vanillajello | Room 324, Saturday Morning

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Room 324, Saturday Morning

Kate had... kind of intended to spend the night alone. That had been the original plan, at least, before a miniature freakout and being a fabulous fake and having to stand the sight of Caroline and ugh. Yet another plan of Kate's that had not gone quite as she'd originally thought it would.

She'd figure out how she felt about that later, maybe. Because right now she was still asleep, clinging to Nathan with an arm and a leg over him, pressed close against him despite the blankets spread over them. That was just her thing, minor neediness slipping out when she wasn't conscious enough to control it. It was a lot like another morning a month or so ago, probably, except they were presently decidedly more lacking in clothes and knew each other better in whole new ways.

And Fandom was being Fandom again, but that was not for them to know yet. They'd find out soon enough.

[ooc: Just for that one guy, and for that other smaller guy who'll cause a whole lot of emo despite being adorbs, and then probably that third guy with some more emo.]

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Kate was just fine not being looked at. Juuust fine. She was looking at them, though, trying to ignore what an adorable picture they made together. "You should tell dad your name," she said softly, keeping her tone mild. "Maybe he's a little fuzzy too."

"Are you fuzzy, daddy?" Dorian wondered, beaming at him. "Did you just wake up? I can tell you my name!"

He had absolutely no problem with that. It was the best name ever, his parents said so. His creepy uncles-of-a-sort probably thought too.

"I'm definitely a little fuzzy," Bod said, nodding and bouncing Dorian around in his arms a little. He hadn't had a child last time so this was all completely new to him. He was trying though.

And he made sure to hold the boy gently, keep Dorian close to his own body so he'd know he was protected and wanted. He did remember that from his own childhood.

"I haven't just woken up but it's been a long few months for daddy so a reminder would be very polite," Bod told him, nodding. "What's your name?"

"Dorian Silas Mitchell Owens!" the boy declared with great joy, happy to be held. "It's a good name!"

Kate offered no commentary, just watched Bod's face, trying to be discrete about it. She couldn't help being curious about his reaction.

"It's a very good name," Bod said though the way his face crumpled for a moment or two before he could stop it might have shown that he was lying. Luckily, he managed to wipe away that reaction and smile at the boy.

"Those are excellent names and I'm pleased to hear your parents were so good about that," he said, sounding sincere. "Thank you for helping me out there, Dorian. Yours won't be a name I'll ever forget again."

"Good!" Dorian decided. "Cuz you can't forget my name, daddy, that'd be bad. How would you call me if you forgot my name? And mum would just call you dummy, because only dummies forget names."

Kate was just going to pretend she was invisible, now.

"Maybe she would," Bod said, rubbing his back gently and smiling sadly. "I suppose I'd deserve it then, wouldn't I? I won't forget your name, I promise. I don't think your mum will either but I can't really speak for her."

"I won't," Kate said, but her voice sounded somehow far off to her. Like she didn't want to intrude, or draw attention to herself. She fidgeted with her sleeves, desperately wanting to ask how the hell they were going to deal with all this, but said nothing more.

"Are you sad, daddy?" Dorian asked, having caught that expression this time. "Don't be sad! You can't be sad when I'm here."

"I've been sad for awhile now, Dorian, but if anything has the chance of getting me out of that mood, it'll be you," he said and made his smile more genuine and less sad.

"It's all right to be sad though," he said, making sure to watch his son while he said that. "Everyone is allowed to be sad. Me, your mo -- "

He turned to look at Kate, noticed that ill fitting shirt and looked away quickly. "Everyone. Even you."

Kate wasn't really listening, not past the part where he'd 'been sad for awhile now'. Because that was where she had to look down to hide anything and everything, and looking down she finally noticed what she was wearing.

She actually came close to saying 'I am wearing Nathan's shirt' out loud just because she was so surprised. Just when she thought this couldn't get any worse. Brilliant. The smudged makeup and shaggy hear probably didn't help either, she thought.

Dorian just watched his father intently. "But I dun wanna be sad," he decided then. "I got you and I got mommy and we all got each other, so we don't need to be sad."

"No, you don't have to be sad right now but if you ever feel sad, there's nothing wrong with that," Bod said, smiling again. "I just don't want you to feel ashamed of being sad if you want to feel that way."

He blinked quickly a few times and shook that off, shook away the want of having a bit of a breakdown right here in her room. It wasn't going to happen.

"And I'm glad you all have each other where you're from," Bod said and he meant it. "You deserve it. I hope you and your mom are happy there."

Honestly, this 'where you're from' business was still a little unclear for Dorian, though portal travel and alternate universes were something he'd been growing up with. Still, he understood the gist of what his dad was saying.

"We are!" he beamed. "You should be too!" And then he tried giving Bod a hug. Or as close to a hug as he could give someone significantly bigger who was also holding him at the time. "I love you, daddy."

Kate, meanwhile, swallowed and then finally moved. "I need to use the bathroom," she muttered, keeping her head down. "Excuse me."

Bod shifted Dorian in his arms so that hug would be a little easier. He got both of his arms around the boy and squeezed as tight as he dared. He still couldn't bring himself to look at Kate right now, not while she was wearing someone else's shirt. That was just...too much for him.

"I love you too," he said, nodding. "And I'm doing my best at being happy. I'm trying."

Well, he didn't have to look at Kate at all for the moment, because she was just going to shut herself in the bathroom and have a quiet, contained breakdown over everything.

"Good, it's good to try," Dorian informed him, tiny arms around his neck. "You always say that! If at first you don't try, you..." He trailed off, frowning. "I dun remember. It's grownup talk!"

"And grown ups are strange, aren't they?" he asked, laughing. Bod wandered closer to Kate's bed and took a seat on the edge so he could let Dorian either stay where he was or move around a little more easily. "Have you been nice to your mom since you got here?"

Dorian let go of him to crawl off his lap, for no better reason than to flop down on the bed beside him. That may have been Kate's brand of laziness shining through.

"I have," he declared, proud of that fact. "I knocked!"

Far more times than he could count but shhh.

"Very good," he said, reaching out to give Dorian's head an appreciative pat for that. "I'm sure she appreciated that."

Especially since she hadn't been alone. Bod's heart ached at that and he had to rub it to try and get the pain to ease.

"Sh'told me not to kick down the door," Dorian shared, rolling around once or twice on the bed. He was not that good at the proper lazy thing yet. "And then she asked me if I knew who the guy was."

There was the sound of the shower from the bathroom.

"Aw, now she's gonna take forever to come out again!"

Oh, little Dorian, it wasn't nice to break your dad's heart without meaning to. Bod had to rub his chest again, trying to get that ache to go away before Dorian noticed or Kate emerged.

"I'm sure she knows you're out here so she won't take too long," Bod said, smiling down at him. "She wouldn't want to miss spending time with you. She's really the absolute best person to have a mother, Dorian, so don't doubt her."

"Best mum in the world," Dorian said, like it was a fact. It had been presented to him as such, yes. "But she's a giiiirl and they take foreeeeeever in the shoooower."

You could tell just how forever by how much he drew those words out. He flopped down on his side, reaching for Bod's hand. "And Alice says thas because girls need to pretty up."

"Alice might have a point," Bod said, taking Dorian's small hand in his and enveloping it easily. "Are you going to be taking a nap?"

"No," Dorian said, but there was no guarantee of that being true. "Mum says Alice never has a point."

Big surprise.

"Well, your mum and Alice don't get along," he said, stroking his thumb along Dorian's hand and watching the boy lay there. "Just make sure you mind and respect both of them. They both deserve it."

"I knooow." Dorian rubbed his eyes with his free hand. Sleepiness was so sneaky. "Shawna too, you say so."

As if he was going to be able to say Shoshana, please.

"I'm right," he said, not able to contain a smile now at how easily Dorian was falling asleep. "Go to sleep, Dorian. If me and your mum decide to do anything, I'll wake you up. I'm right here."

It was a comfy bed! It smelled a little weird, like mommy and someone else, but even that didn't throw him off this path to sleep he'd somehow ended up on. Neither did the sound of the shower stopping, either.

"'M not sleepy," he murmured, eyes closed. "'M not."

Yeah, and how many times had Bod heard that before?

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