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"I don't thin' it's a good idea to suddenly show up at ol' Doggie's house like this," Baba says.
Before Quick Draw can come up with the usual sarcastic response, Snooper sweeps in with a, "Not under normal circumstance-ees, but we haven't seen the guy for weeks."
"I thin' he just needs to be alone for a bit."
"For a month is just too long," Snooper says. "And I don't think the guy's used to being alone anyhow. He was usually hanging out with us or his wife..."
Mention of his wife feels somehow like they're treading upon forbidden ground. Dottie was lovely, but she turned up missing not even a full day after the birth of her first son. Her disappearance affects everyone here, but most of all Doggie.
They arrive at his house with a sense of trepidation. After all, they've never come uninvited before, and now it just seems cold and dark. Knocking on the door doesn't work, so they resort to the spare key hidden within the now-dying potted plant beside the welcome mat.
Inside is a chaos. Doggie either hasn't had the time or the energy to clean up the living room; blankets and pillows are scattered across the place. Snooper leans forward to pick up a half-empty glass of water and finds it to be room-temperature.
"Probably in his room," Snooper comments, his gaze sliding across the rest of the living room.
Somewhere, a shrill cry can be heard - that of an infant's. Instantly, the group rushes towards the source of the sound. They find a decorated nursery that contains both a young puppy and the friend they've been seeking. He clutches the puppy to his chest and rocks him gently.
"Oh, now, don't cry," Doggie whispers, his tone pleading. "There's no reason to be crying! You're alright, Augie." Doggie turns and sees his friends, standing in the doorway like caught criminals. He allows himself only a few seconds of staring at them in complete confusion before he returns his attention to the task at hand. Augie won't let up, and Doggie finally decides he'd better get a bottle. Babies like bottles, right? "I need to get a bottle. One of you mind holding him?"
Quick Draw offers his assistance. After a few moments of fussing, Quick Draw is frantically rocking a still-crying infant. Doggie prepares a bottle as quickly as he can, takes the baby back, and puts it in his mouth. Augie calms down considerably.
"I'm not used to this yet," Doggie says. "We were supposed to..."
Figure it out together.
But he can't bring himself to say that out loud. He looks down at the puppy.
"We've been mighty worried 'bout ya," Quick Draw says. He glances back at the other three, who nod emphatically to show that they're with him.
"I'm...sorry," Doggie says. "I know it musta been weird, havin' me suddenly drop off like that, but...I've had a lot on my mind lately."
Augie stares at the other men with wide, round eyes. He's not bothered by the visitors, but curious as to their intentions.
"You know his eyes just opened up? Guess that means I've been here too long. The place is a wreck. If I knew you'd be comin', I'd...well, I guess I'd try to clean."
"We can help," Blabber offers.
Doggie's instinctive response is, "That's not necess-er-ary."
But the group is already insistent on the idea. After all, they say, there's five of them, and only one kid to deal with; they can all help out, somehow. Doggie can't stop them as they rush into the room and start cleaning everything up. Doggie does what he can, still holding his child in one hand. He's really starting to feel guilty about being unable to help as much.
"Hey, Doggie, you got a stroller or somethin'?" Quick Draw asks.
"In the garage, why?"
Quick Draw holds up a cookbook. "We gotta go grocery shoppin', 'n' I figured you might wanna bring Augie with you."
Doggie glances down at his son, who has nothing to say. "You don't have to make dinner."
"No, but I wanna anyhow."
Doggie glances at his other friends, who are too busy to say anything lengthy but are giving him a look that says just go with him, dummy.
"I'll go get ready."
Doggie, Quick Draw, and Augie are gone from the house for a total of a half an hour. Once they return, they find the place completely cleaned out, save for Doggie's bedroom, which they decided not to tread into. Even Augie's nursery was organized.
"Stick 'im in the high chair," Baba says, nodding towards the puppy. "He can watch us cook."
Augie seems satisfied watching the five men buzz about the kitchen, and at the very least, he's no longer crying. He even smiles at Doggie as he sets out the plates; Doggie can't help but to grin at his son's joy. He strokes his ear and returns to grab flatware.
There's more than enough pasta for the entire friend group, and bread, too. There's a bit of discussion about whether it's courteous to eat in front of someone with no teeth, but the argument finally closes with Baba pointing out that Augie's not going to remember it anyway.
"Thanks for everything you done," Doggie says as they start to eat. "I'm sorry I went off the face of the Earth for a bit there. It's been difficult."
"We all got your back," Quick Draw says.
"Yeah," Snooper agrees, "and you can ask us for help anytime. For anything. Seriously, I hear parenting's all rough. I mean, kids are weird, right?"
Doggie holds back a laugh and glances at his son. "I think this one's alright."