John signed the final papers, then handed the pen over to Dave so he could sign as well. The adoption worker – Susan, was her name – slid the paper across the desk, into her grasp, and looked it over. Dave took John's hand in his as they both waited anxiously for what they'd been working towards for months now. Susan set the paper back on the desk, satisfied.
"Well, then, congratulations. Here's your son; little Sollux Strider-Egbert," she proclaimed, reaching out with her right hand, presenting a little grey-skinned, heterochromic-eyed, bug-shaped infant. John instantly took the child into his hands, holding him close to his chest. Dave poked the cloth wrapped around Sollux, uncovering his mustard yellow body. John poked at his new son's hair until he could feel the four pointy little nubs that were Sollux's horns.
"You're sure this is the kid you wanted? He's sort of... A special one, to say the least," Susan commented. "Not that it's early enough to change your mind, anyways, but-"
"Absolutely," John said, too elated to be offended. "He's precious," He whispered breathlessly, looking back down at Sollux, grinning ear to ear. And precious he was, indeed. He fit in the palm of either of his fathers' hands, and, after wiggling around a bit and blinking a few times, he emitted a quiet, sort of hoarse, whiny, chirping noise.
"Hold on," Dave said, reaching for his pocket with one hand as he took Sollux all for himself in the other. He retrieved a pair of glasses, shaped like regular glasses, but with the lenses replaced with red and blue glass to match Sollux's eyes. Dave gently set the glasses in his hand, on top of Sollux, only to confirm John's suspicion that the glasses were twice as big as the entirety of Sollux.
"Ugh, really, Dave?" John complained, rolling his eyes.
"Dude, I warned you that this would be the first thing I did when we adopted him. I've been telling you for months," Dave replied defensively, watching as Sollux curiously nibbled the frames.
"Whatever, that doesn't make it less stupid," John said sullenly.
"Not stupid," Dave corrected. "Ironic." John sighed, then turned to kiss Dave.
"Dave, you're my husband, and I love you, but goddamn, you are just the worst sometimes." Susan chuckled.
"Well, don't get too upset, there," she said.
"We never do," Dave replied as if it had been rehearsed – which, to be fair, it kind of had been throughout the several month long adoption process.
"Then it looks like Sollux is going to a good home," she replied. Both John and Dave smiled.
"Thanks for everything," Dave said, reaching across the desk to hug Susan with one arm.
"All I did was my job," she replied, hugging John once released by Dave.
"Keep in touch?" John asked.
"Maybe," she replied, "But for now, you two get out of here."
"Alright, cya," Dave responded, already at the door as he held Sollux up to his face, cooing to the wriggler.
"Bye," John waved, grinning as he followed Dave.
John climbed into the drivers seat of their car, shutting the door seconds before Dave sat down and shut the door on the passenger side. Dave glanced around briefly, then set Sollux in the cupholder. John sighed, exasperated.
"Really? The cupholder?" He grumbled, scooping Sollux out of his seat.
"Yeah. Do have have a better idea?" Dave said. John glanced around the same way Dave did, then pursed his lips defeatedly and set Sollux back in the cupholder.
"Fine. This round, you win." John angrily buckled his seatbelt for emphasis. Dave smirked. And reached over to ruffled John's hair.
"Just drive, you dork." Sollux made another chirping sound, as if amused, as the engine of the car revved.
John pulled up in front of his and Dave's house. They both unbuckled, and John picked up Sollux with one hand after he opened the door. "Come on, little guy," John cooed, getting out of the car. John walked to the front door with Dave following after he closed both car doors. John managed to get the house key at the ready with his one free hand, but, when he went to actually unlock the door, the keys slipped out of his hand, jangling as they hit the ground.
"Dammit," he muttered, bending down to pick them up. Dave gently pushed John out of the way and picked the keys up himself. He unlocked and opened the door, then gestured for John to go in first. "Thanks," John said, stepping inside.
"Well, Sollux, here we are! This is your new home," John declared, holding Sollux up and out. Sollux made a sort of questioning sound and inquisitively wriggled his way along John's hand, perking up at the edge of his platform to see as much as he could. However, unaware of gravity, Sollux was promptly pulled off of John's hand. Sollux squeaked acutely, and John quickly moved his other hand to catch him, panicking.
John sighed in relief when he succeeded, and Dave, who had lunged to the rescue, held back his sigh, instead snickering as he relaxed his posture.
"So, should we give him the grand tour?" Dave asked.
"Nah, not right now, I don't think," John answered, not looking up from his examination of Sollux. The wide-eyed little grub was paralyzed except for quivering for a second, but then quickly relaxed. He released a very quiet, but relatively drawn out, sound from a wide open mouth and coiled up as best as a third-of-a-ruler-long insect creature could. "I think he's ready for bed right now," John clarified.
"Tomorrow, then," Dave said as John marched off towards their room. "I'll get the slime for him," he called, receiving a nod from John in response.
"Alright, here you go," John murmured, mostly to himself, as he carefully transferred Sollux from the cradle of his hands to the cradle of th bottom half of an apple juice bottle lined with a tiny, chequered blanket. John idly rubbed Sollux's belly with the tip of his finger as he waited for Dave. It was only a few seconds before Dave walked in with a container of green slime. "Nice call on the apple juice bottle. It's a better fit than I expected," John said.
"Yeah," Dave agreed, setting the bottle of slime on the nightstand next to the crib and taking the cap off it. "Just pour it in, yeah?" he asked, just to be sure. John nodded. Dave tipped the bottle just enough to get a medium stream of slime to trickle into Sollux's crib. It took a second for the blankets to absorb the goop, but as soon as it did, Sollux squirmed around until he was cocooned by the slime-soaked cloth. Dave put the cap back on the slime container as he and John smiled at each other.
John and Dave, deciding that they had no reason not to go the bed, too, changed into their sleepwear without another word. John was first under the covers, but before he turned off the light, Dave whispered to Sollux, "Sweet dreams, li'l guy." Dave turned out the light, then crawled over John to his side of the bed, falling asleep with a rare smile on his face.
A/N: Welp, first chapter of my first au thing- DONE. got muh brotha VirenaSetiss to beta dis masterpiece. shoutouts to my bruv. ily. More on the way soon. Unless it takes me a year to update this. I have been known to do that with stories like this.