Chapter Text
Rama’s father sighs for the third time in ten minutes.
The air is thick with growing tension as he tries to help her with the chemistry homework that may, or may not, have been put off until the last possible minute.
Okay, maybe starting an eight page packet the night before it was due wasn’t the best choice.
“Rama I know you can do this, it is only one more problem.”
“You said that an hour ago,” Rama groans into her hand, fighting the urge to just throw her pencil across the room and be done with this.
“And now it’s actually true, look.”
Low and behold, there is in fact one problem left.
Might as well get to it.
Twenty minutes later, and several slight corrections from her father, the homework is done.
As Rama goes out to the living room to put her books away and fix her bag for tomorrow, she hears talking coming from their kitchen.
He gets calls late at night.
Not unusual given her dad’s relatively new job.
Whatever it actually is.
If she was being honest she thought it was some sort of I.T thing until she saw her father and that strange man after they saved the missing woman she’d heard so much about.
Turns out her father is some cool detective who solves cold cases.
And turns out that makes you quite the popular subject at school, especially when his boss is Carl Morck.
What really was interesting though, was that it didn’t seem like a work call.
Not at all.
In fact, it almost looked like her father was smiling. And he was talking in such a hushed tone that erred on the edge of something.
Something that Rama could sort of describe as the same feeling like when you get butterflies in your stomach when you’re talking to your crush.
Who is this mystery person and why is her dad talking to them like that?
And why didn’t he tell her if he was dating someone?
She must have lingered behind the kitchen wall for too long because her dad called her into the kitchen.
“Rama, I can hear you breathing. What did I say about trying to listening to my phone calls?”
“Don't do it because you could be having an important adult conversation.”
Her dad puts the phone down on the table and brings her in for a hug.
“I know you’re almost eighteen and you’re just curious, but I deal with scary things sometimes. I don’t want you roped into it as well.”
“It didn’t sound scary though. It sounded like you were talking to mom or something. Are you dating again?”
He goes quiet for a moment.
“I’m not, but I promise you’ll be the first to know when I do. I know you worry about those things.” He ruffles her hair, “But now it’s time to head to bed, young lady. You have school tomorrow.”
Rama gives her dad one last goodnight hug and then heads to her room, passing by Mina’s on the way.
That girl sleeps like the dead, she’s shocked that even in the whole homework debacle she didn’t even wake up once.
Once settled in bed, after brushing her teeth and placing the appropriate amount of pillows around her, her thoughts wander.
Mostly to her dad.
More specifically, to his failed dating attempts in the past eight years they’ve been here.
There really weren't that many, a girlfriend here, a boyfriend there. That last part was surprising at first, but it didn’t take long to get used to it.
Still, as many fish in the sea that there were, Rama’s dad can only be described in one way.
As the kids (herself included) these days say, he is simply rizzless. Though, she’d never actually tell him to his face. He’d probably have an aneurism trying to figure out what it meant.
None of the previous partners lasted more than three months.
Which maybe meant he wasn’t ready. Either that or he just hasn’t found the right person.
It sure sounded like the person on the phone seems to have caught his affections.
Rama sighs, she has school tomorrow. She can’t be obsessing over her dad’s love life until the weekend at the earliest.
————————
Saturday couldn’t have come any quicker.
By the grace of everything good on this earth, she actually did well on her homework and ended up passing the test with a solid eighty-five.
Not bad.
Now comes the real work.
Finding out who her dad had set his fancy on and then try to get them together.
Only problem was that her dad wasn’t home today, something about a case research thing going on at the office.
Carl Morck probably called him in to do something stupid, she doesn’t really know. That was the vibe she was getting from the late night calls when they were trying to solve that Merritt kidnapping.
It’s not like she doesn’t like his boss, but the man just screams ‘wet cat energy’. She’s seen that video where he looks like a sopping mess of sweat trying to give a speech. And then the one where he punched that weird guy for messing with his son, which was well deserved and might have raised her respect of the man.
Still, he’s kind of weird. And a major asshole from what she’s heard. Funnily enough, she somehow managed to be great friends with his son. They have a couple of classes together and evidently bonded over their dads being detectives or whatever weird shooting and crime fighting they do.
Mina wakes up ten minutes after Rama’s been mulling over her thoughts on the couch, phone clutched in her hand.
For an eleven year old, she’s an even worse morning person than Rama is. The tween moodiness somehow amplified to eleven on bad days, thankfully not today.
“Rama, where's our good cereal? I thought we just bought some.”
“Behind the bread, we had to move it.”
“I don’t see it!” Mina yells from the kitchen.
Holy crap.
This is going to require her getting up isn’t it.
“Are you sure you’re looking in the right spot?”
“It’s not here!”
Rama’s going to kill this girl.
“Alright, I’m coming!”
Rama pads to the kitchen, heavy-footed, and hands the cereal to Mina.
“Thanks.” Mina pours the contents into her bowl and then moves to the couch.
Much to her annoyance, Mina is one of those people that likes just eating cereal raw. No milk, no spoon, only handfuls shoved into her mouth like she’s a whale opening its mouth for the fish to just float in.
Of course, like most younger sisters, she takes her spot on the couch.
“That’s my spot.”
“You snooze, you lose.” Mina continues shoving handfuls of cereal into her mouth.
Fine, she can have it her way.
Rama has better things to do anyway.
“Dad’s out today, he said we can order food for ourselves if he isn’t back by dinner.”
“Can we have sushi tonight?”
“We had sushi last night.”
“You can’t get between a girl and her Rainbow Rolls, Rama. They give me life.”
“You’ll survive one day without it, plus dad can’t even eat seafood, he always has to sit in the other room when we get it.”
“Fine,” Mina sighs, like the dramatic tween she is. We’ll have something else then.”
Several pings on her phone grasp her attention.
It’s Jasper.
Lots of frantic texts, and then the last one telling her to call him.
She doesn’t even get to read the texts before his face is popping up on screen.
“Rama, you're not going to believe this. You’re gonna fuckin’ lose it!”
Jasper’s practically shouting into the phone.
“Oh my god, did David Tennent die?”
“What? No, you’d see me on the news if he died. Anyway, guess who just texted me for dating advice?”
“Marianne? The girl you fancy?”
“Nah, that was short lived. Carl just asked me how to know if someone likes him back or something.”
“What were his exact words Jasper?”
“He says he feels something for someone he knows, and then goes on and on about some random thing or whatever, and then he like asks me what I would do. Or rather what people nowadays do. He seemed pretty worked up about it.”
“Why did he ask you, isn’t Martin a better choice?”
“You really think Martin is a better choice? He can’t even keep a thesis topic down, how do you expect him to keep a woman?”
“Good point, did he say who it was?”
“Only said he knew them, but I think it’s a bloke. He used an odd choice of pronoun. And he usually doesn’t tell me he’s dating or thinking about it until it actually gets past the crush stage. So this must be different.”
Different.
And it might not be a woman.
And it’s coming after a particularly interesting conversation on the phone from her dad.
Who works with Carl.
“Hello? You went quiet there for a second,” Jasper says.
“I think it’s my dad.”
“What’s your dad?”
“Get it together Jasper! Your dad likes my dad. As in probably wants to kiss him and stuff so that’s why he was asking you.”
Now it’s Jasper’s turn to be quiet.
“You know, he didn’t tell me about the whole liking guys thing, you think he’s scared or something?”
“He probably is. I don’t know, my dad was scared the first time he brought a guy home. He looked like he was going to cry when he introduced him as his boyfriend.”
“So it’s not a question of whether your dad likes blokes then. At least that’s good for Carl.”
“But isn’t that bad? Isn’t Carl his boss? And aren’t there rules against this sort of thing?”
“You act as if Akram’s the sultry assistant of Carl at some big leagues company. If anything, he’s more on par with being the Watson to his Holmes.”
“I guess you’re not too far off. But if he was asking you that means he’s thinking about making a move right? Shouldn’t we do something about that?”
“What? Like parent trap them? You really think that’ll work? They’re not stupid.”
“They’re not, but it doesn’t seem like a bad idea. There’s like no other option. They’re probably, and excuse my language, scared shitless that the other doesn’t like them or something. This is the plot to a hallmark movie and we have the power to actually make this work. Wouldn’t it be cool to be siblings anyway?”
“I guess it wouldn’t be that bad, but we need to be smart about this, cover our tracks. I’ll handle Carl, you get your dad to do some cool shit or whatever.”
Jasper ends the call, and then Rama is left alone.
Well, not entirely, Mina’s still in the other room munching away and watching cartoons.
How to get Carl and dad together.
This was going to be more difficult than she thought.
——————————-
Okay, step one.
What makes Carl so attractive to dad?
That one she really doesn’t see, but she guesses it’s the wet cat “I can save him” thing he’s got going on.
Must be a middle aged dad thing then.
But under all of that, Carl must have something in him that appeals to her dad.
Maybe he’s kind?
Or maybe he’s just really hot and her dad’s type?
Wait.
Wait.
A.
Minute.
Didn’t Carl take a bullet for her dad?
Like stepped in front of him and everything?
Who wouldn’t fall in love right then and there. That’s like the most romantic, spy-detective movie shit she’s ever heard of.
And they didn’t even know each other for that long.
So Carl is willing to die for him. However extreme and stupid that might be, Rama marks a tally in her brain of the amount of respect for Carl.
Steadily increasing.
Speaking of the devil, guess who’s calling her now.
“Hey dad, what’s up?”
“I’m not going to be home tonight, are you girls going to be okay until Monday? We caught a lead and we’re driving to Inverness. I can have Mrs. Manning check up on you tomorrow if you want.”
She doesn’t know what rises in her to completely ignore the fact she won’t see her dad until Monday.
“Is Carl with you?”
“Uh, yes? Why?”
“No reason, just wondering. How’s his arm doing anyway? Wasn’t he shot a little while ago?”
“He was. I believe he’s okay. Will you be okay until Monday? You can take Mina to school or I can have Mrs. Manning do it if it’s too much for you.”
“No it’s fine, I’ll do it. Just don’t forget I’m staying over at Ella’s on Monday, we have that big project next week. And Mina’s got her band rehearsal until six, she’s already got a ride for that so don’t worry. We’ll be fine, go solve your case.”
“I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Love you too, dad.”
The call ends.
And so does the weekend.
Before Rama knows it, it’s Monday and as much as Jasper and her discussed trying to get their dads together, no plans ever came to fruition.
It was a nice thought, but one that would take planning and time they did not have, not with the end of the year coming up with exams and projects due.
In fact, Rama forgot all about it.
Until she realized she forgot the poster board at home and needed to run back to get it.
It was more like a ten minute car drive but still, she went as quickly as Edinburgh’s speed limits would allow.
Unlocking the door to the house, she was relieved no one was there. It was embarrassing enough to have to tell Ella right when she got there she forgot the biggest piece of material they needed, though she said it was fine. And even promised she’d do some work while she went back to get it.
Still, she did not need a lesson talk from her dad if he happened to be home already.
The house was eerily quiet.
The washing machine wasn’t even on, maybe a small humming from the fridge if she really strained her ears.
But there was nothing.
Until she heard it.
It sent a chill down her spine, her arms beginning to raise goosebumps.
It sounded like someone was crying.
It sounded like her dad was crying.
Rama can’t remember the last time she heard her dad cry.
And it was coming from his bedroom.
But she didn’t see his car in the driveway. Nor did he tell her he was home.
So what is going on?
She was just about to make her way to the bedroom when she caught another voice in the room.
And not just any voice, it was a voice she’d recognize from anywhere.
It was Carl.
What was Carl doing here?
In her dad’s bedroom.
Together.
She figures it can’t be that bad to quietly make her way down the hall, she has to get to her room anyway.
She makes sure she isn’t seen, yet still having the vantage point to be able to peer into the bedroom.
From the angle she’s at, she knows they can’t see her, but she can see them.
Her dad looks so small in that bed, his body shaking with sobs.
And there’s Carl, holding him.
His arms, ushering him into his chest. Their heads are pressed together and it looks like Carl is just talking to him. Saying words that mean nothing, or everything. She can’t tell. But whatever it is, Rama knows her dad is being handled with care. Care that almost seems too intimate to be looking in on.
So, she stops. Then retreats to her room and grabs her poster board.
She quietly makes her way to the door, not before passing by to make sure her dad is okay.
There were no more voices coming from the room, only silence, and the distinct outline of two bodies huddled together under the covers.
Maybe they didn’t need to be parent trapped to get together.
But this feels like something she shouldn’t tell Jasper quite yet, however much he might want to know.
Her dad will come to her, she’s sure of it.
Until then, all she can do is wait, and be there for him when he’s ready.