YouTuber OneShots

"H-hey Sweetie, Daddy loves y-"

"No, Chase! Sam deserves better. She's only six! How do you think she's handling all this right now? All the other kids at school have happy parents who love each other and don't fight every night like we do. She's an outcast. Our baby girl's being singled out at school because her family is in shambles. And who's fault is it? No, I'm not done. It's your fault, Chase. Your Fault. If you could get your head outta the damn clouds for one second maybe things could work out. YouTube just isn't a good enough job to support us all. It's a hobby. Either you give it up and get a real job or I'm staying with my sister this weekend and I'm bringing Sam." Mommy whisper-shouted into her cell phone, her hand on her temple seemed to be the only thing keeping her from falling forward and collapsing into a sobbing mess right there on the table.

I kept my distance, hugging my green eyeball plushie close to my chest. My dad had given it to me when I was just old enough to remember how to say 'dada' without drooling everywhere. He always told me about how proud he felt when he heard that my first word was his name. I glanced up at the clock on the microwave behind mommy. 10:50pm. I think 'pm' means night. It's really dark outside, after all. That means its bed time. Why wasn't dad home yet? Where was he?

I took a brave step forward, my red superhero pajama pants catching under my foot. I stumbled forward, yelping loudly as I slide across the kitchen floor, under mommy's chair. She gave an exasperated shout and ducked her head under the chair to look at me. I laughed nervously, nothing but whispy air coming out of my mouth as I stared up at the blonde haired woman. "H-hi, Mommy." I sputtered out shyly as I slid out from under her chair and pushed myself to my feet. She narrowed her eyes at me, taking the phone away from her face and hitting the speaker button.

"Sammy, what're you doing out of bed so late?" Mommy asked, her expression softening as she pulled me up onto her lap.

"I-uh... I couldn't sleep." I mumbled softly, wishing she would stop interrogating me so I could talk to dad before he had to hang up. Mommy said he was a very busy person.

"But you have school in the morning," Mommy argued.

"Sammy? Hey, pumpkin! How's my little girl? It's awfully late for angels to be up. You really should be getting to bed soon." Dad's voice chirped through the phone. I giggle a bit, waving at the phone before realizing he couldn't actually see me through it.

"Daddy, when are you coming home? Mommy's no fun. She makes too many rules. She won't let me get a pet zebra!" Dad chuckled at my silly comment and I could almost see the goofy grin on his face. Mommy always said I had the same smile as dad. Come to think of it, I really only had my mom's hair and nose. My eyes were closer to dad's, even though one of them was green and the other blue.

"Aw, Silly Goose. You can't have a real zebra! But... If you behave for mommy and get into bed soon, I'll have a zebra stuffed animal for you before you're asleep." His grin practically radiated through the phone infectiously, because I too, was grinning excitedly.

"Okay, Dad! Good night, I love you so much!" I chirp before scrambling to my room.

Just before mommy hangs up, I hear. "H-Hey, Sweetie? Daddy loves y--" Mom hung up before he could finish his sentence. I stopped in my tracks, a hand on the doorframe of my room.

"Mommy, do you still love daddy?" I said quietly.

I didn't need to look at her to know that she'd flinched at my question. She was right when she yelled at dad. None of the other kids in my class have parents who fight. Tim's parents love him to bits and they're so nice. Of all the times I've visited their house, not once did I hear their parents argue like mine. I almost liked their house better. It was more peaceful. I didn't have to worry about my parents and all of the fighting they did. I could be a kid there, instead of having to pick sides in my parents' fights.

"O-of course I do, honey." The same answer every time. "We're just a little stressed right now, is all. Things will get better soon. I promise." But they never do.

"Goodnight, Mom," I mumbled as I slipped into my room, the door falling shut behind me.

I tossed Sam Jr., My stuffed animal eyeball, onto my bed and laid down on the floor. There was a window on the ceiling of my room. It showed all the stars that hung above me. It reminded me that the scraping noises in the night were just from the looming oak tree in our yard. It reminded me of the time when dad fell through the roof and couldn't afford to replace it (that's why there was a window there now). It reminded me that my Uncle was up there somewhere, staring back through the stars. Uncle A, is what we called him. Mainly because my parents said I couldn't pronounce his real name but I never really learned his first name before he died. He was always just Uncle A. Mom never liked him much, but he was dad's twin, so she had to tolerate him.

Hours that only felt like minutes went by until eventually, the door to my room cracked open and dad stepped in. He squinted in the darkness of the room, looking for me. I raised my hand up from the floor and he huffed in amusement. After a moment of shuffling, he was laying on the floor beside me, staring up at the sky too.

"You should be sleeping, you know?"

"Don't tell mom."

"I'm your dad. I don't have to tell mom anything." He chuckled, ruffling my short hair. "I have a little someone who'd like to meet you, now."

He sat up now, gesturing for me to follow suit, and pulled something out of a plastic shopping bag. It was dark in the room, making it hard to see exactly what it was. Still, I could tell it was a stuffed animal of some sort. A zebra!

I climbed up onto his lap and wrapped my arms around his neck sweetly. "Thank you!" I said a little too loudly.

"Shh. Don't wanna wake mommy, now do we?" He grinned and unlatched my arms, setting me back on the floor. "So, what're you gonna call 'em?"

I hadn't thought that far. Staring down at the zebra, a number of different names came to mind. None of which were favorable. That's when it clicked. I knew what I wanted to call my zebra. "Robin!"

"Robin? That's a silly name for a zebra. A robin's a bird."

"I know! That's why I wanna call him Robin! It doesn't make sense. It's a goofy name for a zebra. Robin the Zebra. It's perfect!" I giggle, hugging the zebra closely.

"It is perfect. Just like you." Dad smiles, taking off his baseball hat and dropping it gently onto my head. It was much too big and covered my eyes instantly. When I pushed it up I saw a green mess of untamed curls atop my dad's head. He looked silly. Like a lion!

"I love you, dad." I yawn softly as my eyelids grow heavy. I only really stayed up late to see dad when he came home. I wanted him to know that he wasn't a bad dad. That mommy was just stressed and didn't mean those mean things she said.

"I love you too, sweetie. With all my heart." He smiled gently, running a hand through his messy green hair before lifting me up and helping me to bed. He pulled the covers up over me and kissed my forehead gently. "Sweet dreams, Sammy."