#tuserliane

one of the things you love most about rafe was that he was always up for your spontaneous hobbies. no matter how comical it is.

from painting, barista classes, baking, crocheting (which he’s surprisingly very good at), you name it. he’s done it all with you.

your current hyperfixation was clay pottery.

you and rafe were out in his backyard. the sun was hiding behind the fluff of clouds, the breeze was cool and crisp, creating the perfect setting for your afternoon.

you were on your third ceramic by the time an hour passed, and you’ve successfully made a cute mushroom for your jewelry set and a frog bowl.

rafe was… hanging in there.

he couldn’t help but let out annoyed groans as a few hair strands kept falling to his eyes. he can’t push it back like he normally does because his hands were smeared with wet clay.

you looked up from your work to see rafe shaking his head a bit as he tried to get the hair away from his face.

you bit your lip as you tried to hide the amused smile growing on your lips, but it was no use, because as soon as rafe noticed that you stopped working, he snapped his attention towards you.

“oh, you think that’s funny?” he asked you, eyes squinting into a mocking glare.

you scrunch your nose up, pinching your thumb and index finger together. “a bit, yeah.”

he huffed, going back to his art when he gave up trying to avoid the hair in his eyes.

“i’ll be right back,” you abruptly stood up from your chair and went back into the house, wiping the wet clay on your hands.

when you came back, rafe had a bad feeling as he eyed your closed fists and the big grin on your face.

you opened your hands as you stepped in front of him, showing him the myriad of colorful butterfly clips on the palm of your hands.

“no, nope!” he shook his head feverously.

“oh, c’mon, rafe!” you pleaded, dragging your chair beside his, preparing to style his hair. “it would keep your hair away from your face.”

“no.” he deadpanned, ignoring the difficulty to look through the hair that curtained his eyes.

you pouted, playing with the clips on your hands as you tried to catch his gaze. “…you’ll look pretty.”

rafe groaned, looking at you for a moment before reluctantly agreeing.

you did a small cheer and a victory dance before settling yourself in front of him, resting your knee against his thigh as you started working on his hair.

you ignored the grumpy look on his face as you pushed back the strands of hair blocking his face, securing them with one of your many butterfly clips.

rafe couldn’t stay mad at you for so long.

the frown that was etched on his face was immediately wiped away just as soon as it was there and was replaced with a soft smile that made your heart flutter.

you had a concentrated look on your face, your tongue slightly poking out of your lips as you continued to work your magic on his hair. there was a shimmer in your eyes that made him feel all warm and soft inside.

rafe loves to see you happy. your smile was his most favorite thing in the world, and he’d do anything to make you happy.

prologue. mama’s night out

— rafe goes out with you in hopes of sweeping you off your feet, only to end up doing just that, and getting more than he bargained for.

i. my boys

— ever since rafe said he wanted in, he’s trying his best to be the best partner to y/n and the best friend to tommy.

ii. elmo & friends

— whilst y/n was out for work, rafe and tommy spends an afternoon in together.

iii. zoom classes

— rafe and tommy are doing their very best to distract mommy from her online school.

iv. bath time

— rafe proves to be a keeper when he volunteered to give tommy a bath.

v. mario kart

— rafe and y/n was supposed to spend a night full of fun and games as soon as tommy goes to bed, but a sleepy mutter of that word made rafe realize that he needed to step up his game.

vi. three

— for tommy’s third birthday, rafe brought the two of you to the obx’s flashing carnival.

vii. family portrait

— tommy gave rafe a heart-warming gift as soon as he got back home from his first day of school.

viii. closure

— when tommy’s biological father comes back for closure, rafe’s love for tommy shows.

epilogue. father figure

— a happy ending for the family you love.

#rafe and tommy concepts

#ffblurbs

mood board by the amazing @taylathornton

if there’s one thing that jj loves about school, it’s the annual bonfire that’s being held after the first week.

you and the pogues got separated the moment you step foot in the crowded place. there were kooks and pogues alike mingling amongst the horde, music was blasting from the hidden speakers, and cheap beers and soda cans were exchanged from corner to corner.

an hour or two has passed as the party slowly calmed. you sat on one of the rocks on the cove, a hint of a smile on your face as you observed the people gathered around the fire.

there was a pogue strumming his guitar as a few people sang along to the familiar song. marshmallows were being roasted on the fire as the pack was being passed around.

beer and soda cans were littered everywhere, and you were almost certain kie would be raging if she wasn’t drunk. you’ll make sure to help her clean up in the morning.

you were just about to hop down the rock you’ve resided at to roast your own mallows when you heard footsteps from your left.

your smile grew as you watched jj approach you with two cans of soda and a plate of roasted marshmallows.

“hi.” jj grinned, planting a sweet kiss on your lips as he made himself comfortable beside you.

the both of you shared on the melted sweets as you let the soft strumming of the guitar surround the both of you in comfortable silence.

you’ve exchanged casual and silly conversations as you finished on the food you were snacking on when jj suddenly popped the can tab of his soda.

“you know, they said that…” he started, holding the tab towards you. “when you give someone your soda can tab, they owe you a kiss.”

“yeah?” you asked, voice low as you slowly leaned in to muse his quip. “and who told you that?”

he hummed as if in thought. “the gods who really want us to kiss right now.”

“we can't disappoint them now, can we?” you smiled into the kiss, grabbing the tab from his hands as you pulled him closer.

as jj pulled away, he silently asked you to turn around so that he could unclasp your plain necklace. he slipped the tab through the gold chain and secured it.

“now i have a reason to kiss you anytime i want.” he grinned proudly.

“as if you need a reason to kiss me.” you playfully rolled your eyes as you popped the tab of your own soda can.

you handed it towards him with a pleased look on your face. “now you owe me a kiss, too.”

“don’t need to tell me twice.” he mumbled, locking his lips with yours, a sweet kiss like no other.

when you pulled away, jj unclasped his own shark tooth necklace and slid the tab down the chain. “we’re matching.”

“mhm, yeah.” you smiled down at your matching necklaces. “i think we make quite a pair, don’t we?”

“we’ll always be a pair.”

“always?”

“and forever.”

general taglist: @tatesimper @bluvclouds @i-love-scott-mccall @miraclesoflove @rosie-posie08

a bright lovely day was brought to the outer banks on the morning of august 20th.

rafe has his arms wrapped around your body, legs tangled whilst you were in each other’s warm embrace. the soft snores escaping from your lips were fused with the songs that the birds were singing.

it was merely eight a.m. when tommy stirred up. he rubbed his eyes as he adjusted to the light. he let out a small yawn and his gaze fell upon the calendar on his wall, the date today encircled many times with doodles of balloons and a cake adorned on the small box.

he excitedly got up from his bed and hurried towards your bedroom where you and rafe were currently residing.

he twisted the door knob slowly and climbed on the bed, balancing himself as he prepared to wreak havoc on his parents’ peaceful sleep.

“wake up, wake up!” tommy yelled, bouncing up and down on the bed. “it’s my birthday!”

you groaned against your pillow, a yawn escaping from your lips as the boy continued to jump on the bed.

“what time is it, tommy?” rafe asked, his eyes still closed as sleep tried to catch up with him from the sudden disturbance.

tommy flopped down in between the both of you, tapping his chin in thought. “uhh, i don’t know. it’s my birthday though!”

you and rafe chuckled softly as you cupped your son’s cheeks in your hands. you peppered his face with light kisses, his giggles bringing music to your ears. “god, you’re growing up too fast.”

rafe smiled, opening his arms to bring him in a hug. he wrapped his arms around the boy as he laid on top of his chest. “happy birthday, bud.”

the rest of the day was spent at tommy’s favorite ice cream parlor. rafe rented it for a few hours, much to his father’s displeasure, but he’ll do anything to make tommy’s birthday perfect.

the pogues, sarah, topper, and kelce attended the small birthday party, putting the stupid rivalry aside to become one of the cool aunts and uncles for tommy.

they got along, somehow. even going as far as cosplaying superheroes and villains to amuse the birthday boy.

rose and wheezie dropped by, too. rose spoiled tommy the moment rafe told them all about you and him. she loves him, rightfully so.

you prepared a projector and the screen, and spent the rest of the afternoon watching luca, and a few more of tommy’s favorite movies whilst eating tubs of ice cream.

at the end of his party, the now three-year-old now had multitudes of presents. you had to come back again to gather the others since it didn’t fit in your car.

but the day isn’t over yet.

rafe planned something to make tommy’s birthday even more special.

the little boy was practically bouncing around with utter excitement, continuously asking, “are there yet?”

his eyes lit up as he caught sight of the bright flashing lights of the carnival. “wow,”

you and rafe exchanged grins as he parked the car near by the entrance.

you had to hold on tightly onto tommy’s hand because you’re pretty sure he’d run around if you let go. it was his first time being in a fair, and everything from the pretty lights to the creative displays amazed him.

“what d’you wanna do first, tommy?” rafe asked, crouching down to smile at him.

“uhm,” he hummed, his face scrunched up in though. he started to look around, everything was so exciting and he couldn’t choose. although one booth caught his eye, there were stacks of milk bottles on a stool, and huge stuffed bears were hanging on the displays. “that one!”

“alright.” rafe nodded, letting tommy climb on his back for a piggyback ride. “you ready?”

“yeah!” he exclaimed, holding onto rafe’s hair as your boyfriend ran towards the booth.

you let the smile tug on your lips as you trailed after them.

tommy was now on his tiptoes, holding onto the booth’s counter. he was watching rafe intently as he calculated his moves.

you propped tommy on your hip as rafe tried to knock down the milk bottles. you and tommy couldn’t stop giggling at his unsuccessful attempts, which just made him even more persistent on winning.

after six more sets of balls and eight dollars spent, rafe finally managed to knock them all down.

“and we finally have a winner!” the booth manager exclaimed, handing rafe, who adorned a triumphant grin, the three foot tall stuffed bear.

tommy cheered, sliding down your hip to jump up and down in delight. he immediately squeezed the life out of the teddy bear as soon as it was handed to him.

“i love him!” he squealed. “i’m gon’ name him coco!”

“welcome to the family, coco.”

you flopped down on one of the benches after walking around for a few hours, trying to catch a breath as your feet begged for a break.

“you having fun, tommy?” you asked the toddler, dabbing his face with a hand towel to wipe off his sweat.

“yup!” he grinned up at you. he turned around to ask rafe something when he noticed that he wasn’t there. “where’s rafey?”

tommy made a very firm decision that he would call rafe with two names. ‘rafey’ and ‘dad’, always switching between the two.

though he often calls him ‘dad’ whenever he needs something, or he’s done something wrong and he knows that he’ll let him get away with it. he knew that rafe could never resist him.

before you could even reply to him, rafe was already approaching the two of you, two cotton candies occupying his hands.

“is that a cloud?” tommy asked in amazement, making you and rafe laugh.

“no, baby, that’s a cotton candy.” you chuckled before ripping a chunk off and handing it to him. “here, give it a try.”

he hesitantly grabbed it from you and took a bite. his eyes lit up at the sweet melted taste of the candy. he grabbed the stick from you and devoured it as you and rafe shared one.

the three of you spent the rest of the night playing at game stands and trying every ride there was, and rafe settled with the fact that he and the spinning teacup ride were not friends.

from the food court, to the game stalls, and the fun rides, it was time to end the night with a spin on the ferris wheel.

“wow,” tommy mumbled, holding onto you and rafe’s hand for dear life as he gazed across the distance. the stars were especially bright tonight, reflecting across the view of the beach waves.

you smiled softly at him and looked over at rafe, who was already looking at you. you leaned a bit over at him, and pecked his lips, resting your head on his shoulder as the ferris wheel slowly spun.

you held rafe’s hand and coco on the other as you watched the people leave and pack away their stuff. tommy was already quiet and sleepy as rafe carried him.

“did you have fun, buddy?” rafe asked softly, rubbing tommy’s back comfortingly as you walked back to the car.

“yeah, this is the best day ever.” he mumbled, a soft smile gracing his lips despite his drowsiness. “thank you, mommy and daddy. i love you.”

one.

there was yet another kegger at the boneyard, courtesy of the pogues who were all too bored out of their minds to waste the night away.

kiara was with pope, talking to a group of tourons about their never-ending facts, and somehow, it kept them entertained.

john b and sarah were dancing along with the blasting music, bodies swaying despite the music being upbeat.

and you, you were sitting on a log, a red cup in hand. you watched as the waves crashed on the shore. the salty breeze of the air whipping across your face, goosebumps slowly spreading on your body. the night was beautiful despite everything that’s been happening, the moon and twinkling stars reminding you that there’s beauty amidst the chaos.

you sighed, standing up to get another drink when the familiar shouts of jj caught your attention. you dropped your cup on the table and rushed over to him as you saw a group of kooks spit harsh insults at the boy.

knowing him, he’ll never back out from a fight, more so when he’s drunk. jj and the kook already had a threatening range between them, chests puffed out and fists clenched, but before any punches could be thrown, you got between the both of them and placed your hands on jj’s chest, “c’mon, j, let’s go.”

“fine piece of ass you’ve got there, maybank,” the kook laughed, eyes trained on your butt, “maybe i could get a taste after you’re done with her.”

although before jj could lunge at him, you beat him to it. you threw a perfect punch directly at his nose, making him stagger back. his friends went to help him out but he pushed them away. clutching his bleeding nose, he raised a finger at you, “you bitch!”

you slapped him across the cheek as he made the move to do so, “leave, now.”

his friends navigated him away from the boneyard, and you shook your throbbing hand, “holy shit, i didn’t know it was that painful to punch someone!”

jj had a look of adoration on his face, he placed a kiss on your hand and leaned forward to kiss you. your arm immediately wrapped around his neck, as his went straight to your waist.

you didn’t know whatever this thing you had with jj was, you’re more than friends but less than lovers. he never placed a label on your relationship, and you couldn’t help but wonder what this meant to him, if it held a big part of his life as it did in yours.

“that was hot,” he mumbled against your lips, words slurring with intoxication, “god, i love you.”

if the circumstances were different, you would’ve said it back. you would say it again, and again, and again, and you would never get tired of saying it to him, but instead of answering, you brought his lips back to yours. hands roaming across each other’s bodies. you hoped that the intensity of the kiss would make him forget that he ever said that.

two.

it’s been at least a few weeks since that fateful night. jj never got tired of bragging how badass his girl was, bringing up how you broke the guy’s nose.

the two of you were currently snuggled in bed, silence surrounding the both of you with the excerpt of the soft music playing from the radio. your back was against jj’s chest as he continued to trace shapes on your bare skin.

he didn’t know if you’re awake, but he continued to appreciate your existence. the moonlight was shining over the both of you, he moved your stray hair aside and peppered soft kisses on your shoulder. he whispered a soft, ‘i love you’, before letting the music lull him to sleep.

unbeknownst to him, you were wide awake. staring at the blank wall as you felt your chest rise and fall in sync with his. a heavy feeling landed straight to you, swallowing harshly before trying to get sleep to overcome you.

three.

you and jj were at the dock beside the chateau, legs dangling over the water as you watched the sun set into hues of oranges and red.

your head was rested on his shoulder, hands intertwined. he tilted his head to look at you, there was a small smile adorning his lips.

you could feel his stare practically burning a hole on the side of your head, you grinned teasingly, “you know, rumor is, it’s rude to stare,”

“not when i’m looking at the most gorgeous girl in the outer banks,” he kissed your forehead, “you know i love you, right?”

you hummed uncomfortably, removing your hand from his.

“c’mon, y/n. i’m not drunk, you’re not asleep, so what’s the matter?”

you tensed up beside him, and this time he watched you carefully. you took a deep breath, choosing to stare at the dimming sky instead of the man beside you, “you don’t mean that,”

he scoffed unbelievingly, “i do, i do.”

you remove yourself from his side, shaking your head as you let out a quivery breath, “no you don’t. you’re in love with the idea of us, with who you become when you’re around me, you’re in love with the moments we have… not me,”

“no, because that’s exactly the reason why i love you, y/n!” he stood up, running a hand through his hair, “i love who i become when you’re around, i love how you balance me out, i love how well you know me,”

“jj, can’t you see? you love how i’m such an asset to you, you think that i could change you when it’s supposed to be you!” you interjected, “i’m not even your girlfriend, jj. you never asked me to be, and even if i was, you’d have no reason to love me!”

“see now that’s just unfair!” he threw his arms up.

“what’s unfair? that i want to know what’s going on between us?” you scoffed, folding your arms, “jj, you can’t tell me you love me if we haven’t established whatever’s going on.”

he sighed irritably, tugging at the strands of his hair, “why are you so stubborn? when will you accept that my heart beats only for you?”

“jj, you don’t even know what my favorite color is!” you exclaimed, rubbing your arms together as a harsh wind blew.

he froze, his mind whirring, trying to figure out what it is, “i-”

“exactly my point,” you sighed, turning around to walk back into the chateau.

“i don’t know what your favorite color is but i know how you like your coffee, i know that you get grumpy in the morning because you have a hard time falling asleep at night, i know that you braid your hair when you’re nervous, i know that you hang your mother’s ring in a chain because it’s too big for you, i know that you hate sitting next to john b during lunch because he chews too loud but you don’t want to say anything because you’re scared of hurting his feelings, i know that you hate how your voice sounds on tape but i love how you sound, i know that you often compare yourself to sarah, or kie, or some girl, but you’re perfect just the way you are! and i know that saying it back is at the tip of your tongue but you’re scared,” jj spoke up, his chest heaving up and down from saying it in one breath. he watched you stop on your tracks, with one more sigh, he whispered softly, “what are you so afraid of?”

he walked past you and left, leaving you alone at the dock with your thoughts.

what were you so afraid of?

one. part two.

it’s been weeks since your last confrontation with jj.

you’ve been avoiding him, and the pogues like a plague. you spent the last few days moping around your room or spending early mornings out for a walk as your mind whirred with your never-ending thoughts and possibilities.

a knock from your door caught your attention. you sighed, turning your gaze away from your television. the background of friends still went unbothered, “come in,”

your little sister went inside with a sad look on her face. you frowned, opening your arms to invite her in, “what’s wrong, bubba?”

she sighed, nuzzling her nose at the crook of your neck, “i think boys suck,”

“what happened?” you asked, rubbing her back soothingly.

“marcus said he liked me but i saw him holding chrissie’s hand at the park,” she said, playing with the elephant stuffie jj has given you, “i wish i could find someone like your boyfriend, y/n.”

you furrowed your eyebrows, “boyfriend? you mean jj?”

“yeah,” she looked up at you, “it’s like you’re his princess, he looks at you like you’re the most beautiful thing in the world. kind of like those disney movies.”

you hummed, “well, jj and i aren’t talking right now,”

“what, why?”

“things are a bit complicated right now. he said he loves me,” you smiled softly at your sister, who’s listening to every word you’re saying.

“really?” she perked up, “did you say it back?”

you looked up at your popcorn ceiling, “no,”

“y/n, why not?”

“i don’t know, really, i just-” you sighed, were you really going to talk about your love life to your 7-year-old sister? “i feel like i’ve loved him my whole life and when he finally said it, everything sounded so unreal, you know?”

“i don’t,” she blinked, she placed the stuffie on your lap, “but do you love him?”

“maybe? i don’t know,” you sighed, stressfully running a hand through your hair.

“i don’t think love is a maybe, y/n, it’s either a yes or a no. you love him or you don’t love him,” she shrugged.

you looked at her in disbelief, “and when did you get so smart, missy?”

she jutted her bottom lip out, “heartbreak changes you,”

you chuckled, planting a soft kiss on her forehead. you raised the volume of the television, letting her lounge in with you as you thought of what she and jj said.

what are you so afraid of?

you love him or you don’t love him.

the thing with jj was, everything happens so unexpectedly. the moment you kissed him for the first time was you signing up for the start of a summer romance. you had some expectations that you hoped would happen. but with him, sometimes it was more than you could ever ask for.

you didn’t mind if he was a bit closed off, or if he was a bit too rowdy. you didn’t mind that he often steals from your plate, thinking that you wouldn’t notice, you didn’t mind that he gets protective over you and his friends that it often meant getting into fights and you patching him up, you didn’t mind him waking you up at 4 in the morning because he got into another fight with his dad, you didn’t mind that he’ll suddenly open up about everything all at once, and you didn’t mind the least that he loved you.

you didn’t mind.

because despite his flaws, you’ll still love him.

you’re in love with jj maybank.

the pogues were all at the back of the chateau, having a light conversation as the campfire in the middle crackled.

“jj!”

their head snaps toward your direction, and jj shot up the log, rushing towards you.

“y/n, what happened? are you okay?” he panicked, hands cupping your face as he tilted it, looking for any injuries.

“i’m sorry, i love you, i love you,” you breathed out, placing your hands on top of his, “i love how you send me songs that remind you of me, i love how you always have the disposable camera with you, i love how passionate you are, i love how you never fail to make me happy, i love how you care so deeply for your friends, i love you everything about you, jj maybank, every bit. i love you,”

“-and i’m sorry for not saying it sooner, i was so scared of what could possibly happen with us at the next stage of whatever this is but i’m not now, so i love you.” you heaved, now just noticing the shocked expressions of him and your friends. now that everything calmed down, you realized that you practically yelled in front of them.

your cheeks heated up as john b, pope, and kiara stood up, muttering something about giving the both of you some space.

“i’m sorry, jj. i-”

he cut you off with a kiss, wrapping his arms around you to pull you closer than you already were. lips locking with profound love, before slowing down into soft and sweet pecks.

your eyes slowly fluttered open to see him looking at you with a soft gaze in his eyes. he pulled you closer into a hug, your fingers playing with his hair.

when he pulled back, he had a teasing smile on his face, “you love me,”

you laughed softly, and pecked his lips, “yeah, i do,”

“y/n loves me,” he sang, twirling you around, “my girlfriend loves me!”

“girlfriend?”

“yeah, you’re it for me.”

“well, i can’t possibly say no to that,”

“you’re stuck with me for life,”

“forever and always.”

add yourself to my taglist!

general taglist: @tatesimper @bluvclouds @i-love-scott-mccall

“silenzio bruno! silenzio bruno!”

the sounds of the movie playing on your television filled your ears. the three of you were on the couch, your fingers were running through tommy’s hair as his head laid on your lap.

it was far past his bedtime, but he insisted on watching luca before bed, a movie that he claimed was his favorite.

his soft yawn caught your attention, watching as his eyes slowly droop.

“okay, mister, time for bed.” you whispered, pausing the movie.

“but mommy, i didn’t get to watch my favorite part!” tommy whined sleepily as he rubbed his eyes to oust his fatigue.

“we’ll get to your favorite part tomorrow, okay? but right now it’s time for you to sleep,” you promised, rubbing soothing circles on his back as he sat up on your lap.

“c’mon, bud,” rafe smiled, extending his arms towards him to carry him to his bedroom. “say good night to mommy.”

“g’night, mommy.” he yawned once more before burying his face in rafe’s neck.

rafe opened the door to tommy’s bedroom, careful not to step on any of his scattered toys as he walked across the room.

as soon as he got him in bed, rafe turned on the star projector he bought for him for his second birthday, watching as the lights occupied the whole room.

he tucked the sleepy tommy in and planted a kiss on his forehead. “good night, tommy.”

“good night, daddy.” tommy whispered as his eyes fluttered shut, sleep finally taking over.

rafe froze, and he swore his heart stopped beating for a moment. he blinked, his mouth opening and closing in shock.

“what- what was that, tommy?” he whispered, slightly shaking the toddler. “hey bud, can you- can you say that again?”

he stared expectantly at the sleeping toddler, waiting for his response with high hopes.

when all he got in return was soft snores, he sighed, moving tommy’s hair away from his face and planted one last kiss on his forehead.

rafe looked back at him once more, a soft smile on his lips, before heading back out.

“hey, is he asleep?”

rafe looked up to see you preparing the gaming console. you raised mario kart and tekken, silently asking which game he prefers.

he pointed at mario kart and answered, “yeah.”

you and rafe spent the next hour playing mario kart. he could hear you occasionally whispering profanities at the other drivers. usually, he’d join in, the both of you would curse the other drivers together as you munched on some chips, and talk trash like a bunch of teenagers, but tonight, he was especially quiet.

you momentarily glanced at him before turning your attention back to the screen. “you okay, love?”

“tommy called me dad.” he blurted out, though his eyes were still trained on the television.

you froze, and immediately pressed paused on the game. “what?”

rafe had a prominent smile on his face, and it was making his cheeks hurt, but he doesn’t care. he was happy.

“he called me dad.” he laughed, tears of joy slowly blurring his eyes. his heart was nearly leaping off his chest at the warm feeling fluttering in his chest.

“oh, rafe,” you let out a watery smile, leaning across the couch to bring him into a hug. “god, that’s amazing.”

“yeah, i was- i don’t-“ he let out a shaky breath. “i never expected it, y’know?”

you nodded, listening to him as he continued to tell you how he feels.

“i mean, tommy deserves so much. i try my best to be his best friend, and that’s all i ever wanted to be for him,” he puffed out a content sigh. “but fuck, i need to step up my game now.”

rafe paused for a moment. sure, he was over the moon that his girlfriend’s son sees him as his dad, but would he even remember it when he wakes up? what if it was just a minor slip-up?

every what-if question and self-doubt started to cloud his mind, and you could practically hear the gears turning in his head.

“what if i don’t turn out to be the best for tommy?” he frowned, running a hand through his hair.

you grabbed his fidgeting hand and intertwined it with yours to calm him down. “you don’t have to worry about a thing, okay, rafe?”

“tommy loves you. he adores you.” you reassured him. “he looks up to you, y’know?”

“that’s what got me so worked up,” rafe confessed, leaning back against the couch. “what if i do something horrible, and tommy— he’ll be disappointed in me.”

“he’ll never be disappointed in you, rafe,” you pecked his lips. “because you’re one of the best things that ever happened to him— to us, and so far you haven’t screwed anything up, so you’ll be fine.”

“you promise?” he asked, wanting to hear the words from you, a comforting reassurance to ease his anxiety.

“you want me to make a pinky promise?” you teased him, wiggling your pinky finger at him.

rafe playfully rolled his eyes at you before tackling you on the couch. he buried his face into your neck, completely crushing you with his weight, but you didn’t mind.

you turned the television off and combed your fingers through his hair. your lips graced a soft smile as you felt him pepper light kisses on your neck.

“you know we love you, right?” you whispered, planting a kiss on his head.

“yeah.” he hummed. rafe didn’t think he’s ever been so content with the life he’s living right now, but he sure as hell would never take it for granted. “i love you, too.”

it’s been at least a few weeks after rafe agreed to be a part of your, and tommy’s, life.

it shocked him just as much as you did.

he laid in bed that night, wondering why he agreed so easily to partake in a kid’s life. maybe it was the fact that he liked you so much that he’s willing to be there for you and your kid, or maybe it was because he didn’t want tommy to grow up without a father and the paternal love he never received.

maybe it was both.

but rafe slept peacefully that night knowing that he didn’t regret making that decision.

he was nervous.

he’s never been that nervous.

he doesn’t even know why he’s nervous.

but he’s standing on your front porch, gripping a huge white paper bag on his hand as the other shakily pressed your doorbell.

his nerves settled a bit as he saw the smile on your face, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was keeping.

“hey,” you greeted, standing on your tiptoes to plant a kiss on his cheek. “come in, i just need to put on tommy’s shoes, and we’re ready to go.”

“hey, wait,” rafe spoke as he handed you the bag.

you shot him a confused look but opened it nonetheless. “rafe!”

“look, i panicked, okay! i didn’t know what to get him.” his voice was higher than usual, running a hand through his hair as you gaped at the contents inside.

rafe went to the mainland the day before and went through every baby shop there was. he was only supposed to buy a cute little toy for tommy, and he did. it was a plush green dinosaur.

but he ended up buying tons of toys, too. he also ended up stress-buying diapers, baby clothes, baby food, and a beach set for their outing today.

you let out a choked laugh at rafe’s uneasiness, you knew how much it pressured him, but it gave you another reason to adore him. “you didn’t have to, rafe.”

“i know, but i wanted to.” he sighed, wrapping his arms around your waist as you pulled him in for a hug.

he saw tommy standing at the edge of his playpen, gripping on the railings for some balance.

“-plus, i also wanted to impress the li’l guy.”

“you dork, he’s one. but i think he’ll really like the dinosaur though.”

rafe watched in amazement as you positioned tommy’s car seat in his truck. you did too many complicated steps for him to catch up.

he’ll learn how to put the car seat on next time.

you watched from the side as rafe kept glancing at tommy through the rearview mirror every other second.

you smiled softly and placed a hand on his thigh. “hey, he’s fine. the seat is secured, you don’t have to worry, okay?”

he momentarily glanced at you and nodded, “yeah, yeah- okay.”

as rafe drove towards the beach, the both of you had smiles on your faces as you listened to your nearly two-year-old kid babble some nonsense.

he was a few months until he turned two and yet his words are still strung together. he was able to manage to speak a few basic sentences, but for now, that’s all he could do.

when rafe parked his truck, you reached out for his hand as you hesitantly looked around the crowded beach. “are you sure about this, rafe? people would be talking, you know?”

he paused for a moment, glancing at you, tommy, and the people around the beach. he shrugged, “so let them talk.”

as the two of you walked towards the beach, tommy propped on your hip, rafe intertwined his hands with yours and offered you a reassuring squeeze.

you watched rafe settle a beach blanket at one of the spots near the waves, slightly bouncing a curious tommy as he looked around the beach.

you made yourselves comfortable on the blanket as rafe grabbed the food you prepared in the baby bag.

people stared and people whispered.

but you swallowed the unnerving feeling and focused on rafe and tommy.

he was still a little hesitant to hold him, afraid that he might actually hurt the little guy, but as weeks passed by, he got used to spending time with tommy.

and tommy was getting used to spending time with rafe.

it was a sight to see, really.

rafe wrapped his arms around your shoulders as he stole a bite from your sandwich.

“hey!” you exclaimed, leaning forward to steal a bite from his. “now we’re even.”

rafe chuckled at your muffled words, planting a kiss on your forehead.

tommy was playing with the beach set rafe bought for him. he accidentally knocked over the sand bucket and shovel when rafe decided that they should make a sand castle.

you had to prevent tommy from putting his hands in his mouth a lot of times as they started on the castle.

well, as rafe started the castle, he was also the one who finished it.

you and tommy were his supporters, cheering him on as rafe completed the sandcastle.

rafe backed away with a satisfied smile to admire his finished work when tommy slowly stood up from your lap, waddling towards the sandcastle.

his smile dropped as tommy crushed it with his hands, a cheery laugh escaping his lips. you slapped your hand over your mouth as you tried to keep your laughter in.

rafe stared at tommy, mouth agape, as the toddler continued to smash the flattened sandcastle.

a devious grin made its way on his lips as he grabbed tommy and carefully laid him on the map and tickled his sides, eliciting more euphoric laughter from the toddler.

your smile grew at the sight of the two boys who had a special place in your heart.

rafe stopped his playful attack on the kid and situated him on his lap. he looked back at you and smiled, “you okay there, sweetheart?”

you returned the sweet smile and planted a kiss on his and tommy’s cheek. “never better.”

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