"It's gonna be okay." Gavin patted Ryan's back as the older man chewed on his lower lip between muttering the same phrase wordlessly over and over.

Normally in such a situation, Ryan would be reassuring Gavin, especially since Ryan would tell Gavin nothing about his family.

He'd asked who all he was meeting and what their names were several times, but Ryan only smirked at him and claimed that he would just have to wait.

So he had, and now they were sitting outside of a nice-looking house as Ryan pulled himself together. The OCD-ridden man took a deep breath before smiling at Gavin. "You ready?" He asked and Gavin winked.

"Born ready, luv," He linked hands with Ryan once they'd exited the car and strolled towards the front door. Ryan knocked five times, paused, and knocked five times more before the door opened to reveal a man hardly older than Ryan with heavily tattooed arms and a black mustache that looked decades old. His eyes were grey and sunken and he looked like he was in a perpetual state of fatigue. Gavin wondered if it was possibly a relative of Ryan's, despite the clear lack of resemblance, as a woman with a half-shaven head of blonde hair and an equally large amount of tattoos came into view, balancing a young girl on her hip.

"Ryan! Come in!" The man called and Ryan stepped in happily, dragging Gavin with him.

"Uncle Ryan!" The girl scrambled out of what Gavin assumed were his mother arms, rushing towards Ryan and squealing when he pulled her up into a hug.

"Gavin, this is Geoff-Geoff, Griffon, and their fantastic daughter Millie. Millie. " Ryan introduced, tickling the young girl playfully.

Gavin tilted his head in confusion but shook Geoff's hand regardless, accepting the warm hug Griffon gave him. She looked grateful and smiled at him like a proud mother.

"It's so nice to finally meet you, Gavin." She cooed.

"Yeah, Ryan never shuts the fuck up about you." Geoff teased, threading an arm around Griffon's waist as Ryan blushed.

"Shut up. Don't make me regret bringing him here. Inviting him here. Inviting." Geoff laughed and it sounded sweet and genuine.

"You love me, asshole. C'mon, you can help me set up dinner while Gavin and Griffon get acquainted." He motioned for Ryan to follow and the latter placed several small kisses to Gavin's lips before doing so.

"Come with me, honey. We can chat in the living room while they do their men things." Griffon smirked at him and Gavin followed, still confused.

"So, is Geoff his brother?" He asked, half expecting Ryan's parents to suddenly appear.

"Oh no, Ryan is an only child. Though they've been best friends since high school." She quipped, settling down into a soft-looking leather couch. Gavin sat across from her, crossing his legs. "Why do you ask?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Ryan just told me I was coming to meet his family tonight." A soft 'oh' escaped Griffon's lips and her eyes shone with affection at his words.

"Family? Bless him." She smiled so sweetly and Gavin fixed his gaze on his fingers, cheeks blazing. Had Ryan told him these people were his family because he didn't want to bring Gavin home to his real family? Was he ashamed? His brow furrowed as Geoff called them in for dinner, his voice cracking slightly.

"So, Gavin. What do you do for a living?" Griffon questioned when they had finally settled down around the table, each with a heaping plate of homemade food. It smelled delicious, honestly, and Gavin was using all his willpower to not devour it in an animalistic manner.

"I'm a store clerk, actually. I check out the items." He admitted. "It's just until I finally get recognized for my slow-motion cinematography. Then I'll hopefully be working on big movies."

"That sounds lovely! Y'know, Ryan really likes you." Ryan looked up from where he was playing with Millie on his lap, blue eyes wide.

"Griffon! Griffon, Griffon! Really?" He spluttered, ignoring Geoff's laughter.

"I'm just saying!" She held up her hands in a sign of defense, but she was grinning.

"What she's really saying is that Ryan is a fucking loser." Geoff teased, flicking a pea at the younger man. Ryan caught it and threw it back, snorting when it bounced off Geoff's forehead.

"Uncle Ryan, is Gavin your boyfriend?" Millie asked from Ryan's lap, aimlessly playing with the hem of his shirt.

Ryan bit his lower lip, blushing furiously as he nodded. "Yes, he is. He is. Gavin, Gavin, Gavin, Gavin, Gavin is my boyfriend."

"Good. I like him." She spoke decisively, and Gavin felt as if he had just passed some unspoken test.

"That settles it, then. You can't leave now." Geoff pointed mock-threateningly at Gavin and the Brit smirked.

"Well, I don't plan to. But you never know, I might get abducted by aliens or stolen by pirates." He remarked, elbowing Ryan teasingly.

"Maybe so, lad. If that happens, I guess I could let you off the hook."

"I would fight tooth and nail to get back, though."

"I wouldn't expect anything less from you." Geoff stretched out his arms, yawning nonchalantly.

"So, do we want to play video games?" Ryan asked, his face still red, and there were hums of agreement.

"Sure, we just gotta clean up first. How about you help me with the dishes, Gavin?"

"Oh, honey, he's a guest. He shouldn't have to do that." Griffon interrupted but Gavin only smiled, gathering up the used dishes.

"Nonsense. I'm happy to help and it's the least I could do after such a delicious meal." He squeezed Ryan's arm once as they left for the living room, leaving Geoff and Gavin alone.

"Y'know, he really DOES care for you." Geoff commented, clearing the plates off into the trash.

"I know he does. And I care the same for him." Gavin had known the talk was coming as soon as they were together and Geoff's stern voice confirmed it.

"You better. Ryan's gone through a lot of hardships in his life and I'd hate for him to feel so seriously over someone that only wanted this to be a frivolous thing."

"Of course. But I'm in this for the long haul. If anything, I'm the one that should be worried."

"Why?" Geoff questioned, turning off the water and dropping several pieces of silverware into the soapy water. Gavin picked up a rag and began cleaning them, keeping his eyes on the suds.

"Nevermind." He muttered, but Geoff was nothing if not persistent.

"No, why would you think that? Because it's not true."

"It's just... Well, he didn't bring me home to his mom and dad, did he? And I'm really happy he brought me here, honestly I love you family, but I can't help but wonder if he didn't bring me home because he's ashamed." Gavin frowned, brow furrowing as he scrubbed at a dish absently.

He looked up when Geoff didn't answer to see the older man in a state of confusion. "I.. Son, he doesn't have any family. We ARE his family." He sighed, rubbing his hand over his face. "He's an only child, and I don't think he's talked to his parents since he was old enough to high-tail it out of there. They... Y'know, I'll let him tell you about it when he's ready.

"He's brought a couple people home to us, girls mostly, and they always had the same enthusiasm as you. They were certain that they were going to stick around and be with him forever, like they were big fucking heroes for being with a mentally ill man like Ryan." Geoff gritted his teeth, drying the pan in his hand with more force than necessary. "But they got tired. They couldn't handle him flicking the lights on and off every night, or checking to make sure the door is locked over and over, or making them late to work with his routine that he just had to do to feel normal. They left. And it fucking sucks to see someone do that to a person you love. So when I tell you that he cares for you, you best believe it, and you better not think that he's just some charity case that you can use to make you seem like a good person. He isn't someone to be pitied because he's a strong human being and a damn good one at that. You understand?" Geoff's tired eyes met Gavin's and they shone with passion and dedication.

"I'm sure you've heard it before, but I don't see Ryan like that at all. Ryan is just... Ryan, and I love him, and I'll spend the rest of my life showing you and everyone else how much I love him, as long as he'll let me." Gavin retorted, his face one of determination, and whatever Geoff saw in his hazel eyes made him smile.

"You're a good lad. Now, it's time for me to kick your ass at some video games."

"Please, old man. I happen to be a master of games." Geoff snorted at this, slinging an arm around Gavin's scrawny shoulders.

"Son, I've been playing games since before you were born." They stumbled into the living room where Ryan sat chatting with Griffon, balancing a bouncing Millie on his back, and the sight warmed Gavin's heart.

And by the end of the night, after Millie had been put to sleep and Gavin had lost severely at several rounds of different video games (leading to some extreme taunting from both Geoff and his boyfriend alike), Gavin thought that maybe he could find a home in the cozy house as well.