Quill shook his head as Gavynne bolted for her Peepaw's door. She giggled, brown curls moving in time to the bounce of her slippered feet. The little girl was so eager to show off her ballet outfit to her grandfather. Where in the world Gavin had found a master teacher to give private lessons after dark, Quill would never know. It seemed his husband's money and connections were endless.
Quill locked the car and followed Gavynne's path. By that time, the eight-year-old was already inside, hugging her Peepaw excitedly. Quill shut the door behind him, stepped out of his shoes, and leaned against the wall for a moment. His hands settled neatly beneath his belly, stroking the baby. It occurred to him for the upteenth time that he was glad this next little girl would know her grandfather, as well. Quill smiled fondly. He concentrated for long enough to pick up the sounds of his older boys upstairs ; Thomas and Justin, now eagerly running toddlers, had stayed home with their father tonight.
"She couldn't wait to see you," Quill finally said to Sebastian. The curve of his lips deepened. Gavynne chirped for her Peepaw to watch as she offered a spin. Quill sucked in a breath until she was back on flat feet. "The only part of her lessons that she hates is that everyone gets to stay here with you except her. Peepaw is all she talks about coming from the studio."
— from @mycursedcaptain, unprompted.
Sebastian-- if that was really his name and he had any fucking right to it-- often looked forward to interacting with his grandchildren. So many of them were little, still, and it provided a much-needed break between the periods of uncertainty that had become his existence. He wasn't used to it; in life (was it his life?) he'd always had a set path, certain and assured. Even after he met Gavin's mother (but had he really met her?), he'd known with utter certainty that he wanted her, a family with her, and to raise the child she'd left behind in death.
But in what felt like a blink of an eye, that child was grown now with children of his own. And Sebastian was more thing than man.
At least the love that little Gavynne had when she hugged him was real, even if there was a possibility that he was not. He watched her little twirl and didn't hesitate to applaud, chuckling.
"That was marvellous, darl'. Just marvellous," Sebastian cooed, wasting no time to bend and lift the girl up to hold her in one arm. There wasn't much of her for it to be cumbersome (and his body, he felt, was much stronger than it ought to be). "You're doin' great, going out to ballet. Momma's gotta be real proud, yeah?" Glancing in Quill's direction, he smiled, then stepped aside to allow him room to walk further inside.
"Me and your Nan, we used to think about all the kinda stuff your Pops might wanna do, even when he was still in her belly. It's a good thing you found somethin' you like so much."
Sitting on the chair he used for reading, and allowing Gavynne to sit on his lap, he gestured for Quill to take the bed in the room.
Sebastian regarded them both when he asked, "How'd the lesson go tonight, huh?"
turnnoffyourmind
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