Since I introduced my OC Rafael Flores to the revolving door of people I ship with Wasabi, I knew that this was something I wanted to write. In the Floresabi canon, I write Wasabi as a trans man and Rafael as a polyamorous nonbinary person, and so I always wanted them to decide to have a biological child together. So it was fun finally starting to write their little family, and figure out their child's personality and their journey to parenthood. There will be other fics! Their kid deserves to have a fully-formed personality and that doesn't happen in this fic so look out for fics in the future. This fic is more in the vein of "The Cutest Baby Pictures" and less in the vein of "Moving Too Fast". Baby Flores isn't going to get a fic as long and thought-out as "Moving Too Fast", but there will be other fics.

If you don't like LGBTQ+ themes in stories then this is definitely not the story for you and I am not the author for you. If you think trans people aren't valid or shouldn't have rights then just. Get out.

But if you're accepting and affirming, enjoy!

Wasabi had thought that he would never be ready to have a child. And if he was ready for that, it wouldn't be one of his own. The idea had always terrified him. Not just for his parenthood but for his personhood. He had worried that becoming pregnant would emasculate and invalidate him.

But Rafael had made him rethink all of that. Rafael, who was so comfortable with their body and their gender, had made Wesley rethink why he'd been worried in the first place. He was a man and having a kid wouldn't detract from that. And Rafael made Wasabi want to start a family because he knew he had found the one. And he knew Rafael felt the same, though it wasn't exactly just one for Rafael. Their relationship was open and Rafael had had many partners, but Wesley was undeniably their rock, their constant.

So they talked about it a lot. Marriage. Kids. Whether or not they wanted that, whether or not they needed that, whether or not they were ready for that. Eventually, they mutually decided they both wanted it and were ready for it, and so it passed as the poem suggested. First came love, then came marriage.

And then came Rizalino. Their baby boy. The most precious thing in the world to Wesley and Rafael. The pregnancy has been hard but when Rizalino Payton Flores was born, all of it was worth it. It flipped a switch in Wasabi that he hadn't known existed. He knew that the same switch didn't exist in everyone, that some people were content not having children and that that was perfectly valid. But now that he had Rizo in his life he couldn't imagine going back to life before he was a father.

Of course, he was very protective of his baby. His brothers were the first people allowed to hold and meet Rizo, and Wasabi had lectured both of them before he set Rizo in their arms.

Damon was really proud and happy to see his younger brother become a dedicated father, Khary was excited to have another nephew.

"I'm gonna turn him into such a theatre kid," Khary warned.

"Yeah, yeah. We'll see what happens. If Rafael has their way, Rizo will be a band geek."

"Prodigy," Rafael corrected, "You're a geek and I'm a prodigy."

"No, I'm a nerd. Fred's a geek. And Rizo is whoever he wants to be." Wasabi and Rafael both knew what it was like to be rejected by the family that was supposed to love you unconditionally. They weren't going to let that happen to their son.

Damon nodded proudly, "He's really lucky to have you two as parents."

"Aww, thanks, Damon. That means a lot to me." Damon was an excellent father to his own sons, so his compliments and advice meant a lot to both of them.

The brothers talked a little longer after Rizalino fell asleep, always enjoying a chance to catch up, even if the matter at hand was solemn.

"Remember, mom can't find out about Rizo, or Rafael or any of it." Deborah Ginger had lost her chance to be a part of Wasabi's life the minute she'd refused to accept him as her son. If she found out about his partner or his own son things could get ugly. And Wasabi didn't need Deborah's ugliness muddying the joy he and his family had found.

"Mom still doesn't even know about my kids," Damon said. This was telling since Damon was the only one who was still in contact with Deborah.

"I haven't talked to mom since high school," Khary said. That wasn't a big surprise, since Deborah had kicked Khary out in high school. Wasabi had taken his brother in when that had happened, and the two of them didn't talk about their parents a lot. Aaron Ginger's biggest fault was still being married to Deborah, so they didn't talk to him much either.

"You deserve to be able to raise your son how you want to, and Khary and I will be here to support you on that journey. We love you, man." Wasabi teared up a little and hugged his brothers tightly before they finally had to go, both promising to come visit soon and to serve as babysitters if Wasabi and Rafael ever needed that.

The next person to meet Rizalino was GoGo, who was just as much a member of Wasabi's family as Damon or Khary. Wasabi was initially a little worried that his tough-as-nails best friend wouldn't be gentle with the infant, but GoGo was immediately smitten with her nephew, cradling him close with a tenderness that usually only her partner saw.

"He's just like his dad," she whispered.

"I hope he'll be better than me," Wasabi said.

"Well, yeah. But there's nothing wrong with being like you."

Wasabi had to smile then, "Thanks, GoGo. You've always supported me and I can't tell you how much I appreciate that."

"You don't have to tell me. You've always supported me, too. We're even."

Then GoGo smirked, "Honey is jealous I got to meet this little guy before she did."

"We're trying not to overwhelm him," Wasabi said, "But tell your wife that she'll get her chance soon enough."

"I will. I can show her pictures of him, right?"

"You can show her any pictures that me or Rafe approves first."

"I should have known you'd be overprotective," GoGo said, laughing softly so as not to wake the baby.

"Well, you've got to protect what means the most to you. I didn't even know this kind of happiness was possible."

"You did it, Wes. You broke a cycle of abuse and fear. Your son is never going to grow up wondering if his parents love him, or if they'd love him if he came out as anything other than a cis/hetero/amatonormative person." The only reason GoGo hadn't been rejected by her parents is that neither of them had gotten the chance to reject her, her mom had left when she was young and her dad had been in and out of prison until his eventual death. But now she and Wasabi were living lives, removed from their toxic parents, that made them happy.

"It feels good," Wasabi said.

"It should. You deserve to enjoy this." Wasabi took his son back and held him close.

"I really do."

The rest of their friends and some of Rafe's other partners would get a chance to meet Rizo soon enough, but more often than not it was just the three of them. Their evenings were quiet and happy. Rizo would fuss when he needed something but mostly he was chill. He liked being held and he liked being read to. If it were up to Wasabi he would never put his son down. Sometimes, however, he had to let go, to take care of himself or just to take a break. It was really hard for Wasabi to take a break. So sometimes Rafael had to intervene.

"Wesley, slow down. If you're not taking care of Rizo you're cleaning or cooking or doing anything else but resting. And you need rest, dearest."

"I need to be doing something," Wesley protested.

"Do you remember what you used to do for fun before we had a kid?" Rafael asked.

"I'm too tired for that," Wasabi said.

"I meant knitting. Or trains. Do you still like trains?"

"Yeah," Wasabi admitted.

"Perfect. I'm gonna get you a model train set to put together. If you had something fun to do would you actually relax?"

"Yes."

"Promise?"

"I promise. It's just hard to relax when there's so much to do."

"Rizalino will understand if you're not always running around like a headless chicken. He knows you're going to take care of him, that we're going to take care of him. He wouldn't want you to forget yourself in the process."

"Rizo is helping me figure out who I am. I could never forget myself. But I'll try to slow down a little."

"Thank you. And if you ever need me to do more, let me know. I want to pull my own weight. I love you. I love both of you. You two are the best part of my whole life."

Wasabi laughed a little.

"What?" Rafael asked, happy to see their partner laughing.

"Do you remember when the best part of your life was Mark the turtle?"

"I still think we should have named Rizo after him. Or at least his middle name."

"Hard disagree," Wasabi laughed.

"Well, you're the boss," Rafael laughed, leaning over and kissing Wasabi's cheek.

Wasabi returned the kiss, except this time on the lips, then pulled away thoughtfully.

"I think I'd like to get back into dance." They'd met years ago when Wasabi had gone to a ballet class for the first time since his childhood. That had been such a joyous time in his life, reclaiming something that had been associated with pre-transition Wesley. Life had gotten busy and so ballet had fallen by the wayside, but he thought it would be a good way to carve out time for himself.

"That's a perfect idea. I can handle things when you're in class. We're killing it at this parenting thing."

"Heck yeah, we are." Rizo cried from his room and Rafael held up their hand.

"I'll handle it, babe."

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely. This is a partnership. I'm going to do my part. It's not hard work if it's for you two."

"Yeah. As long as we maintain a healthy balance… Yeah." Wasabi smiled and sat down, feeling at peace in the world. He loved taking care of his son, and he loved having a partner to share the work and the joy with. Through the highs and the lows, he was so happy to have this family, the best part of his life.