baby, I'll show you the world [muke af]

Eureka, California (Friday, August 9th, 2019)

Eureka, California (Friday, August 9th, 2019)

Luke laid back on Ashton and Calum's bed. He had one hand below his head, the other resting on top of his chest. "I can't believe this tour is, like, over."

"I'm still gonna see you every single day." Ashton dug through one of their many luggage bags, trying to find the right one.

"Whatever, it's just weird. I remember not thinking you'd make it through these three months." Luke sat up, his feet still stretched out comfortably under the hotel sheets.

Ash chuckled, "The girls could barely talk, and now they're caring out full out conversations and, geez, they're growing up."

"Please don't get emotional on me." Luke sighed, "How are the girls?"

"They're good. Ivona tried to pull out all her teeth yesterday, said the Tooth Fairy could pay the mortgage."

"Amazing."

Ashton pulled out a navy blue binder, clutching it to his chest before sitting down next to Luke. He placed it on his chest, neat calligraphy wrote out Babies 101. Luke looked up at him, a goofy smile on his face. "There's a present for you, I'm not sure when I'm gonna be needing it next." The brunette swallowed a lump in his throat, pretending it didn't' hurt an entire month after their loss.

Luke opened the pages, skimming over the details making his head spin. "Ew, fetuses look disgusting."

"Sh, it can hear you!" He paused, "Okay, it can't hear you yet, but it can soon." Ashton plopped next to him, getting under the covers and putting the large booklet between them. "Even though your baby or babies—."

"No, no, no, I can't handle more than one. Don't put that thought in my head."

"Shut up and let me talk." Ash cleared his throat, "Even though the thing in your womb is the size of sand, its heart is pumping blood. So, you'll get what I call 'pregnancy brain'. You've already have a pretty thick skull, good luck to Mike."

Luke kicked him under the sheets. "Don't be fucking rude."

"Make lots of lists and try to exercise."

"I hate writing and moving."

Ashton looked up at him, a motherly glare in his eyes. "You are honestly so annoying. I hate being friends with you."

Luke giggled, leaning his head on his best friend. "Tell me more about pregnancy, Daddy."

"First of all, fuck you." Ashton pushed him off, taking his binder and flipping through more pages. "I think every thing is pretty much in here. Just do what you think is best, don't drink caffeine, don't run a marathon, don't run up eight sets of stairs. Don't do anything that puts you or the baby in discomfort."

"Why is this so scary?" Luke asked. He pulled the sheets closer to his body, tucking them underneath his chin and arms.

"Because you're suddenly responsible for the growth of this child, and you're really scared of messing it up." Ashton closed the booklet. He could feel his heart speeding up, he wasn't sure why this all hurt him so much. "It's okay to be scared, it's okay if you lose it, okay? Don't put stress on yourself or the baby."

"I'm sorry, Ash."

"It's not your fault." He wiped his eyes, laughing at his ridiculous behavior. "I just feel so guilty. Cal just wanted another kid, that's all he wanted." Ashton looked down at his dry hands, his thumbs rubbing over the large palm. "I wanted that kid, too. I don't feel okay, physically and mentally and emotionally."

"I know it'll get better. This, too, shall past."

Ashton brought his knuckles to his eyes, wiping the free falling tears that he wasn't able to control. "I didn't think this would happen to me, to us."

Luke began crying, sitting up to pull the brunette closer. "Life sucks."

"Life sucks so fucking badly."

Calum whistled a tune, swinging the laminate of his pass around his fingers. He walked through the doors of their suite, slowing his steps and stopping his tune when he heard the awful sound of sobbing.

He walked into the bedroom, Luke and Ashton clutching on to each other as if their lives depended on it. Frankly, in their minds, it probably did.

He turned around, quickly walking back out.

Their day quickly faded. It was soon two in the morning and Luke couldn't sleep. Michael was fading in and out of sleep. He was pretending he wasn't sleep-deprived, jet-lagged, and homesick. He just didn't want to fall asleep before Luke.

"Hey, Michael," Luke whispered. He looked to his side, watching the blue-haired boy open one eye.

"What?"

"This is gonna be expensive."

Michael rolled over, his back to Luke. "Go to sleep."

"No, but, like, children. Children are expensive. Their basic needs, then preschool, and college, and tutoring. Fuck, Mike, this is expensive."

"Go to sleep," he repeated. His tone was low and grumpy, he wasn't in the mood to have one of Luke's infamous deep conversations. He was rarely in the mood for those conversation these days.

"What if we have more than one?"

"Stop talking to Ashton."

"No! I'm serious!" Luke pulled out his hands, grabbing the curve of Michael's hips and pulling him back towards him again.

Michael whined, plopping on to his back and turning his head to look at Luke. "Please let me sleep."

"But, there are children to worry about."

"The bundle of genetics in your body right now is nothing to worry about. Not now, not ever." Mike wrapped his arms around Luke's stomach, pressing a kiss to the space below his ribs. "Go to sleep."

"You suck."

"And swallow, baby."