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If there was one thing Isak had learnt over the last 11 years with Even, it was to never underestimate his dramatics.
Sure, Even was definitely the one of them to get least stressed and always remain relatively calm in distressful situations while Isak freaked out, but he sure had a tendency to overreact when it came to Belle.
Belle was their first daughter and Even’s pride and joy. They had adopted her not long after she was born and that wasn’t something either man took for granted. Being able to raise their first child from birth was something that they had always wanted but assumed would be impossible; it was never guaranteed that there would be a newborn to adopt.
Belle was, somehow, the perfect mix of Isak and Even.
With blonde curls that rivalled Isak’s and blue eyes as bright and sharp as Even’s, she managed to capture both man’s favourite feature of the other. If Even loved combing his hands through Isak’s hair, it was nothing compared to brushing the knots from his daughters as she laid against him, trying to get to sleep. And if Isak ever felt happiness looking into Even’s eyes then it was muted in comparison to what he felt when looking into Belle’s.
Belle was – fortunately in Even’s mind but unfortunately in Isak’s – like both of them in personality too. She was feisty and sometimes defensive like Isak, although he’d never admit it, but she was also a cheerful and laid back like Even.
She appeared to have equal love for both the sciences and art, much to Isak’s chagrin because “there’s only so many times she can draw on the walls without punishment, Even!”
Perhaps it was the little girls love for art that made her and Even so inseparable, or perhaps Even’s unwavering ability to always make her smile. Isak highly suspected it was simply because Even always managed to avoid being the one to dish out punishment, therefore being the one she always ran to for a cuddle when Isak was playing bad cop.
Either way, Even freaked out when it came to Belle’s first day of school.
When Isak first woke up that fateful Mondag morning to Even making breakfast as per usual, he had really thought that today would go off without a hitch. But the moment Even caught sight of Belle in her little outfit for school, school bag tightly in her grasp and big grin on her face, he lost it.
“Would you stop squeezing her hand so hard”, Isak whispered for at least the 5thtime under his breath to Even.
Even shrugged sheepishly but loosened his grip, only for it to tighten once more when a particularly fast car passed them on the street.
Isak rolled his eyes affectionately.
They had collectively decided that for Belle’s first day, the entire family would walk her to school. Initially Isak had protested because “we have a perfectly functioning car, Even” but he was now starting to understand the appeal of the short, peaceful walk to his daughters new school.
“Daddy, can we run?” Belle asked excitedly, tearing Isak from his thoughts. Using her free hand, Belle pointed towards the gathering of pigeons on the pathway.
Isak immediately shook his head, tightening his arm around their youngest, Jonah. “You’re not going to go and scare pigeons for no reas-”
“-Let’s go!”
Isak watched exasperated as Even raced down the path with their daughter in tow, waving their joint hands wildly and cooing loudly. Despite the embarrassment Isak couldn’t help but feel, he laughed quietly as his husband and daughter chased pigeons away from the path.
Following not far behind, Isak turned to Jonah.
They had adopted little Jonah just 2 years after Belle, because apparently it was getting “too easy” for Even. Isak couldn’t help but chuckle at that, because not long after adopting Jonah, Belle had decided to hit her terrible twos a little late.
“They’re mad, aren’t they?” Isak asked Jonah rhetorically, beaming at his son when the little boy burst into a round of uncontrollable giggles.
“Who are?” Even asked playfully as he and Belle returned to Isak’s side. “If you’re talking about us then that’s a bit mean.”
Belle stomped her foot loudly but the smile on her face was obvious. “Yeah Papa, that’s mean!”
Isak hid his smile in Jonah’s hat, blatantly ignoring Even’s encouraging “Yeah you tell ‘im, Belle”.
“It was mean to scare the pigeons”, Isak finally responded.
Belle seemed personally offended at the idea. “No Papa, we’re playing a game.”
Isak, knowing better than to argue with such a strong headed 6 year old, simply smiled and agreed. “Of course, B.”
“So Princess”, Even began as he scooped Belle into his arms, chuckling at her squeals. “Are you excited?”
Belle immediately buried her head into her father’s neck, something Isak himself was guilty of doing rather often. She shook her head adamantly. Even immediately turned to Isak in panic but Isak simply rolled his eyes.
“But you were excited this morning?” Even asked in alarm, lifting Belle up slightly so that she could no longer hide her head in his neck.
Belle shook her head sharply before attempting to hide her face in Even’s hair. Isak, growing worried, pulled Even to a stop and manoeuvred them towards one side of the path.
Isak quickly put a reluctant Jonah down, who immediately grabbed Isak’s hand and hid between his legs.
“What’s wrong, B?” Isak asked gently, stepping behind Even so he was face to face with their daughter. “Why aren’t you excited?”
Belle looked up at her father and something in Isak broke when he noticed her tears.
“Nei, nei, nei”, Isak whispered softly as he stroked away her stray tears. “Come on, you have to tell me and daddy what’s wrong or we can’t fix it.”
Even, obviously hearing Belle’s sniffles, tightened his grip on her and pressed a soft but purposeful kiss to the side of her head. “Hey Princess, why did we call you Belle again?”
Belle’s brows furrowed as she attempted to figure out her father’s question. After a moment she sighed, hiding her face once more in Even’s hair. When she spoke, it came out as barely a mumble.
“What was that?” Even asked patiently, stroking a hand through her loose, shoulder length hair.
Belle pulled her face from Even’s hair just enough to speak. “Because she’s the best princess.”
Isak could see the grin on Even’s face, even with his husband’s back to him; his shoulders shook slightly with silent laughter.
“Exactly. No matter what anyone says Belle is the best, most underrated Disney princess”, Even said. “And we called you that because you’re the best little girl in the whole world.”
Belle giggled quietly and Isak was once again blown away by how good Even was with their children. If seeing him cradle their daughter as a newborn was enough for Isak to know that everything was perfect in his life, then seeing Even comfort their daughter so effectively with their son wrapped tightly around his leg, was enough for Isak’s heart to swell uncontrollably.
It was in moments like these that Isak couldn’t stop a dark thought or two creeping in; how had his father so willingly and easily given all of this up? Even though the kids were only 4 and 6, Isak knew deep in his chest that what he felt for his children would never change, never lessen and never fade. The excitement he got when one of his children smiled was a feeling he would never grow tired of, and one he would never voluntarily give up no matter how old they got.
“What did Belle do in the film when the Beast was mean to her, princess?”
Isak turned back to his husband and daughter, who was now looking down at her father with a small smile on her face.
“Was she really brave and kept trying to help him?”
Isak, despite desperately wanting to roll his eyes at his husband’s antics, grinned when he noticed his daughter’s smile widening and a giggle bubbling in her throat.
“Yeah”, she said softly, the laugh following her words out of her mouth. A smile lit up Even’s face at the sound and Isak once more felt his heart stutter.
“Exactly!” Even cheered, setting his daughter onto her feet on the ground. “So are you gonna do the same today, when me and Papa drop you off at school? Are you gonna be brave and have a good day?”
Belle nodded enthusiastically, looking between her fathers with an uncontainable smile. “I promise Papa”, she said, looking at Isak.
Isak beamed at her and leant down to drop a kiss to her forehead. “And me and daddy will be proud of you not matter what, even if you can’t be brave today.
“But I will be”, she said. “I will be brave today.”
“Okay”, Isak laughed. “Then that’s even better!”
Taking Jonah back into his arms, Isak nodded to Even who took his cue and began to lead Belle back down the path to her school. The trip, which had previously felt kind of long to Isak, now felt ridiculously short. Sooner than expected, they rounded the corner and came face to face with the school.
The grounds were full of young children, obviously all new to school that year if the frantic parents chasing them around were any indication. The sight did seem to calm Even down slightly, or perhaps it was the sound of children’s laughter, for he let go of Belle’s hand and let her run ahead towards the gate.
“You ready for this?” Isak couldn’t help but ask his husband.
Even reached down to take the hand that wasn’t holding their son against Isak’s hip and squeezed it. “Not really, are you?”
Isak shook his head with a laugh. “No way.”
“Y'know… for totally unprepared parents we’re doing pretty well right now.”
“Yeah”, Isak sighed, watching his daughter join the crowd of children playing what he assumed was hide and seek. “You weren’t calm this morning though, when we were trying to leave”, he teased.
Even snorted. “It’s perfectly normal to cry on your daughter’s first day of school.
“Not for 20 minutes.”
“For as long as necessary”, Even protested.
Isak rolled his eyes affectionately, a habit he simply couldn’t get out of around Even. Looking down at their youngest, he sighed. “We have to do this all again in two years.”
Even grinned wildly. “We’ll nail it”, he promised. Isak couldn’t contain a laugh at the look on Even’s face.