voice.
“Are you awake?” she asked.
She poked him hard in the shoulder which earned a grunt in response and one green eye being cracked open to glare at her. She grimaced as she saw how bloodshot they were; maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Still it was in the name of friendship and it must be done.
“You look awful, what time did you get in?”
Sean’s groggy brain refused to cooperate long enough to remind him what time he’d gotten in that morning but it did manage to form a question in return. “What time is it?”
“1 o’clock,” she answered cheerfully as he groaned and tried to pull the sheets back up around him. “No, you don’t…” she said grabbing them and yanking them clear.
“Lorraine,” he groaned as the cool air hit him. “What if I had been naked?”
There was a nervous giggle from the doorway of his room and Sean moved his eyes without moving his head and saw a girl huddled mostly out of the room trying to look like she wasn’t eyeing his bare chest with relish. She looked familiar to his fogged up brain and it took him a few more seconds for it to click into place. She was the new girl from next door, what was her name…Sarah…Stephanie…no, Samantha, that was it. She and Lorraine were the same age, her family had moved to Sheffield from somewhere down south.
“Whatever,” Lorraine said rolling her eyes. “Get up…I need a favor.”
“No,” he said simply and threw his arm over his face.
“You get up and do this one little thing for me and I won’t tell Daddy that you didn’t get home until after he went to work this morning.”
“Who cares,” he said even though inside he did.
“You know he’s threatened to put you to work for him if you don’t shape up…” she reminded him easily of their fathers threat about what he’d do if Sean didn’t stop the drinking, the drugs, the fights and the late nights.
“I’ll end up doing that anyway so that’s not exactly a big enticement.”
Lorraine sighed knowing her brothers feeling about joining the family business but there was nothing that she could do about it at least not without him helping her out by staying sober and acting like the grown up he was supposed to almost be.
“Help me anyway, please,” she said softly. “Betsy’s having an emergency, her boyfriend is cheating on her and Sam and I need to go over there and help her plan revenge…”
“She’s lived next door for two weeks and she’s already up to emergency help level?” Sean asked in a teasing voice which caused Lorraine to roll her eyes at her older brother. “What do you need me to do, beat the guy up?”
“No, Sean,” she said in exasperation. “Samantha is looking after her little brother and he’s only four and can’t be left alone we need you to watch him for a couple of hours while we go over there.”
“You want me to baby-sit,” Sean asked incredulously. “A four year old?”
“Yeah well,” Lorraine said hesitantly. “It wouldn’t be my first choice of course but…”
“Hey…” Sean mumbled in annoyance despite the fact that he had been implying the same thing himself.
“…it’s a bit of an emergency.”
“I don’t really think I’m up for babysitting,” he said tentatively. “I can’t run around after a four year old for two hours…”
“You won’t have to,” Samantha spoke up from the doorway. “Orlando’s been running around all afternoon and he’s about ready to crash, just keep him inside and he’ll probably drop off really fast.”
Orlando? Someone actually named their child that? Poor kid. Sean blinked out of that train of thought when he realized that they were looking at him expectantly. He sighed, ran a hand over his face and then forced himself to sit up.
“Okay,” he muttered.
“Thank you, Sean,” Lorraine practically squealed as she leaned over and hugged him.
She tossed him a T-shirt and a pair of lounge pants which he pulled on after both girls had ducked out of the room, Samantha giggling up a storm. With an eye roll he joined them in the hallway pausing before heading downstairs.
“Anything I need to know?” he finally asked after a few moments of silence.
“No, not really,” Samantha said. “Orlando’s a really good kid, easy to watch, I promise. He’ll probably just stare at you for a while and then fall asleep on the floor.”
“He’s really shy,” Lorraine agreed with a nod. “I doubt he’ll come anywhere near you, you’re big and scary.”
Sean smirked at that but didn’t disagree. The girls moved into the living room where they girls had left Orlando settled on the floor in front of the TV. Sean wandered into the kitchen and grabbed something to eat while he listened to the conversation going on in the next room. It was rather one sided with Samantha explaining to the boy where she was going and who he was going to be with. Orlando didn’t say a word.
“We’re off,” Lorraine said sticking her head into the kitchen. “Be good…no swearing in front of him…he picks everything up a regular mimic that one.”
Sean nodded his head; he finished up his food and his water, placing the dishes in the sink before he headed into the living room. He was giving Orlando enough time to get used to the fact that he was alone in the house with someone he didn’t know. He frowned when he realized the room appeared empty. There was a blue blanket on the floor with what looked to be a ratty stuffed animal of some kind but no four year old anywhere in site.
“Ah…Orlando?” he said quietly. “Are you in here?”
There was no response just the low sound of the TV set on cartoons. Sean eased into the room, he had a feeling that Orlando was somewhere inside, if he was as shy as he appeared to be he wasn’t going to go wandering around a strange house, he didn’t want to scare the kid. He eyed the room guessing that behind the chair on the opposite side of the room was where Orlando was hiding. With a smile Sean knelt down next to the discarded items on the floor and picked up the stuffed animal, it was a pony and very ratty and tattered.
“Well then, since there appears to be no one here to claim this I’ll just have to take it for myself…”
There was a small noise from in the direction of the chair. Like Orlando had wanted to cry out in protest but had stopped himself. Satisfied that he knew where his charge was Sean put the animal back down onto the blanket and went over to the couch. He turned up the TV just a touch but left it on the cartoons.
Minutes ticked by without any movement from the chair. But finally out of the corner of his eye he watched as a small head poked out from around the chair to regard him cautiously. Sean kept his eyes trained on the TV as curiosity finally got the best of Orlando and he crawled out from behind the chair and moved very slowly over to his stuff.
Other than the TV there was no sound in the room. Sean made sure to keep his eyes trained on the TV, but because of where he was sitting Orlando was directly in his line of sight. He watched as the kid picked up his blanket and his stuffed animal and clutched it to his chest eyeing the stranger in front of him warily. More minutes ticked by before Orlando made his next move. He’d shuffle himself along on his butt in the direction of the couch. Just a few inches at the most and then stopped. He kept his eyes on Sean, wait a little while and then shuffle forward again. This went on until he was right up next to the couch.
He was now out of Sean’s line of sight and he made sure not to move his heads or eyes towards the boy because he could feel the kid’s eyes trained directly on him. Eventually Orlando seemed to come to a decision and pulled himself, the blanket and the horse up onto the couch next to Sean. He didn’t say anything but Sean felt it would be okay to shift his eyes towards the boy next to him.
Orlando had a mop of dark curly hair and a pair of wide brown eyes that were equal parts wary and interested in the guy on the couch regarding him quietly. Those eyes seemed far older than his four years there was intelligence and deep curiosity shining in them.
Sean turned his attention back to the TV content to let the boy make each first move. He felt the boy start to fidget and knew that it wouldn’t be much longer before he could no longer resist the urge to speak.
“Whatcha you doin’?
The boy’s voice was such a soft whisper that Sean had to strain to hear it. He responded with a slight grunt and then gestured to the TV. “I’m watching cartoons,” he said in a soft unthreatening voice.
There were a few more moments of silence before Orlando spoke again; his voice was a little stronger and a little louder this time. “You sound funny.”
Sean turned to regard the boy with wide eyes and then grinned as it his him what the boy was talking about. “Am I the first new person you’ve met?” he asked deciding to talk to the boy the way he had wanted to be talked to at that age, like an adult not a child. Orlando thought about it for a moment and then shook his head. “Lr’aine…sounds funny too.”
“Everyone one sounds like that up here,” Sean said looking down at him. “You’re the one that sounds funny, not the other way around.”
“No I don’t!” Orlando said with a huff and a pout. “I sound right…you wrong.”
“You do,” Sean assured him with a grin.
“Nu-huh!”
“Yu-huh!”
Orlando crossed his hands across his chest and huffed and sent Sean a four year old’s version of an annoyed look. His lip stuck out in a full out pout and Sean had to resist the urge to laugh at him.
“You know what,” Sean said easily. “To someone up further north in Scotland, we’d *both* sound funny. But we know the truth don’t we…”
“They sound funny!” Orlando said and he giggled.
“Exactly.”
Sean turned his attention back to the TV hoping that since Orlando’s curiosity had been abated he’d drift off to sleep. Orlando continued to watch him for a few more moments and then he dropped down onto the couch, curling up next to Sean with his head resting against his leg. Sean glanced down at the boy in surprise and found himself still being regarded by big brown eyes. Orlando had his horse clutched to his chest; the blanket was dangling from the edge of the couch. The boys were drifting shut every few seconds sleep was clearly right around the corner.
“What are you doing?” Sean asked him softly.
His response was a small grunt, a youthful version of the one he had done a little bit earlier. Sean chuckled, unable to stop himself, as he remembered what Lorraine had told him earlier about the boy being a mimic. Well at least it was only grunting that he’d picked up and not something worse.
He watched as the boy’s head became slack against his thigh and he fully drifted off. He could feel his leg twitching restlessly from its trapped spot but pushed thoughts of moving the boy aside and instead leaned over grabbed t he blanket from where it dangled and laid it on top of the sleeping child. He flipped off the TV and grabbed the nearest thing he could find to read, the financial section of The Times. He grimaced but carefully opened it and started to read until the numbers and letters started to blur in front of him.
Unable to read it any longer he folded it back up and set it down back where he’d gotten if from. He looked down at his sleeping companion and smiled. Taking one of the couch cushions he propped it behind his neck and quickly joined his small companion in slumber.
* * *
Author’s Notes #4: I warned you all it was silly. Not sure if I’m going to put this out on the Com’s because of the silliness…what do ya’ll think?
Author’s Notes #5: I may return to this verse when certain parties are older and a bit more legal…but I don’t know…I might not need too.
~Amy
Author: Amy (ABandt)
Rating: G
Paring: None - Orlando and Sean are both in it though. This is *not* a pairing fic…that would be squicky.
Disclaimer: I can safely say this never happened
Warnings: AU. Fluff, pure unadulterated, Fluff. And silliness and cuteness.
Summary: Sean gets roped into babysitting detail for the son of his new neighbors.
Author’s Notes: I don’t know…it’s a mystery. That pretty much sums up the feelings about where the hell this story came from. Trying to wrangle my muses into cooperating…why is it that they hear deadline and they hide. This is what came with me when I was thinking of a distraction.
Author’s Notes #2: Okay ages…Samantha and Lorraine are the same age....17ish maybe. Orlando is 4 and Sean is 21. (playing with the ages…well Sam’s)…a lot but its AU. I think its doubtful Sean was still living at home when he was 21 but…whatever.
Author’s Notes #3: This is sort of taking place in modern times…I didn’t feel like doing the research to find out what sorts of electronics a Sheffield home in the early 80’s would have. I was only 3 at the time so I don’t know what a US home had in the early 80’s I have a vague recollection of having remote controls by the mid-late 80’s but when exactly they came into existence I couldn’t say for sure.
* * * *
“Sean! Wake up!”
Sean grunted and pulled his blanket a little tighter around his head trying to block out the bright sunlight that was streaming through his bedroom window. There was another hard shake, the blankets being wrestled from his head and the continued high-pitch whine that was his younger sister’s voice.
“Are you awake?” she asked.
She poked him hard in the shoulder which earned a grunt in response and one green eye being cracked open to glare at her. She grimaced as she saw how bloodshot they were; maybe this wasn’t such a good idea. Still it was in the name of friendship and it must be done.
“You look awful, what time did you get in?”
Sean’s groggy brain refused to cooperate long enough to remind him what time he’d gotten in that morning but it did manage to form a question in return. “What time is it?”
“1 o’clock,” she answered cheerfully as he groaned and tried to pull the sheets back up around him. “No, you don’t…” she said grabbing them and yanking them clear.
“Lorraine,” he groaned as the cool air hit him. “What if I had been naked?”
There was a nervous giggle from the doorway of his room and Sean moved his eyes without moving his head and saw a girl huddled mostly out of the room trying to look like she wasn’t eyeing his bare chest with relish. She looked familiar to his fogged up brain and it took him a few more seconds for it to click into place. She was the new girl from next door, what was her name…Sarah…Stephanie…no, Samantha, that was it. She and Lorraine were the same age, her family had moved to Sheffield from somewhere down south.
“Whatever,” Lorraine said rolling her eyes. “Get up…I need a favor.”
“No,” he said simply and threw his arm over his face.
“You get up and do this one little thing for me and I won’t tell Daddy that you didn’t get home until after he went to work this morning.”
“Who cares,” he said even though inside he did.
“You know he’s threatened to put you to work for him if you don’t shape up…” she reminded him easily of their fathers threat about what he’d do if Sean didn’t stop the drinking, the drugs, the fights and the late nights.
“I’ll end up doing that anyway so that’s not exactly a big enticement.”
Lorraine sighed knowing her brothers feeling about joining the family business but there was nothing that she could do about it at least not without him helping her out by staying sober and acting like the grown up he was supposed to almost be.
“Help me anyway, please,” she said softly. “Betsy’s having an emergency, her boyfriend is cheating on her and Sam and I need to go over there and help her plan revenge…”
“She’s lived next door for two weeks and she’s already up to emergency help level?” Sean asked in a teasing voice which caused Lorraine to roll her eyes at her older brother. “What do you need me to do, beat the guy up?”
“No, Sean,” she said in exasperation. “Samantha is looking after her little brother and he’s only four and can’t be left alone we need you to watch him for a couple of hours while we go over there.”
“You want me to baby-sit,” Sean asked incredulously. “A four year old?”
“Yeah well,” Lorraine said hesitantly. “It wouldn’t be my first choice of course but…”
“Hey…” Sean mumbled in annoyance despite the fact that he had been implying the same thing himself.
“…it’s a bit of an emergency.”
“I don’t really think I’m up for babysitting,” he said tentatively. “I can’t run around after a four year old for two hours…”
“You won’t have to,” Samantha spoke up from the doorway. “Orlando’s been running around all afternoon and he’s about ready to crash, just keep him inside and he’ll probably drop off really fast.”
Orlando? Someone actually named their child that? Poor kid. Sean blinked out of that train of thought when he realized that they were looking at him expectantly. He sighed, ran a hand over his face and then forced himself to sit up.
“Okay,” he muttered.
“Thank you, Sean,” Lorraine practically squealed as she leaned over and hugged him.
She tossed him a T-shirt and a pair of lounge pants which he pulled on after both girls had ducked out of the room, Samantha giggling up a storm. With an eye roll he joined them in the hallway pausing before heading downstairs.
“Anything I need to know?” he finally asked after a few moments of silence.
“No, not really,” Samantha said. “Orlando’s a really good kid, easy to watch, I promise. He’ll probably just stare at you for a while and then fall asleep on the floor.”
“He’s really shy,” Lorraine agreed with a nod. “I doubt he’ll come anywhere near you, you’re big and scary.”
Sean smirked at that but didn’t disagree. The girls moved into the living room where they girls had left Orlando settled on the floor in front of the TV. Sean wandered into the kitchen and grabbed something to eat while he listened to the conversation going on in the next room. It was rather one sided with Samantha explaining to the boy where she was going and who he was going to be with. Orlando didn’t say a word.
“We’re off,” Lorraine said sticking her head into the kitchen. “Be good…no swearing in front of him…he picks everything up a regular mimic that one.”
Sean nodded his head; he finished up his food and his water, placing the dishes in the sink before he headed into the living room. He was giving Orlando enough time to get used to the fact that he was alone in the house with someone he didn’t know. He frowned when he realized the room appeared empty. There was a blue blanket on the floor with what looked to be a ratty stuffed animal of some kind but no four year old anywhere in site.
“Ah…Orlando?” he said quietly. “Are you in here?”
There was no response just the low sound of the TV set on cartoons. Sean eased into the room, he had a feeling that Orlando was somewhere inside, if he was as shy as he appeared to be he wasn’t going to go wandering around a strange house, he didn’t want to scare the kid. He eyed the room guessing that behind the chair on the opposite side of the room was where Orlando was hiding. With a smile Sean knelt down next to the discarded items on the floor and picked up the stuffed animal, it was a pony and very ratty and tattered.
“Well then, since there appears to be no one here to claim this I’ll just have to take it for myself…”
There was a small noise from in the direction of the chair. Like Orlando had wanted to cry out in protest but had stopped himself. Satisfied that he knew where his charge was Sean put the animal back down onto the blanket and went over to the couch. He turned up the TV just a touch but left it on the cartoons.
Minutes ticked by without any movement from the chair. But finally out of the corner of his eye he watched as a small head poked out from around the chair to regard him cautiously. Sean kept his eyes trained on the TV as curiosity finally got the best of Orlando and he crawled out from behind the chair and moved very slowly over to his stuff.
Other than the TV there was no sound in the room. Sean made sure to keep his eyes trained on the TV, but because of where he was sitting Orlando was directly in his line of sight. He watched as the kid picked up his blanket and his stuffed animal and clutched it to his chest eyeing the stranger in front of him warily. More minutes ticked by before Orlando made his next move. He’d shuffle himself along on his butt in the direction of the couch. Just a few inches at the most and then stopped. He kept his eyes on Sean, wait a little while and then shuffle forward again. This went on until he was right up next to the couch.
He was now out of Sean’s line of sight and he made sure not to move his heads or eyes towards the boy because he could feel the kid’s eyes trained directly on him. Eventually Orlando seemed to come to a decision and pulled himself, the blanket and the horse up onto the couch next to Sean. He didn’t say anything but Sean felt it would be okay to shift his eyes towards the boy next to him.
Orlando had a mop of dark curly hair and a pair of wide brown eyes that were equal parts wary and interested in the guy on the couch regarding him quietly. Those eyes seemed far older than his four years there was intelligence and deep curiosity shining in them.
Sean turned his attention back to the TV content to let the boy make each first move. He felt the boy start to fidget and knew that it wouldn’t be much longer before he could no longer resist the urge to speak.
“Whatcha you doin’?
The boy’s voice was such a soft whisper that Sean had to strain to hear it. He responded with a slight grunt and then gestured to the TV. “I’m watching cartoons,” he said in a soft unthreatening voice.
There were a few more moments of silence before Orlando spoke again; his voice was a little stronger and a little louder this time. “You sound funny.”
Sean turned to regard the boy with wide eyes and then grinned as it his him what the boy was talking about. “Am I the first new person you’ve met?” he asked deciding to talk to the boy the way he had wanted to be talked to at that age, like an adult not a child. Orlando thought about it for a moment and then shook his head. “Lr’aine…sounds funny too.”
“Everyone one sounds like that up here,” Sean said looking down at him. “You’re the one that sounds funny, not the other way around.”
“No I don’t!” Orlando said with a huff and a pout. “I sound right…you wrong.”
“You do,” Sean assured him with a grin.
“Nu-huh!”
“Yu-huh!”
Orlando crossed his hands across his chest and huffed and sent Sean a four year old’s version of an annoyed look. His lip stuck out in a full out pout and Sean had to resist the urge to laugh at him.
“You know what,” Sean said easily. “To someone up further north in Scotland, we’d *both* sound funny. But we know the truth don’t we…”
“They sound funny!” Orlando said and he giggled.
“Exactly.”
Sean turned his attention back to the TV hoping that since Orlando’s curiosity had been abated he’d drift off to sleep. Orlando continued to watch him for a few more moments and then he dropped down onto the couch, curling up next to Sean with his head resting against his leg. Sean glanced down at the boy in surprise and found himself still being regarded by big brown eyes. Orlando had his horse clutched to his chest; the blanket was dangling from the edge of the couch. The boys were drifting shut every few seconds sleep was clearly right around the corner.
“What are you doing?” Sean asked him softly.
His response was a small grunt, a youthful version of the one he had done a little bit earlier. Sean chuckled, unable to stop himself, as he remembered what Lorraine had told him earlier about the boy being a mimic. Well at least it was only grunting that he’d picked up and not something worse.
He watched as the boy’s head became slack against his thigh and he fully drifted off. He could feel his leg twitching restlessly from its trapped spot but pushed thoughts of moving the boy aside and instead leaned over grabbed t he blanket from where it dangled and laid it on top of the sleeping child. He flipped off the TV and grabbed the nearest thing he could find to read, the financial section of The Times. He grimaced but carefully opened it and started to read until the numbers and letters started to blur in front of him.
Unable to read it any longer he folded it back up and set it down back where he’d gotten if from. He looked down at his sleeping companion and smiled. Taking one of the couch cushions he propped it behind his neck and quickly joined his small companion in slumber.
* * *
Author’s Notes #4: I warned you all it was silly. Not sure if I’m going to put this out on the Com’s because of the silliness…what do ya’ll think?
Author’s Notes #5: I may return to this verse when certain parties are older and a bit more legal…but I don’t know…I might not need too.
~Amy