Page 9 of The Exception

“Mama says I’m supposed to leave it under my pillow for the tooth fairy so she’ll leave me a surprise.”

“Your mama’s right. The tooth fairy used to leave me a dollar for every tooth I lost.”

Ryan’s eyes went wide and he looked up at his dad. “Daddy, will the tooth fairy leave me a dollar?”

“You’ll just have to wait and see.”

“Okay. Are you done with ambulance school yet, Uncle Trav?

“Not yet, but I’m gonna try to come visit soon, okay?”

“Okay… and we can go to the trampoline park?”

Going to the trampoline park had been their thing before he’d moved, and if he was being honest, he missed going too. Watching Ryan have the time of his life was the main reason, but who didn’t like bouncing around doing backflips every now and then?

“It’s a deal,” he agreed.

A weird hollow feeling grew in his chest when he realized he had no idea when he’d be able to make good on that deal. Mike lived three hours away and had two kids. All of Trav’s other friends were stationed in various barracks around the world. It wasn’t lost on him that his new life was going to feel pretty empty for a while, and not just because he had no furniture in his condo.

Maybe he’d put some effort into making some friends in the neighborhood. He’d need the excuse of a barbeque or touch football game to effectively avoid his dad’s new wife’s calls for him to come over for dinner. Sheri or Shelly or whatever her name was. Sweet lady, but he wasn’t exactly itching to form another quasi-maternal relationship at his age. Especially one that may only last the next twelve to twenty-four months.

“Ry, if you want your TV time before bed, you better get to it. Say good night to uncle Trav.”

“Yes! Good night, Uncle Trav!”

“Good night, buddy.”

Ryan scampered off his father’s lap and disappeared down the hallway.

“He’s been watchingInto the Spiderversein thirty-minute intervals the last couple days,” Mike explained and Trav nodded. Tif was serious about not letting the kids grow up in front of the television, so there were strict limits on watch time.

Tif sat next to Mike on the couch and positioned the baby on her lap facing the screen. She had her mother’s big brown eyes and her father’s dark complexion, and no one could tell Trav that his goddaughter wasn’t the cutest baby, second only to Ryan when he was a baby.

“She’s getting so big,” he said, amazed at how much she’d grown since he’d seen her last.

A proud smile stretched across Tif’s face. “Asia, say hi to Uncle Trav.”

She pointed to the screen and Asia babbled something that resembled a greeting as she waved both her tiny hands in the air.

Trav’s cheeks hurt from smiling so wide..

Mike brushed his hand over his daughter’s curls. “Can you believe she’ll be a year in a few months?”

No, Trav couldn’t believe it. A year ago, he’d been on a satellite phone with a horrible connection in Afghanistan, listening to his best friend break down over becoming a dad for the second time after being deployed for the first. Trav had been just as excited as if it had been his own kid being born.

“Hopefully things’ll slow down by then so I can drive down for a visit.”

Mike jerked his thumb at his wife. “That’ll be good.Shewants to have a party with eight other one-year-olds so I could use the backup.”

Tif poked out her bottom lip. “Babe, she’s only gonna turn one once.”

“She’s not even gonna remember it,” Mike argued.

Trav ignored their playful arguing and focused on Asia who was staring at the screen. He wasn’t sure if it would work virtually, but he covered his face with his hands and kicked off a game of peek-a-boo. When he uncovered his face, she erupted in that baby laugh that straddled the line between cute and maniacal, and he laughed right along with her with every turn.

“So… are you working on having one of these of your own yet?” Tif asked.

He looked up to see her lips twisted into a knowing grin. He should’ve known this was coming. Tif had been on him about finding a nice girl to settle down with for years, but unlike Mike, relationships while deployed hadn’t worked out for him. He couldn’t really explain it, but the handful of relationships he’d had while enlisted had been either too much or not enough. None had made him think they would survive deployment.

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