Like father and son

"Alfred I am going out, if I don't return before Joy does, just tell her that I will be back very soon" said Natasha.

"Alright Madam, enjoy your outing, and Happy Valentine's day" said Alfred as he smiled.

"Thank you Alfred, Happy Valentine's day to you too Alfred" said Natasha as she smiled and she walked out the front door as she smiled when she saw Pete's car parked and waiting for her at the end of the driveway.

"Hello Pete" said Natasha as she smiled and she got into the passenger's seat.

"Hello Nat" said Pete as he smiled.

"Oh I hope that you weren't waiting here long" said Natasha.

"No, not at all, I just arrived" said Pete as he smiled.

"How are you bored, where is Joy?" asked Pete with a smile.

"She went out with her daddy, and I didn't want to go with them" said Natasha.

"Alright then" said Pete as he smiled.

"I see that you are with your car today, so I don't think that we are going anywhere official" said Natasha as she smiled.

"Well no, it's my day off today" said Pete as he smiled.

"Oh, it is? Knowing you, you don't take days off, you don't like missing the action" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Well now I do, and I can let the action pause for a day, besides I trust that Morales will have everything under control" said Pete.

"Oh Morales, well I pity him, because if anything goes wrong, you are going to blame the poor guy" said Natasha as she laughed.

"No, I will be totally calm because anything can happen" said Pete as he laughed.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Happy Valentine's day Nat" said Pete as he smiled.

"Happy Valentine's day Petey" said Nat as she smiled and she gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"So where are we going?" asked Natasha.

"It's a surprise, so sit tight and wait till we get there" said Pete as he smiled.

"Wait a minute son of the law, are you kidnapping me or what?" asked Natasha as she laughed.

"Well don't you trust me?" asked Pete as he laughed.

"I do, but you are acting suspicious" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Don't worry, when we get there you will know" said Pete as he laughed.

"You know what, I should have taken my gun along with me, just in case" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Oh relax Nat" said Pete as he started the car.

"Okay, whatever you say Pete" said Natasha as she laughed and they drove away.

…

"Here you go princess" said Dom as he smiled and he handed Joy her chocolate ice cream in a cone, while he took a vanilla ice cream cone for himself.

"Thank you Daddy" said Joy as she smiled and she took the ice cream from him as she licked it and they went to go sit down on a bench in the park, where many children were laughing and playing on the swings with their parents.

"Daddy, Valentine's day Is for people that love each other right?" asked Joy as she looked at Dom.

"Well yes princess, it's a day of love" said Dom as he smiled.

"Love for mommies and daddies right?" asked Joy as she licked her ice cream.

"Yes, that is true, but it's not only for mommies and daddies, but brothers and sisters, and friends, it's a day for every kind of love, to show the people that you love how much you truly care about them and appreciate them" said Dom as he explained.

"Daddy, mommy doesn't like Valentine's day, and I don't know why" said Joy as Dom sighed.

"It's not that she doesn't like Valentine's day my princess, but sometimes, bad things happen to adults on some certain day, and that makes them have bad memories about that day" said Dom as he tried his best to explain.

"So something bad happened to mommy on Valentine's day?" asked Joy.

"Well yes, something like that, butt it doesn't mean that she hates the day, she would rather not celebrate it, you have to try to understand princess" said Dom as he smiled and Joy nodded.

"Alright princess, now let's finish our ice creams, so we can go and play okay?" asked Dom as he smile and Joy nodded her head happily.

"Okay daddy" she said with a smile.

…

"Do you recognize where we are yet?" asked Pete as he smiled and Natasha looked around as she saw the trees and houses passing as they drove by.

"Wait, I do… I just can remember it…." said Natasha as she was trying to jog her memory until they passed a particular oak tree.

"Of course, I know this place" said Natasha as Pete laughed.

"Wait, we are going to your parent's house aren't we?" asked Natasha as she looked at him, now it made sense, this was the neighbourhood of where Pete's parent's lived.

"You got it" said Pete as he laughed.

"What a surprise" said Natasha as she laughed.

"This is actually not the real surprise yet, but last time my mom called, she told me that it's been a long time since she saw you, and well, she said that the next time I had a day off, I should bring you home with me, so here we are" said Pete as he pulled into a driveway as he got out of the car and Natasha did the same.

"Oh I do miss your mom as well" said Natasha as she laughed and she and Pete walked to the front door.

"Ladies first" said Pete as he opened the door and he let Natasha go first.

"Thank you" said Natasha as she smiled and Pete closed the door behind them.

"Peter is that you?" came the voice of a woman from another room as she heard the front door open and close.

"Yes Mom, it's me" said Pete.

"Oh finally, the wonderful day has arrived, my lost son has come home" came the woman's voice as Natasha laughed silently.

"Oh don't exaggerate mom, I come home when I can, you know how busy I am" said Pete as he laughed and he heard his mother walking in from the other room as she gasped when she saw Natasha.

"Natasha, dear, is that you?" asked the brown haired woman with brown eyes in disbelief.

"Hi Mrs. L" said Natasha as she smiled.

"Oh dear, it is you, what a surprise this is" said the woman as she hugged Natasha and Natasha laughed as Pete shook his head.

"Wow Mom, you won't even hug your own son first" said Pete in sarcasm.

"Oh Peter you know that you always have my love, but I haven't seen Natasha in such a long time" said Mrs. L as she pinched Pete's cheeks, which he hated, but he could not tell her that.

"Natasha how are you?" asked Mrs. L as she smiled.

"I am doing well Mrs. L, and how have you been?" asked Natasha as she smiled.

"Getting older" said Mrs. L as she laughed.

"I mean, you don't look old at all" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Oh you flatter me dear, Peter, you didn't tell me that you both were coming, I would have made something special" said Mrs. L as she looked at Pete.

"It was a surprise Mom" said Pete as he laughed.

"And where is dad?" asked Pete.

"Oh you know, in his study as usual, but this time he has to get out here and talk" said Mrs. L.

"Peterson, get your butt out here right this instant, we have guests and you better have pants on or so help me I will glue them onto you" said Mrs. L as she shouted and both Pete and Natasha looked at each other as they laughed, there was only one woman who could talk to Captain Peterson Lawson like that.

"I will be there in a second Julia" said Peterson as his footsteps could be heard coming from the other room.

"Captain" said Pete as his father looked at him.

"Peter, long time no see, what brings you here today?" asked Peterson.

"It's my day off" said Pete.

"Good, good" said Peterson as he noticed Natasha who smiled at him.

"Good Afternoon Captain" said Natasha as she smiled.

"Ahh Natasha, what a surprise, Afternoon" said Peterson as he smiled.

"Attention" said Peterson as both Natasha and Pete saluted him.

"Oh how wonderful, come on Natasha, we are all going to have some coffee and cookies that I just made, come and help me" said Julia as she pulled Natasha's hand and she nodded as she followed after her.

"How is everything on the force?" asked Peterson as he looked at his son.

"All good Captain" said Pete.

"I heard about the robbery on 7th street, didn't seem like you did much" said Peterson.

"The criminals were armed and they also took hostages, we did our best and we rescued the hostages" said Pete.

"That's not what Bermudez told me when he called" said Peterson.

"Captain, that man always has something bad to say, but overall, the operation went well" said Pete.

"I heard of the position of chief of police opening up in Voca" said Peterson.

"Yes Captain, and I know what you are going to say, I am not taking the position" said Pete simply.

"So you want to remain a commander forever?" asked Peterson.

"I don't want to have to move five hours away and get separated from my team that I have work so hard to build, I am fine with being a commander, and if I am truly meant to be promoted, I am sure that something will open up for me at the station" said Pete.

"You know, if I was your age I would have made sure to work up the ranks quicker" said Peterson.

"I know, and that's also why I joined the force like you did, but we are not at the station right now Dad, so can we speak like father and son, and not like colleagues" said Pete.

"Whatever you say, I just want you to know that age will catch up to you, look at me, I am retired now" said Peterson.

"Dad, I am only 30 years old, by the time I retire, I should be 50 or so, I still have a long time left" said Pete as he smiled.

"Hmm, tell me, you don't want to move away because of her right?" asked Peterson as Pete sighed.

"Partly" said Pete.

"When will you learn to move on?" asked Peterson.

"Who told you that I haven't already?" asked Pete as Peterson just gave him a 'sure you have' kind of look.

"You two, get in here, and I don't want to hear police talk" came Julia's voice from the other room.

"Coming mom" said Pete as he smiled.

"I don't know how she is always so loud" said Pete as he laughed.

"That's what I deal with every day son" said Peterson as Pete laughed.

…

"Oh it's so nice that you are here Natasha, I missed you so much" said Julia as she smiled and they all drank their coffee as Natasha had tea instead and she smiled at her.

"Oh I just remember right now how close you and Petey were, do you remember Peter's first girlfriend?" asked Julia as Pete almost choked, how did they get to this part of the conversation about his love life.

"Oh how can I forgot her Mrs. L" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Wait, a minute, what are you two talking about? My first girlfriend, that I broke up with after two weeks" said Pete.

"Oh right, you did 'break up' with her" said Julia with air quotes as she and Natasha laughed and Pete looked at his father who was sipping his coffee.

"Mom, what did you do?" asked Pete.

"For your own good Peter, for your own good" said Julia as she smiled and Pete was sceptical, knowing his mother, he could not trust anything anymore.

"Natasha, what do you know?" asked Pete as he looked at Natasha who just shook her head and feigned ignorance.

"Well anyway, Natasha, how is your daughter Joy?" asked Julia.

"She is alright Mrs. L" said Natasha as she smiled.

"Oh that's wonderful, you need to advice Peter, he needs to get settled down, he isn't getting any younger" said Julia.

"I agree with you Mrs. L, he's on his way to 40" said Natasha as Pete spit out his coffee.

"Hey, hey, calm down, I'm only turning 31 this year, relax, when did I jump to 40??" asked Pete in disbelief.

"But you will be there soon, I want a daughter in law" said Julia.

"And I also want to plan a wedding, give me that joy to plan a wedding, I am starting to regret having you alone" said Julia as Pete sighed and shook his head.

"Peterson, do you think it's too late for us to have another child?" asked Julia as she looked at Peterson.

"Well if you want the child to think that we are its grandparents then yes" replied Peterson as Natasha laughed.

"You may be old, but I'm, not, I am sure that I can go one more time, and this time have a daughter who does my bidding" said Julia.

"Mom, don't try it, there's a reason why women of your age aren't supposed to continue child bearing" said Pete.

"Oh you are mean, Natasha, isn't being a mother the most wonderful thing in the world?" asked Julia.

"Just the best" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Reminds me of when Petey was three, he liked to do what we call tuck and roll, he took a long while to get potty trained, so he wore diapers everywhere, and whenever he heard the sound of the radio he would take off his diapers and throw them on the ground, we don't know why he liked doing that, but it sure was funny" said Julia as she laughed and Natasha laughed as Pete covered his eyes in embarrassment, he hated this story.

"Oh I even have a video, we have to watch it" said Julia as she laughed.

"Oh hell no" said Pete as everyone looked at him, he hated that video.

"Language Peter" said Julia as she looked at him and he smiled sheepishly.

"I mean, mom we can't watch the video, since Natasha and I are leaving" said Pete.

"We are?" asked Natasha in surprise as she looked at him.

"Yes we are" said Pete as he nodded.

"You guys aren't staying for dinner?" asked Julia.

"No Mom, we can't we have to go actually right now, Natasha let's go" said Pete as he stood up.

"Okay?" asked Natasha in confusion.

"Aww well alright, see you two next time" said Julia as she smiled.

"Goodbye Mrs. L, Bye Captain" said Natasha as she smiled.

"See you later Mom, dad" said Pete as Natasha and him walked away as the front door closed.

"Oh that son of ours. If he was quick enough to tell Natasha how he feels about her, I would have had at least one grandchild by now" said Julia as she sighed.

"Julia, calm down, she is married remember" said Peterson.

"To a man who doesn't deserve her, my Petey would have treated her like a queen" said Julia as she sighed.

…

"You were in such a rush to leave" said Natasha as she and Pete were back in the car as they drove.

"I don't want you seeing disturbing videos of my naked three year old behind" said Pete as Natasha laughed.

"I didn't know that you hated to be confined in pants Pete" said Natasha as she laughed.

"It was diapers, and that was a phase back then" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Where are we going now?" asked Natasha.

"To the real surprise" said Pete as he smiled.

"Okay, okay" said Natasha.

"Now you are going to tell me about what you and my mom did to my first girlfriend and don't you dare lie to me" said Pete as Natasha sighed.

"Fine" said Natasha as she laughed.

"Well your mom asked me to go with her to your girlfriend's apartment since she wanted to drop off some cookies for her, well we went there, the door was unlocked and your girlfriend told your mom on the phone that she was free to go into her apartment, we did so, and I needed to use the bathroom so I looked for it, and I ended up in your girlfriend's bedroom, where me and your mom saw some… disturbing things…" said Natasha as she explained.

"Disturbing like how?" asked Pete.

"Well your 'girlfriend' had a literal shrine of you, with all your pictures and she lit two red candles around the shrine, and well… your mom and I were so creeped out that she decided you had to break up with her, so she somehow influenced you to do so, while making you think that you broke up with her because you wanted to" said Natasha as Pete face, contorted.

"Good Lord Natasha, how long did you know this?" asked Pete.

"How long have we been friends?" asked Natasha.

"10 years" said Pete.

"Exactly" said Natasha.

"I have bad luck with women" said Pete as he laughed and Natasha laughed.

"No you don't, you just need to look harder" said Natasha as she laughed and Pete laughed.

…

"Your fries sweetie" said a waitress as she placed Dom and Joy's order on the table.

"Thank you" said Joy as she smiled and the waitress smiled at her as she walked away.

"Daddy do you want some fries?" asked Joy as she smiled.

"No princess, I am alright, thank you" said Dom as he smiled and he ate his salad as Joy ate her fries and she looked around, she could see many other couples smiling and talking together as some were kissing.

"Daddy, why don't you and mommy kiss?" asked Joy as her question caught Dom off guard as he looked at her.

"Well because we don't love each other" replied Dom.

"Why don't you and mommy love each other?" asked Joy.

"It's complicated my princess" said Dom as he sighed.

"You don't want to tell me?" asked Joy.

"My princess, you will know when you are older, but for now, you should know that your mommy and I love you very much, more than anything else in the world, and if we are together" said Dom as he smiled.

"Okay Daddy, I know" said Joy as she smiled at him and Dom took a fry from her plate.

"Hey daddy, didn't you say that you don't want any fries?" asked Joy as she laughed.

"I change my mind, adults do that sometimes" said Dom as he laughed.

"Adults are weird daddy" said Joy as she laughed and Dom laughed at her.

…

"And here we are" said Pete as he stopped the car and he parked the car as he got out.

"Oh, I see what you did, you planned a picnic for us didn't you?" asked Natasha as she got out the car and she looked at the trees around them.

"I did" said Pete as he laughed and they walked deeper into the trees as the sun was starting to set.

"Is it to pay me back for telling that man that I was arrested?" asked Natasha as she laughed.

"Maybe, maybe not, but it's valentine's day isn't?" asked Pete as he smiled and Natasha saw a picnic laid out for them on the grass.

"That it is" said Natasha as Pete removed his shoes and she did the same as she sat down on the picnic blanket.

"And two friends can enjoy Valentine's day in style" said Pete as he smiled.

"You sly man, I should have known that you would plan something like this" said Natasha as Pete laughed.

"Thank you so much Pete" said Natasha as she smiled, she really needed some cheering up today, even if she didn't show it, but Pete knew her well.

"Anytime" said Pete as he smiled, he always wanted to see her happy to see her smile.

"Nat, do you remember how we met?" asked Pete as he smiled.

"Of course I do, how can I forget?" asked Natasha as she smiled, she remembered it like it was just yesterday that she and Pete met.