Flowers in the Park Ch. 10

Wes followed his son and girlfriend into the apartment. Once the flowers were safely in the vase, he helped his son take his coat off, then sat back and watched as Wesley hopped up on the couch, where Alex joined him. Wes chose a chair on the other side of the small living space, an interested spectator as he watched his two favorite people in the world renew their friendship.

Alex turned to little Wesley and said, "I'm so glad to see you again, Wesley. What are your plans for the day?"

Wesley got excited. "We're going to the zoo! Do you want to go with us?"

"Sure, I'd like that. I've never been to the zoo. Can you help me with all the animal names?"

"My dad and me go to the zoo a lot! I know all the animals! I can teach you, it will be fun!"

Wesley suddenly stopped and looked around the apartment, realizing that something was different. "Hey, your house is just like my daddy's, but it's backwards!" He immediately hopped off the couch to go check out the rest of the apartment. Alex looked at Wes and laughed.

Wes laughed as well. "This is just the start - wait until he gets completely warmed up to you. It's going to be a wild ride!"

Just then they heard a shout from down the hall. "Dad, Alex has two toothbrushes in her bathroom!"

Wes shared a glance with Alex, saying to her, "I don't think we'll address that one just yet. Might be too much for him to process. But if we go back to my apartment, I'd better hide yours just in case!"

They loaded up to head to the zoo. On the way, Wes reminded his son of the rules - always stay close to either he or Alex, and always hold hands wherever they went. They parked, and as they walked to the entrance, Wesley chose to take Alex's hand, pulling her in anticipation of going inside. While it hadn't been planned, it was clear that Wesley was choosing to spend his time with Alex, with his dad following behind.

During their first thirty minutes, Wesley was relentless, tugging Alex's hand as they moved from one animal to the other. He was very good with the names and made sure Alex could pronounce each one properly. Wes followed along behind happily, knowing that it wasn't his arm Wesley was pulling, and enjoying watching his two favorite people getting to know each other.

When they rode the train that circled the zoo, Wesley made sure that Alex sat with him. Wes would get his phone out occasionally, taking pictures of his son and his girlfriend and sending them to Alex's phone. As it got close to noon, they found the concession stand and ordered lunch. While they ate, Wesley again made sure Alex was sitting at his side, with his dad across from them.

As Wesley munched on his chicken nuggets, Alex looked at his father with wide eyes. "Does he ever slow down, or will the rest of our zoo trip be as frenetic as this?"

Wes laughed. "He goes all out in everything he does. At some point in time this afternoon, he'll just shut down and need to rest for a while. Until then, you have to do whatever you can to keep up with him, because he only knows one speed, and that's full throttle ahead."

Wes' warning to Alex proved to be true. Finally, a little after 2:00, Wesley was ready to leave. He chatted with Alex as they drove back to her apartment, and he chatted with her as they walked up the sidewalk to the door, and he chatted with her as they went inside, crawling up in Alex's lap as she sat down on the couch to rest.

After about ten minutes, Wesley laid his head on Alex's shoulder, and was soon asleep. Alex beamed as she looked down at the sleeping child. She looked up at Wes and whispered, "He's so precious! But he has the energy of a machine! I needed this rest as much as he did!"

Wes took his phone out of his pocket and bent down to take a picture of them. Alex smiled and asked, "What are you doing?"

Wes checked to make sure the picture was good, and then answered, "Just taking a picture of the two people I love the most."

The look of surprise was evident on her face. "What did you say?"

Wes paused, and then sat down next to her on the couch. Leaning over to kiss her, he replied, "I knew I felt this way before our day started this morning. But do you remember I told you that Wesley was a very good judge of a person's character? He would be very disappointed in me if I didn't keep you!"

He leaned in and kissed her again. "I love you, Alex. I don't know for sure what lies ahead of us, but I know that whatever it is, it will be with you at my side. I never realized how happy I could be, but you have made it so I can't imagine not being with you."

Alex laid her head on Wes' shoulder. "I was so afraid to say anything because I didn't want you to think I was rushing you! I know it's just been two weeks, but I feel the same way about you! I love you too, Wes, and can't imagine not being with you either!"

They sat together in silence for a few minutes before Alex said, "I need to shift - my leg's going to sleep with him on my lap if I don't adjust somehow."

Wes stood up and picked up Wesley. It gave time for Alex to stand and get the circulation going again in her legs, but before she could sit back down, Wesley woke up enough that he could tell Alex wasn't holding him, and he reached out for her again. Alex took him and they sat back down. Wesley went right back to sleep.

Wes looked at Alex and grinned. "See what I mean? Not only have you won me over, but clearly, you're his favorite now!" Alex's smile beamed as her response.

Dinner was at Chuck E. Cheese as promised. Once again, Alex was amazed at the energy young Wesley showed as he bounced around from game to game, stopping to play on the play equipment. It was Alex's first time ever seeing Chuck and his friends, but she knew it probably wouldn't be her last.

When they got back to her apartment, Wes dug out some coloring books and crayons Wesley's mom had packed in his overnight bag. Wesley gave one of his books to Alex so she could also color, which was different for her. Usually, she was the one supervising her students as they colored in class. Wesley finished his page and gave it to Alex, telling her she needed to put it on her refrigerator, which she did immediately, making Wesley happy.

Wes had decided earlier that he and Wesley would walk to his apartment to sleep for the night, figuring maybe it wasn't time yet for him to stay with Alex. Plus, neither Alex nor Wes had a bed for Wesley, and Wes was used to sharing his bed with his son on the Saturday night he had him. So as the two Watson men walked to their apartment, Wes asked him if he enjoyed his day.

"It was fun! I like Alex! Can she come to the park with us tomorrow?"

"Yes, I know she wants to. I think she likes you too!"

"Are you going to get married to her, like mom is getting married to Dennis?"

Wes laughed. "Well, not quite as fast as your mommy is getting married. But maybe someday. Would you like it if I married Alex?"

"YES! She's very nice, and I like holding hands with her!"

Wes picked Wesley up and carried him the rest of the way. "She is very nice, and I like holding hands with her also. Why don't we keep her as our friend?"

Wesley was asleep in about 30 minutes after they got back to the apartment. Wes snapped a picture of his sleeping son and sent it to Alex, who responded, "Aw, looks like we wore him out today. I know he wore me out as well!" To back up her claim, she sent a picture back to Wes of her already in her bed. But to make it a little spicy, she had pulled the blanket down, showing Wes her naked breasts.

Wes responded back - "Perfect! Sleep well, Alex. We have another active day planned tomorrow." He followed it with a quick, "I love you!" She sent a message back with the same words.

Wes let his son sleep late on Sunday morning, since he didn't have to worry about him staying up late that evening after dropping him off with his mom. Alex came over about 10:30, and Wesley woke up soon after that. Wes gave his son a bath, and then decided they would go out to eat brunch at a sit-down restaurant where Wesley could enjoy his favorite food, pancakes. They went back to the apartment when they were finished and spent the early afternoon playing with the few toys Wes had at his apartment. Wesley also enjoyed sitting in Alex's lap again as she read a couple of story books Wes had for him.

Though it was a chilly late fall afternoon, they knew a trip to the park was important. For Alex and Wes - and for Wesley as well - it was a celebration of a two-week anniversary. For Wesley, it was a chance to play in his favorite park. The park had fewer people visiting on this day because of the cooler temperatures, but that did not deter Wesley any. He grabbed the hand of his new favorite person Alex and pulled her around to all the various playground areas, even getting her to go down a couple of the slides while Wes gleefully recorded it on his telephone.

When it was time to leave, Wes got his son strapped into his car seat, while Alex took her place in the front passenger seat. Wes said, "I'll take you home while I deliver Wesley to his mom's, and then I'll come back and pick you up, since I figured we should probably go to the Burger Shack again. I promise I won't be late this time!"

Alex replied, "Well that seems silly, taking me home and then coming back to get me after you drop off Wesley. I'll go with you, so you don't have to make two trips."

"You realize if you go with me, Wesley is going to make his mom come out to meet you, don't you?"

Alex laughed. "What, do you not want me to meet her?"

"No, that's not what I meant..."

Alex cut him off. "I'm teasing. I'd love to meet her, because as you have said, she must be a good mom to have such an adorable son."

Wes replied, "Maybe we should ask the boss first. Wesley, is it okay if Alex rides with us to take you back to your mom's house?"

"YEA!!!!!!!!"

Alex laughed. "I guess it's okay!"

One of the traditions that Wes had with his son was listening to kids' music programming in the car on the way home. Alex surprised both Watson men by singing along with the radio. After hearing praise from Alex about Wes' singing voice at the club the past Friday, he knew it was his turn to brag about her singing abilities, but it would have to wait until after the singing stopped.

They arrived at Janelle's house. Alex stayed in the car as Wes went around to the back door to get Wesley out of his seat. Once freed, Wesley went running up to his mom, who had come out on the front porch to greet him. Wes followed along, but before he made it to the porch, Wesley was dragging his mom by the hand down the steps. Alex knew it was time for her to get out of the car, since Wesley indeed wanted his mom to meet his friend.

Before any of the adults could say anything, Wesley blurted out, "Mom, this is Alex. She's my friend. She's dad's friend also!"

Janelle laughed as she stuck out her hand. "Hi, Alex. I'm Janelle, Wesley's mom. It's finally nice to meet you. Wes, after you brought him back last time, for two days everything was all about Alex this and Alex that. I hadn't put together who Alex was yet, but he was sure important to her. Now I know why, and it's nice to meet the friend of the Watson men."

Alex smiled. "It's nice to meet you also, Janelle. Your son is completely charming, not to mention a ball of intense energy! I've had a great weekend with him and his dad. It's very clear that Wesley's mom is doing a great job of raising him."

"Thanks, Alex! It helps that he has such a good father, and I don't have to worry about him on the weekends when he's away from me. And now I'm sure I'll hear all about Alex again, but this time I'll know who he's talking about."

Janelle turned her attention to Wes. "Before you leave, can I have a few moments with you in private? I'll take Wesley inside so Dennis can watch him while we talk on the front porch."

Wes nodded. Turning to Alex, he said, "I guess I'll be back in a few minutes."

Alex got back into the car as she watched Wes and Janelle walk to the front of the house. She saw that they would have made a great-looking couple had they been able to stay together. Janelle was nearly as tall as Wes was, and that made her wonder how tall Wesley would be as he grew older.

But Alex knew that sometimes things didn't work out, and she admired their decision not to even try if it was going to be a struggle. She secretly wished she had paid attention to some of the similar signs she had seen in Anthony that became clearer once she had called off their engagement.

Alex continued to watch as Wes and Janelle talked. Suddenly he could see that Wes had become very agitated. Both of their body languages indicated that there was a problem, as they each began to be demonstrative with their hands and arms. At one point, Wes turned completely around, facing away from Janelle as she continued to talk. As their conversation went on, both lowered their heads, and when Janelle tried to give Wes a hug, it wasn't returned.

And then it was over. Janelle went inside her house and closed the door as Wes walked down the steps to the car. Alex could see that he was very upset about something. He went around to his door and got in. Once seated, he didn't move, staring out the front of the windshield. Even in the darkness of the late afternoon twilight, Alex could see that Wes was crying. Alex reached out for his hand, and Wes grabbed it and squeezed.

Softly, Alex asked, "Baby, what's wrong?"

Without looking away from the front windshield, Wes said in a broken voice, "They're moving...once Janelle and Dennis get married, they are moving to Memphis. They're taking my son away from me...instead of twenty minutes away, he's now going to be seven hours away from me. What am I going to do, Alex?