KISS: Road Trip

Ch 50: Of Course You Need Help (Paul)

I walked into Gene's house after a desperate call from him begging me to help with Nick since Shannon was out of town. He was sitting in the living room with Nick, looking absolutely exhausted. Grinning, I sat next to him. "Big old tough guy Gene Simmons is totally, 100% putty in Nick's hands." His face turned red as he bounced Nick on his knee, giving his son a smile before giving me a scowl. "Shut up. If you have kids you'll understand," he muttered, kissing Nick on the forehead.

"I'm just messing with you! It's cute how much you love your family though. And...it's nice to see you happy," I said after a pause. He gave me a soft smile as Nick tried to crawl up his shirt. "It's nice to see you. I really am sorry for what I did. I'm just...I'm glad you're here and you came to find me. I'm glad I'm back in your life and that Nick is able to know all of you guys growing up," he said quietly.

I nodded, heart melting. "Yeah. Me too." Gene looked at Nick, who was chewing on one of his toys and drooling everywhere. "You're a mess, you know that?" he said with a fond smile. "You wanna go see your godfather?"

Nick, of course, didn't respond, being a small infant after all, but Gene still handed him off to me. I was definitely not as good with handling babies as he was and just awkwardly held Nick in my arms as he flailed his arms about and chattered excitedly. "He really is a cute baby," I said, watching as Nick did his best to eat my shirt. "Yeah. It's weird, man, it's really wild having a kid. Like...like that's my son, that's my kid. I made that. And I didn't even realize I could love someone this much."

Later that night, after Nick was asleep, Gene walked into the guest room, sitting on the edge of my bed. "Hey I need to...um..." He trailed off, face turning red, and I looked at him in confusion. "You good? Is everything okay?" I asked, setting aside my phone. He took a deep breath, handing me an envelope. "That's for you. I wish I had been able to give it to you sooner," he mumbled. "I'm sorry."

Bewildered, I pulled open the envelope, counting exactly $295. "I'm so confused. What is this for?" "That's twenty dollars you spotted me so I could get my girlfriend a corsage for senior prom and the 275 I stole from you sophomore year because I lost half my money for rent and I didn't know what to do," he said sadly.

I sat all the way up, giving him a hug. "Gene, you didn't have to. It was five years ago, seven years ago, you didn't have to pay me back." His face grew even redder. "I shouldn't have stolen from you. You gave me a loan and I paid it back." I smiled in spite of myself. "Now see, that's the Gene I know and love. That's the Gene I've missed." He hugged me back, letting out a weak laugh. "Sorry. I'm sorry for everything. I'm sorry I hurt you and if...if I could take back everything I ever did I would."

"Gene, it's okay, really, it is." "I...I did so much to hurt you, I messed up so many times, I don't...I don't deserve you as a friend." "It's okay, really, it is, I swear!" But he just shook his head, sitting back. "I-I mean what the hell was I thinking?! I sabotaged our friendship so many times! Like like with Cher and when I got jealous of you and Ace being happy together and everything I did these past five years and never trusting you as much as you deserved and not...not giving you the same love you gave me and I'm sorry, I really am, I really never meant to hurt you and I'm sorry I ever did," he choked, tears spilling over and rolling down his face.

I grabbed his shirt, pulling him into a tight hug, burying my face in his shoulder. "Stop. Just stop. Shut up Gene. You have been my brother since we were babies. You were always there for me, you always helped me with whatever I was dealing with, no matter what you were going through yourself. I can't thank you enough, and you know damn well I've messed up just as many times as you have. But it doesn't matter because we've both messed up and we've both made up."

"Y-yeah. Thanks Paul," he said softly. "Anyway I'm gonna...I'm gonna go to bed, I'm really tired. It feels like it's still not real though, you know? Like I'm...I'm a dad. I have a son and he's my kid and it just doesn't--I still can't believe it. I'm still kind of scared though. I'm still afraid of being a bad father and not being able to be there for Nick the way he needs me to."

Smiling, I slipped an arm around his shoulders. "Gene. Shut up. You're already a great dad. You love your wife and your son with your whole heart and you'd do anything to keep them safe and happy. You just need to take a deep breath and realize you've got this and you're gonna be fine and you're going to be a great dad. And also get some sleep, because you look exhausted."

He grinned back, rising to his feet. "Sounds like a plan. Night man."

Shrill crying echoed through the house like twenty minutes later. I waited for Gene to take care of him, but Nick just kept crying. "Alright, guess it's time for me to fulfill my godfather duties and take care of the baby," I muttered, sliding out of bed.

Stifling a yawn, I walked down the hall only to find Gene sitting on the stairs, fast asleep with his head on his knees. Raising an eyebrow, I nudged him with my foot. "Hey. Wake up. Your baby's crying." He lifted his head, squinting at me. "Wh-what?" "Your son. He's crying. He's awake," I repeated.

Gene stumbled to his feet, staggering up the stairs without a word. Shaking my head with a smile, I headed back to bed, a little grateful I didn't have any kids to take care of yet.

"Paul. Breakfast is on the table if you want it."

I opened my eyes and looked at Gene, who was leaning against the door frame. "Sounds good. What'd you make?" He shook his head, dark circles under his eyes. "Cereal. Oh, there's like toast too and stuff."

"You look like shit," I said with a grin, sliding out of bed. He shook his head again, yawning. "Shut up. I got like no sleep last night." "You slept on the stairs," I retorted. "Shut up. I sat down for one second and then just...that was it. I vastly underestimated how much having a kid wears you out."  I grinned, shaking my head. "To be honest man, I'm surprised you don't already have a bunch of those with the amount of girls you've slept with." He laughed, rolling his eyes. "Shut up. I was careful about that, the only reason Nick is here is because me and Shannon wanted a kid."

I fixed myself a bowl of cereal, sitting next to Nick, who was eating some Cheerios. "Well, he is a cute kid," I said, smiling at Nick, who smiled back. "That he is. I really wish Shannon was here to help though. Didn't realize how much of a handful he can be. Thanks for all the help, seriously Paul."

"Hey, any time!" I said cheerfully.