Page 30 of Unforgettable Omega

“You have spaghetti today,” Drew confirmed.

Andy nodded, “Papa put hotdog.”

“Sounds yummy,” Drew smiled at the way his son said everything a little seriously. So like he was at that age.

“Incredibullssss,” Andy squealed, bouncing on the couch happily, or maybe he was making himself comfortable. He then turned and looked at Drew expectantly.

Right, he was supposed to put the movie on, not spend the whole time staring at his son.

12

Shay

Shay was surprised how easy it had been having Drew in his home, with their son. After Drew had left his home the first night, Shay’s immediate thought was how could he have fallen into bed so quickly, again?

Then it was quickly followed by gratitude and relief that Drew hadn’t, or wasn’t, trying to take his son away.

“Not yet,”an annoying voice whispered, but Shay ignored it.

Drew had been nothing but nice. No, nice wasn’t quite the word… but Shay couldn’t think of another.

He’d purposely given Drew and Andy some time alone, so that the two of them could get a chance to bond. And when he’d come back in the room and they were already almost halfway into the movie, neither of them missing him, he’d felt a pang in his chest. For the first time, his son wasn’t just his. It had crossed his mind that Andy might not need him when he realized he had a rich alpha dad. It had also occurred to Shay that Drew… Drew might not want him, and then he would have to watch from afar, as his son, and his al… Drew… built a life that didn’t include him.

Then, they’d felt his presence, and two sets of identical eyes had lit up and asked him to join them. Seeing Andy and Drew side by side, was both surreal and incredible to Shay. There was a part of him that had dreamt of this moment from the second Andy was placed in his arms. And then there was the part that had dreaded it too.

Shay wanted to hate himself for how weak he was, for how, even though he thought he’d changed… grown, when it came to Drew, he was clearly that eighteen-year-old all over again.

Later that evening, Shay worked his way around his already clean home, dusting, cleaning and straightening shit out. All he could hear was the words that came out of his son’s mouth as both he and Drew tucked Andy in bed.

“I wish you were my daddy.”

They’d looked at each other over Andy’s bed, and decided there and then to tell their son the truth, even though he and Drew had both agreed to find the right time at a later date. After Drew and Andy spent more time together, when father and son had gotten to know each other. And Andy was more comfortable around his new daddy, then they would try and explain things to him. But with those six words, Andy basically threw a bomb in their midst, so to speak. There was that saying of blood being thicker than water. It had proven itself true, because if Shay hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed it.

It wasn't that Andy was a shy child, he wasn't. He was actually pretty easygoing. He'd been an easy and friendly baby and that was how he'd grown up. Still, he wasn't one to attach himself to grown-ups, or even be clingy with anyone that wasn't Shay, or his grandparents, Shay's parents, but Shay had watched his son fight tiredness just to hang out longer with Drew.

He'd watched Andy through the day. He watched his son squint at Drew like his small brain was trying to tell him something, but he couldn’t quite figure out what. He’d watched Andy drag Drew into his room and point out all his toys and his favorite things.

He watched them play together in the garden, father and son having the time of their lives. Shay had watched all this from the sidelines, trying to allow father and son to spend time without intruding, but close enough just in case Andy needed him. His son hadn’t, not even once. And even though he'd felt a pang at not being number one in Andy’s life anymore, there was a part of him that was so happy for Drew and for Andy too. Getting to know each other. Andy was an amazing child, a beautiful child, and well, Drew seemed to be a good man.

That was when guilt had come a-knocking, because then Shay had realized that he'd deprived his son of a dad, and not just any dad, but apparently agooddad. Shay watched how Drew would just pause and stare at Andy like he couldn’t believe their son was real. Like he was trying to restrain himself from grabbing their kid in his arms and hugging him to within an inch of his life every five minutes.

There was this permanent look of awe in Drew's eyes as he'd watched Andy like he couldn't believe their son existed, and he'd also seen the look of a parent that thought their child was the absolute best.

So, when Andy had uttered those words, Shay had two choices, one being lie to his son, or two being sidestep the question. He hadn't really had one, and it wasn't just the hopefully look in Andy’s bright blue eyes that had made it difficult for him, but it was also the joy and hope in Drew's eyes. Both of those things combined, with his gut instinct that Drew would never hurt their child, even though he'd hurt Shay. Shay had reminded himself that this wasn't about him. All those things had led him to what had honestly been an easier answer than he'd thought.

There was also this fear in Shay that even though Andy was young, just about to be four-years-old, kids remembered stuff. What if later Andy asked him why they didn’t tell him? Shay wasn’t willing to take the risk of his son hating him when he could simply tell him the truth then and there.

Shay sat down on Andy’s bed, on the opposite side from where Drew was sitting. “Andy, baby,” Shay pushed his son’s curly hair back, and looked into those gorgeous eyes, remembering holding him for the first time. “Drew isn’t just any old friend,” Shay whispered his voice choked, “He’s papa’s old friend from before you were born.” Shay wasn’t sure how to do this. All the times he’d thought about telling Andy about his dad, he’d never gotten this far. “Papa met Drew before you were…” Shay wasn’t exactly sure how to finish that sentence. “The reason you have the same name as Drew, is because he’s your daddy.” Shay blurted the sentence, everything running together.

He held his breath and didn’t stop looking at Andy waiting for his reaction. His son looked at him then his head spun so fast to look at Drew, it would have been comical if it wasn’t so serious.

A tear rolled down Shay’s cheek when his baby boy said in his voice filled with awe,

“Daddy?” Andy repeated wide-eyed, his gaze fixed on Drew, unblinking like he thought if he did Drew would disappear, “You’re my daddy?”

Shay bit his lips so hard he tasted blood.

“I’m your daddy,” Drew whispered back, his voice equally awe-filled. Andy flung himself into Drew’s arms. If he was bigger they would probably have toppled over. But the two of them hugged each other made more tears fall from Shay’s eyes.