Chapter Text
“Papa?”
Alex blinked his eyes open quickly, suddenly alert when moments ago he had been sound asleep. He became aware of the sound of heavy rain pounding on the roof and gusting wind shaking the windows slightly. Peering through the dark of the bedroom, his eyes soon fixed on the small face that was peeking through the crack in the door that led out to the hallway.
“Gus? What are you doing up?”
A sudden bright flash lit up the room, followed almost immediately by a deep boom of thunder. Gus yelped, his body shuddering harshly as he clung even more firmly to the stuffed gorilla he had pressed against his chest. A few seconds later, he had crossed the distance between the door and Alex’s side of the bed. Rolling onto his side to face him, Alex reached out a hand to rest comfortingly on Gus’ shoulder.
“Did the storm wake you?” Alex asked quietly, cognizant of the sound of Michael’s deep breathing behind him. His husband could sleep through anything! Alex chuckled internally. Gus nodded solemnly in confirmation.
“Is the thunder scary?” Alex asked the question gently. Even though Gus had been fostered with them for a year and had recently become an official member of the Guerin-Manes family, the six-year-old could still be nervous about expressing his feelings at times. Alex and Michael both knew from experience how difficult it was to trust adults to take care of you when so many had failed to do so. And though it broke their hearts, they knew that Gus had not been well looked after by the adults in his previous living arrangements.
Gus shook his head. “George is scared,” he mumbled around his thumb, which had taken up residence in his mouth. At the same time his eyes glanced down at the stuffed gorilla, George, that he still had clutched to his chest with his other arm.
“Well then,” Alex said with a small smile, “we can’t have that. Why don’t you jump up here with me and you, Daddy, and I can protect him from the thunder.” Gus nodded eagerly and Alex started to pull the covers back for him. Glancing down, his smile broadened.
“Look, Ruby is here to help keep us safe.” Gus looked down at the family beagle who had come to stand next to him. While she had once slept at the base of Alex’s bed (later Alex and Michael’s bed), since Gus had moved in, she had taken to sleeping in his room to watch over him. While Alex sometimes missed her as his constant shadow, who had provided emotional support though some dark times following his last deployment and his separation from Michael, he was happy that Gus now had her as an ever-present companion. Clearly Ruby knew who needed her more now and Alex was more than happy to share with his son.
“Can Ruby sleep in the bed with us too?” Gus asked hopefully.
“Just this once,” Alex responded, with a glance over his shoulder towards Michael. Michael wouldn’t mind too much. The only reason he had insisted on the “no dog in the bed” rule was that he said it interfered with their “alone time”. However, having a six-year-old interfered with that a lot more than Ruby ever had.
Smiling, Gus quickly scrambled up and over Alex into the middle of the bed, fortunately only kneeing Alex in the stomach once. Alex let the blankets fall back down around them. As if she had understood the entire exchange, Ruby quickly followed Gus, launching herself up onto the bed and settling in the middle close to Gus’ feet.
Another clap of thunder sounded, and Gus whimpered, turning to bury his face into Alex’s neck, George the gorilla pressed between their bodies. Alex soothingly ran his hand up and down Gus’ back over his spaceship pajamas (the irony!) and planted a kiss on the top of his curl-covered head.
When Gus had first been delivered to their doorstep by the social worker, Alex had been taken aback by how much he looked like how he had always imagined Michael as a child, curly hair running wild. Michael had disagreed, saying that Gus’ dark brown locks and chocolate brown eyes reminded him of Alex.
“Shhhh,” Alex murmured. “You’re safe. I've got you.” Gus mumbled something unintelligible and burrowed deeper into Alex’s body, hands gripping at the back of Alex’s sleep shirt. There was a reason they sometimes called him ‘Gus the gorilla’. He could definitely hold on tight! And he loved piggy-back rides!
Alex lay still with Gus in his arms and listened to the storm outside. The rain was beginning to lighten, and the thunder sounded more distant. It was blowing over. Gradually, Gus’ breathing became slower and his grip on Alex relaxed in sleep. Alex raised his head from Gus’ curls and gazed beyond him at Michael, still sleeping peacefully and none the wiser to the storm. Untangling one arm from a now sleeping Gus, Alex reached over and placed his hand on Michael’s arm gently so as not to disturb him. Slowly closing his eyes, Alex took a moment to revel in how fortunate he was to be in bed with his husband, son, dog (and George). Several years ago, he could never have imagined being so happy and so fulfilled by his life. Could not have imagined being so loved and loving so much in return. With this last thought, he allowed himself to slip back to sleep.