Karai speaks about animals every time she finds something really cool about them on the book. Hades makes short comments or hums knowingly at her.
K-Did you knew that there has been two cases in the whole world that a white tiger without stripes has been born?
Ha-As a matter of fact, I did not.
K-Yes and they were kept here for quite some time and as they had no stripes they thought at first that they were male lions and that they misplaced the names so they put them with the lions and after the tiger and the lioness had cubs is that they realized they were tigers.
Ha-Really?
K-Yes, it says too that each pup was different. There was a white male with stripes, a female white with stripes, another that looked like the common orange tiger, another orange but with no stripes and male, another male that took most from the lion as it grew a mane and a male white lion. They moved them to another cage to ensure their safety.
-That's pretty cool.
K-Mhm. Another animal.
She looks through her book and when she passes to the mammals she stops on one and reads it silently before she gasps amazed.
K-Did you know that the giraffes have the same amount of bones on their necks as we have? Only theirs are bigger and hollow and that's why they sound like they do when they fight each other. That has to hurt, I wonder how they do it.
Hades looks at her through the rearview mirror and I ask about the drinking acting dumb.
-Does it says how they drink their water?
K-Yes, they separate their front legs and then they bow down to drink. There is a picture here look.
I look at it before she gets it back to her and flips again. She looks at it adoringly and I ask her.
-Which animal is that? Is it a snake or a wolf maybe a leopard.
K-Is the whale, it says here that they don't see the person but their soul and based on that they decide if is good or evil. Their eyes are red and it also says that they always have a connection with another soul besides the family meaning that if is not a killer whale is either food or a soulmate of some sort. Maybe I was the soul for that whale.
Ha-Maybe, she seemed to like you a lot.
K-Yes it did. I'm hungry.
Ha-Want to eat somewhere in specific?
K-At....
She lets out a big yawn and she rubs her eyes a bit. She struggles to keep awake and we laugh at her.
Ha-Tired? Sleepy? Do you want to go home instead?
She shakes her head and another yawns comes.
K-I'm not........sleepy.
And just as she says the last word she falls asleep on her seat with her head to the side. I take a quick picture of her and send it to Josh. He responds quickly and before I even have time to open it and reads I see that he's calling me. I answer it and I put it on speaker.
Josh-Hey little sis, how you doing?
-I'm fine, you? Aren't you supposed to be working.
Josh-They can manage a couple minutes without me and besides is rather empty today so they won't be needing me that much. So I have some spare time to kill and I'm good thanks for asking. How's Karai?
-Tired, she's asleep right now.
Josh-She's an angel. How's your frightening god doing?
Hades clears his throat and I smile holding a laugh as we look at each other.
-You're on speaker and he's driving.
Ha-I'm fine, thanks for asking.
I can hear as Josh clears his throat nervously as he tries to formulate an apology.
Ha-Don't worry, I'm not offended by your comment. So there is no need for apologies.
Josh-Well then, I guess that's good and I'm glad you're fine. So what are you doing now?
-We were deciding on where to eat but the decision fell asleep.
Ha-Deeply.
Josh-I see, why don't you stop by the restaurant and I'll give you a special. I can eat with you if you like and also I still owe Karai a gift from the last time you all got together in family.
-Yes, we did it backwards. The day you worked we went all together but now that you don't have that much work.....well. I guess these things happen.
Josh-So, are you coming?
-Yes, see you there, love you.
Josh-Love you too sis, I'll wait here.
He hangs up and I save my phone on my purse. When we get there as I'm about to wake Karai Hades stops me where I am and I look at him confused.
Ha-Let's see how long before she wakes up on her own, phone.
I give him my phone and he sends a text to someone as fast as lightning. Then he points outside and I see Josh coming at us with a smile. Hades takes the animals book out of Karai's hand and puts it on the side.
Josh-What's up?
Hades points at Karai and he looks at her smiling.
Josh-She's adorable. Aren't you going to wake her up.
Ha-You can do that, later. Right now you'll charge her.
Josh looks surprised by this and Hades unlocks the door for him. Josh slides in and take her on his arms carefully not to wake her. We get out of the car as well and as we head inside I ask Hades why didn't he took Karai himself.
-What exactly are you trying to do here?
Ha-I want to see her reaction when she wakes up. He gives me a big kiss before we go inside the restaurant. I watch as Karai starts waking up very very slowly. She opens her eyes and looks at us and we wave at her. When she fully realizes neither of us is holding her she moves back startled to see who's holding her and she smiles sleepily.
K-Hi uncle.
Josh-Hello princess. How was your sleep?
She shrugs and rests against his shoulder again and Josh laughs a bit at that. Karai smiles as she asks to be pulled down only to ask for Hades to pick her up which he obviously does but only for a couple seconds before he puts her back down.
K-Aww, daaaad.
She complains to Hades and Hades mimicks her way of speaking with her name as he takes her hand.
Ha-Karaaaaii.
I struggle to hold on a laugh as Karai sticks her tongue out at him. We go to the VIP room that Josh made just for us to use for our dates. Although it was constructed for the purpose of only two persons the room is big enough to fit the guardians times two and there still space left to fit more people. We sit on the chairs and Karai rushes past me and claims her father's side and attention all for herself and I stretch out on the sofa in front of them. I slide my legs up and Josh sits and I put my feet on his lap mimicking a kick and when they're in place he makes a face as if he was just given to hold bags of cement before he looks at me knowingly. He takes his phone out and ask us what would we like to eat.
Josh-I assume you'll get the usual
Mr. H?
Ha-Not this time. I'm going to try something out of place today. Take their orders and then make a different dish combining those two if you get it.
Josh-I get it. That's a risky choice, you sure you want to do that?
Hades nods and Josh takes my order and Karai's. And then he says it aloud to confirm the order.
Josh-So sister has a spicy ice cream with apple cider and a pumpkin pie on the side, Karai will have the tacodillas special and a grape juice and Hades would like a combination of those two with your usual pomegranate wine. Anything else?
We all deny on our own way and Josh let's out a sigh as he looks at our order again.
Josh-You got really weird choices today especially you dear sister. Well if that's all, be right back with our dishes. Because I'm going to eat with you.
He waves goodbye and goes prepare the dishes for us. It takes about half an hour before he comes back with our dishes and he gives them to us each and we all sit straight before we dig in and eat our food respectively. After we finish eating we tell Josh about our day at the zoo.
K-And uncle, dad got to volunteer with the crocs and he stuck his hand and his head inside its mouth. They made him wear half a swimsuit.
Josh-Half a swimsuit?
-Pants only, bare chest, like that.
K-And that was after the show with the dolphins and the whale. They let me do a mini show with the whale because I fell on the pool with her.
Josh-When you say with her you're referring to the dolphins, right?
Ha-No, she fell afterwards. They got the dolphins into another pool and got the killer whale in and as she backed away she slipped and fell in the pool with the whale.
-Hades almost kills the trainers there as they didn't let us pass to get her.
K-But the whale saved me and got me safely back with you. She even let me feed her and pet her afterwards.
Josh-You should be careful.
K-But I'm fine and intact and safe and I made a new friend. Did I told you how mom did with the bigger snake that they had. I pet her and then just before they took her away mom charged it around her neck and the snake was smelling her face tickling her with the tongue.
-It was heavy.
K-And we saw lions, lion cubs, very cute and adorable and I fed one of them, we saw the jaguar or the guepard, one of those, the wolves, the sharks, oh a white tiger too. I say that dad is a white tiger and mom was a lion.
Josh-You mean lioness.
-She does mean the lion, Karai why don't you tell him how am I similar to the lion?
Karai smiles widely and nods before turning to her uncle again.
K-I told mom that every morning before she brushes her hair she looks just like the lion, the adult boy lion with the hairs like, puff.
Karai makes a big arc over her head mimicking an explosion and Josh laughs before looking at me and then bursts out laughing even harder.
Josh-Sorry sis but right now I can't look at you without laughing again.
Ha-Why? What did you thought?
Josh-I looked at her and I visualized a mane on her head at the comparison and, I can't.
K-Did I forgot any animal or anything else at all?
-No, I don't think so.
K-Oh and after the show with the whale before we went to the crocs the lady gave us the swimsuits to keep them. They're all on the car with my puzzles, my book and my tiger.
Ha-Actually, I kept mine on after the crocs show.
He unbuttons the top bottom of his shirt and moves it aside for us to see the swimsuit.
-When did you put it on. You never left our side besides the crocs and he gave you a topless swimsuit.
He smiles and puts a finger to his lips.
Ha-You don't know everything about me dear. Just as you always manage to get pictures when nobody else can. I don't understand how you manage that. Always. Speaking of, did you took pictures today at the zoo?
I take my phone out and show him just how many pictures I got of us. His eyes go wide in surprise and I smile.
-More than five hundred pictures.
Ha-Now how you got that many pictures, that is a mistery.
-And in all of them I look gorgeous.
We laugh at my comment with intensity until we hear a knock on the door. Josh goes to answer it and I can hear the hurried voice on the other end but can't get what he says. Josh nods and dismiss him away before turning to us.
Josh-Time to close.
-Already?
Josh-It has been closed for thirty minutes now.
Ha-We should go home. Karai does need to rest.
We all look at Karai as she looks at her plate sleepily. She boosts up still sleepy.
K-I already had my rest I don't need anymore.
She yawns loudly and Josh takes her on his arms and kisses her cheek.
Josh-But you have to go home and sleep and be ready for anything and recover your energy to the full.
Despite her attempts to stay awake she falls asleep and when we get back home Hades puts her on the bed and after he tucks her in he comes to the living room with me and sits at my side.
-She really is exhausted. I like how she tries to keep awake, she looks adorable when she's sleepy.
Ha-Just like you. Come here you.
I laugh but I go to his side and give him a kiss.
-Did you like the zoo?
Ha-Yes, but I think Karai enjoyed even more.
-You know, I was a bit scared when you were with your head on the croc's mouth. The tiniest mistake.
Ha-You should have worried about the croc not me.
-I love you.
I take his face in my hands and I give him a playful kiss. He returns it with passion and desperation. He takes me to the room and we make love like the world's going to end. We fall asleep with our bodies tangled together in a comforting position.
