“Great. I’ll just fill the feeders and then we can do some work. If you’re making coffee, could you make me one too, please? Black.”
Newt didn’t wait to see his reaction. He’d asked nicely, so… He’d see.
When he returned, there was a coffee waiting for him. “Thank you.” He wrote ‘coffee’ on a piece of paper, pointed in his mug, and said, “Coffee.”
River pointed to Newt’s groin and said, “Cock.”
“Funny guy. Coffee. Try and say it. Same sound at the start as cock, then add fee.”
“Co…fee.”
“There you go. Coffee. Easy.”
River looked shocked he’d managed it.
“Smile,” Newt said. “Celebrate when you get something right. Look for something else in here that starts with the same sound as coffee and cock. Check the labels.”
River picked up a cup. “C…” He gave Newt a desperate look.
“Cup.” Newt exaggerated the sound. “Cup.”
“Cup.”
“Well done.”
Newt sat on the couch and River sat next to him close enough that their thighs touched. Newt’s heart did a little loop-the-loop. Right until River shifted so they weren’t touching.
“Think you can try and name the things that have labels?”
River looked at the coffee table and pointed to the book. “Puk.”
“Nearly. Book. Look at my lips. We did it yesterday. Buh and puh. Book. Puck.”
“B…Book.” His eyes widened.
“Yes! You got it. You’re on a roll.”
He saw River’s face fall and gently patted his arm. “It’s not going to take anywhere near as long as you think. You’re also learning to read when you’re doing this. We’ll just do a few more until you get fed up or your head starts hurting.”
River’s concentration lasted longer than Newt thought it would. His memory was good. His reading not so good. WhenNewt removed some of the labels and muddled them up, River could only put a few labels back on the right things, but Newt stayed upbeat.
“I’m really impressed.” He had to strike a balance between being encouraging and patronising but hewasimpressed with River’s progress.
“Hey. Want some good news?” Newt asked.
River nodded.
“Yes. Try to say it. Yes.”
“Yuuu…Yesss.”
Newt gave him a thumbs up. “You don’t have to see Jorge anymore. Max has sacked him. Until he finds someone new, I’ll try and help you through your exercises.”
River’s eyes widened, then his face fell along with Newt’s stomach.Shit.Why was that bad news?
“You don’t want me to?” Newt asked.
River shook his head.
