Chapter Five

Dexter woke up to the shrill beeping of the alarm clock. Today was a staff and crew development day at Nathan's school; he had forgotten to tell him… Shoot. He got up from his bed and went to use the bathroom. After washing his hands and getting dressed in a black T-shirt and grey skinny jeans, he quietly crept into Nathan's room.

He knelt down by Nathan's bed, stroking his brown hair with one hand. Nathan shuffled around in his sleep, before opening his eyes a small sliver. "Good morning, you," Dexter said, bending down to give Nathan a small kiss on his forehead. Nathan sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Nathan, I've got to talk to you, so please listen very carefully.

"Today, your school is going to be closed," he explained, making sure to keep careful eye contact with Nathan, which, with Nathan being autistic, was not easy. "No one will be there except for a few of your teachers, okay?"

Nathan nodded, and Dexter continued, thankful that Nathan wasn't getting upset, or worse, having a tantrum, "But I do have school today, which means that I'm going to be gone for a few hours. Mom has a day off, so she's going to be staying with you, okay?"

Nathan stared ahead, Dexter let him sit for a little while and let it sink in. Dexter took his hand and started rubbing it with his thumb. "I'm really sorry, Nathan," Dexter said, "I know you're not used to it, but I'll ask mom if we can all go on the bus together." Nathan simply stared ahead and started snapping his fingers. Dexter sighed and stood up to pick out Nathan's outfit.

Once Nathan was dressed, (he still wanted to wear the blue shirt; Dexter would have to go to the laundry floor later,) they went to the kitchen to have breakfast. Nico took out some pancake mix and ingredients. Nathan was going to have his special blue pancakes, and since Amara was still asleep and Robert was getting ready for work, Dexter would have to try his hand at cooking.

The pancakes turned out to be quite edible. It seemed Nathan loved them, seeing as he had two plates while he was watching 'Bubble Guppies.'

"Good morning, you two," Amara said as she came into the kitchen, giving the two boys a kiss on the head. "Good morning" replied Dexter, while Nathan barely looked up from the television. "Amara, can I talk to you?" Dexter asked, standing up and getting his and Nathan's plates to put in the sink. "Sure, honey. What's up?" she said, fixing herself a plate of blue pancakes.

"Well, since Nathan doesn't have any school today, I was wondering if you and he could ride the bus to school with me." It'll be good for Nathan, since he doesn't really get out much. He could learn about the bus and a few new words, too."

"It sounds like a good idea," said Amara thoughtfully, "but I'm not sure if he could handle being in such a crowded and small place. He's never even been on a bus before, and he always follows his routine."

"Yes, I do know that, but I just want him to have a little bit of fun. Please?" Dexter put on his best pouty face. Amara sighed and threw her hands in the air. "Fine," she said. "But you're paying for the bus fare," she said jokingly.