Chapter 129: Mimi XVII—Keep the Baby Safe
"Look there’s your Daddy!" Michele cooed into Mitchell’s ear during the pre-skate of the game. "Wave!"
"Daddy!" Mitchell exclaimed bouncing in Michele’s lap and waving at Joe as he skated near the glass, looking deep in thought as he stopped. "Daddy look over here!"
To no avail. Joe was definitely lost in thought as he stood there and Mitchell kept crying, his voice starting to tremble. Michele rolled her eyes and leaned over to Jana, "Hit the glass my love."
Jana grinned through her teeth and stood up banging on the glass and startling Joe into reality. "I did it Mommy!"
Joe looked at Mitchell, smiled and waved.
"Daddy!" Mitchell squealed almost sounding like a little girl.
Michele waved back at Joe with her fingers and she could see Joe mouth out something that looked like, "Keep my baby safe."
"Yes, yes," Michele said knowing that he couldn’t hear her but she rolled her eyes at him just the same to show him how he was overreacting.
"Your father worries a lot yes?" Michele whispered to Mitchell.
"I don’t know," Mitchell said and he cuddled back into her body, bringing back that beautiful feeling to Michele when she used to cuddle her own babies. She sighed and squeezed him, giving him a kiss. Mitchell giggled. "You smell nice!"
"Mommy I wanna sit in your lap!" Jana said in a plaintive voice, standing and stomping her foot, her blue eyes sparking in anger.
"Shh," Michele snapped, "You’re a big girl sit down on your seat like one."
Jana crossed her arms. "I am not!" she exclaimed.
Michele glared back at Jana and the girl got the point. She scrambled back into her seat and sat down, her pale face flushing. Michele knew that the girl had to stop those tantrums, she knew she was too spoiled.
She glanced over at the other children, Elena was sitting in-between Jonathan and Frederick and already she could see both of them were vying for the girl’s attentions. Jonathan would flush and glare at Freddy whenever Elena would look away from him and at his brother. That sent a bell ringing inside Michele, she had never considered the possibility of a rift developing between her sons but a girl was as common a reason for that to happen.
Jonathan stood up abruptly, that tight look on his face that Michele recognized on Patrick when he was annoyed with something. "Hey," he said in a deceptively bright voice, "I’m gonna get some popcorn, want something Elena? Pretzel, pizza?"
"Popcorn’s great!" Elena said brightly. "Oooh and a pop!"
"What kind?" Jonathan asked.
Elena shrugged. "I don’t care, as long as it’s got bubbles."
"Mom?" Jonathan asked.
Michele waved her hand at him. "Non, get Mitchell a pretzel but nothing for me. Take Jana with you before she dies sulking."
Jana jumped off her seat and stormed to Jonathan, squeezing his hand and tugging him up the stairs. Obviously the girl didn’t want to be near her mother.
There was a loud laugh from Elena and she pushed at Freddy, who was grinning. "Stop it!" she giggled. "That’s not true!"
"Yuh huh!" Freddy said with a nod. "And..." He leaned up and whispered into Elena’s ear and the girl’s pretty cheeks flushed scarlet before she burst into another noisy laugh. Michele raised her eyebrows, she didn’t know that Frederick could be a flirt, the little devil! Jonathan was not going to have an easy ride with this one. Well sooner than later, Michele thought. What harm could babies do to each other?
Jonathan returned with the popcorn and soda, and Jana had a red licorice rope around her neck, which she was gnawing on. "Outta my seat!" Jana barked at Frederick making the boy jump. Freddy looked at Michele and she withheld a giggle.
"OK boss," Freddy said and he jumped out of the seat and sat next to Michele. He grinned with squinted eyes at her, his hair tousled and twisted. "Jana’s meeeean Mom."
Michele leaned over nuzzling Freddy with her nose. "Why do you let her boss you around, eh?"
"I don’t know," Freddy said and then he took the pretzel Jana was handing him and gave it to Mitchell.
"Thank you," the little boy peeped. He immediately began gnawing on it.
"You like Elena hm?" Michele asked Freddy.
Elena’s giggle was loud and Michele watched as she began to toss popcorn at Jonathan who was drinking the soda. Like puppies at play...
"She’s OK," Freddy said brightly. "She’s not stuck up like other girls.. and she’s not as mean as Jana."
Michele nodded looking into the boy’s pale eyes. He barely looked a thing like his father, not this one. Jana and Jonathan, both of them were undeniably the image of Patrick in temper, and looks, and even in the facial tics. Frederick, he was different, a more delicate creature. "You’re so cute," she said.
Freddy wrinkled his nose and blushed.
The game was raucous in the stands, as they usually were when these two teams played. Michele really didn’t notice a whole lot going on the ice, but the crowd was a huge mix of Red Wings jerseys and Avalanche and the chants began.
"Red Wings Suck!"
Michele rolled her eyes, what a silly thing to be marketed so successfully!
"Red Wings SUCK!"
Michele narrowed her eyes recognizing that squeal and she looked over at Jana who was standing on her seat, little hands cupped around her mouth and she was howling at the top of her lungs. "RED WINGS SUCK!" Michele closed her eyes in embarrassment knowing that if she yelled at Jana right now then she would probably scare the boy.
Mitchell left off his pretzel and covered his ears.
"LETS GO RED WINGS!" A group of fans howled.
"RED WINGS SUCK!"
The chants were exchanged until the action intensified around Patrick’s net and the Ooohs and Aaaah commenced.
"Ooooh look it that the Colorado Nordiques can’t even get good defense!" someone giggled loudly behind them.
"ITS AVALANCHE DUMMY!" Jana howled standing on her seat again.
Michele sighed and made eye contact with Jonathan. The boy understood and leaned over Elena pulling on Jana’s pants. Jana kicked him away and stuck her tongue out at the fans behind her.
"Jana!" Michele snapped. "Sit down now!"
Jana reddened and sat down but not before snarling, "Octupus PANTS! Peeeee-Uuuuuuu!"
That got a round of laughter from everyone including the affronted fans. "Easy kid," the man laughed. "Don’t burst a vessel!"
"Your mother is very lucky," Michele whispered to Mitchell. "You know that?"
Mitchell looked up at her with large blinking eyes, the picture of Debbie’s features. At that moment Chris Chelios slammed Chris Drury to the glass. Mitchell jumped and whined, "Scary!"
"Ooooo," Michele cooed blowing a raspberry on the boy’s throat and tickling him. "I’m scarier!"
"Hehehehe!" Mitchell giggled, "No you’re not, heehehehe!"
She didn’t even look up not wanting another look at Chelios; she could still feel his fingers on her wrists....
When Hull scored on Patrick at the other end of the ice, Chelios stayed back and swung around the glass where she was sitting. His look was at them and Michele only met it briefly before she turned her attention back to Mitchell. What a basterd! She thought, remembering the feel of him on her lips, a taste of salt...
Through the third period the game began to get extremely rough and Michele noted with some amusement how Elena was squealing and hiding her face in Jonathan’s shoulder. Was the girl really scared? From the blush in Jonathan’s grin she knew it didn’t matter.
Nearing the end of the third period the game was tied and looked to be going into overtime. Jonathan jumped up when a penalty was called on Holmstrom, "Hey Freddy I forgot I was gonna get some stuff at the souvenir stand before the lines start up! Come on!"
"OK," Freddy said brightly and jumped out of his seat.
"Get me something," Jana chirped.
The boys disappeared up the stairs.
Michele glanced up at the clock during the final minute, watching the seconds winding down. Patrick came around the back of the net to play the puck and as he did Kirk Maltby slammed him to the glass. Michele sighed in irritation as Jana squealed in horror, "Daddy! He hurt Daddy!"
"Non, he is fine," Michele said.
Within the instant Chris Drury jumped on Maltby, ripping off his helmet and slugging away at him. The crowds erupted in delight, Jana screaming and Elena standing with her mouth covered. Mitchell buried his face so hard into Michele’s breast that it hurt her sternum but she held onto the boy. Of course this would happen on their end! Brutes!
A real fight developed between the two men and Michele was actually surprised to see Drury holding up as well as he was! Why couldn’t they finish it? Right before the refs could come in Maltby lifted Drury and the weight of him toppled them both over against the glass so hard that a snapping crack began to thread and spider up the pane of glass where they were sitting.
Michele’s heart stopped.
Keep the baby safe!
She knew there was no way she could run them out to safety in time and just for a split second she made eye contact with Elena. The girl nodded and within the instant, Michele squeezed Mitchell to her body and turned around pressing him into the seat and crouching over him. She could only hope that Elena had got the message for Jana.
CRASH!
The glass shattered and the audience screamed. Michele could feel the crumbles of it showering on her body and she kept her eyes closed crying out, "Mitchell bebe keep your eyes closed!!!!" She felt a sharp stinging on her scalp but she made no move to brush at it.
She heard the thrashing, heavy bodies on the floor behind her legs and Michele thought, the men didn’t fall through it did they?
There was a shrill scream from Jana and Michele could only hope that the girl was overreacting.
"YOU HURT MY DADDY! YOU’RE HURTING CHRIS TOO!"
Mon Dieu! Michele thought, they did fall through the glass!
"Kid you’re bleeding!" she heard a familiar voice say, "Don’t touch the OW!"
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" the squeal intensified. "AAAAAAAAAAH!"
"Let go of her!"
Michele recognized Elena’s voice. And Jana’s screaming got louder and louder. Oddly enough, Michele didn’t feel all that worried; she felt numb and cold but not scared.
"The glass break?" she heard Mitchell ask and she pulled back from him a bit, still arching over him. He was blinking and pale.
"Yes darling," she said. "You’re safe."
"Does that mean we get autographs?" Mitchell whispered.
Michele frowned. "What do you need those for?"
Mitchell looked so heartbroken that Michele had to smile. "Of course dear."
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! AAAAAAAAAAAH!" Jana was reaching new decibels.
"I didn’t know you had the red hair," Mitchell whispered.
"I don’t," Michele said.
"Oh... I think you got blood in your hair," Mitchell replied.
Perfect, Michele thought with a sigh. Debbie was going to kill her for this she just knew it.
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