Chapter 30
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Everything was ready. They’d snuck in the presents, prepared the rest of the kids. Now it was time for the big day. Leo had got more and more excited as the week went on. The other kids picking up on his excitement had been restless and refusing to behave properly. Skye had resorted to threats of cancelling the party just to get them to behave. As the morning came it wasn’t really a surprise when she was woken by a small body jumping on her. Blinking up from the cocoon of Grant’s arms.
“Mummy! Mummy!”
“Leo it’s early.” She complained snuggling further into Grant’s arms, burying her head against his bare chest.
“But mummy! Presents!”
She could feel Grant chuckling against her and sighed knowing she was fighting a loosing battle.
“When your brothers and sisters are up then we’ll go downstairs.” She offered, smiling as the small weight moved from the bed.
“Wrong move.” Grant murmured against her head, his breath tickling her skin.
“Huh?” She grumbled rubbing her cold nose against chest, feeling him flinch at the temperature of it.
“GET UP! IT’S MY BIRTHDAY!” Leo yelled from the landing, banging on the doors as he went.
“Oh god!”
“Told you. Come on. You know he’s excited.”
She clung to him as he tried to roll away from her, gasping slightly as he resorted to pulling away the bedclothes.
“If you think this is bad. Wait for Christmas day!”
Five minutes later everyone was downstairs in the living room watching Leo opening his presents. Tripp was lying with his head in Jemma’s lap, half asleep while Mel bounced beside them. Phil was still asleep cuddled into Grant, leaving Skye with a slight pang of jealously. She was jealous of a baby! But then he did have a fantastic chest. As if sensing her thoughts he moved so she could sit beside him, arm around her pulling her so her head rested against his chest. Sat like this they watched as Leo opened his presents. Although they were coming to his party later the avengers had sent on Leo’s presents, knowing he would want to open them when he woke. Skye had rigged a camera so they would be able to see his reaction later on, plus it would be a nice memento when they finally returned to adults.
Crossing her fingers as she looked at the gift, she prayed nobody had bought Leo a real monkey. Tony had threatened to until Grant put his foot down, something Pepper had agreed on. Nat and Clint had bought him a small stuffed monkey, with a voucher so he could go and meet a monkey at the local zoo. Tony had bought him a small build your own car set, which Skye was already worried would blow up the house. From Pepper he received a small set of overalls so he wouldn’t get his clothes mucky when building the car. Bruce had sent him a small tool set and a set of stickle bricks so he could practise building things. Thor had sent a ball from Asguard that Leo was already planning on taking apart to understand how it worked. Steve had bought him a new watch that had a game built in for when he was bored. Maria and Fury and bought him a set of books for ‘the little engineer’ something Skye suspected was chosen by Maria rather than Fury. From Phil he received a small wind-up captain America toy, with Mel, Jemma and Tripp all clubbing together to buy him a new game. Skye and Grant had bought him a set of new clothes along with a new light for his bedside table that projected holograms onto the ceiling.
Delighted with all his presents Leo spent the next hour trying to play with them all at once. He’d found that the monkey toy danced and made noises whenever he squeezed it, driving Grant up the wall.
“Remind me to kill Nat and Clint later.” He commented to Skye after they’d suffered half an hour of constant monkey noises.
“I think I’m setting rules for Christmas presents.” She replied stretching and placing a gentle kiss on his lips. Having finally persuaded everyone to get dressed she was entertaining the kids while Grant made the food for later. Phil, deciding to totter around, was clinging to Grant’s legs trying to help but being more of a hindrance. Hearing giggles Skye had gone to investigate finding both of them eating cookies, chocolate covering their mouths. Laughing at their guilty looks, she grabbed a cloth, wiping Phil down. Rolling her eyes at Grant she removed a blob of chocolate with her thumb before sucking it off her finger. As his eyes widened she sashayed off, leaving him standing there gawping.
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Lunchtime came and the house began to fill. Grant had managed to make enough food even with him and Phil eating a lot of it. Pepper and Tony were the first to arrive with Bruce appearing soon after. Tony and Bruce had already started helping Leo build his car, with Tony suggesting ways to improve it. Pepper and Nat were playing with Jemma while Mel watched Steve with a dreamy expression on her face. Clint and Tripp were bouncing around on the bouncy castle they’d hired for the party. Phil, having been handed to Steve and immediately started crying, was now sat with Thor bouncing him on his knee while talking to Fury. Maria was busy helping Grant deal with the huge cake they’d snuck into the house while Leo wasn’t looking.
“A monkey? Seriously Maria?”
“Shut up Ward. No one bought him a real one.”
Sighing he pushed in the last candle into the cake before heading outside.
The food was going down well with Clint and Thor competing to see who could eat the most. Apart from Phil, all the kids were on the bouncy castle, with Mel showing off doing flips and rolls. Noticing Grant watching them wistfully, Nat nudged Clint.
“Look at him.”
“We should get him to go on it. Only time I’ve ever seen him look like that is when he’s looking at Skye and thinks no one can see him.”
“Yeah but how?”
“Push him on?”
“With Skye or the bouncy castle?”
“Both.”
Noticing Grant’s look as well Skye scooped up Phil and headed over to him.
“Hey. Phil wants to go on the bouncy castle but I’m scared he’ll get hurt if he goes on his own. Will you take him on?”
“Sure.” You couldn’t miss Grant’s face lighting up. She watched as he carefully held the toddler, clearing having as much fun as the kids as he bounced from side to side.
“How’d you get him on? We’re were going to give him a push.” Nat passed her a glass of wine as she gestured to Grant.
“Gave him an excuse.”
“He’s such a big kid at heart.”
“Yes he is.” She murmured watching with delight as Grant had the time of his life.
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