the bad boy and the daddy

thirteen (rewrite)

corbyn sniffled softly as he stared at the paper in front of him, a blank look coating his face. he'd sat at his little table for at least twenty minutes just trying to comprehend what was happening on the page. he'd never been good in school, and it frustrated him to no end, that's why he'd given up. he gently placed the paper back into his little bag, hoping that daniel wouldn't ask to check it. his daddy was currently making them dinner, and he'd left corbyn to attend to his work.

"baby," daniel came in a crooked smile on his face, "dinner's done," he stated as he picked the boy up.

he frowned noticing that corbyn's homework was nowhere to be seen, "where's your homework, baby?"

"finished it," corbyn grumbled.

daniel gave a nod, appreciating that his baby did what he'd needed to, "i'll check it after dinner, okay?"

corbyn shook his head, "no, it's okay."

daniel's brows furrowed at this, usually his boy wouldn't mind the brunette checking his work. what had changed? he had a sneaking suspicion, but he didn't think the boy would lie to him like that. he knew that if he didn't understand something that he could ask for help.

"i'm going to check it, love, it's okay if you did a few things wrong. we'll work through it just like every other time," daniel's voice was soft and reassuring, but corbyn didn't feel very reassured.

his anxiety was kicking in knowing that he was outright lying to his daddy. the boy knew better, and he didn't want to be punished for lying. he tried not to think of it as they ate their meal, which consisted of chicken and mashed potatoes. when corbyn was in a younger headspace he wasn't allowed solid foods like this, but today he wasn't feeling very little.

"good job, honey, you finished all of your food!" daniel praised with a wide grin splitting his face.

corbyn was getting much better with his eating, and he heard about it every meal they ate. it made him feel good to know that such a small thing was appreciated here. daniel didn't think it was a small thing because it directly affected his baby's health, but corbyn didn't have the same mindset about it. soon, he was picked up out of his high chair and brought into the living room.

"go ahead and get your homework for me, honey," daniel told the boy, that same reassuring tone was back.

corbyn's lip wobbled as he went to get the paper, nothing but little doodles covered the page. besides that it was completely blank, and corbyn felt so stupid for not being able to just finish his simple task. every other little could do it, so why couldn't he? he was just dumb and this proved it. the boy held the paper close to his body as he approached his daddy. a calming look in the older's features. he'd be very upset finding out that corbyn lied, and he really didn't want that.

"hey, hey now, what's got you upset, hm?" daniel frowned upon seeing a tear roll down corbyn's cheek.

the boy didn't respond, only pushing the paper in daniel's direction and waiting for the yelling to come. he'd been here long enough to realize that daniel wouldn't yell at him for this, there would be a reprimanding, but nothing crazy. those ideals from his father were still stuck in his head, and sometimes those nasty thoughts just decided to creep up on him.

"oh, love," daniel uttered, his voice still calm, no sense of anger in it.

"i'm sorry," corbyn cried, "i-i just don't get it. i'm too stupid!"

daniel pulled the boy into his arms, "hey, baby, you are not stupid at all. sometimes there are things that even i don't understand, it's okay to need help. next time don't lie to me, and tell me that you need help, i'll be glad to."

corbyn rested his head on his daddy's shoulder, feeling smaller than he had all day. he was stressed out, and being in his little space definitely helped a lot with that.

"it's okay, love, don't worry. we'll figure it out together, how does that sound?" daniel asked while stroking his hands through the boy's soft hair.

corbyn sniffled one last time before nodding, this was definitely a process for the younger. after getting the confirmation that daniel needed he guided the boy onto the floor where they sat in front of the coffee table. a pencil was placed in corbyn's hand after daniel had gotten up to get his off of his little table. it was a reading comprehension worksheet, and it made complete sense to daniel why corbyn didn't understand.

"how about i read this passage to you, and then we do the questions together?" corbyn nodded at this, he desperately wanted to get this out of the way so he could slip and just cuddle with his daddy.

daniel read through the passage slowly, stopping every once in a while to make sure that corbyn was on the same page as him. there were a few times where corbyn had expressed that he didn't understand, and daniel had made it more clear for him. he was a better teacher than any other that corbyn had experienced in his life. he actually made an effort to make sure that corbyn understood what was happening, and that was so heartwarming to the boy. after they'd finally gotten through the passage, daniel helped him through each question, and clapped his hands with an excited look on his face every time corbyn got a question right. "what a smart boy," he'd say every time in accordance with his happy gestures.

it really made corbyn feel ten times better about not understanding in the first place. daniel was amazing, and this was just one of the many things that corbyn loved about him. his patience and understanding when it came to corbyn.

daniel pulled the boy close when they'd finished, "all done! you did amazing, baby, you're so smart," a kiss was pressed to his temple.

now corbyn was slipping, falling into that state of happiness. he giggled happily, "thank you, daddy!"

"oh of course, my love, anytime," daniel cooed as he realized that the boy slipped back into his headspace.

corbyn was so good with his headspace now, he truly accepted that this was now a part of his everyday life.

"daddy?" corbyn whispered.

daniel moved them from the floor back up to the couch, "yes, baby?"

"c-can i haf my paci?" corbyn asked sleepily, he was definitely in need of a good nights rest.

daniel thought he could explode at the cuteness of his baby, "of course," a little blue pacifier was slipped between corbyn's lips.

the boy had grown a liking to the rubber, it soothed him, and he'd be asleep in no time. it was nearing eight at this point, and the boy was so used to his schedule that his body grew tired right around this time. daniel covered the boy with his blanket before walking into their bedroom and placing the boy in his crib. soon little snores could be heard coming from corbyn, and daniel cooed. he loved that boy more than anything else in this world.

"i love you, baby boy," daniel placed a kiss on the younger's forehead before getting in his own bed and falling into his own dreamland.

~s.🖤