Title: Splash
Characters: Chris, Alyssa, Lily, Patrick, Toni, Nick
Rating: PG (cuteness)
Word Count: 1971
Summary: The blended family heads to San Diego for some family time... with orcas.




June 21, 2006
San Diego, CA

Deciding that theme parks were best mid-week, even during the summer months, Alyssa had booked three nights in The Dana Hotel in San Diego. With an infant, a toddler, and two young children, she knew it was not about to be a relaxing vacation. Despite that, she remained nestled in the crisp white sheets of the hotel bed, hoping the children would give her another hour of sleep before needing to wrangle them all for Sea World. Yet just as she was beginning to drift off once more, she heard her alarm clock: an infant’s cry.
With a half groan, she rolled out of the bed, not realizing Chris was not in the room at all, pulled her hair back from her face and shuffled out of the room. Rubbing her sleepy eyes, Alyssa slowly realized that Chris sat on the sofa, holding his youngest child, bottle in hand.

“Good morning, beautiful,” he commented softly as she sat next to him, reaching for the baby. “I’ve got this.”

It took her a moment to realize they sat on the folded up sofa bed, “Where are the other children?”

A giggle just outside the open patio door answered her question. Getting to her feet, Alyssa headed to the door and leaned out slightly. Lily and Patrick sat in the bistro chairs at the small patio table. A squirming Toni giggled and tried to slip off her older sister’s lap. The two older children tried to silence the toddler, but all was for naught the moment she saw Alyssa. Toni squealed and reached for her. Shaking her head, Alyssa picked up the nearly two-year-old girl, kissing her loudly.

Her eyes flicked to the table, “No breakfast?”

“Shamu!” Patrick exclaimed, jumping off his seat. “We’re having breakfast with Shamu!”

“Who?” her eyes settled on him, confusion on her face. “Who is this Shamu? Have we met?”

“Mom!” Lily jumped out of her chair as well. “We’re going to SEA WORLD. That’s where Shamu is.”

“Who is this Shamu? That’s such a weird name,” she commented.

“Mooooooom!” both Lily and Patrick whined.

Alyssa grinned at the two older children, “Well then I guess we better go put on our Sunday best and head to the park.”

“What’s Sunday best?” Patrick asked, stepping back into the suite.

Alyssa ruffled his curly, dark hair, “Go find your swim trunks, Patrick. I bet you’re gonna get pretty wet today.”

“Okay, Mom!”

“You get your suit on too, Lily,” she instructed as she closed the patio door, her eyes flicking to Chris as he stood up.

“I’ll change him then take charge of the kids so you can get ready,” he stated, pausing to kiss her.

Once everyone was dressed and slathered with sunblock, the blended family headed out of the hotel suite. Getting in and out of their car was as much a production as getting the four children dressed, yet somehow Chris and Alyssa had found a system and rhythm. It amazed even her that they seamlessly moved from vehicle, through the gates of Sea World, and to the dining area for Breakfast with Shamu.

However, within minutes of sitting down, she had a feeling the children were not about to eat anything at all as they all squealed upon seeing one of the orcas swim pass them. She attempted a few different ways to bribe them to eat, but each time it seemed to be succeeding, the orca would swim pass or jump out of the water.

“I give up,” Alyssa muttered, turning to her own food.

Chuckling, Chris glanced across the table, “Don’t worry, Mom, they’ll eat.”

“Least one of them did,” she reached over and pulled Nick’s hat back on.

“They’ll be fine, Lyssie,” he stated, taking a bite of his eggs.

Her hazel eyes flicked up to him, “Be prepared to buy Shamu pretzels and cookies all day then.”

“Oh I’m ready. I have a wallet full of money,” he winked. “I know that’s why you brought me along.”

“And for someone else to push the stroller some of the day,” she declared flatly.

Chris laughed, “Yes, of course.”

“Mom!” Patrick shouted. “Did you see that!?”

“Pretty amazing, huh?” she smiled at him, though she was not entirely sure what he was talking about.

Chris snorted, but did not point out she had not been watching the pool like the boy had been, “We’re going to see lots of exciting things today, Patrick. After breakfast, we’re going on a special tour.”

“Really, Dad?” Lily glanced at him. “Are we going to see dolphins?”

“You might even get to touch one…”

Her eyes widened, “Really?”

“But only if you eat your breakfast,” he declared.

Lily instantly turned her attention to her food. Shaking her head, Alyssa smiled slightly. One down, two more to convince to eat before heading on their tour. It was going to be a long day.


With the sun warming even the metal seats, Alyssa did not dissuade the kids from making a beeline to the soak zone at the Shamu show. Where the children seemed to find their endless supply of energy, she did not know. Only Nick, who was not even a year old, seemed to tire out, napping against Alyssa’s chest during the sea lion show. Though he was fussy again, she thought it had more to do with the heat of the day than needing a nap in his bed.

So with their double stroller parked, Nick on her hip, Toni on Chris’s hip, they followed Lily and Patrick into Shamu Stadium. They quickly found a seat in the center of the stadium — in the front row. Chris started to protest, but Alyssa waved it off and sat down.

“Do you want me to take him?” Chris offered, shifting Toni to sit on the bleacher between him and Lily.

Holding over the fussing infant, she smiled and quickly kissed Chris, “I hope you’re ready to get wet.”

He chuckled, “You did make me wear my shorts.”

“You have on your swim trunks, Dad?” Lily asked, glancing down at Chris’s cargo shorts. “Those don’t look like swim trunks.”

“Uh,” he glanced at the oldest, “they’re underneath my shorts. Like how your suit is under yours.”

“Huh.”

“LILY, I CAN SEE THEM!” Patrick declared, standing on his toes on the bench. “THEY’RE PRACTICING.”

The young girl climbed up onto the bench next to him, “Where?”

“You are not wearing a suit under those shorts,” Alyssa commented softly as she pulled a bottle out of the diaper bag and mixed up formula for Nick.

“Sure I am,” he winked, accepting the bottle. “The tight kind I can wear under shorts.”

She rolled her eyes, “Sure you are.”

“You want to take a look?” he offered, motioning down with his eyes.

She rolled her eyes again and pushed his sunglasses back up his nose, “Maybe later.”

Before he could playfully make another innuendo-filled comment, Toni squealed that she could hardly see anything. Alyssa quickly pulled the toddler into her lap and sat back down. A moment later, the crowd erupted into cheers as the show began.

Following the dripping children out of the stadium half an hour later, Alyssa chuckled as Patrick and Lily happily recounted each of the orcas’ leaps, splashes, and dives. The older girl even declared she wanted to be an orca trainer — not two hours after declaring she wanted to be a dolphin trainer.

“Can we go see the sharks now?” Patrick asked, while Toni climbed into her seat in the stroller.

“I was thinking we would go see them after we have some dinner,” Alyssa suggested.

“But Mooooooom,” Patrick whined.

“I agree,” Chris spoke up. “Don’t you want a Shamu cookie?”

“No,” Patrick responded.

Guiding the stroller towards the nearest eatery anyways, he replied, “No? Cupcake then.”

“I want to see the sharks!”

“Patrick,” Alyssa warned.

“Well I do.”

“After we eat,” she stated.

“But—”

“James Patrick.”

He sighed, folding his arms across his chest. Though he continued to pout as the family headed into the restaurant, he quickly changed his mind upon being allowed to pick whatever he wanted to eat. The children actually fell silent as they dug into dinner.

Chris shifted closer to Alyssa, kissing her after she took a bit of watermelon, “Mmmm, you taste sweet.”

She shook her head, finishing chewing her bite, “Well thank you.”

“I think today has been a success,” he declared.

Alyssa laughed, “It’s not over yet, Chris. We have two more shows and a few more animals to see. Plus Lily wants to go feed the dolphins again. And don’t forget that we—”

He kissed her again, “Relax. Just enjoy it.”

She nodded, “I will.”


Heading back to Shamu Stadium for the final orca show before the fireworks, Chris halted suddenly. Alyssa continued forward with the stroller, chatting with the two older children. Toni had pulled away from him and squatted. The toddler finally noticed the shells embedded in the concrete. Chuckling, Chris snapped a couple of photographs as she attempted to pick the shells out of the sidewalk.

Tucking the camera away as Alyssa turned and noticed why they had stopped, he squatted next to his youngest daughter, “Why don’t we leave those there, Toni?”

“But, Daddy…”

“Let’s leave those there, Toni. We have to go see Shamu one last time,” he held out his hand to her.

The little girl picked at the shells for another minute before finally turning to her father. Grinning, she stepped forward into his arms, allowing Chris to pick her up and join the rest of the family. Once beside Alyssa, Toni started to babble about the pretty shells on the ground. Her babbles fell silent once they entered the stadium.

“Where should we sit this time?” Chris asked as Alyssa adjusting the diaper bag on her shoulder.

“In the front!” Patrick and Lily exclaimed.

“Uhhh… isn’t it kinda chilly for that, guys?” he looked at the two older children.

“Pleeeeeease, Daddy? Please?” Lily pleaded.

Chris looked to Alyssa, who merely shook her head and shrugged.

His green eyes went back to the children, “How about we sit a few rows up so we can see all the fun flips and jumps better?”

The children agreed and made a beeline for the seats near the shallow slide-out pool. Shaking his head, Chris followed them, keeping Toni on his hip. Alyssa sat next to him, dropping the diaper bag at their feet and adjusting the sleeping baby in her arms. A minute later, Chris was back on his feet, purchasing lighted Shamu toys for the three awake children. The toys provided amusement for a few minutes, but were promptly forgotten once the show began and the water rocked with waves.

Despite it being a night show, their proximity to the pool did mean splashing went their way. Alyssa managed to shield Nick from most of it, though he did wake with a frustrated cry. The family remained seated after the show, the children’s eyes focused on the fireworks in the sky.

Once the finale sparkled above, Lily turned to Chris and hugged him, “You’re the best Daddy ever.”

His face lit up as he hugged her back, “Thanks, Lil. I’m glad you had a good day.”

“It was great!” she declared, beaming up at him. “Can we come back tomorrow?”

He chuckled and touched her nose, “We’ve got more things to do tomorrow, Lily. I think you’ll have just as much fun then.”

She sighed, “Well okay... but I do want to be a killer whale trainer.”

He smirked, balancing a yawning Toni on his hip, “We’ll see how you feel about that tomorrow, Lily.”

“Why?”

“Because we’re going to the zoo.”