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After so many years, Alex knew all of Henry’s moods. He knew when Henry was in a mood to isolate himself, or when he was overthinking, or when he was trying to keep a secret from Alex – usually something good Henry wanted to surprise Alex with – or when he was just quiet. And right now, Henry was in one of his moods, probably the overthinking one, it was a little early to tell yet.
Alex was trying to respect his time because he knew the love of his life needed time when he got in one of his moods, and Henry would end up sharing it with Alex – whatever it was that was bothering him –, he just needed time. But Alex always worried when he got like that.
Only, at this moment, did he have to leave Henry to his musings because he had to go to work. So, Alex stopped at the door of their study and called his husband softly.
“Henry? Babe?”
Henry was seated on the sofa by the study window, turned to it, and spacing out. However, Alex’s voice brought him back for a moment.
“Alex” He murmured.
“I’m going to work, okay, Babe?” Alex got a nod in response. “Call me if you need me. At any time.”
“Okay.” Henry whispered.
Alex smiled at him and got a smile back, then Henry turned his face back to the window. He almost called in sick, but Alex remembered he had an important vote to participate in that day, so he left Henry by himself. On his way out of the house, Alex instructed their butler – Omar wasn’t the typical butler, he was more a security guard than anything else, but they called him butler just for fun, or at least Alex did – to keep a closer eye on Henry and call if something happened.
By the time he headed home, Alex hadn’t gotten any phone calls from there, so he hoped everything was all right. He got in and Henry came directly to him.
“Love!” Henry said, grabbing Alex’s hands.
“Hey, babe.” Alex pecked his lips, then smiled. “How are you?”
“I’m- I’m good. I need to ask you something.”
Alex sensed that Henry was a little frantic, which meant he was still in one of his moods, and after that morning, Alex had a good guess that he had been overthinking something during the day.
“Anything.” Alex said, as he freed his hands and circled Henry’s waist with one arm, guiding him further into the house.
Alex’s goal was to get them comfortable because he could sense that whatever it was that Henry was thinking about was a serious matter. As if the universe agreed with him, David Bowie came to them at that moment and distracted Henry for a little while, because Henry never let David waiting for pets and attention. So, Alex took advantage of it and led both Henry and David to the study – closer than their bedroom and more private than their living room.
Alex sat on the same sofa where he had found Henry that morning and pulled his husband to sit on his lap, hugging him. Bowie laid down by their feet, and soon, he was snoring.
“What is it, babe?”
Henry held one of Alex's hands in his and played with his fingers. Alex waited. Minutes passed with them in quiet companionship.
“Alex…” Henry voice-whispered. “We never really talked about children, right?”
Alex tensed for an instant, his breath getting caught up in his throat before he could answer.
“I guess not…” He said as he tried to remember if that topic had ever been discussed between them more than just in passing.
Henry nodded shortly but kept silent.
“Henry. Babe. What is it?” Alex asked. “What is going on? You know we can talk about anything. Anything at all. What has got you so pensive today?”
Henry fidgeted a little more before finally speaking.
“What if I wanted to have a child?” He didn’t look at Alex though.
“Henry.” Alex sighed and freed his hand from his husband’s so he could caress his cheek and gently hold Henry’s chin, making him look at him. “Do you want to have a kid?”
He asked seriously, but Henry looked like he couldn’t answer directly so Alex closed his eyes for a second, his brain working in overdrive to figure out how to talk about such a matter when Henry seemed so uncertain about it himself. Alex opened his eyes and brought Henry closer with the hand on his chin, kissing him softly but with purpose.
“I love you.” He said with their mouths still touching. “I love you so much nothing can compare to it.” Alex put a little distance between them so they could look eye to eye. “You can tell me whatever you wish for, Henry, and I’ll do my best to fulfill your wishes. But I can’t do it if you don’t tell me about it. And we can talk about anything in the world without any prejudice because we love each other deeply.” He sighed. “So, babe, tell me, do you want to have a kid?”
Henry had misty eyes and heavily exhaled. He let his head fall on Alex’s shoulder. Alex could only hug him tightly in return and wait for Henry to speak now. It took Henry a couple of minutes, but he finally felt confident to open up.
“I always thought I wouldn’t have any because being a gay prince I didn’t want to marry a woman just to keep up with appearances, although I might be forced to before us.” He was speaking to Alex’s shoulder, but Alex didn’t make him move, the important thing now was for Henry to keep talking. “Then we got together and it’s perfect and I really, deeply love you, Alex. I still didn’t think about having a child for a long while.” Henry raised his head and looked at his husband. “But recently I started thinking about it. I can’t say what triggered it, but I wonder…” He took a breath, steadying himself. “How would our life be with a child? Do I want one? Do you want one? How will our families react? How will the world react? And when I got myself thinking of so many variables for days, I realized I wanted a child. I wanted to be a father. But only if you want it too.” Henry held Alex’s face in his hands. “Only if you truly want too. I am plenty happy with our life as it is. A child would only add to it, I think.” Henry finished, breathing heavily but feeling lighter inside, and pecked Alex on the lips, who could feel he was relieved now.
“Okay.” Alex said after a moment, his eyes on Henry’s. “I won’t simply say ‘let’s do this’ because this wouldn’t be the fair answer.” Henry nodded curtly. “But I’m also not saying no, Henry.” Alex pecked his lips to comfort his husband and to take another moment to think about what to say next. “I don’t remember asking myself a lot about having kids before. Kind of like when I didn’t really evaluate my sexuality until we kissed.” He smiled because how could he not? And Henry smiled too, relaxing in his arms. “So… I need to think about it.”
“And take notes and make lists.” Henry said lightly, comforting Alex in the depths of his heart, because now he knew with certainty that Henry was well again.
“Yeah. I need to take notes and make lists. You know me too well, babe.” They kissed again, more than a peck this time with both in need of contact.
“You have all the time you need, Alex.” Henry said after a little while. “I know I caught you by surprise and we can’t rush on such a decision because it could change many lives, not only ours.” Henry tipped his head a little and smiled sweetly. “Actually, this was the answer I needed to receive. That you will think about it. If we decide to go forward, it’s good. If we decide not to go there, then it will be good too. But it will be a decision we both will agree on, darling.”
“Yes. Definitely. I’ll consider it carefully, babe. Don’t worry.” Alex kissed the tip of Henry’s nose. “I love you. Thank you for telling me all of this.”
“Alex.” Henry melted. “I’m the one who needs to thank you for being patient once again with me.”
“Always.”
“I love you.” Henry said and hugged Alex tightly.
This was their relationship. This was them. Open talks. Difficult talks. Understanding. And love.
~*~
2 years later…
They arrived in London early in the morning and went to the residence Henry once shared with Bea. It had changed very little overall in the last years, but Bea and their mother had made it more comfortable and cozier for the family, which was great, given the new circumstances.
Catherine and Bea were standing in the middle of the entrance hall when the butler opened the front door for Henry and Alex. The couple walked inside slowly, holding hands with a toddler who waddled between them. Henry couldn’t hide his smile, although Alex could see a little twist of nervousness in it. Alex was just happy and greeted his mother-in-law and sister-in-law with a wave of his free hand.
The two women waited for them because they didn’t want to make the child nervous since it was the first time they were meeting. When the group got close together, Henry kneeled to be at the same height as the child.
“These are Aunt Bea and Grandma Catherine, Arthur. Do you want to say hello to them?”
The little boy let go of Alex’s hand and hugged Henry, hiding on the crock of his neck. Henry caressed his back.
“He is shy around new people.” Alex explained.
Although they had talked over video calls many times already, an in-person meeting was different, especially for such a young child.
“Understandable. We have plenty of time, there is no need to rush little Arthur.” Catherine said, her eyes staring softly at her son and grandson.
“How is parent life, Alex?” Bea asked jokingly.
“Challenging.” He answered sincerely. “But it’s great.”
Henry got up with little Arthur in his arms. They had adopted the 1-and-a-half-year-old boy six months ago and, as Alex said, it was challenging but oh-so rewarding.
“I’m sorry, Mom, but I think we should go up and take a nap. The flight wasn’t easy.” Henry said apologetically.
“Oh?”
“We had some turbulence.” Alex explained, caressing Arthur’s hair.
“Oh! Of course. That’s terrible.” Catherine went to the stairs, being followed by her family. “I set up Arthur’s room beside yours. I hope he will like it.”
“I had to stop mom from buying three complete baby stores to furnish and equip the room.” Bea laughed.
“I’m sure Arthur will love his room here in London, right, baby?” Henry spoke softly, trying to coax the boy to look up, but he was clearly exhausted.
Henry looked at Alex and received a reassuring smile in return.
“He will. When he is rested, he will enjoy the family and the room very much.”
Upstairs, Catherine and Bea stayed by the door of the couple’s room, observing them caring for their little child. It would take some time and adjustments, but they were certain that the new family could only thrive going forward. Love was their base and where they would always grow.