Ch 7
A full 'Sunday Dinner' was an affair not seen in the Cameron house in, well, forever, as far as Phillip could remember. Chicken, mashed potatoes, broccoli, and dinner rolls. Nothing fancy or formal, but there had never been five people at the table, nor had there been so much conversation, or any conversation really. But it wasn't entirely unwelcome. Phillip supposed this was what he had missed as a child when hearing about other people's families. Children teasing each other, the scraping of forks and knives on plates, and the warm feelings. Phillip would have felt like an outsider, but everyone made an effort to include him. Franny asked him to cut her meat, Daisy politely asked about his garden, and Gabe tried to explain something about a cartoon they'd been watching.
It was all a bit overwhelming, but it was nice. Also, Phillip suspected Gareth was aware of his social unease because whenever things got to be a bit much, Gareth would redirect the kids for a few minutes with carefully chosen questions, allowing Phillip to regain his composure. When dinner was done, Gareth sent the kids to watch tv while the two men tended to the dishes.
"I'm sorry about yesterday," Phillip offered. "I'm just not good with..." he gestured around the room, as if that should make sense. Fortunately Gareth seemed conversant in awkward waving.
"No, I should have realized. I'm so sorry, Phillip, this has to be a big adjustment for you. And we're all just so thankful to be here. I hope the schedule helped," Gareth said generously, realizing this was a big admission by his counter-mate.
Phillip's cheeks flamed when he heard the way his name rolled off Gareth's tongue. He ducked his head down to hide his reaction, but managed to squeak out, "Immensely, thank you."
They worked together in companionable silence, just adjusting to each other's movements. Fingers occasionally brushed as they exchanged plates and glasses. Phillip's heart was pounding so loud he was worried Gareth could hear it. He stood at the counter just calming his nerves long after the dishes were done and Gareth had gone to take care of his kids. Was there something special about Gareth, or was it just that Phillip had gone so long without human interaction?
Sunday night meant the kids were having baths for the upcoming school week. It was on the schedule. Phillip knew he would wait to run his laundry until the Lewises were out of the house on Monday, and that was okay because it was written on the paper Gareth had left for him tacked to the fridge. It was reassuring and thoughtful. He took a chance and brought his novel out to the living room and sat on the couch, where he knew he would be undisturbed.
Shortly before nine, the Lewis children came out freshly scrubbed and dried, dressed in their pajamas to bid Phillip goodnight. It was slightly less awkward than the night before, and Phillip was able to go back to his book without too much trouble, although Daisy eyed the title hungrily. He supposed that might be something they could talk about sometime. She seemed to like reading.
An hour later, after the kids were settled, Gareth came and sat down on the loveseat to do his grading. Phillip made tea and gave Gareth a cup, then they sat in silence, the only noises from Gareth's pen scratching along his papers, or Phillip turning a page. It was okay. It was more than okay. Phillip was almost comfortable. This wasn't so bad.
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Phillip was awakened by insistent knocking at his bedroom door, causing a slight bit of disorientation. He had planned to sleep until everyone had left to avoid morning awkwardness seeing as it was a school day and it was bound to be bustling in the kitchen and bathrooms, but it seemed there were other plans.
"What?" Phillip called through the door, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and adjusting himself, cursing his morning masculinity issue. What on earth had he been dreaming of? How did Gareth deal with that problem, he wondered and then blushed because he was thinking of that part of his new tenant.
"I'm so sorry to bother you Phillip, but we need your help," Daisy pleaded, apologetically from the hall.
Phillip could hear some soft crying in the background, so he took a deep breath and pulled on a pair of track pants over the boxers he'd been sleeping in.
"What?" he said again, pulling open his door.
"Ummm, Franny had an accident."
Phillip snapped to attention, heart pounding, worried that the kids had been unattended in the kitchen. "Is she okay?"
"Yes, I got her all cleaned up, but I need help with the bedding," Daisy said, sheepishly.
"Ohhh..." Realization of Daisy's request dawned on Phillip and he was somewhat relieved. "I'll do it while you're at school."
Franny poked her curly head around the corner, eyes puffy from tears, peeking up, obviously embarrassed. "You aren't angry? I really didn't mean to," she sounded surprised that he wasn't furious.
"No." Phillip thought for a second before elaborating, "I had accidents sometimes until I was seven or eight, maybe. It's okay. It happens." He shrugged, hoping to allay her shame.
"Mommy yells and makes Franny clean it up herself," Gabe informed him from his seat on the sofa.
"Well, she's not here and I am," Phillip stated brusquely. Realizing he sounded a little harsh, he looked at the clock and offered in a calmer tone, "Shouldn't you all be getting to school?" He was sure the schedule had now listed as their departure time, about forty-five minutes after Gareth's.
The kids grabbed their bags and coats, tumbling out the door while Phillip watched. As they walked down the driveway together, Franny turned back and waved, "Bye Phillip, see you later. Thank you." And he couldn't help but give a little smile and wave back.
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Abby pulled up a yellow plastic chair and huffed down noisily beside Gareth in the busy staff room. Most days, except when one of them had yard supervision, they ate lunch together. Her purple lunch bag landed on the table next to Gareth's with much ceremony. The noise caused the primary teachers across to eye the senior level teachers warily.
"So, how was your weekend?" he asked, as he was obviously meant to given her grand entrance and all, all the while avoiding the dirty looks from their colleagues.
"Good," Abby said with a smile, and told him all about the exhausting weekend with her (nice but overbearing) future in-laws. After a little she reciprocated, giving a pointed stare at his marred face. "What about you?"
"Interesting," Gareth responded, then told her most of the story.
Abby considered the bruising on Gareth's cheek. "I can't say I'm not thrilled that you're away from Leeann, but are you making sure to cover yourself?"
"What do you mean?" He cocked his head, confused.
"Gareth, you need a lawyer. She's not just going to let everything go so easily. You basically supported her for the past six years; housing, clothes, food, an allowance for bingo and the bar," Abby counted off on her fingers. "She had a free ride. I can't believe she'll just let that go, especially if things don't work out with her new guy."
"I suppose you're right, maybe I'm being a little naive. But he can give her what she wants, and it's nothing that I was going to do with her." Gareth emphasized Leeann's wants with a rude hand gesture and Abby rolled her eyes. "I did get my name off the old lease, since we were only month to month, and a bunch of the utility bills, too."
"If you've cut her off like that, you can be sure she'll come after you. Maybe even try to take the kids so she can get money," Abby pointed out, probably rightly, and that thought sickened him deeply.
He quelled the nausea rolling in his gut. "She can't have them," his voice was firm, cold even. "Never." He pushed his lunch aside, unable to eat for the moment.
"Then you're going to have to make sure there's no way she can get them. Nothing unusual in their routine or anything." Abby paused for a second to take a bite of her sandwich. "So you and the kids are just living with some weird guy?"
Gareth instantly got defensive. The last thing he wanted was to drag Phillip into all of this, "He's not weird, a bit socially awkward, shy maybe, but mostly he just seems lonely." There was a little smile on his face when he thought of Phillip.
Abby caught the grin and piped up, "You like this guy?" She knew his preference was definitely not females after trying ineffectively to set him up with a few of her friends after discovering there was nothing romantic between he and Leeann.
Gareth flushed, shaking his head slightly, "I don't know. He's a bit of an enigma really, and I've only known him for three days."
Abby thought for a few seconds before she said, "Well, just remember you can't save everyone, that's how you got stuck with Leeann in the first place."
Gareth didn't bother arguing with Abby, even though she was completely wrong. He was never trying to save Leeann, just his unborn child, then Daisy, and then Franny. Leeann, sadly, just came part and parcel.
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The laundry was finished, both his and the girls' bedding, and Phillip felt bad that Franny had been scared about getting yelled at. Wetting the bed was definitely not something a child did on purpose. Not a malicious act. In his case, it had been a mixture of stress and heavy sleeping, and he was sure something similar was affecting her. There was no way any child could go through everything those kids had faced and not have some difficulties. Fleeing their home after a big fight was bound to be stressful, and he was certain that the visible mark on Gareth's face wasn't the only kind of damage Leeann had done.
Thinking back to his mother, Phillip realized that nothing was better than fresh cookies. To be fair, he had a bit of a sweet tooth of his own, but cookies were his mother's go to item when Phillip was feeling down. And even though it had been a lifetime ago since he'd actually baked, he wanted the kids to know that none of whatever was going on was their fault. Maybe he couldn't express himself well with words, but this was something he could do. Besides, it wasn't like he didn't have the time, after all, he only had two shifts at work this week.
Dragging out his mother's old cookbook, Phillip realized that what he was doing now, right now, would be something his mom would approve of. She always wanted him to be happy and often fretted that he didn't have more friends, mix with people his own age, put himself out there. He was certain that the past few years of his life would have made her truly sad, and he never really knew how to fix it. But she would be proud now, now that he was taking steps outside of his comfort zone to help this family, trying make these kids feel even a little better. That thought made Phillip pleased as he reached for the flour and a mixing bowl.
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Two hours later, the warm cookies were on a plate with four glasses of milk on the table. The Lewises should be back soon. Phillip realized it was silly to have milk for Gareth, too, but he felt the man might appreciate the effort, give him some comfort as well. He was pretty sure that Gareth didn't get a lot of treats if the bruised cheek was any indication. Just as Phillip finished remaking the girls' bed, he heard the front door open. Suddenly he lacked any sort of confidence—he felt his effort was probably silly, misguided, or just plain ridiculous; he was flooded with embarrassment.
"Phillip?" Franny called. "Where are you?"
Phillip froze, realizing being caught in the girls' room was probably not appropriate. Definitely not. He couldn't answer, he couldn't even move. A strangled cry caught in his throat. Why would he have thought having a family in his home was a good idea? He couldn't do this. He must be the stupidest person ever.
Daisy walked in the room, dropping her and Franny's book bags. "Phillip! Are you okay?" Her eyes opened wide in surprise, but then recognition. She could tell he was anxious, familiar with his feelings of panic. It was times when she felt like this she would have been hidden in a closet somewhere. Daisy carefully took his clammy, quaking hand and said in her quietest voice, "Come have cookies with us. It was really thoughtful of you."
"I just wanted..." the words were caught in Phillip's throat but he allowed Daisy to gently drag him back to the kitchen were the Lewises were all sitting around the table having milk and cookies.
"He was making the bed back up," Daisy informed the table, flopping down into her seat next to her ever present book, grabbing a cookie. All eyes were on him, and Phillip wanted to disappear into the old linoleum flooring.
"You didn't have to do that, I was the one that had the accident," Franny said, sounding very apologetic.
Phillip shook his head and gruffly managed to spit out, "That's just it. An accident. Not your fault. Done now."
"Please, come sit," Gareth offered gently, pointing to Phillip's empty chair. Phillip complied, sitting apprehensively, like he was ready to dart away if there was a loud noise.
Gareth went around the table asking each of the kids about their day and discussing things with them. Phillip appreciated the time to just sit and listen, without having to add anything. It was a good way to get used to people without actually having to do anything. Once an inordinate amount of cookies had been consumed and the children were getting antsy, Gareth allowed them to go and watch tv.
Then he addressed Phillip; when Gareth's eyes turned to look at Phillip, his gentle tone helped put the shy man at ease. "Thank you so much for everything, Phillip. I can't tell you how much I appreciate you taking care of Franny's accident. I assure you she doesn't usually have this issue."
Phillip shrugged, "It happens. Especially when under stress. Not her fault." He kept his fixed stare low, on the tabletop, not willing to meet Gareth's eyes.
"Just, thank you for being so understanding. You didn't have to be." Gareth slid his hand slowly across the table and placed his slender fingers on top of Phillip's thicker ones, squeezing gently, then pulling back. Phillip blinked when he felt the contact.
Trying to quell his urge to flee, Phillip tilted his head up meeting Gareth's gaze, his eyes soft and liquid. "Yes, I did," he managed in a faint whisper, his heart pounding and the remembrance of the heat of Gareth's hand sending warm tingles up his arm. What was wrong with him?
A/N: Look at Phillip being all domestic! ;) He's certainly trying, considering he was going to kick Gareth and his family out a few days ago. But it's still just the one week trial, so we'll see! Thanks for all the reads, comments, and votes, the support is amazing. :)
Next update is on Saturday, I hope the rest of everyone's week goes great.
<3 JJ