Elizabeth hung up the cordless phone and turned, hearing a door creak. Ryan, her five year old son, wasn’t sitting on the living room floor watching The Lion King anymore. She didn’t have to wonder where he went though because the open basement door was a clear indicator.

Quickly, she crossed the width of the kitchen, wanting to catch Ryan before he could interrupt JC. The basement was JC’s studio, and he’d been down there for a better part of the day. He’d only come up for meals and a short break.

Elizabeth reached the top of the stairs and paused when she saw that Ryan was just standing a couple feet away from JC, watching him with fascinated eyes. JC, for his part, hadn’t seemed to notice that he had an audience. His forehead was creased as his fingers moved effortlessly across the keys of his keyboard.

Suddenly, JC let out a growl of frustration and the tune abruptly ended. The notes still lingered as he dropped his head into his hands. His shoulders were hunched, and Elizabeth could just imagine the stress that’d settled there.

She wanted to go to him, but she held back. It’d only been a little over a year since they’d gotten married, but she knew from experience that there wasn’t much so could do for him right now. He just needed to be left alone for a while to work through it.

“Daddy,” Ryan said as he tugged at the sleeve of JC’s t-shirt, snapping Elizabeth out of her thoughts. She cursed herself for not getting him out of there before he could interrupt JC.

Elizabeth took a step down and was about to call for Ryan to leave JC alone when JC lifted his head out his hands, turning his head and smiling down at Ryan. “Hey, buddy,” JC greeted, picking up Ryan and setting him in his lap. “What’s up?”

“Nuffin,” Ryan said.

“Nothing, huh?” JC’s long fingers tickled Ryan’s stomach gently, causing him to giggle. “Where’s Mommy?”

Ryan looked up with big, innocent blue eyes and shrugged. “Dunno.”

JC laughed. “Well, shouldn’t we look for her?”

“Nah,” Ryan said. “She can find us. She good at that. She found Sammy.”

Sammy was a teddy bear that JC had given Ryan the first time that they’d met. After they’d had a few dates, Elizabeth had brought JC to her apartment to meet her son. They’d clicked almost instantly, and Ryan hadn’t let that bear get far since.

“What are you doing?” Ryan asked before JC could say anything.

“Writing a song,” JC said.

Ryan nodded. “I hear?”

JC could barely hold back a smile. “Sure.”

Elizabeth couldn’t help but shook her head softly. It probably didn’t occur to Ryan that what he’d heard just a minute ago was the song JC was working on. But JC didn’t seem to mind. He just pressed his fingers on the keys and replayed the song.

Once JC was done, he looked over at Ryan and asked, “Well, what do you think?”

Ryan regarded him seriously before he said, “It’s good, Daddy.”

“Just good?” JC asked.

“Needs work,” Ryan said with a lot of seriousness for a five year old.

JC let out a short laugh and rubbed at his chin. “Thanks.”

“You get it.”

“I’ll get it?” JC repeated, and Ryan nodded. “You sure?”

“You smart,” Ryan said. “You get it.”

JC didn’t say anything, but Elizabeth knew that hearing that made his heart swell. He stressed so much about getting things perfect that sometimes he forgot how much confidence Ryan had in him. To Ryan, JC could do no wrong.

“You wanna play?” JC asked, watching as Ryan ran his little fingers over the keys without pressing on them.

Ryan looked up at JC, excited. “Can I?”

“Yeah. Just let me do something first.” JC reached up with his right hand since his left arm was wrapped around Ryan’s stomach and hit a few buttons. Once he was done, he said, “Okay. Go ahead, but be gentle.”

Ryan nodded seriously and reached out, pressing a white key with his index finger. He squealed with laughter when the sound of a dog barking came out of the keyboard.

“You like that, huh?” JC said, grinning.

“Whose doggy is it?” Ryan asked, glancing up at JC as he pressed the key again.

JC couldn’t help but laugh at that. “No one’s. It’s just a recording.”

“Can we get a doggy?”

“I don’t know,” JC said. “You’d have to ask Mommy.”

“Is that a yes?” Ryan asked, smiling sweetly up at JC.

“It’s a maybe. Mommy and I will talk about it, all right?”

“Okay,” Ryan agreed. He turned his attention back on the keyboard and moved onto pressing other keys, laughing at the variety of sounds. Suddenly, he stopped and focused serious eyes on JC. “Is this music?”

JC leaned his head forward so their foreheads were nearly touching. “Music is what you make of it, and don’t let anyone tell you different. Okay?”

“Uh huh.” Ryan let out a loud yawn.

“Tired, buddy?” JC asked.

“No,” Ryan said quietly even as his small body relaxed against JC’s chest. JC smiled softly at him as he ran a hand through his fine hair, causing Elizabeth’s heart to melt. They were too adorable.

“C’mon, time for bed,” JC said, adjusting Ryan against his side so he could stand up.

There was no object from Ryan as JC rose from the chair. If anything, Ryan just buried his head sleepily into JC’s shoulder. It was when JC turned that he finally noticed that Elizabeth was standing at the top of the stairs.

“You want me to take him?” Elizabeth asked, stepping up and moving out of the way.

“No, I got him,” JC said, gently rubbing Ryan’s back.

Elizabeth followed them upstairs and into Ryan’s bedroom. She helped JC change Ryan into his pajamas since he was practically asleep. Once that was done, JC carefully laid him down in bed and pulled the comforter over him.

“G’night,” JC whispered, kissing Ryan on the forehead before stepping back to allow Elizabeth to say good night.

They turned off the lamp, being sure to leave the nightlight lit though before pulling the door closed. JC looked up and saw Elizabeth smiling at him. “What?” he asked.

“You’re so good with him,” Elizabeth said.

“He’s a good kid,” JC replied.

“I’ve just never seen him connect with anyone like he has with you.”

“I’m glad he has. I’m crazy about him,” JC said.

Elizabeth nodded. “I know, and I love that about you. You’ve always treated him like your own.”

“Well, he is mine,” JC said. Ever since JC had met Ryan, Elizabeth had known right then that was what she’d been waiting for. Ryan’s father hadn’t stuck around once he’d been born, and since then Elizabeth had been waiting for the right guy. Someone who would take care of her and Ryan and love them unconditionally, and she’d known almost right away that JC was the one.

She’d been concerned with how he’d feel about her having a kid, but JC had fallen in love with Ryan almost immediately. And even though he wasn’t the biological father, at a glance Ryan’s dark brown hair and beautiful blue eyes resembled JC.

“I love you so much, you know that?” Elizabeth said.

“I love you too.” JC kissed her. “C’mon, let’s go to bed.”

“What about the song?” Elizabeth asked.

JC shrugged and simply said, “It can wait.”

Elizabeth smiled and followed JC into their room, thinking that Ryan had more influence on JC than he realized. Something that he would surely use to his advantage when he got older. But there was time. For now, they were going to enjoy the childhood innocence.