Chapter Twenty-Five #2
“I can smell that.” Austin sounded dazed as he took another look around. “Why is everything clean? And why are you out of bed?”
“I’m out of bed because I woke up and didn’t feel like hot garbage, so I celebrated with some food and a walk to the couch.”
“The house is clean because we cleaned it,” Gavin added helpfully. “I mopped.”
“You mopped.” Austin looked like he might faint.
“Yes, he mopped, and we vacuumed and cleaned the kitchen, did the laundry, cleaned the litter boxes, made and/or brought dinner, and walked the dog,” Meg added.
“Oh. Why…?”
She rolled her eyes. “Because Will called and said you were both being big dummies. Will promises not to pretend housework isn’t a thing from now on, and you should promise to ask for help in the future.”
Joe bit back the smile that wanted to burst out at the look on Austin’s face. There was nothing like being scolded by a teenager for a failure to successfully adult. He wondered if his own expression was so poleaxed when they served him the same judgement.
Figuring he should rescue his boyfriend from the trials of teen parenting—he’d missed out on several opportunities to do anything boyfriendly over the past two weeks—Joe patted the couch next to him and said, “Why don’t you grab some food from the kitchen and join us in some mindless TV, babe? I’ll even share my blanket.”
Austin did just that, and thankfully missed the shocked looks sent his way by Gavin, Meg, and Alex.
“Did you just—”
“You did.”
“Does that mean—”
Huh, apparently Will hadn’t spilled those beans. Impressive.
“Yes. It does. You were right, he’s too cute not to date.”
“I knew it!”
“Yes!”
“So, like, the wedding is next week?”
“Wait—Will. You knew?”
“Well….”
“Oh my God! Betrayer!”
“Wait, does that mean he’s kicked out of the betting pool?”
“Betting?” Austin stood in the doorway with a plateful of pasta. “Who’s betting?”
“The children, and probably others, presumably about our romantic prospects.”
Austin froze with his fork halfway to his mouth. “Uh… what?”
“Apparently we won someone money by getting together.”
“Oh.” Austin cocked his head. “Should we, like, do something about that? I feel like you should scold children for betting on something personal and tell them it’s very bad and wrong, but honestly, I don’t care.”
Joe laughed. “Me either. If they’d run away to Vegas, maybe I’d have something to say about it.” He winked at the kids as Austin settled next to Joe on the couch, their thighs and shoulders pressed together.
Alex flushed and looked down at their lap, and then up again too quickly for Joe to figure out who or what they were looking at. No one else seemed to notice, and the atmosphere was too nice to disrupt by poking anything with a stick. Especially after the past couple weeks.
Austin’s thigh was warm and solid against his own, and Joe let whatever was happening go. Right now he had his crazy family around him and he could breathe all right for the first time in weeks. That was enough.
“So hey,” Meg said slyly, as they paused between episodes for a bathroom break, “if you and Austin are together, that means there’s a bed going totally unused upstairs, right?”
Alex was in the kitchen making popcorn, as per tradition, but Will and Gavin whipped their heads around to look at Joe.
“Yeah…?”
“So we can totally have a sleepover, right?”
Joe opened his mouth to object—surely they were too old for sleepovers, especially now they could drive themselves around; surely their parents would want them home; this was very last-minute and they hadn’t brought toothbrushes—but his eyes caught on Will’s, open and pleading and bright for the first time in weeks. God damn it.
He sighed. “It’s Austin’s bed,” he said pointedly. “So you’ll have to ask him if it’s okay if two of you sleep in it.” He paused. “And no horny shit.”
Meg wrinkled her nose. “Gross.”
When Austin emerged from the bathroom, Gavin and Meg set upon him. Will hung back, obviously still feeling some guilt. Joe figured the two of them needed space to talk it out, but it didn’t look like that was going to happen tonight.
“Please,” Gavin said, all puppy-dog eyes.
“Yeah, please?” Meg echoed. “I’ve been training so much I barely get to see anyone.”
Alex entered with the popcorn. “What’s going on?”
“Sleepover,” Meg said. “Austin’s totally going to let us share his bed ’cause he’s sleeping with Joe anyway. Right, Austin? Alex and I need to catch up.”
“How come I get stuck with Will?” Gavin grumbled. “He kicks in his sleep.”
Will shoved him with a shoulder. “Sleep on the couch, then, dick.”
Austin sighed and looked at Joe. “I’m going to say yes to this, aren’t I?”
Joe shrugged. “Probably.”
Austin returned his attention to Meg. “You’re changing the sheets yourselves. And Ozzy’s probably going to want to stay with you, so leave the door open, okay?” She had claimed Austin’s bed as her property just days after her adoption.
“Of course.”
“And you have to shut up if we tell you to. Joe still needs his sleep.”
Joe could probably sleep through the five of them singing karaoke to “Bohemian Rhapsody” in his living room, the way he’d been going lately, but let Austin pretend he was exerting some control.
“And, uh, no drugs or alcohol.”
“Whatever,” Meg said, taking one of the popcorn bowls from Alex. “You only have gross beer anyway. Are we good? Can we start the next episode now?”