Archive of Our Own ^beta

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Endless hope, relentless joy

started with a Baby Boy

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Pale December sunrays filtered through the slit in the curtains, poking at Pedri’s eyes to wake him up. He rolled onto his other side, stretched out his arm and pouted when he felt the rumpled sheets and empty mattress. 

“Look who’s there.” The door was open and he heard his favourite voice carrying through the room. Pedri squinted and then smiled, leaning up on one elbow. 

“Hello baby,” he cooed, watching his husband come closer to the bed. Against his chest was a small, teal blue bundle, and two arms thrashed out as Gavi placed their son on the bed. 

Pedri smiled even wider as he greeted his seven month old, placing a kiss on his tiny cheek and rubbing his stomach that was wrapped into a sleep sack. 

Gavi watched the two, could watch his tiny universe for days without getting bored, and crawled back into bed as well. 

Pedri looked up, all sleepy eyes, curly strands and warm cheeks, and Gavi leaned over to kiss him. 

“Good morning, cariño,” he whispered, hand finding Pedri’s waist under the blanket. 

“Morning, my love,” he greeted back. “What time is it?” 

“Seven something,” Gavi yawned. “I just gave him a bottle, and he burped pretty quickly.” 

Leo let out a squeal, captivating both his parent’s attention as they grinned down at him. Gavi caressed his small head, the dark but soft brown hair thickening again after its phase of hair loss a few months ago. 

“Are you cheery today, hm, little man?” Pedri cooed, enthralled by the glimmering and huge brown eyes of their baby. 

From the day he was born, Pedri had known that he'd inherited Gavi’s eyes, and he couldn't have been happier about it. There was something utterly magical in recognising those features he'd fallen in love with, in his own son. 

“He always is,” Gavi muttered with a fond grin, tickling Leo’s small fist until the boy latched onto his finger, moving his papá's hand in uncoordinated motions. 

“Not when he went to sleep last night,” Pedri countered, reminding his husband of the hours filled with crying and frustrated hiccups. 

Gavi chuckled and plopped his head down on his pillow, looking up at his husband and burying his nose in his son’s soft head. He loved that baby smell of gentle cream, milk and powder; there was a chance he even liked it more than his husband’s clean fougére scent, but that chance was almost diminished each time he buried his nose in Pedri’s neck. 

“We should pack the car soon,” the Canario reminded them then, hand still splayed over Leo’s belly in mindless rubs, the baby’s legs kicking in the blue sack. “Right, bebito? You wanna get up, don't you? Crawl around and make your papas catch you?” 

Leo yelped as if he understood the words, thrashing his limbs so quickly his breath came out in little, excited pants. 

Gavi laughed and kissed the boy’s head. 

“Yeah, okay, alright. First Christmas break where we don't sleep until noon, yay,” he sighed while Pedri brought a hand into his hair and scratched Gavi's scalp the way he loved.

“You can sleep in the car, baby, I already told you that,” he told him gently.

“Pepi, if you think I’m going to make you drive nine hours on your own, think again,” he grumbled. 

“Pablito, I slept more than you tonight, I’m good to drive,” he assured him. Gavi sat up again, Leo still holding onto his finger, and he leaned closer to Pedri. 

“No, first of all, you needed the sleep, secondly, you had your stomach sliced open seven months ago, and third, I’m not letting you drive nine hours while I sleep,” he argued. 

Pedri sighed, but turned his head to kiss Gavi’s palm on his cheek. 

“You're so dramatic,” he chuckled and sat up in bed as well, pushing off the blanket. “Alright, we should really get up now. Are you hungry?” 

Gavi nodded but grabbed Pedri’s wrist when he passed his side of the bed, tugging him into his arms. 

“You haven’t hugged me yet,” he mumbled against Pedri’s stomach, and Pedri bent down to kiss his hair, massaging his scalp and just breathing him in for a moment, while their son still lay calmly on their bed. 

The entryway was a warzone. Three suitcases, even more bags, the stroller to pair with their maxi cosi to save at least some space, and a box with enough baby food for a week.

Pedri was in the kitchen, Leo babbling noises in his elevated seat and wearing an adorable dolphin body whose sleeves covered his hands. Gavi stopped by him to kiss his head, and Pedri placed a plate in front of him on the counter. 

“Thank you so much.” Gavi blew him a kiss, and Pedri grinned. 

“Can you stay with Leo while I load the car?” he asked him, biting his own half finished sandwich.

“Of course. I can pack us something for the ride, yeah? Food, I mean,” Gavi replied while he sat down next to his son. “Are you sure you can carry those-”

Pedri groaned. “Gav, I’m an athlete too, did you forget that?” 

His husband huffed. “Don't make me flirt with you with our baby right there.” 

Pedri laughed out loud and left for the door. 

When he came back, his nose was red from the cold, a warm white jacket – Gavi's – embracing him. 

“It’s even colder than yesterday, did you wash his gloves?” 

Gavi halted and looked up at Pedri, eyes wide and lips pressed together.

“Gavi…” the older one sighed in frustration. “I explicitly asked you to-”

“I was going to do it!”

“Great, but that doesn't help us a lot right now! We only have one pair for now, and he can't wear them after vomiting all over them,” Pedri argued back, volume increasing. 

“We can wash them at my parent's house, Pepi, it's no problem,” he calmed him down, but Pedri huffed and pulled Leo out of his seat. 

“And what if we go outside today and his tiny fingers freeze to death?”

“Cariño, he's gonna be warm. Don't worry, okay? He’s gonna be in the car, then in the house, and his snowsuit has those glove-thingies anyways,” Gavi said, trying to relax his husband, who was still scowling with Leo in his arms. 

“I sure hope so,” he muttered before taking his son to the hallway and dressing him up warmly. 

Gavi followed not long after, carrying a small bag with lunch boxes and then sitting down on the ground next to Pedri.

“Pepi,” he sighed. Pedri just continued zipping up Leo’s onesie while the boy was slumped against his chest. 

“I’m sorry for forgetting the gloves,” he tried again, placing a hand on Pedri’s cheek to get him to look at him. His shoulders slumped and he carefully wrapped his arms around Leo before looking at Gavi. 

“It’s just frustrating, you know? This isn't the first time you forget something important and it’s always just ‘I was gonna do it’,” Pedri huffed out and Gavi nodded. 

“I know, and I’m sorry. I try to get better, do you notice when I don't forget something?” His round eyes were wide, and pleading, always like a little puppy, and Pedri had to fight the urge to just give in and coddle his husband. 

“Well, most of the time it's pretty basic standard things you remember.” He could see Gavi’s eyes transforming to being upset. “But I notice it. And I’m glad you’re trying.” 

Pablo smiled now and finally leaned in to kiss Pedri’s soft lips, that he was more than accustomed to after six years of relationship, but still never got enough of. 

“I sometimes still feel like I’m not important when you forget certain things,” Pedri admitted quietly when they broke apart, and Gavi pouted. 

“No, it’s not- it doesn't matter what the task is or who gave it to me, and I remember more of your stuff than my own, you know that,” he explained, causing Pedri to chuckle. 

“Yeah, I do know that.” He stole another kiss from Gavi. “Love you.” 

The Sevillan grinned. “Love you more.” 

He leaned down to Leo then, kissing his cheeks. 

“And you have no idea how much I love you, eh?” 

The little boy grinned, clapping his hands on Gavi’s face with a giggle, causing his parents to laugh as well. 

“You can't hit your papa, Leo,” Pedri gently scolded in a high-pitched voice, and Gavi leaned forward to kiss his son’s nose again, then again and again, relishing in his giggles. 

About half an hour later everything was finally packed, locked and buckled up. Pedri sat behind the wheel, Leo made little sounds from the backseat, and Gavi’s eyes fluttered closed as the car rolled out of their driveway. 

“Wake me up in an hour, yeah?” he mumbled, a hand on Pedri’s thigh.

“I think we can leave the waking up to Leo with full confidence,” he joked, and Gavi snorted with a look over his shoulder. 

Pedri knew the peace and quiet that filled his Porsche wouldn't last for long, but he soaked up every minute of it. Beéle’s voice rang lowly through the speakers, the highway was a bit misty and Gavi’s head was already rolling to the side. 

He enjoyed driving cars, he really did. There was something so comfortable about the way it felt to control a whole vehicle, about the smoothness of rushing past the trees and being in your own orbit. 

He could still hear his baby’s intelligible noises and smiled. To their luck, Leonardo’s little brain was perfectly stimulated by looking out the window when they drove by car and often even fell asleep from it, making it very easy to travel with him. It was part of the reason they decided to neither fly down to Tenerife this Christmas, nor fly to Sevilla, instead taking the long way down by car. 

“Bebito, you excited? You’re gonna meet your great grandma this week,” he told his son and looked into the rearview mirror that reflected the mirror they strapped to the seat opposite Leo so they could see him. The boy squealed, Pedri laughed and felt Gavi’s hand twitch on his thigh. 

Something he could never stop adoring was his husband’s transformation into a dad. He’d always known Gavi would be a good dad, with all the experience with his little cousins and the love he had for children, but even during his pregnancy had he felt a huge shift. 

Gavi no longer slept like a rock, but woke up as soon as Pedri moved or said his name, as if he was alert for any sign of discomfort from his husband. After Leo’s birth, his sleep became even lighter, responding to every sound he heard. Not once did he complain when Pedri felt unwell or needed a snack at two in the morning, nor did he show any weakness after a night of waking up, feeding and changing their son’s diaper every hour. He was always there, always soft and ready to calm his two boys down – something that before had been Pedri’s task. Years of relationship, working on himself and maturing had kept Gavi’s eternally big heart big, but his emotional outbursts smaller, and he’d even received only three yellow cards in his last season. 

Pedri glanced over, at the soft wavy strands falling across Gavi’s forehead, and chuckled at the snores that left his mouth; a habit he would probably never lose. 

He'd already been driving for around ninety minutes and was anticipating the whiny cry from the backseat when it came. 

“Shh, Leo, it's okay, we’re here, we’re here,” he quickly told him and stretched a hand backwards, but grimaced when he couldn't reach him. 

Gavi shifted in the seat and opened his eyes, turning around like he often did during the night, and reaching over. 

“Did he sleep?” he asked in a hoarse voice, Pedri nodded. “Without a dummy?” 

“I think so, he was looking out the window and talking and at some point he stopped.”

The baby boy kept crying, Gavi tried to hush him to no result, so Pedri parked the car on the nearest breakdown bay. 

“Can you go sit next to him?” 

Gavi was already out of his seat at the question, settling into the back and giving Leo a pacifier with reassuring words. 

“He's probably hungry,” Pedri concluded as their son continued letting out muffled whines and spitting out the dummy. Gavi agreed with him, still trying his best to calm down the boy without taking him out of the seat, and Pedri started driving again.

“There's a pull-in like ten minutes away.”

“Perfect,” Pablo sighed. 

When Leo was finally out of his seat and in Pedri’s arms, a warm bottle in his mouth, his brown eyes fluttered shut and he only let out tiny grunts as he drank. 

Gavi's head was on Pedri’s shoulder, both of them sitting in the backseat, and he slipped a hand over their son’s head. 

“You want me to drive next?” he whispered, but Pedri smiled at him and shook his head.

“No, I’m good. Maybe in one or two hours? And maybe you should stay here with Leo?” 

Gavi kissed his neck softly. “Okay, as you wish, baby,” he mumbled. 

The bottle was empty, Leo propped up on Pedri's shoulder to burp, and Gavi took the chance to lean in and kiss his husband.

Pedri hummed and smiled, then mumbled against his lips.

“Won't be lots of alone time these next weeks.” 

Gavi applied just a little more pressure, more passion, to the kiss, as if to savour every second of their solitude. If one could call it that. 

Leo spitting out milk over the towel on Pedri’s shoulder broke them apart again, and after changing his diaper, strapping him back in and sitting down, the journey continued.

The drive went by smoother than expected. They switched three times, put in a few small and two bigger breaks when Leo got cranky and they both got hungry, taking a slow walk over the rest stop once as well. 

At almost half past nine in the evening, they finally arrived at the Gavira house, each one of the three equally tired. 

Leo cried as soon as they pulled him out of his baby seat, a warm welcome for Pablo’s parents who opened the door just then. 

“Mijos, we missed you so much!” Gavi's mum stepped out immediately, embracing and kissing her son before moving on to Pedri and Leo as well, beaming with joy. 

Pedri let himself fall into her embrace for a second. Throughout their marriage and especially the pregnancy, he’d really found a second mother in Belen. The woman was full of warmth that she didn't hesitate to shower her loved ones with – just like another certain someone in her family – and whenever Pedri’s own mum hadn't been available, Gavi's proved to be a precious support. 

Gavi's father quickly came out as well, welcoming them equally as warmly and carrying everything inside without being asked. Pedri could see him massage his son’s shoulders and kiss his head, and smiled. 

“We waited with dinner, come on in!” Pablo Sr. ushered them inside, grinning fondly at his grandson, who was watching everything with wide eyes and suckled on his dummy, a tiny fist curled into his papá's jacket. 

Leo was still cranky when they sat down at the table, hiding his face in Pedri’s sweater and whining every other minute despite Pedri rocking him in his arms. 

Belen smiled at him in compassion. “He must be completely overwhelmed,” she sighed, and Pedri scrunched up his face. 

“Oh yeah, he is, I think I’m going to have to bring him to bed and say goodnight as well,” he replied ruefully, but both of Gavi’s parents immediately waved him off and voiced their understanding. 

“I’ll be with you in a minute, amor, and I’ll bring you your plate,” Gavi told his husband. 

“Take your time,” he murmured before kissing his head. 

“No no, I’ll come soon, really,” he assured him, missing the way his parents smiled proudly at the little family. 

Gavi did in fact enter the room only fifteen minutes after Pedri, smiling tiredly at where his husband sat against the headboard and fed their son. 

He quickly grabbed the diaper bag, pulled out the sleep essentials, laid them out and then changed into Pedri’s shirt and boxer shorts himself.

“I think I might fall asleep right here,” Pedri chuckled, and Gavi quickly crawled over and kissed his cheek.

“Give him to me when he's done and get ready for bed, precioso,” he ordered gently, so that’s what they did.

Pedri came back with brushed teeth and his pyjama on, slipping under the blanket and dropping his head on Gavi’s thigh. The Sevillan was still rocking Leo in his hold, the baby boy squirming and fussing in his sleep sack. 

“You still need to eat, Pepi,” Gavi reminded him, but the older one only turned and hid his face in his thigh. 

“I’m too tired and not hungry anymore,” he murmured, causing Gavi to sigh. 

“You need to eat. I'll feed you once Leo’s asleep, no discussion,” Gavi ordered. Pedri groaned, already embarrassed at the prospect, but he knew his husband was right and that protesting wouldn't get him anywhere. 

He turned around, smiling at the bundle right above him and his loved one's face looking down at their son. 

“Are you okay, Pepi?” Gavi asked softly. Pedri reached up a hand and caressed his cheek.

“I’m okay, just tired. But happy to be here,” he answered with a smile. 

“I’ll cuddle you in a second,” he promised with a grin. Leo let out a louder cry again, but it was one of those that indicated he was almost asleep, so Gavi continued rocking him and kissed his forehead. 

“He's so pretty, just like you,” Gavi said then.

“He's definitely got your eyes, though,” Pedri mumbled with a fond smile. 

“Yeah but he has your cute little mouth, and nose, and smile and cheeks.” He leaned forward, pressing a few more kisses to his son's head, whose eyes closed at each touch. The baby boy let out a content sigh now, his fingers jerking as he yawned again, then finally kept his eyes closed. 

Gavi felt his heart constrict at the sight, like it did at least five times a day with the little wonder in his arms, and Pedri chuckled.

“He’s such a sucker for affection,” he whispered. 

“Not surprising, he’s got it doubled through his genes,” Gavi snickered and placed a hand on his husband’s shoulder, tracing calming circles and hearts. Pedri closed his eyes with a smile and Gavi almost laughed at just how equally both his son and husband were acting right now. 

“You’re such a baby,” he cooed, squeezing Pedri’s cheek, who now swatted his hand away. 

“‘M not,” he mumbled. 

“Yes, you are. My little baby.” He used his Leo-voice, moving his hand to ruffle Pedri’s hair until he caught his wrist.

“So what, you have two babies?” 

“Yes! I have two babies,” he cheered softly and pressed a careful kiss first to Leo, then bent over to do the same to Pedri, who couldn't avoid smiling now.

Leo was finally placed in the baby cot beside the bed, the dummy already spit out in sleep, and Gavi held his promise of forcing Pedri to eat. 

“But I’m so tired, bebé, I just wanna sleep, I’m not hungry,” he complained, burying his face in Gavi’s chest. Gavi didn’t listen, only picked up a fork of rice and held it to Pedri’s lips. The Canario glared but pried the fork out of his hand and began eating, much to his husband’s satisfaction. 

“Now I have to brush my teeth again,” Pedri grumbled when they were both done eating, and Gavi laughed. 

“Come on, I’ll do it for you.” He tugged Pedri out of bed, catching him in his arms and kissing his cheek at what a tired ball he was, then brushed his teeth gently as Pedri sat on the toilet seat with his eyes half closed. 

“I love you,” he murmured through his toothpaste-covered mouth, and Gavi laughed and leaned down to kiss his forehead.

“What?”

Pedri stood up to rinse his mouth, then repeated his words and slung his arms around Gavi’s neck. 

“I love you too,” the Sevillan murmured and carried him back to bed, where he covered him in tired, gentle kisses. 

Pedri was curled up on Gavi’s chest when Leo’s hoarse cry tore through their sleep. As if on autopilot, he lifted himself up and climbed over his husband, whose hands grabbed his waist as if to make him stay. 

“Let me,” Gavi whispered and sat up as well, but Pedri pushed him down. 

“I got it, thank you, Pablito. You can take over in the morning if you want, yeah?” 

Gavi nodded sleepily, lying back down albeit still watching for any sign of needing help from Pedri. 

The Canario hoisted up their little boy, sleep sack dangling from his shoulders and his cries almost getting louder.

“Shh, bebito, you're okay, Papi’s here,” he shushed him and quickly pressed him against his chest before standing up to go to their nappy bag. 

Now Gavi sat up again and climbed out of bed as well. 

“Babe, let me prepare the bottle, come on,” he told Pedri, who just gave him a thankful nod, gave Leo a pacifier and rocked him in his arms with his eyes half open. 

During the third time that Leo woke up, at around four in the morning, he didn't stop crying no matter what Gavi did. Pedri got up, pulled off his shirt and reached for their baby, Gavi handed him over carefully but with desperation on his face. 

The second little Leo was placed on his papá's bare chest, his shrill screams turned quieter, and soon his tiny eyes closed from exhaustion and his cries turned into hiccups. 

Gavi was fascinated by his husband’s instincts once again. There had to be some kind of telepathic connection between them in order for Pedri to feel exactly what his son needed, sometimes even reacting before Leo even piped up. 

At first, he thought it was creepy, some kind of supernatural force, but he quickly realized it was more than understandable that after carrying Leo and feeling everything for nine months, he could still read his son’s emotions like an open book. 

Pedri’s hands looked protective on their boy’s tiny back, almost covering his whole upper body, and Gavi swooned a little. 

Pedri’s eyes were closed, Leo’s breath calming down with every caress. Gavi scooted closer to his two boys and placed another arm over the two, nestling his head into Pedri’s warm neck. 

“You’re incredible,” he whispered after he tugged the blanket back up around them. Pedri turned his head and huffed out a tired laugh, sloppily kissed Gavi’s face. 

“I wouldn't be without you,” he mumbled back. 

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The morning came early for the two young parents, and soon there was no point in lying in bed anymore. 

Gavi prepared them a small breakfast, putting something on the side for his parents as well, while Pedri sat on the kitchen floor playing with their son. 

Gavi could hear tiny excited gasps from Leo, and fabric rustling, so he rounded the counter and crouched down with a grin. 

“Bebé!” he whisper-shouted and stretched out his arms. Leo lifted his tiny head with wobbly motions, eyes wide in concentration as he robbed over the floor. 

“Come to papá,” Pablo cooed and made grabby hands. His baby let out an intelligible babble and hit his hands on the floor, causing both of his parents to laugh. 

“Go on, bebito,” Pedri now ushered him as well, and they both held their breath as he belly crawled further across the floor and after a few pauses arrived at Gavi's knee.

Pablo pulled him up and held him like a trophy, while Pedri clapped and cheered. 

“My baby champion! Look at you and those strong arms, eh?” Gavi attacked his baby with kisses, prising bubbly giggles out of him, and when he tried to set him back down Leo clutched the collar of his shirt and dragged it down with a frown. 

“You wanna stay with Papi?” Pedri asked him as he got up and dropped a kiss to both of their heads. “Go on, babe. I’ll bring over the food.”

After breakfast, Gavi’s sister and her husband and daughter arrived as well, and soon everyone was gathered in the dining room, gushing over the tiny boy. 

Javi had his three year old Alicia – or Lissy, as they called her – in his lap, still groggy from sleeping in the car. 

She was eyeing her baby cousin, who Aurora now took into her arms. 

“Do you remember me, Leonito?” Aurora tickled his belly and saw his lips pucker out into a pout, and almost died from the tenderness of his huge brown eyes and trembling lips. 

“I think someone wants to go back to his papá,” she then concluded and handed him back to Pedri, who smiled and cradled his son as he buried his head in his chest. 

Gavi's parents wrapped all of them up in family talk quickly, they exchanged all kinds of news for the two little ones, or their parents, not failing to look after their in-law children like they were their own. 

“Oh, Gav, we brought you the portable bottle heater,” Aurora reminded her brother then, whose eyes widened in a grateful smile. 

“Thank you, are you sure you don't need it anymore?” 

She waved him off. “Lissy usually gets one bottle before bed now, we’re all good. How did you manage the drive down here without it though?” 

Pedri chuckled. “We had a thermos with hot water, but it didn't suffice, and we had to ask at a pull-in café if they could heat water up for us,” he replied, earning them a round of compassionate laughs. 

Leo soon grew restless in Pedri’s arms, so Gavi took him upstairs to change his diaper, and when he came back, his niece was sitting next to Pedri while she showed him her new favourite miniature car. 

“Tito Gavi,” she called out as he sat down on the other side of Pedri with Leo on his thigh. 

“Yes? What do you have there?” 

Lissy held up her car and smiled proudly as Gavi took it in with awe. 

“What’s your favourite car brand? Is it this one?” he asked her. 

“Noo, what Pepi has!” She climbed into her uncle Pedri’s lap then, causing him to smile softly and exchange a look with the other adults at the table that were smiling back too. 

“Really, Porsche?” 

“Yes, Posh!” 

A few soft chuckles erupted at the table, and Pedri gave her a careful kiss to the back of her head.

“And what is this?” Gavi tapped her small car again and she took it back, inspected the logo. 

“This is Mercedes,” she proudly stated, and Gavi passed a hand over her brown hair. 

“Very good,” he cheered. Leo’s little hands shot out then, grabbing at the car with a concentrated look. 

“Oh,” Lissy let out and pulled the car back with a slight frown, causing the boy to thrash his arms in Gavi’s lap and pull down the corners of his lips. 

“Hey, sweetie, remember what you got in your backpack?” 

The small girl looked at her dad’s encouraging smile and slid out of Pedri’s lap, then came back with a small package. 

Pedri helped her back into his seat and held her hips while she opened the box. 

“Lissy, don’t open it yet,” Aurora scolded but then just laughed when her daughter looked at her with innocent eyes and the already unwrapped present. Pedri laughed as well, caressing her head and leaning closer. 

“What have you got there?” 

She pulled out a small wooden car, looked at her parents, then stretched her hand towards her cousin. 

“For Leo,” she said and smiled shyly when both Gavi and Pedri cooed. 

“That’s so cute, thank you!” Gavi caressed her cheek while Pedri kissed her hair, and she sheepishly preened at the affection. 

“She chose it herself,” Javi added. 

“Aww,” Pedri said and pulled her closer. “Do you want to play cars with baby Leo?”

She nodded and grabbed her own car again, then watched how Gavi handed the wooden car to his son who squealed and immediately nibbled at it. 

“Noo,” Lissy giggled. She carefully guided his hand away from his mouth again and showed him how to drive the car back and forth on Gavi’s thigh, and Leo babbled excitedly as he followed her motions. “Do you like de car?” she asked him, her head bent down, and he beamed at her, thrashing his legs. 

Gavi laughed. “I think that’s a yes.” 

They let the two little ones play on a blanket on the ground while they sat around the table for longer, delighting in the adorable sounds they made, always keeping an eye on them. Leo got fussy not long after, crying and reaching for Pedri, who took him and rocked him in his arms, but quickly realised the problem was his diaper. 

Alicia insisted on helping Pedri, now that she was Leo’s best friend, but quickly recoiled when she smelled and saw the contents of the nappy. 

Pedri laughed and let her watch from a distance as he cleaned his son up, then allowed her to sit in front of him and tape the fresh diaper up herself. 

“Is he always smelly?” she asked.

“Yeah, pretty much. You were the same,” Pedri told her with a chuckle, and she turned around with wide eyes.

“What? I never smoll so much!” 

He bit back a laugh. 

“You never smelled so much? But you also wore diapers, peque,” he told her and watched her frown. 

“But now not. And now Leo fresh too,” she declared, buttoned the body and pulled the trousers back up with Pedri’s help.

“Good job!” He raised his hands for a high-five, and Lissy grinned proudly, then leaned down and kissed her cousin’s hand. Leo grabbed her hair on instinct, and she yelped, but Pedri luckily entangled the two quickly and hoisted his son back on his shoulder. 

The three year old didn't shut up about changing the diaper all by herself and claimed to be Leo’s new parent, painting amused faces all through the family. 

She gave him a new toy every time he started to get cranky, begged Gavi to put him in her lap on the sofa, sang songs for him and insisted to be the one who gave him his bottle, but the little boy didn't stop crying in her arms, so she had to resort to watching over Gavi’s shoulder as he fed their son. 

When noon broke in, Gavi took his little family upstairs for a nap, and he smiled softly when Pedri passed out the second their son was asleep. He cuddled up behind him, wrapping his husband up in his arms and enjoying the warmth of his favourite person. 

He was still awake for a while, and buried his face in Pedri’s neck, smelling it and placing gentle kisses on his soft skin. Pedri exhaled and turned around in his sleep, one hand coming up to Gavi’s hair and grabbing it without any force behind it, while he threw his leg over his husband’s waist. 

Pablo smiled and pulled him closer, still kissing his forehead carefully where it rested against his lips, and soon fell asleep as well, even if not for long. 

This part of his life, these calm moments of affection that they’d practiced for years and never got enough of, had to be one of his favourites. 

When he was younger, he hadn't imagined that one day he could be so used to a person and their body and mind and touch, and it would only fuel his obsession even more. 

Because there was something so utterly exciting, almost holy, in the way he knew Pedri like the back of his hand. He could retrace every single muscle and scar and bump in his skin, knew exactly where to touch his man and what reaction he would get out of it, could sense without looking how Pedri felt, or what he needed. 

In the afternoon, the family was back together and decided to go to the Christmas market nearby. 

Leo was warmly wrapped up in his stroller, watching how the sky turned dark above his head as he kept shaking his little rattling zebra toy, delighted in the sounds he created. 

Pedri was further in front, Lissy’s tiny hands clasped in his and Pablo’s dad’s, swinging their arms back and forth. Javi and Aurora were walking next to them, arm in arm and laughing at their daughter’s lively retellings. Gavi pushed the stroller while his mamá walked beside him, and they watched with quiet smiles as Pedri picked up the little girl to sit her down on her abuelo’s shoulders. 

He looked so pretty in the glittering lights of the market huts, the rosy hue on his cheeks and nose, the curls pushed onto his forehead by the hat, like a painting Gavi had hung up in his room as a kid and never wanted to stop looking at. 

Belen nudged her son when she noticed his gleamy stare on his husband’s face. He gave her a sheepish grin. 

“Made the right choice, hm?” she asked him softly, and Gavi’s grin widened. 

“The best,” he exhaled, like the thought of how lucky he was made him breathless. His mum rubbed his back and smiled proudly. 

“Every time I see you two, and now you three, I feel so… calm,” she admitted, catching her son’s attention.

“Calm?” he asked quietly. 

“Because everything is just right. You’re in good and happy hands, you’re a safe place for Pedri, and now I see Leo and the joy and love that you transfer to him and…” Her voice broke just a little, and Gavi quickly stopped to wrap an arm around her. 

“Aw, mamá,” he whispered and kissed her cheek. “You know we’re like this partly because of you, right? I can never thank you enough for being the best mum on earth.” 

Belen swatted at his hands and brushed away a stray tear, laughing through the sentiments. 

“I’m proud of you,” she managed to add, and Gavi kissed her cheek again. 

“Thank you, mami,” he told her lovingly, and the air was a bit warmer when they continued walking behind the rest of their family.

They stopped at a big hut and got in line for some food, and Pedri came back to his two boys with a plate of tapas and migas. He leaned into his husband and kissed his cheek slowly, like he was savouring the warmth, and Gavi wrapped an arm around him.

“Hi, amor,” he murmured and smiled down at where Pedri bent closer to look at their son. 

“When did he fall asleep?” he asked as he leaned back up and into Gavi’s hold, who pulled him closer. 

“Just a few minutes ago,” he replied and relished in the way Pedri let himself fall into his embrace even here in public. “Are you cold?” he asked him softly, and Pedri shook his head, but Gavi still wrapped his hands up in his and scoffed.

“You’re so cold,” he scolded. 

“I’m okay,” Pedri argued but made no move to pull away from Gavi’s bigger hands. He smiled sheepishly and kissed Pablo chastely on the lips, then chuckled when Gavi’s eyes were still closed when he pulled back. 

“You’re so needy,” he joked and squeezed his hands. 

“Yeah, sure, I’m the needy one. Not the guy who was begging to be touched for months with a literal baby inside him,” he countered with an amused expression. Pedri kicked his foot.

“I was pregnant and full of shit hormones, that doesn't count.” 

Gavi made a humorous hum and nodded exaggeratedly. “Sure. You so didn’t act the same way before or after,” he teased and pulled his husband closer, who snorted.

“Shut up.”

And Gavi did, using his lips to kiss Pedri’s cold knuckles instead. 

On the other side of the standing table, Aurora grinned at the two, her adoration unmistakable. Javi had their daughter on his hip as he fed her a few churros, and Aurora nudged him to nod over at her younger brother. Javi smiled and shook his head.

“Are they worse than we were?” he asked his wife, and she laughed while hugging his arm. 

“Than we were?” With that, she leaned up and kissed him shortly, feeling him smile against her lips. 

“Papá!” Alicia’s voice broke them apart again. “Stop always kissing mami, I want!” 

She puckered her lips out and made the whole family laugh, and Javi obviously indulged and pressed a series of kisses to her cheek.

“There. Good?” 

She nodded with a content hum and smiley cheeks, then dipped another churro into chocolate sauce and munched away on it. 

“She’s living the life, eh,” Gavi commented, and Lissy held out a churro for him to eat in reply. 

Leo was asleep for a while longer, and Pedri and Gavi enjoyed the stroll, now pressed up against each other as Pedri guided the pushchair and Gavi cuddled into his side. It wasn’t long before Lissy came back to them and begged to be the one pushing the stroller, so Pedri lifted a hand and let her small hands grip the handle between his own, letting her help with a wide grin, even though her head barely reached above the push bar. 

Gavi looked at them, at the effortless way Pedri seemed to manage both his niece and son, and felt a flutter in his stomach. 

When they walked back home again, Lissy was already fast asleep on her mamá’s shoulder, Leo instead was wide awake and squirming in Gavi’s hold, his big brown eyes taking in every house and tree and lantern they passed by. 

His head was wrapped up in a tiny hat with teddy ears, a beige scarf and a dark blue woollen onesuit, the now clean gloves snug around his small hands. Pedri leaned over every other second and kissed their son’s cheek, unable to help himself with how cute their baby looked, and every time Leo scrunched his face up in a delighted or surprised expression. 

At some point, he suddenly reached out for his abuela’s arms, and everyone held their breath as Gavi’s mum took the boy and let him grab onto her jacket and babble on about his surroundings. Gavi grinned widely at the happiness on his mum’s face, and Pedri nudged him giddily. 

“That’s it, guys, no matter what you bought mamá for Christmas, nothing’s gonna trump this,” Pablo’s dad commented, and his mum didn’t even protest, too wrapped in the bubble of her little grandson and his puppy eyes. 

Leo actually fell asleep in his grandma’s arms after they got home and she fed him a bottle, and when Pedri took him back to put him to bed, she kissed Pedri’s head with a smile. 

“If you want to, you can bring him to me when he wakes up tomorrow, or I can pick him up, and then you two can sleep in for once,” she offered. 

“Oh my god, that sounds so good, actually,” he laughed. “But are you sure? It’s no problem, you don’t have to sacrifice your sleep for us.”

“Please, it would be my pleasure. I can take over as long as the little one lets me, hm?” She tapped Leo’s small hand carefully, so he wouldn’t wake up, and beamed at him. Pedri agreed with a grateful sigh and hugged her tightly before retreating to bed. 

Gavi was already inside and changing into his pyjamas when Pedri entered. 

“Surprise,” he muttered while gently placing their son in his little bed. 

Gavi, now shirtless, looked at him expectantly. 

“Your mum’s gonna pick Leo up tomorrow morning so we can sleep in,” he explained, and Pablo let out a quiet groan. 

“A dream, oh my god,” he mumbled, and Pedri laughed before stepping closer and kissing him. 

Gavi’s arms immediately wound around his waist, and Pedri’s hands travelled up his chest and to his shoulders, caressing the naked skin while Gavi let out a soft sound of satisfaction at his husband’s touch. He walked him to the bed, carefully lowered him to the mattress and grinned when Pedri made a small noise of protest. 

“Bebé,” he began, but drifted off as Gavi’s lips moved against his in a hungrier rhythm now, and he didn't even notice when he spread his legs to help Gavi settle between them. 

Pablo kissed along his jaw, down his neck, one hand cradling Pedri’s cheek and the other pushing beneath his hoodie. 

“Gavito,” he breathed out with difficulties – it was clear how little one on one time they got. “Gavi, wait.” 

His husband stopped with a pout, lifted his head, and Pedri ran his hands through his soft hair. 

“Hi,” he whispered with a small laugh. “We need to stop. Leo is right there, your parents on our floor, and our niece downstairs.” 

Gavi let his head fall to Pedri’s chest and kissed him there, over the hoodie. 

“I know, I know. I wasn’t gonna do anything. Just… get a little close. I miss you so much, baby,” he whispered back, and Pedri closed his eyes when Gavi resumed his warm, lazy kisses on his neck. 

“I miss you, too,” he breathed out. “Hey, bebé.”

Gavi hummed. 

“Help me undress?” 

Gavi froze and looked up at his husband. 

“How exactly is that not doing anything?” he chuckled lowly, and Pedri rolled his eyes with a smile. 

“I’m tired, and I want to be close too. So help me get out of this so we can cuddle,” he explained and stroked Gavi’s back slowly for emphasis. 

Pablo didn't need to be told twice. He pulled the hoodie over Pedri’s head, the pants down, socks off, and kissed his ankles while Pedri laughed and kicked him playfully. They quickly slipped both under the blanket, Gavi immediately lay back down on top of Pedri, and kissed him softer this time. 

“I’ll never get tired of you,” he whispered into his mouth, and Pedri wrapped his hands around Gavi’s neck.

“Me neither, I feel like we need this whole lifetime to be satisfied. You know? Like there's still so much I wanna do with you, wanna learn about you, wanna see you do,” he replied with a sickly enamored smile, one that Gavi could only mirror. 

“And we have it,” Gavi replied in a giddy whisper. “We have this for the rest of our life.” 

Pedri pulled Gavi closer, pressed him against his body everywhere as if he wanted them to morph together. He breathed into Gavi’s neck, inhaled his scent, closed his eyes and curled his fingers into Gavi’s hair. 

“Can you touch me?” he asked softly, but not timidly. They were both past the stage of being embarrassed by their needs and utter love for the other. Gavi chuckled and kissed his shoulder. 

“Where?” 

Pedri breathed out and smiled. He grabbed his husband’s hands and placed them on his chest. 

“Everywhere. Just…” 

And Gavi nodded, understanding without needing words. 

He slid down from Pedri’s body, curled into his side, head on his shoulder, and let his fingers begin their dance on his favourite body. He traced his muscles slowly, his arms, his collarbones, his soft stomach, and pressed a kiss to his shoulder every now and then.  

Pedri’s hand was still buried in his hair, scratching Gavi’s scalp deliciously. 

“Good?” he murmured, voice extra raspy to feel Pedri’s fingers tighten in his hair. 

“Mhm,” the Canario replied. Something shifted in his breath when Gavi reached his lower stomach, and Gavi already knew what it was. 

“Pepi,” he whispered and propped himself up on one elbow. Pedri’s eyes were preoccupied as they tried to focus on his husband. Gavi made sure their eyes were locked when he brought his pointer finger down to Pedri’s scar. “Feel that?” 

Pedri nodded with furrowed brows. Gavi continued slowly, and gently, stroking his fingertips over the long scar, back and forth. He smiled, one of those infatuated smiles only Pedri was ever witness to, and kissed his nose. 

“Remember the moment we saw Leo for the first time?” 

Pedri nodded and his eyes softened.

“Remember how happy we were? How nothing mattered except for our baby and our love for him?” 

Pedri nodded again.

“And our love for each other? Remember how you kissed me so fiercely even though you were exhausted?” 

Pedri’s cheeks turned red. 

“I remember,” he whispered. 

“I want you to remember it every time you look at your belly,” Gavi ordered in a tender voice. “The joy, our love, and how undeniably great you are.” 

Pedri’s breath hitched. 

“Pablo,” he began, but pressed his lips together again. 

“Tell me.” 

He hesitated and chewed on the inside of his cheek, but Gavi’s hand was still moving over the scar. 

“I just… you know, are you sure you don’t find me ugly?” 

Gavi’s mouth fell open, an incredulous sound leaving his throat. His eyes searched Pedri’s, as if waiting for a sign that this was a joke, but Pedri’s forehead only wrinkled further in worry.

“Pedri,” he exclaimed. “This is the dumbest question I’ve ever heard and I never want you to say it again.” 

Pedri huffed out a breath and opened his mouth to speak, but Gavi cut him off. 

“I'm dead serious. Have you looked at yourself? Fuck, cariño, you know I still daydream about you, right?” 

“Oh, por díos, Pablito,” Pedri chuckled in embarrassment and tried hiding his face in Gavi’s armpits. 

“Seriously. For example about doing this.”

Gavi slowly kissed his way down Pedri’s chest, with a small grin, and his husband watched with half amused and half intrigued eyes. He savoured the soft skin of his tummy with lingering motions of his open lips, almost as if he wanted to eat and worship him at the same time. 

Pedri’s usually defined abs were still covered by a soft mass of his post-partum belly, and while it was not even really changing his figure, he often felt self conscious about it, eyeing the not perfectly flat stomach in the mirror with distaste. 

He closed his eyes now, and tried to focus on his husband’s loving and apparently aroused kisses. 

And then he smiled a little. Gavi made a hum of contentment, as if he was enjoying the skin under his lips, and in the matter of seconds Pedri felt better, even if just a bit. 

“Pepi, give me your hand.” 

Pedri complied, and Gavi lifted himself up and pressed it onto his stomach. 

“Say I like you.” 

Pedri chuckled. “What?”

“Say I like you, to your stomach, or the scar, or yourself in general,” Gavi repeated. 

Pedri hesitated. “That’s ridiculous,” he then mumbled, but Gavi wasn’t having it, so Pedri sighed. 

“I like you,” he muttered out. 

“Say I’m proud of you,” Gavi ordered next. 

“I’m proud of you,” Pedri shyly repeated, his hand moving over his stomach. 

Gavi smiled and moved back to cuddle into Pedri’s side and put his head on his chest. 

“I love you so much,” Gavi whispered and pressed his hand atop Pedri’s heart. 

“I love you more,” his husband countered. 

He felt a feather light kiss on the crown of his head, Pedri’s fingers massaging his hair as they both drifted off to sleep. 

The night trickled by with three interruptions, Gavi insisting on covering all of them, but Pedri was similarly stubborn. They fed him and changed two diapers, rocked Leo in their arms until he fell back asleep, and Pedri made a sarcastic quip on how Leo had definitely inherited Gavi’s volume and temper when they almost couldn't get him to calm down for half an hour. 

🐻‍❄️🐻‍❄️🐻‍❄️

At six in the morning, Belen found the small family huddled in their bed, Leo in the middle of his parents as they fed him another bottle and both tiredly caressed the tiny boy. 

“Do you want me to take him?” Gavi’s mum asked, and her son gathered Leo’s nappy bag and whatever he’d need, while Pedri finished feeding him until the boy was asleep again. Gavi carried the little man in the sleep sack over to his parent’s room and his mamá quickly ushered him back to his own room to sleep.

Pedri was expecting him with a sleepy smile and mussed up hair, and Gavi quickly slid back into his embrace. 

“Let’s sleep,” he murmured, and a happy smile took over both their faces as they snuggled deeper into the pillows and warmth of each other. 

They woke up when the sun was already up and white light filled the room, casting an uncomfortable flair over their tiredness, and Gavi scrambled up to drag the curtains closed. Pedri was leaning up on his elbows with a mischievous expression, watching how his half naked husband walked back and crawled under the blanket. 

“Morning,” he breathed out and met Pablo in a slow kiss, both of them releasing a small satisfied hum as their lips moved. 

Gavi let himself fall onto his back and pulled Pedri with him, holding his waist while the older one held himself up on one elbow. Pedri’s curly fringes tickled Gavi’s temple as he tilted his head to deepen the kiss, and one of his hands moved up to his fontanel, carding through his hair. The room was almost eerily quiet, filled with only the sounds of their wet lips and soft gasps or hums. Pablo’s hands moved slowly over Pedri’s skin, as if he was luxuriating in every body part he was able to feel – the slope of his back, his shoulders, soft nape and the skin of his upper thighs poking out of his boxers. 

He grinned a little into the kiss when he placed his palms on Pedri’s butt and stroked it, and his husband had to shake his head with a small laugh. 

“So needy,” he mumbled, but his own fingers traced Gavi’s chest, stomach and biceps, his thumb caressing the skin like he was a sculpture. 

“Very, very needy,” Pablo replied with a smirk and pulled Pedri on top of him until his thighs were caging in his hips and their chests stuck together. The blanket was sliding down Pedri’s back as he lifted himself up, and Pablo stared as if in trance. 

“You should stop making me feel like a caveman. How can everything you do turn me on?” he muttered out with a genuinely puzzled and aroused expression, while Pedri laughed and sat up straight on Pablo’s crotch. 

“Or you should learn to control yourself,” he teased and leaned back down, nuzzling his face into Gavi’s neck. 

“I control myself every day,” he retorted, pinching Pedri’s ear and wrapping his arms tightly around him, until Pedri let out a grunt. 

“Stop unaliving me, oh my god.” He slapped Gavi’s chest and felt him laugh. 

“I’m trying to squeeze you into me, then we’ll never be apart again.” 

Pedri snorted. “Are you gonna squeeze Leo into us also?”

“Do you think he would cry? I think he would love it,” Gavi said with a grin. 

“Yeah, he’d love that,” Pedri agreed. “Where would all of our pee go, though?”

Pablo groaned out loud. “Ew, shut up. I didn’t think that far.”

Pedri leaned up and laughed, brushing a few strands of hair from Gavi’s forehead and kissing him. 

“The usual, I see,” he teased, and suddenly Gavi rolled them around in bed, pinning Pedri under him. 

“Do you know what happens when you insult your husband?”

Pedri’s eyes glistened at the words. Husband. 

“No, what happens?” he asked, purposefully innocent. He could see the passion clearly in Gavi’s eyes, the amber swirls of fire they always had to nip into the bud these days. 

And unfortunately, it wasn’t very different today. 

Pablo tipped Pedri’s chin up with his fingers, tilted his head to the side, and started devouring his neck while a choked sound escaped Pedri’s lips. His hands flew to Gavi’s shoulder and head, gripping him tightly. But then, when Gavi moved his lips to the other side of his neck and his finger pinched Pedri’s nipple so that he felt all his blood rush south, he breathlessly pushed Gavi away. 

“I hate this,” he panted, and Pablo groaned but nodded. 

“I really don’t wanna meet your relatives with hickeys on my neck tomorrow,” he explained while their breathing slowed down and Gavi rested his cheek on Pedri’s chest. He huffed out a laugh.

“Or imagine Lissy asking about them,” he commented. An exasperated laugh bubbled out of Pedri and he kissed Gavi’s head repeatedly. 

“You know? In, like, one or two years, Leo’s gonna sleep through the night. And we’ll be alone for the whole night in our own home,” he said. 

“Right. And just as we get to it, in freaking two years time, there’s a knock on our door.” Gavi paused and continued in a high-pitched voice. “Papi, I had a nightmare, can I sleep in your bed?”

Pedri burst out laughing. 

“Yeah, come in Leo, let me just pull back out,” he continued and earned himself a slap to his back. 

“Stop, oh my god, stop,” Pedri begged, a grimace on his face. “No but seriously, we’ll have nights for ourselves. I know Dani or Ferran are begging to babysit, my parents as well. Or Fer, or your parents, didn’t Fermín ask you too?”

Gavi snorted. “Even Lamine asked me. Not leaving my baby with any of these dipshits.”

“I’d trust Dani with him,” Pedri admitted. “Ferran… eh.”

“Never. He’s good with kids, but not my kid. But Dani, okay. Actually, Fermín could handle him, too,” Gavi said.

“Yeah, he could. Also, Joan. I trust those hands with blind eyes,” Pedri agreed.

Gavi lifted his head, eyebrows arched up venomously.

“Sorry?”

A sly smirk spread over Pedri’s mouth.

“Oh, so you do still get jealous?”

“What’s that supposed to mean? I was never not jealous.”

“Mhm, I don’t know. You’re always so calm and composed now,” Pedri whispered. 

Gavi eyed him for a long minute, his intense stare always had Pedri squirming. 

“Ah, you want me eating you up in front of others again?” 

His hand moved to Pedri’s throat, just resting there, not applying pressure, but Pedri’s eyes widened. 

“I know, before you come back to training next summer, I’ll make sure he sees your neck,” he murmured sensually. 

Pedri didn’t say anything for a moment. “You’re a little sick, baby.”

Gavi laughed. “You just said you want the old me back, no?”

And as if nothing had happened, he snuggled back into Pedri’s chest and tugged the blanket up over them. 

Pedri sighed and hugged him. “I love you.”

Gavi laughed against his skin. “Impeccable timing. You’re the sick one, you know that?”

“Do you love me back, or what?” he instead replied, professionally ignoring Gavi’s jab.

“I love you, I love you, I love you,” Pablo murmured while pressing kisses to Pedri’s chest in between, and Pedri sighed in satisfaction. 

They stayed like that for a moment, and listened to the sounds coming from downstairs now. The clock on the wall almost struck ten in the morning, and they could clearly hear the happy brabbles of their son in the kitchen. 

“I miss him,” Pedri whispered with a pout, and Gavi nodded.

“Me too,” he agreed with a sigh. “It’s so weird without him.”

“Right?” Pedri sounded almost upset.

“He’s probably gonna need a nap in one or two hours again, no?” 

“Yeah, and some proper food. We forgot to give him his puree yesterday.”

“Shit, we did,” Gavi hissed. “Do you wanna get up and have breakfast too?” 

Pedri nodded, and so with unhurried and still tired steps, they got dressed and went downstairs. 

Leo was happily perched up in his grandpa’s lap, a few wooden bricks on the table before him, and when he caught sight of his parents, his eyes almost popped out of their sockets. He started thrashing in his abuelo’s hold, then cried loudly, and Pedri immediately received him into his arms. 

“Hello! Hello bebito, did you have a good time, eh?” He pressed exaggerated kisses all over his baby’s face, immediately silencing his cries, and then cuddled him close to his chest. 

Leo’s tiny head dovetailed into the crook of his neck, and his hands fisted Pedri’s shirt. 

Gavi swooned at the image and wrapped his arm around Pedri’s shoulders, to embrace both of his boys. He kissed Leo’s cheeks like a mad man, just like Pedri had done, and Gavi’s parents chuckled at the three. 

The small boy giggled and leaned his head against Gavi’s mouth, as if asking for more kisses, and Pedri gasped at how cute it was. 

“Yeah, you love this, don’t you?” Gavi cooed and kissed his little head. “You always want kisses, and you know how to get them, because you look extra cute every single day, and then your papas can’t even do anything else other than give you kisses. All part of your masterplan, am I right?” 

He tickled his little boy, who broke into a fit of squeals and giggles, squirming against Pedri’s chest, and the Canario chuckled, catching the adoring looks of his in-laws over Gavi’s shoulder. 

“Thank you so much for this morning.” Both of them shook their heads and waved him off. 

“It was our pleasure, mijo,” Pablo Sr. reassured him. 

They gathered around the table, Gavi’s parents fussing over them and bringing them food, while Leo was content in Pedri’s arms, munching on the parsnip puree Gavi was feeding him. 

It didn’t take long before Lissy and her parents came downstairs as well, and the little girl immediately wanted to take over the feeding as she climbed into Gavi’s lap. Just slightly overwhelmed, the couple tried to manage the enthusiastic girl spilling puree all over Leo’s bib, and the poor tiny boy grew more and more frustrated by the second. 

Gavi was already planning an escape plan to let his niece down gently when his sister luckily called her over for her own snack, and Pedri had to hold in a laugh when they cleaned up their son’s mouth. 

Leo cried when the glass was empty and hit Pedri’s arm in frustration. 

“Shh, Leo, Leo-” Pedri tried calming him and changed his position, turning him so he was facing his chest and lying in his arm, but the tiny boy continued sobbing angrily. 

“Can you make a bottle?” Gavi immediately nodded and came back as quickly as he could, and it took Pedri three attempts to start feeding the bottle to his son. 

Lissy stared at them from the other end of the table. 

“Was I so loud?” she asked and turned to her mamá, causing Gavi to laugh as he leaned over his husband’s head and massaged his shoulders. 

“Definitely,” Aurora replied with a chuckle. Lissy turned to her uncles, shock on her face, then scrambled off her chair and ran into the kitchen where her papá and grandparents were. 

They could faintly hear her ask each of them for confirmation and laughed, which Leo apparently did not approve of as he pushed away Pedri’s hand and cried all over again. 

“Pequenito,” he mumbled. “Come on, are you not hungry?” 

When the tiny boy didn’t stop flailing his arms and crying his lungs out, Gavi took over and rocked the boy in his hold, but to no result. 

“I think he needs to sleep,” Pedri said and held out his arms expectantly for Gavi to hand the baby over. “I’m gonna put him to bed.”

Gavi tutted and stood up, nodding for Pedri to follow him. “We’ll bring him to bed,” he told his sister over his shoulder and went back upstairs with a hand out for Pedri to take. 

A pit of warmth opened in Pedri’s stomach at Gavi’s action. It wasn’t anything special, and he acted like this every day, but somehow, the effect of seeing the man he loved being a caring husband and dad never got lost on him. 

The garden was coated in a thin white layer of snow when Leo woke up again, and the family buzzed with excitement despite their tiredness as they wrapped up Alicia and Leonardo in snowsuits. 

Javi was the chosen one to hold the baby boy while everyone else got dressed, since he would stay inside and cook dinner after twenty minutes of persuading Gavi’s parents. 

Leo was watching him with big eyes, and turned his head every minute to make sure his parents were still with him, which had them all laughing. 

“Your first snow today, Leo!” His uncle lifted his tiny hand in a cheer, but the baby frowned, skeptically watching his own hand and Javi’s face. With a laugh, he turned Leo around so he wasn’t facing him anymore but could watch his papas getting ready, and the small boy finally relaxed in his hold. 

Two small arms wrapped around Javi’s leg then, and he looked down to see his daughter with an almost equal frown on her face. 

“What’s the matter, baby?” 

Lissy squished her cheeks against her dad’s leg. “Can you come with us?” 

“No, I’m staying here, because I’m gonna cook,” he told her gently. 

“Then I wanna stay too,” she whined. 

Gavi carefully retrieved his son from Javi’s hands and mouthed a thank you, so he could pick up his own daughter in his arms. 

“What? You don’t wanna go into the snow?” 

She adamantly shook her head. “With you!”

“No, sweetie, you should go outside, hm?” He kissed her head but was suddenly met by an angry expression. 

“I wanna stay!” 

“Lissy, it’s snowing! And you’re already dressed, and papá can’t play with you if you stay inside,” he explained to her. Without warning, the little girl slid out of his arms and kicked his foot, then ran off into the kitchen, her small legs and the rustling of her snow suit almost making the scene adorable. 

“Lissy-”

“No, asshole papá!”

Javi’s eyes blew wide as he looked at the others, and Gavi had to press a hand to his mouth and turn around, but when he was met with his sister and Pedri sharing the same facial expression, he nearly burst out laughing. 

Belen slapped Gavi’s arm with a stern expression as he let out a snort. 

“Some parents you are,” she scolded her two children, and Pedri looked over to see Javi hold in a laugh as well, the shock still evident in his eyes though. 

Aurora was the first one to compose herself and quickly follow her daughter, and Javi did the same, disappearing into the kitchen. 

Gavi sighed and looked at his own son sitting in his arms, his small lips puckering into a casual pout he knew oh so well from his husband. Pedri was putting on his beanie and Gavi couldn't stop staring between his two boys and all the small similarities in their faces. 

Pedri noticed his staring and smiled, coming closer to rearrange the knot from Leo’s hat. The baby started babbling softly and uncoordinatedly lifted a hand to Pedri’s face, grinning when he caught his nose and Pedri gasped playfully. 

“Did you just steal my nose?” 

Leo’s eyes glimmered as he held his breath, only to burst into a laughing yelp when Pedri lunged forward and nuzzled their noses together.

He pulled back again, Leo watched him in anticipation, and squealed as soon as his face came close again, accidentally hitting his face from all the excitement. 

“Ouch,” Pedri mumbled but still smiled at his son, and Gavi laughed. 

“Careful, peque, or are you going to kick your papi too when you’re older?” Gavi chided, amused, and Pedri chuckled. 

Gavi's dad overheard them and laughed as well.

“You still have two years before he starts calling you all kinds of names,” he added, making them laugh. 

“Noo, my angelito, you’ll never insult me, will you?” he cooed to his son, who let his head drop to his chest with a giggle, enticing all the adults around him. Pedri stroked his little one's cheek and smiled like he was under a spell, and that he was. 

Outside, little Leo’s cheeks immediately reddened from the cold, and he blinked repeatedly as the soft snowflakes landed on his face. 

With frenzied motions, he held on tighter to Gavi’s jacket and tried to duck his head away, as if to hide from the cold. 

“Look, bebito, look at the bush here,” Pedri said, trying to coax his head back out. Gavi nudged his little cheek and shifted him a little in his arms. Pedri extended a handful of snow to his baby. 

“You can touch it, Leo,” he told him, and Leo’s gloved hand reached out and patted the snow. 

Gavi crouched down with him then and set him on the ground, still holding his tiny torso in his hands. 

The snow crunched beneath them with every movement, and Leo’s eyes widened. He started kicking his feet, causing a few bits of snow to fly up, and squealed. 

“Now he likes it,” Gavi commented.

It didn't stop snowing for another while and Leo slowly got used to the sensation of cold flakes on his small cheeks. He marveled at the single snowflakes that landed on his sleeve, suddenly started telling a whole story in his imaginary baby language, containing little ‘ooh’s, ‘dede’s and squeals. 

Pedri and Gavi were crouched down beside him the whole time, absolutely captivated by the cuteness that was their son. 

Gavi’s parents, Aurora and Lissy were off in the other corner of the garden, where the small girl forced them to a battle of mini snowballs, but not after watching baby Leo’s reaction to snow first and gushing about how adorable he was. 

Said little boy now brought a glove of snow to his mouth, ready to eat it, but Pedri quickly pulled his hand back. 

“No, no, no, cariño, this is not to eat.” 

Leo frowned up at him and tried again, Pedri took his small wrist in his. 

“No,” he repeated, catching Gavi’s amused expression above his son’s head. “This-” He demonstrated putting snow near his mouth, grimaced and threw it away again. “Is bleh.” 

And Leo started giggling. 

“You find this funny?” Pedri asked and Gavi chuckled. 

“Do it again,” he told his husband, so Pedri did, grimacing and throwing away the snow with a ‘bleh’ again, and Leo broke into another fit of giggles. He put a glove full of snow up to Pedri’s mouth himself, already kicking his feet in anticipation, and he did it over and over and never stopped laughing less, soon cracking up his parents as well. 

Lissy came over and begged to carry Leo around the garden to show him all of the snow, and Gavi hovered close to her as she held the little snowsuit man and dragged him around, almost letting him slip three or four times. 

Leo seemed to enjoy her tour, until a bunch of snow fell down from the leaves above them and onto his face, and he started crying hysterically. 

Pedri was quick to pick him back up and assure Lissy she didn't do anything wrong, caressing his tiny face and kissing his almost frozen cheeks. 

The sun was starting to set, Leo didn't stop fussing, and the small Gavira González family retreated back inside and warmed their little baby up. 

They had a cozy and early dinner, with the rest of the family coming inside as well, and were all relieved to see Lissy sitting on her dad’s hip and cuddling him again. 

Leo was tucked into bed and asleep at seven in the evening, and the adults settled into the living room to watch first Lissy’s bedtime show ‘Brave Bunnies’, then told her goodnight and watched Jack Frost when Aurora and Javi were back. 

Gavi was curled into Pedri’s side, head on his shoulder and not hiding how much he loved and needed his husband’s affection. 

Pedri's fingers softly ran through his hair and he felt a dangerous wave of sleepiness roll over him. 

He let the sounds of his family murmuring and joking about the movie and the comforting smell of his Pedri lull him into a safe space of half slumber, the babyphone in his lap luckily quiet. 

After the first half of the movie, Leo’s whiny cries sounded through the device, causing Gavi to fully wake up again. 

“That's our cue,” Pedri sighed with a smile and they hugged everyone goodnight, ascending the stairs with their fingers tangled. 

Leo fell asleep only between his parents, cuddled in his sleep sack, a dummy in his mouth and Pedri and Gavi framing his sides. 

Pedri’s eyes closed faster than Leo’s, the hand on the tiny boy’s head falling limp, and Gavi’s chest surged as he looked at the sleeping faces right next to him, at how safe and loved the two suns his earth revolved around were. 

🐻‍❄️🐻‍❄️🐻‍❄️

Christmas morning was as chaotic and cozy as every year. 

To their surprise, instead of adding to the stress, baby Leo somehow slowed everything down. 

Lying there in the dining room in his baby chair, he made everyone stop dead in their tracks and squeeze his cheeks or talk to him for a moment. The tiny zebra rattle was clutched in his hand, but he seemed much more interested in the way everyone was hovering between the rooms, and squealed happily the second he got attention. 

Gavi’s parents had assigned little tasks to each of them, and abuelo Pablo was the lucky one folding tissues and paying his little grandson company. 

Pedri and Gavi stopped in the dining room more often than once, checking on their little one, and finally around noon, the house was polished, table set and most of the food prepared. 

Pedri was in the kitchen with Javi and Belen, helping with the pucho die canario they wanted to try out this year, and Gavi came back from their bedroom with a freshly woken up Leo in his arms. 

“Hi, baby!” Pedri cooed and rounded the counter, stretching out his arms. “Hi! Did you sleep well?” 

The tiny boy’s face was grumpy, eyes half lidded, and he let out a tiny whimper, then stretched out his hands as well. 

“Ma-ma,” he cried before snuggling back into Pedri's chest, slumping like a ball with his little legs pulled up and the diaper bloated in his small cotton pants. 

Pedri's eyes were wide, hands frozen on his son’s body, and everyone stilled in their movements. 

“Did he just…” Gavi drifted off, staring in awe. 

Pedri couldn't speak, his throat clogged as he looked around at Belen's and Javi’s wide smiles. 

“That was unintentional, right?” he whispered. “He’s- he can't speak yet. Right?” 

Javi tilted his head as if he knew something his two brothers in law didn't.

“He knows who you are,” Belen said softly. “He can't really say words he means yet, although it varies from baby to baby, obviously. Most of them start at eleven months, he could be early. But he might already have his own term for you.”

Pedri looked at Gavi, whose eyes were shining with one or two unshed tears, and leaned forward to kiss his cheek. 

“When did Lissy say it?” Gavi asked then.

“Around the eighth or ninth month, and it seemed like it was just a babble, but then she started using it really only when she wanted Aurora, so… congratulations, mamá,” he said with a big smile and squeezed his shoulder gently. 

Pedri blushed and looked down at his son, peacefully resting against his chest while his big eyes were still blinking from sleep, and he almost cried.

“But… we never, I mean, we always say papá,” he mumbled, and felt Gavi’s hand rubbing his back. 

“Guess it’s instinct?” he suggested with a small smile. 

“Yeah,” Pedri breathed out. And then, only for himself, his Pablo and his little baby to hear, he added: “Mamá’s here, hm?” 

Before Gavi’s relatives arrived, everyone quickly got ready for the evening and cleaned up nicely. 

Pedri and Gavi were in their room, little Leo between them on the bed as they dressed him. They had bought a little bright blue knit sweater with a small bear embroidered on the chest for their son, because Pedri would be wearing a sweater that looked the same only in dark blue, and Gavi a beige one, and Pedri had thought it would be cute for all of them to match and Leo to be a mix of them. 

Gavi was buttoning the white body up, a fresh diaper underneath, and Leo happily babbled about something he was apparently seeing at the ceiling. 

Pedri leaned over the little boy and pressed his nose into his chubby belly, kissing it with a loud ‘mwuah’. Leo laughed out loud.

“Do you have a marshmallow belly?” Pedri asked in his baby-voice, and Gavi stared fondly while he pulled the grey cord trousers over his son’s legs. 

“Or are you a marshmallow?” 

Leo’s eyes were focused on Pedri’s, glimmering, and lips parted in an excited grin. Pedri leaned down again to kiss his belly, immediately eliciting a happy shout and giggle.

“You are a marshmallow!” He took Leo’s tiny but chubby arm in his hand, wrapped in the white sleeve, and pretended to eat it, making exaggerated ‘nom, nom, nom’- sounds, then kissed his cheeks, and his tummy again. The baby boy thoroughly enjoyed it, laughing and grabbing Pedri’s face. 

“You’re so cute, you want your papis dead, don’t you?” Gavi now leaned down as well and kissed Leo’s cheek, and their baby couldn’t have been happier as he yelped and fluttered his eyes at every kiss. 

“Hey, I want a kiss too,” Gavi then mumbled, smirking at Pedri. His husband snorted and cupped his face, pulling him over and kissing his cheek as well. And suddenly Leo squealed again. They broke apart, looking at the boy. 

“Does he like when we kiss as well?” 

Pedri laughed. “Try it again.” 

Gavi leaned in and kissed Pedri on the cheek, and Leo did in fact squeal and thrash his legs again. 

“My god, he’s our biggest fan,” Pedri gushed. Gavi pressed a kiss against Pedri’s cheek again and again, and their son didn’t stop looking at them, uncontrollably clapping his hands and giggling. 

“We’re gonna be late, amor,” Pedri mumbled with blushing cheeks. 

“You see that, Leo? Mamá likes kisses as much as you do, but he hides it,” Gavi whispered to their baby like it was a shared conspiracy theory. Pedri rolled his eyes and swept the little boy up in his arms, kissing his cheek and hoisting him up on his hip as he got up from the bed. 

Gavi followed and straightened Leo’s hair with his hand, the soft brown strands sticking up from his little head and curling faintly at the back of it. 

He sprayed some of his perfume on himself, then took their son so Pedri could do the same, careful not to spray the baby in the process, and before they opened the door, Pedri pulled Gavi closer again. 

He cupped his husband’s cheek, their son in the middle of them, brushed back a strand of Gavi’s hair and then leaned in to kiss him. 

It was soft, like a love letter passed from one mouth to the other, and Gavi exhaled into it. 

Unable to touch Pedri, since his hands were full with baby Leo, he tilted his head and tried to showcase his joyful reaction by deepening the kiss a little, and Pedri started smiling. 

When they broke apart again, eyes locked magically as if it had been their first ever kiss, Pedri noticed their son's head on Gavi’s shoulder, watching them with wide but soft eyes and a thumb tucked into his mouth. 

“He loves love, eh?” he commented, and Gavi turned his head to look at Leo too. 

“He loves us, I think,” he whispered reverently, as if he couldn't believe their tiny son loved them back as much as they loved him. 

Pedri came closer and smooched the baby’s cheek, causing him to giggle and turn his head away, as if embarrassed. 

The house was alive with laughter, warm greeting hugs and twinkling lights, the dining room soon spilling over with Gavi’s aunts, cousins and grandparents. 

Obviously, tiny Leo being the youngest of them all, was also the center of attention. 

No one could refrain from squeezing his little cheeks or trying to make him laugh, and Pedri and Gavi felt overflowed with all the love the family poured over them. 

Christmas dinner was as chaotic as it was cozy. More than five conversations happened at the same time, criss-cross over the table, every other minute one of the kids, or at least the ones under ten years old, increased the volume at the table with either a laugh or a complaint. 

Leo quietly took it all in from where he sat in Gavi’s lap, head bobbing around to catch all that was happening, but Pedri could see behind his big, round eyes that his little brain was already overstimulated. 

Gavi was talking with his cousin and uncle about the latest MotoGP transfer rumours, his plate half full, and kept Leo’s grabby hands away from the table without even looking. 

Pedri hated when his husband executed his dad-tasks so effortlessly while looking like that and he couldn't do anything about it. Gavi seemed relaxed, one arm wrapped around Leo’s stomach, the other hand occupying the little man's hands so he played with his fingers and not the fork on the table. He lowered his head every now and then to check on his son or give him a kiss, continued the conversation without pause at the same time. 

Pedri couldn’t steal his eyes away from the scene. His own plate also not yet empty, he stared at his family – at his very own little family – and brushed through Leo’s soft hair. 

The baby boy registered the touch and turned to Pedri, scrambling out of Gavi’s lap and pulling at the arm that was keeping him against his dad’s chest. With a wide smile, Pedri leaned over and took the boy, and his husband only now paused his conversation. 

He looked at Pedri, a glimmer in his eyes, and watched for a moment how he hoisted the little boy up against his chest and supported him standing in his lap, Leo’s small head bumping into Pedri’s chin and hands grabbing his neck. 

Leo started to babble again, and then he was nibbling at Pedri’s jaw. 

“Ouch, ouch, Leo,” Pedri laughed and pulled him away from his face. “You always forget that you’ve got teeth now, little man.” 

Gavi chuckled, catching Pedri’s attention, and they smiled at each other, like they were sharing a tiny secret in the middle of this loud family dinner. He placed his hand on Pedri’s thigh and squeezed it, then kept it there to caress his leg. 

He didn't know if it was on purpose, but Pedri angled his leg closer to Gavi, pressed it against his knee, but otherwise kept his focus on their son. 

When dessert was brought over, Leo was almost impossible to hold back from the plate as he whined in Pedri’s lap.

“Give me,” Gavi said and reached for his son, but Pedri shook his head. 

“No, no, it's okay,” he assured his husband. But Gavi’s best and worst quality had always been his stubbornness. He cocked an eyebrow and held his hands out still, and Pedri knew better than to argue again. He handed the boy over and Gavi stood up with him, then kissed Pedri’s head from above. 

“Eat,” he ordered gently, and Pedri probably blushed as he scooted back closer to the table. 

Aurora nudged him from the side and sent him a cheeky smile, and Pedri rolled his eyes. 

“This reminds me of your wedding,” she said. Pedri grinned widely, remembering what she was referring to, how Gavi had forced him to eat throughout the whole night and fed him forkful after forkful in between kisses, always pouring his whole heart out in the form of taking care and touching him. 

“Yeah, he hasn't changed,” he mumbled, still with that embarrassing blush he always sported, and Aurora sighed. 

“I hope you two stay like this for the rest of your lives,” she told him honestly and squeezed his shoulder affectionately. 

“We plan to,” he joked, but it was clear how deep the love and trust between him and his Gavi ran, how serious they both were about each other. 

Gavi came back with Leo in a bib and a glass of fruit puree in his hand, smiling when he saw Pedri’s empty plate.

“Ooh, what do we have here, your own dessert?” 

Pedri rubbed Leo’s little feet and took the glass and spoon from Gavi’s hand, who sent him a thankful smile. 

“Apple, banana and oat,” he read from the glass, then wiggled it in front of his baby. “Your favourite, eh?” 

He turned in his seat and fed their little boy, while Gavi held him properly in his lap and watched. 

“We still need to call your parents,” he reminded Pedri then, whose eyes lit up at the mention. 

“He’ll need a new diaper after this anyways, we can call them after that and then the kids are getting presents, right? And then he needs to nap before the mass.” 

Gavi nodded along at his husband’s plans and hooked his leg around Pedri's, watching how his cheeks flushed red. 

“You’re so damn cute,” he whispered, not knowing if Pedri would hear it, but the older boy bit his lip to fight a smile and simply concentrated on their baby again. 

They excused themselves when Leo got fussier again, bringing him upstairs and changing his nappy. The boy was still crying and hitting the blanket beneath him when he was all cleaned up, and Pedri lay down next to him on the bed, giving him his pacifier and humming a tune while he stroked his little head. 

“Pepi, what are you doing? If he sleeps now he’ll miss the presents and not sleep before the mass and then he’ll be crying in the church,” Gavi intervened and knelt down on the mattress as well. 

“He’s completely overwhelmed, love, look at him. It’s already eight pm and this was already such a long day for him, just let him rest a little. We’ll wake him up after or during the call anyways, yeah?” 

Gavi sighed, but he knew Pedri was right. He kissed Leo’s temple, then leaned over to kiss Pedri’s cheek. 

“Don't fall asleep on me as well.”

They let Leo have his moment of calm, putting on a lullaby on their spotify baby playlist, and watched him tiredly suckle on the dummy while his hands clasped Pedri’s finger. 

“Can you take my phone and call my parents now?” 

Pedri sat up again and let Leo slump against his chest as they settled against the headboard with the phone in the middle.

Pedri’s parents were more than elated over their call. They flooded the two with questions over questions, making sure they were all doing good, Gavi's family included, and swooned over the small figure in Pedri’s arms. 

Rosy took it upon herself to film the whole table and buffet for them, then made her rounds across the living room, where the González and López relatives had gathered, before finally settling into a quiet corner of the house with Fer and Pedri’s dad. 

They checked in on the plans of Pedri’s family coming to Sevilla for New Year’s, quickly filling the talk with excitement again, and it was more than heartwarming to see how Pedri’s and Gavi's relationship had merged the two families into one. 

When Pedri’s parents said goodbye again to take care of all their guests, Fer stayed on the call for a little longer.

Gavi stood up from the bed to give the two brothers privacy, but they both replied with equal bewilderment, as if Gavi wasn't just the brother in law or husband but still the best friend who had nestled himself into the daily life of Fer and Pedri. 

They chatted about football – obviously –, about Leo's first impressions of the snow, Fer still not having found the perfect present for his girlfriend for the sixth january, over which they both teased him loudly. 

It was almost one hour later when they ended the call, and Pedri let his head fall against his husband’s chest. 

“I’m so ready to sleep, you have no idea.” 

Halfway through the call, Leo had given up on falling asleep and either played with his new wooden car between them, watched the tiny people on the screen, or belly crawled over the mattress in an attempt to make his parents catch him. 

“Let’s take a nap alongside Leo before the mass,” Gavi chuckled and kissed his neck. Then he quickly bolted up from the bed and caught Leo in his arms, who had almost rolled over the edge, staring wide eyed at Pedri. 

“We should probably get back downstairs with him now, since he's clearly more than awake again.” 

The family had moved into the living room by now, all of the kids – the ones from Gavi's cousins and Lissy – gathering on the carpet as Gavi’s dad placed a small bag in the middle. 

Pedri and Gavi settled on the couch, cuddling close with Leo in Gavi's lap, and all of the adults watched as the four kids pulled out tiny gifts from the bag with closed eyes. 

Gavi's dad gave six year old Nico the bag to carry it over to Leo, and the boy held it open for the baby to reach inside. 

He pulled out a small koala bear plushie, and squealed in delight, enchanting everyone in the room with him over his adorable excitement. 

Gavi ruffled his cousin's hair and thanked him, and now the kids were all playing on the floor while the adults started talking again. 

Gavi's aunt Marta pulled out her phone and pointed it at Gavi and Pedri.

“Can I take a photo? You three look so cute with those matching sweaters,” she pushed, and the couple laughed before agreeing. 

“We really do look cute,” Gavi agreed when she showed them the photos, and Pedri groaned quietly when he felt a kiss on his cheek. “Especially you two,” Gavi added. 

They lowered Leo onto the carpet with the other children soon after, and watched how they all coddled and played with him like he was the highlight of the day, showering him in kisses and cuddles that the boy obviously enjoyed as he giggled and grabbed them in what was his version of a hug. 

Mila, the oldest of the four, carried him back to the couch when he started crying at some point, and Nico accompanied his older sister. They both stood between and next to Gavi's legs as he rocked Leo in his hold and explained to them that the baby boy was probably very tired and hungry now, and they kept asking him questions and reached out to pat Leo’s little hands in an attempt to comfort him. 

Pedri looked at them, and felt a hot flutter swirl through his stomach. Oh goodness. 

The image of his husband with basically three kids in his lap, talking patiently and comforting their little one, had him absolutely enamored with the man all over again. 

So he leaned in and brushed his lips against Gavi’s ear.  

“You look really good like this,” he whispered. 

Gavi's lips parted and eyes widened while he snapped his head to Pedri, but before he could reply anything, his husband was already cooped up in a conversation with his aunt and uncle. 

When they were finally back in their bedroom upstairs, with Leo tucked into his sleep sack and ready for at least a one hour nap, they also crawled under the blankets. 

“Pepi,” Gavi whispered, and received a croaked out hum in response. Noticing that his husband was almost fully asleep and exhausted from the day, he decided his question could wait. Instead, he leaned over and kissed Pedri's pouty lips, softly and reverently, then curled around him and buried his nose in his hair. 

“Sleep well, baby, I’ll wake you up.” 

“...put’n alarm,” he mumbled with a half closed mouth and Gavi smiled. 

“I put on an alarm, don't worry.” 

Leo let Pedri sleep for less than an hour, while Gavi was alternating between cuddling and kissing his husband, scrolling on his phone and watching his boys sleep. 

He quickly took it upon himself to calm the little boy down and give him a bottle, then dressed him carefully for the midnight mass. 

Pedri woke up in the process as well, and grumbled when Gavi kissed him ‘goodmorning’, his eyes small from sleep and voice scratchy. 

“Pepi, stop being so cute or we’ll stay here,” he warned his husband with a whiny voice and made him crack a smile. 

He leaned up and puckered his lips out, now gladly accepting the kiss from Gavi. 

“Let’s go.”

The entrance downstairs was a fuss, with everyone dressing their kids and themselves and organising who would drive in what car. 

Pedri and Gavi decided it would be the smartest to take their own car in case they needed to drive back earlier because of Leo, and the family agreed. 

They arrived at the church on their own, taking a moment to take Leo out of the baby seat and secure him in the wrap against Pedri’s chest. 

Gavi clipped it up on Pedri’s shoulder and pulled it tightly at his lower back, making sure Leo was all safely bundled up, and when he zipped Pedri’s jacket back up with the extension in the middle, he stole another soft kiss from his husband. 

“Good?” 

Pedri smiled and patted their baby's back over the wrap.

“Perfect.” 

Leo’s small fists were curled into Pedri’s sides as they entered the church with all of their family back together, and when they sat down, Pedri had to fight from dropping his head to Gavi’s shoulder and falling asleep on him. 

Almost half an hour into the sermon, Leo began to wiggle inside the wrap. 

Pedri opened his jacket and pulled off Leo’s hood, but the baby didn't stop. 

A tiny, still quiet whine left his lips, and Pedri grimaced. He caressed him, kissed his head and let Gavi try to put the dummy into his mouth, but he kept on opening his mouth in a frustrated expression and cried. 

Despite his cries still being quieter than usual, they echoed faintly off the church’s walls, and both his parents grimaced. 

“Should we take him outside?” Gavi whispered, and Pedri shrugged. 

“Isn't that impolite?” he whispered back. 

“It’s worse if he starts screaming through the whole church,” Gavi argued, and Pedri kissed his teeth. He turned to Javi next to him, then. 

“Do you think it's okay if we take him outside?” 

Javi nodded. 

“Definitely. Don't worry, we had to do this with Lissy once or twice as well,” he assured them, and they sent him grateful glances before they stood up as quietly as possible and left the church with Leo’s cries getting louder by the second. 

“Shhh, bebito, you can sleep, everything’s okay,” he hushed his son as soon as they stepped outside, the cold wind hitting their faces as they noticed thin snowflakes falling from the sky. 

“Look at that, snow on Christmas Eve,” Gavi commented with a smile, and Pedri joined him. 

“Let's go to the car, I have a bottle heated up inside.”

Pedri nodded immediately and followed his husband to their car, pulling the hat back over Leo’s head so the snow wouldn't reach it, while the little boy kept crying and gurgling against his chest. 

Pedri sat down on the backseat and got their son back out of the wrap and into his arms, while Gavi got the bottle ready and gave it to Leo. 

He drank a few first sips, then resumed his crying and pushing the bottle away desperately.

Gavi huffed. “Leo, what do you need, hm? Why don't you want to drink?” 

Pedri chewed on his lips and tried giving him the bottle again, but to no avail. 

“Maybe we should take a walk with him?” he suggested, and Gavi shrugged. 

“Okay, I’m just gonna trust your mamá-gut.” 

A tired chuckle left Pedri’s lips. 

“But I’ll carry him, you're already tired enough,” he added. 

“No, cari, it's okay-”

“Give him to me, Pepi.” 

The Canario rolled his eyes but pulled off his jacket and helped clip the wrap around his husband now, then settled their baby inside it. 

“Can you give me the jacket thingy?” 

Pedri zipped the extension into Gavi’s jacket now, dropped a few kisses to Leo’s head and frowned at how their son's cries now shifted into anger. 

“Maybe he's so exhausted and overwhelmed to the point that he can't sleep but desperately needs to,” Pedri said as he closed the car doors and locked it. 

“Yeah, probably,” Gavi sighed. “Poor little baby,” he cooed then, stroking his head and rocking him as best as he could in his hold. 

“Let's just walk and see if he calms down.” 

Gavi held out one hand for Pedri to take and pulled him into his side as they began walking away from the parking lot. 

The church was at the edge of a small plaza, and Gavi knew a short way to get to a quiet area where some meadows lay, so Pedri just let himself be pulled with him. 

Their son still cried, and he went on for another few minutes, but just when Pedri and Gavi were beginning to be frustrated and turn back around, his cries changed. 

The angry gurgling softened to a more whiny tone, the one they recognised as his close-to-falling-asleep cries, and they both let out a breath of relief. 

They continued walking through the snowy meadows, the snow crunching beneath their shoes and softening all the sounds around them, although it was quiet at this time of the night. 

Pedri’s hand was wrapped around Gavi's and he tucked their hands into his pocket, warming his husband's hand up.

“Does it bother you that we can't be at the mass now?” Pedri asked quietly.

Gavi looked over, their baby’s eyes fluttering closed with every step they took, and frowned. 

“Nope,” he simply replied. “I don't mind, I’m here with you, and bebito needed this, so. Besides, it's nice. Just us and the snow.”

The Canario smiled and squeezed Gavi's hand. 

“Yeah, I like how quiet it is,” he agreed. 

“Is everything okay?” Gavi whispered. 

The question caught Pedri off-guard, and he almost denied it on instinct, but he was here with his Pablo, the one person he could share his thoughts with. 

He sighed a little, and shrugged. 

“Everyone was staring again,” he admitted. 

And Gavi stopped walking. 

“Come here.”

He opened his arms and pulled Pedri in, standing at the sidewalk next to the meadows, a few houses on the other side of the street.

Pedri hugged him sideways, buried his face in Gavi’s neck and kissed it softly. 

“They can stare all they want, I’ll never give you away,” he assured him, burying his hand in Pedri’s hair. “And none of them know I found heaven in you.” 

Pedri chuckled tearily into Gavi’s embrace and squeezed him tightly, then broke apart again and wiped his cheeks. 

“Thank you, querido. It’s just always a bit much for my head, and the last days were loud, even though it was the good kind of loud, but…”

Gavi reached out and kissed his forehead. 

“You need a pause, baby. Maybe we can take some time to ourselves tomorrow. Drive around and take a walk just us three, maybe find a cafe that's open,” he murmured as he cupped Pedri’s cheeks. 

“Maybe… yeah. Maybe we can do that, just us,” he breathed out. 

Leo was now completely asleep and they continued their walk, slowly strolling through the quiet streets, and Gavi soon wrapped his arm around Pedri’s waist to hold him closer. 

“Do you wanna go back? The mass is probably over.” 

Pedri nodded and wrapped an arm around Gavi as well, leaning into him as they made their way back past the glittering houses and through the snowflakes. 

The mass was actually not over when they returned, the parking lot still full of cars and empty of people, and they settled into the car in slow and careful movements, afraid to wake Leo up. 

He was still sound asleep when they set him into the maxi cosi, and Pedri sat down in the backseat to keep an eye on him.

“We could drive home now,” Gavi suggested in a whisper and turned around to pat Pedri’s knee.

Pedri hesitated. 

“Won't your family mind?” 

Gavi waved him off. “Not at all. They’d be worried if you fell asleep in this parking lot now.”

Pedri smiled softly and gave in. He watched how Gavi pulled out his phone and texted his family group chat, then started the car and steered out of the parking lot with skilled motions. 

By the time they arrived at home, Pedri was already asleep, and Gavi carried the baby inside before grabbing Pedri as well. 

“What are you doing,” he mumbled as Gavi lifted him out of the car bridal style, closing the door with his foot. 

“Getting you into bed, keep sleeping.” He kissed Pedri’s forehead and brought him upstairs, then made the tour again and carried Leo in his baby car seat up. 

Pedri was curled up on the bed, the jacket still on and his legs hanging off the edge. Gavi did a quick work of pulling his own street clothes off and changing into his pyjamas, then proceeded to do the same to Leo, even though it was a tricky task while the baby was still asleep. 

The boy woke up once, his small lips pouting as he hoarsely let out a whine, but Gavi was quick to silence him again and wrapped him in his sleep sack with the dummy clipped to it. 

Leo’s small hands twitched as Gavi settled him next to Pedri on their bed, and then he began pulling off his husband’s shoes. 

“Pablito?” 

Gavi halted and looked up. 

“Hm, bebé? Did I wake you up?” 

Pedri sat up and rubbed his eyes. “Uh… am I in bed?” 

Pablo chuckled. “Yeah, I’m taking off your clothes, you can sleep again.” 

Pedri looked at him with his eyes wide awake. 

“Stop trying to fuck me in your parent’s house,” he cursed, causing Pablo to burst out laughing as quietly as he could. 

“Pepi, I’m just preparing you for bed.”

“I can do that myself,” the older one grumbled and leaned over, pulling off his jacket before standing up and removing the rest of his clothes. 

He stumbled over his own foot at one point, immediately caught by Gavi's arms. 

“Pablo, I won the jackpot when I married you,” he told him as he stood back up straight, and Gavi could tell he was really awake now. 

“Mhm, I did too.” 

And with that, the two young parents cuddled back under the blankets, Pedri curled around Gavi from behind and Leo next to the Sevillan. 

“I wanna have this every year,” Pedri murmured and tightened his grip around Gavi’s waist. 

“This? Us? Or Christmas with our families?” Gavi asked back and kissed his arm. 

“Yeah, both. Us in love and cuddled up, Leo with us and completely safe, and our families close.” 

His husband nodded and turned his head to smile at Pedri. 

“Promise me we’ll do whatever we can to keep it up?” he whispered with a hint of fear in his voice. 

Pedri leaned up, curls already chaotic, and kissed Gavi deeply.

“I promise.”