Page 83 of Love Limits

One chair had a pillow on the seat and a brightly printed cover over that. A colorful placemat with the alphabet printed on it sat in front of it.

It looked inviting. Comforting, even. Ash had never been here before, and there was a place just waiting for them.

They weren’t quite there yet, though. They took the chair right next to it. Maybe if they wanted to later, they could move over.

They watched with interest as Josh finished drying his hands. He walked over to the oven and pulled out… a bag with the McDonald’s logo. Next came a Happy Meal box.

So, not quite what they’d been expecting, but definitely kid food.

It was just that they’d gotten so used to Zhong making them fresh, tasty vegetables that fast food hadn’t occurred to them. They got enough McDonald’s on the way home from work as it was. They had a suspicion that if Zhong knew, he’d just pack twice as much food for them each time. Which sounded kind of dreamy, really. Maybe they should let that piece of information slip.

Josh put the bag on the table and spread out three sandwiches, plus the carton of fries that he laid on the flattened bag. “You choose which one you want. I’ll go get the drinks.”

Ash looked at all of them. Unfortunately, they knew the menu well enough to recognize even hints of the labels. A buttermilk crispy chicken sandwich, a deluxe quarter-pounder with cheese, and a Big Mac.

Well, at least he’d gotten the expensive sandwiches? Though the thought was ludicrous when the table they were eating on could probably pay some McDonald’s employee’s salary for a year.

God, they shouldn’t judge. It really was the thought that counted, and Josh had bought them a Happy Meal. He’d been thoughtful enough to include some other options, too.

They reached for the chicken, since it was pretty much the best option. But then again, the Happy Meal would have a toy. Maybe they could have both.

Josh was a good Daddy. Everything that he did showed it.

He set the drinks on the table. Two soft drinks and a squat little jug of chocolate milk. Zhong never let Ash have sodas. He didn’t have any in his house. And Ash could bet that if they asked for chocolate milk, they’d get it… but only if they gave up ice cream for dessert. Zhong did not approve of too much dairy or sugar.

Josh leaned over the table and gently touched their arm. “Hard decision?”

Yes, but not the decision Josh was talking about.

“Can I have the chicken sandwich and the chocolate milk and see what the toy is?”

Josh laughed, looking like every Daddy should when he was pleased with his little. That felt nice. “Of course, baby. There are chicken nuggets and sauce in the Happy Meal, too.”

Ash opened them all and spread them out. They could just imagine the look on Zhong’s face.

The fries spilled out when Ash was digging out the toy, and Josh came around the table to scoop them all back up. Zhong would have left them on the table to see what Ash would make with them. And then take a picture with his phone.

The toy was at least pretty awesome. It was the teeniest, tiniest little version of Hungry, Hungry Hippos. The front looked like a little person with the game box for a body and cartoon arms and legs sticking out. The back had a little plastic bubble with two little hippos underneath. If you pressed the buttons with your finger tips, the hippos snapped up the balls.

Ash opened the package just to test it out, orange hippo versus green hippo.

Orange hippo won. They started another game.

They ate a couple of fries and then went back to it. The hippos were so adorable, and it was silly watching them snarf up the tiny balls.

A hand waved in their peripheral vision.

“Do you like your toy?”

“Yeah! This is, like, the best McDonald’s toy ever.” They were going to go to McDonald’s every day now and get as many as they could. Zhong wouldn’t have to know. They wondered how many toys were in the collection.

“I’m so happy, sweetheart. But I would like you to put it away for now so you can eat.”

They sighed, but did what they were told. They were kind of half-in and half-out of little space now. Josh had opened up the little boxes of dipping sauces while he was cleaning up their fries, and everything was laid out for them, ready for dipping.

They slathered the first one in tangy sauce and munched on it, willing themself to let go. Even if it was just a scene, they trusted Josh to take care of them.

“Hey, do you have any games?” They asked.