paradisalogs | you and I'll be safe and sound

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you and I'll be safe and sound

Who: Lee and Clem
What: FATHER'S DAY
When: Sunday
Where: Cuteness HQ

After some input from people over the journals, Clem made herself busy. She was pretty set on getting Lee something or at the very least doing something for him even before making her entry, but the reassurance that it wasn't weird was nice. She owed Lee a lot, and if she could do something to make him happy, she'd do it.

So, bright and early on Sunday, she sneaks in to wake him up, climbing onto his bed and carefully shaking his arm. She doesn't want to scare him or make him think there's some sort of emergency, of course.

"Lee!" She whispers.

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"Mmhn. Just another few minutes, alright?" It does sometimes occur to Lee that, as awful as the castle can be, that he's been spoiled by this. Warm beds, heat and electricity, all the food they can eat. Even now, when Clem whispers his name, he's not expecting urgency in her voice, isn't dissecting it for fear like he used to do by reflex.

Instead, he's just reaching up to playfully (and sleepily) try to ruffle her hair.

For the briefest moment, she remembers crawling into her parents' bed on Christmas, shaking them awake with all the excitement in the world. They'd always make a show of pretending to sleep, and she'd grab their hands and drag them into the living room.

She tries to not think about that as she huffs under Lee's hand, hair still kept neat and short. Just in case.

"Lee," she insists, "Get up! It's already late."

She doesn't want to remind him that it's Father's Day because she's not sure if he's been thinking about it as much as she has.

He hasn't. He usually called his dad, yeah - and it was with a little pang of sadness that he had sort of acknowledged the upcoming date a week or so ago - but Paradisa was so far removed from what he had taken to thinking of as real life that it didn't even occur to him that Clementine's behavior might have been a little odd.

Lee does roll out of bed with a little groan at her insistence, though, not irritated or grumpy - just sleepy.

"What are we late for?"

Clem squeezes into the space he once occupied. No falling back into the nice warm bed, Lee. She's not letting you.

"A surprise." She smiles. If he can't figure it out on his own, maybe that's for the best.

He shakes his head and laughs, still groggily but quickly waking up. "You just wanted my bed, didn't you."

Lee wouldn't be entirely surprised. It's kind of adorable, okay.

"No, I have a surprise! Really. I promise." Lee isn't making this easy at all. She's trying her hardest not to be impatient and pout, though. "Do you wanna see?"

"What? Yeah. Yeah, Clem, of course." He stretches as he straightens up, heaving himself to his feet. "Everything's alright, isn't it?"

"Everything's fine," she's quick to reassure, not wanting to dampen the day.

"You should open the door."

Because she definitely didn't leave a giant, posterboard-sized drawing out there of herself and Lee (no dead things in this drawing), meticulously colored and featuring a rather detailed castle. There's totally not a wrapped box next to said drawing, containing a mug, either.

Most adults drink coffee, right?

Lee isn't sure what he's expecting when he opens the door. Something, of course - she wouldn't have roused him out of bed like that for nothing - but it wasn't that. He freezes for a moment, trying to figure out what's going on, why she's done this, and then the date hits him.

Father's Day. He wonders if it's bad that he can physically feel his heart aching in his chest, and before he bothers approaching the box with the coffee mug, he just twists and kneels down, wrapping Clem tightly in his arms.

"Sweet pea."

Right when Clem thought she'd have to start explaining herself, she's in Lee's arms. That's the best reaction she could have hoped for. With him kneeling, it's easy for her to nestle herself against his chest, arms around his neck.

She owes Lee a lot, and she knows it. No one would ever replace her parents, but Lee deserved a show of thanks--even if it was small.

"Thanks, Clem."

He just continues to hold her for a moment - because as much as he misses his dad, he can't imagine what it must be like for a little girl who's been through as much as she has, tough as nails or not. He briefly considers telling her that it's the best and only Father's Day gift he's ever received, but Clem is sharp. She knows that, and it suddenly seems cruel to actually give a name to the day when she can't celebrate it with either of her actual parents.

Finally, finally, he'll lean back, release her from the hug but keep a light grip on her upper arms.

"That's.. you did really well. Thanks."

"You're welcome, Lee." Maybe that's all that needs to be said. A smile is stuck to her face--it feels good, making him happy like this.

"You can go back to bed now, if you want."

Whatever, it's Father's day, he can do what he wants.

"I think I'm up for now."

But he stands up then, touching his hand to the top of her head as he studies the mural.

"How long did this take you?"

"That's a secret," she says, though after a moment she relents.

"... a day. All day." Which explains the little yawn and the stretching of her arms. Drawing took a lot out of you when you had a deadline. Lee's close enough, so she leans some of her weight against him.

"Better than an axe, right?"

"Way better than an axe."

And then, impulsively, Lee will lean down and swing her up into his arms. Is nine too old to be picked up? Probably. He doesn't care. He's just going to take her back to the bed, tossing her playfully onto the blankets.

"How about I go downstairs and get us some breakfast?"

She might be a little too old to be picked up, but her laughter clearly reveals she doesn't mind at all. Clem rolls into the spot he was in before, the blankets still warm, and clutches a pillow. It smells like Lee, just like her dad's pillow would smell like him.

"Can we have pancakes and chocolate milk?"

She rolls and he laughs, ducking his head as he shakes it and chuckles softly.

"I'll go get on that right now. You stay put, alright?"

"I will."

To prove her point, she wiggles under the blankets and pulls them up to her chin. It's not even close to chilly in Paradisa, but the warmth is comfortable, and the blankets are soft.

Lee just sort of smiles at her before he can help it, shaking his head and laughing under his breath to himself. This was it - this was the reason why he had to find a way to keep them all here. So he just pats the blankets around her, sort of tucking her in, and heads off to the kitchen to make them breakfast.

And, of course, not two minutes after Lee heads out, Clem is fast asleep.

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you and I'll be safe and sound

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