Pyroclast
Add alcohol and stir!
The Loch Inn Pub
~ Fort William, Scotland ~
~ Fort William, Scotland ~
Alicia & Eddie Miller (Shona & Eddie King)
“Yesss!” Eddie cheered. “I wanna see ya’ knock him out! Can I go see Logan’s fight, mum?”
Shona looked at Logan and Spencer. “If they let kids into that sorta’ thing,” she said with a hint of uncertainty. “And if your dad goes with ya’. ‘Cause I ain’t goin’ - I’d hate to see Logan get hurt, I just couldn’t watch that…”
“It’s alright, mum, he won’t get hurt,” Eddie replied with confidence, turning to Logan with a grin. “‘Cause he’s gonna win!”
Spencer then clarified that he was going to set Logan up with some higher level opponents, and the pair started bantering with one another, with the Scot ending up speaking rhyming cockney slang in his best accent. Eddie laughed heartily, his mouthful of pie almost falling from his mouth. The attention turned to Lottie when Spencer realised she hadn’t started her dinner yet, and once the table fell quiet, the girl took her turn to speak. She suggested to Logan that he should have kids so that she and Eddie could play with them and babysit. Shona swallowed her mouthful and set her knife and fork down, glancing at Logan with caution to see if her comment was affecting him. It was a sore subject all year round, but poor Lottie didn’t know what that particular day meant for Logan.
“You’re just sayin’ that so you’ll have someone to boss around,” Eddie pointed out. “But I’ll still be the oldest, so I’ll always get to tell you what to do!”
Lottie asked Shona if they could help Logan find a girlfriend, but before she could work out how to respond, the girl knocked her glass of juice all over Eddie’s dinner and then onto the floor where it smashed. Spencer and Logan jumped into action immediately, with one sweeping up the glass and the other fetching tea towels.
Eddie just looked down in shock at his ruined dinner before Shona took it away. “It’s alright, love, this recipe always makes six portions,” she assured him, worried he might get upset with his sister and make everything worse. “I’ll get you a fresh plate - you just stay there, alright?”
That was enough to pacify Eddie, and so he started mopping up the mess with a tea towel that Logan had handed him. A quick glance to Lottie showed him that she was crying. “It’s okay, Lottie,” he said. “Don’t cry. It’s fine. I know you didn’t mean it, you’re just clumsy.”
“Eddie,” Shona warned him, passing him a fresh plate of food and Lottie a fresh glass of juice.
“Um, I already ate my vegetables,” he attempted.
“No you ain’t!” Shona retorted, and Eddie gave a playful sigh and turned back to his food, leaving Shona to console Lottie. “Don’t cry, love, everything’s okay now, look. Glass is swept up, your brother’s got his food, you’ve got your juice. Nothin’ to cry about, okay, sweet pea?” She hugged the child from behind, kissing her on the head and gently rubbing her chest to help calm her down.
It was when she stood up that she realised Logan was hovering and looking almost tearful. He told her he ought to go, and backed out of the room. But she couldn’t just let him leave on his own.
“Nathan,” she uttered to her husband. “You got this? I need to just…” and she gestured towards the door, bringing to his attention that Logan had left. Given that both she and Spencer knew how hard this day was, she figured that he would know what she was trying to say.
With Spencer taking care of the kids, Shona slipped out of the room to find Logan at the top of the stairs, gripping onto the banister.
“Logan?” she asked softly, approaching his side and placing a gentle hand on his back. He looked like he was on the verge of tears and her heart ached for him. Turning into him, she opened her arms to invite him into a close hug. “Come ‘ere, love,” she whispered. “We can go talk somewhere if you like?”
Interactions
Misty Gray Spencer, Lottie, Logan