Chapter Text
Confusion greets Rain when he wakes up. He’s not sure what woke him up, or where he is. This room is distinctly darker than the one he’s sharing with Phayu. When his eyes finally connect to his brain, it’s not Phayu beside him but his Dad. He jerks upright, nearly toppling off the bed. The last time he had been in the same bed as either of his parents had been when he was ten and had caught a nasty cold, and that had been his Pa’s worry making him lie next to a bedridden Rain.
Like a rubber band snapping, Rain remembers the previous night. Phayu had clearly needed the reassurance of his own family after the day’s events so he had called Saifiah. Rain is grateful for his brother-in-law because while he may enjoy pushing Phayu’s buttons as much as Rain does, he also knows exactly when to be serious. It was probably going to be a longer conversation so Rain had gone to check on his Dad. The aftershocks of his panic attack had been mainly soothed by Phayu’s gentle care, but Rain wouldn’t have been able to sleep until he knew his Dad was somewhat okay. Having gotten to speak with his Pa had been an added bonus. Being in his Pa’s childhood home without his Pa was a distinctly bad feeling. His Pa was a lot of things, but he was one of Rain’s rocks, and he wished he was here. Seeing his Dad’s abandoned phone on the sheets made it clear that his parents had been talking after Rain had fallen asleep. His Dad was probably missing Pa even worse than Rain was.
The jostling of the bed caused his Dad to sluggishly blink his eyes open.
He pats around the bed, “What time is it?”
Rain opens his mouth to respond when there’s a shout coming from somewhere in the house, “What the fuck is your problem!”
Dad sits bolt upright in the bed, Rain’s head snaps towards the door.
“No! You don't get to blame that on Tharn!”
“Pa?” Rain was moving before he even registered what he was doing. Racing out the hall, he nearly collided with Phayu, who was coming out of their room. He can hear his Dad following behind him as he rushes past his bewildered boyfriend.
Down the steps, he nearly trips, grabbing the railing as he comes upon the scene and-
“Pa!” He shouts, bulldozing his way past his grandparents. He doesn't understand how his Pa is here, but the minute he's wrapped in his Pa’s arms he doesn't care. His Pa smells like home, and his hug is warm as he bends down slightly to wrap himself around Rain.
“Type?” His Dad’s voice holds the disbelief that Rain feels, an almost broken sound, as he comes up behind Rain to hug Pa. Squished between them, Rain is in one of the few safe places he can be.
Dad pulls back slightly, “What are you doing here? I told you we'd be back tomorrow.”
“Dee already agreed to cover for me, and I had booked my tickets. I would have just cancelled, except I got a concerning text.” Pa turned behind him and Rain peered around him to see his Uncle Khom standing a few steps behind. His expression seems to be a cross between sheepish admission and determination.
Dad's face scrunches up, “I don't-”
“This is ridiculous.”
Rain's blood ran cold, as he finally realised his Grandpa was standing a few paces from them. Blotches of red coloured his face and his knuckles have gone white where they grip the crutches. He separates Rain from Phayu, who still stands in the steps. Rain lets out a pained noise, wanting his boyfriend closer in case something happens.
Pa, the original to Rain's blueprint, understands. “Phayu come over here.”
Phayu moves quickly, giving a wide berth to his grandparents. Once in reach, Rain grabs his arm pulling him closer. In the same move Pa pushes Rain, and by extension Phayu, behind him. Rain watches as Pa moves Dad so that while they both block Rain, Pa is in front of Dad, standing between them and his parents.
***
Fury runs through Type, so familiar he nearly choked on it. He hadn't felt this way since before Tharn.
Thirty years he's been with Tharn, thirty years he has loved this man more than himself. He made his life, he raised their child, he did everything with Tharn. Tharn is it for him, there is no one else.
And despite all this, his Pa still refuses to accept him. Had nearly killed his husband in front of their son!
He stares his Pa down, the same man who raised him to be hard working, to be strong, to be courageous, and sees something else.
“You come into my house at the crack of dawn and start shouting and calling me all sorts of things! Who do you think you are!” His Pa roars.
“Your son!” His Pa has the audacity to look shocked at Type's shout. That doesn’t stop him, “I'm your son, something I need to remind you of because you clearly don't remember!”
“Type-” he feels Tharn try to pull him back. Try and cool the rage, but Tharn should know there is no stopping this.
He pushes Tharn back towards their son and son-in-law, “Tharn is my husband! Your son-in-law! The fact that you refuse to accept this after all this time!”
His Pa scoofs, “Why would I accept someone like that when I should have had a daughter-in-law.”
“What so you can salivate over them like you did with Thanya? Absolutely not.”
His Pa reels back, almost comical if it weren't for the seriousness of the assumption, “What are you insinuating boy?”
“Exactly what you think! Get over it, Tharn and I are married. Nothing will change that. What does it matter if it's him or some woman?”
“At least then I'd have a proper grandchild!”
Type stepped back this time, emotions flicking through him at rapid speed. Anger, hurt, betrayal, sadness.
“What did you just say?” He hears Tharn growl.
He looks back at his family and sees Tharn has pulled Rain behind him. His shoulders were straight across, his expression a fury storm ready to strike. Always the protector of their family.
Rain, his baby, looked shell shocked. His eyes were glassy, mouth opened slightly. Fingers wrapped around Phayu's arm, with what must have been a bruising grip. It took all of Type not to grab his son in a hug, instead he turned back to his father. Fury and rage swallowed him whole.
“Is that what you think? That because neither of us gave birth to Rain that he isn’t ours?” Flames were licking at his skin as he stared down his father.
His Pa has the audacity to scoff, “That’s not what I meant, don’t be putting words into my mouth.”
“Then what the fuck did you mean?”
“That if he was actually blood he wouldn’t be…”
“What?” Type is on the verge of self-destruction, “A faggot. Is that what you think?”
“Would you stop putting words in my mouth!”
“Then why don’t you say what you mean! Stop with the bullshit and tell me exactly what you mean in clear language!”
His Pa struggles for a second, his face twisted in rage, “Why are you acting so high and mighty, huh? You haven’t visited in ten years and this is how you act once entering my home.”
“Do you want to know why I don't visit?” Type snaps, “Do you want to know why you don't get to see your son anymore? Why you have to complain and moan to everyone on the island?” With each sentence he took a step towards his father, “It's because of this shit! You insult my husband, my child, and his partner! You hate the man I love!” He stops, only a few feet from his father and takes the deepest breath he can get, “Khom told me about what happened yesterday. He told me the truth about what happened last time. You could have killed Tharn, do you realise that? Do you even know what that would have done to me?”
Type can picture it so clearly it makes him sick. If the ladder had fallen in a different way, or if Tharn had landed slightly differently. There had been so much blood that day, he had been nearly sick and now he can imagine getting to the clinic. The damage too severe and Tharn bleeding out, or some kind of brain damage. Type was a doctor, he knew the complications of head injuries. Seizures. Amnesia. Brain bleeds. Conclusions.
He looks at his father, meets his gaze straight on, “Do you even care about me?”
There is no response, or if there is, his father cannot produce it. He stands their gapping at Type, the first time he's ever seen his father at a loss for words. It breaks Type, the fact that the person in front of him is now a stranger to Type. His father had been his number one supporter, had loved him with such fierceness it was the one thing Type had always relied on. All of it is gone.
He takes a shuddering breath, feeling a wetness on his cheeks. “I wanted you in my life,” he states, his voice firm, “I wanted you to see the life I built for myself but apparently that was never supposed to happen.”
He turns on his heels, refusing to look at the man who called himself his father but could not love him like one. “Come on,” he urged his family, “let's get out of here.”
***
They make it as far as the beach before Type breaks down in Tharn’s hold. It's not a great heaving thing that Tharn had been worried about, instead one of resignation. He holds his husband close, rocking them slightly.
“Fuck.” Type sudders.
“You're okay,” Tharn mutters, trying to keep his own emotions in check. Having Type back in his arms soothes most of the pain he's been dealt on this trip, not all, but some.
“Rain?” Type twists in his grip, looking for their son and Tharn chokes on the barrage of emotions. How could Type’s Pa say that about Rain. Rain was their pride and their joy and a testament to their relationship because they did that. They raised a beautiful, smart, courageous, loving boy and all this time Type’s Pa never saw him as theirs.
He looks over and feels the air rush out of him because Phayu has Rain. He's got Rain in the same bruising grip that Tharn has Type. His son's shoulders shake, muffled sobs as he clings to Phayu. All his emotions building up and exploding in one go, a perfect replica to Type.
Phayu whispers something to Rain, giving him the tiniest jostle to get Rain to look up. Phayu nods towards them, and it takes Rain a second to move. When he turns around Tharn wants to march back into the infernal place and punch his father-in-law in the face. Rain's face is wet with tears, his eyes painfully swollen as he looks at them.
Type moves first, pushing out of Tharn's hold to reach out for Rain. Rain stays attached to Phayu only until Type has a hold of him.
“My baby, you know he's wrong right?” Type is achingly gentle as he wipes away Rain's tears, “you know you're ours, right?”
“I know Pa,” and Tharn could collapse from Rain's conviction, “That’s not why I’m upset. He said all that stuff about Dad, and Phayu and he's been horrible this whole time and-” he's forced to stop with a wet cough.
Type shushes him, trying to stop the new tears, “Rain calm down, you'll make yourself sick.”
Rain shudders, his breath catching twice before he can get a lungful of proper air. “I fucking hate him.”
“Language.” Phayu gently scolds.
It's so instantaneous that Tharn chokes on his laughter. Based on Phayu’s expression it was clearly an insticant than actually scolding. Tharn can’t help but laugh harder when he sees Type's scandalised expression.
“Who taught you to swear like that?”
“You did.” Rain bites back.
It would do little good to remind Type just how many times he swore in his argument with his Pa, but Tharn can't hold back his laughter when he catches Phayu's eye. The two of them end up laughing which gets Type and Rain pouting harder.
“P’Phayu,” Rain actually stamps his foot like he's five again, “don't be mean.”
“I'm not being mean,” Tharn knows exactly what will happen next as Rain pouts harder. Phayu folds in seconds, pulling Rain back into his embrace, “Okay, okay, I'm sorry. Phi is sorry.”
Type wipes at his own eyes, the tension not gone but reduced. Tharn knows they'll need to have a serious conversation later, but that can wait for now.
“Rain,” he gets his son’s attention, “are you okay?”
Rain nods, his eyes no longer hold the glassy shine of tears and the corners of his lips have tipped up from Phayu's teasing. He runs a hand through Rain's hair, the adrenaline from the confrontation leaving Tharn just as needy for comfort as the rest of his family. He tugs both Rain and Type into his embrace, resting his head against Type's.
Rain whines, trying to twist around. “P'Phayu.” He stretches out his arm, making grabby hands.
Phayu hesitates, a rare look for the confident boy, slightly swaying with indecision. He knew they could just wait Phayu out, he was probably the weakest of all of them to Rain’s pout. But Tharn didn't want that, not after everything that had happened.
He gestured with his head, “Come on, you're family too.”
Phayu startles slightly, something Tharn takes pride in. There is no hesitation when Rain whines again, two steps forward and Phayu is being folded into the hug. It feels distinctly right, not in the way that a piece was missing but in the way that the universe felt complete.
Things would be fine, now that they were all together.