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It was another ordinary afternoon at Devil May Cry, where no one had anything to do, and not even flies dared to come in through that door.
Dante was sitting in his chair flipping through one of the many magazines he had thrown around him when he noticed, on the corner sofa, Nero sitting holding his hands and tapping his foot nervously on the floor. The older one was sure the boy had been there for a few minutes but only noticed his nervousness now.
Pretending not to see, he turned a new page as he wondered what might be the reason.
He knew that before Nero got there, the young man was with Vergil and the girls in the kitchen doing something Dante couldn't understand because of the noises. The only thing that made sense in that mess was the complaints of his brother trying to put order in that group.
Stopping to think about it now, the man noticed that this might be the second or third time the kitchen was used. The other time was when Nero insisted he wanted to eat something different, and they both almost burned the whole place.
Dante was used to living with his pizzas for so long that he didn't even remember when it was the last time he'd eaten something different. A shy smile appeared at the corner of his face as his eyes stared at the page he wasn’t reading.
However, none of that thinking answered his question. Curious, he glanced around, listening to the kitchenware still pounding in the background, making sure the others hadn’t finished whatever they had planned there.
Turning to see the young man again, Dante sighed boringly, throwing his body back in his chair and his legs over the table.
“All right.” He said smiling, calling Nero's confused look. “Spit it out.”
“What?”
“I know you wanna say something.” Using the cockiest tone, Dante said, watching the boy’s head bow down with a nervous smile. “But if you want me to ask something from Vergil for you, forget it.” He pointed, seeing Nero shake his head no. “I should ask you to do that for me.” He laughed, wishing his brother could hear him from there.
“Nah... It’s nothing like that.”
“Then? Talk.”
“Okay... um...” Sitting on the edge of the couch with shaking hands, he stared at Dante's face, unsure how to begin while the older waited casually. “You know… How should I call you?” The bored expression became confused, making the boy even more nervous. “I mean.” He stopped. Sighed and scratching his jaw, he tried to speak once again. “Should I… Call you uncle?”
The silence that followed that question set them both in a panic. Dante even shouted a "what?!" in his mind, but his surprised mouth didn't open to making a sound.
The noises of pans in the kitchen being stored and thrown stopped. They stared at each other anxiously as if any move could endanger them.
“I mean-”
“No.” Nero tried to explain himself as he coughed, but Dante cut short, sitting properly in his chair, pretending the question hadn't shaken his heart. “It’s cool-”
“But, you know-“
“Yeah, but- Really. It's fine.”
They both fell mute while they nodded to each other, not knowing what to say next. An awkward silence washed over the place. It was clear that Nero still wanted to speak, even if it were to explain himself better and take out the confused feelings consuming his entire week. However, he said nothing as Dante leaned against the table, turning his face away from him.
The older man didn’t want to give the wrong image of contempt for Nero's suggestion, but he didn’t want him to see the turmoil of feelings on his face. Dante had always known the family ties that bound them together, but this was the first time he could feel the “family” actually happening.
Trying to disguise his agitation, the man turned away, looking at the walls and begging Lady to leave the kitchen already and come to rescue him. However, since he was sure this wouldn’t happen, he decided to think of some quick subject to talk about and completely forget that simple question.
It was when he opened his mouth to say a joke that he heard Nero's low voice saying:
“Uncle Dante...”
His words echoed through the silence. The sentence hit the older man's heart like a bullet making his chest boil. He quickly spun in the chair with his eyes popped and his lips dry to face Nero without even knowing what to say. And as soon as he turned, he saw the young man's face staring at him with red cheeks, nervous eyes, and puffy nostrils that made it clear that he was holding his own breath.
The image of the boy trying his best not to faint with embarrassment calmed the older man's heart.
“Ah, I can’t!” Nero shouted to himself, covering his red face. “It’s really embarrassing.”
The innocent reaction made Dante smile and brought a slight flush to his cheeks. Trying to disguise the happiness on his face, he rubbed his eyes, leaning back in his chair.
“I told you it was cool.”
“I know, but I wanted to try.” Shy, he answered, unable to look at the older man who watched him from afar, glad to know that he cared for him just as Dante did.
————
In the kitchen, the group heard Dante laughing next to Nero after all the embarrassment of their short conversation.
“Vergil.” Lady called, placing the last washed pan on the table as she watched the man standing in the middle of the kitchen, staring at the entrance to the room. However, the man did not look her way, despite hearing her voice.
“You jealous?” The blonde sitting on the table teased, making him turn his face toward her as furious as he was frustrated.
“No-”
“Yes.” Vergil responded quickly like a blade to cut the conversation but stopped when V, sitting in a chair, spoke over, making the man close his eyes in defeat while the two girls held back their laughter.