twenty five
Milton lays with his head resting on his carer's chest, softly rising with every breath the man makes, his steady heartbeat against Milton's ear like a gentle lullaby.
They'd fallen asleep atop Milton's bed, Cal's legs hanging off the child-sized mattress and head bent slightly on Milton's mountain of pillows. A hand lies on Milton's bottom where it was once rhythmically patting him to sleep, now holding him close in case he rolled off the man as they slept.
He's surprised Callum hasn't woken up, usually the two men always wake before he does, but he doesn't mind the stillness.
It's nice to let his eyes wander over his room to the discarded jacket and scarf on the chair and the slightly open dresser drawer.
His penguin toy is still sitting on the bedside table, but Milton doesn't bother trying to reach for it.
Instead, he focuses on wiggling his toes, enjoying the extra freedom his foot now has since the cast is off. Sure, it's now in some kind of brace, but he can definitely move it a little bit more now that the hard plaster has been sawed away.
He blinks sleepily, lips smacking as he attempts to swallow the saliva pooling in his mouth.
He wiggles again, cheeks blushing pink as Callum just pulls him closer with a contented purr, the noise rumbling through the man's chest.
He's not sure how long they lay there, soaking in each other's warmth before the sound of the apartment door unlocking pulls Milton from his daze. He swivels his head a little, eyes watching the open door as Aldric appears, a smile on the large man's face as he sees the two.
"And I thought you two would still be in the park."
His voice rumbles through the room, Cal automatically waking from his nap with a big stretch, tilting his head to look at his husband.
"You're home early." He murmurs; eyes still glazed with sleep.
Al chuckles. "It's almost five, my love."
Cal groans, shifting to a seated position, Milton sliding down into his lap. "I think we fell into a food coma."
Milton hums at this, not really understanding, but he did feel rather full from lunch, the tendrils of sleep still clinging to his body, calling him to fall back into the sweet darkness.
"Did you end up going outside?" The large man enters the room completely, smelling strongly of wood and sunshine as he lifts Milton into his arms for a cuddle.
Cal tenses a little, lips drawn in a line as he exhales and stretches once again. The bed was really not made for a full grown wolf.
"No. I think our day was eventful enough without being outside."
Al hums, fingers running over Milton's cast. "I can see that, no more cast! That's good news."
Milton shyly smiles, leaning his head against Aldric's chest at the praise.
"We're right on track, aren't we Milly?"
Milton nods, hands fisting in the man's shirt. Cal rises from the bed, still stretching out his neck and shoulders as he steps over to the two, leaning up to place a kiss on his husband's lips, followed by a kiss to Milton's cheek.
"How about we have an early dinner? Something light."
Al hums again. "We could head to the main kitchen? See what's on offer."
His mate makes an odd sound in his throat, clearly not loving the idea, leaning back to get a better look at Aldric's face. "Really?"
Al nods, looking down at Milton in his arms. "It would be good for everyone to get familiar with Milton, he'll be up and walking soon. It might be nice for him to get to know people his own age."
Milton perks up at this. People his own age? There were other teenagers in the building?
Callum, noticing the interest sparkling in the human's eye, reluctantly nods. "If it's too overwhelming, we-we can always come back to the apartment."
Aldric grins, turning to head out the bedroom with a pep in his step. "It'll be fun! A bit of socialising will do us all some good."
Callum isn't so sure about that, but he smiles at his love anyway, following him out the room and down the small hallway.
They all seem to pause before leaving the apartment, taking a moment to breath before Aldric opens the door and presses a kiss to Milton's head. He waits patiently for Callum to exit as well, locking the apartment and taking his mate's hand in his as they continue to the stairs.
It's a fairly short trip down to the ground floor, but to Callum it feels never ending, each step shooting waves of panic up his spine that he desperately swallows down, his wolf shaking out its metaphorical coat at the stress.
"We can go back up if you're not ready." Aldric murmurs, pulling his love closer to his side.
Callum smile sup at him. "No, it's alright. I should... It's been a while."
Guilt claws up his throat. The pack always manage to support him in his time of need, yet he hasn't returned the favour. Not that the pack expect anything in the first place.
Landing on the tiled ground, Callum takes a deep breath, letting it out through his mouth as he brushes his hands over Milton's head, who is busy looking around the open space with wide eyes.
As a common area, the space is divided into two distinct areas.
The left breaking out into an open kitchen and dining area, set up with two rows of tables and picnic style bench seats.
To the right, the area opens up to a loungeroom with large windows opening up to the front of the building, framed with beautiful curtains and a bench seat laden with pillows.
Fluffy cream and beige couches fill the space, angled slightly towards the big screen tv and low wooden coffee table.
Everything feels warm and lived in, with shoes littering the hallway leading to the front door and jackets tossed over the couches. Pictures hang crooked on most of the tall walls, and a few plants sit in pots throughout both spaces – some looking a little worse for wear.
Walking into the kitchen, Aldric leans his hip against the main bench, Milton propped up on the other.
A few other people are milling about, moving in and out the kitchen with bowls, plates and a variety of food.
One man is at the stove sizzling some meat, large frame enveloped in an apron that looks like it might just tear at the seams.
"Hey, Jude, what's cooking?" Al calls out, patting the human gently as he stiffens now that the attention in on them.
The man, now known as Jude, turns around with a wide grin, kitchen tongs in hand and a twinkle in his eye. "Al! Good to see you out and about!"
Cal steps from behind his mate, sending the man a little wave. "Hi, Jude."
If it's possible, the man's grin turns wider. "Callum! Good to see you too. How've you been?" He turns briefly back to the stove where he flips red meat over, the hot sizzle of oil loud against Milton's ears as he watches.
Cal lifts a shoulder, still very much keeping in contact with his mate as he greets his fellow pack member. "I-it's been good. This is Milton, he's been s-staying with us."
Jude's smile turns soft, no longer baring his teeth, much to Milton's relief, as he nods his head respectfully to both Milton and Cal.
"Well, it's lovely to see the family all together, that's for sure. You guys grabbing something to eat? The rest of the kiddos should be down soon."
Callum looks up at Aldric, who easily swaps Milton to his other side and wraps his now free hand around his love's waist, tugging him closer.
"We're thinking of having some sandwiches, and maybe some chicken soup if there's any left. I know Martha made a big batch the other day."
Jude scratches at his chin in thought, turning from his meat to waltz over to the fridge, confidence oozing out of the man seemingly without thought. "Should be. Why don't you all have a seat? I'll heat some up for you."
Callum takes a step forward instantly throwing his hands up. "Oh no, we didn't m-mean to make you cook for us—"
Jude barks out a laugh, head thrown back as he grabs a large pot from the fridge and dumps it on the stove next to his still sizzling frypan. "Relax! I'm cooking for everyone today, that means you three too."
Milton blinks at the exchange, fingers curling in Aldric's shirt as the loud man continues to bang around the kitchen, grabbing bread and salad ingredients as he gets to work.
"Are the others on kitchen duty coming down to help?" Al asks with a good-natured chuckle.
Jude nods. "Should be here any minute. No doubt Martha will take over as soon as she sees me manning the stove."
Milton thinks that's probably a good thing.
The three move out of the way and take a seat at the long dining table near the doorway, Callum running to the lounge to fetch some pillows to prop Milton up on the bench.
Milton smiles, thanking his carer in sign language as he's gently placed on the stack by Al, his large hand resting on Milton's back to support him sitting upright.
As much as he doesn't mind sitting on their laps to eat, as he often does... he really doesn't want to be seen as a baby if there are other people his age joining them for lunch.
But will they still think of him poorly when he can't eat like they do? When he accidently drools or struggles to hold a spoon?
Nerves swirl in the pit of his stomach, but Al is there to pat his head, leaning down to press a kiss to his hair and murmur encouragement.
"You'll be alright. No one's going to hurt you or pick on you. Not when you have me and Cal here."
That's right. He's not alone. He's seen Cal get protective and there's no way anyone would want to mess with Aldric. He takes a breath, nodding at the man with a spark of determination flitting in his eyes.
He can do this. He can be normal. If it all goes wrong... well, he'd have to deal with that when it happened.