#the full translation would be something like strawberries swaying in the breeze i think

[nuzzle]

"Swinging Strawberry Garden" series 🍓 「ゆらゆらいちごのStrawberry Garden」シリーズ

[aqlemonade]

Family Reunion - Biadore

Summary: Danny, Ivy, and Kurt pick Roy up from the airport after a month on tour.

AN: I’ve had this idea for a long while. I finally got tired of thinking about it and decided to actually write it. This got a lot longer than I expected it to, so I did cut out a few scenes I wanted to incorporate in the fic. I’ll write a second part, or separate one shots for them later.

A little tidbit: The kiss thing Kurt does in this fic is actually what I used to do when I was a baby!

Danny glanced in the mirror to get a glimpse of his children in the back seat. He smiled to himself as he turned his attention to the road.

“Are you excited to see Daddy, Ivy?” The young child had been kicking her feet happily while staring out of the window.

“Yeah!” She yelled, which made Danny chuckle. “Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!”

“What about your brother? Does he look excited?”

Ivy leaned over to peek at Kurt. His car seat still had to face inwards, Danny couldn’t see the baby’s face. “Mhm! He’s laughing!” Ivy tried to give her brother a kiss, but the seatbelt had pulled her small body back. She just tapped him on the head instead, returning her attention to looking out of the window.

“How long, Dad?” A slight whine in her voice. Danny could tell she was growing impatient and missing Roy more every second. A month was a long time for that little girl to go without her father. He tried his best to step in, to distract her from the longing. Ivy and Roy had a special connection that no amount of gummy worms could make feel better when he was gone.

“Only a few more minutes until we’re there, okay? Then Daddy’s plane lands a bit after that. Do you have the sign you made him with you?”

“Here!” Ivy held out the rolled up poster that she had decorated the night before proudly. “All by myself!”

“All by yourself!” Danny returned the same energy when speaking to his child. “Are you gonna tell Daddy you did it all by yourself? I know he’d really love that.”

“Yeah!” She hugged the paper to her chest the rest of the ride there.

——

Danny pushed Kurt in his stroller through the busy airport. “Hold my hand, Ivy,” he instructed his rambunctious daughter. The last thing he wanted to happen was for her to get lost in the chaos. Ivy wrapped her hand around her dad’s, his fist completely covering her smaller one.

“Food!” Ivy pointed out when they started passing all of the cafes. “Can we get food, Dad?” She began tugging him in the direction of a pastry display.

“No, Ivy. We just had dinner. You have to go to bed when we get home. Do you want a tummy ache before you sleep?”

“No,” she pouted.

Truthfully, Danny just didn’t want her to spoil her appetite or fill herself up on airport food. He and Roy had been planning on surprising her with a trip to an ice cream shop before they went home so they could spend some family time together.

——

Danny bounced Kurt on his knee, making the chubby baby giggle as they waited for Roy. “Daddy!” Ivy practically screamed Danny into partial deafness. When he turned to his daughter she was no longer next to him.

“Ivy!?” Danny yelled, standing up with Kurt in his arms to scan the crowd with no luck of setting eyes on his daughter. “Roy, get her!” There was no sight of his husband either, only hope that he was close enough to hear him and close enough to grab Ivy before someone else did.

Danny strapped Kurt up in his stroller as quickly as possible. His heart raced as he began blindly wondering around for his family.

——

“Daddy!” Ivy yelled again as she approached her father. Her body could barely keep up with the pace of her legs. Her Welcome Home Daddy sign flopped in the breeze as she sped towards him.

Roy shot a wide grin at the sight of his daughter running in his direction. “Is that my sweet girl?” He called out to the child who radiated joyfulness. He lowered himself onto the ground so he could be at her height, opening his arms wide enough to engulf her in a hug when she jumped into them. Holding his daughter after a month of not being able to felt like new life filling his soul.

Roy squeezed her tightly, rocking her back and forth a bit as they hugged. This was undoubtedly the longest Roy had been away since he and Danny had Ivy. She was older, and Danny had experience being alone with a baby; They thought it’d be easier and the money was good enough to make Roy say yes, but never again. He didn’t know how emotionally draining it would be being away from his kids for such a long time. The pretty chunk of change he earned from working nonstop just wasn’t worth missing a month of their lives.

Roy lifted Ivy off of the ground, slinging her across his hip.

“I made this, Daddy! All by myself!” Ivy showed Roy the unraveled poster paper. Welcome Home Daddy was sloppily written with a new color for every letter. She had squeezed out a few unrecognizable designs with glitter glue to fill up the empty space. Small metallic heart stickers were spread around as well.

Roy put on his best shocked face. “Ivy! That is so good!” He helped hold the poster open so he could get a better look at it. “Very pretty, honey! I like the little hearts,” He pointed to a blue one in the corner. “Thank you so much!”

All the praise had Ivy beaming. Her daddy liked her poster and nothing could have made her heart happier. “Welcome,” She said almost shyly. “I wrote that (or dat as Ivy said) too, by myself.” Her little hand had hit the middle of the sign.

“I see! I’m very proud of you!” Roy made sure to validate his daughter. He kissed her cheek. Ivy puckered her lips for another kiss, groaning for her father’s attention until Roy gave her a peck.

“Missed you,” The child’s expression dropped.

Roy attempted swaying her a bit to cheer her up. “I missed you too, Ivy. I’m not gonna be away like that again, okay?” He looked at his daughter for an answer.

“Okay. Promise (which sounded a lot like pwomise the way Ivy had said it)?”

“Pinky.” Roy hooked Ivy’s pinky with his own and they both blew on their hands before exchanging another peck. It was their secret pinky promise routine that was special just between the two of them.

“There you are!” Danny was heard before he was seen. “Ivy, don’t ever run away from me like that again, do you understand me!?” The small child frowned at her dad’s tone, looking up at her daddy to defend her with the same doe eyes Danny gave him all the time. They both knew how that made him melt and had no problem using it to their advantage.

“You can’t run away from us Ivy, especially in a crowded place like this.” Roy backed Danny up much to Ivy’s disappointment. The girl stuck her tongue out at her dad before laying her head on her daddy’s shoulder.

With Danny coming in on full dad mode, Roy hadn’t had the chance to greet his baby or his husband. “Is that who I think it is?” An over exaggerated baby voice was something Roy couldn’t help talking to his son in. For a moment the baby just stared at him with shock and confusion on his face. Roy almost began to worry that his child had forgotten who he was in the time he was gone. Almost. 

Kurt blinked a few times before bursting out in hysterics. The baby screamed on the top of his lungs, earning quite a few glares from the people around them. He sobbed, reaching up for his father while making grabby hands towards him. Roy’s heart sunk. “Aaw, my baby. I’m here now. Daddy’s here.”

Danny circled around the stroller to unbuckle Kurt and put him in Roy’s free arm. The boy’s tantrum stopped abruptly now that his daddy was holding him. A giant smile spread across his face. The pureness of the moment made Roy want to cry. “Hi Kurt, hi baby. I missed you,” He cooed softly at his son who probably didn’t understand a word of what he was saying. His tone had translated however, making Kurt laugh and squeal.

The baby began to wiggle in Roy’s arms, clearly getting worked up by the excitement of the moment. Kurt grabbed Roy’s face, opened his mouth, and devoured Roy’s cheek. He pulled away, smacking his lips together to make a popping sound before smiling and giggling again.

Kurt knew from watching and getting kisses from his family that you used your lips and it made a noise. The baby just hadn’t figured out how to piece that all together yet. The mistake was a pretty damn adorable one.

Roy pressed a kiss to Kurt’s forehead in return, the baby repeating the process of his special kisses. Roy pecked him again, then Kurt slobbered on his cheek again. They continued this back and forth long enough for Danny to get a video to post on Instagram before Ivy interrupted. “Me next!” She declared, becoming jealous of the attention her little brother had been receiving. Ivy turned Roy’s head in her direction to give him smooches. Kurt started getting fussy when all eyes (and kisses) weren’t on him.

“I think it’s my turn,” Danny chimed in to save his husband from becoming a tug of war toy between Ivy and Kurt. The couple’s eyes lit up when they met each other’s. With all of the havoc of Roy reuniting with the kids, they hadn’t had the chance to properly look at each other; To really embrace and take in the moment. A warmth filled Danny’s chest that spilled out through a soft smile. Roy’s heart nearly caved in, his husband was glowing.

As much as Roy wanted to, both arms being occupied by his kids prevented him from hugging Danny. Thankfully, the fact that he wouldn’t get squeezed in return didn’t stop Danny from wrapping his arms around Roy’s waist. His head rested on Roy’s chest while his eyes fluttered shut so he could better absorb the moment. He nuzzled his cheek into the soft sweater Roy was wearing, inhaling his scent after having to cuddle up with a pillow for a month just to get a breath of his husband.

Roy smirked down at him. Danny was the sweetest, most sentimental person Roy knew. He was soft and delicate; Unafraid to show that vulnerability, and it made Roy crumble at his fingertips. Roy let a kiss lingerie to the top of Danny’s head. He smelled like strawberry shampoo and Kurt’s baby powder. Roy snickered fondly, kissing him again.

“I’m happy to see you,” Roy broke the unusual silence that had fallen over his family. Danny beamed at him, and Roy couldn’t help but to seek out his lips. They kept it PG in front of the kids, exchanging a kiss they held to under a minute and a few follow up pecks.

“Ew, Daddies!” Ivy scrunched her face up.

“Oh, you think that’s gross?” Danny teased. The young girl nodded her head.

“What about this?” He attacked Ivy’s cheek with kisses and tickled her tummy, making her giggled and squeal loudly. Roy chuckled as he watched his daughter and husband interact, providing Kurt with attention when the baby started getting jealous.

“No, that’s okay!” She answered when he had stopped.

Danny stepped back from them. The distance allowed Roy to eye him up and down. “You look beautiful,” He said sincerely. Danny’s hair was thrown into a messy bun that flopped to one side of his head, his shirt was tattered beyond recognition, he wore flannel pajama pants and a coat that was too bulky for California.

“Stop it,” Danny bit into his bottom lip, his eyes shuffling to the floor. A compliment from his husband always had Danny behaving like a school girl. He used to brush them off thinking Roy was pulling his leg. When he realized how deeply and wholeheartedly Roy meant every gushing comment that was shot his way, Danny couldn’t help getting flustered at them.

“Dad pretty!” Ivy joined in, pointing at her father.

“He is, isn’t he?” Roy ‘whispered’ loudly enough that Danny could hear.

A blush painted Danny’s cheeks bright red. He shook his head, “Alright, enough. Let’s get these kids home,” Danny put an end to the reunion, and the compliments. He took Kurt from Roy’s arm. His son excitedly wove his fists in the air when he took hold of him. Kurt grabbed at Danny’s face, extorting more kisses from him before being put back in his stroller.

“No!” Ivy screamed when Roy placed her feet on the ground, prompting him to lift her back up. She wrapped her small arms around her father’s neck, just like she had always done since she was a baby.

“Do you want me to carry you?” Ivy nodded yes, and with that they were headed out of the airport.

“Daddy, hold your sign!” Ivy urged Roy as they walked through the prominently less populated airport. She handed the poster off to him. He strode with it in pride.

“I’m gonna put this on the wall in my sewing room. Is that okay?”

Ivy clapped her hands together, “Yay!”

——

Roy handed Ivy off to Danny so he could buckle her up in her booster seat, repeating the process with Kurt. When the car door clicked shut Roy pulled Danny into a proper hug; The hug he wanted to give him when he first laid eyes on him after landing. Danny let out a long sigh, feeling as though he could finally breath again enveloped in Roy’s arms. He let himself relax; Allowed himself to fall apart for a moment. Roy was his comfort, and he hadn’t felt safety like this since he had left.

Roy kissed Danny’s temple, smiling to himself as he rested his chin on Danny’s head. They held each other for a bit. Roy rubbed Danny’s arm while Danny rubbed his back. They were an affectionate couple who were so used to having physical access to each other that a month apart took a huge toll on them. Their bodies ached for each other. Ached to feel the other’s embrace, a kiss on their forehead when they woke up, or the stray touch of their hands brushing when they both reached for the salt at dinner. They could manage without sex, that wasn’t exactly the hard part. The hard part came at night when all you wanted to do was flop over and find solace from the day in your love’s arms.

Danny directed Roy away from the side of the car, pulling him towards the back so they were out of their kid’s eye sight. He cupped Roy’s face in silence, smiling at him before going in for a kiss. It took not a second after their lips touched for it to get heated. Roy wound an arm around Danny, pressing their bodies together tightly. Danny moaned into Roy’s mouth as their tongues twirled around each other. The kiss was untamed, sloppy at that. They felt the overwhelming desire to devour each other and their kiss was reflective of that.

Danny pawed at Roy, panting against his lips. His husband’s arm around his waist getting tighter made Danny whimper into his mouth. Roy chuckled at the sound, pulling away and kissing the tip of Danny’s nose in the process. Danny leaned some of his body weight against Roy as he attempted to catch his breath. “You know,” Roy started with a smirk. “If the kids weren’t here I’d bend you over the hood of the car and fuck you like I used to.”

Goosebumps flared on Danny’s skin. The memories of sneaking around, and the feel of cold medal against his hot stomach came rushing back. It was an impulse at first, then a game, then a habit. The couple used to be separated more often than not, when they reunited a half hour car ride home was too long of a wait to touch each other; To be close again. Once Ivy was old enough to express her want to come pick up her dad or daddy they put an end to their airport parking lot affairs.

Danny bit his bottom lip, a suggestive look on his face. “Well, I do have a day trip to New York in a week,” he played with Roy’s sweater. “I’m sure my mom would let you drop the kids off with her if you wanted to come pick me up alone.” His green eyes flashed up at Roy with a look of innocence as if he didn’t know what he was suggesting.

It was so Danny, and Roy couldn’t help the fondness spreading through his chest. “I like that idea.” They exchanged smirks, then a much tamer kiss.

“We really have to get them home,” Danny’s responsible side kicked in. Sometimes it was hard not to forget that their lives revolved around two other lives now. They would love nothing more than to stand outside of their car kissing and catching up, but the babies inside of the car had to be put to bed soon.

“Alright, let’s go,” Roy agreed. They kissed, Roy squeezed Danny’s butt playfully, then back to parenting mode they went.

——

The car ride home was a quiet one. The kids were tired out. Kurt had fallen asleep while Danny and Roy were having their moment. Ivy stuck it out a bit longer. Roy watched her in the mirror fight sleep for ten minutes before she finally passed out.

“Shit,” Danny whispered to himself. “We were suppose to take them to get ice cream. I completely forgot.”

“It’s okay, babe. They wouldn’t have made it,” Roy reassured while looking back at their kids. “They’ve both been asleep for most of the ride. We’ll take them tomorrow.”

“I didn’t give them baths either, I thought we’d have more time than we did. Do you wanna wake them up when we get home, or should we just let ‘em sleep?” Danny missed having someone to make decisions with. Even something as simple as giving them a bath wasn’t as simple as it seemed, and he was thankful to have Roy to help with ultimate choice.

“I say let them sleep. We’ll throw ‘em in the washing machine in the morning.”

Danny laughed, “You’re awful.”

——

“Let’s try not to wake them up,” Roy whispered before he and Danny exited the car. They were careful not to let the doors slam. Danny grabbed Ivy while Roy grabbed Kurt. It had gotten dark out. Walking with your kid in your arms when you couldn’t see your own feet wasn’t a fun task, but the fathers had managed to get inside without a stumble.

“Meet in our bedroom?” Roy asked.

“Yeah. Good luck with yours.”

“Good luck with yours,” Roy returned. The couple parted ways. Danny taking Ivy to her room, Roy taking Kurt to his.

——

Danny let out his daughter’s pigtails to prevent a headache in the morning. He ran a comb through her hair a few times, too nervous about waking her up for the tugging of a brush. He slid her little shoes off, the accessories always made him laugh. They were so small that they looked like a novelty. A fresh pair of cozy pajamas replaced Ivy’s day clothes, which were now tossed in the hamper. Danny carefully placed Ivy in bed, pulling her blanket up to her chest and making sure she’d wake up with her favorite stuffed animal next to her. “I love you,” Danny said quietly, pressing a kiss to Ivy’s forehead.

Roy changed Kurt’s diaper. Just like his older sister, the baby loved his sleep. He hadn’t woken up once other than a slight whine when Roy switched the dirty diaper for a clean one. Roy was happy to find that the onesie with their family picture printed on it had been washed. He opted for that outfit, smiling affectionately when he snapped it on. “There you go,” Roy mumbled to his baby as he lifted him off of the changing table. He cradled Kurt in his arms, rocking him for a moment. He missed this; Holding his son, putting him to bed, changing his diaper. He missed being a father, and being around his babies. Kurt looked so much older. Ivy looked like she had shot up a few inches. He couldn’t leave them like this again. There was a good reason he and Danny had decided on a two week maximum away from the kids. Not until they were much, much older. Even then Roy wasn’t sure it’d be any easier. He kissed Kurt’s cheek, placed him down on his back in the crib, and checked to make sure the baby monitor was working. “Goodnight, sweet boy. I love you. Daddy’s gonna be home when you wake up. It’s been a long time since I have been, huh?” Roy rambled to the sleeping child.

——

Danny rubbed lotion into his thigh while Roy undressed on the edge of their bed.

“So, how were they?” Roy inquired about the kids while he was away.

Danny’s lotion bottle snapped closed. “They were pretty good. A bit fussy the first week without you, but once they got used to it they calmed down. They missed you though.” Danny sat down next to Roy. “Ivy kept asking about you. I couldn’t get Kurt to eat his peas. I still can’t, I don’t know how you do it.” Roy chuckled at that. Danny leaned his head on Roy’s shoulder.

“What about you?” Roy’s eyes flickered towards Danny. “How was all this on you? How’d you do with them?”

Danny shrugged. “It was hard. I’m so used to you being here that when you were gone I kinda felt like a single parent. I mean, once I got them into a routine it was a bit easier, but,” Danny clasped his fingers with Roy’s. “I wouldn’t want to do this without you.”

It made Roy feel so much better to hear. He felt guilt for leaving them for so long, then disposable when he saw how well they were doing without him. Danny’s reassurance meant the world to him. The kid’s reaction to seeing him today meant the world to him. Danny turned Roy’s face towards him and kissed his lips; Roy felt his husband’s smile against his. Danny kept kissing him, eventually moving to mount Roy. “I missed you,” Danny admitted between smacks of their lips.

“I missed you too, babygirl. So much.”

Danny groaned. “You know how it makes me feel when you call me that.” He leaned into Roy, his lips brushing his. “I just have to fuck you now.”

Roy’s pupils got darker, goosebumps rose on his skin. “I know,” He growled, pulling Danny into a deep a kiss. Roy licked his way pass Danny’s lips, their tongues meshing together and gliding over the other’s. Danny rucked Roy’s shirt up while they made out. His hand lingering on Roy’s skin. Sometimes his fingers would twitch, making Roy’s muscles jump with them. Danny’s hand drifted upwards, slowly smoothing over his husband’s warm skin. The sweater had followed with him. Once Danny reached Roy’s chest he broke away from him to pull the garment over his head.

Danny marveled at Roy. He was always so beautiful. Being pressed up against the body in front of him felt like home. This was home. Roy was home. Danny had so much love in his heart for his husband, he wanted to burst every time he saw him. While Roy was undoubtedly fucking hot, the love Danny harbored for Roy made Danny look at him like a God. Ethereal. Someone who deserved to be praised, and touched, and made to feel as gorgeous as they were.

Roy squeezing Danny’s hips brought him back to reality. The younger put his palms on Roy’s shoulders, guiding him to lay down. Danny followed. He nuzzled his nose with Roy’s, kissing the trace of a giggle off of Roy’s lips. He didn’t focus on that for long before moving to his neck. Roy’s eyes rolled back as Danny placed supple kisses to the sensitive flesh. His lips were so attentive, so soft, and so caring. Danny always strived to make Roy feel lavished with his love.

“Can I mark you?” Danny let his breath tickle Roy’s ear, dipping his tongue in the shell for good measure. Usually he would never even attempt it, but Danny wanted to mark Roy up. He wanted to look at his husband and know he did that. That he was the only person that could do that.

“Yes,” Was Roy’s answer. Danny didn’t waste much time. Roy hissed as plump lips began sucking and biting at his neck.

“Are you okay?” Danny asked while pressing soothing kisses and licks to the already bruising skin.

“Yeah,” Roy huffed out in response. Danny went back to sucking on the spot he was working on before. He started two hickeys on the side of Roy’s neck, alternating between the purple circles. He didn’t want to cause too much pain, or give Roy no relief from it. When he worked on one for long enough he switched to the other. Afterwards he’d kiss and lick, attempting to sooth the skin and let Roy relax.

Danny ran his fingers over the huge bruises on his husband’s neck. He felt so proud of them, and so proud to have Roy wearing them like a necklace. “Do you want more?” Danny didn’t want to stop. If Roy would allow him to turn his body into a giant hickey he would, but he had to allow  him first. Hickeys were still bruises. They were painful to receive and painful to live with after the act. Danny wasn’t giving him tiny bites that would go away in the morning, the sight of his neck as is would probably be disturbing to anyone who didn’t know how he got them. Danny wouldn’t inflict pain on Roy for his own pleasure unless Roy wanted it too.

“Please,” Roy breathed. On a normal day receiving hickeys wouldn’t be his favorite thing to do, but he wanted Danny’s marking on him. He wanted to look in the mirror and know Danny did that. He wanted to feel claimed, to have Danny’s stamp on him. For their friends to look at him and know they were from Danny. To know that Roy was his.

A new line of love bites started on the opposite side of Roy’s neck. Danny ground his ass on Roy’s lap, relishing in the gasp that sounded from his husband’s lips. Roy’s hands had been on Danny’s ass the whole time. If there was one way for Danny to distract Roy from anything it was his butt. Lap dances, grinding, or just strutting across the room in tight jeans was enough to get Danny out of most situations or entice Roy into them. His husband loved his ass and he sure as hell used that to his advantage.

“Shit, babe,” Danny laughed as he hovered over Roy. “You look like you got choked out,” He observed as he brushed his fingertips over the blooming bruises again. “You need some here though,” Danny dipped down to paint Roy’s throat, settling for just one when Roy asked him to stop. “That’s better,” Danny said.

Roy smiled lazily at Danny. The adrenaline of the moment drowning out the throbbing pain these would be causing otherwise. “It’s a good thing I don’t have to work for a while.”

“Yeah, I don’t think you’d even want to try to cover these up. Baby, they’re so bad,” Danny covered his mouth to suppress his snickering. Seeing Roy with raging hickeys was new, exciting, and quite funny. Roy rolled his eyes. He was sure Danny was being his usual over-dramatic self.

“Roll your eyes again and you’re getting another one,” Danny teased, his tone playfully seductive.

“Oh, I am?” Roy challenged.

“Yeah,” Danny leaned down to kiss Roy, but before their lips could touch a knock on their bedroom door interrupted them.

“Daddies!“ They heard Ivy’s voice call for them on the other side.

“Shit,” Danny said quietly so she couldn’t hear it.

“Give us a minute, Ivy.” Roy answered.

“What do we do?” Danny started to panic. “I have a semi! I can’t answer the door for our daughter with a semi!” Ivy had walked in on them before, but it was easy enough throwing a blanket over your naked body, or taking your hand out of your partner’s pants. This…This Danny didn’t quite know how to handle.

“I’m hard! How do you think I feel!?”

“A bit better than me,” The joke was Danny’s natural reflexes to an awkward situation stepping in.

Roy lightly kicked him with the heel of his foot, “Not the time!”

“Right,” Danny agreed.

“Daddies!” Ivy yelled again, her knocking getting more frantic.

“We’re horrible parents. Our daughter needs us and we have boners! We can’t answer the door for our daughter because we have boners! We can’t have sex until they leave for college. That’s just what we’re gonna have to do—“

“Dan!” Roy cut Danny’s wild ramblings short. “Relax. Pull yourself together.” Roy yanked the sheet off of their bed, “And put this around your waist.” Danny complied. Nodding his head, he took the sheet and a few deep breaths. This is why he needed Roy around. They balanced each other out. When Danny didn’t have a solution to something, Roy did and vice versa.

Roy slipped his sweater back on and found the baggiest pair of pants either of them owned.

“You good?” He asked Danny before opening the door.

“Yeah. I’ll be soft in a minute.”

Roy signed, “Same.” It was more than obvious that the two were slightly annoyed by the disruption, but their kids came first. When you’re a parent you work on their time, not your own. Danny and Roy fully believed in that. They would put anything on hold if their babies needed them.

The biggest smile in the world was waiting for them when they opened the door. “Daddies!” Ivy mused sweetly. She reached up, grabbing for one of her fathers to pick her up. Roy took the bait, scooping his daughter up in his arms. It didn’t take long for Ivy’s smile to fade when she saw Roy’s neck. Tears welled in the child’s eyes as she began to cry. She pointed at the hickeys Danny so graciously gifted Roy with and let out a heart wrenching scream. “Daddy hurt,” Ivy sobbed.

They both fell into a fit of “Oh no,” and “It’s okay.” Danny felt awful. He gave Roy those hickeys and in return made their daughter cry.

“I’m not hurt, Ivy,” Roy tried to reassure her. “I’m okay. Daddy’s fine.” Though his words didn’t seem to be getting through to her.

As Danny watched on helplessly a lightbulb went off in his head. “Ivy, come here,” He took the sobbing child from Roy,

sitting down on the side of their bed with her in his lap. “Daddy’s not hurt. That’s paint!“ The child looked up at him curiously. “You see, I miss Daddy a lot when he goes to work. Married people who miss each other, when they finally get to spend some time together again they paint on each other! This is special paint so it’ll stay on for a while to remind Daddy how much I love him. See how it’s really red and purple?” Ivy looked at Roy then back at Danny to nod yes. “Soon it’s gonna be just purple, then it’ll turn yellow, then it won’t be there anymore.” Danny grabbed Ivy’s hand before she could poke Roy, who had sat down next to them during Danny’s explanation. “But you can’t touch Daddy’s paint because it doesn’t dry. It has to stay wet so his skin can breath.”

Ivy looked between them for an awkward moment. Danny hoped she had bought his story.

“Why don’t you have paint, Dad?”

“Because it’s only for the person who was away for a while,” Roy chimed in when he noticed Danny scrambling for an answer.

Ivy seemed to contemplate the idea. “Not hurt?” She asked Roy.

“No baby,” Roy cupped her cheek. “I’m not hurt.” He swiped away a few tears from her eyes. “Do you feel better now?” Ivy nodded. “Thank you for caring so much,” Roy spoke to her in a soft tone. “That’s very kind of you.” Ivy shot him a sweet grin.

“What did you come down here for, Ivy?”

“I sleep here!?” The young girl poked her father’s mattress, already excited at the idea. Roy and Danny shared a knowing look. They weren’t gonna get their hands on each other anytime soon, but Ivy missed her dad’s together. Keeping her happy was always more important than anything.

“Just for tonight, okay? You can’t make a habit out of this.” Danny informed their child.

“Okay!” Ivy speed-crawled up to the head of the bed.

Danny looked at the sheet around his waist. “I guess we can sleep with just the blanket tonight.”

“We’re gonna have to,” Roy chuckled. He kissed Danny goodnight before getting into bed, knowing Ivy would be smack dab in the middle of them and he wouldn’t have the chance to once they were lying down. “I love you, Dan.”

“I love you too, Roy.”

Danny discarded the sheet. Ivy flopped over on her belly to get more comfortable. Roy slid into the bed on one side and Danny on the opposite. Ivy was conflicted on who to cuddle up with, getting frustrated until deciding to rest a hand on both of her fathers. “Night, night, Daddies,” Ivy adorably mumbled out in a sleepy voice.

“Goodnight, sweet girl.”

“Goodnight, baby.”