"She's so cute but she's really, really tiny!" Axel giggled and shuffled in closer, he and Lisa making a pretty good team taking care of the baby. It wasn't until she started to get fussy that it became a problem. Even happy babies have their moments of distress and April started to make a sad noise and struggle. Mick turned his head and then jutted it towards Leonard.
"Can you hold her for a sec? She's probably wet. I'll check her in a few." He just didn't want to risk her rolling out of Lisa's arms. Besides, Leonard had yet to hold the baby and Mick was kind of curious how he'd handle it. This first meeting... it was really hard. Lisa hit the nail on the head. Leonard was everything to him. Leonard and April.
Leonard hadn't held a baby since Lisa had been one, but given he was older than he had been then and that it wasn't really something one forgot, he had no problem taking April into his arms. He looked down at her and at the shirt she wore, trying not to feel personally attacked by it. Obviously he was overly sensitive to it all right now. Leonard tried to remember what reasoning had prompted him to reach out to Mick tonight, but looking down at his baby, it was almost impossible to recall.
He only half-listened to Lisa explain the posters on the wall to Axel, showing him her favourite almost naked woman and telling the stories she'd made up about them. He supposed it'd be back to Lisa asking why they couldn't go see Mick after this, but that was the least of his problems.
Mick came over while Lisa told the story about the girl straddling the car as being a 'teacher/ballerina who owns a lot of cars' and set the plates of food onto the coffee table, clearing his throat until they looked at him. "Foods done, knock yourselves out. Don't eat that third one, it's for your brother." He smiled at the kids and then looked over at Leonard, deciding to take this time to talk to Leonard while the kids ate.
As he moved towards him, he snagged the remote and turned the TV on to some kind of cartoon to keep them occupied.
He reached out and gently took April from Leonard, kissing her on the forehead as he did so. "I'm sorry." Mick kept his voice quiet because it was just easier this way. "I let you down. No, shut up, don't interrupt me." Mick gave him a look before he could dismiss it. "I fucked up, I get that but I had her and I panicked about everything, I didn't think. I spent the past six months missing you and being too much of a coward to pick up the phone." And all he wanted was to know what he could do to still be in Leonard's life but Leonard was giving those vibes. He didn't want Mick. "I want to help you. I don't care if you got someone else, I don't have to date you to love you, you got that? And I do. I love you, man. And I got your back."
This was a trap. He couldn't even walk out on this, not with Lisa and Axel right there. Leonard didn't know what to do with that whole onslaught of feelings that Mick was throwing at him. What was he supposed to to? Mick had a tiny, little, happy baby that Lewis had threatened. He couldn't do this, not that he was even sure what "this" was any more. "You got a different focus, Mick. I get that. I ain't asking anything of you, I was outta line."
Mick sighed. It wasn't a trap, he wasn't tying to hurt Leonard but he was so hard wired into this state of mind and there was no winning. "You were worried about Axel, right? The new kid." Fine, if Leonard wasn't going to share, Mick was just going to piece it all together from their texting session. "He needs a legal guardian and that ain't gonna be you, not in the eyes of the law. I can do it. I got a good job, I got a little girl, I even got references now. I could help you have that kid safe."
"What job you got?" There was no need to discuss the big elephant in the room of why he couldn't bring Mick into this right now, while the kids might still be listening. He could bring it up if he got a moment alone with him. "Hopefully one that will allow you to buy shelves some time, so you won't have to just toss everything on the ground all over." Not so tidy was an understatement in Leonard's eyes.
"I do some free lance welding. I got offered a full time contract but I got a kid so I can't but there's always that. I can take it up whenever, there's a window there. I can sell that to any social service." Mick explained as he bounced April up and down in his arms. "Daddy is making plenty of money but he's tired and doesn't want to dick around with shelves. Does he? Huh? What do you think, cub? Is daddy fine the way he is?"
April giggled and flailed her arms, happily chanted dada.
Mick looked back at Leonard and sighed, unsure what to do. "Leonard, you got to let me help you. If not me, someone. Cause your dad is coming back in what? A month? And you got two kids, one of which you don't have any legal right to."
"Look, Mick. Yeah, I contacted you because of that. But you told me that he's threatened your little girl. So, what? You think he just got over it?" There, he'd said it. Luckily neither Axel nor Lisa seemed to be paying attention. "I mean, I'm still in awe that he knew when I didn't, that has gotta be a first." Not so surprising that Lewis didn't feel the need to catch him up in the facts there.
"I said we were going to put him down. And I meant that." Mick shrugged his shoulders and looked down at his little girl. "He didn't know until he turned up, then it was too late. I don't even know if he knows it's my kid, he just saw me holding a kid and he made a vague threat." Mick huffed and gave Leonard a look. "You wanna work with me on this or what?"
"He's my..." Leonard stopped himself before he could say anything more, because he was aware that his voice had slipped and he noted Lisa looking his way for a few moments. Damn. Sure had been easier back when she was as tiny as April was now. "If you can do the guardian thing, then maybe. I don't know. I don't have a plan yet."
"Then let's make a plan." Mick grunted as he pulled April in close and started to rock her lightly. "Now go sit down, eat your grilled cheese and watch cartoons while I change my kid. Then I'll put her down for a nap and we can arrange a time to talk." A time without kids, hopefully. If they could find a way to wrangle that sort of thing.
"Life's an adventure, isn't it?" Leonard rolled his eyes and sat down as he'd been told, eating the grilled cheese while looking at the television and not actually paying attention. Once his plate was cleared off, he leaned back and on the whole it really wasn't surprising that he actually fell asleep on the couch like that, curled in on himself.
"Lisa! Leonard fell asleep!" Axel tugged on Lisa's sleeve to get her attention away from the cartoon and eyed Leonard's sleeping form like it was somehow dangerous and bad. Leonard was asleep and he was the adult and they needed him. He shuffled closer to Lisa as Mick came back in, unsure what to do.
Mick looked at Leonard and rolled his eyes. "Figures."
"It's okay, Lenny sleeps like that sometimes." By which she meant uncomfortably, mostly. Lisa was at ease, given she felt at home anywhere Mick was and so she wrapped an arm around Axel. "We can wake him up if you want to. Lenny!"
Leonard stirred, reaching up to rub his face. Damn.
"Lis." Mick hissed lightly, giving her a look and throwing his arms out. He should have had a proper sleep, he probably only got like fifteen. "Never do that to April." Mick warned before he looked down at Leonard and sighed. "Come on, you, go crash in my bed for an hour or so."
"No, don't." Axel tugged at Lisa, as if she could somehow defeat Mick's influence.
"April is a baby, Baby need to sleep a lot." Lenny's evidently didn't. Leonard gave his sister a look and slowly sat up straight, stretching. Sleeping like this wasn't exactly the way to avoid cramping up.
"It's fine, I'll sleep tonight."
"Yes! Axel wants him awake." Lisa was clearly prepared to fight for this against Mick if need be. Leonard just snorted and shook his head.
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"Can you hold her for a sec? She's probably wet. I'll check her in a few." He just didn't want to risk her rolling out of Lisa's arms. Besides, Leonard had yet to hold the baby and Mick was kind of curious how he'd handle it. This first meeting... it was really hard. Lisa hit the nail on the head. Leonard was everything to him. Leonard and April.
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He only half-listened to Lisa explain the posters on the wall to Axel, showing him her favourite almost naked woman and telling the stories she'd made up about them. He supposed it'd be back to Lisa asking why they couldn't go see Mick after this, but that was the least of his problems.
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As he moved towards him, he snagged the remote and turned the TV on to some kind of cartoon to keep them occupied.
He reached out and gently took April from Leonard, kissing her on the forehead as he did so. "I'm sorry." Mick kept his voice quiet because it was just easier this way. "I let you down. No, shut up, don't interrupt me." Mick gave him a look before he could dismiss it. "I fucked up, I get that but I had her and I panicked about everything, I didn't think. I spent the past six months missing you and being too much of a coward to pick up the phone." And all he wanted was to know what he could do to still be in Leonard's life but Leonard was giving those vibes. He didn't want Mick. "I want to help you. I don't care if you got someone else, I don't have to date you to love you, you got that? And I do. I love you, man. And I got your back."
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April giggled and flailed her arms, happily chanted dada.
Mick looked back at Leonard and sighed, unsure what to do. "Leonard, you got to let me help you. If not me, someone. Cause your dad is coming back in what? A month? And you got two kids, one of which you don't have any legal right to."
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Mick looked at Leonard and rolled his eyes. "Figures."
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Leonard stirred, reaching up to rub his face. Damn.
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"No, don't." Axel tugged at Lisa, as if she could somehow defeat Mick's influence.
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"It's fine, I'll sleep tonight."
"Yes! Axel wants him awake." Lisa was clearly prepared to fight for this against Mick if need be. Leonard just snorted and shook his head.
"We can talk in your room?"
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It seemed like the best way to go with this.