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David has seen Kevin smile many times: on his championship banner, on sports magazines, on press duty after games. Always a large grin that shows off two rows of gleaming teeth, his eyes crinkling up in the corners. It's the same look that causes girls to ask for his autograph and send fan letters to the mailroom of his dorm.
But David has never seen him smile like this before.
Kevin's riding shotgun while David drives, since Kevin never learned how. That's a fact that David is still planning to rectify, but certainly not anytime soon. This weekend will already be filled with enough awkward attempts at father-son bonding; teaching Kevin how to drive can definitely wait until a later date. And David doesn't actually mind driving, especially since Kevin doesn't try to fill the silence with inane small-talk. There's a voice in David's head—one that sounds suspiciously like Abby—reminding him that he probably should be making small talk with his son, but they're not those kind of people, so he tells himself that it's probably okay. And the airport isn't too long of a drive anyway.
Which probably has something to do with Kevin's strange smile.
Every time David glances to his right, he sees Kevin tapping away on his phone and occasionally placing a hand over his mouth, as if that will get him to stop grinning like an idiot. Sometimes he sinks his entire top row of teeth into his bottom lip, attempting to quell the upward curve that just won't go away. It's a pretty unflattering look, if David's being honest.
Right as he turns onto the road circling the airport parking lot, Kevin's leg starts bouncing and he presses his phone hard against his thigh.
"They just landed."
David grunts to show that he heard, and he pulls into the drop off lane before parking.
"Alright," he says as Kevin hurriedly unbuckles his seat belt. "You'll meet them at baggage claim, and then you'll text me when you're on your way out. I'll be somewhere in this area." Kevin nods once and slips out of the car before taking long strides through the automatic doors.
David rolls his eyes at Kevin's speed and pulls out of the lane. He makes a few laps around the perimeter of the parking area before his phone finally pings ten fifteen minutes later. It's Kevin.
The car slides into an open spot in the pickup area at the same time that the three of them walk out of the building. David eyes them and mentally starts placing bets on how long it will take for them to locate the car. Kevin's never been very good at noticing things.
Now he has a backpack slung over his shoulder and an exy duffle in each hand. Of course he told them to bring their fucking gear. It's interesting to see the three of them standing together; Kevin has always been the tall one of the foxes, second only to Matt, but he's at least two inches shorter than Jean Moreau, who seems to tower over every other person waiting nearby. Jeremey Knox is the shortest, but not by too much, and he has his left arm looped through Kevin's right, with Jean trailing right behind the pair.
The three of them stand there for almost two whole minutes, barely even looking for the car, before David takes pity on them and pulls out his phone.
Kevin picks up on the third ring. "Where are you?" David can practically hear the smile in his voice.
"To your right." Kevin turns slightly, but not nearly far enough. "All the way right, Kevin."
The volume must be turned way up because Jeremy spots the car before Kevin does, and his face splits into the widest smile David has ever seen. He smacks Jean on the arm before pointing at the car and dragging along Kevin, who is fumbling to hang up the phone.
David hops out of the car and walks around to the trunk to greet them. Jeremy steps up first, offering his hand immediately.
"Hello sir," he says as David shakes it. "It's great to see you again!"
David isn't entirely sure how to respond to Jeremy's megawatt smile, so he just says, "It's great to have you here."
Jean stretches his hand out more hesitantly, as if he's only doing it because he's copying Jeremy. "Thank you for picking us up from the airport."
David shrugs in an effort to appear casual as he says, "It was really no problem. The drive is too short to make you two pay for an Uber."
Meanwhile, Kevin has been quickly stuffing the exy duffles and other luggage into the trunk of David's car. He seems eager to leave and avoid conversation, so David follows his lead and gets back behind the wheel, already turning the keys in the ignition by the time Jean and Jeremy climb into the backseat together. Kevin slides into the passenger's seat, and David breathes a quiet sigh of relief that at least his own son is riding up front with him.
The ride starts out quiet enough with just the occasional comment from Jeremy in the back. He takes a call from someone named Laila at one point and mentions the nice weather, but doesn't say much beyond that. David can tell he's trying to reign himself in.
"It's nothing to write home about," David says after Jeremy makes a claim about how lovely South Carolina is.
"Well I've never actually been here before," Jeremy amends, "but California is always too hot, plus the traffic moves much faster here."
Kevin has been nervously bouncing his left leg this whole time, and David thinks he can only take about another two minutes before he'll be bothered enough to say something. But it turns out he doesn't need to because suddenly, Jean says something in French—the first time he's spoken since they left the airport—and Kevin abruptly stops. David doesn't know what the French means, but he's in favor of anything that calms Kevin down and gets him to stop fidgeting.
When the car finally pulls into the driveway, David hops out and makes his way to the front door, explaining to the others that he's alerting Abby that they're home. As he steps into the house, he sets down his keys and calls out to her. She yells back that she's in the kitchen finishing up dinner, and she'll be there in a minute to greet their guests. Abby runs quite a tight ship in her kitchen, and David doesn't want to interrupt her flow so instead, he looks out the front window to see if the boys need help with their luggage.
They've already retrieved all of the bags, but before Kevin can start walking up the driveway, Jeremy drops his duffle on the ground. Then he reaches up to grab Kevin's face and pull him down into a kiss. Even from the front hall David can tell that Kevin instantly relaxes into the embrace. His arms reach around Jeremy's back to hold him closer, before Jean leans in and pecks Kevin chastely on the cheek. Kevin breaks away from Jeremy to focus his attention on Jean instead, and that dumb smile is back on his face, only this time it's bigger than ever.
It occurs to David that this is probably the first moment of real privacy the boys have gotten in months, and it suddenly feels like he's intruding. He steps away from the window and busies himself with his phone while he waits. He sees a couple thumbs up emojis that Dan texted him on the drive back, but nothing out of the ordinary other than that.
Right as he's about to respond, Kevin opens the front door and charges through with his boyfriends in tow. David starts walking down the hall and gestures for them to follow.
"You all can stay in our room for the next two nights," David explains as he reaches the bottom of the staircase.
Kevin shoots him a startled look as he asks, "What?"
"Our mattress is a California King. It should make it easier to fit three people in one bed." David pointedly looks at Kevin and Jean, both of whom are over six feet tall. "Hopefully."
Jeremy grips the bags tighter and says, "Alright, we'll go drop our stuff off and be right back."
"Second door on your right," David tells Jeremy as he and Jean disappear up the stairs. He almost expects Jeremy to thank him, but is relieved when he doesn't. David thinks that might be too weird to deal with. Hey, thanks for letting your son and his two boyfriends spend the night in your girlfriend's bed, you're so generous! God, when he puts it that way it sounds like a terrible idea. Then David sees Kevin heading toward the kitchen and mentally reminds himself that he's doing all of this to see more of that smile.
"Kevin!" Abby wipes her hands on a towel and turns around to hug Kevin tightly while David lingers in the doorway of the kitchen. "How are they? How was the drive?"
Kevin pulls away and grabs a banana from the bowl on the counter. "Good. They're good." Abby takes the banana from him and places it back in the bowl with a gentle reminder that he'll ruin his appetite, which means Kevin is actually pouting when Jean and Jeremy come back downstairs.
Abby steps up to Jeremy first and hugs him the same way she hugged Kevin, warm and welcoming. "It's lovely to meet you Jeremy."
Jeremy, ever gracious, smiles at Abby and says, "It's great to meet you too ma'am. Thank you so much for letting us stay here for the weekend."
"Of course, of course," Abby says as she reaches out for Jean. The hug she gives him is much more gentle, more soothing than friendly. "Jean, it's nice to see you again. Especially under better circumstances."
David winces a bit at the reminder of the last time Jean had to stay in this house, but the acknowledgment seems to loosen some of the tension in Jean's shoulders. David doesn't understand why, but then he notices that the words seem to have a similar effect on Kevin, who is watching the whole exchange. Weird.
"Likewise," is all Jean says, but Abby doesn't seem deterred by his shortness. She just smiles softly and tells them all that dinner will be ready soon.
As Abby gets back to bustling around the kitchen, Jeremy leans into Kevin's space and teasingly asks, "Do you guys always eat dinner at four thirty?"
Kevin looks a bit affronted at that. "The Sharks game is on at six."
Jean snorts. "Of course."
"We never miss a Sharks game," Kevin explains, and he looks right at David.
David feels something warm zing through his chest at Kevin's casual use of the word we. It's the same feeling he got when Kevin came out to him as bisexual, the same feeling he gets when Kevin scores an impossible goal. He asked Abby once if it was something he should get checked out, but she laughed and told him it was "fatherly affection" or "pride" or some shit like that. David tries not to think about it.
"Are you two Sharks fans?" David asks instead, choosing to ignore the smile that threatens to bloom on his face when he thinks about all the games he's watched with Kevin this past year.
Jeremy shakes his head and replies, "No sir, I'm more of an Eagles fan myself. But I'm always ready to watch the Bearcats get their asses handed to them."
David chuckles a bit. "Spoken like a true California native."
"Absolutely," Jeremy says around a grin.
Just then, Abby announces that dinner is ready. David, Jean, and Jeremy all sit down at the large oak table while Kevin helps Abby bring out the food. Kevin still can't cook worth shit, but he's taken to helping Abby in the kitchen with the non-culinary tasks.
Overall, dinner is pretty uneventful. The pot roast is delicious, the conversation is friendly, and the participants are polite. Abby mostly steers the small-talk, which is good because David certainly doesn't know what to say. By the time everyone is done eating, David has learned quite a bit a bit about Jeremy and significantly less about Jean. He's not a particularly lively dinner guest, and he answers most questions with an awkward or blunt demeanor, almost as if he's nervous. If that's the case, then David can relate. He's been fretting over this get together all week. Even Dan and Neil had sensed his apprehension, and they had taken to teasing him relentlessly about it ever since.
Soon enough, Abby starts clearing away the dishes, and Jeremy offers to help her wash them in the kitchen. David and Jean make their way into the living room and settle onto the couch with Kevin sitting between them. Jean curls himself up in the right corner of the couch, tucking his legs underneath himself, as Kevin switches the TV to the right channel for the game. Jeremy eventually walks in and sits on the ottoman in front of Jean right as the players are walking onto the court.
The first serve results in a quick play that earns the Sharks the first point of the game, and Jeremy slaps his leg excitedly, and Kevin stands up to cheer, and David feels himself relax. He's in his element now, a familiar terrain he knows how to navigate.
David may not know how to be the perfect father, but he knows how to be a great coach. Exy is something that he and Kevin bonded over even before David knew the truth. Things aren't so different now than they were back then. They don't talk about Kayleigh. They don't talk about Riko. They don't talk about any of the shit that happened in the past. David will never push Kevin to talk about things if he doesn't feel comfortable, and he knows that Kevin talks to Neil whenever he needs to. It's probably for the best because David wouldn't know what to say anyway. Neil will always be able to understand what Kevin's been through better than David, but as long as David gets these moments with his son, then that's really all he needs.
Speaking of Neil...
Kevin's phone rings, but he doesn't notice from his spot standing behind the couch, white-knuckling the backrest and shouting at the screen every couple minutes. They're in the second half of the game, the sharks barely leading by one point. One of the Sharks' strikers—Kevin probably knows her name—just scored a near impossible goal by rebounding off the glass and reaching back and around her mark to snag the ball in her raquet. Kevin actually shouted at the screen and pumped his fist in the air, which made him too absorbed in the moment to notice his incoming call.
But Jeremy notices the buzzing and grabs the phone right away. "Hey Kev," he says, trying to get Kevin's attention. "It's Neil."
Kevin, clearly not wanting to be distracted from the game, tells Jeremy to put it on speakerphone. Jeremy sets the phone next to him on the ottoman and answers the call, and without even waiting for an introduction, Neil's voice comes blasting through the phone.
"Did you see what #12 just did?"
David shouldn't be surprised that Neil is watching the game too. Eyes not leaving the screen for a second, Kevin responds, "Of course I did."
"That's the move you've been trying to teach me for the past two weeks isn't it?"
Kevin snorts. "Yes. The one you called pointless."
"Well I didn't think it actually worked." Neil laughs a little, and it sounds tinny through the phone's crappy speakers. "Maybe I'll start listening to you now."
"Doubtful," Kevin says before a backliner on the other team fouls another Sharks player, and him and Neil both shout in unison. David and Jeremy settle for just shaking their heads, not nearly as involved in this game as the other two.
When the outrage dies down, Neil asks, "So how's it going over there? Is everybody getting along?"
"It's going well. Everybody's fine."
"Has Coach calmed down yet?" Oh no. "He's been worrying about it all week."
Kevin cuts a suspicious glance towards him, but David quickly avoids eye contact. "He seems fine," Kevin says cautiously, and David exhales slightly in relief.
"Cool. Well, say hi to Jean and Jeremy for me." Jeremy opens his mouth, presumably to say hello, but then Neil starts speaking again before he can get any words out. "Oh that reminds me! Have you shown them the cock ring you bought for tonight yet?"
Three sets of eyes snap to the cell phone, but Kevin springs into action first. He vaults himself over the back of the couch and lunges for the phone, banging his knee very loudly on the wooden floor as he goes. The phone slips out of his grip once before Kevin grasps it tightly with both hands. He turns the speakerphone off before pressing it to his ear, and the last thing they hear as he retreats down the hall is Kevin angrily hissing "NEIL!" into the phone.
David focuses his attention back on the TV screen, but he's not really watching the game anymore. He suspects Jean and Jeremy are in similar situations. He risks a glance in their direction and wishes he hadn't. Jeremy's face is redder than the crimson in the USC sweatshirt he's wearing, and Jean has his head in his hands, knuckles pressed against his drawn up knees so that only his hair is visible.
The three of them sit in silence, watching—but not really—the game. Someone scores another point, but David has no idea for which team, only knows there was a goal because the sound of the buzzer is just loud enough to cut through the static in his head.
David can hear Kevin walking back into the room slowly. He reclaims his spot behind the couch, and nobody says a word. It feels like the whole room is holding its breath.
"Well," Abby says from the entryway, and David realizes that she's probably been standing their for the entire conversation. She sits down in Kevin's abandanoned spot on the middle couch cushion and places the tray she was carrying on her lap. "Why don't we all just pretend that didn't happen? I made brownies for everyone."
God, what would he do without Abby?
As awkward as it feels, David reaches over and takes one of the offered sweets because he knows how good Abby's brownies are. Just like always, the chocolate is rich and sweet on his tongue, delicious as ever.
But still no one is talking.
Or watching the game.
Or breathing normally.
"So," Abby starts again, and honestly, bless her for trying so hard to diffuse the tension. "I know it's almost over, but what did I miss?"
And somehow, Kevin's innate passion for Exy overrides his extreme humiliation because he immediately dives into strategy mode, giving Abby a breakdown of the highlights so far and detailing what the Sharks still need to do in the next six minutes to secure a victory. Soon enough, Jeremy jumps in with his own commentary, although he still looks very flushed. Jean is the only one who doesn't join the discussion, but he has unfolded himself enough for David to see the absolutely mortified expression on his face. It seems that the two of them are pretty content to stew in their collective embarrassment for a bit longer.
The game finally ends around eight thirty with the Sharks winning 7-6, and David feels the remaining tension drain out of his body as he smiles at the triumphant whoop Kevin gives to the room at large. He thumps Jean on the shoulder, and Jeremy walks over to kiss Kevin's cheek with gusto. Kevin's smile widens even more, and he leans down to whisper something in Jeremy's ear. David can't hear it, but Jean apparently can because he smacks Kevin on the arm and mutters something quickly in French even as Jeremy's laugh drowns him out. Jeremy heads upstairs to call his parents, and Abby follows him to go read in bed—Kevin's bed—for the rest of the evening. She hugs Kevin on her way past, and he says goodnight before taking her spot on the couch.
Kevin and Jean watch the post-game commentary with David until Jean eventually heads upstairs as well, leaving with a touch to Kevin's shoulder and a nod in David's direction. Which leaves just him and his son alone in the living room.
It's still not too late, but David doesn't think he can handle anymore social interaction with anyone that's not Abby right now. He switches off the TV, but doesn't stand up yet. Neither does Kevin.
"I like them," David says, breaking the silence. "They seem to make you happy."
"I wouldn't have invited them if they didn't," Kevin responds.
"Jean doesn't talk much." He doesn't know exactly why he brings this up, but it's been nagging at him all night.
"He's not good with new people," Kevin explains. "It takes a while for him to feel comfortable in new environments, but he's getting better at adjusting."
"Alright." David sits with that information for a moment before moving on. "It's a good thing Jeremy isn't a Raiders fan, or I might have to kick him out."
Kevins laughs at that, which is another recent development. David doesn't know if it's the way that Kevin is growing closer to his teammates or his two boyfriends, but something is steadily mellowing Kevin out. He's still high-strung as hell, but at least now he can laugh like a normal college student.
"No, rooting for a Northern California team would be like treason to him."
"Well I'm glad I got to meet them. I assume you guys are going to the court tomorrow?"
Kevin nods easily. "We're meeting up with some of the others for a scrimmage."
David hums in understanding. And then he steels himself for what he's going to say next. He knows that he doesn't have to say anything about it, but he thinks this is what a good father might say to his son, so he's going to.
He can do this goddammit.
"Kevin," David starts, his tone dropping into something more serious, but still not too harsh. "I'm sure I don't need to tell you this, but whatever you do tonight, please be safe, clean up afterwards, and keep the volume down."
Kevin splutters and blushes furiously, and David can feel himself wincing at the words as well. Kevin coughs out an affirmative and stumbles through a goodnight before booking it upstairs into the master suite.
Breathing out heavily, David takes a moment to collect himself and turns off the lights on his way up to Kevin's room. He finds Abby already asleep, and he strips off his shirt before sliding under the covers with her and drifting off to sleep.
~~~~~
David wakes in the morning to Abby sitting up in bed next to him. She's reading an article on her phone, but she pauses to smile at him sleepily when she notices that his eyes are open.
"Good morning," she whispers, and David finds it so strangely endearing that he wraps an arm around her and presses his forehead against her hip.
"Morning."
She chuckles lightly and runs a hand through his hair. They stay like that for several minutes before David's stomach growls. He sits up to get out of bed, but Abby puts a hand on his chest to stop him. "Don't go downstairs."
David raises an eyebrow at her and asks, "Why not?"
"The boys are in the kitchen, and I think we should give them some privacy."
David snorts. "They got plenty of privacy last night." But then the reminder of what his son and his son's boyfriends might have done in his and Abby's bed makes him shudder involuntarily.
Abby laughs sweetly at that and leans in to kiss him. Really, how was David lucky enough to end up with a woman who doesn't mind his morning breath? "We can burn the sheets if you want," she whispers against his lips.
He grunts in agreement. "And maybe buy a new mattress too."
"Oh just stay here for a bit longer," Abby says as David rolls out of bed and tugs on a clean shirt. But David just turns around and points a finger at her.
"I need coffee in the morning, and I'm not letting those three idiots take that away from me."
But as David gets closer to the kitchen, he smells bacon and hears someone laugh too loudly for the early morning atmosphere. Probably Jeremy.
"I don't know how they deal with you in the dorm,"Jeremy teases lightly. "You're always so grumpy when you wake up."
Kevin groans obnoxiously, but Jeremy just laughs again. David peeks his head around the corner to peer into the kitchen, and he sees Kevin sitting on one of the bar stools at the island, facing away from David and slumped over the counter with his head resting on his crossed arms. Jeremy is leaning on his elbows, smiling softly at Kevin and playing with his hair as he complains about how early it is.
Jean, who is standing at the opposite counter, facing the wall and frying bacon and eggs in two separate pans simultaneously, speaks up and tells Jeremy, "Let him sleep. He's probably tired after worrying about this weekend for the past month."
Kevin groans again, the sound tinged with a touch of annoyance this time, and David can see a small smirk cross Jean's face. Then, Kevin reaches out and grabs the back of Jean's shirt, pulling him closer. Jean stumbles backward, spatula still in hand, until his back is pressed against the island countertop. He looks over his shoulder and shakes his head at Jeremy as Kevin snakes an arm around Jean's waist to keep him in place.
"Hey!" Jean says indignantly. "Do you want your breakfast or not?"
Instead of answering the question, Kevin just hums contentedly. He stretches himself farther across the counter to press his forehead against Jean's spine. The gesture reminds David of the way he greeted Abby just a couple minutes ago when he woke up, and he thinks that it should feel like a weird revelation, but it doesn't. Before he can analyze the similarities between him and son, Jean twists around and drops a kiss to the top of Kevin's head.
Again, David gets the feeling that this isn't a moment he should be witnessing. Damn Abby for always being right. David supposes that his coffee can wait for another twenty or so minutes.
But as he's climbing the stairs back to Abby and the warm bed, he hears Jean, in a tone dripping with fondness, tell Kevin "You are such a bitch in the morning."
Jeremy's laugh rings throughout the whole house.