Chapter Text
One Year Later
“Carey…Joaquin...Killian…”
Taako is scrolling through his phone contacts, hastily scrolling past a dozen different numbers to find the one he’s looking for. Why he never took the time to set a speed dial for the person, he will never know.
Suddenly, the timer on the stove goes off, blaring a terrible buzzing noise throughout the entire house.
“AH!” Without meaning to, his thumb taps against the screen and his phone begins to dial. He quickly looks down and sees that instead of trying to call his boyfriend, he is now trying to call his restaurant assistant, Ren.
“Shit,” he murmurs underneath his breath. “HEY, SOMEBODY COME GRAB THE LASAGNA OUT OF THE OVEN!”
“COMING!” Magnus rushes into the kitchen, pushing past Taako who is attempting to hang up the call. He throws open the stove and reaches inside.
Taako looks up from his phone and catches his brother literally moments away from putting his hands into a 375 ° box of metal. “MAGS, PUT OVEN MITTS ON, YOU DOOFUS!”
“Oops, sorry!” Magnus plucks the pair of nearby oven mitts off of the counter and covers up his hands. There was no need for there to be two trips to the emergency room two years in a row. Taako lets out a sigh and shakes his head.
“ Taako? Taako, are you there?”
“Oh, f-Hey Ren!” Taako holds his phone up to his ear. “Listen, sorry, I called the wrong per-”
“ How’s your trip?! Did you tell your family hi for me?! ” Ren is the embodiment of cheerfulness, and if Taako weren’t currently trying to rondevu with someone else while also cooking dinner for eight people, he would try to strike up an actual conversation with her.
“No I-REN SAYS HI EVERYONE! There, I did it. Now listen, Ren-”
“Who’s Ren?” Merle asks as he wanders into the kitchen. Upon seeing the pan of lasagna sitting on the counter, he reaches up to pick at the melted cheese on top.
Taako smacks his hand away. “My assistant. Stop swiping! We’re gonna eat soon!”
“I wasn’t even gonna take that much,” Merle grumbles before walking to the other side of the kitchen. He grabs a set of plates and makes his way over to the dining room table, where Hekuba is already setting out silverware.
Taako turns his attention back to his phone “Sorry, I was yelling at my dad. Listen, Ren, I gotta go. This was an accident. I didn’t mean to disrupt your evening or whatever-”
“ Oh no, you’re just fine! ” Taako can hear her smiling on the other side of the line. “ You didn’t bother me or nothin’. Everything’s still fine over here, just so you know! ”
“That’s great. Okay, I’m gonna hang up now-”
“ Okay-! ”
“Ren, really I gotta-”
“ If you need anything, I’m on standby- ”
“I know, alright-”
“ Seriously, anything at all-! ”
“Ren, I’m really going now. Bye!”
“ Bye Taako-! ”
Taako hangs up the call and immediately goes back to his contacts list, scrolling even fast through all the people listed. The sun has started to go down and all seven of them are about to sit down for dinner without his invited guest. Taako’s mind starts to access his worst case scenarios. What if the traffic in town is bad? What if his guest decided not to come? What if he got sick? What if-
Suddenly, his phone starts ringing. Kravitz’ name pops up on the screen, as well as his profile picture, which Taako took of him on one of their many dates after the promise he made exactly a year ago to this day. Taako is mesmerized by with his goofy grin and dimples, his bird-printed button up, and just...everything about him. He’s fallen and he has fallen hard.
He holds the phone back up to his ear. “Krav! Where are you?! My family is starving and they’re gonna assassinate my lasagna at any minute!”
On the other side of the line, Kravitz laughs, and Taako feels a blush rise to his cheeks. “ I’m on my way! Sorry, I was late getting out onto the road. No one in your family is allergic to peanuts, right? ”
“Why do you-?...Krav, I’m allergic to peanuts. You know that.”
“ I know that. I’m just joking. ” Taako smirks. “ I was just thinking...t-this is the first time I’m going to meet your family without one of them getting arrested or while surrounded by a bunch of dead people and...uh… ”
“Oh, babe, you don’t have to worry about impressing them. Believe me , you don’t. All you really needed was Ango’s approval and you’ve defo got that, my dude.”
“ That’s reassuring...but just in case, I may have attempted to bake a cake? ” Taako can't help the snort that comes out of him. “ Hopefully it tastes good. I tried to remember everything you taught me, but...cakes aren’t supposed to be lopsided, right? ”
“Well... nooooo . But I’m sure it’ll be fine,” Taako reassures him. “That’s actually really adorable, Krav.”
“ Ah, well ,” Kravitz says sheepishly, “ It’s only fair I bring something after you invited me. Listen, I’m almost there so I’m going to go, okay? ”
“I hear ya. Drive safe, darling. See you soon.”
“ Bye Taako. I love you .”
It’s certainly not the first time Kravitz has proclaimed his affection towards him, but it makes Taako’s heart just like it is. “Love you, too. Bye.” He hangs up and watches the screen go dark before tucking his phone away. With his doubts vanquished, now all he has to focus on is making sure all of the food he has prepared makes int onto the dining table without being sampled by impatient family members first.
“Was that Kravitz?” Taako looks to his side and sees Angus smiling up at him. He is quite taller than last year, certainly taller than the last time him and Kravitz ever met in person. It’s not the first growth spurt the kid has had, and the fact that it may not be the last gives Taako that parental urge to keep him small forever. However, there is no way he would ever try to force his son to be an adolescent forever.
Still, the feeling is bittersweet.
“Yeah,” Taako replies, barely aware of how his voice almost swoons . “He’ll be here soon. The poor guy tried to bake a cake for everyone.”
Angus cringes. “Yeesh. That couldn't have turned out well.”
“Well, we’re about to find out because he’s bringing it with him. Don’t worry, you don’t have to eat it if you don’t want to. He’ll understand.”
“I don’t want to seem rude but…”
“No, Ango, it’s okay. He can’t cook anything to save his life. He knows that.”
“Thank you, dad. Is there anything I can help with?”
Taako thinks for a moment. “Hmmm, you can grab yourself something to drink and go take a seat. Oh! Maybe help Mooky get his too, okay? You remember what happened the last time grandpa let him pour a glass of milk for himself?”
Angus shuddrers. “Right. I’ll do that.” Taako ruffles his hair and he smiles.
Then Taako returns to work. The lasagna is still settling, but he still needs to get the garlic bread in the oven and check on the green beans boiling on the stove top and put the fruit salad in a serving container and start chopping up the actual salad and-
-and frankly, he needs more hands on deck, now that he’s thinking about it.
“Need any help?”
As if some god were watching Taako at that exact moment, a miracle has been sent his way. He turns to Hekuba, who is already slipping on a pair of oven mitts. “Yes, thank God . Can you strain the green beans for me? I can get them seasoned.”
“On it.” Hekuba opens up a cabinet and pulls out a pot strainer. “You still need that salad chopped up?”
“Yeah.” Taako grabs a bottle of garlic powder and shakes it over the pieces of buttered toast in front of him. “The romaine lettuce is ready but I still gotta die up the tomatoes and the red pepper-”
“Don’t forget carrots.”
“ Right , of course! Christ, those gotta get shredded. Where did I put the-?”
“Shredder?” Taako looks behind him just as Hekuba sets down the shredder on the kitchen island. “I’ll take care of carrots if you can get the rest.”
“Thanks, Ms. Roughridge-”
“Pssh,” Hekuba waves a hand at him. “How many times to I have to tell you, kid. Just call me Hekuba.” She smiles fondly at him and Taako can’t help but return the expression. Last year, she and Merle had decided to get another divorce, but they were still on friendly grounds. Something must have been discussed between the two of them, but whatever they said, Taako will never know. As the year went on, the two of them have started acting more like close friends and Hekuba has opened up tremendously. Her previous demeanor has long since disappeared and has been replaced with a lady that Taako genuinely enjoys being around. She’s kind, outgoing, and surprisingly snarky.
Slowly, she is becoming the mother Taako never had. Not that he would ever tell her that. A little more time needs to pass before he’s ready to drop that bombshell.
With her help, the two of them manage to get everything on the table a whole lot faster than Taako could have ever on his own. Kravitz shows up a few minutes before everyone starts chowing down with his lopsided cake, which actually looks way worse in person than how he described it over the phone. But the state of the cake doesn’t matter. Everyone greets him warmly and when Taako goes in for a surprise welcome smooth, they all tease him about how hard he’s blushing.
The food tastes incredible, as always, even if it’s just a simple lasagna and some side dishes. Through bites, a conversation is passed around. Hekuba demands that Taako give her his lasagna recipe so she can show up everyone at her book club. Mooky tries to build a fortress out of his green beans and garlic bread and Mavis has to constantly ask him to stop. Merle traps Kravitz into listening about one of his many church stories ( “And you wouldn’t believe how bad John is at lighting the candles! The guy tries, he really does, but he almost set himself on fire!” ).
Kravitz sits patiently though the entire story, but his distress is easily palpable. Taako can’t blame him; the first dinner with your boyfriend’s family is stressful as hell. But as time goes on, Kravitz seems to grow more comfortable around everyone. His shoulders loosen, his expressions become less artificial. Soon enough he starts telling his own stories about his misadventures at the funeral home.
He’s so cute when he goes off about his job, Taako has to resist the urge to kiss him right then and there.
They finish up with dinner and move on to dessert. Magnus dives right into the cake, having the stomach of a goat and the brain of a walnut, and takes the first piece. After taking one bite, his expression goes sour and he tries to discreetly spit the mouthful into a napkin.
“I’m sorry,” Kravitz apologizes. “I-I tried to bake something edible this time, but I guessed I goofed it up, huh?”
“No no! It’s fine!” Magnus tries to convince him. “It’s just...um...I’m allergic to sugar!”
Kravitz face falls. The lie is a critical failure on convincing him otherwise.
“It’s okay, babe.” Taako gives him a quick peck on the cheek. “How about you help me and Ango whip up some brownies real quick? How does brownies sound, everybody?”
“BROWNIES! BROWNIES!” Mooky chants incessantly.
Kravitz smiles. “Yeah, that sounds really fun. Magnus, you can throw that monstrosity out if you’d like.”
“Oh thank God .” Magnus chucks Kravitz’ cake into the garbage can like he is Lebron fucking James.
Taako has no idea how he went six years without cooking, but what boggles his mind even more is how he ever went without cooking with Angus. The kid is always so eager to help and makes what is already an enjoyable experience a thousand times better. He has learned so much from Taako in the past year that he almost doesn’t need help with the brownies. Kravitz, however, does, and Angus is ever so patient with the man.
“Sir, can you hand me the whisk?...No, no-Sir! Sir, those are tongs. It’s over- no , no that’s a spatula. It’s right over-! Sir, to your left. To your- No, no that’s-yes thank you .”
With their combined efforts, they get the brownies in the oven and set the timer for twenty minutes at 400°. Ten minutes later, the heavenly scent of chocolate wafts throughout the house.
This must all be a dream , Taako thinks. Interacting with his family on October 14th without squabbling. Spending time with his boyfriend and having him meet the family. Eating around Magnus’ dining room table, the one he carved himself that is no longer in the basement. Cooking with Angus and Kravitz. Cooking .
It all has to be too good to be true.
But it is true, and all of their lives have changed for the better, and for the first time in years, Taako is happy. Truly happy. He is himself again. He is home .
In his pocket, Taako feels his phone vibrate before it starts ringing. Curious, he pulls it out and looks at the screen.
“Who is it, dad?” Angus asks, peeking over Taako’s shoulder.
“Don’t know kiddo. Area code is for here, though.”
“Whoever it is probably just dialed the wrong number,” Kravitz suggests.
“Yeah...sounds about right…” Taako says before something heavy settles in at the bottom of his stomach. An inkling of suspicion seeps into his brain, begging him to pick up the call instead of ignoring it like he was planning to do. Somewhat hesitantly, he accepts the call.
“Hello? This is Taako?”
There’s a gasp on the other end of the line that sends chills up his spine. “T-Taako? Is it really you?”
“Y-Yeah, the one and only. Is this a business call? Sorry, but I’m off on family vacation. You’re gonna need to call the actual restaurant number-”
“ Taako, it’s me! It’s me, it’s Lup!”
Taako has a family. A family not related by blood but by love and they are all around him, in this house, forever in his life. Despite the damage done those past six years, they have given him everything he has needed to grow into the person he has become. They have given him a home. His home.
But that family could never give him back his sister. No matter how much love he received, a part of him has always been sheltered from that affection. Over time, it has been broken, withered down, and abandoned. It’s a piece of heart that refuses to beat, because how could he live without his second half?
Now his heart is beating and he has never felt so whole .
“.. .Lup? ”
Angus jumps. “Dad...is it really-?”
“Lup, L-Lup where are you? Where have you been?! ”
“ I-I’m right here! I’m right here-I’m still in Lynchburg! Oh my God, Taako -T-Taako, I never thought-!”
“ Where , Lup? Where in Lynchburg. Lup, where-? ”
They’re both speaking so fast, their voices trembling and Taako fears he may break down before she answers him. Lup’s address comes out of her mouth in stutters, like a train moments before it falls off the railroad tracks, but Taako catches it. He holds onto her words like a lifeline.
He turns to Magnus. The truck’s keys are already in his hands. “Let’s go.”
They’re out the door mere moments later.