all will be well

“I thought I’d be used to it by now.” Mei had always preferred the heat; as a kid she figured it was just a matter of where she grew up, though now she wonders if it’s more to do with her powers. 

“This is… cute.” Mei wanders through the market, feeling a little out of place. Cute, after all, wasn’t exactly her forte. She adjusts her sunglasses and lights a fire in her hands with a snap of her fingers, holding it close to keep herself warm. “God, it’s freezing out.”

“That’s an amazing idea. What do you want to get her? I think we should find a few things, she’d love that.” Adrianne asks quickly, shooting questions at her father in quick succession. She can’t help it - she’s excited, the market seems like so much fun and she wants to see everything. “Hey - is Guy coming with us for Chrismtas?” She asks with a grin, turning to her father and raising an eyebrow.

He can’t help but smile at the expression on Kyle’s face, all excitement and joy that lights up the whole room and Guy loves it. He always has, really - Kyle just has something about him that brings him such a warm, bright feeling, something Guy doesn’t find too often. “Aw c’mon, even if you weren’t stuck dealin’ with me you wouldn’t die alone. Y’still got Adri, after all.” He says with a chuckle as he loops his arm around the other’s waist and pulls him in closer. “Hey, m’happy to meet her. I’ve always thought she sounds like an incredible woman, dealin’ with you for so long.” He chuckles and kisses the side of Kyle’s head gently.

“that’s lovely,” she says, a genuine smile on her face before she listens to his next answer. She writes furiously as he speaks, “alright, one final follow-up to that,” she looks back up at him, “it’s no secret Paragon’s home to plenty of heroes and vigilantes. do they make you feel safe, personally?”

“Oh yeah?” Guy call from the kitchen with a grin. Family dinner sounds interesting, and of course Guy wants to meet the man’s mother now that they’re actually together, but the last thing he wanted to do was impose on something he knows Kyle and Adrianne do with Kyle’s mother so regularly. Better to wait until Kyle’s ready for that, as far as Guy’s concerned. He turns the stove off, satisfied that their dinner is just about done, and takes two beers out of the fridge. “Y’told her about me already, huh? Must mean m’doin’ pretty good so far.” He chuckles and steps over to the couch, handing one of the beers to Kyle before settling down beside him. “What’d you say?”

“i’m so excited for christmas.” dot signed brightly, grinning across at kyle. she loved christmas, and as soon as she’d gotten comfortable within the family and learned about certain holidays, it had become her favourite immediately.  she got so enthusiastic that it was infectious. “i saw the cutest biscuit cutouts today. they were little snowflakes. i’m going to get gingerbread right this year and make them, i swear.” [ @kylerynr ]

“I’m pretty sure if anyone was going to spark doom on Guy it’d be himself. He seems to be good at that.” Adrianne says with a soft chuckle, though she knows why he’s felt that way. She knows why he’s avoided romance and relationships since his mother, but she’s glad he’s taking a chance on this. She wants him to be happy. “C’mon, this is about you not about me.”

“You’re also a little silly. I know you’ve been avoiding things like this since mom.” Her smile fades a little as she practically chastises her father, but after all this time he and Guy have wasted it’s about time Kyle was told how silly he’s been. Mostly so he doesn’t mess up this chance at happiness. “I’m really happy for you, you know. You deserve this, dad.”

Adrianne knows what her father has been protecting himself from, what he’s been doing. She understands - she never wants anyone to hurt him again the way her mother did. But.. she also wants Kyle to be happy, he deserves to be happy, and she knows Guy can give him that. “It will be, papa. I know it will be. I’ve seen the way he looks at you. You guys are just terrible at timing, but that doesn’t matter now.”

“I guess we did. Not just wars - other stuff, things just.. didn’t line up, huh.” He says with a soft chuckle, raising a hand to brush Kyle’s hair back gently. It seems kinda silly now, that they let things get in the way, but he’s not really one for looking back and regretting. Right now, Guy’s here and no where else, and all that matters is Kyle. “Y’bet your life we’re gonna make up for it.”

Guy doesn’t try to stop the other when he moves, letting Kyle settle in his lap and resting his hands on the man’s hips as he looks up at him, a wide smile on his face. “What took us so long, huh?” He asks with a soft chuckle before leaning up to kiss him again, a little deeper this time, arms moving to wrap around Kyle nice and snug, keeping him close.

Adrianne knows her father has always been careful with this, considering his history. It’s not like he’s had great luck - he might not talk much about it, but she knows about what happened with Alex - and then considering what her mother had done.. it never surprised her that he didn’t really pursue anything, but.. she wants him to be happy. And he is happy with Guy, so this all seems perfect. “Of course I am. He’s loved you for a long time, dad. It’s about time you guys figured out what this is.” She smiles and shakes her head. “What does getting there actually mean?”

[ text → daddy 💚]: i’m glad, dad 😊 [ text → daddy 💚]: yeah? i’m really looking forward to it [ text → daddy 💚]: you’re amazing there’s so much I can learn from you!

[ TEXT // PRINCESS ] → i'll try and be a good teacher

It’s not that Adrianne’s not excited for her father - of course she is, she wants him to be happy more than almost anything. It’s just so silly to her that it’s taken them so long to figure this out when just about everyone can see they love each other. “Of course I’m okay with it, papa. I’m happy for you.” She says with a smile, stepping over to give him a quick hug. “You really did, Maggie and I were beginning to think you’d never get there.”