Zephaniah // z.m

Seventy six

Zayn

"We're blessed with this weather," Mum smiled as she closed her eyes, letting the rays of sun warm her face.

I smiled, pulling one leg onto the bench we were sitting on, watching Zephaniah and Cooper play in the playground. "Yeah, totally. It's actually pretty warm when you sit still," I answered, taking off my coat.

"Don't get another cold," Mum frowned as she glanced at me, tapping my cheek.

"I'll be fine," I mumbled, chuckling as Zephaniah tripped and kept lying on the ground, pointing at birds while talking enthusiastically to Cooper.

My mum smiled too, her eyes full of love. "He's too pure. How's the dog adjusting in your house? Is everything going well?" She wondered.

I had phoned her earlier, explaining the whole situation when it came to Cooper and my new job. She wanted to catch up, so we decided to take Zephaniah to a small playground in my neighborhood, where there usually wouldn't be too many kids. We were alone now.

"Everything is going so well, mum. I can't believe- did you know these dogs existed?" I wondered, looking at her.

"Honestly, no. I didn't. Of course I knew about service dogs but I hadn't known they could be there for children with Epilepsy and Autism too, until Cooper." My mum smiled again, turning her head so she was facing me.

I nodded, slouching back onto the wooden bench, "Yeah, me neither. He makes Zephaniah feel safer when he sleeps as well. I hadn't put on his nightlight, and he didn't mention anything about it." I grinned proudly, causing mum to pinch my cheek.

"That's amazing, Zayn." She smiled.

"Yeah, and, when we take a walk outside, he goes anywhere, you know? When if I would take him somewhere unknown, he'd be very nervous. It's just so, so amazing. And I can finally sleep peacefully knowing Cooper would wake me if Zephaniah has any seizures in the night. It's just so.. good." I sighed deeply, running my fingers through my hair.

Mum cupped my cheeks, searching for eye contact. "You deserve it, Zayn. There's happened so much the past eight years. You deserve to rest,"

"Thanks," I blushed as I fiddled with my fingers. "He had a bad panic attack, though. Cooper tried to calm him down too. With his help I was able to calm him down faster than when I had been alone."

"Oh, really? Why did he have a panic attack?" Mum questioned, the both of us smiling when we heard his loud laughter as Cooper, apparently, did something funny.

"He has a presentation soon. He hates that, obviously. He's never liked being the center of attention, at all, but now he has to present in front of his classmates and the parents." I nibbled on my bottom lip, genuinely fearing for that day myself.

Mum frowned, shaking her head. "Poor little man." She sighed, watching him. "I wish I could take all of his difficulties away, to make things easier for him."

"Yeah, me too." I said sadly, noticing how he kept wiping his fringe from his eyes. "How'd the last haircut go?"

"Well, it's been a while, Zayn." She laughed softly, poking my side, knowing it had been when he was sleeping over at her house, me and Hannah painting his room. I squirmed away, looking up at her in anticipation. "It was.. okay. He was crying the whole time, flinching away and flapping his hands so now and then but we managed."

I bit the inside of my cheek, knowing how his sensory issues caused tears at the barbershop, (and the dentist), every single time. I hated to take him, just because it would make him so upset. Always hoping his hair wouldn't grow so fast, but, it did.