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| Part 8 : Questions???? |
| "Daddy." Gus said as he sipped at his juice after school. "How come mommy is married to Mama and you are married to Justin?" Brian nearly spit out the water he had just taken a sip of. He had known that Gus would have questions one day, but he had hoped that it would be Lindsay or Melanie that he posed the question to. "Why do you ask that, Gus?" Brian asked. At seven years old, Gus was just a precocious as Brian had been at that age. "Well, today at school, Miss Johnson asked us to draw a picture of our family. So I drew mommy and mama and you and Justin." Gus sighed. "And then Selena Marshall told me that you can't have two mommies and two daddies." "Well, our family is different than other families." Brian said. "What did the teacher say?" Gus put his elbows on the table and rested his chin on them. "She said that sometimes mommies and daddies decide not to live together and sometimes the mommy marries another man and the daddy marries another lady." Gus continued. "But you married a boy and mommy married a lady." "Well, our family is different." Brian felt the anger rise inside him at the way the teacher had described it. "Mommy and me were never married. Mommy and Mama love each other so they got married and Justin and I love each other so we got married." "But how come you don't love mommy like other dads love mommies?" Gus asked. Brian was starting to feel uncomfortable and unsure of how to answer Gus's questions. It was his weekend with Brian and Justin, Lindsay and Melanie had both taken the day off to spend a weekend in New York. "Gus, sometimes, boys like other boys and girls like other girls. That's just how it is." Brian said. He was relieved when he heard Justin walk in from work. They made a point of being out of work on time on their weekends with Gus. "Justin!" Gus exclaimed. He and Justin were very close, and Gus was always excited to see him. Gus rushed over to Justin and dragged him to the table. "Do you know why some boys like other boys and some girls like other girls?" Justin looked at Brian who simply shrugged. "The teacher told me that sometimes mommies and daddies marry other people, but she didn't say that mommies married other mommies and daddies married other daddies." "Well, Gus, your teach probably doesn't know that you have two mommies who are married and that your daddy is married to me." Justin said. "We can talk to her and tell her ok?" "Ok, Justin." Gus climbed into Justin's lap. "Can I see your new cartoons?" "Sure, Gus." Justin smiled and started showing Gus his newest designs. Brian sat at the table and pondered what to do about Gus's teacher. He knew that the teachers all knew about Gus's parental situation and wondered why the teacher wasn't sensitive to that. *** When Melanie and Lindsay came to pick up Gus on Sunday night, they made sure Gus had a movie to watch in the den while the four of them took some time to talk in the kitchen. Justin made tea for all of them. "You made sure that the teachers knew that Gus's family situation was different than other kids, right?" Brian asked. "Of course." Melanie said. “We don't want any of the teachers to make Gus feel different because of his parent's lifestyles. The principal assured us..." "The assurance was bullshit. Gus drew a picture of all of us on Friday and someone asked him why he had two daddies and two mommies. The teacher said that sometimes mommy’s marry other men and daddies marry other women. She didn't have anything to say about alternate lifestyles." Brian said angrily. Over the weekend, the more he thought about the situation, the angrier he got. "Should we schedule a meeting with the teacher?" Lindsay asked. Over the years it had become customary for all four of them to be involved in decisions when it came to Gus. Brian and Justin were well aware that the final say was Lindsay and Melanie’s, but they were glad that they got their say. "Do you think they'll do anything?" Justin asked. Having gone to a prestigious private high school that refused to acknowledge homosexuality and tolerance concerning it, he was somewhat of a skeptic. "They had better." Melanie said. She had become nearly as angry as Brian. "We're shelling out big bucks for our son to go to this school." "Well, we'll stop by the office tomorrow morning when we drop off Gus. Can you both come to a meeting sometime this week?" Lindsay asked. Brian and Justin both nodded their heads yes. "Good. I'll call you and let you know." "Now, we should get Gus home to bed." Melanie said. *** "Do you think they'll do anything?" Justin asked as he and Brian lay in bed that night. "St James still hasn't done anything." "They had better or we're pulling our son out of there." Brian said vehemently. "I will not let anyone make Gus feel like a freak." "You're an amazing father to him." Justin snuggled closer to Brian. It had been three years since their wedding and Justin had been thinking about children of their own for some time. "Have you thought about having some of our own?" Brian raised an eyebrow. He had been thinking about it, but hadn't been aware that Justin had too. "Well, actually yes I have. I think Gus would like a little brother or sister." "Really?" Justin climbed up and straddled Brian's waist. "You mean…?" "Yes." Brian said. "Now let's talk about it in the morning." He pulled Justin back down next to him and they cuddled together. "I love you, baby." "I love you too." Justin closed his eyes and began to envision he and Brian as parents. He thought about making the guest room into a nursery. *** "Now, please." The principal began. "You have to understand that some parents wouldn't want our teachers explaining alternative lifestyles to their children." "Well, you have to understand that by not saying anything, you're making it seem abnormal. The other children will react to this and Gus will be an outsider. We only want our son to be an equal." Melanie explained. Both she and Brian were livid about the situation, while Lindsay and Justin kept their cool. "I don't think, Mr. Koya, that the parents would have a problem with your school teaching them tolerance at a young age." Lindsay said. "Ms. Peterson--" The principal was cut off. "Besides, there are all different types of families and I don't think that there is any reason for the children to be sheltered from one simply because it's different." Lindsay continued calmly. "We are paying to send out son here and would like him to get the same treatment as they other children." "Please." "If you aren't going to offer that, we are going to be forced to send our son to another school." Lindsay said. "And I'm afraid we would refrain from sending any of our friends or family members to this school. We chose your school because we were assured that Gus would be treated just like all the other children." "Ms. Peterson, I assure you that Miss Johnson's actions were in no way meant to make Gus feel isolated." Mr. Koya said. He sounded nervous. "Well, I'm afraid it did make him feel isolated." Brian said through clenched teeth. "He doesn't understand why his family is different than all the other kids." "Mr. Kinney, Gus's family will always be different." Miss Johnson, the teacher, reminded him. Brian turned to her and shot daggers from his eyes. "Miss Johnson, I'm sure you understand how children can be. If they think that Gus is different, and no one tells them that his family is just as normal as theirs, they will most certainly leave him out of certain things." Justin finally spoke. "All we ask is that you acknowledge that Gus's family, though it is different, is not abnormal." Lindsay said. "If you'd like, we can take this to the parent council." "Yes, I think that would be best." Mr. Koya said. "We can see what the other parents think of this. You understand that we cannot, on one students behalf, go against the wishes of all the other parents." Lindsay smiled. She was a member of the parent council and knew that the other parents would vote in her favor. The students who attended this school came from very liberal families. "Well, then. We will see you on Wednesday night then." Lindsay stood. She, followed by Melanie, Brian, and Justin, left the office. "Are you two going to come to the meeting?" Melanie asked as both couples were about to go to their separate vehicles. "Of course." Brian replied. "I'm not going to sit back and watch while this school makes my son feel like a freak." "So we'll see you Wednesday at seven then?" Lindsay asked, "Yep." Brian took Justin's hand. "See you." He pulled Justin to the Jeep. "You and I are going to have a nice dinner and wine and talk." Justin knew exactly what Brian was talking about and was very excited to have the talk. *** "So, are you sure you're ready? With work and all?" Brian asked as they sat in front of the fireplace, like they liked to do at least one evening a week. "I can work from home." Justin said. "As long as I can go in once a week to take Rick my sketches." Brian thought for a few moments. "Once the child is a year old, he or she can go into the daycare program at the agency. Or there's always the program at the center." Brian said. "All of that can be figures out later, Brian. How are we going to get a baby?" Justin asked. Brian had already thought about all that. "Well, Lindsay loved being pregnant." Brian said. "One of us could be the father..." Justin wasn't sure of that would work, he knew that they would both want to be the father. "You could be the biological father, Justin." "Really?" Justin asked in shock. "Yes. As long as we're equal parents." Brian said. "I asked Lindsay about a year ago if she would do it and she talked to Mel. They decided that they would want to. Then Gus would have a half-brother or sister." "What if he could have a full brother or sister?" Justin asked. He liked the idea of that. "You could be the father." "I want you to be, Justin." Brian said quietly. He wanted to have another little piece of Justin in his life more than anything. He already had a natural son and wanted more than anything for Justin to have that too. "I love you, Brian." Justin threw his arms around Brian, who immediately picked him up and carried him to the bedroom. "I love you too, Mr. Taylor Kinney." Brian playfully ran his fingers up and down Justin's ribs. "And I am going to make it feel like we have to do this to try and have a baby. We might as well have as much fun as straight couples, right?" Brian pulled Justin's shirt over his head and started kissing his nipples. "Sounds like a good idea." Justin said breathlessly. He loved when Brian teased him, went slow, and touched all of his hot spots. "And we better do it while we can. Who knows what a baby will do to our sex life." Brian started moving his lips down Justin's stomach. "We may not have sex for 20 years." He joked as he pulled un Justin's zipper. "Never." Justin closed his eyes as he felt Brian's warm breath on his cock. "We'll still be like we are now, only we'll have a little baby to check on when we're done." "Yeah." Brian gently wrapped his mouth around Justin's shaft. As he started sucking slowly, Justin's hands gripped the bedding. He stopped for a moment to say, "Even when we're all old and gnarly, I'll still love your cock." "Ohhhh…" Justin moaned. "Yeah." *** "Are there any other matters that we need to address?" The chairman of the parent committee said. Lindsay stood and walked to the podium. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is Lindsay Peterson. She is the mother of one of our first grad students." "Good evening everyone." Lindsay said as she stood at the podium. "First I would like to tell you that my family, as some of you may know, if not like most other families. My partner Melanie and I raise our son together. Also, my son's birth father, Brian, and Brian's partner spend a lot of time with him as well. "It came to our attention the other day that one of the teachers was afraid to explain to the children that some families, such as ours, were different. My son came home and he didn't understand why his parents weren't married and why they didn't love each other like other mommies and daddies." Lindsay paused, trying to gauge the reaction of the other parents. They all seemed to be listening with interest. "What we wanted to ask tonight is whether the other parents would have a problem with the teachers explaining that some families are different, and that some people love people of the same sex." A woman in the middle of the crowd stood. "I personally see no problem with the teachers explaining that some families are different and that it's ok. Every family is different and if the only family dynamic that is ok is two married opposite sex parent then most of the children will feel isolated." "I don't think that it's the teachers responsibility to be explaining homosexuality to our children." A man in the back stood as he spoke. "Sir, we aren't asking them to explain it to them per say. We just want them to acknowledge that our son comes from a family that is different from other families and make sure the children know that that's ok." Lindsay said. "We only want our son to attend a school that promotes tolerance and understanding, not only towards homosexuals but towards all people." "Can we have a show of hands?" The chairman said. "On whether the teachers should acknowledge alternative family dynamics." Lindsay was thrilled that most of the people in the auditorium rose their hands in agreement. "Thank you, everyone" Lindsay said as she took her seat. During the reception, many of the other parents came to speak to Lindsay, Melanie, Brian, and Justin. They were all very interested in how they took care of Gus, how much time he spent with Brian and Justin, and many other things. They were all very nice. "So, do you plan to have any more children?" One woman asked. Melanie was about to say no when Brian interrupted. "Well, Justin and I have actually decided that we want to have one of our own." Brian put his arm around Justin. Melanie looked shocked and Lindsay looked thrilled. "We're hoping to get things rolling as soon as we can." "Brian!" Lindsay threw her arms around Brian. "Why didn't you tell me?" "We just decided." Justin said. "I think that the four of us should go and talk about this. It concerns us all." Brian looked at Melanie to make sure that she felt involved. She smiled at him. *** "So we're really going to do this?" Justin asked after an hour of talking. They had gone to a nice little restuarant and ordered drinks and desert. Everyone was even more excited about the new baby situation than Justin had expected. He wondered if this had been what it was like when they were planning Gus. "Only if you really want to, honey." Brian was a little scared that it wasn't what Justin really wanted. He was reassured when Justin looked at him and smiled. "This is what I want more than anything." Justin grabbed Brian's hand. "I just wish we didn't have to wait a whole nine months." "I'm excited too." Lindsay giggled. "I love being pregnant." Melanie was really excited too. She knew how Lindsay felt about being pregnant and was thrilled that Gus was going to have a brother or sister. "I can't wait!" Justin exclaimed. He leaned over and kissed Brian gently. "We're going to have a baby." He wanted to stand up and danced, but he controlled himself. *** It's Official *** "Congratulations, Daddies." Lindsay said as she walked out of the doctor's office. Brian, Justin, and Melanie were all waiting hopefully to find out if the artificial insemination had taken. "In nine months you are going to have a little angel of your own." Brian jumped up and swung Lindsay around in a hug. "Careful, Brian!" Justin scolded. He was already protective of his child. "I think we should celebrate!" Melanie suggested. "Let's go get Gus from school and go out for pizza." She suggested. Everyone was all for it. They were really turning into a family. They got Gus and went to Pizza Hut. They decided it was time to tell Gus about the new baby. "Sweetie, we have something to tell you." Lindsay said. "What, mommy?" Gus asked with his mouth full of cheese pizza. "Gus, you're going to have a little brother or sister." Brian explained. "Mommy has a baby growing in her tummy. When the baby is born, he's going to come live with Daddy and Justin." Gus seemed excited. He had seen on TV and in movies kids with brothers and sisters and had been hoping that he would get one too. "When?" he asked. "In nine months." Justin said. "Nine months!" Gus exclaimed dramatically. "That's for-EVER!" All four parents started laughing. "Why can't we get one now." "Well, the baby has to grow bigger." Melanie explained. Gus pretended to understand as he chewed on more of his pizza. *** "Well, daddy, are you excited?" Brian asked as they sat in front of the fire that night. He and Justin were both wired and had decided to sit together for a while before going to bed. "You have no idea." Justin said. "I guess now we have to tell everyone. Our families, Debbie, Michael, the boys, Daphne." "For tonight, let's just enjoy it on our own." Brian suggested. He pulled Justin closer against his chest. "I want you to know that I'm really excited too." "I know. You don't have to say things for me to know." Justin reminded him. Brian hugged him as close as he could and the reveled in the silence that they had grown to love. "Let's go to bed." Brian said a few minutes later. The held hands as they walked upstairs. They both seemed to like the contact of holding hands whenever they could. *** Three Months In*** "Everything is going perfectly." Lindsay said when she walked out of the doctor's office to find Brian, Justin, and Melanie waiting for her yet again. "Don't you three have jobs?" She laughed. "We have to be here to make sure our baby is okay." Brian said. "Besides, you appointments are always around lunch time." "What else did the doctor say?" Melanie asked. "Just that everything seems just right and to keep up what I'm doing." She said. There was one thing that she wasn't telling them, but she decided to keep that quiet for now. She wanted to wait a while until she dropped the bomb on Brian and Justin. "Wanna come over for dinner tonight?" Justin offered. He and Brian had been inviting Melanie, Lindsay and Gus over for dinner a lot lately. "I'll make that pasta thing that Gus likes." "Sure." Lindsay replied. The way she was feeling these days, she wouldn't turn down food from anyone, least of all Justin. *** Lindsay Drops The Bomb *** Justin and Brian were explaining how they were going to decorate the nursery when Lindsay felt she had to interrupt. "Guys, there's something I need to tell you. The doctor gave me some news that I wasn't sure how to tell you." Brian and Justin both immediately got worried. "Is something wrong with the baby, Linds?" Melanie asked. She was as worried about the baby nearly as much as Brian and Justin were. She was also worried about Lindsay's health. "There's nothing wrong with the babies." Lindsay said with a smile. "Thank, Christ!" Brian said before her words set in. "Wait a minute. Babies?" He asked. Lindsay looked down and then back up at them. "Twins." She said simply. Brian's face went pale, and Justin's face lit up. "I wasn't sure how to tell you guys." "Twins!" Justin exclaimed. "We're going to have two babies!" He was even more excited now than he had been before. "Two babies." Brian repeated. He stood and walked upstairs. He wasn't sure how to react to Lindsay's news. "I'm going to make sure he's okay." Justin said. He stood and hurried upstairs behind Brian. He found Brian sitting on the edge of the bed silently. "Bri." He said. Brian looked up at him. "I'm scared." Brian admitted. When Justin looked at his lover's face, he knew these words were the truth. He sat down next to Brian and wrapped an arm around him. "We'll be fine, Bri." Justin tried to assure him. "We'll be great." Brian looked into Justin's eyes and could see the excitement there. He decided that his fear wasn't as strong as Justin's excitement, so he put it aside. "So I guess we're going to have to rethink the nursery, huh?" Brian turned to Justin and smiled. They hugged and returned to the dinner table. Lindsay and Melanie both looked worried, but seeing the smiles on the guys faces eased their worries. "So, Linds, is this going to make the pregnancy harder on you?" Justin asked. Lindsay smiled. "Not really, I'll just be bigger." She winked. "And instead of having to push out just one baby, I'll have to push out too." "Can we know the sexes?" Brian asked. Justin smacked him in the arm. "I want it to be a surprise!" Justin exclaimed. Brian grinned, he had known that was coming. "But we're going to have to pick two names for each sex." "Why doesn't each of us pick two names... One for a boy and one for a girl. When the babies are born, we pick out of a hat." Brian suggested. He was trying really hard to include Melanie in the baby thing, and she seemed to be very happy with his efforts. "I like Halloran." Justin said. He couldn't remember where he had heard the name, but he had fallen in love with it. "For a girl or a boy?" Brian asked with a funny look on his face. "Girl." Justin said. "For a boy, Allan." "I like Ripley." Lindsay said. "For a girl. Ethan for a boy." "I choose Ewan." Brian said with a grin. "And Nicole." "Brian!" Both Lindsay and Justin exclaimed. "I like the names!" He said innocently. "I like Noel." Melanie said. "And Vanessa for a girl." Everyone liked her choice and they wrote down the eight names and put them in a small velvet pouch to wait the six months until the babies were born. *** 6 Months *** "Owww!" Lindsay said. She had been having pains in her lower back for the last couple of days and they were starting to drive her crazy. Having heard the sound she made, Brian, Melanie, and Justin were all by her side in a flash. "Just my back again." She told them. She shifted and felt the shooting pain ease. "Can we get you anything, honey?" Melanie asked. They had been staying at Justin and Brian's house for about a week because the doctor had put Lindsay on bed rest. They wanted to make sure someone was with her as much as possible. Justin had set up his office at home and stayed with Lindsay all day. "Some soda crackers?" Lindsay asked with a smile. "Sure, honey." Melanie said. She was off to the kitchen to get some crackers while Brian and Justin stayed and kept a close eye on her. "Justin, do you want to talk to them?" Lindsay suggested. "The doctor said they can hear you now." Justin smiled and knelt in front of Lindsay. He started talking to the babies, telling them how everyone was really excited and how they all loved them already. When he said byebye to them, he stood and Brian hugged him. "Can you believe it? We're going to be daddies!" Justin exclaimed. They were getting more and more excited with everyday that passed. "I can believe it." Brian said happily. *** The Nursery Is Finished *** "And now presenting, a Taylor-Kinney original creation, the baby suite." Brian said as he proudly opened the door for Lindsay, Melanie, Debbie, Michael, Vic, Emmett, Ted, and Jennifer to see. The room was beautifully decorated with antique baby furniture. There were two cribs, a changing table and two rocking chairs. On the walls was yellow paint and a teddy bear border. Everyone was shocked. The rest of the house was very contemporary, while this room was very country. "I know what you're thinking." Brian said. "Justin made me do it!" He threw his hands into the air. "But the babies will like it, I think." He touched a hand to Lindsay's belly, like he had been fairly often lately. He liked being able to feel the babies moving inside her. "And there's a door into our room." Justin said. They had added that so that they could easily check on the babies. "This is beautiful, you two." Lindsay started to sniffle, she had been crying a lot lately, and left the room. Melanie followed her. "Has Gus seen it?" Debbie asked. "Not yet. We've been keeping it a secret." Brian said. "He'll see it tonight when he gets home from his playgroup." Brian had to admit that he liked having them all in the same house, they were like a little family in themselves. He also had to admit that he wished he had more time alone with Justin. "I can't believe that in a month and a half you two are going to be parents." Michael said with a chuckle. Brian was the last person he ever expected to choose to be a real parent. *** 3 Weeks Later, It's Time*** "Oh my GODDDDDD!" Lindsay's wail woke everyone in the house, including Gus, who arrived at Lindsay and Melanie's room at the same time as Brian and Justin. "Mommy! Are you okay?" Gus asked. Brian picked his son up and put him on his back. "It's time." Lindsay ground out. The contractions were stronger with the twins than they had been with Gus. Even though she was three weeks early, none of them were surprised, the doctor told that multiples were often premature. "Justin, get the car. Melanie, help Lindsay get ready. I'll get Gus dressed. And we'll all go to the hospital." Brian said more calmly than he really felt. Everyone did as they were told and they were ready to go in record time. When they got to the hospital, Michael and Emmett were already there. Brian had called them on the way. Brian handed Gus off to them as they hurried to get Lindsay checked in. They had made arrangements that all of them would be in the room. "Good luck!" Michael called after them as they followed the orderly who was taking Lindsay to the maternity ward. They said that contractions were close enough together that the birth should go fairly fast. *** Ta Da!! *** "I guess it's time to pick names." Brian said as he held his newborn son. He looked at his lover who was holding their daughter. "Lindsay, why don't you do the honors?" Justin suggested. He held out the velvet pouch that held the names.. "The first girl name you pick will be the babies first name, the second will be the middle name. And same goes for the boys name." The first name she picked was Halloran. The second was Ripley. "Ladies and gentleman, may I introduce Halloran Ripley Taylor-Kinney." Justin said with a smile and he gently lifted his daughter. "And now. For our baby boy." Brian said with a smile. Lindsay smiled and pulled the next name. "Nichole?" She said with a funny look. "Not even you two are gay enough to give your son a girls name." She pulled the next name. "Noel." She said with a smile. She was happy that she had picked one of Melanie's names. "And," she pulled the final name and laughed when she looked at it, "Ewan." "Yee haw!" Brian said. He kissed the top of his son's blonde head. "Hear that, you're named after Ewan McGregor." "Brian, you are shameless." Melanie laughed. She was at least happy that the boy was going to have the name she picked. Thought they had all made sure she was included, she hadn't felt it until just now. "I know." Brian said as he cooed at his son. *** "They're both asleep." Justin said quietly when he returned to the bedroom to find Brian sitting up in bed smoking a cigarette. "Finally." In the past three weeks Brian and Justin had barely slept. Lindsay had been coming over during the day to spend time with the twins and give Justin time to sleep and work. Usually, Brian went over to Lindsay and Melanie's place after work for a few hours of sleep. The three am feedings were taking their toll on the boys, but they were too excited about being parents to mind it too much. Justin found himself taking more breaks from work to spend time with his children. Brian also tried to spend as much time with the babies as he could. He always came home on his lunch hour and tried to get up for the feedings with Justin as often as possible. "They're really beautiful, aren't they?" Justin said with a smile as he cuddled up to Brian in the bed. Brian wrapped his arms around his lover and they reveled in the silence that didn't happen often in their house anymore. "Well, they look like you. Of course they're beautiful." Brian kissed Justin's neck. He started nibbling gently. "Can we take advantage of this rare occasion?" He asked against Justin's skin. "I love how your mind works." Justin said as he turned himself over to straddle Brian. "Always gunna be naughty, aren't you?" "Would you still love me if I wasn't?" Brian asked playfully as he slipped Justin's silk robe from his body. Justin sighed. "Not a chance." He joked. He was happy that things between he and Brian hadn't changed since having the babies. "You have to be naughty as often as possible or I'm going to leave you." He teased as he licked a circle around Brian's nipple. "Well, looks like I have a reason then, don't I?" Brian grabbed Justin and flipped him onto his back. "And I promise to be really, really naughty tonight." He said as he wrapped his long fingers around Justin's cock. "Lay back and enjoy, baby." "Always." Justin moaned as Brian's lips closed around the head of his cock. "Mmm... always." He closed his eyes and reveled in the feeling of Brian's mouth. The End! Note: I know, I know... it's very happily ever after-ish... but what can I say, too much Cinderella I guess... |