Restore (Sequel to Purge: Larry au)

Chapter 32

TW: mentions of depression and suicidal thoughts

A week later

"Darcy, please don't put that in your mouth," Harry pleads over the sounds of Morgan's screams.

The three-year-old looks up at him with a mischievous grin on her face and proceeds to put the crayon in her mouth.

"Darcy."

Darcy giggles and pulls the slobbery crayon out from between her lips, using it to color her picture. 

Morgan wails in Harry's arms, squirming. Her face is red and her cheeks are shiny with tears. He's just fed her and changed her nappy, but she's still crying. He wishes Louis were here to help him, but it's his first day back at work so Harry's on his own.

"Morgan, I don't know what's wrong with you," Harry whimpers, cradling the baby in his arms. "Please stop crying."

"She never stops Papa," Darcy informs him. 

"Darcy..." Harry sighs, seeing the toddler move to chew on another crayon. "Those aren't food. Please don't eat them."

"But I like it," Darcy tells him. 

"I don't care, it's not healthy. You can't eat crayons."

"Yes I can." And to prove her point, she puts another crayon in her mouth.

"You shouldn't eat crayons," Harry amends, switching Morgan to his other arm, hoping to calm her down.

"But it's fun!" Darcy says. 

"But it'll make you sick," Harry tells her wearily, bouncing his baby in his arms. 

"Why?"

"There are bad things in crayons that aren't supposed to be eaten," Harry explains, getting a bit frustrated. 

"Why?" Darcy asks again.

"I don't know why, Darcy, that's just the way they are!" Harry exclaims just as Morgan lets out the highest-pitched wail yet. 

"Papa, she's screaming loud," Darcy says. 

"I know she is," Harry grumbles, looking down at the baby. Why can't he just get to her calm down? He's her parent, he should be able to calm her down.

"Shhh... Morgan, please stop crying," Harry begs. "Please."

Morgan just screams louder. 

Harry begins to walk around the room, bouncing her in his arms, but he has no idea what to do to get her to stop. He has no connection with the baby at all and a pit forms in his stomach at the thought. 

"Darcy! I told you not to eat the crayons," Harry scolds, turning to see Darcy with two crayons sticking out of her mouth. 

"But look Papa, I'm a walrus," Darcy says, pointing to the crayons, clearly indicating that they look like walrus tusks. 

"I don't care," Harry says. "It's time to put the crayons away."

"What?" Darcy cries. "No!"

"You didn't listen to me," Harry tells her, still bouncing Morgan in his arms. "I told you not to eat them three times and you still disobeyed me, so now you have to stop playing with them."

"But Papa-"

"No," Harry says, overwhelmed. "Put them away Darcy."

Instead of putting the crayons away, Darcy takes the whole box and dumps it out on the floor, glaring up at Harry. "No!"

"Darcy Tomlinson," Harry scolds, "pick those up right now."

"No!" Darcy screams, frustrated tears forming in her eyes as well. "I won't!"