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“No, you heard me, no more milk - stop laughing, Freddie!” Jim says, glaring at him. Freddie bites his lip and pretends to oblige, but snickers once Jim averts his gaze to look at the tiny, furry creature on the floor.
Miko wails once again, scratching the bottom of the cupboard with her claws. They are in the kitchen, with Freddie leaning against the counter and Miko beside him. They are facing Jim, who is standing with his arms folded across his chest. He is staring at Miko with a determined expression on his face. But their little hairy monster is not intimidated. She is holding her ground, interrupting Jim’s speech on self control with loud meows.
“… and that is why you can’t have more, Miko. You have already eaten. You are NOT STARVING,” Jim raises his voice towards the end of the sentence as Miko lets out a particularly loud wail. For a kitten, she has got quite the lungs on her.
Learned that from her Papa, Freddie thinks proudly.
“You know, darling,” Freddie finally decides to speak up. Two pairs of eyes look at him. “It won’t be the end of the world if you do give her a little milk.”
Jim huffs. “No, it will teach her a bad lesson. Children need to learn discipline, Freddie. I already gave her milk after she finished her plate of tuna against my better judgment. She has had her share of food, and she needs to learn that she cannot just demand things in life. She is not starving, she is just being a little brat,” Jim glares at Miko who has now abandoned her post near the cupboard and padded over to Jim’s feet, rubbing her head against his leg.
“Oh, that’s harsh, darling,” Freddie says. Trying to suppress a grin, he continues. “If that is your reaction when she’s asking for just a bit of extra milk, I wonder what you’ll say when she brings home a boyfriend.”
“It’s not a joke, Freddie,” Jim says sternly, though Freddie can see a faint hint of a smile forming on his face.
Miko pads over to Freddie, hoping for some help from her Papa. Freddie’s heart melts at the big yellow-green eyes of his daughter.
“Aww, my darling,” Freddie picks her up, as Jim sighs and shakes his head. Freddie kisses Miko’s little head, and holds her like a newborn. “I’m sorry that Daddy is being such a meanie.”
“Freddie!”
Ignoring him, Freddie continues. “But he is just worried about you, darling. You see, you can’t have a lot of milk otherwise you will get sick,” Freddie says, stroking Miko’s fur as she looks at him and meows. “Daddy just wants what is best for you.”
Freddie looks over at Jim who finally has a small smile on his lips. “Give her to me,” he says.
Freddie hands Miko over to Jim, and the sight melts Freddie’s heart. Miko instantly buries her face in Jim’s neck, while he places a series of kisses against her tiny head. It seems as if the argument between the father-daughter duo never happened.
Detaching her paws that are hooked on his shoulder, Jim brings Miko carefully in front of his face. “I am not changing my mind, darling. You cannot have more milk,” Miko lets out a small meow, as Jim continues. “But, I can give you a small treat of salmon, though just this once.”
As if understanding him, Miko meows loudly and Jim laughs, hugging her again, and stroking her dark fur. Freddie looks at Jim with a smile on his face, knowing that no matter how stern his husband tries to be, he will always melt at Miko’s pleas and cuddles and kisses.
“Well done, darling. Thanks to you, we now have a happy baby,” Freddie says, moving towards his husband and child, and kisses Jim on the cheek.
“Just this once. I mean it,” Jim replies, rubbing his cheek against Miko’s soft fur.
“You say that, dear. But this girl has you wrapped around her little paw!”
Jim smiles and shakes his head, wrapping his left arm around Freddie while holding Miko with his right. He kisses the side of Freddie’s head, and looks at Miko who is purring against his neck.
“That she does,” he says.