It was the middle of the night when Finian came home from the hospital, and the house was all quiet. It was like nothing had happened, and everything was as it should be. Like it all had just been a bad dream. Finian was tired, and he took his time taking off his coat and shoes. His big belly prevented him from bending down, so he had to sit on a chair. He could feel the baby moving in there, and he put his hand on his stomach and closed his eyes. It would have been nice to be as unaware as the little boy in there was.
It was with heavy steps Finian went to the living room. He stayed there for a while. He needed to sleep, but he was worried. Worried that the children were awake and knew that something had happened. What if they needed him? He couldn't be there for Dorian right now, but he could be there for them.
Finian went to Caoimhe's room first. It was dark inside, but he saw the girl sleeping peacefully with Duke down by her feet. Duke lifted his head when the door opened and wagged his little tail when he noticed Finian. But the dog was tired and quickly put his head down again and closed his eyes. Finian carefully closed the door and went to Ikumi's bedroom. She was also sleeping while hugging an old brown teddy bear that her father Kei had when he was just a little boy. When Finian was about to close the door, the girl opened her eyes.
"Papa?" She said in a tired voice.
"No Sweetheart, it's me," Finian said and walked slowly towards the bed.
"Dadaí?"
Finian stopped. He knew that the girl was half asleep and probably wouldn't have said it if she had been fully awake because of how timid she usually was. But it didn't matter. She had called him dadaí, and she even had the same Irish accent that Eamon and Caoimhe had when they said it. Finian's eyes teared up. He knew that it wasn't just because of his happiness but also due to the pregnancy hormones and the exhaustion after everything that happened. But it took everything he got not to cry. He didn't want to startle the sleepy girl, but he was just so happy. It felt like she had really accepted him. On light steps, Finian walked over to the bed and sat down next to the girl.
"Did I wake you?" He asked.
The girl shrugged.
"I don't know. I dreamed of Papa, and then I just woke up."
"Was it a good dream?"
"Yeah. We ate crêpes in Shinjuku Gyoen and walked around for hours. Just Papa and me. We used to go for walks together when Otousan wasn't home, and we talked about all sorts of things."
Finian could hear the longing in the girl's voice, and his heart ached for the little girl. Ikumi sighed and hugged her teddy bear.
"I miss him."
Finian put his arms around her and patted her gently on the head.
"Of course you do. It's your Papa."
"But I like you and Dorian too. Wouldn't Papa be sad if he knew? It feels like I'm doing something wrong."
"No, you're not doing anything wrong Sweetheart. I'm sure Kei would have been happy that so many people care about you. Because your Papa loved you very much."
"So it's really okay?" Ikumi's voice, which had previously been filled with worry, now sounded hopeful.
Finian smiled and caressed the girl's cheek with his big hand.
"Yeah, it is."
Ikumi smiled before yawning.
"It's time to go back to sleep, Little lady," Finian gently said and were about to get up when Ikumi grabbed onto his shirt.
"Can you stay here just until I fall asleep?"
Finian nodded and sat down again.
"Thank you," she said and closed her eyes.
It didn't take long until Ikumi was sleeping, and as quietly as he could, Finian left the room.
Finian really adored Ikumi, the whole family did. She was such a kind and bright child. And she was strong because even though she was young, she had experienced so much in her life. Being the child of a celebrity was hard, and on top of that, Ikumi had lost her father at such a young age. A truly horrible thing for a child to go through. To see your parent become ill and after a long struggle having to say goodbye. But Ikumi still had Shiro, who loved her more than anything, and now she also had them. Her new family. A family that would do anything for the ones they loved.
Before Finian finally went to bed, he carefully opened the door to Eamon's room and peered inside. Finian smiled when he saw Eamon lying on his back and Tem hugging him from the side while he used Eamon's arm as a pillow.
'So adorable,' he thought before closing the door again. He didn't linger, and soon Finian was in the bedroom. He took off his clothes and crawled under the covers. He turned to the side and looked out over the empty space next to him. Had the bed always been so big? It was a strange feeling to be alone in a bed when you were used to always having someone next to you. Finian used to think the bed was too small. He and Dorian were, after all, big men, and Shiro took surprisingly up a lot of space even though he was almost half their size. The little omega rolled around and spread his legs and arms. Dorian was often beaten in the face or the crotch, but Dorian, who slept like a log, never woke up.
Finian used to think they needed a new, bigger bed. But he no longer wanted that.
Being there on the empty, big bed, Finian felt lonely. He knew he had no other choice but to go home, but it was still hard to leave Dorian. He was the one who needed to be home when the children woke up. He was the one who needed to tell Caoimhe what had happened to her dad.
Well, that was something he had to deal with in the morning. Now Finian needed to get some sleep. After a while in the comfortable bed, Finian was finally able to relax, and now he could feel how much his body ached. He had done everything the doctor had told him not to do. He had been running around, sitting on hard chairs and standing up for far too long. But he didn't have any other choice. He just couldn't stay at home when he learned that his beloved was at the hospital. That wasn't even an option. But he was also well aware that he had to take it easy. He needed to be healthy for the sake of the child.
It wasn't long until the due date, and he was both happy and relieved that it was soon time. This pregnancy had been tough for him, and he knew that people thought his decision to have another child as a thirty-five-year-old was foolish. Deep down, he knew they were right. But it didn't matter. He wanted this child. He longed to meet him and give him so much love. Finian put his hand on top of his swollen belly and closed his eyes. The baby moved. Normally, it would have made him smile. But not today. Not when all his thoughts were on Dorian. His beloved Dorian. His best friend, first love, husband. The other half of him.
It took a long time before Finian fell asleep. Thoughts swirled in his mind and kept him awake for far too long. He kept on seeing Dorian in the hospital bed, bloody, and even though he didn't show that he was in pain, Finian knew that the pain Dorian felt was excruciating. He had seen it in Dorian's eyes. He had seen how desperately Dorian fought to keep the mask, not to worry them.
Finian missed his Dorian. He missed him so much that it hurt. But Finian couldn't stay up all night. He was far too tired, and in the end, the fatigue won over the anxiety. Finian didn't dream, and he slept until he woke up to the sound of his phone ringing. Tired, he answered. It was Shiro, and when Finian heard his voice, all exhaustion disappeared. He sat straight up, far too fast, so his stomach hurt. But he ignored it.
"Is he okay?" Finian's voice trembled as he asked.
"He just woke up. He doesn't want to take any sedatives, but he's in serious pain." Shiro sounded tired, like he hadn't slept all night.
"Did Dorian say that?"
"Yeah, but he still says that he can handle it."
Finian couldn't believe what he was hearing. Had Dorian really admitted that he was in pain? The same Dorian who always tried to pretend that nothing was wrong, so nobody would worry. Finian couldn't say anything for a while. He was happy that Dorian was finally being honest, but he couldn't help feeling jealous. Not much, but just a little bit. Dorian could be honest with Shiro, but not with him. Was it because of their bond or something else?
"Finian?" Shiro sounded worried, and Finian jerked, and the anxiety went away when he heard the worry in Shiro's voice.
He felt a bit silly. He knew there was no reason for him to be jealous. Instead, he should be happy that Dorian was comfortable enough with Shiro to feel that he didn't have to be strong all the time. And Finian knew that Dorian didn't want to worry him because he was pregnant.
"Did he say why he doesn't want to take any painkillers?"
"He didn't like how it felt when he took them. He thought it was scary. He couldn't focus, and it was like his thoughts were clouded. The doctor is pretty upset with him. But he says that my pheromones help Dorian relax, so the doctor wants me to be by Dorian's side as much as possible."
"It's that alright with you? You don't want to come home?"
"No! I want to be here," Shiro quickly said. "But I don't know if I can."
"Why? Because of Ikumi?"
"Yes."
"You don't have to worry. We'll take care of her."
He heard Shiro sigh with relief.
"Thank you. So when are you coming?"
"After Simon and Keith. But we won't stay for long. Dorian needs to rest."
It was quiet for a while.
"Thank you for taking care of the children. I wish you could be here as well."
Finian understood what he meant when he said that. Shiro felt bad because he was the one with Dorian and not Finian. And Finian appreciated it. Of course, it was hard not to be the one Dorian needed most, as it had been for over twenty years. But that was the reality of things.
"Dorian needs you more than me right now. And I think it's better that I'm the one taking care of Caoimhe."
And when he had just said that, he heard the girl shout from the kitchen.
"Is Dad in the hospital?"
"The children have woken up. I'll call you when we are on our way," he said quickly.
They said goodbye, and Finian put down his phone on the bed. He put on his bathrobe and went to the door. He put his hand on the handle and took a deep breath to strengthen himself, and then he went out. In the kitchen stood the children and Tem. Caoimhe held up her phone in front of the others and showed them something. Ikumi held his hand in front of his mouth and had large frightened eyes. Eamon, who already knew what had happened, still had a terrified look upon his face, and so had Tem.
"What are you looking at?"
They flinched in surprise when they heard Finian's voice and turned around.
"Dadaí, where is Dad? It says here that someone beat up Dad."
Caoimhe's voice trembled, and Finian walked up to them.
"Can I take a look?"
The girl gave it to him. It was a news site, with a long article about what had happened and also two pictures. Someone had taken photos when Dorian stood on all fours with blood running down his face and glass shards on the ground. The next picture was when Dorian stood up, and people lay on the ground. Finian didn't recognise his husband. His face, blonde hair and jacket were covered in blood. And the only thing that could be seen under the blood was a glowing yellow eye. He towered over the people around him, like a god of death looking down at his subjects.
Finian quickly glanced through the article, and everything in it was accurate. The reporter had interviewed several witnesses to the incident, and all agreed that it was the other alpha that unprovoked attacked Dorian. The last piece of the article was entirely dedicated to praising Dorian for his self-control and for helping the omega. Who, according to the article, cooperated with the police. Finian was relieved because the article could just as easily have been full of lies, but now they stuck to the truth.
"Is it true?"
Finian looked up from the phone when Caoimhe talked. He could hear the panic in her voice.
"Calm down, Caoimhe. Dorian is in the hospital, but he's fine. I talked to Shiro just a few minutes ago."
Finian spoke calmly, but it was as if Caoimhe didn't hear him. Her face filled with anger and her body became stiff. As if she were frozen solid. It came so suddenly, as from nowhere. Her eyes turned bright yellow, and pheromones poured out of her like a sudden tidal wave. The room was soon filled with her scent. At her side, Eamon flinched and stared at her with a watchful gaze. Even though it was his sister, Eamon's instincts screamed that he had to protect his omega, so he automatically stood in front of Tem so his body could be used as a shield if she attacked. Behind Eamon stood Tem and didn't feel a thing but the gentle pheromones from his mate. He liked the feeling. It was as if he was wrapped in cotton. It was cosy.
On Caoimhe's other side stood Finian, and even though he was pregnant, he could sense the ominous pheromones, and he frowned. They didn't affect him, but Finian was worried. How strong was Caoimhe, and how would they teach her not to lose control?
Finian heard someone crying, and by his side, Ikumi sat crouched on the floor and rocked back and forth. The girl trembled like a leaf while tears streamed down her cheeks. At first, Finian couldn't move. He just stared at the little girl. She behaved like an omega in the face of an unfamiliar, aggressive alpha. She was terrified. But Ikumi wasn't an omega. Not yet anyway. She was just a small child. Finian leaned down and carefully put his arms around Ikumi's waist.
"Come Sweetie," he said calmly.
Finian helped her up, and the girl threw her arms around him. She didn't say anything. She just cried and held on to him.
"Don't be afraid. Nothing will happen to you."
While carrying Ikumi, he went to Eamon and Tem.
"Take her and go up to your room."
Eamon nodded, and without letting Caoimhe go with his gaze, he took Ikumi in his arms. He grabbed Tem's hand and left the room. Finian followed them with his eyes and then looked at his daughter. He walked cautiously towards her. She didn't move, and her eyes still glowed yellow. She really looked like Dorian.
"Honey, everything will be alright. Dad's fine, and we'll meet him soon. So just calm down."
Finian took Caoimhe in his arms and held her tightly. As if by magic, the pheromones became weaker and weaker until Finian no longer felt them. The yellow in her eyes disappeared, and they turned green again. And full of tears.
"Dadaí," the girl cried desperately.
Finian wanted to cry as well. This was one of the few times Finian didn't know what to do. And that was scary.