Dinner [for Essie]

[bachjones]

 The woman at the coffee place had recognized Isaac, and had looked at Bach like he was a kidnapper and murderer all in one wrapping. It had taken his son not only ordering a coffee for Essie, but also knowing precisely how she liked it and a silly anecdote about how Isaac was showing Bach around town because Essie was too busy or some nonsense, to make the woman step away from the phone. They could have just sung. 

It was pretty clear that Isaac had a bit of a clue about what was going on, but he didn't want to talk about it, and Bach didn't really either. So they talked about the things he had learned at school, about the trips they'd make together when Isaac was older, and when Bach would have a guitar again. After all that, he neatly returned his son to his adoptive mother. 

Bach had found a few more of his things at the beach, including his guitar, snares broken but still a chance to live. It hurt to see the instrument like that, but it also gave him hope. He could bounce back. He would. 

He visited Lily Middleton for a shower and a new outfit, protesting any police involvement, he just wanted to go have dinner with his son. Mrs Middleton wasn't amused, but she allowed it. She was a good woman.

Neatly at the time discussed, Bach tried to show up on Essie's door step. "Essie!" Was she really still putting magic up for him? 

 

Comments

[bachjones]

"I'm not saying I want to put a leash on him, Christ. Am I really being that unclear?"

There was a difference between locking up someone in their room until they were eighteen and to pulling them along across the planet. Bach knew that he should appreciate Essie sharing, that this was something he should learn from, but it felt like an attack. Like a dismissal. If the both of them would have to be involved with Isaac's life, why was she making it sound like she had all the ideas?

"Because I never even had a room to get locked up in, I woke up in a new place every morning. Are we going to outbid each other for worst ideas? Can you really not understand that I want school, school holidays, graduations, employment, those kind of things for him? Like the rest of u- them? And of course he can find his own hobbies, save money to go to Europe instead of New York, I don't care about those things. But he needs a foundation, a proper one, a great one he can fall back on."

He pulled open a container, stuck in his hand and decided against it. "I'll use a fork."

[wakingwakewood]

She wanted to roll her eyes, but she focused on getting him a damn fork instead while she took a really deep breath. She wasn't saying she wanted to coddle Isaac. Maybe not exactly, it was getting pretty damn hard to focus at the moment. The man had a knack for getting under her skin and saying the exact WORST things at any given moment.

"I'm not -" She set the fork in front of him. "I'm not saying I don't want him to have a work ethic or whatever. I'm saying that we can give him advantages that we didn't have and maybe that's something to consider. A... broader world than what we had. A better start."

[bachjones]

"We?" Was she going to act like they were similar in any way?

Not that that had stopped them, that one time. That one time they had grown towards each other, had built something together out of their differences.
Fucking magic town.

He focused on his pasta instead, forking it into his mouth in the neatest way possible. If Essie'd expect him to be a barbarian, she might lock him out again.

"He's five", he offered after emptying half the box. "And what if he doesn't want broad?"

[wakingwakewood]

"I'm not going to force him to do anything he doesn't want to, but I want him to have the opportunity to do anything he does. Shit, I'll be a soccer mom if that's what he wants." Not that she thought that was going to be a danger, with Bach as a father, she'd probably end up shilling band candy at the local PTA meetings. BAnd candy was a thing, right? She thought she remembered come of the girls in her dance class talking about it once.

Oh, shit. That was actually a possibility, wasn't it? She didn't think she was ready for PTA. When did that start anyways? Was there... registration? Dues?

[bachjones]

"Soccer mom? What's wrong with f-"

Maybe Isaac would love soccer. Maybe he would turn into a little snob that would love all kind of things, because he knew about all kind of things. You couldn't love what you didn't know about, right?"
Bach rubbed his face and pushed the container aside, hunger gone. Fat musicians didn't get work anyway, lean was a better look for him.

"Soccer mom", he smirked. "You." It was a hilarious idea, honestly. She'd probably be the one really supportive, while at the same time cussing out the other team. Maybe. The smiling feeling disappeared again, because what did Bach really know about Essie?

"But can we do it with boundaries? Age appropriate ones and money appropriate ones and stuff? I mean, he already knows that he can get what he wants with the right set of eyes and song, let's not turn him into a spoiled brat because "everything" is a full time option for him. You agree with that, right?"

[wakingwakewood]

"That's why we have things like chores and allowances. I'm just going to give him my platinum card." She managed a wry grin. It seemed like a positive twist. Or a step in the right direction. Or some other cliche. Whatever it was, she didn't want to poke at it too much. Truce was better than war.

"Listen, it's pretty obvious that this is going to be tricky, but it's for Isaac so we'll work it out, right?"

[bachjones]

"For Isaac." Why the hell was there a lump in his throat.

"You have a platinum card?" Bach put his head down with the excuse of putting away the tupperware, trying to get control of his emotions again, because that was probably the thing bothering him. How much Essie wanted to do for his son, this kid that was just tied to her because of some stupid magic. Which reminded him ..

"This means you're in it for a long time, Es- Essie. Like, at least another ten years, because I know puberty will wreck any mother - son relationship." Maybe he shouldn't have called her that. "A long time."

[wakingwakewood]

She had all the cards, but she wasn't going to tell him that. She didn't use them often, after all the cash from her investment dividends was more than most people made in a year. Yeah, that wasn't going to go over well with him.

"I'm not leaving him. Bach. I love the kid. I know it's a completely f'ed up, but... the feeling isn't wrong. I'm suddenly a mom and that should bother the hell out of me and it doesn't. It's the first thing in a long time that's felt right." Oh, God, that sounded ridiculous.

[bachjones]

"Oh fuck." Jesus, had that last batch of pasta been filled with tearjerkers or something? And of course she was going to take his comment the wrong way, because that's what Essie did, take Bach's things the wrong way.

"You have a bag for all these boxes?" He got up, stacking them before putting his fork away in the sink. She'd probably think he was pulling a show to stay the night, and it made him feel awful. Vulnerable, which was the worst feeling ever. "We text or call if there's something on? And when I have a place again, you can drop him off. Always."

[wakingwakewood]

"Deal. Once you have a place you can take him weekends. Give me a chance to catch up on things." She winced, that sounded... "Sorry, that sounds totally lame. We'll work something out." They had to. She'd make it work somehow. For Isaac.

Heading to the pantry, she grabbed one of the reusable bags she'd been collecting. "Here. and just let me know if you need a few extra meals. I don't mind cooking you up some things on occasion. You can come over. I... won't put the super-wards back up."

[bachjones]

Look at them, both trying hard. At least this showed that Essie didn't completely have a clue about everything and all of it. Which felt good, but who did they turn to when neither of them had a clue? His family? His father would love that, Bach admitting he didn't understand.

"Right. Yeah, sure. And cooking classes, right? Or is that off the table? I mean, chicks love men cooking, I cou-" Could put his foot in his mouth, but at least the lump in his throat was gone. "I'll let you to ..whatever you had planned for the rest of the night." He accepted the bag. "I'll return all this, as soon as it's empty. And clean, of course."

[wakingwakewood]

"Yes. Cooking classes. And you keep what you cook." Baby steps. "I'll see you out." At some point she'd need to maybe give him his own security code. To the electronic alarm and the magical ones. But that was... later. Much later. A later she didn't want to think about.

[bachjones]

"Even when it is completely and terribly shit you wouldn't even feed a dog? Don't get -" Dan was a pet, duh. Isaac already had a pet, the dog was probably his best friend. Maybe even closer, and that brought Bach to thinking about more children and his brain should shut up now.

"Yeah. I don't want whatever witch stuff on my head. Or anywhere else." He picked up his poor guitar and cradled it against his chest. "We talk as soon as I have my own place?"

[wakingwakewood]

"You bet." She walked him to the door and held it open for him. "I won't do any witchy things to you unless you want me to. I'm not like that. Not unless... well, you wouldn't do anything to us. So it's not an issue." She believed that. She had to. Anything he did, she knew he did it because he loved Isaac. They'd just have to work things out.

"I'm a good witch, Bach. Healing, protecting, that's my jam. Issac's safe here and so... so are you."

[bachjones]

"Is that an invitation for the rest of the night?" Bach was a creature of habit, some things were hard to drop. "Ignore that, I know that wasn't an invitation."

He closed up his coat and checked the bag with food again, like it would suddenly have changed. "What if ..can I pick Isaac up from school and drop him off here? If he wants to? Maybe that can help you out as well?"

[wakingwakewood]

She almost choked on her drink before she realized it was a joke. Well, probably mostly a joke. It had better have been a joke.

"If you could maybe keep him until the store closes a couple times a week, that would be... okay." It wasn't the best way to put it, but Essie honestly didn't know how someone negotiated things like this. She would remember to call the school and let them know that Bach could pick Isaac up if necessary. For a brief moment she was worried his family might do something... rash and had let the school know, in no uncertain terms, that only she or his baby-sitter were allowed to pick him up. After Bach's disheveled arrival, she may or may not have added him to the do-not-allow list. Easily fixed, though and he didn't even need to know.

[bachjones]

"Okay." He was going to swallow the rest of his words, his thoughts, because this was a point of power and Bach knew that Essie would pull back like a scared kitten with every show of emotion from Bach. She could say yes or no to anything right now, he had to move very carefully. "Yes, just a few times a week, that was what I was thinking off as well. Like.. two or three? And only when I get the ro- apartment. I'm not going to be driving him around town or something, you have to think about what people will see .." And now he had officially turned into the boring house mom.

"Just ..think about it? And it's like, it's going to happen soon, I'm sure. Moving, I mean."