Chapter Text
Chase Sterecra found himself home alone with his sister one evening, waiting for his dads to come back from their date. He and MK had already done everything they could think of, so they were sitting on the floor brainstorming some ideas. “We could go down the street to 7-11 maybe,” he suggested, pointing towards the window. “Our ONE rule was to not leave the house, remember? That’s not gonna work,” MK responded. Chase sighed, before looking down the hallway. “Maybe there’s something cool in our dad’s room,” he suggested. MK followed him into their parents room, examining the space. Nothing super interesting from the first glance, just lots of pictures of the family.
MK’s eyes drifted to a bookshelf, noticing a few binders on the bottom shelf. “Hey Chase, look at these,” she said, grabbing them off the shelf. They were filled with extra pictures, including some the kids had never seen before. “Woah, I’m so little in that one. Maybe- like, around your height,” Chase joked. His remark got an elbow to the side from MK (which hurt more than he thought it would, for someone with such small arms). They each took one book and started flipping through them, but Chase’s eyes were caught on one specific picture.
“MK, come here,” he said, beckoning his sister over. She looked over his shoulder, taking in the picture he held up. It was a family of five, two parents and three boys. The date on the back read 2000-08-16, making it much older than both kids. The three boys each had a specific color they seemed to be wearing. The oldest in green, the middle in blue, and the youngest in red. “Wait- I think I know who these people are. That guy in the green looks like Uncle Carlos,” MK pointed out, tapping Carlos on the picture. “You’re right! Which means- the guy in red is probably Dad!” Chase exclaimed. Down the hall, they heard the clicks of the front door.
“Kids! We’re back!” Noah called out, setting his keys down on the table by the door. He looked around the room, no kids in sight. “Where did they go?” Alejandro asked, glancing at his husband. Noah shrugged. The former archvillain headed down the hall, and into his room. “What are you two doing in here?” he questioned, crouching down to be at their level. “We were going through these photo albums, and we found this REALLY old one. Look!” Chase explained, showing his father the photo. Noah was watching the exchange from the doorway. A look of remorse appeared on Alejandro’s face, handing the photo back to his son.
“We think the family is yours, since that’s you and Uncle Carlos standing there. But who’s the guy in the middle?” MK asked, pointing to the boy in blue. Noah sat down on the bed, leaning towards Alejandro. “You never told them about José?” he asked. “He’s a monster. I didn’t think I should bring him up at all,” the Spainard responded. “Wait- do you have a secret brother? Is he dead or something?” MK asked, Noah chuckling. “He’s not a good person. You know how we don’t really talk to my parents? It’s the same thing,” Alejandro explained. Both kids exchanged a look of understanding. “Can I have a second to talk with Dad?” Alejandro asked, standing up and setting the binders on the bed. MK and Chase left the room, the Spainard sighing.
“They’re just kids, they didn’t know any better.”
“I know, I know. They were going to end up finding out about him eventually.”
“I’m surprised that they didn’t know he existed though.”
“Again, like I do with my parents, I pretend he isn’t real. I thought I’d mentioned that I had another brother though. I didn’t name him, but I definitely implied his existence.”
“Kids don’t have the greatest memories. I would know.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry, mi querido.”
“You didn’t do anything wrong Alejandro.”
Noah gripped his husband’s hand, as a way to reassure him.
“I love you Noah.”
“I love you too, Alejandro.”