WhIP

by footfungus

nederlands verhalen over mijn otp

141. Life is Strange 2 Sean and Daniel 50

LiS2 Short Stories

autoclave_oasis

Summary:

A collection of random LiS2 short stories, primarily about Sean and Daniel and their wholesome brotherly bond.

All of these are canon. I don't care how many times these fics divulge into extremely fluffy babyism full of cuddles every 3 seconds it's still canon

Anyway sjdhdhry these short stories don't have a continuous theme to them and might not even necessarily take place in the same universe but yeah they're basically written like a Saturday morning cartoon or something they're super fluffy and mostly slice of life and each one doesn't really have anything to do with the others

They are occasionally more serious or touch on serious topics and when they do I will tell you in the chapter summary so if there's anything that could be triggering I will notify you before reading

But it's mostly just really wholesome. Lots of hugs, lots of kisses, and LOTS of cuddles

Sean and Daniel are the most wholesome precious brothers ever okay I love them they are babies

This is updated with new chapters usually around twice a month but sometimes more whenever I feel like writing

hope you enjoy and please leave a comment if you have something nice to say

New: Sean's birthday fic!

Chapter 1

Chapter Text

Sept 4th, 2016

It's a late Sunday night in the Diaz household, and Sean is watching an old favorite: The Day The Aliens Came, a weird classic horror flick from the 80s that he'd always strangely loved.

He had originally planned to go over to Lyla's and hang, but it was canceled since her mom didn't want any "shenanigans" on the day before school started in session.

So, since he had nothing else to do, he decided he might as well re-watch some old stuff.

Right as the "don't copy this movie or BAD THINGS will happen, VERY BAD THINGS will happen to YOU" warnings flashed on to the screen, Sean heard a door open, and considering the sound of the footsteps were quite soft and fast, he realized it must be his little brother.

"Sean!" He hears Daniel exclaim as he runs up to him. "What are you watching?" He asks.

"Dude, I thought your bedtime was 9. It's past 10:30," Sean says, matter of factly.

"Yeah, but…" Daniel says, trying to come up with a good reason. Well, he does come up with a reason.

"I, uh...wanted to get some food," Daniel says unconvincingly.

"In the middle of the night?" Sean questions.

"Um…"

"You know Dad doesn't want you to stay up this late, school starts tomorrow, dude," Sean says.

"Then why does he let you stay up this late?" Daniel asks, trying to conceal a pout.

"I'm older," Sean explains. "It's kinda...different."

"I don't get it," Daniel says. "Your school is a bigger deal, right? So why does it matter less if you sleep enough than me?"

"It's kind of hard to explain. But you should get to bed. You don't want to be known as the tired kid on the first day, trust me, I know, dude," Sean says jokingly.

"Well, I...I remembered how you said that you were gonna watch a movie tonight, and I just- I'm kinda worried about having to go to school again, so I thought, maybe we could watch it together-I mean, I think it would be nice," Daniel says shyly.

"Daniel, this is kind of, like, a scary movie and I don't know-do you remember the last time we watched a scary movie?" Sean reminded him.

"Well, yeah," Daniel says sadly. "But that was a long time ago! I've grown up since then!"

"Dude, that was 3 months ago."

"Please, Sean? I just wanna do something fun before having to go to school again. Please?" Daniel says, looking at him with big doe eyes.

Sean isn't sure. On one hand, it would be pretty fun to watch this with Daniel, he's never seen it before. But also, it might scare him, Sean remembers the first time he ever saw it when he was a kid and having nightmares about being abducted by aliens for weeks.

"Ok, you can watch," Sean says, patting a spot on the sofa, signaling Daniel to sit with him. "But if you get scared, remember you can look away. And if it's really bad, just tell me to turn it off and I will," he mentions as he pulls his blanket over Daniel.

Sean gets up and heads to the kitchen. "I'm gonna get a bowl of ice cream, do you want some?" He asks.

"Yeah," Daniel responds.

Sean comes back with 2 bowls of vanilla ice cream with chocolate syrup on and gives one to Daniel before grabbing the remote and pressing play.

"Thanks, Sean," Daniel says.

"No problem, dude."

# # #

After the brothers are finished watching the movie, Sean walks Daniel to his bedroom.

"Hey, Sean?" Daniel starts as Sean tucks him in bed. "I get it if you don't want to, but Dad always reads me bedtime stories right before bed, and I want to ask, uh…"

"Didn't he read you one earlier? When you were meant to go to bed?" Sean asks neutrally.

"Yeah, but I didn't fall asleep, so...I get it if you don't want to, but it helps me fall asleep, and, uh...sorry."

"No, it's fine, dude. I'll read you something. What do you want me to read?" Sean asks, looking at the shelf of stories kept on the far side of Daniel's room.

"Well, I was kinda thinking," he says. "Could you-make up a story?"

"I'm not a writer, dude," Sean declares. "But I can try. Get comfy."

"So, uh...once upon a time, there was a, a-a knight, who, he, this knight was the knight to a really strong king who had control of all the lands, and uh, this knight was very, very loyal to the king. He would fight, and uh, do, uh, knightly things for the king. But one day, a woman showed up, and she, uh, she was from the outer lands. No one knew where this lady came from. Some people thought she was a witch."

Daniel looks at him with big eyes.

"So the knight, he met the lady one day, and they got along pretty well, and she told him that the rumors were true. She was a witch. And she needed the knight's help."

"With what?" Daniel asks.

"I uh, I was getting to that, okay?" Sean replies.

"So, the witch, uh, she, um, so, she told the knight that she was actually the king's daughter. She was the princess. And she said that-"

"Wait! How did the knight know if she was actually the princess? What if she was lying?" Daniel questioned.

"Uh, she, uh, she looked a lot like the king."

"That's not a good explanation!" Daniel comments.

"Well, do you have a better one?" Sean asks.

"Uh, well, what if," Daniel furrows his brow to come up with something. "Ooh, what if the king had a special tattoo and so did the princess?"

"Uh, sure," Sean supposes. "Not sure how they got tattoos in medieval times, but," he mumbles. "That's not important," he softly laughs.

"So, anyway, uh, now the knight knew that she was the princess. And, uh, the princess told the knight that the reason she was in the outer lands was because her father kicked her out of the kingdom a long time ago. It turns out that the king was actually evil and the reason he had so much power was because he stole kids from their families and made them be knights for him."

"What?!"

"Yeah, so, the king was really bad. But when the princess told the knight about this, he, uh, had a flashback. And he realized the king took him when he was young to be a knight. So now the knight and the princess had teamed up, and they went to face the king. The knight and the princess broke into the castle and the knight, uh, struck the king with his sword, and the princess used her magic on the king, and together, they managed to defeat him. And the princess became the queen of the kingdom, and the knight was the, uh, top, uh, knight, to the queen, and they told the whole kingdom what happened years ago and they all worked hard to make the kingdom good again. It wasn't as powerful as it used to be, but they weren't hurting people for no reason anymore, so it was worth it. Uh, the end."

"Wait! But what happened to the king? Did he die?" Daniel speculates.

"Uh, the, no, the king, he, the old king was defeated and they sent him to jail, but when he served his time, he realized that the new kingdom was much nicer and he realized what he did was bad. He, uh, was just a normal guy then. Not the king. But he was good now. Now that's the end, cause I gotta get to bed, dude," Sean says, ruffling Daniel's hair and getting up to leave.

"Good night," Sean bids farewell.

"Good night. Thanks, Sean. Love you!" Daniel proclaims.

"Love you too, Daniel," Sean replies, starting to close the door to Daniel's room. "Sleep tight, little bro."

Chapter 2: Oh, You Are the Roots That Sleep Beneath My Feet and Hold the Earth in Place

Summary:

Whenever Daniel's hurting, Sean's always been there to comfort him. And Daniel wouldn't hesitate to provide Sean that same comfort when he needs it.

Notes:

Warning: This chapter features descriptions of feelings of panic and anxiousness that may be triggering to some readers.

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Dec 7, 2016

Sean & Daniel have been staying with their grandparents for a few days now, and their worries have diminished significantly, which is obviously a good thing, but unfortunately, the lack of immediate-must-survive-must-figure-out-how-to-not-die worrying has left both their minds to wander and consider things they've been pushing back.

Including the death of their father.

These thoughts have been plaguing Sean for a while now, but they've mostly been zipping in and out of his mind, he'd never been able to truly think about what it meant.

Dad was gone. Like, actually gone. He wasn't going to see him again. Daniel wasn't either. They both have known that, for months. Obviously. But he was never able to really think about it, other than a few instances like in the motel where he and Daniel both broke down and cried about it and shared that moment.

But they really haven't been able to truly grieve until now.

Sean's had to try to hide it. He knows that Daniel's scared too, and these things are hurting him as well, and he's been there for that support, but he hasn't ever, really, revealed his true feelings to Daniel about it.

If I look like I've got it together, like I know what to do, it'll make him feel safer, he's always thought.

But he doesn't have it together. He keeps thinking over what happened, replaying the situation over and over in his head. He envies his little brother sometimes...Daniel doesn't remember any of it.

The way the cop went flying…

The strict, tense body of Officer Matthews as he prepared to kill a man in his own yard…

The way Dad's body fell the second the bullet hit him…

His corpse sitting on the lawn, surrounded by broken shit, the little twisted body of the cop having been thrown across the street…

The hole-

The hole in his father's chest, and the way he grabbed him, clutched on to him, one last desperate hope that Sean's pull could save him…

These are the thoughts that are, literally, keeping him up at night. As his little brother is sleeping so peacefully next to him, he's retracing the worst moment of his life.

Oh, how he wishes he still had that. But that's what he's fighting for. The ability to keep Daniel calm, content, safe, above anything else.

But that just makes him feel more isolated. He can't make Daniel worry by telling him about this. Claire & Stephen wouldn't understand, they would probably make it worse. He has no one.

And he knows he shouldn't think of it that way. Even if it's true. If he clouds his mind with pain like that, how will he be able to stop it when it goes too far?

He won't. Yet despite knowing this, those thoughts keep running through his mind.

Dad is dead. I have no one. What if I could've done something? I could've never tried to beat up Brett, why did I even do that? Why? Because he insulted Daniel? Great job, dumbass, Daniel will probably think it's okay to get in fights over shit like that. And if I didn't, Dad would still be here. If I never kicked Daniel out of my room, Dad would still be here, if I was just a good big brother…

Fuck. Sean can't focus on anything else, his body feels both loose and tense at the same time, he needs to stay still but he needs to move, he needs to, he needs to, he needs to..

God. His heart feels like someone dropped a 50 pound weight on top of it and he can't get it off, but does he deserve to get it off? He can't decide that.

He feels erratic. Like his entire body is out of sync. His breathing is wrong, his heart feels like it's moving too fast yet not moving at all, his whole body is trembling and he can't stop it. He….can't….stop….it.

Is he breathing? He can't tell. He's alive so he must be, but he can't feel it.

What does he need to get under control? He feels numb and he can't find that either, and, and, and…

Oh god, oh fuck, it's getting worse, he can feel it. He just wants to sleep. He can't solve it, if he can fall asleep his body will sort itself out okay, right? But this won't let him sleep. It's a moment where he realizes he is truly, entirely helpless to what his body has decided to do.

The panic sets in. The only thing he knows could help him can't help him, he's stuck here and this can only get worse, it can never get better, and he starts sweating heavily.

How do you stop this? Maybe if he gets up and runs around, it will wear out all the unwanted energy? But at the same time, he feels totally...exhausted. How can his body feel like it needs to overwork itself when it doesn't have the energy to do that?

Fuck. What does he do?! He has no option here. His only true option is sit there and hope it goes away. But he knows it won't go away.

He starts losing control of his breathing. He can't stop himself from breathing faster and faster, what's the outcome here? What is this leading to? It's not going to stop, so it isn't leading anywhere, it won't go away, and it's scary, and...what does he do? Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck…

"Sean?" A whisper comes from the other side of the bed, faint enough that he thinks he's just imagining it, that maybe he's delusional, he's hearing things now…

"Sean!" Nope. He isn't hearing things. Daniel is awake, and...god, he doesn't want to be so freaked out in front of him, he doesn't want to scare him, all the chaos must've woke Daniel up, okay, okay, he only has to calm himself down a little bit, just look normal in front of him, don't freak him out…

He rolls on to his back.

"Sean! Are you...okay?" Daniel asks, and though he's trying to look normal, he can't fake it, he isn't okay, he's trembling in front of his little brother.

"Daniel, I, just, I can't…" He says, trying to say something that makes sense and won't freak Daniel out. Fuck, how can he fix this?

A distressed look starts spreading across Daniel's face, and in the dark Sean can't tell if he's started to cry, but he is worried of it.

Daniel sputters something unintelligible that sounds like something between a cry and a whine, then he, seemingly instinctively, puts his small hand on his brother's chest and feels his heartbeat.

"Sean, please...it's okay," Daniel softly speaks, yet the tone of his voice makes it obvious that he's incredibly worried for his brother and has no idea if what he's doing will actually help.

"Please calm down, Sean...look," Daniel whispers, inching closer to Sean. "Don't look over there, look at me."

Sean looks over at Daniel, who is still trying to temper the distress in his eyes.

"Sean...breathe...just breathe...you're okay, you're safe, we're safe. Remember? We're with Grandma and Grandpa."

"I, I…" Sean wants to say something but he can't focus enough to realize what and his mouth feels dry and numb.

"Breathe...you can do it. Does it hurt?" Daniel consolidates.

"I...it...I don't think it hurts."

"Are you...scared?"

As much as Sean doesn't want to say it to Daniel, at this point, it makes no difference. It's obvious he's scared.

"Y-yes."

"You're safe. What are you scared about?"

"Daniel...I...do you think," he pauses to make sure he can handle talking about this. "Do you think that Dad wouldn't have died if I didn't...you know?"

Daniel immediately pulls himself closer to Sean and completely hugs him, making sure he can still feel Sean's heartbeat.

"Sean...that…" Daniel starts crying. "No. You didn't-that wasn't your fault! Sean, please, I, you, don't even think about that. It wasn't your fault."

"I…"

"It wasn't. Please calm down, okay? You're safe, and, and, I'm here, and I love you, Sean. Just, um, take deep breaths and remember I'm here. Please…" Daniel practically whimpers, and his face looks like a dog whose face has just been kicked in.

"I'm right here."

Daniel's right there. He's going to be okay, he just has to remember how close his brother is. Daniel has his arms wrapped around him as much as his tiny arms can wrap around him, he's right there, he cares and he can help.

They're brothers. They'll never give up on each other.

It's not a one way street. He wants to support Daniel and never worry him, but Daniel only wants to help him too. They have each other and have to be there for each other. Always. It's hard to him to comprehend, but for each and every way he loves Daniel and would support him, Daniel feels equally strong in each way for him.

He's not alone. Daniel cares and he can help. He wants to.

Now he just needs to breathe. Focus on his breathing, his heartbeat, just...slow himself down. Get in a rhythm.

Daniel is right there. He's taking care of you.

Of course it still hurts. But you're not alone. Daniel actually cares. A lot.

Sean looks at his brother and tries to filter everything else out. Just focusing on that feeling of safety, of comfort, that Daniel gives him and how much they both care for each other.

A lot of shit sucks for him, but how much does that really matter when he knows that Daniel loves him?

He still has the most important person to him. And not only that, but Daniel is safe, he's okay, and he'd do anything to make Sean feel safe and okay too.

That calming comfort overtakes all feelings of worry.

Notes:

I wrote this one because there's a lot of stories I love with the trope where Daniel is scared or worried or hurting emotionally and Sean comforts him, but there's not so much of the reverse so I wanted to just write a little [mostly] wholesome thing about that.

Title of this chapter is from the Bright Eyes song of the same name.

I've got lots of ideas for more stories and there will probably be a Christmas related one sometime soon.

Chapter 3: Just Don't Let Yourself Forget When The Times Get Good

Summary:

Despite how difficult their life has become, no one will stop them from making Christmas feel special.

Chapter Text

Dec 25th, 2016

It's Christmas Day, and on a day that's supposed to be so happy and special to so many, it's exactly the opposite to Sean & Daniel.

They've been living in the cold for weeks now, after the altercation with the police at their grandparents left them without a home again.

They're tired, sore, sad, and hungry, and left with nothing but each other. At this point it's easy to forget what they're fighting for. But they have to keep going out of sheer hope and their desire for a better tomorrow.

Despite the work they've found on a nearby farm, they still don't have a consistent place to sleep. No matter how much they've begged the owner. Even today, he still told them they had to find a place to sleep off his property.

So here they are, are heading through the closest town's main block, one they've seen all too many times now, but this time does feel different, in a way. It's Christmas, so Sean's been hoping that maybe, just maybe, there might be some more generous people around tonight.

It's the 'around' that's the hard part. Who's outside past 8 at night on Christmas Day?

And as the brothers walk through the town square, it looks like there isn't much of a chance of that. Sean continues to keep his eyes out for other opportunities. Food, supplies, shelter-not that they're missing that, they have a tent, but it'd be nice to find a better place to sleep than a tent out in the cold air.

As they continue moving, Sean does notice something. It's maybe a bit risky, but the reward would probably far outweigh the risk.

There's a Cabela's over on the far side of the city block. Yeah, it's a hundred percent closed, Sean's pretty sure they usually close at around six thirty, and it's also Christmas, but if they could find a way inside...not only would it provide shelter and tons of supplies, but Sean has vivid memories of Esteban taking him to see the Christmas displays there as a kid. It would be amazing for keeping Daniel's spirits up.

"Hey, dude," Sean says, bringing attention to the old marketplace. "I think, maybe, we could sleep there tonight. Plus they've probably got food there too."

"C-Cabela's? But they're closed, aren't they?" Daniel says, shivering in the frigid, bitter air.

"Dude, everywhere's closed," Sean says casually. "But if there's one place I'd want to stay the night, it's there."

"You really think? It'd be nice to actually sleep inside."

"Exactly! So, come on, let's do it," Sean says, trying to keep his little brother content as they head up to the entrance of the store.

"So...are we gonna break in? I don't know…" Daniel says, always one to be hesitant of doing anything illegal.

"Well, I think, if we can find a way to get in, without being so obvious, then it'll work."

"But what if an alarm goes off? Or...something…" Daniel mutters."

"Then I guess we'll run. But look, I get it, but, it's Christmas, dude, and our Christmas so far, it hasn't really been a Christmas. We deserve it. You deserve it," Sean reassures, and this makes the slightest start of a smile pop up on Daniel's face, probably the closest Sean's seen to a smile from him in a few days.

"So how do we get in? Maybe I could use my power?" Daniel asks.

Sean's slightly surprised at the suggestion. "I thought you didn't like your power anymore." To Sean's understanding, Daniel hasn't used his power even once since Beaver Creek.

"No, I do. Kinda…" Daniel looks at his feet for a moment. "I just thought, you know, it'd be the easiest way."

"Yeah, but let's see if there's another way first, right?"

# # #

Unfortunately, a big chain store isn't something very easy to break into. There's no windows, no way up to the roof, the only entrances are the front, side, and rear doors. The brothers decide the rear employee door would be the easiest to open and attract the least attention.

"Okay, you sure you wanna do this? I don't want to force you to use your powers if you don't want to," Sean says, carefully.

"Yeah, I'm okay. It's Christmas. We deserve something. Even if it's just a warm place to sleep," Daniel says softly, in such a way that makes Sean's heart shatter.

"I'm sorry, dude," Sean says, kneeling down to hug his brother. "It's gonna be okay. Promise."

Daniel keeps himself wrapped in the hug for a while, before pulling away. "Okay. Let's go inside," he says. "I'm really cold."

"Alright, whenever you're ready," Sean signals to Daniel.

Daniel outstretches his arm at the door. A few specks of snow start floating several inches above the ground. The door shakes, then bursts open.

"Okay, stay here while I check this out," Sean says.

"O-okay...be quick," Daniel says, shivering.

Sean walks in slowly, keeping his head low, careful not to make any noise. He doesn't hear an alarm. And it seems like all of the employees have definitely gone home. Though, the lights are off, so it's hard to judge.

Sean walks back to the door and gestures for Daniel to enter the building, before shutting the door, and grabbing him by the shoulder to tell him what's going on.

"Okay, dude, so, I don't think anyone's around, I didn't see any signs that we alerted someone, but we still have to be careful," he warns. "And be ready to run if something happens. And stay right next to me, okay?"

"Okay, I-I'll be careful," Daniel whispers.

The place the brothers have entered through appears to be some kind of storage area for employees. They just have to find the exit that goes to the main store. It likely has all kinds of wilderness supplies, probably some food, on top of the Christmas displays. Daniel's gonna love it.

"Okay, dude, so right now, it's gonna be hard to look for shit in the dark, but I thought," Sean pauses. "Uh, you know how...when you're scared, the lights flicker? I thought that maybe you could use your power to turn them on," Sean theorizes.

"I can try, but I don't know, Sean. I've never tried to do something like that before," Daniel says hesitantly.

"I believe in you. You can do it...trust me," Sean reassures.

"Okay. Thanks Sean," Daniel says, and he starts to focus. He clenches his fists, closes his eyes, and for a moment it seems like nothing happened. Sean's just about to say something when suddenly, the lights all flip on, blinding Sean for a second.

Daniel opens his eyes.

"I did it! I did it!"

"Hell yeah bro, you did," Sean says, excited, and gives Daniel a high five.

"So what are we looking for?" Daniel asks, quizzically.

"Well first we have to hit the main store, we're still in the employee section. Come on, this way," Sean says, he and Daniel walking over to the door both briskly and cautiously.

Sean opens the door for Daniel, then moves through himself.

"Woah," Sean hears Daniel's excitement immediately. "There's so many trees!"

"Yeah, it's pretty cool, huh?"

"Wait, look! Sean!" Daniel yells loudly and starts running over to what's caught his attention, ignoring basically everything that Sean told him earlier, but it doesn't seem like anyone's around now, and Sean can't bother to be mad when Daniel's yipping and yelling with such excitement, and an actual smile spread across his face.

"Coming, coming! Dude, don't run off!" Sean yells back in a way that's somehow both serious and playful.

"So what's up?" He asks his little brother.

"Look how cool this is!" Daniel says, referring to the big Santa display with the giant chair and elf cutouts.

"Yeah, it's pretty rad," Sean replies. "Dad used to take me to one of these when I was really young."

"Why did he never take me?" Daniel wonders.

"I don't know, dude."

"Well, anyway, it's cool! It'd be nice to have gone here...on a normal Christmas," Daniel says, meloncholically.

Sensing his little brother's mood starting to falter, Sean immediately goes into action.

"Hey dude, look at this!" He says, pointing at the big Santa chair. "I bet this is where they'd have all the kids come in and tell Santa what they want for Christmas."

Despite Sean's fun tone, it doesn't seem to do much for Daniel. Maybe it's just serving as another reminder of their situation. Daniel just wants to be a kid again. Realizing this, Sean knows exactly what he needs to do.

Grabbing a Santa hat from the floor, Sean tries his best Santa impression.

"Ho ho ho!" He bellows. "Uh...hello there, child, it's me, uh, Santa Sean!" He says awkwardly, but thankfully managing to knock Daniel out of his gloomy spell.

"Come! Come! Santa Sean, uh, welcomes all children," Sean says, sitting down in the big chair. "Come, child!"

Daniel walks over to Sean, kind of embarrassed by the cringiness of Sean's Santa impression yet still entertained.

'Santa' Sean pats his thigh and once again bellows "Come, child!"

Daniel laughs. "Okay, okay, Santa Sean," he says sarcastically, climbing onto Sean's lap, much heavier than Sean thought he would be.

"Hello, Da-I mean, child I don't know. What's your name?"

"Daniel," he says happily.

"Hello, uh, Daniel. And what would you like for Christmas?"

Daniel just sits for a while, without saying anything, before finally replying, "I want the new Hawt Dawg Man game for my PlayBox! And at least one box of Choc-O-Crisps, maybe more. And I want that new Star Wars Lego set with the Millennium Falcon! And…" He pauses, clearly back down to reality.

"And I want," Daniel says softly. "I just want to know that we'll be okay. And...that I won't miss everything so much...and it won't hurt as much," he says, and this time there's nothing Sean can do to stop him from crying. He just wraps his arms around Daniel and holds him close as Daniel cries into him.

"I just want a normal life again."

"I know," and Sean cries right back.

# # #

After the brothers share their moment, Sean sets the tent up, half hidden within the Christmas trees, and leaves Daniel inside while he goes looking for food and supplies.

There's really not much to be found. But Sean manages to collect a few small bits, some supplies and snacks, and even a few Choc-O-Crisps for Daniel.

"Alright, I'm back," Sean greets. "I got some stuff."

"Ooh, what did you find? I'm really hungry," Daniel groans.

"Well, like I said, it's not much," Sean crawls in the tent and lies down next to Daniel. "But first, I wanna show you something else."

"What?"

"Can you turn the lights off with your power?"

"O-okay," Daniel says shyly. "One sec."

Daniel closed his eyes and focuses. After a moment, all of the lights switch off and the brothers are left in absolute darkness.

"Why did you want me to do that?" Daniel questions.

"Well, you know all those Christmas trees? Most of them are all wrapped in lights. I was thinking maybe you could use your power to turn them on too," Sean suggests.

"Maybe...I can try," Daniel says, and he starts to focus once more. Sean sets his hand on Daniel's shoulder, a subtle reminder of his support.

Once again, it works. Sean & Daniel can see outlines of colored lights coming from outside their tent.

"Alright, you wanna see the lights, Daniel?"

His face lights up.

Sean & Daniel exit their tent, and are immediately greeted by a shining collage of colors from every direction. The rows of trees lined up like beautiful royal guards, their vibrant reds and blues and pinks and greens shielding them from the truth of how desperate their situation is, at least for the moment.

"Woah," Daniel exclaims. "It's so pretty."

Daniel starts running up and down the aisles, looking at every tree and taking it all in, while Sean walks closely behind him.

"This is so cool!" Daniel yells, continuing to excitedly woosh up and down, zipping and zagging between the trees and the aisles.

"Hey, don't run so fast!" Sean chuckles while trying to chase after his little brother. "You're gonna get lost, bro!"

"Nah, I know my way around! And I bet you can't catch me!" Daniel giggles.

"More like you're gonna knock over the trees going so fast," Sean laughs. "But fine…you wanna play this game? I'm coming for you, dude."

Daniel's already moved out of view, running through the aisles to get as far out of Sean's reach as possible.

"I'm gonna find you, bro."

Daniel's occasional giggling is his biggest weakness, and it allows Sean to sneak right up on him. He's tried to hide under one of the bigger trees in the display, but Sean's seen him. Daniel hasn't seen him though…

"RAWW!" Sean screams, startling Daniel and making him get up and run again, shaking the tree as he does.

"The bigger wolf always eats the little one!" Sean yells, and Daniel laughs.

"Hahaha, I don't know about that."

"I'm gonna get you, bro!" Sean yells while speeding after him, still being wary not to run into any of the trees.

Daniel rounds a corner and Sean moves swiftly to follow him. As he does, Daniel uses his power to carefully topple a tree down into his path.

"C'mon dude, that's cheating!" Sean says playfully, jumping over it.

"Nuh uh," he says, running and giggling, as Sean tries to catch up.

As Daniel goes into a side alley, Sean runs to where he knows it exits and hides up against one of the trees.

When Daniel rounds the corner, Sean jumps out and grabs him.

"AAH!" Daniel yells.

"Hahaha, got you dude."

"Yeah, yeah, okay. I was getting tired anyway. Are we gonna sleep here tonight?" Daniel asks.

"Yeah, we should be fine," Sean confirms. "I remember seeing a sign that they won't be open for like, 2 days. So there shouldn't be anyone around."

Sean & Daniel head back to their tent left in a previous aisle, and crawl inside.

"Um…" Daniel begins. "Did you pick up any food?"

"Oh, yeah! Sorry, I forgot," Sean grabs his bag from the corner and pulls out a few small snacks. Among the debris is some beef jerky, a box of crackers, some Oreos, a few apples and other assorted fruit, and a few Choc-O-Crisps, along with some other knickknacks.

"You got Choc-O-Crisps?! Cool!"

"Well, I knew I had to check the candy shelves to see if they had any. You deserve it, little wolf," Sean says, ruffling Daniel's hair. "And I know it's not much. Most of the shit in here's been taken already...Christmas rush I guess."

"It's fine, I mean, it's cool, I'm just happy we have something real to eat for once," Daniel smiles.

"Yeah, cause Choc-O-Crisps are real food, huh?"

"No, I mean, you know. And they are!"

"Whatever, bro," Sean laughs.

At least for tonight they'll be satisfied. They haven't been able to really say that in a while. They've had money from working on the farm, but it's hard to budget a paycheck for weeks while still trying to save for the road.

Sean's tried to cut every cost, looking for free food whenever possible. And this was a nice opportunity.

"Hey, Sean?" Daniel asks when they're finished eating.

"What is it, buddy?"

"You know how I said all that stuff before, like with the Santa thing?" He begins. "I wanted to know that we'd be okay. I know...you don't know, but I trust you and I thought…"

"Daniel," Sean says painfully. "I know it's been hard," he scoots close to his little brother. "For months, and I know it hurts, I know it does. And I can't say what's gonna happen," he says like a knife being pulled out of a wound;

"But just know that I love you, okay?" He wraps his arms around Daniel, who's started to look so fragile. He's looked like that all too much lately. "We're brothers, alright? I will never give up on you. I promise. And I mean it. There's literally nothing in the entire world that would ever stop me loving you. So whenever you feel alone, or scared, I'm here," he reassures him as he holds him close. "I'll always be here. I love you, Daniel. Forever."

"Sean…" Daniel says, somehow hurting and healing at the same time. "I...I love you too, Sean. I won't ever give up on you either."

"Thanks, dude. You know you're a great brother, right? I'd never trade you."

"You're the best brother in the whole world, I'd never trade you either."

Sean can't help but let a few tears drip out of his eyes, joining his brother in their fragility.

"Love you, bro. Always," Sean says.

"I love you too. Always," Daniel responds, then after a long pause, "Thanks, Sean."

"Sleep tight, little bro," Sean whispers, and they fall asleep still holding each other like the world's about to dissolve around them.

Chapter 4: Diaz Brothers! Always.

Summary:

Extreme fluff. Fluff for the sole purpose of being wholesome Diaz boys fluff. Sean comforts Daniel.

Chapter Text

February 8th, 2017

It's a breezy, calm night in Humboldt. A night where it's seemed that everyone was tired and decided to go to bed early.

Sean & Daniel are actually one of the last few to go, which is not usual for them. Daniel usually wants to go to bed earlier and most of the time Sean comes with.

It's been tough on them the past few months. They haven't been very healthy physically or mentally, and their relationship has definitely suffered. Sean's noticed that Daniel doesn't ask for his help as much. Maybe he's just more independent, but…

He's clung to Finn a lot lately. Sean hasn't been around as much as usual due to work and trying to fit in, and Daniel's become a lot closer to Finn. He probably even spends more time with him than Sean.

That worries Sean quite a lot. What if Daniel doesn't trust him anymore? Has Finn replaced him?

So he's decided he needs to talk with Daniel about it. Make sure he knows that Sean's here for him. They're brothers, and they're the only family each other have out here.

So as they crawl into their tent for the night, Sean starts.

"Hey, we need to talk."

Daniel looks at him sternly. It's the face of, "I'm preparing for the worst and making sure I'm ready to be angry if I have to."

"What? What are you mad about now?" He says, bratty and annoyed.

"Dude...it's not that. Why do you always think I'm mad at you?" Sean asks.

"Because…" he trails off, in a way that suggests he wants to be angry but is hiding something deeper.

When he doesn't continue, Sean puts his hand on his shoulder and says, "I love you, okay? I know it's been hard living here. But I'm not mad, okay? Even when I get mad, I'm not mad at you. I'm mad at everything, okay?"

"Yeah, but...you've yelled at me before and we don't hang out anymore, so-"

"Daniel," he says somehow solemnly, sternly, and lovingly all at the same time. "I'm sorry for yelling sometimes. I'm just trying to protect you, you know?"

"Yeah, yeah. What did you want to talk about?"

"Well, I guess it has something to do with this. I just noticed that you haven't really talked to me seriously lately and I just wanted to make sure you know that I'm always here. Alright? I'm your brother. I love you," Sean says, as the pain and hardship in Daniel's face starts to cease, if only for a moment.

"I'm always here," Sean continues. "You're not alone, and I'm not mad at you. You're the best little brother in the world, okay?"

Daniel looks away from Sean and towards the ground, like he can't acknowledge it or his mind is whirring so fast he doesn't know what to say.

They both stay still and don't say anything for a bit, until Sean breaks the silence with, "You need a hug?"

Daniel looks at him like he asked if he wants to see an alien spaceship.

"No…" he says softly.

"You sure, dude?" Sean says, scooting closer to him.

"Stop!" He says, annoyed, and proceeds to scoot further away.

"Okay, okay, sorry," Sean says, holding his hands up and moving back. "But if you ever just feel alone, or need some comfort, or something, I'm here, alright?"

Daniel doesn't respond.

"Good night, bro," Sean says, and turns over.

"Actually," Daniel says a few seconds later, "I think I do need a hug, please," Daniel scoots over to Sean, as he turns back over.

"Okay. No problem, dude," Sean says, wrapping his arms around Daniel and Daniel's around him.

Daniel moves even closer and holds Sean as tightly as he can. Sean wraps his arms completely around Daniel, protectively.

"I love you, bro."

"Thanks, Sean. I love you too," Daniel says sweetly.

Chapter 5: The wind when it blows, it is older than Rome, and our joy, and our sorrow

Summary:

A few days after they arrive in Mexico, Daniel's power burns out. Seeing how bad of a mood this puts him in, Sean moves quickly to cheer him up.

Chapter Text

July 8th, 2017

It's been a few days since Sean & Daniel have arrived in Puerto Lobos, and while it's not a perfect situation, the old town and rotten house have been surprisingly good to them.

It still needs a lot of work, but it hasn't been too much trouble for them just yet. It's still summer in Mexico so the thin and in some cases, swiss-cheesed walls aren't too big of a deal, and the town is very small and calm most of the year from what they've been told, so it isn't too worrying.

The house's wiring still works to an acceptable degree, so the brothers have managed to purchase a microwave and even a TV with some of the money Karen gave them. It's got an antenna and like, 10 channels but it's more than they ever expected from this place. They've also both bought flip phones just in case they need them.

It's an early morning when Sean's making some sandwiches for himself and Daniel.

Grabbing the cheap plates they bought yesterday in the marketplace, Sean walks to the living room, where Daniel is sitting on the half torn couch, watching an early showing of Hawt Dawg Man on the TV.

He sets one plate down on the table and moves to sit down.

"So, what's up?" Sean asks, still slightly drowsy.

"I wish I could understand what they're saying," Daniel says, dejectedly.

"What, my teaching not good enough?" Sean says humorously.

"No, I just, I know it'll take a while before I can speak Spanish. I wish I could just, do it right away."

"I know. But you don't have to talk to people right now. I think everyone we've met so far," Sean takes a bite of his sandwich. "Kinda understands."

"Yeah…" Daniel holds out his arm to grab his sandwich with his power.

Nothing happens. Daniel's brow furrows. Sean looks at him, worried.

"What-" Daniel exclaims, clenching his arm tighter and trying to focus even more.

Still, the sandwich does not float.

"My power-" Daniel whines. "Why is it not working?"

"Shit," Sean whispers, as Daniel tries even harder to use his power. "Did it work yesterday?"

"I never used it yesterday."

"When was the last time you used it?" Sean asks as Daniel lies his arms down and punches the sofa, and Sean moves closer to try to calm him.

"I think," Daniel exasperated, "I think I haven't used it since the border. I've been kinda tired."

"Hmm…" Sean wonders, "Well, are you still tired from that?"

"No, I feel pretty normal."

Sean puts his hand over his face and sighs. "Maybe," Sean thinks, "Maybe you were given the power to help us-get over the border? And now we made it so, I guess, the universe decided you don't need it anymore. I don't know."

"But-I want it!" Daniel gestures wildly. "I like the power," he says softly, trying to use it again, to no avail.

"Dude, everytime you've talked about it, you always say you think it brings trouble and shit. When we first got to Away it was all you could talk about!"

"Yeah...but that was then," Daniel mumbles. "I like being able to do stuff with it."

"I don't know, bro. I remember Jacob, and I think Joan, said the world gave you that power for a purpose, and I think the purpose was to help us get here."

"But what if I wanna do more stuff with it?" Daniel says, practically on the verge of tears.

"Maybe it's like some prophecy or something. Maybe the power was given to you to help us deal with the bad shit. But we're safe now so it was taken away," Sean proposes.

"Maybe…" Daniel says, clearly still upset, as he grabs his sandwich and walks to his room. Sean prepares to say something but decides against it, and heads to the garage to start work on a car.

# # #

It's been a few hours, and Sean's decided he needs a break. It's good for his work ethic to relax every once in a while.

Washing the grease and dirt off his hands, he heads inside the main section of the house to grab a snack.

As Sean's finishing up, he notices something. Where is Daniel? He's usually sat around the TV this time of day. Maybe he's outside?

A quick check confirms the answer: no.

He must be in their room then. Sean heads upstairs to check on him.

Approaching the empty door frame, he sees Daniel sitting on the bed, looking very...not cheerful. He's generally been in a pretty upbeat mood since they arrived here, so what's up?

"Hey, dude," Sean greets him as he sits down beside him.

"Hey," Daniel responds quietly and looks away.

"What's up, dude? You look...sad."

"It's nothing," Daniel says painfully.

"Dude, the way you said that tells me it isn't nothing. Is this about your power?" Sean questions.

"Yeah," Daniel sighs. "I still haven't gotten it to work."

"You'll be okay, I promise. I know it feels weird to not have it anymore, but I feel like it served its purpose, you know? It helped you save us so many times," Sean reassures him.

"Yeah, I guess. But it still hurts."

"I don't get it, dude."

"What?"

"All you basically ever said about it were bad things," Sean explains. "I never thought you liked it so much."

"I just-I guess, it kinda…" Daniel doesn't say anything for a bit. "I feel like-without it, I'm harder to deal with," Daniel says solemnly.

"What do you mean?"

"I guess," Daniel says shyly, like he really doesn't wanna say this. "I feel like you won't like me anymore. Without it. Cause I'm not special anymore."

"Dude," Sean says sadly yet with an encouraging aura about him. "You are special! You're Daniel Diaz, you know? You're my brother. Even if you don't feel special, you are special. To me."

"You mean that? I don't know…" Daniel sniffs.

"Dude, your power was never why I love you. It was just-there. I love you for, uh, you. You're my brother," Sean wraps his arms around Daniel. "Remember what I said on that cliff? I love you, no matter what happens."

Daniel buries his head in Sean's hold and wraps his arms around him too.

"Okay," he says neutrally.

"Look, you know what?" Sean says, still holding Daniel close. "How about this: I don't really need to work the rest of the day. I'll just work longer tomorrow. So we've got the whole day to ourselves. You wanna hang?"

"That'd be super cool, but you don't have to," Daniel lightly protests.

"I love you, right? I don't have to, but I want to. What do you wanna do? I'm up for anything you are, bro."

"Really? It'd be nice to have more time together."

"Hell yeah, bro! What do you wanna do?"

"Uh…" Daniel closed his eyes and thinks for a second. "What if-we could draw for a bit? Maybe we could draw something for each other? That'd be fun."

"Alright, let's do it. I knew it was a good idea to pick up those papers and pencils last weekend," he says, putting his hand on Daniel's shoulder for one more bit of reassurance as they proceed down to the kitchen, the only room in the house with tall enough surfaces.

"Alright, here's yours," Sean says, placing a paper on the table, proceeding to help lift Daniel into the wooden stool still quite too tall for him to get onto himself. "And here's mine. Let's just draw for a bit, and uh, see what happens, I guess," he says, then quickly adds, "Wait, let me, uh…" Sean fumbles with a cardboard box on the floor and places it upright on the table. "There. Now we can't peek at each other's drawings."

"Cool," Daniel says, and soon after the sound of pencils stenciling is the only notable sound in the room.

# # #

Once the brothers have finished, Sean has them head to the living room to show off their drawings.

"Alright," Sean sits down on the couch. "Do you wanna go first, or should I?"

"Uh...you can go first."

"Alright, so here it is," Sean says, turning his paper around. "It's you as Superwolf, and Captain Spirit, uh, you guys are working together to fight this guy, he, uh, his name is uh, Kilo, he was trying to throw a rock at you but, you, uh...yeah. Sorry. Maybe I shouldn't have reminded you…"

Daniel grabs the drawing. "No, it's okay. This is super cool! Like, how do you- how do you even draw like that?! You should start a comic or something. It'd be so good."

Sean chuckles. "Don't get carried away, enano. It's just a drawing. But thanks."

"Sean, it's not just a drawing. It's like-you took part of yourself and put it on a paper! I don't know, that sounds weird...but it's cool," Daniel exclaims.

"I think I get it. Thanks, dude."

"I can keep it, right?"

"Of course, enano."

Daniel's eyes light up. "Cool."

"Alright," Sean says. "Can I see yours?"

"Um…" Daniel says hesitantly, holding his drawing to make sure he keeps track of it. "I don't know...what if you don't like it? I mean, I know it's not as good as yours, but what if it's...you know…"

"Dude," Sean says warmly. "It's like you said, right? It's like you put part of yourself on a paper. That makes it special, regardless. Because it, uh, has that...connection, I guess? It's hard to explain, but you know…"

"You sure? It's kinda embarrassing."

"Dude, I'm sure it's great. It represents you, you know? How would I not like it when it's, like, a part of you?"

"O-okay…" Daniel stutters. "Here," he hands it to Sean. "Hope you like it."

"Woah, wait, so this is…"

"It's you. And look on the side, it says what all the parts mean."

""My brother's feet. His will to keep moving and to make it home safely.""

""My brother's legs. His strength to get back up when he gets hurt.""

""My brother's hands. Him hugging me and how much he cares about fixing problems I have.""

""My brother's arms. His determination to fight and never give up even when things are bad.""

""My brother's mouth. His reassuring words that make me feel accepted and like I belong.""

""My brother's ((gigantic)) heart. How much love he has and how no matter how bad I feel, he can easily make me feel better.""

""I love you so much, Sean.""

"Dude," Sean cracks, looking up from the paper. "That's so...so…" He can't find the words, so instead he wraps his arms around Daniel and rests his chin on Daniel's head warmly.

Both of them are crying now, but in an entirely joyous way.

Once Sean lets go of Daniel, he finally spits out, "Dude, that's like, the nicest thing you could ever say. I…"

"And it's so true, too."

Sean makes a sound somewhat of a combination between an "awwww…" and a gasp and holds Daniel close, again.

"Okay, dude, I am so getting that put on the wall, or maybe the fridge, or I don't know, but that...that's amazing. I wanna have that somewhere I can see it every single day," Sean says lovingly.

Daniel looks at him with an expression of pure pride and love.

# # #

After they're done exchanging heartfelt words, Sean grabs a piece of cardboard from the kitchen and asks Daniel if he wants to make another Ship, Captain, Crew, to which he enthusiastically agrees.

Sean hands Daniel a marker and suggests them both creating a ship of their own.

Sean's ship is a careful and sharply drawn one with a large sail with a detailed wolf drawn on it. He adds small cannons to the side.

Daniel's ship is a very wide one with a smaller sail and a "SW" logo on it for Superwolf. He adds small pirates with swords standing on the deck.

"Hey, I guess with this," Sean says, pointing to his eyepatch, "This game fits even better."

Daniel laughs, then looks at Sean in a "maybe I shouldn't have laughed" way, to which Sean's look replies, "no, it's fine".

"I'm Captain Diaz, now!" Sean says with a pirate voice. "The fiercest pirate in all the seven seas!"

"Yes," Daniel says, imitating the voice, "and I'm First Mate Dan, who's always by his Captain's side, ready to fight alongside him!"

Sean chuckles. "But who is the better pirate? I think it's time to find out," Sean says, grabbing some dice from the closet. "You ready, matey?"

"Ready," Daniel says playfully.

# # #

When the brothers are tired of making pirate expressions and battling each other on the open sea, Daniel heads to the TV to watch Hawt Dawg Man on On Demand while Sean makes dinner, their usual routine at this hour.

A while later, Sean comes into the living room with a full plate of burgers, which bring a smile to Daniel's face instantaneously.

Once they're finished devouring those, Sean heads back to the kitchen, and when he returns, he begins with, "So...uh, when I was at the market yesterday," Sean sits down on the couch. "I found a few of these," he pulls a few Choc-O-Crisps from his pocket. "I don't think they're the exact same as the ones you used to have, but you tell me," he says, handing them to Daniel, who has a shine in his eyes.

"Yeah," Daniel says. "They taste pretty much the same."

"Cool. So, uh…" Sean says, gesturing to the TV screen currently displaying "REPLAY?", "What happened on Hawt Dawg Man?"

"Oh," Daniel exclaims, still stuffing his mouth with chocolate, "It was one I never saw before. Hawt Dawg Man was trying to find out where his friend Big Mustard went. Turns out Meatman had kidnapped him and Hawt Dawg Man had to save him! It was pretty cool."

"Oh yeah, I know that one. I remember watching it at Lyla's house when I was a kid," Sean smiles gently. "Anyway, uh, I just wanted to make sure that you were okay and all, I mean, we had today to do shit and have fun and it was awesome, but...obviously I can't do this every day. I just wanna make sure you'll still be okay," Sean says, placing a supporting hand on Daniel's shoulder.

"Yeah…" Daniel sighs. "I still miss the power. I keep trying to use it, like, I think it'll somehow come back, but...it hasn't," Daniel lifts out his arm at the Choc-O-Crisp wrappers. "I'll be okay, though," Daniel says, closing his eyes and focusing.

Suddenly, Daniel's eyes snap back open and the wrapper starts floating lightly over the table.

"Wait! My power! It's-it's back?!" Daniel says ecstatically, running up and down and around the room lifting all kinds of things, big and small.

Sean just sits on the couch with a slightly defeated, yet humored expression. "So we spent this whole day together to make you feel better and now your power comes back?"

Daniel looks back at him with an expression of "everything in the world is awesome" and runs over to him, practically jumping on him as he gives him a hug.

"You were just being the best brother! Like no other brother could ever be as cool as you! Ok, sorry that you now have to work extra tomorrow, but still, you did all the nicest things and were the best brother, and, and-"

"Ok, enano, I get it," Sean says, humored. "You kinda deserved it anyway," Sean laughs, wrapping his arms around Daniel and holding him entirely openly and loving.

Sean and Daniel really are the best brothers either of them could ever have.

Chapter 6: To love and to be loved

Summary:

Very fluffy. Daniel is comforting and spending time with Sean as he recovers in Away and they both will make sure each other know how much they love them.

Chapter Text

April 21st, 2017

Sean & Daniel have been at Away for a few days now and so far have been spending as much time together as possible.

Sean recounted his time in the hospital (which every time he speaks on Daniel looks away and he has to reassure him it wasn't his fault) and Daniel's talked a lot about his life in Haven Point.

Sean tried to help him process Lisbeth's hold. Her manipulation, her abuse, everything she did seemed to have taken roots in Daniel and him realizing the truth had violently tore those roots out. It left scars.

Every time he spoke on it, Sean's knowledge of how Lisbeth controlled him gained. She made him feel special. Loved. Something he wished he could've done more in Humboldt. He was convinced that nothing else could give him purpose or make him feel loved, so he had to stick with Lisbeth despite the abuse and the manipulation.

The bad was very bad, but she convinced him he couldn't get the good anywhere else.

Thankfully, Sean's words that fateful day in the church showed him otherwise.

The brothers have been spending as much time together as possible now, finally reunited.

"Hey," Sean says, weakly, still feeling the damage from Nicholas and Lisbeth. "Can you-put some music on?" He says, pointing to Karen's laptop on the table across from the bed.

"Uh-uh, sure," Daniel nods, crawling out of the bed slowly, careful not to knock Sean, who still has bruises all over his body.

"What do you want me to put on?" He asks, barely able to reach up to and see the computer with his tiny frame.

"Just, anything," Sean says.

"I'll put this on. I know you like this album," Daniel says, as the sound of Gorillaz' Demon Days fills the trailer as Daniel crawls back into the bed. "Do you need anything else?" He asks sweetly.

"A hug?" Sean says heartfully.

"Yes!" Daniel scoots into Sean's grasp and wraps his own arms around his big brother.

"You know you don't have to do all this stuff for me, right? Karen's taking care of me too."

"Yeah, I know, but, we were separated for so long...I guess it's just nice to have you back," Daniel says, his eyes shining as he looks up at Sean.

"Amen to that," Sean says, caressing the side of Daniel's face.

"Plus," Daniel says. "You took care of me so much...so I should be here for you now."

"That's really nice, dude, and I appreciate it so much," Sean smiles gently. "But you don't have to. I'm sure there's some fun stuff here for you to do, everyone seems cool, maybe you should-"

"No, Sean," Daniel says dismissively. "I just wanna be here for you. I just want you to know how much I love you and stuff. You deserve to feel like that. Like you're loved so much."

Sean gently kisses Daniel's forehead. "Dude, you're the best. I could never ask for a better brother, could I?"

"I guess I got it from the real best brother in the world, huh?"

"Stop," Sean chuckles playfully. "I'm not that great."

Daniel scoots completely into Sean's arms and buries himself in his hold. "Yes, you are! I love you SO much."

Sean calmly rests his chin on Daniel's head. "I love you too, enano."

"I missed you so much in Haven Point, you know? I had these dreams...where I thought I saw you, and I just wanted to go up to you and say I'm sorry and that I love you, but you always ran away," he says solemnly. "It made me really sad, cause I thought you didn't like me anymore. But then you saved me from Lisbeth."

"I had dreams about you too, enano," he says. "You always wanted to say sorry, and I kept saying it was fine, but everytime, something bad would happen to you and I'd wake up before I could help you."

"But I'm here now and I'm okay. Because you saved me," Daniel says warmly.

"You're right," Sean says. "And I'd do it again and again. You deserve that."

Daniel diverts his eyes. "You mean that?" He says shyly.

"I really do. I love you, okay? I promise I'll fight for you."

"I'll always fight for you too, Sean. You deserve it too," Daniel says lovingly. "You're...actually the best. Like, the best big brother, the best person to take care of me, the best...friend...I could ever have. I just," Daniel rests his head into Sean's hold. "Love you so much," he smiles purely.

Sean pulls Daniel into him close and gently kisses Daniel's forehead. "You're the best too."

It's these moments that make Sean truly feel like he is healing. It's like the light of Daniel's love is shining over his wounds, slowly yet meaningfully giving him the power to heal them.

It always hurts, it always has, he's felt a lot of pain a lot of the time for a long time, but in moments like this, where him and Daniel are cuddled up so closely, being there for each other, giving each other the satisfaction of that affection, it's like if for just a moment that pain doesn't matter.

How could he feel anything negative when he's holding his precious little brother in his arms and they're both sharing the immense love in their brotherhood and making it known to each other?

He couldn't. He can only feel warmth and pure love.

For yet another time, Sean is thanking the universe for Daniel's existence. And he knows Daniel's done the exact same thing many, many times.

That's really what it's about for the Diaz brothers. Thankfulness, affection, compassion, and of course that infinite, impossible to defeat love.

Their brotherhood will always prevail over every obstacle, both the ones inside them and out.

That's all that matters right now. That Sean & Daniel could not love each other any more than they already do.

And that will last forever.

Sean rests his hand on Daniel's back and holds him protectively. Daniel sinks into Sean's grasp, gently resting with him like he's a part of Sean's own body.

The part he values most.

Chapter 7: The Trials of Babyism

Summary:

Listen up. Daniel Diaz is a BABY.

Chapter Text

November 22, 2017

It's getting calmer and darker in Puerto Lobos and Daniel is just heading to bed. But it's not any normal night.

Ever since they got to Mexico, Sean & Daniel have been sleeping in the singular old bed in the upstairs bedroom. It's all they had, and to admit, Daniel loves having his brother's company more than anything else, so it never was an annoyance to him.

It was nice to know he could always hold onto Sean if he needed to, and without Sean's reassurances those first few nights, he probably wouldn't have slept at all.

But just recently, Sean has bought and assembled a small wooden bed frame in the other, emptier upstairs room, and an accompanying mattress and sheets to go with it. Daniel's own bed.

Sean's talked about how Daniel needs to "be more independent". Do his own things. Learn how to fend for himself. That kind of stuff. And this typically involves spending less time with Sean.

Daniel can't understand. All he wants to do is hang out with Sean all day, help him out, just...enjoy his company. They're brothers, right? They're supposed to be there for each other. He doesn't want to spend less time with Sean.

Does Sean want to spend less time with him?

No, that couldn't be. Right? Sean's the most caring and amazing big brother in the world. Daniel's had worries of whether Sean really loves him in the past but these months with him in Puerto Lobos have reassured him that no matter what, Sean will endlessly love him.

So that makes even less sense.

The concept of growing up is really confusing.

So here Daniel lays, in his own bed, in his own room. It feels so much colder than he thought it would. This room tends to be a bit chillier than most of the house anyway, and the lack of Sean beside him makes him even colder.

It feels so empty. Like he doesn't know what the process of sleep should be without him and Sean holding each other and lovingly reassuring each other.

Then comes the anxiety. Of a million things.

What if someone breaks into the house and takes him and Sean doesn't know?

Or they break in and kill Sean and he doesn't know?

What if Sean wakes up early and he doesn't know and something falls on Sean and he gets hurt and he has to sit there in pain and and and-

And although he entirely understands that these are just irrational and childish fears, they still freak him out.

Ripping off his Hawt Dawg Man themed bed sheets with a distraught look on his face, he rushes out the room and looks around the upstairs hallway.

No murderers prowling around the house. Nothing bad going on.

He slowly tiptoes to Sean's bedroom, and thumbs the half open door further. It creaks softly.

Sean, still awake, quickly glances at the now mostly open door as Daniel darts behind the wall.

"Dude, there's either a ghost in this house, or you just opened the door, and I'm betting on you," Sean says.

Daniel slinks out into the open door frame, and looks down with a half-defeated half-embarrassed expression.

"What is it?"

Daniel looks up at Sean then quickly averts his gaze.

"I don't wanna sleep in there," Daniel says, pointing across to his new room.

Sean sighs. "Is it that you don't wanna sleep in there, or that you don't wanna be by yourself?"

"Um…"

"Fine. Come on," Sean gestures for Daniel to crawl onto the bed.

Daniel crawls onto the left side of the bed, choosing not to use the vast amount of free space but rather cuddle up right with Sean and pull the blanket over himself.

"Why is it such a big deal to be by yourself?" Sean asks, putting his arms around Daniel and holding him like he usually does.

"I don't know. I just...I guess I got used to always having you around. It's kinda scary when I don't have anyone." Daniel admits.

This is always a complex topic for Sean to help out with. Because on one hand, yes, Daniel needs to be more independent, he isn't supposed to rely so much on Sean for feeling comfortable with everyday things.

But on the other, Daniel is extremely adorable, and when he's saying he's scared and wants to crawl in bed and be held, your heart won't let you say no.

Sean stays silent for a moment. "Is there anything I could maybe do to help?"

"Well...I could just sleep in here every night," Daniel looks up at Sean with the biggest puppy eyes the world has ever seen.

"Dude…" Sean sighs. "Other than that?"

"I don't know. Why can't I just sleep in here?"

"Dude, we need our own rooms and beds and shit, okay?" Sean explains. "You can't just sleep in my bed forever. When you get older we both won't even fit."

"Then we can get a bigger bed!"

Sean laughs. "Dude, no. You need your own space. You can sleep here tonight if you really need to, but...you have to grow up, okay?"

"I know. But I still don't get it. It's kinda...comforting, you know? To have you right there."

"I know dude, but I'm always just across the hall. It's not a big deal."

Daniel frowns.

"Plus," Sean suggests. "Maybe sometimes we can have, like, a sleepover and go to each other's rooms sometimes."

"Maybe."

"I'm just trying to help you, okay?" Sean says. "It's not that I don't want to be able to comfort you all the time, but it's just, like, you have to grow up. You need space."

"I don't think so."

"You will in a year or two."

Daniel puts on an insecure expression and doesn't say anything, just rests in Sean's grasp until he falls asleep.

# # #

It's the night after. Earlier in the day, Sean came home from his weekly market trip with a little something special for Daniel.

A Hawt Dawg Man plushie.

"You talked about how it was nice to always have me there," Sean said. "So I thought maybe I could get you something to remind you of me. Something you can hold onto if you're scared. Plus," he chuckled. "I guess it fits with those pajamas I bought as well."

Daniel at first was a little uneasy about it, but after a while has already grown accustomed to it, carrying it with him for the better part of the day.

And now wrapped up in bed, he doesn't feel so lonely. It's like if he starts to feel afraid, he can just hold it closer like he's got a little piece of Sean with him.

Before he knows it, he's drifted off to a peaceful sleep.

His dreams are filled with snowy trees and clouds of mist spreading themselves across the ground. Him and Sean are having a meal in the woods around a campfire.

Then suddenly, a massive yellow bird bursts through the dense forest, toppling over their camp and sending their supplies flying in every direction.

Sean pulls a pistol out of his waistband and takes aim at the bird, but a powerful screech from it sends the pistol flying back into Sean's one eye. He crumples to the ground.

Daniel tries to help him but the giant bird pins him down.

The bird uses its wing to scoop up Sean and screeches again, sending a massive gust of wind through the forest.

The bird then starts to fly off, still holding Sean. Daniel outstretches his arm to try to pull it down, but his power doesn't arrive.

"Sean!" He screams, watching his brother be taken away.

Sean does not respond.

"Sean! Come back!" He cries. "Sea-"

"Ufff…" Daniel jolts awake. "Sean?" He looks around. It's just a dream. Right?

Maybe he should still check on Sean.

Propping himself up and grabbing his new stuffed friend, he opens the door to the hallway once more.

Just looking out at the dark is surprisingly frightening to him. He clutches the plushie even closer to himself as he looks around, almost shivering out of both cold and fear.

He tiptoes to Sean's room and opens the door again.

This time, Sean is sound asleep.

Sean's fine. He knew that already, but he needed the reassurance. He looks back down the hall.

Realizing he has no desire to walk through that dark presence again, he climbs onto Sean's bed carefully, as not to wake him up.

Sean's turned over on his side, facing off the bed. Daniel slinks up next to him closely, and rests his forehead on Sean's back.

Suddenly, as if by magic, all his fear is replaced by comfort. He holds the plushie closer and leans more into Sean's presence.

He debates wrapping his arm over Sean to try to hold him, but decides it'd probably wake him up. So instead he just curls up next to Sean with his plushie like a tiny puppy holding a toy.

His whole body just fills with the warmest feeling in the world. The comfort given simply by his brother's existence is undeniable.

"Uhh…" Sean groans.

Shit. Did he wake him up? He didn't mean to. Sean has a lot of work and if he doesn't get enough sleep-

"Ow!" Daniel whimpers.

Sean accidentally rammed his elbow into Daniel's stomach, not knowing he was there.

Sean, as if moving by the grace of God, flips over extremely quickly.

"Daniel! Shit. I'm sorry," He apologizes. "I didn't know you were here…" He puts one arm over Daniel's shoulder and the other under his head, and instinctively pulls him in close. "Sorry, buddy."

"It's ok," Daniel says. "I shouldn't of crawled in, but…"

"You were scared?" Sean asks, giving Daniel a kiss on his forehead. "I know. It's okay," He looks down at the plushie. "Has that helped at all?"

"Yeah. A lot, actually. I just...had a nightmare and was scared," Daniel says shyly.

Sean's face softens. He pulls Daniel in closer and rests his chin on Daniel's head. "It's okay. Maybe...maybe I should get, like, a sleeping bag so I can sleep in there. So we can work up from, like, me sleeping on the floor to me sleeping in a different room. That sound okay?"

"Yeah…" Daniel said softly. "Okay."

The brotherhood of Sean & Daniel is always one of support. They'll always be that way. When you love your brother that much, fighting for every little bit of help and support you can give just comes naturally.

Chapter 8: Please Don't Leave Me Alone Again

Summary:

Sean returns from a supply trip in the woods and Daniel still feels hurt that he left in the first place.

Chapter Text

November 9th, 2016

It's been a long day for Sean, but the hardest part is nearly over.

A few days ago, he trekked out to the nearest town to grab supplies. Him and Daniel didn't really have much to eat and it was something he knew would have to be done eventually. He put it off as long as possible, not wanting to leave Daniel by himself, but at some point it just had to be done.

The night before he left him and Daniel stayed up playing round after round of Ship, Captain, Crew and Daniel held onto him really close as they went to sleep that night.

Then, in the morning, before Daniel woke up, Sean left the house. It was something he'd already decided and told Daniel it was because he needed as much daylight as possible, though it was also because he didn't want to have to argue with Daniel about it or have a drawn out goodbye before he left.

Now it's a full two and a half days later. He's been as fast as he can, but the walk to the closest town is still relatively far and the snow certainly doesn't help.

But now he's made it. The cabin. His little brother. God, he hopes he's okay...it's probably really scared Daniel to be alone like this for so long.

He slides the door open, sets his backpack full of supplies on the floor, and hangs up his jacket, then he sees a tiny little head poke out from behind the wall.

"Sean!" Daniel says, and the huge frown on his face quickly turns to a gigantic smile.

"Sean!" He says again, running up to him and jumping just a little bit as he reaches Sean, which startles him but he quickly reacts, putting his arms under Daniel's shoulders and lifting him into his arms.

Daniel wraps his arms around Sean's neck and rests his head on his shoulders. "I missed you so much," He says, and the pain in his voice makes Sean's heart ache.

Sean presses his head to Daniel comfortingly. "I missed you too, enano."

Daniel pulls back for a second and looks at Sean and the expression on his face starts to shift, moving from absolute overjoy to pathetic apathy. He slips out of Sean's arms.

Sean tries not to think much of this and puts it aside. "I'm gonna make some dinner, okay?" He says enthusiastically.

"Alright," Daniel says, sounding almost bitter, but in a faulty way, like his tone of voice came mass produced from a knock off company.

Shit, Sean thinks. He's pissed. And I can't blame him.

Deciding to address this later, he begins on dinner.

# # #

Later that night, Sean asks Daniel how he's feeling before bed, to which he's not very talkative.

Sean can tell he's hurt. He's mad. Sean's already noticed multiple broken items around the house, presumably from Daniel's power. And maybe he should feel angry about that, but he can't. Daniel was probably just bored and scared and had nothing else to do. Sean would feel like such an asshole for grilling him about any of the broken shit.

Daniel hasn't really talked. And that sucks. Really all he's got from him was those first few seconds where Daniel couldn't control his pure joy at seeing his brother again. But then he was reminded of the anger. He felt abandoned. And when he thought of all those things he felt like he had to act distant. Maybe to protect himself, maybe to show Sean how it made him feel, Sean doesn't know.

But he's still his big brother. He has to look out for him. And that doesn't just mean protecting him from the dangers of the world, but also protecting him from feeling these things. To make him feel understood and loved. That's his obligation too.

Sean reaches out his arm and places it on Daniel's shoulder, who's at the edge of the bed facing away.

"Daniel," Sean sighs. "I'm sorry, man. I know it must've sucked being here on your own. I'm sorry for leaving you that long."

"You had to," Daniel says shakily. Shit, is he crying? It almost sounds like he is.

"I know, but still," Sean says. "Just because I had to do it doesn't mean you're not allowed to feel bad that I did." Sean pauses for a second, then asks, "Are you mad at me? I-I.. wouldn't blame you."

Daniel pauses for a long while. "I'm not mad at you. I'm just...sad...at you. I guess." He whispers, also very shakily.

"I'm sorry." Daniel sniffles. "Hey, are you crying? P-please," Sean feels himself start to break a little. He tries to pull Daniel closer, but Daniel tries to shake off his hand.

Sean tries again.

"Don't touch me!" Daniel yells, absolutely bawling.

"Dude…" Sean pleads. "I just...want you to be okay," he says defeatistly, pulling on Daniel's arm again.

But this time, Daniel turns over, tears pouring out of his eyes and snot coming out of his nose.

Sean wraps his arms around his watery mess of a little brother and pulls him into his body.

"I'm so sorry," Sean says, trying not to cry but failing. "I'm just sorry you had to deal with that. I'm sorry, Daniel."

"I love you so much," Daniel wails. "I was so scared of everything, I was worried you wouldn't come back, I-"

"What did you do when I was gone?" Sean asks, trying to help stabilize Daniel.

"Nothing. I mean sometimes I tried to sit and play and stuff but that kinda hurt too. So I just...layed around. And cried a lot."

Sean can't help it. The image of his little brother just sitting on his own in the dark and crying just fucking hurts his soul. Soon enough the quiet room's sounds include a second brother's crying.

"I'm so sorry," He pulls him into his arms and just lets Daniel melt into his arms even further than he already has, and it's like he's starting to melt too.

"I love you, okay? I wish I would've told you more in Seattle. You'll always be the person that matters the most to me," Sean goes silent, just letting Daniel rest his arms around his back and feel the hold of himself in Sean's arms.

"I'd do anything to help you feel better. I want you to know that, enano. Anything. If you need comfort, I'm always here."

"Thanks, Sean," Daniel says, though he can't stop crying.

"I mean it. Come to me anytime if you need support or anything, and I would really be happy to help. I love you."

"I love you too, Sean," Daniel continues to cry, and Sean gives him a kiss on the forehead. "I love you," Daniel says again, still bawling

There's not much else to say, so the Diaz brothers just hold each other until Sean and even later, Daniel, stops crying, and then they go to bed, and while they're facing away from each other, it's not in a resentful way, but rather in a way existing in knowledge of their constant support of each other.

After Sean falls asleep, Daniel scoots back over to that side of the bed and holds onto him, which gives him the comfort he needs to fall asleep as well.

Chapter 9: Movie Night

Summary:

It's late at night at Claire & Stephen's, and Sean & Daniel are having a movie night.

Chapter Text

December 6th, 2016

It's a late night at Claire & Stephen's, and Daniel's of course wanting to get up to something.

Their grandparents probably won't be back for at least another three or four hours, so they've got time to do whatever they want. Daniel suggested a movie night.

"Dude, let's be honest, the only movies they have are probably, like...old people movies," Sean says humorously.

"Like what?" Daniel asks inquisitively.

"I don't know, like '6 Steps To Being Friends With God' or something," Sean chuckles. "I guess we can see if they have anything cool."

"Cool! I'm gonna...look in the kitchen for snacks and you can look for a good movie to watch."

Claire & Stephen's collection of movies is...boring. Really boring. It's mostly just old random movies from the 70s on VHS, and 90% of them have a note stuck on them signifying what they taped over it with.

They have a total of like 6 DVDs. One of which is the first Avengers movie. Sean & Daniel have seen it like a thousand times, but Sean knows it'll still be so much fun for Daniel.

"Hey, dude, I found something," Sean calls out to Daniel.

"Ooooh, what is it?" Daniel asks, half skipping over to Sean.

"Do you remember this?" Sean asks, showing him the DVD.

"The Avengers? Oh, yeah! I remember that movie. Are we gonna watch that?" He asks.

"If that's fine with you."

"Cool! Of course, I haven't seen that in ages," Daniel exclaims.

"So, super-scavenger, what did you find in the kitchen?" Sean asks, already inserting the DVD into the player.

"Well, I can't reach the top shelf, but I got us some chips and cookies and stuff, but...I know Claire has a Choc O Crisp stash on the top shelf…I've seen it whenever she gets me one, so…" Daniel looks up at Sean with puppy eyes.

"Ok, fine," Sean can't say no to his little brother when he puts on that look. "But look, Claire's gonna notice if half the stash suddenly disappears, so I'm only gonna grab 5."

"10!" Daniel argues.

"6," Sean suggests.

"7."

"Fine," Sean says, grabbing a fistful of Choc O Crisps from the cupboard.

"Hey," Sean says. "You wanna...grab some blankets and we could make a fort like we used to back home? I'll drag the chairs from the kitchen."

"Okay!" Daniel says enthusiastically.

Sean and Daniel spend a few minutes finding the right arrangement of chairs and blankets to give themselves a cozy vibe while still being able to see the TV screen, and Daniel's already started digging in the snacks as Sean picks up the remote and presses 'Play'.

Sean remembers the first time they ever saw this movie. Neither of them had seen any of the ones that came before it, but Esteban took them to see it when it was in theaters. Daniel was still really young, like 5 or 6, and Sean still remembers all the faces of awe he made watching it. It was all he could talk about for weeks afterwards.

As they watch it again, Daniel keeps that same awe, with his eyes glued to the screen, but Sean notices him subtly scooting closer to him as the movie goes on.

Sensing his moment, Sean moves in quickly.

"Don't mess with Hulk Sean!" He says, tickling his little brother.

"Stop it!" Daniel says, laughing, and eventually Sean relents. "I don't think the Hulk is supposed to tickle people," Daniel giggles.

"Well, if I was the Hulk that's how I'd beat my enemies."

"I don't think you'd be a very good superhero," Daniel says.

"You wanna test that theory?" Sean says playfully, trying to tickle Daniel again but he manages to dodge it.

"No!" Daniel exclaims humorously, trying to bump Sean on the shoulder but he's too small to push him in any meaningful way.

"Alright, fine, I won't tickle you anymore," Sean relents, putting his arm around Daniel, what Daniel was obviously aiming for earlier. Daniel smiles gently.

It's so nice to just have a movie night. Sean actually feels normal for once, and Daniel gets to be a kid for a bit. It's nostalgic in more ways than one. A classic movie from home, but also, just...being normal brothers. That's nostalgic too. Being able to put his arm around his little brother in a cosy little fort and watch a movie.

Once again, he's incredibly thankful for Claire and Stephen. Without them, they'd still be out in the wilderness. Without them, who knows if they'd even still be here.

Daniel's focus on the movie only grows deeper. Only after the movie's over and the credits are rolling does he dare to speak again.

"That was so cool," he says softly.

"Yeah, it was nice to just watch a movie, right?"

"Yeah. I missed it," Daniel says kind of solemnly, to which Sean squeezes his arm in a "don't worry, things are okay now" kind of way, to keep him up to reality.

"So, super-bro, Claire and Stephen probably won't be back for a bit longer, so we can do...whatever," Sean proposes.

"Really? Won't they be mad we were up past our bedtime?

Claire and Stephen, well, mainly Claire, are very strict about their 10 o'clock bedtime. Sean kinda understands it for Daniel, but he's 16. Why does it matter if he stays up? Whatever.

"Well, we just gotta make sure we're in bed when they come home. But we can do whatever we want til then," Sean says.

"Cool! So what should we do then?"

# # #

Ringgggggg…...ringgggggg…..

It's nearly a half hour later, and the phone rings. Sean doesn't get to it in time, but he hears a message play over the machine.

"Hello Sean and Daniel," they hear Claire speak. "I hope everything's well there. Just wanted to call to remind you your bedtime is 10 o'clock sharp, so if you aren't in bed by now you should be. We'll be home at 10:30. Thank you."

Click.

Sean looks at the clock. It's now a few minutes after 10. He looks around the room.

Well, shit.

The floor is covered in crumbs from their movie going, of course all the chairs have been moved around, there's toys all over the floor from them playing superheroes, wait-one of the glass cabinets is cracked? How did that happen?

"Shit, okay. Dude, they're gonna be home soon, so we gotta clean all this up, but-" Sean tries to think. "Okay, I'll grab the chairs and put them back, you use your power to sweep up any food, and then we'll put the toys away after."

"Okay," Daniel responds swiftly.

The brothers spring into action. They put all the chairs back, clean up the floor (Sean ends up having to scrub a spot on the carpet where Daniel spilled grape juice), and they grab all the toys and put them back in their respective places.

But now the worst part. That glass cabinet. It wasn't broken before, right? No, they probably broke it while throwing that rubber football around. How do you hide that?

Sean shifts through a dozen different ideas. Should they just own up to it? Or they could say Chris did it when he was here-

"No! Then Grandma won't want him over again," Daniel says in response to that idea.

"Then what are we gonna do?" Sean almost yells.

"I don't know!" Daniel retorts. "Maybe they won't notice."

"Dude, Claire will definitely notice. Like right away."

"Well, what if-maybe we could cover it?"

"With what?"

"Maybe you could draw something and tape it on there?" Daniel suggests.

"They'd just get mad if I did that and remove it. But wait-" Sean gets an idea. "If you draw something-I bet they wouldn't mind."

"Why?"

"Cause you're the kid, dude. If I taped some drawing on one of their cabinets, it'd be weird, but if you did, it'd be adorable," Sean explains. "Here, let me-" Sean heads to the closet and brings Daniel a big piece of paper and some markers.

"You want me to draw?" Daniel says skeptically.

"Yeah, dude, it doesn't have to be something crazy. Just draw something cute and Claire will probably treasure it too much to take it off the cabinet."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. You're the artist. Just be quick."

"Hmm…" Daniel cocks his head and looks at the paper, then gets to work.

Daniel draws himself and Sean holding hands, with an arrow pointing to Sean labeled "coolest brother ever", and Claire & Stephen in the background, then, and this makes Sean chuckle, he draws a white and golden robed bearded man labeled "GOD" at the top of the paper. Because if there's any way to make Claire like something better, it's to make it overtly Christian.

"Great job, dude," Sean says, and Daniel looks up at him with a smile. "Now let's tape this to the cabinet and jump in bed before they get home."

Sean quickly grabs the roll and tapes the drawing over the crack in the cabinet. Yeah, they'll probably find it eventually, but for some reason the idea of them finding it in the future and not knowing when it happened is less scary than them discovering it right away.

After that, Sean tells Daniel to brush his teeth and get ready for bed, as he does the same.

Daniel's loved having not only what is a super comfy bed, but also sharing it with Sean. At first Sean thought he'd want his own room after all this time on the road where they've had to share sleeping bags or beds, but Daniel just loves having his brother right there. Sean can't say it isn't nice for him too.

Daniel has only had a couple nightmares since they arrived here, which is a massive improvement from before where they were almost every night. It's been so good for him to have a house, a real house, again.

"Hey, dude," Sean says as Daniel walks into the room and yawns. "You ready for bed?"

"Yeah," Daniel says. "We better get to bed before they come back." Daniel hops on the bed and scoots over to the side closer to the wall. It's been his preferred side every night, probably because having your brother on one side, a wall on the other, and a blanket on top makes you feel about as safe as possible.

Good. He deserves to feel safe like that.

Sean pulls the blanket up and, noticing Daniel's expectant expression, wraps his arms around him.

Daniel buries himself deep in Sean's arms and closes his eyes silently. He just listens. He focuses on Sean's breathing, his chest expanding and contracting, and rests his head right up against Sean's ribcage. And that's not without intention.

Daniel likes to just listen to Sean's heart beat. It helps him fall asleep. He doesn't really know why. Perhaps it's just a perfect reminder of the comfort Sean gives him.

Each little beat just feels like another wave of love and comfort surrounding him. Like as Sean's heart is beating, it's sending love from Sean's heart into Daniel's. It makes him feel so valued, so loved, so...perfect. Like nothing is wrong or ever could be. Everything he's worried about just vaporizes as he melts further into his brother's arms.

He continues listening to the rhythmic thumping of Sean's heart, of course smiling gleefully because he can't help it, and uses it as a way to send himself off to sleep.

B-dm. B-dm. B-dm. B-dm. B-dm.

Daniel's infinite comfort is accompanied by a single thought, I love you so much, Sean, and he's so sleepy he's even not sure if he said that out loud before he dozed off.

Chapter 10: I Just Need Cuddles

Summary:

Daniel really wants Sean to cuddle him, but he's afraid to ask.

Chapter Text

July 18th, 2017

It's another day in Puerto Lobos, and Sean & Daniel are still getting acquainted. It's been about 2 weeks since they arrived, and it's not easy to adjust, but they're doing their best.

Sean's already started picking up little odd jobs and started doing mechanic work to provide for the both of them.

They've used Karen's money to help get them on their feet up to this point. They wouldn't be able to get by without it.

It's been a hard-working day for Sean, but he's finally done and can rest for a while. He's sitting on the couch watching cartoons with Daniel, and he's just about to get up to make supper when Daniel scoots over to him and lies down over him, resting his head and shoulders in Sean's lap.

"Dude, what are you doing?" He says conspicuously, looking at Daniel, who puts on a sheepish expression.

"Hey. I gotta make dinner, dude," Sean says, grabbing Daniel and lifting him back up to a sitting position, then heading off to cook dinner, and Daniel puts on a pouty expression from behind Sean as he walks away.

# # #

After Sean & Daniel are finished eating, Sean gets up to clear the table and put the dishes in the sink, but before he can start Daniel rushes over to him and jumps into him, wrapping his arms around him.

"Thanks for the food," he says.

"O-Okay?" Sean says awkwardly, patting Daniel's back and leaving his grasp.

Later, Daniel asks him to play games on their PlayBox, another thing he's thankful that Karen's money allowed them to have.

Of course, Sean wouldn't deny himself the chance to play Wrestlemania Fight Club III with Daniel.

Daniel's gotten really really good at this game. Wow.

Out of a 15 match set, Sean manages to beat his little brother only twice.

"Wow dude, you've gotten so good at this game," Sean says after they finish their set.

"Yeah. Maybe we should try the co-op mode sometime, then we can work together. Hey…" He says this with a puppy eyes expression. "What if we tried to wrestle in real life?"

"I don't know, dude. I wouldn't want to get you hurt."

"It'd be fun! Come on," Daniel says, wrapping his arms around Sean and very half-heartedly attempting a wrestling move. "Well, can we at least pretend wrestle? Just put your arms around me and do pretend moves."

"I don't know, dude," Sean says, still not wanting to risk anything that could hurt Daniel.

Daniel frowns and gets up. "Okay," he says, walking drearily to his toy corner with an intense pout.

Now Sean knows something's up. He's noticed Daniel's weird behavior all day, but assumed it was just him trying to help cheer Sean up after so much work. But now it seems like something Sean did actually made him feel bad. And Sean can't allow that.

"Hey, Daniel?" Sean asks, sitting on the floor next to him. "What's wrong? I can tell something's up."

"I don't wanna."

"You don't wanna what? Tell me what's wrong? Talk to me? Talk at all? Dude, I love you. I just wanna make you feel better."

"O-okay, but...no, I was just being dumb," Daniel says, averting his eyes.

"Dude," Sean puts his hand on Daniel's shoulder. "Your feelings aren't dumb. No matter how you feel, I still care."

"But it's embarrassing."

"Life is embarrassing, dude. It's okay. I'm not going to embarrass you for feeling a certain way. What kind of brother would I be then?" Sean asks rhetorically.

"O-okay, fine," Daniel fidgets with the robot toy in his hand, like playing around with it makes the words easier to come out. "I just kinda-wanted you to hold me or something. I know it sounds dumb, but I just wanted to just-be held and I don't know. I really like being held." Daniel pretty much refuses to look at Sean, as if revealing a need for affection is somehow the most mortifying thing to him.

Sean just scoots right in and puts his arm around Daniel. "Aww, that's it? That's really nice, dude. All you have to do is ask, okay? If you need to be held or need to feel loved or something, I'm here. I love you, so how could I not wanna make you know that?"

Daniel still looks sheepish about it.

"Look, you wanna be held?" Sean smiles as he stands up. "Okay." He puts his arms under Daniel's shoulders and lifts him into his arms, and Daniel instinctively wraps his legs around Sean to hold onto him even more.

Sean carries him over to the couch and sits down. He holds Daniel close with both arms. "I love you, okay?" He says, giving Daniel multiple kisses on the top of his head. "If you need affection, you just have to ask, okay?" Sean says.

"I love you," Sean says again. "You're the best little bro I could ask for."

Daniel smiles and looks up at Sean, still looking so fragile. He always looks that way in Sean's arms. Like a baby. He doesn't need to act strong in front of Sean, he can just be-himself.

Despite how much he's grown, that sweet little kid who just needs cuddles every once in a while is still very much there.

"Thanks, Sean. So much," he says. "I love you, too."

Chapter 11: This Weather Has Me Wanting Love More Tangible, Something I Can Hold, Cause It's Getting Cold

Summary:

It's Daniel's first day at school in Puerto Lobos and Sean's helps him deal with the anxiety about it.

Chapter Text

September 13th, 2017

It's Daniel's first day of school in Puerto Lobos, and he hasn't really been looking forward to it.

Sure, it's nice to be able to feel normal and go to school, but...it's so scary. He doesn't know that much Spanish so he can't really talk with people, he'll be away from Sean all day-

Yeah. That's the worst part. He's barely left Sean's side for months. They were on the road together, camped together, worked on the farm together...then they were separated for about 2 months, and then it was back to always being there for each other.

Protecting each other. Making each other feel safe.

Daniel literally has been within Sean's vicinity, with no exceptions other than the occasional store trip where Sean, even more occasionally, goes alone. But even then, Daniel's at home, completely safe, with his own comforts and the knowledge Sean will be back soon.

With this, he has to go into a foreign environment, without Sean to help him at all, surrounded by people he doesn't know and only has a small ability to get to know, and is expected to do work while dealing with that.

That's fucking terrifying.

"Can I just please not go?" Daniel pleads yet another time to his brother.

"Dude, it's school. It's good for you. I know you're scared but-"

"I'm more than scared, Sean."

Sean sits down on the couch and looks at his watch. 7:32. They'll want to leave in about 20 minutes since school in Puerto Lobos begins at 8 AM.

Sean pats the couch cushion, gesturing for Daniel to sit.

"What's scaring you so bad?" He asks gently, wrapping an arm around Daniel's tiny shoulders and pulling him in close.

"I don't know. I don't know anyone."

"Dude, everyone will love you! You're the coolest."

Daniel looks up at Sean with a half smile, like he's trying to say "That's really nice, but yeah it doesn't convince me". Sean furrows his brow.

"You'll probably be the coolest kid at school. I bet everyone will wanna know what America was like. You'll be super popular."

"Sean?" Daniel hesitates. "It might be weird to say this, but," he sighs. "I really don't want that. I just wanna be normal. I don't want people to think I'm special. For any reason."

Sean sighs, then frowns. "I get that. Sorry, dude. But I'll always think you're special."

"Why, cause of my power?" Daniel says irritably.

"No, not that," Sean pauses, then sort of shakes his head, as if to get back on topic. "A-anyway, is there anything I could do to make you less scared about school?"

"Can't you come with?"

"I can just drop you off. I can't go to school with you. Plus, you don't want that. People would make fun of you if your brother came with. They'd call you a baby."

"So I'm being a baby by wanting my brother around? Thanks, Sean," He says, pouting.

"No, no! No way," Sean wraps his arms around Daniel's head and holds him close. "People just like to judge. I just wouldn't want you to feel bad because of it."

"I'm gonna feel bad either way, Sean," He says. "Why can't you come with?"

"Dude, it's good for you to get some time away from me and with, like, other people. You need to make friends and stuff," Sean explains. "You're still a kid. Most kids your age don't just hang out with their brother all day and help them work."

"But I love you," Daniel says. "I wanna hang out and help you."

"I know," Sean says, ruffling Daniel's hair. "But this is important. You need it. Think of it this way: It'll make me happy to see you go to school and learn and make friends. Do it for me, please?"

"O-okay. I'll try," but Daniel's sullen expression hasn't changed much.

"Look," Sean says. "How about…" He grabs the little bracelet on his arm and stretches it off. "You wear this?"

"Your bracelet?" He asks, confused.

"Yeah, dude. Whenever you get scared, or miss me, or something, look at that. Remind yourself that I'm okay. Remind yourself that I love you and I'm proud of how far you've come, and that you've got so much further I know you can go. And I'll just keep being proud of you, every step of the way. I'm your brother, and I love you."

"Just tell yourself that if you need it, okay, enano?"

# # #

Karen's truck pulls up to the curb at Puerto Lobos' resident primary school. It's 7:55. Five minutes until...yeah.

"I can just stay in the car till 8, right?" Daniel asks.

"Of course," Sean says, putting his hand on Daniel's shoulder again. "And remember. I believe in you. You've got this. I know it's kinda scary, but...trust me, it'll be worth it. And by the way..." Sean puts on a sly grin. "When I went to the store yesterday, I noticed a Dairy Queen down the road. So how about this; we go get you a Dilly Bar after school? Sound good?"

Daniel smirks. "Cool."

"And don't forget, you have your phone with you. If you need to call me for any reason, you have it." Sean says seriously. "I'll also make sure that I'm free near noon so if you wanna talk at lunch, I'm definitely up for it."

"Okay," Daniel breathes. "Thanks, Sean." He pauses for a second. "Okay, I think I better get going now." He grabs his backpack from between the seats, slips it on, then holds out his arms for one last hug before his first day. Sean wraps his arms around Daniel as he does the same, and before pulling away, gives him a kiss on his forehead.

"Have a good day!" Sean says as Daniel opens the door on his side. "Love you!"

Daniel waves goodbye and says, "Love you too!" As he hops onto the curb and Sean pulls away.

He backs up a bit further and watches as the truck gets further and further away until Sean turns a corner and he can't watch anymore.

And now he's left by himself.

He turns himself around from the empty road and towards the large school complex. It's going to be a big part of his life from now on.

Why does that feel so weird?

On top of the frightening aspects, it also just seems so weird.

School.

After running from everything, dealing with so much shit, getting hurt and manipulated and torn apart by the people, institutions, and public figures of society, now he's just integrating himself back in.

How can he pretend to be normal?

Other people's lives are only interrupted briefly, by singular events, a divorce, a loss, a...whatever. You learn to grow. To get over that. And most people his age haven't even dealt with something that serious.

Then there's him. Lost his father. Was violently ripped from him. Unwillingly murdered a police officer. Somehow achieved a supernatural power he could probably use to take over the world if he so pleased. At nine years old. And had to deal with all that while being homeless with only his brother there to save him the countless times Daniel knows he did.

And that's just the start of it.

He's not a kid anymore. But now everyone wants him to pretend to be one.

That's different from at home. But Daniel's home life right now isn't much different from most kids. All his needs are met. Including and especially the emotional ones.

That's the difference. He can be normal, not just act it but be it for some time because he doesn't feel afraid. He's got Sean who not only understands that he's gone through serious trauma and needs immense support, but also that he likes playing with his toys and getting cuddles from his brother like any other kid.

It's easy to be normal when you have someone who helps you be that way without pushing back what's abnormal about you.

But here? He has to act like he hasn't seen the worst cruelties of society and dealt with them firsthand.

Shit. Why did he have to consider all that before even stepping foot in the school?

Anyway. Time to stop dwelling. He walks up to the school main doors and starts pushing on them, to no avail, where he then notices the handle and pulls it open.

Once inside, he looks around sheepishly. There's an open area with a room on each side. On the right, the school administrative office and on the left, the school nurse. Up ahead, a door to the cafeteria which doubles as a gym, and the pathway right before breaks off into 2 lanes, classrooms littered on each side of each lane.

Taking his backpack off, he unzips the top pocket and pulls out a folded piece of paper. His schedule. He unravels it and looks at his list. Six classes. The first one; math. Shouldn't be that bad, it's just numbers, right? Sean's already taught him most of what he needs to know in the number department.

The classroom for his math is 406. Daniel stares down the halls.

Okay. Classrooms in the 100s and 300s are on the further side from the main entrance, 100s on the right, 300s on the left. And then 200s and 400s are closer to the door, 200s on the right and 400s on the left. Then the official school offices are labeled in the 500s and the cafeteria/gymnasium is 601.

So Room 406 should be down the left lane, on the left, about halfway down.

Daniel heads inside, noticing about half of the seats already filled with students.

"Hola!" A stout woman emerges from the corner. "¿Tú eres…?"

"Um," Daniel swallows. "Me llamo Daniel."

"¿Eres el nuevo estudiante?"

"...Sí." He pauses. "Yo...yo no hablo español muy bien."

"I see." The teacher says in English. "That's okay. Did they give you a class to help you learn?"

"Uhh...I think so. You speak English?" He says surprised.

"Yes. But not everyone does. Actually, most teachers don't. But that's alright. You're learning and you'll get around to it." She stops for a second. "Well, it's a pleasure to have you in class, Daniel. If there's anything I can do to help you out, let me know."

"Uh, where do I sit?"

"I'd prefer if you sit in the front or the back. Makes it easier to help you one on one. Other than that, take whatever seat you please," she says. "Oh, and-" She laughs in that way only stern middle-aged women do. "Sorry for not mentioning it sooner, gosh. I'm Mrs. Gomez. Or Señora Gomez. Whatever you prefer."

"Okay. Thanks."

That's good. At least one of his teachers speaks English. And odds are his Spanish Learning class - or whatever it's called, that teacher probably does as well or how could they help people who don't speak Spanish fluently?

Daniel decides to sit in the front. He walks over to a desk one away from the corner and places his backpack on the floor before sitting down.

Mrs. Gomez says something in Spanish that Daniel doesn't fully understand, but is pretty sure it's just that general notice teachers always give whenever a new student joins.

Luckily, she doesn't focus on him for too long and quickly moves into the math. Sean already taught him basic things about how to say numbers and things relating to them, so it's easy to understand. Mostly the same multiplication, division, and fractions he's done before.

Mrs. Gomez doesn't call on him for the whole class period, and he's not sure whether that's just a coincidence or she's just nice enough to not want to bring attention to him. Daniel likes to assume the latter.

The class concludes and Daniel turns in his worksheet with everyone else. He's about to line up at the door and wait for the bell, but Mrs. Gomez gestures him aside.

Probably just some more 'it's your first day' stuff he needs to know, right? Unless he did something wrong…

Luckily, he doesn't have time to dwell on those irrational worries.

"I wanted to know if you had any questions?" Mrs. Gomez starts. "I looked at your worksheet, I can tell you understand it pretty good, but let me know if you need any help, okay?"

"Okay." Daniel nods. "Yeah, uh, my brother taught me some stuff already, so I know, like...math stuff."

"That's nice. Just let me know if any questions do come up, okay?"

"Yeah, okay. Thanks, Mrs. Gomez."

Daniel turns towards the door and notices a few kids staring. 2 of them are looking in that "he's kinda interesting, isn't he?" way but there's another guy who looks...angry? Daniel's not sure he's angry at him in particular, but it does make him uneasy.

One of the non-angry looking kids asks him for his name and where he's from.

"Me llamo Daniel. Soy de…" He pauses for a second. Should he really tell them he's from the U.S.? Well, they probably know, right? He started school like a week later than everyone else and speaks with the teacher in English. There's no harm in telling. Still, it feels weird to reveal details about himself so freely after being in hiding for so long. "Estados Unidos. Mucho gusto."

Then, he adds again, "Yo no hablo español muy bien."

Then, the bell rings and everyone starts to pile out of the room, and on one hand, he kinda wanted to talk more and get to know people, but it's also extremely awkward when you know a total of only like 15 possible things you can say to someone, so at least it stopped that from occurring.

Daniel's next classes go by with, well, not no hiccups but not many. His second period is Spanish class, not, like, Spanish Learning class but actual Spanish class, like how American schools teach English. That one was really hard. He had no clue what was going on.

There were a few points where the teacher, Mr. Miron, looked at him and he thought maybe he asked a question but he didn't but Daniel was still trying to figure that out and-

Yeah. That was embarrassing. It really sucked.

At one point he started to feel the anxiety of it all just get to him. He had all this going on around him that he didn't understand and it was weird and so panic inducing, he just couldn't take it, he felt like he had to jump out of his desk.

But then he reminded himself of Sean's bracelet. He kinda just stared at it at first, then he placed his hand on top of it and closed his eyes. He probably looked weird doing that. He hopes no one noticed.

Then he just reassured himself like Sean would.

I love you, enano.

I know you can do this.

I believe in you.

It's okay. You're safe. Calm down...it's alright. I promise it's okay.

You trust me, right?

"Yes," Daniel accidentally whispers out loud to the Sean in his mind, which at first made him feel embarrassed but thankfully, looking around, he realizes either no one noticed or no one cared. He shuts his eyes again.

Then I'm telling you it's okay. You're safe. I promise you.

"I believe you, Sean," Daniel says, this time only in his head.

I'm your brother and I love you, enano. You got this.

"I love you too, Sean."

And that really helped. It was like a weight being lifted off his shoulders, but a purely emotional one. Spanish was still the worst though, but he kept reminding himself how much Sean believes in him and it became more of a "well, this sucks right now" kind of thing than a "this is really bad how am I gonna deal with this" kind of thing.

After Spanish, he had Music, which was actually the best. All they really did was sing and play instruments, which isn't exactly his thing, but when it's something more physical than social like that, it makes it easy.

It's also easier because the words that come up on the screen to sing are all in writing. It's a lot easier to interpret that way.

His fourth class and last before lunch was his Spanish Learning Center, where he and a small group of other kids who don't fluently speak it are helped with learning it. It's probably his best class. Easiest to understand, least amount of other students, and pretty calm compared to everything else.

And then it's time for lunch.

The cafeteria isn't too stressful, there are lots of students coming and going and a lot of talking Daniel doesn't understand, but Sean packed him his own lunch so he doesn't have to wait in line and can just go and sit down.

The tables in the cafeteria are these weird foldable tables with benches connected to them and wheels for easy transportation. Since it's also used for gym class, they have to be able to set up and remove the cafeteria stuff easily.

Daniel heads to one of the tables in the corner to eat. Hopefully no one will come over to sit.

Opening his lunchbox, he finds a note from Sean:

Hey enano! Hope your day's going well. If you wanna call and have a chat, I'm open right now. Love you!

Oh yeah. He almost forgot. Hell yeah he's gonna call Sean. He quickly pulls out his phone and dials Sean's number while starting on lunch.

"Hello?" He hears Sean's voice, and it instantly dissolves whatever anxiety was present.

"Hey Sean!" Daniel greets him enthusiastically. "How are you doing at the shop?"

"It's been going well. You know. The usual stuff. Had 2 dudes come in earlier to get their car fixed," Sean says. "Been a pretty average day. Have you been doing well at school?"

"Uh, yeah, it's been...cool. I had Math, Spanish, Music, and then, uh...Spanish Learning today."

"Have you felt scared at all?"

"Uh, yeah. But not too bad. I just reminded myself of the bracelet and thought about what you said and that really helped me calm down."

There's a short silence, and it gives off that weird kind of feeling when you just intuitively know the thing you just said made the other person really happy even before they say anything.

"That's great, enano!" Sean yells excitedly. "I'm glad to hear that."

Sean & Daniel continue to discuss Daniel's school day, Sean's boredom at home, and their plans after school and Daniel signs off promising to give Sean "the biggest hug ever. EVER." When he gets let out.

"So you better be ready for that," Daniel says confidently.

"Not if I give you the biggest hug first," Sean says lovingly.

"No way! The hug is mine to give."

Sean laughs. "Alright, enano. I'll hold you to it, alright?"

"Okay." Daniel says, then softly adds, "You'll hold me in general, too, right?"

"You can bet on it."

"Cool," Daniel says. "Ok, lunch is gonna end soon, so I need to go."

"Alright. See you after school, okay? I love you, enano."

"Love you too! Bye, Sean."

"Bye, Daniel."

"Wait! Actually…" Daniel starts shyly. "Can we say 'I love you' one more time, please?"

"Okay. Sure. I love you, Daniel," Sean says, just as full of conviction as the first time.

"I love you too, Sean. Okay," he laughs. "Now, bye."

"See you later, enano!"

And then he hangs up.

It's crazy how no matter what Sean says it can always sound so full of love.

Like, Sean could say "I like to eat trees" and if he was speaking to Daniel it would somehow be the most comforting brotherly sounding thing in the world.

It was nice to get that extra bit of reassurance in the middle of the day. He's definitely had some struggles and getting to speak to him gave him a lot of encouragement to close out the day strong.

After lunch he has gym, which honestly, he never liked. Occasionally they'd have some kind of activity he actually enjoys, but it was always a mostly annoying class. At least it's not very confusing to understand.

His final class of the day is science, which is...yeah. He has absolutely no idea what was going on in that class. It was really stressful. It's a lot of concepts uncommon in general language so he didn't understand at least ninety percent of what the teacher was saying.

But at least the day is over. For a first day at school it was about...average. Could've been better, but also could've been way worse.

He just can't wait to see Sean. It's been like 7 hours. That's the longest he's gone without him in months. He just wants to be in the safety of his brother's arms again.

As Daniel swings the large school door open and piles out with the other kids, he sees his big brother leaned up against his truck waiting for him at the curb.

Daniel quickly starts pushing through the crowd trying to get to Sean, and once free he starts bolting to him.

Sean only has a few seconds to react before Daniel literally jumps straight into his arms. Sean stumbles a bit but thankfully doesn't lose his balance as he wraps his arms around his little brother and holds him there.

Daniel, still in Sean's arms, softly rests his head on Sean's shoulder and finally greets him with, "Hey, Sean."

"Hey, enano. You have a good day?"

"Yeah. Well, I mean, it was okay."

"You wanna talk about it?" Sean asks, putting Daniel down and opening the door of the truck.

"Yeah, alright," Daniel says, hopping onto the seat as Sean heads around to the other side.

Sean starts pulling the truck out, and as promised, gets on the highway south to the nearest Dairy Queen, bringing up his phone and shuffling his Spotify playlist to "A Song To Pass The Time" by Bright Eyes.

"So how was it? Your first day." Sean asks after a brief silence.

"It was fine. I have a class that's supposed to help me learn Spanish, but I don't know how much that'll help." He says, trying to be nonchalant.

"Well, I can still teach you, right?" Sean softly squeezes Daniel's shoulder. "It'll be fine."

"Yeah," Daniel says. "I guess." He stops for a second. "A-anyway, my other classes were fine. I didn't really understand some stuff, but it wasn't too bad."

"How were the teachers?"

"Uh...fine. Some of them were really cool. Though some of them were kinda...not."

"I'm sure as you get to know them better they'll, uh...accommodate you more."

"I hope."

Sean looks over at Daniel, who still seems a little anxious about it.

"Don't worry, enano. The first day's always the hardest. It'll get better. Promise."

"Thanks, Sean," Daniel says matter-of-factly.

Sean pulls into the drive thru and sets in behind another car.

"What flavour do you want, dude? Cherry like back home or…?"

"Yeah, I'll just get cherry. Are you getting something?"

"No," Sean says. "I don't wanna spend the money."

"Then why am I getting something?" Daniel flexes his eyebrows perplexedly.

"Well, it's your first day at school here, so...you deserve it," Sean smiles.

"And you don't for working super hard?" Daniel laughs.

"It's fine, dude. Plus I'd have to hold it while driving."

"I can hold it."

"No, dude, really, it's fine. I never really cared for them anyway," Sean says. "But I knew you did so I wanted to, you know, reward you for being strong with school and stuff."

"Okay," Daniel says, satisfied with the answer. He beams at Sean in the signature "just when I thought my big brother couldn't be a better brother than he already was" look.

Sean orders a cherry Dilly Bar over the intercom and hands it to Daniel, who's smile could make even the most cold hearted of us warm, and he digs right into it.

# # #

Later that night, when Sean & Daniel are just heading to bed, Daniel has something to ask Sean.

"Hey, uh, Sean? Daniel says, cuddled up close in his adorable Hawt Dawg Man themed pajamas.

"Yeah, buddy?" Sean says lovingly, looking down at his little bro.

"Uh, this might be a weird question," Daniel says. "But this morning, you said you'd always think I'm special, but not cause of my power?"

Oh, yeah, that," Sean says heartfully. "I forgot. What I was gonna say is," and as he says this, he subtly starts pulling Daniel closer, "I'll always think you're special, cause...you're my brother, you know? You're the best little bro I could ask for. I think you're special just because like...you are. At least to me."

Daniel burrows completely into Sean's arms. "Thanks, Sean. I think you're special in that way too. The best brother ever! That's you."

"Aw, thanks, dude," Sean says, wrapping his arms comfortingly around Daniel's head. "I know school stuff is kinda scary, but I'll still be here to help you. Promise. I love you."

"I love you too. Thanks, Sean. For everything."

"Thank you too."

"For what?" Daniel asks strangely.

"For making me a better brother. For-being there for me and shit."

"Dude," Daniel says. "It's you who made me a better brother and was there for me. I didn't...do so much."

"Daniel," Sean says in a painfully loving way. "Yeah you did, okay? You're awesome. You helped me deal with so much. I probably would've given up without you."

"No way! You're so strong, I don't think anything could make you give up."

"Have you ever thought that the reason I was so strong was because I had to be to protect you?" Sean asks. "I couldn't let you get hurt, you know?"

Daniel goes silent.

"Like-think of it this way; you know how you used my bracelet to help you calm down today? And keep yourself grounded?" Sean says. "You've done that to help me a lot too. And you still do."

"I...never thought of it that way. That's actually really nice," Daniel pauses for a bit and thinks over his words, and continues with lots of excitement in his voice. "Sometimes I feel bad because you help me stay calm and stuff so much and I wish I could help you like that, but I didn't realize, uh…"

"That you already do?" Sean smiles gently.

"Yeah. That's so cool."

"Well, I guess it fits all the other cool things about my super cool brother!" Sean says enthusiastically.

"As if. You're the coolest Diaz brother."

"Debatable."

Daniel laughs. "No you are and you will accept it!"

"Ok, ok, night Sean doesn't have the energy morning Sean would have to argue about this," he chuckles.

Daniel clutched his arms tighter around Sean's shoulders and Sean holds him there, giving him tons of kisses on his head.

The Diaz brothers fall asleep that way, still cuddled up so preciously and warmly, where anyone could easily tell both of them love their brother more than anything else in the world.

Chapter 12: My Private Life is an Inside Joke and No One Will Explain it to Me, But We'll Be Everything That We Ever Need

Summary:

Daniel's been dealing with some tough thoughts lately, and it's taken a toll upon his mental state. After Sean learns of this, he endeavours to do everything he can to help and makes sure he feels loved.

Chapter Text

February 17th, 2018

It's early in the morning in Puerto Lobos, and Sean's just waking up.

He tends to wake up a few hours before Daniel does just to set up shop for the day and make Daniel breakfast so he can wake up to a nice meal.

Grabbing his morning coffee, he heads to the living room to check on the news for the day.

But when he turns on the light, he nearly jumps upon seeing Daniel on the couch. Daniel looks back at him with the same expression.

"Oh...sorry I scared you," Daniel says meekly, still in his little Hawt Dawg Man print pajamas.

"Uh, yeah...why are you up so early today?" Sean asks tiredly.

"Well, I couldn't sleep, so...I went to watch TV, I guess."

Sean looks at the TV. It's switched off.

"Really? Then why is the TV off?"

"Uh…" Daniel averts his eyes like he always does when he's nervous.

"Is something wrong?" Sean asks, setting his coffee on the table and sitting down beside Daniel.

"It's nothing really."

"You sure? You know I can tell when something's up, right?"

"Yeah…" Daniel still won't look at Sean directly for more than a few seconds.

"We're brothers. We don't hide things from each other. If something's wrong, promise you'll tell me, okay?" Sean ruffles Daniel's shaggy hair, which is desperately in need of a haircut, it's longer than back in Humboldt.

"Well, okay." Daniel looks at Sean, and although his eyes are smiling, his face isn't. "I guess it's just...I've been kinda sad lately."

Sean immediately frowns and clutches Daniel closer. "What do you mean by kinda sad?"

"I don't know. I haven't felt like...normal, I guess," Daniel admits. "Sometimes I feel like I don't belong here."

Sean's face softens into a weak tone. "Of course you belong here. You're my brother." Sean brings Daniel in closer to him in a half-hearted hug.

"Well, I don't know. I just feel weird. I try to avoid thinking about...the heist...your eye...Haven Point…" Daniel swallows deeply. "Dad," he says. "But sometimes it just...hurts."

"I'm sorry," Sean says with a tear forming in his eye. "You should've told me. You know I wanna help with these things."

"I didn't want to be...a burden on you. You've got too much to deal with to worry about me." Daniel says in a weak hush.

"Daniel," Sean says strongly, wrapping his arms around Daniel's head and pulling him close. "You will never be a burden to me. You're my brother, dude. I love you," He says, so iridescent with love. "In fact, if I could help, or cheer you up at all, it would actually make me really happy."

"Okay, enano?"

Sean hears a sharp whimper from his arms. He stays firm, holding Daniel calmly and lovingly as he cries into Sean's arms.

"Shhhh...shhhhh...it's okay, enano. It's okay," he says, rubbing Daniel's back softly to calm him. "Let it all out," He gives Daniel a soft kiss on the top of his head.

Daniel stays submerged in Sean's arms for a while even after he's stopped crying, and Sean keeps reassuring him.

"I love you, alright, enano?" Sean says in that softly loving voice that always helps Daniel calm down. "I love you more than you could ever imagine. And I want you to know that I'm here for you. Okay? I would do anything to help you feel better."

"You really," Daniel sniffles. "Mean that?"

"Of course, Daniel. You're the best brother I could ask for. So is there anything I could do to help? I really want to help you, enano."

"I-I don't know. Don't you hav-hhave to work?"

"I'll take a day off if I have to. I can manage it. Don't worry about it. I just wanna know what I can do to help. I love you, Daniel."

"I guess, maybe-I'd just like to spend the day together? We don't have to do anything special," Daniel says. "I'd just...really like that."

"That sounds perfect, enano. Is there anything specific you would like to do?"

"I don't know. Whatever's cool with you. But right now...can you just keep holding me?" Daniel asks heartfully. "I need it," he whispers painfully.

"Of course," Sean says, pulling Daniel back into his arms. "You know how much I love you?" Sean says reassuringly, giving Daniel more kisses. "So much."

# # #

Throughout the day, Sean keeps asking Daniel what he wants to do, but he never has an answer, so they mostly just sit together and watch TV.

"Are you sure, dude?" Sean asks hesitantly. "We can do anything."

"No...I just...I don't know, I don't wanna hassle you."

"You're not hassling me. You never are." Sean says, putting a supporting hand on Daniel's shoulder. Daniel lightly flinches. "You know what? How about we go to the store? And I'll get you anything you want."

"No way!" Daniel shakes his head tightly. "We can't spend all that money."

"Dude, we totally can. And you know I love to spoil you with toys and shit."

"But aren't we on a tight budget?" He asks cutely.

Sean bends over. "You wanna be let in on a little secret? Our budget isn't actually that tight," Sean reveals. "Have you ever noticed that every time we've been at the store, I always bought anything you asked for?"

"Uh…" Daniel stares into space, thinking. "Yeah?"

"Exactly. I just told you our budget was tight because...I don't know, I guess because it feels more special to get things when you think we're on a tight budget and I'm spending some of it on things for you," Sean laughs. "Maybe that's dumb, I don't know."

Daniel looks up at Sean in wonder.

There's that face again. That "my big brother was already the best but is now even more the best" face.

"No...that's super nice," Daniel's expression is like the true extent of how much Sean loves him is coming to fruition.

He knew it already, but it's easy to cloud your mind with other thoughts in times like this.

Sometimes it's the little things. And this is that. The fact that on something as tiny as a store trip, Sean was still thinking about what to say with the plan of making Daniel feel as special as possible?

That's…amazing.

"So how about it, dude?" Sean asks. "For one day, you can be the most spoiled kid in Puerto Lobos. You really deserve that."

"I...don't know. I feel like…" Daniel just sits and taps his leg. "Even though you say that, I still think I don't deserve it. That's too good for me."

"Daniel…" Sean frowns, sitting next to Daniel close. "I...don't let yourself think that. It's not true. You're amazing, okay? And I love you. And I wanna…I don't know...I know this isn't gonna heal everything you feel, but I wanna distract you from the bad thoughts."

"I just wanna surround you with the good ones, you know? Make you feel important. Because you are to me."

Daniel averts his eyes.

"So, please? I get maybe you don't wanna go, but I want to do something...more...to help you," Sean says, getting stuck on his words often. "It would make me happy."

Daniel gets a look on his face that Sean can easily decipher. It's a look of "why did you have to say that? You could've let me be miserable but you just had to say it'd make you happy...and I can't pass on an opportunity to do that."

"Ok. Fine. But just on one condition."

# # #

Daniel's "condition" was that Sean had to hold him around the store. He couldn't bear to not be holding on to his brother, and Sean, who was desperate to help, of course accepted.

Daniel came to the store still in his pajamas. He didn't want to change, and Sean wasn't one to start caring about it now. All that matters is that he's getting time out and doing stuff. That's good for him.

Sean carries Daniel around the store, pushing the cart in front (which he suggested for Daniel to sit in, but he refused to leave his brother's arms) and keeps showing him different things, asking if he wants them. He has to keep reassuring Daniel that it's okay to ask for things.

When they're done, they exit the store with three boxes of Choc-O-Crisp bars, a tin of assorted chocolate, a full playset of Series 3 Power Bear action figures, a giant Lego Batmobile, the next installment of Super Street Heros for his PlayBox, and a slice of pizza from the store cafe.

Finally, Sean sets Daniel in the car (holy shit his back was starting to kill him) and loads everything into the truck while Daniel starts scarfing down his pizza.

"So, is there anything else you might wanna get up to while we're at it? Don't feel bad for asking."

Daniel, whose mood has improved, perhaps from the purchases, being held for over half an hour, or both, looks rejuvenated with energy. "Could we maybe, uh, go see Hawt Dawg Warriors? It's a movie. I saw commercials for it on TV. And it's in 3-D!

"Uh, yeah. Sounds great," Sean says, very well knowing he can't watch 3-D movies due to his one eye.

When they arrive at the theater, Sean immediately endeavours to get tickets to a non 3-D showing, but for some reason the theater alternates their movies weekly between 3-D and regular, and just his luck; the alternating begins on each Saturday.

Refusing to make Daniel wait a week to see the movie, he decides to purchase tickets for a 3-D showing.

Daniel, who's still in his pajamas, also has no shoes, which is technically against the dress code, but luckily it seems none of the employees have the heart to tell an adorable kid he can't watch his favorite movie.

It's not the worst thing with just one eye. Sean doesn't use his 3-D glasses, no point in that, he just watches it normally. It's a bit weirdly layered and kinda makes him sick, but it's not unwatchable.

It doesn't matter, anyway. All that matters is making Daniel happy.

# # #

After the movie's over, Sean & Daniel head back to the truck.

"That was the best movie ever!" Daniel exclaims, buckling his seatbelt.

"Yeah?" Sean lightly smiles. "I'm glad you enjoyed it."

"What did you think of it?"

"It was pretty cool...you know? It's definitely the kind thing I was into as a kid," Sean says, looking over at Daniel.

"Wait…" Daniel's face turns into a small pout. "How did-you watch it with one eye?"

"Uh…"

"Sean?"

"Well...don't worry about it, dude," Sean pats Daniel's shoulder. "It was still fine."

"You sure?" Daniel puts on a slanted expression.

"Yeah, don't fret about it. Plus, the point was for you to have fun, okay?" Sean breathes softly. "And it just made me happy to see the way your face lit up while watching it."

"Yeah. Okay," Daniel says, content.

The day keeps going and the Diaz brothers spend it all together. They play Daniel's new game on the PlayBox, go swimming out behind the house, and play some tabletop games to end off the night. Daniel has one last request as they're heading off to sleep.

"Hey Sean?" He asks babily. "Thanks for today. I still don't feel...that great, but I feel better. I couldn't have done it without you."

"I'll always be here, okay?" He ruffles Daniel's hair. "Don't forget that. If you need anything, don't be afraid to ask. I love you."

"Thanks, Sean. I love you, too. So, um…" Daniel says innocently. "Could you tell me the wolf story? It's been a while," He breathes. "I'd really like that. And it helps me fall asleep." Daniel scoots right up next to Sean, and Sean, as if on cue, puts his arms around him.

"Of course," Sean says, the words entirely made of love. "So…"

"The Wolf Brothers were doing great in their new home, the big wolf even started a business and the little one was going to school."

"The big wolf was so proud of his little brother, he was growing up so fast that when the big wolf thought about it he couldn't help but tear up."

"But the little wolf started to hurt. The journey was tough on him and it brought him thoughts that were really scary. It made him sad."

"He didn't want to tell the big wolf because he knew it would make him sad too. He thought it would be better to keep it to himself."

"But he didn't know just how far his brother's love went. One day, the big wolf talked with him about these feelings, and they spent the whole day together having fun like the old days to try to cheer him up."

"This helped the little wolf realize something important; these thoughts aren't things to confront on your own. He realized his brother could help him. And his brother wanted more than anything to help."

"They both knew that after what they've gone through, feeling this kind of hurt is expected. But it isn't impossible to defeat."

"The little wolf realized that he wasn't alone in this fight. He didn't have to struggle all on his own."

"That day, more than he knew before, he saw how much his brother loved him. The big wolf showed him how worthy of love he is, and he promised to do it every single day from now on."

"Because despite his doubts, the little wolf was the best brother the big one could ask for. He deserves to be loved just for who he is.

"To say it simply, the little wolf is the best and he deserves all the love he needs."

"And the big wolf will, forever, make sure he knows that."

"Alright, Daniel?" Sean says, holding Daniel in his arms, whose eyes are closed. He gives him a light kiss on his head."I love you, enano."

Daniel wraps his fingers around Sean's hand and softly squeezes it. "I love you too, Sean." He whispers.

"Goodnight."

Chapter 13: We Grow, To Form Some Kind of Code, of Flesh and Bone, No, You're Not Alone

Summary:

Sean & Daniel discuss Daniel's anxiety about Lisbeth and come up with ways to counter it.

Chapter Text

June 12th, 2017

Sean & Daniel have been hanging out in Away for about a month now, and it's been such a gift.

They both needed that after Haven Point.

And as Sean has recovered physically, he's made even more of an effort to help Daniel recover from Lisbeth's brainwashing.

It's a scary topic. Sean knows Daniel doesn't like to think about it, so he tends to avoid discussing it unless Daniel brings it up first. It's better to avoid reminding him of it.

But today, Daniel asked if Sean and him could head to the canyon to talk about it.

"It's just one of those days...where I can't get her out of my head," Daniel said.

So after Sean & Daniel finished dinner, they told Karen they were gonna go hiking together.

"You sure you don't want me to come along?" Karen asked.

"No, it's fine, Karen," Sean said. "This is more of a brother thing," Sean gestured awkwardly. "We just need to talk about some stuff."

And so they were on their way. It tends to stay light out until almost 8 here, so they shouldn't be short on time.

The breezy air of the canyon has become a place for expression for Daniel.

At the settlement in Away, he almost never mentions Lisbeth, or the heist, or anything traumatizing about their journey. He rarely shows a sign of fear or weakness.

But here, his heart spills out all over the floor.

It's not like he's putting on an act in Away or something. Both of those are him. He likes to avoid talking about these things because just thinking of them is panic inducing.

But sometimes, you have to face your demons. You have to let out some of your feelings, even if it hurts you to do that.

And that's what this special space is for. Everything that happens here, stays here. Here, it's just a place for Daniel to release his thoughts and for Sean to help him deal with them, nothing more, nothing less.

It's a place for Sean to mend Daniel's torn heart so others won't see the tears. The unnatural tears.

And those tears will reopen, but each time they get sewn back up, their power gets weaker and weaker.

And one day, there'll be so many patches sewn on, that, while it will be messy and unorganized, the scars won't reopen. They both just hope that day is soon.

"So…" Sean says, setting his backpack down on the cliff and sitting down. "What's up?"

"Um…" Daniel hesitates, going over the words over and over. It's the kind of moment where you've rehearsed everything you wanted to say for days and days but when the time comes to say it, it just doesn't feel right.

Daniel never really knows how to start. His internal conflict doesn't even make sense to him, so how can he expect Sean to understand it?

He takes a deep breath, and parts his lips like he's about to speak, but still, nothing comes out.

Sean scoots over to him and puts his arm around him. "It's okay. Take your time. There's no rush."

"Thanks, Sean," Daniel says, still not beginning what he wanted to say. His heartbeat just keeps going faster and his breathing, irregular.

"Hey, are you okay, dude?" Sean asks, noticing Daniel's predisposition. "It's alright," Sean wraps his arms around Daniel, pulling his head into Sean's chest so he can hear his heart beat. That always helped Daniel calm down, even when he was little.

"Take your time. Go about it however you want. You don't have to do anything you don't want to," Sean reassures him.

"O-ok," Daniel spits out, startled, like he just woke up. He pulls out of Sean's grasp. His face is twisted.

"Ok." He takes some slow breaths. "I just don't know how to...start talking about it."

"Well, maybe talk about how you've been doing with it lately."

"Ok…so," He pauses once again. "Lately, I, uh, I guess my big problem is that-like, I can't stop thinking about her. Lisbeth. But I don't want to think about her. I hate even being reminded that she exists. But my brain keeps thinking about her."

"Hmm." Sean ponders. "How does it make you feel when you think of Lisbeth? Do you feel sad?"

"Sometimes?" He says inconsistently. "But mostly, it makes me angry, and really really anxious."

"What kinds of things are you thinking about like this?"

"Like, just Lisbeth in general. I mean sometimes I think about certain things-like what happened to you, but a lot of times it's just in general."

"What do you think makes it so scary?"

"I don't know. Sometimes I wonder if I should've-killed her. Then she couldn't hurt anyone else."

"Enano, she has no power. I doubt she's hurting anyone else," Sean says calmly. "She lost the church and she only came after you because of your power. She doesn't have the means or motivation to hurt more people."

"I-I guess that's right. But I think it's more than that, too. I hate her, Sean," Daniel says deeply. "I...I don't wanna sound bad, but sometimes-I really, really wish I'd killed her. Or could kill her right now."

Sean frowns.

"Is that bad?" Daniel says with a reflective expression.

"I don't know. I mean, she did hurt both of us a lot, so...I guess it's not bad to say that."

"Then why do you have that expression?" Daniel snarls back.

"I guess it's just because...a year ago, you were just any normal kid...things that serious didn't exist to you," Sean explains. "It makes me sad."

Daniel puts on a pout.

"And that's not because she doesn't deserve, like, bad things, it's just…you really aren't a kid anymore," A few tears roll down Sean's cheeks.

"Yeah." Daniel pulls his knees up and rests his arms and head on them.

"It's not your fault. It's just how it happened."

"I know."

"And it doesn't change how much I love you. You know that, right?"

"Yeah."

"But about the Lisbeth thing-what hurts about it? Like, thinking about her dying?"

"Everything about Lisbeth hurts. I don't wanna think about her at all. But I can't stop it. How do I stop it?"

"I…" Sean puts his arms around Daniel awkwardly. "That's hard, enano, but I think the best thing to do is turn that active energy into passive energy."

"What do you mean?"

"I read it in a book at Claire & Stephen's," Sean says. "Instead of actively dwelling on it, just remember that it doesn't matter anymore. And like, that sounds dumb, cause of course your experience matters and your hurt matters, but," Sean pauses. "It doesn't have to own you. Lisbeth has no, uh, physical control over you, so why should she have control in your head?"

"Instead, you can make it more passive," Sean says. "Where instead of worrying about Lisbeth, you can just force those thoughts away. Your feelings still exist, but instead of hurting you, they just, yeah, they just exist."

"Isn't that what I've been trying to do?" Daniel asks. "Cause I haven't been able to. Lisbeth still scares me everyday."

"Kinda, but-how about this?" Sean grabs a notebook and marker from his backpack. "Let's come up with reasons why Lisbeth doesn't matter. It can be anything, big or small. I'll start. So how about: She has no power?" Sean says, writing it in the notebook. "She can't hurt you, or me, or anybody else."

"But how do we know that?" Daniel asks.

"We're together now, and she can't separate us," Sean reassures him. "And like I said before, how would she hurt anybody like that again? And why would she anyway?"

"Y-yeah, I guess that makes sense."

"Now," Sean hands the notebook to Daniel. "I want you to write down a reason. It can be anything as long as it makes you feel better."

"Uh…" Daniel gets a mischievous look on his face. "She's just a loser and I bet her life sucks now. Everyone probably hates her. That's what you get." He says as he writes it down, then hands it back.

Sean tries to suppress a chuckle, knowing he probably shouldn't laugh at a time like this. "Ok," he breathes. "Now, how about, uh-She didn't change anything about how much I love you, okay? She tried to separate us and hurt us, but she completely failed."

Daniel's turn. "Uh...Sarah-Lee is safe and with Jacob, and she got her medicine. Lisbeth wasn't able to hurt her either."

"That's good, enano. You're doing great," Sean says. "Now, uh, next one," Sean thinks for a second. "You don't need to worry about Lisbeth. Worrying about her won't hurt her or get back at her, and it's only gonna hurt you more, so it's not worth it."

"That's a good way to think about it," Daniel says, showing off the slightest smile. "I guess...would it make sense to write "She's not that big of a problem"? Or does that sound weird?"

"No, that sounds great. And it's true," Sean says, determined. "She can't do much, she has no power, lost her supporters, and everyone you care about is safe so how much of a problem can she really be?"

"Right. Wait, I have another one."

"Go for it."

"How about-If I'm ever worrying about her, you'll always be there? Like, to take care of me and reassure me and uh-hold me?" Daniel says sweetly.

"Of course, dude. I'll always be here for you. Don't be afraid to ask to reach out to me when you need it."

"Uh, speaking of that-can you please hold me, at least for a bit? That would really help. Sorry to be annoying."

"Dude! You're not annoying me, ever," Sean says, heartfelt. "Well, okay, maybe sometimes, but that's what brothers are supposed to do," He laughs. "Of course I'll hold you, come here."

Daniel scoots over to Sean and Sean picks him up into his arms. It's a little awkward because they're sitting on uncomfortable and firm rocks, but Daniel ends up resting in Sean's lap with Sean's arms wrapped tightly around him.

"Thank you so much," Daniel says purely.

"It's okay, enano."

"I love you, Sean."

"I love you too, Daniel."

# # #

Sean & Daniel, after they're done with their signature Diaz brothers cuddles, spend the whole rest of the day writing down reasons, some serious and some a bit silly (Daniel suggested some things like "I bet the next time Lisbeth takes a shit, there won't be any toilet paper in the whole town!" and "Me and Chris could totally defeat her in battle! She's no match for a superhero!") They begin to pack up, though Sean has one last thing to add to Daniel's list:

"It would make me really happy if you didn't worry about her. She doesn't matter. You've got this." And it's of course signed off with "I love you so much, enano. Don't ever forget that."

Chapter 14: You're Holding Me Like Water In Your Hands

Summary:

On the way out of America, Daniel's wound starts bleeding. Sean freaks out and Daniel helps him calm down so he can help Daniel.

Chapter Text

July 4th, 2017

Sean & Daniel are roaring down the international highway from the U.S. to Mexico.

They're shocked, they're hurt, but they've made it. They've achieved their goal. All there is now is to move forward.

Sean turns the radio knob up high to drown out his thoughts.

Things aren't gonna be easy from here on out, but at least they'll have a home. No more running. Daniel will finally be safe. It'll be easier to support him then. It's easier to keep a foundation up when the winds of change don't blow so hard at it.

But what happened back there? Daniel really took out that whole police barricade. He's gotten so strong, does he even need Sean to feel safe anymore?

No, he shouldn't think about it that way. He knows Daniel needs him. And he'll be there for him, always.

When Daniel reached for his hand, he grabbed it right back, and with that he internalized a promise; he won't ever let Daniel get hurt like that again. He's going to make sure that Daniel is safe forever.

They drive all evening the way to Puerto Lobos, keeping the police scanner on to make sure they aren't spotted by the patrols sent out after the border incident.

This has the unfortunate side effect of taking them much longer to reach Puerto Lobos. What would normally only be a 4 to 5 hours drive from the border becomes almost twice as long because of the back roads they're taking.

It's already gotten dark and Sean decides it's time to pull off the road and get some rest. They're only about an hour and a half from Puerto Lobos now, and since they're both tired from this insane day, it's best to resume driving in the morning.

"Hey, Sean?" Daniel asks as he's pulling off the road.

"Yeah, buddy?" Sean says, squeezing the tiny hand he's still holding onto.

"Um...my wound is, uh-bleeding," Daniel turns his shoulder to Sean to reveal a bunching of loose bandages slick with blood.

"What?! Fuck. I-I…"

"It was hurting earlier, but it just started bleeding like that."

"Shit, what-" Sean pulls his hand away from Daniel's and up to his forehead, the sweat from his hand matching the sweat from his head. "How much does it hurt?"

"It's not that bad, that's why I didn't mention it before. But the bleeding is scary."

"Yeah...okay," He forces himself to think, and fast. He can't take Daniel to a hospital, a 10 year old with a gunshot wound is bound to raise suspicion, all the pharmacies are probably closed and they're in the middle of nowhere. The gravity hits him.

There's nothing he can do.

Sean starts panicking. Even though he knows he shouldn't, he can't help it, he freezes with the scared look on his face and starts crying.

"Sean? Sean, don't-'' Sean's freaking out is starting to get to Daniel too. He just needs to ground Sean. It hurts to see his big brother like this.

Daniel pulls himself into Sean and puts his arms around Sean's shoulders.

"Hey," Daniel says, trying to be calm. "Don't freak out, please. It's okay, Sean. We're safe. It doesn't hurt so bad, but I just need a bit of help."

Sean can't steady his breathing or bring himself to move.

Daniel pulls away and puts his hands on Sean's shoulders and looks him right in the eyes.

"Look at me." Daniel says. "Just look at me. Everything's okay, I promise. But you can't help me if you're panicking, okay? Calm down, Sean. I love you. It's okay."

Sean keeps staring right at Daniel and tries to focus on his breathing.

It's alright. He's right there. It's okay, he just has to remember-what do you do about a bleeding wound?

You put pressure on it.

"Okay, we need to stop the bleeding," Sean finally says.

"How do we do that?" Daniel asks half frantically.

"Um...give me your shirt, and take off the bandages."

"O-okay." Daniel tears off his torn shirt and starts ripping at the bandages. When he gets to the end and is about to release the wound into open air, he hesitates.

"Wait," Sean says. He hovers the shirt stretched over Daniel's arm. "Okay, now," He says, and right as Daniel rips the bandage off, Sean quickly drapes the shirt over the now dripping blood and ties it tightly around the wound.

"Ow!" Daniel pulls his arm back.

"Don't resist," Sean says. "It's important that we put pressure over it to stop the blood flow."

"O-okay," Daniel says, trying to stay as still as possible while Sean ties the makeshift tourniquet tighter. He fumbles with the bag and pulls out the Washington shirt from that gas station in the forest.

"Here," Sean says, giving it to Daniel as he throws the shirt over his head and rolls back the sleeve on one side.

"Ok," Sean finally takes a moment to breathe. "I'm sorry, but that's the best I can do for now. We'll get you some disinfectant swabs and more bandages in the morning. Does it h-hurt?" Sean looks at Daniel with a kind of vulnerability Daniel rarely sees.

"A little. But I'm okay," Daniel says. "Really."

"Okay," Sean tries to calm himself down. "Do you need anything?"

"I don't think so."

"O-okay. You sure it's fine?."

"Yeah. Hurts a little, but I'm fine."

"Okay. Then we should get some sleep."

# # #

A few minutes after laying down for bed, Daniel hears a light sob from Sean.

"Sean?" He whispers, crawling out of his sleeping bag."Are you okay?"

Sean turns over to face Daniel, his eyes stung with tears.

"Sean! Hey…" Daniel scoots over to him and puts his arms around his neck. "It's okay."

"It's not okay," Sean can hardly get the words out. "What kind of brother am I if I can't even take care of you?"

"Sean…" Daniel rests his head calmly on Sean's, and Sean puts a hand around his back. "You're a great brother. You took care of me all this way. You're the best big brother in the world. It'll be fine. It doesn't hurt that bad anyway."

"Y-yeah, but- you're bleeding, Daniel, and, and I shouldn't have let it happen. I should've been more careful at the border, and- it was my fault," Sean's voice buckles. "Just like in Humboldt. You got hurt even worse back there. And I never stopped thinking about it."

"Is that why this is stressing you out so much?"

"Y-yeah. I promised I'd never let it happen again, I promised I'd do better to protect you, but I didn't. I failed you."

Daniel holds Sean tightly, but Sean's emotional balance is too fluid, it can't be contained.

"No you didn't. The first time was Merrill's fault. The second was just...those people. They were just as likely to shoot you, they just chose me. It wasn't your fault."

"Still…" Sean whines. "I failed to protect you. Both times."

"You didn't fail me, Sean, you never ever have," Daniel shakes his head. "There's no way I could've come this far without you. You can't be perfect all the time. You aren't a superhero. Dude, I have a superpower and I still couldn't fix our problems. You're still the best brother ever." Daniel gives Sean a soft kiss on his forehead.

"I-I…" Sean can't speak, so instead he just looks at Daniel with admiration. The face of "I love my little brother so much. So fucking much."

"Thank you, dude," Sean says finally, the hurt dripping ferociously off of the words. "But I promise I'm gonna be better. I swear to you, I'll never let you get hurt again. Ever. I swear it. I love you, Daniel."

"I love you too, Sean."

"Can you just-stay holding onto me like this?" Sean asks. "I-I just need that."

"Of course," Daniel says sweetly. "Uh, how about-" He pulls up the blanket shared between the sleeping bags and crawls into Sean's bag. "There." He says, shifting contently into the warmth.

It's a bit cramped but they're used to having only a single sleeping bag, so it's not so bad. Plus, Daniel's tiny.

Sean puts his arms around Daniel and he responds with the same.

"We'll treat the wound better in the morning, promise. Then we're gonna get you some ice cream and some Choc O Crisps with Karen's money. You deserve it."

"Do they even have Choc O Crisps in Mexico?"

"I don't know, but I'm getting them for you no matter what," Sean gives Daniel a soft forehead kiss. "Promise you'll tell me if the wound starts hurting or anything, okay?"

"Okay. Promise."

"Goodnight, lil cub. Love you."

"Love you too!" He says enthusiastically. "So much."

"I love you, dude. Really. A lot," He says seriously.

"You said that already.."

"I know. I just needed to say it again."

"Well, okay. I love you! Too. Again," he giggles.

"Sleep tight," Sean says, having to resist the urge to add another reassuring "I love you."

Chapter 15: This Chapter Is Literally Just Sean & Daniel Cuddling, That's The Entire Thing

Summary:

Sean & Daniel cuddle. That's it. The whole chapter is soft precious Diaz affection between the best brothers ever.

Chapter Text

October 7th, 2017

"You're going to bed early tonight," Sean says to his little brother, who's brushing his teeth in his pajamas. "How come?"

"I don't know. Just tired, I guess," Daniel responds nonchalantly from the bathroom.

"Well, I guess I'll go to bed early too," Sean says, sitting on the bed staring at his phone like he does every night. "I've probably been staying up too late recently anyways."

Daniel walks in the bedroom with his face totally lit up. "Sounds great!" He says enthusiastically, with the most adorable smile on his face.

It always makes Daniel happy when he can just hold on to Sean and cuddle up right next to him. It always has. And lately Sean's been staying up rather late, which is more unusual for him.

He's noticed that Daniel almost never heads to bed if he doesn't. Usually he'll keep finding excuses to stay up, before eventually dozing off on the couch or somewhere and having Sean carry him upstairs.

Sean knows it's because he wants to cuddle up and fall asleep holding onto his big brother, so he's decided to try to get his sleep schedule in order again for Daniel's sake.

Plus, it's something he should probably do anyway.

Daniel hops in the bed and scoots around to his side, looking at Sean with an expectant smile on his face.

Sean reaches for the light and flips it off, proceeding to crawl under the covers next to his tiny little brother.

Daniel immediately asks softly, "Hey Sean...can you hold me?" And looks at him with the most lovable puppy eyes in the world.

Sean, of course, wraps his arms around Daniel and pulls him closer. "No problem, dude."

"Thanks, Sean...I missed this," Daniel says satisfyingly.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, you've been staying up way too much lately," Daniel yawns.

"I'll try to go to bed earlier from now on," Sean says. "I know it'd make you happy."

"You don't have to, though."

"Yeah...but I want to," Sean says happily, softly ruffling Daniel's hair.

Daniel squeezes further into Sean's arms, pressing his ear up against Sean's chest. It's so comforting to just listen to the rhythm of his heart. It grounds him.

Sean wraps his arms lightly around Daniel's head, insulating him with warmth and letting the thumps of his heartbeat bury themselves deeper into Daniel and heal him.

"I love you, dude," Sean says, giving Daniel kisses on top of his head, the only segment of his head not insulated in warmth.

For Sean, it's always about the little shows of affection. Just holding Daniel, protecting him, giving him kisses, reassuring him...he just wants Daniel to feel as comforted as possible and he'll go to extra lengths to do it.

For Daniel, he likes to just sit and enjoy the moment. He doesn't move much, just feels the warmth of Sean's arms, letting the grounding heartbeat pulsate through his being, protecting him, shielding him from everything, accepting Sean's gestures of protective big-brother-ism and his soft kisses.

"Hey," Daniel says, moving out of Sean's arms for a moment. "You're the best brother ever, you deserve kisses too!" He says sweetly, giving Sean a big smooch on the cheek and burrowing himself back in Sean's arms.

"Aww, thanks, dude," Sean says lovingly, moving his arms back around Daniel to insulate him. "But wait, how can I be the best brother ever...when you're the best brother ever?"

"Nuh uh!" Daniel says playfully. "You're the best brother ever and there's no way I'm letting you give up that title."

"Well fine, I'll accept the title as long as you accept the title of Best Brother I Could Ever Ask For!"

"Okay, okay. But you know if there was a Brother Awards you'd win all of them."

"Nope, I'd just call you up on the stage to accept the awards since you're the real best brother," Sean says caringly.

"Only the best brother would do that!" Daniel giggles lovingly.

"Well, whatever." Sean says, chuckling. "You're the best brother in the whole fucking world, dude. Thanks for being you."

"I love you, Sean," Daniel smiles with pure joy. "You're the best."

"I missed this too, you know?"

"Really?"

"Yeah...you deserve cuddles and shit every night. From now on I'll make sure of it."

Daniel's smile is so large, it's a wonder that it fits on his face.

"Awesome!" Daniel exclaims.

Sean chuckles in a way that translated into words would be saying, "Awwwwww."

"Love you, dude. Don't ever forget it," Sean says.

"I won't. I love you too!" He says strongly.

"Sweet dreams, enano."

"Sweet dreams to you too, Sean."

The wolf brothers fall asleep in each others arms, but not before the big wolf gives the little one a final kiss goodnight.

Chapter 16: Happy Birthday, Darling. We Love You Very, Very, Very, Very, Very, Very, Very Much.

Summary:

Daniel's 10th birthday in Away.

Chapter Text

May 30th, 2017

It's late in the afternoon in Away, and Sean's lying on Karen's couch listening to "The Good That Won't Come Out" by Rilo Kiley on Karen's MP3 player when his mother enters the room with a big blue cake with the number 10 on it.

Sean immediately notices it and stands up. "What's that for?" He asks.

"Well...I've been thinking," She says, "Since we weren't there for Daniel's birthday, it might be nice to put on a little late party for him. What do you think?"

"Definitely. Daniel would totally love it."

Karen gently smiles. "Great. Go get your brother, and let's get this show on the road."

"Alright, cool," Sean says, stepping out of the trailer. He pulls out his walkie-talkie. "Hey, man. Come over to Karen's trailer. We've got a surprise for you."

"I'm with Joan!" Daniel says briskly.

"Then bring Joan." Sean says, smiling lightly.

After about a minute, Daniel starts coming over with an adorable hop in his step, Joan walking normally behind him.

"What's up?" He asks.

"Well, Karen's got something special for you, enano."

Karen comes out holding the cake, and Daniel makes a precious face of awe.

"What? A cake?!"

"Well," Karen says. "We didn't get to celebrate your birthday with you so we thought it'd be nice to celebrate now."

"That's so cool, Mom!"

Karen sets out the cake on the table as everyone sits down.

"Wait," Joan says. "This is a special occasion. We should all be here to celebrate for you, Daniel."

"You're right," Karen says. "Can you two go and gather up the others?" She gestures towards Sean & Daniel. We wouldn't want them to miss this."

"You sure?" Daniel asks. "I wouldn't want to bother them."

Joan puts her hands on Daniel's shoulders. "Sweetie, you're never bothering anyone here."

Daniel lifts an eyebrow. "Okay. Let's go, Sean."

Once they've gathered everyone about the occasion and they've all come to give Daniel his birthday wishes, it's time for the "Away Choir" as Stanley said to sing for him.

Daniel smiles contently as all the residents of Away festively sing Happy Birthday to him. It's kind of an emotional moment for the brothers, it's just something so...normal.

Like nothing's changed.

It feels nice, if not a little weird.

"Alright...cake time?" Daniel asks adorably, to which everyone laughs.

"Yes, Daniel, cake time," Karen says.

"Me and Arthur are trying to cut back a little, so we'll skip out on the cake," Stanley says.

"Plus, we don't wanna take too much of it from you, Daniel," Arthur chuckles.

"We'll be hanging out at the campfire if you wanna join later," Stanley says.

"Cool! We will!"

"I think I'll do the same," Priya says.

David ends up joining them as well, with Sean, Karen, Joan, and Daniel, who of course got the biggest slice, to eat.

Joan ends up only eating half her slice and 'donates' it to Daniel.

Daniel really savored his cake. He used to totally scarf it down fast, or at least that's what Sean remembers from previous birthdays, but this time he eats rather slowly, taking it all in. Enjoying the kind of moment he's missed for so long.

Once they're finished eating, they all head over to the campfire.

Joan sits down, and Daniel ends up sitting on the ground next to her.

Sean and Karen sit in chairs on the other side of the fire.

This fireside hangout has become kind of an Away tradition.

They're disconnected from the rest of society so it's important to build a valuable society amongst themselves. Every night they all gather around and talk.

Everyone can be kind of busy during the day, so it's nice to have the time to just relax and chat and catch up.

Daniel always goes to sit next to Joan. He's made really good friends with her, and it warms Sean's heart so much.

Joan is just a cool person in general. She's easy to admire. Daniel really looks up to her. And she lets him help with her projects and his power's been a major help in that regard.

It's been really nice to have a place to rest. Sean needed that. Daniel needed that. There was a lot of hurt in every form that needed working out, and it's going to be a long process to heal that hurt, but for once, Sean & Daniel actually feel hopeful.

Soon enough, they'll be heading off to Puerto Lobos, and while they're not sure what that'll bring to their life, the prospect is one of hope and determination and of course, love.

Sean goes to join Daniel & Joan closer to the fire. He throws a small stick in the fire, watching it turn to embers and float away in the smoke.

Chapter 17: With Every Heartbeat I Have Left, I Will Defend Your Every Breath, And I'll Do Better, Cause You Are Loved More Than You Know, And I Hereby Pledge All Of My Days To Prove It So

Summary:

Daniel's 11th birthday in Puerto Lobos.

Chapter Text

April 11th, 2018

It's Daniel's 11th birthday, and Sean will be damned if he can't make it special.

He's been working very long hours lately to afford a solid birthday outing, but it's worth every bit of effort to him.

He was away for Daniel's 10th, he was still in the hospital, and it still makes him sad that he missed it. Sure, the late celebration at Away was wonderful, but Sean always wished he could've done more.

So for his 11th, his goal was to make it as special as two birthdays combined. He planned everything to an exact point to bring as many smiles to Daniel's face as possible. He might be more excited for Daniel's birthday than the birthday boy himself.

He woke up pretty early this morning, and started getting everything set up. He's already got an awesome cake and tons of presents for Daniel, and Karen will be here by dinner time.

That part he's left out. He wants it to be a surprise.

The last time they saw her was Christmas, in fact, it's the only time she's visited so far. Daniel loved it, and Sean can't wait for himself and Daniel to see her again.

Sean hears a yawn from the hallway, then Daniel enters. "Hey, Sean," he says groggily. "What's up?"

"There's the birthday boy!" Sean says wholesomely. "I was wondering when you'd get up." He gives Daniel a big hug.

"Oh, yeah!" Daniel exclaims, hugging Sean back. "I almost forgot," he says, heading to the fridge to grab a glass of orange juice.

"Hey," Sean says curiously. "You wanna...head out back? Enjoy the morning air?" Sean asks subtly.

"Uh...sure," Daniel says, gulping down his orange juice.

The Diaz brothers head out the backdoor to be greeted with a giant Slip & Slide shooting water up out of the sides going all the way from the back porch zigzagging around and into the ocean.

"Woah! That's so cool!" Daniel exclaims.

"Yeah, I set it up this morning. You wanna try it out?" Sean asks.

"Hell yeah!" Daniel says, already tearing his shirt off. "Wait-" Daniel says. "Where are my-"

"I put your swimming trunks in the bathroom, Superwolf," Sean smiles gently.

"Cool!" Daniel quickly runs inside.

Sean doesn't have swimming trunks of his own, so his shorts will do.

Daniel comes back out in record time with a huge smile.

"You ready, enano?"

"Yes!" Daniel says gleefully. "Let's go!" He makes a running start up to the slide and jumps on as Sean follows.

"Woooooohooooooo!" Daniel exclaims excitedly as he zips down the slide, flying around each turn, his hair flowing in the wind.

Sean quickly follows but on his stomach instead of his back, and nearly catapults off the slide before splashing into the sea with Daniel, who's happily laughing.

"How cool was that?" Sean asks him.

"So cool! Let's go again!" Daniel says, getting up out of the water.

Sean chuckles. "Alright, enano."

This time, Daniel tries Sean's method, running up to the slide and diving onto it on his belly.

Sean tries to do a front flip, but ends up landing on his butt and slipping down the slide, trying to pull his shorts back up from being pulled by the water.

Daniel giggles. "Dude, I saw that!" He says once Sean's splashed into the water.

"Uh, saw what?" Sean says wholesomely, trying to brush it off.

"You tried to do a flip!" He can't contain his giggles. "Keyword: tried."

"Dude!" Sean laughs. "I didn't look that stupid, did I?" He splashes water in Daniel's direction.

"Yeah," Daniel laughs preciously, splashing Sean back. "You, uh, didn't get hurt, did you?" He says more seriously.

"Nah," Sean lightly shrugs. "Unless you count a bruised ego," he chuckles.

The next time they go down the slide, Daniel leans a little too far to the left and winds up sliding way off the water slide and onto the sand.

His attempts to right his course result in the slides outer ring being pulled down, leading to Sean flying way off course as well and almost hitting Daniel.

"Woah!" Daniel exclaims. "Oops." He giggles.

"Guess the slide didn't like us," Sean jokes.

"Too bad for the slide, we're the coolest!"

"Yeah, and you know who's the most, uh, coolest? You!" Sean says, pouncing on the chance to tickle his little bro.

"Sean!" Daniel yells, giggling uncontrollably. "Stop it!"

"Only if you admit that you're the best!" Sean says, continuing to lovingly tickle Daniel.

"Okay, okay!" He says with a massive smile. "I'm the best, okay? Now don't-" More giggling. "Tickle me!"

"Alright, alright." Sean relents. "No more tickles. But-" Sean's grin widens. "Hugs are okay, right?" He scoots towards Daniel and puts his arms around him.

Daniel smiles. "Yeah. Hugs are cool." He puts his arms around Sean's broad shoulders.

"I'm super proud of you, enano. Don't forget it."

"I won't. Promise," Daniel says contently. "Okay, now let's go get back at that slide."

# # #

Once the brothers are done having fun in the sun and heading inside, Daniel tugs on Sean's arm.

"Yeah?"

"Um, can we talk about something?" Daniel asks.

"Sure, what's up?" Sean says, turning off the hose.

"Well, uh...I had a bad dream, you know, about Humboldt…"

"Shit…"

"Yeah, that's why I got up so late. I was just thinking about your eye and stuff, it felt pretty, uh...it hurt," He says painfully.

"I guess you haven't thought about it in a while, huh?" Sean asks, sitting down on the edge of the porch with Daniel.

"Yeah, I don't wanna think about it. But now it feels like the only thing on my mind."

"I'm sorry, enano. But just tell yourself all the things I told you before," Sean puts a supporting hand on Daniel's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault."

"I know. It just made me a little uncomfortable. Brought back some memories...trauma and stuff," Daniel sighs.

Sean puts his arms around Daniel. "It's okay. We're safe now, right?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"I love you, dude. It's okay. I'm here. I'll protect you." Sean puts his head on Daniel's shoulder.

"Yeah...thanks, Sean," Daniel says softly. "Can we just stay like this a little longer?"

"Of course, man," Sean says, then, as if a switch was flipped, instantly moves into affectionate-and-protective-big-brother mode. "You're the best little bro ever, you know that?" He puts his chin on Daniel's head and softly kisses it. "I love you, dude. Always." They both smile in their brother's company.

# # #

Sean & Daniel end up eating out at a sit-down restaurant for lunch, which Daniel absolutely loved.

It was nice to get him a treat like that. The Diaz brothers don't tend to go out to eat that often because it's an expense they'd rather put towards other things.

But it's Daniel's birthday, so everything is worth it on a special occasion.

Daniel got a big spicy burger, he wanted to get the spiciest one they had, but Sean convinced not to unless he wanted to be stuck on the toilet for the rest of the day.

Sean got a burrito in the smallest size. He still wants to have room in his stomach for the actual party.

"That was so good!" Daniel says, wiping sauce from the corner of his mouth.

"Yeah? Wasn't too spicy?" Sean asks, pulling the truck's door open.

"Just the right amount. You were right when you said not to get that other one," Daniel lightly hops into the car as Sean starts the engine.

"Well, the big brother's always right, huh?"

"Shut up," Daniel says sarcastically, softly hitting Sean's shoulder.

"Oh, shut up? I guess maybe I shouldn't have got you all the presents I got you then," Sean jokes.

"Hey!" Daniel laughs. "No way! Or, I mean...you're the coolest, thanks big brother."

"Ok, now say that without rolling your eyes," Sean chuckles.

"How did you...!" Daniel says, transitioning into a more serious tone of voice. "Thanks, Sean. For all the things you do. You're the best. I mean it."

"Thanks, man. You're the best too, you know?"

"Uh...yeah," Daniel says hesitantly.

"I mean it, dude," Sean says lovingly. "You're the best brother in the whole world."

"I don't know about that-"

"Well, no matter what you "know"," He gestures, "I'll always think so. I love you, bro."

"Yeah...I love you too."

"Alright," Sean says as they pull up to the house. "Enough with the sappy brother stuff, I've got something to show you."

"Uh, okay?" Daniel says, getting out of the car.

Sean goes to their safe next to the main room, and retrieves a small envelope.

"So, dude," Sean says, "This is for you. It's from Chris."

"What?" Daniel's face perks up. "How did you get in contact wi-"

"I pulled some strings with Claire & Stephen. You wanna open it, enano?"

"Hell yeah!" Daniel says, jumping onto the couch as Sean sits beside him. "I can't wait to see what he's been up to."

Daniel rips open the envelope to a birthday card and a small red cloth. He opens the card carefully, and a small Captain Spirit and Superwolf drawing.

"Woah! The Awesome Adventures Of Captain Spirit And Superwolf? So cool!"

Hey, Daniel! Or should I say Superwolf in case the bad guys intercepted this letter? Nah, just kidding.

Happy Birthday! I hope this letter reached you on time or that's gonna sound weird haha. I hope you're doing well with your brother down there. You guys are so cool!

We were trying to set up a visit or something but that didn't end up working out. But I know I'll come down there one day!

But yeah uh I've been pretty good lately. Dad is getting help with his, uh...problems. Your grandparents have been so nice, they let me stay over when Dad wasn't around. That was cool!

Anyways if you wanna talk here's my number: 555-743-1097
But don't call at night because I don't want Dad to get woke up.

Also Sean told me you have a PlayBox down there so if you wanna play together here's my PlayBox name: CaptainSpirit40

Oh and if I don't answer or add you it's cuz me and Dad are going on vacation to San Francisco from the 9th to the 18th. But I promise we can talk and play and stuff once I get back!

Happy Birthday Superwolf! Here's to another super year!

By the time Daniel is finished reading, his smile is massive.

"That's so cool! It's been so long. I never thought I'd hear from him again."

"I think he thought the same thing. It seems like we're so away from everything sometimes."

"How did you even get him to send this letter?" Daniel asks.

"Well, I had Claire & Stephen talk to him and-"

"Did he say anything about me?" Daniel asks shyly.

"I don't know, dude. From what I know he just remembered you and we agreed that he should send a letter," Sean says.

"Ok. Cause I just- last time we talked, I lied to him, and-"

"You're still worried about that?" Sean scoots closer to Daniel and puts his arm around him. "You saved him, man. And it's been over a year. There's no way he still cares, if he ever even did."

"Yeah. I know." Daniel sulks. "It still feels weird," He sighs. "And what about our other friends? Noah? Lyla? When are we-"

"I don't know, man. I've tried to call Lyla a few times since we got here," He says. "But I don't know- maybe she got a new phone. I haven't gotten a hold of her."

"Wouldn't she just transfer her old number?" Daniel asks.

"I don't know, man."

"Do you think something happened to her?"

Sean sighs. "I don't know. I've been talking to Karen about maybe going to Seattle and getting in touch with-"

The doorbell rings.

"Who's that?" Daniel perks his head up.

Sean smiles slyly. "Speak of the devil."

Daniel rushes to the door with Sean briskly walking behind him.

"Mom?!" Daniel says looking out the window. He flies the door open with his power. "Mom!"

Daniel jumps right into his mother's arms. "I missed you, mom."

"I missed you too, Danny," She says sweetly.

"Are you here for my birthday?" Daniel says after finally letting go of Karen.

"Of course, Daniel. I wouldn't miss it for the world," She says as Sean walks up to give her a hug. "And how are you, Sean?" She says lovingly, hugging him back.

"I'm doing well, mom," He says emotionally. "We both are."

"That's...great," She says strongly.

"You wanna come inside? We've got everything set up for the birthday boy," Sean says.

"Sure. Just, uh, can I get you guys' help with something?' She asks. "It's just over here," she says, taking them to the trunk, which is full of presents.

"Woah, are those all for me?" Daniel says in awe.

"Everyone in Away only thought it'd be right to send you some things, Daniel," Karen explains. "Just like last Christmas."

"Wow. I wish they all could've come."

"They wanted to, but it just didn't work out. Joan promised she'll be able to come for Sean's birthday in August, though."

"I hope. Haven't seen her in so long," Daniel says as they're setting the wrapped boxes on the floor.

"So what have you been up to lately, Karen?" Sean asks once they're all inside and sitting down.

"Well, not much," She says as Daniel scoots up next to her and she puts her arm around his shoulders. "I've taken up a writing gig for some firm in California. They pay well, it's consistent work. Joan's a little sick, she caught some kind of stomach bug, but she's strong. Arthur & Stanley are getting as many hikes in as possible before it gets way too hot. Not much interesting around there."

"I hope Joan will be okay," Daniel says. "I miss her sometimes."

"She misses you guys, too," Karen says. "Anyway...how has life been for you two in Puerto Lobos?"

"Good. The shop's been doing great lately," Sean says enthusiastically. "And we're doing great, too. Right, Daniel?" Sean looks at him with a funny smile. Daniel giggles.

"Yeah," He says, laughing.

"What's so funny?" Sean asks, now laughing himself.

Karen can't even stifle a chuckle. "What is up with you two?" She asks when they're calmed down with the hysterics.

"I don't know, ask him," Sean says humorously.

Daniel giggles. "I don't know! That was just funny."

"What was?" Sean full body laughs.

"The way you said that with such a dumb look!" Daniel says, still suppressing laughter.

"Uh huh," he says, chuckling. "Alright, alright, I think I'm gonna pop a blood vessel if I keep laughing like this."

# # #

Sean & Daniel and their mother spend the whole afternoon talking and joking and catching up on the going-ons between them. Their dinner is a spectacular and very spicy plate of tacos which Daniel absolutely loved, and now it's time for desert.

Sean pulls out a massive chocolate cake with a huge "11" shaped sugar coated cookie on it, and Choc-O-Crisps surrounding the edges.

"Oh my god! That looks so good. Did you make that all by yourself?" Daniel says in awe.

"Of course, enano. I had to make the perfect cake for my favorite little brother's b-day," He smiles warmly, cutting up the cake. "What slice do you want?"

"I want that piece with the 11!"

"As you wish, Mr. Diaz," Sean says in a silly voice.

"Oh, am I so old now that I'm called Mr. Diaz?" Daniel laughs.

Karen chuckles. "You guys are an absolute hoot."

"Hoot?" Daniel raises his eyebrows.

"Hoot."

"Who says hoot?" Daniel giggles.

"I do," Karen laughs.

"Cuz you're old!" Daniel says.

"Alright," Sean says. "Before we gorge ourselves on cake, it's time to sing happy birthday to the birthday boy!"

"Uh, no," Daniel shakes his head embarrassingly. "You really don't have to."

"Yes we do," Sean says. "And yes, we definitely have to make it as cheesy as possible. Right, Karen?"

"Oh, of course," Karen says humorously. "Wouldn't be a birthday without that."

Daniel smiles awkwardly as Sean & Karen sing, just as awkwardly, "Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Daniel, happy birthday to you!"

Once he's done singing, Sean immediately gives Daniel a massive hug, in which Karen joins in.

"Happy Birthday, enano. I love you so much."

"Thanks, Sean," he puts his arms around Sean and lightly squeezes his big brother's shoulders. "I love you so much, too."

"Happy Birthday, Danny," Karen says. "And to another year of being you!"

"Thanks, Mom," Daniel says. "I love you."

"I love you, too. I'm so grateful to have sons as amazing as you two." She says sweetly.

After they're done devouring the cake, and Daniel's finished an extra slice and a half, it's time for the part Daniel's been anticipating all day; opening his presents.

Sean pulls out a small camera to capture all of Daniel's gleeful expressions.

"Alright, open those small ones first," he says, pointing to a few rectangular presents in the corner.

"Ooh," Daniel exclaims, reaching for them. "Games? Looks like games to me," Daniel says smugly.

"Let's find out."

"Yes!" Daniel says. "Terraria, Spider-Man, and the new Lego Star Wars?! Thanks, Sean!" He says, going to give his brother a hug.

"Wait, look at the, uh.." He points at the back of one of the cases.

"Huh?" Daniel pulls off a little card. "Twenty-five dollars of PlayBox Credit?"

"Yeah, I wanted you to have a little money to yourself too. So you could get whatever you want," Sean explains.

"That's so cool, Sean!" He goes back in for a hug.

"Woah, man," Sean says. "Let's save the hugs for after you've opened everything, alright? I know you wanna give your awesome ass big brother a million hugs but uh...I'm not prepared to be mauled."

Karen chuckles.

"Okay," Daniel smiles warmly. "What's next?"

"How about," Karen says, pointing to a large box, "The one from Arthur and Stanley?"

"Alright," He tears open the box and drips through 8 layers of bubble wrap to unveil a telescope. "Woah."

"Yeah," Karen says. "They got a new one, so they thought they'd send that one your way."

"That's so cool. Hey Sean," He grabs his brother's arm excitedly. "Now we can look at the stars!"

"Hell yeah, man. Gives us something to do outside at night."

"Alright," Karen says. "Now how about that one? It's from Joan."

"Oh, cool," He says, grabbing the box lightly.

"Be careful with it, though," Karen warns. "It's fragile."

Daniel carefully pulls a small metallic sculpture out of the box, a figure of Daniel striking a super-powered pose with small bits of foil representing wolf fur, a large snout replacing Daniel's mouth, and wolf ears on top of his head. The base of the statue is labeled " F"

"She made this? For me?" Daniel says heartfeltly.

"You really inspired her. She wanted to harness that inspiration and represent it with a piece of her own."

"I'm not gonna cry, I'm not gonna cry," Daniel says repeatedly. "Ok, maybe I'm gonna cry a little bit," He says, a few tears slowly rolling down his face. "I wish I could give her the biggest hug right now."

"Me too, man."

"Alright, Danny," Karen says. "That one's from me. Why don't you see what's inside?"

"Okay, Mom," He says, grabbing the box. "Woah! A journal?"

"You told me a few times you wanted your own journal like your brother's, so I thought- why not?"

"That's so cool, Mom!" He says, giving her a big hug. "I'll write in it every day!"

"Alright," Sean says. "I've been saving the best for last."

"Oooh!" Daniel quickly scoots over to the gift. He tears it open. "What? Dog food? And a bowl? Wait, does that mean…?"

"You wanna head to the pet store, enano?"

"No way!" Daniel says enthusiastically, a massive smile spreading across his face. "We're getting a dog?!" He runs into Sean excitedly, wrapping his arms around him.

"Yeah, you kept talking about getting a wolf as a pet," Sean laughs. "I can't do that, but I can do a dog."

"That's awesome! Are we gonna go...now?" He looks up at Sean adorably.

"Sure, man. I think they're open till 6."

"Cool! Let's go!"

# # #

Daniel spends over an hour looking at different dogs, but finally decides on a little Terrier Poodle mix, of which, in light of being unable to get a real wolf, affectionately names Wolf.

The storeperson tells them the adoption paperwork usually takes around 2 to 3 days, and they'll be able to take their little puppy home after that. Sean pays upfront so they won't have to worry about it later.

Daniel hasn't stopped smiling since he opened that present. Sean's not sure he's ever seen his little brother so happy in his entire life. It makes his heart melt.

Once they get home, Daniel and Karen decide to watch some late night game shows, while Sean has some business papers to take care of in the garage. He can hear them yelling and laughing all the way from upstairs. He can't help but smile.

When he comes back into the room, Daniel is sound asleep in Karen's arms, and they're both sitting next to the fireplace.

"Aww, is he asleep?" Sean whispers warmly.

"He wanted me to hold him, and I guess the rocking of the chair put him right to sleep," She says, looking affectionately at her son in her arms.

"Are you ready to go to bed too, Karen?" Sean asks. "Because I think I'm about to."

"Yeah, I just need to make a call to Joan. I promised her I would."

"Alright, I'll take Daniel off to bed," Sean says, picking up Daniel out of Karen's arms. He's still in his little racoon hoodie from heading out to the pet store, which at this point doesn't fit him the best, but it works.

He lightly sets Daniel in bed, brushes his teeth, and switches off the light, crawling in bed next to his baby brother and putting his arms around him. Just like being cuddled up with Sean helps Daniel to fall asleep, it does the same for Sean. He gives Daniel an affectionate good-night kiss on his forehead.

Later, Karen enters the room and lies down on the other side of Daniel, making sure he's fully surrounded in cuddles.

To any outside observer, they'd all just look like any normal loving family, and in this moment, that's all they are. What they've been through just doesn't matter anymore.

Chapter 18: Death May Come Invisible, or in a Holy Wall of Fire

Summary:

Sean tells Daniel about what happened to Dad.

Chapter Text

November 1st, 2016

Okay. It's time to tell him.

Sean's been hiding their father's death from Daniel for their journey so far, but like Brody said, at some point, he's gonna have to tell him.

He just threw his phone away, and Daniel's done with his bath. Okay. Let's do this.

Sean slides open the door and immediately Daniel starts. "Sean! Remember that song? C'mon, dance!" He holds out his hand. "Banquet" by Bloc Party is playing on the TV.

Sean thinks for a second, before eventually deciding to dance with his little brother. Part of it's just him putting off having to tell him. But also, Daniel deserves to just be an innocent kid for one more wholesome moment. It takes everything in him for Sean not to burst out crying.

He just keeps thinking to himself, "This is the last pure memory Daniel will ever have of being a kid." Sean's innocence was taken abruptly, he couldn't prepare for it. But he can make sure that Daniel's final expression of innocence is something nice. Dancing with your big brother.

When they're done dancing, Sean hops off the bed and switches the TV off.

"Okay, dude, we need to talk," Sean says hardly.

"Can I get a drink?" Daniel says, sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Now?"

"You said I could get a Coke, or...something."

There's a big part of Sean that just wants to put it off even more, to get his little brother a Coke and watch TV and tell him later. But he can't put it off longer or he won't tell him.

Daniel deserves to know.

And he deserves for Sean to be the one to tell him.

"Look, man, I gotta tell you something," Sean sits down next to Daniel and stares at his feet blankly, composing himself. His breathing cuts.

"What's the big deal?" Daniel says, half-annoyed.

"Daniel...I need you to come here."

"Uh…"

"Please, man? I'm serious."

"Are you still mad at me for stealing?" Daniel asks.

"No, no, dude, it's not that. I'm not mad. At you. It's...a lot more serious than that," Sean sighs.

"How serious?"

"I've never been more serious with you. Ever. Please, dude," Sean puts his arm out around Daniel's shoulder, and Daniel scoots closer to him.

"Look," Sean says. "I don't know how to say this, but-" Sean really has to try hard not to cry. "You know that thing- with Brett?"

"Y-yeah? I don't remember it too much."

"Do you," Sean pauses. "Do you remember a cop showing up?"

"Uh," Daniel strains himself to think. "I think so."

"Do you remember what he said?"

"He, uh, told us to get on the ground, right? He was mad at us."

"Do you remember what happened after that?"

"Not really. I remember being scared."

"Do you remember Dad coming over?"

Daniel furrows his brow. "No," he says truthfully, but in a way that suggests his subconscious understands what is being implied.

"Okay." Sean takes a huge breath. "So...after the cop came, and Dad came, there was a lot of screaming, and I don't know everything that went down, but what happened-" Sean's voice cracks. "He killed Dad," Sean can't help but bawl at full force. "He killed Dad."

Daniel's face twists. A face of disgust, disbelief, and most of all, hurt. "That's not true!" He says with tears. "It's not!"

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you until now," Sean puts Daniel's head in his arms. "I didn't know how to tell you. I'm sorry."

Daniel bawls into Sean's chest. "You're s-serious?"

"I'm so sorry."

Daniel produces a blood-curdling scream, followed by a near silent whimper, "Dad."

Mushroom starts barking, which prompts Sean to notice that objects in the room have started floating.

"Daniel?!" Sean says in disbelief.

"Why?!" Daniel screams. "Dad," He whines.

"I know. I know," Sean says frantically, giving Daniel a kiss on the top of his head, before looking back up at the objects. Still floating.

"He can't be gone, Sean. He can't!" The glass door breaks into a bunch of tiny shards.

"Daniel! What's going on?" Sean says with tears.

Daniel finally looks up, but he doesn't react to the objects.

"I want Dad," Daniel bawls. "I need him," he says, much more quietly.

Sean quickly puts Daniel's head back in his arms.

"I want Dad."

"I do too."

"What are we gonna do without him?" Daniel sniffles.

Sean presses his forehead to Daniel's. "Shhh. It's gonna be okay. It's gonna be okay."

"Sean? Don't keep anything from me ever again. Ever."

"I promise. I won't lie to you again."

"I'm serious, Sean."

"I know."

Sean and Daniel sit in silence for a minute, just breathing.

Sean tries to compose himself. "Do you still need a drink?"

"No, I need you, Sean. Please don't let go of me. Please. I...don't know what I'd do."

"I won't," Sean pulls Daniel in closer. "Never," Sean gives Daniel more kisses, but unlike the usual protective way, instead, it's in a manner of healing. Of connecting his and Daniel's hurt. The warmth of brotherhood that melts the freezing hurt. It's an affection that will heal them both. Sean needs to hold Daniel right now just as much as Daniel needs Sean to hold him.

They need each other right now. And they need each other's support. They need that more than anything.

That's what Brody meant when he said sharing the hurt would make them stronger together. It's the only way to heal. They just need that love. They need more and more of it, until they can't give more.

That's the emotional end point for the Diaz brothers, but right now, they may not realize all that weight yet. They're only at the beginning. The journey of hurt will be almost unending. But a brother's love is much more than unending. Much more than infinite, even.

They'll always need more love, more healing, but at the same time they'll always have enough to give.

After a while, they crawl into the bed together, Daniel sobbing himself to sleep in Sean's arms, and Sean sobbing right back, giving all the affection he has for his sake just as much as Daniel's.

Chapter 19: Kisses and Cuddles: The Diaz Brothers Story

Summary:

Do you like soft kisses? Do you like cuddles? Well then this is the chapter for you.

Chapter Text

December 30, 2017

"Daniel!" Sean yells from the kitchen. "Cookies are done!"

Daniel whooshes into the room as fast as he can, "Ooh, cookies? I want one!" He reaches out, trying to grab a baked delight.

"Dude, they're just outta the oven! You gotta let them cool a bit."

Daniel puts on a cute pout. "Why did you call me in here then?" He crosses his arms.

"So you could admire my baking skills," Sean jokes with a smile. "Anyway, while we're waiting for them, maybe you should pick out a movie? Let's get this movie night on the road."

"Okay, cool!" He says, running to the living room.

While Daniel's browsing their streaming library, Sean heads out back for a smoke on the porch. He's trying to kick the habit so maybe he shouldn't, but ehh...he's got a lot on his mind. It's fine. He'll quit eventually.

Daniel hates seeing him smoke though. He can tell it makes him really sad. He's really the only reason Sean has any desire to quit.

The sky looks really violent tonight. The forecast called for a big storm, it looks like they'll be getting it.

"Hey, Sean!" Sean quickly snuffs his cigarette and buries it in the sand. "I found something to watch! Hey, what are you doing?"

"I-I was just looking at the sky," Sean mumbles, pushing Daniel back inside.

Daniel looks at Sean angrily. "You were smoking again. I can smell it."

Sean sighs. "Look, man-"

"You know I hate you smoking. Why do you keep doing it?" He asks sadly.

"I don't know, dude. I'm sorry. Look, I'll make it up to you-"

"How?"

"I-I," Sean looks at him solidly. "Look, I'll throw away my last pack," He says, burying it deep into the trash can. "A-and how about, we always go to the store together," He suggests. "So I won't buy any behind your back."

"I'll hold you to it," Daniel says, opening his arms for a hug. It's the Diaz brothers' signature signal of agreement.

Sean hugs him back.

"I'm just trying to help you," Daniel says.

"I know, dude. And I really appreciate it."

Daniel stays in the hug much longer than needed.

"Hey, man," Sean says with a smile. "I bet those cookies are ready now."

That's just about the one thing that could ever make Daniel Diaz exit his brother's arms. He runs to the kitchen and piles a whopping four chocolate chip cookies onto a tiny plate.

"Woah, man, sugar overload," Sean says jokingly.

"You think I'm gonna eat all of these?" Daniel chuckles. "No. Two are for you," He says super sweetly, putting two of the cookies onto Sean's plate.

Sean laughs, "Thanks, man," He ruffles Daniel's hair as they enter the living room.

As they always do, Sean & Daniel fidget in search of the most comfortable movie watching position, eventually settling on Sean lying on the couch, Daniel lying on top of him (his head under Sean's chin: the ideal place to maximize both cuddles and kisses) and a warm blanket over the top of them, insulating them from everything except their brother's affection.

That's really what matters the most. The movie they're watching isn't that important, it's the jokes they make to each other about it and the affection they give to each other.

In the Diaz house, brotherly bonding is the whole point. There's no shortage of it. The supply is always super high and so is the demand.

At one point during a big action scene, Daniel sneakily moves his head just enough to give Sean a soft kiss on the cheek. Sean looks over at him.

"You thought I wouldn't notice?" He says wholesomely. Daniel looks at him with an adorable "ok, you caught me" expression. "Well, I can't just let you get away with it and not get you back," Sean jokes, giving Daniel a big kiss on his forehead, which brings the purest smile to Daniel's face.

They both adore these moments. It's just so nice to be super sweet and give your brother so much affection. It's the biggest win-win that ever was. You love giving your brother affection, it makes you super happy, and it makes him feel super happy, valued, and loved which just makes you even happier. It's the best.

They're the best.

Once the movie's over, it's bedtime, to which Daniel feels a little hesitant. It's storming pretty damn hard outside, and thunder's always made him uneasy.

"Sean, can I please, please, just sleep in your room tonight?" He begs his big brother. "It's so loud outside, it's kinda scary," He confesses babily.

Goddamn it. Why does Sean's baby brother have to be so immensely cute? He just can't say no. Well, it's not a big deal. Yeah, he needs to be more independent but one night with his brother insulating him in his arms won't hurt.

"Okay, okay," Sean concedes. "You can sleep in my room tonight. But you're lost if you think you won't be getting any good-night affection to send you off to sleep."

"I was counting on it," Daniel says smugly, crawling into bed and into his big brother's arms.

Sean gets himself comfortable, then, just as he does everytime he gets a chance, brings Daniel super close into his embrace, resting his head on Daniel's, insulating him and of course kissing him because look, he's a baby and babies need soft kisses.

Daniel keeps trying to give Sean kisses but everytime he tries, Sean always moves back into a position where he can keep resting his head above Daniel's and kiss his head. It kinda frustrates Daniel.

"Sean!" Daniel finally says. "Why do you never let me give you kisses? You deserve them too," He says, poutfully.

Sean gets slightly taken aback by this. "Well...you're the "baby" brother. So you need all the affection."

"No, you deserve affection just as much as I do. We're brothers, right? Equals," He says.

"Yeah...you're right. Okay, you can give me kisses if you want," Sean says, loosening his protective grip on Daniel.

"Yes!" Daniel exclaims, immediately jumping forward, resting his head on Sean's and giving him big smooches on the cheek. His face is so lit up, you'd think Santa Claus just burst through the ceiling or something.

There's literally nothing more adorable than Daniel when he's happy, and it's even more adorable just how happy it makes him to just give his big brother affection. He's the absolute sweetest kid. Sean's raised him super loving and affectionately, and he's interherited those super affectionate traits to a gigantic degree.

It shows up at school too. All the teachers love him cause he's always super sweet and every day gives each teacher a hug before he leaves their class. Sean's so proud that even after everything they went through, he's still such a lovable, precious, and sweet kid.

When the brothers are done with their routine of "affection, reassurance, affection, more affection", only then is it time to sleep.

# # #

Sean wakes up early and after having his morning coffee, decides to wake his sleeping brother in the best way: soft kisses.

He crawls in next to him, puts his arm over Daniel's shoulder and gives his brother a soft kiss on the cheek. "Hey, Daniel," He whispers. No response. You know what that means. Another kiss. "Time to wake up, dude." No response. He softly kisses his brother's cheek again. He doesn't have to say anything this time, Daniel just wakes up.

"Uu, huh," He says groggily, making a sound part laugh, part sigh, part yawn. "Why were you giving me kisses?" He asks, stretching.

"Why not?" Sean says wholesomely.

"Don't give me kisses when I'm sleeping," He laughs, punching Sean's shoulder.

"Why not?" Sean asks again, just as wholesomely.

"Cause if I'm sleeping, I can't give you kisses back!" He exclaims, wrapping his arms around his big brother, to shower him in affection as his first action upon waking.

Honestly, is there any better way to start the day?

Chapter 20: It's Good to Know That From Here, the View Goes On Forever

Summary:

Every day, when dropping Daniel off at school, Sean always gives him a little forehead smooch to start the day. But one day he forgets. How will Daniel, the babiest of babies, react?

Chapter Text

October 30th, 2017

It's an early morning in Puerto Lobos when the Diaz brothers hop in their car to head to school.

Nothing's been going on much lately for them, but that definitely doesn't bother Sean. He's got a lot on his plate already.

Daniel's been doing great at school, but it's not all sunshine and rainbows behind the scenes. His good grades fail to tell the true story.

He really doesn't like school. It overwhelms him, it scares him, he doesn't understand and it doesn't understand him.

If there's any solace to be taken, however, there is one good thing he gets out of going to school.

Every morning, before he leaves the car, Sean always gives him a big smooch on the forehead to send him off to school.

He pretends he doesn't like it, that it's embarrassing and he's too old to be treated like a baby, but honestly it's all an act.

He has to try really really hard not to smile when he gets that precious kiss every day. He always leaves the car immediately to make sure Sean doesn't see him making those adorable, yet incredibly baby "I wuv you big bwother" eyes that he can't help but produce.

And he always makes a big deal out of it being "annoying". Can't have your big brother know how baby you are, can you?

You gotta keep him guessing. For every baby action you do, you have to have a polar opposite just to make sure your big brother doesn't get the wrong idea and think you're some kind of mega-baby.

So with all that in mind, it quite literally perplexes Daniel when Sean only says "Have a good day!" And unlocks the vehicle door. He even bends down for just a second, like he's gonna give Daniel that precious affection he loves but backs up without even a little tiny "mwah" on Daniel's forehead.

Daniel gives Sean an expectant look for only a second, then realizes he can't admit that he needs that precious kiss, it'd be way too embarrassing. So he leaves the car and heads off to school.

There's hundreds of thoughts flowing through his head. Thoughts of sadness, of anger, thoughts of pure unadulterated babyism dance through his skull throughout the day.

Why would Sean just...not give him a kiss?

Does Sean actually think he's too old for embarrassing brother kisses?

But he loves those embarrassing brother kisses so much. It's like the only thing that kept him even giving a shit about going to school.

He keeps telling himself, over and over, goddamnit, he's not that baby, is he? To be so bothered by a forgotten sweet kiss? He's baby but he's not that baby.

Shit, he is that baby.

And the lack of a precious brother kiss to start the day filled him with so much righteous fury that he can't even focus on school.

Like, if he's honest with himself, one of the only reasons he even came to school in the first place might've as well been for those adorable forehead smooches from Sean. And he didn't get one today.

It feels like such a waste to him now. What's the point of dealing with all this bullshit anymore if he won't be getting a reassuring kiss to start every day of it?

Holy fuck, Daniel knew he was extremely baby but with these levels of babyism, they might as well change the age on his birth certificate to 18 months.

He doesn't care though. He embraces that part of himself. He knows he has a very baby side of him and will do whatever it takes to please it.

What will it take to please it?

Well, he could just tell Sean how he feels. That he's seriously baby as all hell and needs those kisses every day.

But imagine just how embarrassing that would be!

So he doesn't have an answer.

He finishes the school day without one, and far from his usual proficiency at that. His mind's just too far in the throes of babyism to worry about 5th grade math.

When Sean picks him up, he doesn't say a thing. It's not that he's mad at Sean necessarily, it's just that he has only 1 thing he wants to say and is too embarrassed to say it.

Sean tries to joke around but can sense his pouty-ness. "Hey, what's wrong?" He asks, after a mention of Daniel's favorite dinner that he doesn't respond to makes him worry.

"Nothing," Daniel crosses his arms with a big sigh.

"Had a bad day?" Sean puts his hand on Daniel's shoulder.

"Sure." Neither of them continue the conversation from here.

Once he gets home, Daniel bides his time watching cartoons while Sean talks with Lyla on the phone. He had asked if Daniel wanted to speak with her earlier, but he declined.

How is he still mad about that?

It was literally just one little kiss from his brother. Like, it's not a big deal. Is there something wrong with him?

Maybe there is, but Daniel doesn't give a shit, he wants what he wants, and he wanted that forehead kiss from Sean so bad.

Finally, Sean decides to press him about his unenthusiastic pouting.

"Hey, man," Sean says, plopping down on the couch. "You seem to be," Sean pauses. "Sad about something today. I can tell it's bothering you."

Daniel looks away from Sean.

Sean only scoots closer. "Are you mad at me for something?"

"No." Daniel whispers softly.

"Then what is it?"

"I can't."

"Why can't you?" Sean puts his arm around his baby brother.

"It's just- super dumb."

"Enano, your emotions are never dumb. It's okay to feel how you're feeling, I just wanna know why," Sean says, that care dripping off, no, flooding off the soaking words.

"I can't say it, it's just- so…" Daniel's face turns red at the thought of expressing this. "Embarrassing."

"Dude, no it's not," Sean says with a loving smile. "Whatever's making you feel this way, it's valid. Even if you don't think so."

"But it's so dumb. You'll think I'm a baby."

"Man, no I won't," he finally puts Daniel all the way into his arms. "I won't. I love you, what kind of brother would I be if I said something bothering you was dumb?"

"O-okay," Daniel says. "But please don't laugh. I just- I- This morning, when you dropped me off at school, you forgot to give me a kiss. You know, like you usually do. I know I always say it's annoying and I'm not a baby, but…" Daniel is looking directly away from Sean. "I really liked it and I didn't wanna say anything cause, I don't know…"

"That's all? It's okay, dude," Sean holds him super close. "Can you look at me?"

Daniel's just way too embarrassed. It's like he's just admitted his deepest baby secret. "Why?"

"Because it's kinda hard for me to give you that kiss when you don't look at me," Sean smiles with a gentle laugh.

Daniel finally looks at Sean sheepishly, too embarrassed to say anything. But Sean doesn't mind. He gives him the biggest, most wholesome big brother smooch on Daniel's forehead that he's ever given.

"Promise me that if I ever forget again, you'll remind me?"

"Promise," Daniel says, and oh no, there's those baby "I wuv you" eyes again.

"Good," He embraces Daniel completely and openly.

Being a baby can be hard sometimes, but when you've got such an amazing big brother like Sean, everything always turns out fine.

Chapter 21: It Gets Dark, and Then, I Am Certain I Am Going to Rise Again

Summary:

Sean and Daniel have a misunderstanding and they both learn a lesson.

Chapter Text

March 26th, 2018

It's a Monday afternoon again, after what felt like such a short weekend, when Sean hears a distinct ring of the phone from the laundry room.

Picking it up, he looks at the Caller ID. It's the local school district. Did Daniel do something wrong? It's possible, but more than likely it's a call about an upcoming event or something.

Once the call initiates, Sean hears a robotic Spanish voice detailing a notice of detention for "one of the students in your household", so, Daniel, for...starting a fight at school?

What? Why would Daniel-

What the fuck did he do?

The disappointment this ignites in Sean is heavy. Daniel's not usually a violent kid, and by the description over the phone, it sounds like he hurt another kid pretty badly. Like, hospital visit badly. They're considering expelling him for it.

He needs to be more careful about himself and his abilities. He knows he has a lot of strength, he can't just unleash it like this.

Maybe it's because of a few provoking interactions with clients, but this has seriously set Sean off. It's just the perfect way to make him angry after an arduous day of getting angry at other shit.

Sean knows he won't be able to focus on his mechanic work until this is resolved, and since Daniel's taking the bus today, he'll get home around 3:45. 15 minutes from now.

Sean resolves to sit on the couch, smoke in his anger (both literally and figuratively), and wait.

The second the door to the house clicks open, Sean immediately rushes to the door.

"Hey, Sean!" Daniel greets him firmly, not all that different from his greetings any normal day, but in a way that tells Sean he knows what he did and he's afraid of Sean's reaction to it.

Sean clenches his fingers on Daniel's shoulders. "We need to talk."

"I-" Sean pulls him into the living room.

"Why did you attack someone?!"

"Sean, I didn't-"

"Don't lie to me!" Sean yells. "I got a call from the school, and it made me very upset."

"I was just-"

"Don't make excuses. You know the kind of strength you have. You used your power, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but...I.."

"I'm very disappointed, Daniel. I'm taking away your PlayBox for a week. And give me your phone."

"Sean, please," Daniel turns away, tears in his eyes.

"Give it to me. I'll give it back in the morning."

Daniel pulls his phone out of his pocket and places it in Sean's hand.

"Now I want you to go to your room," Sean orders. "I'll bring you supper up there in a minute."

Daniel shakes out of Sean's grasp and pitifully walks over to the stairs, sadly muttering, "It's not fair."

Sean, hearing this, responds righteously with "No, it wasn't fair to that kid you hurt."

A few minutes later Sean comes upstairs with a few sandwiches. It's late enough already and he doesn't feel like cooking anything tonight.

He peeps open the door, and immediately sees his little brother sitting on the bed with his knees drawn up to his chest, crying. Daniel gives him a brief look then buries his face in his knees again.

Sean swiftly sets down the plates on a corner desk and rushes over to Daniel.

"What's wrong, buddy?" Sean sits down on the bed next to him. Daniel leans on his side, facing directly away from Sean and continues to bawl.

"Hey, it's okay, it's okay," he says softly. "I'm sorry I yelled at you, but-"

"You didn't even let me say anything," Daniel says painfully, sniffling.

"I know. I'm sorry. I was just fired up." Sean says. "Do you wanna talk about it? I don't want you to hurt like this."

Daniel pulls himself up to a sitting position again. "I feel like if I tell you what happened," he makes a sound between a cough and a cry. "You'll just get more mad."

"I won't, okay?" Sean puts his arm around his little brother. "I'll listen. I won't yell or anything."

Daniel leans into Sean and cries. Sean leans right into him too, rubbing his back to help him calm down. "You promise?"

"Promise."

"Okay. So," Daniel wipes his nose on his wrist. "I didn't mean to hurt anybody. It's just," he looks at Sean with fragile eyes. "This one guy kept making fun of me. Picking on me. Every day. I didn't know what to do."

Sean lets out a long release. "You should've told me. I could've helped. Before it got to-"

"I know!" Daniel exclaims, angrily and sadly. "I know I should've. I guess I just- if I told you, I'd be admitting how much it hurt when they did that. I guess I thought," he sniffles. "If I pretended it didn't hurt, it wouldn't matter."

"I get it, enano," Sean puts his arms around Daniel and pulls him into an accepting hug, surprising him.

Daniel cries into Sean's arms, "And I thought that I had to deal with it on my own, because I'd be a pussy if I had you do something."

"Oh, enano," Sean says painfully, giving him a kiss on the head, "It's not being a pussy to ask for help from someone who loves you. You know I'll always do whatever it takes to make you feel better."

"I know," Daniel says heavily. "I don't know what I was thinking. It just- he wouldn't stop. Every day- he said bad things about me, or you, or he'd push me in the dirt at recess, or steal shit from me... Then today, we were playing basketball at gym, and he threw the ball at me really hard. I couldn't take it anymore. I threw it back. And I went to hit him. And I just kept hitting. My power kicked in and I didn't even mean it to, and I was just totally freaking out, I don't even remember anything except that they took me to the principal's office and said I did something super bad," he says, burying his head in Sean's arms, bawling. "I didn't mean for that to happen!"

"I know, I know," Sean says heart meltingly. "I get it, dude. I'm so sorry I yelled like that. I should've listened to you. That was...an asshole thing for me to do."

Daniel pulls himself up and wraps his arms around Sean's shoulders. "It's ok. I forgive you. I should've told you what was happening before it came to that."

Sean embraces his brother tightly and doesn't speak a word.

It's Daniel who finally breaks the silence. "So what are we going to do?" He asks. "They want us to have a big meeting with the school people."

"We'll just have to tell them the truth," Sean says.

"Sean, we can't," Daniel replies.

"Why can't we?"

"I just, I don't," he struggles to find the words. "It'd embarrass me," he admits.

"Daniel, I get it," Sean says, caressing the side of his face in a stereotypically parental way, another expression of the 'dad-li-ness' Sean has taken on. "You don't wanna admit how they made you feel. I understand. I got bullied too, you know? But trust me when I say that telling the school what really happened can only help."

"How would you know?" Daniel retorts sadly.

"If they know what happened, they might be more lenient on you. Even if they're not, I bet they'll look out for you in the future," Sean explains. "Even if it's just to make sure nothing like this happens again."

"I guess that makes sense."

Sean gets up from the bed. "Ok," he says, "I brought you some food. You should get started on that. I'm gonna call the school and see if we can't work things out."

"Alright," Daniel says, flashing a smile. Not one of pure joy or any typical emotion associated with a smile, more a smile of "Okay, maybe things will be okay."

Sean comes back a few minutes later, and Daniel's already done eating.

"You called the school? What did you tell them?" Daniel asks.

"Just the truth. I basically said "Look, I know Daniel did some stuff, but it's not as simple as it looks". I'll be coming in after school tomorrow so we can all talk about it together," Sean says.

"That sounds good."

"As for now," Sean sits down on the bed and ruffles Daniel's hair. "Do you need anything?"

"Um, maybe like," Daniel ponders. "Can you hold me and stuff? I feel like, I just need...love...after today."

"Awww, of course I'll hold you," Sean says, immediately pulling Daniel deep into his arms and giving him a soft smooch. "I'll hold you for as long as you need. Hey," Sean says, grabbing the TV remote. "How about we put something on? You can just lie in your bed and watch TV while I hold you."

"Really? Okay!" Daniel says gleefully, immediately sliding in bed.

"Oh," Sean says. "And here's your phone back. Sorry I took it."

"It's fine, don't worry," Daniel says, grabbing it and lying it down on his nightstand while Sean crawls in next to him.

Sean moves to bury Daniel in his arms with a smile, and says softly, "I love you so much, dude, you know that, right? You're the best little bro in the world."

"I know, you tell me all the time," Daniel laughs. "But it still makes me so happy when you tell me. I love you too, Sean."

And yet another night for the Diaz brothers ends in more proof that their brother will always have their back.

They just have to let him.

They're both so thankful for that.

Chapter 22: We Show Great Loyalty to the Hard Times We've Been Through, You Find Shelter Somewhere in Me, I Find Great Comfort in You, and I Wanna Go Home...But I Am Home

Summary:

Daniel comforts Sean, and makes sure he knows that for every way Sean is there for him, he'll be there for Sean.

Chapter Text

February 23th, 2018

It's a cool night in Puerto Lobos, cooler than it's been for a long time, which is why it's so strange that Daniel hasn't fallen asleep yet.

Cold breezes and bitter air have always helped him sleep. There's something about being snuggled up so softly and warmly in your blankets when the air around you is so breezy and sharp.

But tonight, something just feels off. That happens every once in a while. Something's off in his brain or his body, or both, and falling asleep just doesn't work.

It isn't that he's not tired. It certainly feels like he could fall asleep any minute now. But it's felt like that ever since he hopped into bed, probably 75 minutes ago.

Sean went to bed only a few minutes ago. Maybe it has something to do with that? It's completely possible that Daniel's conditioned himself to fall asleep when he can hear Sean snore.

But it doesn't seem like his brother's asleep yet. He focuses his ears.

Wait, what's that sound?

It's like a sort of whimper. It sounds...painful. Is Sean crying?

Daniel can't just sit back and do nothing if Sean might be crying. He hops off his bed and out into the hall, slithering into Sean's room through the creaky as hell half-ajar door, careful not to touch it in case Sean's actually asleep.

But 1 second in the room confirms that he is not, and that Daniel was right when he thought he heard Sean crying.

"Sean?"

Sean looks at him, jumping a little and trying to regain himself as fast as possible. "Hey…" He says meekly, wiping his eyes with the blanket and sniffling. "What's up, buddy?"

"Sean…" Daniel isn't sure exactly what to do, so he carefully steps over to the side of the bed and puts his arms around his big brother. "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing. I'm okay," Sean says, in such a worn out way, it hurts Daniel inside.

"You can tell me," Daniel says softly. "I'm here for you."

"I know," Sean says lightly. "But I don't want to worry you."

Daniel puts his hand on the bed, signaling that he's about to crawl on. Sean scoots himself over and pulls the blanket up so Daniel can rest under it, too.

"We're brothers, Sean," Daniel says heartfeltly. "You're here for me all the time. I can be here for you, too. Just please tell me what's wrong," he speaks softly, with a sad look in his eyes.

"I guess," Sean says, thinking back on something he's told Daniel a hundred times, "You're right. We don't hide things from each other, do we?"

Daniel puts his arms around Sean the best his tiny arms can do, and Sean pulls him in close, but this time, it's different, they both can tell. It's not an embrace of "I'm here for you" like the ones Sean usually gives, it's an embrace of "I need you right now".

"No, we don't. So, please, let me help."

"Okay. I guess I just- it's like, no matter where I go, or what I do, or how much better things get, I feel like there's no escape," Sean spits out. "From what we went through. I don't think I'll ever be free. I get reminded of it sometimes. It's all over, but for some reason my brain keeps treating it like it still matters, like we're still out there, fending for ourselves."

Sean averts his eyes for a second, then locks up with Daniel's again.

"When I said at the border that I think about that day every day, that was the truth," Sean says. "But now it's not just that day. Now that we're out of there," Sean whispers painfully, "It's all of those days. Every single fucking one. And all the ways each one hurt."

Sean looks mostly exhausted and devoid of emotion at this point, but Daniel's on the verge of tears.

"I'm so, so sorry, Sean," he says, the words slicing through the air. "I love you, okay? And maybe I don't know how to make all that shit go away, but I'll do whatever I can. Whatever you need to feel better...or something...if I can do anything, I want to. I wanna help you."

"Fuck," Sean's emotional dam has imploded, letting the water burst through, soaking everything in it's path with hurt. "I think I just- I just need...something bolted down, that I can attach myself to. Something that's permanent. I know it sounds dumb cause we're here and we're safe and shit, but- things still feel so desperate to me."

"I don't know what'll happen in the future and stuff, but I'll always be here for you, Sean. Always," Daniel's words are plastered with loving determination. "No matter what, you'll have me to hold onto. That can't change. I'll be here for you. Forever."

Sean takes a deep breath before buckling into Daniel's tiny embrace. He curls up, placing his chin over Daniel's head and grasping his shoulders tightly as he cries into the darkness.

"I know. I know," he says, barely loud enough to hear. "I love you so much, enano."

"I love you too. Whenever you need anything Sean, I'll be here," Daniel whispers. "I promise. Just tell me when you need me."

"I will. I promise."

Sean pulls back a small bit and looks at his little brother in his arms. "Can you just stay with me? That's what I need right now. To have you to hold onto."

"Of course. I'll always be here for you."

"God, I'm so fucking happy that you're my brother."

Chapter 23: We Were Here Before the Flood

Summary:

It's Sean's birthday, and while not everything goes perfectly, Daniel makes sure it's a special day.

Chapter Text

August 15th, 2017

Beep, beep, beep, mmmmm…

The sound of the alarm wakes Daniel up, early on a Tuesday morning.

He chose to sleep on the couch last night, just so he could set an alarm to wake up early without waking Sean up.

Right now, the Diaz bros only have one bed, a big king sized one in the master bedroom.

There was a bed here when they first arrived a month ago, but it wasn't in great condition.

There were certain old things in the house they kept, the oven was still functional, the couch wasn't that rough, but when it comes to where you're sleeping, who really wants to sleep on an old, torn apart, moldy-ass bed?

So, as one of their first purchases, they went to a furniture store in the nearest sizable town and bought a bed.

There was theoretically room in the budget for them both to have an individual bed, but they decided against it for a few reasons.

First off, the most obvious, it opens up the budget a lot more. Beds are expensive, and they still need money to complete other fixer-uppers, start their business, and of course, put food on the table.

The other reason, they've just become accustomed to close sleeping quarters. They both slept on Karen's bed in Away and it wasn't too cramped (mostly because she slept on the couch, only occasionally hopping in bed with them, which Daniel was fine with. Double the cuddles!), and it's just nice to cuddle up to your brother and know he's there, to know…

He's got you.

But of course, that does make situations like this a bit more awkward.

Daniel wanted to get up early, but he couldn't just sleep right next to Sean all night or the alarm would wake him.

So, he had to sleep on the couch.

But what's got Daniel eager to wake up so early?

"It's Sean's birthday!" Daniel whispers to himself with a smile, switching off the alarm.

Daniel's been planning a whole elaborate day out for his big brother's special day, and he's gonna need this time to prepare for it.

First, the cake. Daniel had thought about making one from scratch himself, but quickly realized that he actually had no idea how. Plus, with the whole early morning thing, he probably wouldn't have enough time anyway.

So, he already decided he would buy one.

If he's honest, it kinda surprised him when Sean didn't buy it for himself.

Either Sean doesn't care about his own birthday, didn't wanna spend the money, or simply forgot.

Daniel's not okay with any of those outcomes.

He already stuck some cash he had saved up in the TV stand earlier, so he wouldn't have to sneak upstairs to his money jar in their room and risk waking Sean.

He could've gotten the cake last night, or even during the day yesterday, but it would've been much harder to keep a secret.

And Daniel Diaz is certainly one for surprises.

He already planned everything, even down to his sleeping arrangement.

Sean was none the wiser when Daniel said he wanted to sleep on the couch.

"I just wanna be alone, you know? Have some time to think," he said to Sean. A blatant lie; Daniel loves being held in his big bro's arms, if there's anything to help him think, it's that.

But Sean was happy to see his little bro wanting to be a bit more independent.

Of course, he suggested for himself to sleep on the couch and Daniel to get the bed, but Daniel declined, because it'd be pretty hard to set things up for a surprise party on the main level when there's someone sleeping 2 feet away in the living room.

So he just told Sean that, as the guy who works all day, he deserves the comfort of the bed. It took some convincing, but in the end, Daniel got away with it.

Now it's time to head out to the store and buy Sean a birthday cake.

Daniel didn't bother putting on pajamas last night, knowing he'd want to be as quick as possible, so he just swiftly brushes his teeth, then he's out the door.

He originally planned to walk to the store, considering Puerto Lobos is a very small town of around 3 or 4 blocks total, but, seeing Karen's old truck parked on the driveway, the idea of a joyride is just too enticing to him.

Daniel knows Sean keeps the keys in the garage, so he darts back inside and sleuths into the mechanic's garage.

There's the keys, shining from their hook like some godly presence from above.

Is this a bad idea? Yeah. A 10 year old probably shouldn't be driving the family car.

But it's only a few blocks away. Despite how much Daniel would love to take the thing on a tour of the Mexican coast, he doesn't exactly have time for that.

What's the worst that could happen?

He hops in the car and slams the door tight. He glances at the clock.

It's 3:52 in the morning. Alright. He's got time.

Sean usually wakes up at 6, so all he needs to do is pick up the cake and the other supplies from the store and he should be fine.

He jams the key into the ignition, and turns it just like he's watched Sean do a thousand times.

Nothing happens.

Goddamnit. He twists the key back and forth.

Still nothing.

Come on, he may be 10 but he's not that weak, is he?

He does it again, putting more force into it this time.

Finally, the engine roars to life. That is to say, it turns on and sounds, well, like you'd expect from an old truck that'd be in the extreme budget section at most dealerships.

Only then he realizes that yeah, putting your seatbelt on is probably a good idea, especially right now.

His feet can only barely reach the pedals, so let's just hope he doesn't have to brake suddenly. Or go above 20 miles an hour.

He presses the gas pedal as far in as his tiny legs can muster, but all he hears is an engine revving further up.

Then he remembers the shifter.

Which he has absolutely no idea how to work.

But there's a 1 in the top left corner and you always start with 1, right?

He thinks back to those old racing movies he, Sean, and their father used to watch.

Sometimes when they shifted gears, it'd show them pressing a different pedal down from the others. He looks down.

Okay. There's the clutch. But to reach it, he'll need to put his whole body on that side of the car, making it even harder to press down the gas and brake.

But it's just a few blocks away. He's not an idiot. He can do this.

Cautiously, he shifts into first. Then he realizes that yeah, unlatching the parking brake might be a good idea.

Suddenly, the truck starts rolling forward, toward the street. Caught by surprise, he slams down the brake, as much as he can reach, anyway.

The truck comes to a sudden halt, making him jerk forward in his seat. Okay.

Hesitantly, he lets off the brake and puts both hands on the steering wheel.

This time, as the car rolls forward, he's prepared, and once it's mostly out in the street, he turns the wheel to get it on the road.

Okay, now let's try the gas.

Daniel taps the gas with all his might, and the sudden burst of power surprises him.

He can barely even reach the pedal, but he still has to be more delicate than that.

He tries again, much lighter this time, and is pleased with how the vehicle gradually speeds up.

Not by much, mind you, he's going 6 miles an hour at most here, but it feels cool to him.

Alright, now a turn. He has to make a left to get into the main town front from the beach.

He lightly drifts the wheel to the side, taking note of exactly how far he has to turn it to get the car where he wants.

He cruises down the street, crawling forward at a snail's pace before eventually turning into the parking lot of the largest store in town.

There's like 4 cars in the whole parking lot, so he doesn't really care to do a good parking job.

He presses down on the brake again, still somewhat surprised at how sudden it feels, then grabs the shifter and throws it down into reverse.

He's not very sure that's the right thing to do, but hey, it was left in reverse when he started the car so it can't be the wrong thing to do.

He engages the parking brake and unbuckles, hopping out of the car and skipping towards the store with an adorable pep in his step.

He doesn't waste any time entering the store and going straight to the cake section.

This place doesn't make their own, so all they've got is the branded ones, but it's not like he'd be able to have someone make a personalized cake at this point anyway.

Plus, he knows the exact one he wants. He had Sean take a detour last time they went shopping to take a look at the cakes.

Little did his brother know, he was plotting things out for his birthday.

Daniel knows all of Sean's cake preferences.

The base? Red velvet.

The frosting? Chocolate.

Sprinkles? Fuck yeah.

And wouldn't you know, there's a cake matching all of those conditions just sitting there on the tray.

Due to Daniel's short stature, he'd have a hard time reaching it. If not for his power.

He looks over his shoulder to make sure no one is watching. The place is dead as a doornail.

He concentrates his mind, and the lovely baked goodie floats down into his arms.

Okay, he's got the cake. Check that off the list.

Hopefully the cashier isn't annoying about it. Yeah, he's a kid by himself buying a cake, who cares?

But before that, Daniel notices a collection of balloons sitting in their own little section.

He brought along more than enough money to purchase the cake, so he definitely has enough to add some balloons to the shopping list as well.

He picks out a few he thinks Sean might like, some birthday-themed ones, a wholesome brother-themed one, and a few others, then he heads to the check-out.

The man asks him if he found everything okay, and Daniel replies that he did. Then of course, comes the annoying question of why he's here all by himself.

Daniel sputters out something quick just to let the guy know that it's for a surprise and it's not like he has no parents or something weird, and then he's on his way.

Daniel's so excited to throw this party for Sean. He's been so focused on work and his life has been so serious lately, that he really just deserves to be appreciated like this.

Sean's the best big brother Daniel could ask for. He's always ready to listen, he cares so much, he helps Daniel out with anything he needs help with, and most of all, he just supports him and always makes him feel safe.

And after what they went through, most people wouldn't have the capacity to feel safe. Most people would be anxious. Most people would be terrified.

When traumatic things stop happening to you, your body and mind don't always act like they aren't still experiencing that trauma.

Daniel was worried that the same would happen to him. But Sean just takes the fear away. The anxiety away. Every time he's having a bad day, Sean can make the bad stuff not matter anymore.

Even just the littlest things. Everytime Sean squeezes his shoulder, it feels like he's taking some of the weight away. Everytime Sean ruffles his hair, he gets this feeling that there's nowhere he'd rather be than right here, right now, with Sean.

He could be a billionaire, living on an island, getting every single thing he ever asks for, but if Sean isn't there, it's not worth it.

He's such an amazing brother, and he's worth everything to Daniel. All he wants is for every way Sean can comfort and help him in life, he can do the same.

That's what it means to be brothers.

Daniel pops open the back of the truck and lets all the balloons free in there. Then, he hops in the driver's seat and places the cake on the seat next to him, to make sure it isn't gonna roll around the interior. Not that it probably matters anyway, considering the speed he'll be cruising at, but in his eyes, it's better to be safe than sorry.

He haphazardly shoves the key in the ignition and unlatches the parking brake, completely forgetting that he parked the car in reverse.

Before he can respond, the vehicle begins rolling backward. He doesn't have enough time to get his feet anywhere near the brake before the car has already stopped.

And it's not an easy stop, either. The truck jerks to a stop, sending his body forward. He knows it instantly. He just backed into something.

Okay, now he's fucking panicking. The pure amount of terrible outcomes start surging through his head.

The rear bumper could be totally cracked in. Would cost Sean a lot of money to replace it.

Or worse, he could've hit another vehicle, or something else expensive.

He opens the driver's door hesitantly. Having the foresight to reapply the parking brake, he hops out of the car and heads around back.

Thankfully, all he hit was a pole, but the rear bumper has a massive smashed crease in it, and there's a 100% chance that damage warrants replacement.

Goddamnit. How could he be so careless? And on his brother's birthday? This was supposed to be a day he could make Sean happy. Seeing this is going to make Sean the opposite of happy.

And it's not that he's afraid of Sean getting angry or anything. He probably won't. He probably won't even say anything to Daniel about it other than asking why he drove the truck in the first place.

Even when Daniel does something bad, Sean never tries to make him feel bad about it. He'd probably have to drive the car into the ocean for Sean to actually yell at him, and even then, if it was somehow truly an accident, Sean would still easily forgive him.

But it's not that. It's something that didn't have to happen. And it's gonna cost Sean money.

It's not like the entire rear of the truck is totally trashed, in all honestly if Sean randomly saw it one day, he'd probably think he hit something himself and didn't even realize.

But Daniel will tell him. He won't hide it and hope he doesn't notice. It'd be wrong to do that.

Fuck. This just about ruined the entire thing for Daniel. No matter how much happiness he can bring Sean on his special day, he's convinced it won't matter compared to that.

Why was he so fucking careless? He didn't need to take the car. He really didn't. He just had to go for a joy ride. All of 3 blocks, in a vehicle he clearly has no idea how to operate.

He's just...selfish.

Well, he's not gonna drive it anymore. He's too scared he'll mess something up again. So this time he gets in, unlatches the parking brake, shifts into 1st, and instead of starting the engine, he closes his eyes.

Just closes his eyes and concentrates, and the vehicle moves along with him. All down the road, making every turn along with his mind, until he's back at the house and parked in the driveway safely. Only then he finally checks on the cake.

Which, apparently, has decided to flip over into the aisle of the car.

Daniel grabs it and carefully turns it over to make sure it doesn't get damaged even more, then inspects the damage.

It could be worse, but still, the cake is decently smushed. It's 100% noticeable.

Ugh, just another thing to make the situation even worse.

Daniel briefly debates going back to the store and buying another cake. But at this point, he's just tired.

If things have already gone this wrong so far, who knows what else could happen.

Plus, there's a few things Daniel wants to get ready before Sean wakes up.

He heads to the back of the car to grab the balloons. Upon opening the trunk, however, the balloons start blowing out into the air.

He's able to grab a few, but he's not as quick since his hands are occupied and most of them start to float away.

He closes his eyes and concentrates, trying to pull them back to him.

Unfortunately, the pressure his power puts on them leads the balloons to swiftly pop.

Well, that's annoying. He just can't get his way today, can he?

Whatever. He's still gonna try and salvage whatever he can from this. He heads inside their house with his mashed up cake and the 3 balloons he was able to save.

Alright, Sean's still sound asleep in his bed upstairs. Daniel places the cake and balloons in the kitchen and heads to his room to grab a few things he's made for Sean.

Then he starts thinking to himself. He's still got tons of time, what else could he do to make this more of a special occasion?

Aha! He could make Sean breakfast. He's always working and prepares 3 meals every day for them, the least he could do is prepare one meal for Sean.

He knows Sean's favorite breakfast like the back of his hand. Eggs, bacon, and a plain bagel with cream cheese.

He quickly gets out a pan from the cupboard and 2 eggs from the fridge. Unfortunately, it looks like the Diaz household is running on a bacon shortage, so he settles on some sausage links.

Then he grabs a bagel from the package and, not sure which of the cream cheese flavors they have Sean would like the most, picks out chive and onion.

Once those are being prepared, he stands there in the kitchen, pondering to himself.

It feels like something's missing. Did he forget something?

Breakfast, cake, balloons, the drawing he made, the thing he wrote, that's great and all, but it feels like there needs to be more.

Maybe it's because he feels like he needs to make up for that whole rear-bumper escapade, or maybe it's just because Sean means so much to him that nothing really feels like enough. Maybe both.

It's really tough to plan a whole birthday thing out when you're a 10 year old with no money. But he's done what he can.

Once the breakfast is finished, he sets it out on the kitchen counter and wraps it in aluminum to keep it warm.

He decides to grab one of their TV speakers and place it on the coffee table in the living room. Then he pulls out his flip phone and starts casting one of Sean's all time favorite albums, Gorillaz' Plastic Beach, to it.

Quietly, of course. It wouldn't be very nice to jolt Sean awake with a deafening 'Welcome to the world of the Plastic Beach!', now would it?

Then he sits down on the couch, content in the surprise party he has set up.

This might not be a total clusterfuck. Like, yeah, he kinda messed up the cake, and obviously the whole car incident he's not looking forward to telling Sean about, but at least he can put a smile on Sean's face before he tells him about that.

But still that doesn't seem satisfactory. Whatever. He's just gonna have to figure it out.

# # #

There's the sound of footsteps on the staircase. Daniel quickly flips off the light and dashes behind the couch, in position to jump out and surprise Sean.

Eventually, Sean arrives downstairs and turns on the lights, dancing awkwardly but joyously to the music coming from the speaker. He looks around the room, wondering why it's randomly playing so early in the morning.

Daniel moves into action. He hops out from behind the chair and quickly rushes up to Sean, startling him slightly as he puts his arms around him.

"Happy Birthday, Sean!"

"U-uh.." Sean blanks out, his brain clearly not expecting anything this early. "It's my birthday?" He asks groggily, which makes Daniel giggle.

"Uh, yeah!" Daniel says firmly. "Did you forget?"

"I guess I just didn't realize…" Sean yawns, rubbing his eyes and finally returning Daniel's embrace.

"Well, it's a good thing I got you a cake then!" Daniel says happily, eagerly grabbing his brother's arms and pulling the still in the process of waking up Sean to the kitchen.

He picks up the tray with both hands and shows it to Sean.

"And I made you breakfast too!" He says, pulling the aluminum wrap from the plate.

"Wow, dude, that's really nice," Sean says, before noticing something else. "What's this…?" He grabs a face down piece of paper and starts to flip it over.

"Wait!" Daniel exclaims, grabbing it from Sean's hands and pulling it close to his chest. "That's for later. I made stuff for you, but you can't look at it yet!" He says playfully, grabbing another paper off the table and plopping them both down in another corner.

"Oh, I can't open my presents early is what you're saying?" Sean chuckles lovingly.

"Exactly! No peeking!"

"Alright," he says, ruffling his little brother's hair preciously. "I won't, don't worry," he says, then he grabs a second plate from the cupboard and starts sectioning out the breakfast Daniel made equally onto both plates.

"Um," Daniel asks. "What are you doing?

"...putting our breakfast on plates?" Sean says rather obviously.

"Our breakfast?" Daniel asks. "I made the breakfast just for you."

"Oh," Sean says. "I mean, that's really nice, but you need to eat too, so…"

"I made it for you, okay?" Daniel says, comically using his power to dump the contents of one plate onto the other. "Plus, it's not enough for 2 people anyway."

"You sure?"

"Yeah! I'll just eat something later if I get hungry."

"Alright," Sean says, starting to take a bite. "Thanks, dude."

"No problem!"

"Wait a minute…" Sean says questioningly. "I've got one question."

"Yeah?" Daniel raises his eyebrows adorably.

"When did you have the time to get the cake and balloons and stuff?"

"Uh…" Daniel scratched the back of his neck. "Well, I kinda woke up early today so I could go and buy everything."

Sean laughs. "So that's why you wanted to sleep in the living room," he pulls Daniel into a warm embrace. "But seriously, thanks for doing all this. I really appreciate it."

"You deserved it. For being the best big brother!"

"The best? I don't know, dude, there's probably, like...some big brother down in Australia who's really cool," Sean jokes.

"Too bad for him, cause I've got the best big brother and he's right here!" Daniel says, tightening his grip around Sean and letting his head rest in his brother's arms for half a minute. "You know, I can't wait to be tall," he says after a little while.

"Oh? Why's that?" Sean asks.

"Cause once I'm your height, you won't have to bend down to hug me," Daniel says, smiling just thinking about it. "Plus, then I can put my arms around your shoulders and stuff, like how big people hug," he pauses for a second. "Wait, I wonder if I could…"

Daniel closes his eyes and begins to concentrate.

Suddenly, Sean feels the presence his arms are around pulsate outwards. Then he notices an arm-like presence around his shoulders.

Of course, he can't see any of it, it's just a weighted presence created by Daniel's power. But for a second, it feels like he's hugging a teenage, or maybe even older version of his little brother.

He closes his eyes, but almost immediately forces himself to reopen them, realizing that with his sense of sight removed, his brain interprets the force as actually being Daniel, and that thought instantly makes him tear up.

It just serves as a reminder that one day, his little brother will grow up.

Goddamnit, has he really become that much of a parent that that thought hurts so much?

Sean smiles comedically, yet doubtfully, mostly to himself.

"Aw," Daniel says, disappointed. The strange presence disappears. "Eh, it doesn't feel real."

"Yeah…" Sean says automatically, like he was surprised that his little brother didn't actually have an invisible huge upper body and second pair of arms. He moves his arms back around the real Daniel.

"You know, there is one thing I'll miss when I get bigger," Daniel says. "You won't be able to hold my head like this," he says, referring to the double insulation coming from Sean's arms. He borrows his head deeper into his brother's arms.

"Yeah," Sean says, in a bit of a reminiscent tone. "Me too." He loosens the hug slightly. "Anyway," Sean ruffles Daniel's hair, just a little bit. "You ready for some cake?"

Daniel's eyes light up. "Yeah!"

Sean chuckles. "Even though it's my birthday, you seem way more excited about everything than I do."

Daniel giggles. "Well, I'm just trying to pass that happy energy on," he says smugly. "Wouldn't be a very good party if your brother said everything like this," he says the last 2 words in a monotone robot voice, which makes Sean laugh.

"No, I guess not," Sean says, still smiling as he takes the tray off the cake, not noticing how badly pushed in one side of it is as he opens the drawer below to look for a knife. As he does, he rests his elbow next to the most smushed in part of the cake, close enough to actually touch it. "Aha!" Sean says playfully, pulling the knife out of the drawer and looking up at the cake.

"Oh, shit," he laughs. "Did I do that?"

Daniel's head perks up, like he wasn't really paying attention. "What?"

"Sorry, I think I smushed the cake a little bit with my elbow," Sean says a little funnily, wiping the small bits of chocolate frosting from his elbow off with his thumb and popping it in his mouth.

Daniel looks at him with a bit of a nervous expression, before realizing that, actually, it doesn't hurt anybody to let Sean think he was the one that smushed the cake. He still has to tell him about the truck, though. But that can wait. "It's fine."

"Alright, what piece do you want?" Sean asks after cutting up the cake.

Daniel just looks at him with a funny expression. "Dude, it's your birthday, it doesn't matter what piece I want."

"True, I guess you're right," Sean says, picking out a slice of cake and putting it on his plate.

Daniel pulls a fork out of the drawer and then does the same, joining Sean on the couch to eat.

As the brothers start to finish their plates, Daniel decides that this is probably the best time to tell Sean about the whole incident with the car. It'd definitely be way more awkward to wait until after giving Sean his birthday gifts and all the wholesomeness that comes with that to change the topic to something more serious then.

"Um- there is something I should tell-" Daniel squeaks out meekly before being interrupted.

"Oh yeah!" Sean says, bobbing his head to the music as the beat starts up to On Melancholy Hill. "I love this song," he says, standing up from his seat, grooving his shoulders in tune with the music. "Come on, let's dance!"

"U-uh, okay!" Daniel says awkwardly, hoping out of his seat and starting to dance even more awkwardly.

"Up on Melancholy Hill, there's a plastic tree...are you here with me?" Sean sings with a smile on his face, which is so contagious it makes Daniel smile.

The brothers dance for a few minutes along with the song. It's like it transports them to a whole nother universe. Sean's completely taken to his room back in Seattle. It's been so long since he heard that song.

Of course he's relistened to most of Plastic Beach with his time here in Mexico, they both have phones with access to music streaming services after all, but everytime that song came on he'd always skip it.

Just...too many memories. It was always his favorite.

And that's exactly why as the song fades out with that final little ding, he starts to cry. He even feels slightly lightheaded and begins to wobble a bit on his feet.

"Sean!" Daniel rushes to his side. "Are you okay?" He puts his arms around him tightly, half in a "I wanna hug you to make you feel comforted" way and half in a "I need to make sure you don't fall over" way. Sean rights himself up a little bit and replies by putting his arms around Daniel's head.

"I'm okay. Thanks, enano. It's just been...a while since I heard that song. So many memories come with it. But I guess now I've got a new memory to associate with it," he laughs, kind of forcing it but not in a bad way, more in a "don't worry, I'm fine. See?" way, and ruffles Daniel's hair as he pulls out of Sean's arms, now laughing, too.

"Well, anyway," Sean says. "You said those papers from earlier were something you made? Do you wanna show them to me?"

Daniel's heart jolts with both excitement and nervousness at the smiles he hopes he can bring with what he made for Sean.

But another thought comes to the forefront of his mind. He really does need to tell Sean about the vehicle damage. This is the only opportunity he'll get. Yeah, it sucks to go from laughing and dancing and having fun to being like "Oh by the way I smashed the car's bumper" but it'd be a million times worse to get there from the heartfelt stuff he has prepared with those gifts.

"Um- yeah, but first," he swallows. "I have to tell you something," Daniel droops his head down, unable to look Sean in the eye.

Sean, sending the severity of Daniel's tone, bends down a bit, perhaps ready to either embrace him in affection or to kneel down to get on his level. "Yeah, what's up?" He says, putting one hand on Daniel's shoulder.

"So, uh, this morning-" he snaps his head to the left, refusing to even look in Sean's direction. "Of course I got the cake and stuff, like I said."

"Yeah?"

"But, I also- I know I shouldn't of, but," he puts a hand on his face, maybe trying to cover it or maybe trying to avoid seeing Sean's face and reaction. "I kinda took the car."

"Yeah?" Sean says again, a lot higher pitched and drawn out than before.

"I know it's like 2 blocks, but I really wanted to see what it's like to drive. I was being dumb. And I accidentally hit a pole," Daniel starts to tear up, he can't stop it.

"What kind of a hit was this?" Sean asks, in such an unassuming tone you'd think he was a news reporter who just arrived to the scene and is trying to get all the details.

"I backed into it," Daniel says, crying. "I broke the whole back bumper. I'm so sorry, Sean," he puts both hands on his face and makes no attempt to enter his brother's arms. "You can go see it if you want."

Sean looks up at the door. Even though his brain is really going "aw shit" he's not gonna let any anger show through. Daniel's already crying and he's hardly said anything. What kind of a brother would he be if he got mad at him right now?

"Okay," he says calmly. "Let's go see," Sean breathes, continuing to hold Daniel's wrist, but making sure it doesn't feel like an angry, wrathful tug as he pulls on it, more like a gentle and careful one.

Daniel looks up at him, the arm Sean isn't holding being used to wipe his eyes, as though the tears are beginning to slow down, they aren't over.

"Come on, Daniel," Sean says in the calmest voice he can muster, although he knows that in this situation Daniel's brain won't let him interpret that sentence as anything but angry.

Daniel snatches his wrist out of Sean's grasp and sits down on the floor, drawing his knees up.

"Hey," Sean releases empathetically. "It's okay. I'm not pissed. I just want to go and see it. And I don't wanna leave you alone to cry. Even for a second," Sean reaches out his hand and his eyes are filled with so much heart that they don't even look like eyes. They look like...love. Just infinite, lovely, loving, love.

They look like whatever love as a pure emotion looks like.

"Please?"

Thankfully, Daniel lets his hand reach up to grasp Sean's, and Sean pulls him up to his feet. They open the house door, side by side, and walk out to the driveway.

"I don't know how you're not pissed," Daniel says softly, as they walk around to the back of the car. When Daniel sees the bumper again, he lets go of Sean's hand, and darts his eyes over to his big brother for maybe a tenth of a second. "That's it," he says, covering his eyes because he can't bear to see the face Sean'll make. Maybe of disappointment? Maybe annoyance?

And the 2 things Daniel hates being the most are a disappointment and an annoyance.

But outside Daniel's guarded view, the only face Sean makes is a rather blank one. He's not disappointed. He's not annoyed. Yeah, it's gonna cost decent money to fix, yeah it's gonna effect their budget for a month or so, but it's not the big deal Daniel is making it out to be in his head, and because Daniel is reacting so strongly to it, it's almost like that removes any real reaction Sean could have to it.

All of a sudden, Daniel feels a warm embrace surround him.

"W-wha-"

"It's not as bad as your brain wants you to believe. Okay?" Sean places a soft kiss on his little brother's head.

"Y-you're not mad?" Daniel asks hesitantly.

"No, not really. Shit happens, man. Yeah I'm kinda upset that you drove the car, but not because you damaged it. You could've gotten hurt," Sean says, and it sounds somehow both lighthearted, because it's such a relief for Daniel to hear, but also serious, because, well, "You could've gotten hurt" is a pretty serious thing to say.

"I won't do it again. I promise. I was just being dumb."

"You weren't being dumb, man, I would've done the same thing as a kid," Sean says, almost playfully. "You know, if you wanted to drive, you could've just asked. I would've took you to somewhere empty so you could've seen what it's like."

Daniel laughs. "I think I've gotten all my driving in for the year," he says, which makes Sean laugh too. He pauses for a little bit. "Holy shit."

Sean laughs, caught off guard by the random expletive proclamation. "What?"

"You're literally the best brother in the fucking world."

Sean laughs again, holding Daniel's head closer and warmer. "Hmm, takes one to know one."

Daniel just smiles and stays silent for a few moments, allowing himself to take in the solidarity of the moment.

Then, after a short while, he speaks again.

"Um-" he says nervously, starting to pull out of his brother's arms. "Do you wanna- see what I made for you now?"

"Sure, Superwolf," Sean smiles.

"Okay!" Daniel says as they head back to the kitchen. "I'll show you this one first," he picks up a piece of construction paper with a drawing on it. "I don't know why, but one day I was looking in your notebook-"

"Wait what?"

"Sorry!" Daniel giggles nervously. "I didn't read anything, I just wanted to look at your drawings," he says enthusiastically. "And I saw one from a while ago where you drew me, and I don't know, it just made me happy. I guess it was the way you drew me," he explains. "I looked super happy. And it was just...it's really hard to explain, but looking at it, I got this feeling of, like…"

"Anyone who saw it would instantly know the person who drew that really cares about the person on the paper," Daniel concludes. "So I wanted to draw something like that of you."

"So that's why you were always looking up at me while you were drawing," Sean laughs, thinking about the other night when he noticed Daniel's glances and asked if he needed anything, only for Daniel to say he was fine and cover his paper even more.

"Yep!" He giggles. "So, anyway, I know I'm not as good as you, but here it is," Daniel holds it up for Sean to grab in his hands.

The drawing is a portrait style drawing of Sean's face, with his shoulders and the collar of his shirt. It's colored in very delicately and not super deeply, making it come off as a very 'professional profiling' type of sketch.

The Sean in the drawing has a big smile on his face and his hair styled a bit messy and loose on his head. It's a very detailed drawing, in kind of a freeform style, one that gets just the right balance between realism and silliness, similar to Sean's own style, and it's clear Daniel put a ton of work into this.

And then of course there's his eyes, which are easily the most detailed part of the drawing. It's clear Daniel wanted to get right just how much emotion Sean can express through his eyes. It's something that comforts Daniel a lot, after all.

Whenever he's down, or afraid, or having trouble with something, all it takes is a singular caring look from Sean to remind him he's not alone.

Sean's such an amazing brother that just a simple look can calm Daniel down. How is that even possible?

Sean gives himself a few moments to take it in.

"Dude…" Sean puts his hand over his mouth.

"Yeah?" Daniel tilts his head wholesomely.

He drops the hand from his mouth to reveal a huge smile. "This is so good, Daniel!"

"You really think so?"

"Fuck yeah, dude! I don't even think I could draw something like this."

Daniel laughs. "Yeah right, dude, you can draw way better than I can."

"Whatever, dude," Sean says lovingly, ruffling his brother's hair. "Either way, this is amazing. How did you learn to draw like this?"

"Well, I did learn from the best," Daniel says smugly. "Well, and I also watched like 50 YouTube videos about drawing. And this was like the 40th draft or something."

"Well, you should be really proud! It turned out great. I love it," Sean puts his arm around Daniel's shoulder. "Honestly, I'm gonna frame it."

Daniel nearly snorts. "What? Why?"

"Why not? I mean, unless you wanna keep it with you or something."

"Um, no, it's for you, I just- it's just something I drew," he says shyly.

"Yeah, something that'll make me smile everytime I see it. I think it belongs on the wall," Sean embraces his little brother. "If that's okay with you."

"Well, okay," Daniel smiles. "That's cool," he sits there for a moment. "Oh, wait," he laughs. "I've got one more thing. I wrote a poem for you," he grabs a sheet of white paper off the counter. "I know, kinda cringe, but I didn't wanna write a letter or something about this stuff, that'd be even more cringe," Daniel laughs nervously.

"I'm sure it's really nice if my awesome little bro made it," Sean punches Daniel's arm playfully.

"Here," Daniel says as he hands it to Sean.

"My Big Brother," Sean starts, before putting his hand on his forehead. "Wait, I wanna sit down for this. Okay," Sean says, once they're both firmly on the couch. "Let's go."

My Big Brother

It's not always easy.
Life can be hard.
When you're scared,
It's easy to raise your guard.

Things were so different.
Things were so sad.
It kept changing so fast,
Everything made me feel so bad.

I thought I was worthless.
I thought I didn't deserve it.
Whenever you showed me you cared,
I thought you just pitied my shit.

I'd look at what you gave up for me.
I told myself it made no sense.
How could you be so supportive,
When my fuck-ups were at your expense?

But you just spoke so gently.
You said, "Hey, I'm your brother."
"We're strong, we stick together,"
"And we never give up on each other."

I don't know why I ever doubted it.
But now I just want to say thank you.
For being there, protecting me, loving me...
Because I needed you then, and I still do.

"Fuck," Sean says, sounding almost broken. He sets the poem on the coffee table and pulls his shirt up to his eyes. He starts to lightly sob.

Daniel quickly scoots over to Sean and puts both his arms around him, just to be a presence surrounding him in comfort. Sean does the same back.

"Sorry, Sean."

Sean pulls down his shirt to look at his little brother, who's just got that Diaz love look in his eyes, the same one Sean gets. The look of "I really care about you." The look of "I love you."

"Why are you sorry?" Sean asks him, a little less volatile in his emotions.

"I didn't mean to make you cry."

Sean smiles and lets out a little laugh. He folds his arms and head into a loving embrace.

"Daniel, I'm not crying cause I'm sad. I'm crying because reading that made me so happy. It's just…" Sean pauses.

"Every single thing a big bro wants to hear. That I was able to help you, that I made you feel loved, that I was there when you needed me, and it sounds kinda dumb, but," he looks at Daniel lovingly. "It makes me so happy to know you still do need me. That we've still got so far to go together, and you want me, your brother, to be there to help along the way. That's really nice."

"Oh, but," Sean switches to a less happy tone. "About the whole doubt thing. You don't still feel that, do you? Like, ever? Because I need to know if you do. I'll love you no matter what, so you don't have to worry."

"It's okay, Sean," Daniel says with a smile. "It's not like everything's perfect, but that's the one thing that is. I know you love me. I know that won't change. And I love you too!" He says adorably. "That won't change, either. Because we're the best brothers in the whole world."

That last part kinda catches Sean off guard. It's usually "you're the best brother in the world", and he's so used to saying that same thing back, but this time, it's "we're".

Sean laughs. "Yes, we are. Because it's like in the poem. We're strong, we stick together, and we never give up on each other. I love you, Daniel," he gives his brother a small kiss on his head, and it makes Daniel's face glow with happiness.

"I love you too, Sean."