Chapter Text
“Daddy?”
As soon as Bob hears his toddler’s voice, he knows he’s about to be roped into something he shouldn’t say yes to. He pauses the DVD he’s watching in order to give her his full attention.
“Louise? What are you doing up?”
Even in footie pajamas, Louise manages to have a domineering presence. Her expression is skeptical, like she doesn’t quite trust the fact that her dad is also awake in the middle of the night.
“You and mommy were laughing.” She says matter-of-factly, avoiding his question entirely.
Bob smiles wryly, not giving her the same saccharine look that her siblings would’ve gotten at her age. Louise detests being treated like a child, somehow expecting adults to treat her as an equal.
“We were.” Bob says. “Earlier. Your mom was telling a funny story.”
He leaves out the one and a half glasses of wine he indulged in hours before, even though they surely influenced the volume at which he had been laughing.
“If you say so.” Louise retorts, parroting a snarky phrase she must’ve heard from her parents.
When Bob chuckles, she smiles at him. Nothing makes her prouder than her ability to make her dad laugh.
“I do say so, Louise. Why’d you get up? Did you have a nightmare?”
The clock reads 12:58 a.m, a number that fills Bob with dread. He’s been experiencing an onset of insomnia lately, and never feeling truly refreshed has been hard.
“I did not!” Louise snaps in a way that suggests he hit the nail on the head. “Sleep is just stupid.”
Despite his better judgment, Bob pats the empty space next to him on the couch.
“A little.” He says, as Louise climbs into the waiting seat. “I mean…uh. Let’s not say stupid. It isn’t a very nice word.”
Louise only grumbles, immediately getting comfortable. When she snuggles into Bob’s side, he wraps an arm around her.
“We’re only staying up for five more minutes.” He says somewhat firmly. “Then, we both need to get some sleep. Got it?”
Louise cuddles closer. She may feel larger than life sometimes, but she really is tiny. Clingy, too, even with her fierce streak of independence.
“If you say so.” She repeats, because she knows the line got a laugh out of her dad before.
Bob kisses her head, holding her against him, as he switches his DVD back on. When their family discovers them the next morning, they’re still on the couch—huddled together and fast asleep.