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Declan had always had a troubled relationship with his father Niall. Niall Lynch preferred his other sons, Ronan and Matthew. No, it couldn't even be called preference, it was blatant favoritism and his father had never even tried to be secretive about it. Ronan’s birth, for example, was always heralded by his father as if it had been some kind of grand historic event and Matthew’s birth had always been one of their family’s mysteries.
But when Declan asked his father about his own birth, his father would always bluntly tell him: “I wouldn’t know, I wasn’t there.”
There had been nothing there. No emotion. No love. His father just looked at Declan as if he asked a ridiculous question.
And while it hurt, over time Declan had come to realize that his father didn’t love him and instead saw him as a means to an end, a business partner and someone who could protect his younger brothers...
But Declan had never once felt like his father’s son and even though he would never show that to anyone, it was something that had followed him around to this day.
Their strained relationship had only gotten more complex after his father has been murdered, causing Declan to inherit his father’s secrets. Secrets that put him in danger.
Declan, arguably, could’ve shared those secrets with his brothers...but he had never done so. How could he? Their very natures put them in enough hot water already and Declan could hardly add to that. No, he would shoulder all of their father’s secrets on his own while he vowed to raise his two brothers to the best of his ability. It was all he could do. And after all, it was what he had been prepared for.
But because of the way his father had always treated him, Declan had grown to hate the 3rd weekend of June. The weekend where everyone in America celebrated Father’s Day.
Declan refused to celebrate his father. He hated him. But his refusal to celebrate Father's Day had been something that had gotten him in trouble with both his brothers.
It had been the first year after their father had died when Matthew had wanted to celebrate Father’s Day and honor their father. Ronan had agreed. Declan had not. This had caused Matthew to cry, not understanding his older brother’s refusal, which in turn had caused Ronan to punch Declan in the face, something which, looking back, he arguably deserved for the grief he had caused Matthew.
The two brothers had gotten into a big fight after the first punch had been dealt, exchanging multiple blows, until Declan declared that they would never celebrate Father’s Day as a family before storming out. It wasn’t his proudest moment, Declan knew that, but he had been a teenager at the time and in his experience teenagers did stupid things. Even he himself hadn't been completely immune to that.
But all that had been a couple of years ago and despite the fact that Declan knew that Ronan and Matthew still got together on Father’s Day, presumably to mourn and celebrate their father, he had never joined them. He had stuck to his words and he would never, ever, celebrate the man who had arguably ruined all their lives. He couldn’t. It would go against his principles and Declan tried to stick by those. They were one of the few certainties in his life, after all.
This year, however, Matthew had come to live with Declan in DC while Ronan was still at the Barns. A part of Declan had hoped that Ronan would pick Matthew up for Father’s Day but Ronan had cancelled those plans pretty quickly. Something about having to help his boyfriend, Adam Parrish, who apparently also hated Father’s Day. And while Declan could definitely understand Adam, it meant that Matthew would be spending Father’s Day with Declan. Something Declan was not looking forward to.
Declan had honestly expected Matthew to say something about it all week. To ask for some kind of celebration, to try and change his mind about the day, but to Declan’s surprise, Matthew hadn’t brought it up at all and it wasn’t until the day itself that Declan would find out why...
Declan Lynch was not the type of man who slept in. Sleeping in was for lazy teenagers, irresponsible students, old people and people who didn’t have busy lives and Declan Lynch was none of those things. But since he and Matthew didn’t have to make the drive to Church this week, due to Ronan being busy with Adam, Declan hadn’t set an alarm.
He had fully expected to still wake up early. But Declan, to his own surprise, did not wake up early.
He was tired. He was so tired. He honestly hadn’t realized how tired he had been.
Declan's life had turned upside-down when Matthew moved in. He had always taken care of his youngest brother but never to this extent and Declan had found himself reading articles on parenting while assuming all the responsibilities Matthew’s legal guardian had to deal with.
He dealt with Matthew’s school, his extracurricular activities, his sports, he helped him with homework, reprimanded him, offered him comfort when he was upset, played videogames with him when he felt lonely and did all the other things that came with raising a 17-year old teenager all the while trying to manage his own life.
And his own life had already been pretty busy between his internship and classes, but now Declan had no time to himself.
Declan did surprisingly well, all things considered, getting complimented by his baby brother’s teachers, his superiors and his college professors, but it did tire him out.
It made him feel exhausted but that was nothing new to Declan. Declan had always been tired. Raising Matthew was just one more thing to add to the routine that was his life. His boring, average life.
It was 9:30am by the time Declan opened his eyes, blinking a couple of times because he couldn’t quite believe what, or rather who, he saw in front of him. His baby brother was curled up at the end of his bed.
“Matty?” Declan asked, feeling immediate concern even though his voice was still drowsy. “Are you okay?”
“Hmm?” Matthew stirred before almost jumping up, looking rather disappointed with himself. “Drat, I wanted to stay awake for you Dec…”
“How long have you been sitting there?”
“Since 7am," Matthew answered proudly. "You’re always up early.”
“And why have you been sitting at the end of my bed since 7 in the morning?”
Declan couldn't help but sound rather confused. It wasn’t like his youngest brother to come into his bedroom unannounced, especially since Declan’s room was generally off-limits to Matthew and Matthew knew better than to break Declan’s rules. But Matthew was here. Sitting at the foot of his bed. Declan just wasn't quite sure why.
“I know you don’t like Father’s Day,” Matthew said, nervously fiddling with his hands while Declan sighed before nodding. Of course it was about this. Of course it was about their damn father.
“I don’t,” Declan confirmed rather harshly before his voice softened. He had a soft spot for his baby brother and he knew he couldn’t exactly be hard on Matthew because of his own issues. “But I know you do so...what do you need from me?”
“Can you come with me?” Matthew asked, causing Declan to nod before he got up.
“Can I shower and get dressed first?” Declan inquired but Matthew shook his head, causing Declan to sigh again before pulling a sweatshirt over his head.
He figured he might as well get all of this over with now. The sooner this was done, the sooner he could enjoy his Sunday. Whatever this was.
Matthew led Declan to the kitchen and to Declan’s surprise, Matthew had set the table. But that wasn’t the biggest surprise. The biggest surprise was the small gift box in the middle of the table. It had been wrapped rather clumsily, making it obvious that Matthew had been the one to do it, but it still warmed Declan's heart a little bit.
“Open it,” Matthew said, unable to hide the excitement in his voice.
“Matthew you didn’t have to…-” Declan protested but Matthew interrupted him by once again insisting that he should open his gift.
And so Declan did, revealing a brand new silver watch. It was a rather practical gift, something Declan liked, considering his previous watch had broken down the week before.
“Do you like it?” Matthew asked, his eyes glittering as Declan stayed silent. Declan stayed silent for a long time.
“Why’d you get me a present? It’s not my birthday,” Declan asked eventually, causing Matthew to nervously twiddle his thumbs again.
“Well...you always take care of me D. Ever since I moved here," Matthew spoke quietly before shaking his head. "No. You always did. You’re like a cool superhero that's both dad and mom at once!"
Declan nodded. He supposed that made sense and the idea of Matthew seeing him as a superhero did feel nice. But still, that didn’t quite explain the gift, although Declan already had an inkling what was going on.
Matthew was determined to continue his explanation though and Declan supposed that he could let him.
“And there’s no Big Brother day, I thought I would create it for you!”
“So you decided to get me a gift on Father’s Day,” Declan clarified, causing Matthew to cast his eyes down instantly, looking like he felt like he had made a mistake.
“You’re not mad... Are you?” Matthew asked quietly.
And upon hearing his brother’s question, Declan closed the distance between them, wrapping his arms around his baby brother. Declan wasn’t a hugger but he knew Matthew liked hugs. And Matthew? Matthew deserved a hug for this gesture.
“I’m not mad, no,” Declan said, a small smile showing up on his face. “Thank you, Matty. It’s a wonderful gift.”
He could feel Matthew relax in his arms before his baby brother looked up at him.
“So you like it?”
“I do. It’s the best gift I’ve ever gotten.”
“Really?”
Declan nodded, causing Matthew to smile brightly as he murmured an "I love you Dec," against his older brother's chest.
They stood like that for a while, and the longer they stood, the more Declan realized how grateful he was. And more importantly, how Matthew had done something for him that he didn't think was possible anymore.
“I wanted to cook for you too but you always say I’m not allowed to do anything in the kitchen…” Matthew said, breaking their silence while still hugging Declan tightly.
“Yeah, I’d like to keep my townhouse, thanks,” Declan retorted sarcastically as he finally broke away from his baby brother, putting his hand on Matthew’s head.
“Thank you,” he said, a genuine smile appearing on his face as he spoke. “For making Father’s Day something I can enjoy again. I didn't think that would ever happen.”
“Big Brother Day,” Matthew corrected before his stomach started growling, causing Declan to laugh as he rolled up his sleeves.
“Guess it’s time for some breakfast,” he said, causing Matthew to nod excitedly. “What do you want?”
Soon after, the smell of bacon, eggs, waffles and sausages were filling the kitchen. Declan was going all out with breakfast, as a reward for his little brother. His little brother who he loved very much, and who had turned one of Declan’s most dreaded days...into one of the most wonderful days of the year.