Chapter Text
Ring, ring, ring, ring.
Obi-Wan looked up from where he was putting the last lid on a container of left-overs for Anakin and him to take for lunch the next day when he heard the younger man's phone going off in his living room. He walked over to see who it was while Anakin put the dish he had been rinsing off into the dishwasher.
"It's Padmé," Obi-Wan told him, bringing the phone back into the kitchen with him.
"Thanks, baby. Will you put it on speaker?" Obi-Wan nodded and answered the call. "Hey Pads, what's up?"
"Your son's fever," she sighed over the line. "It's not just a little cough anymore, he's been getting worse all day. The school called me and I picked him up early."
"Oh, man. Hopefully it's not the flu that's been going around." Anakin turned off the water and grabbed a towel. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Would you be able to stay home with him tomorrow, by any chance? Palo is back in Naboo at an art instillation and I have an important legislation session tomorrow for the bill I've been pioneering so it'd be tough for me to swing. And you know I hate leaving them with a sitter when they're sick."
Obi-Wan watched as Anakin let his head fall forward in defeat and pinched the bridge of his nose, but not once did his voice give away any of the frustration he was certainly feeling. "Yeah, I can make some calls. We've got some roll-outs tomorrow that I was supposed to oversee but I'm sure they can wait until Monday."
"I could do it," Obi-Wan piped up. Anakin's eyes snapped up to his. "I could stay home with him. I don't actually have to work in the office as much as I do," he quickly looked away from Anakin before heat could spread to his cheeks. He really only went into the office every day so they could spend more time together. "I can take all my meetings from home. As long as you both are okay with it."
While Obi-Wan had spent more and more time with Anakin and the twins together, he had yet to be alone with either or both of the kids. With Anakin wanting to spend time with all of his people it just hadn't really come up.
In lieu of an answer, Anakin's face split into a wide grin and they heard Padmé exclaim through the speaker "Oh my gosh, Obi-Wan, that would be fantastic! Are you sure you're okay with it?"
"Of course. As long as neither of you mind us being here at my house - I have references to my files and what have you in my home office. You could, um," he hesitated before taking a deep breath. "You could go get him tonight? Then no one has to get up early and he can get some more rest?"
Obi-Wan hadn't thought that Anakin's smile could get any bigger, but somehow he managed. After assuring Padmé he'd call his mom to see if she and Cliegg could watch Leia over the weekend to try and keep her from getting sick (it was Anakin's weekend to have the kids and Padmé was beating herself up about some work obligations she had Saturday evening and Sunday morning) Anakin was hanging up and putting on his shoes.
"Thank you for this, baby," he came up and gave Obi-Wan a quick kiss before grabbing his keys. "I hate to ask you of anything else, but would you mind if he sleeps in bed with us? I want to keep an eye on him and he's never stayed over here before."
"Not at all, dear one. I'll put some fresh sheets on and grab him a pillow from the guest room."
With another quick kiss Anakin was heading out the door and into his car while Obi-Wan turned to get their bed ready for poor Luke. He knew the boy was sensitive, so he figured being tucked between them would help him relax more while he slept, anyway, and was going to suggest it to Anakin himself.
When Obi-Wan was starting the dishwasher for the night he heard Anakin's key in the door and went to greet his boyfriend and the sick boy in his arms.
"Hello, young one," he said quietly, reaching up and smoothing his hand through Luke's blond hair. "How are you feeling?"
In answer, Luke made a grumbly noise and rubbed his cheek into his fathers chest. Holding him a little tighter, Anakin pressed a kiss to the top of his head. "C'mon, minion, let's go ahead and go to bed."
Obi-Wan followed the Skywalkers to the master bedroom, locking the front door and turning out all the lights on his way, and saw Anakin tucking Luke into the middle of the large bed when he walked in. When they had arrived Luke was already in his rocket ship pajamas - his favorite, according to Anakin who had had to buy multiple pairs so he wouldn't wear through them as quickly - and he looked half asleep as soon as his head hit the soft pillow.
Going into the en suit together to get ready for their early bedtime as well, both men stood facing the doorway, looking at the little figure in their bed while they brushed their teeth, hearts aching for how miserable Luke seemed to be.
--
Throughout the night Luke hadn't stirred - he got better sleep than either Anakin or Obi-Wan, both men waking up multiple times to their individual instincts to check on the sick boy. While he was still warm to the touch, neither man had been concerned about his fever dangerously spiking and had felt a small rush of relief each time they checked. Luke didn't even wake up when their alarm sounded in the morning, though Anakin quickly reached over to shut it off just in case.
Because he was no longer going into the office, Obi-Wan let himself have a slower start to his day. While Anakin got up and started getting ready Obi-Wan wandered into the kitchen to get coffee ready for the younger man and put together his lunch. He also took a moment to pull the toaster down from on top of the fridge and set it aside so he could make Luke some toast when he finally roused.
Walking back into the bedroom with the thermos of coffee, Obi-Wan was just in time to see Luke's eyes open and his pouty face - so similar to Anakin's - peer up at them from behind the comforter he was curled into. "Good morning, young one, how are you feeling?"
"'M st'll tired," he croaked out, snuggling deeper into the pillows.
Anakin walked out of the bathroom and gratefully took the cup Obi-Wan offered him. "Well, minion, the good news is that you're staying home with Obi-Wan today so you can get allllll the sleep you want." He walked over and sat on the edge of the bed near his son, petting his hair and feeling his forehead.
Luke looked over to the older man again. "You don' have t'work?"
Obi-Wan walked over to mimic Anakin on Luke's other side. "I do, but I can work from home. So while you're resting I'll be able to sit here and work on my laptop so I can make sure you're doing okay."
With what looked like a great deal of effort, Luke rolled over so he was facing Obi-Wan and wiggled an arm out from under the blanket to throw across his lap. "Thank you, Obi-W'n."
"Of course darling," Obi-Wan murmured, feeling his throat go thick with emotion. "Now, would you like to lay down here? Or would you like to lay down on the couch so you can have the TV on?"
Once Luke decided he wanted to curl up on the couch, Anakin picked him up and took him to get settled while Obi-Wan used the bathroom and got the things he'd need for his day's work. When he joined them in the living room Anakin was pushing the coffee table off to one side of the sectional, leaving the space in front of the chaise portion clear so Obi-Wan would still have access to the surface but Luke would have ample space to get on and off the couch comfortably and easily.
Luke was curled up in a nest made of the comforter from the guest bed and multiple decorative pillows propping him up. He already had the remote in hand, pulling up the kids' profile on some streaming service Anakin had logged into a while back.
"Okay, minion, Vater's got to go to work, but I'll see you later tonight." Anakin bent down to press a kiss to the top of Luke's head. "I'm going to take Leia over to grandma Shmi's for the weekend, so you've got Vater and Obi-Wan all to yourself. How does that sound?"
"Good." Luke looked up at him with big, slightly unfocused eyes. "I love you, Vater."
"I love you, too, minion. Be good for Obi-Wan today."
Obi-Wan followed the younger man to the front door with his lunch and gave him a kiss goodbye, assuring him that they would be just fine together and that he'd keep Anakin updated on Luke's health.
After making sure Luke didn't need anything, and getting him a bottle of water anyway, Obi-Wan sat down on the cushion next to him and pulled the tray he was using for a lap desk and his laptop over to him. As he was logging into his emails and reporting systems he noticed that Luke was not-so-subtly moving closer to him. With a small smile to himself, Obi-Wan lifted up the arm that was between them and chuckled when the boy scooted across the space and pressed into his side.
He may only be able to type with one hand now, he figured, but with his other hand resting on a tiny shoulder and little arms wrapped around his waist he knew there wasn't a deadline in the world that would make him move.
--
Obi-Wan had worked hard to build the kind of relationship with his team that was both professional and personable. There had been times where someone's babysitter would call last minute and tell them that they wouldn't be able to come for this or that reason, and Obi-Wan had always maintained that as long as his team was still able to get their work done and the kids weren't a terrible distraction that they were welcome in the office when needed.
The fact that he was usually the one taking the kids on a trip to the vending machine or to the corner convenience store for a treat was something that no one brought up.
So when he sent out an email to his team that he'd have a little guest with him during all of their meetings he was only met with messages wishing Luke a speedy recovery. His first meeting of the day, his weekly one-on-one with his boss, Yoda, began with Yoda asking Luke questions about school, his friends, and his family, the little boy laughing softly and smiling despite his sniffles.
"Hmm, good-bye youngling," Yoda said when he and Obi-Wan had wrapped up their conversation. "Get better quickly, you will, with Obi-Wan taking care of you."
"Bye, Mr. Yoda," Luke said, waving a little at the computer screen.
Obi-Wan closed the video chat and lifted his hand to Luke's forehead to feel his temperature. "How're you feeling, young one?"
"Sleepy." Luke nuzzled into Obi-Wan's chest again. "A li'le hungry."
"Let's go ahead and get you something to eat, shall we?" Obi-Wan gently helped Luke move back over to the pillow nest. "Do you like cinnamon?"
Luke nodded.
"I'm going to make you something my dad made me when I was sick as a kid. If you don't like it, you don't have to eat it and I'll make you something else, okay?"
He knew he had Luke's curiosity peaked, and Obi-Wan considered that another win for the day. Going into the kitchen, Obi-Wan put some bread into the toaster he'd gotten down earlier and mixed some cinnamon and sugar together in a bowl. When the toast popped up he spread some butter on one side of each slice and sprinkled the cinnamon sugar mixture over the two pieces. On a whim he cut each toast diagonally before grabbing a napkin and making his way back to the couch.
"Here you go, dear one." Obi-Wan helped Luke sit up more fully so he could eat easier. "It's cinnamon sugar toast."
Luke took a bite of one corner and Obi-Wan could see him almost immediately decide he liked it. "Your dad used t' make you sugar toasts?"
"Mhmm. Have you seen Marry Poppins?" Obi-Wan had to stop himself from sighing when Luke shook his head in the negative. "Well, it's an old musical and there's a song with the line 'a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down.' Cold medicine didn't taste as good when I was a kid, so I never liked to take it. But my dad would make me some cinnamon sugar toast as a little treat whenever I was sick and would have to take medicine."
Moving on to his second triangle of toast, Luke smiled at Obi-Wan. "That's silly," he declared. "Where's your dad?"
"Oh, he lives about 15 minutes from here." Obi-Wan took the plate from Luke when he the boy pushed it in his direction and started nibbling on one of the untouched toasts. "When he retired - when he finished working - he sold his house across the city and moved into an apartment nearby so we could see more of each other and he could travel."
"Vater lives in a 'partment." Obi-Wan hummed in agreement. "Wha's your dad's name?"
"Qui-Gon."
"Can I meet him?"
"Oh, dear one." Obi-Wan felt his heart flutter at the idea of getting to really, truly create a family with Anakin and his children, spending afternoons with him and Anakin making lunch while Qui-Gon entertained the twins with a game in the backyard. "I think one day you will meet him. I've told him all about you, and your sister, and your Mom and Palo. He already cares a great deal for you."
Knowing that Qui-Gon already liked him and wanted to meet him and Leia seemed to make Luke happy, the same satisfied grin Anakin had slipping onto his face. The resemblance between Anakin and his son was really quite astonishing, especially once Obi-Wan had seen some pictures of Anakin as a child, his hair lighter and his round face reflecting the same wonder at the world Luke always exhibited. While Leia tended to act more like Anakin, she definitely got her looks more from their mother. Obi-Wan just knew they would both grow up to be devastatingly handsome and beautiful, creating all sorts of dating-related angst for their parents.
"Now, I have another meeting that's about to start," Obi-Wan said when his computer chimed with a reminder. "Would you like to join us?"
Luke crawled back over to his spot tucked into Obi-Wan's side, getting comfortable while Obi-Wan got his laptop situated and started the call. "Good morning, Barris. This here is Luke, he's been helping me today."
--
"Cody, what do you think of the reports that the National team sent out yesterday? I haven't had the chance to compare them to our region, but the numbers seem to be reflective of what we've been seeing."
Obi-Wan's right-hand man looked away to what Obi-Wan knew was another screen. As much as Cody may pretend that he needed to pull up the document in question, Obi-Wan knew that he already had it open with multiple notes on how their numbers compared to the organization as a whole, why he thought their region was doing better than the national average, and strategies for areas that were evident in their need for improvement.
Proving his boss right, Cody launched into various approaches he felt they could implement to improve their client diversity, furthering their upward trend. While he was still listening, Obi-Wan could also feel Luke stirring against him, the boy having finally fallen back asleep during Obi-Wan's previous meeting with the other team managers, Plo Koon and Mace.
"And so if we -"
"Obi-W'n." Even though Luke's voice was quite with residual sleep and muffled where half his mouth was pressed against Obi-Wan's shirt, he effectively cut Cody off and got his caretaker's attention.
"Hold on, Cody." Obi-Wan looked down at the boy against him, lifting a hand to push the hair that had fallen across his face back. "Hello, dear one. How are you feeling?"
"Bad."
In a now familiar move, Obi-Wan pressed his hand to Luke's forehead. Between the warmth there and the his one-word communication Obi-Wan could tell that he was starting to feel worse again. He guiltily figured that Luke talking so much to his different coworkers all morning had finally caught up with him. "I think you need some more medicine, darling."
Turning back to his computer, Obi-Wan let his regret and concern show on his face while addressing Cody. "I'm sorry, Cody, I'm going to have to cut our meeting a little short. I think you've got some wonderful ideas for the team going forward. Would you mind jotting them down to me in an email? I'll look at them once I've had the chance to compare the numbers and we can discuss implementation next week."
"Of course, sir," Obi-Wan had never gotten Cody to break his miliary habit of calling his superior 'sir' and had eventually given up entirely. "I'll get that to you by end of day. Have a good weekend." His eyes softened almost imperceptibly and would have gone unnoticed by Obi-Wan if he hadn't known what a large soft spot the other man held for children. "Feel better soon, littlun."
With his own goodbye Obi-Wan exited the meeting and, seeing the clock at the bottom of his computer reading 3:27 PM, figured he could stand to call it a day. His team knew how to reach him if they needed something for the rest of the work day and despite spending the day with one functional hand he had been able to get ahead in his work between meetings while Luke watched TV or slept.
Moving Luke once again to his abandoned pillow nest, Obi-Wan went into the kitchen to get together another dose of medicine, a snack, and some juice for his little patient. Although Luke took the medicine without any complaints, it took some coaxing from Obi-Wan to get him to eat a few slices of apple with peanut butter. Eventually he was satisfied, though, and moved the mostly empty plate to the coffee table next to the cup.
"Will you lay down with me?" Luke asked, trying to pull the comforter to them.
"Of course, young one. Here, let's lay here."
Obi-Wan moved the pillows around and laid down on the chaise end, opening his arms for Luke to climb up onto him and pulling the comforter over them both once the boy laid down on him, using his chest as a pillow. Scrolling through the options on the streaming site, Obi-Wan started playing a movie that Luke said he wanted to watch (even though Obi-Wan didn't anticipate the boys glassy eyes staying open for much longer).
"Why don't we send Vater a picture? Let him know we've got you all snug and comfortable?"
Luke let out a tired giggle at the idea, and put on his best smile while Obi-Wan snapped a couple of selfies. He sent them off to Anakin with reassurance that they were both doing alright and that they loved him before settling back in.
One hand lightly rubbing Luke's back under the blanket, Obi-Wan felt when he was proven right about his companion falling asleep; not 20 minutes later Luke's breathing evened out and little snores started coming from his congested nose. Settling in further, Obi-Wan let himself relax into feeling the comforting warmth radiate from the small frame on top of him and found his own eyes closing for longer and longer moments until he, too, was asleep.
—
Obi-Wan woke up to a hand carding through his hair lovingly, reverently. Opening his eyes he was met with Anakin leaning over him and Luke, a soft smile on his face and utter adoration in his eyes.
"Hey, baby," Anakin whispered, careful not to wake his son yet. "How was your day?"
"It was good," Obi-Wan started, trying to clear some of the sleep from his voice. "Luke helped me with my meetings - he didn't want to leave my side at all, it was very cute. He's been the ideal patient. He should be due for another dose of medicine soon, too."
Anakin leaned down and pressed a sweet kiss to Obi-Wan's lips. "Of course he was clinging to you all day. He loves you, you know."
Obi-Wan looked down at the boy still asleep on his chest before locking eyes with his boyfriend again. "I love him," he said with all the confidence and adoration he felt laced into his words. "I love them both so much already."