Work Text:
Roger grimaced, pain radiating through seemingly his entire body. The lights had been so strong in the meeting earlier, and the sounds of the fishing boats even had been altogether too much.
Now, he was paying for all that work. Oughtn’t one be paid for working, and not vice versa?
Anywhere there was a nerve, it tingled. He was dizzy, the world spinning and fading all at once. He was utterly unfit for company.
Nevertheless, little Carolyn was his charge today. She was excellent company, but little children often preferred to spin and twirl far more than was good for a man with a migraine. For the moment, she was occupied with a book, at least.
They had never taught her how to read, but Carolyn had been reading since she was very small. They would have taught her, of course. Literacy was important, especially for his beloved niece. She had taught herself how to read before any of them could, grabbing books off of too-high shelves even at eighteen months old, just to read them in complete sentences aloud. It had baffled Liz; Roger had simply accepted it, along with everything else he loved about his niece.
“Hello, uncle,” Carolyn looked up after turning a page. “I’ve finished my chapter.”
“Hello, kitten,” Roger couldn’t smile, but his voice was soft. “How is your book?”
“It’s very silly,” Carolyn informed him. “If all of these people simply told each other the truth, then they wouldn’t have any of these problems.”
“I do believe you’re right, kitten,” Roger nodded. To his memory, Carolyn had summed it up just about perfectly.
“Of course I am,” Carolyn said nonchalantly. “I’m going to read. You could use the quiet for your migraine, uncle.”
“Thank you, kitten.” Carolyn was the perfect company today after all.