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Frank was relieved. He could finally go home. He has probably been away for about a month; there have been whispers of the Irish trying to reinsert themselves in Hell's Kitchen. So he had to make sure that those rumours stayed rumours. Now, finally, he could go home. He wondered if Matt was still up or if he had decided to go to bed to get some rest. Either way, he would like to curl up next to his boyfriend and sleep for a week or two.
He sighed as he unlocked the door and quietly slipped in. He did not expect their living room to be full of sleeping teenagers. Confusion settled as he looked around. They were all sprawled out on the couch and the floor; one was asleep on top of the coffee table, and- was that one stuck to the ceiling?
Not wanting to disturb them, Frank crept quietly towards the bedroom. He closed the door behind him and started to undress until he was in his boxers. Frank then crawled into bed and nuzzled up against Matt.
"Hey," he whispered, nosing Matt's neck. "Hey," Matt answered back sleepily. Frank planted small kisses along Matt's jaw. "Missed you, Red," he mouthed next to Matt's ear.
Matt turned, his unseeing eyes meeting Frank's, and gave a yawn. "Missed you too," Matt murmured between yawning. He nuzzled closer again, Frank, relishing in the warmth. "Red," Frank called to him softly. "Hmm?" Matt hummed back in acknowledgment. "Why are there about a half dozen kids sleeping in the living room?" Frank finally questioned.
Matt groaned and sat himself up on his elbows as he ran his hand over his face.
"It's a long story; I just keep finding them, and they won't leave me alone," he grumbled. "It started with me finding one of them with a concussion, then I found another one who had been shot, and another two who were just plain lost. Before I knew it, they were all following me around," he explained. "They won't leave me alone. They keep showing up at my doorstep with more concerning injuries every time."
Frank chuckled. He wrapped his arms around Matt, pulling him close. "Ah, so you're the unofficial vigilante parent to all the kids with powers in New York now, huh?" he teased."Shut up," Matt grumbled, but there was a smile in his voice. "It's not like I asked for this. They just keep showing up and..." He shrugged, looking at the ceiling. "I guess I can't just leave them alone when they need help."
Their breath mingled as they lay there, side by side. "You're probably the world's most awkward mother duck," Frank laughed.
"Shut up," Matt replied, but he couldn't help but smile. "Well, I can't just leave them out there to get hurt. Someone has to look after them."
There was a comfortable silence between them as they lay there in each other's arms. "So, what's this one kid's story?" Frank asked, curious. "The one who's stuck to the ceiling?"
Matt snorted. "That's Spiderman."
"Spiderman's a kid?" Frank asked, concerned. The kid had been in a lot of rough fights, and he was just that—a kid.
Matt nodded. "He's younger than you think. He's... he's tough, but he's not invincible." He sighed, resting his head back on Frank's shoulder.
"I first found him in an alleyway, concussed and beaten half to death," Matt's voice cracked. "His suit was basically pyjamas. I took him home and patched him up. I asked him why he would place himself in danger; he then told me about his uncle, who was murdered a month ago, and that he could have stopped it but didn't."
Matt heard Frank's breath hitch, but he continued, "After that, he kept coming here when he got hurt. I started to train him, just so he could better protect himself."
Frank pulled Matt closer so that the blind vigilante's head was nestled on his chest. Frank turned his head down and placed a kiss on Matt's forehead.
"You've been teaching him how to fight, huh?" Frank said softly.
"Yeah," Matt's voice was small, Frank felt his heart breaking a little. "I'm teaching him, so that... that he won't end up," there was a pause, "dead."
Taking in all this new information,. He slowly nodded. " 'M proud of you, Red. You've always been so caring." Frank held Matt tighter. A silence once again fell between them, and they soon drifted off to sleep.
——
The next morning, Matt woke up before the others. He gently extricated himself from Frank's embrace and slipped out of bed. Stretching, he headed into the living room.
Hearing that everyone was still asleep, Matt quietly padded into the kitchen. He yawned as he started the coffee pot and got started on breakfast. Matt decided pancakes were in order.
Soon, one by one, the young vigilantes started to wake up. Matt hummed a 'Good morning' to a total of four teens that were now all sitting at the kitchen counter, all in various stages of sleepiness. Peter was face down on the counter; Matt could hear him lightly snoring. Next to him was Kate, who Matt was sure was falling asleep sitting up. Then there sat America, who was leaning her head on Kamala's shoulder.
Matt smiled to himself as he moved around the kitchen and decided to turn on the radio, a habit he had picked up. As he poured himself a cup of coffee, Frank, who was now wearing Matt's oversized Colombia sweatshirt (though it fit the larger man perfectly), finally padded into the kitchen following the smell of coffee. Matt handed Frank a cup as he yawned and stretched.
Frank hummed as he took a sip, watching Matt move around the kitchen, pouring pancake batter into the pan as he hummed along to the song playing on the radio, 'We built this city'. Frank smiled a dopy little smile as he watched Matt.
He was just so... Matt. So comfortable, so caring, so strong, so capable, and so... beautiful. There was a tenderness to him that belied his rough exterior, something Frank grew to adore. And the way he moved or fought was with such grace and confidence that it was both frightening and extremely attractive at the same time.
Frank placed his coffee on the counter and walked up behind Matt.
Matt flipped a pancake and chuckled as he felt Frank nose his neck, his beard scratching at his nape. He felt Frank's hand slide down his side, settling on his hip as he began to sway to the music. "Come on, dance with me, Red," came Frank's voice. Matt could only smile, relishing how all this felt so domestic.
They danced, the two of them swaying and occasionally stealing a kiss. They felt like an old married couple, something that would have been unimaginable to them before. They moved together, their bodies in sync, as if they had been doing this for years.
Matt couldn't stop the plea of laughter from escaping him as Frank spun him and dipped him low before hoisting him back up. Their foreheads rested against each other as they still swayed, both oblivious to the audience of teenagers that they had contracted.
Matt's unseeing eyes settled on Frank's face. "I love you," Matt murmured as he reached up a hand and placed it on Frank's cheek, stroking lightly with his thumb. Matt could hear the smile forming over his boyfriend's face as he leaned down, breath ghosting Matt's lips. He allowed himself to be enveloped in Frank’s being, from his scent and touch to the steady thump of Frank’s heart. His senses slipped from the world around him and settled on Frank, as if he were the only thing that tethered Matt to the ground.
"Love you too," came Frank's rough voice, turning his head to kiss Matt.
The kiss was slow, deep, and filled with so much love that it made Matt feel weak in the knees.
"Ahem," came Peter's voice. They quickly pulled apart, now realising that they had an audience, both blushing a bright pink. "Not to ruin your moment, but I think the pancakes are burning."
The next moment, Matt smelled burning and quickly turned around. "Shit, shit, shit."
He grabbed a dish towel and carefully flipped the pancake over, hoping that it hadn't been burned beyond repair. After a few seconds, he turned the heat down and set the pan on the counter to cool. He sighed in relief as he looked at Frank.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to eat it anyway," Matt said with a sheepish grin. "You can't make pancakes without a little bit of char, right?"
"Nah, Red," Frank snorted. "With your senses? I think pancakes are off the menu."
The kitchen filled with laughter.
As it quieted down, Kate suddenly asked, "So... Daredevil and the Punisher are dating?"
Matt chuckled and nodded. "I thought that whole dancing in the kitchen would make it obvious."
"Yeah, but I had to be sure," answered Kate, "Cause now Clint owes me fifteen bucks!" The sound of laughter filled the kitchen again.