Story Time || Ross MacDonald Oneshot
Word Count: 2,010 Summary: Upon bringing your young son to the bookstore with you, you hear a man’s voice that catches the attention of you both. Author’s Note: Major thanks to @u2bibliophile for the lovely idea <3 It was so cute and fun to write. Also the book Ross reads in this is Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. I’ve linked the music version I document in the story. Highly recommend listening to it when the time comes! Be sure to throw in a like or comment if you liked it! I love seeing feedback from you all. Please feel free to read my other work here! Enjoy!
“Mommy, I want this book!”
You had heard it all day. Your little one’s voice, still high and childlike, yet as annoying as a little boy’s voice ever could be. He wasn’t usually a bad kid - no, usually Carter maintained the same calm demeanor that had drawn you to his father. That is, before he abandoned you during your pregnancy for someone who was very much not pregnant and less of a burden. You would never let Carter get that way. Though, you supposed in moments like this where he didn’t listen to you and kept whining, he was that way to some extent. It made you despise it more.
“Carter, sweetie, we can’t get that book. Mommy has to go get a book for her work. We don’t have the money.”
“But mom!”
“Not today,” you sighed, shaking your head. As much as it hurt to tell him no, you had to. You really did not have the money, and the book he had his eyes on contained actual toys attached to it in a big set. You were sure it would be expensive, however much it was. You simply couldn’t afford it, not when your own book would be its own fortune. Taking Carter’s hand, you brought him back towards the more education-based books. They were far less interesting to the little blonde boy. No four year old could find interest in thick, pictureless books. He didn’t see any pretty colors or cool figures. It might as well have been pure nothingness in front of him. He grumbled and acted sluggish as you brought him to your specific section. A loud sigh voiced his displeasure. You gave him a sympathetic smile as you pulled one of the books off the shelf.
“I know buddy, it’s boring. I’m almost done, and then we can go home and play. Alright?”
He hardly looked satisfied. But, it was enough to make him quiet, and that was good enough for you. You started filing through the books, until finally after about ten minutes of looking, you got what you needed. Picking Carter up off the ground where he had decided to sit and pout, you began making your way through the store. Though you were a bit wary to move past where Carter had seen the book set he wanted, he kept his calm. You chalked it up to him wanted to go home, which frankly you could not blame him for. The quieter he was, the faster you could get him home. But then, just as you were about to make your way to the checkout counter, music started to play. Acoustic guitar music that caught your little boy’s attention in mere seconds. Grinning from ear to ear, he pulled at your shirt and pointed over to its source, which of course just had to be the section with his toy book.
“Mommy, I wanna’ hear the music!”
“Carter, I don’t know if we-”
“Pleeeeease?”
You sighed. You had been a pretty mean mom to him, dragging him around and refusing to buy anything for his time and patience. This was the least thing you could do. Besides, it was free to listen to music. If it got Carter excited, who were you to stop him? Taking his hand, you gave in and walked him over. He giggled and thanked you as profusely as any excited four year old could. As you made your way over, the sound of a really deep voice filled the air. A few other voices giggled around him, and when you got close enough, you noticed that these voices belonged to three handsome men, friends of the one responsible for the acoustic sounds. A small crowd of kids were surrounding them, eagerly watching the four as their parents waited off to the side. Whoever these men were, they seemed important. You were pretty fond of the one with the guitar, yourself. He laughed and then scratched at his beard.
“I was only joking that I’d give everyone a concert, but now that I’ve got a crowd, I suppose I might as well perform something for them anyway.”
“You better,” the guy with curly black hair laughed, gazing out at the kids, “the little ones look ready to hear some music.”
“Alright then,” he spoke, smiling their way, “do any of you kids have a song you want me to sing?”
The taller of the three standing giggled, saying “Old MacDonald should do the trick” to the visible chagrin of the bearded boy. The other two joined in on the giggles, along with some parents. Apparently, these boys definitely were famous. And jokesters, apparently.
“Sir?”
All eyes fell on your boy, Carter, standing right in front of you with a little blush but excitement evident in his face. You blushed as the bearded guy first looked to you before gazing Carter’s way. Giving him a soft smile, he gestured for him to speak.
“Can you sing the song from the book my mommy usually sings to me?”
The man grinned even brighter. “Of course! What book does she sing to you?”
“Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.”
A few kids giggled at the choice, but the man held his smile. He fiddled a bit with his guitar and then began strumming it to the all too familiar tune. He threw Carter a wink.
“Of course, buddy. That’s a throwback to my childhood! We’re all about as old as it is, anyway. I know it by heart because of that, if I’m being honest. I’d love to sing it for you.”
“Yay!”
Clearing his throat, he began to strum louder, growing rather animated facially.
“A told B, and B told C, "I'll meet you at the top of the coconut tree." "Wheee!" said D to E F G, "I'll beat you to the top of the coconut tree." Chicka chicka boom boom! Will there be enough room? Here comes H up the coconut tree, and I and J and tag-along K, all on their way up the coconut tree. Chicka chicka boom boom! Will there be enough room? Look who's coming! L M N O P! And Q R S! And T U V! Still more - W! And X Y Z! The whole alphabet up the - Oh, no!”
The other boys all laughed as he pretended to fall off of his seat, flailing about. The kids also got a kick out of it, including your little Carter, who had been trying his best to mouth along to the song as he danced to it. You smiled and ruffled up his hair, which got a smile from both Carter and the man up front. He continued.
”Chicka chicka... BOOM! BOOM! Skit skat skoodle doot. Flip flop flee. Everybody running to the coconut tree. Mamas and papas and uncles and aunts hug their little dears, then dust their pants. "Help us up," cried A B C. Next from the pileup skinned-knee D, and stubbed-toe E and patched-up F. Then comes G all out of breath. H is tangled up with I. J and K are about to cry. L is knotted like a tie. M is looped. N is stopped. O is twisted alley-oop. Skit skat skoodle doot. Flip flop flee. Look who's coming! It's black-eyed P, Q R S, and loose-tooth T. Then U V W wiggle-jiggle free. Last to come X Y Z. And the sun goes down on the coconut tree... But - chicka chicka boom boom! Look, there's a full moon. A is out of bed, and this is what he said, "Dare double dare, you can't catch me. I'll beat you to the top of the coconut tree." Chicka chicka BOOM! BOOM! Chicka chicka BOOM! BOOM!”
And with that, the song was done. Everyone clapped and cheered, the man bowing for the kids and getting patted on the back by his friends. You clapped as well, smiling at him and the way your little boy clapped and cheered as loud as he normally did for his favorite TV shows, or any superhero movie you let him watch. His little blonde mop ran up to the man and hugged him tight. You blushed, only able to watch the adorable sight through your fingers. The man waved and beckoned you to come over, the curly haired boy telling everyone thank you for coming and something about the year ‘1975’. Moving forward, you came and picked Carter up, the little boy still all smiles at the man. You held out your hand.
“{Y/N},” you told him kindly, “it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you as well,” he replied, grinning back at Carter, “I’m Ross. Who’s this little guy?”
“Carter.”
“Nice to meet you, Carter,” he spoke in the most sweet voice you had ever heard a man use. “You’re quite a handsome lad.”
“What do you say, love?”
“Thank you Mr. Ross,” he replied, polite just like you raised him. Ross reached and messed with his hair, causing him to giggle. “I really like how each letter had..had a different voice!”
Ross smiled. “Thank you! My family always did that for me when I was your age,” he added, poking at Carter’s chest. Carter giggled and squirmed in your arms, making you laugh and have to set him down. Once his feet touched the floor, he was off playing with the other kids sticking around in the area. You shook your head.
“He seems like a firecracker, that one.”
“You have no idea.”
“I’m assuming he has his father’s hair?”
You bit your lip. His father. “Yeah, he does. Thankfully, he doesn’t have much more of the guy.”
“Bad father?”
“You have no idea. He’s out of Carter’s life probably for the best.”
Ross’ expression softened. “I’m sorry. Genuinely. He deserves a good dad. But, from how polite and sweet he is, I see he has a good mother to back him up.”
Blushing, you felt like a silly schoolgirl around her crush. Apparently his voice wasn’t the only thing that was smooth. “Thank you. I’m sure I’ll find someone good for him sooner or later. I try my best to keep him happy in the meantime.”
“You’re doing a wonderful job.”
“Thank you.”
“Look...I hate being so blunt but...you’re a beautiful woman,” Ross rambled nervously, “ and I adore your child. I would really like to get to know you and, if I could be so lucky, him, better. Would you want to go get dinner sometime? My treat?”
You smiled and reached to rub his arm, getting him to look at you. The smile he gave back to you when meeting your eyes lit up your world. “I would love to. And, eventually, we would love to as well. Do you want to exchange numbers?”
“It would be my pleasure.”
You quickly did. Upon receiving your phone back, you found out that his last name was MacDonald, hence the taller man’s joke about ‘Old MacDonald’. You smiled at it before pocketing your phone and calling Carter back over. He jogged over and then held his hands up, allowing you to pick him up and hold him at your side.
“Say goodbye to Mr. Ross, Carter.”
“Bye-bye,” he said sweetly, waving to Ross. Ross waved back, throwing a grin back to his friends who were watching quietly a bit away.
“Bye, little guy.”
“See you later Ross,” you said to him, smiling behind your blush. “I’ll text you when I’m free for dinner, yeah?”
Ross nodded. “Yeah, that sounds wonderful. You two get home safely.”
“Same to you.”
With one final wave, you turned and went back over to the checkout counter. After quickly buying your book, you headed out with Carter to your car. As you went to buckle him into his booster seat, Carter tapped you on the arm.
“Mommy?”
Pulling back to look at him, you cocked your head to the side. “What, love?”
“I really like Mr. Ross.”
You smiled. “You know what? I do too, buddy.”
