Thicker Than Water - 24. Chapter 24

Diego considered waking all the kids up before he left for work. He was still upset about the events at the mall, but decided that his soon-to-be husband didn't deserve the chaos that would come with rousing a house full of teenagers. Instead, he left instructions that Terra was to go home, while Bryan and Caleb were on strict cleaning duty, and Kenny was not allowed to help in any way. Diego rationalized that, even if Kenny was a little at fault, the boy was not his kid and was still pretty messed up from his fight at school.

The parking lot was mostly empty as he pulled up to his restaurant. His openers were quietly working, preparing for the church goers who made up most of his Sunday lunch crowd. Diego preferred those who hated mornings as openers, since he needed the silence to finish waking up. His business partner, Ry, was very much a morning person, which drove Diego crazy when they worked for Diego's father.

“Good morning, Sunshine,” a cheerful voice said, as Diego opened the office door.

He groaned and thought, Speak of the Devil. “Morning,” he said, setting down his second cup of coffee. “What are you doing here?”

“Ouch,” Ry said, leaning back in his chair. “I forgot how mean you could be this early.”

“Sorry. It was a long night.”

“Celebrating, I hope.”

“Nope. Unfortunately, things didn't go as Steve had planned.” He filled Ry in on the details, a little shocked that he hadn't heard already.

“You finally met Billy, then,” Ry said, sounding pensive. “I'm sure he was melodramatic.”

“Just a little bit.”

“He gets it from his birth father, who was...well, a character to say the least. Glad he helped you, though. He's actually a pretty good lawyer when he isn't getting himself contempt charges.”

“Contempt charges?”

“Yeah, he built himself a reputation of fighting with judges. Most of the time it's valid, but sometimes, it's personal. A lot of the judges around here hated his biological father, which pisses Billy off to no end.”

“Was the guy a mob boss or something?”

“Something like that,” Ry said, a little evasively. “Let's just say Will had ways of coming out on top, regardless of the lives it ruined. He often meant well, but his methods would've made Machiavelli question his means and motives.”

“Damn,” Diego said, questioning Steve's judgment of Billy. “I hope your brother isn't as ruthless.”

“He's not, thankfully. Billy just has a mouth on him. Anyway, Billy aside, I'm glad Steve popped the question. I told you he was a great guy.”

“You did,” Diego said, unable to stop himself from smiling. “Definitely in the top three best decisions I ever made.”

“Glad to hear it.”

“So, what really brings you here? It can't be just to congratulate me.”

“You're right; it's not. I also wanted to check in on you, see how you're doing, and make sure you're not taking on too much here.”

“If my oldest kid would stay out of trouble, I'd be doing a lot better, to be honest.”

“I feel you. The twins are a handful already. I'm just glad Charlie works from home. I don't know how you've managed to raise two kids on your own like you have.”

“It's been tough at times, but you've helped a lot.”

“Picking up an extra shift here and there isn't really a big deal. If anything, it gets me out of the house. There's only so much fighting and yelling I can handle. Between the boys fighting with each other, fighting with Charlie or Charlie fighting with his mother, I'm glad to be here whenever possible.”

“Good to know. I may need to take more time off. With Calvin seeking visitation and possible custody, I may need to spend more time at home and watching over the boys.”

“You can't always watch them, but I get what you're saying. I only have limited experience with what you're going through, and haven't had any issues since I was about 13, when my birth parents died. However, if you need a break or need to send your kids somewhere safe for a few days, you can send them to my place. Bryan and the twins will be going to the same high school next year, so they might as well get to know each other better now. Washington is still a small city, after all.”

“Thanks. I really appreciate it. Right now, it's a matter of waiting for our court date.”

The pair spent another hour discussing business and other matters. They had known each other for quite a long time, and Diego had seen Ry during several low points. After Diego's father died, Ry came up with the money to buy into the family business, merging their struggling restaurants into one business. Ry and Diego's ties when beyond just business, as well, and they each considered the other family.

Once Ry left, Diego joined his crew in the kitchen.

*  *  *

By the time he got home, Diego was exhausted. Not only did he have to contend with church groups, but there had been some type of convention in town. He and his crew couldn't help but laugh as they watched the conservative old people gawk at the nerdy cosplayers who were dressed in everything from Star Wars to anime characters. Diego assumed that Steve would've been right at home with the nerds, while his mother would've been telling some of the kids to put on more clothing.

The house smelled of cleaning chemicals and pork chops, which meant the boys did their jobs, while Steve made dinner. He kissed his fiancé, who was making mashed potatoes, and hugged his kids, who looked exhausted. As he hugged Kenny, he noted that the boy was looking a lot better.

“Did you give Steve any shit while I was gone?”

Steve went to say something but clammed up immediately upon seeing Diego's glare. He made a note to talk to Diego about new boundaries and rules, given their changing dynamics.

“No,” Bryan said. “There was some fighting over who had to do what, but Steve took charge and told us what to do.”

“And you listened to him without arguing?”

“Mostly,” Caleb replied, looking at his feet. “the garbage can was really gross, and I wanted to use the power washer, but he said I couldn't and had to use a brush and soapy water.” Caleb's tone still had some bitterness to it. Diego knew his youngest had a touchy gag reflex, especially when it came to smells, which is why he chose that job for Caleb.

“Have you apologized for your attitude?”

“Sorry, Dad.”

“Don't apologize to me. Steve is the one you got upset with.”

Steve placed a hand on Diego's shoulder and said, “I think he was talking to me, Babe.” To Caleb, he said, “Apology accepted. Now go wash up. Dinner is almost done.”

Once the boys were out of the living room, Diego said, “We need to find another name for Caleb to call you. I'm going to keep getting confused with him calling you dad.”

“Agreed,” Steve said, leaning in and kissing Diego. “Besides, it does feel weird when he calls me dad, given what I call you when we're alone.”

“Stop!” Diego said, blushing. “Don't even make that connection.”

*  *  *

Diego filled his family in about his day, especially the cosplayers. Steve, of course, was envious, but admitted that there really weren't that many costumes his size that wouldn't have to be pre-ordered or tailored.

“Well, this got me thinking,” Diego continued, trying not to mock his fiancé's nerdiness, “with Halloween coming up and after what happened at the mall last night, I think we're going to have to cancel trick-or-treating this year.” The boys, predictably, went into a flurry of protests. “Enough!” Diego called out over the din. “I get it, alright, but I'm not changing my mind. Bryan, you haven't been on your best behavior since school started, and Caleb, you're starting to misbehave, too. However, what we can do is have a small party here. You can invite Terra and a couple other kids, too.”

Steve, who had been waiting for his turn to speak, finally said, “The high school's Queer Student Union is hosting a haunted house and party if you're interested.”

“How do you know about that?” Diego asked.

“Trevor is the staff supervisor of the union, and actually founded it when he transferred there from Franklin during high school. We were talking about finding sometime to hang out, and that sounds like a good place to do it.”

“Sounds like a forced side plot, if you ask me,” Bryan said.

“Good thing nobody did,” Diego retorted. To Steve he said, “Sounds like a good idea. I'll see if Ry and his husband want to come along. Their kids will be going to Washington next year with Bryan and Kenny, and it would be good for you all to meet.”

“Seriously?” Bryan protested. “In case you forgot, I've already met them, and it wasn't a fun experience.” Caleb started giggling at his brother's protests.

“I'm missing something, aren't I?” Steve asked.

Diego remembered the incident and tried not to laugh as he said, “You did, actually. It was the first time Bryan ever had to shave his head.”

“It's not funny,” Bryan protested. “It really hurt.”

“I'm sorry, Chico. It was a tiny bit funny, though.”

“I still don't get it,” Steve said, feeling more on Bryan's side.

Caleb replied, “Bryan had a crush on their older sister. He wouldn't play with us and was being a jerk about it, because he wanted to talk to Beth.”

Steve nodded. “But she's like 10 years older than you. How long ago was this?”

“Three or four,” Diego said. “Anyway, James distracted Bryan, as Quinton poured some homemade glue on Bryan's head in front of Beth. I don't think Quinton understood how strong the glue was going to be, but it didn't wash out of Bryan's hair very well, so we shaved his head. He was very embarrassed, too.”

Steve put a hand on Bryan's shoulder and said, “I'm sorry that happened. They've actually calmed down a lot since then, and I doubt they'd do anything like it again.”

“Thanks,” Bryan said. “It was just very painful and humiliating.”

“I can imagine, but knowing Ry and Charlie as I do, I can assure you they were punished for it. Knowing that, if you'd rather do something else, I wouldn't blame you.”

“It's fine,” Bryan said. “I trust you.”

Steve and Diego shared significant glances as they changed the subject.