You had to take them to the toy shop.
But we’re getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s rewind a bit, shall we?
The day had begun, as days like this often did, with a small slip of paper left on the kitchen counter. Alanna, Lance’s wife, had already left for the day, out to take care of a number of errands. That much the note she had left made clear. What the note also made clear was that she wouldn’t be able to get everything she needed to done in the time she had because she was only one person and there were only so many hours in the day…so could he please take Zach to go get some new jeans and maybe some shirts, please, thank you, honey?
Lance smiled as he stared over the top of the note at his son. Zach was busily eating away, shoveling down spoonfuls of cereal as he intently watched the latest episode of some cartoon or other on the television. It amazed Lance how even the simple act of watching his son eat could make his heart feel so light, how just being around his boy could bring a smile to his face.
Lance sat down next to his son, running a hand through Zach’s hair. Zach said nothing but moved closer to his father. When the cartoon broke for a commercial, Lance went for his opening.
“Hey, champ. Hows about we have a day out today, just you and me?”
Zach looked back at his father, a mix of eager anticipation and happiness spreading across his face. “Can we do fun stuff, Daddy?”
“Sure. But we’ve also gotta do some not so fun stuff, too.”
No nuclear weapon on earth, Lance swore, could possibly be half as devastating as his son’s pout. “Like what?”
“Well, Mommy’s been telling me how you’re growing up a lot lately.”
Zach returned to smiling again, looking at his father with the unique brand of awe reserved only for the very young. “Just like you, Daddy.”
“That’s right, champ. But when you grow up, you get too big for your old clothes. So, we gotta go and get you some new ones.”
Back to the pout again. “Do we have to?”
Lance scratched his head, pretending to think deeply about his son’s request. “Well, I guess not. We could just send you to school in your old clothes. Or even better…we could just send you with no clothes at all!”
Zach giggled at the idea. “Don’t be silly, Daddy. I can’t go to school with no clothes!”
“I guess not. So, if you’re good when we get you some new clothes, we’ll spend the rest of the day doing fun stuff, okay?”
“Like the movies and pizza and ice cream?”
“Like all of that. Hey, I know…why don’t you get all those cards that you got for your birthday. You know, the ones for the toy shop? We’ll go there today and you can go and get some toys!”
“Yay!”
Zach had been cleaned up, dressed and ready to go faster than he’d ever managed for school, a small stack of gift cards clutched in his right hand. He seemed thrilled beyond belief as Lance scooped Zach up into his arms, his small frame almost vibrating with excitement.
Zach had not stopped speaking once during the entire trip to the mall, keeping up a running monologue about all the cool things he was going to do with his daddy. Lance had merely nodded, occasionally adding a “sure” or “that sounds great” every once in a while. The parking lot had been packed full to bursting, with cars slowly winding their way through the maze in search of the ever elusive open spot. It ended up taking Lance about ten minutes to find a free space but, he noted with a smile, one that had ended up being very close to one of the mall entrances.
The duo’s first stop had been Macy’s. The children’s department had been packed with parents trying to take advantage of a weekend’s freedom to get some shopping done and children in varying states of activity (and, noted Lance with a mild frown, in varying states of behavior). A slim, attractive African-American woman named Serena had been their sales person, making a point of complimenting Zach for being such a handsome and well behaved young man. Zach had blushed at the compliment, smiling and saying “Thank you.”
The process of clothes shopping had been, thought Lance with amazement, relatively painless. While they had to go into slightly higher sizes than Serena had anticipated (that’s my boy, Lance thought), they had quickly found clothing that both fit Zach and met with his approval. As Zach had gone back and forth from the dressing room to try things on, people had approached Lance…some tentatively, some openly. There had been all sorts. Guys asking about Lance’s workout regime, fans approaching for an autograph, mothers remarking on what a handsome young man Zach was. Both Marshall men greeted them all with a smile and a kind word. When someone complimented Zach on how well behaved he was, he replied earnestly “Daddy always says if you’re nice to people, then they’ll be nice back.” This, Lance knew, wasn’t always the case. But for now, there was no need to let Zach believe otherwise.
Three shirts and three pairs of jeans (one of which, at Lance’s insistence, had been Levis as Lance was intent on having Zach appreciate the classics) later, they’d rung up their purchases and bid Serena a find farewell.
The next stop had been the food court where, at Zach’s insistence, the two Marshall men had stopped for pizza: Zach with a slice and a fruit punch, his father with a slice and bottled water. As they ate, they talked about how Zach was doing at school, how cool the new DS that Damien had brought to school was, how Ben 10 was just the coolest show ever…anything and everything that crossed Zach’s mind was fair game for conversation.
Zach’s choice of movie had been Beverly Hills Chihuahua. A film, thought Lance, that he wouldn’t have chosen to go within one hundred feet of…but Zach had been insistent and today was about him. And, if he was forced to admit it, Lance did find himself laughing once or twice. But Zach was having a grand old time through the whole film and that was what really mattered.
On their way out of the mall, they’d stopped off for ice cream: Lance ordering a small chocolate while Zach had opted for a bigger sized cup of chocolate “with sprinkles”. While eating, they once again entered into a conversation they seemed to have every few months: Zach saying how much he wanted to get a dog with Lance responding that he had no objection to getting a dog but that Zach would need to take care of it.
“You’re too little right now for a dog, champ. But I’ll get you one when you’re older, okay?”
“Promise?”
“I promise.” And that seemed to satisfy Zach...for now, anyway.
The aisles at the toy shop were filled to bursting with every type of toy known to man and some, Lance swore, that had probably been invented just that day. Before they’d gone in, Lance had explained to Zach how the cards he held in his hand were like money and he could get whatever he wanted…provided, of course, that Daddy was okay with it. Zach had nodded attentively, eager to get inside and pick out his new toys.
Once inside, Zach had prowled down the aisles, looking at each of the items attentively. Every so often, he would take an item off the shelf and give it a long, thorough going over. Often, he would then put the item back on the shelf but, every once in a while, he would hand the item over to his father to place in the cart. Lance noticed, with approval, that he had not had to veto anything that his son had chosen. Lego Batman and Indiana Jones for the PS3, some Ben 10 toys, a Ben 10 DVD…nothing to object to in there.
As Lance started unloading Zach’s haul at the cash register, Zach gasped and tugged at his father’s pants leg.
“Daddy, I forgot something! Can I go and get it?”
“Do you know where it is, champ?”
“Uh huh.”
“Go ahead. But be quick, okay?”
Zach darted off, a pint sized blur darting through the aisles. As Lance continued unloading the cart, he thought back to days like this that he used to spend with his father. How he’d loved the toys and stuff…but had loved spending time with his dad even more. He hoped Zach felt the same way…
Quicker than he expected, Zach had returned, holding a cardboard box in his hands. He held it up to this father who took it from him to look at it. It looked, thought Lance, like one of those “urban vinyl” toys he’d heard about. But the figure inside the box…was simply unmistakable. He was a favorite of Zach’s in Lego Star Wars and treating Zach to a viewing of the first Star Wars film last week had only confirmed that fact.
The black vest over white tunic, the blaster hanging from his hand, that trademark smirk that the toy makers had somehow managed to make look both cute and yet completely true to the character…as he handed the box over to the cashier, Lance remembered what he had told Zach at the end of the film. All of the characters were cool, Lance had told his son…
…but Han Solo was just that little bit cooler.
As he pulled out of the toy store parking lot and drove onto the highway, Lance thought back on the day gone by. He was a little tired, true…but it was a good kind of tired. He turned his head to look at his son.
“You have a good day today, champ?”
Zach sat in his seat, surrounded by the spoils of his day…sound asleep. Lance chuckled. Yeah, everything else in his life was great. He had no complaints at all. But when it came down to it…
…just give him more days like this.