Page 31 of Snow Blind

"If you say so," Mustang said, sitting and staring at the coffeepot. "What in the entire hell just happened..."

"Hey," Ricky’s deep voice said, coming in from down the hall. "Stephen made them fairy biscuits again. I swear if he don't stop with all this baking, my ass is gonna be as wide as Texas."

"You don't have to eat them," Mustang said to Ricky.

"And destroy that child's self-esteem? I could never," he said, laughing. "So, what's the plan today?"

Mustang looked the man square in the face. "I'm the guest. Why does everyone keep asking me that?"

"You have a point there, Chief Trooper," Ricky commented, looking at him. He had a thing on his mind, and if he had a word to say to Mustang, he wasn't planning to give the man an out or an in. However, the shared moment was interrupted by the arrival of Apple, who entered the space, changing the entire feel of the kitchen.

"Morning," Apple commented, heading for the coffeepot. "I tell you what...Stephen and these damned biscuits. I have put on at least ten pounds in the past three months."

Again, Mustang seemed confused by two grown men unable to control their eating habits. "You know, you don't have to eat more than one."

Apple turned suddenly, "And ruin that fragile child's mental well-being? I could never!"

The three men sat at the table, enjoying coffee and a new day. Apple had no real plans for the weekend outside of spending time with Helen and getting to know the man in her life. Plus, the kids wanted to see her. A silence lingered between the three as Oscar made his appearance. To the surprise of the group, he went first to Mustang, offering a half-hug, which was returned by his "uncle." He offered a shy good morning to Apple and Ricky and took a seat, his eyes on Mustang.

"So, Uncle Jay, what's the plan for the day?"

Mustang, still confused about why everyone in the home thought he had a plan, was slightly irritated. Instead of allowing it to be shown to the kid, he offered a smile, followed by, "Oscar, can you tell me what you like to do?"

"I like to make stuff," Oscar said. "I have some building blocks and junk, but I need like a desk or a table to build the bigger ones."

Mustang asked, "Would you like to make a desk or a workstation to build on?"

His eyes lit up, "Well, yeah! In my room, I have to build on the floor, so I can't really see how it is all coming together. So, yeah!"

Mustang turned his attention to Ricky. "I assume you have a workshop here. Could you spare some wood or point me in the direction of a home repair store?"

"I have wood, saws, and even a lathe," Ricky said to Mustang.

"Good," Mustang offered. "Mr. Milton, would it be okay for Oscar to show me his room so I can see how much space we have to work with for this workstation?"

Apple waved his hand. A very ecstatic Oscar bounded up the stairs with Mustang in tow. He showed him the meager bedroom space with the bed and dresser, nightstand, and one lone lamp. With the space requirement in mind, Mustang’s stomach growled, requiring more than a cup of coffee and biscuit.

Back in the kitchen, Mustang wanted breakfast and began to crack eggs and mix in cream, milk, and cheese. In the back of the fridge, he found scallions on their last legs, which he added to the mixture. He scrambled the eggs and plated some for himself and Oscar, as well as Helen, who had made an appearance in the kitchen. Mustang pulled out a chair and set the plated breakfast before her, along with a cup of coffee. A smile crossed his lips when he bent to kiss her cheek, thinking of the boy Jeffrey who pointed out this habit of his.

He took a seat at the table with Apple, Oscar, and Ricky. He looked at Helen. "Oscar and I are going to spend a couple of hours in Ricky's shop building him a workstation for his room for his Legos," he told her.

"Okay," she said, "and maybe a chair or a stool to go with it?"

"Depends on the wood and supplies on hand, versus me having to leave to go to a store or cut down branches off a tree," he said.

"Sounds like a plan," Helen replied.

She had nothing more to add, so Mustang completed his breakfast. He washed his dishes before heading to the bedroom to shower and get dressed, returning to get started on the first of his tasks. She watched his strong back as he walked to the barn with Ricky and Oscar to get started on the project, which only took a couple of hours. Mustang taught Oscar how to dovetail ends to connect the desk pieces as Ricky leant a hand with sanding and polishing the wood pieces before applying a thin coat of lacquer to the wood. A quick stool was made, using the lathe to carve legs the right height for the new work desk.

Since he was a kid, Mustang always traveled with a deck of cards. In hotel rooms, or layovers in airports, he would use the cards to play hands of solitaire, or if a bored traveler was interested, a couple of hands of gin rummy. After dinner, he pulled out the deck of cards, drawing the attention of Jeffrey, who knew street games to make a quick buck.

Mustang taught the boys how to play the card game of War, then Crazy Eights, and ending the evening playing Rummy. Pleased with the interaction, Jeffrey wanted to know what his new Uncle was going to teach him on Saturday, as well as Stephen, who had moved closer to sit next to Mustang. It surprised them all, when Stephen sat next to him and Mustang leaned into the boy, shouldering support as he discussed grilling techniques, he would show him on Saturday as well. Oscar came in for a hug to say goodnight, asking Mustang if he would tuck him in.

“And nope,” Mustang said, swatting the boy on the bottom and shooing him towards the stairs.

Ricky nodded his head at Mustang before retiring for the night. Apple, taking a moment, looked at Mustang, he smiled. A thing he didn’t do often which came across as a snarl, making Mustang stare at him mutherfuckingly for nearly ten seconds.

“See you in the morning,” Mustang said, wondering what Saturday would bring.

---