Press Release

39: Slow Release

Tuesday morning I decide to get back into my routine. Having made my list for the day, I start off with a jog before heading off to workout. Today it's weight work, and I'm relieved to be able to get back to lifting. Throughout promo these last two weeks, I've neglected my weightlifting so it takes a little while for me to work back up to what I had been used to.

I grab a coffee afterwards, and I'm sure some damn pap snapped photos of me in my beanie and workout clothes. But that's my life.

Once I'm home, showered and changed, I look over my list. Turns out it's not even ten in the morning, and I've done everything on the list. Planting my chin in my hands, I look around the room. Think, Harry. Think. What else do I need to be doing?

Is it bad that the first thing that pops into my mind is Minnie? I could definitely be doing Minnie. After we'd made love yesterday, we'd showered together and watched a movie. After dinner, though, I figured it would be weird if I just stayed there forever as though I had moved in. Daisy cried when I got in the lift to go downstairs. Perhaps Minnie did, too, but she was busy shushing Daisy and burying her face in the dog's fur so I can't be sure.

Making my way to the music room, I sit at the piano and start trying to compose some of the new thoughts from my journal.

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The rush of disappointment that flows through Xavier when he wakes up in the morning is new to him. Yesterday's "family day" had been lovely, as they had made pink "pop-porn" and enjoyed the movie.

First they'd popped some popcorn in X's air popper. Then on the stove, Meg had mixed together some sugar, milk, corn syrup and salt. It looked disgusting, and there was so much sugar in it, but this was what the kid wanted, so Xavier didn't argue. It couldn't get worse, but then Meg added in vanilla and red food coloring and poured the goopy mess all over the popcorn, drying it on some waxed paper.

Xavier had not been excited by the prospect of tasting the stuff, but then during the movie, Titus had climbed into his lap, stuffing a piece of popcorn into his mouth. Prepared to hate it, Xavier was quite surprised to find that it was tasty. Picking up the bowl, he'd held both the bowl and Titus in his lap while they watched the movie, munching away on "pink pop-porn".

Meg's eyes could not seem to focus on the large screen in Xavier's entertainment room. Instead, they kept shifting to where her son and her -- boss? boyfriend? friend? -- were treasuring each other. She felt envy rear up, but she wasn't sure if she was jealous of Titus for getting to snuggle with Xavier or Xavier for stealing all of the Titus love.

After a dinner of homemade mac and cheese (which is about the time that Xavier recognized he'd better start working out regularly with Harry if he was going to be eating like this all the time), Titus had gotten cranky.

And although Xavier was prepared to get frustrated by the childish whining, he found that instead, he was patient with the boy. After all, he'd been the same, not wanting to go to sleep for fear he would miss something. Suddenly, Xavier had an idea. Picking up Titus and handing him to his mother, Xavier pulled over a chair and started to tell Titus a story. The boy's eyes opened wide, and he got sleepy the more he heard. Xavier pulled upon all of his acting skills, using a variety of voices and facial expressions to convey the full array of emotions. There were a few times when the child would start to wake up slightly, but then he would doze again, his head lolling against Meg's chest, so finally Xavier said, "THE. END."

Titus barely woke as Xavier took him from his mom, carrying the child out to her car and buckling him into his car seat. As the final buckle was being tightened (and Xavier was feeling quite proud of himself for not needing assistance in putting the child in the seat), Titus sleepily opened his eyes. He reached out and patted Xavier's cheek and slurred, "I lob you."