2008-03-05: Breaking Home

Starring:

Niki_icon.gif DL_icon.gif Cam_icon.gif

Summary: Niki takes Cam home. D.L. insists on taking care of things. Tension tension tension.

Date It Happened: March 5th, 2008

Breaking Home


Sanders-Dawson-Hawkins Residence

Queens

The door to the house opens in somewhat of a hurry at about 7:30 in the evening. Niki ushers in the boy that's wrapped in her stylish black coat, and she follows, quickly shutting the door behind them. She's been left in a sleeveless black-and-white-patterned shirt, and it's not precisely warm out. "Go find some of Micah's stuff to put on," she's saying as they enter. "He's at an after school thing. I don't think he's home yet, but he'll be glad to see you. Go on."

D.L. is either coming or going. It's hard to really figure this one out because he's coming out of the bedroom and half-dressed in his firefighter's uniform. There's so much going on at the moment, that he almost doesn't realize that Niki is home and she brought a little white kid. Sliding to a stop after stepping right out of the bedroom door, he looks from the kid and then up to Niki. "Hey." That's pretty much the gist of his solemn greeting. Wow. D.L. hasn't smiled in weeks.

Cam nods quickly, handing Niki her coat and starting to step towards Micah's room, but then pauses a moment as D.L. comes out. He, though, does smile, "You're back! Awesome." Then, he adds, remembering he's now just in underwear, "Right back." He makes a quick dash for Micah's room to find something to wear.

Folding her coat over her arm, Niki watches Cam go, the smile she had for him fading and leaving her looking simply concerned. Her gaze slides to D.L., taking in his wardrobe. "Hey." Her greeting is just as solemn, her focus back on the poor vagrant twelve year old, but distant. "He called me from his new foster home," she explains gravely, moving slowly toward the living room. "His foster parents were trying to … exorcise the demons out of him." She drapes her coat over the back of an armchair, turned away from D.L. "'Cause of … what he can do. I had to bring him somewhere."

"Just make it legal." D.L. says, before not seeming to care anymore. He's growing somewhat apathetic in these new times. Fighting fires is the only time he seems to actually feel like he's alive or worth something. It's a very strange position to be in. But it becomes clear that he must be getting ready to actually go to work, since he's shrugging into the jacket of fire fighting with some sort of ease. "I'll be home in the morning." As if it truly mattered in any type of capacity.

Niki, her hands resting on the back of the armchair, over her coat, looks far enough over her shoulder to give D.L. a look of … well, it's hard to say. Regret, in some form. The soft look gradually disappears, and by the time she turns away again, it's gone, as sober-faced as her husband. "Me, too."

"… Right." D.L. makes a quick change in direction, as he's heading for the phone. "They can't be here by themselves." And he's already picking up the phone, while working one of his arms out of his jacket. "I'll switch shifts with somebody. You go head and do what you gotta' get done." And he's immediately working on dialing the cordless phone that he's holding in his hand.

Cam comes back out of Micah's room, dressed again. Luckily he's about the same size as Micah, close enough anyway. He starts to say something, but then seeming to sense the tension stays quiet, just looking between the two.

"… No," Niki says with a somewhat tired tone, turning around toward D.L. and the phone, shaking her head as she scrapes her fingers through her hair, styled in loose waves. "I'll look after them. I'll get someone to watch them, or I just … I won't go. Go to work." It's not the money that encourages Niki to tell D.L. to go. It's the fact that she knows firefighting means something to him.

"… No," And this is D.L. trying to be the good and quiet husband and make sure everything stays on the up and up in here. His fist clenches around the phone a bit, but he manages to keep himself calm. Could have something to do with his peripheral vision spotting Cam. "It's not a problem, Niki. I'll take care of it." He's putting the phone up to his ear, now that it's ringing. "Besides, we can have like a Guys Nite In or something, right Cam?" At least he remembers the kid's name.
Cam looks between the two a moment, but then smiles some and nods to what D.L. says, "Yeah." He glances up to Niki again a moment, and adds, "Sorry if I messed anything up."

Niki can't quite manage to say thank you. Instead, she gets a stubborn look about her, lips pressed tightly together until her moment of surliness seems to dissipate. "Fine," she breathes. She moves past D.L., slowing as she does so, almost stopping, seeming as if she's going to say something more — something less passive aggressive — but the moment passes, and she makes her way to Cam. "It's nothing, Cam," she says with a tense but sincere smile, drawing him in for a quick hug. "I have to go, but I'll be back soon. Maybe tonight, even. You'll be okay here with D.L. and Micah." Speaking of— she looks to her husband, asking nice and benignly, "Do you want me to swing by and pick up Micah? Drop him off home before I go?"

"I'll take care of it." That's D.L. Mr. Take Care Of It. "I'll get changed and then me and the boys'll go see a movie or something. Then come back and party like it's 1999." There's a very fake smile that D.L. tries to wear, but it doesn't even last long enough to register as being fake. He's just in the process of hanging up the phone, now that he's called out and pulling that firefighter's jacket off. "You just go get ready. You don't wanna' be late." For whatever it is that she does when she's not here.

Cam hugs Niki back and nods a little, "Yeah, I know. See you later. And thanks for rescuing me." He looks back to D.L. and says, "Yeah, that'll be fun."

You don't need to cut the tension with a knife. Something as paltry as a sewing needle would slice it at this point. Niki very nearly speaks up against D.L. — argues, to pick up their own son. She would have picked him up. She wanted to do that simple thing. "Okay," she says, barely audible. She quickly kisses Cam on the top of the head. "Anytime." She smiles and whisks toward she and D.L.'s bedroom. All she retrieves is some sort of laminated card of some kind. When she reappears to grab her coat, she stuffs it in the pocket. She strides to the front door, pausing to look back at the boys. "Don't watch anything too scary," she half-jokes.

D.L. just smirks and raises a hand as he gets near Cam, as if prepping for some sort of low-high-five or something. "We won't." But that's probably a lie, since D.L. is now plotting to find the most scariest movie in the theaters at this particular point. "Tomorrow? We see if we can keep him?" Yeah, D.L. is talking to Niki and even doing that thing where he has to actually check with her before he makes any appointments. In case she ends up getting kidnapped (SUPPOSEDLY) again or something.

Cam grins and nods quickly to Niki, "Sure." he does meet the high-five, grinning up to D.L. and obviously cheering up again. He looks back up to Niki at D.L.'s question, looking hopeful.

Niki hesitates, but put on the spot in front of Cam, doesn't hesitate too long. "…We'll talk." She doesn't want to make any promises. "I gotta go. I'll— see you later," she tells them both, smiling, for an instant, before she's out the door. They're treated to the sound of it closing, followed by quick footfalls on the steps outside.

D.L. just watches the door for a moment, as if trying to figure out if that was a yes or a no. And realizing that he's now, home alone, with the little white boy, he's going to have to take care of business. "Don't worry. If she can't make it, I'll take care of everything. It's… what I do now." Sighing, he turns and starts to make his way to his bedroom. "Grab yourself a snack. I'm gonna' get changed."

Cam nods a little to D.L. and says, "Thanks." He then nods quickly again, hurrying to the kitchen to get himself something to eat. Very hungry, it seems.

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