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Damen could remember the subtle question Laurent had passed his way after their sixth month of dating. Would he ever want to have children? It had been a serious question and Damen had been so overjoyed to hear it because that was Laurent's way of telling him he took their relationship seriously. Being with Laurent meant you had to read between the lines, which was something he had never been very good at. Something he had to learn. When he didn't give an answer right away, the look on his face had given away his excitement. 'You look like a dog who just got told it's time for a walk,' Laurent had said in his own affectionate way. It had taken a long time to even become Laurent's friend, let alone his lover. Laurent didn't let people in very often and Damen had struggled over and over to even get Laurent to look his way. He could remember the very day Laurent had given him a smile (March 23rd).
What had followed after Laurent's question was a long talk. Family meant a lot to both of them for different reasons. Damen had good memories of his father and had always wanted to be like him. Laurent's immediate family had died in a sudden accident, where he had been the only survivor. Laurent wanted a family to experience something he lost and Damen found it an honor to be considered. Adoption seemed like the best choice and Laurent said he still wasn't certain how many children he would like yet. Damen wanted a big family, but Laurent hadn't been sold on the idea. Which was fine. A family, any size, with Laurent was all Damen knew he needed.
When they got married after their third year of dating, Laurent had said it wasn't a good idea to rush starting their family. Damen had agreed. Laurent had just won over his family's law firm from his uncle and Damen was busy struggling to make a business partnership with his half brother work. Children didn't seem like a good fit for a marriage that had just begun and they were preoccupied with too much. No, they couldn't handle a kid. That much was certain.
This was why after a half a year of marriage, Damen didn't expect to see Laurent sitting on the couch with a barely teenager as he came home after a long day of work.
"Oh good, you're home. Damen, this is Nicaise Durand. Nicaise, this is my husband Damen Akielos. I met Nicaise from a case today and invited him for dinner."
Nicaise was small, with a beautiful face that was marred by the scowl that he had on. His brown curls framed his face and contrasted well with his pale skin and blue eyes. Damen noticed he had earrings, just two small hoops in his ear. He looked twelve at best, especially with his chubby cheeks.
Damen smiled, still unsure of why Laurent had brought a child for dinner, and especially without warning. He opened his mouth to introduce himself, wanting to be polite.
"You're fucking giant. Look at you!"
That had been the last thing Damen expected to hear and he sputtered. "Excuse me?"
Laurent was unaffected, as he usually tried to be. He always tried to limit his reactions to anything. "I heard you had horrible grades, but I didn't know basic etiquette went beyond your scope, too. Usually this is when you would say hello?"
Nicaise frowned. "You introduced us so I don't have to say anything. Anyway, when are we going to eat? You said dinner and all I've been doing since you brought me here was just listening to you yammer on."
Laurent looked at Damen. "I was thinking we order out. I usually cook, but I didn't have the time today with our guest. Anything you're particularly craving?"
"Chinese," Nicaise quickly suggested which then became a list of everything he wanted. Damen wasn't sure if a kid as small as Nicaise could even eat that much. Not even Damen knew he could and he was infamous for his bottomless stomach.
"When I meant dinner, I meant for the night. Not dinner for the rest of your week. Pick one thing," Laurent said with a look in his eye that showed he was amused. Damen didn't think he understood why. He mostly thought this kid seemed like a huge brat who needed some real work on his attitude. What did Laurent see in him?
"I'm a teenager. We eat all the time. But fine, if you want to be a stingy cheapskate. With all this money, you think you'd be a little charitable."
It was uncomfortable as Laurent ordered the food because it left Damen alone to try to talk to Nicaise. As much as he wanted a family, he had never been good with kids. He didn't know how to talk to them or relate to them. You put a baby in his arms and he suddenly didn't know how to use them. Nicaise also didn't look like he wanted to talk, what with the way he glared at Damen. He wished he had a moment alone with Laurent just to ask what this was all about. Laurent never invited people over, let alone children. He also didn't think he saw the appeal much in this one. Nicaise looked ready to commit murder with that glare of his and Damen had to admit that it was just a little terrifying. If a grown man looked at him like this, Damen would just give a stern look back and straighten up his shoulders. But you couldn't do that with a kid so it left him unsure of what to do. He also didn't know what he could have done to offend Nicaise so much.
When Laurent finished it was a relief as he seemed to be filling in the awkward silences, which wasn't his usual role. Laurent didn't talk much and Damen was left to be the outgoing one. That was their roles and it was comfortable. Having it reversed was strange.
"So how was your day?" Laurent asked Damen.
"Oh, decent. Kastor and I still can't agree on that one deal. Kastor says we should argue for more, but I think if we ask for too much then we lose the offer altogether." Nicaise started staring off into space and Damen realized he was being rude. Work talk wasn't thrilling conversation for a kid. "I work with my brother Kastor in our family business. We're hoping to expand so it's been a little stressful."
"Laurent told me what you do. All he did was talk about you."
"Telling you what my husband does for work isn't the same as him encompassing our entire conversation."
"Anyway. What grade are you in?" This was the kind of stuff you usually asked kids, Damen thought. And kids wanted to talk about school. Or at least complain about it.
But Nicaise suddenly looked more irritated, slouching down on the couch and crossing his arms across his chest. "I'm in the fifth grade."
So then he was around eleven? This little fact made his language a lot worse, though. What kind of case had this kid been involved in? Laurent usually dealt with businesses and it made him curious how Nicaise tied into that. "Wow, so then you're going to junior high next year, right? Excited?"
"I don't give a shit about school. God, you're all so boring. Don't you talk about anything good or do you just bore each other all day talking about jobs and school?"
Damen was at a loss for how to reply to that and he looked to Laurent for aide. Somehow he had been alone with him for who knew how long so he clearly knew how to talk to this kid.
"Unfortunately that's what being an adult is. What do you want to talk about since you apparently have all the conversational experience in this room?" He simply looked to Nicaise, waiting for an answer and Nicaise just wilted.
"I didn't say I talked better. Just that you guys were boring."
"Ah, my mistake then. Here I thought you might thrill us. Oh well." Nicaise flipped him off and Damen waited for Laurent to say something. Anything. "We can start to set the table then. Maybe you'll come up with something to talk about."
"I gotta piss like a race horse. Where's the bathroom?"
Laurent gave him the directions and as soon as they were alone, Damen hissed to Laurent, "What is this about?"
"What? I invited a guest to dinner. You do it all the time."
"I invite friends, coworkers, family. Not the spawn of a demon. Where did you pick him up from and where are his parents?"
"Nobody knows. He's been in and out of foster homes for the past six years. They say he has behavioral problems."
"Oh, couldn't imagine where they got that idea." Damen sighed. "Why didn't you at least warn me? I would have liked to prepare myself for having a mini sailor in my room. He swears more than I do!"
"I did," Laurent said in that tone that made Damen know when to shut up. "It's not my fault you don't check your phone as often as you should. I bet the battery is dead, too."
Damen took his phone from his pocket and sure enough, it was dead. He pocketed it without saying anything else about it. "Okay, so. Just dinner?"
"We'll talk about it after I take Nicaise back."
"Talk about what?!"
Damen knew he wouldn't get an answer from Laurent and definitely knew when Nicaise chose that exact moment to come back, exclaiming about the fancy soap they kept. Laurent just led him away to show him where they kept the plates and silverware. He complained the whole time he was setting the table up, unhappy with being expected to do any work in someone else's home.
"I'm a guest! Don't you know anything about that? You don't make me do work."
"And I just paid for your dinner so I think you can at least do this for us."
While Damen still wasn't used to how Nicaise spoke to them, it was impressive how Laurent handled him. No matter what he said, Laurent never seemed to even blink at his attitude. It had always been what he was good at, but Damen always thought he would be amazed by his husband no matter how many years passed. He had seen Laurent with children before, too. As cold as he could be, it always seemed to fly out the window with children. He knew how to connect to them and while Damen wasn't sure if he was exactly connecting to this Nicaise, he was at least getting along with him better than Damen was. During dinner, any attempt at conversations on his part were mocked by Nicaise. For some reason, he didn't want to talk to Damen or have anything to do with him. It left him feeling awkward and made dinner seem more tense. He shot daggers in his glare and Damen was glad he didn't have to sit near him. It wouldn't have been surprising if he had felt the need to stab him.
When he was done, he sighed. "Man, that was good. The last place I was at, there was like six other kids and they fed us shit. I haven't had Chinese in forever!"
"I'm glad you approve. Does that mean I get a thank you?"
Nicaise rolled his eyes and said in a sickly sweet tone: "Thank you ever so much, Mr. Akielos. Want me to put on a skirt and curtsy for you, too?"
"No, the thank you is enough. I would have you help us with the dishes, but I promised to get you back before eight. Damen, I'll be back to help you with the dishes."
"Don't worry." Damen smiled at Nicaise, still trying to be friendly. "Pleasure to meet you, Nicaise."
"Hah, yeah. Real pleasure." Nicaise was out the door and as soon as it shut, Damen was leaning against the counter, feeling more exhausted after just an hour and a half of that kid than the whole work day had done to him. Laurent barely did invite people over and his social circle wasn't exactly big. It was rare for him to spend much time with anybody and so Damen had no idea what part of Nicaise interested Laurent. But at least that stressful evening was over and when Laurent came home, Damen could laugh at him and ask if he lost his mind inviting a kid like that for dinner.
The dishes were done by the time Laurent came back from returning Nicaise from wherever he came from and Damen had already taken to relaxing on their couch with some dumb action movie he could get lost in and not have to think about very much. Laurent sat down next to him and leaned against him, head on his shoulder. Instinctively, Damen wrapped an arm around his shoulders and kissed the top of his head.
"We need to talk," Laurent said and Damen felt his stomach drop.
"Nobody ever wants to hear that," Damen groaned. "What did I do?"
"It's nothing you did. But it is about Nicaise. What did you think of him?"
"Is this a trick question? What do you think I thought? I thought he seemed like a nightmare. What kind of kid acts like that?" When Laurent went quiet for a few seconds, Damen didn't worry. This wasn't unusual for him. But then those seconds grew and that was when Damen did start to feel anxious. "Dear? What's going on?"
Laurent sat up, looking him in the eyes. What surprised Damen was how earnest he looked right now and this wasn't a face he saw often. He was taken aback by it, his heart beating rapidly from not only nerves, but love. As rare as it was, seeing it reminded Damen all over again why he had married Laurent.
"Damen, I told you how he's been in and out of foster homes, correct?" At Damen's nod, Laurent continued. "I want to adopt him."
"What?! Him?! Laurent, are you insane? You did hear him, right? He's got some serious problems and if we weren't ready to adopt a child that was probably better behaved than he is then how can we take care of him?"
"I've thought about that. Jord was a terrific hire and he's truly been a big help for the firm. There is still a lot on my shoulders but it's nothing I can't manage. I know things with Kastor are hectic, but if I have to do most of this then so be it. Nicaise needs a home."
Any argument that Damen had left him when it was obvious how much this meant to Laurent. For the cold man, this was practically wearing his heart on his sleeve. "You're really serious about this, aren't you?"
What had followed after Laurent's question was a long talk. Family meant a lot to both of them for different reasons. Damen had good memories of his father and had always wanted to be like him. Laurent's immediate family had died in a sudden accident, where he had been the only survivor. Laurent wanted a family to experience something he lost and Damen found it an honor to be considered. Adoption seemed like the best choice and Laurent said he still wasn't certain how many children he would like yet. Damen wanted a big family, but Laurent hadn't been sold on the idea. Which was fine. A family, any size, with Laurent was all Damen knew he needed.
When they got married after their third year of dating, Laurent had said it wasn't a good idea to rush starting their family. Damen had agreed. Laurent had just won over his family's law firm from his uncle and Damen was busy struggling to make a business partnership with his half brother work. Children didn't seem like a good fit for a marriage that had just begun and they were preoccupied with too much. No, they couldn't handle a kid. That much was certain.
This was why after a half a year of marriage, Damen didn't expect to see Laurent sitting on the couch with a barely teenager as he came home after a long day of work.
"Oh good, you're home. Damen, this is Nicaise Durand. Nicaise, this is my husband Damen Akielos. I met Nicaise from a case today and invited him for dinner."
Nicaise was small, with a beautiful face that was marred by the scowl that he had on. His brown curls framed his face and contrasted well with his pale skin and blue eyes. Damen noticed he had earrings, just two small hoops in his ear. He looked twelve at best, especially with his chubby cheeks.
Damen smiled, still unsure of why Laurent had brought a child for dinner, and especially without warning. He opened his mouth to introduce himself, wanting to be polite.
"You're fucking giant. Look at you!"
That had been the last thing Damen expected to hear and he sputtered. "Excuse me?"
Laurent was unaffected, as he usually tried to be. He always tried to limit his reactions to anything. "I heard you had horrible grades, but I didn't know basic etiquette went beyond your scope, too. Usually this is when you would say hello?"
Nicaise frowned. "You introduced us so I don't have to say anything. Anyway, when are we going to eat? You said dinner and all I've been doing since you brought me here was just listening to you yammer on."
Laurent looked at Damen. "I was thinking we order out. I usually cook, but I didn't have the time today with our guest. Anything you're particularly craving?"
"Chinese," Nicaise quickly suggested which then became a list of everything he wanted. Damen wasn't sure if a kid as small as Nicaise could even eat that much. Not even Damen knew he could and he was infamous for his bottomless stomach.
"When I meant dinner, I meant for the night. Not dinner for the rest of your week. Pick one thing," Laurent said with a look in his eye that showed he was amused. Damen didn't think he understood why. He mostly thought this kid seemed like a huge brat who needed some real work on his attitude. What did Laurent see in him?
"I'm a teenager. We eat all the time. But fine, if you want to be a stingy cheapskate. With all this money, you think you'd be a little charitable."
It was uncomfortable as Laurent ordered the food because it left Damen alone to try to talk to Nicaise. As much as he wanted a family, he had never been good with kids. He didn't know how to talk to them or relate to them. You put a baby in his arms and he suddenly didn't know how to use them. Nicaise also didn't look like he wanted to talk, what with the way he glared at Damen. He wished he had a moment alone with Laurent just to ask what this was all about. Laurent never invited people over, let alone children. He also didn't think he saw the appeal much in this one. Nicaise looked ready to commit murder with that glare of his and Damen had to admit that it was just a little terrifying. If a grown man looked at him like this, Damen would just give a stern look back and straighten up his shoulders. But you couldn't do that with a kid so it left him unsure of what to do. He also didn't know what he could have done to offend Nicaise so much.
When Laurent finished it was a relief as he seemed to be filling in the awkward silences, which wasn't his usual role. Laurent didn't talk much and Damen was left to be the outgoing one. That was their roles and it was comfortable. Having it reversed was strange.
"So how was your day?" Laurent asked Damen.
"Oh, decent. Kastor and I still can't agree on that one deal. Kastor says we should argue for more, but I think if we ask for too much then we lose the offer altogether." Nicaise started staring off into space and Damen realized he was being rude. Work talk wasn't thrilling conversation for a kid. "I work with my brother Kastor in our family business. We're hoping to expand so it's been a little stressful."
"Laurent told me what you do. All he did was talk about you."
"Telling you what my husband does for work isn't the same as him encompassing our entire conversation."
"Anyway. What grade are you in?" This was the kind of stuff you usually asked kids, Damen thought. And kids wanted to talk about school. Or at least complain about it.
But Nicaise suddenly looked more irritated, slouching down on the couch and crossing his arms across his chest. "I'm in the fifth grade."
So then he was around eleven? This little fact made his language a lot worse, though. What kind of case had this kid been involved in? Laurent usually dealt with businesses and it made him curious how Nicaise tied into that. "Wow, so then you're going to junior high next year, right? Excited?"
"I don't give a shit about school. God, you're all so boring. Don't you talk about anything good or do you just bore each other all day talking about jobs and school?"
Damen was at a loss for how to reply to that and he looked to Laurent for aide. Somehow he had been alone with him for who knew how long so he clearly knew how to talk to this kid.
"Unfortunately that's what being an adult is. What do you want to talk about since you apparently have all the conversational experience in this room?" He simply looked to Nicaise, waiting for an answer and Nicaise just wilted.
"I didn't say I talked better. Just that you guys were boring."
"Ah, my mistake then. Here I thought you might thrill us. Oh well." Nicaise flipped him off and Damen waited for Laurent to say something. Anything. "We can start to set the table then. Maybe you'll come up with something to talk about."
"I gotta piss like a race horse. Where's the bathroom?"
Laurent gave him the directions and as soon as they were alone, Damen hissed to Laurent, "What is this about?"
"What? I invited a guest to dinner. You do it all the time."
"I invite friends, coworkers, family. Not the spawn of a demon. Where did you pick him up from and where are his parents?"
"Nobody knows. He's been in and out of foster homes for the past six years. They say he has behavioral problems."
"Oh, couldn't imagine where they got that idea." Damen sighed. "Why didn't you at least warn me? I would have liked to prepare myself for having a mini sailor in my room. He swears more than I do!"
"I did," Laurent said in that tone that made Damen know when to shut up. "It's not my fault you don't check your phone as often as you should. I bet the battery is dead, too."
Damen took his phone from his pocket and sure enough, it was dead. He pocketed it without saying anything else about it. "Okay, so. Just dinner?"
"We'll talk about it after I take Nicaise back."
"Talk about what?!"
Damen knew he wouldn't get an answer from Laurent and definitely knew when Nicaise chose that exact moment to come back, exclaiming about the fancy soap they kept. Laurent just led him away to show him where they kept the plates and silverware. He complained the whole time he was setting the table up, unhappy with being expected to do any work in someone else's home.
"I'm a guest! Don't you know anything about that? You don't make me do work."
"And I just paid for your dinner so I think you can at least do this for us."
While Damen still wasn't used to how Nicaise spoke to them, it was impressive how Laurent handled him. No matter what he said, Laurent never seemed to even blink at his attitude. It had always been what he was good at, but Damen always thought he would be amazed by his husband no matter how many years passed. He had seen Laurent with children before, too. As cold as he could be, it always seemed to fly out the window with children. He knew how to connect to them and while Damen wasn't sure if he was exactly connecting to this Nicaise, he was at least getting along with him better than Damen was. During dinner, any attempt at conversations on his part were mocked by Nicaise. For some reason, he didn't want to talk to Damen or have anything to do with him. It left him feeling awkward and made dinner seem more tense. He shot daggers in his glare and Damen was glad he didn't have to sit near him. It wouldn't have been surprising if he had felt the need to stab him.
When he was done, he sighed. "Man, that was good. The last place I was at, there was like six other kids and they fed us shit. I haven't had Chinese in forever!"
"I'm glad you approve. Does that mean I get a thank you?"
Nicaise rolled his eyes and said in a sickly sweet tone: "Thank you ever so much, Mr. Akielos. Want me to put on a skirt and curtsy for you, too?"
"No, the thank you is enough. I would have you help us with the dishes, but I promised to get you back before eight. Damen, I'll be back to help you with the dishes."
"Don't worry." Damen smiled at Nicaise, still trying to be friendly. "Pleasure to meet you, Nicaise."
"Hah, yeah. Real pleasure." Nicaise was out the door and as soon as it shut, Damen was leaning against the counter, feeling more exhausted after just an hour and a half of that kid than the whole work day had done to him. Laurent barely did invite people over and his social circle wasn't exactly big. It was rare for him to spend much time with anybody and so Damen had no idea what part of Nicaise interested Laurent. But at least that stressful evening was over and when Laurent came home, Damen could laugh at him and ask if he lost his mind inviting a kid like that for dinner.
The dishes were done by the time Laurent came back from returning Nicaise from wherever he came from and Damen had already taken to relaxing on their couch with some dumb action movie he could get lost in and not have to think about very much. Laurent sat down next to him and leaned against him, head on his shoulder. Instinctively, Damen wrapped an arm around his shoulders and kissed the top of his head.
"We need to talk," Laurent said and Damen felt his stomach drop.
"Nobody ever wants to hear that," Damen groaned. "What did I do?"
"It's nothing you did. But it is about Nicaise. What did you think of him?"
"Is this a trick question? What do you think I thought? I thought he seemed like a nightmare. What kind of kid acts like that?" When Laurent went quiet for a few seconds, Damen didn't worry. This wasn't unusual for him. But then those seconds grew and that was when Damen did start to feel anxious. "Dear? What's going on?"
Laurent sat up, looking him in the eyes. What surprised Damen was how earnest he looked right now and this wasn't a face he saw often. He was taken aback by it, his heart beating rapidly from not only nerves, but love. As rare as it was, seeing it reminded Damen all over again why he had married Laurent.
"Damen, I told you how he's been in and out of foster homes, correct?" At Damen's nod, Laurent continued. "I want to adopt him."
"What?! Him?! Laurent, are you insane? You did hear him, right? He's got some serious problems and if we weren't ready to adopt a child that was probably better behaved than he is then how can we take care of him?"
"I've thought about that. Jord was a terrific hire and he's truly been a big help for the firm. There is still a lot on my shoulders but it's nothing I can't manage. I know things with Kastor are hectic, but if I have to do most of this then so be it. Nicaise needs a home."
Any argument that Damen had left him when it was obvious how much this meant to Laurent. For the cold man, this was practically wearing his heart on his sleeve. "You're really serious about this, aren't you?"