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Natasha’s eyes scan the endless choices, sighing as she picks up one to look at the list of ingredients. Sure, Nicky’s old enough that most of the allergens have been thoroughly tested, but she can’t help the anxiety at the sight of such a long list.
Have we really gone through all the tree nuts? He’s had such a thing for peanut better lately but cashews are a completely different beast…
If you’d asked her ten years ago what her ten-year-plan was, a three-year-old would never have made the list. But that’s what happens when you live life — plans change.
She takes a chance on the trail mix. Tosses it in her cart, and keeps moving until she hits cereal. She’s so focused on her list that she doesn’t notice the noises behind her. Giggles, whispers, mumbles of “mama” and “daddy” and “just like that.”
Call it instinct. Call it a gut feeling. Call it an ability to know when her partners are up to something. But she does hear the whispers, eventually and then she turns.
Jake is in perfect push-up position, and as soon as she turns, he starts moving. Bradley stands next to him, arms crossed, a too delighted look on his face as he watches Jake lower to an inch above the ground before pushing up again. And completing the scene, of course, is Nicky on Jake’s back, hands gripping tightly on his shirt at the shoulders as he does his best counting in a delighted giggle.
“One! Two! Thwee! Fast, Papa, fastah!”
A delighted grin immediately spreads across Nat features, and she covers her mouth to hide it as Bradley counts along, squatting down to get eye level with Nicky. “That’s it, Seresin! I wanna see you sweat!” he shouts, and as Jake starts going faster Nicky almost bounces off of his back at the force of it.
“Papa, Papa, Papa!” the toddler squeals, and Nat finally breaks completely as Jake starts grunting with it, noises growing more and more ridiculous in the crowded store.
“Boys! Boys,” she finally shouts, laughing even as she tries to make her voice stern. “C’mon, up off the floor, we have a list.”
Immediately, as if planned, Bradley scoops Nicky up off of Jake’s back. Jake stands, a little shaky but grinning from ear to ear as he wipes off his hands and nods to her. “Yes, ma’am,” he chirps.
“You got it,” Bradley says.
“Mama,” Nicky chimes in, before using his whole arm to give her a strong salute that almost throws him from Bradley's grip.
She sighs, but her smile stays on, shaking her head before turning back to the cereal and grabbing the family favorite.
There’s quiet for a while. Nicky wants to ride in the cart and Bradley and Jake take turns holding him or pushing the cart itself once his legs start kicking too much. The three of them move throughout the store, and every so often Jake or Bradley gives her a kiss on the cheek as they try and sneak something into the list that definitely wasn't there to begin with.
("You like the double-stuffed Oreos, too, Tasha."
"Yes, but we already have two packs at home. Plenty for the four of us.")
But soon the quiet becomes too quiet , and she's already on high alert, especially since she's outnumbered three to one. They've moved on from food and onto hardware and home goods when the whispers start up again.
But this time, even her keen and quick senses aren't fast enough. The whispers quickly escalate to squeals and shrill laughter, and when she turns quick, she's already too late.
It's Bradley's turn this time, but instead of push-ups, it's overhead presses. One hand has Nicky's legs. the other his back, and Jake spots him from behind and to the side, same focused look as Bradley had before as he watches the two of them.
"Let's go, Bradshaw! You know the number to beat! Alright, Nicky, keep that form!"
The form Nicky is keeping is his arms crossed over his chest, but it's clear he's squirming, especially since his laughter is so loud. "Fastah, Daddy! Highah!" he screeches, and Bradley speeds up, loud yells as his muscles strain against Nicky's weight.
While the push-ups made Nat smile and laugh, the overhead presses make her eyes widen, even as a nervous laugh leaves her. "Boys! Bradley, Bradley , oh, god, please be careful!"
She meets Bradley's eyes, doesn't miss his wink as Jake continues counting out. "Fifteen!" Jake shouts, and at the number Bradley lowers Nicky to his chin and then Jake is there, making Nicky safe in his arms.
"Strong work," Jake says, and glances toward the other end of the aisle before squeezing Bradley's arm with a wink of his own. "I appreciate the hustle."
"Of course, the hustle," Bradley replies, not nearly as subtle as he wraps an arm around Jake's waist, kissing Nicky's head as he calms down from the excitement.
"Mama," he cries out, giddy gigglings a delightful sound even through the pounding of Natasha's heart, "ya see? I fly!"
Nat's hands are now over her eyes, almost holding her head as she sighs again. "Yes, Nicky, I did -- I did see." It's loud, and pointed, but soon she's surrounded by her boys and their only slightly stifled chuckles, the feeling of Nicky's arms around her own shoulders as he's moved into her arms. She immediately holds him tight, looking at Jake and Bradley over his head before rolling her eyes at them fondly and kissing his head.
"Breathe, Nat. He's back on the ground," Bradley tells her. "Kinda." His smile isn't stopping anytime, soon, though, and she raises a brow at him.
"I guess that's what you get when you have three pilots as parents," she retorts, though her heart still pounds for a moment or two more. "Your son almost sprouts wings."
Once more Nicky goes in the front of the cart, still giggling before reaching for one of the paint color samples close by and trying to put it in his mouth. "We had him, baby," Jake confirms, redirecting Nicky's fingers with a practiced hand before both hands go to her shoulders. He massages at the junction of her neck lightly before giving a tight squeeze. "We're all good. He's good."
Any lingering worry from the display vanishes as his hands move over those pressure points, and a brief touch from Bradley's hand on her own brings her heart rate bak down.
"I was mainly worried about Bradley's back," she tells them mildly as Bradley grabs another sample of the sage she'd been talking about for their bedroom, offers it to Nicky to add to his growing collection. "When's the last time he stretched?"
"Hey!" Bradley shouts.
Jake snorts. "Well, either way, next time we'll use our son as weights with cushions very close by. Promise."
"Pwomise!" Nicky repeats. Once more the cards go toward his mouth.
"Promise," Bradley agrees, his turn to make sure nothing ends up getting bitten by Nicky's curiosity. "Now, c'mon, Nat. Let's focus."
"Excuse me?"
"Yeah, stop getting distracted. We need lightbulbs.”
She watches, mouth agape, as Jake and Bradley focus up, and doesn’t miss the looks back to her with matching grins as they start pulling things from her list. And when she looks down at Nicky for support, his giggle and grabby hands for her fingers makes her heart soar.
Some things aren’t planned ten years in advance. This life, this family, certainly wasn’t. But things don’t need to be planned to be perfect. And as far as she’s concerned, Natasha Trace’s life is pretty damn close.