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"Okay, you have to pay attention because this is a little bit tricky. To write down ten, you have to use two numbers."
Walter just looked at Peter, and Peter nodded in understanding.
"I know, this sounds nuts, right? But we can't make up a new symbol for every number we want to use. They would end up being a lot because, by the way, numbers are infinite."
Walter took the pencil and Peter's breath hitched, thinking his son was about to write down a number on his own. Instead, the little kid created his signature jagged lines all over the numbers Peter had carefully written down and the ones "he" wrote as well -meaning Peter took his hand in his and basically did it all on his own but gave Walter credit-.
Peter leaned back in his chair. "You know what? If I squint enough, this looks just like my notes in college."
"Give it a rest, Spider," Felicia said as she walked into the kitchen. She bent down, her elbows on the table, gave Peter a kiss on the cheek and said, "Do you really want to be the dad that explains Math to his kid on the kitchen table?"
Peter thought about it. "Is it bad? Doing homework on the kitchen table implies that the children are comfortable with their family and the parents dedicating hours to help them shows that they care."
Felicia rolled her eyes. "It was a meme."
Peter put his hands up. "Sorry I'm not caught up with all the memes and whatever kids do these days."
Felicia raised an eyebrow. "I'm two years older than you."
Peter frowned. "I didn't refer to you as a kid. That would be weird."
Felicia chuckled. "No, I meant that I'm older than you and caught up." Another laugh. "God, I... hate you."
Peter's heart rearranged itself in the second that Felicia hesitated. And if she was hesitating for the same reasons he did, then... Neither of them had said it. It hadn't been too long ago that they agreed to try being together and see where it goes. A part of him wondered if he was still young and naive and confused what was adoration and concern and a big fat crush for love. And a deeper part of him wondered if he felt all these things because Felicia was the mother of his child, but he had heard of people falling in love more after having kids, so maybe it was how it worked for everyone.
Still, like Felicia, he was careful not to say it. He was scared. They clicked the minute they met and it was so easy despite their differences, even easier now, but how many people fall in love on first sight only to find out it wasn't love at all? So, Peter chose to give it time, let the feelings sit and make themselves clear.
It didn't mean that they didn't show themselves every time he looked at her, though.
"I hate you, too," he said with a smile.
Felicia leaned in a little bit closer, and Peter's heartbeat picked up. "Glad the feeling's mutual," she whispered. And as soon as the moment started, it was over. She stood up straight. "I'm going to go get ready. Don't scare our son with Math, yet."
Peter crossed his arms. "I know he's going to love it someday."
Felicia put her hands on her hips. "Maybe." Her eyes trained on Walter. "Walt, yell if your dad bothers you."
"Uh huh," Walter mumbled without looking up.
Peter put a hand on his heart. "Walt, you're three, not thirteen. It's not time yet for such betrayals." His eyes fell on Felicia as she was walking to her bedroom. "And you're leaving me, too?" There was no reply from either of them, so he just sighed and laid his head on the table. "You know, bud, Math can be fascinating once you understand enough. It's not as hard as people make it out to be, though. Take the French for example. Instead of saying ninety, like normal people, they say..." Peter cleared his throat. "Quatre-vingt-dix. It means four twenty ten. Who even does that?"
Walter shrugged and, in a moment of inspiration, took another pen in his free hand and drew with both on the paper. Or tried to. It kept moving and he wanted to scream.
Peter noticed, so he put his hands on the corners of the paper and held it in place. "All I'm saying is that Math tends to get a bad rep. Give it a chance when it's time. For now, we have leave quatre-vingt-dix to the side and focus on drawing."
"You sound like Emily in Paris," Felicia shouted from the bedroom.
Peter chuckled, and then his laughter was cut short. "Don't tell me you started it without me!"
Felicia approached with a sheepish smile that looked so strange on her. "It was late. I couldn't sleep. It's as bad as they say, you're gonna love it."
Peter pouted slightly. "You promised."
Felicia's expression shifted to something serious. "Hey, I'm sorry. I didn't know you'd mind so much. It was just two episodes."
Peter's eyes took the size of saucers. "Two?" He got up and stood facing her, only a few inches between them. "You hurt me, Miss Hardy."
Felicia scrunched her nose. "And to think I thought you actually were upset." She stood on her heels, so she was at Peter's height and leaned in. "Je te déteste."
"Huh?" Peter breathed. "You speak French?"
"I hate you," Felicia repeated, but she didn't bother to hide the smile that was creeping on her lips.
Peter smiled, too. "And yet here you are, ma cherie, dressed up to go out with me."
Felicia leaned in so close that their lips almost touched. Peter felt his heartbeat go up. They had kissed a thousand times and still his body reacted like it was the first time, as if it couldn't believe it was happening.
He moved to close the gap between them, and then Felicia stepped back.
"Hey!" Peter protested.
Felicia shrugged. "That's what you get."
"Did anyone call..."
"Miles and Ganke's babysitting business?"
The two boys walked in the kitchen back to back, arms crossed and big smiles on as if someone would take their photo any minute now.
Walter's jaw dropped, along with his pens. "Miles! Anke!" he yelled in excitement.
Peter shook his head. "And all I get is a condescending dad."
Miles took Walter in his arms and tossed him in the air, making the little kid giggle. "We're gonna have so much fun, my man. We're going to shoo your geriatric parents out and..."
Felicia lifted an eyebrow. "And?"
Miles flashed a smile. "You can't know what the cool kids do."
"Love that you didn't complain about the geriatric part, though," Ganke said. "Now go, we got it covered."
"Yeah, go do whatever senior citizens do these days," Miles added and Walter nodded because he always agreed with whatever these boys said.
"Alright, we're going," Peter said and reached out to mess Walter's hair, who was currently sitting on Miles' shoulders. "Aw, come here you."
"Me?" Miles asked.
Peter ignored him and gently lifted his son from his current position and into his arms and immediately thought about how much he had grown in the last few months. Time really did fly by.
"Be good to Miles and Ganke, okay?"
"Okay," Walter replied, completely missing his father's glossy eyes.
Felicia kissed the top of his head and handed him off to Ganke. "Thank you for coming in such short notice. Call us if you need anything." She took a step and looked over her shoulder. "Everything in the fridge is fair game, by the way."
A few moments later, Felicia and Peter were in the elevator, looking for to their first official date, if their smiles and giggles said anything.
"Wait, I just want to..." Felicia started and pressed the stop button.
"Trap me and murder me? That was your plan?" Peter asked.
Felicia smirked and placed both arms around his neck. "Something like that," she said and leaned in for a kiss.
Peter wanted to pull away to show her how not copl it was before, but he didn't find it in him.