35
Jake
Rey was like a whole new person after our conversation with his family. Their acceptance and change of heart, no matter how brief it would last, had given Reyes the freedom he needed to fully embrace our future together. We’d lain in bed laughing and talking about our future. Neither of us had any real idea what we wanted, other than Harrison and each other of course, so there was literally no limit to what we dreamed up. We alternated between serious goals and unrealistic fantasies.
After another cramped shower in my bathroom, we realized moving to a bigger house was something that not only needed to be a goal for the near future but a priority. We were both tired of stepping on toes in this tiny place and wanted more room for Harrison to run around in. We used Rey’s tablet to browse available houses within our area, and when we found the website for a developer, we realized building a home wasn’t too farfetched of a dream. With our pooled savings and double incomes, we could easily afford a good-sized home in the area. Rey wasted no time setting up an appointment with the realtor, and I found his take-charge attitude sexy as fuck.
By the time we picked up Harrison up, my stomach was aching from all the laughter we’d shared, and my heart was soaring with a joy like I’d never known. I never thought this would be my life, sharing it with someone I loved and dreaming up houses to raise a family in. Guilt still threatened to work its way in, trying to remind me how selfish it was to want this when there was so much risk with my career, but I was getting better about telling it to shut the fuck up. I wasn’t going to let this go. Not anymore.
Harrison wanted to take the dogs to the beach, but it was simply too cold to stay much longer than a few minutes. We let him throw the ball a few times for Lady before heading back into town. Rey stopped for some hot chocolate as an after-school snack, and when we climbed out of the truck at the house a few minutes later, I could tell Reyes was nervous. So was I. We both wanted Harrison to take the news well, but we also were under no illusion that it would go without a hitch. Linda had warned us that Harrison would likely feel threatened by the change, thinking we were out to destroy the bond he had with Wyatt, so we were prepared for some pushback.
Harrison went to his room to drop his backpack and coat off while Rey went to the fridge, pulling the picture Harrison had drawn out from the under the magnet. He studied it quietly a moment before crossing the small distance to stand at my side against the counter. He kissed me once, silently offering – and accepting – encouragement. When Harrison returned, Bumblebee was in one hand and Optimus Prime in the other. I often wanted to laugh at how much he loved those toys, mostly because it reminded me of myself at that age.
“Hey, Sport,” Rey said, “Jake and I want to talk to you for a minute.”
Harrison looked up and immediately noticed his drawing in Rey’s hands. The smile on his face grew wider as he came over to us.
“Do you remember when you drew this?” Rey asked.
Harrison nodded. “Yeah.”
“Can you tell us what you were thinking?”
He glanced between us, confused. “That I liked you and you liked me.”
I chuckled. “That’s very true, kiddo. We really do like you. You’ve kind of changed our life, you know that? In fact,” I paused, glancing at Reyes, who nodded, “Rey and I would like to make this happen. What you’ve drawn, I mean. We want to be your dads so we’re a family.”
At first, he didn’t seem to either understand or believe us, and slowly his smile faded until it was almost a frown. “But what about Dad?” he asked. “Did something happen?”
“No, nothing happened,” Reyes prompted. “I promise. And he’s not going anywhere, okay? Jake and I just want to give you a permanent home, so you’ll never have to worry about when you’re leaving again. We promise you you’ll still be able to see Wyatt as much as you want.”
Harrison looked away, clutching the toys in his hands with all the strength he could muster. I wanted to wrap my arms around him and soothe the worries but knew he needed time to process. His confliction was understandable. We were throwing another stone into his life and causing even more ripples. But I hoped that somewhere beneath all his uncertainty, he saw the root of what we were offering. A home where peace and safety would be the support beams and love the ground he walked on. I hoped somewhere in his little heart he would find a little bit of joy in this idea. We wanted Harrison to understand this was a good thing, and that it meant he didn’t need to fear his future anymore.
“You can call him if you want,” Rey offered. “Wyatt already knows, and he’s said he’d love to still be a part of your life.”
Harrison hesitantly glanced up. “He does?”
Rey nodded once. “Of course he does, Sport. He’s not going anywhere.”
Harrison’s little feet shuffled forward a few steps until he was finally within arm’s reach. Tucking Bumblebee in the crook of his elbow, he reached with his free hand to take the picture Rey was holding, studying it with his amber eyes. I held my breath, anxiously waiting to see what he would do next. I thought I imagined it when Rey shifted and moved closer to me, but then his hip bumped mine, and he didn’t pull away. When I glanced at him, the tension in his lips and around his eyes made me realize he was wasn’t fairing much better than I was, waiting for Harrison’s response.
Harrison finally looked up at us, brows pulled together. “So, you’ll be my dads too?”
“Well, actually,” Rey said, clearing his throat, “Wyatt called me this morning and asked if we’d told you the news yet. He said you can still call him by the same name if it’s easier, but he said you could think of him like your grandpa now, and us your fathers.”
My heart swelled at that notion, and I had to slide an arm around Rey’s back just for more of his contact. I had no idea they’d spoken earlier, yet for some reason, I wasn’t surprised either. And a part of me was glad it had been Wyatt who reached out to Rey, not the other way around. It was a sure sign he hadn’t held this against us and would be a part of our lives.
“So, maybe Jake could be Dad, and I could be Papa,” Rey continued, “but only when you’re ready, and if you feel like it, okay? Neither of us would ever ask you to do something you’re not comfortable with.”
There was a part of me that wished Rey hadn’t said that. While it was true that we wouldn’t ever ask Harrison to do something he wasn’t ready for, going through with this adoption wasn’t his choice either. We’d already started the process to become his adoptive parents, and there was no turning back. Whether Harrison wanted this or not, it was going to happen. But Rey and I also knew Harrison would eventually come to see this as a good thing, even if it didn’t happen today.
Harrison still didn’t move, and his eyes fell back to the picture in his hand. When he spoke, his voice was quiet but filled with a little more confidence than before. “So, we’re really going to be a family?” he asked. “Forever? No more moving?”
Rey let out a breath and reached for Harrison, lifting him into his arms in one smooth move. The toys slipped from Harrison’s grasp, clattering to the floor, and to my surprise, Harrison didn’t try to make a move for them. His attention was fully on Reyes.
“Forever, Harris. We are a family now. You, me, and Jake,” Rey said. “There are some others you’ll meet too, later. Uncles and aunts and cousins, and more grandparents. But yeah, Sport, the three of us will always be together.”
“And Wyatt?” he asked. I had to fight back tears. It was the first time I’d heard him call his foster dad by his first name, and it made me realize he was already making the necessary changes in his mind to fit the pieces together.
