daisy blew a party horn as el did the same, both of them jumping up and down for xander with party hats on. "happy first hockey game day!" el exclaimed, putting a party hat on xander.
he rubbed his eyes tiredly and then sat up better before smiling. "hi daisy,"
"hi," she walked to him and hugged him tightly. "hockey day," she kissed his cheek with slurred words and he fixed her tilting hat for her. "thank you, daisy," he kissed the corner of her lips and she smiled widely.
he held her under her arms as he stood, placing her on his hip as he walked towards el. "morning mommy,"
"good morning, my little love. today is a big day! you need a big breakfast! and we are prepared for today, my baby boy!" she cheered for him and held his hand. "now let's get cleaned and let's go eat some yummy pancakes,"
"pancakes?" daisy's eyes widened and twinkled. "with whip cream?"
el nodded and tapped both of her cheeks. "that's right. your brother needs loads of energy today and you do too because you're gonna cheer him on, right?"
daisy nodded and raised both of her hands. "yes,"
"perfect, little heart," el opened the bathroom door for the bathroom and they both walked in. "party hat is funny," xander giggled at the sight of him.
el bit back a smile. "do you like it? i got too excited for you the other day and wanted to celebrate,"
he tipped his head up. "i love it so much, mama," he then held his hand up. "but i gotta pee now,"
"oops, sorry," she helped place daisy on the counter who swung her legs weakly and then went to assist xander. "don't jump, dais,"
she nodded, playing with her party hat and stared at herself in the mirror with a small frown.
she pointed to herself in the mirror. "mark,"
"what mark?" el asked as she looked over and saw daisy pointed to a faint scar on the top of her forehead from before.
a sad smile overtook her face. "that's a scar, baby heart,"
"ugly,"
"no, you're not ugly. you're never ugly."
"s-car ugly," pronounce scar as s and then car.
"mommy can buy some cream to fade it, baby heart but you're not ugly and nor is your scar. you are beautiful, so beautiful,"
"very beautiful!" xander made sure to add as he stepped on the step stool to wash his hands.
daisy smiled softly and sincerely. "thank you, mommy. thank you, brother,"
he smiled widely and el took her phone out to take a photo of three of them with their party hats.
"smile, bugs," she said and they both put on a smile before putting on a goofy expression next. "so pretty!"
daisy squished her cheeks together and stuck her tongue out, xander tugging his lips upwards to show the biggest tooth grin with his eyes as wide as possible.
"god, i love you both so much." el put her phone away and then helped them put toothpaste on their brushes. "time to brush, little ones."
they both pouted but accepted their pink and green brushes before staring at themselves in the mirror.
"spit if you're done," el told them, picking up a brush to brush through both of their hairs quickly. "time for breakfast now, who wants to help?"
they both shook their heads and el let out a tiny giggle. "you guys can watch cartoons then," she helped daisy off the counter and then headed out with them. "let me grab vada first,"
they both nodded and held hands before running downstairs to the living room and to turn on the tv.
"c'mere, little soul," el held vada up to her chest. "did you miss me?" she asked as vada let out a huge yawn, nuzzling against el's body.
el chuckled and kissed her cheek. "you've been sleeping so much lately," she murmured and el had to admit it has eased her stress a little without so much crying going on in the house.
gently, el bounced her in her arms and brought her downstairs to put her in her bouncer so el could make pancakes.
she made sure to make some waffles too and as she set it on the plate, she added a whip cream smiley face on both of them before setting the table.
"baby bugs, time to eat!" she shouted for them before taking out some drinks from the fridge.
they ran in quickly, jumping up and down for el to place them in their chairs.
"so pretty," daisy murmured at her plate and el kissed the tip of her nose. "eat up,"
"why does xanny more?" daisy asked as el took vada out of her bouncer and cradled her. "because your brother has a game and he loads of energy. he needs a lot of food."
daisy made a sound of realisation before nodding.
el smiled at xander and gently wiped the corner of his mouth. "yummy?"
he nodded frantically and lifted his chin so el could wipe around his mouth. "thank you,"
she hugged him tightly and kissed his cheek before pulling back and to prepare food for vada next.
+++
"no fucking way, you have pom poms!?" max exclaimed, gasping as she grabbed a pair and waved it in the air.
"of course! i have to let xanny know i'm cheering him on!" el exclaimed and then held onto daisy by the waist since she was jumping up and down on the chair.
"xanny fast," she pointed ahead as el nodded. "he is,"
"wanna go up to the glass?" lucas asked, holding his hands out to her and she nodded, moving forward for him to carry her forwards.
he whispered in her ear as she pointed ahead, waving the pom poms with a small smile.
"she's doing better," max nudged el and she instantly nodded. "yeah, she is. she likes her therapist so i guess that's nice. the pom pom was also her idea,"
"really?"
el nodded with a sweet smile. "we passed it in the store and she said it'd be perfect for his game and i said we could use it to cheer him on. she picked his favourite colour," she tipped her head at the green pom poms. "then said she needed some pink ones too to let him know it's her,"
max bit down on her lip to stop herself from smiling too widely. "she's so adorable,"
el nodded, standing up as she fixed vadas onesie. "where's mike?"
max grinned and wiggled a brow at her. "missing you boyfriend already? he's over there setting up,"
el rolled her eyes at her and motioned to vada. "watch her, please?"
max chuckled with a nod as el made her way over to mike, gently tapping his shoulder to get his attention. "hi,"
he turned, a large smile overtaking his face before he embraced her in the tightest hug. "hi,"
he pulled his head back and set a kiss to the corner of her lips. "you look so pretty today,"
she flushed red and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear awkwardly. "thank you,"
he let out a small chuckle, cupping her cheeks delicately before caressing her soft skin with his thumbs. "your party hat is so adorable, sunshine. you're beautiful,"
she instantly smiled. "it's to support xander! vada had a baby one and it's purple!"
"no freaking way," he turned in the direction she once sat at and then gasped. "does daisy have pom poms?"
el jumped up and down before nodding. "yes, yes! is it cute!?"
"insanely," he turned back to her and picked her up with one hand, setting her on his hip. "but you're cuter,"
she let out a small squeal and looked around. "put me down,"
"nah," he looked up, now holding her with two hands as he pressed a kiss to her lips. "how was your day? i haven't asked yet,"
"t'was the best. i gave xanny like a stack of pancakes," she let out a giggle and fixed his curls that were out of place. "he has to be super duper energised,"
he smiled from ear to ear and watched her fix his hair with full concentration. "el,"
she hummed and looked down, their eyes connecting, "yes?"
"el, i—"
"mike! it's 'bout to start, we need to get the kids on the ice!" max shouted to him and he nodded at her. "give me a minute,"
el grabbed his cheeks and kissed his nose. "i know you're not the one playing but good luck," she whispered and got off of him. "you're a good couch," she tapped his cheek before smiling widely.
"find me later, i'll wait for you," she told him and he instantly nodded. "i know,"
she gave him the biggest smile and wave before walking away, turning back to give one last glance before she made her way back to daisy.
"go xan," daisy weakly chanted, raising her pom poms in the air as lucas carried her, cheering with her. "go xanny,"
xander waved dramatically at her and she instantly brightened up, her waves increasing too. "hi xanny!"
"hi daisy!"
she giggled and hid her face into lucas's neck, turning to look at xander with one more laugh.
vada babbled in her car seat, whining to be held and so el bent and carried her in her arms, cooing at her as el cradled her.
vada reached for el's face, grabbing at her button nose which made el chuckle. "hi bb, hi my soul, i love you. i love you so much. you're my little sweetheart," el swiped vada's nose with hers and vada let out a loud giggle, moving her hands and feet around.
el walked towards the glass, standing next to lucas as daisy continued her little cheer with her pom poms.
"goddamn, her party hat is too cute," lucas mumbled as he looked at vada and daisy looked up at him. "bad word,"
his eyes widened. "shi— shoot, what's gonna happen then, daisy?"
"swear jar,"
lucas turned to el. "you got a swear jar in that house?"
she shook her head. "nope, because i don't swear. daisy and xander has heard about it though,"
"please don't tell me you're starting one because i said one bad word,"
el bit back a grin and looked at daisy who grinned before nodding. "one dollar," she held a hand out as he nudged her forehead with his. "later, daisy, don't got my wallet on me right now,"
she huffed but nodded. "okay, fine,"
el chuckled and watched as vada let out a huge yawn, reaching for daisy and her hand lands on the pom pom.
"want it, sissy?" daisy handed it to vada who shook it around with a huge smile, a string of babbles escaping as she giggled at the sound of the pom poms.
daisy smiled and raised the remaining one in the air to cheer xander on along with vada.
+++
"hi, you're xander's mom right?" the woman next to el asked and el turned, nodding gently as she held vada close to her body who had fell asleep with her earmuffs on.
"yes, that's me," el smiled. "um, i'm el," she tried to hold out a hand and the woman instantly shook it. "jenny. i'm jack's mom," she pointed and el smiled and looked ahead.
"oh, he scored a goal earlier!" el exclaimed happily and the woman smiled. "yeah... he loves hockey," she nodded. "he told me about xander, he's a very sweet boy, you raised him well,"
el gasped inaudibly, placing a hand to her heart, "thank you... that really means a lot and i'm sure jack is very sweet too,"
jenny let out a chuckle. "at times. he can be a pain with the sudden mood changes,"
el chuckled and nodded. "not my xanny... he is overly caring sometimes, he'd come up a lot and ask if you're okay,"
"ugh, i wish jack would do that," she groaned with a laugh before wiggling in her seat with an eye roll. "for 60 dollars, i'd think they'd have better seats,"
el furrowed her brows. "60 dollars? for what?"
jenny narrowed her brows in confusion. "for the game? we had to pay 60 dollars but if it's for my kid, i can't complain," she let out a sigh and el just nodded slowly and turned back to face the rink.
60 dollars? she never paid 60 dollars for anything.
"XANNY!" daisy jumped up and down with her pom poms after xander scored the final goal before the buzzer rang.
el gasped, holding vada in one arm as she raised the green pom pom with her other hand, waving it in the air for him to see. "GO XANDER! GO XANNY!"
xander gasped when he saw that he scored and he instantly skated towards where daisy was, holding his hand up to her through the glass. "DAISY! DAISY DID YOU SEE!? CAN YOU HEAR ME!?"
"YES! I SEE!" daisy exclaimed loudly. "WIN!?"
he nodded and she gasped, waving the pom poms more. "WIN! WIN!"
xander moved over to face el and she smiled widely, bending to place her forehead on the glass and he did the same. "I LOVE YOU!"
"I LOVE YOU TOO!" she shouted for him to hear and he grinned from ear to ear before skating away back to mike.
"mommy, can i go to xanny?" daisy asked her softly but el shook her head. "not yet, my little bear. there's too many people and xanny hasn't come out yet. can you wait a little longer? we can go to him right as he comes out,"
daisy pouted deeply but nodded. "okay, mama,"
el smiled, ruffling her hair as she placed vada back down in her car seat.
"i can watch her," lucas told her, "trust me," he grinned and el nodded. "thanks lucas," she stood and picked up daisy into her arms. "don't pout, baby. here, take your pom pom and we can go find xan in a minute,"
daisy nodded, grabbing onto her tightly before giving el a kiss. "i love you,"
"i love you more," el chuckled and held her better. "you're such a cute koala,"
"no, i'm panda!" she exclaimed with full seriousness and el nodded, putting on a matching serious expression though she really wanted to smile at how cute daisy was.
when el saw xander come off the ice after a handshake with the other team, she instantly rushed to him, smiling widely as xander ran to her, even with his skates.
"MOMMY!" he jumped on her, hugging her tightly with his legs lifted to not hurt her or daisy with his skates.
"hi baby, hi my love," el kissed his cheek repeatedly. "oh, you did so good! you did so good! i'm so proud of you!"
"xanny!" daisy exclaimed to get his attention. "you goal— you— wow!"
"i know, daisy! i saw you cheer for me!" he hugged her tightly and el pulled back a bit.
"and then, you skate so fast and vroom!" she exclaimed, grabbing onto him tightly before pulling back. "see me cheer," she held the pom poms in the air and showed him a dance.
he threw his head back with a laugh and el reached forward and placed a party hat on his head. "congratulations, my baby love, i am so insanely proud of you,"
he looked up at her, tears forming as he gave the most shy smile. "thank you, mommy,"
"oh, don't cry," el wiped his tears, "you're gonna make me cry!"
he let out a small laugh and nodded. "i need to take off my skates,"
"oh, right!" she led him to a seat, "sit down, bugs,"
she bent down to xander as he helped daisy on the seat and el began to untie xander's skates. "you're so adorable, my bugs."
daisy smiled as wide as she could, her teeth showing as xander hugged her from the side.
el let out a laugh and set the skates aside. "okay, little ones," she stood up, "xan, i gotta get you changed, daisy, run along to lucas,"
daisy pouted with puppy eyes and el mimicked her expression. "sorry, baby," el grabbed her hand and motioned for xander to stay sat before taking daisy back to lucas.
"stay seated," el blew her a kiss and daisy blew one back. "okay,"
she grinned widely, grabbing xander's bag before she rushed back to xander and took his hand and his skates. "let's get you changed now,"
"mommy, did you see!?" he exclaimed excitingly as el led him to the changing rooms. "i skated and then dodged the other team and then scored!"
"yes, of course i saw!" el laughed, putting the skates down and he sat down without any instructions.
he raised his hands for her but el reached for his helmet first, making him smile shyly. "oops,"
"you are a very good boy," el tapped his nose and he giggled as she set everything aside.
"now, arms up," el instructed and he instantly followed for her to take off his shirt and for her to put his sweater on.
"mama? you okay?" he asked when she noticed her slow blinking and she gave a small smile. "just... 'bout to faint,"
"uh-oh," he murmured and she went to sit down next to him.
"thanks xanny, very helpful," she let out a small chuckle and he giggled, tapping her cheek.
"uh-oh, falling," he mumbled as el placed her head down onto his shoulder, her eyes falling shut and the clothes in her hand slipping.
he caught onto the clothes and patiently waited for his mother to wake up.
"hi xander!" jack walked in with a large wave. "what's wrong?"
"my mom is sleeping," xander smiled at him and placed a finger to his lips. "shh,"
jack gasped and covered his mouth before walking off.
mike walked into the changing room, looking around, "xan?" he asked and then noticed el.
"faint," xander said and poked el's nose.
mike nodded with a small smile and walked over, gently pulling el off of his shoulder and sat her up right. "want me to change you then, little man?"
he nodded, raising his hands. "yes, please,"
mike laughed and put his hands down. "your shirt is changed. i gotta change your pants instead,"
"oh right!"
xander stood up instantly and mike got him changed out of his pants and into his other pair.
mike picked him up, kissing his cheek before setting his equipment aside. "you did so well today, xan,"
"thank you," he whispered and mike smiled widely and placed him down.
el slowly stirred and mike gently patted xander's head before assisting el. "hey there,"
she slowly smiled and pushed herself up. "you're here..." she rubbed her head. "xan..?"
"hi mommy," he smiled and she instantly smiled widely. "hi baby, you're all changed,"
xander nodded proudly and pointed to mike. "mike helped,"
she smiled widely, stroking his hair before kissing his temple. "ready then?" she asked, standing up and holding her hands out to him for him to climb on.
he nodded with a hum as el went to gather his things but mike stopped her. "i can hold it,"
she smiled, pecking the corner of his lips. "thank you," she held xander better in her arms before carrying him out, him resting his head on her shoulder.
"where's hoppy?" he asked and el pointed above, grinning as she did so.
"he's watching up there. i told him to come down but he said there were a bunch of people and that he got a seat," el shrugged and xander nodded but pointed up front. "but he's there now! look, it's daisy!"
daisy gasped and snapped her head up. "xanny!" she exclaimed like she hadn't seen him in years when she just saw him minutes ago.
el placed him down and he darted out of her arms and towards daisy who met him halfway. "hi!" he exclaimed as she jumped into his arms. "i missed you!" she exclaimed, burying her head into his shoulder.
he smiled widely, swaying her around as he held onto her tightly. "i missed you too!"
mike handed el xander's things for her to pack up and then bent to vada in her car seat. "hi there,"
she stared at him for a second before giggling loudly and flailed her arms, cooing for his hold.
he instantly leaned forward and held her in his grasp, watching as max led daisy and xander aside and not have them stand in the middle of the path.
"xanny, what do you want for dinner?" el asked, "we have to celebrate!"
xander turned to daisy. "what do you wanna eat, sissy?"
she shrugged and leaned back into his shoulder as xander tipped his head up at el. "can i have pizza?"
"of course!" el cupped his cheeks and squished him tightly with a giggle before giving him a kiss. "we can call a bunch of pizza and pasta back to the house,"
"mommy, you're squishing me,"
she pulled back, "oops, sorry, baby love... you're just too adorable for me,"
he giggled shyly and gave daisy a big kiss as vada let out a loud yawn and rubbed her eyes.
"tired, vada?" mike murmured as vada let out a pout, her bottom lip jutting out.
"you're making her sad," max grabbed vada from his grasp and brushed her nose against vada's. "hi bb! i love you more!"
vada cooed, babbling as she giggled.
max smiled widely and cradled her as hopper came over and helped el with her things, shoving a bag over at mike as he did so which mike wore on his back.
"who's ready!?" el tapped daisy and xander on the head like they were drums and they both laughed.
"we are!" they both exclaimed and she smiled from ear to ear. "perfect! time to go home and celebrate xanny,"
daisy nodded and then booped xander's nose. "congrajulashion," she tried her best to say congratulations but everything came out jumbled.
xander held back a laugh and kissed her nose. "thanks, sissy!" he hugged her tightly and walked off with el following behind them.
el turned back to face mike, holding her hands out to him. "don't fall behind,"
he grabbed onto her hands, pulling her into his chest before pressing a kiss to her hair.
she let out a laugh, snuggling closer as she wrapped her arms around his torso tightly.
perhaps there was something else that made her happy too.