#teens gotta eat their bodies are growing and need the proteins

[sedlex]

I used to think adult Shawna was more than a bit unhinged but nope, she's an extremely well adjusted member of society for somebody who spent 2 of 19 months stranded in the woods hallucinating chats with the corpse of her deceased bff while semi starving and then, after consuming a piece of it by herself, proceeded to eat the rest with her teammates because said bff somehow agreed and frankly after the forest maneuvered it to yummy smoked meat it would've been a waste of resources.

[joyful-soul-collector]

Blanket Forts and Midnight Stories

By @joyful-soul-collector for @marvels-blue-phoenix

Rating: Teen and Up (for swearing)

Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark

Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark, DUM-E

Summary:  This is my gift for the Friendly Neighborhood Exchange! I combined two of the prompts given to me: "The two are stuck inside on a rainy day so they make a blanket fort and watch movies, falling asleep inside of it", and "Peter has a nightmare so Tony reads to him to get him back to sleep".

Thank you @friendly-neighborhood-exchange for planning this event! The story is under the cut, or you can read it on ao3

Tony was reading on the couch when Peter nearly fell flat on his face as he hopped on one foot into the living room that morning, trying his hardest to pull on a sock.

“Mr. Stark--ack--Mr. Stark I’m so sorry I woke up late, my alarm didn’t go off--”

“Woah hey, Pete, calm down,” Tony said with a laugh, putting down his book and turning in his seat to face him. Peter had on a wrinkled pair of jeans that Tony was fairly certain were the same ones he'd worn yesterday, had somehow put his shirt on backwards as well as inside out, and was sporting such ridiculous bedhead that it reminded Tony of a mad scientist. This of course wasn’t helped by the fact that he was still struggling to put on one of his socks.

“I think the park should be open but--jesus, c’mon stupid sock--I dunno if we’ll have time to go on all the rides and still play games now--”

“Pete have you not looked out the window yet?” Tony interrupted with a frown.

“Huh?” Peter said. Tony felt his heart squeeze a little when Peter glanced out to see an abysmally grey sky, the city of New York seemingly warped by the constant torrent of rain upon the windows of Stark Tower. His entire body seemed to droop sadly at the sight, even his spiky bedhead looking much more miserable than before.

“Oh,” he said quietly, and Tony gave a sympathetic chuckle.

“Sorry bud. No Tornado of Death Ride today,” Tony said.

“Hurricane of Death Ride, Mr. Stark,” Peter muttered, flopping down on the couch next to Tony.

“Hurricane, Tornado, they’re both winds that go in a circle,” Tony said. “Besides, any ride with the phrase ‘of Death’ in it, automatically sounds super cheesy. I could come up with a better name for it, and that’s not even my job.”

Peter replied with a noncommittal “hmm”, and Tony looked up at him. Peter was frowning at his knees, slumped against the couch so that his chin rested on his chest and his arms laid limply on his legs. He seemed to be more upset about this than Tony had thought he would be.

“You know we can always go another time, right kid?” Tony said.

“Yeah, I know,” Peter said with a sigh.

“So what’s bothering you?” Tony prompted.

“I--I dunno, I was just really looking forward to this. I mean with all my homework piling up since the school year is ending I haven’t been able to come over here for weeks, and I just--” Peter cut himself off, instead gesturing angrily at the window. Tony put his arm around Peter’s shoulders as he gathered his thoughts.

“I just wanted to spend the weekend with you. I miss you a lot,” he said quietly, snuggling a little closer to Tony’s side.

“Aw Pete,” Tony said, rubbing his arm comfortingly and pulling Peter so his head laid against Tony’s shoulder. “I’ve missed you too. I’m sorry we can’t go to the park today.”

“Yeah,” Peter said.

“You’ve been really stressed about school lately, haven’t you?” Tony said, remembering how dark the circles were under Peter’s eyes when he arrived at the tower yesterday. Karen had said he was still doing his patrols after completing his homework (as his aunt had forbidden him from putting Spider-Man before his education), but his energy levels were more depleted than normal, resulting in him being almost constantly delirious with exhaustion.

“Yeah. It’s just really hard,” Peter said. “Especially this week. I did extra work every day that way I wouldn’t have to do it while I was here.”

“You did? Oh kid, you didn’t need to do that,” Tony said.

“I didn’t want to stress about it while we were at the park. And I was worried you or Aunt May wouldn’t let me come over if I still had homework to do and I didn’t wanna have to cancel another weekend with you,” Peter said, ducking his head slightly but still pressing his face against Tony’s shoulder.

“Oh gosh, Pete no, of course I would’ve let you come over. And I know for a fact your Aunt wouldn’t have cared either, she can tell school’s been taking a toll on you,” Tony said. “In fact she was the one who suggested I take you to the park. She wanted you to get a break.”

“Oh,” Peter said. “Well I guess I didn’t need to pull those all-nighters.”

“Did you just say all-nighters? Plural?”

“Ummmmm… yeah?” Peter said innocently, and Tony guessed he hadn’t meant to say that.

“Oh Peter,” Tony said, now wrapping both arms around him and pressing a kiss to his hair. “When was this? How long did you stay up kid?”

“Um… I woke up Wednesday morning, and I went to sleep again, uh… last night.” Peter said the last two words in barely above a whisper, and Tony felt him tense up next to him.

He didn’t say anything for a moment, only releasing a heavy sigh and turning so he could properly hug Peter, his arms wrapped tight around him while Peter’s head rested on his chest. Peter relaxed, returning the hug eagerly.

“Well. Now I’m almost glad we can’t go to the park today,” Tony said.

“Huh? Why?” Peter asked, his voice muffled slightly by Tony’s shirt.

“Because roller coasters aren’t the kind of break you need. What you need is a calm, restful break. Get your energy back,” Tony said. “I’m thinking breakfast first, and then we do something like play a boardgame, or watch a movie.”

“Blanket fort?” Peter said hopefully.

“Blanket fort, huh? That might just be the perfect thing for you today,” Tony said with a grin. He released Peter and they both stood up. “How bout you get changed back into pajamas while I make you and I some breakfast? Ya hungry?”

Peter gave a shrug, pushing his hands into his pockets and glancing sadly out the window again before he spoke.

“Not really. I haven’t had much of an appetite lately, been too stressed out,” he said. Tony gave him a sympathetic smile and ruffled his hair as he made his way towards the kitchen.

“Ya gotta eat, kiddo, that’s probably part of the reason you’ve felt so tired recently. That and of course staying awake for three days straight. I’ll make you somethin’ with lots of protein: Eggs, bacon, sausages, all the good stuff.” Tony glanced back long enough to see Peter’s eyes light up and his tongue poke out to lick his lips.

“Just as long as you don’t make me drink one of those weird protein shakes Aunt May has sometimes,” Peter said, wrinkling his nose at the thought.

“I won’t make you as long as you don’t come back out looking like an eighty-year-old blind monkey dressed you,” Tony said, gesturing to Peter’s clothes. Peter frowned defensively, but upon seeing his backwards and inside out shirt he burst into laughter. Tony grinned at him, feeling a soft warmth grow in his chest at the sound.

“You go get changed, Spiderling,” he said. “When you get back we’ll get you fed and then we’ll start on that blanket fort. Sound good?”

Peter grinned and nodded, then walked back to his room while Tony started breakfast.

~~~

Peter scarfed down his food eagerly when Tony set it on the table, finishing his plate before Tony was even halfway through his own.

“Jeez kid, did you chew any of that? I swear you’re like some kinda vacuum,” Tony said, his eyebrows raised. Peter laughed and leaned back in his chair.

“I just didn’t realize how hungry I was until you started talking about food!” he said. Tony snorted.

“Well if you want more there’s some bacon still in the pan,” he offered.

“Nah I’m full now. Thanks for making me breakfast, it was amazing,” Peter said as he cleared his plate.

“Heh, no problem kid, that’s what I’m here for,” Tony said. Peter put his dishes in the sink, but rather than coming back to the table, he started walking out towards the bedrooms.

“Now where the heck are you goin’?” Tony called to him, a frown forming on his face. Peter whirled around then jerked a thumb over his shoulder towards the bedrooms.

“Supplies! Can’t build a blanket fort without the blankets!” he said.

“Ah, yes, of course, how silly of me to assume that we’d wait until everyone was done with breakfast,” Tony said with a lighthearted roll of the eyes. “And by everyone I mean me. I’m everyone.”

“Well hurry up then, everyone! We’ve still got movies to watch, we haven’t got all day!” Peter said before darting into one of the rooms. Tony laughed and quickly finished his breakfast before heading towards the hallway.

But before he could step a foot into it, an impossible mass of blankets and pillows blocked his way, almost knocking him over.

“What the--Jesus, Peter do we really need this much!?” Tony said, stumbling backwards and out of the way. Tony could barely see Peter under the pile, and even then it was just his legs. “I didn’t even know we had so many blankets.”

“Me either! Isn’t it awesome!?” Peter said, his voice muffled heavily by the mountain of fabric. “This is gonna be the best blanket fort ever!”

Tony laughed and followed Peter (or rather, the walking blanket mound), back to the living room. Together they spent the next half hour or so dragging chairs into the living room, draping sheets and blankets so they laid just right, and arranging pillows to weigh down the blankets so the fort didn’t cave in.

There were still plenty of “supplies”, as Peter called them, when they’d finished the structure of the fort, so they both dragged what was left of the blanket mountain inside their shelter and spread the soft fabric over the entire floor. By the time they finished, Tony could compare it to sitting inside a colorful cloud.

They both laid against a pile of pillows they’d fashioned into some sort of lumpy backrest and gazed around. It was a rather large space, big enough for both Peter and Tony to stretch their legs fully in front of them. But as Tony adjusted to sit up straight, his head touched the ceiling and fabric obscured his view.

“Yeah, that’s always a problem with blanket forts,” Peter said as Tony quickly bent down again to avoid disturbing the delicate structure of the fort. “The ceiling always bows in the middle. I’ve heard of some people propping up a stick in the center but then we run the risk of it getting knocked over and taking the whole fort down with it.”

“You sure are an expert on blanket forts,” Tony said, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, me ‘n Uncle Ben used to make them together all the time. We’d watch youtube videos and try and make the coolest blanket fort we could find. It was the best,” Peter said with a bit of a sad smile. Tony returned the grin and ruffled his hair affectionately before kissing his head.

“Well I sure as hell am not gonna be able to stand the saggy ceiling situation,” he said. “So you’re lucky you’re building a fort with a genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist, because I have an idea that’s gonna blow your mind.”

“Oh really?” Peter said as they crawled out of the fort.

“Yes, really, and you can keep your skepticism to yourself young man, I’ll have you know I have also made a blanket fort before,” Tony said.

“Uh-huh. Says the dude who tried to use the thickest blanket for the roof,” Peter said with a roll of his eyes. “Everyone knows you use the thin blankets and sheets for the top and all the thick blankets are used for the inside, Mr. Stark.”

“Yeah yeah whatever. You go grab some snacks and set up the movie while I grab the mindblowing, cosmically amazing invention that’s going to solve all our problems,” Tony said, walking to the elevator and punching in the code for the lab.

“Alright, but since I’m the one getting the snacks, that means I get to have all the junk food I want!” Peter called over his shoulder as Tony stepped into the elevator.

“What? What messed up dimension did you pull that logic from?!” Tony said as Peter disappeared around the corner.

“Friday close the elevator doors!” Peter shouted from the kitchen.

“Wh--PETER--” But the doors closed before Tony could continue. He laughed to himself as the elevator made its way to the lab.

~~~

Peter’s face when he saw Tony leading DUM-E out of the elevator was priceless. He’d just poked his head out of the fort at the sound of the elevator dinging, and Tony relished in the surprise and excitement on his face.

“Told you I had a great idea,” Tony said with a smirk. Peter laughed and crawled fully out of the fort.

“I’ll never doubt you again Mr. Stark,” he said.

“Better not--Oi! Quit messin’ with that DUM-E, I’ve got a job for you,” Tony said, clapping to get the robot’s attention away from Tony’s book still lying on the couch. DUM-E turned around and whirred curiously. “Right, yes you, dork, I need you to pinch the fabric of the blankets right here--” Tony reached over and pointed to an area in the center of the roof of the fort “--and pull up slowly. You got that? Slowly, don't yank at it. And then, when I tell you, stop.”

DUM-E whirred and made a nodding motion with his claw. He hovered over the area that Tony had indicated before pinching the fabric in his claw and slowly pulling up. He froze immediately when Tony told him to, and after a few adjustments, the fort was finally complete.

“Good boy. Nice job DUM-E,” Tony said. DUM-E beeped happily at the praise, still staying perfectly still.

“Will he get tired doing that the whole time?” Peter asked, looking a little concerned.

“He’s a robot Peter, unlike you, he can stay up for three days straight no problem,” Tony said. Peter snorted.

“Fair enough,” he said. Then he crawled under the fort, and Tony followed after giving DUM-E a pat on his long mechanical arm.

The ceiling problem was definitely fixed, Tony could now sit up straight and see the TV with no difficulty, however that victory was slightly overshadowed by what else he saw inside.

It seems Peter hadn’t taken some snacks, instead going for all of them. Several bags of chips, at least three containers of cookies, and somewhere around five boxes of pop tarts were scattered about the fort. Peter was munching on a bag of Cheetos, his fingers already orange with the cheese dust.

“Jesus kid, are you stocking up for winter or something?” Tony said, still staring wide-eyed at all the food.

“I’m a growing boy Mr. Stark! Besides, you were the one who said I had to eat more,” Peter said, pointedly popping a Cheeto in his mouth.

“Well I kinda meant something healthy,” Tony muttered crawling to sit next to him. “But I’ll make an exception for today. Just don’t make yourself sick.”

“Whaaaat, I’ve never done that in my life, you must be thinking of some other kid,” Peter said, handing him a box of cinnamon pop tarts. Tony rolled his eyes and took one of the shiny packets.

“Oh yes, how silly of me. What’re we watchin’?”

“Star Wars.”

“Again?”

“Is that alright? It’s just, I’m still kinda tired and I’m not sure I can pay attention to anything new right now, but if you want we can--”

“No no, it’s fine kiddo. I’m happy to watch Star Wars with you,” Tony said with a small laugh. Peter grinned then grabbed the remote and pressed play. Tony wrapped his arm around Peter’s shoulders and Peter snuggled into his side, still crunching on chips as the words A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away… appeared on the screen.

Soon, one movie turned into two, and then three, then four. To be honest, Tony wasn’t sure how many they’d watched when Peter fell asleep, all he knew was when the credits started rolling on the final movie, Peter didn’t immediately jump up to put in the next DVD like he’d done every other time.

Tony looked down to see Peter sleeping soundly against his side, empty snack wrappers and bags littered next to him. Tony checked his watch.

It was only eight o’clock.

“Well I guess you really were tired, huh little spider?” Tony whispered. Peter still had dark circles under his eyes, though they weren’t quite as bad as yesterday. Tony gave him a kiss on the head before carefully untangling himself and laying Peter’s head on a soft pillow. He spent a couple minutes throwing out all the snack wrappers and putting away all the food they didn’t end up eating, before crawling back into the fort and pulling one of the heavier blankets over Peter’s sleeping form. Then he laid down next to him, and laughed softly when Peter squirmed closer to him in his sleep.

“Sleep good kid,” Tony whispered.

~~~

Tony didn’t think he’d been sleeping for very long when he woke up. At first he wasn’t actually sure why he’d woken up, until he heard the sound of whimpering. Cries that sounded a lot like Peter’s.

“H-help…”  

“Peter?”

“Help… help I’m stuck…” Tony’s heart sank instantly.

“Peter! Peter wake up!” Tony said, his voice croaking from sleep.

“Help, help I can’t breathe--I can’t breathe!” Peter said, twisting in his sleep as his voice rose to a shout.

“Peter!” Tony grabbed his shoulder and his eyes snapped open, shining with fear and tears. He stared for a moment before suddenly pulling himself close to Tony’s chest and burying his face into Tony’s shirt.

“Hey, hey, it’s alright Pete, you’re safe, I promise,” Tony said, wrapping his arms around him and stroking his hair. Peter’s breathing eased after a few more minutes of reassurance, and Tony could feel his muscles relaxing under his arms.

“I--I’m sorry I woke you up,” Peter said, his voice trembling slightly.

“No, you don’t need to apologize kiddo, it’s not your fault,” Tony said. “You think you can go back to sleep now?”

Peter didn’t answer for a moment.

“I… I’m scared. I don’t want to, can we just get up now? We could watch another movie…”

Tony sighed and looked at his watch.

“Peter it’s two am. You’ve only been asleep four hours. You stayed awake for three days kiddo, I’m not letting you get any less than twelve hours tonight,” Tony said. Peter bit his lip and looked down, trying to hide the misery on his face. Tony started to wrack his brain for ideas on how to help him when a high whistling noise startled them both.

The ceiling of the fort suddenly dropped, bowing inwards again and Peter flinched hard, like he’d been punched.

“You alright?” Tony said, looking down at him in surprise.

“I--I thought the ceiling was gonna fall on me,” he mumbled, and even in the darkness Tony could see an embarrassed blush rising in his cheeks. Tony felt anger flare inside him and he released Peter, pushing himself up.

“Dammit DUM-E,” he muttered. He could hear the robot wheeling around noisily outside the fort. Tony crawled out and stood up, his fists clenched and his lips pulled in a snarl.

DUM-E was by the couch, struggling to pick up the book Tony had been reading this morning and whistling in frustration.

“What the hell are you doing?!” Tony said as loudly as he could while still keeping his voice at a whisper. DUM-E just kept grasping at the book, ignoring him. Tony stepped forward and snatched up the book. It was Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Peter had been trying to get him to read the series for months and since Tony hadn’t been able to see much of his intern lately, he decided to give it a try. He’d told Peter it was just to get him off his back about it but really, he’d just missed having his Spiderling around. He ended up loving it though, and he was almost done with the third book.

“What do you want with this!?” Tony said, holding out the book and shaking it at him. “It’s a book DUM-E, you can’t even read!”

The robot whirred impatiently and turned to face Tony. He reached forward and poked the book with his claw, then pointed directly at the fort.

“…I have no clue what the hell that means.”

DUM-E made a noise that could’ve been a sigh if he had lungs. He jabbed at the book again, then this time at Tony’s chest, then insistently at the fort again.

“Ugh, I don’t have time for this,” Tony muttered, but DUM-E whistled angrily and suddenly wheeled off in the direction of the bedrooms. “Now what’re you doing!?”

The robot only whistled again and went into one of the rooms. Tony waited for a second before growing impatient and starting back to the fort, deciding to berate him for scaring Peter in the morning. But just as he kneeled down, Tony heard DUM-E whirr indignantly before something soft smacked him in the face.

“What the--” Tony held up the cloth that’d hit him, and instantly recognized Peter’s mask. DUM-E prodded the book, then the mask.

Tony suddenly understood.

“Oh. I see. That’s… actually a really good idea. Thank you. Sorry I got mad buddy,” Tony said. He patted the robot’s claw apologetically, and DUM-E forgave him easily with a wave, then turned and pinched the fabric of the fort again, pulling it up back into its original position.

Tony went back into the fort, feeling guilt at both snapping at DUM-E, but also for leaving Peter alone. Peter had sat up and was hugging a pillow, his eyes still glistening with tears.

“Hey kiddo,” Tony said. “Not feeling any better?”

Peter opened his mouth, but words seemed to fail him so he shook his head instead.

“Well, DUM-E had the idea that I should read to you. To help you fall asleep. So, how do you feel about The Prisoner of Azkaban?”

Peter’s face actually lit up at that, and he wiped the tears out of his eyes quickly.

“That--That’s my favorite one actually,” he said with a small sniff.

“Is it now?”

“Yeah. I like Professor Lupin. He reminds me of you. Like how he helped Harry when he got attacked by the dementor, and taught him magic so he could protect himself. That’s like how you give me hugs when I’m sad or scared, and you tell me to sleep more and stuff.”

“Huh. I guess that’d make you The Boy Who Lived, huh?”

“Well, I am really good at barely avoiding death,” Peter said. Tony laughed softly.

“I suppose since it’s your favorite, we should start from the beginning then,” he said. They both laid back, and Tony put on his glasses, activating night vision so he could read without a light. Peter laid next to him, waiting for the story to begin.

“Harry Potter was a highly unusual boy in many ways…”  

Irondad Taglist: @phahbiyah @keep-a-bucket-full-of-stars @clevermuffinalmondpeach

Let me know if you want to be added or removed from the taglist! I don’t mind at all either way!

[eyez-ff-blog]

○○ eyez | forty

April 23, 2018

“Hey, put this on,” Jermaine furrowed his eyebrows as Janiya laughed, her purple babydoll style shirt only half on her body. Her eyes peeked from the confines of the collar, and she giggled. “Hi,” She gently greeted.

“Hi,” He smiled, and she laughed as he finished putting the shirt on. “There we go. You wanna wear this?” He held out the pair of jeans. “Or...?” He held out the skirt, and Janiya stared up at him before she reached up towards the jeans. Jermaine proceeded to help her into the jeans, and he stepped back as she stood before him in her what would be her outfit for her birthday party. “Where’s mama? We gotta get your hair done,” He ruffled his hand across her curls, and she held her arms out for him to pick her up.

His sidekick was a year old today, and it brought so many feelings to him as he walked around the house with his daughter in his arms. This time last year, even he was unsure of what Niya’s future would hold. A part of him was afraid that she wouldn’t be strong enough to endure. It was a scary time, and despite those fears he carried the burden of his family. But now it was a year later and the rain still came just as heavily as it did when she was born; despite that rain, the home felt warm and nothing as it was. He could only pray that his baby girl would only understand times like these.

“I wonder where mama is,” Jermaine said as he looked down at Janiya, who seemed to respond to the word immediately.

“Mama,” She mumbled before the two entered the living room. At the sight of Beija, she reached over towards her, wiggling restlessly in Jermaine’s arms. “Mama,” She called out.

“Hi, baby!” Beija got up before she came over to the duo, kissing Janiya’s forehead before taking her from J’s grip. “Daddy got you all dressed up—you’re so cute,” She chuckled as she looked up at the curls that laid haphazardly upon her head. “But he didn’t do this mane, huh?” She shook her head.

“I can barely do mine. I’m learning, though. Before long she will get a good puff,” J said, and he chuckled as he watched Beija carry Niya to the couch—he saw that she had Niya’s hair care items on the ready.

“Did you need me to go to the store for anything or did you get everything?” He asked.

“The cake should be ready by the time you get to the bakery, so go ahead and do that for me if you please,” Beija said as she began to focus on gently combing through Niya’s hair. “Say bye to daddy,” She instructed.

“Bye-bye,” Niya said softly, and J waved before he disappeared to the master bedroom to retrieve his coat. After slipping it on, he went to his car and carefully drove through the rainy streets to reach the bakery.

As he pulled up to the bakery, he heard his phone ring before he checked the I.D., swiping to answer before he pressed it to his ear. “Yo,” He answered.

“You could be more civilized towards me on the phone,” Ib joked, and Jermaine chuckled a bit before he quickly got out of the car and jogged towards the bakery’s entrance.

“I knew it was you, though. Fuck you want, though?” J playfully asked as he stood in line, running his hand over his regrowing dreads. They were pretty much growing the same as before, but with Beija’s help they seemed a lot neater looking.

“First, I got your email about the new album pitch—I love it,” Ib sounded excited as he spoke. “So, that’s all good with me. Go ahead and start that up and I’ll be there to help when you need me,” He added.

“That’s wassup. I was hoping you’d be down for it. But you said ‘first,’ so what’s next?” Silence came after, and he furrowed his eyebrows. “Ibrahim?”

“Nicole’s pregnant.”

“Are you seri—I’m gonna be an uncle?!” Jermaine did all he could not to yell too loudly, letting out a laugh before he nodded. “Congratulations, man. I know you guys have been working on that,” He said.

“She’s been floating all day since we found out. I’m really just blown right now; I’m gonna be a dad,” Ib chuckled softly. “Man, we are getting old as shit,” He playfully complained.

“There’s a strange thing called time, Ib. Doesn’t seem to know much about going backwards,” J retorted.

Ib sucked his teeth before laughing. “Nigga, fuck you—you know what I mean. We spent so long doing this music shit and we never thought this would be our lives, you know what I’m saying? We got so many people on, we put The Ville on the map, we made history several times...and now my niece is one. I’m about to have a kid. We really made it,” Ib said.

“Don’t get emotional on me or I’m gonna have to tease you,” J chuckled. ‘But you’re right. We’ve been through a bit. Can’t say I’d wanna be doing this with anybody else, brother,” He said warmly.

“The feeling’s mutual. But man, enjoy your baby’s day. Kiss Niya for me and tell baby sis I said what’s good,” Ib concluded.

“You got it,” The two hung up soon after, and J smiled softly to himself before he nodded slowly to himself.

Soon enough he got to the front of the line and got the vanilla cake before he took it back to the house. When he walked in, the decorations were finished and what was once a ground zero of planning seemed to be a bit more tidy. He saw Janiya in her playpen as Beija was putting up the streamers, and he sat the cake on the kitchen island before he stood behind her to help her put the streamer up. “Thank you,” She said before she went to check the cake, inspecting it to make sure it was what she ordered. The sheet cake was covered in white icing, the purple trimmings and lettering giving it a pop of color. The theme of the party was a clichéd princess palace but J didn’t mind because in his eyes, Janiya was his princess.

“I made chicken spaghetti to eat—I think that’s general enough for the parents to eat. Then I have some of the baby food I made earlier for the kids,” She said, and Jermaine nodded before he grabbed one of the small canisters of the apple and strawberry flavored ones. “That’s not for you,” She scolded as he popped it open.

“It’s good, though. Not my fault that it’s good,” He grabbed a spoon and started to eat it. “You know, have you thought about selling these?” He asked, as he leaned back against the counter.

“Hm...no, I haven’t actually,” Beija said, and he nodded quickly.

“You should. It’d be a good investment, for one. And you know everyone is out here worried about these modified foods—organiz foods are in the market and it sells,” Jermaine explained.

“And when did you become a consumer’s market expert, huh?” Beija chuckled as she took out one of their plastic punch bowls. She began to prepare a punch for the party, mixing in orange juice with club soda, trying to create a virgin mimosa.

“I do my research! How you think I finally learned how to bake chicken?” Jermaine proudly grinned, and Beija groaned before the two began to laugh. They had baked chicken and store-bought mashed potatoes for about a week just off of J’s sheer excitement of learning to make a protein. “But I’m serious, baby. I mean, I think you could make a brand out of yourself and really do something great with this,” He explained.

“Well it’s good to know you were thinking of me. I know I’d have at least one supporter,” She chuckled.

“Of course. Gotta make sure my star player stays sharp,” He smacked her behind as he passed her, placing the glass canister in the sink.

“I better be the only player,” She playfully threatened, and he chuckled before he gently placed a raspberry-style kiss to her cheek.

“Now you know better, Imani. You my one-woman team,” He chuckled.

Soon enough, the parents from around the neighborhood had shown up for the party with their children. The living room area was gated off and child proofed so that the kids could play in an open space, and meanwhile the adults hung out in the kitchen and dining room, keeping an eye on the kids throughout.

Jermaine hung against the wall as one of the fathers attending the party talked he and some of the other fathers’ ears off about his newest deal with whatever energy business he worked at...his name was Anthony, if J remembered right. But when he finally did take a breath from speaking, the subject switched to the children. “I think my Danielle loves your daughter, Jermaine. They play well together and usually Dani is so picky,” Anthony said, and J glanced back to see the small white child rolling around on the soft rug that Beija had placed down. Janiya rolled around with her, and they stopped to start playing with stuffed animals together.

“She’s gonna be social, I can already tell,” Silas was probably the most confident man in the group and he and Jerrmaine probably were worth a good grip combined. He was a family lawyer and though he was suave and had business savvy out of this world, he was a chatty son of a gun whom couldn’t even be trusted with water without spilling it. Jermaine wouldn’t ever tell him too much, but Silas pretty much knew everything about every guy in that circle at the moment. “What are you gonna do when she gets older?”

“What? The teen years?” Jermaine didn’t like to think too far ahead when it came to Janiya. It seemed that when he did it only made him worry. “I don’t even like to think about that. I’m still worrying about when she starts Kindergarten and that’s another four or so years,” He shook his head.

“Ugh. My oldest just turned fourteen and I’m having the time of my life,” Tim was the true ‘dad friend’ that anyone would want—guy was the sweetest thing, but had four kids and always looked so rundown. Even now as he was sitting and being relaxed at the moment, he seemed to be jittery. “Hormones. Boys. And she started her period,” All of the men groaned.

“Good luck,” Silas laughed deeply. “This is why I’m glad I had boys,” He said, and Jermaine nodded slowly before he sipped his punch. And I won’t let Niya around any of those motherfuckers, J thought.

“I could see why you’d worry, though,” Allen was the newest guy in the neighborhood and had taken on the role as the ‘new black dad on the block.’ He was probably the one person that Jermaine could identify with; guy was level-headed and held down his household as a surgeon at the hospital. His wife was a school teacher, and his twin girls were angelic. “I can only imagine kids’ mothers and fathers when they realize their kid knows J. Cole’s daughter. That’s going to be a struggle,” He said.

“Exactly. I don’t want people taking advantage of my baby,” J said as he watched Janiya as she played with one of her bouncy balls, rollng it around with one of Allen’s daughters. “And the boys—God,” He chuckled lowly. “I don’t wanna think about it,” He sighed.

“I’m sure it’s worrisome. But you and Beija seem like you’re no nonsense. That’s good! The guys will know not to mess around,” Anthony said quickly.

“Oh, yeah. She not getting a boyfriend until she’s at least...twenty. Twenty-one? Sure. If she can handle a drink legally, she can handle a boy,” Jermaine joked...half-joked, anyway.

“Amen to that,” Tim and Allen said simultaneously.

“Okay, it’s time for the cake!” The men looked up to see Beija standing at the kitchen island with the purple ‘1’ candle and the lighter. While most of the mothers were going to get their kids, Jermaine downed the rest of his punch and threw away the cup before he went to retrieve Niya from the play area. “You ready for birthday cake?” He asked, and she looked up at him curiously as he walked over to the cake, where the candle had already been lit.

Beija had the camera recording, and she smiled as she waved at Niya. “Look at the camera, baby,” She laughed before Janiya looked in Beija’s direction, mimicking her wave. “Okay, everyone sing on 3. 1, 2, 3—...”

As everyone began to sing, Jermaine slowly rocked Janiya in his arms and he smiled as he sang to her. Her eyes automatically averted to him when he did, and he watched as she began to smile as well. He could remember the first time he held her in his arms. She was so small, barely moving as they had just revived her from what seemed like certain death. Her eyes were closed as she slowly breathed, and he remembered the feeling of relief and equal anxiousness. He was wondering if she’d ever live a normal life or if she’d even live to see this day. And now, one year later, she looked at him as if he was her most important view. Her eyes seemed to twinkle, and he couldn’t help but to want to hold tighter. He never wanted to let go.

“Blow out the candles,” Beija said softly once everyone was finished singing, and J snapped out of his trance before he nodded.

“C’mon mama, blow em out,” He pushed his lips together, and Janiya mimicked him before he leaned in and blew out the candle for her. Everyone began to clap, and he bounced her gently as she mimicked everyone clapping. “Yay,” He praised.

“Yay!” She copied, and everyone began to laugh.

The party wasn’t extremely long and that was fine—soon the parents left with their kids and once Jermaine and Beija cleaned the house, they opened some of the gifts that Janiya had gotten. They decorated her room with her brand new stuffed animals, and they took a couple photos of her to put into their photo album. Jermaine had finally taken a seat for the first time in a couple hours, and he groaned softly as he ran his hand over his purple jersey; he remembered getting the jersey from a fan some years back and he had made sure to keep it maintained. It did have the Prince branding on it and all.

“What are you doing, girl?” He asked as he watched Janiya sit up and down, laying back against the soft mad that was still on the floor. He raised his eyebrows slowly when she slowly began to try to stand to her feet. “Baby—Beija! The camera!”

“What?” Beija looked back from the dishes she was washing, and she gasped loudly before she grabbed the camera to turn it on. Janiya had been trying to do this for the last couple of weeks, but she hadn’t quite mastered it just yet.

Janiya fell back on her behind, and her eyes got big. “Uh-oh,” She mumbled.

“That’s okay, baby. Try it again,” Jermaine slid off the couch and onto the floor, sitting comfortably before he opened his arms. “Come on to daddy,” Janiya tried to get up again, and she slowly took a step forward, and his smile broadened. “That’s right, come on,” He encouraged.

Janiya stumbled a couple of times, but she had successfully walked to mat until she fell into Jermaine’s arms.

“You did it!” Beija squealed, and Janiya giggled as Jermaine squeezed her gently. “Good job, baby!”

Janiya laughed a bit as Jermaine leaned in and blew a raspberry on her cheek, then began to make the same sound before she patted his cheeks slowly. He smied softly before he placed his forehead against hers.

Beija and Janiya had long since been asleep; it was a little past 10 in the evening, and what was once a lively home full of individuals and party spirit was now a subtly placidity. Jermaine sat in the living room alone as he sat on his MacBook, editing the video clips that Beija had taped, along with different messages that the partygoers had to commemorate Janiya’s special day. Janiya’s grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins had send in videos as well, and J had seamlessly stitched them all together. He and Beija’s message would go last, and he had just added Beija’s message in. Now, he hd to tape his.

He sat his laptop to the side before he grabbed the camera and turned it on before he licked over his lips softly. “Hey babygirl. It’s your father,” He chuckled softly to himself. “You know, it still feels unreal to say that. I’m your father...God thought I was good enough to take care of you,” He paused before he smiled to himself. “You’re sleeping right now, but just know that today was a beautiful day and I’m so blessed to have you. When you were born, no one was sure what your future would hold. But you fought for the right to be here and everyday is celebration of that, to me. You’re...so perfect,” He mumbled as he ran his hand over his face. “You’ll always be perfect to me. We might get into it in the future. You’ll wanna defy me. You might end up being just like me or your mama. You might end up being nothing that we expected. But no matter what...you’re perfect to me. You’re a constant reminder of how lucky I am. Janiya, daddy loves you. So much,” He smiled softly before turning off the camera.