A Thousand Words | ✓

Chapter Twenty: A Thousand Treats and Scares

 

Yeah, definitely rubbing off on her.

 

“Leaving now!!!”  said one excited message. I smiled as I typed back a response, barely catching Rebecca’s speech of warning and caution that she gives us much too often.

 

“ – opening the door without checking, and call me if you feel something uncomfortable, okay, Chris?”

 

“Yes, Mom,” he groaned, sliding lower on the couch. You could tell how much he wanted her to shut up so he can stay focused on this very interesting Disney movie.

 

“We’re going to be fine, Rebecca; go before Chris falls sick of saying ‘yes, mom’ a billion times. I’ve got everything handled,” I assured them as I shuffled the two adults to the door.

 

“All right, all right, we’re going.” She gave us both a kiss on the cheek; Chris groaned again as he wiped the lipstick off his skin. Doing the same as I shut the door, I went back to the couch and watched as another giant ass bear came in for a showdown.

 

* * *

 

“Chicken fingers, chicken fingers!” Chris chanted, following on my heels as I made my way towards the kitchen to prepare dinner. “Reece, make chicken fingers, please,” he begged, leaning on my arm dramatically.

 

“Don’t be a princess,” I muttered, shaking him off but retrieving the frozen chicken fingers nonetheless.

 

“So what should we watch next?” he asked, perching himself on the kitchen counter. 

 

I blew out my mouth as I placed the frozen pieces on a tray and weighed over my options. “I'll pick the next one because you’re likely to fall asleep on a full stomach and it’s something I can bear to watch incase you wake up and yell at me for changing the movie, like last time.”

 

“I was still awake,” Chris said in defense.

 

“Sure you were.”

 

Once the chicken fingers were cooked, I dumped them on a plate and carried them to the living room along with a small bowl of mayonnaise for Chris. “Don’t tell Rebecca we're eating in here,” I said to him as I placed them on the table and fell back onto the couch as Chris greedily dug in. At least his appetite is back.

 

Several minutes into the movie, I noticed my phone vibrating where I had left it on the arm rest besides Chris. “Oh, your phone’s been ringing for a while, but I didn’t answer because it was a blocked number. Could be a murderer for all I know.” Chris shuddered for emphasis, then took a big bite from his mayo-covered chicken finger.

 

I frowned as another incoming call came in and Chris handed it to me. Wiping off the grease and crumbs left from his messy hands, my eyebrows furrowed together as I missed another call from the blocked number. It had called five times already.