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 Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2022 9:46 am
Claire was excited. She was going to see her newest grandchild again. She’d only met him briefly before (because a couple hours for dinner isn’t nearly long enough for her to get to know him), so she was thrilled to meet up with him and Devyn again.
Yes, she was aware that Atticus technically wasn’t her grandchild, but really. Michael and Devyn were practically together, so it was close enough.
They were meeting up at an art gallery that afternoon. Both to get ideas on how Devyn would like his gallery with Percy’s art to look like, but also because she was sure that Atticus hadn’t been to an actual art gallery before. It would be the perfect time to show him!
“Elly! I didn’t know you’d be coming too! Atticus oh, you’re both so precious, come here,” she insisted as she trotted over to greet them, wrapping them both in a tight hug.
“Devyn, how are you doing? Everything going okay? Oh, that’s so horrible about your house, Elliot. I’m so sorry. Michael’s helping your parents work on your new house, isn’t he? Next time we’ll have to make sure he and your parents have time to come along.” Atticus was still a little nervous around Michael’s mother. She was nice!! She was just very talkative. Not loud! Just had a lot of things to say and she showered him with praise and compliments he was still trying to get used to.
How was it possible for anyone to just accept him when they’d never met him before? And she treated him as if she were his grandmother. He wasn’t complaining! She was a lot more bubbly than his own grandmother, but she’d also been rather sick.
He cast a glance over at Elliot to make sure he was okay, before letting Claire hug them.
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Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2022 9:59 am
“Surprise!” Elliot said, returning the hug enthusiastically. He smiled at Atticus in an effort to privately assure him that he was happy to be here and that it was safe to indulge in her hugs. “I got kicked out. My parents are painting and know me well enough to know that if I see wet paint I have to stick my hand in it, so they sent me out. I hope that’s okay, Michael sends his love. He’s been really great, this would have been so much harder if he wasn’t there. He’s been taking good care of me and my parents. We’re trying not to be upset about the house, my parents put a lot of work into it so I know my dad’s taking it kind of hard, but he’s trying to make the best of it. You should come over to dinner when we get the place set up, I’ll make some fancy. Like grilled cheese.”
He was teasing, and reached his arm around Atticus to give him a little squeeze, too.
Devyn smiled at the three of them and crossed his arms over his chest; he figured the boys probably needed a good squeeze, and Claire probably did too. He’d gotten a little bit dressed up, partly because it was only reasonable to dress nicely when going to such a nice place, and partly because he thought Atticus had spent enough time thinking he had to be how someone else wanted him to be. The least Devyn could do was be himself to encourage Atticus to let himself do the same. “We’re doing well,” he promised. “Excited to see the exhibit. And you. How are you doing?”
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Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2022 10:11 am
Claire happily squished both boys in her arms and ruffled Elliot’s hair -- only so she could gently pat it back into place. Or some semblance of it. With Atticus she was a bit more gentle, but that was only because they were working up to knowing each other! Claire had seen Elliot around over the many years that Michael had known him and his parents, so of course she had the opportunity to give him lots of hugs.
“I’m glad he’s putting himself to good use and keeping busy,” she said with a warm smile, although she was relieved to hear that Michael wasn’t moping around. Staying active was good for someone like him, although she understood sometimes he just needed a break.
“I would love some fancy grilled cheese. We’ll have to make sure we get ice cream to go with it. I’m doing well, too,” she smiled up at Devyn, turning her attention from the boys to him for the moment but even though she pulled back a little, she rubbed both Elliot’s and Atticus’ back before taking a step closer to Devyn to give him a hug as well. Atticus did his best not to wiggle, and to hug Claire back, but as soon as she moved away to hug Devyn, Atticus reached out to give Elliot a hug. What? If they were all giving each other hugs, then that was only fair, right? That, and he really just wanted to stay close to him. Even if Claire was nice.
He did think that Devyn looked very nice though. Atticus let Devyn fix his hair earlier, so he had a small braid that kept his bangs out of his face, and a cute clip to keep it all up. He wasn’t sure how Devyn kept his hair so long and pretty, but maybe one day he could grow his hair out again.
“Have you been to an art exhibit before?” he quietly asked Elliot when Devyn and Claire were momentarily distracted. “Is it just like hanging pictures on the walls at school? But fancy?” At least that’s what he thought of when he heard about an art exhibit.
“You make very good grilled cheese,” he added after a moment, although he made sure to pull back and just hold Elliot’s hand instead of clinging all over him.
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Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2022 10:20 am
Elliot smiled, not the least bit concerned with his fluffy hair. He returned Atticus’ hug afterwards, and then when they broke their hug he reached up to smooth it down a bit more.
“No. I’ve been to museums, and sometimes they have some art up, but I’ve never been to an art gallery specifically. I’m excited. Especially to go with you and Momma. She’s fun, it’s okay,” he said quietly. “She just has a lot of love to share.” He’d just have to hug him more so he was less anxious when other people did. “She can explain things, too. This is just like school but fancy, it’s just a lot of neat art, or old art or important art.”
He laced fingers with Atticus easily and swung their hands a bit. “I’m glad I get to go to my first art gallery with you, though.”
Devyn smiled as he squeezed Claire in return. “He’s been very busy, he’s working incredibly hard. I’d like to do something nice for him one of these days but he’s just so focused. He’s been so busy taking care of the Reids, I just want to make sure someone’s taking care of him, too.”
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Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2022 10:45 am
“Has he taken you boys out on his boat yet? I’ve told him he should look at getting a new one. She’s getting up there in age, and I bet he could use one with more space,” Claire sighed as she fussed over Devyn’s clothes, patting away the wrinkles that didn’t exist, before being unable to stop herself from playing a little with his hair.
“Oh, but he likes that boat. So maybe that’s not a good idea, but it’s so small. I don’t know how it’s going to fit everyone,” she sighed, but she knew it wasn’t her choice. “If it was up to me, I would give him Beau’s boat. It’s much bigger. Oh, but I don’t know how he’d feel about that. It’s not like I’m going to be sailing around on my own,” she sighed. There were some good memories on that boat, but it was just going to waste away on its own without someone to take care of it.
“You’ll like this exhibit though. It’s really colorful. I cheated a little and already took a quick look. Just so I won’t get distracted while I’m showing you around!” she insisted with a smile. Atticus held tightly to Elliot’s hand, glad that he was there with him. He wasn’t sure what to expect, but it sounded nice. And it sounded like he really liked being around Michael’s mom, so that was good, too. She did seem to be rather bubbly and friendly. It was just going to take some getting used to. But it wasn’t bad.
“I’m glad I get to go to my first art gallery with you, too,” he said quietly as he smiled at Elliot. He always seemed to know how to make him feel better, and for that, Atticus was very grateful. He didn’t know what he did to make Elliot want to be his friend, but he hoped that he would never take him for granted. Elliot was too important to him.
“I want to do everything with you. Every museum you’d like to see. Or anything you’d like to learn how to cook, or if you just want to go to the park, or sit in the grass and stare at the sky,” he hummed softly as he swung his hand along with Elliot’s.
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Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2022 11:02 am
Devyn stood still, content and pleased with her fussing over him. Even if he knew he looked impeccable, he appreciated the attention, and he wouldn’t have spoken anyway if it meant interrupting her while she was talking about Michael.
“He hasn’t yet, but he’s been talking about it soon. He and the Reids go every year? I think they’re trying to plan for the next few weeks. After they get the house a little cleaned up and get everything moved in. Michael wants to get a security system installed for them, too, but I doubt that will take long.” Especially if Soleiyu was involved. He couldn’t help but give her a look while she spoke about Eulalie because she’d given him quite the concern the first time she’d brought it up with him.
It had been of considerate relief to learn that it was a boat, not a woman.
He hadn’t stopped to wonder why.
“I don’t think Michael’s afraid of old things. He says she’s in excellent condition. Do you want to go sailing sometime? I’d go with you.” No matter how much he disliked the water, if it was important to her he could have stomached it. He could learn how to do whatever she needed. And, he suspected Michael would have wanted to come too, but he knew he was still grieving and he didn’t know how sensitive he might be if it meant going on his father’s boat.
He leaned forward to give Claire another hug; it wasn’t like it was a topic that needed to be broached right now. It was food for thought and the offer wasn’t going anywhere.
Usually it was in Elliot’s nature to want to eavesdrop–he couldn’t help his curiosity–but whatever he thought he might have liked to hear Devyn and Claire talking about was missed because Atticus was just too distracting. Not even in a bad way! He just didn’t want to miss anything he said.
“Sounds like there’s a lot we can do. All of that sounds good to me.” He smiled and gently tugged him forward. “Let’s not waste any time. If you get any inspiration, we’ll have to go home and paint or something.”
Even if he wasn’t particularly artistic, he liked the idea of Atticus being eager to paint and getting the chance to do something fun without worrying about being scolded for it.
Atticus had a lot of firsts to experience. Elliot was glad he was going to get to be there for them.
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Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2022 2:04 pm
“Oh, I would love to go sailing,” she smiled up at Devyn, obviously very fond of him, even if she didn’t know him well yet. He was so sweet and polite and so thoughtful. And he gave the best hugs, which she gladly accepted. Atticus nodded in agreement when Elliot suggested that they go home so he could paint if he got any inspiration. He thought he might, but he was going to hold off as long as possible, especially if that meant spending some more time with Elliot.
“Would it be okay if we just sat in bed together-- Oh… or on the couch. Or floor. I mean, I can sketch in my book your dad got me,” he quickly explained. And it was a much nicer sketch book than the one he left behind with his old life. And it obviously meant more, because it was given to him by someone who actually loved him.
“Sometimes just being next to you gives me inspiration,” he continued, feeling his cheeks warm a bit as he held Elliot’s hand.
But Claire seemed ready to head into the building, so-- oh, was he going to have to let go of Elliot’s hand now? He didn’t really want to.
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Posted: Sat Aug 06, 2022 2:29 pm
Devyn smiled again at Claire and offered his arm as he turned to the building. “Then, Michael will have to teach me so I can take care of you. We’ll go out and have some good fun. You deserve to be spoiled. Especially for raising such a charming son.”
Elliot didn’t seem like he had any intention of dropping Atticus’ hand and continued to swing their hands as he guided him into the building. He laughed, not like Atticus had made a joke but instead because he was just tickled by what he’d said. “That sounds good. Maybe I can play a video game or something while you’re doing your art. I haven’t in a little while. And if you need a break, you can play with me.”
He liked being able to spend time with Atticus. Maybe there was a part of Elliot that worried if he was getting too clingy or dependent, if he was going to smother Atticus, but…
He seemed to like it. So who cared? They were happy.
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