Fates | Book 2 ✔️

[10]

Finally, I had gotten some of Lance's walls down and I do not want to give him time to build them back up, so every day I had gone to his room asking about the little things and ignored the bigger ones. My grandfather would see some form of a relationship in that and he would relent on Lance giving up Emery to him. I'd give everything to make sure he is happy, but I'd give my life to keep my child. The very thought of him warms my heart.

I knock on his door just as I hear a small voice coming from inside. As soon as I open it, I see Emery nudging Lance awake, but Lance only turns away from him and groans.

"You said you would play with me! You promised," Emery says. His Rs sound more like Ws which makes me laugh, but I smother it down wanting to see more of this.

"M, daddy's tired."

"I don't care! You promised." Emery jumps on him causing him to laugh and roll over.

"Okay, okay, okay." Lance kisses his cheek causing Emery to wipe it away. "I did make you a promise, so I'll keep it," he said smiling making my heart melt under the warmth of his voice.

"Stop kissing me!" Emery growls but Lance only kisses him again and again until Emery is a laughing bundle in his arms. "I'm not a baby!"

"You are... " Lance kisses him again. "You're mine and you always will be." He runs his hand through his red hair and sighs. "And his as well."

"I only have you, daddy and Aunty Dani."

"... No, there is one more. Your other... " I can feel the hesitation in his voice. It's so potent. He's nothing but reluctant about telling him and I understand why. "Your other daddy, Emery."

His blue eyes were wide with excitement as a smile bloomed across his face.

"Red hair... he has red hair like me?" Emery asks wrapping his small arms around Lance's neck and snuggles into him.

"Yes... "

"There is someone like me!" he squealed. "Someone who looks like me, so I'm not different. We're the same."

"M, you have never been different. The other kids... the other kids... "

"I am different. No one wants to play with me because I look different. I don't look like them, so they make fun of me and don't want to be my friend."

My eyes lower the same time as Lance's does. I had known he wouldn't be so welcomed here. Although Lance is a Northerner, by birth, Emery is all Red to the eyes of others. It must have been hard to see no one looking the same as him. He has an entire side he doesn't know about and that's why the Old Man is here. That's why I'm here.

Emery tugs Lance off the bed and towards the doorway. He rubbed his eyes sleepily and stops once he notices me.

"S-Seth," Lance mumbles.

I walk a little closer to them as Emery throws his head back to look at me grinning. So that was why he grew so attached to me in the beginning? I smile and ruffle his hair before he latches on to my leg like a leech.

"You're here!" Emery says.

"Yeah, I am."

"I haven't seen you in forever! I thought you didn't want to play with me either." I bend down low and smile at him again.

"Of course I'd want to play with you. I would never leave you. Never." My eyes skim across his facial features making me wonder how much of him is mine or is it just all Lance there? He hugs me not giving me a chance to look further.

"We are the same... We are the same, right?" Emery asks.

"We are."

"So I'm not weird...?"