I'll Be There

“Hi there.” Evgeni smiled as Rachel opened the door to she and Ava’s apartment. It had been two weeks since he had originally met Ava and he hadn’t seen her in person since, but sometimes Rachel would text him photos of the two of them. Evgeni decided to keep it from his friends and teammates that he didn’t hit it off with the child right away in hopes to improve their relationship.

“Hey babe.” She smiled as he leaned in to softly peck her lips, which could very well be the only kiss he got from her that night. She was pretty conservative about affection around Ava until she was more comfortable with him being around.

“You’re just in time, I’m about to pull a lasagna out of the oven.” She smiled, kissing him once more for good measure before he could take his sandals off in the entryway. Evgeni really liked Rachel’s apartment – it was always warm and felt like a home. Sure, he enjoyed his house as well but it was big and cavernous and still had a bit of a bachelor feel to it.

“What can I do to help?” He asked, following her into the kitchen, able to hear the television in the family room. He set down the bottle of wine he brought over and settled against the counter top opposite the oven as she tossed together a salad mix in a big bowl.

“Absolutely nothing.” She insisted. “You can go watch TV with Ava if you want, I have to let this cool while I pull the salad and bread together.” She gave his behind a swat as he looked back at her helplessly before entering the family room. He stopped and looked down at Ava whose dress was flipped up as she hung from the couch upside down, watching TV and sipping on a juice box. He took a seat on the sofa on the opposite end and she didn’t flinch as she continued to watch her show.

“What are you doing?” He finally asked with a small smile.

“Space training.” She said, taking another sip of her juice. Evgeni recalled Rachel telling him about Ava’s dreams to be an astronaut.

“How does this train you for space?” Geno asked, curious enough as the blood rushed to her head, turning her skin red.

“Zero gravity, Ev-geeny.” She said in a matter-of-fact tone. He didn’t even try to get her to call him Geno after being called Ev-geeny so many times. He knew that she made fun of his accent and mended English behind his back.

He wished he could be rude to her like his little brother, Denis, or his little brat of a nephew. He wanted to tell her that the US hadn’t sent anyone into space since 2011 and that the chances her getting to go in her lifetime were slim to none. But not only could he not betray her like that, he couldn’t crush her dreams.

“Ava, Geno, dinner!” Rachel called from the dining room after setting the lasagna, salad, and bread on the dinner table. “Ave, babe, do you need more juice?” She asked, smoothing out Ava’s wrinkle lines from hanging upside down. Ava shook her head and took her usual seat at the dining room table atop a pillow-covered phone book that hiked her little body up to the table. “Wine?” Rachel offered Geno.

“I have to drive.” He frowned, knowing that she knew he would be later that evening.

“Or maybe… you could stay, if you wanted to, and you obeyed house rules.” She bit her lip, looking up at her through her thick, kohl lashes. Geno weighed his options, he really did want to stay over and she was offering him a free pass. He nodded, making her smile as she poured him a glass. They would just have to be very discreet and wait until Ava went to bed before they could get comfortable.

The one thing that Rachel had to notice was that every time Evgeni was around, Ava was noticeably quieter. She dug into her slice of lasagna, picking croutons out of the salad bowl with her little fingers and sipped on her juice as she watched conversation between her Mama and her boyfriend.

Ava didn’t understand why her Mama and Daddy weren’t together anymore – one day he was home and they were just fine and the next, they were “separated”. She didn’t know what that meant, but she knew what getting divorced was and she knew that she hadn’t seen her Daddy in months. She kept hearing that it was something she would understand when she was older, but she was seven, she was a big girl and she was in second grade. She was a big girl – but she still didn’t get why Daddy wasn’t a part of their family anymore.

Ava didn’t fight her bedtime for the first time in a long time – not that she’d ever admit it, but Geno was a lot bigger than her and she didn’t know him very well. So when he stood behind her Mama when Mama said it was time for bed, she decided that she was suddenly very tired.

“I can not do anything right with her.” Geno sighed, shedding his shirt as she entered Rachel’s bedroom from the bathroom after washing his face and brushing his teeth. He bent backwards, listening to his spine crack deliciously before pulling back the covers on the uninhabited side of the bed. Her mattress was soft and her blankets warm over his skin, pulling her into his chest he could feel the satin of her nightgown and knew that tonight was no time for anything intimate.

“I just think she doesn’t know how to react to me… seeing someone.” Rachel offered. “She thinks that Dave and I are getting back together. She doesn’t know that he’s already shacked up with the little girl he knocked up and they’re already working on their second kid.” She tried to not sound so bitter, but it was a dark day when she found out her husband had cheated on her with a twenty-year old girl. They now had a three year old and she knew that his new fiancé was pregnant again.

“She doesn’t know that Dave has other kids?” Geno asked, confused. Rachel shook her head. “He doesn’t want anything to do with Ava now that he has his little perfect life in the suburbs.” She said, shaking her head before resting it against her chest.

“I don’t think she could handle it.” She replied. “How am I supposed to explain any of that to her at this time in her life?” Geno nodded in agreeance. They were silent for a moment before Geno spoke up, running a hand down her hair to her back.

“We’ll make it work.”

•••

“I hate this thing.” Ava muttered, wiggling in the seat she had to use in the back of Evgeni’s car. She was pretty small for her age and hated that she had to still use a booster seat like a baby when she was in the car.

“Ava, don’t say hate.” Rachel looked back at her daughter over her shoulder from the passenger seat of the upscale SUV. They were going to meet a friend and teammate of Geno’s for lunch at his home in Fox Chapel. Geno told Rachel that Jordan and Phoebe had five boys, some around the same age as Ava and that she would have someone to play with while they were there.

“Sorry.” She mumbled, sitting back and looking out the window as the nature-filled area turned into big homes with manicured lawns and expensive cars sitting in the driveway.

“Almost there.” Geno said, flicking on his blinker to turn onto the street just before his, driving deeper into the neighborhood. Phoebe and Jordan lived at the end of the cul de sac, needing the giant end lot for the big yard for John, William, Alex, Max, and Christopher. John was the oldest at six and baby Christopher wasn’t even one yet.

Pulling up to the big house, Ava unbuckled herself from her seat, hopping down and out of the car she took her mother’s hand. She looked up at Geno wearily as he rang the doorbell. She wished she was back at home.

“Best behavior.” Rachel reminded Ava before the front door could open to reveal a man whose height rivaled Evgeni’s, blonde hair and a big smile.

“Hey there, Geno!” He boomed excitedly, hugging his friend. “You must be Rachel.” She shook her hand before crouching down to Ava’s level. “And you must be Ava.” He grinned, sticking his hand out for Ava to shake. She took it reluctantly and just barely nodded in the affirmative. “Come in! We have plenty going on.” He laughed. Ava gripped Rachel’s hand even harder when she heard shouting, running, and boisterous laughing.

Ava cringed at the sight in front of her. Boys, and lots of them. Rachel gave her little hand a squeeze before letting go and following Evgeni into the kitchen. Ava stayed close, smoothing out the skirt of her yellow dress. She bumped into the back of Geno’s legs when he stopped short.

“Sorry, Ava.” He placed a steadying hand on her head. She stayed quiet, eyes exploring as a woman entered the kitchen with a welcoming smile. She introduced herself as Phoebe as she cradled a little baby in her arms that Ava’s Mama immediately started cooing over.

“I want to see.” She whispered, just barely loud enough for Geno to hear. He lifted her by her sides for the moment, her little hands on his as he picked her up and placed her on the kitchen counter so that she was a little more level with Phoebe’s arms. She peered down at the baby with white-blonde hair and rosy cheeks in Phoebe’s arms. Phoebe was a nice woman and Rachel could tell that Phoebe was excited to have two more women in the house for once.

“This is Christopher.” Phoebe smiled as Ava’s curious eyes looked down at the baby. She’d never really spent a lot of time around babies seeing as her Mama was an only child and she had no cousins.

“Hi Christopher.” Ava grinned, making Geno grin as well. Just as he was beginning to enjoy the way things were going, two little boys ran full force into the kitchen.

“Mommy, where’s my – ” John, the oldest, paused his yelling upon seeing Ava sitting on the counter, growing very quiet suddenly. Ava stared him down in the way that only one child can do to another.

“Why aren’t you wearing a shirt?” She asked plainly, raising an eyebrow as his cheeks turned bright red. He turned on his heel, running back out of the kitchen as the younger stayed, having a fine time sipping on his juice. Reaching her arms up to Geno, it was only instinct for him to pick her up again and set her on her feet.

“Ava!” Jordan boomed from the opposite archway, a grill brush in one hand and another boy on his hip. “Want to check out the yard with me?” He insisted. Ava sighed, pushing her hair out of her face and following him, looking back to see both her mother and Evgeni occupied with the baby. “How’s it going, Ava?” Jordan asked, too friendly for his own good.

“Fine.” She shrugged, taking a seat on one of the patio chairs as Jordan tended to the grill.

“How’s a hot dog?” He asked, making her nod. Jordan was loud but he was fun to talk to. He told funny stories and paid lots of attention to her. Soon, her Mama and Evgeni were back on the patio as well as a lot of boys, ready to eat lunch. Jordan served up Ava first, putting a hot dog and bun on her plate before Phoebe could offer her fruit and other sides.

“Don’t make me sit there.” Ava made her eyes wide as she looked to the ‘kids table’ where most of the boys sat, barefoot and shirtless in the sun.

“Ava, make friends.” Rachel insisted, “they’re nice boys.” Ava shook her head, refusing to sit at the kid’s table, but Rachel was already enraptured in conversation with Phoebe.

“Ava! You can sit by me!” Jonathan, who now had found a shirt to cover himself waved from the table further down the patio. Ava wanted to panic, looking up at Evgeni, her eyes got even wider.

“Can I sit with you?” She asked, gravitating towards his chair. Geno looked over at the table with most of the boys and decided he probably wouldn’t want to be sitting there if he were her anyways. He nodded, scooting his chair back and lifting her into his lap, setting her plate beside his on the table. He wasn’t sure if he’d call it progress, seeing as she had deemed him the lesser of two evils, but he was relieved that she’d at least consider him an option before throwing herself to the sharks.

After they had eaten, John volunteered to show Ava the jungle gym in the back yard off to the side of the house.

“Is Geno your Dad?” He asked as they climbed up the ladder to the look out.

“No.” Ava recoiled in disgust. “My Daddy’s name is Dave, Ev-geeny is my Mama’s boyfriend.” She informed him before they could both reach the little tower by which the slide extended from as well as a small bridge connected to the other part of the jungle gym.

“Do you like Geno?” John asked as they both stood in the tower where she smoothed out her dress once again. Ava simply shrugged as a loud bird flew by, successfully distracting both of them. She was brought back to her senses when she felt John’s lips on hers. Ava pushed him away before wiping her lips with the back of her mouth.

“Why did you do that?” She asked, frowning.

“I like you.” He replied, his big blue eyes and dimpled chin reminiscent of his father’s. “You’re pretty.”

“Don’t do that again.” She narrowed her eyes at him, sliding down from the jungle gym and crossing the yard. She crawled into Geno’s lap once again, crossing her arms over her chest and staring at John as he joined the table, giving her a big, goofy smile.

Another boy in her life she didn’t like.