Saving An Angel
By Jason Finigan

This story is completely fictional. Any similarities to any persons or events, past or present are purely coincidental. This story may contain scenes which involve sexual situations between young males. If this type of material is offensive to you, or it is not legal for you to be reading this type of material, please do not read any further. This story is copyright © 2007 by Jason. Please do not copy this story for distribution or post on any online server without the author's permission. Please send all your comments to: jasonfinigan@yahoo.com You can also visit my site at: www.jasonfinigan.net. Thanks and enjoy the story.

From the last chapter:

"Who's Tommy?" Ryan asked.

"Tommy is Adam's older brother. He's thirteen. There wasn't any room in the group home for them together, so I had to place them in separate homes.

"My God," Ryan said. "There has to be a way to get them together again."

"Now that you are his foster father, we can make that happen. Except we have to deal with something first."

"What do you mean? You mean I get to see my brother again?" Adam asked, hopefully.

"Not yet Adam. Tell me how you would feel if you were to go live with your real dad again," Mrs. Jacobs said.

"No!" Adam screamed. "I don't want to live with him. I want to stay here with Kyle and Greg and my new dad!" Adam was crying now, and I put my arms around him. He buried his head in my chest and cried, hanging onto me tightly, as if I was going to leave him.

"It's okay Adam, I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you can stay here. I can see that you're loved and that you belong here," Mrs. Jacobs said.

"You will?" Adam sniffed.

"Yes I will. Ryan and me, and his lawyer aren't going to let anyone take you away from here. We'll do everything we can to make sure of that. Okay?"

"Okay," he said, still hanging onto me.

"Anna, can you tell me who his father is? That way I can get Jerry to have people look into his background."

"Yes, of course. I have it in this file," Mrs. Jacobs said, pulling a file folder from her bag. She opened the file up and looked through a couple papers before finding what she was looking for.

"Here it is," she said. "His name's Rick Thomas."

"Oh my God," Jason gasped.

"What is it?" Mrs. Jacobs asked.

"Rick Thomas is the name of one of my managers Anna," Ryan said. "He interviewed Jason for a position in my company, and right now he's being investigated by my staff for harassment."

Chapter 10

"You have got to be kidding me!" Mrs. Jacobs said, putting the file she had taken out of her bag onto the coffee table.

"I wish I was. Not too long ago Jason had applied for a position within my company. His interviewer was Rick Thomas. Jason has told me that while he was invited back for a second interview, he didn't go, and that was because he felt that Rick had a negative view of homosexuals, and he didn't feel comfortable working for a company that allowed open discrimination. Now you know that I do not allow that, for obvious reasons, but I'm afraid I haven't paid close enough attention to my staff or the goings on in the office. I plan to rectify that very soon."

"I see," Mrs. Jacobs said.

"Anna, how is this going to affect me being Adam's foster father?" Ryan asked.

"Honestly Ryan, it makes things more complicated."

"And if I were to terminate Rick's employment with my firm?" Ryan asked.

"It could work in his favor. His lawyer could claim you are trying to sabotage his chances of being reunited with his son."

"Anna's right Ryan. A situation like this could hurt your chances of adopting Adam," Jerry said.

"Very well, then what do you suggest I do? If I can't fire him, and I can't condone any of his actions at work, if they are true, then that leaves me with very little options."

"Actually, no it doesn't. The investigation itself will reveal the extent to which Rick has violated standing policy on discrimination. That could be introduced into court as a matter of his character."

"Would termination be possible prior to this going to court?" Ryan asked.

"Possibly. But it would have to be done with clear proof that Rick is discriminating against homosexuals."

"Dad?" Adam said, interrupting us.

"Yes Son, what is it?" Ryan asked.

"Are you talking about my dad?"

"Yes we are, Adam," Ryan replied.

"Oh. Is he hitting people 'cause he doesn't like gays?" Adam asked.

"No Son, he isn't hitting people. If he was, he would have been put in jail."

"I think he should be put in jail now though."

"Why would you say that Son? Did he do something to hurt you?"

"He pulled down my pants and hit me on my bum with his belt," Adam admitted.

"Oh my!" Mrs. Jacobs exclaimed. The reaction to what Adam was telling us was pretty much universal. Greg moved closer to Adam and put his arm around his shoulders.

"Why would he do that, Son?" Ryan asked.

"I promised I wouldn't tell though," Adam said, refusing to look at anyone.

"Son," Ryan said, getting up from his chair and kneeling down in front of Adam. "If he hurt you or did something to you, we want to know, so he can't do it to anyone else. I promise you I won't let him hurt you any more, and you aren't in trouble."

"But I promised Tommy," Adam said again.

"Would Tommy want you to go back to your Dad?" Ryan asked.

"No! He would want me to be safe," Adam said, his head jerking up in horror.

"Well, that's what we want too, Son. We want you to be safe. If we know what happened, we can make sure it never happens again."

"You promise though Dad?" Adam asked.

"I promise, Son."

"What about Tommy though? I promised him."

"We'll deal with that later. Right now what's important is making sure you are safe. And the best way for that to happen is for us to know everything that happened before," Ryan said.

"And don't forget Adam," I said. "You've got Greg and me too."

"I guess so," Adam said.

"Now what happened, Adam? What was it that happened before your Dad hit you?"

"Well, one day Tommy and I were playing on his Playstation together. We always used to. My favorite game was Kingdom of Hearts and it had all my favorite cartoon characters in it. It was really fun."

"I bet it was Son," Ryan said. "Go on."

"Well, Tommy was beating me, and I began to tickle him to make it so I could win. It was funny. He was so into the game that he didn't even see me. I tackled him and he fell back laughing."

"Ah yes, I remember those days," Jason said, laughing.

"You?" Ryan asked him.

"My brother and I used to do the same thing when we were younger. Only he was better than me at Mario Brothers, so I ended up tickling him."

"I think most siblings do something like that with each other," Mrs. Jacobs said, smiling.

"OK, well, go on Adam. You were playing around with your brother. What happened next?"

"Well I was laying on top of him and tickling him, and he was squirming around giggling. That's when my dad came into the room. I guess we were making too much noise. He saw us on the floor with me laying on top of Tommy and he got mad and pulled me up off of him by the arm. He was squeezing my arm really hard and it hurt a lot. I started to cry as he pulled me out of Tommy's room and took me into mine. Then he pulled down my pants and underwear and took off his belt and began to hit me with it over and over again. I cried for him to stop, but he just kept hitting me. He kept saying that he wasn't going to have no fagot living in his house and that he was going to put a stop to it one way or another. Afterwards, Tommy came into my room because my Dad told me to stay there and not come out until he told me to. Tommy made me promise never to say anything about it again, because he told me that if I did, my Dad would hurt me." By now Adam was sobbing loudly in Greg's arms, as Greg held him close, and was rubbing his back.

"Jeezus!" Jason exclaimed loudly.

"That son of a bitch!" Darren almost yelled.

"Watch your language Darren," Jerry said, "But I agree with the sentiment." Then he looked over at Anna. "Is this why Tommy and Adam were taken away from their parents?"

"No. This is the first I've heard of this, and it's not in their file either."

"I don't want this monster anywhere near Adam or any of my sons," Ryan said. I could see that he was crying slightly.

"He's not going to, Ryan. With this information, there isn't a chance his father would get custody of Adam. Assaulting a minor is a serious charge," Jerry said.

"One last thing, Adam," Mrs. Jacobs said, making Adam look up at her, his face wet from his tears. "How did Tommy know that your dad would hurt you if you told anyone?"

"Cause Dad did the same thing to Tommy, only worse. He had a black eye and he was limping when he came into my room," Adam said, sniffling.

"Darren, I want you to call a meeting for tomorrow morning. I am going to put an end to this once and for all. And make sure my staff knows the meeting is mandatory," Ryan said.

"I will do that right now Ryan," Darren said, getting up from where he was sitting and going over to the phone.

"In the meantime, Anna, I need you to tell me everything you can about Rick's application to seek custody of Adam," Ryan said, going back over to where he was sitting before with Jason, letting Greg comfort Adam on the couch.

'Well Ryan, apparently, some time early this morning, Rick filed for custody of his son. A hearing has been scheduled for Friday at ten in the morning at the Milton court house. His claim is that his son was forcibly taken from him without proper authorization, and that he is concerned his son is being brought up in an unhealthy environment."

"Unhealthy? Just what does he mean by that?" Ryan asked.

"Well, it goes on to state that he is aware of the recent fostering of his son by you, and that he is concerned with his son's safety."

"My God!" Ryan exclaimed.

"I think you can read between the lines there," Mrs. Jacobs said.

"Yes I can," Ryan said. "It's clear that he objects to my being gay, and that he is trying to say that I am fostering Adam for my own sexual gratification."

"I would say that that is a fair conclusion."

"Well, I'm not going to let him get away with that. Jerry, I want you to prepare a defamation of character suit against Rick. Get it ready so that if he does attempt to lay such a charge in court we can have it filed immediately."

"That will be my pleasure, Ryan," Jerry said.

"Thanks," Ryan said.

"What about my interview tomorrow?" Jason asked.

"I don't see any reason that you should cancel it. By that time I should have everything wrapped up as far as Rick is concerned, at least, at work that is."

"What exactly is his problem with gays anyways?" Jason asked.

"I have no idea. This is the first time I've even heard of Rick being anti-gay so I couldn't tell you what brought this on," Ryan said.

"Dad, what about Greg, Adam, and me?" I asked.

"Well sport, you'll stay here with your brothers while I go to work. I shouldn't be too long, but Uncle Darren is going to be here to look after you. And I'm betting the three of you would love to go swimming."

"Oh yeah!" Adam said excitedly, all thoughts of his father suddenly forgotten.

"Okay, that'll be fun," I said, smiling. It had been a long time since I was able to swim in a pool. The last time I did it was with my mother when we went to the local YMCA. My mother didn't like getting in the water, but she often sat at the side of the pool and watched me as I played with some of the other kids in the pool. Actually it was where we met Simon, who would eventually become my babysitter when my mother was at work. He loved the water almost as much as I did I think, and he was a good swimmer too. One day I found out that he had applied for a position as a life guard, but was turned down because all the positions were already full. He would have made a good life guard too I thought.

"What is it Kyle?" Ryan asked, I guess noticing the shift in my mood.

"I was thinking about the times I had with Simon. He used to love swimming too," I said.

"Well, I'm sure he still does Kyle. You never know. Maybe one day you'll see him again. Burlington's not exactly the largest city you know," he told me.

"I know Dad. I just miss him is all."

"Well, now you have two brothers to play with, and we have our own pool. And provided Uncle Darren isn't too old yet, he's a pretty good swimmer himself," Ryan said, grinning mischievously at Darren.

"You just watch yourself Ryan. Don't think for a second that you're too old for me to take over my knee," he said gruffly.

"Oh that would be a sight to see!" Mrs. Jacobs laughed.

"I think you're right," Jason agreed, though by his look he was giving Ryan, I knew he had something else on his mind.

"Anyways. Enough of this," Ryan said, whose face had turned red from Darren's comment. "Who's up for a movie?"

"Well, I can't stay," Mrs. Jacobs said, standing up. "I need to get back home to my cat. She's probably standing at the door wondering where I am."

"I'll have to decline the invitation as well Ryan," Jerry said.

"I'll walk you both to the door then," Ryan said, getting up as well. Mrs. Jacobs gave Greg, Adam, and me a hug good bye. When she gave Adam a hug though, she held him a little longer, and I think, a little tighter than Greg or me.

"Don't you worry little one," Mrs. Jacobs said to Adam. "No one's going to take you away from here. I promise you that."

"Okay," Adam said, in his small voice, which if I wasn't so close to him, I probably wouldn't have heard.

Mrs. Jacobs and Jerry then left the living room, Ryan following them out and pretty soon I heard the front door opening, and then close again. When Ryan came back he was alone, and he had this odd looking smile on his face.

"Dad? What's wrong?" I asked him, giving him a puzzled expression.

"Nothing at all Son," Ryan answered. "But I think that my lawyer and your social worker might be beginning to like each other."

"You mean they might want to go out together?" I asked.

"That's entirely possible Son," Ryan said.

"That would be so cool," Greg said.

"Alright, so what are we going to watch then?" Ryan asked suddenly. That simple question set off a whole slew of requests. We must have taken at least ten minutes deciding on which movie we wanted to see. I also think that Ryan was loving every minute of it. When it was just him and me, he let me pick out a movie and we lay down on the couch together to watch it. Now he had three young boys all of whom had different tastes in movies.

Eventually, we were able to decide on watching the latest Harry Potter movie. There was a new one in the theaters, but we hadn't gone there yet. I hoped one day that Ryan would take us to see it as I really did like Harry Potter.

The rest of the evening went by pretty quickly. Ryan and Jason were on the love seat together, while Greg, Adam, and I were cuddling close on the big couch, watching the movie. I don't think that Ryan was watching the movie so much as he was watching the three of us. Occasionally I would look over to see him looking at us, and smiling. A few times I smiled back as I saw Jason snuggle close to Ryan. They both had their arms around each other, and once or twice I saw Ryan squeeze Jason just a little tighter.

It was obvious, just by looking at them, that they were falling in love with each other. I couldn't wait for the day when they asked each other out, and became boyfriends. Even though Ryan had us, I knew that what he needed in his life was someone he could love, like a mother and a father love each other.

Before long, the credits began to roll up the screen, the movie finally finished. Adam was almost asleep on the couch, his head resting on Greg's shoulder. Greg wasn't doing much better himself, and I had to admit, that despite the nap we had earlier, I was still pretty tired.

Ryan managed to sit up on the couch, both he and Jason stretching slightly from laying like they were for so long. Slowly he got off the love seat, went over to the DVD player and ejected the movie. Putting it back in it's cover he replaced it on the shelf, then turned to look at us.

"Okay guys, I think it's about time the three of you got ready for bed," he said. "You three get up those stairs and I want to hear the water running in the tub. Greg and Kyle, can you two take your showers first, then run the water in the tub for Adam so he can have his bath?"

"Okay Dad," I said, then looked over at Greg. "Do you mind if I have mine first, that way you can get the bath ready for Adam."

"Actually I was going to ask you the same thing Kyle," Greg said. Giving him one last smile, I started to climb up the stairs. When I left, Greg was slowly helping Adam get up off the couch. The poor little guy was so tired. I don't think he could have had a shower if he wanted to. He wouldn't have been able to stand up for long.

Going into my bedroom, I stripped off my clothes except my underwear, grabbed my pajamas, grabbed a towel from the linen closet, and went into the bathroom, closing the door. I didn't stay in the shower for too long, but I did manage to enjoy the feel of the warm water running over me. It was so soothing. I was so relaxed by the time my shower was done, that I thought I was going to fall asleep in the bathroom.

Turning off the water, I got myself dry, using the towel that I had brought in with me. Satisfied that I was dry enough, I pulled on my pajamas, and brushed my hair, which was still a little wet. Finally finished, I gathered my underwear and towel, I left the bathroom and went into my room where I put them in the hamper along with the clothes I had stripped off before.

I just left my room when I saw the cutest thing I had ever seen, that of Greg and Adam giggling playfully as they made their way to the bathroom, the two of them naked as the day they were born. I almost laughed as I watched them get a couple of towels and go into the bathroom, closing the door behind them.

Still smiling, I walked down the stairs and back into the living room where I saw Ryan and Jason sitting up on the love seat having a conversation. Ryan saw me first and looked over at me.

"I see you didn't dry your hair," he said.

"No, I did. It just takes forever," I replied.

"I'm going to have to show you how to use the hair dryer next time," he said.

"You have a hair dryer?"

"No, we have a hair dryer," he corrected.

"Oh cool. That'd be a lot easier than using the towel. I hate it when my hair is all wet."

"Don't we all," Ryan said, smiling at me.

"Okay Kyle," Jason said standing up. "What say you we get your computer set up before it's time for bed."

"Sure! Please! Can we?" I asked excitedly.

"Of course we can. Ryan, where did you plan on having it?" Jason asked him.

"Well, actually, I want to put all the computers in the living room. You see that empty spot over there by the far wall where I have my desk?" he said, pointing to the desk in the corner of the room. "I think it would be best to put it over there."

"Ryan, you bought two more computers but where are the desks for them?" Darren asked.

"I didn't get them yet. I was going to do that tomorrow when I pick up the computers. That's another reason I won't be long at work. I still have a lot to do."

"Alright Kyle, let's get this desk built and your computer set up," Jason said.

"Okay!" I said, smiling.

"By the way Kyle, is Greg having his shower now?" Ryan asked.

"Actually Dad, I think Greg and Adam are having a shower together," I snickered.

"Oh that is so cute," Jason said.

"You're right, it is." Ryan said. "I'm really glad that Adam has the two of you Kyle. Though I think he's really attached to Greg."

"I know. It's almost like the two of them are really brothers," I said.

"Hey, pretty soon, you legally will all be brothers, and all of you will be my sons," Ryan pointed out.

"I don't care about it being legal or not Dad. You are my Dad. For real," I said.

"I feel exactly the same way, Son," Ryan said, giving me a gentle hug, which I returned. "No you go help Jason with the computer desk." Letting go of Ryan, I went to where Jason was already beginning to open the box. Pretty soon we had all the contents spread out on the floor. I heard the sound of the water running and knew that Greg and Adam were in the shower.

Since I didn't know the first thing about putting together the desk, I sat on the floor and watched Jason work, occasionally handing him something when he asked for it. He worked pretty fast, and soon it was beginning to look like a computer desk. By the time he had tightened the last screw, the water had stopped running.

I helped Jason position the desk against the wall right where Ryan had said he wanted it. We then opened up the boxes that contained all the computer components. Jason was even better at putting the computer together than he was at putting together the desk. It was almost like he had done this hundreds of times. The first thing he did was pull out the keyboard tray and put the keyboard on it. Then he set the mouse on the desk, feeding the cord through a hole in the back of the desk. Then he set up the monitor, attaching two cables to it, and feeding both of those through the same hole in the back of the desk. Next came the computer itself. How he knew which cable went where I have no idea, but it must have only taken him seconds to have everything attached.

The computer itself rested in a little cupboard in the side of the desk. The final task for Jason, was to plug everything into the power bar, and to turn everything on. He started with the power bar, then turned on the monitor, and then after looking at me for a second, pressed the switch on the computer.

The computer started up, and pretty soon the Windows XP logo appeared on the screen. Jason sat down at the desk, and did a few things on the computer. He then had me sit down myself.

"Okay Kyle. This is where I need your help," he said.

"What do I have to do?" I asked him.

"Well. Every computer needs a log in. That means you need to tell it that you are going to be using it. So that no one can do anything else on it, you need to give it a password that only you know. So I want you to type something in, but don't tell us what it is and let me know when you're done. Just remember. It has to be something that you won't forget."

"Okay," I said, then thought for a second. I knew just the password I was going to use, and I started to type away at it. I didn't get to use computers all that often when I was with my mom. The only ones I used were at school and sometimes the library, so I wasn't that good with the keyboard. When I entered the last key, I looked over at Jason. "Now what?" I asked him. He pressed a key on the keyboard then told me to enter the password again, which I did. Once I finished that, he told me to press the 'Enter' key, which I did.

"Alright there buddy, your computer is set up and ready to use."

"Can I play a game, Dad?" I asked, looking over at Ryan.

"Not tonight Son, but you can tomorrow. It's getting late tonight and you need to get into bed."

"Okay Dad," I said.

Just then Greg and Adam came down the stairs dressed in their pajamas which Ryan had given them. Both of them had wet hair, and were wearing grins wide enough to swallow the house. Well, okay, not that big, but I could tell that the two of them were really happy. It was the first time I had seen Adam smile like that, and I hoped it wasn't going to be the last time.

"I see I'm definitely going to have to show you three how to use the hair dryer," Ryan laughed.

"There's a hair dryer?" Greg asked confused.

"Yeah, Dad was telling me about it," I said.

"Well shoot. I wish I had known. I hate having my hair all wet like this."

"I do," Adam said, giggling.

"Well you, little turkey, just like to splash me with water."

"I take it the two of you had a shower together?" Ryan asked.

"Yeah. We always did in the group home. Adam doesn't like having a bath alone, and I didn't want to have a bath, so we had a shower. It's okay isn't it? I guess I should have asked, its just that's what we used to do."

"No boys, I have no problem with the two of you having a shower together. I'm sure if I had a brother, he and I would have shared one when we were growing up," Ryan said.

"You should have seen them upstairs walking to the bathroom naked," I snickered.

"Oh streakers huh?" Jason laughed, causing both Greg and Adam to blush.

"Don't worry boys, it's perfectly okay. Just don't make it a common occurrence, especially if we have guests."

"We won't Dad," Greg said.

"Oh wow you have the computer set up!" Adam exclaimed, running over to the computer, which was still on.

"Yes it's set up Adam, but you boys need to get into bed, so there's no time to play on it. And besides that, I haven't loaded any of the software on it yet."

"Oh," Adam said disappointed.

"Don't worry buddy," Greg said. "We've got all day tomorrow, and besides, we get to go swimming tomorrow too!"

"Yay!" Adam exclaimed excitedly.

"Alright you three, get your butts upstairs to bed and I'll come up to say good night in a bit."

"Well, at least both rooms are completely set up now," Darren said.

"Oh so you managed to get everything done then?" Ryan asked.

"Yep, just before you got home."

"Then how did you get dinner done at the same time?" Ryan asked.

"That's my secret," Darren said, grinning.

"Never mind, I don't think I want to know. You've always managed to do the impossible, so why do I even bother asking?" Ryan sighed.

"That's because you never learn," Darren laughed.

"You three still here?" Ryan said looking at us. "Go on, scoot!" he said, waving for us to go up the stairs.

Giving Ryan one last smile, I turned to head up the stairs, Greg and Adam following behind me. At the top of the stairs, I was just about to walk into my room when Adam stopped me.

"Kyle, can you come say good night to me?" he asked.

"Of course Adam," I said, and allowed him to drag me into his room. The people from Ikea did a wonderful job at putting everything together. It was amazing just how much work went into putting furniture together. But after helping Ryan set up my room, and watching Jason put together my computer desk, I was beginning to get an idea. Adam wanted to sleep on the top bunk, which I kind of expected. Had I had a bunk bed when I was growing up, I would have wanted the top bunk as well.

One time when my mother had sent me to summer camp, I did get to sleep on the top bunk. That was the last time I tried too. Now, anytime I sleep in a bunk bed, I know better and pick the lower bunk. I'm not exactly a morning person, and climbing out of the top bunk is dangerous when you're half asleep.

I helped Adam climb up the ladder to the top bunk, and watched as he climbed in under the covers. I climbed up the ladder half way, and leaned against it.

"All tucked in Adam?" I asked him.

"Yep!" he said, smiling at me.

"Can I have a hug?" he asked, taking his arms out from under the blanket, and holding them out to me.

"Of course you can, Adam," I said, climbing up a little more so I could reach over to give him a hug. Putting my arms around him, I hugged him, and felt him return the hug.

"I love you, Kyle,"

"I love you too, Adam. You sleep well okay?" I said, letting him go.

"I will. Good night."

"Good night," I said. Climbing back down the ladder I saw Greg behind me. He climbed up the ladder after me, and repeated the same thing I had just done with Adam. I think he stayed up there a little longer, but eventually came back down. Together he and I left Adam's room, and I walked with him to his room.

"You really like that little guy, don't you?" I asked him.

"He's really cute," Greg said.

"Cute?" I asked him, a wry grin on my face.

"Well, you know what I mean. He's my little brother. Even when we were at the group home, I wanted to look out for him."

"I know what you mean. I feel the same way. I'm glad he has you Greg. The two of you stick to each other like glue."

"You're not feeling left out are you? I don't want you to feel like we're not paying attention to you."

"No of course not. I love you both. You're my brothers. Besides, you've known him longer. I'm sure he'll get used to me eventually, just like he got used to you."

"Yeah, but he really has taken a liking to Dad already."

"I know. I've never seen that before. When I first was with Dad, I didn't know if I could trust him. I felt like running away from him a couple times. I'm glad I didn't. He really does care about us, and wants us to be happy. Other than my mom, no one's made me as happy as he has."

"I'm sure he is Kyle. I'm still not used to him though. I mean, I think I love him like a father, but I haven't been with him long enough to know for sure."

"I've only been with him for a day longer than you Greg," I told him.

"That's it?" he asked me, surprised.

"Yep. That's it. When he found me, I was on the beach sleeping under some bushes. I was so scared when he woke me up. But he was so funny that I started to like him right away. He kind of reminded me of my mom."

"Wow, I didn't know, Kyle. I guess I do like him, but after what I've gone through, I need some more time," Greg said.

"Don't worry about it. You'll learn to trust him like I do," I told him.

"I do trust him. I guess I'm just not used to him yet."

"Well, just wait until tomorrow then," I told him.

"Why tomorrow?" he asked.

"Your computers will be done, we're going swimming, and I think Dad has something planned for us."

"Tell me!" Greg said, suddenly tackling me and pushing me onto the bed.

"Nope, never gonna tell!" I said, laughing.

"Everything okay in here?" Ryan's voice sounded from the doorway.

"Yes Dad," Greg said, getting off of me.

"Okay. You two should settle down a little. It's time for bed."

"Dad, can I sleep in here with Greg?" I asked him.

"Of course you can, Son," Ryan said. "You miss being with each other like you were in the group home?"

"Yeah. We used to tell jokes and everything before we went to bed."

"Well, just so long as you boys don't stay up too late. I need to get up early tomorrow, so breakfast will be a little earlier than we normally have it."

"Okay Dad," I said.

He then came up to Greg and gave him a hug. "Good night Son, sleep well. I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night Dad," Greg said, returning the hug. Then we walked up to me, and gave me one as well.

"Good night, Son."

"Good night, Dad," I said, hugging him back. He then let go of me, and before leaving the room, looked at the two of us and smiled. He turned off the light, and closed the door slightly, leaving the room dark except for the light in the hallway coming through the opening in the door.

After he had left, Greg looked at me. "You want to share the bottom bunk with me like we use to?" He asked.

"Sure," I said, smiling at him.

* * *

Waking up in the morning was not something that Ryan was looking forward to. Everything was going so well for him and the boys until Rick Thomas decided to get involved. He still couldn't figure out why Rick had a problem, or why he was trying to take Adam away from him. All he knew was, after what Adam had said his father did to him, there was no way he was going to allow that man to have custody of Adam, or any other child for that matter. No one beats on a child like that. Knowing what Rick did, made him angry. More angry than he had ever been before.

The alarm had gone off when he had set it for, jerking him awake from a restless sleep. He hit the button to shut it off and looked over to Jason, who was still sleeping beside him. Then he smiled. Of everything that had gone on in the past few days, meeting Jason was one of the best things that could have happened. He looked so peaceful just lying there. There was no expression on his face, just a relaxed look that told him that he was comfortable, and Ryan suspected, more comfortable than he's been in a long time. He hated having to wake Jason up, but he had no choice. If he had had a choice, he'd have held Jason close to him and stayed there until he woke up.

"Jason," he said gently, putting his hand on Jason's shoulder.

Slowly Jason began to wake up, his eyes opening, and trying to adjust to the light that filled the room from the morning sun. It took a few minutes for Jason to fully wake up, but when he did, he saw Ryan laying beside him, with the most curious grin on his face.

"Good morning babe," Jason said, softly.

"Good morning. How did you sleep?" Ryan asked.

"Better than I have in a long time," Jason replied.

"Well, it's time for me to get up and get breakfast started."

"Mmmm. I think I'll join you for that, but first, I have to visit the little boy's room," Jason said.

Ryan laughed. "You go ahead. I need to get my work clothes ready. It's been a while since I've worn them."

Jason got out from under the covers. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and reached down to grab his pants that he had worn the day before. Ryan watched as Jason pulled his pants on. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to have found Jason. He was the most attractive guy he had ever seen. Dressed only in his pants, Jason stood up and Ryan got a good look at him. He was cursed with the typical bed head that one would have with hair as long as Jason's, but to Ryan that just made him even more attractive for some reason. As if his messy hair actually made him look better than he already did. Jason's skin was very smooth, despite him being thirty-four years old, and aside for a little bit of a belly, he looked to be in very good shape.

Jason walked out of the bedroom, and went down the hall to the bathroom. As he left, Ryan got out of bed, and went over to the closet. Opening the doors, he took out one of his best suits, still wrapped in plastic to protect it from lint. He wasn't kidding when he told Jason that it had been a while since he had worn these clothes to work. He placed the suit on the bed, then went over to his dresser. There he grabbed a pair of boxer shorts, and some socks. He also opened up the lower drawer, and took out a pair of track pants.

Slipping on the pants, he made his way towards the door when Jason came walking in.

"That feels so much better," he said.

"I bet it does. I need to have a shower, you go ahead and head down stairs. Help yourself to some juice or something. I shouldn't be too long."

"Okay. I'll see you when you get out of the shower then," Jason said, already making his way to the chair by the window in the room where he had put his socks and shirt.

"Count on it," Ryan said.

"Just one thing," Jason said, walking up to Ryan after he had put on his socks and shirt.

"And what's that?" Ryan asked.

"This," Jason said, and leaned forward, placing a quick, but loving kiss on Ryan's lips

"I liked that," Ryan said. Then pulled Jason back towards him and kissed him back, this time a long lingering kiss, filled with as much love as he had for Jason.

"I do love you, Ryan," Jason said.

"I love you too Jason," Ryan said.

"I'll wait for you downstairs babe," Jason said, letting go of Ryan reluctantly. Jason then left the room, looking back at Ryan one more time, and Ryan just stood there, letting what just happened run through his mind over and over. There was no denying it. He was in love with Jason.

Ryan gathered up his shorts and socks, and headed for the bathroom, stopping at the linen closet to grab a towel. Closing the door, he stripped off his clothes and started the shower. His shower didn't last long, staying under the shower head just long enough to get washed up. When he got out, he dried himself off, then slipped on the clean pair of boxer shorts and socks he brought with him, followed by his track pants.

Before leaving the bathroom, he made sure his hair was properly combed, and he was clean shaven, putting on some cologne after he had finished. Back in his room, he threw his towel and the dirty pair of boxer shorts into the laundry hamper. It was then he suddenly realized that there was going to be a whole lot more laundry for him to do with three young boys to look after.

He took off his track pants, and began to put on his business suit. He wanted to look his absolute best for the meeting he had arranged today. It was going to be the toughest meeting he ever had, and he was not looking forward to it in the least.

Only one more thing he had to do before going downstairs to get breakfast going, and that was to wake everyone else up. The first room he went to was Adam's which, when he opened the door, he suddenly realized was empty. Now more awake than before, he went to Greg's room. Opening the door he saw something that almost brought tears to his eyes. There lying on the bottom bunk were all three boys cuddled together with Kyle sleeping behind Adam, and Greg sleeping behind Kyle. All three boys were holding each other tightly as if they were afraid to let go.

Ryan stood there in the doorway for a few minutes, and smiled. His three boys belonged together. They were a family, and it was the happiest he could ever be at that moment. It was almost a shame to have to wake them up, but he knew he had to.

Walking into the room, he put a hand on Adam's shoulders, gently shaking him and softly calling out his name. Adam opened his eyes, groggily looking up at him.

"Time to get up Son," Ryan said. "Wake up your brothers, breakfast will be ready soon." He then left the room, and went downstairs to the kitchen where Jason was sitting, a glass of orange juice in front of him.

"Damn, don't you look smart!" Jason said, seeing Ryan coming into the kitchen.

"Thank you Jason, but I have to be honest. I rarely wear this when I go to work. Most of the time I dress business casual. There are some perks to being the owner, after all."

"I guess there is," Jason said, smiling at Ryan. "Where are the boys?" he asked.

"I just woke them up. They were all sleeping in Greg's bed."

"Aw, I bet that was so cute to look at," Jason said.

"Yeah, I wish I had my camera when I saw that."

"Well that will teach you to make sure you have one handy just in case," Jason pointed out.

"Very true."

"Will you be able to drop me off at my place before you go to work? I need to have a shower and change into my good clothes before I go to my interview today."

"Of course. How will you get to the office?" Ryan asked.

"I'll take the bus," Jason replied.

"But it's going to be scorching outside, you'll end up with sweaty clothes by the time you get to work."

"Can't be helped. When you don't drive, there are certain limitations you have to live with."

"Well, forget about the bus. I'll come pick you up and bring you to work personally."

"You don't have to do that, Ryan," Jason said.

"No, I do," Ryan said. "Look Jason, I have to tell you. I am in love with you. When you kissed me upstairs, it made me realize just how much in love with you I already am, and I've only known you for a day."

"I feel the same way babe," Jason said.

"What I'm trying to say Jason, is that I want to do everything I can to make you happy."

"Just being around you makes me happy Ryan," Jason said.

"And being around you makes me happy too Jason. But until earlier, I hadn't made ujp my mind what I was going to do. And now I have."

"What is that?" he asked.

"Jason, I am in love with you. I can't deny that, and there is something I have to ask you. Would you be my boyfriend?" Ryan asked.

"Ryan, you have no idea how long I've waited to here someone ask me that. Yes. I will be your boyfriend. If you'll be mine," Jason said, a tear running down the side of his face.

"Of course I will," Ryan said, and drew Jason towards him, wrapping his arms around the back of his neck. He closed his eyes and leaned forward, kissing Jason once more, but this time kissing him as his boyfriend. Jason, in turn, put his arms around Ryan and returned his kiss. Together the two of them stood like that, holding and kissing each other, blocking everything else out except for the love they shared.

* * *

"Woohoo!" I yelled out from the doorway of the kitchen. "We have two dads!" Ryan and Jason separated suddenly, and looked over in the doorway to see Greg, Adam, Darren and me standing in the doorway looking at them.

All Ryan and Jason could do was stand there and smile at each other. I could only guess at what was going through their minds right now. It was obvious to all of us that they were a couple, and I knew that this was something that Ryan had wanted his whole life. His dream had come true at last. He had a family.