I listened while Edwin and Cliff went on a journey to find which things Edwin liked. It wasn’t limited to vegetables either. Cliff had a way of getting people to open up about things without being invasive.
Edwin told us stories of when he first became a little, or realized he was a little. It started out as cozy hobbies, like coloring and puzzles. He tried to take up knitting and cross-stitching but soon realized those things were more serious and took concentration he didn’t have after a long day of work.Coloring and puzzles, easy ones, gave him a chance to release his stress without adding any new levels of frustration. Then one night, he was looking for things online and stumbled on a little’s site. He clicked with the lifestyle, and that was when he realized who he was.
A little. In need of care and love.
“And you still color now,” I said once he was done telling his story.
“I do. It’s still one of my favorite things to do.”
Cliff put his hand over Edwin’s. “We have lots of coloring things at our home. If you ever come over to play with Edwin, we can get more if you don’t like the ones we have or prefer different books.”
“I’m pretty easy to please.”
Good to know.
“How about sundaes all around?” Cliff asked, already waving the waiter over. Edwin had only finished half his burger but all of his fries. He even let Cliff feed him a bite of his ratatouille. Edwin didn’t like it, but he received some well-earned praise for taking a bite. I could see it in my daddy’s eyes. Cliff was going to make Edwin love veggies one way or another.
Broccoli-cheese tots were my favorite.
“I’m not sure if I can eat anything else.” Edwin soon proved himself wrong. Cliff ordered us all salted-caramel sundaes with extra cherries on top. My new little friend and date moaned in appreciation, and I wasn’t the only one affected by the sound. Cliff took my hand in his and squeezed it tightly.
Cliff paid the bill, of course, and on the way back to drop Edwin off, I already missed him. I wanted to ask him to stay, but that was something Cliff and I would have to talk about.
In the meantime, I put my hand behind the front seat. Edwin took it. For a few minutes more, I was touching him, and that was almost enough.
Chapter Fifteen
Cliff
Our first date had been very much “big,” but that was perfect since we’d needed to talk and learn a bit about one another’s backgrounds. The food was good, the company excellent, and after we dropped Edwin off at the Little House, we went home and spoke more together. Brax and I had been together long enough, we thought we’d known what the future held. We were both attracted to him and drawn to his personality as well.
But if we were going to change our future, if he was even interested in being part of it, we needed to spend more time together first.
“Is this weird?” Brax asked. “I mean, I never even had a fantasy where I was with a daddy and another little.”
“No, I felt pretty complete being just the two of us as well, but that night at Chained when the two of you played for the first time, it felt as if a door opened.” We were driving to pick up Edwin for our second date as we spoke.
“It scares me a little because we’re so good.” Brax rested his hand on my thigh.
“I understand. So, taking our time, making sure we all three want the same things in our lives, is the smart thing to do.”
“Do you think he’ll like the arcade?”
“He said he’d like to do that when we asked him. And you mentioned the one you did the dancing game at when you had your little party.” I shrugged. “Hopefully he will have a great time. I know you always do.” The arcade was an opportunity for a little to be in public and actually play where nobody was going to bully them. Arcades were popular with all ages. I pulled into the driveway and cut the engine. “Shall we both go to the door?”
Before he could reply, it opened and Edwin came out, a bounce in his step. He trotted to the car and hopped in the back. “Thank you for inviting me to the arcade. I’ve been wanting to go, but haven’t made it. My friends in the Little House have been telling me how fun it is since I moved in.”
“So much fun.” Brax turned in his seat as much as his seat belt allowed. “They have a whole section of claw machines where you can win stuffies and building sets and candy and chips and”— he hesitated as—if trying to think what other prizes might be in there—“everything.”
“Wow! I’ve only seen the ones at gas stations and at the fair and they weren’t that interesting. Also, I’ve never succeeded in winning anything. Are these hard like that?”
“No.” Brax’s head swung back and forth with his denial. “They’re not easy, but Daddy can almost always get something, and I’ve won a few too. What do you hope they have to win?”
They launched into a discussion of what they would like to find in the machines and devised strategies for “beating the system.” While they were not in full little mode, they were so enthusiastic, it made me smile. Having the two of them together in my life was certainly different than Brax on his own, and the more time we spent together, the better I felt about the whole thing. Or at least, I believed I could enjoy them, their interactions with one another and with me. My concern was whether I could be everything they needed in return.
The arcade lay at the edge of town where the owners had been able to find a property with enough room for things like a nine-hole mini-golf and a few other outdoor activities and rides. We’d chosen to go kind of late, at nine o’clock, where we hoped it would be less crowded. As we pulled into the parking lot, I realized that the plan had not worked. While there weren’t many children there, other adults must have had the same idea we did.
No matter. Everyone was there to have a good time, and we would fit right into that.
