Being a dad has its perks, far too many to count. The Am-I men knew this very well. The McWinkle men knew this too.
Sam-I-Am and his stepfather Grinch were new to this.
Sam had his daughter Molly for half a year now and he loved her more than every fiber of his being. Had you asked him a year ago if he ever imagined himself as a father, he probably would've laughed at the idea. Mostly even saying "I could barely raise myself, let alone my own kid!" But now that he actually is a dad, he laughs at his own naïveté.
In near-identical circumstances was Grinch. He pretty much became a dad around the same time as Sam, becoming one as soon as he started dating Pam. Melanie entered the picture once again and promoted him to father of two. After adopting Jenny, she made three. In addition, Molly, Terry and, the latest member of the family, Mikaela also became his grandchildren.
——
On this day, Sam was feeling especially excited. It meant he could show all the love to his baby girl.
He awoke to Gluntz lying on his chest, her eyes locked on his. "Happy Father's Day, babe", she greets him and kisses him.
"Thanks!", he responds with an ear to ear grin. He reaches up, runs his fingers through her hair and down to her cheek. "I love you."
"I love you too."
They touch their foreheads together, enraptured by each other's gaze, and they kiss again.
They were interrupted when Molly tugged Sam's cheek tuft. She babbled happily and giggled.
"I see you, Molly! Daddy loves you too!" He picks her up and cuddles his cheek against hers before peppering it with kisses. "You ready to spend the day with Daddy?"
"And Mommy?", Gluntz adds in. "And Grandma? And Grandpa? And everyone else?"
Molly giggles.
——
After a good breakfast, the family of three played on the carpet in the living room. Molly was lying on her back, messing with the various stuffed animals hanging from a mobile. Sam and Gluntz couldn't help but mess with it too.
"We need one of these above our bed", Sam suggested.
"I know! Babies get all the cool stuff!"
A knock came from the door.
"I'll get it!"
Sam opened the door and found Gluntz's parents on the doorstep.
"Gerry! Lee!"
"Hi, Sam!" Lianna hugs her future son-in-law. "Happy Father's Day!"
"Thank you!" Then he gets a high five from Gerald.
"Enjoying your first dad day, Sam?", Gerald asked endearingly.
"So far, yep! Gluntz and I are just spending time with Molly in the living room." He sighs and says, "My sweet wittle peach."
Lianna puts her hands on her heart and smiles at her husband.
"Come in! Almost slipped my mind!" Sam led them inside.
Lianna put her hands on her heart again watching her daughter and granddaughter playing in the living room.
"Mom! Dad!" Gluntz shot up and ran toward them.
"Boobaloo!" The two women hugged.
"Hi, honey-bunny", Gerald greeted when his daughter hugged him.
In the meantime, Molly realized that both of her parents weren't nearby. Then she began to cry.
"Oh no! Molly!" Sam hurried over to her, picked her up and held her close. "I didn't mean to leave you like that, little peach. Daddy loves you." He kissed her cheek and wiped her eyes with his thumb.
"Mommy loves you too, baby", Gluntz added in, kissing her daughter's other cheek. "Ready to have fun with Grandpa and Grandma?"
Speaking of whom, the older couple grinned softly at what'd transpired.
"You handled that very well", Gerald complimented the two.
"Thanks, Dad", Gluntz replied.
Then, in the foyer, someone said "Hey, everyone!"
It was Pam, and Grinch was just behind her, cradling Jenny in his arms.
"Mom!"
"Wanted to see you on your first Father's Day, Sam. Plus Jenny wanted to see her big brother today."
"I wanna see my brother too."
In came Melanie with Mikaela in her carrier.
"Hi, Mel!"
She smiles.
——
Not long after, the Am-I's popped in as well. The adults conversed in the living room while the children shared Molly's toys. Mikaela, still too little to be able to play, was kept under the watchful eye of E.B. Junior didn't have time to show envy to his sister showing love to someone other than himself; he was too preoccupied by Molly sharing her stuffed animals.
At the dinner table, Sam and Grinch were seated right next to each other with Guy, Gerald, Jack and his dad flanking them on each side. The women sat opposite to them on the other side of the table.
"Sam, Grinch? Enjoying your first Father's Day?", Michellee asked.
"Yep!", the former replied giddily.
Grinch nodded softly.
"You seem pretty...unsure, Grinch", Michellee noted, "Is something bothering you?"
He shrugged. "It does seem a bit silly, especially since I suggested adopting Jenny. But, the thing is...I'm...scared sometimes."
"Scared?", Guy parroted. The green man nodded. "What for?"
"I'm not sure yet. I'm just scared something could go wrong in Jenny's life and it'll be all my fault."
"But you can't think that way, honey!", Pam exclaimed. "Jenny loves you! I know she does!"
"Would she ever forgive me if I failed her at all?"
"Grinch", Guy began, "it's not smart to worry about that. Making mistakes and learning from them is all a part of living. If you tried patching up something that was never broken, it'd take all the fun, for lack of a better term, out of simpler pleasures. Believe me. I used to be afraid of taking chances."
"As was I", Michellee added. "It's not really something I like to revisit, but things will always look up at some point."
——
After their Father's Day meal, Melanie had her own little chat with Grinch.
"How is it, Mellie?"
"Good. I just wanted to ask you something."
"What is it?"
The young woman shifted on her feet and then asked, "I always...wondered...maybe you and I could spend some time together? I'm grateful to have you as a dad."
"Of course, dear. What do you say to Jenny joining us, make it a little father-daughter time with both of you?"
Melanie smiled. "That's even better." And then she hugged him.
