Chapter Text
Buli was licking her hair again, grooming her, Daddy-Finn called it. She opened her eyes, smiling at the kitty who liked to sleep on her shoulder. Buli stretched, then curled herself into Amelia’s neck, pawing at her nightgown, rubbing her head against Amelia’s jaw and purring. Amelia loved waking up like this, cuddling with Buli in the morning, even though she was what Daddy-Finn called a morning person and liked to spring out of bed right away. Daddy-Poe always grumbled in the morning.
“It's January 4th, Buli-baby. Do you know what that means? It's my birthday,” she said to the cat, who meowed in ecstasy when she scratched under her chin. Amelia giggled. She could see from her bed that it was still dark, which meant she should probably wait until one of her daddies came to wake her up and not the other way around. She continued to pet the cat until a soft knock sounded at her door, and she turned to see Daddy-Finn standing there. A smile broke out on his face at the sight of her snuggled up with Buli. Amelia curled her toes; Daddy’s smiles always made her feel like she'd just taken a sip of hot cocoa.
“Good morning, birthday girl!” He walked into the room, blood testing kit in one hand, other held behind his back.
Amelia sighed resignedly, sitting up and holding out her hand for the test, then giggled when Daddy just took the hand and bowed over it with great ceremony, revealing a plastic crown from behind his back. He placed it on her head, and she clapped. “Does this mean I’m the princess, Daddy?”
Daddy laughed, one of Amelia’s favorite sounds in the whole wide world, except for maybe both of her daddies laughing together. “This means you get to be Queen for the day, sweet pea!” He began to run through the blood test as he continued to talk. Amelia liked that, too. He never made a big deal out of this, not like at school. She didn’t have to test very often at school but she had to go to the office to do it, and the walk there and back was always torture, pointing out that she was different than everyone else when she just wanted to blend in. And someone always had to walk with her, just in case, and no one ever volunteered. “So, Queen, what would you like to do for dinner tonight?”
Amelia thought as Daddy ran the blood test strip through the machine. She popped out of bed, excited by the possibilities. “Could we go to Olive Garden, Daddy? Please? Pleeeeeease?”
Daddy wrinkled his nose a bit, but responded, “Sure, sweet pea.” Then his brow furrowed as he read the number on the testing machine. “Blood sugar’s a little on the low side today, Amelia. Make sure you eat some extra raisins today with breakfast?”
“Sure, Daddy,” Amelia said carelessly, beginning to look through her closet for a birthday outfit. He joined her, helping her pick bright green leggings, a magenta skirt, and a t-shirt proclaiming “Rainbows make me smile!”
“Okay, time for teeth and insulin, let’s scoot before Meghan gets in the bathroom.”
Amelia danced out happily. Her family always smiled at her when she did that - Daddy-Poe said she’d rather dance someplace than walk. That was true, Amelia reflected. She wasn’t allowed to run in the house, and dancing was the next best thing.
In the bathroom, Amelia stopped, dropping her jaw at the beautiful drawing of Threepio attached to the mirror. ‘Happy 6th birthday, Amelia!’ was written along the bottom, though she had to ask Daddy to verify what all the words were. Before Daddy could stick her with her insulin, she walked back out of the room until she was out of sight of Daddy, then ran the rest of the way to knock on Meghan’s door just like Anna did on Elsa’s door.
“Come in,” came Meghan’s muffled voice, and when Amelia threw open the door, Meghan was at her closet, picking out clothing for the day as well.
Amelia raced across the room - breaking the no running rule again with no regrets - and launched herself at Meghan, hugging her around the waist with enough force to knock the crown off her head. “Meggy, I love it! I love it so much! It’s my horse and I love it so much! Thank yoooouuuuu!”
Meghan knelt to pick the crown up, staying on Amelia’s level to put it back on her head. “You’re welcome, squirt. Or should I say, Your Majesty? Happy birthday, Amelia.” She hugged Amelia, and Amelia melted into it. Meghan was always more hesitant to hug Amelia back than her daddies were. She felt Meghan’s hand pat her on the back, Meghan’s signal that she was ready for Amelia to let go, and Amelia did, happy.
Daddy-Poe poked his head into Meghan’s room. “How’re my girls this morning?”
Meghan smiled and gave him a little wave, and Amelia danced over to grab Daddy’s hand. He grunted, but picked Amelia up, settling her on his hip and placing a smacking kiss on her cheek. “Daddy, did you see what Meghan gave me for my birthday?”
“No, nugget,” he said, winking at Meghan. “Why don’t you show me?”
After she did just that, Daddy gave her her insulin and urged her to brush her teeth, then helped her pull the picture from the mirror and put it on her wall in her room.
She lingered in her room, rearranging her stuffies on her bed. Daddy sat down, patting the blanketed space beside him. She crawled up and put her arms around him, squeezing partially into his lap. He smelled like the farm, like the outdoors and leather. “What's wrong, nugget?”
“Do I have to go to school on my birthday?” she mumbled into his chest.
She could hear concern in his voice. “Is everything okay at school? How's recess been recently?”
She clenched her little hands together, unsure of what to say. Everyone had told her she was too mean at recess, so she tried to play nicer, but now no one really gave her a chance. She liked school, she liked reading time, and she liked the bubbly Miss O’Brien, but it was such a lonely place. “Fine, Daddy.”
“Well, Amelia, we have to go to school every day, it's one of the rules. Besides, you just got back from winter break.” Amelia sighed heavily, and Daddy smiled down at her. “Before you know it, it will be summer break. You get to hang out on the farm this summer!”
She smiled up at him. “I wish it were summer right now!”
He kissed her forehead. “Me, too. Winter is the pits, huh?”
“The super pits!” Daddy laughed, and lifted Amelia to the floor.
“Sweet pea, you ready?” Daddy-Finn called up the stairs.
“She's coming, babe,” Daddy-Poe called, and Amelia hurried to catch up with him.
At the bottom of the stairs, Daddy-Finn held up a plate to show to Amelia. Her eyes widened. “Mickey Mouse pancakes?”
“Buckwheat with blueberries, on the special plate, sweet pea, just for you.”
After breakfast, Daddy-Poe and Daddy-Finn and Meghan took Amelia to school, where maybe she lingered in their hugs for a little longer than normal. When she finally released Daddy-Finn, she took off her crown and handed it to him, thinking still about wanting to fit in at school. “Will you keep it safe for me, Daddy?”
“Sure thing, sweet pea.” He kissed her on the forehead and she walked into the school by herself.
Before starting her first lesson, Miss O’Brien announced Amelia’s birthday. Amelia sort of wished she hadn’t, because now the other kids would be expecting cupcakes and Amelia had decided she’d rather have cake at home with her family. Sure enough, there were noises of disappointment when it became clear that Amelia was being different, yet again. Miss O’Brien told them to quiet down, of course, but the damage was already done.
Thinking about being different made her tired, and Amelia leaned her chin on her hand and looked away from Miss O’Brien as she talked about numbers. Amelia’s eyes fixed, for the umpteenth time as Daddy-Poe would say, on Molly Walsh, or more specifically, on Molly Walsh’s red hair. It wasn't really red, Molly’s hair. It was the color of Amelia's favorite crayon in the crayon box, copper. It was magical. It was different than anyone else that Amelia knew. Not only was it such a beautiful color, but it hung in perfect ringlets, shining as they curled over Molly's shoulders. Sometimes Amelia felt a little like Charlie Brown, obsessed with the Little Red-Haired Girl. Except she didn't love Molly like Charlie loved the girl. She knew what love was, saw it pass between her daddies every day, even when they were mad at each other. No, Amelia wasn’t in love with Molly; Amelia was envious of Molly. She felt like Molly was everything she wasn't. Vibrant. Popular. Copper curls to Amelia's boring straight black hair. Willing to raise her hand and win praise from Miss O’Brien. Nice to everyone. Everyone wanted to play with her on the playground, everyone wanted to be her friend.
Amelia realized she’d been staring at Molly for quite a while, a fact which Steven, who sat in the desk next to her, and who she really didn’t like, had noticed. He narrowed his eyes at her, and Amelia knew he’d probably have something to say to her later. Right now, she didn’t really care. She fought to keep her head upright - if Miss O’Brien saw her leaned over like this she’d send her to the nurse for sure - and pay attention to the numbers.
She wasn’t really feeling better at recess, but she picked up a bouncy ball from the recess monitor and began to hit it against a wall anyway. She was getting into a rhythm, dancing and running and diving to hit her own ball, when a group of boys led by Steven stood in front of the wall to block her game. Amelia felt a little hurt near her heart when she saw Colin was one of the pack.
“You’re a freak, Amelia Smith-Dameron,” Steven said in a low voice, glancing quickly over at the recess monitor. “You don’t even have a normal last name, cuz my daddy says you don’t have a normal family.”
Amelia could feel her face flaming. “I do so,” she mumbled, arms hanging limply at her sides, but hands clenched into fists.
“You’re a freak,” he repeated, and this time the boys in the group echoed him, although Amelia didn’t think that Colin did. “No one should have two dads. No wonder you don’t have cupcakes today. I bet no one in your family even knows how to make cupcakes. Freak, freak, freak,” Steven began to chant. “Just a little freak with two dads.”
They were closing in on her, and Amelia wasn’t sure what she should do. She could feel the tears stinging her eyes, and worse, her stomach was heaving at the embarrassment and upset, and she looked down, trying to decide if she should run away so she could go be sick behind the bushes. Suddenly, green sparkly shoes crossed her line of vision, right in front of her, and she looked up to find her view of the boys blocked by the gorgeous copper curls Amelia would recognize anywhere.
“I have two dads, Steven,” declared Molly. “My daddy and my step-daddy. Am I a freak?” Amelia peered out from behind the redhead, where she was amazed to see Steven taking a step back, as if he didn’t want to challenge the most popular girl in class. Molly glared at Steven. “I didn’t think so, now-”
“She stares at you, you know. All the time, like a little freak, like she looooves you.” Steven held his ground.
Molly glanced back at her, and Amelia was stumbling for words to explain. “No, it’s just, your hair, it’s so pretty, I don’t love you, and you sit right by where Miss O’Brien stands and I don’t love you, I swear-” Molly turned away from her again, and she cut herself off, feeling bile beginning to rise.
But amazingly, Molly was defending Amelia again. “I don’t care. She’s not a freak, Steven. Say you’re sorry, or I’m not inviting you to my birthday party.” Silence on the playground; this was the ultimate threat from Molly Walsh. Of course Amelia had never been to a birthday party for Molly, she’d just met her this year. But her parties were already legendary among the kindergarten students.
Steven glared one final time, but backed off, mumbling an apology in Amelia’s direction before taking his posse with him. Molly turned back to Amelia again, smiling brightly. Amelia stared at her with gratefulness and admiration. “Thank you so much, Molly. I’m really not in love with you.”
Molly grinned at her. “My mom always says us females have to stick together,” she said, then frowned. “Hey, are you okay? You look awful pale-”
Which is as far as Molly got before Amelia leaned over, trying to dodge Molly, and threw up on the blacktop. She saw a little splash onto Molly’s pretty green shoes before she collapsed, world going black around her.
When Amelia woke up, she was laying on the cot in the nurse’s room in the office. She could feel her finger tingling from a recent blood test.
The nurse walked in efficiently, placing a cool towel on Amelia’s forehead, which felt like bliss to Amelia. “Welcome back, sweetie. How do you feel?”
Amelia shook her head slightly. “Still feel sick. Want my daddies.” The look of horror on Molly’s face when she threw up all over her shoes kept replaying in Amelia’s head, making her want to cry.
“One of your daddies will be here any moment. We called him as soon as you came to the office.” The nurse turned away and muttered under her breath, “And knowing Mr. Smith, he’s probably breaking several traffic laws to get here.” This made Amelia smile a little. “If you feel like you’re going to throw up again, there’s a bucket right here, okay? Just rest, Amelia. Close your eyes for a bit.”
She followed the nurse’s advice, except that when she closed her eyes, the scene in the playground kept coming back to her. To fleetingly feel like she was not alone, then ruin the moment - it was too much, and combined with the feeling in her stomach, this time Amelia really did start to cry, the big, fat, silent tears that she couldn’t seem to keep in. And then she was throwing up again, and sobbing, and feeling lower than she had felt in a long, long time.
Somewhere in the blur of tears and vomit, she felt a hand on her back, strong and steady, and heard Daddy-Finn murmuring, “Shhhhh, sweet pea, shhhhh, it’s going to be okay.” She collapsed on her side, letting her Daddy comfort her. When her tears had quieted, she felt Daddy take the wet towel and wipe her mouth, then give her back one last rub. “I’m going to be right back, okay, sweet pea? Everything’s going to be alright, my little Queen.”
She heard the adults talking in the doorway. The nurse, to Daddy: “Her blood sugar was low, but that’s to be expected after throwing up. Even with your low reading this morning, I think we’re looking at a stomach flu, not something related to her condition. However, you should continue to monitor it carefully as the flu passes through her, and keep some Pedialyte handy if it dips too low.”
A shaky sigh from Daddy. “Thank you, Helen, for contacting me so quickly. I know I can be a pain-”
“Ma’am?” Amelia half opened her eyes at the sound of Molly’s voice. “I volunteered to bring Amelia’s lunch and backpack to the office because she’s going home.”
Daddy took the backpack from her. “Oh, thank you, …”
“Molly, hello. Are you one of Amelia’s daddies?” Molly was holding out her hand to shake Daddy’s, all politeness. Despite feeling so sick, Amelia felt her cheeks flush in embarrassment at the last time she’d seen Molly.
“I am, yes. Finn Smith. Thank you again, Molly, that was very kind of you.”
“Of course I volunteered. Amelia’s my friend. I was wondering, when Amelia gets better, is she going to have a birthday party?”
Daddy hesitated, glancing back at Amelia. She had told them she didn't want to invite anyone over, which had caused both of her daddies' heads to wrinkle, but they hadn't pressed her. “I don’t know, Molly. We hadn’t really-”
“Because if she does, can I come?” Molly’s smile was all sweetness.
Daddy looked confused, like he’d never been confronted by a little girl before. Amelia smiled a little. “Uh, maybe that’s something we should ask Amelia?”
Molly scooted past Daddy before either adult could stop her. “Hi Amelia. I hope you feel better soon.”
“You’re not mad at me for throwing up on your shoes?” Amelia managed to ask, stomach feeling slightly unsteady again, and she wasn't sure if it was because of the flu or her own awkwardness.
Molly laughed that off and sat beside Amelia on the cot. She wiped some of Amelia’s sweaty hair away from her cheek. “Can I tell you something?” she whispered. Amelia nodded. “I like to stare at your hair, too. You look different than anyone I’ve ever seen in my life. And I want to be your friend, if you want to be mine.” She said the last part very quietly, as if she expected Amelia to reject her.
Amelia was confused. “Why? You’re friends with everyone else already. Why be friends with the freak?”
Molly gave a little half shrug. “You’re different. And you’re not a freak. And I have been wanting to ask you for awhile but you always seemed so happy by yourself. I was hoping if we were friends you could show me how to be so good at four square, so I could,” and Molly leaned in to whisper this directly into Amelia’s ear, “kick Steven’s butt.” Amelia giggled a little, and Molly laughed.
“Molly, you need to return to class,” the nurse called from the doorway.
“See you later, alligator,” Molly said, giving her one last sunny smile before turning around.
“After awhile, crocodile,” Amelia returned as strongly as she could. She didn’t feel so bad about throwing up on Molly’s shoes anymore, although it was still embarrassing. Amelia didn’t know that years later, at her own wedding, Molly would use the anecdote to embarrass her again in her Maid of Honor speech, but this time Amelia would laugh, and pretend to throw the strawberry from her champagne at Molly. No, all Amelia had right now was a burgeoning feeling around her heart like maybe everything was going to be okay.
Daddy came back to her bed, helping her sit up and wrap her arms around his neck. As he carried Amelia and her stuff out of the school building, she whispered in his ear, “Daddy, could we invite Molly over to spend the night when I’m feeling better?”
Her daddy looked relieved, which puzzled Amelia. “Of course, sweet pea. I think that sounds like a great idea.” He buckled her into the car, then kissed her cheek. “Try to get some rest on the way back to the farm, Amelia.” He slipped into the driver's seat.
Amelia giggled, suddenly, one of those delirious overtired giggles. She met her daddy’s eyes in the rear view mirror and he arched a brow in inquiry. “Looks like I got to stay home on my birthday after all, Daddy.”