Chapter Text
The soft breeze cuts through the sweltering Floridian night. The humidity clings to them like a wet blanket, beading on every cool surface.
It’s been insane weather, but after the last few months, he’s realised that’s just a part of Florida. And it isn’t even the craziest thing here.
A sharp cry pierces the night, forcing his eyes open in a flash.
Bailey.
He looks over to his partner and sighs. Leon’s still out like a light.
A part of him wants the poor Alpha to get some much-needed rest, but the other part of him—the man who’s given birth two days ago and was out of bed to feed the baby not a few hours prior—wants to kick Leon out of bed to tend to the baby.
He tries to lift one leg out of bed. A dull ache spreads from his abdomen and down to his thighs, drawing a groan from his throat. He’s not getting out of bed. Not tonight.
Bailey’s cries continue over the baby monitor.
That’s it.
“Leon…” Chris groans into the night, looking over to where Leon is still conked out.
No reaction.
“Leon…”
Still no reaction.
He gives one swift swat between Leon’s shoulder blades, not enough to hurt, but definitely enough to startle his partner.
Leon shoots up into a sitting position, hair sticking up in all directions as he looks around frantically.
“What? What’s wrong? I’m up.”
Chris stays quiet, letting Bailey’s cries answer for him.
Leon groans at the sound and turns to look at him as if he’s been kicked to the ground and dragged through the mud. “You have to be kidding me…”
“It’s your turn.”
Leon turns to look at him, giving him his best puppy eyes. But even if he wanted to, his body isn’t getting up right now.
“I can’t. I tried.” Chris whispers.
Leon immediately gets up without another word.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Leon’s stumbling down the hall to the nursery. Bailey’s cries rise as he gets closer, boiling over as he walks in.
As soon as she senses he’s nearby, she stops. Her cries turning to little whimpered hiccups.
His stomach twists as he looks down at her red face and tense little body. He’s the worst father in existence if this is what their baby has to go through on her second day of life.
He’s at her side in the blink of an eye, gently lifting her out of her bassinet. The soft scent of warm milk, and new baby soothes over him and makes him hum soothingly on instinct.
“Shhhh, I’m here, sweetheart. Daddy’s here.”
Bailey’s whimpers don’t settle. And each one is like he’s stabbed in the heart with a jagged knife. He nuzzles her brown hair and presses soft kisses to the sensitive skin of her head. “Shhhhh.”
For a moment, all he does is cradle her, rocking her gently from side to side as he paces the room. His nose buried in her downy locks as he grounds himself.
Moments later his exhausted brain catches up
One quick sniff confirms that her diaper is dry and clean. Her skin feels warm but not hot or clammy, despite the heat. Which is a miracle of its own but clearly not the problem.
A soft rumble from her stomach has him smiling in relief. She’s hungry.
That means he has to take her back to Chris for a feeding.
Chris.
He pauses there for a moment and looks down at the baby girl in his arms. She looks so much like her aunt Claire. But she has Leon’s eyes, and Chris’s hair.
Chris, who gave birth just two days ago and immediately tried to leave the hospital against medical advice. Who stayed with Bailey through the first night, rocking and holding her. Who made a schedule for the nights after, just as Leon woke up. Who pushed his body and mind so hard these past two days he couldn’t get out of bed minutes ago.
“Guess I really owe your papa one hell of an apology, huh, sweetheart?” Leon murmurs as he shifts Bailey in his arms and carries her back to his partner.
Bailey only kicks her little legs in response. The little sounds she makes are ones he hasn’t deciphered yet.
Chris is half asleep when they reach him. The omega has propped himself up against the pillows, his head lulling back and forth as he’s fighting off the sleep that’s overtaking him.
“Hey,” Leon shifts Bailey in his arms and gently lays a hand on Chris’s shoulder.
Chris startles, a broken snore escaping him as he jumps at Leon’s touch. He settles quickly. But Leon sees the dark circles under his eyes, the hollowness that comes from lack of sleep.
Fuck he’s let Chris down. He needs to step it up.
“I don’t want to wake you, but she’s hu—”
Chris already has his shirt off before he can finish his sentence— and his arms out. He gently gives him Bailey without another word and watches in awe as Chris feeds her.
They’re still getting used to one another, the feeding is a little clumsy and there are a few latching attempts before they’re successful. But Leon watches them in awe. This is his family. His.
He didn’t think he’d ever have one. Not like this. Never like this.
After everything he’s done. Everything he’s failed at. Everyone’s he’s lost. This is what he gets to come home to from now on. It’s a thought that he still can’t quite process.
Chris’s hand brushes against his own, their fingers intertwining as he takes it. “You’re in your head again.”
He gives him a soft smile and nods in agreement. “I was. I am.”
“We’re not going anywhere.” Chris presses a kiss against the back of his hand. “Not a chance in hell.”
“I know,” He whispers. And he does. But it’s an old habit that’s not easy to shake. Still, he squeezes Chris’s hand, then moves to the other side of the bed to slide up next to him. “I just— I should’ve done more.”
“Hey,” Chris looks at him, bags under his eyes and hair in disarray, but somehow still the most beautiful and compassionate person he knows. “ You’re doing more than enough. This shit’s hard. We’ll figure it out.”
“Yeah,” Leon agrees softly, leaning in to press a soft kiss to Chris’s cheek, then to the top of Bailey’s head. “We will. And I’ll be sure you get some sleep.”
Chris smiles at him, laying his head on Leon’s shoulder as Bailey feeds. “I’m holding you to that.”
In that moment, in the sweltering Florida heat, there’s no place he’d rather be.