Only you | Derek Morgan

Stop threatening to cut peoples balls off

L A Y L A ' S P O V

"Jump. Jump. Jump!"

Hushed whispers, quiet giggles and scampering of paws gently stir me awake. I roll over to see the source of the noise and I can't help but smile at the scene in front of me. 

Aidan is on the floor by the foot of the bed, carrots in hand while he plays with the bunnies, rewarding them with every trick they complete.

I rub my eyes as I pull myself up in the bed. It's still bright out. I'm not sure how much of the story I got out to Averie between my sobs, but im pretty sure she got the idea of what happened. By the end of it, I was physically exhausted and just about able to drag myself up to the guest bedroom for what I'm guessing was a couple hour nap.

"Uh oh." Wide eyed, Aidan blinks up at me. "I wasn't meant to come in here and wake you up."

"That's okay," I say through a yawn. "Are you having fun?"

Aidan and I play around with the bunnies for a few minutes before they start to get worn out and hop into their carrier for a nap.

"Here," Aidan says as walks towards me and hands me a sucker before crawling into the bed beside me. "I brought you a lollipop. Lollipops make me feel better when I'm sad."

I smile at him. "Did anybody ever tell you that you're too smart for your own good?"

As blunt as his father, Aidan nods. "All the time."

When he asks why I'm sad, I'm in the mists of coming up with a peppy it's a grown up problem you don't need to worry about speech when Aidan beats me to speaking first.

"Mom had a knife," He says casually, as if it's a common occurrence in this house. "She said she was going over to uncle Derek's house to cut his balls off. My dad had to hold her back until she gave up."

That unfortunately doesn't surprise me one bit. Averie would kill for those she loves and clearly, she takes that very literally. But still, I say, "Your mom was just kidding."

"No she wasn't," Aidan shakes his head, not buying my lie for a second. "She's really mad."

Don't doubt that either for a second, so I try to steer the conversation away from that topic. "Well, it's a good thing that you don't need to worry about anything other than playing with the bunnies."

A bright smile stretches across his face. "Okay," He hops down off the bed before he pauses, sighs and bites his lip in question. "But.. should I be mad at uncle Derek too?"

"No way," I say, keeping my voice as positive as I can right now. "He loves you more than anything."

Aidan's big brown eyes stare innocently back at me. "But he made you upset and I love you more than anything."

My heart squeezes inside my chest. Such a sweet boy. I probably squish all his little bones with how tight I hug him, but he doesn't complain.

"Aidan?"

With a nervous wince, Aidan's eyes flash with warning at his mom calling out to him from downstairs. "I'm in big trouble."

"Quick," I whisper, pulling back the comforter back and ushering him underneath. "Hide."

Averie steps into the room, visibly out of breath. She spots the lump in the comforter immediately and shoots me a remorseful look. "I'm sorry but the stairs, the bump and an excitable toddler really don't mix." She blows out a breath and drops her voice, low enough for only me to hear. "He's like the fucking road runner. I can't keep up."