Ronan grumbles as he waits impatiently for the pancake batter to bubble. He taps the spatula against the pan in a strange rhythm. A full plate of pancakes already rests beside him; this is the last one. "Come on," he mumbles to it.
Adam smirks from his spot at the kitchen table, where he sits reading the paper and sipping coffee. His (new) glasses start to slide off his nose. He pushes them up, annoyed. "I feel like Gansey with these things."
"You could get contacts?" Ronan suggests, finally flipping the pancake over.
"I'd rather not touch my eyeball every morning," Adam jokes, folding up the paper and putting it aside. "Should I call the kids down?"
Ronan nods, sliding the perfectly-cooked pancake off the pan and onto the plate. Adam stands up and heads towards the stairway, calling up, "Opal! Hunter! Time for breakfast!" Ronan removes a lid from another pan, releasing the sweet smell of bacon, and slides the pieces onto another plate. Adam grabs both plates from the counter and sets them on the already-set table while Ronan hunts through the fridge for butter and syrup.
Footsteps pound on the stairs—or rather, hooves—at a rapid pace. Opal darts inside the kitchen, grinning wildly. "Morning, Daddy!" she smiles, kissing Adam's forehead. He tilts her head so he can kiss her cheek. "Morning, Kerah," she says, giving Ronan a squeeze before sitting next to him.
"You look nice," Adam remarks, studying her outfit. She's dressed in an array of colors and patterns, her style imitating Blue's. Her pale hair is braided tightly, the tail end of it swirling over her shoulder. She has thick, black eyeliner and bright, blue lipstick.
"It's school picture day, remember?" she raises an eyebrow at him, scooping two pancakes onto her plate. Adam nods his head, remembering. She takes the syrup and starts to drown them in it, pouring it on carelessly.
"Easy on the syrup," Ronan nudges her. He takes three pancakes for himself before setting a couple onto Adam's plate for him. "Where's your brother?"
"He's still getting dressed," Opal says around a mouthful of pancakes.
"Hunter! Hurry up!" Ronan yells, checking his watch.
"Don't worry, Kerah, we have plenty of time."
"No, you don't. Aunt Blue's picking you up today. She should be here in 15 minutes," Adam says, carefully biting into a piece of bacon.
"Aunt Blue?" Hunter asks, popping in the doorway. He has light brown skin and curly black hair, with green eyes that gleam in the morning light. He's dressed in a nice sweater and khakis, despite only being seven years old. It seems that Hunter takes after Adam's style more so than Ronan's.
"Yup. I'm picking Uncle Matthew up from the airport this morning and can't drive you," Ronan says, gesturing for the boy to sit. He clumsily slides into his chair. "Eat quickly, kid."
"Opal, is your math test today? Or is that tomorrow?" Adam asks.
"Today. I'm going to faaaaillll," she cries melodramatically. Ronan smacks her gently on the arm and she squeals. "Okay, fine. I'm not going to fail, but I don't know how well I'll do."
"Just try your best," Adam says, smiling at her warmly. Since she wasn't raised in the most orthodox manner, Opal's always struggled with school. She's very smart, naturally, but she started late and hasn't had the time to catch up. And now, being in high school, things are even more difficult. Luckily, her parents are very supportive.
"What about you, Hunter? Anything today?" Ronen asks.
"Hmmm," he says, finishing a piece of bacon. "I think we're playing kickball in gym class."
"Fun," Ronan says, smirking. Adam can't help but smile. The kid was just too cute.
They chat on about mundane things for a few minutes more before they hear someone honking in the driveway. Ronan stands up and peaks out the window. "Run and get your shoes on. And don't forget your backpacks!" he tells the kids, who immediately dash out of the kitchen.
Adam and Ronan start to clean up, clearing the table and rinsing the dishes. A moment later, Opal comes back in, holding a worn pair of boots in her hands. "Kerah, can you get me a new pair of boots tonight?"
"Why the fuck do you need a new pair?"
"These ones are, like, three years old. They don't match any of my clothes anymore," she argues, sounding like a completely normal teenage girl. Except for the fact that she needs her father to dream her up a pair of shoes because normal ones don't exactly fit or hide hooves.
Ronan turned around from his place at the sink and looked at her, inspecting the shoes. He let out a sigh of resignation. "Fine, brat." Opal smiles, having won the battle, and races back towards the front door. Ronan shakes his head and follows her.
"I'll be out in a second," Adam calls after him, finishing the plate in his hands.
Blue's van is parked in the driveway, with her window rolled down. "Aunt Blue!" Hunter screams, running towards her. She smiles an climbs out of the car to lift him up.
"Hi, there, honey," she says, kissing his cheek and setting him down. "Go climb in the back. Noah wants to sit next to you."
Hunter scrambles towards the car but Ronan grabs him first, wrapping him in a hug. "Have a good day, kid," he says, messing up his hair. "Love you."
"I love you too, Kerah," he says, squeezing him back before hopping in the car. Hunter's taken to calling Ronan "Kerah", too, despite not fully understanding its meaning.
"Hi, Aunt Blue," Opal smiles, giving her a quick hug before climbing into the passenger street. Blue's eyes widen at the quick exchange, and Ronan just shakes his head. Blue walks towards him and closes the distance, hugging him.
"Thanks for driving them, maggot."
"Anytime," she smiles, pulling away. "Matthew's coming in?"
"Yeah, he has a few days off of work and decided to stop by. It should be fun," Ronan shrugs.
"That's nice," she smiles.
"Yeah," Ronan agrees. "How are the twins?" He tilts his head towards the car, trying to get a look inside.
Blue rolls her eyes. "Psychotic," she laughs. "But that's nothing new." Blue and Gansey have twin boys a year older than Hunter: Noah, named after Czerny, and Percy, named after Persephone. They are notoriously known for their enthusiasm and energy.
Adam closes the front door, running down the steps. "Hi, Blue," he says, giving her a quick hug. "Thanks again."
"It's fine, Adam."
"I know, but the Barns are so out of the way and—"
"Adam. Stop," Blue says, pressing a hand against his chest. "It's really not a big deal." Adam just nods his head and presses his lips together. "Okay, we should get going or we'll be late."
"Okay, let me just—" Adam starts, gesturing towards the car. He pokes his head in the door, causing a bombardment of screams.
"UNCLE ADAM!" the twins cry excitedly.
"Hi, boys. Have a good day at school, okay?" Noah nods enthusiastically while Percy holds out two thumbs up signs. "You too, Hun," Adam smiles, squeezing his son's hand.
"Thanks, Daddy. I'll see you tonight." Hunter smiles.
Adam grins and eases out of the car just as Blue climbs in. He tries to say goodbye to Opal, but she's too absorbed in her phone to notice him, so he gives up. "Drive safe," Adam says as Blue starts the car.
She wiggles her eyebrows at them as she pulls out of the driveway. Adam and Ronan watch them go, following the car with their eyes.
"You should go," Ronan says after a moment, turning to look at Adam.
"Eh, five minutes won't hurt anybody," Adam shrugs, slinging his arms around Ronan's shoulders.
"Actually, in your profession it could," Ronan points out, wrapping his arms around Adam's waist anyways.
Adam shrugs. "I don't have any dying patients right now, so I think I'm okay." He leans in closer, their noses almost touching.
"Whatever you say, Dr. Lynch," Ronan whispers. When they got married, Adam had chosen to take on Ronan's name; after all, it's not like Adam was proud of his family name to start with.
"I love it when you call me that," Adam murmurs, closing the distance between the two. The kiss is simple: soft and delicate and gentle. Adam smiles into the kiss, causing Ronan to hold him tighter.
Despite the simplicity, Ronan moans lightly, wanting more. "Maybe you can take the morning off?"
"And leave Matthew stranded at the airport?" Adam smirks against his lips.
"That doesn't sound like that bad of an idea."
"Oh, fuck off, Lynch."
Ronan replies with another kiss, pressing his palms against Adam's cheeks. "I'll see you tonight?"
"Yeah," Adam smiles.
Ronan nods, biting his lips. He always hates saying goodbye to Adam each morning. Despite years of practice, he still hasn't gotten used to it. "I love you," he says.
"I love you, too," Adam echoes, placing one more, featherlight kiss on Ronan's lips.
And with that the two split apart, heading to their respective cars.