*October 20th, 2004*<?xml:namespace prefix = o />
*Jaden’s First Birthday*
Standing in the entry, Brian stared at the scene in front of him and grinned. He couldn’t do anything but grin. Quietly he leaned against the wall and settled in to watch the show. Music blared on the radio, blocking out any sound he might have made anyways. “Footloose” was the song that was playing. And, in the middle of the living room, AJ and Jaden were dancing their little hearts out.
Watching Jaden try to dance was cute enough. That little boy sure had gained his daddy’s lust for the stage. He loved to dance and be around crowds and he absolutely loved people and music. With a mile wide grin he was bobbling around the living room, arms raised in the air as he gave the baby babble version of singing.
AJ, on the other hand, was just as much fun to watch. Dressed only in pajama pants, he made one heck of a picture as he danced in a style reminiscent of Kevin Bacon in the move Footloose, which was where this song came from.
Praying they’d stay where they were, Brian rushed to the coat rack by the door and dug through the diaper bag until he found the ever present camera. Rushing back over as quietly as possible, he turned it on and switched it to video. Then he stood in the doorway and grinned as he recorded the two dancing their way through the living room.
Somehow he was lucky enough that they still hadn’t seen him. He had a perfect view as AJ scooped Jaden up in his arms and spun around with him, making the little boy squeal and laugh. In mid turn, AJ finally caught sight of Brian and the camera. He almost stumbled, barely managing to catch himself. Then his face lit up with a bright grin. “Look, Papa’s home!” He told Jaden, pointing over to Brian.
In the camera frame Brian perfectly caught Jaden’s wide grin. “Papa, papa, papa!” he chanted, bouncing on AJ’s hip.
“Looks like my two best guys were having fun.” Brian teased as he stepped into the room, still keeping the camera trained on them.
The two wore identical grins. “Just playing around. He sure loves his music.” AJ said fondly. He nuzzled against Jaden’s neck, making the boy squeal and giggle. Absently AJ still bounced, keeping beat with the end of the song.
“Wonder where he got that trait from?” The teasing in Brian’s voice had AJ’s eyes slipping up to him, laughter echoing in their depths. Taking hold of Jaden’s hand, AJ raised it. “Wave hi to Papa, honey.”
Jaden bounced again and waved his hand. “Hi!” he cried, using his newest word. For being a year old, the kid already had a few words under his belt. He was also walking, and had been for about a month already. They were so proud of him. No one could have loved him any more than they did.
“Celebrating the big one already, little man?” Brian teased Jaden.
AJ grinned. “Hey, a man’s first birthday only comes around once. Gotta celebrate it right. You get everything set up downtown for the party?”
“Yes, Daddy.” Brian said with a smile. “Got it all reserved. Kay’s there to set things up, get it all organized. She’s like a little general, marshaling the troops. Kev and Kristen are already there. So are Mom and Dad.”
With another smile, AJ swung him and Jaden around in a circle, the little boy’s giggles echoing in the air. “Let’s go party!”
Brian lowered the camera, shutting it off. He set it on the coffee table so that he could step forward and embrace his two boys, kissing them both on the forehead. AJ tucked himself under Brian’s arm and rested his head on Brian’s shoulder. The gesture was sweet and totally AJ. It made Brian smile. Then Jade snuggled in too, the top of his head under AJ’s chin, his cheek pressing against Brian’s shoulder. Emotion clogged Brian’s throat. Like father like son, he thought to himself. Jaden was just as snuggly as AJ was.
A buzzing sound interrupted their snuggle. AJ raised his head, looking around. “Crap, that’s my phone.” He grumbled. With an easy move he transferred Jade from his arms to Brian’s before he set off to look for the source of the sound. Brian pulled Jaden in close, nuzzling his cheek and making the boy laugh. “Daddy lost his phone again, didn’t he?”
“Daddy!” Jaden agreed loudly.
“I didn’t lose it!” AJ called out from the kitchen. “I just misplaced it!” There was a shuffling sound, then a loud shout as AJ obviously found his phone. The vibrating sound stopped. Brian shook his head and put Jaden down beside him, taking the little boy’s hand. They liked to encourage him to walk on his own so that he could practice and gain better balance. Plus, they wanted their son to be taught his independence.
So Brian kept his pace slow, allowing for Jaden’s toddling beside him. They made their way upstairs to Jaden’s room. While he searched for clothes, Brian let his son go play with his toys.
That was how AJ found them a moment later. Jaden was on his rug, driving a car around and crashing it into everything, including Papa’s feet. Brian was finally pulling out the clothes he needed. A soft whistle caught his attention. Turning, he grinned over his shoulder at AJ, who was blatantly staring at his ass. “Hello, husband.”
“Hello, Bri.” AJ smiled at him.
“Who was on the phone? No one’s canceling, are they?” He bent down, scooping up Jaden and moving him to the crib to make it easier to change his clothes.
AJ shook his head, resting against the doorjamb. “No, no, nothing like that. It was the center. We’ve got about an hour until the party, Bri, you think it would be ok if we swung by the center? There’s a shipment that came in double the size it was supposed to. Charged us double too. Tammy called the company an kept the driver there, but the guy won’t take half back and the guy at the company said he won’t give back the money even if it’s all returned.” Tammy was their office manager. She took care of almost everything around the office and kept AJ up to date on the day to day information of the place. AJ was also the only one who got away with calling her Tammy. The matronly lady wouldn’t answer to that from anyone else; she’d glare them through the floor. To the rest of the world, she was Tamara.
Brian tossed Jaden’s dirty clothes into the hamper. He looked over at AJ in surprise. “They can’t do that. Our orders are always clear.” He snagged Jaden’s clean shirt, pulling it over the little boy’s head. “If Tamara didn’t find anything wrong in the order than it’s got to be on their end, which means they have to accept the return shipment and they have to reimburse us. We won’t pay for their mistake.”
“Exactly. But she says they’re telling her that they won’t give the money back no matter what, so she’s at her wits end and asked me if I could stop in and talk with the driver and the company.”
Now that Jaden was fully dressed, Brian scooped him up and gave him a kiss on the nose before lifting him into the air, making him giggle. “Well we’re ready here.” Brian brought Jaden back down, setting him on the ground. “If you’re ready to go, let’s hurry up and stop by there so we don’t end up late for our son’s party.”
“You’re the best!” AJ exclaimed, popping forward to give Brian a loud kiss. “I promise, it’ll be fast. Give me five minutes to get dressed!”
As AJ dashed out of the room, Brian looked down at Jaden who was crashing his car again. “Your daddy is a lunatic.”
Jaden squealed in response and let his car crash spectacularly into Brian’s foot.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fifteen minutes later the three of them were parking outside of the clinic. Unbuckling, AJ grinned at Brian. “Like I said, it’ll just take a few minutes.” He reminded him. The look Brian gave him in return had AJ chuckling. He climbed from the car, stretching his body in the cool October air. Though he hated to admit it since the day had barely started, he was already feeling achy. Just one of those things he’d been forced to get used to. Didn’t mean he liked it, but he didn’t like a lot of what was going on in his body.
By the time he’d adjusted his jacket again, Brian had Jaden out of the car and was holding his hand. Everything inside of AJ simply melted right then and there. It always did when he saw his two boys together. He felt the smile lighting up his face when he reached out and took Jaden’s other hand.
“So,” Brian continued. “When you going to finally hire the new administrator? I know you’re down to two you like. You’ve got to pick one at some point, husband. Free up some of your time from this place. You don’t have the qualifications to be the administrator.”
“I know, I know.” Sighing, AJ pushed open the door as he reached it, holding it open for them to step in. “It’s just… it’s like entrusting Jaden to someone. I need to make sure this person is perfect first. This place is my baby.”
He’d let go of Jaden’s hand to let them in. Once they were in, he stepped in himself and let the door shut, then turned to look at Brian. Right as he did, he crashed into someone, sending things flying to the ground. The door caught him, preventing him from falling and he automatically stuck his hands out, steadying whomever he had hit.
“I’m so sorry!” he cried out, looking at the young girl he’d almost knocked over. She pulled back from him, squatting down to gather the papers she’d been holding. “It’s fine.” She whispered. Her voice was soft, trembling slightly as if she was on the verge of tears.
Worried, AJ squatted down and helped her gather the papers. “I wasn’t looking where I was going. I really am sorry.” He apologized again.
Her smile trembled a little as he handed her the papers he’d gathered. “It’s ok. I wasn’t paying attention either.” She reassured him. The girl was pretty, he thought. Long brown hair down to her mid back, left to hang free. Bright green eyes that held a slight film of tears to them. His heart couldn’t resist the broken look on her face.
When they rose, AJ stepped sideways, away from the door. He put a gentle hand on her arm. “You ok, ma’am?”
The girl looked surprised at his question. God, she couldn’t have been more than twenty. So young. “I...I’m fine.” Her eyes shifted toward the door. One single tear fell. “Just some bad news, you know?”
Ah. There was no doubt what that bad news was in a place like this. AJ ignored the others around him for a moment and focused solely on this sad girl. “I understand completely.” He told her softly. He stuck out a hand. “My names AJ. Is there anything I can do for you? Anyone you’d like me to call, maybe?”
She shook his hand briefly, then wrapped her arms around herself, cradling her paperwork to her chest. The brief glimpse he’d caught of it told him that it was the information packet that was handed out to people who were newly diagnosed. “No, no one.” She whispered. The words sounded so broken. “There’s no one at all.”
So much heartache in those words! AJ spoke before he could think about it. “It’s not all as bad as it seems, my dear. Things aren’t as bad as they used to be for people like us.”
It looked for a minute like she’d resist talking to him. He thought she might bolt straight for the door. But another tear slipped down her cheek as she looked up at him. “It seems horrible. I’m going to die.” The words were tore from deep inside and carried all her pain and fear.
AJ put his hands on her arms, rubbing them lightly to keep her attention. “We all die one day.” His words were soft and gentle.
“But I’m too young for this! I had so much more ahead of me.”
“You still do!” He insisted. Before she could protest, he shook his head at her. “No, I’m telling the truth. Look at me, honey. I was diagnosed with HIV a little over four years ago. Right before my band went on tour. The average person can last a long time on the new HAART regime that doctors prescribe. Not everyone reacts the same, but they usually find something that works.”
“But…if it progresses to AIDS, I’ll lose everything. My life will be over.”
AJ smiled indulgently at her. “No, it won’t. I didn’t react well to HAART, which is unusual. Trust me, I’m not the normal case. I progressed to AIDS two years ago. Look at me now. I’m still here. Still healthy. We’ve found a medication that works for me and it’s keeping my levels all in check. My viral load is so low right now it doesn’t even register! Hell, my doctor said if the meds keep working like this, I could end up having ten years or more added on to my life expectancy. So long as I keep away from viruses.”
Those words seemed to reassure her for a moment. But she was so desperate for someone to talk to, that AJ could easily see. Words just poured from her. “What about a family? I, my boyfriend and I wanted a family. Now I doubt he’ll ever want to be with me.”
AJ lifted one hand from her arm to point to where Brian and Jaden stood at the front desk, talking to the receptionist. “See those two over there?” he asked her. She nodded when she looked over at them. “That’s my husband and my son. My biological son. He has no HIV whatsoever. We wanted a family and we got one. My husband’s been with me since the start and he’s been my biggest advocate. If your boyfriend loves you, truly loves you, he’ll be by your side no matter what.”
“You think so?” She sniffled, looking at him again.
“I do.”
Her smile finally bloomed. “Thanks.” She whispered.
With a smile of his own he leaned in and kissed her forehead. “No problem. If you ever need anything, this place is here for you. We offer counseling, even, three times a week. Free of charge. Come back any time. There’s always someone with a willing ear. An if things get real bad and you just feel alone, leave a message for me here. They’ll get it to me.”
After a quick hug, the two separated. AJ headed up to the desk, feeling a little better about himself. He found Tammy waiting there, a frustrated look on her face. Not bothered in the least by her sour look, AJ grinned. “Ok, Tammy, show me the shit I gotta deal with so I can get to my son’s party.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jaden’s party was a blast. The little boy was showered with gifts from everyone he loved, stuffed full of cake, and played his little heart out. They’d rented out a pizza parlor that tailored to families, so there’d been fun for everyone. By the time they packed up to head home, everyone was stuffed, the digital camera was full of pictures, the video camera held plenty of home movies, and they were all exhausted.
While the others went to their hotels, Brian’s parents headed with them back to the house, as well as Mikayla. Presents were unloaded, Jaden was cleaned up and put in his bed for a nap, Mikayla was putting away food, and Jackie and Harold were upstairs unpacking their things.
Brian sat down on the couch, one arm thrown over the back. Grinning, AJ lay down next to him, resting his head in Brian’s lap.
Automatically Brian moved his free hand so he could stroke it through AJ’s hair. “It was a good day. He was happy.” Brian said softly, thinking of how joyous Jaden had been all afternoon.
“He was. Can’t believe he’s already one.”
“I know. Time flies.”
For a short while they sat there, relaxing in the quiet of their house. AJ was the one to break the silence. “You think we should tell everyone we’re trying for another one?”
Brian couldn’t help but chuckle. “Naw. We’ll tell them if it takes.”
“I can’t wait.” AJ’s voice turned soft and dreamy, half asleep. He was more tired than he was admitting to everyone. It frustrated Brian to watch AJ force himself to act as if things didn’t exhaust him around other people. He hated showing how weak he was. “A little you this time. I hope it’s a girl with your curls.”
“We’ll be blessed with whatever the Lord decides to give us.” Brian’s voice was content. He kept stroking AJ’s hair until he felt his husband drift off in his lap. Happy with his world, Brian rested his head against the back of the couch and let his thoughts wander. If only their life could stay like this. If only they could always be this happy.
It was a peaceful thought to have as he drifted off to sleep.