Chapter Text
Nyx stood in the airport, Avery stood right beside him. He was a bit nervous to meet Avery's boyfriend, Derek, but he knew he was a good guy. He seemed to care a lot for Avery, that was a good sign for Nyx.
Avery was Nyx's brother, having been adopted by Avery's parents last year. Avery was average height, about 5'4, with short, curly green hair with blond at the roots. He had soft hazel eyes and a ton of freckles. People always mistook them for real siblings, but really they only looked similar in their faces. Avery had a sleeper build, he wasn't super strong but he could do some lifting with little struggle. Nyx on the other hand was quite weak, though it wasn't entirely his fault.
His old home was the cause, the one before the Collins took him in, the one he thought was his forever home. He got removed from their care 3 months before Mr. and Mrs. Collins adopted him, the previous family starved him as punishment for being too loud, he still struggled with eating, but he was getting much better thanks to Avery! He was so happy to have him as a big brother.
The airport was incredibly busy, Nyx was a tad anxious but kept quiet, he kept his hands busy with holding his mimikyu plushie, a gift Avery got him when he was first adopted. He loved it a lot, it's name was Rio(after the nickname Avery gave Nyx) and he took it everywhere. He always felt like he had a poece of Avery with him when he had Rio.
Avery looked at Nyx, smiling softly as he spoke. "Derek is about to be here, do you wanna step outside and wait there?"
Nyx simply nodded, words felt too heavy right now. He was happy Avery didn't push him to talk, unlike most people...
The two stepped outside, Avery let Nyx cling to his hand as they walked. He knew how stressed Nyx could get in these types of places, he could see how exhausted Nyx was. Derek texted him again, he was only 5 minutes away now. He replied with a thumbs up emoji and put his phone in his pocket.
"Mio caro(my dear), Der is almost here, you don't gotta say anything to him if you don't want to, alright?" He said softly, squeezing Nyx's hand twice, their signal for 'i love you, I'm here.'
Nyx nodded slowly, squeezing Avery's hand twice in return. A black car pulled up, Avery smiled and waved at the driver happily. The car parked and a tall man stepped out. He had green eyes, dark skin, dreads with golden rings and red highlights. He smiled at the two.
"Hey Aves," he said, having a slight German accent that reminded Nyx of a friend back at his old home, before looking at Nyx "you must be Nyx, right? I'm Derek" he continued. "And that's Rio, correct? Avery told me you take it everywhere." He added, nodding towards the mimikyu in Nyx's hands.
Nyx nodded after a moment of hesitation, squeezing Avery's hand again. Avery squeezed back, smiling at Derek as he led Nyx to the backseat of the car. Derek grabbed the bags and put them in the trunk, Avery slid into the seat beside Nyx.
The car-ride to Derek and Avery's apartment was slow, Avery and Derek chatted about the trip. Avery had gone to Italy to see some old friends and pick up Nyx, then they went to Greece for a month to spend time with their grandparents before leaving. Their parents had passed just a few months ago, Nyx had been living with their mom's sister since the end of the school year, Avery decided to take custody of him and bring him to the USA. There was a few weeks left of summer until Nyx went back to school, they wanted to ensure he'd have time to adjust to the new life here.
Derek noticed how quiet Nyx was, but he seemed content beside Avery, leaning his head on Avery's shoulder as his brother spoke. Avery was playing with Nyx's hair as he spoke waving his other hand around while talking. Derek found it sweet that they were so comfortable with one another, all of his own siblings were incredibly close as well, he was happy that Avery had Nyx now, he knew Avery missed his little brother dearly, and he could tell Nyx missed Avery just as much.
Fourty-five(45) minutes later, they arrived that their apartment complex. Each building had 10 apartments, there was a community pool, dog park, and a small playground for little kids. The apartments were pretty nice, Avery and Derek's apartment was a four(4) bed, three(3) bath. They had already set up Nyx's room(Avery did all the decor, Derek just bought and built the things). They also took the two cats, Charlie and Pancake, that their parents had. They'd brought them both about 3 months ago so make sure they got along with Derek's dog, Lucky.
Derek stepped out of the car once he parked, Avery and Nyx followed. Derek grabbed the bags from the trunk while Avery took Nyx to their apartment and showed him around. Once Derek got inside, he spotted Nux curled up on the couch, Pancake and Charlie both comfortable on his lap. Nyx seemed content to be toppled by his cats, Avery was in the kitchen, cooking lunch for all of them. Derek set all bags in the living room before taking a seat on the armchair, he remembered something Avery said, Nyx was obsessed with Pokémon. He watched every show, has played every single game, and had tons of plushies.
He smiled and grabbed the TV remote, turning on Pokémon: Sun and Moon. He figured since Nyx loved mimikyu, he'd enjoy this series in particular.
Nyx looked up from petting Charlie, his eyes lighting up seeing the show on the TV. Avery grinned from the kitchen, hearing the familiar intro of the TV show, giving Derek a thumbs up from behind the counter. Derek smiled and nodded in return. Nyx sat up a but more, eyes locked on the screen, Derek chuckled a bit at Ash's manorisms, he'd never been a huge fan of Pokémon, but his younger siblings watched it a lot so he has seen many episodes.
He just hoped Nyx would get more comfortable with him, he knew Nyx couldn't help getting anxious in a new place, but he did want Nyx to feel safe with him. Avery mentioned Nyx was very sweet and clingy once he got comfortable with people, his main language of affection was physical touch(alongside giving gifts), but he hated being touched without warning. Derek then remembered the gift he'd gotten Nyx, he would give it to the younger boy tomorrow morning. He'd bought Nyx a vaporeon plushie, a bracelet made of beads, and a rowlet Keychain. Hopefully it'll get Nyx more comfortable with him...