After the battle at Cosmopolis Park, Adrian seriously needed to gather his thoughts. His mind was going haywire trying to process all the craziness he'd just witnessed and been a part of. So, once the healers had patched him up and given him the okay to leave HQ, he headed out, slipping away from his teammates and dodging any questions from curious bystanders.
As soon as he stepped foot in his home, the exhaustion from the day's events caught up to him, and he slumped into a chair, resting his elbows on the kitchen table and placing his head in his hands.
What had even happened? How did things get so screwed up? How did his date-that-wasn't-actually-a-date with Nova turn into a near-death experience and a terrorist attack? And what now?
While it was all going on, everything was just happening so fast; he hadn't had time to think about how it made him feel. But now, sitting at his kitchen table, all the emotions came rushing back, flooding his mind with a conglomeration of feelings he wasn't sure he'd ever dealt with before.
The front door creaked, announcing the arrival of his dads, Captain Chromium and Dread Warden. But Adrian didn't even look up; he barely registered their leaden footsteps and tired voices as they made their way to the kitchen where he sat.
When the two heroes reached the kitchen, they stopped in their tracks at the sight of their adopted son looking so distraught.
Hugh was the first to speak. "Adrian?" He stepped forward and placed a strong hand between his shoulder blades.
Adrian startled and looked up over his shoulder to see his dad standing behind him. But he didn't relax. He couldn't. Not when there was so much going on inside of him. Feeling tears start to prickle in his eyes, he snapped his head back around and pulled his glasses off his face, resting his forehead back in his palm.
Simon came over and took the chair next to Adrian. He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. "Hey," he said in the softest voice Adrian had ever heard him use. "I know that was a lot back there. You and Insomnia shouldn't have had to deal with a situation like that. Not yet."
Hugh pulled out another chair and sat down, keeping his hand squarely on Adrian's back the whole time. "You both handled it very well, considering. But…," he added quietly, "it shouldn't have been you."
Simon reached out and placed a hand over Adrian's shoulder, careful not to disturb the bandages wrapped around his bicep. "Are you okay?"
He was most certainly not okay. He'd just spent the last few hours in a fight for his life and the lives of so many other people, sure that Nova was dead and that the Anarchists were actually going to win this one, leaving hundreds of fatalities in their wake. And he was powerless to stop any of it.
He was most certainly not okay. With all these feelings pounding against his skull. The confusion, the pain, the regret, the never-ending worry.
He was most certainly not okay.
The question hung in the air until his dads were pretty sure he wasn't going to answer it. And then, in just one small movement, Adrian shook his head. He squeezed his eyes shut and took in a shaky breath, exhaling in small puffs like he was afraid if he let it out, he'd unleash the whole monster of emotions inside.
His dads exchanged a concerned but knowing look.
Scooting forward in his chair, Simon reached out his other hand, and Adrian found himself being turned to face his dad, but he still wouldn't look at him. "Come here," Simon coaxed, drawing Adrian to him and wrapping his arms around him.
Hugh moved closer to where they sat and placed one hand on the small of Adrian's back and the other on Simon's shoulder, fully connecting their little family. "Today was hard," he said. "But it's going to be okay." He rubbed his thumb up and down on Adrian's back. "The Detonator is dead, and everything else is under control." He moved his hand up to the back of Adrian's head and, leaning down, placed a kiss to his temple. "And you are going to be okay. I promise. We're right here. You're safe."
"Yes," Simon agreed, nodding. "You're safe now." He paused, then continued in a quieter voice. "So you can let it all out now. It's okay to cry, Adrian. Even superheroes need to cry once in a while."
Adrian's breaths came out short and hard, and he began to shake his head against Simon's shoulder. Simon just squeezed him harder, and Adrian felt a hand strongly but gently grasp his neck. It wasn't until he felt his dads rubbing soothing circles on his back, though, that the tears started to flow. At first, he just sat there, overwhelmed by everything he'd been through and all the emotions that came along, gasping and spluttering against his dad's chest. But his dads just held him tighter, and eventually he coughed up the knot in his throat and just let it all out.
"I….I wasn't able — to stop her," he choked out between sobs. "I couldn't — save…."
"Shh," cooed Simon. "It's okay. It's all okay now."
So Adrian just cried. He wrapped his arms up under Simon's, grasping his shirt in tight fists, and cried into his shoulder. It was the first time he'd cried in….probably since his mom's death. He wasn't used to feeling this vulnerable in front of other people, not even just his dads. But it felt good to have their strong arms wrapped around him as his shoulders shook.
Eventually, he calmed down a bit, breathing in controlled deep breaths instead of short gasps and relaxing his grip on the fabric of his dad's shirt. Reluctantly, he pulled away from Simon. "I'm sorry," he said, his voice quiet and a little hoarse.
Simon took him by the shoulders and held him at an arm's length. "Look at me, Adrian." Adrian dragged his sleeve across his eyes and then looked up into his dad's sparkling dark eyes. "You have no reason to apologize." He tightened his grip on his shoulders and looked him right in the eyes, unblinking. "It's okay," he said firmly. "Okay?"
Adrian slowly nodded, and then, after reaching up to wipe the rest of his tears away, he wrapped his arms around Simon's neck and pulled him in for another quick hug before doing the same with Hugh.
"Thank you."