A Boy's Best Friend...

Chris, his mom, and little Christopher Paul came back from the gym two hours after Persephone and Micaela left. Taking his mom and his temporary baby hadn't been his first choice, in fact, he had tried to remove the bracelet to leave it with his mom, but Persephone had placed some sort of binding spell on the damn thing so that it could only come off with her consent.

Aw, but his mom was so cute holding that little thing in her arms, bouncing it, feeding it, and changing its pretend diaper. He was going to double-down on Persephone when she came home on the topic of kids. Chris had no idea why she made it sound like children were the end of freedom. He could totally have a whole troop and still have time to do whatever he wanted to do, whenever he wanted to do it.

The baby was apparently in sleep mode when they got home. His mom went to the kitchen to prepare a meal for the two of them and he carried the baby upstairs placing it in the middle of the bed carefully. He smiled at the little bald plastic head looking forward to the day when he and Persephone had their own little angel sleeping on the bed while they showered together.

He walked to the ensuite, stripping completely, immediately giving the voice command for the shower to run followed by a voice command for his shower playlist which included soothing piano concertos and a few of Persephone's favorite country songs.

Just the perfect ambiance, he thought as he grabbed a washcloth from the bathroom cabinet and walked into the large walk-in shower. The warm spray immediately covered him. He placed the white washcloth on top of the mounted shower caddy and began soaking his hair.

Life was good, he mused as he squirted shampoo onto his hands and began to build it up into a thick lather calmly washing his hair with a smile. The classical piece had reached a cadence when Chris heard an unfamiliar mewl coming from the bedroom interrupting his mental utopia.

He frowned as he poked his head out of the shower, listening intently.

The sound went from a mewl to shrill screaming.

Chris scoffed. "You gotta be kidding me," he whispered to himself as he walked out of the shower toward the bedroom, but before he got to ensuite door he noticed a trail of water puddles behind him. Chris was about to grab a towel from under the cabinet to dry the puddles when he caught sight of his reflection on the bathroom mirror. He was sporting what looked like a foamy white football helmet. He touched his lathered hair and was about to head back in the shower when the baby shrieked.

Chris spun three-hundred-sixty degrees, ending up where he began.

He walked to bedroom to grab the baby. He was reaching for it when his mom knocked on the bedroom door, the sound of the doorknob jiggling made Chris drop for cover behind the bed. "Mom, don't come in!" he shouted in a panic. "I'm naked!"

"Oh," he heard her voice from the opposite side of the door. "I came to get the baby," she said. "Why don't you hand him to me?"

"Good idea!" He shouted back as he grabbed the baby by the thigh and stood up. He walked behind the bedroom door opening it just wide enough for the baby to fit through. The baby shrieked even louder.

"Fucking bracelet," Chris said under his breath. "Mom, I'll be right out," he said as he rushed to the bathroom. he dropped a few towels on the floor to soak up the puddles and he rushed into the shower to rinse the shampoo off before hastily cleansing his body. He skipped the conditioning and rushed out to get dressed. He donned old jeans and an old sweatshirt, rushing downstairs when he heard the baby was still crying.

His mom was sitting on the sofa trying everything to calm the kid, but nothing worked until she handed Chris the baby and one of the bottles. Chris's heart was beating erratically. He was pressing the nipple hard against the doll's lips when his mom placed her hand over his and in a soothing manner, guided him.

"Don't force it now," she spoke gently as she pulled his hand away from the baby's mouth. "Babies suck their little hands in the womb, that is second nature."

And like magic, suddenly there was silence.

Chris breathed a sigh of relief. He looked at his mom. "I thought I was going to have a heart attack."

Maggie smiled at him as she stroked cheek. "Not on my watch."

Chris looked back at the baby in his arms. It was making sucking sounds just as Persephone and Micaela walked in.

Chris looked at his girl and smiled stiffly. "Oh, hey babe. How was brunch?"

Fuck.

His voice sounded funny.

Persephone must have noticed because she narrowed her eyes on him. "Nice. How are you holding up?"

Chris just nodded, afraid to say anything else.

Micaela took a seat on the other side of Chris and looked toward his girl. "Thanks for a lovely outing, darling. I hope you don't spend all day at the dealership."

Chris quickly sat up straight, his eyes shooting at Persephone. "You're leaving?"

Fuck. He sounded scared.

Persephone nodded. "I have to take the Rav4 for maintenance," she told him. "I haven't used it since we got the Sequoia but it's due for maintenance."

Chris stared at her wordlessly.

"Don't you worry one bit," his mom was quick to speak as she kept her gaze on the doll. "I'll take care of our boys."

Chris looked at Persephone, who was looking at Micaela. He noticed she had that Scorpio stare again.

"Bye-bye," she said in a tone that sent shivers up his spine.

Thirty minutes later Micaela stood to grab water from the kitchen when her knee buckled and she began to wail. "My knee!"

Both Chris and his mom looked at Micaela. She was one ass cheek on the sofa and the other off. Chris looked at his aunt's face. Tears began to stain her cheeks.

"Oh my god!" She continued to wail. "Ten! Ten!" She yelled. "My pain level is a ten out of ten! Maggie! Take me to the emergency room!"

Maggie rushed to her sister and looked at her son who was still holding the baby. "Are you sure you need to go to the hospital?" She asked. "I can always call George-"

In response, Micaela wailed louder than any sound he had heard come out of Christopher Paul. She grabbed onto his mom's arm and squeezed.

"Eleven!" She yelled. "My pain level is at eleven! Maggie! I need the hospital right now! Don't make me beg!"

With a look full of remorse, his mom's eyes went from him and the doll in his arms. She helped his aunt to her feet and offered her support as his aunt hobbled out of the house.

Chris understood the look on Persephone's face when she had walked out of the house and looked at Micaela.

Just as Chris had his epiphany, the doll in his arms began to shriek.