“A Decepticon!” Kai cheered. “I like Megatron and Starscream.”
“Those are the bad guys, kid,” Nikos said as he ruffled Kai’s curls. “You have to be a good guy like Optimus and Bumblebee.”
“But the bad guys have all of the cool powers,” Kai grumbled.
“Still, you have to be a good guy so you can protect your mom,” Nikos said, and Kai nodded before he started bouncing excitedly on his toes.
“Do you want to play games with me?” Kai asked. “I have the PlayStation.”
“Kai, it’s a school night,” Honey said. “You should be sleeping right now.”
“Please, mom. Just one game,” her son pleaded as he looked at her with that tender, sad face he always gave her whenever he wanted something. Honey looked reluctant, not wanting to give in to her son’s adorable face that always made it hard for her to say no to him. It wasn’t good for him to be up late because he would have a hard time waking up in the morning, and itwas hard getting an eight-year-old out of bed when he was still sleeping like the dead at seven am in the morning.
“Please, Honey. Just one game,” Nikos said, mimicking her son. Honey sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose, and her son cheered, knowing she was giving in. Kai tugged on Nikos’s hand, pulling him into the living room before he turned on the TV, and set up his gaming system.
“Just one game,” Honey called after them. But her son didn’t respond as he handed Nikos his other controller. Honey sighed before she continued to put the groceries up. As she did that, she heard chatter and laughter coming from the two boys in her home as they played the PS4. When she finished putting everything up, she sat down on the loveseat, watching as they played a fighting game.
“Aww, you beat me again,” Kai complained moodily. He hated losing.
“That’s because I’m the champ at this,” Nikos said before he placed his own controller down and then placed his hands on top of Kai’s smaller ones.
“You can’t press buttons randomly. That will only get you so far. You have to press X and triangle at the same time. Yes. Just like that. And when you want to get even more creative, hit LR while holding X. Yes! You see.”
Kai nodded as he did it on his own, and when he was able to hit Nikos’s avatar with direct hits, he cheered. Nikos smiled as he took his own controller and played again.
Honey watched them with a small smile on her face, surprised that Nikos was good with children like this. But she guessed that he was just like a child himself, and that was how he was able to get along with her son. They played a couple morerounds until Honey noted the time on her watch. Realizing that it was past midnight, she called the game off.
“Aww, come on, mom. Just one more game,” Kai pleaded. Honey ignored him as she took the controller from his hand.
“I already let you play one more game. Now, it’s time to go to sleep. You have school in the morning.”
Kai pouted as he stood begrudgingly.
“Tell Nikos goodnight,” Honey instructed.
“Goodnight, Nikos,” Kai said, and Nikos smiled, ruffling his hair.
“Don’t worry. We’ll play again another time,” Nikos promised, and Honey arched a brow because there would definitely not be another time. This was a one-time occurrence, and the last time Nikos would be stepping inside her home.
“Really?” Kai asked.
“If your mom lets me,” Nikos said knowingly, and Honey glared at him.
“Mom, can Nikos play again with me another time?” Kai asked eagerly, even as he let out a yawn. Honey could flat-out say no, but then she knew Kai would only mope around instead of going to bed like he needed to.
“We’ll see,” Honey said, placating him, but she did not plan on having Nikos around again.
“Okay,” Kai said before he gave her a hug, and she pressed a kiss against the top of his head. “Goodnight, Kai. Love you.”
“Love you too,” Kai told her before he headed back to his room.
Honey smiled, hearing his door close. He would be out like a light for the rest of the night, and she would definitely have to pull him out of bed herself, but she was glad he had fun.
“Your son’s really cute,” Nikos said fondly. “I didn’t know you had a child.”
“Now you know,” Honey said, shrugging. She didn’t think Nikos would be much of a gossip, but then again, it didn’t matter if people at the club knew she had a child.
“He looks like you,” Nikos commented as he looked at the photo of her and her son together on her wall.
