Nighthawk Unchained: The Lost Bird

Part 12

He sighed, rubbing his temple. "I thought things would be different," she pulled away to squint at him. "You know, after what happened last time, I thought it'd get easier."

Julie snuck up from behind and nuzzled his cheek. "It does," she sat herself on his lap and smiled into his chest. "You just need to let go."

He stiffened up, pushing away from the desk. His eyes wandered across the room, falling on the far side of the room.

There was a statue, courtesy of Hyperion. It looked nothing like the real model. It was too cold, too stiff, too quiet. But it looked like her. There were the sunken marks around her eyes and the way her chin jutted out from the bottom of her face.

He wanted to cave that face in.

He tried to stand up. "I have to go," she grumbled, seemingly growing heavier out of spite. "I said I have to go, now get off." He stood up, pushing her to the floor.

She landed with a huff, "Fine," she stood up, dusting herself off and heading for the exit.

His phone buzzed. The party. He slammed his palm against his face. God, how could he forget.

Neal was turning ten.

Freaking idiot.

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He stepped up to the door, switching the box between his hands. He look down and frowned as he saw them shaking.

He squeezed them agains his chest, along with the box, taking deep breaths and trying to focus.

In, out, up, down; in, out, up, down; in, out, up, down.

In, out, up, down. In, out, up, down. In, out, up, down.

In. Out. Up. Down

In.

Out.

Up.

Down.

He didn't remember closing his eyes or stepping forward, but he was greeted with wide eyes over the threshold.

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"Yah!" Mark, James and Bill jumped out from around the corner, clapping their hands and cheering, "Happy Birthday!" James zipped out of the corner and returned with a small cake covered in macarons. "Happy tenth!" He set the cake on the meeting table.

"C'mon, Neal," Mark beckoned him forward. "Make a wish."

Neal cheered, bounding to the table in five long strides. He knew he was acting like a five year old, but it was his birthday. He was entitled to it.

There was a hoarse cough. "Um," they turned to face the source of it. "Oh, uh," Kyle rubbed the back of his neck with one hand, gift in the other. Even in his primped armor and slicked hair, without the cowl, he looked small.

"Room for one more?" He held up the gift.

"Uh, yeah," James pointed at the gift pile. "Over there, um," he waved aimlessly for a minute, before Kyle held up a hand. I get the picture.

His gift was simply wrapped: flat red with a silver bow, neatly folded and cut to fit. Everyone else's gift was either a flimsy, paper-wrapped parcel or a cardboard bow fastened with twine. There was a black, egg-shaped pod on the top of the pile, with a clouded mirror. It was easy to tell whose it was.

By the time he got to the table, they were already helping themselves to seconds. Neal was having his face wiped by Mark while Bill brought the gifts over with the Power Prism.

Mark held up the pod. "Zarda couldn't make it," mumbled the artist. "But she sends her love." He set the gift on the table, gesturing for Neal to open it. The boy looked at it, poked it a few times, and tapped on the window.

The glass retreated, a thick mist seeping out of the crack. Once the fog clear, Neal reached into the pod and pulled out a husky orange kitten with black stripes and sharp teeth.

"A kitty!" The kitten kicked a bit at the boy's enthusiasm. "You're so cute!" Neal set the poor critter on the floor, where it licked its paws and started rubbing them all over its face. The boy kneeled down and stroked the kitten's head.

"He's perfect!" Neal gave the Eternal the most serious look a child could muster. "Mark, tell Her Highness that she will be expecting a tribute soon."

Mark raised an eyebrow. "Really?" He grinned like an alligator. "What should Her Majesty be expecting?"

"A bag of Halloween candy," Mark tried to muffle his snickers. "High quality Halloween candy."

Mark put his thinking look on, pursing his lips and bobbing his head. "I'll tell her," he gave the boy a secret smile. "If you give me fifteen percent."

Neal spat in his hand. "Deal," he held it out, a glob of saliva tricking from the palm and dripping to the floor.

Mark shook it. "Pleasure doing business with you."

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After finding some food for the cat, (and after Kyle called Zarda and left her a thirty minute message about how bad of an idea it was to get the kid a pet without consulting his dad) Neal continued opening the presents.

Billy got him a gaming console, and his niece got him a penguin plush. James got him a new cap. Albert couldn't make it, but he got Neal a pair of EarPods.

Finally, came Kyle's gift. The ribbon unfurled and the shimmering paper fell off. Neal dug through the shredded paper, and pulled out a smartwatch. The face was rectangular, the screen was blank, and the leather band had a feather-printed pattern.

"Um," Neal flipped the watch over. "Thanks?"

Kyle waved at the watch. "Try it on." The boy did so, still squinting at it suspiciously. "Tap the screen."

Neal did so, and the screen lit up and a familiar female voice sound out. "Hello, Neal." The said boy squealed excitedly. "How may I help you?"

"Quagmire," Kyle walked up and placed a hand on his son's shoulder. "Play 'Song list No. 3.'" Neal's squealing was nothing compared to the spaz attack the boy had when the music started playing.

"Thank you, Daddy!" Neal threw his arms around Kyle, causing him to stiffen up. "Thank you. Thank you. THANK YOU."

Kyle grinned and patted the boy on his back. Maybe this whole "dad" thing wouldn't be so bad.