A Preschool Promise [A Bensler FanFic]

Thirty-Six

Josiah climbed out of his crib early the next morning. He had started to do this more recently and always ended up climbing into bed with Maureen or his parents. This morning, he decided to climb into bed with his mother and father.

"Momma." Josiah yawned, as he toddled into his parent's room and walked over to the bed.

"Josiah? It's so early." Olivia spoke, as she pushed herself up and saw her son standing on Elliot's side of the bed. His brown hair was a mess, and his eyes were almost completely closed because he was so sleepy still.

"What's happening?" Elliot yawned, as he sat up and saw his wife sitting up beside him.

"Can you grab him? He wants to sleep in here now." Olivia spoke. Elliot nodded before grabbing their son and lifting him up onto the bed and placing him between himself and his wife.

"You are only one, Josiah. I think that you are too little to be climbing out of your crib all by yourself."

"But I missed Momma." Josiah yawned, as he snuggled into his mother's side and Olivia smiled as she held him close.

"I missed you too."

///

It wasn't long after Josiah got into bed with his parents, Maureen woke up. She coughed a few times into the bend of her elbow, before climbing out of her bed and heading down the hall and towards her parents' room. She opened the door and saw her parents laying next to each other, and with her baby brother between them. She ran her hands over her face before quietly padding across the carpet and she reached out and gently shoved her father a bit.

"Daddy?" She questioned, and Elliot yawned before rolling over and looking at his kid.

"Hey, Mo. What's up?" He asked.

"Can you tell Momma that my throat hurts?" Maureen asked, and Elliot closed his eyes before pushing himself up and drawing Maureen onto his lap. He placed his hand to her forehead before sighing softly.

"You feel hot, Mo. Is it just your throat that hurts?" Elliot questioned, as he stood up and carried Maureen from the room so that she wouldn't expose Josiah to germs that he didn't need.

"And my head... my nose feels all stuffy... and I coughed a few times." Maureen frowned, as she rested her head against her father's shoulder.

"Okay. Let's get you downstairs and I'll get you some medicine. Then once you get some medicine in your system I'll tell your Momma."

"Can I watch cartoons?" Maureen asked, and Elliot nodded.

"Yeah, I guess."

///

Elliot didn't want to wake up Olivia. He knew that she takes care of the kids all day, and she deserves some sleep when she can get it. Especially since it looks like they'll be having a third kid sooner rather than later.

Elliot gave Maureen medicine to take her fever down, then he pressed a cold washcloth to her forehead while she sat on the couch and watched cartoons way earlier than she was supposed to be up.

Nearly an hour after she took her medicine, her fever didn't go away. It got worse. Maureen got sick a few times, so Elliot gave her a trash can and she held onto it while she sat in the bathtub in her bathing suit since that is the only way she'd get in a cold bath.

"Daddy, can't Momma come take care of me?" Maureen whimpered, as she stood on the bath mat while her father tied her robe around her body.

"Mo, Momma needs her sleep. And Josiah-"

"I want Momma." Maureen cried.

"Maureen-"

"Why does Josiah get her but I don't?!" Maureen started to cry. Elliot drew her close and held her tightly until her tears stopped and she just clung to him.

"Mo, I'll go get Momma for you. Okay? Please don't cry anymore." Elliot breathed.

"Okay." She sniffled.

///

Elliot left Maureen on the couch, and he headed upstairs. He opened the door to his bedroom and he saw that Josiah was sitting on Olivia's stomach and playing with her hands while he tried to wake her up.

"Siah," Elliot spoke, and Josiah looked over at his father and smiled.

"Daddy!" He squealed, which ended up waking up Olivia too.

"What's happening?" She yawned, as she reached up and pulled Josiah close. Their son was so excited to have both of his parents wide awake and ready to give him all the attention he wanted.

"Maureen is sick. She has a fever and isn't feeling good at all. She wants you." Elliot spoke, and Olivia nodded before kissing the messy hair on Josiah's head before sitting him down beside her.

"Momma, where you go?" Josiah asked, and Olivia sighed as she climbed out of bed and walked over and grabbed her robe and wrapped it around her body.

"I have to go take care of your big sister. Be good for Daddy, Josiah." Olivia spoke. She went to walk out of the room, but then Josiah started to scream and cry.

Right now it was the worst time for Maureen to be sick and for Josiah to be needy and throw a fight.

"Momma, stay!" Josiah sobbed, as Olivia walked towards the door and tried to ignore him. But it was so hard because she really wanted to comfort her son right now.

"It's okay, Siah! I'm here, buddy!" Elliot exclaimed, as he moved to Josiah and picked him up.

"No! I want Momma!" Josiah cried as he tried to get out of his father's arms while his mother shut the door tightly before heading downstairs just as Maureen started to moan her name.

"It's okay, honey. I'm coming... you'll be feeling better in no time."

///

It wasn't until around noon when Olivia and Elliot got time to talk real quick. Olivia was folding a load of laundry in the kitchen because she had more space to spread out the stuff she washed. Elliot was making Josiah some lunch real quick before he went back upstairs to eat with him and continue to camp out in the fort he built them.

"I didn't think it would be this hard," Olivia admitted as she glanced out into the living room to see how Maureen was doing. 

"You need to stop being such a good mother so neither of them wants you." Elliot teased. Olivia sighed softly before looking at him.

"I hope we get better at balancing our time with the kids." Olivia breathed, and Elliot nodded in agreement.

"I hope so too. But until that time, I'll take care of Josiah and you take care of Maureen. She should be feeling better soon, and by then Josiah should be down for the night."

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