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 Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2021 3:32 pm
The cafe was closed, and Nick had cleaned up from his dinner with Arias and was still mulling over all of the conversation that had happened with himself and Caius earlier in the day. He had been quiet during dinner, and he was quite sure that Arias had noticed but…
This was a lot to wrap his head around...and he didn’t want to say the wrong thing and mess everything up.
Finally, with an over dramatic sigh, he flopped onto the couch. “He doesn’t have a family, Arias. He’s a foster kid in the system and...he’s waiting to age out.” Nick looked at his fiance and chewed on his lip for a moment before looking away. It was written all over his face what he wanted to do. Adopt the boy. Bring him home. Have a whole little family of knights.
“...I know your parents are always asking for grandchildren...and I mean...I have been thinking about adoption a lot lately...I wondered if you...might be open to thinking about it too? Or at least looking into it a little? I...I know it’s a big commitment, but…” He shrugged. “...Caius is a good kid. He was at the cafe today, and I learned a lot about him.”
Nick practically held his breath when he finished talking, unable to meet Arias’ eyes. He could practically feel the scolding that was bound to come. The talk of him not thinking things through but…
But hadn’t he? He hadn’t rushed into it yet, hadn’t asked the boy...Even though he had wanted to. Desperately.
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Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2021 5:04 pm
Arias had noticed Nick’s silence, and though he tried to carry the conversation, he had been worried about how distant--or, at least, distracted--Nick had been during dinner.
When Nick sighed heavily, Arias felt his stomach twist in the anticipation of horrible news. He wanted to break up, he wanted to call off the wedding, he was having an affair, he--
Oh.
Wait, no, that wasn’t so bad.
He felt the muscles in his stomach unknot quickly and he reached out a hand to take one of Nick’s as he scooted a little closer on the couch.
“I was looking into adoption before I met you, Nick,” he said, a little smile tugging on his face. He squeezed Nick’s hand to try and reassure him a bit. “It’s been a while since I last looked into it, I didn’t know if you’d want kids or not.”
He didn’t know if Nick was ready for that sort of commitment.
“...Although, from what I’ve heard, Caius is a young man, not really much of a kid, and I think my parents were sort of hoping for someone they could share Santa with, and school plays, and Disney.”
He wasn’t opposed to it; on the contrary, it almost sounded like Arias was maybe suggesting they also consider younger children.
Almost.
“We have to look into a lot of things...Costs--court costs, at least. See what programs they have for college, get a home evaluation, get our background checks. It’s a lot of work,” he reminded.
But he didn’t say he wasn’t willing to do it.
“I still haven’t met him--and you just barely know him. So let’s…”
He hesitated. “...Let’s look into what we would need to do to adopt while we get to know him. And let’s not spring it on him. I don’t want to get his hopes up if things work out, and I don’t want to accidentally invite a serial killer into our home.” Another squeeze, playful even. “...And, you know. I spoke to the owner next door.” He was quiet for a bit. “He said he’s thinking about moving down south. He’s already got someone to rent the space downstairs. But he said I could rent to own the space above it. I might have mentioned...thinking about expanding some time. If we renovated a little bit,” he shrugged. “...We could combine my space and his. It would certainly give us enough room. If...that’s something we should also consider.”
He was chewing on his lip, like this was something he’d thought about but hadn’t quite gotten around to asking--and if Nick was going to talk about adopting, he was going to have to consider this too since they’d need the space. Arias had lived above the bakery for years--loved the location and the convenience of working so close to home. It was a good area, with everything nearby, and he was completely attached.
He looked hopeful, but he was going to be as open minded for Nick as he hoped Nick would be for him.
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Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2021 6:29 pm
Nick looked up when Arias took his hand, and when his words registered, he sucked in a breath. “I hadn’t…I mean. I thought we’d start off with someone younger...like a little kid or something. But Arias...I don’t know what it is about this kid, I just want to protect him so badly...it’s...it’s almost stupid how much I want to make sure he’s safe. I wish you had been there today, he’s going to come to dinner. Tomorrow, I invited him...I’m going to make lasagna...I thought he could meet you...obviously. And I asked if he’d help us out with marketing on Twitter….so he’d have a job...I guess I already offered a lot.”
The words came out in a rush and Nick twisted, pressing his face against the other male’s chest for a moment before looking up at his face again. “...You...I think that sounds amazing! I’d love to have more space, that would get us a lot, we’d have room for a whole family…”
God...he wanted that. “I want kids with you, Arias. So badly. Since Carlee had the nerve to grow up...we don’t have any excuse to do fun things anymore…I mean, stupid fun things. Childish things.”
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Posted: Mon Jun 14, 2021 8:55 pm
Arias did his best to keep a straight face, and there was a bit of a visible strain as he worked through his emotions.
On one hand, he was pleased that Nick was so optimistic about getting a larger space--about having kids.
On the other hand, Nick was passing out jobs without talking to him, and it was just so very like Nick. Too much energy, too much passion, and he didn’t really seem to stop and consider everything before running his mouth.
But, Arias still loved him, and he eased into a smile after a few seconds.
“Well, I look forward to meeting him, Nick. It’ll be nice to know him in person, and I hope I get along with him as much as you two get along. You’ve been making a lot of big plans, I see.” No malice, no hard feelings. Just love, amusement, and a little exasperation.
“We should probably sit down and make a list of all the things we need to research and talk about,” he laughed. “Sounds like we might forget things, otherwise. Do you think he’ll be a good social media manager or were you just trying to make him like you?” he teased.
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Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2021 11:05 am
“It was more of a consulting thing than the actual manager...he does good art...I thought he could do graphics, and maybe help us set it up. He’s going to bring his art tomorrow, treat it like an interview. I think his Twitter page is set up very nicely, and he’s a kid so...he must know how to best get followers.”
Nick shrugged. “I’ll pay him out of my own savings if you’re not comfortable with it...lord knows I don’t have followers on my twitter...and obviously I’m not getting any more any time soon…” He chuckled and kissed his cheek. “...I’m sorry I always get so carried away...it always seems like a good idea at the time…”
He had tried to get better…tried to be more open about things...sure, most of it was still after the fact but…
“We can always say no if we don’t think he’s a good fit.”
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Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2021 11:55 am
Arias hummed under his breath, but a smile was already twitching on his lips. “Do you know how to say ‘no’, love?” he asked, and tilted his head as if asking for another kiss.
“I’m willing to give it a go. The truth is, I don’t have time for doing anything online. If he’s got any sort of graphic design eye, it’s better than what I can do. And we’ve got the budget to manage it--and if he can get our social media up and running, I’m sure we’d have more business. Everything’s online these days. Imagine, if people could place orders online? I can do things through email, but nobody wants email, they want a straight forward form. So if he’s tech savvy, maybe we can look into a real website, not just a Facebook page and an email list, and he can help with the graphics for that, too. I’m--yeah,” he nodded thoughtfully.
“...Yeah, let’s see what ideas he’s got. If we can convince him to work with us for a while, that’s definitely a good way to get to know him. Don’t bring up that we’re looking into adoption though, okay? Just promise me that we’re going to take this slow. We have to get our bases covered first. But I’m open minded, I promise. And I’m not going to make you pay out of your own savings. We’re a team, we’ll go into this together. And if it’s a mistake, we’ll learn from it and do better next time.”
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Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2021 12:27 pm
Nick absolutely lit up at that, nodding. “Yeah. Yeah okay!” He pressed another kiss to Arias’s lips this time and looked ready to burst with happiness. “We’ll learn from it...but I think he’ll be good. I really do. He...I mean. You’ll meet him tomorrow...and having a real website...that could be amazing for us. Seriously. I know I’ve had a lot of customers ask if we have one and I...you know. Have to say we don’t because we’re...lame like that.”
...They were a bit lame...but.
Maybe that would change.
“Of course we’ll take this slow. I want to have a solid path and be on the way to being able to adopt him before I spring it on him...I don’t want him to get his hopes up for nothing...god that...would be enough to utterly destroy a kid…” He swallowed. That was something he never wanted to do to this poor boy.
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Posted: Tue Jun 15, 2021 12:34 pm
Arias nodded, glad that Nick had gotten through that train of thought on his own. He couldn’t imagine what would happen if they were rejected from an application, and he was nervous enough just thinking about it. They weren’t married, but they’d been together for a while and he didn’t know if that was going to be a factor, or if they got married and then tried to adopt shortly after if that would look rushed? Was his record good enough for the both of them?
He squirmed, just slightly, a little anxious at the wave of questions that suddenly felt like they’d come crashing down on him.
He didn't know how he was supposed to work through things one at a time when it suddenly felt like he was drowning under the weight of all of it, so he leaned closer to Nick.
They’d make a list. They’d sort through things. They’d figure this out.
And, maybe at the end of all of this, they’d have a family.
...If things went well.
Arias was not rushing into this.
And yet, he was more excited to meet Caius now than he had been before.
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