frogs_of_war (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
frogs_of_war) wrote2012-06-13 09:40 pm
frogs_of_war) wrote2012-06-13 09:40 pm
Entry tags:
Uninterrupted, Part 7
People should never talk on the phone while driving or they end up saying things like this: Those 36” balloons for $9.99, how big are they and how much do they cost?
Title: For an Uninterrupted Date
Status: Part 7 of 10
Universe: (A Balance of) Harmonies Portland
Genre: m/m romance, family, city life, businessmen, kids
Content: shopping, chatter, too much attention, preening, work, a virus, peanut butter, traffic, flowers, tasting, bed making
Length: about 1,300 words
Master List
Diemen waited to go by the store until Thursday after work. The store had the cut of meat he wanted and the florist was there to take his order for colorful arrangement in a low vase for the next day. He’d pick it up when he got the vegetables for the salad. He wanted everything to be as fresh as he could get it.
He let Em help him pick out the pasta. Ne picked the mini bowties over the sea shells or springs. Diemen bought two boxes, so he could feed some to Em tonight, which would also give him practice cooking them.
People stopped him and cooed over Em’s astronaut car seat and fairy costume. Diemen confided that they were made by a friend at least fifty times. He should get some of Autumn’s business cards and pass them out to everyone who asked.
Em preened under that attention. Ne rubbed nir chubby fingers over the straps and fabric as ne prattled away. Every few words, Diemen felt he understood a word, but the more Em spoke the less Diemen understood. But did all this chatter mean Diemen wasn’t talking to Em enough at home? Em was normally much quieter.
In the frozen aisle, two energetic six year twins lavished Em with so much enthusiastic attention that nir eyes filled with tears. Diemen pulled off his button down shirt and put it over Em’s head. He smiled at the girls and pushed the cart out of the aisle and over by the juice until he was sure which way the twins’ mother was going. Diemen patted Em’s knee. “You stay under there as long as you need.”
Diemen wrote Blanket for Em down on his list. Maybe Autumn could make them to match the cart seat.
Em popped nir head out. Diemen grinned. Em hid again. They played hide and seek through the rest of the store. At the checkout Diemen passed Em the smaller, more durable things for nir to put on the conveyer belt. The cashier lavished Em with attention with an occasional grin at Diemen as she wrung up their purchases. Em was in a good enough mood to preen.
Diemen quite contently pretended Em was his.
Getting the groceries into the house only took one trip with the help of Autumn’s baby backpack. He added to his list to thank her.
The high chair was priceless. Not just for dinner, but for taking his shower in the morning. He didn’t turn the fan on until he was out and dressed, so the mirror stayed foggy. No sense showing off more skin to a toddler than he had too.
Friday morning’s traffic was a mess, but with Em’s jabbering away as ne pointed out the windows, the trip wasn’t stressful.
By now Em knew the way to the playroom and could change out nir toys as ne saw fit. Ne changed nir clothes less often if they were pretty clothes. If Em came back to stay with him again, he needed seven really Em-appealing outfits and he’d have much less laundry to do.
He was only working until two today, so he’d have time to make his date with Pavel perfect, but everything that could go wrong seemed to all at once. He spent the morning removing a virus someone had downloaded when trying to look at pictures of puppies. At least she insisted they were puppies. Then right before lunch, the printer ran out of toner. Diemen knew they had more. He’d bought it when he replaced the last one. But the box wasn’t where it was supposed to be. He hunted through all the cupboards and drawers until he found it under a pile of old newspaper.
Once the printer was working again, Diemen realized he hadn’t seen Em for a while. He found nem and the three year old twins under his desk eating crackers. He added clean bottom of desk to his list and avoided the little peanut butter smears as best he could. The three feel asleep in a pile under Diemen’s desk.
By the time Em was awake and in a new outfit, Diemen had all the realtors quizzed on what not to open and he was able to get started on all the stuff that had piled up while he was busy elsewhere. Maybe he should come in tomorrow morning and finish. But he hoped to be so well loved tomorrow that he couldn’t get out of bed. Sunday morning then, before he met Pavel’s parents. He’d need something to keep his mind too busy to worry about that.
Em climbed into Diemen’s lap and refused to get down, no matter how the twins begged. He covered nir head with a pillow case he’d brought for just this purpose. The twin’s mother came by and led them off. “Sorry.”
Diemen assured her that Em just needed a rest from the world. But he wasn’t getting any more done today.
Still he was interrupted five times on his way to the door with problems he couldn’t put off solving. The traffic was horrible by the time he got onto the road. He stopped at his grocery store first. Em clapped nir hands when ne saw the flower arrangement. The florist smiled. Diemen took the tag so he could pay for it with the rest of his last minute things and then he swung by at the end to pick it up. Em went into the backseat, the flowers went into the front, held down by the waist part of the seatbelt, and everything else went in the trunk.
Getting out of the car, he took the flowers in first, with Em on his back, and then the one bag of groceries. Em was happy to get in nir high chair and tear up a few pieces of lettuce while Diemen did the rest. Then ne ate them. Ne also ate a piece of each one of the vegetables as Diemen cut them up. Diemen didn’t toss the salad. He’d do that when he was ready to serve it.
Diemen made the pesto for the pasta. Em loved the sound of the blender grinding up the hazelnuts and insisted on tasting once it was bright green with ground up fresh basil. Ne made funny tongue noises and drank the water Diemen offered, but then had another taste.
When Diemen put the pesto in the fridge, he turned the steak over, so it would be evenly marinated and snuck a small spoonful of homemade pudding. It had set well and tasted good. He hoped Pavel would like it. The pasta was on the counter, the pots and pans he needed were clean. He checked his list and then the clock. He’d have to leave soon if he was going to get Em home and then himself home before six.
But first he needed to change his bedding to the new sheets. He was running late, but that was one thing he didn’t want to do in front of Pavel and make it seem that he hadn’t planned for Pavel to stay the night. Em had to be cleaned and changed first, but ne was actually helpful as pillow-fluffer and holder. And the bed looked wonderful, but not so perfect that it didn’t invite itself to be unmade. Diemen was well pleased with his purchase.
Title: For an Uninterrupted Date
Status: Part 7 of 10
Universe: (A Balance of) Harmonies Portland
Genre: m/m romance, family, city life, businessmen, kids
Content: shopping, chatter, too much attention, preening, work, a virus, peanut butter, traffic, flowers, tasting, bed making
Length: about 1,300 words
Master List
Diemen waited to go by the store until Thursday after work. The store had the cut of meat he wanted and the florist was there to take his order for colorful arrangement in a low vase for the next day. He’d pick it up when he got the vegetables for the salad. He wanted everything to be as fresh as he could get it.
He let Em help him pick out the pasta. Ne picked the mini bowties over the sea shells or springs. Diemen bought two boxes, so he could feed some to Em tonight, which would also give him practice cooking them.
People stopped him and cooed over Em’s astronaut car seat and fairy costume. Diemen confided that they were made by a friend at least fifty times. He should get some of Autumn’s business cards and pass them out to everyone who asked.
Em preened under that attention. Ne rubbed nir chubby fingers over the straps and fabric as ne prattled away. Every few words, Diemen felt he understood a word, but the more Em spoke the less Diemen understood. But did all this chatter mean Diemen wasn’t talking to Em enough at home? Em was normally much quieter.
In the frozen aisle, two energetic six year twins lavished Em with so much enthusiastic attention that nir eyes filled with tears. Diemen pulled off his button down shirt and put it over Em’s head. He smiled at the girls and pushed the cart out of the aisle and over by the juice until he was sure which way the twins’ mother was going. Diemen patted Em’s knee. “You stay under there as long as you need.”
Diemen wrote Blanket for Em down on his list. Maybe Autumn could make them to match the cart seat.
Em popped nir head out. Diemen grinned. Em hid again. They played hide and seek through the rest of the store. At the checkout Diemen passed Em the smaller, more durable things for nir to put on the conveyer belt. The cashier lavished Em with attention with an occasional grin at Diemen as she wrung up their purchases. Em was in a good enough mood to preen.
Diemen quite contently pretended Em was his.
Getting the groceries into the house only took one trip with the help of Autumn’s baby backpack. He added to his list to thank her.
The high chair was priceless. Not just for dinner, but for taking his shower in the morning. He didn’t turn the fan on until he was out and dressed, so the mirror stayed foggy. No sense showing off more skin to a toddler than he had too.
Friday morning’s traffic was a mess, but with Em’s jabbering away as ne pointed out the windows, the trip wasn’t stressful.
By now Em knew the way to the playroom and could change out nir toys as ne saw fit. Ne changed nir clothes less often if they were pretty clothes. If Em came back to stay with him again, he needed seven really Em-appealing outfits and he’d have much less laundry to do.
He was only working until two today, so he’d have time to make his date with Pavel perfect, but everything that could go wrong seemed to all at once. He spent the morning removing a virus someone had downloaded when trying to look at pictures of puppies. At least she insisted they were puppies. Then right before lunch, the printer ran out of toner. Diemen knew they had more. He’d bought it when he replaced the last one. But the box wasn’t where it was supposed to be. He hunted through all the cupboards and drawers until he found it under a pile of old newspaper.
Once the printer was working again, Diemen realized he hadn’t seen Em for a while. He found nem and the three year old twins under his desk eating crackers. He added clean bottom of desk to his list and avoided the little peanut butter smears as best he could. The three feel asleep in a pile under Diemen’s desk.
By the time Em was awake and in a new outfit, Diemen had all the realtors quizzed on what not to open and he was able to get started on all the stuff that had piled up while he was busy elsewhere. Maybe he should come in tomorrow morning and finish. But he hoped to be so well loved tomorrow that he couldn’t get out of bed. Sunday morning then, before he met Pavel’s parents. He’d need something to keep his mind too busy to worry about that.
Em climbed into Diemen’s lap and refused to get down, no matter how the twins begged. He covered nir head with a pillow case he’d brought for just this purpose. The twin’s mother came by and led them off. “Sorry.”
Diemen assured her that Em just needed a rest from the world. But he wasn’t getting any more done today.
Still he was interrupted five times on his way to the door with problems he couldn’t put off solving. The traffic was horrible by the time he got onto the road. He stopped at his grocery store first. Em clapped nir hands when ne saw the flower arrangement. The florist smiled. Diemen took the tag so he could pay for it with the rest of his last minute things and then he swung by at the end to pick it up. Em went into the backseat, the flowers went into the front, held down by the waist part of the seatbelt, and everything else went in the trunk.
Getting out of the car, he took the flowers in first, with Em on his back, and then the one bag of groceries. Em was happy to get in nir high chair and tear up a few pieces of lettuce while Diemen did the rest. Then ne ate them. Ne also ate a piece of each one of the vegetables as Diemen cut them up. Diemen didn’t toss the salad. He’d do that when he was ready to serve it.
Diemen made the pesto for the pasta. Em loved the sound of the blender grinding up the hazelnuts and insisted on tasting once it was bright green with ground up fresh basil. Ne made funny tongue noises and drank the water Diemen offered, but then had another taste.
When Diemen put the pesto in the fridge, he turned the steak over, so it would be evenly marinated and snuck a small spoonful of homemade pudding. It had set well and tasted good. He hoped Pavel would like it. The pasta was on the counter, the pots and pans he needed were clean. He checked his list and then the clock. He’d have to leave soon if he was going to get Em home and then himself home before six.
But first he needed to change his bedding to the new sheets. He was running late, but that was one thing he didn’t want to do in front of Pavel and make it seem that he hadn’t planned for Pavel to stay the night. Em had to be cleaned and changed first, but ne was actually helpful as pillow-fluffer and holder. And the bed looked wonderful, but not so perfect that it didn’t invite itself to be unmade. Diemen was well pleased with his purchase.