Chapter Text
It felt like hours had passed when her parents had walked in before anyone reacted. Loid had gently closed the door, and robotically walked into the kitchen to pour himself a glass of scotch that he downed almost immediately. He had not been prepared to walk into his home and see his daughter in such a compromising scenario.
The teenagers just stood frozen in place, Damian’s hand stuck to the small of Anya’s back. They were too embarrassed to move. And Anya knew she needed a few moments to let herself stabilise before she pulled away too soon and tripped over her own feet.
Yor shrugged off her jacket, moving to place it on the back of one of the dining chairs. She didn’t say a word, nor look at the couple, and met her husband in the kitchen. She poured herself a glass of wine from one of the half empty bottles and dragged Loid to the couch. He looked as if he had been stunned, same expression as he had when he walked in, barely blinking.
Damian let out a soft sigh when Anya moved away. He watched her inquisitively when she skipped over to her parents, picking up her heels silently, and skipped back to him. She pulled him towards her room, interlacing their fingers as she dragged him.
“Anya-” Yor began, silenced by the closing of her bedroom door. Damian stood awkwardly in the middle of the room, nearly stumbling back when she ran into his chest. At first she was silent, but then she giggled. Which turned to heavy laughter. And Damian joined in. It was a ridiculous situation. One neither of them could quite believe was happening.
He knew Anya had been upset at her parents for lying to her about being able to help her get ready for them to turn up at the event. She was an open book sometimes. And he also knew that neither of them had expected to come home quite so soon after the end of the event. He had expected at least enough time for them to change and go to bed before they were home.
“They’re going to be so mad at me,” Anya giggled when she took a few steps back to drop her bag and shoes to the ground. She felt great, her mind a little fuzzy but otherwise overwhelmingly happy.
Damian kissed her head giggling with her. He was beyond fuzzy, but not drunk enough to be unaware of what was going on. “Schatzi, they’re definitely more mad at me. They caught me with my tongue down your throat and my hands dancing on your skin. How your father hasn’t killed me already is a miracle.”
“Schatzi? That’s new.” Anya smirked, throwing her arms over his shoulders as she kissed up his neck.
“You call me hasi! And it fits,” Damian replied, melting into her kisses. He tilted his head back when she reached his jaw, her nails delicately scratching over his shoulders.
This time, they were interrupted by a knock. At least her parents hadn’t walked in that time. Someone definitely would have been harmed. “Anya, Damian, we’d like to talk to you please. I’ve made some tea for us all.” Yor’s voice called through the door. They parted, Anya rolling her eyes as she opened the door.
Damian felt faint. The buzz from the alcohol was no longer enjoyable. Now that he was stressed, he felt painfully sober. Anya gripped his hand, giving him a calm smile. She pulled him over to one of the armchairs opposite where her parents had chosen to sit on the couch, and made him sit in it.
Before sitting down herself, she walked (almost knocking into the hallway table) to the kitchen. She got a glass of water for herself, and poured their remaining wine for Damian. She knew that he would need it, her parents' expressions giving away their disappointment in them. She walked back over, giving her boyfriend a wobbly smile when she passed it over. She fell into her own armchair, brushing the hair from her face.
“Anya, you need to talk to us about this. How you ended up at the museum, why Damian’s here, why there’s two empty bottles of wine in the kitchen.” Loid asked, his first words since entering the apartment. He was leaning back in his seat, hand massaging his temple and forehead.
Anya said nothing. She sipped on her water, looking over at her parents, calculating. She was trying to hear anything in their minds. But they had both learned to block her out. She frowned, flicking her eyes to Damian where he was sitting upright, tense.
“Anya, I expect an answer.” Loid sighed in frustration. The man had wanted to come home and ask his daughter how the visit went, to compliment her dress, to maybe interrogate her over how close she was with Damian. But instead, he was met with a side of Anya he had never seen before. A side that was a surprise to all of them, Anya included.
“I expected my parents to be at home, to help me get ready for the biggest event of my life so far. Like they had promised. Then, I expected to have the most amazing date with the person that I love, without any stress. But then you guys turned up at the museum, which changed the plans. After that, I expected to spend time with him here, able to be ourselves while you two went to debrief or whatever. But then you turned up. Again! Since I got very little of what I was expecting tonight, I don’t feel as if I should give you what you expect of me.” Anya sighed frustratedly.
“Anya-” Damian said softly, frowning when he saw her trying to blink back tears. He jumped out of his seat and crouched in front of her, placing one hand on her knee and one on her cheek.
“I’m okay hasi, it’s okay.” she said, trying to hide the cracks in her voice. Damian stood up and pulled her up with him, tucking her into a hug. He flipped them around and sat in her seat, making her sit on his lap. She tucked her feet up on the seat and leant into his shoulder. He really was the best source of comfort for her.
Damian was so preoccupied with making Anya feel better, that he didn’t notice her parents staring at them, Loid’s eyes narrowing at his simple touch. He had seen the teenagers getting closer over the years, especially since Anya’s secret had been shared. But he hadn’t noticed such a big shift between the two, the platonic relationship turning more intimate. Secretly changing.
“Anya, I know that you must be upset with us for not being here to see you before you left to go to the museum’s event. But your father’s right, we should get an explanation for all of this. This night hasn’t been what any of us expected.” Yor said, pouring some tea into her teacup.
“Mama, I’m not just upset. I’m angry. Frustrated. You promised! You promised to help me with my hair. I wanted you to see my dress! I was going to tell you where I was going, why it was so important, why I was so nervous. But I wasn’t made a priority again.” Anya responded, unmoving from her position on Damian.
“Anya, I’m sorry that you feel this way. But at this moment, we are more worried about underage drinking and explicit displays of affection when you’re home alone than anything else. You are still underage, and so we want an explanation.” Loid said, his voice laced with a sense of danger.
Anya tensed. He hadn’t used that voice with her before. He was using his interrogation techniques with her. As if she were one of his targets. And he wasn’t going to back down. She knew how he could get sometimes.
“Uncle Franky gave me the tickets, Aunt Sylvia bought me the dress, Damian and I were on a date and I asked him to come back, we had a few drinks, then you came home.” Anya said, choosing to ignore any details of the story.
“You invited him over? You chose to drink when you know the rules? All of this without permission. Anya, I’m disappointed.” Loid sighed, deciding to drink some of his now lukewarm tea. “I wish you would have told us the real reason for the museum trip.”
“I was going to tell you when I was going to be picked up by Becky. It’s your fault that you found out the way that you did.” Anya grumbled, relaxing when she felt Damian’s chin rest on her head.
“We’re going to bed. We can continue this in the morning. Come on, Damian.” Anya said, peeling herself from Damian’s lap. She gave no second look to her parents when she dragged him to her room, gently closing the door behind her. She didn’t even flinch when Loid called her name in frustration.
When the door was closed, Anya let go of Damian’s hand and tried to undo her dress. He noticed her struggle and unzipped it for her. “Do you want me to leave while you change?” he asked, stepping towards the door.
“No. I want to just get into bed. There’s spare clothes from your previous stays in the closet. You’ll see them next to your jumpers. And you don’t have to look away, I wouldn’t be doing this if I wasn’t comfortable.” Anya giggled, pulling the sleeves down to pull down the dress.
Damian’s mind was racing again. Thoughts about her parents were overshadowed by his thoughts about Anya. To him, she was a goddess chiselled from marble. He placed a chaste kiss on her cheek before searching through her closet, trying to hide his burning blush.
Anya was wiping her makeup off when Damian changed, only sneaking a few glances. He didn’t care, grateful to be in some soft clothes after hours of being in a stiff suit. He collapsed onto the bed, throwing the quilt to the side and Anya jumped on with him. They snuggled up together, easily falling asleep.
In the morning, Loid and Yor left them to sleep in. They knew that they’d be more tired due to staying up late, and the drinks from the night before. Anya woke up first, finding herself being Damian’s little spoon, loving how she could hear his gentle snores and feel his hot breaths on her neck. She didn’t move until he stirred, smiling when he kissed her temple before sitting up.
They decided to let themselves adjust slowly, Anya choosing to pick up her phone from where it had sat in her bag. She noticed some messages from Becky and from her Aunt Sylvia.
Aunt Sylvia
How did it go, kiddo?
I hope you have some photos of you in your dress!
How did your parents react?
I’ll come over next week and we can have a real debrief!
Becky
How did it go?
Did the boy appreciate you?
Wait no, don’t tell me.
I don’t need to know those details of your lives.
Call me later to tell me how it went though!
Anya
it went amazingly!
Damian just looked at my phone and asked what you meant by ‘appreciated’
my innocent boy
and now he’s blushing and refusing to look me in the eye
but yes we will call you later
also, i’d never tell you the details.
his wandering hands are of my concern only
“Anya! Don’t say that, she’s going to kill me!” Damian complained, trying to pry the phone from her hands. She laughed, shutting it off before placing it at the end of the bed and clambered on top of him to hold his face as she distracted him by peppering kisses on his face.
“It’s not wrong though hasi. Your wandering hands are of my concern, and currently I’m concerned that they haven’t wandered enough.” Anya giggled, laughing harder when she saw how red he instantly became. “Damian, I’m joking. My childhood bedroom is absolutely not the place to do that, least of all while my parents are in.”
Damian let out a breathless chuckle, leaning his forehead on hers. “Anya Forger, you are breaking me. Somehow it makes me love you more.”
They sat in her bed, relishing in the comfort they brought each other. When they could hear Yor in the kitchen, they decided to get up. They had a conversation to finish after all. And Anya felt much better now that she was sober, and not completely exhausted.
“Anya! Damian! You’re finally up! I’ve just made some tea. Loid will be home from seeing Franky in a few minutes. Why don’t you sit down and we will join you when we’re ready?” Yor said, her voice full of joy.
They did as suggested and sat together on the couch. Anya laughed as Damian tried to flatten his bed hair, cringing as she tried to do the same. They laughed as they made eye contact, finally noticing how disoriented they were. Damian wished they had the foresight to have brushed their hair at the very least.
When Loid arrived home, Yor carried over the food and drinks before sitting in the armchair next to her husband. Anya and Damian settled to just share a single cup of tea, both knowing they wouldn’t both finish a whole one.
“Now that we have all had some rest after a long day, I would like to continue our conversation from yesterday.” Loid said, eyes flitting between the two facing him.
“Where do you want to start, papa?” Anya asked. She was in a better mood than before. She had time to understand hers and her parents’ feelings.
“Firstly, I want to know about this,” he said, pointing at her and Damian, “and when it started.”
“The holidays. The day he came over and he gave us all gifts. That’s when it officially started. Before that, we were just friends. But I guess we’ve been working up to this since the summer.” Anya explained. She smiled when she saw Damian’s short smirk, remembering the time they spent together.
“So I was right. I knew something was up between you two. And yesterday? Why did you have Franky get you the tickets to that event?” He asked. Franky hadn’t explained anything when he asked. Anya hadn’t actually told him her reason for needing them, he just provided the tickets without question.
“Because I knew he could get them, and I knew that it would be perfect for Damian. Why were you working there?” Anya replied, passing over the teacup to Damian to finish.
“HQ asked us to, skipping through Sylvia entirely. We were on the way home to help you get ready when we got the message. Two agents went missing yesterday and we had to step in for them.” Yor said, cringing when she remembered Damian was present. The boy looked confused but let it go when Anya shook her head, stopping him from asking. That was a conversation for another time.
“And the alcohol? Why would you break the rules, Anya?” Loid sighed, much like he had the night before.
“Because we could. We couldn’t drink at the exhibit with you watching, so I thought that it would be best to come home and drink. At least then we were in a safe, albeit unsupervised, environment. And while I may break some rules, I wasn’t going to break the Damian rule. I didn’t want you to kill him.” Anya laughed.
Damian turned to her and whispered, “What on earth is the Damian rule?” which made Anya flush.
“It’s the rule he made when you started staying over more. He never explicitly said it to me, but he always thought it. That if we… you know… I’d be grounded for life and you’d never be allowed back. It’s like he thinks we’re kids.” Anya whispered back, snickering when Damian stared at her, eyes wide.
“You are kids Anya.” Loid said, rolling his eyes. “And I’m not too sure that you didn’t break that rule. Need I remind you of how we found you last night, and how you dragged him to your room.”
“Papa, we kissed. Big deal. You’ll have to get used to it. Damian’s my boyfriend, we kiss. And yes, we slept together. Literally, in a bed. As if I’d attempt more in this apartment when you and mama are scarily good at finding things out.” Anya said, Loid and Damian both choking on their drinks as she was so blunt.
“You better never attempt it anywhere,” Yor snorted, “or I think your poor father will have a heart attack.” Loid did look unwell at even the idea, and the Forger women were highly entertained.
“Papa doesn’t get a say mama. I’m allowed to live my life. If he finds out, that’s because he’s been snooping.” Anya gave him a pointed look that made Yor giggle to herself.
“Just as long as you’re being safe, Anya. We’ll always be here if you need us, even for that.” Yor said honestly. Loid hesitated but nodded along. Internally, he hoped that the time would never come. But he also hoped that Anya would feel comfortable enough to come to him if she needed.
“Mama, I really need us to move this conversation along before Damian melts in embarrassment. He isn’t used to having open conversations like this. And I’d quite like to see how our relationship develops and not have him get scared of us too quickly.” Anya laughed, letting him hide his face in her hair as he sat next to her, tensed.
Yor laughed but nodded along, changing the topic to Anya’s dress. “You did look really pretty yesterday Anya. That dress was incredible! It was gorgeous. You really must thank your aunt for it.”
“I will mama. I promise! I wish she could have seen me in it, I felt incredible.” Anya smiled.
Damian leant in and with a cheeky smile and thought, ‘You really did feel incredible.’ Anya whacked him, and pushed him away. Damian snorted when he noticed her face flushing, apologising for embarrassing her.
The parents looked between each other, confused as to what had occurred without any words exchanged. They knew it was something said through Damian’s mind but since they didn’t have Anya’s powers, they didn’t have a clue as to what he had actually said.
“I hate you.” Anya mumbled, moving to sit away from him.
“No you don’t, Anya. You love me.” Damian replied, forcing her to sit closer to him again.
Loid coughed, reminding them that the quick argument was not done in a space alone. Anya rolled her eyes at Damian but still leant into him, turning back to her parents.
“Sorry.” Anya said, not so discreetly elbowing Damian as he gave her a smirk.
“You two really didn’t change as you grew up, did you?” Loid asked, smiling as he remembered them through the years. As their friendship bloomed, they were known to banter, to push or shove, to joke around. It was as if the sense of gentle violence was their love language.
“I guess we didn’t. I don’t think that’s a bad thing though.” Anya shrugged. She had always liked how they were and was glad that it hadn’t changed as their relationship expanded.
“It’s not a bad thing at all, Anya. I quite enjoy it. It shows that we really were always made for each other, much to the joy of my younger self.” Damian laughed, reminding himself of how infatuated he had been as a child.
Everything really had worked out better than anyone could have expected. Loid and Yor had formed their family, able to work alongside their jobs. Damian and Anya had gone from nothing to everything with each other, letting themselves love. And the young couple’s relationship was accepted by the adults.
Even if it was the most embarrassing way for them to have found out, and had led to a week-long grounding for Anya due to her rule breaking, it was worth it. Damian had already been accepted as a member of the family, but now he was solidified as their son-in-law. Really, as their son.