The Night Gets Older • •

[damien royce malone]

Damien had worked on Calypso’s car non stop since it had been left in his care. He hadn’t afforded himself anything more than a water break. The rest of his guys had clocked out for the day and headed home, but he had stayed on, working even after his leg began to ache, the prosthetic pinching and rubbing at the socket because he had been baring weight on it for longer than he usually would. Damien couldn’t walk away though. Working on her car, replacing the busted alternator, kept his mind busy. While he was doing that, he couldn’t focus on the bombshell she had dropped on him when he had gone to help her out; the one where she had told him he was a father, and had been for the entire time he had been in jail and trying to rebuild his life. Damien didn’t know how to process that. How the hell was anyone supposed to process that?

He had never imagined having kids. After the accident he had been in recovery for so long that it was impossible to think about how he could ever be a good dad to someone. He couldn’t play football, or ride a bike, or do a bunch of things like they showed on television, and with his record he would always have that reputation hanging over his head. Damien knew he had come a long way in the last few years, but he would never truly be rid of it, and he beat himself up over that a lot. It always left him feeling like he would never be good enough for anyone to love, and then add his broken body, the scars and the missing parts, and he felt like some broken toy. He couldn’t be someone’s dad, and Caly could surely find some better replacement for her son. At least she could find someone who could at least carry her little boy through the park without worrying if his broken body would let him.

When the car was repaired, and after starting it up and testing it around the empty forecourt of the garage, Damien pondered on whether he should take it to her or call her to collect it. It was late, and they needed to talk, if only for him to try and explain that it wasn’t that he didn’t want to be a dad, but rather that he would only be a terrible one. He grabbed the paperwork for the return of the vehicle, tossing it onto the passenger seat after wiping down the hood of the car so his grimy fingerprints were gone. He also cleaned himself up before he clambered into the car, switching his overalls for a clean t-shirt from the office and scrubbing the oil from his wrists and hands. He had hoped the drive over might clear his head, but it didn’t and Damien felt as sick as he did the night he knew he was going to be arrested when he buzzed her door, wondering in that moment if maybe he should have called her first to make sure he wasn’t interrupting anything. What if she was putting her son to sleep? God, he knew nothing about kids; he definitely couldn’t be a father.

• • •

TAGGED! Calypso Peyton Payne
WORDS! 806!
LYRICS! For The Keeping - - - Wayward Daughter
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Calypso Peyton Payne]

Calypso knew she'd dropped a bomb on Damien when she'd told him about Soren. She'd been thinking about it ever since and knew that she could have done that a million different ways. She had been awkward and completely useless. She'd stuttered and talked in circles. She was so much more direct than that and it irritated her that the second she'd seen Damien again after so many years, she'd apparently lost her damn mind. Calypso was usually very eloquent and not being that way when it mattered most was irksome. She would eventually get over it but she needed to stew for a while. She'd managed to get to the office and pass along all the things she'd had to her boss before settling in to try and get a few uninterrupted hours of work in before she had to return home. She couldn't be late tonight since it was her night to cook and Emmie had a test she needed to study for.

So, when the clock struck five, she was packed up and ready to go, forgetting for a split second that she didn't have a car. The office was in a well-off neighbourhood where cabs didn't mind cruising down, looking for fares so she was able to catch one easily enough. The older gentleman who was probably close to her grandfather's age voiced his concern about her neighbourhood but she smiled and told him she was pretty safe actually. They'd had a few break-ins in the area but her neighbours seemed to like Calypso and Emmie and most of them adored her little boy so they tended to keep the building at least quiet. She knew that wasn't the case for other areas and neighbourhoods and honestly when it was time to move, she was going to miss the place. But it was not the time to dwell on all the reasons she liked that apartment complex now. Now, it was back to splitting her attention between wondering if she had all the ingredients for enchiladas and Damien.

She got the cabbie to pull over by the grocery and, after paying her fare, hopped out to pick up what she'd need, just in case. She couldn't concentrate but cooking always helped to sort out her thoughts. It took twenty minutes to gather everything, pay, and finish the walk to the apartment but she'd made good time and she was excited about dinner at least. Emmie had the music cranked up when she opened the door and was spinning around with Soren, making him giggle and squeal. It was her favourite way to be greeted. Laughing with them, she took her son from his auntie and danced around with him for a few minutes while Emmie took the bags and went about sorting through them. They made the small space home. After a few more spins around the living room, they switched out again and Caly quickly whipped up dinner.

They left the dishes until after Soren went to sleep and Emmie sat at the table to study while Calypso took her turn to play with her baby boy. She had set a bedtime for him, obviously but after the day she'd had, she just needed him close so she let him stay up a little longer. She was just about to call it quits when someone knocked on the door and her heart slammed into her chest because she knew who was on the other side. Emmie had moved to the bedroom ages before because they'd been making too much noise for her to concentrate and honestly, Caly couldn't blame her so she wasn't around to get it for her. With a sigh, Calypso debated on answering the door with Soren in her arms or not. Ultimately, she chose to leave him sitting on the floor with his toys and opened the door just enough to be seen but block everything else; just in case. "Hey." She said hesitantly. She hadn't expected the car to be done already.

♦ ♦ ♦

TAG; damien royce malone
WORDS; 672
LYRICS; Thinking of You --Dierks Bentley
NOTES; <3

[damien royce malone]

The last time Damien had felt this nervous, he had been in a suit and tie and standing before a judge. At least then he knew the outcome before his sentence was handed down; the only mystery had been how long he’d be spending behind bars. This was different. He had no idea how this was about to go, or what he would even say or do. Calypso had blindsided him, though he knew it hadn’t been intentional. He supposed it was one of those things – the universe laughing at him once more – where just when he thought he had his life in order, something came along to knock the papers off the desk again.

He suddenly wished he had changed his clothes before driving to Calypso’s. He was still grease smeared and wearing his work clothes; fabric that held the remnants of his work in them no matter how many times they were washed. Somehow coveralls never quite covered everything. He felt like he looked as much of a mess as he was planning on explaining. A lot had obviously happened since the last time he’d seen Calypso, and Damien didn’t feel like he’d improved enough to be settling down and contemplating a family life. He was still meeting his probation officer, still having to prove he was actually a changed man. No one had really cared all that much about his so-called sob story. People lost their legs doing more heroic things than surviving a train derailment, and not all of them turned to a life of crime to survive. Damien hadn’t felt this confused and out of his depth since he had come home from the hospital after that ordeal.

He swallowed hard, the tension in his shoulders stretching through him. He felt stiff, awkward, and almost out of place. He offered a small smile, holding up her keys that were dangling from his left index finger. “All done.” His voice was a little gruffer than usual, and he quickly cleared it with a short cough. “It shouldn’t give you any trouble for a while. I did the repair and checked your fluid levels. Everything is good.” He had done a bit of extra work, just tightening up a few things, cleaning stuff up. It was a shorter version of a normal service, but Damien hadn’t wanted the guys at the shop noticing that he was giving this car a bit more attention than some other. He’d pushed it through the queue, meaning there was another car awaiting repairs that would take up his day tomorrow, but Damien had needed it out of his shop before the “what ifs” and the worries drove him to the brink of insanity and dangled him over the edge. “Even threw in a little air freshener.” He concluded, handing her back the keys and shoving his empty hands into his jeans pockets. There was so much he wanted to say, but he wasn’t sure he had the right words. Damien was not eloquent by any means; the most he ever spoke was yelling at sports on the TV.

• • •

TAGGED! Calypso Peyton Payne
WORDS! 524!
LYRICS! For The Keeping - - - Wayward Daughter
NOTES! <3 <3 <3

[Calypso Peyton Payne]

Calypso had a lot going on in her life. And she would for the rest of it because she had Soren. Caly would never complain about the work because she adored him and knew when she found out she was pregnant that it would be a difficult road. She didn't mind. The graphic designer had been prepared to be a single mother and wasn't expecting Damien to help her in any way; mostly because she hadn't known if he was even still around. Caly hadn't known what sort of trouble he'd been in when she'd directed him to sneak into her apartment. She knew she wasn't the only one that should have been making that major decision but he hadn't been around and Calypso knew the second she found out she was pregnant that she wanted that baby with every fibre of her being. So it wasn't so much how she was going to do it as much as it was if she could be the parent her child needed. She wasn't that perfect mum who had everything together, she wasn't always doing everything herself, she swore and she indulged in a drink once in a while. But she wasn't a bad mum either. She was there when he needed her, took care of him when he was sick and spent tons of time with him reading books, singing songs and dancing around the little living room. She wasn't perfect but she was present and that's what mattered.

If Damien wanted to be a part of his son's life, Calypso would not deny him. She cherished the memories she had of her father, though they are few and far between. But she also wouldn't push any part of it on him either. She was a willing participant, he was not. She knew what she was getting into and welcomed it. In fact, Calypso was looking forward to the little league games, football, his first crush, though that one meant he was growing up and he was not allowed to do that. He needed to stay her little boy forever. But, she would deal with her own issues at those particular points in his life when they reached them. He was only a baby still, she had plenty of time. First, she needed to get through the potential first meeting and introductions. Soren was still so young and didn't know what was going on but if Damien did want to be a part of his son's life, the earlier in his life that started, the less chance of him never remembering that there was a time when he wasn't in it.

Answering the door had given Calypso more anxiety than telling the police she had no idea where Damien was that night when she'd been looking right at him. At the time, she hadn't known what was going on but she couldn't believe he was a bad guy. It hadn't made any sense to her. How they'd fallen into bed was another mystery but one that she didn't want to think about that much since the night- despite doing so many times- because it didn't look like it would ever happen again and she was wishing it would. That helped no one and solved zero problems but it didn't stop her from thinking about it from time to time. Caly smiled, accepted the keys. "Thank you. I appreciate what you've done." She said, leaning the side of her face on the door. She didn't want this to get as awkward as it had been earlier but she felt awkward all the same. Caly knew her hair was a mess, that she probably had a smudge on her cheek and a saucy handprint on her shirt somewhere but that was the life she'd picked so she didn't mind. It was up to Damien to figure out if he wanted the random food stains, high-pitched squeals of delight that their toddler still did when he found something he liked. "Do you want to come in, meet him? No pressure." She asked, hesitating only for a moment because she knew there was no going back from this line. If he wasn't ready, that was fine but there was no way in hell she was letting him meet Soren and then back out of his life.

♦ ♦ ♦

TAG; damien royce malone
WORDS; 721
LYRICS; Thinking of You --Dierks Bentley
NOTES; <3