Okay, I'll be frank, this is definitely not the best thing I've written. It should probably be about 5 chapters long, but I really didn't feel like making it that long. Maybe if a bunch of you demand that I re-write it as a chapter story it'll eventually get done, but I make no promises. It might just stay like this.
Warning: MPreg
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Lee lifted his son from where he was playing on the floor and took him into the kitchen. Groaning softly he placed the five-year-old in his chair in front of the pre-cut chicken breast that Lee had made for him. He was exhausted, but had more to do before he could go to bed. Jun was his life, but that didn't mean he knew what he was doing. As his friends had told him when he was fifteen, he was simply too young to be a father. Unfortunately life had a different plan for him and he had found himself pregnant at fifteen with his mate killed in a landslide. He had left the village and moved to America to live with one of Ray's uncles for awhile and work in a restaurant. He had since gotten his own place and was working for a night school that taught native Chinese speakers English. The babysitter would arrive shortly to look after Jun while Lee was at work, but the lion wasn't near ready for work. With a sigh he walked to the front door of his apartment when the bell rang. He opened it only to be greeted with a face he hadn't seen in years. "Kai" he whispered as he heard Jun's feet coming towards the door.
"Lee. How have you been?" Lee blinked too surprised to actually answer the question posed to him. He stepped aside and let the phoenix into his small apartment. "You okay? You look a little off."
"I wasn't expecting you. I haven't exactly kept in touch with anyone from the BBA. It's a little odd seeing you here since I'm pretty sure you live in Russia or Japan." Jun was tugging on his pant leg so Lee lifted him up and settled him on his hip. "This is my son, Jun. Jun this is my friend Kai." Jun waved energetically at the Russian who smiled softly at him.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Jun. How old are you?"
Jun grinned at the question as he held up five fingers. "This many!" he cried happily. "Papa, do you have to go to work?"
Lee sighed as he nodded. "Yes Jun. I have to leave as soon as your babysitter gets here. Miss Chen should be here shortly."
"I came at a bad time then?" Kai questioned. Lee shook his head as he placed Jun on the ground. The little boy ran off into the next room as the lion led the phoenix into the kitchen where he started to clean up. "You look exhausted Lee. How much sleep do you get?"
"Not enough" Lee replied as he stretched his body. "I have to go to work in about fifteen minutes, but you're welcome to stay until then. I have to admit I can't even begin to come up with a reason for you to be here though."
"I was talking to Ray and he mentioned that you moved out here. Since I was coming here for business I decided to stop by and see how you are. You're well aware of the feelings I still have for you I believe."
Lee raised an eyebrow in question. "I thought you would get over that. It wasn't much more than an infatuation with the only guy who wouldn't spread his legs for you anyway."
Kai frowned as he walked over and wrapped his strong arms around Lee's slim waist. When he realized just how thin Lee was he started to worry. "Lee, it was always more than an infatuation. I always wanted to be with you, but you were never receptive. I thought you just didn't like me. I never imagined you thought the only reason I made passes at you was to get you into bed." Lee sighed and leaned back against Kai's chest.
"I wasn't interested. I already had a mate back in the village." Lee straightened and pulled out of Kai's grip to start washing the dishes.
"Had? That's past tense." Lee looked up with sad orange eyes that spoke volumes as to what had happened. "When did he die?"
"When I was three months pregnant with Jun. It was part of the reason I left the village after I had him. I couldn't stand being around all the people pitying the 15-year-old stuck with a child and no mate. It was making me crazy and I was already suffering." Kai's hands rested on Lee's shoulders gently massaging the tense muscles.
"You've been focusing on taking care of Jun haven't you? You haven't even thought about yourself for the past five years." Lee shook his head no as he placed the last of the dishes on the drying rack before turning around. "Maybe it's time to let someone take care of you." Lee started to protest, but Kai placed a finger over his lips. "I'm not asking you to be my lover Lee. I have no right to ask that even if it's what I want. I'm asking you to move out of this dump and into someplace nicer where you don't have to worry so endlessly about everything but yourself. I'm asking you to take some time off work and let me support you financially so that you can get better, maybe gain back some of that muscle you've lost. Let me take care of you."
"You do realize that you'd also be supporting a five-year-old right? Five-year-olds aren't cheap. Jun is in the middle of a growth spurt too. He's growing out of everything I buy for him." Kai smiled and pulled the Lee into his arms.
"I can afford it. Let me take care of both of you for awhile. Just until you're healthier. I feel like if I squeeze you too hard you're going to break." Lee rested his forehead against Kai's chest silently grateful for the support and the knowledge that someone was worried about him. "Will you?"
"I need to think about it. Jun and I just moved into this apartment two months ago. I'm reluctant to uproot him again. He's five and lived in nine different apartments. I don't want to keep doing that to him, but as I get better pay I find a better place to live that's a little safer than the last." Lee lifted his head and stared into ruby eyes. "I haven't allowed myself to feel for anyone but him since Shen died. I don't want to betray the love he always gave me."
Kai ran his fingers through Lee's wild mane and smiled softly at him. "I bet he'd want you to be happy and healthy. I bet he'd want you to find someone to raise Jun with. You know that he wouldn't want you to be miserable. No one who loves someone wants them to be miserable."
Lee nodded and rested his head on Kai's chest. "Maybe. I'll think about it."
"That's all I'm asking." The doorbell rang again and Lee pulled away slowly.
"That's the babysitter" the lion whispered softly. Kai nodded and followed him to the door. Jun ran out and stopped behind his Papa waiting for the babysitter to come in. After exchanging a few pleasantries Lee and Kai left. "Kai, why do you want to help me so much? You haven't seen me in five years."
Kai stopped and turned Lee to face him. "I haven't answered that question yet? I want you to be happy. I'm still in love with you even after not seeing you for five years. I'm going to be in America for awhile so I feel like I can finally do something about it. You were taken before, but you're not now. I want a chance to be with you." Lee smiled softly before leaning up and pressing a kiss to Kai's lips.
"You make it sound so attractive that I might not be able to turn you down, but I still need to think about it before I decide to uproot Jun again. He deserves some stability."
Kai nodded. "I can understand that. I'll come by tomorrow afternoon to check on you and we can talk more."
Three days later Lee lay in bed wide awake thinking about everything Kai had said. He had really been thrown for a loop, but he was positive that the phoenix was being honest and really wanted to help him. The lion knew that Shen wouldn't be happy with the way he was living his life, but he couldn't see himself being with anyone else. Shen had stolen his heart when he was only thirteen and given him the single best thing Lee could ever hope for two years later. It had been a scandal in the village because Shen had been twenty three when Lee got pregnant, but that didn't stop Lee from pursuing his love. There was nothing that could ever make him stop loving Shen. Maybe, just maybe, he needed to open up his heart again though. Maybe he needed someone like Kai in his life. He knew that his health wasn't what it had once been and his weight had dropped dramatically. He was still a healthy weight, but the muscle he had once prided himself on had disappeared and not solely because of his pregnancy. Sighing he rolled over to face the door as it was pushed open and Jun walked over to crawl into bed.
"Papa?"
"Did you have a bad dream?" Lee questioned softly as he stroked his son's head gently.
"No. Is Kai going to be my new daddy?" Lee blinked at the innocent question that was far from innocent.
"Why do you ask that?"
"I like Kai. He plays with me and he makes you smile" Jun whispered as he snuggled into his Papa's side.
"Jun, do you like living here or do you want to live with Kai?" Lee wasn't sure why he was asking the five-year-old his question, but he had a feeling that he might just get the answer needed.
"Kai" was the murmured response before the small neko drifted off to sleep safe in Lee's embrace. The lion blinked and smiled. It was settled then. If Jun was already this attached to Kai then it couldn't possibly hurt to take the phoenix up on his offer. It could do them both some good.
Weeks passed by as Lee and Jun got used to living in the penthouse apartment Kai was calling home for several months. Lee had quit his job and was focusing on his own health. He had even started working out again which was getting him more than a few compliments from the phoenix. Jun was extremely attached to Kai and had started to call him Daddy which was unnerving for the lion who could only see Shen as his son's father. He was standing at the sink washing the dishes from dinner when Kai's arms wrapped around his waist. "Jun's sound asleep. He could barely keep hi eyes open once I had him in bed."
Lee smiled and leaned back against Kai's chest. "He adores you" the twenty-year-old whispered softly. "I'm afraid he's getting too attached."
Kai kissed the top of Lee's head gently before resting his chin on the black mane. "You don't like that he calls me daddy do you? I know that you wish Shen was still around for him to know."
Lee dried his hands on a dish towel before turning around to face Kai. "It's not just that. I understand that he'll never know Shen like I did or even how my family did and I accept that. I think what bothers me the most is that I know that Shen would have been an amazing father to him, but you're doing an amazing job as well. I can't understand why you would take on the responsibility of a five-year-old at your age. You're only two years older than me."
Kai tilted his head to the side slightly as he smiled. "You took on the responsibility of an infant at fifteen. What makes it that much different?"
"I chose to have a child Kai. It was a conscious decision I made when I started sleeping with Shen at fourteen. I knew what I was getting into." Kai smiled and pressed a light kiss to Lee's lips. The small affectionate gestures were becoming more and more common the longer Lee lived with the phoenix. "Kai, I do like you. I just don't know if I can be with anyone romantically. I made a promise to Shen to love only him and I don't think I can break that promise."
"Even if it means never being truly happy again?" Kai questioned softly.
"He made me happy, but you make me happy too. I never told you, but the reason I accepted your proposal to live here is because Jun said that you make me smile. I didn't realize how little I smiled after Shen's death. I don't want to betray him."
"You aren't" Kai whispered. He kept his voice soft so as not to put too much pressure on the lion. He knew that this entire experiment was scary for him and that they needed to take things slowly. The phoenix decided it was probably a good time to change the subject before Lee got scared off. He had withdrawn from Kai more than once in the few weeks since they had been living together and Kai was beginning to recognize the signs. "You're gaining weight. I don't feel like I'm holding a porcelain doll anymore. It's always nice to feel some muscle on you."
Lee blushed as he hid his face from Kai's eyes. "The workout facilities are really nice here. Between your staff helping look after Jun and not having to work I've been able to get there everyday. I never liked not working out, but I had no time to work out. I was always exhausted."
Kai tilted the lion's head back and smiled softly at him only to sigh when he recognized the familiar look in Lee's eyes. "Do you want me to back off a little?" Lee nodded as he turned around to finish the dishes. "I just want to be here for you Lee."
"I know Kai and I appreciate it. I just don't feel comfortable sometimes. I never really got over Shen." Kai placed a gentle kiss on Lee's cheek before leaving him.
"My door's always open Lee. No matter what." Lee nodded, but didn't lift his eyes from the dishes he was cleaning.
Once Lee couldn't hear Kai's footsteps he sighed softly. "You're too good to be true Kai. I hope you're not setting me up to fall hard and get hurt again. I can't lose another lover." He stopped and placed his hand over his mouth. He had just called Kai his lover. "I'm so sorry Shen. I love you, but I think I have to let you go."
Kai blinked when he felt the weight on his bed shift. It was the middle of the night and Jun only went to Lee if he had nightmares. Lee. Kai sat up and stared at the neko-jin sitting on his bed looking terrified. "What's wrong?"
"I'm falling in love with you" came the whispered reply. Kai smiled and pulled the frightened lion into his arms. "I don't want to love you. All I ever wanted was to live with Shen and Jun in the village. I don't know what I'm doing anymore."
Kai wrapped Lee into his arms as he made soft shushing noises. "No one knows where life will take them Lee. All you can do is let life take you where it will. We'll take things slow and see where we end up." Lee nodded and rested his head on Kai's shoulder. "What are you going to tell Jun?"
"I'm not sure. I'll probably tell him that you are his daddy. He deserves a father in his life and he's in love with you. If you promise to stick around for us than I can be okay with that."
"I can promise you that. I'm not going anywhere." Lee nodded and let his eyes slip shut as he slept soundly and feeling safe for the first time since Shen had died.
The new couple woke up to Jun bouncing on the bed chanting "Daddy! Papa!" Lee tugged Jun down onto the bed and held him close as Kai chuckled. "Papa, is Kai really my new Daddy now?"
"Yes Jun. Kai is your new daddy. He's going to be your daddy for the rest of your life since your real one isn't here anymore." Jun cheered and hugged Kai tightly. Lee couldn't help the depression that filled his heart at the thought of finally accepting Shen's death. Kai reached over and ran a finger beneath Lee's eye catching a stray tear.
"Does this mean that I'll have a baby brother?" Both Kai and Lee's eyes widened at the question.
"I don't know about that Jun. We'll have to see" Kai replied cautiously as Lee turned bright red. Jun grinned seemingly placated with the statement as he snuggled between his two fathers. Lee looked over Jun's head at Kai who smiled softly before leaning over and pressing their lips together in a firm kiss. They stayed in bed for several hours before Jun started to complain that he was hungry and wanted pancakes.
Years passed by quickly for Lee. With Kai in his life he was as happy as he had ever been. He still missed Shen and sometimes caught himself wishing he hadn't lost his son's father so tragically, but Kai took care of him and Lee loved him in return. When Jun was nine he got sibling he had been demanding in the form of a beautiful baby girl name Sakura that looked as much like her Daddy as her Papa. Kai was every patient with his neko lover and realized he would never really be able to fill the place in Lee's heart that had so long belonged to Shen. He didn't mind though. He was satisfied with the knowledge that Lee loved him enough to keep him close.
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Yeah, it was long. Over 3000 words actually. Let me know what you think, but please no flames. I know it's not the best thing I've written, but I just had to get the idea out of my head. Thank you for reading!