34 Hind Street.
"Yes! Emory!"
Darian's elated voice echoed throughout their living room. The sound of hands periodically clapping added a hint of vibrancy to the space.
Watching the young one-year-old, Darian couldn't help but eagerly grin as Emory wobbled around on his little feet.
Being a little over one year old, Emory was now overcoming the great milestone of walking. A couple of months back, Emory surprised his father by crawling toward the newspaper by the door. Not being able to contain his sheer exhilaration, Darian wrote about his child's achievements in a small notebook titled Emory's Journey.
He would open the book at night and read what he wrote aloud, as if letting his wife, Elara, in on their day-to-day lives.
It was one of the many things he did to try to remember Elara.
Combing his thin black hair to the side, Darian focused his crimson eyes on Emory, cheering the baby on as he jostled on his feet.
Emory, now being much older than before, opted out of his fish era. Instead, he chose a more general toy, the Teddy Rat.
The Teddy Rat was made by a young girl over 300 years ago. The way in which she made it was by taking leaves and wrapping them around dead rats.
Unfortunately, other children saw her joyfully making the rats and decided to rain in on her fun. Grabbing the rats by the tails, they began throwing them at the little girl.
They gave her the nickname Teddy Rat. With each coming day, the children would patiently wait for the little girl to arrive and wrap more dead rats in leaves so that they could hit her with them.
The girl, however, was oblivious to their bullying and instead thought they waited for so long just to have fun with her. The concept of bullying never registered in her mind. So she would happily arrive at her little station, collect dead rodents, wrap them up in leaves, and await the children so that they could 'play.'
She had thought they called the rats wrapped in leaves Teddy Rats and adopted that notion as well. The children finally noticed that the girl was not saddened by their bullying, nor by the pain they inflicted on to her, so they left with annoyance plastered across their faces.
The girl, once realizing the children never came back, would search frantically for them. Sadly, she could never find them again, leaving her stuck alone with her Teddy Rats.
A quiet, failed businessman saw her playing alone and decided to join her. The girl's face shot up with glee, to which she handed the man the rats enthusiastically.
Not knowing what to do with them, the man held the rat by the tail, shooting the girl a confused look. The young lady joyfully exclaimed, "Teddy Rat! Teddy Rat!" and motioned the man to hit her with them.
Rejecting the idea, the man had realized the little girl's head had been filled with monstrous and cruel ideologies. He decided to help her and taught her how to play with stuffed animals like a normal child.
Many years and editions later, the Teddy Rat was now a toy with fake fur stuffing wrapped in leather. It was a staple in Theales' homes and one that you could find almost anywhere.
Emory constantly bit it, trying to tear the leather apart. Darian gave up on trying to teach his son how to play with it correctly and just let him do whatever he pleased.
"Wow, Emory! You're walking so well!" Snapping back to reality, Darian's eyes were glowing as he watched the silent, struggling boy wobble his way to the couch.
Once finally reaching his long-awaited destination, the couch, Emory wrestled his way and struggled to get on top of the dark green two-person sofa. Noticing his son was met with a severe roadblock, Darian exhaled and got up. Reaching his hands just below Emory's underarms, Darian gently lifted the baby up and onto the couch.
After sitting beside him, Darian felt the urge to put Emory on his lap, so he did. Their red eyes exchanged glances, and Darian opened his mouth, "I'm so proud of you, little Emory!" He snuggled his head into Emory's chest.
Contrary to his assumptions, Emory didn't laugh; not even a smile unhid itself from his chubby face. Darian didn't let the reaction dishearten him, mainly because he was already used to this.
It was decided another method of bonding would be tried. "How about we try to say some words now?" Both sets of crimson eyes peered into each other. Darian continued, "Say… Dada."
Emory didn't respond; instead, he analyzed the man's face. "Come on, Emory. Dada!" Darian adopted a babylike tone and held both Emory's little hands.
After not getting a single response, Darian scolded himself in his mind, What are you thinking, Darian? He's only one. His eyes softened. At least he was able to walk.
A soft, soothing voice came from before Darian, pricking up both of his ears.
"Dawian."
It was Emory; his baby tone heavily influenced the pronunciation of the word.
"Wha—" Darian's eyes widened.
"Dawian," Emory repeated with a still expression. Darian, however, could not believe his eyes. He proudly exclaimed, "Yes! That's me! How were you able to say Darian but not Dada? Haha!"
Not answering his father's rhetorical question, Emory softly repeated.
"Dawian."