Author's Note:
All right. The new chapter is finally up! Thank you for your patience!
Was it that obvious? John blushed a bit and reached over to grab his husband's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. Now he just had to hope that the kids were still going to be tired because this was the first time he had gotten an erection without medication in quite a while. "This is going to be such a good vacation," he whispered with a grin. Sex or not he knew that it was going to be good enough for the kids to get out of the country and experience something new.
Amy nodded and stayed close to Thomas. She wasn't going to tell him but she knew that he was scared and beyond nervous and now all she had to do was make sure he knew it was all right. "Does you wants to go swimming at the hotel when we gets there? I thinks it will be fun and I'm sure Papa and Dada would love it, too.
Sherlock returned the squeeze, the smirk still plastered on his face. "Yes, it will. I think we all needed one." He looked back over at the children. He was worried about Thomas and not just because of the fear of flying. Something else was going on with the boy, but he wasn't quite sure what. Had John noticed too? Should he say something to his husband about it later?
Thomas smiled a bit bigger and nodded. "Yeah, Sis that sounds good." Swimming. Maybe that would calm him down a bit. He liked it well enough.
John followed Sherlock's gaze with ease and the smile and excitement faded from his body immediately. That meant something was wrong, he knew. "Are you going to tell me what you are thinking about?" His voice was soft as he leaned forward and pressed a soft kiss to his husband's temple. They had a lot of time once they got to the hotel and, from the what he'd heard from Amy, they were going to be going to the swimming pool once they got there.
Amy let out a small sigh and dropped her head. She was trying but it seemed her older brother was just going to be unhappy about whatever it was that seemed to be bothering him. "I loves you, 'Mas," she whispered as one last attempt to try and cheer him up. "I loves you lots."
Should he say something? Probably. John was his husband after all. "I'm worried about Thomas," Sherlock murmured. "I make a living off observing people and their habits, and without realizing it I do the same thing to our family. I can't help it really, it's just the way I see the world. Anyway, I think something is going on with him but I'm not sure what." He gave a slight shrug. "Has he talked to you about anything lately?"
Thomas smiled at Amy again and leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Love you too Sissy Poo." Oh thank goodness, the aeroplane had finally stopped moving. Safe. They were safe, right? He finally let himself relax as he unbuckled his seat belt. He looked over at their parents. They were whispering. He was trying to learn how to read lips but he couldn't quite make out what his Daddy had said.
It shouldn't surprise him in the slightest that Sherlock had noticed something different with their son. John glanced at the boy sitting next to him and bit his bottom lip before shaking his head. "He's not said a word to me," he muttered softly as he bit his bottom lip some more. In reality he hadn't even noticed too much of a change in Thomas aside from the panic attack about having to fly and now he felt more like a horrible parent than anything. "Should we try to talk to him at some point today?"
The moment Thomas seemed to lighten up, Amy smiled widely. She'd managed to cheer her brother up and that was quite the accomplishment. "I likes it when you are happy," she whispered to him, clearly wanting to have a secret conversation between the two of them since Dada and Papa were doing the same thing. "I is gonna tells you a secret a'cause they is having a secret," she declared softly before leaning forward and looking up at Thomas. "I stayed up past bedtime last night."
Sherlock thought for a moment and then shook his head. "Maybe after the vacation? If he doesn't want to talk about it, it could ruin the vacation and I don't that to happen. Maybe he will talk to us when he is ready?" He looked up at John, to see if his husband thought that was a good idea or not.
Thomas looked back over to Amy with a slight grin. He leaned down and whispered in his sister's ear. "Me too." He refrained from saying it was because he had been too scared to sleep. That he had eventually snuck upstairs to sleep with Dad and Daddy. This vacation would be fun. Despite his trepidation about flying, he was excited at the prospect of being in America.
After vacation would probably be best if John really thought about it. The last thing he wanted to do was ruin the boy's vacation. This was a chance for him to see the world and get away from the bullies that he knew existed at the school. Hearing that his only son was being picked on always hurt just a bit. "I doubt he will but we can wait and see," he said softly, biting his bottom lip and glancing up at Sherlock.
Amy giggled happily and shifted in her seat, moving even closer to her older brother. "I knew you was awake," she whispered with bright eyes lifted to his face. The grin tugging at her lips was wide and showed all of her teeth. "But I didn't wants to get us in trouble so I didn't say nothing a'cause Dada and Papa might of heared." She nodded seriously, clearly very committed on not getting them in trouble for staying up past their bed time.
Sherlock didn't care that passengers were already starting to disembark, he leaned over and nipped John's bottom lip. "Love when you do that. Can tell you are always thinking or worried about something. Only adds to how adorable you look." He smirked at his husband as he pulled away.
Thomas nodded and smiled at Amy. "Come on Sis, its time to get off the aeroplane. I'll get your bag from above." He stood up and he was able to reach the compartment above by standing on the tips of his toes. He wasn't really short for his age but he wished he could be tall like Daddy. Why was his Daddy so perfect and amazing and he just wasn't? He sighed at his thoughts and tried to make himself happy for his sister so he smiled at her as he looked back down after getting their bags.
Oh God, that was going to drive him crazy. John sucked in a quick breath, looking at Sherlock as his pupils dilated to show how aroused he already was. It didn't matter if somebody had called him adorable because Sherlock in front of him was enough to distract him. "Only for you, love," he murmured as he leaned forward and gave the man a quick, gentle kiss.
Amy slowly slid over, balancing on her knees in the seat Thomas had vacated to watch him curiously. Her older brother was far taller than her and at her age she already knew she probably wasn't going to be as tall as him or as her Papa. "Thanks, 'Mas," she said with a small smile, leaning forward to give him a quick hug with her head resting on his chest. "You's is the bestest."
Sherlock returned the kiss, eyes fluttering close. They needed to disembark but damn it he was kissing John. If they didn't have the children with them, he would taken his husband here and now people watching be damned. "Soon Love, soon." He gave John another kiss before finally getting up out of his seat and grabbing their bags from the overhead compartment.
Thomas smiled and returned the hug. "No, you are the best Sis." He ignored their parent's obvious display of affection and pretended not to notice by looking anywhere but at them.
The moment Sherlock stood up John missed his presence and instantly wanted to pull him back down into another kiss. Instead he controlled himself, standing slowly and looking over at their children with a smile. They were so well-behaved and rather perfect. Hopefully they were both tired by the end of the night so he and Sherlock could have some time alone. "Look at you two," he said as he reached out and ruffled Thomas' hair. "You did very well today, my little boy."
Amy nodded up at Thomas after hearing what John had said, eyes bright as she agreed. "Yeah, 'Mas! You's did really good and I is very proud of yous!" Without hesitation she stood on her toes and placed a soft kiss on his cheek.
Sherlock smiled at his family and let the children and John go first before following after them. "Yes Thomas, you did very well. I'm proud of you too son." There, working on being a better father and having a better relationship with Thomas. He could do this.
Thomas shrugged and blushed at his family's praise but he couldn't help but puff out his chest and beam proudly at what his Daddy said. He made sure to hold Amy's hand as he lead them out of the tunnel. His eyes went wide as he looked around at all the different people going to and from airport terminals.
John followed after the kids, right away grabbing their hands so they wouldn't get lost. It was hard for him to hide the shock written across his face and he looked more like Thomas than anybody else. There were just so many people around, moving about and trying to get to places. On top of that they all sounded different. It was taking a bit for his brain to adjust to all of the changes around him.
"Whoa," Amy said, her voice hushed as she looked around them with a massive grin. "'Mericas," she whispered as she squeezed John's hand and jumped up and down just a bit. "Dada, Papa, 'Mas! Looks! We is in 'Mericas!"
Sherlock smirked a bit as he watched his family's reaction to airport. It was pretty much what he expected. Perfect. He got a cart for their luggage, put it on the cart and then followed the signs to the carousel that had theirs.
Thomas held onto his Dad's hand tightly, still looking around with wonder and awe. He smiled down at Amy. "We are Sis and it is going to be great, just you wait." He continued to look around at all the different people, absently following wherever his parents were leading them
It was clear that Sherlock was more confident than all of them about where they were. That all made sense, though, since he'd been to America as it was. John followed after his husband, keeping both of the kids close as they made their way to the luggage carousel. "Stay close, you two," he murmured with a smile, looking down at both of them. "Thomas, no staring," he said with a soft laugh, squeezing the boy's hand.
Amy giggled a bit and moved closer to John, not caring if staring was rude and instantly doing it herself. There were so many people and they seemed to look just like her family but they all sounded so different. It was astounding to her and she couldn't help but grin as she took all of it in. "They has different voices," she declared, looking over at Thomas with wide eyes.
Sherlock got the luggage and put it on the cart with the rest, thankful it had gotten here safely. Intentional flights could be annoying sometimes with luggage in his previous encounters. He continued to smirk as family continued to be fascinated by everything around them. The vacation was certainly off to a good start. "We just need to pick up the car Mycroft procured for us and then we can go to the hotel."
Thomas shut his gaping mouth, finally realizing it had been ajar. He stayed close to his Dad but it was hard not to stare at all the people around them. He smiled at Amy. "It is because people in America have different accents, depending on where they live and they have all kinds of different people live here Sis." He had learned that in school last year.
Of course Mycroft was going to make sure they were taken care of, even in a completely different country. John just nodded, leaning forward to give his husband a quick kiss. "To the hotel and then how about swimming, kids?" The place they had picked out to stay had a small indoor water park that he knew both of the kids were really going to enjoy.
Amy didn't even hesitate to jump up in joy, nodding her head as fast as she could manage. It caused her blonde hair to go everywhere but she clearly didn't care. "Pool! I wants to go to the pool!" She looked between Sherlock and John eagerly.
Sherlock smiled as he watched how excited little Sandi got over the mention of the pool. Since his older brother had made the arrangements on the vehicle they wouldn't have to worry about paying for it. How Mycroft managed to work magic even overseas was mystifying even to him. He took the keys once he found out what kind of car it was and where it was parked.
Thomas was finally getting over the fact that everything was already totally different and they hadn't even left the airport. He tugged on his Dad's arm. "I promised Sissy Poo lots of pictures on the vacation. Can we take some before we leave for the hotel? I want pictures of every place we visit!" He then looked up at his Daddy. "Daddy! Daddy! Can we listen to American music in the car?" He was finally getting excited about this trip.
All it took was finally being in America to get Thomas absolutely enthralled with the vacation. "Of course," John said with a nod, looking up at Sherlock with a warm smile. "Let's take some pictures of them before we leave, yeah?" He moved to his suitcase, pulling the kids with him, before managing to find their camera. "Alright you two," he said softly, turning to squat down at be on their level. "Get together now."
Amy moved right away and wrapped her arms around Thomas' torso, pulling him close and grinning at the camera. After two clicks she moved and snatched the camera from John, sloppily holding it and taking a picture of her Dada, then her Papa, and then Thomas without even waiting for them to smile. "Theres," she declared as the camera was handed back to John. "So does they has cars here?"
God he hated having his picture taken or waiting for them to be taken. They were on vacation though and it was to be expected. Sherlock had mentally prepared himself for it though and nodded with a small smile. The smile got bigger as he watched little Sandi with the camera. "Yes Baby Girl, they have cars here." American music? Sure why not. He was supposed to be a better father, wasn't he? "And of course we can Thomas." He gave the boy a smile.
Thomas smiled for the pictures and laughed as he watched Amy take a few too. Maybe this trip was going to be fun after all, now that he wasn't worrying about being in aeroplane anymore.
John easily put the camera away before grabbing the kids' hands again and smiling down at them as they started moving. Sherlock was a genius but the thought of driving in a completely different country did scare him a bit. It was more of the driving on the other side of the road thing that scared him. All of it was really him being too protective of his family but after several deep breaths he smiled and made his way out to the car and helped Sherlock put the luggage in the trunk.
Amy grabbed Thomas' hand and climbed into the back seat of the car, eagerly tugging him with her as she looked around. "'Mas, looks, the steering wheel is on the wrong side," she whispered in awe, her eyes wide at the new discovery.
The car was exactly what he had wanted. Nothing terribly fancy, but gas efficient considering the amount of driving that would be done. Sherlock was just happy it wasn't one of those ridiculous Prius' or one of those stupid Esclades. Americans made no sense to him whatsoever sometimes. He sighed at his thoughts and climbed into the vehicle. Considering how little he drove back in London, it really shouldn't be too difficult to adjust to how everyone drove here. The thing had a GPS, but he preferred relying on his own mind that some stupid machine. He started up the car and began driving them toward their hotel.
Thomas was once more fascinated with everything around them. There were buildings everywhere and they were so big. They even made Daddy seem tiny in comparison. "Daddy, how come they drive on the wrong side of the road here?" He was staring out the window in amazement. "Sis, look outside," he mused in complete wonder.
John couldn't help but laugh a bit, looking back at their children to see the wonder in their eyes. He could take in the surroundings later because they were brand new to him as well but seeing their kids discover it all was far better. Despite the question being for Sherlock, he went ahead and answered it anyway. "To them it isn't the wrong side of the road, Thomas," he said softly, looking out the windshield and trying to adjust to it himself. "But your Daddy is a very good driver and will do a good job of getting us to our hotel."
Amy looked around at her family before turning to look out the window, pressing her face against the glass as everything passed around them. Everything was bigger than what she remembered in London and it was clearly capturing her attention. "I just wants to go swimming," she muttered as one of her small hands rested on the glass and she looked up at a massive building. "Does people lives here like in London?"
Well, John's answer was a hell of a lot more diplomatic than what he was going to say. He was just going to say it was because Americans did everything backwards from the rest of the world. They drove on the other side of the road and didn't use the metric system. Sherlock was sure there was more, but he didn't want to bother himself with such useless thoughts right now. The kids seemed to be enjoying the vacation so far, even though they hadn't really don't anything yet. He glanced in the rear view mirror to smile at little Sandi. "Yes Baby Girl. A lot of people live here. When we are on vacation, it is important you two stay with us okay? No running off without us, even if you see something really cool." He hated that word. 'Cool.' Bah, but he was trying to relate to his children so he used it more often than he would like. And oh God, the thought of losing one of the children in New York City made him want to fly back to the comfort of London.
Thomas stared out the window for a bit longer, still mesmerized by it all. He finally looked to his parents sitting up front. "Okay Daddy. Oh! Daddy! Daddy! Can we listen to American now?" It was obvious he was having a hard time containing his excitement about the trip and everything it would entail.
American music. John chuckled and leaned forward and turned the radio on, finding a station with newer music and turning it up a bit. "There you go, mate," he said as he reached a hand out to rest gently on Sherlock's thigh. Right away his thumb started massage the area beneath it through Sherlock's trousers, a smile on his face as the continued to drive. Covering all the bases before they officially started their vacation with walking around the massive city was definitely good and John couldn't agree more. He had a feeling they were going to have to tell that to the both of them all over again since they were so wrapped up in everything going on outside the car. "I had no idea you could drive in America," he whispered as he squeezed his husband's thigh.
Amy giggled as the music came on, wiggling in her seat to it as her blonde hair went in every direction with the movements. "This is a good song," she declared as she looked over at Thomas. "'Mas, dance! People in 'Meracas dance lots!" She grabbed one of his hands and continued to move in the back seat.
Right. Of course. Music. Sherlock preferred silence when driving but he was a family man, so he just ignored it. Besides John's hand was on thigh and that helped keep him calm. His husband always could. "It isn't that hard. I actually spent enough time California once I got a license while there and even a place to live. The license expired years ago though." He shrugged a bit and refrained from mentioning he had been doing drugs heavily then and had moved to America temporarily to get the hell away from his family after a particularly bad fight with his father and brother.
Dance? Him? Thomas hesitated but he didn't want to disappoint Amy. He shifted around in his seat a bit, trying to move his body in time with the music and feeling utterly ridiculous the entire time.
It felt like sometimes he was learning new things about his husband that he never knew. Spending time in California? That was definitely a story he was going to have to hear, more than likely while they were in that state. "I just figured it was because you were such a genius," he whispered as he leaned to the side and placed a gentle kiss against his cheek. He could tell right away that the music was not exactly what Sherlock wanted to hear so he was trying to keep him as calm as possible. Hopefully they were close to the hotel.
Seeing her older brother dance made Amy the happiest little girl in the world, the smile on her face stretching practically from ear to ear. "You's is a good dancer, 'Mas," she said with a small laugh. As the song stopped she did as well, breathing a bit heavier as she looked back out her window. "I wants to be there. Can we be there?" The idea of swimming was making her far more excited than anything else.
Sherlock managed a slight smirk at what John said. He could tell his husband was curious about how he had come to live in the States for a short period of time. "I'll tell you about when we have a room to ourselves," he muttered. The children were busy listening to the radio and too enraptured with the world around them to probably pay attention to what he was saying anyway. "We will be there soon Baby Girl." Traffic in New York City was awful especially during rush hour. Walking and taking the Subway might be the smart move once they start touring the city.
Thomas blushed and looked away with a bit of shrug. He glanced back out the window to look at all the buildings. It was still amazing to see, no matter how many times he looked at it or how long he stared.
Their night was going to be a bit different than what they'd been used to for so many years. While they would have their own bed, the room would also be occupied by their kids which meant the amount of privacy they'd be having as far from anything they had become adjusted to. That night in the shower was the only private time they'd have together during the day. Spending time with their kids would definitely be a plus, though. "I packed your swimming shorts," he said as he glanced out his own window and took it all in with wide, child-like eyes. "You're going to the little water park with us."
At the mention of the water park from the front of the car Amy jumped up and down in her seat a bit, squeezing her older brother's hand in excitement. "Did you hears that, 'Mas? Water park! We gets to go swimming and Dada and Papa is gonna go with us! I wants to go! Can we goes there now?" She was more than ready to be at the hotel, that much was obvious.
Sherlock arched a brow at John, another smirk etched upon his lips. He hadn't been swimming since their honeymoon. Did he still remember how? Probably. Couldn't be any harder than relearning how to drive on the other side of the road. "I look stupid in those things." With any luck the children will not want pictures taken while at the water park.
Thomas didn't hate swimming but it wasn't exciting to him like it was to Amy. He supposed most normal children his age loved it, but he was freak. Just like his Daddy. Why was being different so hard?
"Actually, you look fantastic in them and it isn't that deep, I looked it up before we left." John's grin only grew and all he could do was leaned to the side and kiss his husband's cheek again. "The kids will love it and I think I know a certain little boy who might rather enjoy swimming with his Daddy." Right now he was more focused on make sure that both of the kids were going to be as happy as possible.
Amy paused and looked at the boy sitting next to her, licking her lips and then looking out her window. "Swimming it going to be fun, 'Mas," she said softly, squeezing his hand and wiggling a bit in her seat before nodding. "And we can takes pictures with Dada and Papa for our scrapbook, yeahs?"
Right. He was supposed to be a better father to Thomas. He could do this. He wasn't anything like his father. Sherlock nodded and finally pulled their car into the hotel lot. "I'll be right back. I need to check in and get our keys." He got out of the car and walked inside the posh hotel. It had a water park inside it for God's sake, of course it was going to be nice. It didn't take long to get everything in order and he walked back to their vehicle. "All right. Let's get everything inside our room and unpacked and then we can go to the water park."
Thomas looked up at the hotel. It was just as big as the other buildings all around them. He got out of the car when Daddy came back and helped Amy out her seat. "What floor are we on? Is it one of those fancy rooms? Sweets...no...a suite...?"