Time Warp: The First Night (Oriel)

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Set in 2020

2 am. For most people, this was a time to be in bed, fast asleep, with the presumption that they'll stay asleep for several more hours. Until now, that was the case for Phoenix, too. With work the next day, he liked to sleep as much as he could; the twenty-five year-old was still prone to getting sick and not feeling well if he wasn't rested, though he wasn't quite so thin and weak as he used to be. It helped that he had his own personal heater in bed with him - his husband's broad figure let off a lot of warmth, which was a relief for the nearly always-cold Korean.

Tonight, though, their sleep was about to be disturbed. As Phoenix shifted in his sleep, he was suddenly jolted awake by the sound of crying. He blinked rapidly, reaching for the alarm clock, but quickly realized the sound was different than his alarm. "Nnn... Oriel?" he mumbled, unsure if the noise had woken him up too. It was another moment before he realized what the sound was.

"Devi?!" he stammered, quickly sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "The baby's crying," he mumbled, a small panic settling in his chest. What was wrong? He got out of bed as fast as he could, whether Oriel was following or not, and darted over to their new daughter's room, fumbling around in the dark. He finally reached her crib, wide awake now, and wracked his brain on what could be the problem. She was just laying there, but instead of those bright, happy eyes that had captured his heart, she was crying hard, and he didn't know the cause. "Devi, shhh, Devi..." he whispered.

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2 am. And Oriel was in bed, fast asleep. Dead to the world, in fact. Face down into his pillow and barely realizing that he was going to suffocate himself before long, how did he sleep like that every night anyway? But while Phoenix was shaking him and getting up to fly to the baby's room, Oriel was merely a corpse on a pillow, his tendrils of hair curling out like a filthy dust-mop.

His brain was drifting somewhere between this world and the next. That's what happened when one didn't get home until just shy of midnight after a long night of performing at the House. He managed to get off early even, which didn't make a lick of difference because there was a baby crying at 2 o'clock in the morning.

Oriel groaned into the pillow. "What. Is. The problem!?" he said, his words smothered. He turned his head. "This is not happening..." he mumbled. He rolled(fell) out of the bed and got to his feet, stumbling to the other bedroom with heavy footsteps. He practically fell into the frame of the door, using it to hold himself up as he switched on the light. "....Is there an off switch?" In the newly lit room, Oriel face was finally visible, his heavy showgirl make-up having been smeared across his face since he neglected to take it off when he came home. There was probably a stain on his pillow that looked like a clown had just face-planted there....which it practically did.

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Phoenix continued to coo and murmur to the crying baby, reaching down to tickle her stomach and brush her thin hair, but nothing seemed to help. He wished Tak was here - she'd probably know what to do, right? If they didn't get this figured out, maybe they could call her, but Phen didn't want to have to disturb her this early in the morning if they could figure it out...

"Oriel?!" he called out again, finally lowering his arms around the tiny girl and pulling her up against his chest, still making soft, soothing sounds. "I don't-" His voice went quiet when he heard his husband stumbling over to the room, and he waited for him to appear before he continued. Or, at least, tried to. "I don't-" He winced and blinked as the bright light came on, waiting for his vision to adjust as he rocked little Devi gently in his arms. When he looked up, he caught sight of the mess that was Oriel's face, and let out a laugh despite the situation. "B-babe, you really should wash that off before you go t'bed," he chided, but an extra loud cry from the baby brought his attention right back to her.

"I don't know what's wrong, I tried talking to her, but she won't stop... Shhh," he tried again, rubbing Devi's back. "It's okay, sweetie, we're right here..." Phoenix looked up at Oriel again, his panic clear in his eyes. "Do you think she's hungry, or... Or sick!?" She had been perfectly healthy earlier, what if she had caught something, or or or....

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Oriel's eyes were actually still closed, but that still didn't distract from the eyeliner that was beginning to melt down his cheeks. Or the rouge that was upturned on only one corner. Or the eyelash that was stuck to his eyebrow. Needless to say, Oriel was not amused with either baby Devi nor his "wife" Phoenix. "I'm too tired and I'll wash the pillowcase later…." he slurred out, still mostly half asleep.

He groaned as Phoenix listed off the possible problems. "I dunno," he mumbled, irritation clearly present in his murmur. "Didja feed her before you went to bed?" Oriel slowly blinked through his clumping mascara. "Check her diaper, she need to be changed?" Despite being half asleep, Oriel was already trying to think of other reasons why Devi was so upset, hoping to God or whomever it was up there that she wasn't sick.

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Phoenix realized quickly that Oriel hadn't been bolted awake with adrenaline like he had been - his poor lover's face looked exhausted, and even though Phen knew he'd be suffering in the morning, he was so very attached to their new little bundle of love that he didn't care right now - he just wanted to make her happy. "I can wash it off if you'd like, sweetheart," he replied softly, cradling Devi in one arm as he reached up and rubbed his fingers against the man's scruff, lifting his hand to pluck off the stray eyelashes from Oriel's brow. "Your skin's gonna suffer if you sleep with it on all the time. And even though I don't care what you look like, you're gonna scare Devi if you try t'hold her." He offered a tired smile to show he was joking; all of his concerns were only due to his love and worry for his Oriel.

He fell silent, not wanting to irk Oriel even more. "Yeah, I fed her at... Eight? Nine?" He held both arms under the baby again, who was still crying insistently. "How often does she need to be fed?" Phoenix was sure they had learned this, but his memory, even after all these years, still wasn't very good, and he still forgot things. "Shhh, honey...." The murmurs were coming naturally, without much thought. "Oh, right... Okay." Fortunately, Phen had found that he wasn't too squeamish about the whole diaper-changing business. He quickly tugged down to check, and, seeing nothing, shook his head. "I... Maybe I should try t'feed her again?" Phoenix wondered. He sat down in one of the two plushy chairs in the room, his attention divided between his exhausted partner and the upset baby.

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Oriel could probably use an adrenaline shot right now, it might make him start actually thinking more about the problem, which was: how do you make a baby stop crying? He grunted. "Right, fine." He probably should wash his face. He retreated to the bathroom across the hall and started to do so, a clean towel quickly being dirtied with muck and grime.

"Uhh….didn't they say, like, every 3-4 hours or something?" Maybe. Oriel hung the wet towel over the drying rack and returned to the room, face mostly cleaned. There were still some light stains of eyeliner under his eyes. "I think that's a good idea," he agreed with a yawn. "I'll….go get the formula ready…" Oriel gave his loves a tired smile before leaving the room again to the kitchen where he started to prepare the formula. He could hear the cries of little Devi echoing throughout the house but….he wasn't really bothered by it, he found. As tired as he was, Oriel felt stupidly warm in this scenario. He didn't want it to end….the feeling, not the crying, no he wanted the crying to end as soon as possible so he could go pass out again.

Some minutes later, Oriel returned to the room with a warm bottle.

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Phoenix looked up as Oriel finally agreed and left for the bathroom, smiling faintly at the guy's obedience. "You're the best, babe," he said with a yawn, blinking several times before returning his attention back to the crying squirming baby. He even began humming, a random Disney song popping into his head as he tried to sooth Devi into being quiet. She just wasn't gonna have it.

"I... I don't know, is it that often!?" he exclaimed. Dammit, he should know these things. "Oh, honey, you must be starving..." He felt awful, no wonder she was crying! He glanced at Oriel as he returned, nodding approvingly at the mostly-clean face. He didn't care what his lover looked like, but he did like him clean the best. "Mm..." he hummed, wiping a thumb under one of Oriel's eyes. "Thanks, Oriel..." He settled down more in the chair as he waited for his husband to prepare the stuff, wishing he could do something in the meantime to calm the baby. He sang quietly, and eventually Devi did quiet down a little, but she was still obviously upset.

Once Oriel reappeared, Phoenix took the bottle, placing it near their daughter's mouth. She latched on immediately, the cries going silent as she suckled on the nibbin. "Oh, thank God," Phoenix breathed, closing his eyes momentarily. "I guess that was all." Were they going to have to wake up to do this every night? Phen was gonna be exhausted, but... It was worth it for their little girl. "Wanna sit, Squishy?" He smiled and opened his eyes, looking up at Oriel. "Or you can go back t'bed, I think I can handle this now." He lifted a hand and laced his fingers together with Oriel's, bringing the back of the man's hand up to his own cheek.

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"Yeah, what'd you think it was, dope?" He was just teasing, although his tired came through in his lack of a creative comeback. But at least he felt more awake after washing his face. "You really need to listen to Tak's lessons more carefully." Though Oriel really wasn't one to talk, he often found himself falling asleep at those lectures himself. But it was all worth it, right? Oriel and Phoenix wanted to have this child, they went to the classes so they could, and now they were more than willing and happy(if not just a bit irritated or frantic) to make sure their little Devi got the attention she needed.

Oriel gazed down at his love as he took the bottle and started settling the nubbin to their daughter's lips. Phoenix had really become such a momma since they brought little Devi home, showering the baby with more love and attention than Oriel knew was possible. "I'm alright here," he answered, lowering his hand to meet with Phen's. Oriel was tired, but he didn't want to abandon Phoenix to do all the work, especially now that he was already up. It'd be too hard to fall asleep again without his Squishy-butt laying next to him. Besides, he was enjoying the scene of his 'wife' and daughter before him.

He released his love's hand and combed a trail of hair back behind his ear. "She…she really brings out your maternal instincts, don't she?" Oriel said as he leaned a shoulder against the wall next in front of the chair, watching them still.

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Phoenix pouted, something he still had a habit of doing when Oriel teased him; that wasn't gonna change anytime soon. "I try t'pay attention, but it's hard," he grumbled. He just wanted to have the baby and play with her and hope there wouldn't be any problems (yeah right, this was just proof it wasn't gonna be that easy). At least he felt as attached to the girl as he felt he would be if she was his own biological daughter - her narrow eyes and dark hair could fool a lot of people anyway. "Tak should probably just come live with us," he said quietly, continuing to rub Devi's back. "I gotta feeling we're gonna be calling her every hour anyway."

The little girl seemed much happier as she suckled on the formula, and Phen shifted to hold her closer in his arms, his eyes shining with adoration. "She's so beautiful," he murmured. When Oriel determined he was going to stay, Phoenix tore his gaze off of her for a moment to look up at him, giving a tired smile. "Thanks, sweetheart," he replied, tilting his face up for a kiss. He then turned his attention back to Devi, who was still eating and staring up at him with her bright, innocent eyes. He wouldn't mind doing this every night, he thought. He might have to make some adjustments to his work schedule, but he'd make it work. And Tak being around really was a big help - since she worked at home, they could rely on her pretty much always.

"Mmm..." he hummed contentedly, closing his eyes for a moment as Oriel brushed him tenderly. "I guess so," Phoenix replied with a tired chuckle, giving a little coo to the baby girl. "Do you want t'hold her, babe?" He adjusted his arms so Devi could be handed off if Oriel did; while Phen didn't particularly want to stop feeding her, he also wanted to see her and Oriel bonding, too. "She needs some love from daddy, too."

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There was obviously more to taking care of a baby than playing with her and cuddling her and loving her…well, the loving part came with the taking care of, Oriel figured. Devi wasn't just something to hug and hold, she was a little human being with little human being needs that ate and shat and cried when she was upset. Her advantage was that she could easily get her parent's attention to get her what she wanted. The disadvantage was that she couldn't always tell them exactly what it was she needed, so her parents had to be extra paranoid just to get it right. Oriel wondered if mothers, women, had some natural instinct to speak baby, because Tak never seemed to have a problem figuring out what Devi needed when she was upset. "Hell, I don't mind. She can stay with us forever."

"Of course she is. She takes after her mommy," he joked. Oriel leaned in to give Phoenix the kiss he was vying for, then hovered just millimeters above his lips for a few teasing moments before finally giving Phoenix what he wanted.

He grinned as Phoenix started to hand Devi over to him and Oriel held out his hands carefully to accept her, keeping sure to support her head while he cradled her. "I got lotsa love," he mumbled with a lazy smile. Oriel looked down on that tiny little person with the creaseless eyes. God she really was beautiful. "…Phoenix, I hate to say it, but I've fallen in love with a gorgeous woman….And I plan to spend the next 18 plus years spoiling her…" Oriel looked up at his partner with a snark. "Want to join me?"

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Phoenix knew these things. He really did. But Devi was just so goshdarn cute that he just wanted to cuddle her silly until she got old enough that she didn't want it anymore (which, Phen hoped, would be a long time). But he thought they were doing a decent job their first night, having no experience and little idea of what they were doing; at least Devi was quiet now, and if they were lucky, maybe would be until Phen woke up for work in a couple hours. If they were going to be able to sleep at all again tonight, at least. "She might end up turning our house into a gypsy wonderland," Phoenix warned with a smile. "Would you be able t'handle that?" He liked Tak. He really did. She and Oriel had occasional romps, which Phoenix was fine with; after all this time, Oriel was still much the same as he used to be, and Phen was fine with him needing to have the occasional night with another person. He had no fears that Oriel would leave him for someone else, especially now with their new daughter.

He laughed quietly, and Devi's head seemed to turn curiously as she looked up at him. "Nah, she's much more beautiful than that," he replied, reaching down to brush his fingers against her forehead. Phen let out an irritated huff as Oriel teased him, coming in so close, and hummed contentedly when he finally gave in. Their physical relationship, he knew, was going to be in for an interesting ride with the baby around.

Phen held onto the baby until he was sure Oriel was holding her securely in his strong arms, and slowly retracted his arms, still wanting to hover. "I know you do," he said softly, covering his mouth as he yawned. He blinked as Oriel declared his love for this 'woman', eyes crinkling as he giggled and stood. "Should I be jealous?" he teased, leaning in to peck Oriel's scruffy cheek. "I would love to, Oriel," he replied, smiling wide as he nuzzled his forehead into Oriel's thick mane. "I just hope 18 plus years is long enough." He yawned again, rubbing a sore muscle in his back. "I think I'm gonna go make some tea. You want some?" Whether Oriel did or not, Phen went out to the kitchen and set some water to heat on the stove, the image of his husband holding such a tiny little creature against his strong, broad chest not leaving his mind. There was a time when Oriel was afraid to hold something so fragile; as Phen pulled out the mugs, he thought about just how much the man had also changed since they first met. His throat choked up a little just thinking about it.

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Oriel could understand the sentiments. He really could. Devi was just so downright adorable that he wanted to hold her and sandpaper her face with his scruff forever. But they needed to be extra careful, especially in the first few days, and even more especially because they were brand new at this. Tak had done a great job at training them and preparing the man-and-man couple for parenthood, but putting it all into practice on a living breathing baby was a lot different than hearing about it or using a doll as a practice dummy.

"S'long as there ain't any voodoo sacrifices, I can live with it." They should probably call Tak in the morning and let her know how things went. Oriel wanted to make sure that Phoenix especially knew what he was doing since it was likely that Oriel would be gone in the evenings and Phen would have to do it all himself.

Oriel snorted, amused. "Well, fuck, how much more beautiful can you get?" He brushed his hand over Phen's hair.

With little Devi in his arms, and Oriel making faces that only a daddy could make at his newborn child, Oriel rocked the little princess back and forth, completely captured by her beauty. "Maybe…" he mused. "Hell…I'll take care of her forever it she needs it." He finally lifted his eyes as Phoenix announced his need for tea and offered it to Oriel. "Yeah, that'd be nice." As he left, Oriel sat down in the rocker, and rocked forward and back, reaching over to grab the bottle from the small table beside and brought it to Devi's lips. She was being less fussy now. "Still hungry, love?"

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Phen supposed he should feel a little sad that the attention Oriel had spent on him all these years was now split between him and the little girl, but he wasn't - she deserved all the attention in the world, and he knew Oriel was going to be a great father. They didn't get to mess around as much as they used to now anyway, with their occupations and fatigue and just generally getting older and less hormonal; it was just a part of growing up, he supposed. And Phen really couldn't be any happier.

"Mmm... I don't think we have t'worry about that," he chuckled, tilting his cheek up to rub against Oriel's rough, scratchy face. He was still extremely affectionate, at least. "I might ask her t'start comin' over when you're not here sometimes anyway, at least at first," he told his lover. "I trust her way more than I trust myself." Eventually he'd feel more comfortable about it, but being the first night and all, he was extra paranoid. At least they'd figured out what the problem was tonight.

A light flush came to Phen's cheeks at the comment, and he giggled, swatting gently against Oriel's neck. "I dunno, you looked in a mirror lately?" he grinned. Two could play at this game.

God, Oriel looked so godda- goshdarn adorable with those expressions he was making. Phen laughed to see the long-haired, scruffy-faced man make such faces, watching the two of them for several long, loving moments. "Yeah..." he agreed softly, meeting Oriel's eyes when he looked up. "Me too. I'll take care of both of you." More like Oriel took care of him, but... At least Phoenix wasn't as dependent as he used to be.

It didn't take long for the tea to boil, and he was back in a few minutes, placing a steaming mug on the table for Oriel and sipping another one himself as he sat in the chair beside the two. "Wow, she really was hungry," he murmured, leaning against Oriel's shoulder. The quiet intimacy and the warm drink was starting to make him drowsy again; hopefully once Oriel finished feeding Devi, they could go back to sleep. He stifled a yawn. "Mmm... I feel like the luckiest man in the world right now," he whispered. What more could he ask for? "I love you, baby." Phen smiled softly. "Babies," he corrected himself.

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"Probably a good idea," Oriel agreed, looking up at Phoenix with a snarky grin. "You can barely take care of yourself." He stuck out his tongue just a little, like he used to do in the old days.

It was funny to think of their days in high school as being the "old days". It was only about five years ago when Oriel finally graduated from Hammel. Despite his efforts, he still had to stay an extra year. He'd gotten himself a job at the House while he was still there and had been doing it ever since, sporting his own kinky-drag burlesque number. It wasn't Broadway, like his childhood dream yearned for, but it was still something he enjoyed. It was good money. If it meant that Devi could have a good home and a good life and a good future, Oriel would do it forever.

Oriel nodded, tilting his chin up with a cocky smile. "Why yes, yes I have." Just a few minutes ago in fact. "Though…I'll admit, I'm biased."

Oriel pulled the bottle from Devi's lips once Phoenix had come back with the tea. "Yeah, but got to take it slow. They say it's easy to overfeed 'em too." Babies were so tiny with itty-bitty bellies, it was no wonder they had to be careful. Her stomach was probably about the size of Oriel's thumb. He set down the bottle and picked up his tea, bringing it to his own lips for a long sip. "Mmmm…." Phoenix had gotten good at doing simple kitchen stuff over the years. Oriel remembered when he could barely boil a pot of water….Oriel might be exaggerating. "Me too," he said softly, setting his tea down. He felt lucky to finally have the family he always wanted, to have the home he always dreamed of. It wasn't perfect but…no, it was perfect. He had it, so it was perfect. A wife and daughter he could love with all his might and who did so in return, unconditionally. No matter what, it was perfect.

Oriel smiled down on his beautiful daughter, her eyes starting to droop. Seems like Devi was about to pass out too. "I think she's just about gone," Oriel announced quietly, slowly starting to shift himself up out of the rocker. He carried her to the crib and, with a final kiss on her forehead, gently set her down under the mobile of stars and moons. "Goodnight, Devi-love."

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"Heyyy... I can take care of myself better than I used to," Phen retorted with a small laugh. Though it was true he probably still wouldn't get along too well without his husband; along with the emotional support, there were still a lot of things Phoenix couldn't do.

His job wasn't all the glamorous - Phen worked part-time at a rehab center for people trying to get their lives back on track. He enjoyed it, though. While it was hard to see people suffering with something he could so easily relate to, it was always great seeing how they came out of the program. Some were easier than others. He hoped, someday, to get a better-paying, full-time job there or at some other facility, but for now, it worked. Especially with the new little life they needed to take care of. And Phen supported his lover in his own work, too - he didn't get to see every performance, but he tried to go see him at least once or twice every couple weeks. He enjoyed seeing Oriel on stage; it was definitely where he belonged.

Phoenix snickered. "Dork." He reached up and pinched Oriel's nose lightly. Devi let out a giggle.

"Ooh... Yeah, we wouldn't want t'do that," he agreed, reaching down and pressing his palm gently against Devi's belly. "She seems happy now, at least." That hadn't been so bad. Not bad at all, really. Sure, he was tired and was sure Oriel was even more so, but seeing their little girl squirm happily made it all worthwhile. He took another drink from his mug, smiling lovingly at the two people he loved most in the world. It was definitely perfect. How had Phoenix, the ex-addict, troubled, stupid boy become so lucky? He still had to pinch himself sometimes.

"Looks like it," he agreed in a murmur, smiling at the tired baby. He rose as Oriel did, trailing beside them, watching as he deposited the little girl in her crib. Once his lover was done making his good-nights, Phen slipped in and smoothed his hand over her head, watching as she yawned and seemed to fall into slumber. "Love you, sweetpea," he whispered, gazing for a moment before he was sure she was asleep, then turned away and looked up at Oriel. "Wanna head back?" he asked with a sleepy smile, lacing their fingers together and tugging him gently back to their own room. "I got a little chilled, I'm gonna need my human heater."