Categories > Celebrities > Fall Out Boy > Press Play
Author's Note: With all the madness of prom and graduation finally behind me, I have time to write.
THANK YOUS
somethingorother: Aww. Your cousins sound adorable.
chocolatechortle22: Haha. You'll see.
Tissamy: Oh lord. Driving with flip flops does not sound fun. At all.
doyleangel: Special shout out to you for reminding me to update! Thanks a bunch, yo!
storytime!!!
FIFTEEN: hey ya!
P A T R I C K
“You’re not my mom,” a little girl noted, standing in the doorway of Juliet’s apartment.
“And you’re not as tall as I remember.”
“Patrick?” Juliet said, confused.
“Hey,” I awkwardly said.
“Didn’t Parker give you my message?”
“Pete kinda took my phone before I left…”
“Oh…” She bit her lip and looked down. “I had to cancel our date because my sister needed a babysitter. ” Glancing up, she added, “I‘m sorry.”
“No, it‘s fine…”
“Auntie J, is this the cute boy you were gonna hang out with today?” the girl asked, tugging on Juliet’s arm.
“Yeah,” she responded, cheeks turning a bright shade of pink.
“Hi, I’m Sammi,” she smaller brunette said, stepping forward and extending her hand.
“I’m Patrick,” I replied, squatting down to her level. “Nice to meet you.”
After shaking hands with her, I stood up and looked at Juliet.
“Raincheck?” she asked.
“Are you free tomorrow?”
“Why don’t you just play now?” Sammi asked.
“Well…”
“C’mon, you‘re already here,” she said.
“Patrick probably has some other plans,” Juliet explained.
“Oh, okay…” she said, looking down.
“Well, actually I don’t…”
“So you can play with us?”
“Yeah, I mean, if it’s alright with your aunt.”
We both looked up at Juliet. Uncertainty was spread across her face, but that was followed by a smile. She stepped aside and let me through the doorway.
“Sorry the place is a mess. I wasn’t expecting to hang out here today…”
“It’s fine. I feel kind of bad for barging in on you two.”
“Don’t worry about it,” the little girl said, directing me to the couch.
As I took a seat, a grey kitten gracefully jumped onto my lap. It took a seat, then looked up at me with inquisitive eyes.
“Bella likes you,” the girl commented, smiling as she sat down.
“You can pet her. She won’t bite,” Juliet added.
I carefully rubbed the back of her ears and she nuzzled against my palm, purring as she did so.
A quiet gurgling noise caught my attention, and I looked over to my left.
“Sounds like you’re hungry, kiddo,” Juliet said, poking her niece’s stomach.
“Kinda…”
“What are you in the mood for?” she asked, walking toward the kitchen. Bella leapt to the floor and followed.
“Whatcha got?”
She opened the refrigerator and searched for something edible.
“Umm, there’s pizza, your Aunt Lacey’s tofu stuff, chicken soup…”
“Any psgetti?”
“Only if you like it crunchy,” she said, holding up a box of uncooked pasta.
“Patrick and me can help cook it.”
The taller brunette looked over at me. “Patrick?”
“Sammi and I would love to help,” I said, getting up from the couch.
“See?”
“Okay,” she chuckled. “We’ll make some spaghetti. But what do you have to do first?”
“Wash my hands.”
“Good answer.”
She lifted her niece off the ground so she could reach the sink. The little girl quickly lathered up her hands and rinsed them off. Juliet set her down and washed her own hands and I followed suit. We both reached for the soap at the same time, skin brushing for an instant.
“Sorry,” we said in unplanned unison.
“You grown ups are silly,” Sammi commented. We both chuckled, rinsing our hands and simultaneously turning red.
“What should I do now?” Sammi asked as we dried off.
“Grab the red jar out of the refrigerator.”
“And me?” I asked.
“Um, could you get the pasta pot out of the cabinet over there?”
“Sure.”
I took the large pot off the shelf and set it onto the stove while Sammi set the spaghetti sauce on the counter. After adding 5 quarts of water to the pot, Juliet set it back onto the stove.
“Salt me, Sammi.”
She zoomed over to the table, hopped onto a chair and grabbed the salt shaker. When she returned, Juliet lifted her up.
“What did Andre 3000 say?”
“Shake it like a Polaroid picture!” the smaller brunette replied.
I chuckled as they both shimmied in front of the stove.
“Okay, I think that’s enough,” she said setting her down and turning on the burner. “Now for the sauce…”
Juliet grabbed a smaller pot from a cabinet and held it to Sammi’s level. With some effort, tiny hands twisted off the lid and poured out the jar’s contents. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched.
Juliet placed the second pot onto the stove and started heating up the sauce. As the water boiled, we stood around in a semi-awkward silence.
“…So…” Sammi spoke up. “What do you guys think about the weather?” For a preschooler, she was ridiculously good at picking up social cues.
“It’s a little too cold for my taste,” I said.
“But the snow makes everything look pretty,” Juliet said, glancing out the window. “For a little while anyway…”
“Yeah. The grey snow is yucky. And the yellow snow is really gross…But when it’s cold I can go watch daddy play hockey with his friends.”
“And hang out with your boyfriend at the skating rink,” Juliet teased.
“Justin’s not my boyfriend,” she said, pouting. “Sheesh. You and my mommy need to get your heads out of the butter…”
“Do you mean ‘gutter‘?” Juliet asked.
“Oh. Yeah. That‘s what I meant.”
“Well your mom says otherwise.”
“My mommy always says otherwise She says that’s the reason she gets in trouble a lot.”
Juliet chuckled. “That’s true. Talking too much can get you in trouble. Right, Patrick?”
“Mhmm… My friend Pete talks too much and he gets into lots of trouble.”
“But you hafta ‘member that correlation doesn’t mean causation,” Sammi said. “Just because he talks a lot doesn’t mean that’s the reason he gets in trouble… Maybe he talks a lot because he’s in trouble…Or maybe there’s a third, unknown factor.”
Sammi’s analysis of Pete pretty much blew my mind. I was probably 3 times her age before I even knew what “correlation” or “causation” meant.
Astonished, I stared at her for a few seconds, then looked up at Juliet.
“Her mom is studying to be a psychologist,” she explained.
“I help her get ready for tests so she can get lots of A’s and make lots of money.”
“Wow. That’s really cool.”
“Thanks… Um, the water‘s really bubby. I think it‘s done.”
“Spaghetti!” she said turning her attention to the stove. “I almost forgot.”
She quickly opened the box of pasta and placed the noodles into the pot.
About 30 minutes later, we were all sitting at the dinner table with plates of freshly cooked spaghetti in front of us.
“This looks really good,” I said surveying our work.
“Thanks for helping me, guys.”
“No problemo.” Sammi said with a toothy grin.
“It was fun,“ I added.
Juliet smiled as she twirled her fork into the pasta.
“Mmm,” Sammi said, digging in. “The psgetti’s really yummy. We definitely rocked the kitchen today.”
+++++
Please rate/review.
You know how much I love feedback.
PS. Add me on "twitter":http://twitter.com/somesaint.
THANK YOUS
somethingorother: Aww. Your cousins sound adorable.
chocolatechortle22: Haha. You'll see.
Tissamy: Oh lord. Driving with flip flops does not sound fun. At all.
doyleangel: Special shout out to you for reminding me to update! Thanks a bunch, yo!
storytime!!!
FIFTEEN: hey ya!
P A T R I C K
“You’re not my mom,” a little girl noted, standing in the doorway of Juliet’s apartment.
“And you’re not as tall as I remember.”
“Patrick?” Juliet said, confused.
“Hey,” I awkwardly said.
“Didn’t Parker give you my message?”
“Pete kinda took my phone before I left…”
“Oh…” She bit her lip and looked down. “I had to cancel our date because my sister needed a babysitter. ” Glancing up, she added, “I‘m sorry.”
“No, it‘s fine…”
“Auntie J, is this the cute boy you were gonna hang out with today?” the girl asked, tugging on Juliet’s arm.
“Yeah,” she responded, cheeks turning a bright shade of pink.
“Hi, I’m Sammi,” she smaller brunette said, stepping forward and extending her hand.
“I’m Patrick,” I replied, squatting down to her level. “Nice to meet you.”
After shaking hands with her, I stood up and looked at Juliet.
“Raincheck?” she asked.
“Are you free tomorrow?”
“Why don’t you just play now?” Sammi asked.
“Well…”
“C’mon, you‘re already here,” she said.
“Patrick probably has some other plans,” Juliet explained.
“Oh, okay…” she said, looking down.
“Well, actually I don’t…”
“So you can play with us?”
“Yeah, I mean, if it’s alright with your aunt.”
We both looked up at Juliet. Uncertainty was spread across her face, but that was followed by a smile. She stepped aside and let me through the doorway.
“Sorry the place is a mess. I wasn’t expecting to hang out here today…”
“It’s fine. I feel kind of bad for barging in on you two.”
“Don’t worry about it,” the little girl said, directing me to the couch.
As I took a seat, a grey kitten gracefully jumped onto my lap. It took a seat, then looked up at me with inquisitive eyes.
“Bella likes you,” the girl commented, smiling as she sat down.
“You can pet her. She won’t bite,” Juliet added.
I carefully rubbed the back of her ears and she nuzzled against my palm, purring as she did so.
A quiet gurgling noise caught my attention, and I looked over to my left.
“Sounds like you’re hungry, kiddo,” Juliet said, poking her niece’s stomach.
“Kinda…”
“What are you in the mood for?” she asked, walking toward the kitchen. Bella leapt to the floor and followed.
“Whatcha got?”
She opened the refrigerator and searched for something edible.
“Umm, there’s pizza, your Aunt Lacey’s tofu stuff, chicken soup…”
“Any psgetti?”
“Only if you like it crunchy,” she said, holding up a box of uncooked pasta.
“Patrick and me can help cook it.”
The taller brunette looked over at me. “Patrick?”
“Sammi and I would love to help,” I said, getting up from the couch.
“See?”
“Okay,” she chuckled. “We’ll make some spaghetti. But what do you have to do first?”
“Wash my hands.”
“Good answer.”
She lifted her niece off the ground so she could reach the sink. The little girl quickly lathered up her hands and rinsed them off. Juliet set her down and washed her own hands and I followed suit. We both reached for the soap at the same time, skin brushing for an instant.
“Sorry,” we said in unplanned unison.
“You grown ups are silly,” Sammi commented. We both chuckled, rinsing our hands and simultaneously turning red.
“What should I do now?” Sammi asked as we dried off.
“Grab the red jar out of the refrigerator.”
“And me?” I asked.
“Um, could you get the pasta pot out of the cabinet over there?”
“Sure.”
I took the large pot off the shelf and set it onto the stove while Sammi set the spaghetti sauce on the counter. After adding 5 quarts of water to the pot, Juliet set it back onto the stove.
“Salt me, Sammi.”
She zoomed over to the table, hopped onto a chair and grabbed the salt shaker. When she returned, Juliet lifted her up.
“What did Andre 3000 say?”
“Shake it like a Polaroid picture!” the smaller brunette replied.
I chuckled as they both shimmied in front of the stove.
“Okay, I think that’s enough,” she said setting her down and turning on the burner. “Now for the sauce…”
Juliet grabbed a smaller pot from a cabinet and held it to Sammi’s level. With some effort, tiny hands twisted off the lid and poured out the jar’s contents. I couldn’t help but smile as I watched.
Juliet placed the second pot onto the stove and started heating up the sauce. As the water boiled, we stood around in a semi-awkward silence.
“…So…” Sammi spoke up. “What do you guys think about the weather?” For a preschooler, she was ridiculously good at picking up social cues.
“It’s a little too cold for my taste,” I said.
“But the snow makes everything look pretty,” Juliet said, glancing out the window. “For a little while anyway…”
“Yeah. The grey snow is yucky. And the yellow snow is really gross…But when it’s cold I can go watch daddy play hockey with his friends.”
“And hang out with your boyfriend at the skating rink,” Juliet teased.
“Justin’s not my boyfriend,” she said, pouting. “Sheesh. You and my mommy need to get your heads out of the butter…”
“Do you mean ‘gutter‘?” Juliet asked.
“Oh. Yeah. That‘s what I meant.”
“Well your mom says otherwise.”
“My mommy always says otherwise She says that’s the reason she gets in trouble a lot.”
Juliet chuckled. “That’s true. Talking too much can get you in trouble. Right, Patrick?”
“Mhmm… My friend Pete talks too much and he gets into lots of trouble.”
“But you hafta ‘member that correlation doesn’t mean causation,” Sammi said. “Just because he talks a lot doesn’t mean that’s the reason he gets in trouble… Maybe he talks a lot because he’s in trouble…Or maybe there’s a third, unknown factor.”
Sammi’s analysis of Pete pretty much blew my mind. I was probably 3 times her age before I even knew what “correlation” or “causation” meant.
Astonished, I stared at her for a few seconds, then looked up at Juliet.
“Her mom is studying to be a psychologist,” she explained.
“I help her get ready for tests so she can get lots of A’s and make lots of money.”
“Wow. That’s really cool.”
“Thanks… Um, the water‘s really bubby. I think it‘s done.”
“Spaghetti!” she said turning her attention to the stove. “I almost forgot.”
She quickly opened the box of pasta and placed the noodles into the pot.
About 30 minutes later, we were all sitting at the dinner table with plates of freshly cooked spaghetti in front of us.
“This looks really good,” I said surveying our work.
“Thanks for helping me, guys.”
“No problemo.” Sammi said with a toothy grin.
“It was fun,“ I added.
Juliet smiled as she twirled her fork into the pasta.
“Mmm,” Sammi said, digging in. “The psgetti’s really yummy. We definitely rocked the kitchen today.”
+++++
Please rate/review.
You know how much I love feedback.
PS. Add me on "twitter":http://twitter.com/somesaint.
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