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Alex is making fajitas in the kitchen, humming his favorite song under his breath, when the sound of a key turning and the door unlocking tells him Henry is home.
“Darling?”
“In the kitchen, sweetheart!” He yells through the house, chopping onions and bell peppers. A moment later, he feels strong arms around his waist and his boyfriend’s chest against his back.
“Hey. How was your day?” Henry asks, resting his chin on Alex’s shoulder.
He shrugs. “As stress-free as a day in a law student’s life can be. Which is not stress-free at all, but I managed. Yours? How was lunch with Pez?”
“It was good, the kids love whenever Pez is there.” He pushes his cold nose into Alex’s warm skin. “But I’m happy to be home now,” he murmurs, and Alex feels soft lips on the side of his neck.
“Sap,” he whispers back, making Henry snort. “Well, I hope you’re hungry because dinner is almost ready.”
Henry chuckles into his neck and kisses his skin again before stepping away and taking all the warmth with him. Alex bites the inside of his cheek to keep himself from protesting.
They settle in at the table and talk more about their day, Alex going on a rant about his least favorite professor and the ungodly amount of work he always assigns. As they eat, he notices Henry seems to have something on his mind, if the way he keeps opening and closing his mouth hesitantly is anything to go by.
“Hen.” Henry’s eyes snap up to him. “You’re overthinking loudly. What’s up, sweetheart?”
Henry blushes at the pet name but maintains eye contact. Tentatively, he tells Alex about the kids at the shelter, and how, for the past few weeks, they had been talking about getting a dog to stay at the shelter after Henry showed them pictures of their dogs.
“I showed them a few photos of David and Freddie, and they haven’t stopped talking about it since,” he says with a chuckle, and Alex smiles fondly.
They had brought Freddie home from the street just a couple of months ago, and the little golden retriever was so hyperactive they had to take him on walks to get his energy out more than three times a day. It was a big contrast to David’s quiet and lazy life, but the two dogs got along really well and were often found cuddling in the evening, peacefully asleep.
Henry continues, saying he called the nearest animal shelter and he’s planning to go sometime soon, to choose and bring a dog to stay at the Brooklyn shelter.
“I thought, if you wanted, you could come with me and we could… well…” he says in a quiet voice, not quite making eye contact, and Alex realizes now why he seemed so hesitant to start this conversation.
Smiling, he takes Henry’s hand and laces their fingers together. “Baby?”
Another blush. “Yes, love?”
“Are you trying to tell me you want to adopt another dog?” He asks in a soft voice, and watches a light brush make its way down Henry’s neck.
“Only if you want to. I know we already have two, and Freddie can be a bit of a handful sometimes,” which makes Alex snort into his glass; Freddie can be handful all of the time, but Alex would die for him without a second thought. “But… I like it. I like the mess and the chaos. And if that’s something you want too, you could come with me to the shelter this weekend, if you’re not too busy with law school. We’d pick one for the kids…”
“And another to bring home,” Alex completes, and squeezes Henry’s hand in his. “I would love to, baby.”
Henry’s smile is big enough to blind the sun.
* * *
Next Saturday, Henry manages to persuade Alex to wake up before 9am with a cup of coffee and soft kisses all over his face.
“You’re so lucky I love you.” He mumbles sleepily as Henry drags him out of bed to the shower, getting dressed afterwards in blue jeans and Henry’s old Oxford hoodie.
Before they get in the car, Henry turns to look him in the eyes. “You’re sure about this, right?”
Alex takes his hand and laces their fingers together. “A thousand percent, baby,” and Henry visibly relaxes, most of the tension in his shoulders melting away.
The car ride is short and uneventful, their joined hands resting on the seat between them as Alex traces his thumb over Henry’s knuckles. When they arrive at their destination, right in front of the shelter, Henry turns to Alex, who smiles encouragingly at him.
“Ready?” Taking a deep breath, Henry nods and steps out of the car, not letting go of Alex’s hand.
As soon as they open the doors, a young person quickly comes up to them, holding a clipboard; a ‘they/them’ badge is pinned to their blazer, and they’re sporting a bright but professional smile. “Good morning Mr. Claremont-Diaz, Your Highness. I’m Cassandra Smith, we spoke on the phone a few days ago.”
“Yes, I remember, how are you? And please, call me Henry,” he adds, and Cassandra nods as they shake hands.
“Please, follow me,” they say in a strong Irish accent as they lead them through the hallways of the building. “As you mentioned on the phone, you wanted to bring a dog to stay at the LGBT shelter and another to your own home, is that correct?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
“Very well. As you can imagine, some of the animals we have here have had quite a tough life, and can get very nervous when around too many people. Regarding the shelter, a very shy dog could easily feel overwhelmed in such an environment, which would compromise its health. So, to make things easier, I decided to select a couple dogs from here that are more sociable and get along well with kids.”
Alex is low-key impressed. That’s… a really good idea that had not occurred to him before.
Cassandra stops in front of a white door and turns to them with a calm smile. “Would you like to meet one now?”
Alex feels Henry squeeze his hand briefly before taking a deep breath and sticking out his chin, the way Alex loves so much. “Absolutely.”
When the door opens, they’re met with the sight of a small brown dog with amber eyes next to a man with a stethoscope around his neck. The dog’s tail starts to wag as soon as they enter the room, and it walks closer to them to sniff their clothes.
“Her name’s Daisy,” Cassandra says in a soft voice. “She’s a four-month-old Labrador Retriever, very loyal and especially loves to be around people. Peter here is our veterinarian and often comes by to check on everyone. How’s she doing, Pete?”
“Perfectly healthy as always,” he says with a smile, shaking Alex’s and Henry’s hands.
Alex watches as Henry gets down on one knee and offers Daisy his hand for her to sniff. A moment later she’s already licking his fingers enthusiastically, making Henry giggle and scratch behind her ears.
Alex joins him with the same care, extending his hand and only touching with her approval, and soon they’re both sitting on the floor with a very excited Labrador Retriever wagging her tail enthusiastically, licking their hands and any other patch of skin she can reach.
After a few more minutes pass, Cassandra’s calm voice startles them a bit, bringing them back to reality. “I can see you’re quite fond of her already. Should I still arrange for you to meet another one, or…”
“No, that won’t be necessary, thank you.” Henry says searching Alex’s eyes, who nods instantly. His voice is soft in a way Alex usually only hears in the privacy of their home, and it makes his heart jump in his chest to see his boyfriend so at ease. “Daisy is the perfect choice. When can we bring her with us?”
Cassandra’s smile grows on their face for a split second before their more professional look settles. “I’ll ask my colleagues to get the paperwork started right away, and she should be ready to leave with you in less than an hour. In the meantime, you also mentioned wanting to adopt a dog yourselves. Would you like to come into the other room and meet a few? Or you could also come back another day if you prefer.”
Alex catches Henry’s questioning eyes and answers quickly with a charming smile. “If it’s not a problem, we’d love to go now.”
“Of course. Peter will prepare Daisy for the transfer, then. Right this way, please.”
They shake hands with Peter again and say goodbye to Daisy for now, following Cassandra down the hall. They lead them to a big room with dozens of different dogs, some easily bigger than them and others so small they must be as light as a feather.
Suddenly, Alex pats his pockets and curses under his breath. “Hey sweetheart, I think I forgot my phone in the other room. I’ll be right back.” Henry nods and he steps out to the hallway.
When he comes back barely two minutes later, phone now secure in his jacket pocket, he doesn’t spot Henry right away. It takes him a moment to see him on the other side of the room, standing in front of a dog in a cage, eye-level with its brown eyes.
It is, unquestionably, a beautiful dog. He’s medium size, with black fur and a white belly, and his eyes are very wide, like he’s afraid of them. But slowly, he walks closer to the bars, flicking his eyes briefly towards Alex but mainly keeping his gaze on Henry.
Henry slowly lifts his hand, hovering close to the bars, and Alex watches as the dog sniffs for long moments before sticking out his tongue to lick at the digits. Alex then turns to get a glimpse of Henry’s face.
He knows that look; it’s the same one he sees on his boyfriend’s face when they spend time with David, or Freddie, and Alex knows exactly what it means: Henry has fallen in love all over again, and no other dog in this room will capture his attention as much as this one.
He feels Cassandra’s presence beside him. “What breed is he?”
“He’s a mixed breed, part Collie and part Terrier. We’ve only had him for a few days, but he’s proven himself very smart.”
“Does he have a name?” Henry’s voice is barely a whisper, and his eyes never leave the dog in front of him.
“Not yet, no.”
Alex steps closer to him, taking his hand and lacing their fingers together. Henry turns to face him, and his feelings are clear on his face; this is the one.
“You know what I think?” He stage-whispers, and Henry’s eyebrows rise in silent amusement. “I think he rather looks like a John. Not Elton, because that’s ‘a bit on the nose, don’t you think?’” He says in a poor imitation of Henry’s British accent.
Alex watches with a small smile as Henry’s lips part in surprise, and he blinks very fast, but it doesn’t hide the fresh line of tears that threaten to spill through the corners of his eyes.
“You are,” he says with a wet laugh, “the best thing that has ever happened to me.” He rests his forehead against Alex’s and stays there for a minute, just breathing with him. “I love you.”
“Hm, love you too, baby.” Pressing a chaste kiss to Henry’s cheek, he turns back to Cassandra with a determinate voice. “This little guy is coming with us too, if that’s not a problem.”
“Absolutely.” After a slight pause, they speak again. “Would you like to hold him while I go sort out the paperwork?”
Henry lets out, in a slightly choked up voice, a simple “We’d love to,” so they open the little door and quietly step out of the room, giving the couple some privacy.
When the door opened, the black and white furred dog retreated back to the other side of the cage, eyes wide in alarm. But after a few moments where neither Alex nor Henry move, he tentatively makes his way back to them, stopping just at the entrance.
Henry lifts his hand again slowly, and lets out a small, wet laugh as his hand is viciously attacked with delicate kisses. He brings his other hand up too and picks up the dog, gathering him in his arms. It’s adorable how quickly he seems to relax in Henry’s embrace.
Alex approaches him with the same care he had with Daisy, and soon enough there’s a wet tongue all over his hand. He beams and scratches the fur behind his ears and sees him positively melt in Henry’s arms.
“He’s perfect,” Alex whispers, leaning on his boyfriend and wrapping an arm around his waist.
“He is,” Henry agrees, voice just as low. “John, huh?”
“Just a thought. I think it suits him,” Alex says, and laughs as the dog nuzzles his nose into Henry’s chest and settles there. He thinks Henry might be holding his breath.
“Yeah. It does. John,” he murmurs almost reverently, looking down at his arms, blue eyes meeting brown. “Welcome to the family.”
Eventually, Henry will hire a veterinarian to check daily on Daisy for her first week at the shelter, and for yearly checkups. They’ll schedule a veterinarian appointment for the newest member of their family, much like they did when they brought Freddie around, and buy a new bed and possibly new toys.
Eventually, they will do all of that and more.
For now, though, after all the paperwork is handled at the shelter with Cassandra and their colleagues, they take the car back to the brownstone, both dogs in the backseat with them.
Daisy rests with her head in Alex’s lap as he softly runs his fingers through her fur, and John has been peacefully asleep in Henry’s arms for at least twenty minutes; the love shining in Henry’s eyes is mutual, apparently.
Alex smiles at the scene and rests his head on Henry’s shoulder. “Sometimes, I still can’t believe we get to have this,” he whispers.
He feels Henry exhale breathily and press a kiss into his curls. “Me neither, love. But we do. And it makes me fall in love with you all over again.”
Alex smiles despite himself. “Forever?”
“Forever,” Henry says into his hair, and Alex doesn’t have to look up to know he’s smiling.