The Next Stage - 39. Parenting

Jasper is struggling. There’s no doubt he isn’t as patient at this parenting thing as Ryan seemed to be, but he’s doing his best not to completely lose his mind. One of these days Ryan will come home to find every plausible door, window or cupboard duct taped closed yet, or their kids entirely encased in bubble wrap. But this is day one and Jasper isn’t going to peak too early.

Since learning to walk, Jasmyn has been an absolute liability to have around. She trips over her own feet constantly, or runs with all the momentum from her pudgy little kid belly, pulling her forward faster than her legs can keep up. The peace to screaming ratio is extremely uneven and Jasper can just about feel his brain melting with each tantrum he’s forced to try to navigate his way through, and at this point Ryan has left him alone with the children for a total of 4 hours and 23 minutes. Not that Jasper has been keeping count with every time he’s paced across the house and looked out the window with his eyes full of hope. He already respected how much of the parenting load Ryan had been taking on so Jasper could finalize his album with Luke, but he appreciated it even more now, knowing how truly draining it can be.

He’d invited Leo around, but apparently Kevin’s show wrapped and they’d planned on spending time together before he headed back to Australia. Instead, Leo went home with him weeks ago and forgot to tell Jasper. Part of Jasper felt a little upset that Leo hadn’t thought to mention it, but the other part of him is just glad to know his friend hadn’t wasted his time waiting for Kevin. Selfishly, he wants Leo to come home. But if this becomes serious and Kevin doesn’t want to move, Jasper will have to get used to a lot of his own company.

The first day Ryan is out at rehearsals, Jasper puts Rocky Horror on during the kids' naptime, though he pays little attention to the storyline. His focus was entirely on how he intends to perform a song for Ryan, like he’d done with Chicago.

Jasper is relieved that Beth had been released from the hospital, for now, and is back living with them. His favourite part of the day is going into her room while the kids are napping, laying on her bed with her and watching movies. In another life, this is what he imagined their marriage would’ve been like. Two sleeping kids, a third on the way, the house in a shambles, but the two of them snacking and watching whatever they feel like in the middle of the day. Now and then, Beth would be paying no attention to the movie, instead staring at her little baby bump and caressing it with tears in her eyes. Sometimes Jasper would get to share the moment with her, placing a hand on her bump to feel the little movements for himself, but he always waiting until she invited him. Afterall, this pregnancy was very sensitive an emotional. He knows Beth appreciates that her little one will grow up with two very doting uncles, but she’d always mourn that the man she wanted to make a father wasn’t here to enjoy any of this with her.

Jasper makes some attempt to clean the house while Beth rests, but he’s fairly resigned to the fact this is how houses look when kids live in them. Considering the backlash some gossip magazines had run about their ‘Indulgent Lifestyle’, Jasper doesn’t feel quite inclined to hire a cleaner yet.

By early afternoon, he’s starting to understand why 80’s housewives used to day drink. Especially as he receives a phone call from Ryan’s charity about a blocked toilet, causing a bathroom to flood and water damage to seep through to the floor below it.

It’s a genuine relief when he gets a text from Ryan, though that’s only short-lived.

**** 

Rehearsals were over, but Ryan stays back to run through his dance routines again one last time. He’d texted Jasper to make sure the house wasn’t burning down and neither of the kids were in hospital and as long as he picked up a pack of nappy wipes on his way home, Jasper was fine if he was a little late.

He could practice at home in his dance studio, and he knows he will over the next few months. But from the moment he stepped inside the theatre and was hit with the smell of hairspray and make-up that cycles through the air-conditioning backstage in an endless loop, the echo of each step on the empty stage, the heat and vulnerability of the bright stage lights and the rows upon rows of seats stretching out from the stage that hold their own sense of anticipation and excitement, he knew leaving would be hard. He’d not realized just how much his heart truly ached for this. Something about being up here felt like falling asleep and hoping to never be woken from the dream you’re in.

He’d probably have benefited from starting a routine at home of dancing leading up to this. He’d barely had the time, but the endorphins swelling within in makes him certain he can make the time. His body must have missed the way it feels weightless when it’s carried by music. Even the pain that he can feel in the muscles that hadn’t been used this way in a long time is a good kind of pain.

The routine he’s practicing ends, and he’s met with a condescendingly slow clap from the wings.

“Wow.” comes the sarcastic voice. “Your talent outshines us all, Ryan. No one could even be as good as you.”

Elliott hadn’t spoken to him the entire day, and Ryan’s hoping that is why he feels some kind of relief to finally get a chance to talk to him.

“Why are you staying back late on your first day? Don’t want to go home to your family? Don’t believe in yourself to be able to remember the dance steps if you leave? I suppose you could use baby brain as an excuse, but it’d be a pretty pathetic one.” His snark is annoyingly enjoyable and Ryan bites back a smile as he turns to face him.

“I’ve missed this.” Ryan shrugs.

“Well, I’m flattered, but what would your husband think?”

Ryan laughs. “I meant the stage. Dancing. Performing for an audience. Were you watching the entire time?”

“Oh, am I your audience?” Elliott asks with a smirk.

Ryan ignores the pleased look on Elliott’s face. “Anything you think I need to work on?” he asks, sipping at his water.

“You think as your understudy I would want to advise you on how to do the job I deserved better? Babe, this is show-business. If you fail, I win.” Elliott shrugs and crosses his arms.

“Love the team spirit.” Ryan rolls his eyes, though he’s undeniably amused.

“There was definitely plenty you need to improve on.”

“See, I don’t know if you’re saying that to be helpful or to throw me into a spiral of self-doubt.” Ryan comments.

“Babe, it’s the first day. You’re not conceited enough to honestly think you're already flawless. Go home to your husband and kid.”

“Kids. We’ve expanded.”

“Huh.” Elliott crosses his arms and considers the new information. “Why? Didn’t you guys struggle with the one kid last time? There’s no way you’re going to be able to handle this and be a husband and father.” Though Elliott’s attitude is reminiscent of Jasper’s in a way that Ryan can’t resist, he’s glad to find it only makes him miss Jasper an exceptional amount.

“See you next time, Eli.” Ryan smiles as he walks past him, heading off the stage and back home.

**** 

Elijah being dressed in a small, black sequined tuxedo, should have been Ryan’s first clue that he was of course not coming home to a normal household. The moment he calls out for Jasper and Has Jasmyn toddling over in a yellow sequined tuxedo, he feels the building thrill. Then music starts, and Ryan flicks on the light in the kitchen to find exactly what he really should have expected, but was extremely unprepared for. Jasper, making use of the fishnet stockings and garter once again, but this time also wearing leather underwear, a corset and elbow length black leather gloves. It’s a wild look, and that’s not even mentioning his exaggerated make-up.

“How do you do? I, see you’ve met my, faithful handyman,” Jasper sings as he stands on the kitchen bench.

“I leave you alone for one day…"

“Don’t get strung out, by the way I look. Don’t judge a book by its cover.” Jasper struts the short distance to the edge of the bench, where Ryan stands grinning. The way Jasper commits to the performance is absolutely adorable. Jasper crouches before Ryan and reaches a hand out to grab him by the neck of his shirt, cleverly distracting Ryan from the fact he’s forgotten the lyrics, before continuing with the line, “by night I’m one hell of a lover!”

Ryan smirks and kisses him, probably ruining whatever amount of practice Jasper has done to perform this for him. Jasper doesn’t seem to care; he’d not had that much time to throw this together, anyway. He’d prioritized nailing the characters' look and gone over the lyrics only a handful of times.

“So you’re actually committed to performing a song from every musical I get cast in?” Ryan asks.

“Rude of you to doubt that I would.” Jasper grins.

“Are the fishnets going to be a recurring theme?” Ryan plucks at them.

Jasper laughs. “I hope not, but if you make it sound like a challenge, you know I’ll have to. How was it?”

“Not bad.” Ryan shrugs.

“How’s the dream job going? Oh, not bad.” Jasper mocks.

“I missed you.” Ryan smiles softly, shaking his head at how ridiculous Jasper looks.

“I’m clearly such a catch. How could you not?”

A knock on the door sends both kids excitedly running over like a couple of puppies.

“Are we expecting someone?” Ryan asks, frowning at Jasper, who thinks for a minute, then his eyes widen and a blush covers his face.

“Oh shit, it’s Sunday.”

“Jasper-fucking-Reid, are your parents at the door right now?” Ryan asks, unable to hide his amusement.

“Ry, I am so sorry to leave them with you for a while, but they cannot see me like this.” Jasper jumps down from the bench as his parents knock again. Ryan watches with a grin as Jasper makes for the stairs, trying not to trip in his heeled boots.

The moment he’s far enough upstairs that he’s out of sight, Ryan opens the door and greets his in-laws.

**** 

Beth, the darling, came to Ryan’s rescue after hearing Jasper’s parents' voices. She emerges from the bedroom and steals their attention from Ryan right as Jasper’s dad is mid rant about the rampant sex lives of the ‘children’ in their charity hotel after a flushed condom caused thousands of dollars of plumbing and some minor water flood damages.

Ryan is tired of having to explain why he’s not going to have the bedrooms ransacked and any condoms or lube confiscated and he’s not far from making a dramatic comment about how a condom being used doesn’t always mean two or more people were doing something intimate. Given the idea, Jasper’s dad may also push to confiscate anything that could be used as a dildo.

Jasper looks like his usual self by the time he makes his way downstairs. Much more dressed than he had been when Ryan got home.

“Honey, you’ve got glitter in your hair.” Jasper’s mum says, trying to pick it out.

“As you can see, I was playing dress-ups with the little ones today,” Jasper smiles, purposefully not looking at Ryan.

“I can’t believe you didn’t tell us about Elizabeth. How wonderful is this? A little blessing on the way.”

“It wasn’t my news to tell, but yes, we’re all very excited.” Jasper nods.

“Is it yours or Ryan’s?” Jasper’s dad shocks Jasper, Ryan and Beth.

“I can assure you neither of us had anything to do with it.” Jasper says, gesturing to himself and Ryan.

“It was a donor.” Beth smiles as she caresses her bump.

“Jasper, I need to have a word with you about the hotel. Ryan doesn’t seem to be taking it seriously...” Jasper’s dad leads them back down his rant while Jasper genuinely pretends to be listening and taking it in, before finally concluding.

“So, the options are, we shut down the facility and abandon these people who are trying desperately to get their lives together and just need a safe place to call home. We take away all safety products and end up with things spreading because I can assure you it won’t stop them from hooking up, especially since most of them were abandoned by people who were supposed to protect, raise and educate them so their response to adults who want to take things away from them and enforce rules is going to be adamantly and spitefully finding ways to break the rules. Or, we put up a few signs around the place that remind them to not flush condoms down the toilet, then we plant a little tree to offset the paper we used to print the signs.”

“Neither of you see an issue with these children having sex?”

“Can we just have a normal family dinner instead of discussing the sex lives of people old enough to make their own decisions?” Jasper sighs.

“They are...”

“I swear if you say children, one more time, I’m going to have a conniption.” Jasper says, pinching the bridge of his nose and walking over to the kitchen.

“Uh, since I’ve been out all day and Jasper’s had his hands full, we’re a little behind on getting dinner organized, so why don’t you two go for a walk while we get started? You can take the kids if you want. They’d love that and it’d give us time to set up for dinner,” Ryan suggests.

“That sounds like a lovely idea.” Jasper’s mum takes the hint and picks up Elijah. His dad takes Jasmyn and they head off for a walk along the beach.

“Thank god.” Jasper breathes out a heavy sigh of relief and presses his fingers to his temples. “I cannot wait for my dad to be too senile to talk to me about strangers' sex lives."