Archive of Our Own

Cody threw himself into the water, determined to get Rex out, and uncaring on if it killed him or not.

He pulled Boba, the baby of the family out of Rex's arms and slid him along the ice to where others were hovering. They should be able to reach him without trouble.

Cody couldn't find Rex under the water. As soon as he had taken Boba, Rex had slipped under the water immediately and did not resurface.

There he was. He tried to get Rex to the surface, almost tossing him up, but it seemed like it was too late. Cody was freezing, running out of air. Everything went numb...

.

Obi-Wan frowned and pulled his two charges into the in-between. They were being reckless, and were dying before their time. In fact... neither of them were fighting too hard for themselves to live, despite being married to each other.

Cody looked around frantically. Then stopped and stared at the being with wings in front of him. "Am I dead?"

"What about me?" Rex groaned sitting up, then his eyes widened as he turned to Cody. "You're not supposed to die!"

"Neither are you!" Cody snapped back.

Obi-Wan sighed. "I am Obi-Wan. Your guardian angel. Neither of you are supposed to die, and I grabbed you at a critical moment."

"What do you mean?" Cody asked, studying the guardian angel with suspicion.

"Where have you been all my life?" Rex demanded.

"Right with you, once I replaced your previous," Obi-Wan assured Rex. "You might still live. You both may be unconscious, but what determines if you live is your will to live. You have to want to live, and neither of you do."

Rex and Cody shared looks of realization, then horror, then shame. They hadn't known the other felt so terribly, and now they were ashamed the other knew of their misery.

Obi-Wan smiled at them. "Come, let's explore your life together. See if we can find a spark of something that will give you the will to fight for your lives."

Rex sighed. "Fine... Let's get this over with."

Cody frowned. "How's this going to work? We're two different people, and you've been our guardian angel this whole time?"

"Oh, I've not actually been Rex's the entire time," Obi-Wan responded cheerfully. "His first guardian angel made a terrible mistake and I was assigned temporarily and then it stuck because what I was doing was working."

"What?" 

"You'll see," Obi-Wan assured him. "Now... let's start with the beginning of your life, Cody."

Cody groaned. "Wonderful."

Obi-Wan chuckled and lifted a hand. The scene shifted. A hospital room. 

"Oh, we'll name him Cody, Jango, look at him, he's perfect."

"Yes, he is... Our son. Our first baby."

"And hopefully not our last."

Cody had to turn away. The look of love and amazement on his father's face was too much coupled with his mother, who had died when he was fifteen, ten years previous. 

Obi-Wan smiled sympathetically. "Your life was pretty typical, and when you were two..." 

Cody watched his hyperactive two year old self get introduced to his younger siblings. The twins, Wolffe and Fox. He was so happy to be an older brother. He was so proud to be trusted to protect them, even so young.

A year later, there was Ponds, then there was Monnk and Bly. Then more twins Thorn and Thire. By then, Cody was five, almost six. And he was happy to help his mom and dad with his little siblings.

Cody watched, cringing at the amount of kids they had under six. Eight children under six at the same time, and they weren't nearly done having kids yet. 

Obi-Wan chuckled. "Your parents really loved having kids. Your mom thrived having all of you to take care of, and your family was always willing to help. They gave you all as much attention as they could, even when you started school, and you loved being the older brother and keeping them safe, teaching your younger brothers how to do everything. Look, there you are teaching Monnk and Bly how to use the potty."

Cody blinked. "I remember helping with the younger ones, but I don't remember helping them..."

"Oh, you did... and you were fantastic. They all loved you, and you loved them."

"I still do. I've always wanted to see them get the best, do the best they can. They deserve it."

Rex frowned. "But you're acting as their parents in some of these memories... that wasn't fair to you..."

Cody winced. "I didn't really notice I was doing it," he confessed. "At first, I just wanted to help, so I volunteered to help in any way I knew how. When I saw how much mom and dad struggled with potty training the littles, I made sure to do the same things too, to make it go easier. They were pretty amazed at how fast Thorn and Thire and all the younger ones were  compared to the rest of us, especially me."

Obi-Wan nodded. "And this was just the beginning."

"What's the point of all this?" Cody asked, tearing his eyes away from how he was playing with Wolffe and Fox at the age of seven, when they were five.

"Who you were then, how you were raised, that is what is led you here. Every moment of your life led you to me having to show you this. So we're going over all of it, even if it makes no sense to you."

Cody frowned. "I don't understand."

"You will. For now... let's see Rex's life."

Rex groaned, looking away. Cody moved over to Rex and wrapped an arm around his husband. "Do we have to?"

"Yes. You two cannot begin to understand yourselves and each other, to talk and find a will to live, if you do not see this, and discuss."

Rex sighed and looked down. "Fine."

Obi-Wan moved over and placed a hand on his shoulder. "There is nothing to be ashamed of. I am sorry you need to relive through your pain. I am sorry that I cannot adequately fill in for a therapist to talk through what happened. I am sorry you went through it in the first place. Unfortunately, watching these moments is necessary."

Rex shifted and nodded.

His mom gave birth to him, alone and scared. She did her best for a time, without any support, and often turned away. But she kept Rex as happy as she could.

And yet... there were cracks. She was harsher than she needed to be, scaring Rex into behaving instead of trying to be gentle, trying to teach. He was behind in many milestones, and nearly wasn't allowed into kindergarten. Thankfully, he was; it would not have been good if he hadn't been.

It was during this time she met and married an abusive man. That man terrorized Rex from the moment they met. Rex's mom didn't see anything wrong with it. 

The man swung at Rex one night when she wasn't around.

"And this is where your first Guardian Angel made some major mistakes. We're not supposed to ignore these things. We're supposed to protect as much as possible and work towards getting you free of the situation."

"What?" Rex asked, in disbelief. 

Obi-Wan smiled gently. "If I were around, that hit wouldn't have hurt you so much, but it would have left enough of a bruise to arouse suspicion. A few nudges of some adults to pay attention and it wouldn't take long to open an investigation. Once CPS has your case, it's far easier to get them to take things seriously, and the more reports, the more likely they are to remove the child."

"Oh." Rex frowned. "But you weren't here. You were with Cody."

Obi-Wan hummed. "Very true, but I do have a couple of apprentices. Once I was assigned to you, I alternated looking after you and Cody, with them taking the other."

"Okay... is that supposed to make me feel better?"

Obi-Wan chuckled. "No, just explain." He looked back to the scene. "While this was some major mistakes... it took far too long for anyone to notice how much your guardian angel was failing you."

"...it was that day, wasn't it?" Rex whispered with dread. Cody wrapped an arm around him.

"Yes, we'll get there." Obi-Wan smiled at them. They weren't his first charges, but they were his favorites. He was fond of them. Maybe more than fond, but he remembered the warnings about falling in love with who they're protecting, and was determined not to do so.

They walked through the next few years of Rex's life. Then, finally, came the day. 

Rex's father was drunk. And he attacked Rex while the little seven year old was trying to make dinner on the stove. The boiling water went everywhere, enraging him more. He broke the beer bottle on Rex's back after hitting him with it enough times, and neither noticed at first how much he was bleeding. 

He slipped and fell on some of the broken pieces. 

His father left him to clean up.

Rex started cleaning up, forgetting that the stove was on.

Neither noticed that the chaos of his drunk step father had knocked some papers into the stove. That those  things caught fire. 

Rex was whimpering in the bathroom, trying to take care of his many cuts from the glass when the smoke alarms went off. 

His drunk step father ran right by him. Rex followed but when they got to the stairs, his father shoved him down the stars.

Rex laid at the bottom of the stars, dazed.

"Good riddance!" his stepfather slurred before rushing for the door.

Rex stared at the scene. "I don't remember everything, but I remember what he said... and I remember laying there, thinking I wanted to die. I was happy that this was going to kill me finally. No more abuse. I remember struggling to breath as the smoke got bad, and never seeing the fire."

"You thinking you wanted to die, at seven years old, is what triggered an investigation into your guardian angel. I was put in their place since I had apprentices, and I have been with you both since."

Rex nodded absently, watching the rescue where a fire fighter entered looking for their dog, only to almost trip over his little body. The firefighter was surprised, but recovered quickly, rushing Rex outside. 

"I wasn't conscious then... I don't remember any of this," Rex said softly, watching how the police arrested his step father on the spot after he drunkenly tried to attack them for questioning him. 

"I'm sure you don't," Obi-Wan agreed quietly. "This was a lot of bad at once for such a little boy. But you survived, and then you were put into the foster system."

"Yeah, I jumped from place to place for a while. Until..."

"I know. Which is why we're going to go watch Cody's life to that point instead, give you a break."

Cody stiffened, but nodded to Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan shifted the scene to Cody's eighth birthday. 

Everything had fallen apart. There were newborn triplets (Wooley, Waxer, and Boil), his mom was on extended medical leave due to some complications, and his father had started drinking. 

His eighth birthday was just a cake and a card. There was not even singing and a candle. 

Cody didn't say a word to anyone though, didn't let on to his brothers that he was sad. He just went along with it. Went along with everything. Until it was time for bed. He helped get his brothers to bed. He helped with the still newborn triplets. 

Then he crawled into bed and cried. 

"Why didn't you mention your birthday or how you felt to anyone?" Rex asked Cody.

Cody sighed. "Because I didn't want to make mom sad, and I didn't want to set any of them off because both Wolffe and Fox were biters and I was the responsible one... I was responsible for keeping them happy too, not just taking care of them."

"You were only seven. Well. Just turned eight."

"So were you when you almost died."

Rex sighed. "I suppose we both went through something traumatic. I never knew."

"It's nothing compared to the abuse."

"You cried yourself to sleep!" Rex exclaimed. "That's not okay! It looks like your parents didn't even care that it was your birthday. I bet they didn't do that to any of your brothers even though there were so many of you!"

Cody winced. "I..." he sighed. "You know I've done some therapy on this... I just... It's hard to accept it as abuse. It was all mental, I thought I was just doing what any good older brother did. For family. I had some good dreams that night, though."

"That was my apprentice's doing. He thought it would help if you had a happier way to process rather than a nightmare. It was a good thought but everyone needs nightmares. You have to be able to acknowledge something as scare or hurtful in order to be able to heal."

"That makes sense," Cody admitted. He turned to Rex. "I hadn't truly realized things were that bad, not until I moved out. Once I had a little freedom, it was overwhelming, I nearly destroyed my life, and then I watched other families and it hit me. It wasn't okay. Normal people didn't treat their kids like that."

Rex blinked, then nodded. "That makes sense. Don't undersell what you dealt with. It may have felt mostly in your head but it was real, and you suffered for it."

Obi-Wan smiled at them. Then he took them through the rest of their lives. How Cody and Rex met because Cody's grandfather was fostering Rex. How they got along in school, how they started dating, at first keeping it secret, then going more open in college. 

Things seemed to fall apart when Cody moved out for college, but he came back as often as he could to help out until Fox and Wolffe had it under control. And even then he still went back at least once a month. 

Then he graduated, and by then he had more brothers in college. He had a degree in graphic design, and he found a decent job right away, doing IT stuff on the side as he had a minor with that. He even started taking night classes. 

His goal? Earn enough money to help the rest of his brothers through college.

Rex in the meantime never fully recovered from the abuse. There were several abusive foster homes, and several bullies at school  about some scars from the glass that were visible among other things. It was never as bad as the time he nearly died, in part thanks to Obi-Wan's diligent efforts to keep him safe.

They watched the last few years of their adult lives, how they got married, how Rex full heartedly joined Cody in always doing their best to help Cody's family, help his brothers. He had felt welcomed and felt obligated to help them.

The result was that they barely had anything in savings, just enough for a couple of months if one of them was fired. They didn't have much free time, often driving his brothers from place to place.

He even helped them by their first cars. He helped many through college. He helped Wolffe and Fox with their degrees, helped them find an apartment together. 

"Okay... we're almost to what happened today. What's the point of this?" Cody asked.

Obi-Wan sighed sadly. "The point? You and Rex? You two never think of yourselves. You are willing to sacrifice yourselves to see everyone happy. I want you live, and thrive. I want you to be happy. But you have been determined not to have that. No matter how much you deserve it."

"I couldn't let Boba drown! He's the baby!" Cody protested.

"The baby is ten years old now," Obi-Wan reminded him. "But you went in there thinking you would die and wanting that. You embraced the idea of death instead of fighting for life. This is about a life worth living."

"There is none!" Rex burst out. "Life is full of abusive people who get away with it. The only thing keeping me going is Cody! And then he dove in after me and I..." Rex started crying. 

Cody hugged him and cried too. "I just want them to love me. They don't love me. They just love my help. They won't care that I'm gone beyond wanting my money. I'm so tried of trying to be the best big brother. Of being the best person I can be. I just want to be able to breathe and not feel guilty."

Obi-Wan stepped up and wrapped his arms and wings around them both, comforting as they finally acknowledged their deepest feelings.

"Okay, let's take a look at some of the last few years. How much you're still doing for people, even though it seems thankless."

Cody nodded slowly and wiped his eyes, clutching Rex. 

"Okay," Rex whispered, lifting his head. "Okay." 

Obi-Wan showed them the last few years, more memories here than in any time previous. They brought food when their dad was sick and Boba was struggling with changes in the house. They helped out when Fox got injured. They funded Wolffe's therapy and eye replacement when he got in an accident that left him permanently scarred and recovering from many injuries. 

Then came the heart of the matter. What made them think they were unloved. That people didn't appreciate them.

"Hi everyone," Cody said quietly at a family dinner. "We have some bad news." 

Everyone looked up at them.

"I've got bone cancer," Rex admitted, voice raw from dealing with the news over the last several days. "They've got a plan, and it's not progressed too far, but there's no telling right now how fast it will advance."

Everyone was sympathetic, asking questions, and it was fine then. But later... they didn't check in. They didn't bring offers of support, they didn't bring food. They didn't even ask how treatment was going.

Rex and Cody got tired of bringing up updates to little response so they kept it quiet. 

But Rex was struggling. The treatment was difficult, and he was at risk of losing his leg if it progressed any further. If they did that and started another round of treatment, it would hopefully be enough to put him into remission.

Rex mentioned it once, but no one blinked an eye. They didn't seem to care. In fact, they were confident that Cody and Rex had it under control. They didn't think Cody and Rex needed support.

Then came the day Cody was fired from his job, framed for fraud and neglect. He was going to even be under investigation. He found a lawyer, and fought and then sued the company, eventually winning mere months before the incident that brought them here to view memories. The process had taken months.

"Oh, you'll just find another one," Jango said, distracted by Boba's dramatics about his classes. "You're resourceful. Always been good at that." He wasn't a great dad, a bit of an alcoholic, but it still hurt to have it all dismissed like that.

Cody had to excuse himself from the family dinner and he and Rex left early. No one reached out to see if they were okay, or even to ask why. 

They continued to be there for all their family, and even friends. Helping them with any issues, donating money. 

Boba was diagnosed with leukemia. Rex and Cody helped out as much as they could. And the family rallied around Boba, helped out extra, checked in all the time. 

Cody and Rex were almost not even needed. But they helped out where they could anyways. They tried not to let it get to them either. Boba was eight when he was diagnosed. Of course people were going to care more about him possibly dying than an adult.

Boba was getting better, and it was possible his leukemia was gone. 

And that's when they were having a family day outside in the snow. The tradition had started when Cody was seven. They just went out and played in the snow for most of the day, only going in to warm up, have hot chocolate and food, and then go straight back outside. The park had a pond.

Everyone was laughing. And everyone knew to be careful of the pond because it didn't always freeze enough to walk on until the colder temperatures of January. 

Boba was ten. He didn't listen to those things.

Rex and Cody, still in Obi-Wan's embrace and holding onto each other, watched as Boba wandered onto the ice, happily playing. Then the ice cracked and he screamed. 

Every one rushed to the scene. When Boba fell into the freezing water, Rex didn't hesitate the way everyone else did. Cody, further away, was not far behind. 

Cody got Boba onto the ice, almost throwing him. Boba slid across the eyes, shivering and crying. He made it almost all the way to the shore, where family swarmed. 

Cody went under looking for Rex. Neither of them resurfaced. 

And, no one noticed, too focused on making sure that Boba was okay, and getting help.

Obi-Wan froze the scene right there. "And that's when I pulled you here."

Rex swallowed. "Now what? Are we dead?"

"You have a choice," Obi-Wan said softly. "You can let yourself die here. Or you can live. I will return you to this precise moment. Do you want to see the aftermath?"

Cody bit his lip, looking at how those of the family who ad noticed were all gathered around a shivering Boba. How they were making sure he was alright. 

"I... I think it may just cause more pain."

"It can help make a decision."

"What decision?" Rex grumbled. "I came to terms with the idea of my own death a while back. I dove in knowing full well that I wouldn't be able to swim back to the surface and pull myself out of that hole. I'm too weak these days for that. Boba was more important, and anyways... I want to die."

"I... I didn't care if I died," Cody admitted. "Between knowing I will eventually lose the one pillar of support I have, and not really caring about life or death anymore... wanting all the hurt to be done... I just wanted Boba to be okay and I wanted to at least try to get Rex to the surface but it was too late." 

Obi-Wan hummed. "Well, I am your guardian angel. It's my job to keep you from death earlier than it should be. I made sure you caught the cancer early, and I made sure you had the exact piece of evidence you needed for a fighting chance."

"You want to show us." Cody sighed.

"I do."

"Why? When it's just going to cause more pain?"

"You might be surprised. Let's take a look?"

Rex and Cody looked at each other before they sighed and agreed.

Obi-Wan smiled. 

The moment continued.

Fox looked up from Boba, glancing around. He spotted the water moving from Cody's attempt to get up before he passed out and frowned. He glanced around. His eyes widened.

"Cody and Rex are still in the water!" he yelled, already moving for the frozen pond. He dropped to his stomach and inched over to the hole, grateful it wasn't too far away.

Wolffe started moving immediately, following his twin. Ponds, Monnk and others weren't far behind.

"I'll dive in, you be ready to pull them out," Monnk decided. "I'm the strongest swimmer." 

Fox nodded. "Wolffe you stay behind me to get them to shore and Ponds will get them onto shore."

No one argued with the plan. It was the best they had. 

Monnk came up with Rex first. Fox pulled him out. 

"No..." he whispered, seeing that Rex was turning blue and barely breathing. He hurriedly passed Rex to Wolffe, noting how worryingly light Rex was.

Wolffe passed him to Ponds. 

Ponds immediately started with CPR, to get the water out of his lungs. 

Monnk came back up with Cody and passed him to Fox. Then he waited, holding onto the ice. 

Fox almost started crying at the sight of Cody. Unnaturally still, not breathing. Turning blue as well. He passed Cody to Wolffe then turned to pulling Monnk out.

Wolffe sucked in a breath when he saw Cody, then passed him to Ponds who started CPR. Thorn had taken over CPR on Rex. 

Fox made sure Monnk was nearly to shore before he inched his way back, then he helped Wolffe back to shore.

By then, Boba was clearly going to be okay, he was awake and shivering. 

Now the real concern was if Cody and Rex would survive. So the majority of the family crowded around, trying to see.

The longer Cody and Rex went without waking, the more concerned they got.

Obi-Wan turned to Rex and Cody. "This is the version of the future where you both die."

They nodded, arms wrapped around each other, staring, stunned at how distressed some of the family was.

Especially the normally stoic Fox and Wolffe, both were trying not to cry and wiping tears way.

When the paramedics arrived, both Cody and Rex were declared dead. 

Several things happened at once. Fox and Wolffe both collapsed on the ground, sobbing. 

Bly, Monnk, Thire, and Thorn were all in denial, begging the paramedics to save them. 

Others were numb with shock, some were crying. No one was unaffected.

Cody took a step back, eyes wide. "What...? Why... why are they so upset? They don't really care about us? We left them plenty of money?"

Obi-Wan wrapped his arm around Cody once more. "They care about you. They're terrible about showing it, yes, but they care about you, not your money. It's never been about the money. It's about how much of a second father to them you were, how much Rex fit nicely into the family and joined in on how you take care of your family like you're the parent instead of the oldest sibling."

Rex blinked. "But why don't they care normally?"

"They do care. But they see you as parents more than siblings, both of you." Obi-Wan explained gently. "And it is hard to see that a parent needs help, especially when that parent is always helping them. They don't even realize that's what's been going on."

Cody nodded numbly. "You can't fake that, though...They really do care about us?"

Obi-Wan nodded. "I promise you, they do. But you don't need to have them in your lives if they're causing pain with their actions. You don't need them to be happy. I just want you to live, and you shouldn't always live for others. You need to live for yourselves too. Set yourselves free from feeling so responsible. For your own sakes. Or we will just find ourselves here at another point in the road."

Cody bit his lip. "What... what does living for myself even mean?"

"Yeah, I'm not really sure either," Rex chimed in. 

"Do you remember the day you two got married? We skipped over it, but now I think it's time we revisit."

The devastated scene around them faded away to be replaced by all happy smiles the day Cody and Rex got married. 

"The one day you two got what you wanted. You still got needs met and accommodated but you put your foot down on some things. You got the wedding of your dreams. That's what living for yourself looks like. Remember how happy you were? Remember how you couldn't stop smiling? Remember how hopeful the future was?"

Rex gripped Cody's hand tightly. "I remember."

"Find things to live for besides helping others out, try new hobbies, enjoy new movies. Get a pet or two. You deserve better than you two have allowed yourselves. You are adults, you are married, and you can be good people, care about others, without sacrificing absolutely everything. You can be good people without driving yourself to depression." Obi-Wan hugged them tightly. It had been hard watching them drive themselves into the ground for people who appeared not to appreciate what they were doing. 

Cody sighed. "I guess... but where do we start?

"I'm not sure," Obi-Wan admitted. "You were into drawing in high school. You should try that again. Rex, didn't you want to be a gym teacher? Why did you become an accountant?"

Rex shuffled. "People said I wouldn't be good with kids," he mumbled.

Cody frowned. "You're good with my siblings, all of the ones still under the age of eighteen. I think you'd be a good teacher. And we have the money to live comfortably for years if we wanted to... We can afford for you to go back to school so you can be a teacher.”

"I... I want to do it... I'll think about it."

"Can we see more about how people react to our deaths?" Cody whispered.

Obi-Wan nodded. "The next day, funeral planning." 

All the ones old enough were spread out across the living room of Cody and Rex's house. There were photo albums spread out. There was a scanner, computer, and printer set up to save pictures and also to print some digital pictures out if necessary. 

"I didn't realize they lived like this..." Thorn said, frowning as he looked over the room. "They don't seem to have too much for fun... and what's with this decorative scheme?"

"I think they were mostly saving their money for us," Wolffe said softly. "You know they paid for everything they needed. They helped all of us with college, cars, anything we needed."

"They're still paying for my coach," Monnk added, flipping through a photo album with a frown. "They want...ed me to not have to worry about that sort of fee while I'm working towards becoming a professional swimmer... working towards the Olympics."

Fox was looking through their papers. He gasped suddenly and shakily pulled out a folder related to Rex's cancer. "Rex was still receiving treatment for his cancer..." He flipped through and winced. "They were considering removing his leg to prevent further spread... how did we not know?"

"They never brought it up..." Ponds frowned. "But we never asked. We assumed."

Thire froze. "How much have they been doing for Boba with his leukemia? How much has Rex been doing despite feeling ill... how much have we been doing for Boba that we have not done for Rex?" 

Everyone exchanged horrified looks. 

"We're horrible brothers," Wolffe whispered, burying his head in his hands. "They've done so much for us... what have we done for them... we don't even show a base level of interest in them... why hav-had they stuck around?"

"Because Cody feels too responsible for us," Bly spoke up quietly, eyes dead, tears rolling down his cheeks. "He was the best big brother we could have asked for... and he at times acted like our third parent. He's done a lot for us every since he was a little kid. And Rex didn't have a family before grandpa... he wanted to fit in, to never get kicked out... and we never noticed."

Cody turned his face away, into Obi-Wan's chest. "I can't watch anymore."

Rex was watching still, transfixed but also sad. "Me either."

"Very well." Obi-Wan took them back to the little room he brought them to originally. 

"They really would miss us..." Rex said with wonder. "But... they don't realize what they're doing... I... I don't know what to do with this information."

Obi-Wan hummed. "It's up to you. Whatever you want to do. All I am going to do is return you to the moment I took you from or guide you on your way to the afterlife." He very carefully kept the sadness out of his voice. He had done the one thing angels weren't supposed to do. He had fallen in love with his charges. And he could not show it.

Cody took in a deep breath and let it out. "Let's... Let's go back, Rex. I love you... I think we need to give our lives a second chance. We... we should take a step back if they don't realize, and take care of ourselves. Rex... you're about to lose a leg, we should be focusing on that, not on what we can do for Boba."

Rex nodded shakily. "You're right... you're right. I'm scared but I'm never as scared when I'm with you... we can get through this..."

Obi-Wan smiled. "Alright. I can return you to that moment?"

Cody glanced at him and turned to Rex, pulling Rex into a hug. They whispered together, then nodded. 

Cody kissed Obi-Wan. "This is weird but I think you're amazing. You... you've been better to us than most have. And you have been trying not to overstep or anything, caring about our feelings instead of just keeping us alive and... thank you." 

Before Obi-Wan could recover from the kiss and ramble, Rex was kissing him. "Thank you, Obi-Wan. This... this was something I didn't know I needed. I had never considered how much my past was still affecting me and I never realized just how... one-sided things get sometimes."

Obi-Wan shook himself out of the daze. "Well that is the nicest thank you I have ever received. You two are brilliant men. You deserve better in life, and you should look for it yourselves. Whatever makes you happy, whatever is going to help you in life."

They both nodded. 

Cody smiled. "If we had met outside of whatever this is... I think we would have liked to date. Btu it's not meant to be..." He took a deep breath. "Rex? Ready?"

"Yeah, I think so." Rex squeezed his hand.

Obi-Wan shook himself out of his stunned stupor. "Very well, let us get you out of here." He set them back to the moment he took them from. 

They wanted to date him. That was an amazing feeling. The two amazing me he had been guarding for years actually would want that for him. But... he had his duty. Right?

.

Rex blinked and groaned at the sight of the white ceiling above him. He wasn't bothered by any of the machines around him. He was quite used to them after spending so much time in the hospital after his diagnosis. 

"Rex!" Wolffe exclaimed, squeezing his hand. "You're awake!"

Rex groaned. "And regretting it..."

"Don't say that!" Wolffe said sharply, grip tightening.

Rex blinked at him in confusion.

"We nearly lost you," Wolffe said quietly. "I don't want to lose you. Please don't regret being awake and alive."

Rex blinked at the normally stoic man next to him. "Uh, right. Shouldn't you be with Boba? Where is he? How's he doing?"

Wolffe stared at him. "Boba is just fine, now that he's warmed up. They're keeping an eye on him in case he gets sick, but you've already caught pneumonia, so they're concerned about you... Cody is doing better than you but worse than Boba..."

"Oh, good. I'm glad Boba is awake." Rex was not really bothered he caught pneumonia. His immune system was compromised. Getting sick after that dip in the pond and nearly drowning was a given. "I'll get a nurse in here, and you can go sit with him." Rex pressed the button. 

Wolffe shook his head. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Why not?" Rex asked, genuinely confused.

"You could have died! You need someone sitting with you!"

Rex shrugged. "Not my first go around in the hospital in the last few months. Cody's not always able to sit with me, you know."

Wolffe stared at him. "What are you talking about?" he asked slowly.

Rex gave him a weird look. "I have bone cancer, I've been getting treatment for a few years now. And I've gotten really sick a few times and gotten stuck here. I know we told you and the others about that." He normally wouldn't be so blunt but he knew he had to be... if nothing else, because Obi-Wan told them to.

Wolffe stared at him some more. "It's been that serious?"

"Uh? Yeah? It's cancer? I'm probably going to lose my leg in a month or two anyways. Cancer is slowly spreading, and nothing is working. Best we can do is hope it's not too late."

"You're going to lose your leg?" Wolffe asked, shaken. "But you... you've been acting normal?"

"Yeah. Boba needed us to. He's only just started to get better."

Wolffe looked down and started crying. 

Rex stared at him, uncertain of what to do. 

"Uh... Wolffe? I don't understand what you're upset about?"

"You've been dying and none of us knew. You could have died at any time and it would've surprised us and you haven't stopped being who you are, you haven't stopped doing everything you can for Boba."

"Well... he is Cody's little brother. Mine too, I guess."

"I'm staying." Wolffe said firmly. "You shouldn't be alone in the hospital and next time, call me if you're going to be alone. 

"I don't want to impose."

"You're as good as my brother- adopted by my grandpa, and married to my brother. Of course I'm going to come and sit with you, idiot."

"I... you don't have to you know."

"Oh, I know. But I want to. I want to make sure you're okay. That you're not about to actually die on us. And apparently we need to have a talk about how much you've been supporting each of us and asking for none of that in return."

"It's okay." 

"No. It's not. I love you. I don't want to see you suffer."

Rex stared at him. "I..."

He was saved from his confusion by the nurse. He didn't think it was going to be that easy. That it would just take a near death experience to start getting the appreciation they wanted. 

He wondered if Fox was with Cody. If Cody was going through his own version of this strange feeling of being cared for.

Cody was. He wasn't sure what to do with all the fussing. He was just confused. "Fox... what are you doing?"

Fox glared at him. "I nearly lost you. I am not going to leave you alone until I'm sure you're going to be okay. Now... favorite foods?"

Cody stared at him and gave him the information he wanted, still confused and maybe a little touched. Fox truly did care, no matter how little he showed it. That was nice.

.

Rex and Cody got better. When they left the hospital, they were amazed that apparently their brothers really did think they needed more attention. They were getting fussed over, they were being acknowledged. 

Rex received the news they would be taking his leg in two months calmly. He had known it was coming and it was easy to accept that decision. It was going to be rough, but he didn't have much of a choice.

A month after being released from the hospital, Cody and Rex sat at a coffee shop, making plans for the next year of living for themselves. 

"Mind if I join you?" A familiar voice asked.

They looked up. It was Obi-Wan, though his wings were gone.

Cody stared but moved over. "I thought..."

"Oh, I chose to retire. Living among mortals sounds far more interesting. So here we are."

"Yeah... Can we date?" Rex blurted out without thinking.

Obi-Wan laughed, eyes dancing with mirth. "Why do you think I am here, right now?"