AN: Hello! So I've been stuck in a non-stop listen to the cast album of Hamilton for the past few weeks and tried to get out of it by putting my IPod on shuffle and I kid you not, this was the first song that came up, which frustrated me because I had finally gotten it out of my head. So this is completely random and I have no idea where it came from.
I don't own the characters (except for Chris) nor do I own the song.
Christopher is walking around his New York home with his mother's IPod. He's proud of himself because he managed to get it without her or his daddy noticing and is going through it to find a song. Something in him, he doesn't understand what, makes him stop at a certain song and without thinking starts playing it.
"Highway run. Into the midnight sun. Wheels go round and round. You're on my mind," the song starts and leaves Chris feeling confused. He's never heard this song before and feels like it's important but he doesn't know why.
"Restless hearts. Sleep alone tonight. Sending all my love. Along the wire. And they say that the road ain't no place to start a family. But, right down the line it's been you and me. And loving a music man ain't always what it's supposed to be," he's so into the song that he doesn't hear the footsteps behind him nor feels the presence that is now entered his room.
"Oh girl, you stand by me. I'm forever yours. Faithfully."
"Chris, what are you doing?" a voice speaks right behind him and Chris drops the IPod before turning around to face his father.
"Nothing, Daddy," he says blushing a little as the song keeps playing.
"Is that your mom's IPod?" he asks as he looks behind the boy who just nods.
"I wanted to listen to some music," Chris tries to explain shyly.
He looks up and sees his father's face of contemplation, with a soft smile but a little bit of sadness in his eyes, as the song continues to play. He crouches down to retrieve the IPod and continues to let it play while he stares at it. Chris sees that his daddy is gone somewhere else, it's the same look his mommy gets when she's remembering something.
"You know your mommy sang this song once," his daddy says softly.
"Really?!" Chris asks excitedly. He loves hearing his mommy singing and his daddy made sure to show him all the videos of her singing when she wasn't looking.
"Yes really," he says, looking up, seeing his wife in the little boy's excitement. Rachel's traits were few in the boy but he loved seeing them when he could, the rest of him was his father. "Do you want to see?"
"Yes!" Chris says happily raising his arms up as his daddy stood up. He hears his daddy chuckle as he bends down again and lifts him up, carrying him to his mommy's and daddy's room.
He sets Chris down on the bed as he retrieves his laptop and a DVD that he keeps hidden. He sits on the bed and the boy crawls onto his lap, as he's done since he learned to sit up and move by himself.
The DVD begins to play and the music starts. At the back of the auditorium a young man appears singing the first lyrics.
"Highway run. Into the midnight sun. Wheels go round and round. You're on my mind."
"Restless hearts. Sleep alone tonight. Sending all my love. Along the wire" Chris quickly identifies the young girl as his mommy, as she walks in and starts singing with the young man, and smiles.
"And they say that the road ain't no place to start a family. But, right down the line it's been you and me. And loving a music man ain't always what it's supposed to be" both teens sing together as they join in the middle of the auditorium.
Chris sees the younger version of his mommy looking at the young man the same way she did when looking at his daddy.
"Oh boy, you stand by me," she sings.
"I'm forever yours. Faithfully," both teens sing together as they make their way to the stage.
"Is that my real daddy?" Chris asks quietly. He feels his father press a kiss on his head.
"Yes, that's your real daddy," he answers truthfully.
"He and mommy sound pretty," Chris says as he continues to look at the young man on the screen, amazed as he sees himself in the young man.
"Yeah they did. It was the best performance of the night, in my opinion," he says with a sad chuckle. The little boy turns his head to look at his father's face. He looks into the blue eyes, which contain a bit of sadness in them, and frowns.
"Where are you?" he asks. His daddy chuckles as he pauses the video and points to a bright pink shirt hiding in the audience. The boy smiles at seeing his daddy on the video too. "Did you and mommy sing too?" he asks.
"No," he answers quickly. "Come on, pay attention," he says playfully as he makes the boy's attention turn back to the video.
"Circus life. Under the big top world," young Rachel sings.
"We all need the clowns to make us smile," both teens sing together.
"Oh! Through space and time," she sings on.
"Through space and time," he sings back to her as they make their way to the stage
"Always another show. Wondering where I am, lost without you. And being apart ain't easy on this love affair. Two strangers learned to fall again. I got the joy of rediscovering you," both sing as they reach the stage
"Oh girl, you stand by me," the young man sings with all the love that he had.
"I'm forever yours, Faithfully."
"Did he love mommy?" Chris asks, seeing the same look on the young man's face as on his daddy's when he looked at his mommy.
"He did, more than anything," his daddy answers, placing another kiss on his head.
"Did mommy love him?"
"Yes," he says softly. The boy turns around to face him as the video continues to play.
"But she loves you," Chris points out.
"I know, but love is complicated. I know…" he pauses to correct himself as he sees his son angry face "we both know…" he corrects and sees the boy smile at being included, "your mommy loves me and I love her. But part of her will always love him," he gestures towards the video. "Because he gave her you and that is something both of us will be forever grateful for," he says as he touches their foreheads together and takes a deep breath.
"Since I came back into your mommy's life and she gave me the chance to be in it, I have thanked him for you. And when I held you the first time, I promised to be the best daddy I could be for you since he didn't get a chance to," he explains with tears building in his eyes. The little boy also has tears gathering in his eyes.
"Did he love me?" Chris asks and he feels his daddy hold him tightly.
"I'm sure he did. He would have loved to be your daddy, to get to know you, to love you as much as he loved your mom," he says as he holds the boy. "Even now, I'm sure he's watching over you, watching you grow up, taking care of you."
"Faithfully," they hear his voice sing from the video. They both turn to watch the video again.
"Faithfully. I'm still yours," young Rachel sings. As the song ends Chris speaks up.
"You are the best daddy," he assures him as he turns around to face the man that has raised him as his own. The man who has showed him and his mommy unconditional love. Although he knows he's not his real daddy, he's the only one he's ever known. The one who reads to him, plays with him, sings to him and takes care of him and his mommy.
Tears begin to fall from the man's face.
"Don't cry Daddy," the boy says as he wipes the tears.
"I'm not. Jesse St. James, doesn't cry," he says jokingly as he wipes his tears away. "Come on, your mom will be home soon and we still need to make dinner," he says as he moves the boy from his lap and closes the laptop.
As he gets off the bed, Chris stands on the bed and holds his arms out. Jesse makes his way over to him, picks him up and feels the boy hold on to him as they make their way out the room.
"I love you, Daddy," the boy whispers into his ear.
"I love you too."