Chapter Text
The day’s finally here. Amanda storms into my room in a frenzy of excitement at the crack of dawn, or what seems like it. She hasn't done this since she was 10, and only on Christmas mornings.
“Dad, wake up! The shelter’s going to be open soon!” She shakes my blanketed form vigorously.
“How soon is soon?” I croak.
“In two hours.”
“Amanda,” I grumble, pulling the covers over my head.
“I figure we could swing by the food truck, get some burritos, and then maybe your boyf- I mean, Damien, could let us in early.”
“Burritos for breakfast?” I raise a sleepy eyebrow.
“Yeah, Dad. There are these magical concoctions called breakfast burritos for this specific purpose. Pleeease?”
She drags out the last word in a plaintive whine. I relent and drag myself out of bed. I suppose should look presentable for the world. I make an extra effort to look good for Damien, now that we have an ‘understanding’, as he calls it.
Amanda is already good to go, buzzing around the car when I exit the front door, looking as suave as I can at seven in the morning. She bounces in her seat with nervous energy on the way to morning Mexican food.
“What are we going to name it? I guess we don't know if it'll be a boy or girl. Maybe we should pick a gender neutral name. But then again, it all depends on how it looks, right? Can’t have a big dog with a small dog name. Can’t have a small dog with a big dog name either.”
“Slow down, Amanda, you're going to give yourself whiplash.”
“Okay, okay. I'm so excited.”
“And you just can't hide it?” A smug smile spreads across my face.
Amanda groans. “Why. Why did I set that up for you.”
We grab the breakfast burritos, which are really no different to normal burritos, except that they contain scrambled eggs and hash browns instead of meat and rice. They're delicious, though. Amanda chows down at top speed, practically inhaling her food.
“If you choke to death, you won't be around to witness the adoption, you know.”
“I'll take the risk.” She grins and finishes her food by stuffing the entire butt end of the burrito into her face. “Done,” she proclaims, her voice muffled.
We drive over to the animal shelter once I catch up and finish my food. Damien is already waiting for us out front, in civilian clothing like an undercover cop. He looks radiant as always, his long dark hair tied up for practicality’s sake. He beams at the sight of us. In a brief moment of daring, I kiss his cheek in greeting. A hint of pink colours his face.
“Awww.” Amanda grins.
“Well! Good morning to you too.” Damien smiles. “I suppose we shouldn't delay this any further. I can see Miss Amanda is about to burst at the seams with anticipation.”
“Hell yeah,” she says with a fist pump. “Let's do this.”
Damien leads us inside, to where the dogs are housed in individual pens. “The important thing is that you feel a certain chemistry with the animal. You'll know it when you see it. In my experience, it's usually the animal that chooses the human,” he tells me.
Meanwhile, Amanda is beside herself with glee. I haven't seen her smile this much since she won a kiddie calzone eating competition at the local pizzeria when she was 12. Clearly takes after her father. I hear non-stop squealing as she moves from pen to pen, renewed in volume every time she finds a new dog cuter than the last.
“Dad. Dad. Dad. You have to see this one.” Amanda drags me over to one of the pens. In it, there's a mostly black, medium-sized, short-haired dog. It looks like it's just past the puppy stage into adolescence. I can't tell what breed it is right away, since it appears to be a mongrel, but it looks like a German shepherd.
“Dad, he has eyebrows, look!” Sure enough, on the dog’s brow, above its eyes, are matching little brown markings that give it the look of thick, cartoonish eyebrows. It's quite endearing.
The dog perks up when it sees Amanda. It makes a beeline for the gate of the pen, scrabbling at it.
“Would you like to get acquainted with him?” Damien asks.
“Does a vampire suck blood?” she answers with a cheeky smile. I roll my eyes. She's a regular old comedian, just like her dad.
“Well, according to some cultural and historical accounts, some vampires feed on one’s life force.” Damien’s explanation is met with a blank stare. “I'm going to assume you meant yes.”
He unlocks the door, entering and clipping a leash to the dog’s collar, leading it out. It leaps at Amanda immediately, putting its paws on her.
Damien chuckles. “Why, he's almost as excited as you are, Miss Amanda.”
The dog is busy running circles around our legs, sniffing at us with unbridled enthusiasm. Amanda crouches down, petting his head and giving him chin scratches, which it seems to adore.
I squat next to her. “I think it's safe to say he likes you.”
“Oooh yes. You're a good boy. The best boy.” The dog flops down in front of her, and she strokes a hand down its back. I join in, petting its wiry curls. Its tongue is hanging out as it pants, wagging its tail furiously.
“He’s very enthusiastic. Boisterous, even. Don't tell the others,” Damien says to me in a stage whisper, “but this one is my favourite.”
“I can see why.” Amanda laughs as it tries to lick our faces. She looks up at me with puppy eyes. Very fitting. “Dad, please? You said I could pick. I want this one.”
“Just remember this moment when it's time to decide whether to put me in a nursing home,” I tell her.
Amanda squeals and seizes me in a big bear hug. Then, she grabs Damien and does the same. Then, she grabs the dog and does the same.
I follow Damien, who leads the pup out on the leash to the reception counter, where Mary is waiting.
“See anyone you like?”
“Yep!” Amanda pipes up. “This one. I love him already. I would do anything for him.”
Mary gives her a rare smile. “Got a name for him yet?”
“Sirius,” she declares. Mary writes it onto the paperwork.
“Ah! As in the brightest star in our night sky?” Damien asks.
“As in Black.” Amanda looks very pleased with herself. I am not surprised in the least. Amanda has dragged me to enough midnight book releases for me to know that it's a Harry Potter reference.
Mary passes me a clipboard with adoption form to sign. I pull out my wallet, about to hand her the adoption fee, when-
“I want to do it!” Amanda exclaims. She nudges me. “Can I borrow some money?” she whispers.
I hand her the adoption fee. She hands it back to me. I hand it to Mary.
Mary slams a stamp onto the adoption certificate. “He's all yours.”
Amanda whoops and cheers. She hugs Sirius to her, who lets out a happy bark.
“This is the best day of my life.”
We decide to take Sirius for his first walk as a member of the family. Damien joins us, back in his usual attire. It’s a lovely evening, the sun not quite set yet, the rays of dying light playing off the water. Apart from the few regular joggers doing their laps, not many people are around this time of day. We stroll by the marina, Amanda and Sirius romping around ahead of us. Damien and I are walking side by side. I subtly take his hand in mine.
“I hope this isn't too outrageous.”
“My modesty will survive.” He smiles, holding my hand. “Did you manage to get everything?”
Prior to Sirius’ arrival, he'd given us a list of the things we would need. Everything, from dog bowls to pooper scoopers. Amanda picked out the collar and leash herself, black with tiny bones all over them.
“All done. Amanda and I had fun shopping for it all.”
We sit on a bench as Amanda bonds with our new dog. It's a heartwarming scene. Damien and I watch as they both roll around on the grass.
“I've loaned her several books on dog training. Sirius will be learning new tricks in no time.”
“I might need some, too. Guess I'll have to come over to visit your personal library…”
Damien smirks. “Like you ever needed an excuse to come over.”
We watch as Amanda attempts to get Sirius to shake hands. Every time he puts his paw in her hand, she pulls out a dog treat from her pocket, and he chomps it with gusto.
I yawn. Or pretend to, anyway. I stretch my arms with a big sigh, then rest one on the back of the bench behind him.
Damien stifles a laugh. “How very smooth of you.”
“I try.”
He shifts closer, so I put my arm around him. He sighs with contentment. “How very fortunate I am… I haven't been this happy in a long time.”
“You're a wonderful person, Damien. You deserve all the happiness in the world.”
“I suppose.” He sighs again. “It hasn't been the easiest thing in the world for me. To be struck by Cupid’s arrow once more, after so many years… after his passing… I feel so blessed.”
Damien hasn't said much about his late husband, and I never pried. I figure he'll open up about it when the time is right. Which seems to be now.
I hug him closer, and press a kiss to his head. He blushes a little. “Will you tell me about him?”
Damien looks at me, surprised. “Of course.” He stares into the sunset, which is painting the water a fiery orange. “He was in the rescue business. He'd been passionate about animals since he was a boy, and then he grew up to be a vet.”
I hold Damien’s hand in mine, trying to convey my support wordlessly, rubbing my thumb over his knuckles.
“I met him while working at the shelter. One day, on the way to work, I found this poor pup… she'd been abandoned, wandering around near the park, crying for food. She was so skinny, she must have been starving. I took her straight to the shelter. The owner, Mrs Lee, she drove us to the vet, and there he was. Tall, dark and handsome. Well, dark-haired, anyway.” Damien smiles at the memory. “He's saved the lives of so many of our rescues over the years. But he always thought of doing more to help them. That's the kind of man he was.”
“He sounds amazing. I would have fallen head over heels for him too.” I grin. Damien chuckles.
“I wouldn't be surprised. After that, he dropped by the shelter an awful lot, and would make it a point to ask after me. It was rather adorable, actually, the way he'd get all flustered at the sight of me. One day, he managed to muster up the courage to inquire what I was doing after work, and… well, the rest is history, isn't it.” Damien leans back onto me, a wistful expression on his face. “We fell in love, we got married, we built a house and a life together. Then Lucien came along.”
“Did you adopt him?” I ask.
Damien suddenly glances at me, a little stricken. “Darling, I… I gave birth to Lucien.” He looks away, uncomfortable. Then he takes a deep breath and says, “I’m transgender. I hope you don't think of me any differently.”
It couldn't have been easy to tell me. I squeeze his hand in an effort to comfort him.
“Of course not. Damien, I love all the things that make you who you are.” I brush his hair away from his face, tucking it behind his ear. “That doesn’t change the way I feel about you, not at all. You mean the world to me. I… I love you.”
It’s the first time I’ve ever said it. He peers up at me, eyes glistening. Tears roll down his cheek. I panic briefly. I've never been good with people crying, not even Amanda. I place my palm to his cheek and wipe them away with a thumb.
“Please don't cry,” I say.
“It's tears of joy, silly.” He smiles weakly, placing his hand on mine.
I'm not sure what else to do. I know what I want to do, though.
“May I kiss you?”
He sniffs. “Are you sure? Like this?”
“I don't care. I want to kiss you all the time.”
Damien giggles wetly, then nods. His eyelashes are damp, I can see it from this distance. I lean in, closing my eyes and pressing my mouth to his, just a soft, chaste kiss. When I pull away, he's looking shyly at me, his cheeks a fetching shade of bright pink.
“Oh, darling.” he breathes. “I love you too.”
I smooch his forehead, which makes him giggle some more. Damien rests his head on my shoulder, and I cuddle him close. I stroke his hair, inhaling its pleasant floral scent and marveling at how soft it is.
We watch Amanda try to play fetch with Sirius, who bounds after a tennis ball she's thrown, but hasn't mastered returning it to her. She looks so happy, almost as happy as when she got her acceptance letter to Horne. Maybe even more so.
“Will you tell me about Amanda’s father one day?” Damien asks me, breaking the silence. I consider it. The loss still aches in my heart, until today. I've never told any of our neighbours about him yet, about who he was and what he was like. But Damien is special to me, and I know he understands what I'm going through.
“Yeah,” I murmur, holding him tight to me. “Someday. I promise.”