Daddy and the Nanny

Jack woke up in the morning and found Alex still curled up and fast asleep, dried tear stains still visible on his cheeks. Jack climbs out of bed slowly and gets ready before exiting the room and finding the kids heading towards his room.

“Stop right there. Let’s go make breakfast and let Ali sleep in.” Jack told them, pushing them towards the stairs.

“But daddy.” Dylan whined.

“Don’t argue with me, bud. Alex doesn’t feel good so he needs to rest.”

“What’s wrong with my brother?” Shane asked Jack worriedly.

“Just a headache, buddy. Later though, we’re gonna go to your parents’ house to get some things he missed.”

“Oh.” Shane’s face dropped as he looked at Jack with sad eyes. “You mean-”

“Yeah.” Jack nodded, wrapping an arm around Shane’s shoulders as they kept walking down the stairs, sending Tyler a reassuring smile when he looked back at the pair with a confused gaze.

During breakfast, Jack asks Grace if she could watch the kids for a bit.

Things were quiet between Jack and Alex on the drive to Alex’s parents’ house. The radio was playing softly in the background, but otherwise Alex hadn’t really spoken much all morning besides the greeting he gave the kids.

“Come on, babe, we’re here.” Jack spoke gently as he rubbed Alex’s hand with his thumb.

Alex nodded and swallowed the lump in his throat before they both walked up to the front door and rang the doorbell. Isobel opened the door with a smile that quickly faded when she noticed her son’s blank stare and Jack’s worried and tired gaze.

“Boys, is everything alright?” Isobel asked as she let them inside, Jack spotting his mother in the kitchen.

“Jack, Alex.” Joyce spoke up as she walked up to them.

“Everything’s fine, we just came to get somethings.” Jack explained, his arm wrapped around Alex’s waist tightly.

“Alright, if you need anything we’ll be here.”

Jack nodded in thanks and Alex slipped past the women and headed for the stairs, leading Jack into his old bedroom. Maybe locking everything away for so long had really been a terrible idea. Alex didn’t like how all of his emotions were crushing him down, breaking down the weak walls he had built. He didn’t like feeling so vulnerable.

“Alright sweetie. Remember I’m here.” Jack encouraged his lover as he watched the younger man walk up to the closet and open the door.

“Thank you.” Alex whispered, leaning up on his tip toes to grab a box from the very top of his closet, dust covering the lid.

Jack simply watched as Alex’s shaky hands brought the box down and clear away the dust before approaching him.

“This is it. The past I buried away.” Alex spoke up, looking at his boyfriend who nodded encouragingly.

Alex opened the box as they sat down on the bed, looking inside the box and both freezing at the contents inside of it. An old stuffed bear, a lot of pictures, a pair of tiny shoes and an old white rose all dry and shriveled up.

"Jason always blamed me for her death and I guess at some point I blamed myself as well." Alex spoke up as he picked up a picture of him holding the small and fragile baby.

"Well I hope you're not blaming yourself still. Sometimes these things just happen, you know? She was gorgeous though." Jack spoke as he pulled his boyfriend on his lap and looked down at the picture with a soft smile.

"Everyone always said she looked like me, but she had Jason's lips and hair color."

The couple sat in silence for a couple of minutes, both just looking through the various photographs. There were only about ten plus three from Alex’s ultrasounds, the last actual picture being taken just two days before she had died.

~~~xxx~~~

Ty knew something was bothering Shane. Ever since Jack and him had had that weird talk where they kind of just guessed what the other meant, he’d been distant and a bit sad. Tyler didn’t like seeing his friend like that.

“What’s wrong? You’ve been really quiet since my dad said Alex was sick.” Tyler asked quietly as he approached his best friend who was sitting on the couch in the toy room looking out the window and hugging a stuffed bear to his chest.

“Come sit.” Shane whispered as he patted the spot next to him.

Tyler sat next to his friend and curled up into his side, relaxing when Shane dropped the bear and instead hugged him tightly. Tyler rested his head on Shane’s shoulder and just listened to the older boy breath as the room fell silent again, the younger kids screaming and laughing downstairs.

“Three years ago a baby girl was born and her name was Melodie. She was Alex’s daughter.” Shane began, shifting a bit in his seat to better hold Ty.

“Was?” Tyler gulped, already dreading the rest of the story.

“Was. She was born a few weeks before her time and she was very small and weak so she stayed at the hospital for two months before she went home with Alex and Jason. They only had her for one month before she died. Alex might have not been my cup of tea back then, but he was so broken it broke me too. I had grown to love the little girl and suddenly she was torn from us.”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” Ty mumbled.

~~~xxx~~~

“That’s why after she died, Jason always said I’d be a terrible dad because I wasn’t careful enough and she died.” Alex whispered, setting the pictures back in the box and letting his fingers caress the teddy bear.

“But you’re an excellent father, love. The kids love you so much and you’re doing a great job with helping me raise them.”

“Thanks and you know, with time I’ve really overcome all of those negative thoughts. The kids have really helped me out.”

Jack smiled and kissed the back of Alex’s neck, hugging him tighter and looking down at the box.

“We should get home.” Alex suggested as he got up from Jack’s lap.

“Alright, only if you’re ready though.”

Alex nodded and grabbed Jack’s hand as they walked downstairs where both moms looked up at their sons and offered them a smile, Isobel frowning when she noticed the box in Alex’s hands.

“Sweetie?” Isobel asked softly.

“It was time, mom.” Alex smiled at her, eyes flickering down the box that seemed to get heavier with each passing minute.

They left the house shortly after, Alex’s fingers caressing the box softly as Jack drove them home with less tension in the air. Once at home, Shane quickly attached himself to his brother and followed him up to the bedroom while Jack entertained the kids.

“Shay told me about…” Ty trailed off, not wanting to mention her name around the other two.

“Hard to believe, huh?” Jack told his child, both sitting on the couch as Taylor and Dylan watched a movie.

“Very. Just try not to mention the subject around him unless he brings it up, alright?"

"No worries dad." Ty smiled sadly at his dad before they both focused on the movie.

"How did Jack take it?" Shane asked his brother, watching as Alex pulled out a picture of Mel.

"He's been very supportive of all this." Alex replied with a soft smile, placing a kiss to the picture.

Shane simply smiled from where he sat on the bed and looked through the box.

As the days went on, Alex became more of an open book to Jack. He spoke about his past and all, but still left out the Jason parts. Jack was glad Alex was finally talking and at this moment, things couldn’t go better.

“Dylan, you excited to start school in a few weeks?” Alex asked the child on a rare day when it was just them at home.

“Nope. I want to stay here with you, daddy.” Dylan whined, crawling onto Alex’s lap and frowning.

“Well you have to buddy. I’m gonna start working once you kids go back to school and who’s going to watch you? Grace can’t watch you buddy. Besides, don’t you want to have friends so you don’t have to hang out with your boring siblings all day?”

“I guess.” Dylan sighed dramatically, a pout still present on his chubby face.

“I miss mommy.” Dylan suddenly spoke up, looking at Alex with teary eyes.

“Oh baby. I know you must miss her so much and I bet she misses you too, but she’ll always be with you. Right here.” Alex told the child, placing his hand over his heart.

Dylan cuddled into Alex’s chest, his legs on either side of said man’s hips as he sniffled sadly. Alex smiled sadly as he rubbed the child’s back and sang softly.

“Honey, I’m home!” Jack shouted, and Alex simply rolled his eyes as Dylan giggled into Alex’s t-shirt.

“Ali!” Taylor and Tyler shouted, jumping on the couch and hugging their father’s boyfriend.

“Hi kids, have fun with your crazy father?” Alex asked them with a smirk, his arms wrapped tightly around the child sitting on his lap who refused to move.

“Yep.” Tay smiled.

Jack walked over and pecked his boyfriend’s soft lips, ruffling Dylan’s still long and messy hair.

“Ty, Shane’s not coming over today.” Alex informed his oldest step-son.

“Why not?” Ty frowned, looking at Alex a bit angrily. “He promised he’d be here.”

“I know bud, but Shane’s not doing well right now.” Alex sighed sadly.

“Well what’s wrong? Is he sick?”

“Yeah buddy, he’s sick.” Alex all but choked out and Jack looked at his boyfriend with concern.

What was going in with Shane?

That night when both Jack and Alex were alone in the comfort of their bedroom, Jack tasked his boyfriend about his brother in law.

"What's going on with Shane?" Jack asked, watching his boyfriend move around the room as he put his clothes in the hamper in the bathroom.

"He's having a hard time with his soccer team. The guys are being too rough on him and so is the coach. I get to take him in for his practice tomorrow, so maybe I'll find out more because mom told me he's shutting down on them. Shane's not the same anymore." Alex sighed as he climbed on his bed and laid down next to the older male.

"Well if something is going on, don't hesitate to tell me. This could be serious, Lex."

"I know. I worry about him, but sometimes it feels like he doesn’t tell me things. I thought we were doing so much better than before. That our bond as brothers was finally growing. I didn’t even know he was in soccer until mom told me this morning."

“I’m sure he didn’t mean to not tell you, babe. Maybe since he’s so busy now it totally slipped his mind.” Jack assured the younger boy who sighed.

“Probably. I’m tired.”

“Then get some rest babe.”

“Night, Jack-o.”

“Night, Lexy.” Jack chuckled, wrapping his arms around his lover.