Eleven

Chapter Twelve: I'll take "Parenting 101" for 300, Alex

Reminder: The order of the townhouses from left to right, if you're facing them from the street, is Headquarters (Owen, Sean, "Sang,") Shangri-La (Victor, Kota, Nathan, Gabriel,) and Siberia (Silas, North, Luke.)

Chapter Twelve: I'll Take "Parenting 101" for 300, Alex

A week later, I found myself snuggled against Sean on the couch in Siberia's TV room. It was a lazy Sunday morning, and we all had the day off. I'd had another visit with Dr. White on Wednesday without any surprises, and a mission with Kota and Nathan just last night. We retrieved some important financial documents, but it ended up taking longer than we expected and I was still dozing off on the couch. Sean's chest made a very comfortable pillow.

"I disagree. How would the baby activate it?" Kota's voice argued from the floor, and I peeked open my eyes to see his own lovely green ones narrowed at Luke.

"Easy! Just press the button," Luke shrugged, like the answer was obvious.

"And the baby will just magically know to press the button whenever his or her diaper needs to be changed?" Nathan questioned from his spot on the recliner behind Kota's spot on the carpet.

"Well, we'll make it light up different colors and make sounds. The rugrat will learn in no time," Luke answered dismissively as the rest of us laughed.

"Luke, the baby will be pressing the button all the time if you make it attention-grabbing," Victor huffed, rolling his eyes playfully when he saw me watching him. I nudged him gently with my toe, but he just grabbed my foot before scooting closer to me and Sean on the couch.

"And we only want the little bugger to press it when he shits," Gabriel added helpfully.

"All of you are completely missing the point," Sean sighed, my body moving with his chest as I leaned against it. "It's not about the logistics of a diaper-changing-robot. It's about the bond you form with your child when you change their nappy. The personal interaction, the build of trust, and the love. Replacing this basic human action with a robot could be devastating to the infant's development."

"I'm assuming we can put your name down on the rotation for all Code Browns, then?" Silas asked with a hint of teasing.

"Now don't go putting words in my mouth," Sean chortled goodnaturedly. "But yes, I'll use any chance I can get to bond with our baby."

His words were followed by what could've been called a respectful silence, and I turned to place a tender kiss on Sean's chest as his palm rubbed up and down my back.

"Fine, no diaper-changing-robot then," Luke sighed dejectedly with a frown. "It was just an idea."

"I liked it, too," Gabriel muttered loyally from beside him on the floor, turning back to his laptop and typing away on it.

"Are you still looking up ways to get the robot to work?" Victor asked skeptically. "Sean just said-"

"No shit, I heard him," Gabriel stuck his tongue out, eyes still glued to the screen. "I'm going back to the trivia that Kota and I were doing before all you goons woke up."

"Trivia?" I echoed, my curiosity piqued, and I did my best to keep my eyes open and awake. "What kind? I'm in!"

"Baby trivia, Trouble," Gabriel smirked, tapping his nose lightly. "All things baby-related. Kota wanted to be tested on everything he's been reading so far, but we're also going over all those fun and useless facts."

"Sean, I also wanted to ask if Dr. White had any books for us?" Kota asked hopefully. "I've been through the ones I downloaded already, and I'm looking for more."