welcome!

[tynan owen anderson]

Tynan sighed softly and looked at his hands. “Yeah, I know… Maybe it’s just because I’m her father and she’s only six,” Tynan added, running his hands over his face. He wasn’t going to ask her why her parents would be worried about her coming home with broken bones, so he just kind of ignored it. Tynan smiled thankfully at her and nodded. Well, yes, he did need a friend. He had a few guys that he worked with, but he didn’t really let anyone get close. Not since Anais. Or since they left Boston. He wasn’t closing himself off, exactly… Okay, so he was, but he didn’t want to take that chance and lose someone again.

“She knows better,” Tynan said, looking at her. She fractured her wrist, yes, but she didn’t have to be rude. But it wasn’t unusual for her to be shy around new people. Ana nodded. ”Yeah,” she sniffled. ”Mommy was really pretty. But then she got sick and she changed. Daddy still thought she was pretty.” Ana sighed softly and looked at Mani for a second. ”And then one day, Mommy wouldn’t wake up. Daddy cried and cried and she still didn’t wake up. Daddy said she went to heaven with my Aunt Maddie.” Tynan cleared his throat and looked away. God, did she have to tell this story? She usually never talked this much in the first place. “Ana,” Tynan said, his voice cracking. Why did he call her name? She had a mind of her own and said whatever she wanted. He really didn’t understand why she brought up Anais. It hurt more than anything in the world to hear her talk about what happened with her mother.

[manuela mercedes flores]

Mani nodded. Her parents had gone through several boys before they'd had her, they had their practice. They also had one another to lean on when something went wrong but this guy was on his own. She would never be able to imagine what it was like to be a single parent. She'd had a complete family unit and she didn't have kids of her own. It made it hard because she didn't think the movies and shows gave you everything to work with. Besides, it was always harder when you were dealing with your little girl as opposed to your son or your daughter who could hang with the boys. Mani didn't think that their meeting was really enough for them to bond over but she had listened to a lot of people talk to her about their problems. It was what came with the job when you were a cop. You just had to be there for people when they were in need. Sometimes, that made all of the difference. She was, technically, off of the clock but she never stopped working. It was a curse when you thought about it but she tried not to and it helped.

She nodded and remained quiet. Who was she to get in the way of parenting? Mani could understand but he was right. Just because you had problems, that didn't mean you were allowed to forget how you were raised. Her face was set into a solid, grim expression that didn't offer too many emotions aside from a more stoic nature. She felt pain for the family, sadness to hear the girl's tale, and sympathy for the man. Under all of that, she felt regret for ever having said anything in the first place. After a long moment, she took in a painful and deep breath. "I'm sure she was still very pretty." What did you say after something like that? She really had no idea but she knew that she should probably say something, here. Maybe just change the subject? "So, did you know that they've got princess bandages for your arm?"

[tynan owen anderson]

Tynan let out a soft breath. "Daddy?" Ana asked, looking at him worriedly. He didn't know what to say and he didn't want to say anything at all. This was too much for him. All he could think about was Anais and the way she laughed, the way she would look at him, how she was the only person he knew that would shout at the characters of a movie... In the movie theatre! Ana nodded. "Yeah, Daddy said she was, all the time," the small girl added. Tynan took a deep breath as Mani changed the subject. "REALLY?!' she yelled. "DADDY, DID YOU HEAR?!" Tynan winced as the small girl yelled in his ear. What? She had a big voice for a girl so small! "Yes, Ana, I heard. But remember what we talked about? Use your six inch voice, baby." He patted the top of her head, letting out a soft chuckle. She was so hilarious. Her reactions made him forget about Anais. A bit. She was so interesting. A nurse walked in and said that they were ready for Ana to come pick out her cast. "Ana, baby, why don't you go be a big girl with the nurse and pick out your cast while I sign some paperwork down here?" he asked. The little one frowned. "The faster I fill out the paperwork, the faster we get out of here, Monkey," Tynan added with a wink. Ana huffed and walked off with the nurse as the woman began to chatter.

With Ana gone, Tynan turned to Mani. "Um, listen about earlier..." He cleared his throat. "I'm sorry," he said softly. "It was a bit awkward. I mean, what she was true, because my wife... Anais... She... Well, um, yeah, but I hope you're not feeling awkward now," he finished finally. "But the subject of death is awkward, so..." He stuck out his hand for her to shake. "How about we start over?" he asked, looking at her. "Hi, I'm Tynan," he said, a smile gracing his sad face. He was sad and he didn't know if he'd ever stop being sad. He was hurting from Anais's death, but what could he do? Tynan had a daughter to take care of and sometimes, his feelings were put on the back burner. Which was okay because Ana's well being was more important than his.

[manuela mercedes flores]

Mani's gaze flickered between the child and her father. She'd found herself in this position all too often. The children seemed to handle things differently than the parent did and, therefore, were more willing to talk to her about whatever was on their mind while the parents seemed to regret their child speaking of the painful event. You would think that, after all of the different times, it would be easier to handle but it never was. She smiled down at Ana, showing her that she'd heard her comment and understood. You had to be careful with children. If they thought that you actually gave a crap, they were happy, no matter the situation. She laughed at the girl until the pain in her side struck her from the laughter and she had to stop, holding herself and looking away so that she didn't see her face. She didn't need to worry her. Still, her reaction was adorable. Mani turned around to look at the nurse who had entered in the room and Mani waited until the father and daughter had their conversation to ask the nurse about her own paperwork. She said she'd check into things for her when she went out into the hall.

She watched the nurse and child leave the room in time to turn around as Ty spoke to her. She shook her head, eyes closed. "Don't worry. It's fine. Kids talk, you know? I mean, you should be glad that she's talking. If she kept it in, who knows what it would do to her?" It wasn't that she should be the one for the girl to talk to but she did think that the child needed to talk. She tenderly eased herself over to meet him with a smile, shaking hands with him. "Pleasure to meet you, Tynan. I'm Mani."

[tynan owen anderson]

Tynan took a deep breath. There were days when Ana would cry and tell him that she missed her mother, but she’d never done this before. She’d never told anyone about her mother’s death. No, she closed up when people asked her about her mother. He kissed Ana’s forehead, holding her close. Damn it, it was hard to be without a person that was your whole life. It was hard enough raising Ana without Anais… Tynan rubbed her hair and watched her as she left, letting out a breath. Anais wasn’t supposed to die. She was supposed to live with the heart defect. Of course there were things that she wouldn’t be able to do, but losing her had been the worst day of his life. For awhile, he wasn’t even a good father to Ana, but his parents made sure that he came back to life for his daughter. For Ana. He couldn’t have another break down like that.

He nodded, sticking his hands in his pockets. “Thanks. For listening to her. She doesn’t talk about Anais – her mother, that much.” Tynan nodded and squeezed her hand tenderly as she shook it. “If you don’t mind me asking,” he said softly, “why are you black and blue?” Tynan sent a small smile her way. If it was domestic violence, he didn’t think she’d be over here, listening to his daughter talk about her mother. Maybe she boxed? Maybe she was a cop. Or maybe she was a spy? Wow, he sounded like his daughter for a moment.

[manuela mercedes flores]

Sometimes, kids took a bit longer to process things. While she didn't have any of her own, it wasn't uncommon for the station to call her in so that she could handle a situation involving a kid. She got them, for some reason. Death was hard on anyone and few ever liked to really talk about it. She knew the time for her grandmother would be soon and she refused to speak a word of it. She did know, however, that they'd insist she talk to a shrink just as soon as it came to pass. When handling a gun, it was always nice to know that the person holding it was of sound mind. She'd have to go speak to the station funded psychologist and tell them what they wanted to hear. Then again, it wasn't like she had some crazy ideas in her head. Maybe just talking to a stranger who wasn't allowed to tell any of your secrets wouldn't be too bad for her... It seemed to work for kids. She wasn't a kid, though. She wasn't as free and open about stuff, either. Kids were able to get by with just about anything and adults knew how easy it was to get hurt. Loss was one of the hardest things to handle and, while Ana had been there for it, she didn't understand the weight of it like her father did. She'd bounce back but it would take time for Tynan.

"It's fine," she said with a soft nod. It was better than shrugging and causing too much pain in her side. "A kid's gotta talk." Keeping it bottled in would only make it worse and might even cause problems later on down the road. If the girl trusted her enough to tell her that, so be it. His question made her grin and she realized that she'd left her work shirt on her own bed as she eased herself into a chair. Why were hospitals always so freaking cold? At least her sore arm would help keep her warm as it was easier to just hold it to her body. "I work for the King William Sheriff's Department. Got a call for a party and ended up turning into a brawl at an impromptu baseball game. Didn't even see it coming until it was too late." Oh well, what could you do? It was all part of the job and Manuela had signed up for this... kind of. "Back in LA, I was SWAT. People don't seem to need to call us in all that often so I'm stuck working jobs like that until I'm called."