Work Text:
It had been a hard few weeks, no scratch that, months. Months of drowning in text books, applications, presentations, references and quite literally anything that could help Dennis boost his academic scores.
Despite being quite athletic and being on his schools track team, Dennis was still a huge nerd. Though this wasn't completely his fault, given that his life could be described as a little "pre-written" by the fact that both his dads were doctors.
His interest wasn't purely forged by the need to catch up to the highly acclaimed levels of pressured future careers though (not like Jack or Micheal gave a flying fuck about what he'd become), quite frankly it was mostly because of his own interest in medicine and its complexity.
It had started when his eyes had been opened to the world of medicine for the first time at 15, when he'd been admitted for a tonic-clonic seizure and his severely broken and infected arm.
He still remembered the days of Jack sitting beside him, huge textbooks or medical charts open in front of him, sometimes even with scans, calmly explaining his condition, as well as the medical procedures that would follow.
He remembered clinging to either Abbot or Robby for comfort, when his nightmares would get worse and his separation anxiety felt suffocating. He'd cling onto their bodies and feel the rhythm of their breaths and pulse to calm down, often having one hand rapidly signing J and A over and over again, even when Jack was right in front of him.
Even when he'd remember these strong moments of emotional turmoil, he'd also remember the comfort and security of belonging that'd follow after.
Jack signing D back to Dennis when he'd managed to wipe his tears and breathe again, Robby rubbing gentle circles on his back after waking up abruptly from his nightmares, both of the men not even batting an eye to call in sick to work in order to stay home just to show him that they cared enough.
Sometimes it almost felt selfish to Dennis for taking so much from them. Especially the time when he'd finally been allowed to stay with them. The long times spent at the window waiting for them to come home, the control of holding every possible key to the house and being the one to physically allow them to leave.
It had been a lengthy process of recovery, but it had also felt good. It felt good knowing someone cared enough to let him have control, to let him take things slow or to also let him stumble and figure it out on his own.
And it had felt even better when he'd gotten legally adopted, when he finally felt comfortable enough, to call the men who raised him better than any biological family ever could, by their real titles, "Dad and Pops" (Yes, Robby was slightly offended by being called Pops, but Dennis didn't wanna call him Papa and Father felt too distant and cold, so he got over it).
Just as he loved calling his dads, his dads, he loves being called "Denny, Son, Kid", even if he wouldn't admit it to anyone else. It felt unreal to be seen in such a loving, normal way.
His appreciation for the two men who'd quite literally saved his life (multiple times) only grew stronger as he got older. As he realized what his old family had done to him, how dehumanizing it had been and how genuinely disturbing it felt to see it from another persons view.
Just as much as he felt appreciation for Jack and Mike, he also felt the genuine happiness and pride radiating back at him with every achievement he made, no matter how big or small. The first time he actually held his counseling lesson, his first day of school (like actual high school) and it not going terribly, him joining the track team and then winning multiple competitions, him picking up new hobbies and even him making new, actual friends for the first time.
All of these things might've felt small to the average teenager, though Dennis could argue that he definitely wasn't your average teenager with enough trauma to kill a persons entire bloodline and an Epilepsy Disorder he only found out about at 15. However, all of these factors also contributed to his interest and love for medicine.
He quickly learnt that medicine wasn't just all about anatomy, drugs and procedures, but also about compassion, empathy, care and vulnerability. It stuck.
Given that his Dad and Pops had also been stoked to hear he wanted to follow their footsteps of becoming a doctor (not emergency medicine though, they drilled it into his head), it was clear what he'd want to become once he grew up.
He hadn't considered how painstakingly hard the process would be like though. His laptop's runtime was a concerning 70+ hours per week of use, mostly purely to do something to boost his academic scores, mostly assignments and research papers he could use in his applications.
While he did want to apply to the best universities possible, it was hard to pick anything that was more than a state away and schools like Harvard, Yale and Stanford were chaotically spread across the country in a way that made Dennis feel uncomfortable.
Lucky him for living in Pennsylvania of all states. For some reason most of the high ranking medicine focused schools were in California, quite literally across the entire country, a life-time away.
That didn't discourage him though, as there was still enough opportunities for him in the East. The university of Pittsburgh would be the best of course, though it didn't have the best medical rating.
All of these brooding thoughts had Dennis stuck in a loop of exhaustion, despair and strategizing for the last weeks. It was becoming concerning how desperate he was to find his perfect opportunity to study medicine while also staying in his social fields range.
The worst moment was when he'd quite literally passed out at dinner and woke up to Jack's terrified stare looking at him, already checking his vitals, while Micheal stood just behind him, worriedly looking over his shoulder.
Dennis had to ensure them he'd pay more attention to his sleep schedule and eating habits, though he felt their lingering gazes on him more after that evening, occasionally slipping a snack into his room or forcing him to drink a glass of water before heading up to his room.
He almost felt a little guilty for making them worry again, especially after realizing he was experiencing more absence seizures again due to induced stress and failing to take his medication at the right time, which had resulted in him having dropped a glass.
At that point, Robby had set his foot down and straight up told him, if he couldn't hold up his daily routines he'd cut his internet connection. Much to Dennis' dismay, he stood true to that sentiment and made sure to remind him anytime he felt Dennis wasn't being sufficient enough with his food intake or necessary hours of sleep. How ironic coming from the man who slept about 5 hours max before heading in for his next shift.
Despite all of these concerns, Dennis had pulled through and eventually managed to find a healthy balance between the two aspects. That was when the first rejections came in, some almost disdainful. Most universities just put him on an inescapable wait list, so basically also a rejection.
It hurt. Rejection after rejection made Dennis feel hopeless, was he really worthy of med school? Was he too amateur to make it as a doctor for real? His mental image certainly plummeted under the pressure.
However that all changed on the day this story really follows. A relatively normal Saturday morning, with Jack having just gotten off his shift and Robby lazily waking up from a good night's sleep after his grueling shift the day before.
Dennis was idly sitting at the small kitchen island, laptop in hand, scrolling through a new research paper. Behind him, Robby stirred his freshly brewed coffee and a gentle herbal tea for Jack, who was just getting settled, taking off his prosthetic and reaching for his crutches.
The older men shared a moment of quiet solace between them, musing in a gentle hug and a few quick kisses. When the short moment of affection faded, Jack sat down on the other side across from Dennis, putting his leg up and holding his tea, warning his overworked hands.
"Oh, by the way—this came for you in the mail." He offered, remembering the small slip he'd collected while setting his backpack down.
The small, pale white envelope slid over the counter and stopped dead in front of Dennis, who only half looked up from his laptop to reach for it.
Only when seeing the parcel of the University of Pennsylvania on the envelope did he finally direct his attention fully to the dreadful paper in his hand, carefully tearing it open.
"What is it?" Robby slipped the question while getting settled at the island as well, coffee and yoghurt bowl in hand, silently munching away.
"Just another application.. it's UPenn though, so probably just a rejection.." His solemn expression wasn't lost on either of his dads.
They shared a worried glance between each other. It wasn't a lie to say Dennis hadn't taken the rejections well, feeling more and more depressed by every wait-listed application coming in.
When he finally opened the envelope, he quickly scanned over the letter. Something about thanks for the application, details about dorms and semester breaks..
Wait. What?
He went back to the top of the page.
We have reviewed your application and are amazed by your extracurricular activities as well as your essay on the recently reoccurring opioid crises our state has been through.
With a stable GPA of 3.9 and these further strengthening credentials we are happy to inform you that your application has been approved and accepted by our universities administration.
He got in?
"—Denny?..—hey!" He heard his dad calling, but he was stuck in a trance.
He looked at the paper again.
It felt unreal. The world felt so distant and small, yet so violently big like it could swallow him whole at the same time.
"I—got in." The words finally spilled from Dennis' lips.
For a split second it felt like the world had stopped, like his words had simultaneously worked with the world to make it pause and never turn back on again.
And then chaos erupted. Jack had rushed up from his seat and Robby was already wrapping him in a tight hug.
"Oh Denny, we're so proud of you, so fucking proud!" His pops exclaimed and the excitement was infectious.
Within a few minutes they had somehow made it to the couch with Dennis and Micheal in tears of joy and Jack with a bright grin on his face in between them.
"Well we have to celebrate! What do you wanna do Dennis? You can pick anything.",
"anything?" he quickly asked, a mischievous grin painting on his lips.
"Well maybe something that won't kill us... " Jack groaned, the grueling shift he'd just finished finally settling in him.
"Yeah yeah, I'm joking old man." He joked and got up from the couch, "But I'd like for us to sit in tonight. Like the beginning, y'know? Fatty pizza, some trash tv on and just.. Us. Would that be ok?",
"That would be more than okay Son.." Jack murmured, already losing his battle against sleep as he rested his head on Robby's shoulder, letting him play with his curls.
"Alright, I'll be in my room for now.. Still have to actually read the thing—y'know?" Dennis excused himself with a nod from Robby as he grabbed the letter and went upstairs.
Robby rested his head on Jacks and finally let go of the breath he'd held in too long, another gentle wave of tears rolling over him.
"I'm so fucking proud of him, Jack..",
"Yeah, and he didn't do it by himself. We raised him well, huh?" His husband replied with a gentle tone, wrapping his hand around his head and gently stroking his hair.
"Yeah, yeah we did." He chuckled and let himself sink further in Jack's embrace.
"Yeah, and now be a good headrest so I can get my first nap of the day in." And of course he did.