Cody learns to love

The one chapter where Obi-Wan definitely doesn't adopt the children

  The dinner was going great. Everyone seemed content with their food, everyone except for Fox who discreetly slid his portion of minced meat to Wolffe's plate. "Fox, do you not like your meat?"

  Fox didn't answer, he just gripped his fork tighter and looked at Cody.

  "Fox doesn't really like mushy food," Cody answered for him. If Cody told Obi-Wan that a little bit sooner, Obi-Wan would get Fox a normal slice of meat. He stored this piece of information for later use. "Are you sure you don't want to try, Fox? It's good."

  Fox hesitated. He glanced at Obi-Wan.

  "It's alright, Fox, you don't have to eat it if you don't want to," Obi-Wan assured him. He watched Fox give Wolffe the rest of his meat.

  "Cody? Can I just give my veggies to Wolffe the next time I don't want it?" Fives asked.

  "Hell no. Give it to someone else." Wolffe defended himself. Apparently, he also wasn't a fan of vegetable.

  Cody gave both of the boys a look. "We talked about this, Fives. You need to eat vegetable to be big and strong."

  "How much veggies did you eat?"

  "Enough."

  Fives turned to Echo. "We will have to eat more veggies than Cody so we are bigger and stronger and taller." Obi-Wan could see Cody hiding his smirk. What a smart way of making children eat healthy. Too bad they were probably going to forget by the time they were actually faced with vegetable.

  Echo seemed to be thinking Fives' words over. Then he turned to Obi-Wan. "How much veggies did you eat?"

  "It would seem that I didn't eat nearly as much vegetable as Cody." Now that was a lie. Obi-Wan was a salad person. Cody looked like anything but a salad person. But that would only confuse the twins and Obi-Wan wasn't all that enthusiastic about explaining that genetics played a huge role in how big and strong, as Cody put it, one was to two little children.

  "So it's actually true... Cody, can we get some veggies?" Echo asked.

  "What do you say we eat some veggies after the dinner, instead of the dessert?"

  And that was when Cody's luck ran out. Obi-Wan guessed Cody must've expected it. He sure did expect the loud disagreement coming from everyone including Rex. Maybe Obi-Wan could bring dessert the next time...

  "Well then I suppose you could have some carrots and a dessert. What do you say, Echo? Sounds great?"

  "Okay."

  Cody smiled as he got up. He adjusted his grip on Boba, who was thankfully quiet for the moment but would start crying the moment Cody put him down, so he could work in the kitchen. Obi-Wan suddenly thought that he liked how the kitchen area and the living room were connected. He could sit at the table and observe Cody as he worked at the same time. He liked observing Cody.

  "Cody? Would you still like me if I was a worm?" Jesse asked randomly. Wolffe snorted. Fox facepalmed. Obi-Wan had a feeling he knew who gave Jesse that idea.

  "If you were a worm? Why are you even asking that, Jesse?"

  "No reason at all. Now answer, Cody."

  "Well, assuming you would be the cutest worm out there, I suppose I would like you very much. I would keep you in a pickle jar and feed you lettuce everyday. How does that sound?"

  "Gross."

  "Really? I think it's a rather lovely life for a worm." Cody sounded amused.

  "I would still like Jesse if he was a worm," Kix announced. "Because then I would be a worm too. Cody, do you think worms live in apples or apples live around worms?"

  "Worms live inside apples," Cody answered.

  "How do you know?"

  There was a moment before Cody answered. Obi-Wan imagined Cody used that moment to remind himself to be patient. He couldn't see Cody's face. "Because first, there was an apple and only then the worm came and decided to live in that apple."

  "And why does no one like worms inside apples?"

  "That's because no one likes to eat worms."

  "But our teacher said worms and insects were the food of the future and that one day, we are all going to eat bugs and worms."

  "Do you want to eat worms?"

  Kix hesitated before he shook his head. "Not really."

  "There you have it," Cody answered as he finally returned to the table with a plate of chopped carrots. He set the plate in front of Fives and Echo. "Here is your carrot."

  Fives took one piece of carrot, chewed it for a few seconds, then swallowed. He made a face. "I think I will get big and strong another time."

  "Me too," Echo copied his twin.

  Cody closed his eyes for a moment, just to remind himself to be patient. He didn't say anything to the boys, he just moved the plate with carrots to the middle of the table so anyone could reach it before he returned to his own meal.

  Fox took a piece of carrot and tossed it onto Wolffe's plate when the other boy wasn't looking. Wolffe almost ate the vegetable unknowingly but the other children's giggles gave it away.

  "Traitor," Wolffe growled but there was no heat in it. Obi-Wan was pretty sure Wolffe fondly kicked Fox under the table.

  "We are going to have a new teacher," Echo changed the topic in the way only children could.

  "That's great, I'm sure they are going to be super nice," Cody said. Obi-Wan guessed he was relieved that the previous teacher was fired. 

  "There was a real nice Tholothian lady today but she said she was there only for a few days and then we will get a different teacher."

  "And what did you do today?" Obi-Wan asked to show his interest.

  "We played hide and seek and then the teacher read us a story. And then we went to play outside. We found a snail and built it a house," Fives said.

  "And we also drew trees and leaves!"

  "That sounds fun."

  "Can we go to the park after dinner?" Fives turned to Cody. "Please!"

  "Not today, Fives. Wooley didn't get a very long afternoon nap and he is tired. We can go another day," Cody promised.

  "But I want to go to the park today!"

  "We can't go today, Fives. We will go tomorrow, okay?"

  "I want to go today!"

  "Fives, I already told you we can't go. I promise we can-"

  "I don't want to go another day!" Fives screamed. Obi-Wan got an idea.

  "I could take the children to the park," he offered. "I mean, if you don't have anything against it. I won't lose them."

  "Yay! We're going to the park!" Fives yelled. He didn't seem to care if Cody agreed or not. In a moment, the boy was up and running to hug Obi-Wan. It was rather sweet.

  "You don't have to do this," Cody told him. As if Obi-Wan could refuse now that Fives was already so excited. "Fives will get over it."

  "It's alright, I don't mind."

  And that's how Obi-Wan ended up taking the twins, Jesse and Emerie to the park.

  Sorry for the late post. I had a clear picture of this chapter in mind but for some reason, I couldn't actually write it. I love being a fanfic writer. But sometimes my fictional friends just stop talking to me and then I'm out of order.