Enjoy this chapter! I love you all!
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"NiNi," Harry squeals, running forward to embrace his best friend.
Niall chuckles and the two boys hold each other tight. Niall pulls away and turns to hug Louis, but the older boy moves away from him to hug Liam's waist tighter. He lets out another sob and buries his face as deep as he can into his Daddy's tummy.
"Why is Louis crying," the blond asks the adults.
"He's just a little anxious about us going. He'll be okay," Zayn tells him.
Niall nods and walks towards Louis. He rests his hand on Louis' shoulder. "Don't be sad, Lou. We get to play for hours and hours!"
Louis' grip on Liam doesn't loosen. He and Harry were sick for half a week before either were finally fully recovered. The past days have been filled with nonstop praise and cuddles from Daddy and Papa and the two men had decided yesterday that today would be a just them day. So they called Nick over to babysit the boys and have a little play date with Niall while they're gone. Harry seems fine, but Louis has grown so attached that the thought of being away from his daddies makes his heart pound.
Niall feels a little hurt that Louis doesn't share his excitement for the day. Nick understands that Louis needs a bit of privacy with the daddies and puts arms around the two youngest boys and walks them out of the kitchen.
"Doesn't that sound fun, Baby? You can show Niall your keyboard! And I made cookies for you guys to have as a snack after your nap!"
Louis shakes his head. "Don't leave, Daddy," he begs.
Liam looks up at his husband and gives him puppy dog eyes, regretting this decision. He doesn't want his little boy to be upset because he's gone. But Zayn narrows his eyes slightly and shakes his head no.
"It's just for a few hours, Louis," Zayn says. "You're gonna have lots of fun with Niall and Nick."
The blue eyed boy knows he's lost his battle because Papa used his firm voice. The voice that he always seems to use when he doesn't want any arguments.
Louis looks up at Liam with sore, red eyes and a wobbly lip. "What if you forget 'bout us? What if you find another little boy 'nd he's better than us?"
The daddies coo. Liam pries Louis' hands off of him so he can back away and look him in the eyes. "Louis, we are coming back. Nobody in the world could ever be more special to us than you and your brother. We're never replacing you!"
"And it's impossible to forget about someone as cute as you," Zayn adds, pinching Louis' cheek.
"Promise," Louis asks.
"Promise," they say in unison.
Truth be told, Zayn and Liam were even more nervous than Louis about leaving today. Their excursion is almost a test to see how Louis reacts to them being gone while he's in his little space. The two times Nick has babysat him the boy wasn't very attached to the men and was fine as long as Harry was with him. They can only hope he's well behaved and doesn't cry too much.
Liam picks Louis up and the boy snuggles into his chest. The men take him out to the living room where Niall and Harry have already sprawled their bodies out on the carpet. Niall reaches up to ruffle Harry's extra soft curls and Louis feels a burn of jealousy in the pit of his stomach. He wriggles around in Liam's arms, indicating for the man to set him down. Liam chuckles and releases him. Louis drops to his knees and joins his brother and friend on the floor.
The three daddies watch them play for a minute before turning to face each other. "The boys have already eaten lunch, but help yourself to anything in the kitchen if you and Ni haven't. We really want them to have a nap around two. Since they've been sick, they got into the habit of sleeping after lunch so we figured we'd try for daily naps. Their after nap snack is in the blue Tupperware."
Nick chuckles at Liam's frazzled, nervous state as he explains. "Honestly, Li, you sound like this is my first time watching them. I know what to do. Just relax and go out and have fun."
Liam sighs and leans into his husband's arms. "You're right, sorry."
"No worries, mate. I know you're nervous but it'll be fine."
Zayn kisses Liam's forehead. "We'll be back before dinner. Bye, boys," he calls to the littles on the floor.
Louis would rise from the floor and hug them if it wasn't for Harry's body anchoring him down. Instead, he raises a hand and waves shyly.
"Bye Uncle Z! Uncle Li!"
"Back soon," Harry asks.
Zayn nods, "Yes, Baby. Just a few hours."
"Otay," Harry grins and returns to playing with Niall's hair.
The daddies use that distraction as their opportunity to leave. They wave goodbye and Nick watches them leave. Zayn grabs Liam's hand and intertwines their fingers, hoping it will help the younger man refrain from turning around and canceling their date.
They get in Zayn's car, not needing the car seats in Liam's for once. "It feels strange, leaving without them in the backseat," Liam sighs.
Zayn groans and hits his head on the headrest. "Honestly, Liam, we need today for us."
"Jesus, I know," Liam snaps. "I was just saying."
The pressure in the car is heavy as Zayn rolls his eyes and pulls out of the garage. They sit in silence for a few minutes, both sneaking glances at eachother and then quickly looking away when they're caught looking.
Zayn is the first to give in. "Look, I'm sorry. We've just been so focused on them that I feel like I never see you anymore. I mean, I do see you but..."
"No, I'm sorry," Liam cuts him off. "I shouldn't have snapped. I just don't like being away from them. You're right, though. I feel like it's been ages since we've really just talked about anything besides picking up nappies or scheduling appointments or finding a toy."
"I'm just happy to have you all to myself for a few hours," Zayn smiles, reaching for his husband's hand and kissing his wedding ring.
Liam blushes. "So, what have you been planning that's had you revved up since last night," the younger asks.
"Revved up? Who me," Zayn says nonchalantly.
"Don't play coy with me, Malik," Liam laughs. "I heard you talking to Harry about something. You two are hiding something from me."
"I don't know what you're talking about, Li," he smirks.
Zayn continues driving and turns onto the highway. Liam snaps his head to look at the driver. "You never said anything about leaving town!"
"You never said we couldn't either," Zayn says, sticking his tongue out.
"Should we really be leaving town? What if something goes wrong and the boys need us immediately?"
"The boys," Zayn says, interrupting his spouse's panicking, "are in the safe, capable hands of Nick. Now, if you don't stop worrying I won't hesitate to tie you to the roof like a Christmas tree."
It was an empty threat. Liam fakes a shocked gasp and lightly slaps Zayn's arm. The older chuckles and keeps his eyes focused on the road.
They end up driving on the highway for a little more than an hour before they spot the signs indicating just a few more kilometers till they reach Swindon.
"Are we seriously going to Swindon," Liam asks.
"Yes. Is there a problem with that?"
Liam shakes his hands. "No, just haven't been here in years."
"I figured it would be cute to come and relive our university days for a bit," he smiles.
Liam watches with a great amount of fondness beating through his body as Zayn drives into the city. He looks around at the familiar houses and buildings. Not much has changed, everything looks just as beautiful as before.
Zayn reaches their first destination of the date. He pulls into the drive in restaurant's parking lot and picks a spot close to the front. Liam's mouth opens a little in shock.
"God, we haven't been here since the day you-."
"Welcome to Jerry's," a voice cuts in from the side. Zayn rolls down his window to see a blond girl standing with a small notebook in hand. She looks absolutely freezing in the skirt and blouse uniform she's wearing. "My name is Jenna and I'll be your waitress today."
"Hello," Zayn greets.
"Have you had time to check out the menu yet," she asks.
"No need," Zayn says. "We'll have two bacon cheeseburgers, both without onions, two medium fries, and a cherry Coke with two straws."
The girl nods as she writes the order down. "Will that be all?"
"Yeah."
"Okay, you're total is £6.17," she tells Zayn.
Zayn pulls a tenner from his wallet and hands it to her. She goes to unzip the change purse attached to her hip but he raises his hand. "Keep the change."
She gives him a big smile. "Thank you, sir! Your food will be right with you!"
They watch her leave and Zayn rolls the window back up to save any heat in the car that's left. Liam chuckles. "She's certainly eager."
"College kids," Zayn grins.
"She probably thought you were flirting with her."
Zayn turns to look at Liam and cocks an eyebrow. "Who could blame her? I'm basically a god!"
"You're cocky enough to be a god," Liam says, shoving him a little.
The bantering continues for a few minutes until their food arrives. Jenna even winks at Zayn, which causes Liam to feel a little possessive and kiss his cheek when he grabs his burger from Zayn. Jenna's eyebrows furrow and she quickly scurried away from the men.
"Was that necessary?"
"Completely."
Zayn unwraps his food and sighs. "Oh, I married a dork."
"A cute dork," Liam reminds him.
"That's true," Zayn smiles.
They eat their food, often feeding each other fries and brushing hands when reaching for the Coke. They tease each other and bring up old stories uni stories.
Liam laughs so hard he almost spits out his drink. "That's so not true!"
"Is so! You and Tony were so hammered that night you couldn't remember anything the next morning!"
"Zayn, I don't think I'd forget hitting on my professor."
"Fine, don't believe me. I'm not the one who asked Dr. Wright if my ass looked good in a lab coat."
Liam blushes and hides his face in his hands. "God, I was such a freak!"
"I'm not denying anything," Zayn smirks and stuffs the last few fries in his mouth.
After a few quiet moments, Zayn feels a buzz in his pocket and his ringtone starts playing. He pulls his mobile out and sees Nick's photo flash across the screen.
He slides the green button and puts the phone on speaker. "Hello?"
""Hey," Nick says. "So we're having a bit of a problem..."
"Go on," the black haired man says, not liking the blank statement.
"I'm getting boys ready for their nap and I know Louis needs a change but when I got near him he ran into the playroom closet and he's crying."
"Bring the phone to him," Liam says.
"Okay," Nick says. They listen to the sound of shuffling feet and Niall and Harry talking quietly to each other. There's a knocking sound. "Louis," Nick calls.
"Go away," the boy sobs.
"Your daddies want to talk to you," Nick tells him.
"Are they home?"
"No, they're on the phone."
Louis' crying gets louder but no one talks.
"Nick, slide the phone under the door," Zayn tells him.
They wait a second and hear the once muffled crying is now loud and clear.
"Hi, Baby," Zayn says.
"Papa," Louis whines.
"I'm here, Dove. So is Daddy."
"Louis, will you tell us what happened?"
Louis takes a minute to catch his breath. "I d-don't want him seeing my-my bits. Don't want it, Daddy!"
"Louis, if you don't get changed you'll get a nasty little rash. That's not very fun, is it," Liam asks.
Louis whines and the husbands exchange weary looks.
"Dove," Zayn says. "Would you let Nick change you if you talked to us the entire time?"
"I...I guess so," the little whispers.
"Good boy," Zayn praises. "We want you to stand up and leave the closet."
Louis hums and they hear shaky noises as he bumps into costumes and toys. The sound of the door swinging open echoes through the phone.
"Nick's gonna take you to the nursery and change you. He'll be quick," Zayn tells Louis while also instructing the babysitter.
"Come on, buddy," Nick says.
More footsteps are heard, as well as Nick telling Harry and Niall to go wait in the daddies' room.
"Are you still there," Louis asks, fear present in his voice.
"Yes, Baby, we're still here."
"Okay, Louis. Just hop up here and I'll be super quick." They hear Louis laying himself down. "I'm just going to pull your pants down, okay?"
Louis whimpers. "No."
"Shhh, Sweetie," Liam coos. "You're okay. We're right here."
When Louis sobs again they know his pants are gone. They also hear the sound of the tape on the side of the nappy being pulled off. Louis' crying continues.
"Hey, Lou? Why don't you tell us about what you've done with your brother and Ni," Zayn suggests.
"Uh," Louis says. "We watched Dragon Tales and-and then we went to the playroom."
"Oh yeah? What happened in Dragonland today," Liam asks.
"Zack 'nd Weezy got in a fight 'cause they didn't wanna be brother and sister no more. But Max 'nd Emmy showed them it's fun having a brother," Louis explains.
The plan to distract the boy seems to be working as his crying has calmed considerably. "And what did you do in the playroom?"
"I showed Nalli how to play Twinkle Twinkle on my keyboard," Louis says.
"That was nice of you," Zayn says.
"He says he can play guitar."
"Hmmm," Liam hums. "You boys should put on a concert for us all someday."
"That'd be so cool! Hazza could sing," Louis says excitedly.
"And we're all done," Nick cuts in. "You did so good, Louis."
"Very good, Lou. We're so proud of you," Liam praises.
Liam smiles as he imagines the blush creeping on Louis' face that he always seems to get whenever he receives praise. Oh how Liam loves that blush.
"I'd say it's naptime," Nick declares.
"Do I have to," Louis asks.
"Yes, Baby," Liam says.
Louis groans. "How c'n I sleep without lullabies," he asks with enough innocence that Zayn has half a mind to drive home this very instant and cuddle him.
"Just because we aren't there doesn't mean we can't sing to you," Liam says matter of factly.
"Louis, give the phone to Nick and go crawl in bed with your brother and Niall. Then we'll sing you a lullaby," Zayn tells the boy.
Zayn reaches across the console to grab his husband's hand and holds it tight, massaging between each knuckle. The daddies smile at each other and Zayn is awestruck by the man he's been in love with all of his adult life. The man he's been blessed to be able to take care of two special boys with. And there is absolutely no regrets for his plans for the rest of the day.
"Louwee," Harry squeals on the other side of the phone.
"Get up here, Lou," Niall says.
"Feeling better," Harry asks.
The daddies coo.
"Yeah," they hear Louis sigh. "Daddy and Papa said I gotta take a nap."
"That just means we get to cuddle," Niall says.
"Hi, Bugaboo. Hi, Ni," Liam says.
Harry gasps, completely unaware of the fact that Nick has a phone in his hands. "Hi, Daddy! Did Papa ask you-."
"Baby, it's time to quiet down for your nap," Zayn cuts in before his youngest reveals too much.
"Okay, Papa," Harry pouts.
"We're gonna sing for you little rascals."
Zayn and Liam probably look ridiculous to anybody outside of the car. They're holding a phone at an awkward angle, trying their best to harmonize Moon River. They hear tiny yawns cackling through the phone.
"They're all asleep," Nick whispers.
"Okay, thanks for calling us," Zayn says.
"More like I should be apologizing for interrupting," Nick says.
"No, if either of them are agitated we prefer to know and get it taken care of asap."
"Right, well I'm gonna let you lot go now. Enjoy the rest of your date!"
"Thanks," they both say and hang up.
Zayn puts his phone back in his pocket and rests his head against the cool window glass. They sit in silence for a moment before he hears chuckling. He looks over at Liam and the other man then bursts into full on laughing.
"What's so funny?"
"Do you realize we're never gonna get away from the babytalk and lullabies?"
Zayn laughs along with him now, realizing how right he is. "But I'd never have it any other way."
"Agreed."
--
The sound of soft footsteps pull the sleeping boy from his sleep. Louis rolls over onto his side and clutches Sally tight to his chest. He yawns and opens his eyes. Nick is bending over right next to him and picking up Harry's bear. He notices that he's now on the couch In the living room despite having fallen asleep upstairs.
Nick freezes when he sees the boy is now awake. "Sorry, Lou. Didn't mean to wake you."
"How did I get here?"
"I brought you down here so you wouldn't be alone upstairs.'
"Alone? Where's Hazza," Louis asks.
"He's in the kitchen with Niall eating a snack. I sent them in there so they wouldn't wake you," the babysitter explains.
Louis heaves himself off of the couch and walks past the man, still holding his teddy underneath his chin. Nick looks at him with a bit of disbelief. Louis clearly doesn't feel comfortable with him yet. He follows the boy into the kitchen and freezes when Louis does.
Louis frowns at Niall, who is sitting in Louis' highchair eating his cookie. "My spot," Louis whimpers.
"Sorry, Bud," Nick says. "Ni is almost done and then you can sit up there. But for now, why don't you sit over here at the table with me?"
Louis quickly shakes his head. "M'not a big boy. Can't sit there!"
"It's okay, you won't get in trouble," Nick tells him.
"Daddy and Papa would be mad," Louis says and makes a show of plopping down on the ground with a dramatic sigh.
"C'n I sit wiff Loulou," Harry asks.
"Finish your snack and then you may," Nick tells the squirming boy. Harry nods and takes a large bite from his cookie.
The man grabs Louis' already filled sippy cup from the fridge and a large cookie, packed full of M&Ms. He goes over to Louis and squats in front of him. "You sure you want to sit on the ground?" Louis' lips tighten and he nods. "Okay," Nick gives in and hands him the cookie and sets his drink on the floor beside his feet.
Before he stands, Nick pecks Louis on the forehead. The oldest boy groans and when Nick turns away from him he wipes away any trace of Nick's germs.
"Ba...Nick" Niall calls out.
"Yes, Sweetheart?"
"Done," the blond declares, holding up his empty sippy cup to show Nick.
The man walks over to Niall with a damp cloth in hand. "Very good," Nick praises and wipes melted chocolate from Niall's fingers and mouth.
"Can I get down now," he asks.
Nick nods and removes the tray holding him back. Niall hops down and joins Louis on the ground.
"No fair," Harry whines. "I want out, too!"
"Harry, we just agreed that you need to finish your snack and you still have quite a bit left."
Harry pushes his drink away and juts his bottom lip. "Please, Nicky," he begs.
Nick chuckles and kisses Harry's curls. "Sorry, ducky. You know puppy pouting isn't going to help. Your Daddy told me to make sure you eat your whole snack, that way you don't get fussy around dinner time."
The youngest pouts and struggles his way through the rest of the cookie. Although M&Ms are his favorite candy, sweets sometimes make him feel nauseous. He uses the rest of his juice to help wash down the cookie.
"Done. Now down," Harry says.
"Where are your manners, Harry?"
"Down now, please?"
"That's better," Nick says and wipes Harry free of chocolate and lets him out of the chair. The curly haired boy scrambles to the floor and sits next to Louis and Niall.
"Hi," he says.
"Shhh," Louis says. "Sally's still sleeping."
"Want me to hold her so you can eat," Niall offers.
Louis looks at the blond hesitantly, unsure of if he can trust anyone with his teddy.
"I'll be gentle," he says.
"O-okay," Louis says and hands him his best friend. "Be nice to her."
"I will," Niall nods and pretends to rock the bear in his arms like a baby.
Louis finally takes a bite of his cookie while Harry adjusts his body to a laying position, head in Louis' lap of course.
Harry's face scrunches. "Hey! You gots crumbs on me!"
The older brother giggles. "Sorry, Hazza," he bends down and kisses Harry's nose.
"You guys kiss a lot," Niall says.
Louis shrugs. "So?"
"I was just saying. Doesn't it feel weird?"
The oldest shakes his head. "No, I like kisses."
"Me, too," Harry grins.
"You're gonna get cooties," Niall tells them.
"Nuh-uh," Harry says.
"Uh-huh! I saw it in a movie! When you kiss someone you get icky cooties!"
"But you and Uncle J kissed all the time," Harry says.
Niall's mouth drops and he looks down in his lap. The room is filled with silence, except his mind which is screaming memories. Harry dug deep, even if it was unintentional. It's been a few weeks since Niall has seen Josh, and although he's adjusting well to living with Nick and he realizes how badly he was treated by Josh, he was still his daddy. A huge part of his life is now missing and what Harry said only pushed the knife deeper into the wound.
Niall looks around him through bleary eyes. Louis looks a tad bit on edge, but Harry looks completely unaware of the fact that he just upset his friend.
The blond lets out a long whimper that gets louder with time. Soon the tears that were clouding his eyes are falling down his face. He's always been a quiet crying, not sobbing unless he really wanted something.
"Why are you crying, NiNi," Harry asks.
The blond quietly sets the teddy bear on the ground, sitting her up straight against the cupboard. He pulls himself to his knees and crawls over to Nick, who is washing dishes. He wraps his arms around the man's legs. Nick gasps in surprise and looks down at his crying little.
"Aw, Baby! What happened," he asks as he reaches down to swoop the boy into his arms.
Niall holds on tight to Nick, afraid he'll disappear like his Daddy did. He doesn't respond to Nick's questions. He hears him speaking softly to him, but he can't quite put together the words he's saying. The man asks Louis to take his brother into the living room and soon they are alone.
Nick sits himself down on a chair and cuddles the crying boy in his lap. "Ni, can you calm down and tell me what happened?"
"Baba," he cries.
"You want a bottle," Nick asks, squinting his eyes in confusion.
The boy shakes his head and buries his face into Nick's neck. "Baba!'
"Are you calling me Baba?"
Niall nods this time and a smile spreads across Nick's face. He bounces the boy in his lap and rubs soothing circles over his back until his crying ceases to occasional hiccupping.
"Will you tell me what happened now?" Niall whimpers. "Hey, it's okay. You can tell Baba anything."
Niall feels better knowing Nick isn't mad at the name he's been given. Daddy...Josh, was the one who named himself and every time Niall wanted to call him something different the man would get upset.
"Harry brought up J-Josh," he said as if the name is a curse word.
"Oh, I see," Nick says.
"It's hurts to think about him," Niall confesses.
"I know it does. But Baba is so proud of you for everything. I only want to see you happy."
"I haven't done anything," the boy says, bringing his fist up to his sore eye and rubbing.
"That's not true at all, Niall. You are strong and brave. You're allowing yourself to change your life around and be happier and I'm so blessed that you're letting me help you."
"Really?"
Nick nods. "I love you, baby," he says and kisses Niall's temple.
"So it's okay if I call you Baba? It's just that...it's the only name I think of when I see you. Like you're a comforter."
"I don't mind at all. In fact, I don't think I could be any happier about it!"
Niall blushes and hides his smile in Nick's shoulder, where the man can't see it. The man holding him has strong, warm arms that were practically made just for protecting.
"Baba?"
"Yes?"
"I love you, too," he squeaks and pecks the man's cheek.
---
Liam gives Zayn a confused look as he drags them into the old pet store. He's honestly a little surprised that this place is still standing considering how old it is compared to the rest of the shiny, new stores on the street.
"Zayn, what are we doing here?"
Zayn grins. "I said we'd be reliving our college days, didn't I?"
"Yes, but we only came here a few times..."
"And what's one more time added to that?"
Liam smiles as they pass by the large tanks filled with tropical fish. "I guess you're right."
They walk up to the brightest tank, the black light glowing in the darkness. A clown fish swims up right in front of them and lightly taps the tank with his lips.
"Hey now," Zayn says. "I can't compete with Nemo trying to steal my man.'
Liam laughs, "He's definitely cuter than you!"
Zayn gasps and walks away from Liam, concealing his grin as he leads him in the direction he's been planning all along.
"Zayn, you know I was joking right?"
"I don't know, Li. It was pretty hurtful," he sing songs.
Liam grabs Zayn's wrist and turns him around. Zayn grabs Liam's hips and the two kiss each other for an entire minute before pulling away.
"Better stop now, before we give the guinea pigs too much of a show," he jokes, nodding his head to the fluffy little creatures gnawing on their cage bars.
Zayn leads Liam to the desk at the back where the cash register is. He taps the little silver bell.
"Stop that," Liam laughs. "Don't want to get us in trouble."
A woman in her late 40s comes of the office behind the desk. She has a red apron on and a Santa hat, clearly already excited for the holiday season.
She gives them a warm smile. "Can I help you?"
"No, we're jus-."
"Yes, hi. I'm Zayn Malik. We talked on the phone yesterday," he tells her.
"Ah, yes! Please wait right here and I'll go get her," the woman says and leaves the husbands alone.
"Her? Zayn, what the hell is going on?"
"Don't you ever liked to be surprised?"
"We live lives where surprises are usually bad, so no," Liam says.
"Here she is," the lady sings.
She holds the leash connected to the collar of the most beautiful black lab Liam has ever seen. The puppy has big, blue eyes and a wagging tail. She happily barks up at Liam and Zayn.
Liam collapses on the floor next to the puppy and lets her lick his face. Zayn snaps a few photos of their first moments together. Liam looks up with eyes full of so much joy that no one could ever take away from.
"Is she really ours," he asks.
The clerk grins. "Yep! Your husband called me yesterday about her, saying you needed a bit of cheering up. She doesn't have a name yet, but she's gone through obedience training and has all of her shots."
"Awww, hi, little girl," Liam coos.
"What do you want to name her," Zayn asks.
"Why don't we let Lou and Harry name her," Liam suggests.
"Are those your children," the clerk asks.
"Yeah, our two little boys. They are going to absolutely adore her."
"Labs, in general, are good with jumpy kids so there's no need to worry about that," she says.
Liam snorts. "That'll be good for Harry!"
--
The car ride home was pleasant. The backseat is loaded down with the necessary puppy items. The jumpy little pup sits on the floor between Liam's feet, head resting on his lap.
"So, is this the surprise that Harry and you were talking about," Liam asks as they enter the community.
"Not exactly," Zayn says, biting his bottom lip.
"Are you ever going to tell me?"
"I will...just not right now. I've decided to go about things in a completely different way."
When they pull into their driveway, they're surprised to see only light coming from the kitchen and living room. The sky is dark because of the sun now setting at only five. They park in the garage and get out of the car, Liam holding the puppy while Zayn grabs the bags of dog food and toys.
"Ready," Zayn asks.
Liam chuckles, "Is it possible to be ready?"
Zayn unlocks the door and holds it open for his spouse. They walk to the kitchen and find it empty.
"Hello," Zayn calls out.
"In here," Nick responds.
They follow the sound of giggles into the living room. Three little boys are sitting in a circle on the floor making friendship bracelets. Beads are scattered everywhere.
"Hi," Nick says, looking up from his book. "Oh my goodness! You got a puppy!"
All three of the boys immediately turned to look at the puppy and gasp.
Harry is the first to get up and rush over to her. "Puppy," he squeals, trying to take the dog away.
"Harry, you gotta calm down. She needs to adjust to her new home."
"She's ours," Louis asks, looking up at the men with big, hopeful eyes.
"Yep!"
Niall closes in on the puppy and she starts attacking his face with kisses. The blond laughs. "Baba! His tongue tickles!"
"Her tongue," Liam corrects. "She's a girl."
Liam sets the lab on the floor and the three littles beg her to follow them over to the corner of the room. She lays on her back and whimpers until they give her belly rubs.
"Niall, five more minutes and then we gotta go," Nick says.
The boy looks up at Nick and forms a pout. "But Baba! Puppy," he says, scratching behind the puppy's ear.
"We have Charlie at home," Nick reminds.
"You're always welcome to come over and visit, Niall, you know that," Zayn reminds.
That makes the boy smile again and he returns to giving as much affection to her as possible.
"What are you boys gonna name her," Liam asks.
Louis' eyes light up and he says the first name that comes to mind. "Scout!"
"That's cute," Liam tells him. "But why Scout?"
The blue eyed boy shrugs. "Dunno. She just looks like a Scout. What do you think, Hazza?"
"I like it! Hi, Scout," Harry greets the puppy She barks and everyone laughs. "Scout likes it!"
They boys play a few more minutes before Nick insists it's time to go home and feed Niall. The boys all hug each other and try holding on so their daddies wouldn't pull them apart, but in the end Niall is being carried out by Nick with the promise that they could come back in a day or two and play.
Liam walks Nick and Niall out to their car. When he comes back in he notices the lights in the living room appear to have dimmed. He walks towards the room where his little family is waiting.
"What do you boys want for dinner," he says and stands in the doorway. He freezes when he sees Zayn propped up on one knee in the middle of the room with Harry and Louis smiling on either side of him. He shakes his head, trying to assess the situation. "What's... what are you doing?"
"Come closer," Zayn says softly.
Liam shuffles across the carpet to his husband. Zayn takes both of his hands. "Babe..."
"Liam, we've been married for seven years now. And when I think back on every moment with you, it feels like both a century and a short moment. I love you with every ounce of my being. You have taught me to be a better person. Every time I see you with Louis and Harry, and just how absolutely incredible and nurturing you are, all I can think about is how amazing the rest of our lives are going to be. Babe, I want to renew our vows. I want Lou and Harry to be there, right by our side. You three are the most important people in the world and I couldn't ask for any more in life because I've already been given so much. So, will you? Will you remarry me?"
Liam has tears rolling down his face. He pulls a hand away from Zayn to cover his mouth. He nods. He nods faster than ever before because he's at a loss for words.
The boys cheer and Scout happily barks at their feet. Zayn stands up and pulls Liam close to him, giving him a kiss. They bring the boys into their embrace and the four stand in that spot for a few minutes, soaking in all of the love they all rightfully deserve.