Calvin and the kids get home and walk inside. Michelle and her parents are in the kitchen. The kids say hello to their grandparents, except Romeo, who goes straight to his mom.
"Mama. Please come talk." He says. Pulling her by her hand toward his room. Calvin follows them, hoping to apologize. He pushes Romeo's door open and sees his wife and son sitting on his bed. Romeo looks like he's crying.
"Son, can I come in?" Calvin says, gently. Romeo doesn't look at him. He sighs and sits next to him.
"Romeo, I'm sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have blamed you." He says. Michelle rubs his back.
"Cal, Ro is pretty upset about what you said. Just because he's the eldest doesn't mean he should get in trouble for what the girls do. They were just calling because they were bored waiting." She says.
Calvin sighs. "Michelle, you're not understanding. They know not to use the ohone when I'm in a meeting. Arielle is still a baby so she makes mistakes. Romeo knows better."
"Ari isn't a baby! She never does anything wrong! Or Sissy! You just don't like me!" He screams at his dad.
Calvin gets upset. Standing up, he points a finger toward his boy.
"How dare you scream at me like that, Romeo Miller. I'm your father. Maybe I don't like you sometimes because you act like more of a baby than your BABY SISTER!" He rambles. As soon as he said it, he regretted it. He wished he could take it back. Michelle gasps.
"Calvin, That's horrible!" she scolds him Romeo gets up.
"I hate you. I don't want a dad like you anymore." Hs said, walking downstairs. Calvin's mouth drops. Michelle goes over to her husband.
"Oh my god, Calvin, how could you say that to him?" She says, clearly disappointed. He's completely stuck.
"He... he hates me." Calvin mumbles, more to himself than anyone else. His wife sighs, knowing how hurt he feels. He was wrong for what he said, but she knows he's crushed. He takes pride in being a good father. Prideful hearing his kids speak highly of him to others.
There's a knock at the door. Michelle sighs.
"Romeo's friends, Honey." She says, holding her hand out for him. His shaky hand grabs hers and they go downstairs.
Romeo opens the door, letting in Greyson, Charlie, and their parents. His eyes are still a little red, but he's happy to see his friends. He turns to his grandparents.
"Papa, Grammy, it's my friends." He says happily. They walk over and introduce themselves.
"Nice to meet you all, we're the kids grandparents. My daughter amd Calvin should be coming right down." He says right as Michelle and Calvin walk into the living room. They all say hello, sitting in the living room.
"So, Bug, who are your friends?" Their grandfather asks. Romeo smiles and stands.
"Oh, Da-Papa, this is Charlie and Greyson. They're gonna come for the weekend." He says. Calvin picks up on Romeo's little mistake. How could he? Michelle catches it, too, rubbing her husband's back. She stands and gets everyone a cup of water.
"Thank you so much, Michelle, sweetie." Charlie's mom says, smiling. She's in her fourties and met Michelle when she was still in her twenties, thinking she was just the cutest thing. They all chat for about an hour until it starts to get a little darker.
"Alright, Mr. and Mrs. Brooks, we're gonna take Grey home and get him packed up. We'll drop him off in about am hour for the kids sleepover." Greysons mother says. His dad nods and the leave. Charlie and his mom say their goodbyes and go as well. As soon as the door closes, Calvin calls Romeo.
"Romeo, what was that about?" He asks calmly. Romeo looks confused.
"What?"
"You called your Papa 'Dad'. Are you that upset with me?" Romeo shakes his head, still not getting it.
Mr. Brooks speaks up. "Calvin, Romeo always calls me that." he explains. Now Calvin looks confused.
"Why would he call you that? I'm his father." He says, feeling a bit defensive of his title. He just shrugs.
"He always has. It doesn't matter, we're both his male figure. No big deal." He says, smiling. Calvin looks at Michelle, who just shrugs. He doesn't like that at all.
"Well, let's help you kids pack up for your grandparents." Calvin says. He follows the kids upstairs while Michelle and her parents talk more.
Calvin goes into his sons room and sits on his bed.
"Romeo, I know we haven't really been getting along lately, but it really hurts my feelings when you call your Papa 'Dad'. Can you please try and stop?" he asks. Romeo looks at his dad briefly before going back to his dresser.
"But I always say 'Papa' or 'Dad'. Papa doesn't mind." He says. Calvin sighs.
"Buddy, I'm you kids father, and I'd like if you only called me 'Dad' from now on." He tried again.
His son rolls his eyes, taking him back. "Papa doesn't care. And he's like my dad, too." he says. Calvin sighs.
"Bug, he's not like your dad. He's your grandfather. I'm your father. You only have one father." He tries one last time.
Romeo opens his mouth, but hesitates.
"I do have a real dad, you know." He mumbles under his breath. He knew his dad heard him. He wanted to hirt his ferlings for what he said earlier. Calvin's heart shatters. He's never brought up his birth father. Romeo sees the look on his face and instantly feels guilty.
"Poppy I-"
"Alright, son. You're all packed up. Let me take your bag downstairs, okay?" Calvin cuts him off, not really wanting to talk about it anymore. Romeo follows him downstairs and puts his shoes and coat on. Their grandparents load up the car and get in. Michelle makes sure the girls are buckled in kissing them goodbye. She hugs Romeo tight and kisses him as well.
"Momma loves you so much, Honey. Have fun with your friends." She says. Romeo smiles at his Mom as she walks over to his dad. He runs up to his dad, hugging his waist and squeezing hard. He tries to keep his emotions under control, but they're all over the place.
"I love you, Dada." he whispers, surprising his parents. He doesn't really call him Dada anymore. Calvin squeezes him back.
"I'll see you when you get back, Son. I love you." He says. Romeo feels a bit more relieved his dad said he loved him, but knows they're not back to how they used to be yet. He knows he's had a bad attitude, being rude to his father and getting mad easily. He's just anxious knowing Renee isn't too far from him. He knows he shouldn't be mean to the people who saved his life.
He gets in the car and his parents wave them off.
