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“Lukey, get that finger out of your mouth” Ashton said sternly, probably for the fifth time that day, and it was barely 1pm. Luke had woken up at 10am. Jesus.
The addressed boy whines, throwing the lego he was holding to the floor in an annoyed way. “This is like, the tenth time you tell me that, stop it!”
“Baby, maybe it’s because is the tenth time I catch you sucking your thumb today!” He walks to the boy and crouches down next to him, moving his glasses higher up his nose. “Where’s your dummy baby?” he asked quietly, caressing his hair softly. This was the fifth time asking…
“I don’t know” Luke whined again, turning away from Ashton to keep building the tower in front of him. “Oh God, please tell me it’s not under the table again” he quickly checked just to make sure, sighing in relief when he didn’t find it there full of dust and germs. “Why don’t you look for it hm? So you won’t suck on your finger”
“Nooo! I don’t know where it is Ashton” Luke mumbled, getting more and more upset at how his legos wouldn’t fit together. He knocked the tower down in frustration, kicking his legs and hitting some of the toys scattered around. And just like instinct, his thumb went to his mouth, however being stopped by a big hand that belonged to the 23-year old, who used his other hand to gently swat the boy’s delicate one as a chastisement.
Ashton had noticed, since the first weeks of meeting Luke, and after the boy had finally stopped being shy around him, that he had a habit Ashton first found endearing, but it then became his worst enemy: Luke sucked his thumb, a lot.
He remembered calming Luke on his bed at the orphanage, the blue-eyed crying silently and clinging to the older boy on his lap, explaining how the older kids made fun of him, just because he went to the ‘small kids’ room and played with the toys there. He couldn’t understand what was wrong with it –it was definitely better than playing football with them and getting shoved around like he was the ball instead.
But Ashton made it better, he reassured the boy that whatever he chose to play with was totally okay. And that it didn’t make him ‘less of a man’ as the other kids would like to call it.
“Don’t cry baby, you’re okay, you’re okay. They’re not better than you”.
And Luke was sucking at his thumb desperately, muffling his sobs and cries and burying his face on the older man’s shirt.
Ashton thought he had found the ultimate solution, buying Luke a pacifier. But the boy was so messy and even with Ashton taking care of him, he still managed to lose it, leave it everywhere or just refusing to use it and going for his thumb. Ashton didn’t get it.
He hated it. There were so many consequences about sucking your thumb like:
1. Unsanitary. Luke played with everything he could get his little curious hands into and he definitely couldn’t care less about washing his hands before getting them into his mouth.
2. Bad for teeth. Self-explanatory.
3. Unsanitary.
4. He could undeliberately do it in public. Ashton knew Luke would get so mortified by it, and he wanted to avoid seeing his boy sad.
5. SO UNSANITARY.
And Ashton would do absolutely anything to stop the so, so unsanitary habit. A pacifier wasn’t the best help, but it was more…sanitary Dammit.
Luke glared at him, pulling his hand away quickly. The boy stood up and climbed to the sofa, not before grabbing his plush penguin though. He picked the TV remote and started changing channels; Sponge Bob was on around these hours. Ashton huffed and got up too, leaving Luke with his grumpiness to himself. He went in search of the light pink pacifier of the boy, an idea popping on his mind. I’m such a genius.
“Hey baby boy, I’ve got something for you” Ashton said as he flopped down besides Luke on the couch. The 16-year old turned his head at him quickly, he loved gifts. He wasn’t excited though, when he saw it was only his dummy. “Dummy?” He looked up at the older, confusion written on his face and a bit of an adorable pout of disappointment there.
“Look Lukey” Ashton said, extending the pacifier to the boy, and that’s when he noticed it. A dark blue strap that secured the dummy and made it so it could hang loosely around the boy’s neck. He stared at it incredulously. “You’re so ridiculous to be honest” and turned back to the TV.
“Come on, put it on” the older said as he slid it over Luke’s head. “No! Why?! I don’t want it!” Luke whined loudly, already moving to take the dummy strap off.
“Luke, no. Keep it on, it’s for when you want to suck your thumb and don’t have your dummy. Now you have it so, no excuses” He stopped the boy. He knew this was the best option to fix Luke’s habit, at least until he would just grow out of it.
“I don’t even use the dummy all the time Ashton!” Luke shouted, flinging his arms in a fuss, the TV remote slipping from his hand and landing on the floor, its parts flying on different directions. He looked up at the older with fear on his eyes, it was an accident I’m sorry it wasn’t my fault I’ll fix it was written all over his face.
But just when he was about to voice it out, Ashton took him in his arms, raising him off the couch and wordlessly taking him to the kitchen where the table they usually ate was. He took a chair and dragged it to the corner, setting Luke there and crouching down in front of him.
“Listen, I’m putting you in time out because -I know it was an accident, but I can’t let you throw tantrums around like that alright? And, if I give you an order, you must obey, got it?” He spoke calmly, caressing Luke’s bare knees with his thumbs. The boy listened attentively, a pout always present. He nodded his head, biting his lips and looking down at his lap where his fingers fumbled mindlessly.
“Luke” the boy looked up.
“Got it?” Ashton repeated; a gentle but stern look on his face. He needed Luke to understand.
“Yes daddy. I understand I shouldn’t throw fits and that I have to obey you” he said, but not for the first time. “That’s my good boy, I’ll get you on ten minutes” the adult stood up, ruffling Luke’s hair playfully. “Daddy that’s too much, come on! I’ve already learned my lesson” Luke whined, reaching for Ashton’s shirt to stop him from leaving.
“Lukey, it’s not much. Stay still for ten minutes and I’ll come get you okay?” He said softly.”Remember to be quiet” And Luke was about to stand up, but the glare sent by Ashton was enough to calm him down, he settled to just be good for the ten minutes. Just ten minutes Luke ten minutes he told himself.
Barely six minutes passed when Ashton thought it was enough, to be honest it hadn’t been a big deal. He went back to the kitchen and cooed at the sight he found, a sense of pride filling him. Luke was sitting with his knees to his chest –something a bit surprising judging by the size of the chair and Luke- his head resting on them, and the dummy that Ashton had put around his neck bobbing curiously on his mouth.
When the younger boy saw Ashton, his arms immediately went up to make grabby hands at him, which Ashton took without hesitation. He scooped Luke on his arms, bouncing him up a bit as a form of greeting him in the embrace. He knew Luke loved that.
“You good baby?” He received a nod as response before Luke clung tighter to him, burying his face on the older’s neck. He was always so quiet after receiving a punishment; it would take some minutes until he opened up again to the older. Ashton took a pre-made bottle out of the fridge and put it on the microwave to heat it. He could feel the dummy on Luke’s mouth digging on his neck, but didn’t really comment on it. When the bottle was done, he took it and went to the couch, where he sat with the boy.
“Gonna feed you your bottle, yeah baby boy?” He spoke gently, chuckling as Luke dropped the dummy off his mouth and chased the nip of the bottle. He noticed how the pacifier fell on his chest and stayed there. It was definitely a good idea. The blue-eyed nuzzled the side of his face on Ashton’s chest, drinking peacefully from the bottle, gripping the older’s shirt in his smaller hands.
“Good boy Lukey, daddy’s very proud” Luke mewled at that, sucking happily from the bottle. “I like daddy proud” he said, resting for a bit. “I know my boy” he kissed the top of his head as Luke continued on drinking.
When the bottle was empty, the boy removed himself from it and hugged the hazel-eyed around the waist. Ashton placed the bottle on the table in front of them and moved back to let Luke settle more comfortable on his lap. He looked down soon enough to see him raising his hand and knew immediately where it was headed to. He stopped the boy and took the dummy dangling on his chest, placing it on Luke’s lips, who gladly accepted it.
Ashton stood up then, strolling through their apartment until he got to his room. He walked to the side of the bed and carefully laid Luke down. “Time for a lil nap boy” he moved the golden fringe out of the lidded blue eyes.
Luke whined –something he was doing a lot today- and grabbed onto Ashton’s shirt. “Not sleepy daddy, don’t go” he begged the older, dropping his dummy again. He rolled on the bed to lay face down, turning his face on the pillow to look up at the older.
“Baby remember we’ll visit my family tomorrow and we have to leave early, so I need you to be good and take your nap so you get enough sleep” Luke groaned, he hated waking up early –giving Ashton more reason on putting him to sleep now- the boy lifted the dummy up to his mouth and took it silently.
“Good boy” Ashton praised, sitting beside the boy, he lifted his shirt gently and started softly caressing the skin of Luke’s back, something he knew would make him fall asleep in no time.
Luke closed his eyes, sighing contently. “You look older with your glasses on” he mumbled, gaining a giggle from Ashton “Thanks? I don’t know, today I wanted to rest my eyes” he perched the glasses higher on his nose, smiling at the already drifting to sleep boy.
Once he knew Luke was fast asleep, he lowered his shirt and carefully stood up, not before leaving a long kiss on the top of his head. He left the room to pack for his adoptive son and him for tomorrow, making sure to let a reminder on top of his suitcase to save Luke’s dummy the next day.