As Grace was driving down the road, everyone else in the car was talking to the elephant in the room.
“So how much do you remember?” Veronica asked.
“I don’t know. I just wanna go home.” Jon said, leaning back into Mike’s chest.
“Well do you know my name? Maybe you remember your friends?” She kept asking.
Jon looked around, getting a good look at everyone. He points at Mike, “He’s Mike” and then at Grace, “Her name is Gwace”. The car is filled with the sounds of adults awing at the adorable tot.
“His lisp makes him sound cuter!” Veronica squealed before she pinched Jon’s cheeks.
“I’m sorry!” He immediately says, making everyone confused.
“What are you sorry for bud?” Mike asked.
“Mommy doesn’t like when I talk like that. It gets me in trouble.” He tells them.
“It’s ok bud, your mommy won’t know. I’ll keep it a secret ok?” Mike promises him. Jon nods his head and leans back into Mike, taking a nap in the process.
“He really trusts you Mike.” Carl tells him, “How do you do it?”
“Do what? Handle kids? I have 7 siblings remember.”
“Oh yea I forgot. So does this mean you’ll take care of him while we wait for an antidote?”
“What?” Both Mike and Grace said in unison.
“He can’t live with his parents. The poor kid was scared of his mom when he had a lisp. We’ve all met that woman, and she’s not going to be good with Jon right now.”
“You do have a point, but I have a job that isn’t really a ‘bring your kids to work’ kind of place.”
“We can babysit while you work.” Veronica stepped in.
“Honey, both you and I have jobs that are crazy enough. Babysitting a kid wouldn’t be on our daily schedule.” Carl told her.
“Actually, your job is the crazy one. I simply take photos and get paid for it. I’m usually not working unless someone requests my skills.”
“This isn’t ok!” Grace shouted, making everyone, including Jon, startle. Mike immediately started to stroke his hair and got him to fall back asleep.
“Jon and I have been together for years, practically ready for marriage. Now it’s just babysitting time? I’ve met everyone Jon considers family, I know what he likes and dislikes, I even know where his birthmark is. We’ve been through hell together, and him becoming a child isn’t going to stop that.” She ranted.
Everyone went quiet after hearing what Grace had to say.
“Maybe we can think of something? What if Grace stays with Mike?” Veronica suggested. “With Jon being a toddler, he can’t pay for your house, so you’ll need a place to stay. Mike is probably the best option since Jon trusts Mike out of everyone here. After a while he can try and get him to trust you.
“Are you ok with that Grace?” Mike asked.
She sat there, quiet for a few seconds. Then nodded her head.
“After this we can go to your place and get some of your things.”