Pre Radical / Boy Spies Au Stories

Pillow Chewing Much!

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - DAY]

Tad, dressed in casual clothes, is pacing the living room while four playpens are set up around the space. His 1-year-old children, Marc, Blake, and Ray, along with their half-sister, Libby, are inside their respective playpens, giggling and playing with toys.

TAD:
Grumbling to himself
"Alright, kids, your dad's got to make sure nothing goes wrong today... Last thing I need is a report going to Britney that I let Libby escape again."

Suddenly, the doorbell rings. Britney enters the room, holding Libby, who's squirming excitedly.

BRITNEY:
Tired but cheerful
"Hey, Tad! Thanks again for watching Libby today. I've got a ton of errands to run."

TAD:
"No problem, Brit. I've got everything under control."
Winks
"Though you did mention something about Libby being a mini escape artist?"

BRITNEY:
"Yeah, she loves to crawl out of her playpen. Especially when she's got her eyes set on the couch. So just, uh, keep an extra close eye on her, okay?"

Tad nods, taking Libby and placing her in the playpen with the boys.

TAD:
"Don't worry, I've got this. You go handle your errands."

Britney waves and leaves. Tad watches the kids play for a moment, looking satisfied with himself.

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - PLAYROOM - LATER]

Tad watches from the couch as Marc, Ray, Blake, and Libby giggle and throw soft toys at each other from their playpens. Tad leans back, thinking he has everything under control.

TAD:
"See? Not so hard."
Glances over at the playpen
"Right, Libby? You're staying put today."

He stands up and heads to the kitchen.

TAD:
"Just going to grab a snack real quick... be right back!"

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - KITCHEN - MOMENTS LATER]

Tad munches on a sandwich while looking at his phone.

TAD:
"They're quiet... too quiet..."

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - PLAYROOM - SAME TIME]

As soon as Tad is out of sight, Libby, with her mischievous grin, starts climbing out of her playpen. Her half-brothers, Marc, Ray, and Blake, watch her in awe. Marc is the first to follow suit, crawling out of his playpen.

MARC:
Giggling
"Go! Go!"

Ray and Blake follow Libby's lead, and the four toddlers sneak out of the playroom, crawling rapidly towards the living room. Libby leads them like a mini explorer.

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - MOMENTS LATER]

The four toddlers make it to the couch. Libby, in an expert move, climbs up and onto the couch cushion. She looks at the pillows with wide eyes, grabs one, and starts chewing it.

LIBBY:
Through a mouthful of pillow
"Mmm!"

The boys quickly follow her lead. Blake grabs another pillow, Ray tries to stuff a pillow into his mouth, and Marc joins in, gnawing at a throw pillow.

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - KITCHEN - MOMENTS LATER]

Tad is blissfully unaware. As he finishes his sandwich, a sudden realization hits him.

TAD:
"Wait... it's too quiet..."

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - PLAYROOM - MOMENTS LATER]

Tad rushes into the playroom, but it's empty.

TAD:
Panicking
"Oh no... where did they go?!"

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - SAME TIME]

Tad hurries into the living room, where he finds the toddlers all gnawing on the pillows.

TAD:
Wide-eyed
"What the—?"

He rushes to scoop up Libby first.

TAD:
"Okay, no chewing the pillows, sweetie."

He grabs Blake, who stubbornly holds onto a cushion.

TAD:
"And you too, Blake. No eating pillows. What is this, a teething convention?"

Ray giggles and kicks his legs while Tad removes the pillow from his grasp. Marc throws the pillow aside and reaches out for his father, laughing.

TAD:
"Okay, okay. No more pillow chewing."

[INT. TAD'S HOUSE - PLAYROOM - LATER]

Tad places all the toddlers back into their playpens, making sure they're secured. He sits back with a sigh.

TAD:
Exhausted
"Okay, babies... no more chewing anything, especially pillows. Let's just keep the mischief to a minimum, okay?"

The toddlers giggle innocently as Tad rubs his temples.

TAD:
Looking up at the ceiling
"How does Jerry do this? Oh wait... he retired."

Suddenly, Tad's phone rings, and Zerlina's name pops up. He groans and answers.

ZERLINA (ON PHONE):
"Hey, Tad. Just checking in. How's your break going?"

TAD:
Looking at the toddlers, who are now trying to climb out again
"Oh, you know, just another day in paradise."

As he finishes the call, Tad lunges toward the playpens to stop another escape attempt.

[END SCENE]

Credits roll with images of Tad chasing after the toddlers, giving them snacks, and dealing with a constant stream of chaos, all while trying to maintain some level of control.