as it is

"You can't know that. I didn't even see you there were so many people," Sky sighs, running a frustrated hand through her hair. The first person after she'd managed to get to Diego with Brie that she saw was Robbie. And whether she wanted to admit it or not, she'd wished for a moment that it was Wes. Robbie was a close friend and someone that she admired greatly. But Wes was intertwined in her life no matter what he did or didn't do. She wished Wes had been there to comfort Diego. "It shouldn't be complicated. You should be staying alive."

"I wouldn't have let anything happen to him. Or you." He promised again. Yeah, there was a lot of chaos at the party, but he would have killed someone if he needed to to protect his family. Wes wasn't a dark guy but he'd really do anything for his little family. They may not have been the most conventional family but they were still a family. "You guys were the first thing on my mind."

Sky stays silent while she places a few more of the rogue toys into the basket before finally sighing and giving up on the task. "Yeah, sure," she agrees, figuring the toys could stay everywhere for another hour. Sitting on the couch, grabbing the remote, Sky curls her legs into herself. She bites her lower lip for a minute, barely even looking at the TV as it sits awaiting her command and Wes awaits her answer. Her brown eyes turn to Wes, finally letting the view of the TV go from her focus. "Diego could've got hurt, Wes," she says, where the words 'you could've gotten hurt' linger somewhere behind them. Maybe if her eyes tell the story, she won't have to. "You guys are going to go after them, aren't you?" she asks. It's common sense. Blood for blood and there would be plenty of that before the end of the blows, she's sure.

If he didn't know any better, he would think that she was pissed at him and at the situation. He couldn't tell for sure though. Bringing Diego into that, it hurt him. Talking about their son, thinking about the fact that he could've gotten hurt. Civilian's weren't supposed to get hurt, anyways. And kids? Hell no. Maybe that's what he told himself to make himself feel better about the situation. "I wouldn't have let him get hurt. You know that, right? Or you." He cared about his family. They might not have been the most conventional family in the world but that didn't matter. He'd protect both of them, even if Sky didn't need the protecting. "It's more complicated than that, Sky. The less you know the better." Staying in the dark was better for her. "Y'all scared the fuck outta me when I couldn't find you at first. I dunno what I'd do if anything happened to either of you."

“Nah man, that’s just you —“ Andy laughs, reaching over to ruffle Wes’s hair. “It’s coverin’ up your lumpy fuckin’ head. Sparin’ all the kids here a few nightmares.” Moments like this remind him of being a kid, him and Wes terrorizing one another purely for shits and giggles. He’d enjoyed whenever the other man came to visit Andy while he was in prison, given the way he could always bring a certain comedic relief with him — Even if it was unintentional sometimes. “Careful talkin’ about my big head while Ma is around, she’ll have your ass for talkin’ shit on her baby boy,” Andy warns with a chuckle, though they both know there’s no heat behind it. 

"Ain't my fault I've fallen so many times, I got dropped on my head a lotta times." Which was totally true even if his mom never admitted it. "I know she will. Her precious boy. Be careful, she might go for pinchin' your cheeks." Though sometimes he wished that he had a mom who would do that, let alone a mom that actually cared about him. Not that he had seen his in years to be honest. "It'd be an honor to get my ass kicked by Rhea."

@wesleycvans

If he needed a pick me up, he'd either drink or want to play with Diego. His son literally lit his world up. And hanging with Sky after Diego went to bed was common somewhat.

"Y'know what, surprising that doesn't make it any better," she cringes, brows pulling together tightly. "In fact, I think it makes it worse?" The whole thing makes her stomach turn, but she can't say it's the worst thing Wes has ever done — or that it comes as a surprise at all. She remembers a time vividly when they were fourteen and he'd been dared to eat a worm someone had found in the school parking lot. He'd done it before she even had time to think about stopping him, and nothing has surprised her since. "You need to learn how to say no to a dare," she hums, shaking her head. "You're a grown man now, Wes. Not a frat boy who needs cool points — and especially not with the boys." Benny already thinks his Uncle Wes is almost the coolest person he knows, second only to his big brother and she knows Diego loves his father too.

Somehow they always had conversations like this, with Rowan telling him not to do something and Wes not knowing why she wouldn't want him to do it. "If someone dares me, I can't say no. I could get called like a pussy. Or worse, they'll triple dog dare me." And that was a good enough reason for him. "I always need cool points with the boys. I want Benny to know that I'm the cool uncle always." If that meant eating a fly, he'd eat like as many as he needed to.

Admittedly, most of the time Sky just called Diego her kid. The "we" was no more and certainly Wes could only claim him because of the blood shared between him and Diego. He tried, which is what was important, though Sky finds herself bitter, even while laying next to Wes in a mess of a bed. But when Wes said things like 'you deserve some alone time' despite his actions, she finds herself weak, overtaking the bitterness at the drop of a hat. "I appreciate that," she mentions, though she's already contemplating what time her she'll go into the Dive on her day off.

"You know I got your back, right? Like we're a team and if you need a break and want a break, I gotchu." Maybe it didn't seem like that but he was offering to help out in anyway for her to get a break with her raising his kid. "Margs are fancy as fuck. They all got the salt on the rims, that's some fancy shit right there." He insisted, "And a Paloma's at least mixing it up." Maybe it was the pot calling the kettle black considering Wes' go to was beer and and whiskey. "Yep. Beer for me. I got beer from this new brewery just outta town. I think it's pretty good. They even got like chocolate flavors but I kept those at home."

"I can tell," Andy notes, putting a hold on his teasing for a moment. All jokes aside, he was proud of his best friend -- Parenthood had it's ups and downs, but Andy knew how much Wes loved his son, the lengths he'd go to for the four year old. Diego was a good kid, clearly inheriting his father's best qualities. "My hair isn't oily, asshole." Eyes roll, smacking the other man's hand away. "Oh, I fuckin' know how much you love sayin' I got a big head. One of the CO's told me 'bout you askin' for 'Big Head Andy' at the state pen." The joke was annoying, but it never failed to pull a smile from him. "Least I'm not shittin' myself, Skidmark." He remarks, laughing lightly at the mention of Wes' childhood nickname.

"What do you call it then? Thick and oily?" He teased, though the other man really did have nice hair. No male patterned baldness was happening for Andy. "Maybe if you didn't have such a big head, I wouldn't have referred to you as that. It's not my fault that you do." At least the only thing wrong with Andy was that his head was too big. "That was one time." It was actually more than one time. "We're lucky my mom potty trained me, man."

Sky was both irritated by Wes and she worried about his ass constantly. They'd been in each other's lives for going on a decade so it's hard, even years after the breakup to not lecture him or push him to be better. And maybe her hoping for him to stop drinking like he does or to stop fucking around with the tramps around the Club isn't ever going to change him but she's damn sure not going to stop trying to help. "Nights off mean less money for your kid, Wes," she reminds him. Ever since she's become a mom, Diego has been her number one priority over everything and everyone-- including herself. Sky follows him to the alcohol, as if she'd choose something different from her usual margarita but she gives it some thought, leaning over the table for a second. She gags at the sound of sangria, especially one made by the prospects. It probably had rotting fruit that they didn't want to throw away and instead served it to idiots. "I'll have a... margarita," she says, standing straight up and smiling at him like it's their own personal joke. "Are you surprised?" she asks with a grin. "But I'm only having one."

"Why is he only my kid when you're pointin' that out?" He let out a little chuckle, "This Club stuff, it pays, you know? I can always just chip in more." He didn't want to offend her when it came to Diego, knowing that she put everything into raising him. And he was very very thankful for that. "You just deserve some time. Like alone time with no one hanging off your leg."

"If you say so, man. M'pretty Sky's genes were the stronger ones, considerin' your kid doesn't look like a fuckin' troll." Andy laughs loudly at his own joke, eyes rolling. They never missed a chance to mock each other -- It'd been that way for over twenty years. "Your big ass nose is just the tip of the iceberg. I got plenty'a time if ya want me to keep goin'." He continues, eyes rolling at the big head comment. "I been away for six fuckin' years and that's still your go-to, man? I would'a thought you'd have new material by now." Andy sips his drink as Wes speculates about their kids futures. He can only hope Benny and Diego end up being best friends, in the same way Maddie and Iris immediately took to one another. Sure, the boys weren't blood related -- But they were basically cousins at this point. "Hope so." He nods with a small smile, sipping his drink. "I can't believe you got a kid, man." Andy states with a shake of his head, still finding it odd to step back and look at the big picture. He'd known Wes since they were kids -- Sure, Andy got an unexpected head start on parenthood, but it was interesting to see Wes step into the role. It was exciting, too. "M'surprised Ro hasn't ripped your head off in the last couple'a years, not havin' me as a buffer for your annoying ass."

"And he's as sharp as a fuckin' knife." Much different than he was growing up. Diego was already a fucking genius, knowing two languages and shit. "At least I don't got that oily hair of yours." He teased, pointing to Andy's locks. "It's always gonna be my go to. Your head is abnormally huge. I bet your helmet's gotta be custom ordered." At least his best friend could rock it.

Sky was admittedly tired of arguing. It was the same song and dance every time. She would get mad, nothing would change and they would be on the outs for however long it took for her to calm down. She couldn't be mad forever, it was just exhausting-- and they only had the rest of their lives to be mad, stuck together by the little boy they shared. "Don't do it to prove a point," she warns, knowing that that would only end in her having even more full custody of Diego and he would have no dad, which is definitely not something Sky wants. Taking a deep breath, trying to remind her to be the bigger person, tapping her fingertips against her arm as she shrugs. "Yeah, sure, fine. Just let me know what day. I'll pick up a shift." Money was always tight so having an extra night of work would set her up with at least some wiggle room. "Are you going to offer me a drink or are you just going to change our schedule around and send me on my way?"

"'M not. I'm just tryin' to not be an asshole is all." Anytime he was, he truly was trying to not be one. It was just hard balancing family, drinking, and the club. "Why don't you just give yourself the night off from everything instead of pickin' up a shift?" Maybe it was just him but if he could have a full night off, he'd take it. "It's not like you get many of 'em." She was definitely more of Diego's caretaker than him. He didn't want to say she was the sole caretaker but she definitely took on more than him when it came to their child. "I figured you were gonna hang, didn't realize I needed to offer you a drink too." His tone was light as he wandered on over to the array of alcohol. "What can I do for ya? Just don't try the Sangria, I think one of the prospects made it and it smells like shit."

Even with the age difference between Benny and Diego, they get along well enough. Rowan is pretty sure Benny just likes having someone younger than him around, seeing as he's the baby in their family by a pretty substantial difference. It's cute, though, and Rowan's glad that they like hanging out seeing as they're as close to family as they can get without actually sharing a bloodline. She's not surprised in the slightest by what Wes says, brows furrowing together and nose scrunching in disgust. "You drank a fly?" She asks, wishing she could be surprised. "You're fucking gross, Wes."

"It was dead, it wasn't alive." He defended his actions, "I can't disappoint the kids, Ro." Who hadn't eaten a fly before on a dare? He had been called worse before, though. At the mention of her saying his memory is worse, she was right. To be honest, there had been a few birthdays where if no one had mentioned it to him, he would've forgotten the date. It happens. "Damn, why you gotta roast me like that?" He asked, frowning at her. "What'd I ever do to you besides accidentally fall asleep on your couch?"

starter for: @wesleycvans when + where: ma's birthday party, the mc clubhouse

"He takes after me, being cute and all. No one can say no to that cute lil face of his. But y'know, Sky's got a lot to do with it too." It was like old times for the two of them, making fun of each other and shit. "Big nose is graspin' at straws, man. We're lucky Benny wasn't born with your big fuckin' head. He's got a normal head." And Andy did have a big head. He'd die on that hill. Wes was already a few beers in, hoping he made sense. "Wonder if your kid and mine are gonna be just like us when they grow up." Besties forever. "We've missed you around here, doing things like this. I can only annoy Ro for so long before it starts to get old."

Sky purses her lips, unsure why she was at all surprised. Hell, she can't even figure out why she'd asked it. Wes' drinking was one of the reasons that they had broken up in the first place and now it was one of the reasons that they fight. Staring at Wes, her eyes never leaving him as she speaks to Diego. "Stay with Benny, baby. You don't go anywhere without telling momma, okay?" she says, her voice raising as he sprints away. But as the boy leaves, her hands cross over her chest at Wes. "Yeah, I'll take him home. I'm not leaving him here if you're staying in the dorms," Sky says, trying to keep herself from getting too mad. She should expect this, shouldn't she? And Wes wasn't hers to babysit anymore. "Wouldn't want to ruin your day, Wes," she sighs. An annoyed hand runs through her hair as she lets her gaze finally fall.

At least they waited to argue about this until after Diego had ran off. "Depends how I am tonight. If I think I can ride home I'll ride home." Though he'd probably do it anyways against his better judgment. "It's not like that." He insisted. "It's just, this is a party, y'know." And the last thing he wanted to do was put Diego in harms way by doing something dumb if he was under his car for the night. He could tell she was annoyed with him and he immediately regretted his answer but she had asked and he gave her an honest answer. "You wanna give me him another day next week then?"

@wesleycvans

Wes smiled as Diego virtually ran into him, hugging the child that was now on his legs. He was happy to have both Sky and Diego here, both special to him in different ways. "I'm sure Benny's waiting to play with you, buddy," Though there was an age gap with them, they were still around each other a lot thanks to Rowan and himself. He pressed a kissed on top of Diego's head and let him go so that he could go run off, making sure to keep an eye on him anyways. "You should probably take him home." He figured he'd end up getting drunk as a skunk, unable to take care of his son, "If that's cool." Even after four years, they still had not gotten this whole co-parenting thing down. He knew it was supposed to be his day with him, but this was different right? "He could stay in one of the dorms with me for the night."