A Perfect Morning (Short Story)
The world, for all intents and purposes, seemed to be at peace. A warm Saturday mid-morning was accented by the soft chirp of birds, the gentle wisps of wind passing by the nearby trees, and, still, the day was cool and crisp as the sun had started its slow climb into the sky. Andrew smiled as he moved swiftly around the front of his second passion project, a restored '67 Impala. He hadn't intended to work on it to completion, but the lucky find leading up to the car's discovery at a junkyard practically made the choice for him. Andrew huffed as he shifted the new serpentine belt into place. Standing up, he couldn't help but smile proudly at the work he had done so far, even with what had turned into a second or third job; it felt like it sometimes. Andrew paused for a moment, letting the calm day wash over him. The sound of three snoring dogs seemed to be the only sound in the world. Smirking, Andrew quickly slid over to the driver's side door, the keys to the car already in his hand. Grabbing the handle, Andrew popped over the door.
As he shifted his feet to slide into the driver's seat, his ears caught the telltale sound of crinkles coming toward his garage, turned workshop. For a moment, he froze; all three dogs were outside. They must hear the same thing. Andrew reasoned to himself, his powerful six-foot-five-inch frame slowly lowering into the seat as his ears caught the gentle swing of the garage door opening.
"Daddy?" The voice was a pleasant mix of soft and husky to Andrew's ears, especially considering the woman (if she could be called that anymore), who said it had only just started using that moniker unconsciously. "Daddy, are you out here?" Andrew looked over his shoulder. Standing in the doorway was his little; a mocha-skinned woman with curves like a mountain road, amplified by what could only be described as a bulging diaper on her waist. Unlike Andrew, who was wearing an old and mostly oil-stained T-shirt, along with some jeans. The woman was wearing a black onesie, decorated with swirling images of red swirls and white kitsune monsters. (Or at least that is what the woman had told Andrew they were,) Covering up the majority of her legs was a pair of matching red thigh-high socks. Of course, sides of her thick pink diaper peeked out from under the leg bands of her onesie, not that the woman noticed. Last of all, she was carrying a stuffed platypus with a bright yellow bill in her arms.
Andrew smiled, waving his hand as the woman leaned down slightly to look in the car, "I'm right here, little one. Are you okay?" Andrew looked out the back window at the woman whose attention had been captured by the beautiful black Impala sitting in the garage. Andrew's smile turned into a wide grin as he slipped the key into the ignition, quickly turning the engine over. The powerful machine roared to life, making the woman jump in surprise, and the dogs woke up.
The woman started to pout as she looked at Andrew again, clearly not having liked the jump scare he had caused. Turning off the engine, Andrew stood up out of the car, looking toward the woman with a warm smile that seemed to make the woman blush.
"Daddy!" The woman started before realizing something, "Is it all fixed?!" She took a few small steps forward, staying on the single-step platform on the garage's perimeter. Leaning as close as she dared to.
Andrew chuckled before replying, "Almost, Sandy, almost." Andrew couldn't suppress a short chuckle as he watched Sandy keep herself on the platform, but still try to peek at the engine, something she knew less than nothing about. "So why is my baby girl out here, and not playing inside?"
Sandy couldn't contain her momentary pout from flashing over her face before looking at Andrew as he walked over to her. Sandy smiled widely as she put a hand on top of her head, then slid it forward, going over Andrew's head. "I'm taller than Daddy!" Sandy exclaimed, ignoring the question, which caused Andrew to sigh. His little girl was easily distracted, something he lovingly endured about his baby girl. Stepping onto the platform, Sandy was once again dwarfed by Andrew's height.
"Little one, why are you out here?" Andrew repeated himself using his Daddy voice.
"Um, well..." Sandy waffles for a moment, clearly trying to think of a reason as to why she had come out to the garage, before letting out a short and sharp squeak. Andrew's fingers snaked their way into the leg bands of Sandy's diaper before she could finish responding.
"You don't need a change yet..."
"Hey! Daddy!" Sandy crossed her arms
under her bountiful chest as a pout faded into existence on her reddening face. "I can't find my dices." Sandy finally said, which only caused Andrew to raise a brow in confusion.
"And does my baby girl think they are out here?"
"Well, no, but I needs help finding them," Sandy replied with her best puppy dog eyes, which were ever so slightly undercut by her petulant stance.
With another sigh and a simple wave of his arm directing Sandy back inside, the two entered their shared space. Sandy held her stuffed animal with one arm while she used her other hand to obviously fake search for her dice, as she hummed questioningly every very few seconds as she waddled around the kitchen and living room. Andrew glanced around the space, his height allowing him to search easily without much movement. He chuckled softly before walking to Sandy. Without a word, he grabbed her hand and guided her toward a large playpen in the center of the living room. A simple pat on her diapered butt prompted her to step into the playpen and sit down.
"Sandy, you're staying in here until lunch time," Andrew said, using his stern Daddy voice. Sandy poorly pretended not to know why, made a fake gasping sound before responding.
"But... Why Daddy?"
"Baby girl." It was a harsh statement, short and direct. Sandy slunk back, pouting up at her Daddy. Andrew realized his baby girl just wanted special 'Daddy Attention,' which softened the stern expression on his face as he responded, "Y-your dice look very pretty stacked up like that."
Sandy beamed with pride, wiggling back onto her knees as calmly as she could. In her excitement, her leg kicked the tower of dice, making the foam blocks tumble around the playpen, and Sandy looked up at Andrew in total shock. The room was silent for a moment, before the three puppies came running through the living room, the largest of the trio, a big black Mastiff, jumped over the railing and right into Sandy's arms. The room erupted into giggles and laughter, the situation forgotten as Daddy Andrew watched his baby girl play in her playpen. It was a good morning.