Nathan and Sophie Oneshots

Kids

"Because I'm not very good at piano"

"Bella, there aren't many four year olds-"

"Four and a half" she corrected.

"-Four and a half year olds who are good at piano" I explained, "but honestly, you are a natural"

How could she not be? It's in her blood. Her genes are probably made up of musical notes.

"But I want to be as good as Daddy"

"And one day you will" I told her, "it will just take lots and lots of time and practise"

She nodded, but still had that sad pout on her face. I held my palms up and she linked her tiny fingers with mine.

"Shall we go see Daddy?" I suggested.

"No, he doesn't like me anymore"

"Daddy loves you no matter how well you can play piano"

She sighed, blowing a piece of hair out of her face simultaneously. I rolled my eyes.

"You know it's not your dad who's annoyed with you" I told her, standing up and with my grip on her hands, pulling her up with me, "its yourself"

"How can I be annoyed with myself?" She questioned as I pulled her out of the room, her following alongside me.

"Trust me, Bel, it's very possible"

"But why would I be annoyed with myself? I'm amazing" she replied innocently, making me chuckle.

"You are" I agreed, squeezing her hand as we began to descend the stairs, "but you are annoyed that you weren't playing the piano right"

"My fingers wouldn't play the keys in the right order" she mumbled, "I was telling them to but they wouldn't listen"

I smiled, just as we reached the last step, hearing the random keys of a piano being played. I pulled Bella towards the lounge, the piano playing getting louder as we got closer. Bella and I stepped into the room, where Nathan was sat at the piano with Scarlett fidgeting about as she stood on his lap.

"B" he said to her, pressing the key down. The piano chimed a B. Scarlett reached out and pressed down the D and the E keys clumsily with her tiny hand. She smiled and make a gurgling, giggly sort of sound.

"C" Nathan continued, before Scarlett began frantically bashing random keys down with her hand. She giggled again at the noise it made.

"Okay, I think that's enough" Nathan said softly, gently pulling Scarlett's arm away from the piano keys. She gurgled again in glee, before reaching up and batting her hand lightly against Nathan's cheek.

At ten months, Scarlett is just starting to walk - well, she walks a few steps and then falls on her bum again - but she's very inquisitive and likes to explore. She'll start playing with anything thing she can get her hands on. At the moment, her particular obsessions are playing with my car keys and feeling Nathan's stubble when he hasn't shaved. She's fascinated by it.

I pulled Bella over to the large piano stool and sat myself down next to Nathan.

"Bella thinks you don't like her anymore" I told him, as Scarlet smiled at me and reached out towards me. I moved her from Nathan's lap and into my own, her hands coming up to start playing with my hair. Another of her habits.

"Bella" he sighed, swivelling around on the stool so he was facing away from the piano and towards Bella, "why do you think that?"

"Because I kept getting it wrong" she mumbled, her bottom lip starting to quiver as her fingers knotted together nervously, "and- and you said that it wasn't right and I was trying really hard and I kept telling my fingers to do it right but they wouldn't and-"

"Bella" Nathan interrupted, placing his hands on her waist and picking her up so her feet were on the piano stool and she was stood in front of him.

"I'm sorry I'm not very good at piano" she mumbled, her voice all wavery and a few stray tears rolling down her chubby cheeks.

"Bella, please don't cry" Nathan told her, keeping one arm securely around her body and using his spare hand to wipe away the tears from her cheeks, "I don't like seeing you cry"

"I'm sorry"

"Don't be sorry" Nathan shook his head, "you were doing really well, and for a four-year-old-"

"Four and a half" Bella and I corrected simultaneously.

"-For a four and a half year old, you're actually very naturally talented, musically"

"Am I?" She sniffed.

"Yeah" he assured, "I couldn't play that well when I was your age"

"Really?"

"Yes, really" he replied, "now, can I have a hug?"

Bella slid her arms around Nathan's neck and squeezed him tightly.

"Are we friends again now?"

"Yes" Bella sighed over-dramatically, "I suppose"

Nathan chuckled.

"Isabella, you are going to grow up to be exactly like your mother, you know" Nathan told her in an amused tone.

"That is the biggest compliment you could give a child" I grinned.

"Yes, Daddy, that is the biggest compli-li-ment you could give a child" Bella repeated with the same pleased smile as me, stumbling over the word 'compliment' as it was a little too big for her four-year-old brain.

"She is literally a mini-you" Nathan told me, shaking his head.

"That was the plan" I smirked.

"I bet you were exactly like this at her age"

"I probably was" I smiled, "I'm hoping this one will turn out the same" I added, tickling the underside of Scarlett's chin.

"Ba ba ga" she gurgled. That was the extent of her vocabulary at the moment.

"You're gonna be just like mummy and Bella, aren't you?" I cooed at Scarlett, nuzzling my nose against hers, "aren't you?"

She smiles and gurgled again in response, clapping her hands together in approval. 

"Another little troublemaker to add to the family" Nathan titters, sliding his arm around my waist. I just flash him a big grin as he squeezes my side and presses his lips softly against my cheek.