Chapter Six “Daddy?”
907 Words
For the first time since Vivian left…
Daniel woke up before the alarm.
He sat up slowly, looked around the quiet room suspiciously, then checked the time.
5:48 AM.
“…I’m evolving.”
This morning, Mr. Superman had a plan.
And somehow…
It actually worked.
Breakfast was packed properly.
No ice cream involved.
Tiny victory.
He woke Lois first.
“Five more minutes,” she mumbled dramatically.
“Nope. Up.”
This time, bath time was calm.
No floods.
No screaming.
No near-death experiences.
Daniel even managed to brush her hair correctly after only watching three tutorial videos.
Next came Lorraine.
She kept singing loudly while he dressed her.
“Daddy,” she announced proudly, “you’re less terrible today.”
“…Thank you?”
Then came Lucy.
The tiniest boss in the house.
She cried only a little during her bath before calming down once Daniel started making ridiculous sound effects.
“Behold,” he whispered dramatically while wrapping her in a towel, “the Queen of Tiny Problems.”
Lucy blinked sleepily at him.
By 7:05 AM, all three girls sat downstairs eating breakfast peacefully.
Peacefully.
Daniel almost cried again.
He quickly showered, got dressed, and headed downstairs while fixing his tie.
The girls were laughing together at the table.
For a second…
He just stood there watching them.
Vivian did this every morning.
Every single morning.
And somehow still went to work afterward.
The realization hit harder than he expected.
“Daddy?” Lois asked. “Why are you staring at us weirdly?”
Daniel blinked. “Eat your pancakes.”
School drop-off went smoothly.
No yogurt incidents.
No missing children.
No emotional breakdowns.
Another miracle.
Then came work.
Lucy stayed strapped against Daniel’s chest the entire drive because apparently today she had decided:
Father only.
At the office daycare center, the nanny smiled and reached for her.
Lucy instantly frowned.
Then cried.
Then clung harder to Daniel’s shirt.
The nanny sighed knowingly. “Separation anxiety.”
Daniel looked betrayed. “She’s three months old. Why is she already dramatic?”
So now…
Lucy attended work.
Daniel sat in an important meeting surrounded by executives discussing numbers nobody cared about while Lucy slept quietly against his chest.
One of the men paused mid-sentence.
“…Is that your baby?”
Daniel looked down proudly despite himself. “Unfortunately, yes.”
Lucy yawned sleepily.
The entire room melted.
“Oh my God, she’s adorable.”
“Look at her tiny socks!”
“She looks exactly like you.”
Daniel smirked slightly. “Yeah, she got lucky.”
Lucy suddenly grabbed his tie with surprising strength.
One executive laughed. “Seems like she runs the company now.”
Daniel sighed. “You have no idea.”
Hours later, back home, Daniel attempted dinner.
Attempted.
The kitchen looked stressful.
Pasta boiled too hard.
Something smelled burnt.
Lucy sat nearby in her crib making suspicious baby noises.
Meanwhile, Lois followed Daniel around nonstop.
“Daddy?”
“What?”
“Daddy?”
“What?”
“What’s the capital of Canada?”
“I don’t know right now.”
“Daddy?”
Daniel gripped the kitchen counter.
“Yes, Lois?”
“My teacher said girls have v*****s and boys have penises.”
Silence.
Daniel froze completely.
The spoon slowly slipped from his hand.
“…Excuse me?”
Lois looked innocent. “What’s a p***s?”
Daniel stared into space like his soul had disconnected from reality.
Somewhere in the distance, Lucy sneezed.
Lorraine walked into the kitchen casually. “I know what a butt is.”
Daniel pointed immediately. “Okay! Enough biology for tonight!”
Lois frowned. “But Daddy—”
“Eat your food.”
“But—”
“PASTA. NOW.”
Later that night, after baths, homework, arguments over pajamas, and seventeen bedtime hugs…
The house finally became quiet again.
Except for Lucy.
Daniel sat at the dining table in sweatpants with his laptop open, trying desperately to finish a presentation for tomorrow’s board meeting while bouncing Lucy gently in his arms.
“Please sleep,” he whispered tiredly. “Daddy needs money so we can continue buying your expensive diapers.”
Lucy blinked at him.
Wide awake.
At midnight, she FINALLY drifted off.
Daniel carefully placed her in the crib beside the couch like someone handling a bomb.
Slowly…
Carefully…
One step backward.
Then—
SQUEAK.
Daniel looked down in horror.
A toy duck.
Lucy’s eyes opened immediately.
“No,” Daniel whispered.
Her tiny face scrunched up.
“No no no no—”
Her lips trembled.
“Oh God.”
Then—
WAAAAAAAAAAAH!
Daniel almost collapsed.
At that exact moment, Vivian called.
Daniel looked at the phone ringing on the table.
Then at screaming Lucy.
Then at the unfinished presentation.
Then back at the phone.
“…I can’t do this.”
He couldn’t even answer.
Meanwhile, in Boston, Vivian stared at the unanswered call quietly.
She knew.
Mr. Superman was fighting for his life.
About thirty exhausting minutes later, Lucy finally fell asleep again curled against Daniel’s chest.
This time, he didn’t even try moving her immediately.
He just sat there quietly in the dim light.
Laptop open.
Presentation unfinished.
Tiny baby asleep on him.
Completely exhausted.
But strangely…
Not unhappy.
Eventually, he carried Lucy carefully to bed and returned to finish his presentation alone in the silent house.
For once…
Daniel finally understood why Vivian always looked tired.
- Writer
