another cute full-circle moment would be the boys going to visit rose’s grave with bouquets of flowers (and dahlias) and it going like this-
“thank you, rose, for everything.”
“shouldn’t we uh,” reggie pipes up quietly, “you know, introduce ourselves?”
alex nudges his side gently (reggie welps in protest, alex’ nudge definitely wasn’t gentle).
“dude, we already did, remember? back at the orpheum in ‘95?”
“oh. right. yup.” reggie nods and moves to step back in line before a thought pops into his head. “okay but hear me out - what if she doesn’t recognise us? we’re like. 20 now. we look totally different.” reggie holds out his arms as if to show how much he’s grown in the last 3 years (28 years? goddamn this will never get less confusing).
“plus,” he adds, holding up a finger, “it’s the polite thing to do, especially since she’s julie’s mom and all.” here, he throws a significant look in luke’s direction.
luke shuffles uncomfortably on the spot, fiddling with his sleeves before clearing his throat and reverting his attention back to the tombstone in front of them.
“i’m- i’m luke, by the way,” he stutters, suddenly feeling self-conscious.
“hi!” reggie follows suit without missing a beat. “i’m reggie!” he waves enthusiastically, the biggest smile on his face.
alex is the last one to talk, his eyes focused on the lettering on the stone.
he thanks her again in his heart, thanks her for this miraculous second chance at life.
thanks her for julie, for music, and for being their fan even when she barely knew them.
he thanks her for everything, really.
he nods his head once, briefly closes his eyes and then opens them again.
“alex,” he finally adds quietly.
and with that, all three stand there, heads bowed as they pay respects to the person who granted them the greatest gift of all.
a new life, with julie.
the end
yknow?
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idk how to actually ask prompts or if ur still doing these (feel free to delete this one if ur not) but i have this scenario in my head where Ray take his 4y/o Julie to the park with his wife and a 5y/o Reggie comes by his back "Dad! Dad, look what i found!...you're not my dad." and Reggie can't actually find his dad
Hello Anon! Yes still taking prompts, sorry this took so long! Irl things were taking too much energy so I've been really slow on the prompt fills. I hope this finds you well! And I hope this matches up with what you were thinking, it's a really good idea!!!
TW: Implied child abuse and neglect.
"Swing, swing!" Julie exclaims, pulling at her parents' hands as the playground comes into view.
Ray laughs. "Of course, mija, we can do swings," he tells his 4-year-old daughter.
"Might have to just be you on that one though," Rose tells him, glancing down at the baby strapped to her chest. "I think Carlos is starting to wake up."
Ray leans over to peck her on the cheek. "Of course, I got it."
"Swing!" Julie cries again, more insistent this time.
Ray chuckles and allows her to tug him towards the tall, metal swing set. Julie clambers up onto one of the seats and Ray ducks around the chains to get behind her.
"Ready, Julie?" he asks, placing one hand on her back.
"Yes!" Julie cheers.
"Ready, set, go!" Ray calls as he pushes her forward.
His daughter giggles as she flies through the air, first up and then back down towards Ray. He can't help but echo the sound as he pushes her higher and higher. Not too high, she's only 4 after all, but enough to give her that magical feeling of weightlessness that Ray misses from his own childhood.
He glances over at one point to see Rose going down the little slide with a gurgling Carlos in her arms. He wishes he had his camera on him so he could get a picture of it. Ah well, another time.
Julie protests when he misses a push so he turns back to his little girl. Her ponytail is bouncing all over as she tips her head back. Ray thanks God every day that Rose knows how to handle her curls. He wouldn't have the faintest clue where to even start with them.
"Dad! Dad, look what I found!" someone yells from behind him.
Ray thinks nothing of it until he feels a small hand tugging on his black and green overshirt. He looks down to see a little boy, probably a little older than Julie, with dark, straight hair that falls over his eyes. Through the fringes, Ray can see the boy's delight and excitement quickly turn to confusion.
"W-wait, you're not my dad," the boy stutters, stepping back quickly.
"It's okay, no worries," Ray assures the boy, giving him a wide smile. He scans the playground quickly. "Is that your dad over there?" he asks, pointing to a man sitting beside the sandbox who looked to be around his build.
The boy squints, then shakes his head. "No, that's not him," he responds. He stares around at all the grown-ups there, and Ray can see him getting tenser with every passing second.
Ray drops into a squat so he can be on eye level with the kid. "Well how about I help you find your dad?" he offers, smiling.
The boy seems unsure. "Mom wouldn't like that," he mutters, dropping his eyes to the ground.
Stranger Danger, Ray thinks. He's glad the kid is cautious at least. "I bet your mom will just be relieved that they found you," he reassures the boy. He holds out a hand. "I'm Ray."
"Reggie," the boy says. He hesitates, then reaches out to shake Ray's hand in his tiny one.
"Who're you?" Julie asks suddenly, jumping off her now slowed swing to run up beside Ray.
"This is Reggie," Ray tells her. "We're gonna help him find his dad."
"Okay!" Julie agrees, grinning through her crooked front teeth. She turns to Reggie. "Hi, I'm Julie, this is my dad!"
Reggie returns her grin slowly. "Hi Juwie."
"Ju-lee," she corrects, giggling.
Reggie goes red. "Sorry, sorry," he stutters, his smile gone and his eyes widening.
Ray frowns at that reaction. Who was teaching a kid this young to be this upset over a simple mistake? Lots of the kids in Julie's preschool class had done the same thing.
"It's okay," Julie says, suddenly alarmed. She darts forward and wraps her arms around Reggie's shoulders.
Reggie seems startled by the hug, but after a second he returns it. Ray's chest feels warm at how Julie has so easily made the boy relax.
When Julie lets him go, Ray clears his throat and glances around the playground again. "Reggie, what's your dad's name?" he asks, getting back to the task at hand. The boy's parents must be frantic at not being able to find him.
Reggie frowns, thinking. "Well most of the grown-ups call him Rob, but mom calls him a word I got in trouble for saying at kindergarten."
Ray doesn't let himself dwell on that second part. "Okay, Rob then. What's your last name?"
"Peters."
Julie smiles. "That's my teacher's name."
Ray chuckles. "Well Julie, Peter is your teacher's first name. It's Reggie's last name. Like how your last name is Molina," he explains.
He racks his brain. He can't think of a Rob Peters that lives in their neighborhood, and that's most of who comes to this park. "Do you know your dad's phone number?" he asks Reggie.
Reggie shakes his head. "He gets mad if I ask about his phone."
Ray isn't sure what to do with that information. He just knows he doesn't like it. But that will have to wait. "Okay, that's okay Reggie," he assures the boy. "Where was the last place you saw him?"
"By the slide," Reggie answers, pointing. "We came over here in the truck and he took me to play."
"Your dad brought you here, but he's not here now?" Ray clarifies.
Reggie nods silently, biting his bottom lip. "He likes hiding sometimes, but I'm really good at finding him."
Ray makes a mental note to mention this to Victoria later. His sister-in-law is a social worker. Hopefully Reggie is just blowing things out of proportion because he's young and doesn't have a solid grasp on the world yet, but he'd rather be safe than sorry. Would rather Reggie be safe.
"Okay, well what does your truck look like?" he asks. "Is it still here?"
"It's blue, Dad uses it for work," Reggie tells him, looking around for the vehicle. His brow furrows. "Where's the truck?"
Ray spots the first tear escaping from the boy's eye. Julie must see it too, because she takes a couple of steps forward and pulls Reggie into another hug.
"Don't worry, my Papi is super good at finding stuff," she tells him. Then she laughs. "Unless it's his keys. Mami always has to find them for him."
Reggie lets out a watery chuckle at that. "My mom never finds things for my dad," he says. "She just yells right back at him."
"Everything okay over here?" Rose inquires, walking up to them with Carlos balanced on her hip.
Reggie retreats behind Julie, but Ray offers his wife a worried smile. "Don't worry, Reggie, this is Julie's mom, Rose," he tells the boy. "Reggie can't find his dad," he explains, rising to his feet.
"Oh no," Rose murmurs, frowning.
"I think his dad might have left him here," Ray adds in a hushed tone so only she can hear. "His truck is gone and Reggie said that his dad likes hiding from him."
"He doesn't know a phone number or an address?" Rose questions, mirroring his volume.
Ray shakes his head. "His dad's name is Rob Peters, and he drives a blue truck, but that's all I know. If he doesn't show up soon, we might have to call the police."
Rose winces. "I hope it doesn't come to that," she says. Then she smiles down at Reggie and Julie. "Well, I have some snacks in my bag," she tells the kids. "Why don't we all sit down and have something to eat. Your dad will probably be back any minute, Reggie."
Both children brighten immediately at the word 'snacks' and Ray thanks heaven for the millionth time for granting him the privilege of being married to Rose Molina. His wife leads them all over to a bench, where she'd left her large purse. She produces crackers and string cheese after a minute of digging around. Ray and Rose had learned soon after having Julie that the number one rule of having little kids was to always have food on hand.
Reggie takes some string cheese and starts tearing it open happily. Julie grabs for the crackers. Carlos whines a little and Rose laughs.
"Don't worry, you can eat too, mijo," she tells him, unbuttoning her shirt enough that he can nurse.
Ray chuckles and settles on the ground with the kids, listening to their very serious discussion about the merits of different snack foods. He wonders if Reggie lives close enough that the two could play together again, under less stressful circumstances. They were getting along pretty well so far.
Just then, Ray hears someone yelling. He looks up to see a man storming towards the playground. The guy might be taller than Ray, and definitely a lot broader. Rose, Reggie, and Julie notice the commotion a moment later.
"Dad!" Reggie exclaims, jumping up. "Dad, I'm over here!"
The man, Rob Peters apparently, turns slowly. His angry expression doesn't soften when he sees his son. "What're you doing over there?!" he demands, crossing his arms. "What have I told you about talking to strangers."
Reggie hangs his head. "I'm sorry, they were being nice," he mumbles.
"I don't care," Rob Peters snaps. "Get in the car."
Ray finally unfreezes and jumps to his feet. "Ah, you must be Reggie's dad," he says, taking a step towards the man and trying for a friendly smile. "I'm Ray, we were helping Reg-"
"I don't care who you are," Rob Peters barks. He takes a few steps forward and grabs Reggie by the arm. "We're going home, kid."
And then they're gone before Ray can get another word out. Reggie manages a little wave over his shoulder. Ray slowly turns back to his family to find them all staring after Reggie as well. Rose glances back at him and their eyes lock.
Ray knows they're in agreement. They're going to mention this to Victoria soon.
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