Summary: The return of an old love changes the rules of the game.
GinaStar: Yeah, go them.
DemonWitch: And here's another one.
Phantom Rogue: No, I'm going to make her suffer for years and years and she won't meet Dyre until he's all grown up and she's a granny, how does that sound?
HopelessRomantic45: -screaming- you said the forbidden 'S'-word! Now you'll be doomed to spend the rest of your life in that hell!
Challon86: No, I won't allow them and Andros agrees with me. We've taken quite some counsel about this. I'll read your update… um.. next week after Christmas or something. I've still been too swamped to sit down and read it.
SweetSas: SAS! You said the forbidden 'S'-word too! Kill your old computer! Never will I forget that. Fijne Kerst en een Gelukkig Nieuwjaar… I'll be in London counting down.
Super Silver Ranger: Another doomed soul who said the forbidden 'S'-word!
bRaInWaVe: Poor you and stupid fanfiction!
Forbidden Love
Chapter 24
Andros woke up with a groan to the sound of Dyre's cries. Reluctantly he pulled himself out of bed and made his way to the nursery. His young son was screaming out his lungs. Andros leaned on the edge of his crib and started down at the crying two and a half-month-old baby.
"What's wrong with you now? I fed you less than an hour ago." Andros commented, glancing at the clock.
The boy just kept on screaming and Andros resigned himself to picking him up. Carrying the child over to the changing table, he checked his diaper and pulled away with a sigh as he realized that it wasn't the cause of his cries.
When he brushed some of the hairs sticking to the boy's sweaty forehead away, he frowned.
"You're not getting sick on me, are you?"
With a sigh he cradled Dyre in his arms and walked to the bathroom. There he balanced the boy on one arm and drenched a washcloth in cold water. After wringing it out, he gently wiped Dyre's little face with it.
He was pleasantly surprised when a corner of the cloth entered Dyre's mouth and the boy settled down, closing his mouth and sucking on it. Andros looked down at him amazed. His sleepy mind was racing past all the possibilities of what could make a baby cry and shut up when something was put into their mouths besides hunger, of course the slight fever had to be added to that too.
Deciding he'd ask his mother in the morning, but wasn't going to take any chances right now, he took out two towels and walked back to his own room. Carefully he laid Dyre down on his bed. The boy was now clutching the washcloth, so he didn't have to worry about that falling.
He unfolded the towels and rolled both of them up, placing them on either side of the baby. When he was satisfied that he couldn't roll away and off the bed, Andros laid down himself, as close to Dyre as he dared, facing the little boy. Happy giggles and gurgles came from the child now and Andros smiled. He turned off the lights and let his head fall onto the pillow. The familiar sounds of the night slowly lulled him back to sleep.
The next morning
Andros woke up and found Dyre still lying next to him. The little boy was still fast asleep, the washcloth lying forgotten next to him. His face was no longer flushed with sweat, but when Andros reached out, his forehead was still slightly warmer than usual.
"We'll just ask your granny later." He promised the boy.
He got up and decided to risk taking a quick shower. He needn't worry because when he returned to his room, Dyre's hadn't moved an inch and wasn't showing any signs of waking. Andros didn't mind and walked over to the com-set in this room. He typed in a few commands and the panel made contact with the one in the kitchen, keeping an open transmission.
Satisfied with himself, he left the room and went to the kitchen to get himself some breakfast.
It wasn't until half an hour later that sounds started coming from the com, soon followed by the wails of an extremely unhappy baby. Andros laughed and shook his head. He quickly shut the link and rushed to the bidding of his son.
The moment he picked the boy up, he noticed two things: the added weight of a soiled diaper and the insistent grumbles of a famished baby.
"Clean diaper goes before food. Sorry, kiddo, but I think you'll feel much better once I get that dirty thing away from you." He told the child, picking up the washcloth from the bed. "Here, suck on this for a while."
The boy looked at him curiously, his wails turning into whimpers, but he happily took the washcloth and put a corner into his mouth. Small threads of baby drool leaked from his mouth as he let out a quiet gurgle.
Andros smiled at the baby and walked into the nursery. The boy was quickly rid of his diaper and given a new one. Smiling to himself, Andros dumped the old diaper into the garbage, pleased that he was getting much better at this rather unsavoury part of parenthood.
He was in the kitchen preparing Dyre's bottle when the com chimed, indicting an incoming call. He sighed and walked off, Dyre cradled in his arm, still sucking on the washcloth.
"Mom." He smiled. "I was just about to call you later."
"How's my dearest grandson doing?" His mother asked, ignoring him completely.
"Actually." Andros said, rather loudly to catch his mother's attention, startling Dyre a little. "I wanted to ask you something."
"Is something wrong? I'll be right over, don't move!" She said immediately, reaching out to cut the connection.
"MOM!" Andros warned. "He's fine as far as I can tell. It's just that he woke up last night about an hour after he already ate. I think he had a slight fever, but he's fine now. But the odd thing about it was that he quieted when I pressed a moist washcloth to his face and he started sucking on the corner."
His mother stared at him with big unblinking eyes as if he had just sprouted a second head.
"Mom?" He tried after a while.
"You might want to buy a bite ring today. I think your little man is teething." His mother told him as if in a daze.
"Mom, are you okay?"
"You actually unconsciously did something right… I guess you do have it in you to be a good daddy and raise a child on your own. Who ever would've guessed?"
Before he could reply, Dyre started whimpering and his mother quickly perked at the sound of her grandson's discomfort.
"Do you need me to…?"
"No mom, I was just making his bottle when you called. He's only hungry and cranky for not having his bottle yet. You don't have to come over. I can handle it. But…" He sighed and then shrugged, smiling at his mom. "Thanks for the advice on the teething bit. Bye mom."
He quickly turned off the com before his mother had the chance to open her mouth. He really loved her, but sometimes she could just be really tiring, especially when it came to Dyre. He believed he was doing a great job for someone who didn't know the first thing about babies, but he couldn't seem to be doing anything right in his mother's eyes. Even the way he fastened the diapers seemed to be wrong. Like it really mattered if the sticky parts were straight or not; Dyre certainly didn't care as long as he got to fill the diaper up again.
"Your granny's being obnoxious again." He informed the little boy. "But at least she was of some help. If only you could just tell me you're getting teeth, it would save us both a lot of trouble."
Dyre just gurgled happily in reply when he spotted the bottle in his father's hands, his chubby little hands reaching out for it.
"Sure, all you care about is food, sleep, a clean diaper and attention twenty-four/seven." Andros laughed, giving Dyre his bottle and watching the boy in his arms drink eagerly. "We'll go out and get you that ring when you finish it."
Dyre just stared up at him, his clumsy hands desperately and possessively clinging to his bottle even though he couldn't even support it on his own yet.
"I love you, little man." Andros smiled, kissing Dyre's forehead. "If only your mommy could be here with us, life would be perfect."
A/N: Hope you liked it. Isn't Andros cute with his little boy? Please review!