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His skin itches. His hands are cold and his fingernails feel like they’re going to shoot out of his fingers. The hair on the back of his neck is standing up and rubbing up against his shirt. He feels like his skeleton is going to shake out of his skin. He feels..utterly terrible. And the thought of going home to his annoying roommate sounds like extra hell.
Well, that’s not entirely true. He likes Kaveh a lot. He’s calm and feels like home when Alhaitham walks through the door. But when all Alhaitham needs is to go home and curl up in his bed with Whitey, Kaveh is..helpful.
Regardless, Alhaitham storms through the front door of their shared home. He throws his bag down by the door and immediately heads to his room to find his weighted blanket to hide under so that he can calm down before going to visit Kaveh. And when he reaches his bedroom, the weighted blanket isn’t there.
Alhaitham takes in a deep, exaggerated breath. Tries to calm the trembling in his hands and his raging heartbeat in his ears. He is two seconds away from a meltdown.
Today honestly wouldn’t even have been that bad had Azar not come to visit him in his office. The man spoke to him, then was enraged because Alhaitham didn’t have his hearing aids on. Alhaitham had pointed out that his DO NOT DISTURB sign was on the door, but Azar tried to make the point that Alhaitham was at work and should always have his aids on.
That was honestly the last straw before Alhaitham left early for the day. Which now made sense as to why his blanket wasn’t on his bed. Kaveh said he was going to wash it while he was gone today. And here was Alhaitham. Home early. Alhaitham took a moment to settle himself. It was technically his fault his blanket wasn’t ready yet.
He takes a small comfort in the fact that his blanket would be warm when it was done.
Regardless, Alhaitham decides to check on Kaveh before he finally drops for the night, and finds him in his own room sitting at his desk. The man is hunched over his desk, one hand fisted in his hair and the other wrapped around a pencil above a sketch. So, Alhaitham walks over and slaps his shoulder. “Hey. Get up. Stretch. Move. I-Idiot.”
That tiny stutter in Alhaitham’s tone alerts Kaveh, and he turns around quickly to see him. The look in Alhaitham’s eyes is too telling. They’ve been living together long enough for him to know. That look, the softness and worry, means that Alhaitham is about to drop.
Kaveh smiles softly, cocking his head a bit and reaching for Alhaitham’s hand. “Haitham, how was your day?” he asks quietly. Alhaitham shudders.
Kaveh knows him too well.
“It was fine. Leave me alone..”
Kaveh stands and pushes in his chair, taking his hands in his own and giving him another calm smile. “Okay, well, I’m gonna go braid my hair on the couch. Do you want to come with me? Body double?”
Alhaitham is quiet for a moment but finally nods and then runs back off to his own room. He tears off his stuffy, tight clothes that he wore to work and shudders when he feels the chilly air conditioning through the vent. Hating being cold, he dives for the cozy sweater and pants buried deep in his clothing drawers. Those go on quickly and then he fumbles with his socks, struggling to get them on. His fingers and his slipping mind are just not cooperating, and frustrated tears are springing to his eyes.
Eventually, he gives up, leaving it up to Kaveh to fix, and moves for his closet to dig around for his things. In a pastel green box, a gift from Kaveh, he finds what he’s looking for. His pacifiers, diapers for when he’s extra regressed, teethers, toys, and his prized possession, his stuffed parrot, Whitey. Alhaitham gathers her and one of his pacifiers into his hands and then bustles back out to Kaveh.
He finds him on the couch, leaned over a mirror and focused on braiding his pretty blonde hair. Alhaitham trots over and sits, turning to put his feet in Kaveh’s way. “Socks,” he mumbles, his voice far softer and lighter than Kaveh usually hears it. But he minds not, putting down his clips and turning to fix Alhaitham’s socks for him. Once they’re in place, he rises from his spot and goes to get Alhaitham’s favorite book. The two of them have read it together countless times but it makes him happy the same way every single time.
For a book on burial tactics in Inazuma, Alhaitham always lights up when he sees the book in Kaveh’s hand. And he does so just as expected when Kaveh comes back. He reaches for it with little grabby motions of his hands and gets it placed in them soon enough. Then, Kaveh reaches for his pacifier, pops it between the little boy’s lips, and settles Whitey close next to him.
“Haitham, can I braid your hair? I promise it won’t take long. I’ll even use the dark clips you like, okay?” Alhaitham considers this quietly for a time. He really likes when Kaveh touches his hair, His fingers are always super gentle and he makes him look pretty. So he nods, and smothers his blush in his book when Kaveh gets excited. The blonde runs off for just a moment before he returns with his box of clips. Then, he gets to work on his hair.
Things are quiet for a while. Alhaitham reads through the book for the millionth time and Kaveh spreads an outie braid through his hair. When he finishes, he steps back to admire his work. And Alhaitham looks up. “Why stop?” he lisps behind his binky.
Kaveh smiles at him. “I’m all done, sweetheart. I’m going to put some music on for you and get to cooking dinner, okay? I’ll be just in the kitchen so no need to worry about me leaving, little one.” Alhaitham’s chest flutters at the attention and he nods.
As Kaveh walks out, Alhaitham thinks about how lucky he is. He’s never had a caregiver before Kaveh, and Kaveh never even said that he was one. But he takes care of Alhaitham’s needs and wants so effortlessly like this. He just naturally flowed into the role. And he loves having Kaveh’s attention and care like this. He lets him dress him, feed him, bathe him, and tuck him into bed at night. And it makes him feel so warm and safe and loved. Kaveh was an excellent addition into his age regression, even if he doesn’t know it.
Time passes quickly, with quiet music playing in their home and the lovely smell of Kaveh cooking away in the kitchen lulling Alhaitham off to sleep on the couch. His book is slipping and Whitey is getting closer and closer to his chest. And it feels like just as Alhaitham finally closes his eyes, Kaveh steps over and taps him. “Little? Food is done. Come on to the table.”
Alhaitham whines quietly but sits up regardless. He tucks Whitey into the couch securely and makes sure she won’t fall over before finally pattering away to the table. Kaveh has pulled out his chair, and pushes it right back in when Alhaitham sits down. Kaveh sits close by. He has an entire steak on his plate with a pile of vegetables. Meanwhile, Alhaitham’s portion is cut smaller, and less, and his vegetables are all in baby sized pieces. There’s also a sippy cup of juice in front of him contrary to Kaveh’s wine glass.
Dinner is quiet. Alhaitham is old enough to eat on his own, though through exhaustion pulling at his eyelids. But soon enough, his beef and veggies are gone and he’s suckling on his sippy cup sleepily, curled in a ball on his chair. Kaveh finishes soon after that, standing and taking the younger boy’s plate and his own to the sink. When he comes back, he offers his hand to Alhaitham and leads him back to the couch. He sits on the end and watches with ease as Alhaitham lowers himself onto the couch, tucks his stuffie friend close to his chest, and lies his head on Kaveh’s thigh.
Kaveh will only let him nap for about thirty minutes, but he knows it’ll be just enough energy to get him through bath and snack time before he actually needs to put the young lad down for bed. So, he grabs a book he’d been reading and allows Alhaitham to snooze off in his lap.
Eventually, the thirty minutes pass, and Kaveh puts his book down to the side. Alhaitham looks so helplessly cute sleeping there, hands balled near his face and Whitey pillowed in his grasp. But Kaveh shakes him anyway, listening to the boy complain quietly before allowing himself to be pulled up. The two of them make their way to the restroom down the hall. Alhaitham sits on the toilet seat while Kaveh deposits Whitey in the bedroom before coming back and helping Alhaitham undress. Off comes his shirt and cozy bottoms before his underwear and socks on his feet. Once those are placed to the side safely, Kaveh starts the warm water, and when it’s the right temperature, he clogs the drain to fill the tub. “Kaveh?” comes Alhaitham’s voice, tiny and a bit stammered. He motions at his head and watches as Kaveh realizes that the boy’s hair is still up in the clips. And they’re removed soon enough.
Alhaitham is soon lifted into the bath water, sitting silently as Kaveh scoops water at him. “Do you want to use the fancy stuff? Or yours?” Kaveh asks, knowing how particular Alhaitham is, even as a child. But oddly enough, the boy reaches for the sparkling bottle of Kaveh’s expensive shampoo, shoving it into Kaveh’s hands. And so, the bath goes by, Kaveh using his own expensive products to satisfy Alhaitham. Shampoo, conditioner, then a good scrub with the body wash. Finally, a good cleanser for his face. The boy is then rinsed, thankfully not getting soap in his eyes.
When bath time is all over, Kaveh lifts Alhaitham up by the armpits and brings him to sit on the side of the tub as he meticulously dries the boy’s hair. Once it’s soft and full of life again, Kaveh gets him some comfortable pajamas and puts them on the counter while he dries Alhaitham’s body. And when that’s done, Kaveh dresses him carefully, pulling the soft sweater over his head and tugging the comfortable pants up his legs. When the boy is dressed, his head droops a bit, signaling to Kaveh that the poor thing must be exhausted. “Why don’t you go get into bed, sweetie? I’ll get your weighted blanket from the dryer.” At the mention of his blanket, Alhaitham shoots to his feet and toddles off to his room. He pulls himself under the sheets quickly, Whitey tucked under his arm as the two of them wait for Kaveh.
He returns soon enough, muted green weighted blanket over his arm. “Here, baby.” And soon enough, the baby is tucked under the sheets and weighted blanket, perfectly pinning him down with pressure to sleep. Kaveh leans down to kiss him on the forehead before whispering, “sleep well, Haitham.” Alhaitham is already half asleep as Kaveh steps away to turn on the nightlight by the door before walking out.
And once Kaveh knows Alhaitham is drifting away peacefully, he goes back to his desk, and back to worrying.