Jude and Connor arrived home at the same time. Connor paused to let his husband in the driveway first and then parked his car behind Jude's. Jude waited for Connor at the end of his car and kissed him as soon as he was close enough.

"How was the law class today?" Connor asked anxiously.

It had been an awkward morning for Jude. Connor wouldn't call it a bad morning, exactly, but it had teetered that way. It had been hard to get the household up and going in those early hours, and Connor had fretted as Jude had driven off to classes. Connor had almost offered to drive him today and hang out on campus while Jude was on campus. He didn't though. He knew that it would be too smothering – as much as he wanted to wrap Jude in bubble wrap, Jude was a capable adult and Connor knew that he had to let him be so, even on bad days. And, Connor had his own mission to accomplish today, though he hadn't taken his mind off his husband's mood the entire time they were apart. His worrying was all for not; Jude wasn't all smiles now, though he didn't seem upset. He seemed to be at the calm baseline that he tried to maintain rather than completely falling apart.

"I don't think I'm feeling much of anything," Jude said. "But … We're going to have to be excited by two-thirty."

Connor shook his head. "He's going to be over the top."

He unlocked the front door and Jude walked inside. They kicked their shoes off in the grey tray.

"How'd the sublet meeting go?" Jude asked.

"It's gone," Connor said. "I no longer have an apartment and I'm now completely stuck with you."

"Oh, no," Jude drawled. There was a hint of a smile on his face as he glanced at Connor.

"Hungry?"

"Yeah, a little."

Connor herded him into the kitchen. "Is that Jude for 'I know I'm supposed to eat but I really don't feel like eating'?"

"Yeah." Jude put his bag on the counter and then sat next to it. "Can't I live off coffee?"

"I know you didn't eat breakfast," Connor said, pulling out leftovers from the night before. "Please eat a little something."

"Okay, sweetheart," Jude agreed. "But, not too much?"

"No," Connor agreed. "Not too much."

He portioned out their meals and heated them up in the microwave. He'd only given Jude a little, but Jude was still just picking at it.

"Did something happen today? You seem a little more down then when you left."

"No," Jude said. "Nothing like that."

"Something about us or Mikey?" Connor asked. It hadn't even been three weeks since New Year's Eve. As far as he knew, nothing had happened. Then, it clicked. "Are you scared things are getting a little too routine again?"

"I mean, today didn't feel like a good day anyway," Jude said. "But I was sitting in class and I was surrounded by all these young kids who had four different plans for tonight and it's a Tuesday. And … I don't know. It doesn't make any sense, because I don't like change. I find comfort in the routine. But I was just thinking that I could almost anticipate everything we would do tonight, right down to the conversation topics. I'd come home and we would talk about class and work and Mikey would come home and we'd lecture him about the puppy and then we would go to Moms' and we'd talk about how we were doing and Callie would probably fight about us being back together and I'd get upset and you would get upset and Mikey would get upset and then we'd come home and tell Mikey that everything was fine and then I'd probably cry while we watched a documentary and you held me." Jude sucked in a deep breath.

Connor shook his head and reached out to take Jude's hand. "Oh, Jude. You're going to make me do it, aren't you?"

"Do what?"

"We have date plans on Thursday," Connor revealed. "And I was also going to mention to you that Amber mentioned a couple's cooking class to me that she thought you and I might want to join with her and Cassandra. It's every Wednesday starting the first week of February and ending the last week of March."

Jude looked down at the table. "Oh." He sounded a little embarrassed.

"I've learnt, Jude," Connor promised. "I know how to listen now."

"A cooking class would be fun," Jude said, looking up. "Especially with Amber and Cassandra."

"Then remember tonight to ask your Moms what they're doing for the next few Wednesdays coming up."

"I will." Jude's foot nudged against Connor's. "I'm sorry."

"For what? If you're worried about something, I want you to tell me. I was just trying to surprise you a little on Thursday, but maybe that's not the best idea."

"What if you told me that we were going? I don't mind not knowing what we do, I just like to know something's coming. Plus, what if I ever planned a date for the same night?"

"That's a good point." Connor played his foot up the inside of Jude's calf. "Okay, well, don't plan anything for Thursday. We have a date. Brandon's already agreed to take Mikey and Rojo."

"Poor Brandon," Jude sighed.

"We don't know the puppy is going to be that bad."

"We'll know by Thursday," Jude said. "I mean, it'll be fun. I'm looking forward to having him. But those first few days aren't going to be great, I know that. He's going to be a lot of work. Especially for you."

"It'll be busy as we all get used to each other, but, other than that, I think we'll do okay. And it's not like you're gone for that long every day. You can pull night shift to make up for it."

"Well, we'll know soon."

Jude stood up from the table and gathered up his half-finished meal. Connor was finished now, so they put their things in the dishwasher. They tidied up a little around the house, but they didn't have time to do much before Mikey came screaming into the house, smacking the door off the wall so drastically that Connor would have sworn the whole house shook.

"IT'S TIME TO GO GET ROJO! DAD! FATHER! IT'S TIME! LET'S GO! IT'S TIME!"

Mikey came streaking into Jude's and Connor's bedroom with his shoes still on; something that was uncharacteristic of him, since Jude had trained both he and Connor that shoes went in the tray. He pulled at Connor's shirt, his cheeks nearly as red as his hair.

"Where's Father!? It's time to go get Rojo! Come on, come on! Where is he?"

Jude walked out of the bathroom. "I'm right here. Are you ready?"

"Uh-huh!"

"Then, down to the car! We're taking Dad's."

"Okay!"

Mikey seized Jude's hand and yanked him down the stairs. Connor was left behind to gather up his car keys and lock the front door. Mikey was bouncing up and down in the backseat and plucking at his seatbelt.

"Is it going to be a long drive?"

"You know how long of a drive it is," Connor said, backing out of the driveway.

"Is it going to feel long? Sometimes things feel long but they're not really long and then sometimes things feel short when they're not really short."

"I can't tell you how it's going to feel. Hopefully it passes by quickly."

Mikey was too antsy for it to pass by quickly. He jumped around as much as his seatbelt would allow him to. About every forty seconds, it seemed, he asked how long it would be until they were at Melissa's. Connor was about as excited as Mikey when he was finally able to answer, "We're right around the corner."

They parked in the driveway and Mikey made it more than clear that Jude and Connor were old and they moved far too slowly. He danced between them as they knocked on the front door.

"Hi, Mikey!" Melissa said. "Are you here to pick someone up?"

"Yes!"

"Well, go ahead and see him. You know where he is."

Mikey tore to the back of the house. Connor and Jude paused to pay Melissa the rest of the money for Rojo.

"Anything we should know?" Jude asked.

"I always give people this," Melissa said, turning around and grabbing a sheet of bright green paper. "It doesn't have all of the info that you will need but all of the websites at the bottom of the page give all the advice that I would, so I'd recommend checking there before you checked anywhere else. If you run into big problems, then call me, for sure. I'm happy to answer anything."

"Thank you, so much," Connor said.

"Thank you. I hope Mikey and Rojo get along."

They walked to the back of the house, where Rojo was standing up in Mikey's lap, licking his face enthusiastically. Mikey was playing with Rojo's ears and running his hands down to the top of his tail. He cuddled the puppy, knocking the small animal off balance. Rojo yipped excitedly as he fell between Mikey's crossed legs. He launched himself back onto Mikey's knee, sniffing at his forearm.

"Getting along won't be the problem," Jude said. "Separating the two of them will be."

"How are we convincing Mikey to go to school tomorrow?" Connor whispered.

"Brute force," Jude replied.

Connor wasn't sure if he was joking or not.

"Are you ready to come home?" Mikey asked. "You're going to love it! We have a big back yard and a fence so you can't get out and we're going to have lots and lots of fun."

"Can you pick him up, Mikey? Or do you want Father or I to carry him out to the car?"

Mikey stood carefully. Rojo sat down on Mikey's shoe. Mikey scooped the fluffy puppy into his arms.

"Hold him tight so he doesn't run away when we get outside."

"I've got him, Father!"

Jude kept a careful eye on Mikey and Rojo as they walked out to the car. Mikey handed Rojo over to Jude while he buckled himself in and then he reached out for his dog again. Jude placed Rojo in Mikey's lap, warning Mikey to hold him so that he didn't hurt himself in the moving car. The drive home was filled with Mikey's excited conversations to Rojo and the puppy did his best to answer back, letting out little barks every now and then. They stopped twice and convinced Rojo to pee, and then they were back on the road. When they arrived home, Rojo peed one more time on the lawn, and Mikey took him inside.

Connor carefully set a timer to remind Jude and himself to take the dog out. The last thing that either of them wanted was puppy pee all over the house. While Rojo was curious about the house and all that was in it, Mikey immediately directed him to the living room. Jude and Connor sat down next to the coffee table. On it, was the blue puppy collar that Mikey had been staring at since Christmas. He wanted to put the collar on himself, but Jude had to refuse.

"He's not going to like the collar, remember? And we need to make sure that it's not too tight or too loose. And you need to watch him to make sure that he doesn't get stuck on anything."

"I'll watch him carefully!" Mikey swore.

Mikey held the wriggling puppy still and Jude slipped the collar over the puppy's tiny head. Rojo immediately set about shaking his head and pushing his small paws against the collar. He yipped at Jude; he knew exactly who had done this to him.

Mikey, though, wasn't about to let Rojo get hung up on the collar.

"Come on, Rojo! I'll show you the rest of the house!"

"Careful on the stairs!" Connor yelled. "He's too little and make sure you hold onto him tightly!"

"I've got him, Dad!"

Jude rested his head against Connor's shoulder. "He'll be as careful holding that puppy as we were with him as a newborn."

"I hope that dog is tough," Connor said. "Mikey's not going to leave him alone for even half a second."

Mikey's loud laugh came from upstairs and they heard the yipping sounds of the puppy.

"HE LIKES MY ROOM!" Mikey called. "He wants to stay with me!"

"He will soon!" Jude called back.

Connor wrapped his arms around Jude. "This is perfect."

"Yeah," Jude murmured. He turned so that he could put his arms around Connor's waist. "This is perfect. I love you, you know?"

"I know," Connor replied. "I love you too."

Eventually, Mikey, Connor, Jude, and Rojo all ended up in the basement. Connor and Jude took turns taking Rojo out to pee, Mikey accompanying them every time. Rojo liked to take his time sniffing around the fenced yard and, once, he pounced on Mikey's soccer ball, and Mikey promised that he would teach Rojo how to play. Connor wondered how that would go and he was also hoping to have a camera around when Mikey did try.

It came time to pack up Mikey and Rojo and take them over to Stef's and Lena's. The Adams-Foster-Stevens were the first to arrive and Mikey proudly carried Rojo into the house and deposited him in Lena's lap.

"Oh, Mikey, he's so cute!"

"I know!" Mikey beamed. "I love him."

"And he loves you too," Stef said.

Rojo stood up on Lena's lap but after sniffing her for a moment out of polite curiousity, went back to pawing at Mikey.

"Make sure you take him out to pee," Stef said.

"Connor has a timer set," Jude assured her.

"And make sure you keep an eye on him," Lena warned. "We don't want him getting stuck in the house somewhere."

"I doubt you could get Mikey to take his eyes off Rojo."

"He's in love," Jude said after Connor had spoken.

Connor's phone timer went off.

"My turn," Jude said. "Come on, Rojo."

Mikey called to the puppy and he happily followed along. He tried to pause and sniff at everything, but Jude made sure he was hurried along.

"So," Lena said, leaning toward Connor.

"So," he said. He hadn't really seen any of Jude's family since they had reunited. It was his first family dinner. Mikey had more or less let it slip to everyone, but Connor still didn't expect things to go well.

"Are you still in love, Connor?"

"With Jude? Always."

"We're so happy for you," Stef said.

The front door opened and the three of them turned as Callie and Alex walked in with Jude and Mikey. Alex was happily chatting to Mikey, saying that he'd picked the best puppy name after all. Callie was close to Jude's side and her eyes fell on Connor, sitting on Stef's and Lena's couch like he belonged there – like he had never left.

"Hey, Callie," Connor said. He knew that he couldn't ignore her, but he didn't know how to talk to his sister-in-law anymore.

"Hi, Connor," Callie said stiffly. She turned to her brother, "Can I talk to you in the kitchen?"

"Sure," Jude agreed. She whisked by him, and Jude used a nod to gesture Connor along with him.

"Sure?" Connor mouthed.

Jude nodded and gestured again.

Connor stood up from the couch and followed Jude into the kitchen. Callie crossed her arms over her chest.

"I thought I was going to talk to you alone," she said quietly.

Mindful of their family being so close, Jude and Connor stepped closer to her.

"I know this is about him and our relationship," Jude said. "You might as well say it to the both of us, Callie. He's not going anywhere."

"I don't understand what's going on, Jude."

"And I keep telling you that I'm old enough to make my own decisions. I love Connor. I'm going to stay married to him. Our family is going to be together."

Callie's dark eyes flickered to Connor. "So that's it, then? You're doing this for Mikey."

Connor shook his head vehemently. "If being divorced was the right thing for Mikey, then we would get divorced. Us being happy is the best thing for him. Us being together is the best thing for all of us."

"You've been living together again since, what, October? I don't get it!"

"Callie," Connor said warningly.

"Don't! He's my brother!" she snapped. "Moms clearly know. Why is it such a big secret? Did you have an affair? Did you –"

"I tried to kill myself."

Jude's bomb dropped calmly into the middle of Callie's tirade and she stopped, struck dumb by his words. She took a step back from him.

"W … Wh … What?"

"In September. Connor saved me. He moved back in to help me. And we grew together again." Jude closed his eyes and steadied himself. He reached for Connor's hand and, after a reassuring squeeze, looked at his sister again. "What more do you need to know?"

Connor expected Callie to start rattling off questions. Instead, she leant back against the counter.

"Um, nothing right now, I guess. I … I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"I didn't want to tell," Jude said. "It's not an easy thing for me to say and I just want to be able to move beyond it. But, there you go, Callie. There's really nothing else for you to know, okay?"

She nodded, and then Jude reached forward and embraced her. She clung to him for a moment.

"Are you okay now?"

"Yes. I'm happy now," Jude clarified. "I promise."

"I'm here for you, Jude. Always. Whatever you need. It's okay to call me."

"Thanks, Callie," he whispered. "I'm okay now. I'm getting better."

Callie hugged him tighter.

"Father?" Mikey called.

"Coming," Jude called back.

He let go of Callie and left the kitchen. Connor went to follow, but Callie's voice turned him around again.

"I owe you a better apology than that."

Connor tucked his hands into his pockets and waited, because that, in itself, was not an apology.

"I'm sorry. I thought I understood more than I really did. I'm sorry for unfairly judging you. You and Jude went through a hard time that I don't fully understand but I can't penalize you for that. You were – are – there for him when no one else can be. He loves you and you love him. So, thank you for that."

"Thank you for the apology, Callie. You are my sister too. I never intended to hurt him and I'm going to keep atoning for hurting him in the past. We're happy now. And he really is getting better, I promise you that too."

Callie nodded, and before either of them could say something else, Connor heard his name being called. He stuck his head out of the kitchen, only to be hugged by Mariana.

"Connor!"

"Hey!"

"Oh, I know Jude's been wearing his ring again but it's so nice to finally see you here! I know you were here at Christmas but I mean here, as his husband. I'm so happy you worked it out."

"Me too," Connor agreed. "Me too."

Mariana beamed at him, and then she, Callie, and Connor went to the living room, where everyone was crowding in. Connor took his place at Jude's side.

"Everything okay?" Jude asked.

"Better than," Connor assured him.

Jude smiled at him and Connor couldn't help but smile back. And, really, why should he stop? He was with his family again – his husband, his son, their new dog, and his in-laws. Jesus and Kimiko were the next to arrive.

"Brandon's right behind us," Jesus announced. "And you will not believe who's with him."

Connor had an idea and, when he glanced over at Stef and Lena, he was able to catch the knowing look between them. The front door opened again and Marley skipped into the living room, haphazardly throwing her jacket to the floor.

"Daddy!" she yelled. "Mikey's puppy is here!"

Rojo leapt into Mikey's lap at the sound of her shriek and Mikey curled around him protectively.

"His name is Rojo! And don't yell! He's just a baby."

"Sorry," Marley apologized. "Can I pet him?"

"Maybe," Mikey said, petting his dog.

Brandon stepped into the room, a woman trailing along behind him. She had long, wavy black hair and dark eyes and skin.

"Everyone, this is Abby," Brandon said, catching their attention. "This is my girlfriend."

"Hello," she said brightly. "It's so nice to meet you."

Brandon began making individual introductions. As Abby reached forward to shake Lena's hand, Marley turned to her grandmother.

"Isn't Abby pretty?" Marley asked.

"She's very pretty," Stef agreed.

"Thank you," Abby told Marley. "I appreciate that."

Marley leant her head back and stared up at Abby. "Almost as pretty as my mom."

"Marl –" Brandon started.

Abby, though, knelt down next to Marley. "That's an amazing compliment. Can you introduce me to your cousin?"

Marley smiled at her. She pointed. "That's Mikey and that's his puppy, Rojo. Dad's going to get me a puppy, you know."

"I said we could talk about a pet."

Marley ignored Brandon. "And that's Carla with Uncle Greg but she's just a baby and she doesn't do anything."

"You don't like babies?" Abby asked, and Marley shook her head vehemently.

"Good girl," Brandon muttered under his breath.

Stef leant back into the couch, stretching her arm around Lena's shoulders. "It's so nice when the whole family is together."

Connor put his arm around Jude and Jude leant back against him. Mikey crawled up on Jude's laughed and lifted Rojo up onto Connor's lap. The puppy sniffed him and, when satisfied that he knew who Connor was, he stretched forward and bit onto the hem of Mikey's jeans, pulling on it to get Mikey's attention.

"Father, Rojo really wants to sleep in my room. He said so!"

And Connor smiled while Jude smiled. It was more than nice when the whole family was together, and his family was going to be together forever.

The playlist is now closed! If you suggested a song but it didn't appear in chapter, don't worry, it's on the full versions of the playlist, which can be found on Youtube and on my tumblr! If you need some extra tips on how to access it, please message me and I'll help you out! Thank you so much for everyone who added to it and who decided to read this story! Your support means a lot.

This week's songs are: Lay By Me by firekid (reader recommended); Try by The XX; and When The Lights Go Down by Jason Walker.

So, on tumblr I'm: we are all of legend now (with dashes between every word). If you want to find my replies to anon reviews, add backslash tagged backslash anon dash replies. If you want to see anything I post about Hand In My Pocket, to my tumblr URL add backslash tagged backslash hand dash in dash my dash pocket. Punctuation is spelled out due to Fanfiction's restrictions. If you're having any trouble accessing the tumblr content please send me a pm and I can format it for you in a different way.

~TLL~