#tmbtp

I'm back! (On Baker's birthday, of all things!) And I am so excited for what 2026 will bring! Can't wait for y'all to get your hands on both of these books!

Bringing the boys home meant a lot of last minute scrambling to get things in order. The first order of business was finding a place for the teenager, Brody, to sleep.

Luckily, Hollis and Mercedes were able to move into their new place sooner than anticipated, so we were able to convert Hollis’s old apartment into a new space for us.

Her old bedroom became a playroom, and her living room became Brody’s bedroom. We already had a nursery ready upstairs for the baby, who we named Lucas Solomon. 

The whole thing felt so surreal. Even though we knew we could get a call from the adoption agency at any moment, we didn’t expect that moment to come so soon. Or to be welcoming not one but two new members into our family.

When it came time to bring the boys home, Brody was a bit quiet. He seemed happy but a little shy. I remember how it felt to move in with complete strangers, so I understood where he was coming from. We arrived home and started showing Brody around.

While Paul was getting Lucas settled in, I showed Brody his bedroom. 

“I get my own bedroom?” He asked.

“Yeah, and your own bathroom, too,” I told him. 

“Wow.”

As Paul held Lucas, I noticed Chelsea watching him closely. I tried to work out what she might be feeling. If I had to guess, I’d say she felt betrayed. She didn’t say anything, though, just continued to keep a close eye on her new little brother. 

Rachel, on the other hand, was over the moon about meeting her new brothers. She talked Brody’s ear off on the way home, and continued to do so at home, although Brody was still being quiet.

We showed Brody around the rest of the house. The thing that caught his attention was our workout area. In fact, he decided to get a little workout in himself. I wanted to ask him about himself, to get to know this new person living in our house, but I didn’t want to push him too much.

We continued to check in with him throughout the evening–offering, but not forcing him, to join us in conversation. He seemed content to sit in our presence and just take everything in. It was our new normal that we were all getting used to. 

this must be the place // byler big bang 2023

A year after Vecna's defeat, things have finally returned to normal. Well, aside from the lingering nightmares. And the fact that Mike is in love with his best friend and it's getting increasingly harder to keep that to himself.

Chapters: 5/? Fandom: Stranger Things (TV 2016) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Jonathan Byers/Nancy Wheeler Characters: Jonathan Byers, Nancy Wheeler, Will Byers, Joyce Byers, Jim "Chief" Hopper, Steve Harrington, Mike Wheeler, Karen Wheeler, Lucas Sinclair, Dustin Henderson Additional Tags: Pining, Mutual Pining, Friends to Lovers, Angst, Fluff, Falling In Love, Canon Compliant, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD Summary:

'What happened?', Nancy had asked. 'I waited', she'd said. She had waited for him, for them. He didn't know. He hadn't waited, not really. Actually, he'd fought against the forces that seemed to pull him towards her over and over again, but Jonathan, of all people, should know that no matter how much you try, what's meant to happen, will happen.

****

Brody’s perspective

It was time for school and Brody realized when he got there that he’d forgotten to study for his exam. He did the best he could, but he couldn't remember half of what was covered on the exam. 

To make matters worse, after class a boy named Tom came up to him and insulted his clothes for no reason. Brody couldn’t remember having seen this kid before. He tried not to let it get to him, but it put him in a sour mood for the rest of the day.

When he got home, he looked around for his parents. He found Paul in the baby’s room, having just put his brother in the crib for a nap. He wasn’t sure if he should bring up what happened at school, but Paul could tell something was wrong. Brody decided to be honest, and Paul gave him some good advice about how to deal with people who are rude. Brody thanked Paul for the good advice. 

Hollis and I are enjoying an after dinner coffee at the cafe. Coffee at dinner time sounds wild, I know, but I usually stay up late anyway.

“So, I wanted to ask you something,” Hollis tells me as she’s waiting for her drink.

“Sure, go ahead.”

“Would you want to walk me down the aisle?”

“I’d be honored!” I exclaim. “So, you’re not planning on inviting your parents?”

“No, I haven’t spoken to them in years,” Hollis says. “I don’t think they’d approve of me marrying a woman anyhow.”

“Yeah, I can understand that. I was in the same situation with my mom.”

“I remember.”

Hollis finally gets her coffee and we sit down.

“I can’t believe your wedding is almost here," I tell her.

“Well, that's because I haven’t been engaged for very long," Hollis laughs.

“True, but time is still going by fast.”

“This all seems surreal. After all of that planning, my big day will come, and then it’ll just be over.”

“It is pretty crazy. But you’ll be too busy enjoying your honeymoon to think about that too much.”

“It’s going to be nice getting away for a little while after going through all of this stress.”

“It will be. You know, I’m really happy for you.”

“I know. You’ve been a big help. I couldn’t have done it without you and Paul.”

“We’re happy to help.”

After Hollis’s wedding, I didn’t have anything to take my mind off of waiting to hear from the adoption agency. It turned out that wasn’t an issue for long. Paul got one home from work one day and told me he’d gotten a call from the adoption agency.

“Tell me it’s good news,” I say.

“It’s great news. There’s a newborn who’s in need of a home and they want us to take him.”

“Are you serious?” I’m over the moon. “We’re finally getting a baby?”

“Yes, I’m serious. This is real, we’re going to have a son!”

“I would say you have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear those words, but I think you do!”

“I definitely do. There is one other thing, though.”

My heart drops a bit. What else could there possibly be? 

“What is it?”

“Well, the baby has an older sibling. A much older sibling, a 16-year-old brother. He’s been in foster care for a while, and they asked if we’d be willing to take him, too.”

“Wow, I wasn’t expecting that.”

“I know. She said if we need some time to think it over, then we can.”

“I don’t need to think it over,” I tell him. “If the kid needs a home, then I can’t turn him away.”

“I had a feeling you’d say that.”

“So, how do you feel about it?” I ask.

“I’m with you. We have the space in our house and our hearts, so why not?”

“So it’s official, then. We’re getting two sons.”

“We are!” Paul kisses me on the cheek.

I can’t believe we’re expanding our family with 2 more people. We’d better get started on preparing for our boys.