Eighteen (Oikawa Tooru Ambm)

Chapter Twelve

Ethan's Pov
The morning sun poured through the kitchen windows, illuminating a scene of absolute, beautiful devastation.

After the movie theater marathon, Daichi and Akaashi had agreed it was logistically easier to just have all twenty kids sleep over at my house. Now, the living room floor was a sea of tangled blankets, stray pillows, and snoring toddlers.

I stood at the stove, humming softly to myself as I flipped a massive stack of pancakes. For the first time in over a year, the heavy blanket of anxiety that usually weighed down my chest was completely gone. Every time I thought about last night about Tooru's words, the warmth of his hand, and our official step into a relationship a goofy smile tugged at my lips.

"Someone's in a good mood," a raspy, deeply affectionate voice whispered in my ear.

Before I could turn around, two long arms wrapped securely around my waist from behind. Tooru rested his chin directly on my shoulder, his messy morning hair brushing against my cheek. He smelled like sleep and maple syrup, and the sudden warmth of his body sent a familiar, pleasant shiver down my spine.

"Tooru, stop, I'm holding a hot spatula," I chuckled, though I didn't make any move to pull away. Instead, I leaned back against his chest, letting myself sink into the embrace.

"I don't care about the spatula. I haven't seen my boyfriend in eight whole hours," Tooru murmured dramatically, tightening his grip on my waist. "Do you know how agonizing it was to sleep on your couch while you were all the way down the hall? Truly a tragedy."

"You chose the couch so you could watch over the toddler army," I reminded him, turning my head slightly to look at him. Up close, his brown eyes were bright and full of affection.

"A tactical error on my part," he smirked, leaning in to press a soft, lingering kiss to my cheek.

"Ewwwww! Dad is kissing Mr. Ethan! Gross!"

The sudden, high-pitched shout from the kitchen doorway made us both jump. Tooru didn't let go of my waist, but we both turned our heads to see toddler Atsumu standing there, wearing mismatched dinosaur pajamas, pointing a chubby finger at us in absolute betrayal.

Right behind him, Osamu pushed past his twin, looking entirely unfazed. "If they are kissing, does that mean we get double the pancakes?"

Within thirty seconds, the kitchen was completely flooded. The smell of breakfast had acted like a homing beacon for twenty four-year-olds.

"Ethan-nii! Look! I can jump as high as the counter!" Hinata squeaked, bouncing up and down on his tiptoes while Kageyama tried to pull him back by his shirt collar.

"Don't jump in the kitchen, Shouyo," I warned automatically, trying to manage the pancake flip while Tooru finally detached himself from my waist to herd the influx of children.

"Alright, my little monsters, everyone take a seat at the table or on the floor mats," Tooru commanded, clapping his hands together. "And no fighting over the chocolate chips, or Iwa-chan gets to enforce the rules."

Four-year-old Iwaizumi, who was already sitting at the kitchen island meticulously cutting a pancake with a plastic knife, gave a solemn, terrifying nod to the rest of the room.

The chaos of breakfast was a military operation. Akaashi and Daichi stumbled into the kitchen looking completely exhausted from their night of theater duty, but they both paused when they saw Tooru standing right next to me at the stove, casually reaching over to steal a piece of bacon from my plate.

Daichi caught my eye and gave me a massive, triumphant grin, subtly nudging Akaashi with his elbow. Akaashi didn't smile out loud, but the soft, relieved look in his eyes spoke volumes. They knew.

"So," Kuroo loudly announced from his spot on the floor, where he was sitting cross-legged next to Kenma. Kuroo had a streak of syrup across his nose and a mischievous glint in his eye. "Are you guys married now?"

Tooru choked on the piece of bacon he had just stolen, coughing dramatically into his hand. "Kuroo! Where did you even learn that word?"

"Daichi-nii said you were going on a romantic date to become boyfriends," Bokuto boomed, wearing his signature garbage-bag cape over his pajamas. He slammed his chubby hands on the table, his eyes wide with excitement. "Does that mean Mr. Ethan is our dad now too? Can we have two dads?!"

The entire kitchen went completely silent for a fraction of a second. My heart skipped a beat, a sudden wave of heat rushing to my face. I looked over at Tooru, suddenly nervous about how he would react to the kids throwing the word 'dad' around so easily.

But Tooru didn't look panicked at all. He looked down at Bokuto, then turned his gaze back to me. His expression was incredibly soft, filled with a deep, emotional warmth that made my chest ache in the best way possible.

"Well, Bo," Tooru said gently, walking over to ruffle Bokuto's spiky hair. "We're taking things one step at a time. But I can tell you one thing for sure Mr. Ethan and I love all of you very, very much. And we're not going anywhere."

Sugawara, who had been quietly eating his breakfast next to Tsukishima, suddenly stood up on his chair. He toddled over to where I was standing, reaching his little arms up. "Up, Papa. Up."

I smiled, abandoning the spatula for a moment to lift Suga into my arms, burying my face in his soft hair. Across the room, Kenma looked up from his toy cat, making direct eye contact with me. He didn't say anything, but he crawled out of his spot next to Kuroo, walked over, and wrapped his arms around my leg, anchoring himself to me.

Tooru walked back over to my side, stepping close enough that our shoulders brushed. He reached down, gently patting Kenma's head, before looking up at me with a smile that promised a beautiful, bright future.

"See?" Tooru whispered, his voice just for me over the loud chatter of twenty kids arguing about juice boxes. "I told you. We've got this."

"Yeah," I breathed, leaning my head against his shoulder for just a second, completely surrounded by the chaotic, beautiful family we were building together. "We really do."