~
"There's nothing good on today!" Ace said as he was getting bored. "Maybe try reading a book?" Paul asked, sarcastically. "Or maybe, we can play with little Erica?" Ace said as a mischievous smile was on his face.
"Ace, she's asleep. Don't bother her." Paul said. "Don't worry, curly. I'll be careful." Ace said as he slowly walked towards the crib where Erica was asleep.
Then, Ace accidentally stepped on one of her toys which caused a loud sound to come out from it and Erica woke up as she started crying. "Come on, man! I told you that this would happen!" Paul yelled as he glanced towards outside where Eric was still busy doing the laundry with his headphones on.
"This is your fault! So, you calmed her down!" Paul yelled. "Why me!?" Ace asked as Paul have him the 'are you joking right now' face towards Ace. "Um, maybe she's hungry?" Paul asked. "That's impossible! Eric just feed her 30 minutes ago!" Ace said. "Check her diaper!" Paul said. "Nothing." Ace replied.
Then, Paul glanced around him and saw a small ukulele and handed Erica who was still crying into Ace's arms. "Hey, curly!" Ace yelled. "I got an idea!" Paul said as he grabbed the ukulele and played a few chords on it as he started to sing a lullaby to Erica.
Paul took a deep breath a d tries to come up with something. Then, his voice, deep yet tender, weaves a comforting cocoon around his little one, lulling her into a peaceful slumber.
The lullaby goes something like this:
🎵 "Hush now, my darling, it's time for your dreams,
Under the moonlight and soft starry gleams.
In your small world, where love's all that you've known,
We're here, sweetheart, you're never alone.
Close your eyes, my dear, let sleep take its hold,
Dream of bright days and tales yet untold.
In your dreams, may you laugh, may you play,
In a world where the night turns to day.
Know that I'm here, watching you sleep,
Promises to you, I'll always keep.
I'll guard you, guide you, hold your hand,
Through every journey, on every land.
So sleep now, my darling, under the night sky,
While I sing you this sweet lullaby.
Dream of tomorrow, of love, and of light,
Goodnight, my darling, sleep tight." 🎵
As the last notes of the lullaby fade away, Paul then glanced towards Erica who was now fast asleep in Ace's arms.
Then, Ace places Erica back into her crib and placed the pastel orange blanket on top of her.
~
"This is all your fault!" Paul whispered to Ace as they both went to the kitchen.
Then, Eric walked into the kitchen. "So, how was everything with my daughter?" He asked. "Oh,... everything went great!" Paul said. "Yeah,...no need to worry about anything, curly!" Ace said. "You do realize I heard her cry." Eric said.
"We're sorry, Eric. I mean we never got any experience of taking care of your daughter." Paul said. "It's okay. You did what you had to do. You both tried to calm her down by singing a lullaby." Eric said. "You heard us!?" Paul asked, embarrassed as Ace was trying to hold back his laugh and Paul nudged him a bit.
"Yeah. I did. And, I even recorded the entire song so, I can blackmail you." Eric said with a smirk. "Come on, man! Give me your phone!" Paul said as he and Eric started running around the house.
~
"Okay! Okay! Fine! I'll keep it but, make my daughter cry again and this video will go on the internet." Eric said. "Fine. It's a deal then!" Paul said.
Then, Eric glanced towards the crib only to find that Erica was now awake. "Looks like my little angel woke up." Eric said.
"Now, come on! Your uncles were being very noisy were they?" Eric asked as he picked Erica up from the crib. Then, the infant took an interest in her father's hair. "Looks like you've got yourself a mini version fan of yourself, curly." Ace said.
"Well, at least that's one thing you like about me." Eric said as he nuzzles Erica's nose. "So, real talk. Eric, do you plan on raising her until she's 18?" Paul asked. "Well, yeah. Why?" Eric said and asked back. "Because curly, once she's olderz she's going to be asking questions about you know, girls stuff and-" Ace said but, he was cut off from Eric. "I am well aware of all of that." Eric said.
"-Her biological parents." Ace continued. "Whoever her parents are, they are not laying a single strand of hair on my daughter!" Eric said as he started to grabbed the baby formula.
Paul let out a sigh as he glanced towards Erica on her high chair. "Hey, Eric? We have band practice tomorrow so, who's going to watch your daughter?" Paul asked. "I was thinking about dropping her off at my neighbour's house. Plus, Mrs. Fox has a son around Erica's age so I guess she can watch Erica for a while." Eric said.
"So, that's settled then." Paul said. "But, I'm still trying to find out who are Erica's biological parents. So, don't worry. The plan is still a go." Paul said with a strict voice. "Yeah, curly! Just focus on your life with little curly here!" Ace said as he started making funny faces towards Erica which made her giggle. "Ace, please, she's only one year old. And don't call my daughter curly! Her hair isn't even like mine!" Eric said.
Then, Eric walked over towards Erica's high chair and placed a small plate there.
"Here you go, sweetheart. Egg and avocado mash, just how you like it." He said as he sat down near his daughter and started feeding her. "Man, curly! What kind of food are those!?" Ace was literally analyzing the food. "What? It's just some mash hard-boiled eggs and ripe avocado which I put together until it's smooth." Eric replied. "Yeah, I'm with Ace on this one, Eric. I mean does she even likes it?" Paul said and asked Eric.
"Just watch." Eric said, confidently and grabbed the spoon as he was about to feed Erica, Ace was getting ready to take a video of this. "Come on, Erica. You know, you love this. It's the same meal as breakfast this morning." Eric said.
The one year old infant looked into her father's eyes and slowly opened her mouth and at the food that was given to her with joy. "See! I told you!" Eric said.
"You just feed your daughter vegetables at a young age." Paul said again. "Well, she loves it. I mean I don't feed her with just this, sometimes I feed her milk too but, baby formula are very expensive." Eric said as he continues to feed his daughter.
~
Then, the front door rang. Eric let out a sigh and got up. "Could you finish this up for me?" Eric asked Paul. "Sure, anything for you." Paul said as he sat in front of Erica's high chair and Eric left. "Why did curly askes you instead of me!?" Ace said, clearly he was jealous.
"Well, after what had happened a couple hours earlier, then that's your answer." Paul said sarcastically as they kept going on back and forth with Paul feeding Erica.
Eric went to open the front door and to his surprise, it was Gene. "Hey! Man, what brings you here!" Eric asked as he gestures Gene inside the house. "I went to the store and thought you might need this." Gene said as he handed Eric some baby formula and it can last him until next year. "Wow! Gene, thanks man! But, this is so much!" Eric said as they both walked towards the kitchen.
"She finished her food and now she just needs a bath." Paul said. "I'll bring her upstairs and come back down soon." Eric said as he picked up Erica from the high chair and went upstairs.
~
"So, Eric is actually a father now, huh?" Gene said as he started the conversation. "Yeah, I mean this is Eric we're talking about, curly!" Ace said. "So, how was the interview, Gene?" Paul asked. "It went great and I got a chance to speak with our manager and we got a gig in Chicago in 5 days." Gene said.
"I wonder how Eric will handle this." Paul said as he let out a sigh.
Then, Eric came back down with Erica while carrying Erica, who was now fresh from the bath.
"Eric, we have a gig in Chicago, do you plan on bringing Erica along?" Paul asked. "Well, that's the plan but, I can't find anyone else to babysit her for me for a couple of hours during the concerts or shows." Eric replied as he sat on the couch and started playing the xylophone with his daughter. "We'll figure something out later then." Eric said again as he continues to play with his daughter.
"Man, Eric. What's with this poor choice of toys?" Gene said. "What are you talking about?" Eric asked, clearly not understanding the situation.
"I mean, come on curly! A xylophone, a small sized ukulele, a toy train, a teddy bear, a fox plushie and some Legos." Ace said as he listed all of the toys in Eric's house. "I was in a rush, okay! Don't judge me!" Eric said.
~
"Well, it's getting late. Shouldn't you guys be on your way by now?" Eric said and asked.
"Um,....Ace is with me and my car broke down." Paul said as he got an annoyed look from Eric. Then, Eric glanced towards Gene. "My engine's dead." Gene replied casually.
"Fine, you guys can stay. Just use the guest room or sleep in the living room, I guess. I got to go upstairs and put Erica to bed. It's way past her bedtime." Eric said as he kissed Erica's forehead and went upstairs, waving. "Good night, guys!" Eric said.
"Good night, Eric." They all said in sync.
~
"Now, it's time for bed Erica." Eric said as he placed Erica in her crib and started singing her a lullaby. Soon, Erica fell asleep and Eric took this chance to take a quick shower.
When he got back, he couldn't sleep so, she kept an eye on his daughter for a while and smiled. "You are one lucky child. Erica Cordelia Foxy Carravello. I will make sure that your childhood is filled with joy." Eric said as he kissed Erica's forehead one last time. "Good night, my little vixen." Eric said as laid down on his bed.
"One step at a time. We'll eventually get there soon, my daughter." Eric thought to himself and drifted off to sleep.
~To be continued~