Tense

Bonus Chapter #1 : Part A

"Claire just called me, they've left and they should be here in like twenty minutes." Kai said. Roan didn't reply, and simply nodded as he took out the casserole from the oven.

The two husbands were twenty eight now, after five years of marriage they decided that they wanted to take the next step. Neither of them wanted to have a child via surrogacy, both of their hearts were set on adoption since the start. But they also knew that it was a huge commitment, so after weeks of discussion, they decided on becoming foster parents.

The whole application and vetting process took even longer, but after all the formalities were completed, they were finally matched with two children. They were siblings, a 5 year old girl and her 15 year old brother. They had lost their parents four years ago, and without any other family to take care of them, they were thrown in the system.

"What if they hate us?" Kai asked out loud, making his husband sigh.

"They won't," Roan said, "I know we've only met them a couple of times but Maya already loves you."

"She's a sweet kid," Kai smiled, "But meeting and living together is different. Plus, I don't think Leo likes us very much."

"He's a teenager in the foster system with a young sister to take care of, cut him some slack for not being a very happy-go-lucky child." Roan shrugged.

"Fair enough," Kai muttered, "Did you make anything to drink?"

"Iced tea is in the fridge." Roan answered.

"I can't believe this is really happening." Kai said again after a few moments of silence.

"They're probably more nervous than you." Roan stated.

"Really?" Kai asked with a frown, "I knew you'd be able to relate better with them."

"Is that because I'm adopted?" Roan raised a questioning brow, "I got adopted when I was two, Kai. It's no where near the same as bouncing around in foster homes for years."

Kai helped Roan set up for lunch, and after about fifteen minutes there was a knock on their door. Despite his nervousness, Kai was good with kids. So he opened the door and welcomed Claire, their caseworker, and the two siblings.

Both Maya and Leo were reserved, which is why they had trouble fitting in at their previous homes, according to Claire. But the agency had managed to make sure that they weren't separated, so atleast they had each other no matter where they were.

They did, however believe that this harmed Maya's chances of getting adopted, since they didn't want to take her away from her brother, and no one really wanted to adopt a fifteen year old.

Once they were done eating the lunch that Roan cooked and Kai, debatably, helped with— Claire bid them goodbye after discussing the upcoming scheduled visits.

The two husbands had shifted to a bigger house a year ago, when they decided on having kids. Roan had a high paying job at an investment firm after he finished his MBA, whereas Kai got a teaching degree and taught at a highschool.

"Let's show you guys your rooms, yeah?" Kai said with an enthusiastic grin as he picked up Maya's bags.

Roan tried to help out Leo with his luggage, but the boy ignored his attempt and followed Kai wordlessly. They went to Maya's room first. From the meetings they had earlier, the two learned that Maya's favourite colour was yellow and that her favourite movie was Cars, so they had decorated the room accordingly.

Leo inspected the room carefully, looking almost suspicious. But when it was clear that there was nothing wrong with it, he backed off. Maya was surprised at first, pleasantly so. The huge grin on her face was enough to pull at the heartstrings of both the men.