Born Blue

Bringing work home

They had there coffee and sat on the couch waiting for the kids to wake up. Ryan was up first and playing on the floor with a balloon when Alaina started talking through the monitor asking for Eddie.

"Happy birthday sweetie!" She said when she went in her room. She rubbed her eyes and smiled.

"Come see what's in the living room!" Eddie enthused. Alaina climbed out of her bed and walked out to see all the balloons on the floor her face lit up and she picked one up.

"There's the birthday girl!" Jamie said when he saw her. She ran and wanted to sit with him on the couch.

"What do you want for breakfast?" He asked her.

"Peencakes" she said.

"Ooo good call, day daddy makes the best pancakes right?" Eddie agreed and picked Ryan up to get him a bottle.

"Yes" she said shaking her head, making Jamie smile.

"Special birthday pancakes coming right up." He kissed her cheek and moved her off of him to get started in the kitchen.

After breakfast Alaina requested to go play on the playground around the block so they got the kids dressed and walked to the park. Jamie pushed the stroller and Alaina held Eddies hand.

"Do you think Joe will call to say happy birthday?" Eddie asked as they passed by a detective taking their lunch on a bench they passed. Everyone else had called or texted already today to tell her.

"I'm sure. Family comes first, besides Alaina didn't do anything you know?" Jamie said.

"Yeah true. I just hate that he's mad at me. You think you could talk to him?" Eddie asked.

"I can try but I feel like I said as much as I had to say, I hope you know I did back you up more then you think." Jamie said as they neared the park entrance.

"No I know." Eddie sighed, Alaina was wanting to run and go play but Eddie kept a firm hold of her hand.

"Hold on, we have to get inside the fence before you run off remember?" Eddie reminded their now 2 year old.

"Side!" She shouted and pointed at the "slide" that another kid was on at the moment.

"Yup there's a couple slides, remember you have to wait your turn if someone else is on it though right?" Eddie told her with her mom eye and brows raised Alaina looked up at her and nodded in agreement.

They got in the fence and Jamie parked it on the bench nearby with the stroller taking a glance around the park, checking out all adults, making sure none looked suspicious. Eddie let go of Alaina's hand and did the same thing, aligning up in seconds who's kid belonged to who. It was there nature, she went and sat with Jamie.

"I hope she plays nice today." Eddie said.

"She's usually fine." Jamie said.

"You weren't here last week when she screamed at the top of her lungs because she couldn't get up the steps." Eddie said rolling her eyes.

"Oh, yeah well. At least she's determined." Jamie said. Ryan was itching to get out of the stroller, Jamie put his shoes on and let him walk around the bench, picking up sticks and rocks. He didn't show much interest in the playground yet.

Alaina was making Eddie nervous standing on the bridge that bounced as bigger kids ran across it, she got up in case she fell.

"Be careful Missy..." Eddie told her laughing through her fear of one of these kids knocking her over being careless. Why was such a big kid on this playground, he was probably 12...there was a "big kid" playground across the picnic area.

"Eddie." Jamie called out. She turned around to see Jamie on the phone, telling her to bring Alaina, it was Joe wanting to say happy birthday.

"Oh Lain come here, someone's on the phone for you!" Eddie said happily she could get her off this playground for a couple minutes. They got over to Jamie and he handed her the phone.

"Put it on speaker." Eddie told him, she wanted to hear too.

"Happy birthday Lainey...do you know who this is?" He asked her. She got shy and shook her head no.

"Haha she's not sure." Jamie told him.

"It's your cousin Joe Lain!" He told her. She lit up smiling.

"Say thank you!" Eddie encouraged.

"Sank you." She said happily.

"Your welcome, have a good rest of your day okay?" He told her.

"Otay." She said. Jamie took the phone back and talked to him on the regular speaker.

"Pay mommy?" Alaina took Eddies hand and they went back to the playground to play.
——

Later that night after Eddie had gotten Alaina bathed and in bed she sat out on the couch giving Ryan his last bottle for the night. She wasn't feeling well again, she thought back to what she ate today and last night that would not agree with her but she couldn't put her finger on it. She felt lightheaded, dizzy, and her stomach hurt.

"Hey." Jamie said coming home from work around 8:30.

"Hi. Can you do me a favor?" She asked him. She felt bad seeing he didn't even have his shoes off yet and she was already needing something from him.

"Sure one sec." he told her getting situated. He came over then to see what she needed. Ryan was asleep in her arms.

"Can you put him in his crib? I don't feel good, I'm a little lightheaded." She told him. Jamie's face grew imitate concern but he took the child from her.

"Sure...you eat dinner?" He asked.

"Some. I'm just dizzy, it's nauseating me." She said.

Jamie put Ryan down to bed and then came back out to see Eddie lying down on the couch with her hand over her head.

"Do you have a headache?" He sat beside her and wondered.

"Mhm." She mumbled.

"Okay well did you drink water today? What'd you eat?" Jamie asked rubbing his hand gently through her hair.

"Pancakes this morning, coffee, I had an apple for lunch I wasn't that hungry, and then just half a meatball sandwich for dinner." She told him.

"You weren't hungry today?" Jamie was concerned, Eddie usually ate more then him.

"No after getting sick this morning I didn't have much of an appetite." She explained.

"Right, well did you drink enough water?" He asked.

"Idk, probably not. I'm probably dehydrated." She said and turned to her side.

"It sounds that way...you need a Gatorade." He got up to get one from the fridge for her along with pretzels. She sat up and he sat beside her, he wanted to make sure she was okay and wasn't gonna pass out or anything on him.

"I don't think the current family drama is helping. I think it's stressing me out." Eddie explained.

"Babe I get it, but Joe will get over it, there's nothing you could say or do to fix it. He just has to get over it." Jamie told her rubbing her upper back in comfort.

"Huh. I just, I don't know. I wish I would've just apologized but instead of arguing... I could've done more to stop Casey-"

"Eddie stop. You did what you could, if it makes you feel better I can talk to him tomorrow sometime?" Jamie asked.

"Could you?" Eddie pleaded.

"Of course. I don't want you to feel like this over something that's not a big deal." He said sincerely and kissed her cheek.

"Thank you." She snuggled up into his chest and he hugged her for awhile.