"Mm, are you sure you have to get up?" Eli sighed when Hunter's alarm went off that morning. Hunter laughed and shut it off.
"It's my first day, I have to be more awesome than usual," Hunter kissed Eli's forehead and pulled him onto his chest. "You should go visit Dax, he's starting to get better and I bet he'd actually be happy to see you."
"I keep texting, he always says no," Eli listened to Hunter's heartbeat. "Should I go anyway?"
"Text him again today and see."
"Tomorrow we can sleep in, right?"
"Mhmm," Hunter sounded like he was drifting back to sleep already.
"Hey, come on, let's get up," Eli made himself get out of bed so Hunter would get up too. He grabbed his phone to check Instagram while he went to the bathroom and got dressed. "Goodness, Brent."
"Oooh, what now?" Hunter was suddenly wide awake. "Is it another sex picture?"
"No, it's his new puppy. He hasn't posted a picture of Dax or himself in like two days."
"That makes me sad. I liked his Maddox obsession."
"Right? I love them," Eli called through the bathroom door. Hunter tried to walk in and Eli put his foot against the door. "Nice try."
"Why can you take your phone to the toilet but I can't come in?"
"Because I need you to believe I'm just brushing my teeth, nothing else," Eli cringed as he flushed the toilet
"What do you brush your teeth with that makes the whole bedroom smell like shit?"
"You're supposed to pretend you don't smell that!" Eli gasped, opening the door. Hunter looked ready to laugh.
"I love you, but I also love your ass, and you love that I love your ass," Hunter tried to kiss him but Eli dodged. "I accept that there are certain things that go along with that."
"If you pee in front of me I will not let you near this ass for at least a week."
"Babe, we have one bathroom! What do you want?"
"A second bathroom," Eli ran out of the room before he had to follow through on his promise. He got a text back from Maddox that he could come over so he picked out clothes to put on before Hunter got out of the bathroom.
"One day," Hunter kissed the back of Eli's neck when he came out of the bathroom. "I will buy you a house where you can have your own bathroom with all the privacy you ever wanted."
"And then we'll have a baby and it will need my bathroom and we'll be right back to this."
"Our baby can share my bathroom. I don't mind sharing."
"Hunter, what if we have a girl?" Eli cringed.
"Dammit. I was so close," Hunter sighed. "I never knew guys could get baby fever but damn, Eli."
"That's really sweet, but mostly terrifying."
"Babe, we're not even married. I'm just saying."
"Ugh, we'll never be able to afford to get married if we keep quitting our jobs," Eli let Hunter hug him.
"We could just go to the courthouse, it doesn't have to be a thing," Hunter rubbed his back. "I don't need a big fancy party."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Okay," Eli took a deep breath. "Let me think about it."
Eli was still trying to picture not having much of a wedding when he got to Maddox's house later that morning. He wanted to do something more than going to the courthouse, but even the simple things he and Hunter had looked at were really expensive. Maybe they should think about Vegas. It didn't sound awesome, but it was better than nothing.
"Is that only the most adorable sight in the world?" Eli walked in and saw Brent asleep on the couch with his toy poodle puppy, Sophie, on his chest. It was precious, seeing a guy as big as Brent with this tiny little dog.
"Until you realize that dog gets more attention than me," Maddox walked past, like he was already tired of seeing them together. Hunter was right, Maddox did seem better.
"Ew, stop," Eli laughed and followed him out to the pool. "The house looks better every time I'm here."
"I almost have the main floor finished. It's just figuring out all the little decorations and stuff to go on the walls."
"Well it looks great to me," Eli flopped onto a lounge chair. "So, if Hunter and I just decided to go to Vegas and get married would you come?"
"Obviously," Maddox laughed, sitting in the chair next to him. "But what about your dad?"
"He'd be there, and my brother Levi, but the others won't come and none of Hunter's family will even admit I exist so we figured we could just do something really simple. I don't really love the idea of Vegas but it's so easy."
"My family would want to be there," Maddox told him. "Dad loves you, he would be so sad if he couldn't be there."
"Really?" Eli raised his eyebrows. "Aw, Dax," he blinked a few times. He knew Justin and Clara always told him to think of them as extra parents but he'd never stopped to think about what that meant to them.
"Yeah, he'll probably actually pay for the whole thing," Maddox realized. "And, dude, think about everyone we work with."
"He can't pay for my wedding," Eli shook his head.
"You know my dad, you won't get a choice," Maddox laughed.
"Whatever, I know Tim and everyone would want to come," Eli sighed. "I don't know, we thought about doing something here but it all adds up."
"What if you just do it here?" Maddox suggested. "I mean like, right here, in our backyard."
"Are you serious?"
"Of course," Maddox nodded. "Then you don't have to travel, you can just come over and have someone officiate. And it's not like, Vegas, you know?"
"Yeah, but," Eli looked around. "I mean, this is gorgeous and it would be nicer than going away."
"You can do whatever you want too, I mean, we don't have anything in the pool house. All this space can be yours. I promise to stay out of it."
"I'll talk to Hunter," Eli already knew Hunter would say yes. "Are you ever going to stop taking care of me?"
"Probably not," Maddox grinned. "If you'll let me."
"Obviously," Eli laughed. "I miss taking care of you, to be honest. I'm not renewing my contract with the girls."
"Seriously?" Maddox sat up. "What will you do?"
"I'm not totally sure. Hunter and I are trying to figure out if I can go to college, maybe I could take some business classes and come back to really manage bands."
"Do you really have to go to college for that?"
"Well, if I do that means I can do other stuff," Eli explained. "Since Hunter's job will probably mean traveling a lot and right now mine does too it's hard to see having babies and stuff."
"Yeah," Maddox nodded. "Well, I would fire Jordan immediately if you wanted me to and you could have your old job back. You wouldn't have to bring us coffee in bed, Jordan doesn't."
"But I would still have to travel with you," Eli pointed out. "And you know it's only a matter of time before Brent talks Jordan into that morning coffee."
"Do you get the feeling Jordan is straight?"
"Dax, are you really that bored?" Eli laughed. He'd never once thought about Dax's new assistant or his preferences but Maddox obviously had too much time on his hands.
"Yes. I literally spend my whole day shopping online and making food for Brent."
"Okay, you need to get out of this house," Eli shook his head, still laughing. "When was the last time you went somewhere other than therapy?"
"We have dinner at my parents' house at least once a week. I go play with the kids all the time."
"Yeah, you need a life," Eli rolled his eyes. His phone pinged and he checked to see if he had to reply to a text. "Ugh, these girls."
"I think you kind of like them," Maddox accused.
"I mean, I do but," Eli sighed. "I don't know, I miss how it was working for you. We were a family, you know? I liked that. And I liked working with Hunter, too."
"Sorry," Maddox sighed.
"Do you ever think about going back? I know you're done but like, maybe in the future?"
"No," Maddox shook his head. "I don't know, I miss some parts of it. Right now it's hard to remember how good it was when all I see from my fans is like whining and telling me they're worried."
"They're allowed to care about you."
"I know, but I wish it was like how it used to be," Maddox sighed. "I miss the fangirling and all the cute stuff they did. Now it's just like, they're waiting for Brent to hurt me."
"Is that why you're avoiding them all the time now?"
"Yeah, pretty much."
"Then stop," Eli shrugged. "Go hang out with them and have fun, Dax, that'll help so much. It'll help you too."
"I don't know, it's a lot of work."
"Yeah, but you need that. Let them see you're okay and that Brent is too."
"I guess."
"Maybe they'll talk you into going back to work and I can come back and work for you again," Eli got excited just thinking about it. "It would be so good."
"You would still have to travel," Maddox pointed out.
"Fuck if I care. For you I will make Hunter stay home with the babies."
"Ugh, I want a baby so bad," Maddox sighed. "Dylan's gotten so big she doesn't count anymore."
"Brent still wants to wait until next year?"
"Yeah, well he's going on tour next June, so it won't even be next year but like the year after that."
"Sorry. Is that why he got you a puppy?"
"He bought himself that puppy," Maddox rolled his eyes. "Princess Sophie? Are you kidding me? She doesn't even like me."
"Puppies like everyone," Eli laughed.
"Not Sophie," Maddox insisted. "You should hear the way he talks to her, Eli, and he calls himself Daddy."
"Don't be jealous of a 4 pound dog," Eli couldn't stop laughing. If only Maddox could hear himself.
"I'm not!" Maddox protested. "No, okay, I am," he admitted. "You're right, I have to get out of here," he laughed. "Are you hungry?"
"Yeah, let's go eat."
"Alright, let me get Steve," Maddox agreed.
They went inside to wait for Steve and were standing in the kitchen when Brent followed Sophie in. She went straight for her water bowl and started digging in it when she realized it was empty.
"Aw do you need more? Okay, Daddy'll get it for you," Brent picked up the bowl.
Maddox gave Eli a pointed look and Eli rolled his eyes. They both started laughing, and Maddox grabbed Eli's arm.
"Did I miss something?" Brent raised his eyebrows at them.
"Nope," Maddox shook his head, still grinning at Eli.
"Hey," Brent didn't look convinced. Maddox turned to look at him. "Why are you two looking at each other that way again?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Maddox frowned.
"You finally stopped, please don't go back to that," Brent sighed.
"Oh, you mean like this," Maddox realized and turned to grin at Eli.
"Yeah, stop."
"Wow, someone's jealous," Eli grinned right back at Maddox and took a step closer. "Maybe he needs a good reason to be jealous," Eli raised his eyebrow and reached for Maddox, grabbing his hair and pulling him forward like he was about to kiss him.
"Oh come on," Brent protested and Eli pulled away before he actually kissed Maddox. "Don't make fun of me."
"You brought it on yourself," Maddox laughed and went to kiss Brent. "I love you."
"I love you too."
"We're going to eat. I'll see you later," Maddox kissed him again.
"Alright, have fun. Behave."
"If I have to," Maddox agreed.
Eli drove, Steve following in his own car. He told Maddox about the few things he and Hunter knew they wanted at their wedding. Maddox talked a little about decorating but he was still quiet, obviously stuck in his thoughts.
"You want to help me pick out a suit for the wedding?" Eli wondered if he could at least get Maddox to smile. It worked.
"Yep, and a backup for when I rip the first one off and fuck you to pieces."
"To pieces, wow."
"Shut up. Don't tell Brent either, he'll try to talk you into going Paleo with him," Maddox warned. "No grains, no dairy, no sugar. You can't even do peanuts or soy stuff."
"That's really depressing."
"Yeah, he and Tyler are doing it together. He's getting smaller but I don't think that was what he wanted," Maddox laughed. "Oh, and he's kind of moody but he always says he has so much energy. He said he started this crazy new exercise routine but like I said, he's getting smaller."
"Maybe it takes time," Eli shrugged. "Like one day he'll just be all huge and bulky."
"Mmm, as long as he doesn't start making me look bad, I'm 100% here for that," Maddox moaned. "I always think he looks so good and then I look at old pictures and I can see the progress. Ugh, I have to start training again. I'm going to look scrawny."
"You definitely don't look scrawny."
"But I will if I don't get off my ass. Oh good, I bet those kids are fans," Maddox sighed when they pulled into the parking lot.
"Yeah, I bet so," Eli looked at the group of kids sitting at a table outside the restaurant. "This is good for you."
Maddox didn't say anything, he just put his sunglasses on and let Eli drag him over to say hi to everyone. Just like he always had, Eli kept Maddox busy taking selfies and joking with everyone. It felt just like old times watching him answer their questions.
"No, we're gonna wait to have babies. I know, I'm sad too but we want to be good parents so," Maddox shrugged and handed over the hat he'd been signing.
"Why do you let Brent get high?" someone asked. Eli cringed. He'd forgotten that was the big rumor going around ever since Complexx changed managers and didn't have to follow rules anymore.
"He doesn't, okay?" Maddox shook his head. "Seriously, don't believe all that. He won't even eat Oreos anymore because they're too fake, why would he be okay with drugs which are basically poison? That's just not true."
Maddox had to repeat that to the even bigger group of fans who were waiting after he and Eli had finished eating. At first he did a great job but Eli could tell it was wearing Maddox out after he had to answer the same questions a few more times.
"No, I'm really not putting out a new album," Maddox told everyone. "Listen, we have to go but it was nice meeting all of you," he started waving and backing away from the crowd.
"You did a great job," Eli insisted as they got in the car.
"That sucked. I need a nap now."
"Be patient. You haven't talked to any of your fans in months, Dax, of course they're going to be all over you. It'll get easier."
"Yeah, sure," Maddox sank down in his seat.
"I meant it though, you did a really great job," Eli tried to reassure him. "Didn't that feel like old times?"
"It did, but I don't know if that's a good thing right now," Maddox sighed. "Can you stop tweeting petitions for me to come back? It's getting depressing."
"I'll stop if Justin stops."
"Ugh, my dad. He even got my mom to retweet that one, did you see that?"
"Yeah, that was cute," Eli laughed. "Sorry, I really will stop if you want me to."
"No, it's just for the fans. I get it. It just makes me feel like...I don't know, maybe I made a mistake."
"I don't think it was a mistake. You needed a break."
"I did. I still do. I don't know."
"Well, nothing is permanent, you know? You just call me and I'll come running back immediately."
"I know," Maddox nodded. "I do know that."
----
"Tell me again why I need to do this with you?" Cole followed Adam and Zack to the car for work that afternoon.
"Everyone is bringing someone," Adam reminded him. "Jeff wants our spouses to feel included."
"Dude, don't you want to hear our new album?" Zack demanded. "You act like this is hell for you, like we make good music. And Adam wrote 3 of the songs and they're probably our best songs yet."
"What? Brent let someone else write for a change?" Cole looked at Adam. "You didn't tell me you wrote songs."
"You never asked," Adam shrugged and waited for Cole to open the door for him.
"Sure, make me look like the jerk here," Cole shook his head. "Well now I'm excited."
"Damn right," Zack agreed.
Adam tried not to look too smug when he and Cole walked into the meeting room. Brent was there with his puppy but Maddox was nowhere to be seen. Cole squeezed his hand and Adam knew he was proud too.
"Okay, so we're just waiting for Jimmy and we can get started," Monroe had a tray of snacks out and glared at Zack when he helped himself, as if they were just there for the guests.
"Say hi to Uncle Adam," Brent told the puppy when Adam sat next to him. Cole sat on the conference room table, facing Adam.
"Maddox wouldn't let you adopt a baby?" Cole reached over to the pet the tiny dog. Adam braced himself for Brent's reaction.
"We talked about it, but I can't leave him with a new baby when we go on tour next summer," Brent was actually calm. "He's still mad at me about it. How about you two?"
"You don't have to pretend, I know you don't think we should have kids," Cole rolled his eyes.
"Adam will be a great dad. The kids might have to eat protein bars, but they'll do great otherwise."
"Good news, I cook," Cole laughed. "I'll stock the fridge with plenty of food he won't have to heat up."
"I'm learning the microwave," Adam protested, ignoring the pit in his stomach as Cole pretended like they could have kids someday.
"Maybe we'll get a housekeeper," Cole acted like he hadn't heard Adam. "We can pretend Adam's just too important to cook and then I won't have to do laundry either."
"That actually doesn't sound bad," Adam admitted. "But I'm not paying someone to do my laundry."
"Ugh, you and your money. You have two incomes now!" Brent rolled his eyes. "I'm not saying you have to spend tons of money but you don't have to act like it pains you."
"Sometimes I think he loves his budget more than me," Cole grinned at Adam.
"You two can go back to hating each other if this is how it's gonna go," Adam shook his head.
"Maybe tomorrow."
"Can you hold Sophie for a second? Dax just got here," Brent handed Adam his dog.
"Um sure," Adam took the little puppy from Brent. She licked his hand until she realized Brent was walking away and started fussing. "He'll be right back."
"You should have said no," Cole rolled his eyes. "You're not his servant."
"I don't mind."
"Were you really not going to tell me you'd written songs for this album?"
"I didn't really know how to bring it up," Adam admitted. "How late will you be working tomorrow?"
"I don't know yet," Cole shrugged. "If you want to stop by you can, I don't mind having you there while I record."
"Maybe I will, I kind of want to see it," Adam decided. "Thanks for being nice to him."
"I felt bad for a second that he was here alone, but I'm over it. Let the hate begin again."
Adam rolled his eyes but didn't get a chance to say anything because Brent came back with Maddox. Dax had their other dog with him and the puppy lost her mind, fussing to get back to Brent.
"Oh, good, the whole family is here," Cole looked at them.
"Shh," Adam hissed. Sophie tried to climb up his arm to get to Brent. "She cried the whole time you were gone."
"Aww, I came back for you," Brent cooed as he took her from Adam. "Look, Daddy brought your big brother," he put Sophie down to see Twink. The two dogs greeted each other happily.
"I didn't realize everyone would be here," Maddox was talking so softly that Adam almost couldn't hear him. "You should have told me."
"I tried," Brent kissed his cheek. "You're here, that's what matters."
"Maddox!" Jeff looked up from his notes. He definitely hadn't gotten than excited when Adam brought Cole in. "We're so glad you could join us."
Monroe put the album on a few minutes later and Adam sat back to listen. He made a few notes but for the most part it sounded really great, almost exactly how he'd imagined. Cole looked over Adam's shoulder and took the pen. He wrote one word, "tone," but no explanation.
They listened to the whole album and when everyone started talking it sounded like they were all happy with it too. Tyler made a few comments, saying the same things Adam had written down, but that was it.
"Maddox?" Monroe asked when they got to him.
"I liked it," Maddox nodded.
"Just be honest," Brent sighed. "I can see what you wrote down."
"I mean, it's your album, so if you're happy that's what matters," Maddox covered the notepad, like he was embarrassed, but Adam could see he had pages and pages of notes. "It's good, I think everyone will like it."
"But you don't think it's good enough," Jeff raised his eyebrows. "Is that what you're saying?"
"I um," Maddox looked around, like he was afraid to say anything.
"It's okay, we can take it," Zack spoke up. "Whatever it is, say it."
"Alright," Maddox took a deep breath and flipped back to the beginning of his notes. "Well," he started to go through what he'd written down, one track at a time.
Adam bit his tongue as Maddox talked, tearing apart every song. When Maddox got to the first one of Adam's songs, he held his breath, pretty sure he would lose it if Maddox said anything bad about it. But Maddox actually had the least to say about Adam's songs out compared to the rest of the album.
Monroe and Jeff kept asking questions as Maddox talked and Adam wanted to scream at them to shut up. They acted like Dax was the only expert there, as if he had some magic they couldn't get anywhere else. It went on and on until Adam was not only mad but starving.
"Why don't we wrap this up for today," Jeff finally ended the conversation. "But Maddox, would you mind coming back tomorrow and helping us get these things fixed?"
"Oh," Maddox looked at Brent. "I mean, I guess I could, if you all want that," he looked around.
"You can't just dump all this on us and not help fix it," Jimmy shrugged.
"I don't know, I think it's still great the way it is," Tyler shook his head and Adam wanted to hug him. "I get what you're saying, Dax, but I like it."
"I do too," Adam spoke up. "We worked so hard, I think we should leave it alone."
"Well I think we should listen to Maddox," Zack stood up. "He obviously knows what he's talking about."
"Of course you do, you're so far up his ass you might as well just fuck him already," Tyler rolled his eyes.
"Okay, Dax, why don't you take Twink and Sophie outside and we can figure this out?" Brent suggested.
"Sure," Maddox took the dogs, as if he was so happy to get out of the room. Adam rolled his eyes. Dax was the one who'd just come in there and criticized everything they did.
"I know you love him, but that was brutal," Tyler turned to Brent. "He wanted to quit music, he needs to get out."
"Honestly, I agree with everything he said," Cole spoke up. "You guys are too talented to keep putting out the same overproduced crap Elite music makes all their artists do. You have the voices, use them."
"Yes, exactly," Jimmy agreed. Brent started to say something but Cole interrupted.
"Don't worry, I'll go too," Cole held up his hand. "See you in a minute," he kissed Adam's cheek.
"Cole has a really good point," Jeff cleared his throat. "This is a chance for you to redefine your sound. You don't have Martin to tell you to stick to the formula anymore. Why not try something new?"
"Fine," Tyler sighed. "I'm in."
"Adam?" Jeff looked at him and so did everyone else.
"Yeah, okay," Adam had to give in too. "How much of this means re-recording and how much is post-production?"
"A lot is post-production, but I think we'll have to re-record some parts," Brent still had Maddox's notes. "I hope it will go quick."
"Are we all okay with Dax helping?" Monroe spoke up. "You can say no, we can bring in someone."
"He's already done half the work," Adam gestured to the notes. "If we get someone new they're just going to have different ideas."
"Okay, then it's settled. We'll work through it with Dax and try again," Jeff nodded. "Thanks, guys."
"Thank you for listening," Brent followed Adam out of the room. "I guess we know our husbands are somewhere together, huh?"
"Scared?" Adam couldn't help it, he saw the nervous look on Brent's face.
"Tell me you're not."
"I'm not," Adam had to smile. It felt way too good not to, especially when Brent was surprised. "I trust Cole."
"Is that a good idea?" Brent didn't look convinced. They reached the exit door and Adam could hear Cole outside.
"Guess we'll see."
"-so your dad says to put Aiden on the phone and he tries so hard to get serious that he ends up choking," Cole was saying as Adam and Brent walked outside. Maddox had the dogs in the tiny patch of mulch and Cole was smoking a cigarette. "I have no idea how Aiden didn't understand, Justin was laughing so hard."
"What did Aiden do?" Brent had to collect Sophie because as soon as she saw him she went nuts.
"He keeps pooping in the backyard."
"Kids are so weird," Adam took the cigarette from Cole and took a drag before he put it out.
"Hey, those are expensive."
"Exactly, stop buying them," Adam glared at Cole.
"I'll spend my money how I want to, thanks," Cole rolled his eyes. "Can we go?"
"Yeah, we're done."
Adam turned to hug Brent goodbye and felt his heart racing. He stepped back to look at Brent's face but he looked alright, not upset or nervous.
"What?" Brent frowned.
"You okay?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Your heart feels like it's going pretty fast, that's all."
"Feels normal to me," Brent shrugged. "You guys wanna get dinner?"
"Not a chance," Cole answered, taking Adam's hand. "We've got a date."
"Oh, that's...nice," Brent looked at Cole and then back at Adam. "Have fun."
"We always do."
Cole squeezed Adam's hand and they went back inside to find Zack. He was waiting for them outside the conference room, watching a video on his phone.
"Look, Cole, don't you think this looks like Adam?" Zack demanded.
"Adam's not chubby and cute like that," Cole glanced at Zack's phone.
"I'm not a fucking panda, stop that already," Adam rolled his eyes.
"This one looks like you, I swear," Zack insisted. "And Adam is too cute, haven't you seen him after a nap?"
"I wake up with him every day, remember?"
"You never let me forget."
"Jealous?" Cole rubbed Zack's back. "You know you're always welcome."
"Cole," Adam sighed.
"I'm not jealous, you just don't have to rub it in my face. You're married now, I know that."
"Are you sure? Cause you sound a little jealous," Cole grinned. Zack looked at Adam.
"Are you two going out tonight?"
"No, tonight we're going on a date," Cole answered before Adam could.
"I'll be home tomorrow night," Adam could tell Zack was upset but he wasn't sure what that meant. Zack hated being left out, so was it just more about him feeling lonely or was there something more?
"Have fun. I'm supposed to take Colette out tonight but I really don't feel like it," Zack made a face.
Adam watched Cole get dressed for their date, intentionally taking his time so Cole would be done before he was ready to get dressed. When Cole sat on their bed to wait, Adam shooed him out of the room.
"Why?" Cole made a face.
"Because I like the surprise," Adam insisted.
"And I like watching you put each thing on, knowing I'm going to get to take it off later."
"Now you won't know what's waiting for you. It could be anything," Adam pushed Cole out the door.
It was worth it to see the look on Cole's face when Adam walked into the kitchen a short while later. He tried not to say 'I told you so' but he really wanted to, especially when Cole made him turn around.
"I'm a lucky man. It would be a crime to keep you all to myself."
"The crime is that you don't," Zack rolled his eyes. He was dressed to go out but he was eating kraft mac and cheese.
"I thought you had a date too," Adam frowned.
"I eat first in case my girlfriend ruins my appetite."
"You look nice," Adam wasn't sure what else to say.
"You do too."
"We'll leave our door unlocked, just in case," Cole winked at Zack. "Ready, sweet boy?"
He took Adam to an extremely fancy dinner that night. The food was incredible and Adam loved every second of it. Cole acted like Adam was the only other person on the planet, barely even looking at their servers the whole time. It was the kind of night where Adam would have expected Cole to propose if he hadn't already.
"This was so nice," Adam told him when Cole opened his car door back at home. "I think it was the best date we've ever been on."
"It's not over yet," Cole kissed him. "But that means everything is going exactly as I planned."
Despite his promise to Zack, Cole did lock their door that night. He set a slow pace as if he was savoring each kiss and touch. It wasn't the first time they'd ever had slow romantic sex, but in some ways it felt new. Cole held onto Adam afterward, keeping him close.
"Love you," Adam whispered as he fell asleep.
"I love you too," Cole whispered back.
They were still cuddled close when the alarm went off. Adam felt like he'd slept only 10 minutes and a glance at his phone told him it was only 7. He didn't have to be at work until 1 and Cole never started work before 11.
"What's going on?" Adam yawned when Cole kissed his shoulder and tucked the sheets in around him before he got out of bed.
"I have an appointment before work today. Go back to sleep."
"A doctor's appointment?" Adam sat up.
"Yeah, it's been 6 weeks."
"Cole," Adam couldn't get enough air. "That's why you took me out last night. You gave me this magic, perfect night together because you knew-"
"Shit, Adam," Cole sat down and pulled Adam into his arms. "Shh, this is just a check."
"No, it's not, you must have known," Adam started to cry. "Why didn't you say anything?"
"Because there's nothing to say. I don't have any symptoms. I took you out last night because I love you and I want you to see that, not just hear it."
"But, but-"
"I promise I won't do that to you, Adam. I'm not going to pretend like everything is fine when it's not. If I ever think it's time I'll just say that," Cole rubbed his back. "I wish you'd told me you'd finally stopped pretending it's not real."
"It, um, just hit me at Brent's wedding," Adam admitted, trying to stop crying. "When you were holding Dax's little nephew and Monroe told us not to have kids, like it was a choice."
"I knew you wanted kids."
"I want a future with you. That's what I want. I hate not knowing, like we can't just live our lives because any day you might wake up...I don't even know, I don't know what it would be like."
"Do you want to know?" Cole looked Adam in the eyes. "You can talk to my doctor, he can tell you all about it."
"Maybe, I don't know. No, I just don't want it to happen."
"Neither do I, sweet boy. I love you so much and the more time I spend with you the harder it is to know I won't get to be around for the rest of your life. But I want to make all the time I have with you as perfect and magic as I can," Cole started to laugh at the end.
"Don't make fun of me, it was a really great night," Adam protested, wiping his face. "I just wish I'd known you had an appointment today."
"I'll send you a calendar invite, so you always know," Cole kissed him. "I'm going right to the studio after so have a good day. And have fun with Zack tonight."
"When will you hear back?"
"A few days."
"Alright," Adam kissed Cole again and tried to go back to sleep.
Instead, Adam tossed and turned, wondering if he would spend the rest of Cole's life that way, living in fear that every good day or special date would be their last. The same few thoughts kept repeating in his mind - why had he fallen for Cole? Why did Cole have to be dying? How could they go on just not knowing? Would he be able to move on when Cole did die? What if the doctors were wrong and Cole didn't die early? And worse - what if they were wrong and he died with no warning?
To quiet his brain, Adam smoked part of a joint. It let him fall asleep for the last hour before his alarm went off so Adam woke up starving and groggy. And angry.
"Hey, oh," Zack's tone changed as soon as he saw Adam's face. "Are you okay?"
"Not really."
"What happened? I thought your night went well."
"It did, it's just," Adam took a deep breath. "I'm just tired."
"Oh, okay. Uh, sorry to tell you now but I had to move your laundry. I checked every single tag so I wouldn't put anything in the dryer that wasn't supposed to go in there."
"Thanks," Adam went to grab a protein bar but Zack stopped him.
"I made extra smoothie for you. It's chocolate peanut butter, but I added kale because Brent and Tyler said-"
"I know, it's better that way," Adam made himself smile. "Thank you, that's really nice of you."
"Sure, anytime."
It was another long day of listening to Maddox and hearing all his ideas for what they had to do to fix their new album. By the end, Adam was ready to go home, smoke and sleep. He thought about going over to see Cole at the studio but he was too tired to deal with the traffic.
Zack seemed happy to have Adam home that night. He put on a movie and talked nonstop while he messed around in the kitchen. It took Adam way too long to understand that Zack was cooking.
"This looks so complicated, how do you remember what to do?" Adam frowned at their kitchen island, which was covered in all kinds of tools and containers he'd never seen before.
"You just follow the directions," Zack pointed to his phone. "The recipe tells you what you need to do."
"Okay, but somehow you remember all the different cups and spoons and all that," Adam pointed. "Like why are there so many kinds of measuring things? And why are there fractions in there?"
"I don't know, you just remember. Go sit down, you're making me nervous."
"Will you be mad if I smoke?"
"Yes."
"Okay," Adam sighed and went to the couch.
He fell asleep and woke up when Zack grabbed his shoulder. It took him a minute to understand what was going on but Adam rubbed his face and saw there was food on the table.
"Dinner's ready."
"Awesome," Adam sat up, yawning. He realized Zack was watching him very closely a second later. "Um, yes?"
"You still look like a panda to me."
"Ugh, go away," Adam groaned. "What did you cook?"
"Chicken fajitas. They're really good too, I already had a bite of chicken," Zack told him. "I even made guacamole."
"You can make that? I thought it came from the store."
"Watch and learn, sweet boy," Zack teased, imitating Cole's voice. "Do you want a drink? Beer?"
"Yeah, wait, I can get drinks," Adam insisted, since Zack had done all the cooking. "This is cute, thanks Zack."
"I miss when it was just the two of us, it was fun."
"It was different," Adam grabbed beers out of the fridge and went back to the table. "I know this is just going to annoy you, but I don't really remember that much other than smoking together."
"Of course. That's sad, Adam."
"I'm sorry."
"I loved those days. You don't remember sitting on the couch watching YouTube videos with me?"
"Not really."
"Ugh, that's why I always say you're like a panda. You'd cuddle up and watch videos on my laptop with me until you fell asleep," Zack shook his head. "I should have known."
"That's why you said that thing about seeing me wake up," Adam realized. "Oh damn. I'm sorry."
"It's not a big deal, I guess," Zack shrugged it off and reached for the sour cream. "So when are we moving?"
"Not for a while still. Cole's got someone over there working on the house so he can film a music video there. We were actually thinking," Adam paused. "What if we had a party before we decorate it like normal? And like, didn't tell anyone, you know?"
"Savage. I love it."
"Right?"
"Can I ask you a question?" Zack took a sip of his beer. "Why did you and Cole get married? I mean you keep bringing other guys home. I always thought if you got married it was because you knew that was it, like don't you want to settle down with Cole?"
"I really do, but it's not that simple," Adam sighed. "Threesomes are fun and it's such a rush knowing I can pretty much point to any guy I want and he'll just come home with us."
"That didn't answer my question."
"Why does marriage have to be about settling down? Cole was never the type to be monogamous before, it's not like saying some vows could change that. We agreed that there could be other guys."
"So why not just be in a relationship? Why put a ring on it?"
"Because we love eachother and we want to be married. It's just that marriage for us is different than what it's like for other people. I think it's up to us to decide the rules for ourselves, like we both agree. There's no sneaking around, we always do it together."
"I don't get it," Zack shook his head. "Whatever you want, I guess."
They were still eating and talking about work that day when Cole walked in. He was in a really good mood and Adam had to smile at him. Cole looked at the table and grinned.
"Sorry, am I interrupting your date? I can come back."
Adam choked on his beer and Zack reached over to thump his back, laughing like he always did when Cole made a comment like that. Cole got himself a plate and more beer for everyone. He talked about his day at the studio and how well it was all going.
"We picked a song for the music video," Cole announced.
"The one you're filming at the house?" Zack looked excited. "Adam told me your idea, that's awesome."
"Yeah, but only if Adam agrees to be in it."
"Which song?"
"Sex."
"What?" Adam turned to look at him.
"Oh, that woke you up," Cole laughed. "I wrote a song about you, it's called Sex."
"That's so sweet, thanks," Adam made a face. "Are you joking?"
"No, but it's not the only song I've written about you, don't worry," Cole squeezed Adam's leg. "Please be in the music video? Please?"
"What do I have to do?"
"One guess," Zack stood up, laughing. He took his plate to the dishwasher. Adam looked at Cole, waiting for him to explain.
"Why are you looking at me that way?" Cole grinned. "Come on, sweet boy, do I have to spell it out?"
"Is that even allowed?" Adam tried to picture it. "I'm guessing it won't be as g-rated as our threesome video?"
"No way, that's part of the fun. You could be in it too, Zack, with whoever you want," Cole offered. "I mean, if you have a celebrity crush you should ask, maybe we can make it happen."
"Uh, this thing with Colette though," Zack shrugged. "It's probably a bad idea."
"Mm. You should dump her," Cole decided. "Okay, so I'm thinking we do a jungle theme for the house. Bring in all kinds of animals."
"I thought you wanted a circus theme," Adam reminded him.
"Ooooh, you're right, circus is better. Like a freak show, but it's just a sex show," Cole agreed. "I want to paint every room a different color."
"Now I'm with Adam, I can't tell if you're serious or not," Zack picked up his beer. "Is there a pink elephant?"
"There is now," Cole's eyes lit up. "This is amazing."
"Alright, I'm done here," Zack got up. "One of you can clean, right?"
"I'll clean up," Adam promised him.
"We'll leave the door unlocked, if-" Cole started to say.
"If I change my mind, I know," Zack rolled his eyes as he left the room.
"I really hope one of these nights he actually comes in."
"I can still hear you!"
"That's why I said it," Cole shouted back to Zack.
"Can we stay home tonight?" Adam asked. "I'm tired."
"Yeah, that sounds good. Now that we've passed 70 I'm pretty much over it."
"I think we should try for 100," Adam got up to put his plate in the dishwasher and clean up the rest of the kitchen.
"That means adding to your number too, Adam," Cole pointed out. "Are you sure you want to do that? Like 5 years from now will you be sad you did it?"
"I don't know what's going to happen 5 years from now."
"Exactly. I'm not saying we can't ever do it again, but maybe we should cool it for a while."
"Alright," Adam wondered if that meant he didn't have to keep looking for another guy. He decided not to ask.
The next morning, Adam met Brent to go running. They'd been doing it for weeks and Brent was always able to keep up but that morning he kept slowing down.
"Sorry, I don't know what's wrong," Brent paused to catch his breath. "I just got dizzy."
"Check your heartrate," Adam leaned over to see what came up when Brent hit the button on his watch. "B, that's really high."
"It's fine, this thing is probably reading wrong. They can't be 100% accurate," Brent dropped his wrist and Adam couldn't see the display anymore.
"If you're dizzy though-"
"It's fine, let's go," Brent snapped, taking off without waiting for Adam.
If that were the only time Brent acted weird, Adam might have forgotten all about it but over the next few days he kept losing his temper over things that seemed like no big deal. The next time Adam asked him about running together, Brent refused. He said it was burning off his muscles, which might have been true because he did seem like he was losing weight.
"Did you see this video?" Zack asked one day when they were at the studio to re-record one of their songs. "It's a panda and-"
"No one cares about your stupid panda videos," Brent threw down his water bottle and stomped out of the room.
Everyone was quiet for a second and then Jimmy started laughing. Zack laughed too but Adam couldn't even fake a smile. He knew he was probably worried for no reason but he had a feeling something was really wrong with Brent.
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A/N: Happy Wednesday. Next chapter - Are those warning bells or wedding bells we hear? Eli and Hunter get married and Adam is forced to go back to Maddox with another question.