Chapter 6: Time Skip I
5 years later.
[Dunphy House]
"PHIL, PUT PANTS ON LUKE RIGHT NOW!" Claire yelled exasperatedly as she cooked a large batch of sandwiches.
Little Luke, five years old, was walking around the living room in his underwear while eating chocolate ice cream with his hands and chasing a fly that wouldn't let itself be caught.
Luke tripped over his own feet and fell to the floor, spilling all the ice cream on his white shirt and face. Claire, who saw this, exploded. "Dammit!" she yelled, throwing the mayonnaise against the countertop and rushing toward Luke, who, instead of crying, was laughing for some reason. It was as if he liked the mess.
[Phil's Comment]
"Today's the big day for Andy. The big final: Eagles versus Moose. Go Eagles!" Phil said with a smile as he stared directly at the camera in front of him.
Today was the final between Eastwood Eagles School and Moose Ridge School, both elementary schools. Andrew was part of the Eastwood Eagles. Haley also went to that school.
Phil was wearing a blue and white t-shirt with the team logo and the number one on the back, the same number Andrew wore, as he was the quarterback of the team.
He paired this with white shorts and sneakers. He also wore a cap with the Eagles logo and knee-high socks with blue and white stripes that clung to his hairy legs.
"From little Andy's first birthday, I knew he had the makings of a quarterback. This is his fifth championship win... wait, is it the fifth or sixth?" Phil wondered, looking confused. He had already forgotten how many times Andrew had won championships in elementary school.
As he tried to remember all the times Andrew had been champion, he heard a shout from downstairs.
"PHIL, PUT PANTS ON LUKE RIGHT NOW!"
"First grade, champion... Second, third, and fourth too. Haley is already ten, so he's in fifth grade just like her. This will be the fifth consecutive championship if they win!" Phil said with a smile.
"DAMN IT!"
An even louder scream than the previous one reached Phil's ears, and he looked nervous. He quickly got up and left the room.
[End of comment]
"I'm coming! I'm coming down!" Phil said hurriedly as he ran down the stairs. One of the steps gave way, and he almost tripped.
"I need to fix that step," Phil muttered as he reached the dining room and saw Claire picking up Luke and removing his shirt covered in ice cream.
Claire looked at Phil with a piercing gaze. "Leave Luke to me. Come on, buddy. We need to change and put pants on," Phil said as he lifted Luke.
"Are you going to wear that?" Claire asked, looking at Phil's outfit, which in her opinion was pathetic.
"Yes. Why do you ask the same thing every year?" Phil asked.
"Nothing. Go change Luke. We don't have time. Also tell Haley to hurry, she should still be in her room getting ready..." Claire said with a strange expression, then returned to the kitchen.
[Claire and Phil's comment]
"I'm worried about Haley..." Claire began.
"Lately, it seems like she can't let go of Andrew. It's like she's stuck to him all the time..." Claire said with a worried look.
Phil, not catching where Claire was going, said enthusiastically, "Of course! He's the guy on the team! Andy has that effect on people, he's like an adorable sports hero with those little green eyes!"
Claire sighed, putting her hand to her face. "But... what if she gets too close to him?" Claire said, trying to make Phil understand.
"What's the problem? They'll be super cousins," Phil said with a smile, looking at the camera.
Claire elbowed him, and they both exchanged glances. Finally, Phil understood the look Claire was giving him.
"Oh, no... That won't happen, Claire. Absolutely not. Besides, I saw Andy's look, he's obsessed with football. Don't worry," Phil said, shaking his hand repeatedly.
"Let's hope so..." Claire said.
[End of comment]
...
[Pritchett-Tucker House]
"Absolutely not, Cam!" Mitchell said, intercepting Cam as he tried to go to his room.
"Why not!?" Cam asked, trying to find a gap to squeeze through the door, but it was impossible given his size.
"Andrew hates clowns! You are not going to dress up as Fizbo!" Mitchell exclaimed, finally letting the comment out. Saying it made him feel like a huge burden had been lifted from him, like something magical and refreshing.
"Don't lie! Andrew loves Fizbo. He never complained at any of the parties or birthdays he attended with Fizbo," Cam said indignantly. He wouldn't allow anyone to insult Fizbo.
When Cam was a teenager, he developed an interest in clowns after discovering they were just people with makeup. He later trained with Professor Ringmaster Al Uzielli and created his own clown character, which he named Fizbo.
According to Cam, Fizbo is an innocent clown whose only drive is to bring joy and laughter to people.
"He didn't complain because he's the kindest boy I've ever met. Didn't you notice his face? He never smiles when you're dressed as Fizbo and looks at you with a bit of distrust," Mitchell said.
"What...? Impossible. Everyone loves Fizbo," Cameron said, his mouth open in shock, as if someone had poured a bucket of ice water over him.
"Look at this and you'll see the truth," Mitchell said, walking toward the living room. From one of the shelves, he took a photo album that said: "Andrew's Childhood Memories." The album was pink and covered in cute stickers.
Each white page was adorned with roses and bright colors. Then there was a photo where Andrew always appeared with his friends, his parents, his family, etc.
"Look. April 2003. Andrew won his third championship. He was named MVP and received several other individual awards. Look at his face, really look at it," Mitchell said, lightly tapping the photo several times.
Cam looked at the photo where Andrew was wearing his school football uniform. He had several gold medals hanging around his neck and two trophies in his hands. What was strange was that he didn't have the usual smiling, enthusiastic expression.
Andrew was looking sideways with some distrust at a large man standing beside him, smiling at the camera and holding Andrew by the shoulder. It was Cam, dressed as Fizbo.
Mitchell didn't stop there. He showed Cam all the photos where Andrew posed with Fizbo: birthdays, competitions won, parties, etc.
"Oh my God... It's true. He doesn't like Fizbo at all. What have I done? Memories that should have been happy ended up like this for little Andy..." Cam said, putting his hands on his head.
"Why didn't he ever tell me? You should have told me!" Cam said, feeling guilty and quickly blaming Mitchell.
"Don't blame me so fast," Mitchell said with a grimace.
"I was going to tell you, but Andrew convinced me not to. He knows you love Fizbo and didn't want to hurt your feelings," he added.
"Oh, that little angel," Cam said, tears in his eyes. Mitchell sighed inwardly.
"You can't get sentimental now, Cam. Time is of the essence. We need to go get the shirts. It's a tradition that every year Andrew wins a championship, he gets a shirt that says so," Mitchell said seriously.
His son was a genius in football, and he knew he would win. The victory was 100% guaranteed. So, every year, Mitchell ordered shirts to rub it in the other parents' faces that his son was a genius and better than theirs. That's his style.
"That's true. Let's go," Cam said, wiping away his tears. They quickly got ready, grabbed the car keys, and left the house.
[Comment from Mitchell and Cameron]
"On our son's big day, they'll wonder, 'Why are the parents of the child leaving the house without the child?'" Cameron said in an indignant tone, glancing sideways at Mitchell.
"Well, he can answer them," Cameron finally said, looking at Mitchell after a few seconds of uncomfortable silence.
"Ugh... Why does it bother you so much that my dad is taking him to the game? We'll see him there anyway. In previous years, he was always with us. We shouldn't be selfish. I never thought I'd see my dad so happy," Mitchell said, sighing.
"It's not about that. Parents should be the ones to take their kid to the big game. Plus, it was the same last year. This time, Jay showed up unannounced and took Andrew to his house, telling him he got a DVD of the 1969 Super Bowl game. It was impossible for Andrew not to want to go knowing that, and it was impossible for me to say no when he was so excited to watch that game. It was playing dirty, Jay," Cameron explained, detailing the reason for his frustration.
"Well, that's true. That's playing dirty, Dad…" Mitchell said, unable to argue. It was so easy to convince Andrew with football-related items, especially historical games.
"Anyway, it's great how well Jay and Andrew get along. Since Andrew's sixth birthday, their grandfather-grandson relationship has been smooth sailing," Mitchell said with a happy smile. In fact, because of this, his relationship with his father had improved since he saw him much more than before.
[End of comment]
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