Naming babies was never a thought that had crossed Teddy’s mind.
Fatherless and proud, Theodore was rather fortunate in the way he hadn’t managed to get anybody pregnant as of yet, to his knowledge at least. Why even entertain the thought unless it affected him personally? Only then would he try to care. Micah landed with a wife and two kids, the third well on its way — whilst Teddy was besotted with his nephews, that didn’t make him paternal by any stretch of the imagination. Settling down had never even been something that had occupied his mind at all. As far as he was concerned, he was many things; a bon vivant, a diplomat, a libertine, but he was certainly not a father.
As if Salem’s day could not get any worse, Teddy had been the first to hear her voice call out across the street. His curiosity often led Teddy to places he wouldn’t have considered otherwise. Admittedly, he had been more fixated on heading to the outskirts of the city to check up on an Enforcer Teddy was certain had been slacking as of late. Despite Teddy’s outwardly blasé approach to life, he was a different man when exposed to a hurdle in his path of success. People knew what Teddy did to people who’d push him too far — complacency would get people killed, complacency didn’t keep these four walls around everybody living in this idyllic paradise. Because all of that was a mirage, even one that Teddy chose to indulge in for most of his days. But, ultimately, he still had one sole job to do, and that was to ensure everyone did their jobs so that The Badlands would never falter or fall.
But his ever-growing aggravation could always wait a moment whilst he could talk to one of his ❛ sweet spots ❜. ❝ Elisa... Elisa, you dream. ❞ Teddy seemed so naturally laid-back as he sauntered over, plucking a cookie from the tray before lifting it up for Salem to see. ❝ This is exactly what I needed on a day like this. ❞ He took a bite, humming with satisfaction before wagging a finger Salem’s way. ❝ It’s the little things, right? The little things that make ya day. ❞ Teddy was quiet for a moment, deep in thought regarding his next endeavour, before he turned to Salem.
❝ I think I treat all of you well; do you think I treat ya well? Because some people like to think otherwise. They like to take advantage of the fact that I do nice things for y’all. And it’s annoying — really fucking annoyin’ — and there’s this guy. God, just beggin’ for a bruisin’. But I don’t wanna do it, because I treat y’all good just like y’all treat me good. Like, with these cookies. Amazing, by the way. ❞
Perhaps Teddy was talking more to himself than to Salem, solely to gather any kind of validation for the heinous thing he was about to go and do. An explanation. An excuse. ❝ What I’m tryna say here is… if he don’t treat me good, do I owe it to him to treat him good? It’s supposed to be a two-way street, yeah? Does this Badlander deserve my kindness if he’s spending his time doing nothing for any of us? It's a dog-eat-dog world out there, but I gave y'all a place where you'll never have to worry 'bout that. Maybe some people just need a little reminding sometimes. ❞ Maybe Teddy did value Salem's advice. Their relationship had always been a rocky one.