Baby Lee 33

T W E L V E

Lee's POV
"Stampy, are you sure you want to fetch everyone?" Amy asked skeptically. "There's a storm coming soon, and I would feel horrible if you were to get hurt, or worse, killed."

Stampy brushed off Amy's concern with a wave of the paw. "I'll be fine! I'm taking Squid with me, and he can swim marvelously! I'll be fine!" he assured. I sighed, wrapping an arm around Amy's waist.

"Alright... But seriously, be careful. We'll most likely be forced to have the wedding immediately after you return in order for you all to attend. So don't be alarmed if you're thrown into a suit and taken to the beach as soon as you arrive," I told him with a laugh, switching between feet on the public dock.

He and Squid laughed as they walked across the wooden platform and onto the boat. "Don't worry, Leematoad! We'll be fine!" Then he honked the horn to bid us goodbye. We all waved towards them, and they waved back as Stampy pulled out of the dock and in the opposite direction towards our world.

Ali sighed as soon as they left. "They better return safely. The open sea isn't the safest place to be when on a boat." "They'll be fine, Mum. Don't worry," Lynn assured her quickly. "They know what they're doing. They may not act like it, but they do," I said with a laugh.

Everyone else laughed, but Tyson simply grimaced. "Dad, are you alright?" Amy asked, glaring discretely at her father. He nodded quickly. "Of course, Amy! I've never been better." I frowned to myself as she nodded, not believing him in the slightest.

"So, what now? Until they return, we can't have the wedding," Rosie questioned. "We should get planning and stuff like that. Figure out who here is going to go, since everyone at the Lovely World will go," Finnball replied with a shrug.

"That's smart. I'm positive that Aunt Carmen and her kids will wish to go. She's always been that person," Amy said with a frown. "Is she one of those overconfident people?" I asked, fighting back a laugh, and she and Lynn nodded.

"She's very loud, and obnoxious, and nosy, but she's genuine if she wants to me," Lynn told me. "Sounds pleasant," I mumbled, a hint of sarcasm in my voice. "Let's ignore all of this about Aunt Carmen, and let's focus on things like the decorations, the entertainment, the food-"

Amy instantly interrupted Ali with a thrilled expression. "Food? Lots and lots of food, right?" We all bursted into laughter - except for Tyson, of course - at Amy's food obsession, and she crossed her arms across her chest.

"What? I'm pregnant; I'm gonna eat a lot!" she defended, and that only made us laugh harder. Finally, we composed ourselves, and I noticed Tyson staring at me. "Hey, can I speak to you in private at the house?" His deep voice scared me slightly, and I nodded quickly. "S-sure, of course. I'll be right back, babe," I said to Amy, and she nodded, pecking my lips with a smile.

"Don't be too long; we'll need your help with some stuff," she said seriously, and I nodded. "I won't be. See you all later." I turned to see Tyson nearly all the way off the dock, and I ran quickly to catch up with him, nearly running into him when I did. He turned around and glared at me a little, and I slinked back a bit sheepishly.

Oops.

We finally arrived back at the house, and he led me into the kitchen and patted on one of the barstools. "Have a seat." I obeyed without a word, and he walked to the fridge and pulled out a single tall bottle of beer.

Tyson didn't phase me as the drinking type, but he placed the bottle on the counter gently. "Want one?" "No sir," I declined, and he nodded, closing the fridge and sitting on a barstool across from me. "So, Lee is it?"

"Yes sir," I answered, and he chuckled, popping the cap of his beer and taking a small sip. "Nice name. And cut the 'sir' crap; it makes feel even older than I already am. It's simply Tyson." I nodded, and he rested an elbow on the counter. "So... You're wanting to marry my little girl? My princess?"

"If that's alright, then yes," I replied with a small smirk. "Why are you asking?" "Because I want to make sure that you're good for Amy. You must love her loads; she seems very happy." I smiled to myself, and he continued. "I'm guessing that Lynn told you about Amy's future royalty?"

I nodded. "She said Amy doesn't want to rule." Tyson nodded with a frown. "That's true, very true. But she knows she has no other option, and it's unfortunate for her to have to do this. I mean, it's my daughter; I want her to be happy with her life."

"Can she just pass it on to Lynn?" I asked, and she shook his head. "Amy has to be dead for that to work, and I doubt any of us wish for her to be dead." "Of course not." He took another swig of his drink.

"Look, Lee, I'm sorry about my attitude while you've been a guest in my home. It's just that I haven't really been the best father towards her when it comes to boys. I've never approved of her boyfriends, but..." He gave a small smile. "I could get used to calling you my son, Lee."

"Thank you, Tyson. I'll care for her until I die," I promised, and he nodded. "I bet you will. Now, this baby thing... Congratulations, for one thing. It's very exciting." I nodded. "It is. I'm nervous about it though..." "Why?" Tyson asked with a surprise expression.

"What if I'm not a good father? I mean, I want to make her and my child, or children, as happy as they can possibly be, but I can't do that if I don't know what I'm doing. Any advice?" He chuckled, sipping his beer and placing a hand on my shoulder.

"I felt the same way when I married Ali. She was so gorgeous, I couldn't possibly let her down! I had gotten her pregnant when we were teens, with both girls. I had to be supportive, unlike her family. That's why Carmen is so nosy; she wants to judge Ali for something she's done wrong."

"Ali seems like an amazing mother. Why would Carmen want to spoil that?" I questioned, and he shrugged. "I'm guessing it's because of Ali's royalty. She's very jealous, which I don't blame her for. But that's aside the point." He placed his hands on the table with a serious expression on his face.

"I made her happy by spending as much time with her as I possibly could, gave her as much love as I could during the pregnancies, as well as the royalty thing. She was surprised when I told her I was part of the royal family. But I helped as much as I could."

"Would it work?" I asked. "Her mood swings and cravings and the stresses of the wedding may put her on edge." "But that's the thing!" Tyson exclaimed. "You help her get through that. Ali thought I would leave her because of it, so I assured her that I wouldn't, because I loved her more than life!"

I nodded thoughtfully, praying mentally that Tyson was right. "Thank you. I really hope that helps out," I said, and he shook his head. "No need to thank me. Just bring the grandchildren over for visits often; I want to be known as 'the awesome grandpa'."

There was a moment of silence, then we both bursted into a fit of laughter, enjoying Tyson's attempt at a joke, which was actually quite funny indeed. I just hoped that we could keep up this friendship, so he and I could be very close and not hate each other in the end. And at this rate, it seemed like that would happen.