Mystery Author’s story (Chapter 10)

Read from the beginning – links at the bottom.

January 15, 2022

After 10 chapters, can you figure out who the mystery author is?

Chapter 10.

Saturday morning at 7:30am, Jason arrived at Paige’s house for the first time. He walked up the stoop clutching a bouquet of flowers tightly; trying to sooth the unexpected nerves threatening to overtake him. Once at the top, he rang the doorbell and waited. Suddenly the door swung open, and he found himself staring at a miniature version of himself almost stark naked save for Spiderman underwear.

“Are you, my daddy? The little boy asked, craning his neck at the tall stranger in front of him. Jason could only nod as the reality of this child in front of him set In. “Good. Mama said that my daddy was going to come this morning and take us to the zoo.” Before he could recover, they heard a familiar voice calling from inside the house.

“Aiden, where are you? You need to get dressed before your daddy comes.” Not wanting to intrude however, wanting to announce his presence, Jason responded.

“I am here, Aiden let me in?” There was a loud crash followed by an expletive.

“Mommy said a swear word,” the five-year-old announced delightedly. He turned back to Jason and said in a solemn tone. “Mommy doesn’t let me say those words. Grandma always threatens to wash my mouth out with soap even if I think about it.” Familiar footsteps echoed the hallway and became closer until Paige stood sternly at the front door.

“Upstairs young man,” she barked. He begrudgingly did what he was told leaving Paige and Jason alone in the front hall. Jason noticed the subtle weight loss which was the result of a tightly controlled diet, and slight exhaustion written on her face.

“That was not how I envisioned this meeting to go,” she said, clearly embarrassed. She reached behind him and closed the door as Jason snorted in laughter.

“And I was nervous about meeting him. Now I know how my own mother felt when I did things like that?” She looked up at him in mock horror. Another woman emerged from the kitchen, older than Paige with the same piercing eyes.

“These are for you, Mrs. Dillon,” he said, presenting Paige’s mother with the bouquet. Eyeing him warily, she beckoned him into the kitchen and went to retrieve a vase. Paige followed and returned to grab two waffles out of the toaster. Handing one to Jason, she stood chewing hers while putting a third waffle into the toaster.

“Aiden, come get your breakfast.” A few seconds later the unmistakable thump thump of a young boy came barreling down the stairs and burst into the kitchen. She pulled the waffle from the toaster and put it on a plate, cutting it into quadrants while Aiden ran over to the table. Legs swinging, wiggling, back and forth, Aiden looked like he was ready to run a marathon mile. Having dealt with antsy nephews, Jason sat down at the table and waited patiently for his son to begin eating. Out of the corner of his eye, Rachael nodded in approval in Jason’s direction while Paige went into a side room to finish getting ready to go.

“So tell me what is your favorite animal?” Jason asked Aiden who paused seriously.

“Efelumpts, and Lions, and penguins, and bears…” He paused and took a bite, chewed and swallowed. “and snakes, and warthogs, and meerkats.” His grandmother chimed in.

“Pretty much any animal with two legs or four.”

“Want to know a secret?” Aiden asked his father who nodded. “Spiders have 8 legs. And dinosaurs don’t live at the zoo. They are tinked.” Looking confused, Jason glanced over at Rachael for translation.

“Extinct.” She corrected. “Now eat.” He ate quickly, quietly staring at his father in curiosity. When finished, Aiden hopped off of the chair and ran the few steps to join Jason. The moment his son grabbed his hand in order to pull him up would burn into Jason’s mind for the rest of his life. This was the first time he had felt the soft skin of his own son.

“I’m ready to go now.” He said pulling and tugging as if he could pull Jason out of the chair.

“Not yet,” announced Paige entering the room. Both the younger and older man gave her the same disappointed gaze. Ready to argue, Paige cut off her son. “You need to wash your hands and brush your teeth. He groaned and looked at his father in a silent plea. For a split second, Jason wavered at the pleading look, however he found Paige’s eyes challenging him to disagree.

“You heard your mother,” he said soundly. Rachael smiled to herself as Jason declared allegiance.

“Bathroom, young man. And use soap and toothpaste, not just water.” Sighing loudly, Aiden stomped away. Jason followed leaving the women alone in the kitchen. Rachael grabbed a towel and swung it at her daughter.

“You didn’t tell me he was so Hot,” She said, smirking.

“Mother!!!” Paige gasped. Rachael climbed the stairs quietly, ready to eavesdrop on the two boys. She came back down a minute later and looked pointedly at her daughter.

“He didn’t flinch in supporting you Paige. He told Aiden that he was not a baby but a young man and there were responsibilities to go along with it. He said that you might not even get to go to the zoo unless he apologized for his behavior.” She nodded in approval. The two males emerged a few minutes later with Aiden apologizing for his behavior. Seeking his father’s approval, he relaxed when Jason smiled in approval.

“Well then, Let’s go.” Paige grabbed a bag and took her son’s hand leading him to the garage. Realizing that Jason had stayed behind, she smiled apologetically “Sorry, Force of habit.” She let go of Aiden’s hand and opened the door, ushering them all out. Jason hesitated as he took the passenger seat however relented without a word realizing that 1. he didn’t have a car seat for Aiden, and 2. He really didn’t know where they were going. The route was familiar to Paige as they had season passes into the park and the required parking permit already. When Jason pulled out his wallet, Paige shook her head and pulled out a third pass giving it to him easily. She pulled out a stroller from the trunk and placed the bag expertly balancing on the top. Jason could only gaze in wonder at the woman in front of him seeing for the first time a side of her that he never knew existed.

The morning passed quickly as the trio made their way through the reptile house, the Monkeys and Apes, Big Cats, and Elephants. In child exuberance, Aiden ran up to each exhibit pointing at each of the animals often yanking his father with him. Paige often found herself a few steps behind watching the interaction of father and son in silent pleasure. This was exactly how she envisioned this meeting to be and for the time being, she was determined to enjoy the fantasy of being a completed family. They ate lunch in the Zoo and headed to the aquarium area. Jason plopped Aiden on his shoulders and held her waist as she pushed an empty stroller.

Once seated on a bench in front of the penguins, Aiden began nodding off. Expertly, Paige picked him up and placed him in the stroller letting him sleep comfortably under a warm blanket. Jason sat leaning against the wall and Paige almost collapsed in a heap next to him, nestled under his arm.

“I don’t know how you do this every day,” Jason sighed, content to watch his sleeping son. “He is a great kid but all of that energy; how do you keep up?”

“My mom helps out a lot. So does school.”

“He is so smart, I haven’t read so many plaques and signs since College. And he called most of the animals by name, pointing out the new baby animals.”

“He wants to be an Animal veterinarian when he grows up.”

“I don’t doubt it.” They stayed in the penguin house for almost an hour while Aiden slept. Paige left briefly to buy ice cream from a local vendor while Jason stayed with the stroller. They occupied the time by conversing about Aiden, eating the sweet treats, and watching the Penguins. One in particular decided to put on a show for them, swimming back and forth over and over, diving, then rising up in a small jump over and over, disrupting the others in his family as he pushed into them, jumped into them, and caused them to squeal in outrage. Unfazed, the little bird swam on one side then the other, then hopped up to get a running start before plopping into the water in an undignified manner. When Aiden woke up, he laughed and applauded in gleeful delight until the bird, exhaustedly collapsed onto a pile of resting siblings.

Waving goodbye to the one bird entertainment show, the three walked through the rest of the aquarium, then made their way to the Aviary where they enjoyed feeding the birds. Before leaving, Aiden insisted on watching the bird show from his daddy’s lap. Surprised, by the overwhelming contentment with the two, Jason knew that his life would never be the same. Before they left, Jason insisted on buying a stuffed bear for Aiden and matching sweatshirts for Paige and himself.