'Night Dad
'Night, Dad
It was only 7 pm when Oba flicked the light switch on in the master bathroom. The SuperBrite bulbs he'd installed last week killed any trace of a shadow within the space, save for the greatest depths of the wide spa tub. Oba stood in the doorframe, leaning to one side and observing his handiwork - both proud and relieved the tear-out was finally done. He grumbled, scratching under his navel and padding into the room to hover above the giant tub, and here he wondered how he ever dealt with the crummy plastic tub he'd dealt with for the last few year - hardly, he mused.
Oba snuffled away a sneeze - and with a defensive rub of his nose, he knelt and turned the glass knob for "hot" as far as it would allow without breaking the thing off in his paw. The ease of turning this new, un-rusted (and generally better constructed) knob compared to the old one meant he'd had to consciously limit his strength - the first night the installation was finished he'd nearly broken the knob then and there. The gush of water was loud, obnoxious even. It caused shivers and gooseflesh that rippled to his core, even prompting an audible shudder from him.
He quickly peeled his shirt off, groaning as cool air circulated into the depths of his dense fur. The shirt smelled. He'd been working outside all day building a wooden porch on the front of his home, and the actual roof awning wouldn't be started until Saturday. Three days too many, if each were as hot and unforgiving as today. He was happy to be financially - and physically - able to renovate his home, but damn was a day off a welcome thought. Next were his trousers, thrown just outside the door alongside the banished shirt. He squatted on the toilet, mulling through how he'd need to finally buy a laundry basket for the bathroom dirties and the size of the drill bit he'd shattered today (and furthermore, how it broke in the first place). He leaned back, fiddling with the controls on the bidet he'd purchased after reading a string of articles and reviews. He was open-minded as they come, yet the jet of lukewarm water at his behind certainly felt strange. Better than toilet wipes, as far as cost and environmental concerns went. Oba enjoyed thinking green.
Standing with a ached groan, he flushed the toilet, closing the seat right away. A slideshow of memories flooded his mind, all of them related to the repeated lectures on closing the seat from his late wife. At least he never peed on the seat, he thought, grinning as he turned toward the tub.
Oba knelt, dipping his fingers into the water and swirling them a bit to check the temperature. "Lava" he grinned, hesitating on the notion for whether it'd be lava or magma at this point. Now his tail wagged with excitement as he prepared to climb in for a good soak. A hot bath and smoke (which Oba wasted little time to light once he'd settled in ) were his absolute favorite way of unwinding from a long day and lately, most days were long and ended with the same routine.
Eyes closed, Oba sank into the molten water. He drew a long breath through the stick, the sound of the little fire burning so rapidly was almost the only sound one could hear.
"Fwooooooh..." he exhaled, grinning like a fool in his lonesome. After a short while, Oba turned his head to the side. He found a specific bottle of soap, dumping the honey-thick substance into the hot water near the end of the tub. He grunted, sitting up momentarily to help stir in the glob, which skittered and whooshed and then dispersed into strands along the bottom of the tub until it was, at last, no more than a sudsy veil atop the water. It smelled of peppermint and tea, and for Oba, the scent alone was nearly better than his beloved cheap cigarillo. Automatically his eyes closed, and soon he was lost to sleepy thoughts of drill bits and laundry.
"Daddy?" said a curious voice. The sudden sound broke the silence sharply, betraying the softness of the voice itself.
Oba grunted, stirring a bit confusedly as he sat upright . "Hmmh? Wh-whats up cub?" Oba asked sleepily, turning to his left.
"Were you asleep?" the boy asked, forgetting what exactly he'd come to say. He stepped close to the tub, propping both arms on the side and his head atop it all, tail batting with great amusement. A grand, goofy grin spread across the boy's muzzle as he self-confirmed this. "You're silly! You were weren't you?" he teased, noticing his father's nervous grin.
Oba nodded, rolling his eyes. "Yeah, I suppose I did take a snooze, hm?" he grinned further. "..and I think I've been in here a while," he admitted, peering up at the clock. Now it boldly advertised 8:43. "It's almost your bedtime mister. Have you been getting ready for bed Colby?"
"Yeah daddy," Colby said dutifully. "I even got my pj's, but I never got to take my bath! I just watched cartoons and then remembered you didn't come back..." he trailed.
"I didn't mean to fall asleep, cub" Oba apologized. He groaned a bit and stood up, water gushing down his frame and back into the tub. He knelt in front of Colby, unworried about the water rapidly dripping and forming a puddle under him. Most nights he'd bathe the cub first and set him off to bed, but it was the weekend and Colby had simply denied dibs on bath time.
"Aaaaarms up!" he instructed, helping remove the pastel yellow shirt fitted loosely to Colby. Oba always lightened up his otherwise rough voice around the boy, almost without a mere thought. Perhaps it was nature. "We'll go ahead and take one now. The water's nice and warm - and then we'll stay up an extra while for a snack and a book, hm?" he continued, patting between his ears.
Colby approved of this plan, nodding vigorously and wagging his tail, which thumped the open door behind him with a soft "thwack thwack thump."
Oba tugged down his shorts, revealing a decently soggy pull-up. "Prepare for Sooper Winter exposure, solider! You'll freeze out there if you're unprepared!" Oba exclaimed in a play voice. He promptly clawed the elastic bands around Colby's hips, causing the soggy diaper to drop into his other paw, positioned between his legs. Quite on cue to Oba's assumption, Colby giggled and pulled his tail up between his legs as the cool air invaded his damp groin.
"It's a cold one, 'Sarg_-_ant!" Colby exclaimed, making a big show of shivering and tucking his arms close to his chest. He fumbled with the last word a couple times, pronouncing it anything but properly as Oba trashed the soiled pull-up and mopped up the big puddle of water he'd himself deposited all over the floor with Colby's dirty shirt. It was surprisingly absorbent for a shirt.
"Airlift incoming, we're getting you out of there!" Oba exclaimed, promptly scooping the naked boy into his arms and lowering him into the now lukewarm water. He climbed into the back afterward, crossing his legs comfortably in the wide tub. Colby faced the back of the tub, giggles subsiding as he sank into the water only to realize one of his most favorite bath toys was just out of reach. Luckily, Oba's arms were at least twice and a half times the length of Colby's.
"Ahh," Oba grunted, straining to just barely reach the toy from high above on the windowsill without getting up. "Here we are buddy," he soothed, squeaking the toy pigeon and plopping it down in front of Colby. "Now, if we want to stay up late we have to hurry with our bath, okay?" he warned, reaching for a cup nearby to wash up as Colby played. He scooped up a load of water, pouring it repeatedly over his head and adding a bead of shampoo to lather up, watching Colby as he splashed and made silly bird sounds with his toy.
"Okay!" the cub replied, pushing the floating toy around happily. His tail had tucked under his bottom and through his crisscross legs, wagging happily under the water and creating eddies and currents in the water, which (upon noticing) he used to simulate the little pigeon being washed away in a great current. Oba knew this is what happened, because Colby narrated every part of his story aloud with great detail, sometimes grabbing his attention before announcing a particularly exciting turn of events.
Oba watched Colby play for a short while before he eventually stood, washing parts of his body that were previously submerged. His dark fur now was encased in suds, and with no flair he sat back down to rinse. This caused a great wave of suds and bubbles to leave his fur, which quickly traveled to the front of the tub in a great wave of water, capsizing the toy and drawing it away. Now hidden among the foam and out of Colby's reach - the toy's doom had certainly cemented; at least for today.
"C'mere cub, turn around for me" Oba instructed, spinning the gigglebox around as he scooted toward him. Unsurprisingly Colby had already rescued the pigeon ship from the waters, and was now proclaiming a hero among the ranks of the ship for its rescue. He fiddled with it, continuing the narrative toward a strange sea island as Oba lathered up his fur with shampoo from a special kid-worthy branded bottle. Oba quickly worked through his ears, groin, tail, and between each toe before one last great rinse. He stepped out, draining the tub and lifting Colby out onto the floor once again.
"What do you want to snack on?" Oba dried himself on a fluffy towel, nodding at the dripping pup.
"Uhhm.. milk and cookies!" Colby exclaimed, whole head buried in a towel now as Oba dried him too. After ensuring his ears were plenty dry and not full of water, Oba wrapped the (proportionally oversized) towel around Colby's waist and led the way out of the bathroom and downstairs and into the kitchen. Colby crawled into one of the kitchen chairs, thumping his fingers on the table in some cartoon themed rhythm as dad poured two glasses of milk. Producing a package of cookies and a plate, Oba lined up a dozen of the chocolate-chip delights onto the plate, and spun it in the microwave for a short ten seconds to make them warm and gooey as per Colby's favorite way of eating them.
"Alright then kiddo." He said, removing the plate from the microwave and offering it to Colby. "You carry this up to your room- easy, it's a little warm," he cautioned the eager pup. "And I'll carry the milk!" he added, talking to nothing more than the air, as Colby had already raced half up the stairs. Oba followed at his own pace, making sure the door was locked and turning off the television along the way.
"Daddy hurry uuuuup!" the cub whined from afar, right as Oba had made it upstairs. The big wolf chuckled, tail thumping the stair banister as he turned toward the cubs room.
"I'm here, I'm here" he replied, placing the milk down carefully atop the bedside table. Colby had already gathered a book and eaten at least two of the cookies, as there was clearly a smear of chocolate at the corners of his silvery lips. "Are your cookies warm enough?" he asked, pulling the plate away from the snacky cub long enough to crawl into the bed with him. It crinkled audibly as he shifted around, fumbling with his tail and seating. He thought momentarily about getting a less slick, better fitting mattress protector until a ball of damp warmth drew him back to now. Colby had gathered up his glass of milk and sat leaned against Oba, legs drawn up. The towel about his waist had all but fallen away, so Oba just tugged it from under his bottom and tossed it to the side.
"There. Don't want your bed all wet, do we?" he said, patting him between the ears and flipping open the book. This was one of the kids favorites, and by now Oba could do a damn good attempt at reading it from memory alone.
"Mm-mm" he replied, chewing another gooey cookie. His tail waggled around, making a strange sound as it moved both the cloth sheet and the plastic below together. Quickly enough he was absorbed in the book read aloud, tummy filled with soothing milk and tasty cookie. Colby always managed to stay just barely awake for the whole book, no matter his fatigue, and in due time his breathing slowed and movement all but ceased.
"And that's the end for now" Oba finished, closing the book after the final words. He grinned down at the drowsy cub, who grinned and wagged his tail in response. "And for puppy Colby too, it's past his bedtime!" he added, scratching gently at his chin. "Let's get you ready, hm?" he instructed, sitting up slowly enough for Colby to gather himself and sit upright.
He yawned sleepily, "Okay.." he grumbled, grabbing a final nibble of the now-cold cookies before trotting alongside his father. The walk was a short one, as it was only across the hallway to Oba's room where Colby flopped onto the king sized bed.
"Must keep my baby pup dry" Oba mused as he rummaged inside the closet for a moment before finally producing aforementioned nighttime protection. He laid the diaper and a bottle of ointment upon the bed before turning to a half-lidded Colby and blowing a raspberry on his tummy. He giggled, drawing up his kneels and tail and rolling to the side with protest.
"Someone is very sleepy" Oba noted, unfolding the diaper and laying it onto the bed flattened. Of course, Colby wore pullups to help with accidents during the day, but at night time the little pup turned into a faucet monster and simply flooded a measly pullup.
"Uhuh." Colby mumbled, rolling back. Oba tugged him by the hips, adjusting him evenly atop the padding. Afterward he opened the tube of ointment, squeezing a generous amount of cream into his paw before rubbing it into Colby's thighs, groin, and bottom. Not only did it smell spectacular, it did an equally good job of warding off moisture and urine that might stink and stain fur. He wiped his gooey paws on his own naked midsection for the same reason he sniffled at the air moments ago. "Mmm" Colby almost purred, sniffling at the fresh scent too.
"Good stuff, huh cub?" He said, shifting the diaper again and threading Colby's tail through a slit in the back. Afterward he took another look at the symmetry of everything before finally drawing up the front and applying the Velcro-style tapes (Colby hated sticky tapes ever since a bad malfunction left four of them stuck in his tummy fur) snugly. "And we're all done!" Oba grinned, lifting him up with a groan to carry him back to his room.
Carefully lowering him into sitting on the bed, Oba reached next to him, pulling the PJ's Colby had prepared himself earlier that day. He was proud of Colby for being so independent, but a tired cub was a tired cub, one that was not expected to dress himself in such a state.
"Lift those arms up, pup." He instructed, slipping the long-sleeved sleeper over his head. Next came the pants, which Oba threaded each foot through separately before easing him onto his back and tugging the waistband up to its proper spot. Colby was easy to work with.
"There we go.." he soothed, carefully tucking Colby in under the blankets. He'd already found his plushy, and Oba helped tuck him in too. A timed night-light already flicked on across the room saved them from total darkness as Oba turned the overhead light off. "Who's my special cub?" He said softly, returned to Colby's side again. He looked upwards, tail wagging below the blankets.
"I am!" he asserted.
"That's right." Oba replied, kneeling to plant a kiss on his nose. "Night-night, kiddo."
Colby yawned softly, rolling to his side. His eyes drooped lower as he drew his plushy closer and mumbled back: "'Night dad."