Family Talks and Surprises

Dave sent his message as Sebastian drove them the short distance from the station to his brother's house. As he did so, Sebastian came to the realisation that he should have confided in his brother if no-one else. It wasn't all that long ago that they had been as good as strangers to each other, Julian living on the other side of the country. His decision to transfer to the east coast in the first place had been largely influenced by an urge to be closer to his younger brother, and when Sebastian and Dave had decided to move to the suburbs, being close to Julian had been an obvious choice. Now he had just announced to the world that he was going to be moving much farther away. A good brother would have confided in the older sibling before making such a public announcement to the world…

Dave could see that something in his husband's mood had altered as they pulled into the driveway of Julian and Isabelle's home. He took his time in getting out of the car, almost dragging his feet as they headed to the door. Isabelle opened it to them before they could even knock, and she immediately hugged her brother-in-law. "He is in his study, and Peter, who is also a little upset, is in his room. This time, the latter is the calmer of the two about everything…" Sebastian nodded and headed in the direction of his brother's study.

"So exactly how badly did Julian take it?" Dave asked quietly as his husband moved out of earshot.

"Like his daughter takes it when she does not get her own way over things - with a lot of petulance. I take it that you were just as surprised as the rest of us when he announced his plans?"

"I had absolutely no idea what was going to happen. There is a part of me that thinks I should be mad at him, because he went behind my back and took a job on my behalf, but then I realise that what he did he did out of love, and who can argue with that? I should be thankful that he cares enough about me that he will give up his own career for the sake of mine. I just hope that in doing so, he hasn't wrecked his relationship with his brother in the process…"

Sebastian approached the closed door of his brother's study, and knocked; he suddenly felt like he was back in his Junior year at Dalton, on the day that he had been summoned at once to Principal Carmichael's office for a discussion about a rock salt laden slushie. This time he would not have had the benefit of Wes having been there beforehand and pleading his case. He gently opened the door to see his brother sitting in his chair, a toy rabbit that he recognised sitting in his lap; it was Thumper, the one that he had given to Julian when they reconciled back in Las Vegas, as a replacement for Bugs, Sebastian's toy rabbit that he had been returning…

"I am so sorry, Jules, I realise now that I should have told you beforehand. I was so concerned about Dave finding out that I stupidly kept the whole thing to myself, forgetting that my decision would not just affect the two of us, but all of the people that I love. If there was another way to ensure that my husband could have the future that he deserves, doing the thing that he loves, one that meant we could stay here, I would take it… None of that excuses in anyway my lack of forethought though. My only hope is that you can find it in your heart to forgive your screw up little brother, and let us be the way we were before I did this, because losing you would be a nightmare…"

Julian said nothing at first, just gently held the rabbit in his hand. Then he looked up, and said, "Yes, you should have warned me that this was coming, Bazzy. Then again, I should have told you that I was going away for good back when you were a kid. My only concern is this - it is a big step into the unknown. I mean, what if Dave's new job doesn't work out, and he parts ways with the team after a year or so?"

"Then you will find yourself with some permanent guests in your spare bedrooms. I must admit that there is a small part of me that fears that could happen, but the good thing is that my name would not end up as mud with Broadway producers because I walked away, as I informed them all in advance that I was going. It is not as if I am walking out just weeks into a show, without warning. Anyway, they have more or less forgiven a certain Rachel Berry for doing just that…"

Julian laughed, then said, "Seriously though, I would think about keeping your house here, just to have a place to come back to. Rent it out for now, with me to keep an eye on your tenants. You can always sell it later."

"That sounds practical, but the thing is that I don't want us to have to be paying rent in Ohio when we don't have to."

"Oh, but you wouldn't be, Bazzy. In my initial rage, I called dad to let him know what you were doing. Believe it or not, he was the one that calmed me down. He also pointed out that he still owned that old house of ours in the suburbs of Columbus. The tenants he has there now are leaving later this year, and he doesn't need the rent, so he thought that you and Dave could live there rent free…"

Sebastian looked at his brother in stunned silence for a moment, then replied, "Dad really said that? Did he sound drunk?"

Julian laughed again, then admitted, "That was the first thing I asked him too. He wasn't, and as I said, he has more than enough income to live comfortably in the Virgin Islands, and the only condition he makes is that when he needs to be in Ohio, you will let him come and stay with you."

"Well, I cannot argue with that… Of course, you all need to come and stay too. Yes, I will be some distance away, but this time we will be talking all the time, having video chats… I won't let us drift apart this time round, I refuse to lose you again."

"Well, us coming to stay is a given; after all, you will have the biggest house, so you will be hosting the Smythe Christmas gathering every year. You will be a man of leisure after all, so you will have plenty of time to ensure that they are show staopping occasions…"

"I won't be that much of a man of leisure. I am sure I will find plenty of stuff to keep me occupied, or others will… Now, I should go and talk to Peter, but first, are we okay?"

"We are, but if you ever pull a stunt like that again…"

"Trust me, I won't."

"And of course, you will be giving my dear wife her exclusive interview?"

"Oh, that goes without saying; if I know her, she will be getting Dave's side of things as we speak…" Julian smiled, then placing Thumper of his desk, got up and pulled his little brother into a tight hug…

Sebastian left the study and headed in the direction of Peter's bedroom; as he did so, he glanced into the kitchen, where he witnessed his sister-in-law asking his husband questions as his brother had surmised, all the time feeding him cake. He knew that his turn would come, but it would not be tonight, as it was getting late. He headed up the stairs then knocked on the door of his nephew's room, and waited for either the door to be opened, or for someone to call from within. It was the former in the end, and after looking at him for a moment, Peter headed back in, his uncle following him.

"I am not as angry at you as dad was, Uncle Bazzy, so be grateful; I thought that he was going to throw things at the television at one point. I can totally see why you decided not to let anyone know in advance, as there is no way that Uncle Dave would have agreed to this had he known. I think that you have been very sensible in all of this, and have shown us all what marriage is about; in all relationships, there has to be give and take. Until now, you have always had the support of your husband in everything, and that has made you a star; now he needs help, so you have given things up to support him, which is exactly as it should be…"

Peter stopped as he saw that his uncle was just staring at him open mouthed. "Where on earth did you learn all of this? At your age, my outlook on life was much less mature, and much more me, me, me…"

Peter laughed, and said, "That might be because you missed out on being at Dalton in your sophomore year, and the compulsory classes on relationships and life skills as a result. Mr Harwood and I also had quite a few long chats last year when I was acting like a complete idiot. The basic gist of those was that if I wanted to be treated like an adult, then I had to act like one at all times, and put other people first sometimes. That is exactly what you have done here, so I approve. I will miss you not being around when I am home though; that will be hard…"

"Well, it seems that granddad Smythe has decided that I can live in his house, and it is pretty huge, so you will be more than welcome to come and stay with us, if you want to that is, from time to time…"

"That would be so cool, actually, and well… don't tell dad yet, but I have been looking at what I want to do at college, and there is a really cool program at OSU that would be my first choice. If I happened to get into the course, then maybe I could come and live with you and Uncle Dave…"

Sebastian was left with quite a lot to consider as he and Dave headed home a short while later; Peter's admission about school had just heightened the drama of the day. They certainly would have enough space in the house to accommodate him, that much would be true, and Julian would be pleased that his son had family close by as he entered his college years, but it was all mounting up if he was honest. As he turned the car into their own street, he let his mind wander just a little to the meeting that he had now scheduled with Isabelle in the morning, and exactly what his sister-in-law might ask him. Then he heard Dave chuckle, and he glanced over at his husband.

"Well, Sebby, if you thought that the consequences and possible intimidation brought on by your actions today were over for tonight, think again…" said Dave, and Sebastian followed his line of sight to their home. He immediately spotted that there was someone sitting and waiting on the bench on the front porch, and of course, it was a certain latina… "She had seen us, so don't even consider driving past. I wish you all of the luck in the world, and, well, I have never seen the rumoured razor blades…"

As soon as Sebastian had the car in park, Dave made his exit, with a remarkable turn of speed for a man on crutches, and headed straight in. Sebastian left the car much more slowly, maintaining his dignity, then headed over to sit at her side. "I expected you to be back here hours ago, but then it dawned on me that you probably had to stop by at your brother's place and deal with the family fall out first. As for my take on this, well I am conflicted, and I do not like that. On the one hand, your noble gesture for the sake of your husband's career and happiness makes me wonder where on earth the criminal chipmunk has gone, but then I also realised that I was going to miss you being around, and started to ask myself how you dared to go back to Ohio?"

"Well, as far as I am aware, I am not banned from the state, and the fact we will be staying in my dad's mansion is a help."

"Really? Well, that is a plus. Darn it all, meerkat, I am going to miss you, and I cannot for the life of me fathom out how you managed to get under my skin quite so much!"

"I am going to miss you being around too, Satan, and as for why, I think it is because we are so alike. You would do anything for Brittany and your daughter; I would do anything for Dave and my kids. Truth is, beneath all the armour that our upbringing made us put on, we are just a couple of soft hearted lumps…"

Santana looked at him, then laughed. "If that statement ever gets out, I will personally supervise your destruction, but yes, I guess that we really are…"

It would be the following morning before Sebastian had a chance to address the concerns of his Warbler brethren, as speaking to Mrs Carr had taken up a little bit of the night after Santana left. She had been mollified reasonably quickly though when Dave had suggested that she could come with them, as that would make his dad very happy… His first call was to Nick and Jeff, who like Santana, felt sad at the prospect of him moving away, but proud of him at the same time for making his choice. Trent would also applaud his actions in giving up so much for the man that he loved, but he like Bette pointed out that this was au revoir, not farewell; an extended hiatus.

The others all responded in a similar vein, thinking that he had taken a very mature step, but hoping at the same time that he would find enough to do to occupy his days once he was back in Ohio. Thad was on top of that situation of course, and after praising his decision, immediately suggested that he could come and talk to the boys at Dalton about Broadway and his career, once he had actually settled in. "To have an actual Broadway star - almost a living legend if we are honest - come in and talk to the boys would be really wonderful. I know that the Warblers would really appreciate that, not to mention the various drama clubs…"

Sebastian had laughed, then said, "I will need to think about that once I am truly settled in Ohio again, Thad. That is not the sort of thing that I will agree to on just a whim."

"But you are not ruling it out? At the moment, that is all that I wish to know…"

"No, I am not. It might actually be fun to come along and share my story; show them all how good life can be if you go out there and follow your dreams…"

Sebastian's decision to retire from Broadway would come to dominate all conversation between the Warblers for the next few weeks, which suited Seth, glad that he was no longer the centre of attention. All of them wanted to hear how other people were reacting to the news, particularly those whose lives were directly impacted by the change. It came as no shock at all to those in the know that Mrs Carr, after only a few hours thought, had decided that she could go with them if that was what they wanted. Sebastian and Dave agreed, officially on the grounds that continuity of care was important for their children; most knew that it had a lot more to do with her relationship with Dave's father, and secretly they suspected that she would be the new Mrs Karofsky within a few years. None of them saw that as a bad thing.

His choice also had quite an impact on the ticket sales of Waiting for Godot, and with the full backing of Dave and Russell's partner, they both agreed that matinees could be added twice a week, and that the season could be extended until the end of January 2025. That would mean that Russell would have to spend Christmas in New York, and he was invited to join the festivities at the Karofsky-Smythe houselhold, an offer he accepted at once, much to the delight of Isabelle, who looked forward to meeting him again, and possibly getting him to answer a few questions for the magazine…

The moment that the new performances and dates were made official, the tickets began to fly out of the door, and it was highly likely that the show would be a complete sell out; no bad achievement for a serious play on Broadway. The issue of Vogue that would contain Isabelle's exclusive interview with Dave and Sebastian was also tipped for a sell out, such was the interest worldwide after he had retired through such a public statement. There was also a letter sent to him via the theater, from the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts, stating that they would love to be able to work with him once he was resident in Ohio again, and see him on stage in their own Ohio Theater; that gave him belief that his days of treading the boards were not completely at an end…

The gossip around Sebastian so Seth's health issues fade into the background, however briefly. At the insistence of the patient, Skylar now went into his office four days a week, and on the other three he was occupied in his study, carrying out a project for Thad, not that Seth knew exactly what that was, for the best part of the day. Julia was aided in her care of Seth by the redoubtable Mrs Carmichael, who happily covered for her when her pregnancy related medical appointments came up. Now that she was past the 30 week stage, it was very obvious that Julia was expecting, and she was also finding that she got much more tired after particularly strenuous work. Thad was also a regular visitor to the house, using the trips as an excuse to leave all of the planning work for the next school year to one side for a while.

In the main, Seth was well; he had some minor attacks which rendered his arms useless for a while, and sometimes lead to him blacking out, but they were brief and not all that frequent, and did not require the attention of the hospital. Dr McLeod had started to come and see him at home, rather than getting him to come in, using Julia's condition as an excuse for making those home visits. There was much less poking and prodding taking place these days, as Hayden saw most of the available tests as being past their useful stage. He knew, as did Julia, that Seth was not long for the world. Their patient knew that too, but did not express that belief out loud, as he knew that he would be greeted by a chorus of denials. Seth knew his body, however, and he knew that it was failing, and fast. If that was not bad enough, he was now finding it increasingly hard to swallow, thanks to almost constant attacks of dry mouth when he ate. There was no question of it; his time was ebbing away…

Skylar however seemed to be oblivious to all of the changes as they entered the final week of the month of June. However, he did notice a sudden change in Seth's mood one day that week. When he had been escorted out of the premises almost by his wife, and ordered to go to work that morning, his best friend had been rather down in the mouth; when he got home that night, Seth was all smiles, indeed he was almost care free in his attitude. Skylar worried at once, and made his excuses to go and speak to his wife in private.

"I have no idea what happened," Julia replied to his questions, "but I agree, something happened today that perked him right up. He had his breakfast as usual, and then Thad popped in, bringing the mail up with him from the box as he did. Come to think of it, Seth was down before that, and immediately after Thad left, he was all smiles. I think that possibly Thad said something to him that made him happier; I didn't like to ask, in case it was private…"

After dinner, Skylar headed for his study, and then called Thad. After small talk, he asked him what he had said to Seth that morning that had caused the complete U-turn in his attitude. "Nothing. I mean, there was a letter for him in the box when I got there, a handwritten one. Funnily enough now I think of it, he cheered right up after he read it. I didn't like to ask who sent it to him, or what he said, but yes, he was much happier afterwards."

"Well, he is still smiling like a Cheshire cat now, so I would like to thank whoever it was that sent it to him."

"Unfortunately, unless he chooses to tell you about it, that is not something that we will ever know. Even now, he is entitled to keep his secrets and have his privacy. It would be a different matter if the letter had made him miserable, but it didn't, so listen very carefully when I say that I do not want to hear that you have been conducting espionage to find out!" Thad warned sternly.

Skylar agreed, but in the end, he could not help himself. The next morning, once Skylar was out of bed and ensconced in the kitchen eating breakfast, he offered to make up his bed. Julia was feeling particularly exhausted that morning, and Seth was in no position to argue. Alone in his best friend's room, Skylar closed the door, and looked for a sign as to where the letter might be. In his head he could almost hear Thad's voice, telling him not to spy. He decided that he would not make a deliberate search, but if he happened to come across something, then it was fair game…

Half an hour later, and Skylar was on his way out of the house, and driving off in his car as normal; however, he pulled off the road not long after and drove into a lot near the reservoir, where he pulled out his phone and dialled Thad. The second the call was answered, before he could even speak, he heard Thad say, "You went looking, didn't you? You deliberately betrayed your best friend's privacy and went in search of his personal correspondence!"

"Yes, I did, but it was done out of love and concern for his wellbeing. I mean, you hear about these suicide cults and stuff like that, and my concern was that he might have been in contact with one of them, and they had written to him and offered him a place…"

"That is one of the worst lies I have ever heard," said Thad tetchily, "and that is coming from someone that works as a teacher!"

"Okay, okay, it was wrong! I admit it! It didn't do me any good anyway; if anything, I am more confused now than I was before. I found the letter, but it made no sense to me whatsoever. Anyways, as the guardian of the Warblers' moral standards, I am sure that you will not want me to tell you anything that it said…" retorted Skylar with a hint of smugness.

There was a gratifying silence at the other end, and then a loud sigh. "I suppose that as the damage is already done, you might as well let me know…"

Skylar chuckled at the resigned tone that Thad had delivered those words in, knowing that he was as desperate as him to know what was going on. "Okay, so it was from Brittany of all people, and was extremely brief. It said, I think that we might have succeeded. No visitor for two months. Preliminary test positive. Need to have an official one soon. Then she says thank you with so many kisses afterwards I stopped counting. I have not got the foggiest idea what she is talking about!"

Thad smiled at the other end of the call as he digested those words, then said, "I think what it means is that we now know the identity of the hypothetical lady. Do you recall a night back in March when Seth called you, after he had called me, and asked what you thought about the idea of him becoming a sperm donor?"

"Well, yes, but I don't…" began Skylar, and then it hit him. "Wait, she is the recipient!? Seth and Brittany… When? How? I mean, he didn't even have the time!"

"I think he might have done, if a certain blonde lady paid our mutual friend a hospital visit, which might have been the case judging by the inferences to two months. Then again, it is a letter from Brittany, so there is no guarantee whatsoever that the obvious meaning is the right one. It could even be that he asked her to send it to him to find out if you are spying on him. So, just in case, say nothing until it is confirmed by the two of them, okay."

"Trust me, I won't, but I will say this. If it is the obvious, and she is pregnant by Seth, then I will be beyond overjoyed for the pair of them. It would be the most wondrous of situations…"

Having ended his call with Skylar, Thad sat back for a moment and pondered his next move. He could call Ollie and ask a few questions, but he was pretty certain that even though such things had absolutely nothing to do with Seth's medical condition, his brother would have mentioned it if he was aware, and it was highly unlikely that nobody in the hospital had noticed it happening. Either that, or his brother did know, and his pesky oath of patient confidentiality had kicked in. There was of course another avenue to pursue, and he sat and willed his husband to appear. Sure enough, in just a few moments he felt the downdraft of angelic wings…

"I trust that in time you will remonstrate Warbler Willetts properly for prying into the private papers of his house guest," said Wes straight off. "I mean, if he had found it just lying out and chanced to read it, then that would be okay. Actually deliberately seeking out his pen box, and opening it as he knew that was where Seth kept his private stuff when they were roommates at Dalton is another matter."

"I know Wes, and I also have to apologise for asking him to spill the beans too, but it has got me so very curious now…"

Wes sighed, and sitting down by Thad, he said, "Yes, it did happen, and your brother knows it did, and unlike his friends, is respecting Seth's privacy by saying nothing. He actually diverted Skylar away from Seth's room to go and buy hot chocolate so that he would not be aware of what was happening at the time. And as the cat is out of the bag, it worked. All being well, Seth's child will be born in around 30 weeks time, so in early January." Wes paused, as he saw that Thad was smiling, but at the same time had tears forming in his eyes. "Yes, it is unlikely that the father of the child will still be around when they are born, but his genes will live on through his offspring. It is not how any of us would wish it to be, but that fact should make a lot of people very happy."

"It certainly does, and our only hope is that as they grow older, Brittany and Santana for that matter will allow us Warblers to tell them all about their daddy…"

Back at Skylar's place, Seth had returned to his room, and had noticed almost at once that his pen box had been moved. Opening it, he saw that although the letter had been placed back in exactly the same spot, it had been put in upside down, now doubt by his best friend. He was not unhappy that Skylar knew his secret though; in fact, his prying had saved him from having to tell him, and the potentially awkward chat that would come from that. The fact that he might well be a father in due course had left him elated, even if he knew in his heart that he would never have the chance to cradle his baby in his arms. He had sent a text back to Brittany last night, expressing his joy at the idea…

He sighed, and wished that everything in his life could be as good. He had found the nourishing vegetable broth that Julia had given him for lunch that day almost too thick to swallow; he had seen her notice that, and she had begun to talk about the benefit of noodle soup. Then there was the promise of vermicelli pasta with a thin sauce that evening for dinner. He had talked about the whole concept of feeding tubes with Hayden on his last visit, but he was determined that accepting such a thing would be the very last resort for him. In any case, he had the hope that before such a trauma could occur, he would have been taken away from this world by some other part of his condition. That was the far more appealing prospect…