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fellowshippers2007-02-23 07:27 pm
v-angelique.livejournal.com) wrote in fellowshippers2007-02-23 07:27 pm
Entry tags:
- au,
- craig/david,
- r
Fic: Of Best Friends and Lunchboxes (8/12)
Title: Of Best Friends and Lunchboxes (8/12)
Author: Viktoria Angelique (![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
v_angelique)
Pairing: DW/CP
Rating: series up to R; PG this part
Disclaimer: This is very, very untrue, and AU in fact, so even more untrue! Also, I'm borrowing real people including Dave's wife and daughter, but only the names are real, the rest--completely fictional.
Warning: Schmoop contained herein.
Chapter Summary: Eliza spends the weekend with Dave and Craig, and Dave tries praying again.
Previous Chapters
While Dave didn’t quite win the custody case, he didn’t lose it, either. Kate was able to secure full custody of Eliza Jane, but Dave managed visitation rights of two weekends a month. This was less than he’d like to see his daughter, ideally, but at least Kate couldn’t go against a court-ordered visitation policy.
And so, Christmas wasn't quite as depressing as it could have been that year. Though Dave didn't get to see his daughter, who was being shunted off to Kate's family celebration, Craig only spent a couple of days in New Zealand with his family before coming back home to Dave, and he knew that Eliza would be coming over that Saturday.
And before Dave’s first weekend with Eliza, Craig surprised him by bringing home a kid-sized trundle bed with wooden safety rails that could slide down for easy storage underneath Dave’s own bed in the guest room. Kate grudging delivered Eliza at half-ten, and to Dave’s delight, she squealed happily and yelled “Daddy!” as she was transferred into his arms, assuaging his fears that Kate had managed to turn Eliza off to him altogether.
“So, sugar, what do you want to do today?” Dave asked, bouncing her on his hip as they walked into the living room where Craig was sitting watching cartoons with his coffee.
“Toons!!!” she squealed happily. “Want to watch toons with your friend, Daddy!”
Craig grinned widely at the little girl’s reaction and patted a spot on the couch next to him. “It’s got your name on it, sweetheart.”
“Really?” Eliza quickly scrambled to the couch cushion when Dave set her down on the carpet and inspected the cushion critically.
“It’s an expression, honey. It means he wants you to sit with him.”
“Oh. Okay!”
Dave grinned widely when Eliza hopped up onto the couch, sitting in her little pink dress with her legs sticking straight out in front of her, completely focused on the cartoon after thirty seconds. Craig took a minute to fill her in on what she had missed, and Dave wished he had his camera on hand to capture the moment.
Instead, Dave left the “kids” to their television and headed for the kitchen, pouring himself a bowl of chocolate cereal to eat while Eliza wasn’t looking and a cup of coffee. By the time he had finished his breakfast and the Arts & Entertainment section of the paper, thundering footsteps alerted him to the end of the cartoon. Eliza ran into the kitchen, followed by Craig at a more sedate pace, and stopped next to Dave’s chair, holding her arms up to be lifted into his lap. He laughed and obliged, smiling at Craig who took a seat on the other side of the table.
“So, my little pumpkin pie, you haven’t answered my question yet. What do you want to do today? It’s nearly eleven o clock already!”
“That’s still early,” Eliza reasoned, thumbing through the pictures in the paper, which she could barely reach. “Can we go to the park today? And get Popsicles?”
“Hmm, I think that’s an acceptable plan,” Dave agreed. “We’d better get you changed first though. Did your mom put any play clothes in your overnight bag?”
“Yeah. My t-shirt and dungarees.”
“Perfect. And what do you say we have some lunch on the way?”
“Okay. Can he come?” she asked, pointing at Craig. Dave grinned at him over her head.
“Of course he can. But he has a name, silly.”
“Well you didn’t tell me his name, Daddy!”
“Oh, my mistake. Miss Eliza Jane Wenham, meet Mr. Craig Parker.”
Crawling forward in Dave’s lap, Eliza reached across the table as far as she could. “Pweased to meet you, Mister Parker.”
Craig grinned and leaned across the table to take her small hand, kissing it playfully. “The pleasure is all mine, Miss Wenham. But please, call me Craig.”
“Okay, Craig! You can call me ‘Liza. But are you coming with us?”
“I don’t know, ‘Liza. Would you like me to?”
“Of course, silly! You’re daddy’s bestest friend, aren’t you? So you’re my friend too.”
Craig grinned. “Well as a matter of fact, my dear, I think you may be right. Dave, that all right with you?”
“Of course it is,” Dave replied, rolling his eyes. “Couldn’t get rid of you if I wanted to.”
“Which you don’t.”
“Which I don’t,” Dave agreed, sharing a secret smile with Craig over Eliza’s head.
Much to Eliza Jane’s delight, the carousel in the park was running that afternoon, and so after a hamburger lunch, they proceeded on to the pavilion under which the big old carousel sat, surrounded by moms and their kids.
“You mind taking her? I want to snap some photos,” Dave suggested, raising the camera around his neck as they walked down the path with Eliza in the middle, one of her hands in each of the men’s.
“Sure thing. Want to go on the carousel with Uncle Craig, ‘Liza?”
Eliza grinned at Craig and nodded enthusiastically, letting go of Dave’s hand and dragging Craig towards the ticket booth. “You’re much more fun than my other uncles! Mummy’s brothers are silly, and Daddy’s sisters wear way too much makeup,” she confided.
Craig giggled and allowed himself to be led off while Dave watched the two of them with a huge smile on his face. Surely this wasn’t the “depraved household” Kate feared? Dave missed his church and feared his family’s opinion of his situation, but he was happier living with Craig than he ever had been with Kate, more so now that he could see his daughter.
As he snapped photos of the two most important people in his life, whirling around on the elaborately decorated painted wood horses, Dave wondered. He wondered if Craig was really happy in this situation. He seemed to be, but having Dave stay with him surely couldn’t help his love life all that much. He wondered if it was normal that he had much more fun with his gay best friend than he ever had with his wife. And he wondered, most of all, if it was all too good to last.
“Well, that was a lot of fun,” Craig commented Sunday afternoon when Eliza Jane was gone, the two of them sitting on the couch together and waiting for the ordered pizza to arrive.
“Yeah. Kate sure was pissed as hell that I didn’t take her to church, though.”
“Well, where would you go, realistically? I mean, your church pretty much kicked you out, right?”
“Don’t remind me,” Dave groaned.
“Are you all right?” Craig asked, laying a hand on Dave’s back. “I mean, really? I know your religion means a lot to you.”
“I guess so. I just… I don’t remember a time when I didn’t go to church, you know? It was always the nine of us, taking up a whole long pew in the nave, for as long as I can remember. I went to Sunday school, did confirmation classes, even sang in the choir at one point. It’s so strange to think that I’m not welcome. I mean, I always thought God welcomed everyone, but I guess this is my first experience with being one of the people that He doesn’t.”
“Aw, bullshit. God still loves you, David. Doesn’t matter what the Church thinks.”
“Easy for you to say. You’re not even religious.”
“How do you know?” Craig asked, raising an eyebrow.
“You never go to church!”
“Doesn’t mean I’m not religious.”
“Kate thought you were Buddhist. Is that true?”
“Because of the Buddha statue?” Dave nodded. “Not really. I empathise with Asian teachings, including those of the Buddha. But I don’t meditate or follow the Eightfold Path.”
“Oh. What do you follow?”
“I’m not sure. I believe there’s someone out there looking out for me, though.”
“Yet you don’t need to go to church, have your sins forgiven?”
“No. I believe my sins will be forgiven whether I go to church or not. I live a good, honest life. I don’t have it in my heart to believe in a God who would begrudge me heaven because I don’t worship with a bunch of close-minded people once a week.”
“We’re not all close-minded.”
Craig smiled. “I know that, Dave. Of course I know that… it’s just not for me.”
“Oh. Do you pray, then?”
“Sometimes.”
“Would you… would you pray with me? It would mean a lot.”
Craig smiled and squeezed Dave’s shoulder. “Of course. Now?”
“Um, I guess it’s a good a time as any.” Dave smiled a bit nervously and Craig offered a warm smile in return, twisting on the couch to face Dave and taking both his hands, bowing his head.
“Why don’t you start?” Craig whispered, and Dave nodded his head.
“Okay. Um, let’s see. Hi there, God. That’s how Eliza Jane always starts her prayers out loud, so I guess that’s as good a start as any.” Craig grinned and squeezed Dave’s hands but didn’t speak. “Um, I just wanted to thank you for this weekend with Eliza, and for bringing me here to this house, and giving me somewhere safe to be in these times. Please watch over Craig, and Eliza, and her mother this week. Um, please forgive me for missing church, and not confessing, and getting a divorce. Only you know the path that’s right for me, but a little nudge would be nice. Um, Craig?”
Craig smiled at Dave’s nervousness, evident in his shaking hands. “Okay, God. Also, please watch over Daisy, because I think he’s a little confused at the moment about what you’ve got in store for him. Help him find somewhere that he can worship without being ridiculed by all these assholes, and make sure he stays safe. He’s kind of important to me. Amen.”
Dave looked up, incredulous, and then suddenly dropped Craig’s hand and smacked him on the shoulder. “Craig! You don’t say ‘assholes’ in a prayer!”
Craig grinned and reached for Dave’s sides, initiating a tickle war. “Who says I don’t, huh?”
“Eek! Stop! Mercy!!”
Author: Viktoria Angelique (
v_angelique)Pairing: DW/CP
Rating: series up to R; PG this part
Disclaimer: This is very, very untrue, and AU in fact, so even more untrue! Also, I'm borrowing real people including Dave's wife and daughter, but only the names are real, the rest--completely fictional.
Warning: Schmoop contained herein.
Chapter Summary: Eliza spends the weekend with Dave and Craig, and Dave tries praying again.
Previous Chapters
While Dave didn’t quite win the custody case, he didn’t lose it, either. Kate was able to secure full custody of Eliza Jane, but Dave managed visitation rights of two weekends a month. This was less than he’d like to see his daughter, ideally, but at least Kate couldn’t go against a court-ordered visitation policy.
And so, Christmas wasn't quite as depressing as it could have been that year. Though Dave didn't get to see his daughter, who was being shunted off to Kate's family celebration, Craig only spent a couple of days in New Zealand with his family before coming back home to Dave, and he knew that Eliza would be coming over that Saturday.
And before Dave’s first weekend with Eliza, Craig surprised him by bringing home a kid-sized trundle bed with wooden safety rails that could slide down for easy storage underneath Dave’s own bed in the guest room. Kate grudging delivered Eliza at half-ten, and to Dave’s delight, she squealed happily and yelled “Daddy!” as she was transferred into his arms, assuaging his fears that Kate had managed to turn Eliza off to him altogether.
“So, sugar, what do you want to do today?” Dave asked, bouncing her on his hip as they walked into the living room where Craig was sitting watching cartoons with his coffee.
“Toons!!!” she squealed happily. “Want to watch toons with your friend, Daddy!”
Craig grinned widely at the little girl’s reaction and patted a spot on the couch next to him. “It’s got your name on it, sweetheart.”
“Really?” Eliza quickly scrambled to the couch cushion when Dave set her down on the carpet and inspected the cushion critically.
“It’s an expression, honey. It means he wants you to sit with him.”
“Oh. Okay!”
Dave grinned widely when Eliza hopped up onto the couch, sitting in her little pink dress with her legs sticking straight out in front of her, completely focused on the cartoon after thirty seconds. Craig took a minute to fill her in on what she had missed, and Dave wished he had his camera on hand to capture the moment.
Instead, Dave left the “kids” to their television and headed for the kitchen, pouring himself a bowl of chocolate cereal to eat while Eliza wasn’t looking and a cup of coffee. By the time he had finished his breakfast and the Arts & Entertainment section of the paper, thundering footsteps alerted him to the end of the cartoon. Eliza ran into the kitchen, followed by Craig at a more sedate pace, and stopped next to Dave’s chair, holding her arms up to be lifted into his lap. He laughed and obliged, smiling at Craig who took a seat on the other side of the table.
“So, my little pumpkin pie, you haven’t answered my question yet. What do you want to do today? It’s nearly eleven o clock already!”
“That’s still early,” Eliza reasoned, thumbing through the pictures in the paper, which she could barely reach. “Can we go to the park today? And get Popsicles?”
“Hmm, I think that’s an acceptable plan,” Dave agreed. “We’d better get you changed first though. Did your mom put any play clothes in your overnight bag?”
“Yeah. My t-shirt and dungarees.”
“Perfect. And what do you say we have some lunch on the way?”
“Okay. Can he come?” she asked, pointing at Craig. Dave grinned at him over her head.
“Of course he can. But he has a name, silly.”
“Well you didn’t tell me his name, Daddy!”
“Oh, my mistake. Miss Eliza Jane Wenham, meet Mr. Craig Parker.”
Crawling forward in Dave’s lap, Eliza reached across the table as far as she could. “Pweased to meet you, Mister Parker.”
Craig grinned and leaned across the table to take her small hand, kissing it playfully. “The pleasure is all mine, Miss Wenham. But please, call me Craig.”
“Okay, Craig! You can call me ‘Liza. But are you coming with us?”
“I don’t know, ‘Liza. Would you like me to?”
“Of course, silly! You’re daddy’s bestest friend, aren’t you? So you’re my friend too.”
Craig grinned. “Well as a matter of fact, my dear, I think you may be right. Dave, that all right with you?”
“Of course it is,” Dave replied, rolling his eyes. “Couldn’t get rid of you if I wanted to.”
“Which you don’t.”
“Which I don’t,” Dave agreed, sharing a secret smile with Craig over Eliza’s head.
Much to Eliza Jane’s delight, the carousel in the park was running that afternoon, and so after a hamburger lunch, they proceeded on to the pavilion under which the big old carousel sat, surrounded by moms and their kids.
“You mind taking her? I want to snap some photos,” Dave suggested, raising the camera around his neck as they walked down the path with Eliza in the middle, one of her hands in each of the men’s.
“Sure thing. Want to go on the carousel with Uncle Craig, ‘Liza?”
Eliza grinned at Craig and nodded enthusiastically, letting go of Dave’s hand and dragging Craig towards the ticket booth. “You’re much more fun than my other uncles! Mummy’s brothers are silly, and Daddy’s sisters wear way too much makeup,” she confided.
Craig giggled and allowed himself to be led off while Dave watched the two of them with a huge smile on his face. Surely this wasn’t the “depraved household” Kate feared? Dave missed his church and feared his family’s opinion of his situation, but he was happier living with Craig than he ever had been with Kate, more so now that he could see his daughter.
As he snapped photos of the two most important people in his life, whirling around on the elaborately decorated painted wood horses, Dave wondered. He wondered if Craig was really happy in this situation. He seemed to be, but having Dave stay with him surely couldn’t help his love life all that much. He wondered if it was normal that he had much more fun with his gay best friend than he ever had with his wife. And he wondered, most of all, if it was all too good to last.
“Well, that was a lot of fun,” Craig commented Sunday afternoon when Eliza Jane was gone, the two of them sitting on the couch together and waiting for the ordered pizza to arrive.
“Yeah. Kate sure was pissed as hell that I didn’t take her to church, though.”
“Well, where would you go, realistically? I mean, your church pretty much kicked you out, right?”
“Don’t remind me,” Dave groaned.
“Are you all right?” Craig asked, laying a hand on Dave’s back. “I mean, really? I know your religion means a lot to you.”
“I guess so. I just… I don’t remember a time when I didn’t go to church, you know? It was always the nine of us, taking up a whole long pew in the nave, for as long as I can remember. I went to Sunday school, did confirmation classes, even sang in the choir at one point. It’s so strange to think that I’m not welcome. I mean, I always thought God welcomed everyone, but I guess this is my first experience with being one of the people that He doesn’t.”
“Aw, bullshit. God still loves you, David. Doesn’t matter what the Church thinks.”
“Easy for you to say. You’re not even religious.”
“How do you know?” Craig asked, raising an eyebrow.
“You never go to church!”
“Doesn’t mean I’m not religious.”
“Kate thought you were Buddhist. Is that true?”
“Because of the Buddha statue?” Dave nodded. “Not really. I empathise with Asian teachings, including those of the Buddha. But I don’t meditate or follow the Eightfold Path.”
“Oh. What do you follow?”
“I’m not sure. I believe there’s someone out there looking out for me, though.”
“Yet you don’t need to go to church, have your sins forgiven?”
“No. I believe my sins will be forgiven whether I go to church or not. I live a good, honest life. I don’t have it in my heart to believe in a God who would begrudge me heaven because I don’t worship with a bunch of close-minded people once a week.”
“We’re not all close-minded.”
Craig smiled. “I know that, Dave. Of course I know that… it’s just not for me.”
“Oh. Do you pray, then?”
“Sometimes.”
“Would you… would you pray with me? It would mean a lot.”
Craig smiled and squeezed Dave’s shoulder. “Of course. Now?”
“Um, I guess it’s a good a time as any.” Dave smiled a bit nervously and Craig offered a warm smile in return, twisting on the couch to face Dave and taking both his hands, bowing his head.
“Why don’t you start?” Craig whispered, and Dave nodded his head.
“Okay. Um, let’s see. Hi there, God. That’s how Eliza Jane always starts her prayers out loud, so I guess that’s as good a start as any.” Craig grinned and squeezed Dave’s hands but didn’t speak. “Um, I just wanted to thank you for this weekend with Eliza, and for bringing me here to this house, and giving me somewhere safe to be in these times. Please watch over Craig, and Eliza, and her mother this week. Um, please forgive me for missing church, and not confessing, and getting a divorce. Only you know the path that’s right for me, but a little nudge would be nice. Um, Craig?”
Craig smiled at Dave’s nervousness, evident in his shaking hands. “Okay, God. Also, please watch over Daisy, because I think he’s a little confused at the moment about what you’ve got in store for him. Help him find somewhere that he can worship without being ridiculed by all these assholes, and make sure he stays safe. He’s kind of important to me. Amen.”
Dave looked up, incredulous, and then suddenly dropped Craig’s hand and smacked him on the shoulder. “Craig! You don’t say ‘assholes’ in a prayer!”
Craig grinned and reached for Dave’s sides, initiating a tickle war. “Who says I don’t, huh?”
“Eek! Stop! Mercy!!”
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Angie, loving on Craig, who's perfect
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"Kind of important" huh? *grins* OOOOkay~!
I'm so glad ElizaJane is not brainwashed against her father!!!! *cheers*
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