Life Anew Chapter 6

Warning: This story does not contain any sex. None of the characters are based on real people, nor are they meant to resemble any living or dead people.

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Characters in this chapter:

Cody Gaines – Chase's Dad, Andrew's future boyfriend

Chase Gaines – Cody's Son, Andrew's future stepson

Andrew Brock – Chase's future stepdad, Cody's future boyfriend

Jason Perez – Andrew's friend

Ella Gaines – Cody's Mom

Jennifer Cross – Coworker of Cody's and Andrew's

Life Anew

Chapter 6

Chase's Questions ( About Dad's Date )

It is the next day after the date, and Chase is sitting back studying his dad. He doesn't understand where his dad went last night. Maybe, Cody will do something or say something that will tell Chase, where his dad went last night. His father explained what a date is, but didn't tell Chase who he saw last night on his date Chase knows that his dad likes to date guys, so he figures out for himself that his daddy had a date with a guy. Questions are growing inside his head. Hopefully, Daddy will answer those questions.

***

Chase and his father are in the car. The family is returning to their home after visiting with Cody's parents. During the car ride, Chase is quick to ask his dad a few more questions about yesterday's date.

"Daddy, did you have fun last night?"

Cody smiled at his son.

"I did have fun. It was nice to get to know my date."

Chase doesn't know what Cody meant by the last sentence, but he's glad that his dad had fun on his date. Chase had fun last night too.

"Are you going to have another date?"

Again, Cody grins as he thinks about what it would be like to have a second date with Andrew. If the first date was amazing, what will the second date be like?

"I hope I get to have a second date. You want me to have a second date?"

Chase thinks it over and then looks over at his dad.

"Can I go too?"

Cody isn't' sure that he wants his son going with him on a date. At some point, he hopes to introduce Andrew to Chase, but the time just isn't right for that, so for now, his son will have to wait.

"Look kiddo, I think it's too soon for you to be meeting my date, but I promise you can meet him when the time is right."

Chase's face looks like he's pouting a little bit.

"What if Grandma came with?"

Chase is trying to talk his dad into letting him come with, and he's hoping that adding Grandma into the picture will cement the deal.

"I don't think Grandma is going to want to come with me and my date."

Chase still isn't super happy with Daddy's answer.

"Okay! Are you going to see him again?"

Chase's last question hit Cody a little bit. He wants to see Andrew again, that is for sure. Course, he hopes that Andrew wants to see him again. Suddenly, Chase comes up with another question.

"Daddy, what's his name?"

Cody sees no harm in telling Chase his date's name.

"His name is Andrew."

Chase is quiet for close to a minute, and then he breaks his silence.

"Daddy, can you tell Andrew that I want to be his friend?"

Cody chuckles. He wonders what Andrew will think about that Chase's question. Knowing Andrew, he will jump on it.

"I can do that, kiddo."

Cody tells his son, who is now quiet again. Cody knows that Andrew will be on Chase's mind. He knows his son wants to meet his date.

***

Chase is certainly interested in Andrew, or maybe it's just the idea of his daddy going on a date. Cody is afraid that if Andrew meets Chase that he'll run away. It doesn't matter how many times he says that he wants kids. Cody has seen this play out in his own dating life. Just when he thought things were good, his world came crashing down, the guys would meet Chase and then realize that maybe they didn't want a son. Still, he can't keep his son hidden from view. If things get serious and he hopes that they do, he'll have to introduce them. He will continue his son every time over a guy, but he likes Andrew.

***

While Cody is waiting on his snack to finish warming up in the microwave, he pulls out his phone. He pushes the icon to go through his contacts. Looking at Andrew's name, he debates between calling and messaging his employee. He chooses to text him.

"Hey, I thought that I would share with you something that Chase asked me today. He wants you to be his friend, what do you think about that?"

Andrew is relaxing at home when the text comes through. At first, he doesn't know what to think. His boss has a kid, and this kid wants to be his friend. Usually, he would say no because it would be weird for an adult to be friends with a kid. Still, he can't think of a better way to show Cody how ready he is to be with him, then to show Cody's son some kindness.

"You tell him that when the time is right, I will be his friend."

What does Andrew mean by "...when the time is right...", is he giving Cody time to figure out when the time is right, which is excellent? Cody wants to tell him how his son was trying to convince him to allow him to come on the next date. Should he tell him? He decides to go ahead and tell him.

"Andrew, can you believe he tried talking me into taking him on our next date."

Things are kind of quiet for a little bit as Andrew tries to come up with a response. Instead, he decides to see what the dad told his son.

"What did you tell him?"

Again there is a pause in the texting as Cody removed his food from the microwave and carefully set it on the table. He sat at the dining room table and then texted Andrew back.

"I told him that I didn't think the time was right for him to meet you, but I also promised him that he would meet you."

When Andrew says the promise that Cody made to Chase, it brought a smile to the nurse's face.

"Well, when the time is right, I can't wait to meet him, Cody."

Despite the conflict in Cody's mind, it feels good to hear Andrew anxious to meet his son. Right now, though, he wants to dig into his nachos.

"Well, see you tomorrow at work, Andrew."

"Goodbye, boss-man."

Andrew and Cody are left feeling better about today after having a chance to hear from each other.

***

Cody's luck with relationships as of late has him wondering what exactly Andrew is thinking. He kept stressing that when the time is right, that he would be a friend to Chase. He's overthinking all of it, but it feels so real to him. He should just let it go. He knows Andrew will accept his son without hesitation. What Andrew said about his son hit him. Andrew is willing to be his son's friend not because he wants to be Chase's friend, but because he wants to be in their lives. He wants Chase to have friends, but he doesn't want Andrew to be his friend. He wants his date to be Chase's daddy. His son deserves to have someone in his life that loves him and accepts him. Cody doesn't know why Andrew's voice is eating at him, but it is.

***

Meanwhile, we move to Andrew. Andrew is thinking about how things are going between Cody and him. Andrew is very thankful. Cody is allowing things to move slowly. There isn't a lot of pressure on him to be anything but himself. He doesn't want to stress out. Andrew realizes, he made mistakes with Ethan, and going slow, allows him time to think. With Ethan, he jumped from one stage in a relationship to another. He doesn't want the drama that he associates with Ethan.

***

Andrew is out with Jason, and they are trying to do some shopping for dinner tonight. They are enjoying shopping. They're talking and laughing. Suddenly, someone catches his eye. There is a chance that it's not who he thinks it is, but he's pretty sure that it's his boss.

"Dude, did you see a ghost or something?"

Jason asks his friend.

"I think that I saw Cody, and there is a kid with him."

Jason suddenly gets excited. He wonders if his friend will need a push to approach him. It seems like he wants to make sure that there is space between them. It looks like things are going to be super awkward. Jason decides that he'll give Andrew a little push.

"Dude, this isn't Ethan, so go and say hi."

Andrew takes his cart and heads out to see if he can find Cody. All he needs to do is make it look like he's not stalking him in the grocery store. Andrew and Jason end up browsing in the spice and baking aisle because that's close to where Cody and his kid are shopping. They have their backs facing the food as Cody approaches.

"Andrew?"

Cody asks as he gets ready to pass thee, two guys. Andrew turns around to see who called his name. He has a surprised look on his face, course the surprise is all fake, but Cody can't tell.

"Cody, I didn't think I would see you here."

Andrew says as he looks at Cody's face.

"Yeah, I picked up my son from my mom's house, and decided to go shopping for food before going home."

Jason taps Andrew on the shoulder to remind him that he is there.

"Oh, this is my best friend, Jason Perez. Jason, this is my boss, Cody Gaines."

Some doctors would get upset with Andrew for not adding "Doctor" before his first name. Cody didn't though, he smiled and reached his hand to shake Jason's hands.

"Well, I wanted to wait to introduce you to my little guy, but since he is here and you are here. Andrew, this is my son, Chase. Chase, this is daddy's date, Andrew."

Andrew wasted no time in dropping down to Chase's level, ready to give the kid a high five.

"HI, Chase!"

Jason has seen Andrew with kids, so none of this is surprising to him. Chase looks at him, trying to figure the stranger out. Andrew smiles, and instantly Chase gives him a high five.

"You like my daddy?"

Cody grows nervous as he waits for Andrew to answer his son.

"I do like your daddy. He's a great guy."

Cody's face becomes beet red. Chase has decided that any guy who would give him a high five and likes his dad must be okay. Chase walks a little closer to Andrew and gives him another high five.

"Thanks for the high five dude!"

Not wanting to make Chase feel slighted, Andrew is taking every opportunity to make this introduction something that will leave Chase feeling good about it. Cody still had grocery shopping to do as did Andrew, so they said good-bye and went their own way. When Cody is far enough away, Jason turns to Andrew.

"Dude, you were not kidding about the doctor being hot. He looks like his muscles might pop out of his shirt. If you ever break up, I am going to hit him up.

The last sentence got some attention from Andrew. Granted, it was not exactly the attention that Jason might want. It gets him a slap on his right arm.

"You had better not go after him."

It gave the guys a little chuckle as they turned to get back to shopping.

***

Andrew thinks about what his best friend said. He really cannot blame Jason for wanting a chance at being with Cody. Still, the guy had better keep his mind off of Cody's body. They may not be official, but Andrew and Cody have eyes on each other and only each other. It may be hard to believe, but Andrew isn't about the mistakes he made with Ethan. His relationship is with Cody and nobody else.

***

Seeing Cody, it brought back all those feelings inside of his Andrew. You know those "butterflies in the stomach" feelings. Those feelings of seeing your crush time and time again. He saw him, and now, he just wants to see him again. It may not happen today, but at least he knows that he will see him again.

***

A little later in the day, Cody is also missing Andrew as well. He decides to call him. It's not the same as a video call or seeing Andrew in person, which is also nice. Cody loves being able to look into Andrew's eyes. There is just something about those shining eyes that pulls you into his soul. Once you are there, you are there, and nothing other than something hateful will make Andrew forget about you.

"Hey, Andrew, how are you?"

Andrew is happy to hear from his Cody.

"I'm good. I didn't expect to see you and Chase at the store. Talk about cool! Thanks for allowing me to spend a few seconds with Chase."

Andrew told his boss and hopeful boyfriend.

"Chase was smitten with you. He gets that way with adults who pay him any amount of attention, and you must have made an impression on him. Thanks for being so kind."

No one needs to thank him for being kind. He makes it a point to treat every kid like they are important. Making that first impression with Chase was important to Andrew. If Chase doesn't like him, it's possible that Cody won't stay with him after all, they are a package deal.

"It was my pleasure."

Andrew tells his date. The guys are enjoying their time together. They continue talking, but Cody wants to discuss something very important.

***

Cody needs to be reassured that Andrew wants kids. Cody doesn't want just one kid, maybe he'll want more, and maybe he won't.

"So, I have a big thing to discuss with you, and don't freak out."

Cody tells Andrew, and he doesn't want his guy to run away because of this, so he's hoping to put him at ease. It's not one of the more comfortable conversations to have.

"You know that I have a son and that Chase and I are a package. So, how do you feel about being a dad if we get married?"

Andrew isn't one bit anxious over Cody's question.

"Umm...Cody, if we do get married, that automatically makes me Chase's dad. But yes, I am fine with being his parent."

Cody means it too.

"I know kids aren't a problem for you, do you think you would want kids with me?"

Cody asks his guy a question and then waits quietly, giving the other guy a chance to process the question. If Cody were face to face with Andrew, he would have seen his excitement.

"Heck yeah, Dude, I would love to add some kids to the family. We have time to figure all that out, for now, let's have some fun getting to know each other."

Cody was expecting a response like this from Andrew. The question is, how many kids would the guys have together.

`This, this is huge.'

Now it's Cody's chance to glow, Andrew might just have made his day if not his week.

"Thanks, Andrew, I was hoping you would say that I'm sorry if that freaked you out at all. I was thinking about it, and it kind just feel out of my mouth."

Andrew is glad that Cody is nervous, too; otherwise, he wouldn't have brought up having kids with his hopeful boyfriend. Cody hangs up the phone and lets Andrew go back to his day.

***

Cody then calls his mom. He doesn't know why, but he wants to share what he's feeling with someone. Cody doesn't want to keep all of this tucked away inside of him.

"Hi Cody, what is going on? Is everything okay?"

He's a little take back by her question. It almost seems kind of supernatural the way she responded.

"Um...why would you ask if everything was okay?"

He kind of wonders why she asked that question. There isn't anything wrong. Cody wonders if his last question to Andrew and Andrew's response to him will make his mom wonder what is going on in her son's head.

"I just have a feeling that something is up. So, why did you call?"

His mom is waiting to hear from her son exactly what is on his mind.

"I was talking to Andrew today, and we talked about kids. He wants to be Chase's dad assuming we get married, and he's open to having more kids in our family assuming again that we get married."

She is thinking about what her son just said. Cody has always wanted more kids, but he hasn't been in a situation where he could add more kids to the family. She doesn't want to let him think that she is against the idea of more grandkids.

"Cody, I'm excited. I cannot believe that you found someone who wants to be a father to Chase. I hope the best for you and Andrew."

They are fortunate to have Cody's family on their side. He doesn't want his mom to think that he didn't think some of this through. A little later in the day, we find Andrew relaxing at his house.

***

Andrew is feeling pretty happy and has been for the most since speaking with Cody. Jennifer knows that Andrew has been worried about the possible relationship with his boss. She decides to call Andrew and invite him over for dinner. Andrew quickly agrees. A half-hour later, he is at her house sitting down for dinner.

"Andrew, what's new?"

She asks as he waits for food to come around so he can get put it on his plate.

"Well, Cody called me today."

Hearing that, he called makes her happy. They need to take every opportunity to talk and bond whenever they can.

"What was the topic of discussion?"

Now, she is just nosy, but Andrew doesn't mind answering her.

"We were discussing kids."

She looks a tad bit worried about their choice of topics. How many couples that are just starting sit down and discuss kids?

"I told him that I would love to be Chase's dad if we manage to last that long. We also talked about maybe adding kids to the family if we last that long."

Jennifer seems to thinks they are spending too much time talking about the future and not enough about each other and the present. Cody needs to cool it. Andrew doesn't need to be stressing over kids. She understands Cody's need to see if the guy he's dating will be okay with his son. It doesn't mean that he should not be trying to scare the guy away.

"Well, just make sure that it's your decision and not something that Cody is pressuring you into being a dad."

`Where did that come from?'

She may know Cody better than he does, but the doctor wouldn't force his wants and needs on Andrew. Would he?

"I don't think Cody would ever force his thoughts, needs, or wants on me."

Jennifer doesn't say a thing, nor does she roll her eyes. She doesn't want Andrew to get angry. Everyone sits back and enjoys the meal. The conversation drops off as everyone eats. Andrew is kind of beside himself. Why would Jennifer, who works great with Andrew and with Doctor Gaines, make him sound like he would use pressure to force someone into something? After Andrew has gone home, Jennifer does something that her husband would not like.

***

She immediately gets on the phone and calls Cody. It's not going to be a friendly call even though the two people are friends.

"Jennifer, Hi, what's going on?"

Jennifer pauses for a second before addressing her boss.

"I had Andrew over at my house for dinner."

`She was digging for information. I hope Andrew was careful about what he said to her.'

He doesn't want her to put ideas into his head. Cody would love for Jennifer just to mind her business, but she won't so, why even try to make her. Unless it gets really ugly.

"Cody, I think you need to slow down with Andrew. You brought up Chase to him after just one date. Did you think that was wise?"

Cody is on edge. If this were any other person, he would shut them down right now. Instead, he has to try to do it softly. Let's hope he can do that without coming across as a jerk or worse.

"Well, I had something happen earlier in the day that I wasn't expecting. I was out with Chase at the grocery store and ended up meeting Andrew and a friend at the store. What did you want me to do, run, and hide from Andrew? Then when I called him, my brain was running a mile a minute, and yeah, I brought Chase back up because it felt right, just like it felt right to ask him about adding kids to the family. I hope up you see things the way that I do or that you'll come too. I like Andrew, and I don't want to lose him, so please don't put ideas in his head."

She doesn't exactly like the last sentence out of his mouth, but she does understand a bit more about why Chase was discussed.

"I promise not to put ideas as you call it in Andrew's head. If you promise to slow down."

Cody shakes his head. He can't believe that she wants him to slow down. If he moves any slower in this relationship, the relationship will be non-existent. He doesn't want to stop moving forward, and he believes that Andrew wants to keep moving forward too.

"Look, Jennifer, I know you mean well, and I appreciate it, but I need to keep moving forward. Andrew needs that, and I deserve that. I am not moving any faster then Andrew needs me to move. He deserves a second chance at love as do I. He may not think that it's possible for someone to love him again or to trust him again, but I see through that, and I will not hurt him. Now, how about we end this call, and you let me get back to my son so we can relax a bit before his bedtime? I will see you tomorrow."

She listens to his words and silently agrees to see him tomorrow. Cody is very wise, so wise that he was able to make her see things the way that he hoped that she would. It's his wisdom and light, makes her like him, and admire him.

***

Cody walks into his office and pulls out his journal. He records the date and then writes down what was discussed amongst between him and Jennifer. He wants to remember this, so; he doesn't lose track of the end goal. The end goal is Andrew's heart joining with him and becoming the family that Chase needs.

"He may not think it's possible for someone to love him again or to trust him again, but I see through that, and I will not hurt him."

Those words will someday quite possibly be read to Andrew with some changes. Perhaps, he'll have a chance to read those words to his boyfriend when it comes time to propose.

***

Chase wakes up from his sleep and heads for his daddy's office. It's where Cody goes to unwind before entering his room to fall sleep. He tries to avoid reading before going to bed. Cody's little man stands at the entrance to his father's lair.

"Daddy, I can't sleep."

Chase says as he stands at the doorway, looking at his dad.

"Come here, kiddo, why you can't you sleep?"

The little guy enters the room, and as he gets closer, Cody sees him wiping his eyes. Cody reaches out his hands. As he watches his son coming closer, Cody can't help but wonder why his son isn't sleeping. His son climbs up into his lap and snuggles a bit.

"I want to see your friend."

Chase says to his daddy, but his daddy doesn't know what to say to his son. Instead, he trusts that he'll say the right thing.

"Right now, Andrew is sleeping just like you should be. Do you want to sit with me for a few minutes and then go back to bed?"

Cody knows he has to be up early tomorrow so that he can go to see his grandparents tomorrow, but a few minutes with Daddy won't hurt him.

"Daddy, when can I see him?"

Cody knows that what he is about to say will most likely go over his son's head, but it needs to be said.

"Well, that is hard for daddy to answer."

Chase is looking up at his father's face. He doesn't exactly get what his father was saying. He pushes for an answer anyway.

"Why?"

He doesn't know why he can't see Andrew, just that Daddy said that it was hard.

"Well, I have to know that Andrew isn't going to hurt your feelings."

Now, Chase understands what his dad said. Daddy's friend might make his sad or cry. Chase kisses his daddy and then climbs off his daddy's lap and walks towards the door.

"Daddy, I am ready for bed."

Cody gets up and follows his son as he walks towards his bedroom. Chase climbs into his bed and covers himself up in a blanket, a fleece superhero blanket that features his favorite superhero who wears red, white, and blue. Cody finishes tucking him. He gives him another kiss good night. The light was never turned on, so there is no need to turn it off, so Cody leaves the room after turning around and telling him good night.

***

Cody isn't the only one who has a journal. Andrew has been writing his journal since he was in high school. Today though, he writes about his encounter with Chase and Cody at the store. He wants to remember everything that happened and said. He also records the conversation between him and Cody when they were talking about Chase and Cody. It's something that he never wants to forget.

***

Andrew texts Cody out of a need to hear from his crush. He just wants to thank him. He quickly types up a text and then clicks send. A few minutes later, this comes through on Andrew's phone:

"You're so welcome. Chase has not stopped talking about you."

He was going to tell Andrew about his conversation with Chase just a few minutes ago but decides against it. Maybe, Jennifer had a reason to tell him not to put pressure on Andrew. It's possible that by telling him what took place between Chase and Cody, that it could put pressure on his date, to agree to have kids. Cody wouldn't want that, so he keeps his mouth shut.

"Well, I hope it was all good stuff."

Cody chuckles at what Andrew said.

"It was."

`This is stupid; I am going to tell him what happened.'

Jennifer can stick it if he thinks he's keeping this from Andrew.

"You made such an impact, that Chase wants to see you again. He couldn't sleep, so he came into my office about ten minutes ago to because he wanted to see you again."

It hit Andrew right in the heart.

"That is so sweet!"

Andrew loves it, but he needs to get to sleep.

"I'll talk to you later, Cody. I am going to bed."

Cody responds.

"Good night Andrew!"

Andrew smiles as he hooks up his phone to its charger and goes to bed. Cody gets up and walks into his bedroom and does the same thing that Andrew did. The difference is that Andrew can't get to bed just yet.

***

Andrew is happy to have someone like Cody in his life. He is truly the most real person that he has ever met in his entire life. Out of the blue, as he gets ready for bed, his phone lights up, and it's his mom. Now usually, his mom doesn't call him this late at night. It's passed the time that he has asked people not to call.

"Hi, Mom! What's wrong?"

He asked as panic grows in his heart.

"There is nothing wrong. I just wanted to check in with you."

She says to her son, who is trying to shake off the anxiety that built up.

Today has been crazy, Mom. I got to meet Cody's son while out shopping with Jason."

She is quiet for a second before she responds.

"How did that go?"

She asks him, hoping that it went well.

"It went, great Mom. Chase is a little cutie. He woke up tonight and asked his daddy when he can see me again. I about cried, Cody told me."

His mom smiles at the thought that it looks like this thing with Cody might go places.

"I won't keep you, Son, but I'm happy for you."

His mom ends the call, and they go to bed. Cody's and Andrew's sleep is going to be filled with good things. Tomorrow though, things might be a little rough for Cody, but we will have to see what happens.

***

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