The neighbor

3

His new neighbor was in the back of his head the next day. He felt sorry for him. He wished there was something he could do for him and then he finally remembered something. When Elton had colic he had built a device that rocked the baby carriage back and forth in a slow but steady rhythm. It had been a lifesaver. He wondered if he brought it with him when they moved? Probably. He had a hard time letting go of things and his storage unit was filled with stuff.

Wednesday meant football practice for Dominic and they always went to watch him play, practice, or game. It had been their thing. He used to play football too when he was younger. Even if it was a bit tricky to bring all three kids and even if it meant that it would be past Johannah's bedtime before they got home he wouldn't miss it for the world.

He managed to get off work a little early. He rushed to pick up the kids so they would be able to eat dinner before they had to get to Dominic's practice that started at six. He had made extra food yesterday so they could eat leftovers. He just had to heat it. Bringing all three children with him was a bit of a challenge but they made it work.

The kids in question sighed at the leftovers. They didn't like his food the day before and now they had to eat it again. Well, he would never be a fucking top chef how hard he tried. At least they ate quickly. Louis saw that he had time to peek into his storage unit and asked Dominic to keep an eye on Johannah and headed down to the basement hastily. He sighed when he unlocked the padlock. There were so many things in there. Mostly Olivias things. He felt uneasy but took a look and fortunately the device he had built was behind the door. He brought it with him and returned home, putting it against the wall in the hallway.
"Guys! Time to leave. Does anyone need to go to the toilet? Elton, give it a try, you know how it usually goes."

Elton always needed to pee five minutes after they arrived at the football field. He got Johannah ready. Dominic had already changed into his football gear. Elton returned from the bathroom.
"I didn't need to pee."

Louis grunted internally. He rounded them up and they got in the car. They arrived and Dominic joined his team for warm-up. As expected Elton needed to pee five minutes later so Louis picked up Johannah and followed him to the locker room.

After that, they stood on the sideline cheering Dominic on. An hour later practice was over and Dominic came running over.
"You were great." Louis smiled.

They went back home. Dominic jumped in the shower and Louis put Johannah to bed. The baby next door was crying as usual. It didn't irritate him this time, he just felt bad.

As soon as Johannah fell asleep he told the boys he was going next door for a minute. He picked up the homemade equipment and walked over to knock on his neighbor's door. Harry opened it, holding a screaming baby. He looked exhausted. He had dark rings under his eyes and his hair was a mess once again.
"I'm sorry. Are we keeping you up again?" He asked, sounding apologetic.

"No, it's fine. Ehm, I remembered that I still had this." Louis replied and held up the board in his hand.

Harry looked confused so Louis hurried to give him an explanation.
"When my middle one Elton had colic, I built this."

"Okay? What is it?" Harry asked with a small smile on display.

"Well, if you have a baby carriage you put it on this, and then there's this remote control that moves this plank, like you're shaking the carriage, but it's not violent or anything! It's perfectly safe, I promise. I don't know about your baby but Elton always slept best in his baby carriage and first I was out walking back and forth at night until I built this one. Then I could crash on the sofa and Elton slept. Uhm, I don't know. I thought it could help. Maybe it was a stupid idea." Louis rambled nervously. Harry intimidated him a little. Even if he was exhausted he was beautiful. Louis wrinkled his eyebrows. Was beautiful a word to describe another man? Well, this man was. It was just an observation. An indisputable fact.

Harry broke out in a genuine smile.
"That's brilliant! Yeah, Darcy loves her carriage. Thank you, Louis."

"Darcy? That's her name? She's beautiful. Ehm, so, do you want it? Do you want me to show you how it works?" Louis asked.

Harry seemed to hesitate but then he took a step to the side.
"Sure, come in. Just, ehm, I just moved in and haven't had the time, or should I say the energy to unpack all the boxes yet. It's a bit messy. I apologize." He said, clearly embarrassed.

"It's fine, honestly. I don't care." Louis smiled reassuringly.

Harry hadn't been exaggerating. The living room was filled with cardboard boxes.
"I love what you've done to the place." Louis joked and Harry blushed.

"I'll get to it. I'm a bit sleep-deprived." Harry answered.

"Yeah, I get that. I was just kidding. So,  where's the baby carriage?" Louis asked.

Harry went to the bedroom and returned shortly with the carriage. Louis looked around.
"Great, I need a power outlet."

"It's one there, by the couch." Harry pointed.

Louis smiled and put his homemade device on the floor and plugged it in. He rolled the baby carriage on the platform and made sure that the wheels were locked before he picked up the remote control. He went to stand next to Harry.
"It's easy really. Power button. Here it goes back and forth." He instructed and pressed the button.

Harry's eyes grew wide when he saw the board move slowly at a steady tempo.
"It's like a wave." He commented.

"Yes! That was what I tried to mimic. If you press this button it goes sideways instead." Louis said and showed him.

"Wow. This is really impressive. You built this?" Harry asked, eyeing him with interest.

"Uhm, yeah, I'm an engineer, or I used to be." Louis mumbled.

"It's brilliant. I can't thank you enough." Harry said emotionally.

"No problem. I just hope it helps her sleep." Louis said, cheeks turning pink from the praising.

"Let's try it." Harry said with a smile, showing off dimples on both cheeks.

Louis turned it off so Harry could put the crying baby in the carriage. Harry had been holding her this whole time, rocking her back and forth. Louis handed over the remote control and Harry tried it, as soon as he had made sure that Darcy was comfortable. Her crying decreased some.

"I have to get back home and put my oldest one to bed." Louis said.

"How many children do you have?" Harry asked.

"Three. Dominic is eleven, Elton is seven and Johannah is three." Louis answered proudly.

"That's wonderful. I always wanted a lot of children. How long have you and your partner lived here?" Harry small-talked while he followed him to the hallway.

"It's just me and the kids. Me wife passed away a year ago." Louis answered in a restrained voice.

Harry let out a small gasp. He grabbed Louis' arm and squeezed it.
"That's awful. I'm so sorry for your loss."

"Thank you." Louis answered before he walked out of the apartment.

He didn't know what came over him but he turned around in the doorway.
"If you need help unpacking I can help you on Friday. I would have to bring me kids of course, but ehm, I don't know. Just a thought." He mumbled the last part.

"Really? That would be awesome! I can make dinner." Harry smiled.

"Oh, yeah. I get off work at four on Fridays." Louis said awkwardly.

"Perfect. Do your children have a favorite dish?" Harry asked.

That was sweet of him.
"Anything that's not me cooking." Louis smirked.

Harry let out a soft laugh.
"See you all on Friday then."

"Yeah, bye." Louis said and wondered what the hell he just offered as he walked back to his own apartment.