First Try, chapter 2

 "Kid, please open the door…" Johnny was practically pleading to his son's bedroom's door. Robby had gotten all offended at how his dad was so upset about him lying to Miguel's grandma and accused him of so many things.

"I am not mad, shouldn't have… reacted like that." But of course, Johnny got no response, just as the last half an hour. Which kind of idiot ruined his own father's day celebration? Apparently just Johnny fucking Lawrence. "Robby, come on… I prefer to stay and have breakfast with you over a thousand pounds of chilaquiles." That sounded way better on his head, but still had to mean something, right? Rosa's chilaquiles were another level of greatness and even Robby loved them.

"Well, you were SO MAD I 'lied'!" The kid sounded more upset than angry, and that wasn't necessarily a good thing.

"Nooo, no, wasn't that. I was just a bit confused about it… It did worry me a little that you didn't want me to check your room."

"Another thing you should not do!" Robby hated how his dad was always harassing him about ONE occasion he'd messed with molly on 'his watch'. He'd already quit it, was that so hard to understand?

"Robert, the therapist said it was a good idea at least the first few months after the last time you did drugs…" because of course Johnny had told her all about it in the very first session like a gossip lover old lady, but he hadn't cared. His kid had been having an issue, she fixed those for a living, so he'd gone straight ahead and spoke.

"Good, go spend father's day with her!" Robby hated the damn woman, why was his dad even bringing her up?

"...Kid, I was just worried and freaked out."

"Because I wanted to have breakfast with you on father's day? The fact you don't deserve it doesn't mean I'm an asshole enough not to try."

"...I don't deserve it, you got that right… But…"

The door opening interrupted his explanation, and it died right the moment he spotted his kid's teary eyes.

"But nothing! Go with the fucking neighbors to eat the stupid chilaquiles, wouldn't be the first father's day I spend in my room." Though of course, he shouldn't have expected something different just because he was currently living with the man.

Johnny sighed, mentally slapping himself while he leaned down a little and very very carefully dried the only stray tear on the child's cheek with his thumb.

"...I don't deserve you trying to give me a father's day breakfast, but I would have never gotten mad over that… I just didn't even consider it because I didn't know it was today." Not like he'd celebrated many of those either.

Of course, Robby was doubtful to say at least.

"...It's all over the TV and social media."
Johnny cursed under his breath. He still didn't really get everyone's obsession with those Facebook and Instagram things…

"You know I am such a cave man, kiddo… And such a mess. I should really start checking the calendar…" Robby did back away a couple of steps.

"Whatever, you already scheduled us for dinner with the Diaz, so…" so a stupid ruined breakfast wasn't big deal in comparison.
And Johnny cursed under his breath, because he had no idea of the day when Carmen had invited them over.

"I didn't know what day it was."

"But you would still have said yes…"

Johnny took a moment to think very well about his response, because yes, he probably would have, but not just leaving Robby aside like his child surely thought.

"Probably, but in that case 'I' would have been the one waking up first, to spend all the day before that with only you." And he was being sincere. They both had worked so damn hard those last months and Johnny had not felt that close to him in YEARS. Of course he didn't want to throw that away for anything in the world. "Besides," he actually reached for his child very carefully, "Look, I see what you did there. It's brilliant." While still holding Robby as close as the kid allowed it, Johnny sat down on the couch and grabbed his phone with his free hand to access the gallery. Bobby and Jimmy had helped him take pictures of his old photos and some drawings so he could have them all on his smartphone. "This new drawing is just like this one you made for me like 7 years ago."

Now Robby couldn't help smiling a bit as he took the phone. He'd seen that drawing before in the apartment, but had somehow feared his dad had thrown it away after the school fight, since it had disappeared from his dad's box of trophies. At least the man had a picture.

"The one I just did is way better, dad."

"Well, I don't know, you've always been pretty talented. See, you even used to write so well! I would have probably written 'Roddy' instead or something at that age. You've always been really intelligent."

Robby tried not to make a face. For some months now, he'd been having the suspicion that maybe his dad had had some kind of undiagnosed learning difficulty as a kid, but his dumb ass step grandpa had never noticed or cared. It was kind of sad hearing some stories about the man's childhood and that Sid asshole being mean at the smallest mistake.
One didn't need to be a genius to easily do the math. Had there been an actual problem, Sid would have not dealt with it.

Robby felt bad enough to lean a bit on the guy's hold and actually wrap his arms around his dad's torso.

"You have pretty good qualities too, dad." The boy couldn't think of THAT many right then, but the statement did seem to work...
Quite surprised, but beyond pleased, Johnny squeezed back and even dropped a kiss on his boy's now short hair. He actually enjoyed it for a moment, caressing his child's back and hair with affection. And it's not that Robby felt better with that after the breakfast mess, HE didn't need it, he told himself, but if it made his dad feel better, well, he COULD endure it. If he actually snuggled closer, it was merely out of instinct, the boy insisted to himself... Maybe that was a bit of a lie, but Robby was just fine with it for the moment.

"Well, yes, I do," Johnny was satisfied with the reassuring words, "But it doesn't make this new picture any less awesome. Should we go put it on the album and grab breakfast?"

"...Which album?"

"Carmen got me one to put all your drawings and pictures. She's pretty great, right? I don't usually think of those things, but she was like 'you can't have them in a box', and she was totally right, they're so easier to see now."

"...So you didn't throw them away?" After he'd sent Miguel to the hospital... His dad was always saying it had been an accident, not Robby's fault, but still...

"What?" Johnny looked at him as if the boy were out of his mind. "No way! I wouldn't do that, kid, I've been saving all those drawings and stuff like that for 13 years now." Getting rid of them? That was insane! "Let's eat and then we can go somewhere. We're already awake, might as well go out." Robby's small smile was worth the early morning.