*set a few months after Ian moves in with Mickey and Dimitri*
inspired by this picture:
www. windsorstar life/ cms/ binary/ 7840090 .jpg ?size=640x420 (you'll have to remove the spaces)
Nuts
Ian was perfectly content with staying home all afternoon, but Dimitri had been begging him all week to see the ocean. Ian supposed it was his own fault—he shouldn't have let the kid watch Finding Nemo so many times. The problem was that they lived in Chicago, and the closest thing to the sea was Lake Michigan. No matter how many times he tried explaining that to the four year-old, he just didn't accept it.
"Pleeeeeeeeeease, Ian? Can we please go?" Dimitri begged as they walked back home from daycare.
"D, I already told you: there's no ocean here..."
"But I want to see Nemo!" he repeated for the hundredth time. "Please?"
Ian sighed and looked down at Dimitri. The little boy had a face that Ian could not say "no" to. Every time Ian looked at those big blue eyes, he would be reminded of Mickey. They looked so much alike, it was uncanny.
Ian checked the time. It was only a little past one. He suddenly had an idea. They got home and after making Dimitri some lunch, he gave Mickey a call.
"So, you know how your kid's been begging to see Nemo?"
Mickey laughed ruefully. "Yeah, thanks for that, Firecrotch."
"I think I figured out a solution. I can take him to the aquarium. I'm sure they have some Clownfish there." He waited for a reaction or response from Mickey but when he didn't get one, he continued his train of thought. "Anyway, I checked online and it closes at five. We should have plenty of time to get back by dinnertime."
"'Kay," Mickey sighed. "Look, I'm really busy today; too many cars and not enough mechanics. We just got a few rush jobs at the last minute, so I gotta go. I might even be a little late. See you later?"
"Of course," Ian replied. "Maybe we'll bring you back a souvenir..." he added with a grin that Mickey had no way of seeing.
Mickey laughed into the other end of the line before Ian heard the click of the phone call ending.
They took the train and a cab to get to the aquarium. Conveniently enough, the aquarium was right next to Lake Michigan. Ian could kill two birds with one stone.
Dimitri was absolutely amazed by all the fish. Every exhibit was more fascinating to him than the previous one. He looked at everything with wide eyes and admiration, and Ian had to admit it was a good feeling, knowing that he was making Mickey's son so happy. They were both having a good time.
At one point, they were in the jellyfish room and Dimitri was standing with his hands pressed against the glass. He looked so adorable that Ian couldn't help but take a picture with his cell phone. He sent the photo to Mickey, knowing the ten second break from work would make his day seem a little less shitty.
When they finally got to the room that had the Clownfish in it, Dimitri practically squealed with joy. "Look Ian! It's Nemo!" They must have spent at least half an hour in that same room before Dimitri was ready to go, but not until Ian had helped him read the signs under each glass window which taught them basically everything they would ever want to know about the fish and the sea anemones.
They stopped at the gift shop on their way out. Ian let Dimitri pick two stuffed animals: one for himself and the other for Mickey.
"Penguins?" he asked, skeptically. He'd been expecting Dimitri to choose a Clownfish.
"Yeah. 'Cause there's a daddy and a baby one..." Dimitri said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. Ian paid for the souvenirs and put both the big one and the little one into a plastic bag.
They left the aquarium around closing time. The boardwalk was actually more crowded than Ian would have expected it to be. There were tons of people walking, bicycling or jogging by the lake, and even more sitting on blankets strewn on the grass hills beside the path. Dimitri spotted an ice cream vendor on the side of the street and practically dragged Ian towards it.
"We're gonna have dinner in like an hour, kid. You'll ruin you appetite..."
One look at Dimitri's little, hopeful face was all it took. Ian silently berated himself, knowing that this weakness of his was going to be his undoing.
"Alright... but only if you promise not to complain about the broccoli tonight..."
Dimitri made a disgusted face but nodded. Ian had realized that there were absolutely no vegetables in Dimitri's diet, and had slowly been introducing some healthier options into their meals, much to both Milkoviches' dismay.
"What'll it be, kid?" the ice cream vendor asked Dimitri with a smile.
Dimitri took his time looking at the pictures of the different ice cream bars before sticking up his little hand and pointing to the ice cream Snickers bar. Ian laughed at the boy's choice, remembering how much Mickey loved Snickers bars back in the day. He didn't bother getting himself anything, knowing it would be a pain to hold the boy's hand and the bag of stuffed animals at the same time.
They walked over to a shady spot under a tree and sat on the grass, where they had a perfect view of the lake. Dimitri held the ice cream bar out to Ian, silently asking him to open the packaging. As Dimitri ate, Ian told him any and all useless facts he knew about Lake Michigan.
After a minute or two, Ian noticed that Dimitri wasn't asking him the shit-ton of questions he normally did. He turned to look at the boy, ready to tease him about not being interested in the water after all, when he noticed that more than half of the ice cream bar was on the floor, and that Dimitri was slouching against him.
"D? Are you okay?"
Ian moved his hand to lift Dimitri's baseball cap away so he could get a better look at the boy's face. Panic overtook Ian; the little boy's lips were swollen and he was wheezing almost imperceptibly. His body slumped towards the ground when Ian shook him slightly, worried he wasn't breathing.
"Oh shit... oh shit oh shit oh shit..." Ian tore his phone out of his pocket and dialed 911. "I need an ambulance! I'm with a boy, Dimitri Milkovich. We are just outside the aquarium. I think he's having an allergic reaction. I'm going to take him inside to see if they have something at the aquarium. Please hurry!"
Ian didn't even know if the aquarium would have anything that could help, but the alternative—sitting around outside and waiting for the paramedics to come while Dimitri continued to choke—wasn't really an option. He grabbed Dimitri's limp body, held him close to his chest, and ran to the aquarium.
"Please, somebody help!" Ian ran straight towards the information booth. "Do you have a first aid kit or something? I think he's having an allergic reaction!" The two teenagers sitting behind the booth looked around nervously, absolutely dumbfounded. Ian turned to the ticket counter. "First aid kit! You must have one!" he shouted.
The security guard noticed the commotion and stepped forward. "What's the problem, sir?"
"He's having an allergic reaction! I called 911 already and they are on the way, but I don't know if they will get here fast enough!"
Ian felt utterly helpless. He stood there in the main lobby, holding Dimitri in his arms, and it was as if his whole world was falling apart. He was more scared in that moment than he had ever been in his life—more scared than when he'd been at war.
A hand on his shoulder brought him back to reality. Ian spun around to see a small woman, possibly in her mid-thirties, holding something plastic out towards him. Ian stared, confused, at the object offered to him.
"It's my son's EpiPen. If it's really an allergic reaction, he won't have a lot of time. Are you sure it is one?"
Ian looked at her, at a loss for words.
"Are you sure it's an allergic reaction?" she clarified.
Ian looked at Dimitri. He was having difficulty breathing and was wheezing. His tongue and mouth were swollen shut, and he was pale and floppy. Every bit of knowledge he had about allergic reactions was screaming that this was one. He nodded fervently at the woman.
"Go on..." she pushed the plastic tube towards Ian.
"I-... I have no idea how to use it..." Ian mumbled as he looked down at the pen. It looked like a big, yellow highlighter. Ian put Dimitri on the ground and got on his knees beside the boy. The woman knelt beside him.
"Don't worry, I can do it," she said to him softly, voice calm. She held her fist around the pen and took off the cap. She placed the black end of the pen against Dimitri's thigh and pushed down hard against his jeans until she heard a click. She held the pen there while she counted to ten, then removed it and massaged the boy's leg for another 10 seconds. "It's okay, honey. You're gonna be okay..." she murmured to Dimitri as she rubbed his thigh.
Ian watched as the color almost instantly returned to Dimitri's skin. He let out a breath he hadn't even realized he was holding. As the swelling subsided, the wheezing stopped and Dimitri was taking deep, heavy breaths.
It was another two minutes before the ambulance arrived. Ian sat on the lobby floor, holding Dimitri's hand the entire time. Dimitri was still too weak to say anything, so Ian squeezed his hand whenever Dimitri opened his eyes and looked around in fear. "I'm here, D. I'm here. Don't worry."
The paramedics let him ride with Dimitri to the hospital. Ian called Mickey from the ambulance, but he didn't answer, so Ian left a voicemail. Once they got into the emergency room, they wheeled Dimitri in on a gurney; however, the nurses wouldn't let Ian go past the main doors because he wasn't related to the boy in any way. Ian could hear Dimitri crying, and it broke his heart. He took out his cell to call Mickey again.
Twenty-something voicemails and about an hour later, Mickey finally answered.
"Where the fuck are you, Gallagher? It's almost 7."
"Mickey! Haven't you gotten my messages?" Ian asked.
"Nah. Battery died while I was at work and I must'a left my charger at home or something. I just got out of the shower. What's going on?"
"We're at the hospital..." Ian said, hesitantly.
Mickey was silent. Ian knew Mickey well enough to know that this was just the calm before the storm, so before the older boy could blow up on him, Ian continued to explain what had happened.
"Dimitri had an allergic reaction when we left the aquarium. The EMTs said he went into anaphylactic shock. We gave him a shot with an EpiPen and he started breathing again. They took him to the hospital and he is in the ER now, but they won't let me see him because I'm not his parent. You need to get here ASAP."
"I'm on my way," was all Mickey said before hanging up. Ian swallowed, and muttered a low 'shit'.
When Mickey arrived at the hospital, he walked right past Ian without giving him a second glance. He told the nurse at the triage desk who he was and she motioned towards the main doors. Mickey practically ran through them.
Ian sat in ER and waited. There was nothing else he could do. He took Dimitri's baseball cap out of the plastic bag full of stuffed animals that had somehow managed to stay around his wrist. He nervously toyed with the cap. He knew that Dimitri was breathing and that the reaction was over, but he was still worried out of his mind. What if he'd lost too much oxygen? What if he had some kind of permanent damage? Ian watched the time pass by on the big clock above the nurses' station. 8pm... 8:30pm... 9pm... 9:30pm...
At 9:37, Mickey walked out of the swinging doors. Ian got up to ask if Dimitri was okay but before he could say anything, Mickey's fist connected with his face. Ian's lip began to bleed, cut by his own tooth. Instead of hitting back, though, Ian grabbed a hold of Mickey. He wasn't angry with him; he knew Mickey was upset, and had every right to be. Mickey tried to get out of Ian's grip but the redhead refused to let go. He held on to his lover until he felt Mickey exhale and felt the tensed up muscles relax under his hold.
"Is he okay?" Ian asked, voice low.
Mickey nodded but refused to look Ian in the eye.
"What did the doctors say?"
"He had a severe allergic reaction to the peanuts in the ice cream. They said that if you hadn't been so quick to administer the epinephrine to him on the scene, he wouldn't have made it." Mickey finally looked up at Ian's eyes. "You saved his life."
Ian couldn't think of anything to say. He didn't think he'd saved Dimitri's life at all... He'd been the one to endanger it...
"He was asleep for the last couple of hours. He just woke up and the doctors did some tests. He's gonna be just fine..." Mickey continued. "He's asking for you."
"He is?"
"Yeah... He says to not forget to bring the penguins," Mickey said with a questioning expression.
Ian laughed and held up the plastic bag, showing Mickey the stuffed animals they'd gotten from the gift shop.
Later that night, once Dimitri was safely tucked into his bed and after the guys had read The Jungle Book to him for the second time in a row, he finally fell asleep and they were able to relax. Ian and Mickey walked out and sat on the couch in the living room. Ian huffed out a sign of relief as he plopped down, wincing as his lip opened up again and bled a bit. He quickly brought his fingers up to it to catch the drop of blood that threatened to fall.
"Ay... don't you dare get any blood on my new sofa..." Mickey said.
"Your sofa?" Ian asked, shocked. They had bought the new furniture together just a few weeks ago, and it seemed like Mickey was taking all the credit. Ian looked over at Mickey but saw a grin on the older man's face. Ian smiled in return, realizing he was being teased and taking the tissue Mickey was holding out towards him.
"Mick, can I ask you something?"
Mickey hummed his assent.
"How is it possible that Dimitri's never eaten peanuts before? I find it hard to believe he's never taken any of your Snickers bars..."
Mickey looked at Ian with a raised eyebrow. "What do you mean? I don't have Snickers bars."
"But you love them..." Ian argued.
Ian stared at Mickey and could have sworn he saw the older man blush at his last comment.
"I haven't been able to eat a fucking Snickers bar since that day at the Kash and Grab..." he explained.
Ian watched as Mickey pressed his hand against his thigh where the tiny circular scar marked the spot where Kash's bullet had hit him. Ian couldn't help himself: he pressed his own hand on top of Mickey's while leaning in closer to press their lips together softly, making the brunette grunt.
"Gallagher, you drive me crazy sometimes..."
Ian laughed. "Don't you mean I drive you nuts?" He gently squeezed Mickey's crotch.
Mickey scowled and pushed Ian's hand away. "That's not funny!"
"Oh come on... You have to see the irony in this whole thing... Your son can't eat any nuts but you can't get enough of mine!" Ian teased.
"Yeah, yeah... It's fucking hilarious." Mickey grimaced before adding, "and leave my kid outta this."
Ian smiled. Dimitri was safe and sound in his room, clutching onto his baby penguin stuffed animal. After their exhausting day, it felt good to know that things were okay between himself and Mickey.
"Okay, fine... I won't mention Dimitri and your nuts." Ian said, still smiling. "Now can we go to bed?" he asked.
They laughed as they raced each other into the bedroom.