Devil's House

Moral Compass

Jason was up first the next morning. Around four a.m. he'd heard someone up with one of the girls, some rustling in the kitchen and some unhappy infant cries. But then things quieted back down and the house got still again, and Jason realized he couldn't fall back asleep.

When he turned on his side and looked at the time, it was just after six. Even though that was earlier than he was accustomed to rising in the morning, he was annoyed that he couldn't fall back asleep, and decided to just get his day started. As quietly as possible, he slid out of the bed, tucking the blankets around his husband, and went into the bathroom.

It didn't take long for him to use the toilet and wash up, and then he was pulling the bedroom door closed on his way through the office. If Ryan could get a little extra sleep, Jason was all for it. Too often his husband was up early with Julien, and it wouldn't be long until the baby was awake and ready for his breakfast. They didn't usually make it past seven without Julien needing a dry diaper and something in his stomach, and Jason hoped he'd get to him before Ryan woke.

He stopped in the office, plucking a book from his desk that he'd been trying to read. It was a sci-fi novel of Mike's, and even though that wasn't a genre Jason typically chose to read, he'd promised Mike he'd give it a try. For entertainment purposes, he'd said a few months ago, and Mike had smiled back at him, excited to have someone to discuss the book with.

I'll read a chapter or two and then make some coffee. Maybe when Mike gets up, we'll have a chance to talk about it. Jason carried the book with him as he crept past Julien's door and down the hallway, reaching for the light switch to the living room lamp as he stepped into the space. There hadn't been a whole lot of conversation between Mike and anyone in the past week, and Jason had definitely noticed the other man seemed withdrawn. Life had been chaotic since Lily and Lila had come home, and any time Mike wasn't spending with the babies, he was spending with his nose in a textbook.

Maybe it will cheer him up if he's got something else to think about for a minute. He really wanted me to read this, and I didn't get around to it.Jason felt a guilty pang in his chest. Things had just gotten so busy, with Talinda moving in, and Chester working so much. He hadn't made reading a priority, but decided in that moment that maybe he should have.

He hated seeing Mike so quiet and stressed, which was the only way he'd looked since the middle of last week. I'll just start talking about it, without telling him I read anything. It will make him smile, I know. The thought made Jason smile, right before a dark spot on the floor caught his attention.

It was a shirt, and Jason stopped to pick it up, a frown immediately replacing the smile that had just been on his face. None of them liked a messy common area, especially with Mike's mom around. But this was definitely Chester's shirt, and Jason held it uncertainly for a moment before he looked around the living room. Outside it was still dark, and he could see his reflection in the windows as he turned and glanced at the rest of the space.

The piano bench caught his eye next, pulled out from the piano and slightly askew. He walked over and pushed it back into place, the thought suddenly occurring to him that there was a reason for both items to be amiss. The piano bench and a lost t-shirt sounded very much like a good time had been had in the living room, in the hours between infant feedings. Jason rolled his eyes as he put his book down on the piano so he could fold the shirt and leave it on the bench.

Maybe that's what's been wrong with Mike. I guess they made up for it last night. It was like that when Julien came home, too. Ry and I didn't have sex for weeks.

Jason sighed as he stood there, looking down at the piano bench. It was easy to imagine Mike and Chester there at the piano, using the bench or the instrument itself as leverage - though Mike loved that piano enough that Jason doubted the two of them had actually had sex there. More like a neck massage, some kissing, and then Chester got on his knees. Jason could see it in his head, an updated version of the famous piano room video, with Mike and his longer hair that Jason still loved even though it was now off-limits to him. He could visualize Mike leaning against the piano while Chester used his lip ring to make Mike's eyes roll back in his head. It wasn't hard to imagine being the one to do it himself, but Jason shook that thought away.