Not even a day later AJ was fixing his clothes in his room as he prepared to allow cameras in to his home. All the appropriate people had been called, and they had two separate crews who would be filming the same story, almost like MTV Cribs. It would be an exclusive walk through his home with him and his daughter. He’d talked to Mattie and told her all about the reporters and how they liked to ask questions and take pictures. She’d been thrilled at the idea of having pictures with her Papa.

 

So AJ had dressed her in her very best dress and Brian had brushed her hair until her curls practically shone. AJ had taken great care with how he looked too. It was important that he present the right image. Not suddenly a suit and tie man, because that wouldn’t fit with his normal image and would seem fake to everyone. But he wore his nicest pair of dark blue jeans, one of his fedoras, and a black shirt with silver scrawl on it.

 

Just as he finished adjusting the hat, Brian walked in the room. He let out a whistle. With a grin, AJ struck a pose for him. Mattie clapped from her spot on the bed, making both men laugh. On his way over Brian scooped Mattie up with one arm, balancing her on his hip. Then he stepped over and kissed AJ. “You do look devastating, my dear.”

 

“Is that what you plan wearing?” AJ asked. He gestured at Brian’s ratty jeans and comfortable shirt. The surprise on Brian’s face was pleasant to see.

 

“But I thought we decided you were going to tell them, and we’d leave it at that?”

 

“Well, change of plans. Kev and Howie are going to be in the music room, so when I take them in there they’ll see those guys and know that they’re supporting me. Nick said he’ll kick it in the movie room so they can see that he’s on my side too. I thought maybe you and Mattie could be in her room waiting for me.”

 

It was easy to tell that the idea pleased Brian immensely. He gave AJ another sound kiss, and at Mattie’s applause, gave one to her too. She held her arms out for her Papa, and AJ scooped her up so that Brian could get dressed. He enjoyed watching as Brian traded his older jeans for a newer yet still comfortable pain; and he traded his baggy shirt for a white collared shirt and a sweater over top of it.

 

“Look at us, Miz Mattie.” Brian drawled as he came back over to them. “Aren’t we just a pretty picture here?”

 

“Papa pretty!” Mattie agreed, touching AJ’s cheek. The compliment had the corner of his mouth quirking. Before Brian could tease AJ about being ‘pretty’, Mattie turned and put a hand on Brian’s cheek. “Da pretty too!”

 

Her words stunned him. “Da?” Brian croaked out. Emotion had tightened his voice. “I’m Uncle Brian, baby.” His reply was automatic.

 

Mattie shook her head in confusion. “Da.” She said clearly. Brian locked eyes with AJ in surprise. He got another surprise when he saw the tears in AJ’s eyes, and the wide smile on his face. “Mattie and I talked.” He said softly. His eyes sparkled at Brian. “About having two daddies and such. She was pretty excited to have a Papa and a Da.”

 

Brian didn’t have words to describe the joy that he felt. He simply embraced his family and held them close. It was AJ who pulled back finally, wiping at his eyes. “We gotta get ready.” He said as he moved over to his dresser. “They’ll be here any minute now.”

 

In a game that they had developed, AJ sat Mattie on top the dresser on a spot he now kept clear just for this reason. The little girl clapped her hands again before starting to sift through one of the bowls up there. At one point AJ had just kept everything on the top, but since Mattie had come into the house, he had organized his stuff into bowls. In one held his bracelets and wrist bands; in another were his few necklaces that he wore. In the last were rings.

 

Mattie plucked out the wrist band that AJ knew she would. It was her absolute favorite, though he didn’t understand why. It was just a black sweat band he’d picked up in Ireland with intricate Gaelic symbols embroidered in white. He put it on, as well as the studded leather one that she gave him. His nails were painted black, something that made Brian smile.

 

From the next bowl she picked out a simple cross necklace that AJ pulled on with a small smile. It was a necklace that Brian had given him at one point, a long time ago. Lastly she picked out only one ring for his thumb. He attached his familiar chain to his pants, running back to connect to his wallet, which he put in his back pocket.

 

Just as he was lifting her off the dresser the front doorbell rang. AJ squatted by Mattie. “You go play in your room with Da for a bit ok, Mattie my love? Papa’s going to go talk to the people who are here. Remember, they’re going to come take our pictures.”

 

“Pretty pi’tures.”

 

“That’s right, angel. Now go with Da and play, ok? That’s a good girl.” He kissed her forehead and sent her off with Brian, slapping the older man’s ass as he passed by. Brian stuck his tongue out over his shoulder before he was gone from the room. AJ was still smiling when he opened the door to let the people in.

 

The camera crews were supposed to just follow him through from the instant he opened the door until he sent them on their way. There was to be an interview with the second group of people, about halfway through the first ones show. Both had agreed to share the exclusive with one another for the sake of having a juicy story. No one would be talking directly to him until the interview, so AJ was in the spotlight from the instant he opened his door.

 

“Well hello there!” he greeted them. “Come on in, please! Welcome to my house. I’m so glad you guys could some. It’s been a while since I let someone in here to film, and there’s been a lot of changes lately.”

 

He ran through his whole spiel, touring his home. When they reached the music room they paused to focus on Howie and Kevin there, jamming away with one another. They explained that they were working on a new song, and played a small sample of it, the three of them harmonizing together. Then AJ was leading them off again, showing the rest of his downstairs. Last night after Mattie went to bed they had put up a bunch of Christmas decorations, though they had yet to put up their tree, wanting to wait to do that with Mattie.

 

“I’ve got one more room to show you, and then we’ll sit down for the interview portion of the show. But first, the whole reason I know you guys all want to watch this.” That said he took a deep breath and opened the door to Mattie’s room. The camera panned across the room before focusing on the little girl and grown man lying on their stomachs, playing with dolls. The image had AJ smiling.

 

Mattie, looking pretty in her red dress with all its ruffles, jumped up when she saw him. They hadn’t tried to tell her what to do or say. AJ had only told her about the cameras. The rest, he figured, she was too young to know. So when her face lit up and she let out a cry it was with honest joy at seeing him. She rushed over and he opened his arms in time to catch her and swing her up into the air to rest on his hip.

 

“This right here is my daughter, Madeline. I just call her Mattie, isn’t that right, love?” He smoothed down one of her errant curls with an absentminded gesture. “We haven’t known each other for very long, but I love her with everything that I am. She’s my angel.”

 

Mattie gave the camera a wide grin that was so reminiscent of her fathers. About that time, Brian walked over to them with his own smile turned on for the cameras.  Before either he or AJ could speak, Mattie lit up like it was Christmas morning and stuck her arms out, clearly saying “Da!” and bouncing on AJ’s hip until Brian took her in his arms. Mentally, AJ was cursing. A comment like that, combined with the obvious love on Brian’s face for her, basically made their announcement to the world.

 

Well, he was nothing if not adaptable. AJ flashed his grin at the camera and gave them all a wink. “Now, let’s move to my office, and I’ll show you first how I like to work. Then we’ll sit down with Miss Tiffany Alder an I’ll give you the scoop on what’s really been going on.”

 

In a move designed to be seen and to make a statement AJ reached over and took Brian’s hand in his. He gave him a soft smile that Brian returned. Together they set out from Mattie’s room. This was the right thing to do. The only thing. They had decided that if they were going to be true to themselves and to their daughter, they had to be honest with the world.

 

After showing off the office, the camera’s cut off long enough for them to set up with Miss Alder, or Tiffany as she asked to be called. The love seat was moved by the window, with Tiffany in a chair across from it. It provided them with a perfect background, as snow had begun to fall lightly. It never lasted long there, but it was pretty to watch.

 

Brian took the seat nearest the window, while AJ sat next to him, with Mattie on his leg on the opposite side of Brian. It made them look like a family. They’d already planned this out in great detail and new exactly the image that they wanted to portray. To further add to what they wanted to show, Brian put his arm on the back of the loveseat and around AJ’s shoulders, his fingers fiddling with Mattie’s hair.

 

The cameras came back on, and Tiffany did her introduction spiel.  There was the basic questions of how were they doing and all that, and then she jumped right in to the big questions, something she was known for and one of the reasons they’d picked her. They didn’t want to dance around the issues, but put them right out there for the world to see, and they knew she would be the best to do it with.

 

“So, I imagine that there’s so much the fans want to know. It’s hard to decide where to start.” She teased them with a tinkling laugh. “So, I’ll ask what I’m the most curious about. I’m sure you’ve all heard the rumors circulating about the relationship between the two of you. Can you tell me if any of it’s true?”

 

AJ was the first to answer. He chuckled and flashed a look to Brian. “First and foremost I want it to be known that Mattie is my biological child, and I had the testing done to prove it. Brian was no part of her conception.”

 

“As for the rest of it,” Brian added. “Well, we’ve just recently begun to explore a relationship between the two of us. So yes, it’s true we’re together, but no, it’s not true that we’ve been hiding it from the fans for years. As I said, this is still new for us.”

 

Tiffany gave them both her famous smile which had helped her through many an interview. “Well I imagine that fans all over will be disappointed that you two are off the market.”

 

“We anticipate that things will be difficult for a while, but we also hope that our fans love us enough to stand by us through the hard times as well as the good. What should matter is that we’re happy. He makes me happier than any other relationship I’ve had.” AJ said, resting his hand on Brian’s leg. “And Mattie absolutely adores him.”

 

“Yes, we heard that she calls him Da.”

 

“That’s right. It’s how she separates who she’s speaking to, and it’s something she just started today. She’s called me Papa from the first, but today was the first time she called Brian Da.”

 

The questions continued then, asking about their living arrangements and their plans for the future and the bands future. The boys both reassured everyone that they were planning on continuing to make music, though they didn’t plan on touring as much. Tiffany introduced herself to Mattie, and was rewarded with a shy smile.

 

“She doesn’t talk very much.” AJ explained to her as he rubbed at Mattie’s back. “Mattie’s mother had cancer, and the life that Mattie lived in that stress has made her a quiet child around others.”

 

“Is it true she was abused?”

 

That threw AJ for a minute. He had prayed that they wouldn’t have that information. But they’d agreed that they wouldn’t lie. There would come a time when Mattie might see this, and they didn’t want her ever thinking they were ashamed. So AJ answered truthfully. “We’re not sure. There were bruises that indicated she was, but she doesn’t talk about it. She’s three, but when she speaks it’s obvious that she hasn’t had much practice. She’s learning quickly though.”

 

“So she does talk to you guys?”

 

Brian let out a laugh. He reached out and caught Mattie’s hand, letting her hold his finger. “Yes, she talks all the time to us. Not to the other guys yet, but that may take time. But she talks to her Papa and I.”

 

A smile curved Mattie’s lips and she leaned in to whisper in AJ’s ears. Whatever she said had AJ laughing out loud. He turned twinkling eyes toward Tiffany. “Mattie thinks that you have a very nice smile.” He told her. “But I think I’ve got to go, so she can take care of some important business.”

 

Tiffany chuckled with him and quickly wrapped up the interview. Brian took Mattie to use the restroom, and AJ continued the tour of the rest of his house.

 

By the time that everyone was gone, AJ was exhausted. But, he had done it! Now it was time to sit back and wait. They would see what came from this.