"Bob the blob!" Aussie shouts, raising his hand holding the paintbrush. Blue splatters land on my arm and across a couple of our papers. "Oopsie!"
"Aussie, are you causing trouble over there?" Remi calls out across the yard. We all look over at them in unison, which seems to amuse them. I spot Riley and Fluff calmly laying beside each other. Fluff is laying on his back and is swatting gently at Riley's face.
"No way, Daddy!" Aussie calls back.
"It's raining blue!" Luke shouts. His paper is speckled with blue dots from Aussie moving his hand around. It makes me laugh.
"Let's try to keep the paint on the paper, okay?" Remi nods at Aussie, but I see his eyes meet each of ours. "I know Garrett is the cool Daddy, but we don't have time today to clean all of you off with the water hose again."
"Best birthday ever!" Orion shouts. This time, in his excitement, he flings purple paint and it lands directly across Quinton's face. We all start laughing, but I see the others stand up. Painting time is over.
"Okay, I think we've had enough painting today." Vaughn reaches the table first. He grabs a napkin from the roll we have on the table and starts wiping Quinton's face. It isn't a lot and it comes off easily.
"I'm sorry." Orion looks and sounds like he is close to tears for accidentally flinging the paint. He looks up at his Daddy. "I didn't mean to. I just got excited."
"I know, baby. We're just going to go ahead and do something else, okay? How about you all go on the playset for a bit? It's in the shade so not as hot."
Orion nods and we all stand up. The playset is big, sturdy enough to hold adults. There's a slide and two swings attached. The main part is built like a castle and it's all in a light wood color. Only part of it is in the shade right now. I can feel the sweat trickling down my back and I fan my shirt away from my chest. I don't make it a few feet from the table before my Daddy calls my name.
I turn back around and see him motion for me to come to him. I look back at my friends, all who are picking what they want to do on the playset. Quinton's Daddy is over there with them, too. Daddy calls my name once more, in a much more serious tone, so I know I can't ignore him.
"Yes?" We're standing off to the side. Still in the shade, but if we keep our voices low enough no one can hear us.
"I think you need to sit over here for a little bit, okay? Your face is already red and I want you to drink some more water before you go play."
"I'm okay," I say. I might be a little hot, but it's super sunny out today. Everyone is sweaty.
"Ty, I'm not asking." Daddy's face is serious. "Just for a few minutes and see how you feel after that."
"But I want to go play," I whine. I look over my shoulder at my friends laughing and running around. I turn back to Daddy. "Please?"
"I'm sorry, but you need to remember that you have to be more careful than most people."
I pout my lip and look at the ground. I know, in the back of my mind, that he's right but the biggest part of my brain just wants to play.
"You can sit and play with Fluff and Riley, okay? I'm going to mix up your drink."
"I don't want to," I say. I cross my arms, still avoiding Daddy's eyes.
"Tyler." His voice is leaving no room for argument, but I still don't look at him. "Look at me."
I don't look at him. Instead, I turn around and sit right there on the patio floor. I can feel tears threatening to show themselves. Daddy's shoes come into my vision and then his knees when he squats down in front of me. It's only when he puts a finger under my chin and makes me look up at him that I meet his eyes. He doesn't look happy.
"Turning your back on me is not nice, is it?" He's waiting for an answer. His finger and thumb squeeze my chin a little bit harder and I know I'm in the middle of a tantrum, but other parts of me kind of like that. This is not the time for grown up thoughts. "I know you don't like it, but you just changed your medicine this morning and we have to keep an eye on how you're going to react to it. Daddy isn't trying to be mean and keep you from playing. You know that. If you keep acting like this, we can go back home. Do you want to do that?"
The thought of going home so soon is enough for me to let go of this little fight. I shake my head. "I want to stay."
"Then you need to listen to me, okay?" I nod. "You can stay right here or go sit in the chair. I'll be right back with your water."
Chapter Fourteen
IlookoveratTyler sitting on the patio floor. It’s been ten minutes and he hasn’t moved. He's sitting crisscross and watching his friends play. The last thing I wanted to do was pull him away from having fun, but I saw the way he was fanning himself and the sweat on the back of his shirt. He needs to cool down for a few minutes and rehydrate. The tantrum added a few extra minutes. He lifts the bottle of water to his lips and takes another sip. I dumped in a full electrolyte mix into it, hoping that it'll be enough for him.
He went to the doctor yesterday and they did some bloodwork. It came back a bit concerning, so the doctor upped his dosage. The last thing I want is for him to get dehydrated or the medicine to make him physically sick. I don't like watching him sit on his own while the others play, but it's for his health.
"You're doing great with him," Remington says. "I'm glad he has someone with actual medical knowledge to help him through all of this. When Austin called me that day and said that he'd fainted, I didn't know what to do."
"Orion came home really worried about him, too." Garrett says. "We all were, but I know seeing it right in front of him scared Orion for a while. I can't imagine how Tyler feels having to go through it."
