Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was late in the season when Danny got the call from the officials. He never expected to get a phone call like it. The call changed his life forever.

Danny sighed as he sat down to tie his shoes in front of his locker. Practice was a long and demanding one and he couldn’t wait to go home and take a nice long nap before he and Jules would be having one of their game nights.

He stood and looked to Jules, motioning that he was ready to head home. Jules quickly finished his conversation with Tom and followed suit. “Tom wants us to come over for dinner tomorrow. Talk about more routes,” Julian informed as they made their ways through the halls.

“Sounds good to me,” Danny said as he looked at his roommate. “I’m whipped. So ready to crash.”

“It’s probably good that I’m driving the-...” Julian was cut off by Danny’s phone ringing.

Danny let out a sigh and pulled his phone from his pocket. Without checking the caller ID, Danny hit the answer button and brought the phone up to his ear. “Hello?”

“Hi, is this Daniel Amendola?” A female’s stern voice asked from the other end of the line.

“Speaking…” He said. Confusion was displayed on his face as he furrowed his eyebrows. Julian gave him a look of question.

“This is Detective Ferraro with the College Station Police Department,” she said. “I am calling about your cousin Carmen Rosalie Martin.”

Danny stopped dead in his tracks. What about his little cousin? What kind of trouble did she get herself into this time? “What about her?”

The detective let out a sigh. “Mr. Amendola, would it be possible for you to come to the station? I am not permitted to talk about the situation on the phone,” she told him.

“Is she okay? Can I talk to her?” His eyes went wide when he remembered… “Is Anthony okay!?” He asked in one breath. His heart was pounding.

“Can you please come to the station?” She repeated, staying level headed. “This is an urgent situation.”

Danny instantly nodded. “Yeah… I’ll… I’ll be on the next flight out from Boston,” he mumbled. “I-I’ll see you then.” He pulled the phone from his ear and looked up at Jules who was stopped in front of him, looking back with concern.

“Everything okay, Bubs?” Julian asked. Anyone could tell by the look in his blue eyes that he was worried— He always seemed to feed off of the olders mood.

Danny huffed and shook his head. “I need to go to Texas. The police department just called about my cousin. They won’t tell me a damn thing right now,” he said. Anger was starting to surface in his words.

Of course Danny was worried for his cousin, but at the same time he shouldn’t have to put his life on hold to go bail her out. And he most definitely shouldn’t have to fly halfway across the country to bail her out. Her knucklehead better not had gotten arrested for something completely stupid.

He thought she outgrew that crap once she had Anthony six years ago… But evidently not…

“Do you want me to come with you?” Julian asked as the two began to make their ways to the parking lot again.

Danny shook his head. “No. Just get me to the airport,” Danny grumbled. “Coach will be mad enough that I probably won’t be making it to practice tomorrow.”

***

Danny managed to get the first flight out to Texas, and once he landed, he ran straight for the police department.

He was so worried that he was sick to his stomach. The last time he’d seen his cousin was the off season, when she and Anthony had just moved in with her boyfriend of six months.

He hadn't heard much from her after that. Maybe an occasional text saying that she was sending luck for a game or Anthony wearing a Patriots shirt with the biggest smile on his little face. Little Anthony looked up to Danny ever since he was able to walk and talk.

The little guy attached himself to Danny. He was like the little brother Danny never had. Knowing that Anthony’s dad wasn’t around made Danny even more nervous— sick to his stomach to the point he felt he’d need to empty his stomach at any second. If something had happened to Carmen, Anthony wouldn’t have anywhere to go.

Danny and Matt, Danny's brother, were the only ones in the family that kept contact with her after she had Anthony at 17. Everyone else cut her off.

When Danny jumped out of the car at the police station, he felt as if he should’ve been regretting each step.

He pushed his way into the front doors and walked up to the front desk, where a woman in uniform was talking to the lady at the front desk. As he stood there, they both looked to him.

“Hi sir, how can I help you today?” The lady sitting down asked with a small smile.

“Hi… Uh… I’m Danny Amendola. I got a call from Detective Ferraro to come down here,” he told her. The palms of his hands were beginning to get sweaty. “About my Cousin Carmen Martin.”

The officers eyes widened. “Mr. Amendola, I am Officer Schmidt. If you could follow me, I’ll bring you to the conference room with Detective Ferraro,” she told him. “We were beginning to think you wouldn’t show.”

Danny gave her a straight face and shook his head. “No,” he replied in a flat tone. “I had to fly from Boston.”

She didn’t respond, just opened a door to a room, where a woman in her 30’s was, dressed in a suit and sitting, looking through a lot of papers.

When she looked up, her brown eyes lit up. “Mr. Amendola, you made it! Thank you for coming in. Have a seat,” she told him. She stood up and motioned to the table across from her.

Danny moved forward, shook her hand and sat in a seat. “I’m sorry. I left as soon as I could. I got on the first flight from Boston,” he told her.

“We appreciate you making it a top priority. Now…” She let out a sigh and closed one of the packets of papers that was on the table. She gave Danny a sympathetic look.

Danny's eyebrows shot up and he began bouncing his legs. What the hell was she going to be telling him? Danny's heart was pounding faster than the final minute of the Super Bowl.

“Mr. Amendola,” she began, but Danny instantly cut her off.

“You can call me Danny,” he said. He was beyond uncomfortable. “I’m sorry Detective Ferraro, but can you please just tell what she’s done so I can bail her out?”

The detective pursed her lips, looked down at the table, and then up to meet Danny's eyes again. “Danny, I’m sorry, but Carmen was found unconscious with no pulse in her bedroom closet this morning,” the detective informed. “She wrapped a belt around her neck and hanged herself.”

Danny's eyes went wide. There was no way. “What!? Who found her? Where is Anthony?! Is he okay? Please don’t tell me he was the one who found her,” Danny said, freaking out as he nearly jumped out of his seat.

Detective Ferraro let out a sigh. “When she didn’t wake him up for school, he went to find her. After not getting a response from her, he ran over to the neighbors,” she told Danny.

Danny looked back at her in shock. His breath hitched and he instantly knew he had to hold back his tears. There was no way this could happen. There was no way Carmen could… No. She didn’t. This had to be some kind of a sick joke.

Ferraro continued, “She has who appears to be her best friend, according to a neighbor, as her primary emergency contact. You were the secondary. However, Anthony will not cooperate with us and has only been asking for you. We had no choice but to ask you to come here.”

Tears began to surface in Danny's eyes. “Can… Can I see her?” Danny finally asked.

She shook her head. “I’m sorry, Danny, but they have her in for an autopsy,” she told Danny. “I can bring you to Anthony. We’ve been trying to get him to eat lunch for two hours, but he’s refused.”

Danny rubbed his eyes and nodded. He’d have to be strong for that little boy. He’s gone through enough, the last thing he needed was to see Danny look like a mess.

Once Danny calmed down, he was led to a room down the hall where Anthony was. Ferraro opened the door, and another officer immediately came into view.

He stood from the table and moved toward the pair. “He’s been asleep for a half hour.” He informed them. “Hi, I’m Officer Brassard.” He stuck a hand out for Danny.

Danny was in shock as he shook the man’s hand. He looked damn near identical to Julian— the same hair. The same blue eyes. The same facial structure.

Looking into those eyes suddenly made Danny feel a bit calmer— like his best friend was really there with him. And knowing that the lookalike was the one looking after his little cousin seemed fitting.

“Is he okay?” Danny questioned as he shook the man's hand. He peered around the man to see Anthony fast asleep with his mouth dropped open on the couch, and he was wrapped in the Spider-Man blanket that he’d gotten him for his third birthday.

“He’s been okay,” Brassard said. Danny looked back to meet the man’s blue eyes. “Anytime we said that his mothers best friend would be here soon, he’d ball his eyes out and scream for you. And he refused to eat lunch because he said his mom told him to never take food from strangers.”

The tips of Danny's mouth slanted up for a second. That sounded like Carmen. She watched way too many documentaries as a kid and was terrified that the little guy would be kidnapped.

Detective Ferraro put her hand on Danny’s shoulder. “We’ll leave the two of you for a few minutes. If you need anything, we’ll be right outside.”

Danny gave the two a firm nod and moved over to the couch. He sat down at Anthony’s feet and rubbed the little boys back. He was skinnier than Danny remembered from just four short months ago, and his hair was disheveled and a mess.

Anthony stirred before opening those big brown eyes. He rolled over and sat up as he rubbed his eyes. When he looked up, his bloodshot eyes went as wide as they could. “Danny!?”

Danny pursed his lips as he nodded at the little boy. “Hey Anthony.” He wanted to sound normal, but knew his voice was a bit flat.

The little boy launched forward and wrapped his arms around Danny. Danny rubbed his back and held him tight as Anthony began to shake . “Mommy wouldn’t wake up,” he sobbed into Danny’s shirt.

Those four words hurt Danny’s heart.

***

Danny pushed his front door open, placed his keys on the table, and kicked the front door shut behind him. His arms were full with a fast asleep Anthony and the plastic shopping bag that had a his of clothes and a blanket.

He flicked the lights on as he made his way up the steps, Anthony stirred in his arms, but stayed fast asleep. When Danny got to the guest room, he dropped the bag on the floor and laid Anthony down on the bed, where he pulled his shoes off and then pulled the covers back so he could slide his small body in.

Danny dipped down and pressed a kiss to Anthony’s forehead before attempting to tip toe out of the room. Just as Danny almost had the door shut, Anthony spoke. “Danny?”

Danny silently cursed, but opened the door back up. “What’s up bud?” He asked. He could see Anthony looking up at him because of the light seeping in through the hall.

“Can you sleep with me tonight?” His voice was so small. It shook Danny to the core; what this kid was going through was something no one should ever have to go through.

Danny's heart cracked a bit. After a few seconds, he finally nodded. “Yeah I can, bud. I’ve gotta go grab some things from down stairs first. I will be right back,” Danny told him.

Anthony nodded and put his head back on the pillow and let his eyes shut before letting out a small “yeah”. Danny let out a sigh of relief as he shut the door, then made his way down the steps.

When he got down stairs, he made sure his front door was locked, then shuffled over to the couch where he plopped down and ran his hands through his hair. After a few seconds, he pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed Julian’s number.

The younger man had been texting him all day asking for updates, but Danny’s only been able to reply that he landed safe and that he’ll be there for a few more days.

He brought the phone up to his ear and listened until the ringing stopped and was replaced by Julian’s voice.

“Danny!? Please tell me everything's okay,” Julian instantly questioned once the line was connected.

Danny let out a sigh as he leaned back and shut his eyes. He knew tears were coming on and there would be no stopping them. “Jules…”

Danny desperately wished he could’ve been back in Boston, around the people he enjoyed spending time with. Around more people who would care— unfortunately due to Carmen being estranged from her family, no one would care about the situation with Anthony.

No one cared. And that hurt Danny the most. Matt was out of the country on a business trip, which meant that no matter what— this was Danny's problem.

“What’s happening? Are you okay? Are they okay?” Julian was speaking a million miles a minute.

Danny let out a long sigh as he shook his head and rubbed his eyes. “Sh-She’s gone, Jules,” he mumbled. “Anthony found her…”

Jules was silent for a second. Once he spoke up, he sounded devastated. “He what? Who… Who did it?”

“She did,” he muttered. “She left a note. Just wants the best for Anthony. That’s it Jules. It literally said ‘Give Anthony a good life’. I-I don’t understand. I thought she was happy. She straightened her life out. Had a decent boyfriend… We won’t know more until the autopsy comes back. Th-They said it appeared that she’s attempted before. There were marks all over her neck.”

“Dola, I’m so sorry you’ve got to go through this,” Julian told Danny. “What about Anthony?”

Danny shook his head. “He won’t cooperate with anyone but me. The kid is breaking my heart,” Danny admitted. “I don’t know what to do. I can’t stay here forever.”

“Bring him here then,” Julian mumbled. “We have enough room. You two would just have to share a room. Or he could crash on the couch.”

Danny shook his head. “I’d never make him sleep on the couch,” he instantly said. “I’ll… figure it out. I’ve been asked to stay for at least another day so we can deal with custody type of stuff and then tomorrow they have some questions for him now that I am here. They knew how stressed Anthony was so they let him come home with me.” Danny let out a loud yawn. “We gotta be back at nine in the morning.”

“Get some sleep then, Bubs. Please just keep me updated. Tell the little guy that if he does come to live with us, I’ll take him to the park to play catch,” Julian told Danny. He knew that Anthony loved it when they tossed the football around.

“Alright,” Danny said. He sucked in a breath and stood from the couch. “Thanks for the support man.”

“Not a problem. I’ll see you soon. If you need anything, just call me.”

“I will. Thanks.” Danny let out a sigh as he disconnected the line.

***

“Hey, Bud,” Danny said as he nudged the six year old next to him. “It’s time to get up. We’ve landed in Boston.”

Anthony stirred a bit before yawning and opening his big brown eyes. He looked up at Danny. “Am I going to be here long?” He questioned.

Danny shook his head. “Matty will be taking you when he gets back from France for work. You can go back to the same school in Texas,” Danny told him.

His brown eyes went wide as tears began to well up. “No! I want to be with you! I don’t want to be with Matty! I wanna be with you and Jules!” He was practically screaming by the end.

Danny’s eyes went wide. “Okay! You can stay with me for a while longer!” He was desperate to get Anthony to calm down. He didn’t want a big scene in public. “We will have to find you a school to go to, the .”

Anthony looked back to Danny. “Why do I have to go to school? Christmas is soon. Mommy said my break was starting in a couple days.”

Danny let out a sigh. “I know buddy, but we’ve gotta at least go look for a school if you’re gonna stay here,” Danny told him. “Now come on! We gotta get off the plane! Julian is waiting for us.”

Anthony’s brown eyes went wide. “Julian!!! We can play catch!” A genuine smile came into his face for the first time since Danny got him. “Danny?”

Danny grabbed Anthony's hand and led him off the plane. “What’s up Anthony?” Danny questioned as the walked out to the terminal.

“Do you and Julian still live together?” Anthony asked. He was looking back up at Danny, eyes full of curiosity.

“Yeah, we do. We live in a townhouse now. You’ll be seeing a lot of Jules,” Danny informed.

“Are you and him together? Like mommy and Brian were?” He looked down to his shoes and back up at Danny. “Does he like to hit you like Brian did to mommy?”

Danny's eyes went wide as he damn near stopped breathing. “Wha-...”

“Julian!!” Anthony screamed and took off, running toward Jules.

Danny stood there dumbfounded. Was his little cousin pushed toward suicide because of her relationship? Did Brian hurt her more than just that? Better yet… Did that asshole touch Anthony?

***

“How has he been?” Julian asked as he and Danny sat down in the living room to watch the Bruins game.

Danny had just tucked Anthony in and Julian could tell the older man had a lot on his mind. Danny let out a sigh and threw his head back. “I don’t know what to do, Jules,” Danny mumbled. He ran his hands down his face and shook his head.

“We can figure it out. He can stay here as long as he needs,” Julian responded as he uncapped a bottle of water. “He’s a good kid and great to be around.”

Danny nodded, but let out a long sigh. “He probably will be here awhile. He doesn’t even want to see Matt…” Danny took a second and shook his head. “I’m just… I need to call the detective,” Danny mumbled. “He asked me if we still lived together.”

Julian looked over at Danny with confusion. “Why call the detective over that?” He questioned.

“It’s what came after that.” Danny shook his head and stuffed his face in his hands. “He asked if we lived together. I told him yes. And then he asked if we were together and…” Danny trailed off, close to tears.

He pulled shaky hands away from his face and looked at Jules with watery eyes. Julian’s blue eyes were looking back at him, soaking of concern.

“He asked me if you hit me the way that Brian hit Carmen.” Tears began pulling down Danny's face as he shook his head. “Could Brian have a part in her death? Could he have touched Anthony? I just… I don’t know what to do.”

Julian moved over and pulled his best friend into him, giving him a tight hug. “You’re not alone in figuring this out,” he mumbled. “We will figure this out.”

Danny nodded against Julian as he wrapped his arms around the younger man. It wasn’t uncommon for them to act this way towards each other. They were each other’s biggest support systems during the season, and they’d stayed in each other’s arms while crying until they fell asleep multiple times.

“He’s going to be okay,” Julian mumbled. “We will give him a good life. And we will keep him safe.”

The older man’s arms tightened around the younger man. It was reassuring to hear ‘we’. And for that he was beyond thankful.

Because he could never go through all of this alone.

When Danny woke up the next morning, he was still on the couch with Julian. His head was in the blue eyed man’s lap and a hand was laced through his hair. If he didn’t have to get up and check on Anthony, he would’ve stayed there for hours, embracing what he could of the others body heat.

He slowly moved from the couch so he wouldn’t wake Julian up. As he stood there, he looked back at his best friend and felt something warm build in his chest. He would forever be thankful for the younger man.

Before he headed down the hall to check on Anthony, he grabbed a blanket and draped it over Julian, who would certainly have a hurt neck when he woke up. As he headed down the hall, his mind began to whizz in a million different directions.

He would be needing to do so much in the next couple days. Buy clothes, shoes, a proper car seat… Find out more about his cousins likes and dislikes. And school? Piss on school. Danny would have to figure that out after Christmas.

Christmas. Danny’s heart suddenly hurt a little more. It’s the time of the year for family, friends, and love; and the little boy in his room wouldn’t have his mom— the only parent he ever knew— there.

As he shuffled into his room, Anthony was just sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

“Good morning, Buddy,” he greeted with the best smile possible on his face.

“Mornin’,” Anthony’s small voice mumbled, practically soaking of a Texas accent.

Danny closed the door and sat on the edge of the bed as he looked back at the six year old. “Buddy… I think we need to talk.” The Brian situation was bothering him.

Anthony looked back at Danny with wide brown eyes. “About what?”

A sigh left Danny’s mouth. “I need you to tell me more about Mommy and Brian,” he responded.

“What about ‘em?” Anthony sounded so innocent it hurt Danny to think he saw Carmen abused or was abused himself.

“Yesterday you told me that Brian hit mommy,” Danny began. “How often did he do this? And did he ever hit you?”

Danny felt bad for being so straightforward, but he didn’t know how else to go about it. His heart began to pump as he waiting for Anthony to respond.

“Brian hit mommy every day.” Was the first thing out of Anthony’s mouth. Danny sucked in a sharp breath. “He only hit me when I was bad. And I had to stay in my room a lot.”

And oh shit. That bastard touched both of them. Danny had only met him once, but he appeared to be a good guy. Apparently not. Danny wanted to push a hole through a wall. Not only did Anthony have to find his mother’s body… But he had to see her be abused and was abused himself.

“What do you mean when you were bad?” Danny questioned, not thinking out his question.

“When I wouldn’t do the dishes or laundry. Or clean up after Rosie… Or didn’t do my homework right,” he responded. “It was only when Mommy was at work.”

Danny’s breath hitched. Only when Carmen wasn’t there— that sent a shiver down his spine. And why was he given those responsibilities at six years old? “Why were you always in your room?” Danny asked. He wanted to ask so much, but needed to balance the hardness in his voice.

“The door was always locked. So I had to sit in there,” he responded. He made a face and looked at Danny. “Can I use the potty?”

“Of course,” Danny replied. “You don’t need to ask me, little man. You can just go.”

“Brian made me ask,” was all he mumbled before he practically ran out of the room.

Danny felt sick. Where the hell was Brian? Part of him was beginning to wonder if he had a bigger part in Carmen's death than he originally thought.

All he knew was now more than ever, he needed to protect that child. Danny pushed himself up from the bed and made his way out of the room.

When he got to the kitchen, Julian was standing at the island, preparing some type of mix in a bowl. His eyes lit up as soon as he saw Danny. “Dola! Hope you and Anthony like chocolate chip pancakes! I know it’s not in our diet, but we gotta make the little guy feel at home,” Julian informed.

Danny let out a sigh of relief and smiled as he sat down at the island. “I appreciate it man,” Danny mumbled. “I’m gonna need the strongest cup of—…” He was cut off by a mug of coffee being placed in front of him.

He looked up at Julian and smiled. “Thanks, Man,” he said. He brought the mug up to his lips and took a long sip. “So good.” He mumbled.

Before Julian could respond, the sound of a door closing down the hall made Danny stand up. He made his way down the hall to see his bedroom door closed. He inched closer to it and lightly tapped on it. “Anthony?”

“Come in,” Anthony’s cheery voice called.

Danny opened the door to see Anthony sitting on the now perfectly made bed. “Hey Bud… You don’t have to stay in here. You can come out and sit with me and Julian. He’s making breakfast,” Danny told him.

Those big brown eyes lit up. “Really?!” Anthony asked, excitement in his voice. “Brian never let me eat with him and Mommy!”

Danny’s heart broke a bit at that, but he kept a smile on his face. “Come on, Bud.”

When they got to the kitchen, Julian was just pulling the first pancakes off of the griddle. “Good morning, Buddy!” Julian practically yelled. “How are you!”

Anthony hopped up on one of the stools to see one of the plates of pancakes. “They’re so big!” Anthony said, looking up at Julian. “Thank you Julian!”

Julian slid a plate of two toward Anthony and gave him a fork. “Would you like some syrup?” Julian asked.

Anthony shook his head as he began to cut into the pancakes. As soon as he stuffed a piece in his mouth, his eyes went wide. “These are so good!”

Danny smiled as he and Jules began eating their own pancakes. “Thank you, Jules,” Danny mumbled.

“Hey Julian?” Anthony spoke up, looking ahead at the blue-eyed man. “Can I have a glass of milk?”

“Are you okay with Almond milk?” Julian asked as he moved back to the fridge and pulled it out so Anthony could see it.

Anthony nodded as he kicked his lips. “Yes please.”

Danny smiled. Anthony was such a well behaved kid… But the smile quickly came off his face when he remembered that it was only because he’d get hit when he wasn’t a good kid.

Chapter Text

After he talked to Anthony about Brian, Danny finally decided to call detective Ferraro. Julian agreed to take the six year old to the park to throw the good ol pigskin around to give Danny the space and time to talk about it.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Danny crashed down on the couch and pulled his phone out to press on the detectives contact. He brought his phone up to his ear and waited for a few seconds before she picked up.

“Detective Ferrero, how may I help you?”

“Uh… Hi Detective. This is Danny… Danny Amendola,” he answered, a bit nervous about how he was going to tell her his newly found information.

“Hello Danny. I was going to call you about some findings later today. How is Anthony adapting?” She asked once she knew who was on the other end of the line.

“He’s Uh… Okay… I’ve actually called about things he’s told me,” Danny informed. He ran a hand through his hair and let out a shaky breath.

“Oh, alright,” she replied. “I’ve got a pad and paper in front of me. So whenever you’re ready.”

“This morning he told me that Brian hit both him and Carmen on the regular. And it sounds like Brian abuses Anthony… Sounds like he hit him, deprived him of food at times, and would keep him locked in his room all the time,” Danny mumbled. “I don’t know what to do about it.”

The detective let out a sigh as she thought for a second. “I knew we should’ve had a doctor check up on him,” she mumbled. “If I were you I would set up an appointment with a doctor to have him checked over. As for Brian… May I ask who he is? We have no mentions of him in our notes. It would certainly help us with our investigation.”

Danny paused for a second. How did they not know who Brian was? And how was that overlooked? “Carmen’s boyfriend. They were living at his home,” Danny informed. “Been together maybe six months.”

“According to our records, Carmen bought the house about a month and a half ago,” Detective Ferrero responded. “There had been no proof of him living there when we entered the house, which is why we didn’t believe Anthony to be in any danger.”

What a clusterfuck this was. “She’s been living there for a while… I believe his name is Brian Kent with a K. With the way Anthony has been talking, he’s made it sound like Brian’s been around as of late.”

“We will certainly be using this new information…” The detective paused for a second. “Uh Danny,” the detective began in a careful tone. “What I was going to call you about was the autopsy of Carmen… We no longer believe it is a suicide, but a homicide. And you may have just given us a main suspect.”

Danny nearly stopped breathing. “What did you find?” He asked after a second. Tears were getting close to falling from his eyes.

“Normally we would call you in to talk to you in person; however, I do know you’re back in Boston and this is the only practical way,” she warned.

Danny didn’t care. He just wanted to hear what she had to say.

“After we did a full examination we discovered that she had quite a few drugs in her system. Most notably heroin… But we also discovered rat poison, strangulation marks on her neck, rope burn on her legs and quite a bit of bruising on her back and abdomen,” Detetive Ferrero rattled off the multiple issues. “We also found out that she was pregnant before her death. It appears she had an abortion.”

Danny’s heart jumped. She got rid of a baby? Was it that bastards? Or someone else’s? He shook his head. “How did you call it a suicide in the first place?” Danny questioned. There was a fire flickering in his chest, waiting to explode. Brian should be the dead one.

“We only classified it on what we saw at the time. That was why we ordered an autopsy,” she responded. “I’m very sorry for having to drop you the news over the phone.”

Danny scoffed.

“We will continue to look into this case and begin a search for Mr. Kent,” she added. “Please call if you find anything that could help us.”

Danny let out a soft sigh. “I will. Thank you. Have a great day.”

He dropped the call before he could get a response. As Danny leaned back into the couch, he pinched the bridge of his nose.

She was killed. And it had to be by that bastard. The one who not only fucked up her life, but little Anthony’s in the process. Because of him, he’ll never have a mom again.

Danny’s heart hurt. He didn’t know what to do, so he called one of the most knowledgeable men he knew.

***

“Dola! Buddy! What’s up!” Gronk greeted with a big smile as he walked out of the house! “If I had known you were coming I wouldn’t have made plans for later!”

Danny smiled as he walked up to Gronk and gave him a bro hug. “Hey Man. Good to see you,” Danny thanked as he pulled away.

“How’s Anthony,” Gronk asked, looking down at Danny with concerned eyes. “Tommy told me a bit of what has happened. I’m sorry about Carmen.”

“He’s doing the best he can considering how much has changed in such little time,” Danny replied with a small shrug. “It’s interesting trying to navigate it all.”

Rob nodded. “I bet, man… Well, I gotta get going. If you guys need anything let me know,” He replied as he walked toward the car. “Love ya man!”

“Thanks man!” Danny replied before walking up to the house.

When he pushed his way in, he looked over into the dining room where Tom was sat coloring with Vivian at the table.

“Hey Dola!” Tom greeted with a smile. “Glad you could come!”

Vivian quickly whipped around and jumped off her chair. She ran toward Danny at full speed and wrapped her little arms around his legs. “Uncle Danny!!”

“Hey Vivi!” He greeted with a smile on his face. “How are you?!”

“Good! Daddy just got done with Gronky and now we’re coloring!” She exclaimed. “You should come and color with us!” She grabbed ahold of Danny’s hand and began to pull him toward the table.

Danny gave Tom a look and Tom shrugged. “Okay, ViVi… We will color one more picture with you and then me and uncle Danny have to go and talk in my office,” Tom replied. “Mommy and Benny should be home by then.”

Danny agreed and sat down next to Vivian. She slid over a picture of a flower. “Here! You can color this one!” She told him as she turned back to her red turtle. Danny definitely didn’t miss that Tom was coloring for a picture of Cinderella and chuckled as he shook his head.

Just as Tom had guessed, Gisele was walking through the door as Danny finished coloring the last petal of his flower.

“Oh Danny!” She greeted the moment she walked in the door. “How are you? How is Anthony?”

Danny stood from his spot and moved over to hug her in greeting. “I’m okay. We’re okay.” When they pulled away, he gave her a small smile.

“Hey Uncle Danny!” Benny greeted as he gave the older man a small wave.

“Hey little man,” Danny greeted as he ruffled Ben’s hair. “How are ya?!”

“I’m good.” He responded before Tom himself stood from the table.

“Honey, Danny and I have to go talk in my office... We’ll be back out soon,” Tom informed as he grabbed everyone’s attention.

Danny nodded and followed Tom toward his office without saying another word.

When they got to his office, Tom plopped down on one couch and Danny sat down on the other across from him after he closed the door.

“What do you need to get off your chest?” Tom asked, soft blue eyes watching as the brown-eyed man twiddled with his thumbs.

“Where do I even start?” Danny asked as he threw his head back. He let out a long sigh and shook his head.

“How about the beginning?” Tom responded in a calm tone.

It was so cliche, but Danny decided not to call him out. The beginning was just where Danny started. From the call, to getting to Texas, to taking Anthony home, to finding out what Brian did to the both of them, and finally about what had truly happened to Carmen.

Danny wiped a few tears from his face and let out a huff. “And now… Me… and Essentially Julian are parents to Anthony because he doesn’t trust anyone else,” Danny mumbled. “I need to find him a doctor so he can be evaluated. But like, how do I even find a doctor? And clothes! Where do I even go? Fuckin’ baby gap!? Kohls!? I need to get him more clothes because he will be with us for a while… And I just don’t know how to go about any of it.”

“Danny,” Tom finally spoke up, feeling that the story was done. “You… Both you and Julian aren’t alone in this. We can help with whatever you need help with. Need someone to watch him? I’m sure Benny and Vivi would love to hang out with him when they’re with Gisele all day! Especially at the games and while we’re practicing! And the clothes? I’m sure we can give you some of the ones Benny doesn’t wear anymore.”

“Tom… You don’t need to—,” Danny was quickly cut off.

“I don’t… We don’t need to help you. We want to, Danny. I couldn’t imagine having all this shit sprung on me,” Tom quickly jumped in. “And for the doctor? I can call the kids’ doctor and get you in like tomorrow.”

Danny stopped and looked at Tom for a second. “Tom… I…”

“Dola, this is a hard time for you. You need to take it all one day at a time… Shit, maybe even an hour at a time. You're being such a good person by taking that little boy in when the rest of your family wouldn’t,” Tom reminded Danny. “You’re family, man. We’ll all get through this together.”

Danny never felt more touched in his entire life. “Thank you,” was all that could come from his mouth. “Thank you, Tom.”

***

The next day, Danny followed Anthony through the front door and closed it behind him. “Woah! Jules! Are you watching Spider-Man?” Anthony asked as he saw the TV.

“Yeah. You wanna watch it with me, little man?” Julian asked as he turned around with a smile on his face.

Anthony nodded as he kicked his shoes off and moved into the living room to sit on the couch next to Julian.

When Danny didn’t say anything, Julian turned back around and pursed his lips. Danny looked close to tears. He watched as his best friend made his way down the hall to his bedroom.

Julian let out a long sigh. “Are you okay here for a bit Bud? I’m gonna go and talk to Danny,” Julian said as he ruffled the boy's hair.

“Yeah,” Anthony replied as he kept his eyes glued to the TV. It appeared as if it was the first time he’d ever seen it.

And it probably was.

Julian pushed himself up from the couch and made his way down the hall. When he made it to Danny’s room, the door was closed.

Julian lightly tapped on the door. “Dola?” Julian asked.

“C-Come in,” Danny said from the other side.

When Julian opened the door, it revealed a broken looking Danny with tears rolling down his face.

Julian closed the door behind him and sat down on the bed next to Danny. “I take it the appointment didn’t go well?” Julian asked. He studied his best friend who had his hands clasped together.

“It’s worse than I thought,” Danny said, his voice broken as more tears fell.

Julian let out a sigh. His heart began racing. What did the doctor find? What happened? Was Anthony okay physically? Or even mentally? He was a beyond happy kid. “What… What did he find?” Julian spit out. His breath became uneven.

Danny shook his head as he wiped at his tears. “When he had to change into that gown… I-I saw the bruises,” Danny mumbled. “Some across his back… A few on his thighs… And… God… Burn marks on his chest.”

Julian’s eyes went wide. “What?” He was shocked. Absolutely shocked.

“I… I feel guilty for having him change by himself. If I could’ve noticed earlier… The detectives could’ve been on the move earlier,” Danny cried. “That poor kid has been through so much. And he hasn’t deserved it in any way.”

“Danny man… We just gotta…” Julian stopped as a sob rocked its way out of Danny’s chest. Julian was heartbroken… Both for his best friend and for that poor child down the hall.

Julian leaned over and pulled his best friend into him. Danny turned so his cheek was resting against Julian’s shirt and wrapped an arm around the younger man. “And the X-rays were horrifying.”

Julian hugged the older man even tighter. He didn’t want to hear it anymore. He couldn’t stand to hear it.

“He had a broken wrist, broken collarbone and a slightly cracked rib… It was all healed… Without medical treatment. His head is dented in two places, too. And there were almost no doctors records. He hadn’t sent a doctor in almost three years,” Danny mumbled against Julian. He began to shake more as he cried.

“I-it’s gonna be okay,” Julian murmured, close to tears. “We’ll keep him safe.” The tears continued to gather in his eyes.

Danny pulled from Julian, and watery brown eyes met watery blue eyes. “How could she let this happen?!” Danny asked. “How!? The cousin I know wouldn’t do this!”

“I’m sorry,” Julian mumbled. “I’m so sorry, Danny.”

“How is he so happy?” Danny cried. “I don’t know how someone like him with what he’s gone through can be so happy! He’s been through hell…”

“He’s a warrior,” Julian responded. “He’s so strong… We have a special boy down the hall.”

Danny rubbed a hand down his face. “We do, don’t we?”

“He’ll make it through all of this stronger than ever,” Julian said. “We will too.”

Danny looked back at his best friend as his heart began to swell. He was spoiled to have Julian as a friend, let alone a best friend. And he knew it. He didn’t deserve someone to put aside their life for him, or his cousin.

But he was damn thankful for it. Julian was Danny’s rock, and Danny was Julian’s. It’d been that way for years.

Before either one of them said another word, they were in each other’s arms again. Danny hooked his chin over Julian's Shoulder as more tears fell down his face. “I love you, man,” he said. “Thank you.”

“Anything for you and Anthony,” Julian shot back as he hugged his best friend back. “Anything and I mean it. I love you, man.”

The two had had heart to hearts before. But they never held such sensitive information. It usually took a lot for either one of them to be able to express their feelings, but this time around… As they navigated their situation, it seemed much easier.

Plus, this heart to heart was special. It seemed as if it was almost pivotal… For many reasons.

***

Things didn’t get immediately better. Over the next couple days Julian and Danny began to notice little things that Anthony was different to.

Whenever there was violence in a movie, Anthony was silent and couldn’t even look at the screen. The six year old was also very suspicious of any hot liquids or hot pots and pans. He also didn’t like when people other than Julian or Danny were within arms length of him.

The two agreed that hot pots and pans or hot liquids were what possibly caused his burn marks, which made them decide to keep him distracted when dinner was being cooked.

When it came for Anthony’s first day of staying at Brady's while the guys practiced, Danny was uneasy the entire time.

He dropped catch after catch to the point that he was told to run laps. It wasn’t a good look, but he was extremely nervous.

When he’d dropped Anthony off, the six year old was happy. He instantly ran off to play with Benny; however, he didn’t seem to warm up to Gisele very well. And that was what worried Danny. Anthony was good with a lot of people… But not Gisele.

Later that day, when Danny and Tom got back from practice, Gisele greeted them with a nervous look on her face.

“Danny, hun,” she said as soon as he walked in the door. “He’s been refusing to eat and has been asking for his mom. He even asked me if I was his new mom.”

Danny ran a shaky hand through his hair and shook his head. “Where is he?” Danny questioned. His heart was racing. In the couple that Danny had been taking care of him back in Boston, he had yet to ask about Carmen.

“Benny's room,” she replied. “Benny’s been reading him stories to keep him occupied.”

Danny instantly took off toward the steps to get to Benny's room. When he got there, he walked right in. Ben was sitting there in one bean bag chair with a children’s book in hand as he pointed to some pictures for Anthony who was sitting on the ground with one of his new Bruins blankets.

“Hey boys,” Danny greeted as he ‘casually’ walked into the room. He felt a bit more relaxed at seeing Anthony in a content state.

“Danny!” He exclaimed as he hopped up and ran up to him. Danny instantly lifted his cousin into his arms.

“Hey, Buddy,” he greeted. Brown eyes met brown eyes. “How was today?” He had to ask, he had to know what was going through the little guys head.

Anthony’s big brown eyes lost their shine. “Okay… Gisele made Mac N Cheese for lunch… I don’t like it,” he replied. “Brian made it and I got sick.”

Danny’s heart clenched. His mind drifted back to that rat poison… Was he putting it in their food?

“Danny?” Anthony asked. “Is Gisele my new mom? She’s nicer to me than mommy was.”

Is that why he didn’t like her at first? Did he think she was there to replace Carmen? That was never what Danny intended. But he couldn’t help but wonder if that were the case, why he would be mad that she was nicer.

“Nah, little man. No one will ever replace mommy,” Danny said in a small voice. “You know what? Let’s go home. Me and You and Julian can watch a movie tonight. And then tomorrow we can relax. Then, you can watch me and Jules play on Sunday!”

“Yes!” He said with excitement. “Let’s go!” He turned to Benny in Danny's arms and waved. “Bye Benny!”

“Bye Tony!” Ben replied with a wave and a smile.

Danny led them out of the room and smiled down at Anthony. “Tony, huh?”

Those big brown eyes lit up again as he nodded rapidly. “Yeah! I like it!”

Danny continued to smile. When they got down stairs, Tom and Gielse were both in the kitchen talking. “Hey guys, we’re gonna head out,” he informed. “What do you say to Gisele?”

“Thank you, Gisele. I can’t wait for next time,” Anthony thanked with a big smile on his face.

“It’s not a problem… I’m glad you had fun. We’ll see you at the game on Sunday!” She replied. She offered him a warming smile. He nodded again.

“Bye bud!” Tom said as Danny pulled his keys out to press the button and start his car.

“I appreciate it, you guys. I’ll be seeing you Sunday,” he informed. “Now we gotta go home and make some dinner with Jules, right?”

“Yeah!” The excitement in his voice was music to Danny’s ears.

***

“Detective Ferrero called me today,” Danny said as he made his way into the living room.

He had just tucked Anthony in and was bursting at the seams to tell someone his newly found knowledge.

Julian looked up from his phone in surprise. “And what did she say? Have they found him?” He asked.

Danny plopped down on the couch and shook his head. “No… They think he fled the state,” he mumbled as he leaned his head on Julian’s shoulder. “What if he comes here?”

Julian leaned his head against the older man’s. “I don’t think that’ll happen,” he replied. “He didn’t touch Anthony for a reason. For what reason? I have no clue.”

“I guess,” Danny murmured. He felt exhausted. They were coming in hot on game day, and he wasn’t able to focus on it. He was always too worried about Anthony. “I still don’t know how he’s as happy as he is.”

“You’ve been his hero for forever,” Julian piped up, taking his head off of Danny’s. The two pulled away and looked at each other. “He loves you and he loves to look up to you. I wouldn’t doubt if he learned it from you.”

Danny shook his head. “She said that Anthony shouldn’t be in danger… But I don’t know,” Danny mumbled. “Tom said that he could go to school with Vivian… They'd be in the same class… And it’s a higher security school… so I shouldn’t be worried.”

Danny let out a sigh as he shook his head. “Christmas is next week,” he mumbled. “I still haven’t been out to get him anything.”

“We could go after practice on Monday,” Julian offered. “I need to get him something too.”

“Alright,” Danny said as he nodded. “I hope that Gisele is okay watching him a bit longer.”

“I’m sure Vivian would be happy to see him,” Julian shot back. “She made Tom text me a picture of a drawing that her and Anthony did together.” He chuckled.

Danny smiled. “I’m glad he’s gotten to know them a bit. I’m sure they’ll be great friends… But… I don’t know how long he’ll be here in Boston,” Danny said.

Julian looked at Danny in confusion. “Where else would the little guy go? Up for adoption!?” Julian looked concerned as his blue eyes went wide.

“I don’t know,” Danny said. He sounded miserable. “The thing is, I don’t know how long I’ll be able to take care of him. What if someone from child services were to come and decide because of my career that I’m not fit to be a parent to him?”

“Danny,” Julian stopped the older man from freaking out. He reached out and cupped the dark haired man’s cheek. “No one would ever try and take him away from you. You’re the only family member that cares about him. And you can give him a full life. The more I look at the situation, I wonder... Was all this a blessing in disguise? Because I know it’s helped me… It’s helped us…”

He stopped for a second. Brown eyes locked on blue eyes. “I think…” Julian stopped himself as they both leaned in, pressing their lips together.

Danny brought a hand up to Julian’s chest as he deepened the kiss. He fisted Jules' shirt and pulled him closer. As soon as Julian’s tongue began to slide across Danny’s bottom lip… Danny’s eyes went wide and he pulled away.

“Oh shit!” He said. “Jules… I didn’t mean…” he looked like a deer in headlights.

Julian brought a hand up to the back of his neck and let out a nervous chuckle. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I just… Uh… I think I’m gonna go to bed.” He quickly jumped up and made his way down the hall before Danny could respond.

He couldn’t call after Julian, he didn’t want to wake Anthony. After a few minutes, he let out a deep sigh and shook his head.

Danny had no clue what to think about what they had just done… They kissed… He knew that much. But was there any feeling behind it? He thought there was a small spark there.

But no… There couldn’t be. Jules was his best friend… He couldn’t feel like that. And he definitely wasn’t Bi… Or was he?

His mind was racing in millions of directions. As he rested back into the couch, it only got worse. He’d never felt so conflicted.

Chapter Text

As promised to Anthony, Saturday was a lay low kinda day. The three all got up around the same time, and Danny decided to make scrambled eggs for all of them. Julian was acting completely normal which made Danny question what was going through his best friends head.

When they all sat down at the table to eat, Julian watched Danny carefully. The older man seemed a bit stiff. “How did you guys sleep last night?” Julian asked as he brought his water up to his mouth.

“Good,” Anthony said as he stuffed his face with a piece of toast. He seemed to be in his own little world— a happy one at that.

Danny shrugged. “The best I could. I was tossing and turning all night,” he replied as he continued his eggs. “I’m really stiff. How about you?” He knew damn well he couldn’t sleep due to his mind not wanting to shut down.

Well that, and if Danny was being honest… He missed his bed… actually he missed any bed. The couch was beginning to take a toll on him, and it only worried him for their upcoming game day.

Never in a million years did he think that he would be praying for an away game to come. In reality it would be the best place to get some sleep-- in a hotel bed.

Julian nodded. “Slept okay,” he replied. “Nice to have a day to relax now.”

Danny nodded in agreement. “Hey Buddy? What do you want to do today?” Danny questioned Anthony who had just finished clearing his plate.

Anthony’s big brown eyes looked toward Danny as he shrugged. “Can we maybe play go fish?” He asked. “Mommy and I used to play that on our days without Brian.”

Julian and Danny exchanged looks and shrugged at the same time. “That’s fine by me. Maybe we can teach you crazy eights, too,” Danny offered. “Me and my dad used to play that all the time with Matty.”

Anthony smiled. “Okay! Julian, will you play with me and Danny?! I think it could be fun,” Anthony responded.

“Yeah, Buddy. I would love to,” Julian replied. “I think that could be a good idea. We will even get to playing poker one day.”

“What’s poker?” Anthony questioned.

Both men chuckled before trying to explain.

The conversation quickly died down as Julian and Danny finished their breakfasts. After breakfast, Danny took the dishes and began to load them in the dishwasher.

“Hey Anthony,” Julian said. Anthony was still sitting at the table and looking out the window at the city of Boston. “Do you wanna take a shower?”

Both Danny and Julian learned within a few days that Anthony hated baths. Danny had assumed that Brian used it as a form of abuse. So, neither Julian or Danny were going to make him take a bath.

Anthony nodded quickly. “Yeah,” he replied. “Do you still have the Spongebob Shampoo?” Anthony was extremely happy when Julian first came home with the children’s shampoo.

“Of course we do. It’s in the shower. You wanna grab your clothes and then I help you turn the shower on?” Julian asked.

The six year old didn’t say a single word, only ran down to the hall to grab a pair of clothes that Tommy had given them.

Danny decided to grab a water and relax on the couch as the other two did what they had to. He couldn’t help but think about how he needed to confront the younger man.

Part of him wanted to ask if the kiss meant anything, but something deep down told him not to ask. He didn’t want that heart break.

During his hours awake, he finally decided that there was something there, for him at least. He did like Julian. It didn’t matter that he was a man, all that mattered was what Danny had always wanted… Julian had. Well except the tits… but he could deal with that.

The younger man was gentle… Smart yet dumb… had an amazing smile…smelled amazing...and had a great personality… was always there… and wanted nothing but the best for Danny.

Danny could hear the water of the shower start, and within a couple minutes, Julian was shuffling down the hall.

He plopped down on the opposite side of the couch and pulled out his phone. Neither one said a word to each other.

The older man got the hint and pulled his phone out to occupy himself. After a few minutes, Julian let out a long sigh.

“Dola,” Julian finally spoke up.

Danny looked over to the younger man with both brows raised in question. “What’s up?” His heart was beginning to race as those icy blue eyes looked back at him.

Julian’s phone was in his lap. He quickly broke eye contact with Danny. “If you’re not sleeping well… you could sleep in my bed. I want you to play well… we all do,” Julian informed. He sounded extremely nervous.

“Oh,” Danny mumbled. “I don’t know… I just…”

“I promise I’ll stay on one side,” Julian quickly jumped in. “There won’t be no issues. I just don’t want you to feel like you’re hurting your game any.”

Danny let out a sigh. He did want to sleep in a bed again… Hell, he wanted a good night of sleep, period. He almost felt as if he didn’t have a choice. It almost came out of his mouth too fast when he said, “Okay.”

A smile instantly grew on Julian’s face, but he didn’t say anything as he nodded.

For some reason, Danny thought that was an opportunity to bring up the happening of the night before.

“So uh… Last night,” Danny began in a small voice. “I…-,” he was cut off by Anthony calling down the hall.

“Julian?! Which toothpaste do I use?!” He yelled as he popped his head out of the bathroom.

Julian chuckled as he got up from the couch and made his way down the hall to help the six year old.

Danny let out a sigh as he relaxed into the couch. He wasn’t sure if it was a sigh of relief or one of frustration. Either way, he wasn’t gonna have to talk about his feelings. But that did not change the fact that Danny was still unsure of how Julian felt… or hell… How he even truly
felt.

***

“Goodnight, Buddy,” Danny said as he placed the children’s book he had on the bedside table. “Remember we gotta be up early tomorrow so you can go to Vivian and Benny’s.” He stood up from the bed and smiled down at Anthony.

Anthony pulled the covers up to his chin and nodded. “Does that mean I’m not going to the game?” He questioned with big sad brown eyes.

Danny shook his head and chuckled. They had told the six year old multiple times he would be going. “You’re going to go with Gisele… Jules and I have to be there much earlier than you do.”

“Oh.” Anthony replied. “That’s right… Night Night.” He shot Danny a small smile.

Danny clicked the lamp off and smiled back. The room was lit up by the light coming from the hall. “Night, Bud.”

Just as Danny got to the doorway, he was stopped by Anthony. “Danny?” His soft voice spoke up in the barely lit room.

Danny turned around and looked back toward the bed. “What’s up?”

“Are you gonna be my Dad?” Anthony questioned as he propped himself up on his elbows. He was looking right at Danny’s silhouette.

The question surprised Danny. It took him a second to recover. “Oh… Uh… I’m not sure bud… But I sure would be lucky to have you as a son,” he admitted. And he meant it.

“Oh,” Anthony replied. He laid back down and stared at the ceiling. “I was just wondering. I’ve never had a Dad.”

Danny let out a sigh. “I don’t know what the future holds, but I’ll always be here for ya, Buddy,” Danny shot back. When Anthony didn’t respond, Danny spoke up again. “Now get some sleep. Love ya, Tony.”

“Night.” Was all Danny heard before he moved out and closed the door behind him.

He stood in the hall for a second to collect himself. Danny never expected a question like that to be asked so soon. Although it touched him that Anthony already thought of him that way, it was absolutely shocking.

Flabbergasted, Danny shuffled down the hall and into Julian’s room. Julian instantly looked up from his phone and raised a brow. “What happened? You look like you’ve seen a ghost?”

Danny ran a hand down his face as he plopped down on the edge of the bed, facing away from Julian. “He asked if I was going to be his dad,” Danny mumbled as he stared ahead at the closed door.

There was movement behind Danny before Julian finally spoke up. “Oh shit.”

“What do I even tell him?” Danny mumbled. He popped up from the bed and kicked his socks off before he pulled the covers back. He looked over toward Julian who was turned on his side, looking at him.

The younger man was shirtless, and Danny knew that was going to drive him nuts. The way that his muscular chest was covered with short stubbly hair and the way that those biceps of his had veins popping out made him want to damn near jump the blue eyed man.

“You’ll figure it out,” Julian mumbled, shaking Danny out of his thoughts. “Do you see yourself being his guardian at some point?” He asked.

Danny shrugged. “Of course I do. I love him as if he’s my own.”

Julian moved so he was lying on his back and looking up at the ceiling. “Is it bad that that is how I feel, too?” He questioned. “He’s grown on me so fast. I love him.”

Danny’s heart swelled. “I just hope if there were a custody battle that it’d go okay… I don't see anyone on Carmen’s side wanting him,” he stated. “And we have no clue who his biological father is…”

“If you want to,” Julian started, “I know you could get custody. You’ve been great with him.”

Danny rested back into the pillow and turned to face Julian. “You have too,” he whispered. “So much has changed in the past, like, week.”

Julian nodded as he reached across the bed and placed a hand on top of Danny’s. “We will navigate it all,” he reassured his best friend. “I promise you that. And, next week is Christmas. We’re gonna make it the best Christmas Anthony has ever had.”

Danny smiled. “Yeah. We should probably think about planning something,” he said. “We only have that small little tree, too.”

“So? The entire living room will just be full. Doesn’t have to be under the tree,” Julian replied. “It will be the best Christmas ever,” he said through a yawn. “Ugh. We should probably go to sleep, huh?”

“Yeah,” Danny whispered as he rolled onto his back and pulled the sheets up to his chin. “We play the Bills tomorrow.”

“Night man,” Julian said as he turned off the lamp on the table next to him.

“Night, Jules.” Danny said as he stared up toward the ceiling in the now pitch black room.

Danny closed his eyes, and all he could see was Julian turned in bed facing him. He wasn’t sure if it was at Julian’s enthusiasm about Anthony, or if it was the way Julian’s eyes crinkled at the edges when he spoke of Anthony, but it sure as hell made his heart pump like crazy until he finally managed to fall asleep that night.

***

“We’ll see you after the game, okay, Bud!?” Danny said as he gave Anthony one last hug.

Anthony nodded as he ran into the house to begin coloring with Vivian. They all knew he had a small crush on her, and they all thought it was adorable.

“We’ll see you at the game,” Gisele informed as she ushered Danny out of the door. “Now get going. Tom will kill you if you’re late.”

Danny rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah”, he mumbled. “Mr. I need to be there four hours before everyone else.” He rolled his eyes. “See ya, Gisele!”

He turned and made his way to the car. Once he hopped in Julian quickly shifted it into drive. “He so likes Vivian,” Julian said.

“No doubt,” Danny replied with a chuckle. “He’s gonna be such a stud.”

Julian smiled. “He really will be. Just wait until Anthony Martin and Vivian Brady get married one day,” Julian joked. “God, I don’t even know if I’d want to know Tom’s reaction.”

When they got to the stadium, the two began their normal pregame routines. And when it came time for the game, Danny felt nervous.

This was Anthony’s first time in Foxborough for a game and he didn’t want to disappoint. When the defense was on the field, Danny sat on the bench, trying to stay warm, almost stuck in his own little world.

Then his eyes drifted over to Julian, who currently had his back to the older man. How had he never realized how nice of an ass Julian had? Or even those thighs and calves? They all looked so biteable.

His breath hitched as his fists tightened and his jaw clenched. The younger man was a chiseled masterpiece. His breath hitched as Julian turned around, and made his way toward Danny. He sat down next to him.

The older man only continued to look ahead at nothing. “Geez man, if looks could kill! Why are you sending death glares right now?” Julian asked as he bumped their shoulders.

Danny’s death glare turned toward Julian, but his face softened when he met those blue eyes. “Just really wanna win this one for Anthony,” he replied.

Julian nodded from next to him. “We will, don’t worry.”

They finished the first half up by a touchdown… and then trailed for the second half of the third and all of the fourth… Well, that was until the last few seconds.

The Pats were down by three, they were on the 8 yard line with the clock stopped at 10 seconds… Enough for one last play.

Danny’s heart was pounding as he took his place and waited for the ball to be snapped. Julian was set in motion and boom, the ball was snapped.

Tom easily grabbed the ball as Julian took off and cut hard right, dodging his corner. Tommy sailed the ball through the air and easily into Julian’s arms. Danny saw other coverage break off around the two and moved over, easily blocked him, and created a hole to the end zone for the younger man.

It was no surprise when he made it.

Danny was the first one there, hugging the younger man as tight as possible. “We fucking did it baby!” He screamed as they bumped their helmets together.

“Fucking great block!” Julian screamed back.

And before they knew it, the two were engulfed by the rest of their teammates. The whole group moved back a few feet before Julian lost his footing and they all needed up on top of each other. Danny’s damn near entire body was draped over Julian’s.

It happened too fast for either of them to register what happened before their O Linemen were picking them up.

They just won the game.

Meanwhile, Anthony was going absolutely wild in the box. “Did you see that!?” He asked Gisele with wide eyes. “Julian just had the best catch I’ve ever seen!”

Gisele smiled and nodded at the over excited six year old.

“And Danny! Danny had that massive block! And… And Tom! Tom threw it before he got sacked! And they won! They won the game,” he said in amazement. He was nearly jumping up and down.

Gisele loved to see this side of Anthony. She could tell the kid had a passion for the game and could even one day be on an NFL field as a player. It was also refreshing to see the excitement he carried. Her kids had gotten so used to it that the excitement Anthony had definitely wore off.

“Ya know,” she said as she sat back in her seat, “Maybe it’s the jersey? It’s probably lucky!”

Anthony paused and looked down at his Amendola Jersey. It was his first jersey and Danny made sure he had one before he went to the game. Anthony took so much pride in the jersey and was beyond proud of his cousin's name on the back.

“Oh my god! It’s the jersey! I gotta tell Danny,” Anthony said, with shock in his voice. “It’s a lucky jersey! Maybe we shouldn’t wash it!”

She chuckled. That one was definitely gonna be up to Danny. “Well,” Gisele said as she stood up and turned to her own kids who were playing in the back of the box. “I think we can head down to the locker room now.”

“We get to go to the locker room!?” Anthony asked with wide eyes. “That’s so cool!”

Benny nodded as he put on his hoodie. “Yeah. We go there after every game, Tony,” he replied.

When they got down to the locker room and he set eyes on Danny, Anthony instantly pulled his hand from Gisele’s and ran toward the dark haired man. “Danny!”

Danny turned from his conversation with Gronk to see the little boy running toward him. He squatted down with open arms. “Hey Bud!” He greeted Anthony.

“You played amazing!” Anthony said as he was lifted into Danny’s arms.

Danny had a big smile on his face. “Thank you. Did you have fun? And did you enjoy the game?” Danny asked.

“Yes! Gisele said that my jersey is lucky!” Anthony informed his cousin. “I gotta wear it every game!”

“Oh really?” Danny asked and chuckled. “Do you remember Rob?” He nodded toward the bigger man.

Anthony looked at Rob and shook his head. “Hey there,” he said. “I’m Rob but everyone calls me Gronk. It’s nice to see you, Anthony.” He put his hand up for a high five, but Anthony flinched and leaned into Danny. He turned his face into Danny’s chest.

Danny tightened his hold on the six year old. “It’s okay,” he whispered to Anthony as he kept his eyes on an alarmed Gronk. “He just wanted a high five.”

Anthony peeked his eyes out to look at the large man before feeling bad and putting his hand out. Gronk happily gave him a high five. “Sorry little man! I didn’t mean to scare you!”

“It’s okay,” Anthony replied.

The conversation quickly changed as Julian jumped in. He placed a hand on Anthony’s back and locked eyes with the six year old. “Hey Bud! Did you enjoy the game?”

Anthony’s eyes lit up. “Yeah! You were so awesome! I loved that touchdown!” He was practically screaming.

Julian’s eyes sparkled as he spoke to Anthony. Not that Danny noticed. “Thank you! One day it will be you out there and me cheering you on! You’ll be even better than me and Danny put together!”

Gronk couldn’t help but smile before he walked away without a word. The three looked like the perfect family. It was clear that both men cared dearly for the child, but it also became clear in the time that they had him that they were growing closer.

Oh and there was totally sexual tension that no one, especially Tom, Gisele, and Gronk didn’t want to bring up.

“You think so!?” Anthony asked. Hearing that from Julian was like music to his ears.

“I know so!” Julian replied. He pulled his hand off of Anthony’s back. “Hey Bud, why don’t we let Danny finish getting ready and then we can head home? How does spaghetti sound for dinner!?”

Julian loved that amazement and excitement that were constantly in those eyes. “Thank you,” Danny mouthed as he put Anthony down. All he had life to do was put his shoes on and pull on his hoodie.

***

Later that night, the three of them sat on the carpet in the living room, snuggled in blankets while leaning up against the couch with the lights off as they watched the Sunday night game… The Eagles and Cowboys. It was much better than expected, and it was quite clear that Anthony was a Texas boy based on his cheering for the Cowboys.

Once they hit half time, Anthony could barely keep his eyes open. He was lying on his side with his Spider-Man blanket wrapped around him as his head rested on Julian’s thigh.

Julian rubbed his hand up and down Anthony’s arm. “Buddy, I think it’s time we get you to bed,” he said. Both of the men knew the day would wear out the six year old.

“No,” Anthony whined in a sleepy voice. “I wanna… Stay up.” He let out a yawn.

Danny chuckled as he pushed his blanket off himself. “Come on, Tony,” he said. “If you don’t go to bed now, you may not be able to have as much fun with Benny and Vivian tomorrow.”

“But…” Anthony was seconds from sleep. “I don’t want today to…” He let out a small breath, probably in defeat. “To end.”

Danny’s heart warmed at that. He was proud that Anthony liked their lifestyle (at least so far). He was also quite relieved that Anthony seemed to be thriving much more than he did back in Texas.

“I’ll tell ya what,” Danny said as he leaned over and took the six year old into his arms. “You can sleep in the jersey tonight.”

Anthony shifted into a better position in Danny’s arms and let out one last word before his eyes officially shut. “Kay.”

Danny fully stood up and pressed a kiss to Anthony’s hair. A big smile was on his face as he looked down at Julian who returned the look.

After getting Anthony tucked in, Danny shuffled back out to the living room and plopped down where he’d been minutes before. “He’s really starting to fit in, huh?” Danny mumbled as the second half started.

Julian nodded. “It’s great to see,” Julian replied. “Did I see it correctly when he flinched because of Rob?”

“Yeah,” Danny mumbled as he ran a hand across his face. “It’s moments like that that I remember why I have him. I just want to make it all go away.”

“Have you heard anything from the detective? Like where Brian is?” Julian asked as he let out a loud yawn.

“No,” Danny whispered. “I gotta call her tomorrow. And that’s what worries me the most. Especially when it comes to getting him back to school after the New Year. He could just show up. And if he really did kill Carmen… I have no doubt he would attempt the same on Anthony.”

“If he’s smart, he will stay away. There’s a whole football team that would kick his ass,” Julian mumbled. He let out a yawn and shook his head. “I think I’m with Anthony. I gotta go to bed.” He stood from the ground and ran a hand through his hair.

Danny nodded in agreement. “Yeah. It’s been a long day,” he mumbled. “Goodnight,” he said as he moved up to the couch to resume his old position.

Julian gave him a look. “You can sleep in bed again,” Julian replied.

“I don’t want to intrude,” Danny mumbled. His brown eyes met blue eyes. The blue eyes had a look in them he couldn’t quite identify. Was it hope? Lust? Begging?

“Danny, it’s essential to get good sleep so your body can recoup from a game,” Julian reasoned.

And that was enough for the dark haired man. Then again, he didn’t need much. He really missed sleeping in a bed on the regular. Also, quite honestly, he loved sleeping next to Julian. The other man’s scent was extremely calming… It was definitely something he could get used to.

The two men made their ways down the hall and began getting ready for bed. Danny was the first one in bed and tonight he even decided to sleep in just his shorts, which left his top half to just be skin. As he rested back into the pillows, his heart pumped. He wanted to make sure he didn’t miss ‘the show’.

When Julian came in from brushing his teeth, he watched as the shirtless man with the way too short shorts strutted across the room. Each muscle worked in unison with the others, made evident by his tight, smooth looking skin.

And those legs? They made Danny want to melt into the bed. He’d never looked at a guy the way he looked at Julian. Now that he’d had a couple days to think about it, he didn’t think it was weird anymore. What was weird, was the new found love his dick had for the younger man.

He’d already come to terms with the emotional feelings. But it scared him when he jacked off while thinking about Julian that morning in the shower. He’d truly never felt that way about a man. Only women. And even then the feeling wasn’t as intense.

That’s why it was crazy to Danny when he was already thinking about what he would do once the younger man slid into the covers.

Part of Danny wanted to lean over in bed and lick a stripe up Julian’s bicep— parallel with the vein that popped out. Then trace kisses up his shoulder, neck, jaw, and then finally to his lips.

Danny rested on his back as the other man slid into the covers next to him, trying to get the appealing vision out of his mind. The familiar scent of musk with a drop of vanilla quickly filled the area around the bed. Danny relaxed into the sheets even more.

“Night, Dola,” Julian mumbled as he leaned over and clicked the lamp off.

It took Danny a second to register he was being spoken to. He was too submerged in Julian’s calming scent. “Night Jules.”

For the next hour, despite being beyond exhausted, the two couldn’t stop tossing and turning. Both were warmer than usual, and neither one could shake that the other's scent or warmth was so close.

Julian sucked in a breath, taking in the spearmint that was Dola before he finally spoke up. “Dola, you awake?” He asked in a hushed tone.

“I sure am,” a voice came from next to him. “Can’t sleep to save my soul.”

Julian chuckled. “Same,” he replied. “Guess I’m just too pumped from the game.”

Danny rolled his eyes. He wasn’t stupid. He felt it. Whatever it was going on between the two of them.

“Julian.” His name came out flatter than Danny was intending.

“Yeah.” Julian shot back, in a much easier going tone.

“How… Did… I mean… The other night?” Danny stumbled on his words. He was unsure how to go about it. “Did that kiss mean anything?”

Danny’s heart was pumping faster than it ever had before. He thought his heart would literally leap through his chest.

There wasn’t an immediate response. “You know what?” Danny quickly jumped in. “Nevermind. Forget I asked. That was a stupid question.”

Truth be told, Julian didn’t answer right away, because he didn’t know if Danny wanted to hear that yes, the kiss did mean something. To Julian, the kiss was magical and he certainly wanted more. Danny didn’t give him enough time to work out all the scenarios in his head.

The older man let out a huff when there was no response in general. He turned so his back was facing Julian. Now was the time to sleep. He was an idiot.

While Danny slowly drifted off, Julian laid there, replaying what happened in his head. He should’ve told the truth. But he was scared to lose his best friend because of his own stupidity.

Once soft snores began leaving Danny’s mouth, Julian turned on his side to face the older man's back. “Yeah, it did,” he mumbled. “I’m really starting to fall for you, Dola.”

***

The next morning, Danny woke up much warmer than normal. And he was still encased in that musky vanilla… That was when he popped an eye open to see Julian practically lying on top of him. His head was on Danny's chest, and he had an arm hooked over Danny's abdomen-- grasping Danny’s hip with his warm hand.

Danny's eyes went wide. It was certainly the last way that he expected to wake up, but in a way, it was extremely comforting. The other man's warmth felt so much better than he ever could’ve imagined.

His instincts told him to run a hand through the younger man's hair. He brought his hand up and smiled as he did so. It was like the other man belonged in that position. And Danny swore Julian leaned into his touch.

“Mmm,” Julian mumbled against Danny’s warm skin. “Good morning.”

Danny loved that way Julian vibrated against him when he spoke. “Morning,” Danny mumbled. His hand trailed from Julian’s and rested on the back of his neck. “Sleep well?”

At that, Julian went tense. He realized whatever he was leaning on was warm… In fact it almost felt as if it was burning. His eyes snapped open as he stayed still. He was leaning against someone's firm chest… A nice smooth, muscular chest. And some beautiful abs were apparent in the direction he was facing. The sheets just cut them off where the older man’s V line began.

He knew exactly who the abs belonged to. He’d seen them oh so many times in the locker room… But this view? God it was enough to make anyone drool.

Julian began to burn up. He suddenly felt like his skin that was touching Danny’s was boiling. He pulled away from Danny, ignoring the fact that his body wanted to rest there all day. “Oh shit,” he said as he sat back. He was met by amused brown eyes. “I am so sorry Dola! I didn’t mean to uh… You know!”

“It’s okay,” Danny mumbled. His soft brown eyes looked back at Julian’s terrified icy ones. “I actually didn’t mind it.” He was surprised about it, and normally he didn’t even like women to sleep on him… But now? He didn’t necessarily mind it; he decided to roll with the punches.

“Oh? Oh!” Julian exclaimed with wide eyes. Julian’s eyes trailed away from Danny’s as he looked down at the sheets. It took him forever to fall asleep the night before… And he knew he needed to talk about it. “Uhm… I wanna talk about last night.”

“You do?” Danny questioned, surprise soaked in his voice.

“Yeah… I uh… I couldn’t sleep. I kept thinking about your uh question,” Julian said as he brought a hand up and rubbed the back of his neck.

Danny knew that meant the younger man was nervous. He tended to do that when he didn’t know how to properly express his words.

“Okay,” Danny said easily. Knowing that Julian was just as nervous as he was gave him the courage to talk.

Julian shuffled so he was sitting on his ass instead of on his knees. “I couldn’t help but thi-...” Julian was cut off by Anthony down the hall.

“Danny! Danny! I lost my tooth,” he called out, but his voice was moving away from them. Toward the living room.

Both men mentally cursed. Of course. They were never gonna get to talk.

After a second, the screaming stopped. “Julian! Julian! Julian,” Anthony began to scream as he ran down the hall and pushed his way into the bedroom. “Danny is miss…” Those brown eyes went wide as he saw the two of them sitting there. “Danny! I thought you went missing!”

A big smile appeared on his face as he moved toward the bed and jumped up. “Look!” His voice was full of excitement as he held his hand out. One of his baby teeth was sitting there in his palm.

“That’s awesome buddy,” Danny replied with a big fake smile on his face. “You’re gonna have to make sure you put it under your pillow tonight! The tooth fairy will have to add your tooth to the list!”

“Really?! The first time I lost one, the tooth fairy never came! Does the fairy not go to Texas?!” Anthony’s voice was full of wonder. Danny and Julian exchanged looks.

“I don’t know about Texas, but the tooth fairy certainly comes to Massachusetts!” Julian jumped in knowing Danny was at a loss for words.

Danny glanced over at the clock and let out a sigh. “We gotta get ready so we can get you to Tommy’s house,” he said as he pushed the covers off of him. “You can take a shower tonight, okay? That way you will be nice and clean for the tooth fairy!”

Anthony gave Danny a rapid nod. “Okay! Can I bring the tooth to show Vivian?”

Danny chuckled before nodding. “Sure, but you’re gonna have to keep it in a little ziplock bag so you don’t lose it!”

Chapter Text

Practice went by without a hitch. The two men had convinced Tommy to have Anthony over a little later than normal so they could begin to put together the best Christmas Anthony could ever imagine.

Despite the fact that the conversation they needed to have was sitting in the back of both of their minds, neither one of them wanted to bring it up. Especially in public.

They went to Copley Place Mall and wandered around, waiting to see any stores that may have something that Anthony would like. Danny decided to go into a children's store where he saw some cool lego sets, a remote control corvette and some Batman figurines.

Julian, of course, decided to stop in a sports shop, where he grabbed all of the things the younger boy could ever want. Footballs, soccer balls, hockey pucks, a hockey stick… He even used his deal with Nike to get some cool new shoes and finally grabbed the best gift that Anthony could ever get… A Julian Edelman Jersey.

That made Danny roll his eyes at the younger man. “You really think he’s gonna like that?” Danny joked as they walked through the mall with their hands full of bags. “He said he never wanted to take mine off!”

Julian rolled his eyes in return. “He’s gonna love it when he realizes that I’m better than you,” he shot back. And of course, like a kid, he playfully stuck his tongue out at the older man. “The kid needs to see some stats!”

“As if,” Danny mumbled. “Oh! Let’s stop at Barnes and Noble. I’m getting sick of reading the same book every night.” He damn near knew The Hungry Caterpillar front to back.

The two of them made their ways into the store and wandered over to the children’s area. They grabbed a few picture books that looked interesting… Then Danny stumbled upon a box set of The Magic Treehouse.

“Jules! Do you remember these!?” He asked as he picked the box. “These were the bomb!”

Julian looked at it before nodding. “Hell yeah! They came out when I was like 7… Couldn’t read them right away, but when I could I loved them!”

“I gotta get them,” Danny said. “He’s gonna love them.”

“He'll love them. He’s an adventurous kid,” Jules said.

Danny nodded in agreement. After dropping nearly 200$ at the bookstore, they made their ways back to Danny’s car.

They still had quite a bit of time before they had to pick Anthony up, so they rushed home to at least begin wrapping their presents.

Julian picked up some paper with snowmen on it while Danny chose some with candy canes on it. As they began wrapping their gifts, Danny couldn’t help but laugh at Julian’s wrapping skills.

“Dude, you’re terrible!” He chuckled as he shook his head. “He’s gonna think a fucking dog tried to get his gift!”

“Yeah? Well… Your wrapping is wonderful… He’ll definitely think the elves wrapped them,” Julian shot back.

And was that supposed to be an insult? Danny didn’t know, but he paused.

Both of their eyes went wide. “Oh shit,” they both said at the same time.

“We gotta wrap some in paper that isn’t the same! He can’t think Santa skipped the house!” Danny’s eyes were wide. “Maybe we can put two aside each? Is four from Santa enough?”

“I would think so…” Julian replied, dumbfounded.

Danny quickly got up and made his way into Julian’s bedroom to grab the other roll of paper they had… Santa was all over it… So that worked out well.

The two spent the next forty minutes finishing up their wrapping before finally sitting down for a breather.

“Do we just hide all of them?” Julian questioned. “And just put them all out on Christmas Eve?”

Danny shrugged. “Sounds good to me. Should we hide them in your closet or under the bed?” He asked as he grabbed an armful of presents.

“Closet for sure,” Julian shot back as he picked up presents as well. “I really hope he likes them.”

Once the two got the stuff put away, they shuffled to the kitchen to make some lunch before they went to pick Anthony up.

The two sat in silence as they slowly chewed their food. “Dola,” Julian finally spoke up. “We really need to talk.”

Danny instantly put his fork down and nodded at the younger man. “I agree. A lot has been going through my head the past week.”

Julian nodded. “I really like you,” Julian started and let out a large sigh of relief.

Danny’s heart began pumping as he waited for the ‘but’ to fall from Julian’s mouth. Instead nothing came out, and the blue eyed man was left looking at him in question.

“I… I uh like you, too,” Danny replied. “The kiss the other day was…” He trailed off as a blush covered his pale cheeks.

“I think tha-...” Julian was cut off by Danny’s phone ringing on the counter.

“Goddamn it,” Julian grumbled as Danny picked the phone up.

“It’s Tom,” he said as he brought it up to his ear. “Hey Tommy…”

Julian stared at Danny, as if giving him a death glare.

“Yeah,” Danny replied with a sigh. “Okay… Yep… that’s fine… Do you want me to drop stuff off? Oh… Okay… Please do. Yep… See you tomorrow.”

Danny hung up the phone and put it on the counter. When he looked up, Julian’s blue eyes softened. “What’s up with Tony?”

“He and Benny wanna have a sleepover… Gotta pick him up tomorrow before noon,” Danny informed. “Tommy’s taking care of the tooth fairy too.”

“Oh,” Julian replied. “Okay…”

He quickly moved out of the room.

Maybe it wasn’t meant to be if they could never talk without getting interrupted.

***

The frustration was clear in the house for the rest of the day. Julian spent much of his time at the desk in his room while Danny spent much of his time on the couch. Both of them were watching the same footage to prepare for their upcoming game against the Jets.

Danny knew that Julian was extremely frustrated. The problem was Danny was, too… But he was still too afraid to fuck it up… To fuck anything up, really. He was scared to say the wrong thing… Or to do the wrong thing. He didn’t want to ruin their friendship.

Similar things were going through Julian’s head; however, at this point, he was the opposite of Danny. The frustration was beginning to take over the fright. At least that was what he decided while watching some film from the last time they had played the Jets.

His eyes were stuck on Danny, and not the defenders. The way the other man's tight ass moved under their uniform made Julain’s dick swell. He knew it wasn't normal to think of someone who was just a ‘best friend’ like that.

After he calmed his situation down a bit, he knew he needed to march down that hall and tell Danny how he truly felt.

Neither of them said a word to each other until Julian came shuffling down the hall and plopped down on the couch that night. “Danny,” he said in a bold voice. Much more bold than he intended.

The brown eyed man sensed the need in the other man’s voice. His eyes snapped up to meet the hungry blue ones looking at him. “Jules I… Fuck it.” He mumbled, knowing what the other man was saying.

He practically launched forward, pressing his lips to the younger man’s. Both of Danny’s hands moved up to cup Julian’s bearded face as he deepened the kiss.

His hands trailed back so they were tangled in the younger man’s hair. His tongue began to trace Julian's bottom lip and Julian happily opened up.

Julian’s hands moved so they were grasping Danny’s sides. He instantly pulled the other man closer to him. Their heaving chests moved in unison.

“Mmm,” Danny groaned as he rolled his hips into Julian’s. He broke the kiss, his lips already pink and swollen. Both were breathing heavily as they locked eyes.

Julian dragged his hands down Danny's sides, and slid back up once he was under his shirt, feeling the warm smooth skin underneath. “I want you,” Julian said through heavy breathing.

Danny took that as an invitation. His hands moved down to Julian’s shirt and pulled it up in a not so swift motion. As it dragged up Julian’s tight abs, Danny nearly drooled. God, Julian really was perfect.

The shirt continued to be pulled up, causing Julian to pull his hands from Danny’s hot skin. His shirt was soon pulled over his head and Danny nearly dove down, pressed soft kisses to Julian’s clavicles.

“Dola,” Julian groaned as his hands made their ways back to Danny’s sides and under his shirt. Danny paid no attention as he continued to trail kisses down Julian’s boiling skin.

Julian didn’t make much of an effort. As Danny inched his way down toward the waistband of Julian’s sweats, the shirt slowly inched its way up his body.

Danny hummed against Julian’s skin as he stopped above the belly button. His shirt was now under his chin and all he needed was for it to be properly pulled up and over his head.

The younger man was happy to assist. He moved his hands from Danny’s hot skin and grabbed the red material. As the shirt was pulled over his head and arms, Danny looked up to meet those blue eyes that were studying him oh so carefully.

Danny smirked as he drug his nails down Julian’s chest. “Ugh!” Julian let out as he arched his hips up.

The dark haired man shook his head, as if giving the younger man a warning. Danny’s hands trailed a bit lower and grasped Julian’s hips— forcing them back down. He carefully curled his fingers around the waistband of Julian’s sweats. Julian let out a long moan as Danny chuckled and pressed a kiss to Julian’s happy trail.

Julian was completely tense under Danny. He bit his lip as he looked down at the beautiful sight in front of him. It was all he’d wanted for a while, and it was electrifying to finally have it happening.

As Danny began to slowly pull Julian’s sweats and underwear down his thick thighs, Julian balled Danny’s shirt tight in his hands. What was he even supposed to do with his hands? He didn’t know, he was too focused on getting his tight waistband off his length.

He let out a groan as he tried to buck his hips up, but of course the older man stopped him. His eyes were glued shut as Danny moved down a bit more. The Texan’s hot breath tickled the Californian’s sensitive skin. “Please Danny,” Julian cried. He was getting harder and harder by the second, and all he wanted was to have his dick set free. Julian’s eyes snapped open.

Danny pressed a light kiss on Julian’s hip bone before looking up at the wrecked blue eyed man. The smirk on his face made Julian’s heart race even faster. “I… Please touch me,” Julian whined. He threw his head back.

The older man chuckled as he ran a knuckle across Julian’s smooth skin. “I am, babe,” he said, his voice low.

Julian was practically vibrating under him and Danny was proud of that. The other man was his only distraction from his aching hard-on in his own pants.

Julian let out a whine as his begging eyes locked eyes with Danny. “Please.”

The older man shook his head as he moved off of Julian, leaving Julian there with his waistband holding back his dick, and his thighs practically bulging.

Icy blue eyes looked up as the dark haired man began to pull his shorts down his plump thighs. Danny smirked as he saw Julian’s jaw drop. “You like what you see?”

Julian visibly swallowed as he nodded. He couldn’t get out a word as Danny pulled his shorts and underwear down in one swift movement. His long thick dick popped out, nearly hitting the man’s abs. Julian knew Danny was big, but what was in front of him would surely wreck him.

Danny moved back so he was straddling Julian’s midsection and decided to ignore Julian’s growing issue. He moved back up to the younger man’s face. “God,” he whispered. “You’re so…” He trailed off as he moved closer, resting his body— his hard length— against Julian’s stomach.

Swollen lips met swollen lips and Julian’s arms were instantly wrapped behind Danny, pulling the older man closer to him.

As Julian tried to deepen the kiss, Danny bit Julian’s lip— hard. “Ow!” Julian cried as he pulled back. His lust filled eyes looked up at Danny in shock.

Danny chuckled as he shook his head. He moved so he was sitting back on Julian’s muscular thighs, Julian’s hard member right between Danny’s legs.

“God,” Danny mumbled as he ground his ass against Julian. His hand moved up to grasp his own member. “I’m getting so hard.” He rested back so he was near Julian’s knees. And whenever he wanted to pull Julian’s waistband down, his length would be free.

Julian began to squirm. “Danny… Can you please…” Julian sounded close to tears. He continued to stare ahead, but he sure as hell wasn’t looking Danny in the eyes. No, instead his eyes were studying the precum that was seeping from Danny’s tip.

“I suppose,” Danny replied in a teasing tone. He brought his hot hands down, grabbed the waistband, and pulled it down— sure to scratch Julian’s thighs in the process.

The waistband was slowly moved back. Danny smiled as the younger man’s member was freed from the waistband. Julian let out a sigh of relief as he brought his hands above his head, completely displaying himself to Danny.

“You look so close,” Danny mumbled as wrapped a hand around Julian’s length. He gave a light squeeze and smiled as precum made its appearance.

“I-I am,” Julian let out. He was nearly out of breath.

Danny grinned as he leaned forward, their dicks brushing one another. He placed a burning kiss on Julian's adams apple. When his lips left Julian’s skin, he moved his hips to create more contact and locked eyes with Julian.

“You look so fuckable,” Danny whispered and quickly sat up. He was back on Julian’s thighs, looking at the exposed man. “Give me your hand.”

Julian took a second, but held out a shaky hand. Danny grabbed his wrist and spit into his palm. “Now finish yourself.”

He crawled off of Julian, completely ignoring the shocked look on the younger man’s face. As he made his way down the hall, sure to strut his ass, he couldn’t help but feel the fire inside him kick up a notch.

As Julian laid there, her wrapped his hand around his member. He knew he needed to be finished soon. It was at this point that his hard-on was painful. And he hated that Danny had made him wait so long… And that he wasn’t the one to take care of it.

Danny rummaged through his drawer until he finally found the string of gold packages. He quickly grabbed them and two towels before he made his way back to the living room.

He stopped dead in his tracks as he saw the sight in front of him. Julian was pumping his hand up and down his length with his eyes shut. “D-Danny,” he grumbled. “So… You feel so good.”

And be damned if Danny’s knees didn’t almost buckle at the way his name rolled from Julian’s lips.

“Do I now?” He asked as he stood there, watching the man teetering on the edge. “How do I feel?”

“Y-Yeah.” Julian’s eyes snapped open and as if on cue, exploded onto his stomach. He looked beyond spent and Danny liked the look of it. The younger man would only be more spent by the time he was done with him.

“You look so good,” Danny mumbled as he moved ahead to Julian. He placed the stuff on the coffee table, pulled the sweats off Julian’s legs, and resumed his spot on Julian’s thighs.

Julian looked up at the dark haired man with hooded eyes. He couldn’t help but feel his dick begin to harden again as soon as he saw Danny’s member. There was no way that was comfortable for the other man. He wondered how he was still able to function.

Danny leaned forward, pressing a kiss on Julian’s lips. “I think it’s time you’re stretched, huh? I think you could use a second release,” he whispered as he grabbed ahold of Julian’s hardening dick.

The younger man swallowed. Danny’s hand held his dick as he dipped a few fingers into the cum on Julian’s stomach. He moved back so he could easier reach the younger man’s hole.

He drew a circle around it with his middle finger before slowly inching it in. “Ugh… Ah….” Julian squirmed as he tightened around him.

“You like that?” Danny asked as he moved the finger in and out. The groan Julian let out was enough for him. He added a second finger, stretching Jules a bit further. “Oh… Is that…'' He angled his fingers to brush Julian’s prostate. What sounded like a squeal left Julian’s mouth.

Danny couldn’t help but chuckle. “Too easy,” he laughed, adding a third. He knew he was getting close. He couldn’t wait to sink into the younger man— feel his heat completely around him.

“I’m close,” Julian mumbled as he arched his back. He wanted Danny deeper.

Danny smiled as he quickly withdrew his fingers. He let out a chuckle. “You don’t know what you’re asking for,” Danny threatened as he leaned over for a condom.

He locked eyes with a very tired Julian and tore the foil with his teeth. He spit it out and easily rolled the rubber on.

“God,” Danny mumbled. “So fuckable. You’re not gonna be able to walk for a week.” He brought one of Julian’s legs up, resting the younger man’s ankle on his shoulder. He smiled at Julian’s vulnerable state and he lined himself up.

His hands moved up to grasp Julian’s biceps as he slowly began to sink into Julian. He was hell of a lot tighter than Danny expected, and based on the noises falling from Julian’s mouth, he knew Julian wouldn’t last long.

Danny bottomed out and ducked his head, taking a few seconds to breathe. Sweat was dripping down his forehead as he placed a small kiss to Julian’s sweat covered chest.

“So tight,” Danny mumbled. “So hot.” Without another thought, Danny pulled out and slammed back in.

Julian let out a howl as Danny did so. “Ah… Oh my god,” he practically screamed. Danny hit his prostate repeatedly. “I-I can’t… No… Please. I’m gonna…”

And Danny agreed. He was at his edge as well. He slammed into Julian twice more before forcing the younger man’s leg off his shoulder and collapsing.

“That was…” Danny said between breaths. He closed his eyes.

“Nice,” Julian replied, his brain practically short circuiting. He could barely think. All he could do was attempt to slow his breathing down as all of Danny was on top of him.

Chapter Text

Danny rested back into the sheets as he took in the smell of musky vanilla. He felt absolutely amazing. He just had the best sex he had in months… Or maybe ever. And he never thought it would be with his best friend.

It was probably about an hour after they finished. Both had already taken showers and Danny even through the towels into the washer. He was the first in bed as he could still move the easiest. Even though he was joking, it seemed like Julian really would not be able to walk for a week.

As Julian pushed his way into the bedroom, he had a slight limp that hurt him in the best way possible with every step. Danny chuckled as Julain gingerly moved to the other side of the bed. He slowly slid into the sheets and let out a sigh of relief once he realized he wouldn’t have to move much more the rest of the night.

“I didn’t hurt you too much did I?” Danny asked in a soft voice as rolled to his side and looked over at Julian. His brown eyes were full of worry.

Julian shook his head. “I mean I didn’t necessarily like that I had to make myself cum… But it was great… It was my first time being fucked like that in years,” he admitted. “It’s been like three years since I’ve been with a guy. But I don’t think a girl has ever made me cum like that.” Julian let out a sigh as his tired blue eyes looked back at Danny.

Danny’s eyes went wide. He never realized that Julian had done anything like that before. His cheeks burned as he blushed. “You were my first,” Danny mumbled, his voice small. He was a little embarrassed. “First guy, I mean”

“Are you serious?” Julian asked, his eyes wide.

Danny looked down at his hands in his lap and nodded. “I mean, yeah… I’ve only ever been with women,” he replied. “Before you I’ve never really looked at guys.”

Julian shook his head in disbelief. “I can’t believe that,” Julian said. “You acted like you knew exactly what you were doing.”

“I uh,” Danny let out a sigh. “I uh let my feelings take over.” He was still looking down at his hands, not wanting to make any eye contact with the other man. Danny had never felt so small.

After the best sex of his life, he knew he shouldn’t have felt like that. But he couldn’t help it. He didn’t know if Julian did it all out of lust or if any of it was feelings. Danny knew some were out of feelings, but after the afternoon that they had, Danny questioned if it was more than just some feelings.

Julian sensed the other man’s nervousness and moved to put a hand over Danny’s. “Danny,” Julian said in a careful voice. “Look at me.” His voice was so soft.

Danny’s chest tightened.

His brown eyes slowly lifted and moved over to look back at Julian. Concerned blue eyes were looking back at him. “Danny,” Julian said. “You don’t need to be shy about it. That was probably the best sex I have ever had.” Julian let out a sigh and shook his head. “We really need to talk about this… About us.” Julian’s hand was not tightly grasping Danny’s.

Danny squeezed Julian’s hand in return. “Julian,” Danny whispered. “I think… A lot has happened in the last week.”

Julian nodded in agreement. “Dola… Danny… I’ve always thought of you as a friend… But this last week… Seeing you with anthony… Helping you… It made it feel like we could be a thing… That we are in it together. I’ve seen a different side of you,” Julian told Danny. “A side that I love. It's made me realize what a good person you are. How much you care for others. And… How attracted I am to you.”

Danny sat there, staring at Julian with wide eyes. He blinked a few times before finally regaining the ability to breathe. “Jules…” Danny whispered. This felt so good but like too much to hear at the same time.

The older man was never one to explain his feelings to others-- he never truly knew how to… And this moment was no different than normal. Millions of things ran through his mind.

“I think I’ve had feelings for you longer than I realized,” Danny finally got out. “I don’t… I just… Jules I like you.”

“I like you, too,” Julian shot back.

Danny let out a sigh as his grip on Julian’s hand became a death grip. “What… The media. We can’t… I don’t want to... But… I like you.”

Julian rolled his eyes. Danny was being ridiculous. “Who cares! If you love someone you love someone!” Julian shot back. When he realized what came out of his mouth his eyes went wide.

“L-Love?” Danny questioned. He didn’t know what was scaring him more. The fact that this was moving so fast… Or the fact that he felt the same.

“Uh… Yeah,” Julian said with a small shrug. “Listen, I’m sick of hiding my feelings. We’ve been trying to talk but never do. I know this is moving fast. But we can take this slow… You don’t have to say it back. Just know that I am interested. I’m fine if we were to just keep it between you and me.”

“I love you, too,” Danny spit out.

“We can try and do things on our own terms and--...” Julian stopped as he looked at Danny with wide eyes and tilted his head in question. “Did you just?”

“I love you, too.” Danny’s voice was much more firm this time.

“Thank god for that fucking sleep over,” Julain said before practually launching forward and pressing his lips to Danny’s.

***

The next morning, Julian was up first. And he was hell of a lot more sore than he thought he would be. He rolled off of Danny and sat there for a second, studying his… His boyfriends… Chest moving up and down as he slept.

He still couldn’t believe everything that happened. Never in a million years did he think the one he actually fell in love with would be a man. It blew his mind that not only he felt that way, but Danny did as well.

Julian slid out of the bed and gingerly made his way down the hall and into the bathroom. He hurt, but he hurt so good. The ache of every muscle was amazing.

He was thankful that it was an off day. It would be a much needed day to relax and gather himself. And well, possibly learn to navigate his and Danny’s new found relationship.

Were they boyfriends? Julian thought so, but of course wouldn’t tell anyone until talking to Danny about it.

And would they tell Anthony? Or keep it to themselves for a while? Julian didn’t care, but knew Danny would probably have an opinion on it.

Julian leaned into the shower to turn the water on. He wanted nothing more than to take a nice hot relaxing shower. His tight muscles needed it.

He shook his head as he pulled his briefs off and looked down at himself. There were light scratch marks on Julian’s thighs. When did that happen?

Julian sighed as he moved to completely be in the hot stream of water. His eyes fell shut as he dipped his head back, letting the water hit his clavicles and flow down his achy body.

After a few seconds, he moved further into the water. Where he dipped his head down and let the water hit his hair.

Everything was tight, but slowly loosen as he spent more time in the water.

He was so caught in his own world, he didn’t even realize the other man was slipping into the water behind him.

Danny smirked as he watched the younger man’s muscular back. Julian looked hell of a lot more relaxed than he had seen in quite a while. It made Danny’s heart swell knowing that he was part of what helped Julian finally relax.

He inches forward and placed his hands on Julian’s hips. The Californian jumped a bit, his eyes snapping open before realizing that it was only Danny behind him. “Jesus Christ,” Julian complained as he looked over his shoulder and met Danny’s mischievous brown eyes.

“I figured you were taking too long and that I’d never get hot water if I didn’t get in now,” Danny whispered as he moved closer. His front was now pressed against Julian’s back.

Julian chuckled as he leaned back into Danny’s firm chest. “I’m not taking that long,” Julian shot back as he shook his head.

Danny laughed and tucked his face into the book of Julian’s neck. “Maybe not, but I still thought this may save more water,” Danny replied and placed a kiss to Julian’s warm skin.

“We’re not doing anything,” Julian said. He pulled from Danny and turned around to face the older man.

“And why is that?” Danny asked, a bold smirk on his face. “By any chance are you feeling a little uh… Worn out from yesterday’s activities?”

Julian rolled his eyes and shook his head. “You’re impossible,” Julian whispered. “How can you be so…”

“Perfect?” Danny asked, a full blown smile on his face.

“God no,” Julian shot back. “So much of an asshole.”

Danny shrugged. “I don’t know, but yours is kinda nice,” he said. “A little tight. But oh well.”

Julian grabbed Danny’s hips and pulled him back a bit. The older man let out a sound of surprise. Danny was now the one completely in the water, but Julian’s back was flat against the tiled wall.

Danny smirked back at the younger man. He stepped forward so the hot water was running down his back. Be brought his hand up and cupped Julian’s cheek. “You’re lucky it’s almost time to pick Anthony up,” he whispered.

He was so close to Julian they could feel each other's breaths. His blue eyes were wide as he looked into those beautiful brown ones.

“Why?” Julian asked. “Cuz then we’d have more shitty sex?”

Danny shook his head. “That’s not what you seemed to say last night,” he shot back. “God, I’d love to fuck you so hard right now.”

“Those kids better have more fucking sleepovers,” Julian grumbled as their lips met.

***

“We’re gonna be late because you couldn’t keep your dick in your pants!” Julian shot at Danny as they pulled onto the highway.

Danny rolled his eyes as he watched the other man drive. “Please! I didn’t even have any pants on! And you sure as hell didn’t complain!”

Julian glanced over at Danny and scoffed before looking back at the road. “If you had stayed in your pants for like an extra 10 minutes, you could have taken a shower no problem!”

The older man laughed. “And what? Then I would’ve had cold water! One shower made the hot water run out,” Danny replied. “Cold showers suck.”

“It wouldn’t have turned cold if you would’ve kept it in your pants,” Julian said. He chuckled. “I can’t believe we did that… I’m so fucking sore.”

“You’re welcome,” Danny mumbled. He reached over and grabbed ahold of Julian’s hand.

“You know we haven’t really talked about what we want to do now,” Danny whispered after a second. “Are we going to… Ya know?”

Julian squeezed Danny’s hand in return. “It’s up to you,” Julian said. “I’m happy with letting people around us know… But if anyone knows, then there’s the threat of the media knowing.”

And that was exactly what scared Danny. Not only did he not want the whole world to know… He didn’t want the media to know before his family did.

He always identified as straight, so it wouldn’t be the best way for his family to find out. And even though it wasn’t likely, because times have changed, would him being with Julian cause him to lose custody of Anthony?

Danny let out a sigh and ran his free hand through his hair. “Honestly?” Danny mumbled. “I think we should give it a little time. My family would probably like to know. They all think I’m straight.”

Julian nodded in understanding. “You got it,” he replied. “I get it. I was scared shitless when I told my parents in college. But then… Uh just one more question then.” Julian pulled off the highway and stopped at the traffic light.

Danny’s brown eyes looked over to meet Julian’s. “What’s up?” Danny asked.

“What about Anthony? Will he catch on? Do we tell him? Hold it off?” Julian was curious. If he was honest, he wanted Anthony to know… He didn’t want to hide the love he had for Danny in their own place.

“I uh…” Danny trailed off. It was a good question. One he hadn't thought of. But, after a few seconds, he got a terrible feeling about it. If he got Anthony into school, the little guy could slip up about it without even trying. “Not yet… Can we just… maybe figure us out a bit more first?”

Julian’s heart hurt a bit at that, yet understood where Danny was coming from. “Sure thing, Dola.”

The two continued to hold hands until they got to the Brady’s, but stayed completely silent. As Julian shifted the car into park Danny let out a sigh. “I love you, Jules,” he said. “I don’t want to make you feel bad or hide you… Hell I’d love to scream it out… I’m just not there yet.”

Julian nodded. His blue eyes were soft. “I get it, Bubs… I love you, too. Now let’s go get Tony… I’ve missed the little guy!”

The two of them got out of the car and made their way up the steps. They rang the doorbell and waited for a few seconds before Tom pulled the door open.

He leaned up against the door frame with his arms folded over his chest, completely blocking the couples way in. A smirk was present on Brady’s face.

“I fucking knew it. My plan worked. You two are so fucking whipped.”