This is the first chapter to a longer story I'm slowly working on, but as my honours thesis is due in two months, and I've had stories peter out before (which is annoying as a reader, so apologies to anyone still awaiting chapters of my other fics), I've decided not to publish more until it's practically finished. Which may be awhile. But I thought I'd test the waters with the first chapter anyway, and really, it can be a one shot all on its own.
Only little Kosov-Meyer is mine, I'm just borrowing the rest, yadda yadda ya, on with the story:
Rebecca 'Bomber' Kosov-Meyer lay on the bed, gently stroking her new son's soft, rosy cheek. "I am never, ever gonna let you out of my sight" she whispered, drinking in every tiny little detail; his soft blonde hair, his fingers curled on the pillow next to his face, his chest slowly rising and falling in a rhythm of sleep. After all these years of trying, and failing, of pain and frustration, she was finally a mother.
A flash of light made her jump a mile, and she frowned at her husband and his new camera. Leo "2 Dads" Kosov-Meyer grinned at her as he lowered his hands and placed the camera gently on the bedside table before slipping under the covers on the other side of their boy.
"I had to get a photo" he whispered. "You look... incredible."
"It feels incredible" Bomber murmured back, still gently stroking his cheek. "I never though I'd be here."
"You never thought WE would be here" he corrected. "I've always told you, I'm only interested in kids if you're their mum." He grinned at her across the sleeping child. "You're gonna be the most unbelievable mum." Finally tearing her eyes off her son, she looked across at her husband and smiled.
"Well you're already fantastic with him" she said back. "But I think Charge is an excellent choice of godfather. Some one to keep him in line. Like father like son" she teased.
"I'll teach him all I know" he teased back. She looked back at her son, still gently stoking his cheek. "No doubt he's your son, either" she said. "His eyes, his face, his hair... even his mannerisms... he is already just like you. Lucky me" she laughed softly.
2 Dads caught her hand and put it to his mouth, kissing her hand gently. "I love you" he whispered softly. She smiled softly, and he tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
"Things are finally looking up" she breathed softly. "Finally perfect". She glanced up at 2 Dads, who was looking at her with so much love on his face it took her breath away, so she settled her eyes on his for a moment longer.
"My life was perfect the day you married me." He glanced down at their son, before raising his eyes to meet hers again. "You're my family. It never mattered to me that we couldn't have kids, so long as I had you. But now, with him..." He went back to staring at the small form tucked between them. "Now, this is perfection. This is my family." He looked up and stared into her eyes, the most intense and serious she had ever seen him. "No nannies. No boarding school. He is our son, and WE will raise him. No travelling all over the world and leaving him at home, he is ours and he stays with us." "I know" Bomber said softly. "After everything we've been through to get him, there's no way we're raising him the way you were raised." They fell into an easy silence, both focused entirely on their son as he slept, occasionally stirring only to be soothed by his mother stroking his cheek, or his father running a hand over his head.
"You know, all these years I thought I was being punished" Bomber finally said softly. "And it never seemed fair." She looked at her husband, shifting the sleeping boy slightly so that she could curl closer into him, with her arms still around their son. "That I risked my life, and nearly died, on Victory Day Island trying to save the lives of everyone on that plane, and not only do I nearly die on that damn island, I end up with a couple of broken ribs, radiation poisoning and infertility to boot." 2 Dads pulled her in as close as he dared, kissing her forehead softly. "But now I think it was a gift" she continued softly. "Because if I had been able to fall pregnant, keep a baby to full term..." "We would never have adopted him" 2 Dads finished for her. "We would never have done all that paperwork, saved all that money, learnt Russian and travelled all this way..."
"We wouldn't have him" she interrupted softly. "Everything, all the IVF, the miscarriages, everything. Now we have him." She smiled as the four year old she held to her chest stirred again, stretching slightly against his father, her husband, and looked up at her through bleary eyes. "Mamma" he said softly.
"Nikolai" she answered softly.
"You're still here" he said in Russian, looking over his shoulder sleepily to look at 2 Dads.
"Of course we are mate" 2 Dads told him, tapping his nose gently. "We're not leaving you."
"I thought I was dreaming" Nikolai told them. "That you had finally come for me."
"No darling" Bomber whispered, cupping his face in her hand. "You're our little boy, and now we have you we won't leave you."
"Good" he yawned, snuggling shyly into Bomber's neck. "'Cause I like you. I want to stay with you." Bomber held him tightly, and 2 Dads shuffled in closer to them both so that he could wrap them in his arms. "I like having a family" Nikolai whispered sleepily as he held the collar of Bomber's pyjamas. 2 Dads leant over Bomber and grabbed a sailor teddy from the bedside table, passing it to Kai. "Thank you Daddy" he murmured.
"No problem buddy" he whispered, kissing the back of his head. "Wait til we take you home. You'll get to meet your whole family then. They can't wait to meet you." Kai nodded sleepily as he dozed off in his mother's arms. Bomber kissed his head, then 2Dads' cheek, and settled into her pillow, as 2 Dads ran a hand over Kai's head, a finger over Bomber's cheek, and watched over his small, perfect family as they fell asleep.
As always, constructive criticism much appreciated, as for flames... well, why bother wasting my time and yours? Thanks.