Alekai laid silent in the bed, his head propped up by a pillow as he stared hard at the ceiling. It was early morning, warm rays of light peeking through the curtains, highlighting the dancing dust drifting through the air. It was peaceful; the soft chirps outside, the gentle swishing of the leaves in the tree as gentle breezes passed through them, the soft brush of short hair tickling his cheek, and the gentle breaths whispering their way across his throat.

He pulled Leo against him tighter, reveling in the way she seemed to mold against him... if not reluctantly if her little sleepy grumbles and shifting said anything. A sliver of a smile graced his lips as he rolled her eyes. Of course she would still be that spitfiery hardass even in her sleep.

And yet he wouldn't change that for the world.

Admittedly, a hint of regret resonated deep inside of him as he recalled the events of last night, and he breathed a deep sigh. It was one of those rough moments that could send you spiraling, and he didn't regret running to Leo and letting her see him at his worse... but he did regret the fact that he was still dragging her into his messed up shit.

He told himself that he would never involve her with what went down inside his house with his family. Promised himself that the really dark shit would stay in the dark. He sure did a good job at keeping his word, he thought ruefully, letting his eyes drift down to the girl in his arms. He knew that it was inevitable that she found out just how deep that well of patheticness went down, but it didn't mean he was happy about it.

Shifting, and consequently cringing at how loud the sheets sounded with every movement in this silence, he ever so slowly maneuvered his position until Leo was simply clinging to the blankets surrounding her and breathing gently. Once he was satisfied that she was still comfortable, he threw his legs over the bend and leaned over them, running his hands up and down his face in an attempt to rid the lingering emotions from last night.

Did jack squat when his palm rubbed over the scab on his lip, reminding him once again of what he would rather forget. His first thought was to go look for a bottle to drown the memories, an instinctive want of his after dealing with everything by himself for so long... but then Leo shifted, mumbling something incoherently, and he found that he shouldn't have what he wanted but what he needed.

Leaning over, he settled a feathery light kiss against her temple, chuckling softly when she unconsciously moved closer.

Opening her door and walking down the hallway like he was trying to be the pink panther or some shit, he suddenly jerked to a stop when he saw Oscar staring at him with amusement over the stove and a spatula in his grizzly hands. Like the man's daughter often had him doing, Alekai opened and closed his mouth several times in an attempt to explain himself, only to stiffen as Oscar put his cooking tools down and walked his way closer and closer.

Expecting the familiar pain that came with father's finding him after a night with their daughters, he clenched his eyes closed and prepared for the worst.

Guess he forgot that the burly, grizzly bear looking guy was actually a fucking teddy bear on the inside. Next thing Alekai knew, he was dragged into a firm hug that squeezed his arms to the side and even lifted him off the ground; a feat that was not achieved by many considering Alekai's 6'3 height and own muscle gain.

Stumbling when he was let go, Alekai grunted in slight displeasure when he grabbed his chin and tilted it upwards. "Damn, son.", Oscar said lowly, his tone light but tinged with something he couldn't detect, "Someone use you as a punching bag?"

A sharp inhale and Alekai was suddenly looking down at his shirtless form, his eyes roaming over the dark bruises showing on his abdomen. Suddenly feeling very defensive about his rare vulnerability, he raised his head and gave a half shoulder shrug, "Something like that. Not the first time though, I can handle it."

Oscar's expression dropped slightly and he opened his mouth only to be interrupted by the only girl in the household yawning and stretching as she wandered into the kitchen.

The tension in the air suddenly dissipated as Oscar practically charged his daughter and pulled her into one of his famous air lifting, bear hugs. Alekai leaned against the counter, crossing his arms as a small smile graced his lips. Even with messy bed head, clothes practically swallowing her, eyes hooded with remaining sleep, and maybe even a small trail of drool still lingering on her chin, Alekai still thought she was quite the sight the behold.

"Didn't warm me, this fellow would be spending the night.", Oscar chuckled, letting her go finally as he walked back over to the stove. "Don't mind it much though, especially with that pink panther show he gave me as entertainment."

Alekai's wistful look as he stared at Leo suddenly dropped to shock as his head whipped back to the man's back. A blush coated his face fiercely as he glared at the guy and crossed his arms, wishing more than anything he had a hoodie to pull over his face. "I wasn't-", he tried to protest...

But one look at the raised brow both father and daughter gave him, had him grumbling to himself and taking a seat in one of the chairs. Guess he knew who she took after a lot more. Grunting in acknowledgement and maybe just maybe, melting a little when Leo grabbed his chin and pulled him down for a light kiss, Alekai felt his mood lighten considerably.

With his arm wrapped resting against the back of her chair, he listened silently as father and daughter talked to and fro, conversing so easily and familiarly that it was easy to see the love between them even if unspoke.

He leaned back, tilting his head a little as he stared at Leo next to him. A few rays of sun broke through the kitchen window and illuminated a few strands of wayward hair into golden streak, making it look like a crown of light she wore. And as she grinned boyishly at her old man, he hoped that he could have a relationship like those two with his own children one day.

Odd, considering he never once wanted a future in the past.

As long as it involved the girl beside him who didnt question the blatant bruises on his body and who talked about secrets even after spilling his own, and who could beat his ass as easy as brushing her teeth... he thought that he would want a life no matter how it turned out in the coming storms.

Only her.

Always her.

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DISCLAIMER
Leo and Oscar do not belong to me. Any and all creative credit for these ocs belong to PokechuBirdie. She created these characters and allowed me to create a short story involving them and Alekai! This was originally meant to be a one shot type of deal but now it's an i-don't-know-how-many-shots deal. I'm just rolling with it! XD

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𝙿 𝚕 𝚊 𝚢 𝚕 𝚒 𝚜 𝚝
"𝙸𝚏 𝙸 𝙳𝚒𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚃𝚎𝚕𝚕 𝚈𝚘𝚞" 𝚋𝚢 𝙹𝚊𝚖𝚎𝚜 𝚃𝚆