The Parenthood Drabbles

Baths

Baths

In the style of Thalia and Jason Grace and Annabeth Chase

"Jason, you're smelly." She said.

He looked up at her and shook his head adamantly, holding on to his toy train tightly.

"Oh no? Well what do you think you smell like?"

"Flowers," Jason replied. Thalia stifled a laugh.

"Definitely not. Look Jacey, baths aren't so bad."

He crinkled his nose, and she couldn't completely blame him. She hated the water too, but Jason was taking it to the next level. It was like he was afraid of water, not just mistrustful. She understood a hatred of pools and rivers, lakes and ponds and oceans because she had it too. But Thalia knew that bathwater wasn't enough to get Poseidon's toga in a twist, and that Jason was just being difficult. Mom would have caved in to that nose crinkle-like she had all week- but Thalia was adamant. She didn't want the daycare to think that Jason was being neglected. That way they could avoid foster homes and drama. Also because Thalia was too prideful to ever stop taking care of her little brother.

"They're not," Thalia insisted. "And guess what I got..."

She was pulling out her secret weapon- her last resort. Fingers crossed, she pulled out the bad of skittles she'd picked up at the corner store on her way from school. Jason's eyes were wide and mesmerised.

"If you take a bath, I'll let you have some." Thalia said.

"All?" Jason tried.

"No, then you'll have to brush your teeth twice a day and that's a battle for another time. You can have some." She said.

Jason pondered it, but he was essentially a slave to his sweet tooth.

"Okay. Bath time." He said.

Never had Thalia Grace felt more accomplished.

•

"Well..." Luke said. "I'll leave you two girls in this room and I'll be two doors over. Come get me when you finish whatever it is."

He tossed Thalia the keys for the particular room they were in.

"Shower and get dressed?" Annabeth asked. It was what they'd told her the stolen motel rooms were for, after all.

"Right," Luke said. "Later," he told Thalia before making himself scarce.

"Well, kiddo, you can go first." Thalia said putting a hand on Annabeth's shoulder. "Careful not to touch the real occupant's stuff too much."

"Okay." Annabeth said. "It's just that..."

"What is it, Annabeth?" She asked.

"If I wash my hair on my own I get shampoo in my eyes and it really hurts."

"Well we don't want that, now do we?" Thalia said.

"You'll help me? Can you?"

"I can most certainly help you with that. You can just bend over the tub, I'll wash your hair, and you can shower on your own right after. Sounds like a plan?"

Annabeth nodded and skipped over to the bathroom, her curls bouncing on her shoulders. Thalia's own hair was scratchy enough as it was, she couldn't imagine having curls like Annabeth's just as dirty.

"We don't want your clothes getting wet, it's chilly out there." Thalia said following her into the bathroom and flicking the lights on. The panel with the switches was too high for Annabeth to reach. She spotted a bathrobe on a shelf and pulled it out. "Let's wrap you up."

"Like a Christmas present," Annabeth said, sticking both arms out like a cross so that Thalia could drape the robe over her.

"You are one awesome Christmas present," she said poking Annabeth's nose.