“I say we do nothing.” Jens snarls and throws handfuls of pasta into a pan. “Let people gossip. Let people gorge on freaking scandalous stories and by tomorrow it will all be forgotten.”
“I still have to go to school. I still have to deal with this shit tomorrow, listening to idiots talk behind my back.”
“I will come into school with you in the morning, and speak to the headmaster. I don’t give a shit about gossip, but they have a duty to protect you.” Jens says crossing his arms over his chest.
“Yeah, that would go down well. Everyone would take photos of you and post on Insta.”
“Bullshit. They are not interested in me.”
“I think you’re right, baby.” Axel says, leaning back against the kitchen counter. “I’ll talk to Hedda, but I think if we just leave this, and then somehow get the truth out, then that journo will have egg on his face. Fucking wanker. I kind of want to go on that Good Morning Norway show now just to throw shade on him. Call him out. Bad research, article full of shit and no clue about human dignity. I would love to have him come on with us. Fucking trolling idiot.”
“Language, Axel!” Malena giggles. “That would actually be quite good. You would ace it.”
“Are you going on TV then?” Morten says as he sits himself down at the kitchen table with a thud. Throwing his arms on the surface and letting his chin rest on his hands.
“No, well, maybe. I don’t know.” Axel says. “What do you think Morten?”
“Nothing.” Morten sighs. “Nobody has said anything to me. I mean, I don’t care.”
“You know you can speak your mind, Morten. Your views and opinions are important too.” Jens replies. “Malena, what do you think?”
“Family meeting. Now. With dinner.” She says, dragging her chair over to the table.
“Family meeting?” Axel questions.
“Yeah, it’s where we all sit around the table and shout at each other and throw food and then we all hate each other until the next morning.” Morten sighs.
“Mikkkkiiiiii! Dinner!!!” Jens shouts, and Marthe raises her arms to Axel and says, “Pappa Axel,” like nothing is wrong with the world.
She knows. Because she wraps her arms around his neck and Axel melts into a puddle of goo. “Pappa Axel,” she whispers as she plants a wet kiss on his cheek. And Axel just can’t let go. He carries her over to the sink to fill glasses of water, as Jens loads plates with pasta and sausages.
“We need to eat vegetables.” Malena mutters.
“I hate vegetables.” Morten growls.
“Ketchup is tomatoes.” Jens bangs the ketchup bottle down on the table. “So there, tomatoes. Part of your five a day.”
“No ketchup.” Mikki puts his hands over his plate. “I hate ketchup.”
“You love ketchup!” Jens almost shouts.
“No kecchupp.” Marthe singsongs.
“Sit down, please.” Axel pleads as Marthe’s legs refuses to bend into the highchair.
“Family meeting!” Malena yells.
“I have a thing to talk about.” Morten shouts.
“Morten. Speak.” Jens sits down next to Axel and hands him a plate.
“I need a haircut.”
“I can take you on Saturday morning. No problems.” Jens gets his phone out to make a note.
“No, I don’t want to go to that woman at the Co-op, she cuts it so I look like a dork.”
Jens puts the phone down. “She cuts it fine. Just tell her how you want it.”
“I want Axel to take me to where he gets his hair cut. His hair is cool.” Morten sits back in the chair and puts a forkful of pasta in his mouth.
“I go to a place in Frogner, I’ll take you. No probs. We can have a day out.” Axel smiles a little. Feeling all warm again.
“I want a haircut with Axel, too.” Mikki pipes up.
“Okay, we can have a boys’ day out. Haircuts. Pizza. Stuff like that.”
“No Mikki is a baby, I want to hang out with Axel, and do like grown up stuff.”
“I want to come, too.” Mikki howls, with tears threatening to run down his face.
“Calm, calm,” Axel declares, trying to wave his arms in the air and feed Marthe a piece of sausage at the same time. “Morten and I will do haircuts one day next week after school, and Mikki and I will do haircuts another day. Okay?” Axel is sweating a little bit now, stuffing a forkful of bland pasta into his mouth and chewing furiously as he tries to compose himself.
“I want to add something too.” He tries to keep his voice calm. “Can I add some things to the shopping order? I would like to try to cook some dinners for you, some different things for you to try. Would you let me? You can ask if there is anything you want me to cook and I can try to make it. Would that be okay?” He tries to meet Jens’ eye, hoping that this is alright.
“I like tacos” Malena states. “And stewed macaroni. Pappa doesn’t know how to make it.”
“Waffles.” Morten mutters. “Do you know how to make waffles?”
“Nutella sandwiches.” Mikki’s face is a picture, smiling like the sun.
“You can’t have Nutella sandwiches for dinner, you plonker.” Morten throws a piece of pasta at Mikki who starts to wail like he has had his arm chopped off.
“Please kids, just calm down.” Jens pleads and lifts Mikki up on his lap. “I need to ask you something very important.”
“Are we all going on TV to trash this journalist?” Morten asks with a grin on his face.
“No, seriously, this is important.” Jens goes quiet and grabs Axel’s hand under the table.
“Axel and I want to live together, and I have asked Axel to move in with us. To live here all the time, with us, as a family. Would that be okay?”
“I thought he already did.” Malena grumbles.
“I don’t want to move to a new house. I like it here.” Morten stops eating and just stares at Axel.
“We aren’t moving to a new house. Not now. Maybe if we all talk about it and decide to look for a bigger house we can do that. Look around and see if we can find a house that we all like. It’s something we can talk about, but for now we will all live here.” Axel takes a deep breath. “I just need you to know that I might move some things around, and bring my things over here and it might annoy you and you might not like what I do, but please just talk to me and tell me if I put things somewhere you don’t like.”
Axel is rambling, his hands shaking in Jens’ grip. Jens, who takes his hand from underneath the table and brings it up so he can kiss his fingers, mouths, “I love you,” over and over again while the children squabble and talk nonsense over each other and Axel lets himself get lost in Jens’ eyes. Lets himself breathe and calm down, his lips on Jens’ lips. Right there at the table, while Morten makes disgusted noises and Malena shouts, “Get a room,” while throwing her plate in the sink, and Mikki has taken all his clothes off, and Marthe is eating pasta. With a fork. Like nothing else matters.
Axel thinks about it while he washes up and Jens puts the children to bed. He thinks about it as he wipes down the kitchen table and gathers the laundry that litters the floor in the hallway. He thinks about it when Jens comes back out in the living room and drags Axel off the sofa into his arms.