Chocolate Eyes

"Hey, Dad," Brian greeted as he wrapped his arms around his father. "Sorry we're late." He pulled out of the hug and pushed Evander forward from where the small child was standing, clutching onto a brand new toy his father had bought for him.

"It's alright, Bri," Papa Gates replied, "Why don't you come in and give Suzy and McKenna a hug." He clapped Brian on the shoulder and smiled as his son slid past him and into the hallway, leaving him with his grandson. "What do you have there?" he questioned the child, holding his hand out for the toy.

"Airpane," Evander replied, holding it out to him.

Brian Sr. smiled at the mispronunciation and lifted it up so that he could see it. "Wow," he enthused, "It really flies!"

EJ nodded and held out the black controller. Papa shook his head and set the plate on the ground after he'd turned the switch on the bottom. "Show me how high it goes."

Evander smiled slightly and turned the remote on. It was just like a video game; he used the joy stick to make the small plastic plane fly up into the air and over his grandpa's head. The plastic toy flew towards the banister of the stairs and soared over, heading up onto the second floor of the large house.

"Woah," McKenna said from the top of the stairs. She'd grabbed the bottom of the toy and held it out in front of her as the propellers spun and threatened to tangle in her purple hair. "Incoming," she called as she dropped it off of the second floor and it fell for a second before it floated back into place.

"Bri and EJ are here," Papa Gates called up to her, "Come down and spend some family time with us."

McKenna rolled her eyes playfully and raced down the stairs that hugged the walls. "Dad, like I didn't figure out that they were here when a helicopter came flying at me."

Brian Sr. rolled his eyes at his daughter. "Just take EJ to the living room, Kenna."

Evander turned the remote off and watched his plane hover to the ground. He walked past Papa and picked it up, holding each piece in one of his hands as he looked at his new aunt cautiously.

Even though he'd grown more comfortable with his dad, he still wasn't sure about everyone else. McKenna grinned at him and wrapped an arm over his shoulders. "Come on, EJ," she enthused ignoring her father , "Lets go get some food from Grandma Suzy."

Evander followed her through a swinging door, relieved to be going to same where his dad had gone. Suzy stood in front of the stove, stirring something in a large pot and she grinned at them when they walked in. Evander didn't smile back, he found his dad sitting on a stool and hurried over to him, pulling away from his new aunt.

"Did you show Papa your helicopter?" Brian questioned, setting the toy on the island before he lifted his son up and set him on the stool next to him.

"Yes, he did," Papa Gates cheered as he entered the kitchen and wrapped his arms around his daughter, "We even flew it upstairs and made McKenna come spend time with us." He mused her hair before he walked over and took a stool on EJ's other side.

Brian pulled the hat off Evander's head and smiled at the quiet boy. "Maybe later you can bring the rest of your things in and play with them in the living room."

"Okay." Evander nodded.

Suzy turned around and smiled widely. She rested her elbows on the island counter top. "Someone got a haircut," she acknowledged, "It looks nice."

Evander reached up to touch the ends of his hair. It now framed his face and touched his cheeks. Brian nudged his shoulder and asked him to thank his step-grandma. Evander murmured a quick reply to Suzy and then turned his attention back to his hat that was sitting on the counter along with the sun-glasses he'd had to wear quiet a few times before.

He turned to his grandpa and asked the question that his dad never answered. "How come I have to wear a hat at the mall?" He stared at Papa's face as the older man looked over his head at his own son.

Evander glanced between them, waiting for a reply.

Brian shook his head and was about to reply to Evander, but Papa Gates stopped him by resting his hand on EJ's shoulder and claiming the boy's attention.

"Evander," he started, ignoring Brian's sigh, "Your daddy is going to tell you why, someday, but right now, don't worry about it, okay?"

Brian sighed in relief and nodded at Evander when the child looked to him. "I promise I'll tell you, Ev," Brian told him, "But I want you to understand completely when I explain."

Evander frowned but nodded anyways. "Okay," he said softly, watching his dad smile. Brian ruffled Evander's hair as the little boy smiled back.

Suzy turned the stove off and smiled at her family. "Dinner's ready," she said. She leaned down in front of EJ, the island separating them, and she asked, "Do you like pulled pork? It's like barbeque."

Evander's face crumpled in confusion. "I don't know," he said, not knowing what it was that she'd made for him.

Brian nodded. "Yeah, you'll like it, Ev."

Evander nodded. "Okay." He watched Brian slide off his stool and pull his cell phone from his jeans.

"I'm going to call Michelle," Brian announced to them, "I'll be right back. Can someone get Evander a plate for me?"

Evander sighed nervously as Brian walked out of the kitchen, leaving him with the rest of the family. He stared at the swinging door until it stopped moving, and then looked up to Suzy as she grabbed him a plate from the cupboard and started filling it with food.

"Here you go, Honey," she cooed as she set it down and slid it across the counter to him. She grabbed a fork from the drawer and gave it to him, nervous that he wouldn't like what she had made.

She had been the most surprised when she found out about Brian's son. That he had one, and also that her husband had known and hadn't told her. And even though she thought she'd be upset, she found herself more in love with Brian Sr. because he'd stayed loyal to his son.

And then, when she'd actually met the child for the first time, she was surprised again. Everyone had just assumed that Brian's dark hair and stunning features would be the dominant genes in this child, but when Brian brought over a nervous, blonde haired boy, she'd questioned the authenticity of Evander Kent being Brian's biological son, even though it was obvious that Brian Jr. was quickly falling in love with his son.

Like with Brian's own encounter, Suzy and Papa's uncertainties had been whisked away from them when Brian pulled the sunglasses off the boy's face and showed them the stunningly identical eyes that the duo shared.

Suzy served the rest of her family happily, peaking back at the little boy as he ate slowly, trying each food item with a nervousness that told everyone that his mom had kept him on a short leash, monitoring everything that he did from the time he was born.

Brian and Michelle walked into the kitchen hand in hand. Evander had looked up right away at the sound of them entering, but he looked away just as quickly when he caught sight of Michelle.

Papa Gates rubbed the child's back comfortingly when he realized that he still felt skittish around Michelle, seeing as she was technically his step-mother, even though she was trying not to act like it to make EJ feel more comfortable since his birth mother had just died.

Michelle sat on the other side of Brian and smiled at the little boy. He looked away quickly and scooped another spoonful of mashed potatoes in his mouth, to Suzy's delight.

Michelle sighed and offered her husband a smile. She wanted Evander to like her, but she'd known all along that it'd be hard for him to accept a new woman in his life so soon after Claudia's death. But she didn't expect to be so upset by the boy's rejection.

"Can I go play?" Evander questioned, a half empty plate in front of him.

Brian shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, Buddy." He nodded. "Just stay inside, alright? It's dark outside now." He helped Evander off of the stool and handed him his helicopter.

"Thank you," EJ told him before he hurried out of the room with his toy in his hands. He pushed through the swinging door and disappeared down the hallway, into the living room that had another staircase in it, much like the staircase in the foyer that hugged the wall of the building.

Evander had been here once before. The first time his dad had brought him here to meet his new family. EJ had been astounded by the large building and the beauty of the whole place. The living room had been his favorite.

The far wall was made of only windows and now, showed the pool glowing outside. On the right wall was a staircase that curved up the wall and lead to a loft and a carved, wooden banister surrounding the entire thing.

Evander walked around the white furniture and headed up the stairs. He reached the top and walked out onto the loft, looking out of the large windows across the living room from him. He could barely see over the top of the railing, but he loved standing there, anyways. He turned on his plane and tried to balance the toy on the railing, but it threatened to topple over the edge, so he stepped back a couple feet and set it on the carpet while he turned on the remote.

He backed up even more and started the blades of the helicopter. He smiled lightly as it started rising in the air, mimicking the way a real live helicopter would. Evander let it float just higher than him before he directed it out over the railing and into the air of the living room.

He sent it flying towards the windows.

"Evander, you're going to break it!"

EJ looked over the edge at his aunt. McKenna stood in the middle of the living room, looking straight up at the plane that floated over her head.

EJ changed the direction of the plane and made it soar in the circle, heading back towards him so that he could turn it off. He landed it in front of him and flipped the button on the bottom so that the propellers would stop turning.

"Come on down here," McKenna called, "Nana made some dessert that she wants you to try." She motioned for him to come down the rounding stairs.

He grabbed his plane from the floor and took to the stairs carefully. McKenna rested her arm on his shoulders and led him back down the hallway to the kitchen. Evander relaxed slightly when Michelle wasn't back in the room, but he was slightly upset because his dad was missing, too.

"Nana Suzy," he said softly, causing his grandma to turn around and smile at him.

"What's wrong, Sweetheart?" she questioned, her smile dwindling as she watched her non-biological grandson look around the room.

He let McKenna help him onto a stool and Suzy set a bowl of ice cream down in front of him on the counter. He set his helicopter and remote down on the granite and took the spoon from Suzy.

He spooned a large bite into his mouth and looked down at the counter, trying to stay calm as his nerves spiked the longer Brian wasn't in sight. He sniffled quietly and let another bite of vanilla ice cream melt in his mouth.

"Bri- Your dad went outside with Michelle," McKenna told her nephew, almost forgetting that her brother was this little boy's father, "She has to go to her sister's so he was walking her out."

Evander nodded in relief. For a moment he wondered if his dad had left him there with his new family and the thought of being all alone had him one minute from tears. But Evander smiled when Brian walked back into the room. He slid off of his stool and raced over to the dark-haired man. He threw his arms around his father's legs and pressed his warm cheek against Brian's jeans.

"Woah, EJ, what happened, Bud?" Brian questioned, looking to his family for answers. The three of them just stared back at them, and Papa Gates shrugged his shoulders, watching with confusion as Brian kneeled down in front of Evander. EJ instantly wrapped his arms around his dad's neck.

"Are you okay, Ev?" Brian questioned, patting his son's back.

Evander nodded against Brian's neck.

Brian shared a concerned look with his step-mother and father. He wrapped his arms around his son's legs and stood up, taking the young boy with him. "Do you want to go home, Buddy?" he questioned, nodding as his mother nodded.

"Yeah," Evander said pathetically, having scared himself with thoughts of Brian never coming back for him.

McKenna handed Bri the helicopter and he took it before he wrapped a single arm around Suzy and let his father follow him out of their house. "Thanks for dinner, Suzy," Brian called over Evander's head, "It was delicious. I'll call you tomorrow."

Suzy nodded and smiled at her son. "If you don't, I will," she replied, causing Brian to smile as Brian Sr. rubbed his grandson's head as he surpassed him on the way out of the house.

Papa and Brian walked out to the black SUV and Papa opened the car door for his son. Brian slid Evander into his car seat and buckled him in. "I'll be right back in a minute, Okay, Ev?" Brian asked, "I just have to talk to Papa Gates real quick." He set the helicopter on his son's lap and waited for the child to nod before he shut the door and lost sight of his son behind the tinted windows.

Brian Sr. stared at his oldest son, wondering if he knew of the young child's obvious separation anxiety. "What was that, Bri?" he questioned.

Brian shook his head. "I have no idea," he said honestly, "Are you sure nothing happened before I came back in? I've never seen him start crying like that before."

"It was because you weren't in the room when McKenna brought him in for ice cream," he stated, biting his lip as Brian Jr. took in his words.

He glanced back at the car door. "You think so?" he asked, realizing that that could be the only reason if something hadn't scared him before hand.

Papa nodded. "Yeah. He was wondering where you went."

Brian sighed and ran his fingers through his dark locks. "Tomorrow's the funeral," he said softly, "I hope he's going to be okay."

Papa Gates clapped his son on his shoulder. "Everything will work itself out, Bri," he promised, "We've all just got to give Evander some time to get used to all of us. Honestly, I think it's great that he's scared to be without you. It means that he trusts you."

Brian smiled at the words of wisdom his father was speaking. Of course he wished that his son would realize that he'd never leave him, but he understood that this little boy knew that sometimes people didn't always have a choice. And tomorrow he'd be brutally reminded of that.

"I'll call you tomorrow, Dad," Brian murmured, "I'll let you know how everything goes."

Brian Sr. smiled and nodded. "You better," he warned, "I want to be kept up to date on my grandson."

"I'll call you," he promised, "You can talk to him yourself."

"Deal." Papa Gates threw his arms around his son and held him tightly. He loved his son and he could never imagine how Brian was surviving this. He could never imagine missing the first years of his son's life and then being thrust into fatherhood with so many complications waiting on the sidelines.

"Talk to you tomorrow, Dad," Bri called as his father headed back into the house and he climbed into the driver's seat, looking back at his son who dozed in his car-seat, in a land between asleep and consciousness. "Are you ready to go home, Little Man?"

Evander nodded slowly before he closed his eyes and rested his head against the back of his car-seat.