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“Are you ready for a week of fun with Uncle Charlie and Uncle Babe and everyone else at the garage?” North asked, lifting Martin up high in greeting and then holding him so Sonic could poke at his tummy and make the pup start giggling. Neither of them saw the furious glare Babe sent their way at North referring to him as Uncle instead of Phi.
“Yeah!” Martin nodded, looking excited.
While they didn’t see Babe and how Alan had to distract him from any thought of going after North, they both saw the strained smile on Way’s face.
Obviously, he wanted the boy to always be happy, but they both knew Way. He probably wanted the pup to be a little less excited about the prospect of being apart from his parents for so long. Though Way wouldn’t want Martin to be upset, he wanted to be missed. As proof that the pup loved him, in a silly way. North was tempted to go tease him about it, but Martin begging to be lifted up high again kept him from doing that.
Charlie took Martin’s things from Pete, and then took Banzai’s leash as well. The dog would be joining Martin in being babysat while Pete and Way went on a cruise.
After some more goodbyes where Martin squirming to get air was the only thing that made his parents stop hugging him, the couple left.
Martin was fine as he was left with his uncles. Everyone figured that because he was used to his father’s long work days that Martin had no trouble with being apart from his parents. It probably wouldn’t sink in for a while. Charlie and Babe knew from the past that provided Martin got plenty of attention from his guardians and a phone call from his parents before bed that he wouldn’t be bothered at all. Way tended to call at least twice a day whenever he was away, which made things even easier for the pup.
So despite the more lengthy time, they were sure that things would be perfectly fine.
-
The first three days went off without a hitch. Martin received no less than two calls a day, the first around noon and the second before bed, with an extra call and lots of texts the first day as Way clearly adapted to separation from the pup. It seemed he was soothed a bit when Martin excitedly showed him some drawings he’d made the first day for him for when he came back, the pup counting on his fingers exactly how many more days it would be. It satisfied his need for the pup to be thinking about him, so Pete and Way went to just the regular two calls after that, with Charlie sending some pictures of Martin sporadically throughout the day instead of receiving texts.
Charlie and Babe did everything they could to keep the energetic pup entertained, and he really enjoyed being brought along to the garage when they needed to go in for training. He had no problem being swapped between different uncles as everyone went through their schedules taking turns looking after the pup.
On day four, there was no morning call. Pete had warned that there might be periods of time that there was simply no reception, and when Charlie’s texts didn’t go through, it was clear that the lack of reception was what was happening. Martin accepted that explanation when Charlie showed him the little red exclamation errors on his phone, and was easily cheered up with the promise of going out somewhere to get lunch. Finding a good food stand got the pup’s mind off of not getting a good morning call from his parents, after plenty of assurances on the way that his parents would be certain to call before he went to bed. Then stopping for ice cream after completely cheered him up.
Charlie barely got to eat any of his cup of ice cream, Babe and Martin both insisting on sharing with him, Babe taking huge bites to prevent Martin from taking more than a few spoonfuls.
They figured that by the time Martin’s bedtime rolled around, Pete and Way would once again have reception on their phones and be able to call the pup.
But as it got close to the right time, there was no call. The past few days, Pete had called at almost exactly eight every night, no doubt having an alarm set on his phone so they wouldn’t miss the call.
If Pete and Way were busy doing something, maybe they’d silenced the alarm. After getting Martin ready for bed, his teeth brushed and little pajamas put on, they decided to let him stay up later to wait for the call. Babe put on the second Cars movie and took Martin to the couch, holding the pup on his lap. Charlie settled in next to them, putting his phone close by so he could grab it as soon as it rang. The dogs even came over, Bibi flopping down at their feet, and Banzai hopping on top of the large golden retriever to curl up on his side like he was a big furry cushion.
Charlie snapped a picture of it after pointing it out to his mate and nephew. He sent it to Pete, and was surprised to see the notification pop up that the picture couldn’t send.
“Oh.”
“What’s wrong, P’Charlie?” Martin climbed over to see his phone. His little face fell when he saw the red exclamation point and his father’s contact name. “Papa’s phone isn’t working?”
“I guess not.”
“But P’Charlie and P’Babe said it would work…” Martin said quietly, sounding heartbroken.
Charlie ruffled his hair. “I’m sorry I was wrong, noo. I really thought that your dad’s phone would have reception by now.”
“Why won’t it work?” Martin asked, looking up at Charlie with big sad puppy eyes.
“Well, it could be the weather… or maybe they’re too far away from shore to get reception.”
“Which one?”
Babe gave Charlie a wide-eyed look. They had to get out of the line of questioning quickly. Martin was four, and if they hit the ‘why?’ stage it was bound to keep going until it ended in unsatisfied tears.
Charlie brought up the cruise itinerary that Pete had sent him so Martin would know where they were whenever he asked. They were between ports according to schedule, and Charlie checked on his phone’s map app the distance between the two places.
It was the longest stretch between stops on the trip. Charlie showed Martin. “I just looked up where they are, and it’s because of that and not the weather. The boat should be right about here.” He pointed to a spot in the ocean, between the two ports. “See how far away it is from land?”
“Uh-huh.”
“When boats are far away from land, cellphones don’t work. Your dad said that might happen. But they’ll get to their next stop sometime tomorrow, right here.” He pointed at the next port.
“And then Papa and Mama can call?”
“That’s right!” Charlie said cheerfully, squeezing Martin’s cheek and making the pup giggle. “Their phones will work again once they’re on land. You’ve got it!”
“Nice job,” Babe told Martin, relieved, dragging him back onto his lap. “Now we can go back to watching the movie.”
“Yeah! Lightning McQueen!”
Charlie couldn’t tell if Babe was more relieved about the fact that Martin had been successfully distracted, or that they could finally continue the movie.
When the movie finished, it only took a bit of carrying Martin around and patting his back to get him to start dozing off. Babe pulled Charlie and the pup to their bedroom, grumbling that because the kid was sad about his parents, he could spend the night in their room. Charlie beamed, so happy to see Babe being so soft when it came to their nephew.
His smile faltered when he went to put Martin in the middle of the bed, only for Babe to move Martin over so that he would be in the center instead, Charlie and Martin on either side of him. Charlie sighed when Babe then wrapped his arms around him, scooting closer so he was pressed against him and not their nephew.
“Babe. Really?”
“Yes!” Babe hissed. “I don’t have to share you with him! If we can’t have sex because of the kid then I deserve to be the one sleeping next to you, not him!”
“We had sex when he took his nap earlier.”
“Charlie.”
This was not a battle he would win, Charlie could tell. He grabbed an extra pillow and handed it to Babe. “Put this pillow on the other side of him so he won’t fall off if he rolls over.”
-
It was obviously getting to Martin that he’d been unable to speak to his parents for an entire day. The boy was quiet the next morning, and just wanted to play with Banzai. A clear sign that he missed his parents, focusing on the one family member he did have with him, his father’s dog. Banzai was happy to have the boy’s attention, and kept climbing onto Martin’s lap to cuddle and kiss him, sensing that the child was upset.
No amount of distracting seemed to be working, though Martin didn’t seem like he was at risk for crying or tantrums. He was just sullen. Babe didn’t like to see him like that. It was just wrong, not having the pup chattering away and being a bundle of activity and curiosity. He’d been expecting to spend the entire time chasing after the kid and being exhausted keeping up with his energy and endless cheer.
He was even more keenly aware of Martin’s mood since they were staying at home that day. Alan had given everyone a day off while the garage got some maintenance done on the lights, so they couldn’t bring the pup to the rest of his uncles to have them try to help. Being in close proximity with the kid and actually being able to hear himself think made him uneasy.
Charlie was trying his best to cheer up their nephew, and Babe debated whether or not to tell his mate to give up. The younger Alpha was just wasting his time, and it hurt a little to see Charlie disappointed in his own inability to help their nephew. Babe tried to boost Charlie’s spirits, pulling him aside to tell him how Papa was doing such a good job, but Charlie had just frowned, looking like a sad puppy.
It was both cute and heartbreaking. Babe wasn’t strong enough to handle both Charlie and Martin moping like abandoned puppies. Bibi and Banzai being worried as well didn’t help either.
As Martin told Charlie no to an offer to play, Bibi looked over at Babe, and he could have sworn the dog’s eyes were mirroring his own concern exactly. They shared a worried glance, and Babe thought of an idea.
“Hey, kid.” Martin looked up at Babe as he approached them. Banzai and Charlie did as well, curious. “We’re going to play a racing game together. Come on.”
Martin got up. He’d been rejecting all of Charlie’s offers, but accepted Babe’s demand with an, “Okay.”
Babe heard Charlie quietly cheer under his breath as the boy agreed and followed him towards the racing sim setup. Babe got it ready and sat down on the chair. He pulled Martin onto his lap and made the child put his hands on the steering wheel. He put his own hands over Martin’s.
The racing game seemed to do the trick. Martin was fully engrossed in how they were driving, focused on the screen and bouncing a bit whenever they made an overtake, listening whenever Babe gave him driving tips that he probably didn’t even understand. Babe glanced over at Charlie as they went down a straight, and Charlie was staring directly at him, no longer a puppy but a wolf. Babe smirked, smug about being able to handle their nephew. Of course Charlie would be extra attracted to him, seeing how good he was with the kid.
No doubt Papa would want to reward him later. Babe could only hope that Pete and Way would call so Martin could sleep in the guest room with the dogs. Then they could lock their bedroom door and have as much fun as they wanted.
Alan had tried to tell them to calm down a little while the kid was in their house when they’d told him how they’d be looking after Martin. Babe had laughed at him.
They made it through the rest of the race. As their car crossed the finish line and a gold trophy appeared on the screen with their positioning of first, Martin cheered.
“You guys did it!” Charlie clapped for them, coming over to give them both a hug.
“Of course we did. Kid had the best helping him.”
Excited, Martin turned to face Babe and said, “We won, Mama!”
Babe froze. Martin blinked up at him, confused, and then went wide-eyed.
The topic of kids was a touchy subject for Babe. At first, he’d thought he’d hated them, and was absolutely certain he’d never want one. But then he’d met Charlie, and them calling each other Papa and Mama had just fit. Charlie asking if they’d ever have children hadn’t horrified him, somehow. Then once everything was normal, they’d started looking after Martin.
Though Martin was, of course, his rival for Charlie’s attention and affection, Babe couldn’t deny to himself that he was attached to the kid. Though the pup took Charlie’s attention away from him, he enjoyed it when the boy was at their house. Of course, Babe was always very glad to send him on his way home, but seeing Charlie so happy to care for their nephew did something to him. Charlie had teased that Martin gave them baby fever, but it was always rather fleeting. Martin would do something cute with Charlie that would make Babe wonder what it’d be like to have their own pup, and he’d get emotional about Charlie calling him Mama and talking about having kids of their own, but then Martin would wail at a truly impressive volume or interrupt them in the middle of an intimate moment and Babe would figure that maybe it was okay to wait a little longer and focus on being good dog parents instead.
Having Martin accidentally call him Mama made Babe think about how nice it would be for a little pup of his own to call him that. A pup that would be the perfect mix between him and Charlie, one he could teach how to race and play games just like he had with their nephew, but theirs. Things were safe now- Babe no longer had to worry about his former foster father trying to ruin his life, and didn’t feel like he couldn’t have happiness in case it was all ripped away. He had Charlie, and Bibi and his real father and the rest of their pack, a house that he loved that was actually a home, a pack that he belonged to.
He was happy. With Charlie, he had the love he’d always desired, a little family of his own that he’d never had before.
A pup of their own would make things even better, he was sure.
As Babe went through the strongest wave of baby fever he’d ever experienced, Martin was going through his own realization. The realization that since his mother had come back into his life he had never been away from him for so long before, and had never been without a phone call from either parent while they were away for that long either.
Babe looked down at Martin as the pup started to sniffle. The emotional surge he’d been experiencing started to fade as tears welled up in his nephew’s eyes, then shattered as Martin began to cry.
He handed Martin to Charlie. They would definitely wait a little longer before they had kids.
“What’s wrong, pup?”
“I want Mama…!” Martin wailed, wrapping his arms around Charlie’s neck. Babe covered his ears. His Sense was truly hell whenever their nephew cried, the pup capable of reaching high volumes and pitch that Babe hadn’t realized kids were capable of. “I want Mama, I want Mama-”
Charlie rocked the pup, rubbing his back soothingly. “Aw. It’s okay, noo. I’m sure your mom will call soon.”
“Mama, Mama…” Martin cried between sobs. It took a bit for his volume to go down enough for Babe to uncover his ears, Charlie assuring the child that his parents would soon call and he’d get to see his mom over video, and that they’d be back from their vacation in just a few more days. Martin kept crying for his mother, though.
Usually Martin didn’t cry for so long. Charlie was so good at calming him down. But now it didn’t seem to be working. Though… “Damn, he’s only crying for Way? Not for Pete?” Babe asked, raising an eyebrow. He would have thought Martin would want both of them considering it was both who hadn’t spoken to him yet in over a day. Maybe there was a little hope. The kid wasn’t upset about both parents, just the one whose name he’d accidentally used. Maybe he’d get over it.
Charlie shrugged. “I guess he’s used to P’Pete going on business trips. This is the first time he’s been apart from Way for more than a weekend since he moved in with them.”
Martin paused for a moment to look at Charlie, devastated as he remembered that he not only missed his mother, but that he hadn’t been able to talk to his father either. He whimpered a little, and Babe covered his ears again, cursing under his breath. Charlie looked horrified.
“Ah… Papa…” Martin sniffled, starting to work himself back up. “I want Papa…”
“Shh, it’s okay. You’ll get to see him too!” Charlie tried, but Martin didn’t listen.
“I want Papa and Mama…!” Martin resumed wailing.
Babe made Martin look at him. “Hey. It’s gonna be okay. Your parents are going to come back home in just a few days.”
“That’s forever!” the pup cried.
“Come on. Throwing a fit isn’t going to make them come back sooner. They’re-”
“Babe!” Charlie interrupted. “Don’t say that to him. He’s just four. This is just how he’s processing his feelings.”
Freaked out by the kid continuing to cry, Babe demanded, “Make him stop.”
Though he sounded rude, Charlie could tell that Babe was just worried about Martin. They really hadn’t seen him cry so hard before, and it was the first time they couldn’t actually do anything about it. It seemed like only getting to talk to his parents would soothe the child, something that couldn’t happen until Pete’s phone got reception.
It was hard seeing their nephew so upset. Charlie continued rocking Martin, starting to hum to him.
Babe suddenly started walking away. “Babe?” Charlie called, confused.
“I’ll be back in a bit! I’m gonna get something to help!”
“What? Babe, wait!”
“I’m just headed to Pete’s place!” Babe grabbed his jacket and keys. He quickly left, leaving Charlie standing in the middle of their living room with their sobbing nephew in their arms.
Seeing that now his uncle was gone as well, Martin just cried harder.
-
When Babe came back, Charlie had moved to the couch, bouncing Martin on his lap. Both dogs were curled up on the couch as well, trying to be as close to the upset pup as possible. Charlie looked up when he heard the door open, and he blinked in surprise at the big bag Babe was carrying that had not come from their house.
“Babe!”
“Put him on the couch.”
Confused, Charlie obeyed. Martin didn’t want to be put down, but didn’t have the energy to cling onto his uncle. He looked absolutely betrayed as he was plopped down. Charlie would have laughed or taken a picture if he didn’t feel so horrible for the pup.
Babe came over and turned over the bag, dumping the contents onto Martin. The pup was immediately drowned in a pile of clothes and bedding. For a moment, Charlie was bewildered. Then he realized that the clothes belonged to Pete and Way as he spotted pieces of a suit and black button-ups amongst the pile.
Martin’s head popped out of the pile, then his little hands. He’d stopped crying from shock as he’d been buried, and they both waited, worried he’d restart. But he just sniffed the pile and took in the scent and feel of his parents’ things, and didn’t resume his wailing. He was still sniffling with the occasional hiccup, but was calm now.
Banzai climbed onto the pile, curling up on top of one of Pete’s suit jackets.
Charlie and Babe sighed in relief. “Oh, man. It worked.”
“That was a really good idea, P’Babe!”
Babe preened at the praise. Then he stepped forward and poked Martin’s forehead, telling him, “No more fussing now.”
Martin gently grabbed his hand and nuzzled it, relieved that he had come back.
Now that they knew distractions wouldn’t work, but things that reminded the boy of his parents did, Babe and Charlie took a moment to reassess and make a new plan to cheer up their nephew. Charlie suggested a video of a race Way did well in to kill a good chunk of time, and Babe knew exactly which one would be perfect. He found the footage and got it onto the TV, then sat next to Martin on the couch and told him about it as it went through the introduction and some commentary.
“Way’s in this race and it’s a really good one, so you better pay attention! He does really well in it.”
“Does Mama win?” Martin asked, then hiccupped.
“He does.”
“He does?!” Charlie echoed. “I thought-”
“I didn’t win every race!” Babe hissed. “Some idiot hit my car in the pitlane during qualifying and Uncle couldn’t get it fixed in time for the race.”
“Why didn’t P’Alan just give you Way’s car?”
Babe frowned at him. Charlie gave him a sheepish smile, realizing he was interrupting Babe as he tried to comfort their nephew.
“Aren’t you my fanboy? Don’t you remember this race?”
“Uh… well, you’re not in it, so I mustn’t have watched it.” Babe gestured for him to come closer. Charlie stepped over and Babe tugged on his ear. “Ow!”
“Even races I missed were important to my championships!” Babe scolded. He huffed and turned back to Martin. The four-year-old was staring at the both of them. “I had a big enough lead in the standings where it was okay if I sat out a race, but if Way gave me his car, there was a chance that he could fall below another guy in the championship-”
“Who? Winner?”
“Charlie!”
“Sorry, Phi…!”
“Go make us food. We’re gonna watch this.” Charlie dutifully headed towards the kitchen, saying he’d get some water and milk for them first before he started lunch. As Charlie walked away, Babe asked the pup, “Ready to see your mom win a race, kid?”
Martin nodded eagerly. “Wanna see Mama win!”
“Good. Now watch closely. This is one of Way’s best starts this season.”
-
Martin completely calmed down during the race, excited to see his mother driving. Charlie brought them drinks, giving Martin a sippy straw cup full of water to rehydrate him after all his crying. Then he made them lunch, and they ate in front of the TV.
After the race ended, Martin and Babe had a lively discussion about it until Martin fell asleep in his little couch pile as Babe went on and on about Way’s other best races. The pup had started cuddling Banzai as he began to doze off, and the two were soon sound asleep together.
Babe joined Charlie in the kitchen as he did the dishes, not helping but watching, wanting to keep talking about racing after his first listener had fallen asleep.
Soon after, Charlie’s phone rang. He almost ignored it, wanting to listen to Babe, as he absolutely adored when the older Alpha got so into talking about driving. But he checked it anyway in case it was important, and saw it was an incoming videocall from Way.
Babe looked irked that his mate was no longer paying attention to him. “Charlie. What are you doing?”
“Way is calling!”
Babe no longer minded the interruption. “Finally! Answer!”
Charlie clicked it, and Way popped up on screen. “Martin!” Way said, excited. Clearly it had taken a moment for Charlie’s end of the video to pop up. Charlie could see the exact moment it happened, as Way’s excitement immediately vanished at the sight of him and his face fell. “Huh… Charlie,” Way amended, voice full of distaste.
For once, Charlie understood Way’s reaction to him. If he’d been unable to call he and Babe’s pup for so long, and Way had answered, he would be just as pissed off. “You called earlier than we thought you would. Martin’s taking a post-lunch nap right now.”
Way looked crestfallen, disappointed. “Oh… he’s sleeping…”
Pete came into view of the screen, wrapping an arm around Way and giving the other Enigma a kiss on the cheek before saying, “Aw. Way just missed Martin a lot because of not getting to see him yesterday. Call us back when he wakes up.”
Before Charlie could respond, Babe ripped the phone out of his hand. “No way. No more of the kid crying. He can nap later,” he told them, marching into the living room. Charlie followed him, grabbing his arm to try to stop him, protesting quietly that Martin really needed his sleep.
Babe shook Martin awake. “Hey, kid! Wake up!” The pup woke up, grumbling and rubbing his eyes. Banzai woke up as well, the little shih tzu stretching and yawning. “Your parents are calling.”
Martin snapped to full alertness. Seeing the phone, he lit up, grabbing at it. Babe let him take it. The pup absolutely beamed as he saw his parents on the screen.
“Mama! Papa!”