Chapter Text
“What do you mean 'she's missing'?!” Nath asked as he absently poured his cereal; it began to overflow without his notice. Marc held out his own bowl to stop cereal from going everywhere. “Okay, good she's not missing, but what do you mean she left?”
Marc took the box at last from Nath with a gentle tug and quirked a brow at his husband.
“A note isn't good enough! Did you call the cops?!” Nath slammed a hand into the kitchen table where they were supposed to be enjoying breakfast. It was a wobbly, old thing and nearly dislodged all the dishes—including Marc's coffee. The sustenance necessary to avoid murdering his editor and publisher, which he had meetings with that day.
Marc cradled his cup and tried to follow along with the conversation.
“Sorry, ma, I really don't mean to yell, but this just--” Nath held the phone away from his face and let out a frustrated growl she hopefully wouldn't hear before, as calmly as he could, he pressed it back to his ear. “Ma, you can't keep defending her. She's--Wait, where's Lori?”
That caught Marc's attention. Lori was Nath's adorable little niece, whom his piece of shit sister didn't deserve.
“Wait, Ashley disappeared?” Marc asked as he leaned over the table with pursed brows and a frown.
Nath turned to Marc, and the look in his eyes was all the answer Marc needed. His angry husband shook his head with a sigh. His free hand moved out to caress the ravenette's wrist a moment (both to give and take a little comfort), before it went flying away in frustration.
“There. Is. No. Excuse this time! She disappeared, again. This time without her fucking kid--not that Lori should be exposed to any of her nonsense,” Nath huffed. He rolled his eyes, which was a clear sign his mother disapproved of his cussing (most likely). “I'm a full grown man, ma, I'll say the f-word all I like.”
Marc was worried, but couldn't help but to chuckle at that. He took a long sip of his coffee as he tried to summarize what he just heard.
So, Ashley went off, again, and left Lori behind. With a note. Ashley was a “free spirit” who had gotten pregnant after a partying binge and did not know who the father was. Lime Orange Redbull and Ice (Lori) was her daughter that resulted, and Ashley had named her after her favorite fruity drink. Though 'Lime' seemed a cute name the anagram suited her better. “So, you did call the cops, then? Did she say why?”
Nath put a hand over the mouth piece, what little good that did with smart phones.
“Ma is worried that if we call the cops CPS will get involved,” the red-head confirmed with a pinched look and returned to the call. “What did the note say besides 'I'm going'?”
Marc had a feeling they would be leaving soon. Luckily, they hadn't poured in milk yet so he was able to put the cereal back in its bag from both bowls and store it away. The milk followed, and then Marc helped himself to the last of the coffee. Nath would just steal his mug as needed per usual (despite complaining that he never used enough sugar), so he didn't feel bad about hogging it all into one cup.
“Should I grab the keys, love?” Marc asked as Nath rubbed at his temples with a free hand. Nath turned to look at him and nodded. They shared a quick kiss, which only briefly brought back the softness he preferred to see in Nath's eyes before he was back to his conversation again.
I better contact my editor, Marc thought with a sigh as he grabbed their jackets. It was already almost winter and had grown cold. He walked back into the kitchen and helped Nath into his sleeves. Publisher, too, probably.
Nath wasn't very good at walking and talking in narrow spaces, so Marc took his husband by his hand and walked him to the door carefully. They kept their wallets, checks, and bags when they used them by the door under the key shelf; he grabbed Nath's first, stuffed it into his pocket as the red-head's voice grew strident, and then grabbed his own. He flipped the keys into his hand.
“Yes, we're heading over now. Did she at least leave Lori supplies? Anything? … Fine. What size diapers does she need? How should I know?!”
Marc sighed as he dragged them both out of the house, locked up, and then directed Nath down their front steps so he wouldn't trip. Nath was too busy arguing with his mother to do more than grip Marc's shoulder as the ravenette took him by the hips to keep him stable.
Marc was at least rewarded for his efforts with another nice, much longer kiss once they passed the last step (phone off to the side, of course), but despite that he could feel the anxiety rising in them both. Nath was right back on the phone as he headed to the car, now trying to calm what he assumed to be his mother's crying.
It's going to be a looooong day...
Oo00oo00oo
Dear Family,
Not even our names, Nath growled in his head. They had to stop by to get supplies for the baby as Ashley hadn't left even a bottle or food, and his mother wasn't capable of driving. Should babies even be on a bottle so soon? Lori is only three months... The formula said 'breast milk formula', but I doubt powder is as good as the real thing. Can we buy actual breast milk?
I regret to inform you life here has become too much. I do not intend to harm myself, but I must shed the ever oppressing skin of societal norms. There was a tundra of weight that bore down upon me in this polluted atmosphere, and I intend to ascend past it to fresh air.
'Oppressing skin'? 'Tundra of weight'? What does that even mean? Nath rolled his eyes. The atmosphere is literally everywhere. You can't escape it.
I must become one with nature again. I must be free to spread my wings and fly into the open blue skies. Lori is too young to join me, but perhaps in the future she might embrace liberation.
Also known as 'I thought motherhood would be easier, it's not, and now I'm ready to embrace my role as deadbeat mom'. Nath was practically shaking he had become so furious.
Tell her she's as fresh as a daisy.
What. Does that. Even. Mean?
Tell her life should be lived without boundaries. Tell her the future waits for no one. Finally, tell her mommy loves her dearly. The decision was difficult, but I feel this will be better in the end for everyone. I simply could not be a slave to the war machine of modern times any longer.
I mean, technically Lori is better off so she got that part right. Won't make it easier for her as she grows up, though.
Forever your Starshine,
More like shit stain.
Moonlight Withers (my old name was too mainstream)
Fucking hipster hippy.
Nath was tempted to crumble the note and toss it, but they needed it as evidence should she come crying back wanting to take Lori away. His niece, under no circumstance, was allowed to grow up on a commune or whatever the heck Ash—Moonlight Withers had planned to do with herself.
His mother was in the kitchen making tea. Or rather, to watch the kettle as it slowly boiled. She could be heard sniffing on occasion, and despite being annoyed he still wanted to comfort her... but first he needed to be mad.
Mad his sister was raised to think she was a gift to the world and allowed to do as she pleased from an early age.
Mad for every transgression she made: from bringing men home when they were both still kids (him 6, her 14) to stealing for her multilevel marketing scheme that would 'Totally Change Lives!'.
Mad that tiny Lori had to live her life with a mother who had all the attention span, patience, and care of a gnat.
Suddenly, just as he was reaching his peak, he was surrounded by a familiar smell; rosemary, cinnamon, coffee, and chocolate. It was a weirdly pleasant combination that Marc made himself for himself from herbs they grew in the yard (the coffee was added on every morning when he would make a pot to last the day). Two strong arms encased him from behind as his husband made himself comfortable by landing his chin on the red-head's shoulder.
“Love,” Marc whispered in a way that was both somehow concerned and seducing. Nath closed his eyes and let himself fall back into the ravenette—let him take the weight for now.
“Mom can't take Lori,” Nath announced after a time of breathing alongside Marc. Marc had learned some relaxation techniques from his cousin-(might as well be brother)-in-law, and with a husband as high-strung as Nath it definitely came in handy. “She can barely walk these days.”
“I know.”
“She can't go back to Moonlight even if she comes for her.”
“Moonlight?”
“Ashley's chosen name.”
“Ah.”
“That leaves us.” Nath stood straight and turned slowly in Marc's arms to look his husband in the eye. He hugged the writer's neck and bumped their foreheads together gently. There was silence for at least a solid minute as he closed his eyes and soaked in his lover's essence, before he opened them again with uncertainty clear in his gaze.
“I know we have my art projects, your messy office, our lifestyle of just sleep in as we please, eat what we want, watch what we want, go out at three in the morning for waffles, but I--”
“It's all right, Nath.”
“It is?”
Marc nodded as an easy smile graced his lips. “I already had a feeling this would be how it might end up the moment I heard she skipped town.”
Nath chuckled as he stood straight to get a better look at his beautiful partner. He ran a hand down the heart-shaped face he had fallen for years ago and pinched his chin affectionately. “We'll need to convert the guestroom.”
“We can have her in ours until we do. It'll take time, and she's still so tiny it wouldn't hurt to keep her close.”
“I love you so much, Rainbow.”
“I love you, too, Muse.” Marc nodded toward the kitchen. “Thank fuck we work on our own schedules so we don't have too many people to disappoint when we're late.”
They both shared a soft laugh.
“Now, let's talk to your mother and look into the legal hurdles we have to jump. We can technically put off adoption for a bit, but if, uh... Moonlight comes back to claim her we can't stop her.”
“The sooner she's ours, the better.”
“Ours.” Marc's smile widened. “Already sounds nice.”