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Vincent had been volunteered yet again to babysit the youngest in the family. Joy. Kaleb had insisted on buying a bouqet of snowdrops to give to people. Despite his being shy, and too timid to approach anyone. Which meant that the toddler was still carrying the large bouqet. Vinny leaned against the back of his bench. He watched his sibling with vague interest.

Kaleb was toddling around the field, looking for someone to give the flowers too. He couldn't fight his giving nature, despite being shy. He made his way towards a lonely looking tree. It was bare, and had grayish bark. It looked sad! Maybe it wanted a flower. He held one out to it, and tripped over a tree root. He fell onto the ground, the single snowdrop he'd been holding in his right hand was smashed. A sniffle escaped him. The tree's flower had been ruined! The poor tree!

Vincent knew the danger signs, and knew when to avoid going over to his brother's side. He knew Kaleb was about to start wailing, and so he stuck a finger in each of his ears and hoped for the best. He was clearly used to this. "Every time..." he muttered. "Every single time." He meant that every time Kaleb insisted on getting something to give away, something happened. And happened it did.

A wail did indeed escape Kaleb, tears streaming down his cheeks. Now how was he supposed to make the tree feel better? The tree was sad, and it was all his fault! Poor tree! The toddler put the broken snowdrop down, before rubbing his eyes with two chubby fists. The waterfalls of tears continued as he toddled towards the tree under which Edes slept. He sniffled. "I sorry tree," he told it, looking at the ground. "I broke your flower... Now you dun get any." He seemed oblivious to the bouqet his left hand was still holding carefully.

At the sound of someone's voice, Kaleb looked up with a sniffle. The person who had been sleeping under the tree had woken up. Kaleb toddled over to him, and sat down on the cold ground. "Tree sad," he explained. "No leaves make tree sad. I gonna make tree happy 'gain, but flower broke..." his lip trembled as he said this, threatening to cry again. "Wan flower?" he asked, taking a snowdrop from his bouqet and offering it to the older boy.

Vincent watched with interest. This was unusual. Kaleb was usually shy when it came to meeting others. Vincent himself had never yet met Edes; he wondered if the boy would be a good influence on his younger brother.

Kaleb gave the older boy a smile. "Pretty," he agreed easily. "Very very pretty," of course, he was generous with compliments, he was liberality. He blinked as the older boy picked him up, and as he was sat next to him. "Tree not sad?" he asked, looking at the tree in disbelief. He gave Edes an uncomprending glance, trying to piece what the older boy was saying together.

"Oooh. Tree sleep so it be pretty in morning!" He could understand that, at least. Mommy did that, she called it Beauty Sleep. "It awake soon?" he asked, looking to Edes with a smile. The tears on his cheeks were beginning to dry; this was a nicer concept. The tree was sleeping! Maybe it was having good dreams! "Night night tree," Kaleb said, putting a flower by the tree's roots. "Good dreams."

Kaleb believed Edes. Who was he to say the older boy was wrong, when he probably knew much more about trees than he did himself? And the tree would have a present for him in Spring? He couldn't wait! "Oooh. I wanna see tree when he wake up!" Kaleb said excitedly. "I wanna see tree when he wake up and see him happy with flower!" He had never been given much; because he generally refused it, being liberality. But being given something because he'd given someone else something, that was nice.

He gave Edes a bright smile. "I luv him," he told the older boy, pointing to the tree. "Luv you too!" He paused, and studied Edes for a moment. "Ooooh. You gots pretty wings. Like mine!"

Kaleb smiled as he was patted on the head; he was used to the gesture, his siblings did it twice a day--when they weren't ruffling his hair. Edes had said he loved him! Just like his family loved him. A small giggle escaped his lips, before he followed Edes' gaze and looked to the sky. "Sun wake up!" he said, looking to Edes and giving him a bright smile. "Hooray, wake up sun!"

If trees took naps, surely the sun did too? Maybe that was what happened when nighttime happened. He paused to think about what the older boy had said only a few moments before. "No, your wings prettier. Like angels. Mommy said angels bery bery pretty; and you bery pretty too. So you angel." Pleased with this statement, he leaned against Edes. "I take nap like tree."

Kaleb gave a yawn and rubbed his eyes. Edes had turned out to be the perfect pillow. "Ooor 'ings pwettier," he muttered, sleep causing him to fall out of the English language. "Nini tree, nini angel," he looked up at Edes for a moment, eyes half closed. His hands feel from his cheeks and into his lap. Soft breathing sounds escaped him. The toddler was asleep.

Vincent was silent for a moment, then he gave Edes a smile. "Oh, I forgot that it was almost his nap time," he said sheepishly. How could he have forgotten? He had thought he'd remembered everything--Kaleb's afternoon snack, the juiceboxes he had become accustomed to carrying... He made his way over to the tree, and sat on the opposite side of Edes. "I'm Vincent by the way," he said. "You can call me Vinny though--all my friends do." Casually, as he always did, he invited Edes to be his friend. "I think you know Cody, don't you? He's my friend too."

Kaleb lay nestled in Edes lap, a small smile crossing his features as he slept. He must have been having a pleasant dream, or perhaps it was the lust in him reacting to Edes' touch. One couldn't be certain.

"You're really good with him, Edes," Vinny observed, watching the younger boy hold his little brother. For a moment he wondered if Edes would have made a better brother to Kaleb than he did--but only for a split second. "I agree, about the napping thing," he said awkwardly. "It's always better to be with someone; that way you don't have bad dreams. That's why people have teddy bears, isn't it?" He paused, and gave the younger boy a smile.

"Cody's a good friend of mine too; he taught me how to float. I haven't really seen him since then though..." His smile faded, and he looked vaguely sad. "Maybe we could all meet up sometime, and hang out?" It would be nice to see old friends again, as well as having made new ones.