Gwiyomi (Gryphon)

[Deleted]

So Kodi's mom had come back into his life recently, and that was fine and great and all (okay mostly it was weird and uncomfortable and ended up with Kodi's hair 'fixed' in a way he didn't like and struggling to converse in Mandarin and complaints about him being too fat and chiding to get his piercings taken out or for goodness' sake Jiang was going to rip them out herself), but it was taking some adjustment to get used to.  He'd only taken Gryph out to meet her once they had had a couple conversations about his sexuality and, even though she still didn't quite understand, she at least wasn't disturbed by the relationship.  In fact, she had even complimented Gryphon a lot when she met him - how handsome he was, despite being in a wheelchair, and how polite, and gentlemanly (all traits that, according to her, Kodi lacked - which was probably true).  

Something she had kept from her son until a few days ago was the fact that she hadn't moved back into town by herself.  

Nope.  Apparently, Kodi had a four-year-old sister he'd never known existed until now.

The fact had completely blown his mind.  In fact, he'd stared at her with his mouth open for so long that she chastised a fly would fly in if he didn't get that stupid look off his face.  Apparently she hadn't brought up little Annabelle until now because she'd been afraid their reuniting wouldn't go so well.  At least, Kodi figured, she seemed to be warming up to him again, despite her critical words.

But.... Holy shit... A sister....?

His head had still been whirling with this realization when he'd gotten home that night, and still was now as they rode the bus to finally go and meet the little girl.  Kodi was chewing on his nails nervously, staring out the window into blank space.  He'd tried to make himself look somewhat presentable (or at least, not as much of a punk as usual), so as not to scare the little thing.  How could he be related to a little... Little... Princess?

"I swear I'm goin' t'end up killin' her on accident," he groaned finally, still looking outside.  "I ain't made t'handle kids...."

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

To find out that Kodi's mother had moved nearby... it was interesting. Kodi really didn't like opening up much about his past, but Gryph knew the general gist of things when it came to before his manifestation, and it wasn't pleasant. So at first, Gryphon had been a bit uncertain, more concerned than anything by her arrival. But as time went on, and as he actually met her... well, she wasn't terrible. In fact, she was very kind towards him, and of course, he was in return. It was his nature. He wasn't sure how happy she was about the relationship he held with her son, but she clearly wasn't that prejudiced. Just being willing to meet him, and being so positive, was an obvious sign of that.

And this news, a little girl... well, of course it stunned Gryph too. It wasn't as serious for him, considering it wasn't a sibling of his own, but it was... surprising. And the dad seemed to be the root of the problem here, so he was glad Jiang had taken the little girl away from all that before too much harm could be done. Hopefully.

Gryphon watched Kodi sit there with his nervousness as the bus pulled them along. His positioning was a little awkward, considering he had brought a chair with him after all, but he still tried to keep a hand on Kodi's knee and give him comforting smiles. He looked handsome today. Usually, Kodi looked more hot, because of his style, how he generally dressed, but today... yup, he looked handsome. Maybe he should say. "You look so handsome today~" He said softly. Would that help? Hopefully.

He giggled at Kodi's worries, "I don't think you will, love." Gryph tried to sound more supportive and less teasing, but his boyfriend was adorable when he was nervous. "Look, the worst thing that could happen is if you throw her out of a window, which I wouldn't advise." He said, with a grin, "And the worst thing she can do is punch your nuts." Which.... yes, well, that would hurt very much so, but it wasn't dangerous, per ce. Gryphon smiled softly, rubbing his thumb over Kodi's knee, "Sweetie, you'll be fine. I think you're both nervous about it, and that's understandable. You'll be okay. You don't have to be the perfect brother right off the bat." And then Gryph was taken slightly aback by himself, pausing momentarily, "...wow, it really is weird to think you're a brother." But this... Kodi would be fine. It was just a little girl after all, and little girls were adorable, and this one probably was too. Hopefully.

Hopefully.

[Deleted]

Kodi knew that the root of his issues at home stemmed from his father. His mother had always been kinder, if strict, but not so fiercely against him doing… Well, pretty much anything. Her biggest fault had just been never speaking against her husband and nearly always doing as he said. The fact that she had finally gotten the nerve not to just leave the situation, but to also take her daughter along… Well, Kodi could hardly believe it. He wondered how his father’s reputation had sunk, first with Kodi leaving, and now with this. He tried not to feel too smug thinking about it… But he kinda was.

His mom had decided to choose him over that jackass. That made him feel pretty damn good, despite how long it had taken. Now he just had to make sure this meeting didn’t go horribly wrong somehow. That was why he’d brought Gryph along – for moral support, and to tell him if he was messing up terribly.

When he was done chewing on his nails, Kodi fiddled with the rings in his lip, wondering if they would scare Annabelle. Maybe he should get them taken out, like his mom suggested, but… He liked them, dammit! Along with all of his other piercings and tattoos. Just because she said… Mrrr…. At least he’d gone out of his way to look more presentable, which he wasn’t all that happy about until Gryph complimented him. Kodi blushed and finally looked away from the window. He’d barely realized his boyfriend had been touching his knee until then. “… Really?” he asked, a little meekly. Kodi looked down at himself. “… I look weird, you’re just bein’ nice,” he humphed. But if Gryph said so… “… Thanks, though….” He leaned over and pecked the boy’s cheek, then went back to fiddling with his snake bites. “I’m pretty sure mom wishes you were her kid instead,” he mumbled. “All pretty and clean-cut and no metal stuck in your face.” He managed a small smile.

They neared their stop, so Kodi began fiddling with Gryph’s wheelchair’s knobs, getting ready to wheel his lover carefully out onto the sidewalk near the motel where his mother and sister were staying. “Well… I think I can avoid that,” he said with a weak chuckle. “An’ I’m pretty sure mom would tackle me before I even took two steps.” He winced at the second bit though. “… Ouch. You really had t’say that, didn’t you?” At four, she was probably the perfect height for hitting there, even on accident. He just sighed and nodded when he went on, standing up and beginning to cart his lover off of the ramp to the stop outside. He was glad to get off the stuffy contraption. “I ain’t gonna be perfect by a long shot,” he snorted. “…. It is, ain’t it?” Kodi still couldn’t quite believe it. “I wonder if she’ll look anythin’ like me…” Please, a four-year-old girl, with a mug like his? Kodi hoped not, for her sake. He started pushing Gryph towards the place, drumming his fingers nervously on the chair’s handles. “You work with kids all the time,” he mused. “I betcha ten bucks she gets more attached t’you than she does t’me.”

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

Gryphon was mainly happy that Kodi now felt he had some family to actually speak of, who would most likely support him, instead of two prejudiced adults down south who seemed to have forgotten about his existence, or had given up caring, or something. No, this was so much better. So so much better. Gryph was very happy for Kodi, because some family was better than no family at all. Got him thinking about his own dad... but Gryphon wasn't sure that was a wound easily healed.

The winged man knew one thing for certain - this wouldn't be easy, or simple, considering Kodi's... dispositions, and his nervousness. He could pretty much predict how this first meeting would go, but it wasn't a bad thing that they would probably be awkward. They would probably warm up to each other eventually, if Annabelle was also introverted like Kodi (Kodi was introverted, Gryph was certain of this despite his past activities). Time was key. It would be fine.

Gryphon smiled at Kodi's meek response, nodding enthusiastically. He rolled his eyes, "You don't look weird, you look gorgeous." And his smile grew at the peck. He was almost certain Kodi would never believe his compliments, and that was a shame, but it wouldn't stop Gryph from giving them. He gave Kodi a questioning look as he sat back, "Yeah, but who has all the tattoos here?" He said quietly, pulling up his sleeves to show his inked arms. "And you're her child. She only gets at you because she loves you and wants you to be happy and succeed in life and stuff." Probably. Gryph couldn't imagine anything she'd said just being spiteful, really. He smoothed his baggy sleeves back down, casually rubbing his thumb over a small, new tattoo Kodi probably didn't know about quite yet on his right hand, below his thumb. Two familiar letters of a certain someone's initials and a little heart. He bit his lip softly, holding in a smile.

Gryphon grinned, giggling again, "Precisely. The worst won't happen." Well, it wouldn't be caused by Kodi, at least. The ball-attack was a very likely thing, here. And a horrible thing. Kodi may have been a bit of a masochist, but being hit in the jewels by a little girl would never be a pleasant experience, Gryph was certain. He chuckled softly as he was rolled out, "I did~" Cheeky little Gryph.

Ahh, fresh air, freedom~ He hummed in agreement. No, it wouldn't be perfect, but you would have to be very naive to believe that was possible. Gryph smiled, "She probably will, considering." He knew of siblings who looked different, but they were always similar in one way or anything. Gryphon was willing to bet they had the same chubby cheeks... that Kodi had only developed really from eating too much ice cream, and so they were slowly fading, but they were still adorable. Gryph watched his surroundings pass by as they moved. He could easily enough get himself about, but Kodi liked to push him around, so he let him, generally. He laughed, "Having knowledge with kids doesn't guarantee that every single child ever will love me." He looked back and up at his boyfriend, "She'll like you, babe." Probably.

Gryphon felt himself looking forward to this. If he ever had his own siblings, he would take care of them to no end, so... he couldn't help being excited to a point. "I think this will go fine." He thought out loud. To give Kodi confidence.

[Deleted]

Kodi still couldn’t quite believe the compliment, so he wrinkled his nose. “Whatever you say,” he drawled, deciding not to argue. Wasn’t worth it. And he supposed he should get used to Gryph’s lies compliments someday, since he said them so often. “You look beautiful, like usual,” he added with a small smile. Kodi glanced at the tattoos as they were revealed, and made a ‘psh’ noise, leaning down to give the exposed ink a love nip. “At least you can hide most of those,” he replied. “I’d have t’wear a paper bag.” He smiled wryly at Gryphon’s explanation. “I bet she would get after you too if she knew what an ink-addict you were,” he teased, ignoring the whole ‘cares about you’ thing. It was still hard for Kodi to grasp that. “Look at us, a pair of rebels, ain’t gonna go nowhere in life just ‘cause we’ve got body mods~” He didn’t really believe that, especially for Gryph. He had way too much good going for him, and was waaay better with people that Kodi would ever be.

Despite Gryph’s assurances, he was still nervous. Kodi always managed to do something wrong, it seemed, even when he tried not to, which was why he stopped trying most of the time anymore. He would try today, though, to be his best.

Kodi winced. “That will be so weird…” Another person with his face, sort of. And his genes. Related to him…. Ahhh! Maybe this was some elaborate joke that he wasn’t seeing. Yeah… Maybe… Kodi knew this was unlikely even as he pushed Gryph inside and headed for the room after checking in. His heart was beginning to beat faster the closer they got. “Well, you’ve got a shitton more experience than I do, so that’s somethin’,” he retorted. “You know how t’like… Talk t’them and stuff. I’ll prob’ly just end up sayin’ somethin’ stupid.” And Kodi supposed he was probably expected not to cuss around the little thing. That would be difficult… “I hope you’re right.” He also hoped she wasn’t a whiny little brat that he was going to have to put up with.

He slowed down as they got closer to the door, and finally stopped before it. Kodi’s nerves were about to get the best of him, so he just nodded mutely and gulped, unable to knock. “Y… You do it,” he finally told Gryph, hands tightening on the handles. “… Please.”

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

Gryph rolled his eyes a little, "Exactly, because I am saying the truth." Kodi was just dumb and blind. That made Gryphon think momentarily... Jiang did know about Kodi's eyesight problems, right? Gryph didn't know how long his boyfriend had needed glasses so he wasn't sure. He couldn't help giggling at the compliment, dipping his head a little, "Oh, shush, you," He said, meekly, knocking Kodi's shoulder gently with his hand. And then he continued to chuckle a bit, "Don't worry, she'll find out one day." It wasn't like Gryphon generally made a point of hiding them, anyway. He grinned wide, "Yeah, spend our days out on the streets, mugging old ladies~" ...and then he burst into a fit of giggles, "Why did I say that~..." Idiot.

Gryph shrugged in his seat, "It probably will be," He replied casually, "But that's kinda normal when you realise you have a sibling." If Kodi found this normal, that would be weird. This was normal weird.

Kodi was speaking as if the winged cripple was some kind of expert. Gryphon rose an eyebrow, "Every kid's different." You couldn't always talk to them all the same, "You've just got to be friendly. Open. Warm." And then Gryph paused and realised why that might not have been the most helpful thing to say. "...kids are less judgemental than adults. You've just gotta wait and see." He smiled to himself as they got closer, only just starting to feel a little nervous as well, "I hope so too, sweetie."

Gryphon looked at the door as he was stopped in front of it, before glancing back at his lover. He gave him a sympathetic smile, "You'll be okay, baby." He said softly, gently headbutting Kodi's stomach before looking forward again, taking a moment to center himself as well before leaving forward and knocking a couple times. The moment he saw Kodi's mum, he would be all bright smiles. Asking her how she was, saying she looked beautiful and so forth. And casually tugging his sleeves over the ink that peeked through on his hands because... well, Kodi was probably right.

[Deleted]

Well, Kodi was technically half-blind, so Gryphon was kinda right on that part. But still… Mehh. He was wearing contacts at the moment, because he didn’t want to be squinting with obvious sight issues and he didn’t want to wear his stupid-looking glasses, especially in front of a little girl. He’d always had the problems, though, even as a kid, so his cheap glasses back then was one of the reasons why he’d gotten picked on, among other things. “Nope,” he snorted. “You never do, so I won’t, either.” And Gryph deserved compliments way more than Kodi did. “Mm… Yeah… Just prepare t’be scolded when she does,” he replied with a small smirk. Gryph would never be scolded as much as Kodi had been, though. He laughed at his boyfriend’s attempt to be… Thug, or whatever. It didn’t work on that face. “Yeah… I think all you’re capable of doin’ to old ladies is helpin’ ‘em cross the street,” he replied with an eyeroll. “Moron.” He pecked the boy’s cheek again.

As far as Kodi was concerned, Gryphon was an expert, at least compared to him. Seriously, Kodi couldn’t recall a time he’d ever interacted with a four-year-old before. “Friendly? Open? Warm? Me?” he retorted with a snort. “Babe, have you met me? I’ll try my best, but, fuck…” He could only act so much. “… Kay. I guess that’s all I can do,” he sighed, shaking his head as he wheeled the boy forward. “Just tell me if I’m doin’ somethin’ horribly wrong, okay?”

His lips were pressed firmly together as Gryph looked back at him, and he nodded mutely. Okay. He’d be fine. Kodi still winced when he knocked on the door, and lowered his eyes as he waited for his mother to appear. When she did… “Nín hǎo, mǔqīn,” he greeted meekly, bowing his head a little before he looked up at her. Her features were always startling now, he thought; had she always been so… Fierce-looking? Kodi supposed she was beautiful, to someone who noticed that about a woman (apparently Gryph did, or he just wanted to flatter her), and he had to wonder how much his sister had picked up from her. “<Thanks for… Having us over…>” She’d asked him to start speaking Mandarin more around her, but it was a struggle since he hadn’t spoken it much in a while, and he also didn’t want to be rude to Gryph.

Jiang greeted Gryphon much more warmly than she did to Kodi, which he wasn’t surprised about. After giving her son a polite nod and returning a few courtesies, she smiled at the wheelchaired boy and asked how he was doing, if he was eating alright, if he needed any tiger balm to help with pain. Kodi just wheeled him inside and stood by politely while they spoke, looking around the room, expecting to see a little face. “Mǔqīn… Is she here?” he asked during a lull in the conversation. His heart was beating fast again.

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

Kodi's glasses were cute! But of course Gryph would think that. Of course. He was blushing now, only a little, head slightly dipped, "I guess that's fair." And true. Gryphon would never shut up about complimenting Kodi. It needed to be done! Gryphon made a face at the idea of scolding. It wasn't like he was used to it but... yeah, Gryph hadn't had the best past with his father and 'mother', simply put. "I'll have my brave face at the ready." He joked, despite his thoughts. Besides, Jiang wasn't a horrible person. And neither was Gryphon. He would definitely make a terrible thug, someone meek and sympathetic like him, he who giggled at the simplest cheek kiss. "Maybe I'll just stick to that." He said softly, smiling at Kodi. Definitely felt like a moron right now.

Gryph made a conflicted face. Yeah, he knew where he'd gone wrong here, and he was embarrassed. He nodded, "Yeah, I'll make it clear." He said, before looking at Kodi again, "I think the very worst thing you can do is seem insincere. Kids see right through that shit when they're smart, and considering she's related to you, she may as well be baby Einstein." Subtle compliment, nyeheh, "You're allowed to be nervous."

When they were let in... well, simply put, Gryph only knew minimal Chinese. Enough to greet Jiang in her mother tongue but not enough to hold a conversation by far. So as they spoke, it went right over his head, and he just smiled, peeking around a bit to see if a little girl could be seen inside, but he didn't spoke anyone. When he spoke to Jiang, he was friendly as well, thanking her for her kindness and concern and that yes, he was alright for now. He liked speaking to her, but he felt awkward, considering he felt like she should be speaking to her own son similarly, but didn't. Unless he'd missed something in their Mandarin.

He looked up at Kodi when the question was asked, and at a glance it was obvious that his nerves weren't calming down, but that was okay. Curious as well, Gryphon looked to Jiang, waiting for an answer. He wondered how Belle was, what she would think of his brother, of himself... this was going to be an interesting experience.

[Deleted]

Kodi scoffed and rolled his eyes when Gryph gave his reasoning why his sister would be smart. “I ain’t that smart,” he retorted. “Just read a lot.” But whatever, that wasn’t the point. “… Kay. Good, ‘cause I am.” Nervous, that was. Smart? Only sometimes, despite whatever Gryph said.

He vaguely thought, he should teach Gryph some Mandarin, as Kodi spoke with his mother. He was learning Korean after all, but that was a lot simpler, considering it was phonetic. But still… Kodi would feel less rude and like he was leaving Gryphon out. He did smile a little as they interacted without him, thought. It was so much better than Jiang disliking Gryphon because they were boyfriends. He was pleasantly surprised that she seemed alright with it, especially considering how things used to be.

When the topic finally moved to Kodi’s sister, Jiang smiled at the question, and she nodded as she looked over her shoulder. “<Belle? You can come out now, no need to be shy.>” The dentokinetic had to chuckle at this; at least, apparently, he wasn’t the only meek one. He looked in the direction that his mother was talking, towards the small hallway in the apartment, and waited…

There was a faint sound of footsteps. And when Belle finally made her appearance, Kodi nearly had to steady himself against the wall.

How could something related to him be that stupidly cute?!? Little four-year-old Belle looked up at them with small, dark, long-lashed eyes, not unlike his own (nor his mother’s). Her hair, black and silky like Kodi’s had been before he’d started ruining it with dye, was trimmed neatly to frame her round, dimpled face. She was dressed simply, but Kodi hardly paid attention as she tottered towards them. All he could think about was that this was the first and probably only time he’d ever fallen in love with a girl.

He gulped. “Hey, sis…” he managed weakly, but if the girl heard him, she didn’t show it. Instead, she seemed to make a beeline for Gryphon, and glomped onto the wheelchair’d boy’s legs when she reached him. “Brother?” she asked in a high, excited tone. Kodi’s heart broke in two. Ugh, his stupid boyfriend must have a much more kid-friendly face!

Kodi scowled and stuffed his hands in his pockets, grumbling quietly as his mother laughed and corrected Belle on who her brother really was. When Belle did finally look up at him, he tried to smile again and hesitantly squatted down to be more on her level. She seemed more hesitant to approach the pierced and scruffy boy, which Kodi supposed he couldn’t blame her for, but Belle finally gave him a smile and the dentokinetic’s heart reformed before melting into a pile of goo. He was definitely smiling stupidly by this point. “I’m Kodi,” he informed her, feeling silly.

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

"You're smart, shuddup." Even if that just meant smarter than Gryph (which, according to Gryph himself, wasn't much of a feat), Kodi definitely had some intelligence in him. He smiled softly at the confession of Kodi's obvious nerves. Yeah, Gryphon would be nervous too.

Yup... this was still Mandarin. If Gryph felt it possible - which it was, he seemed to have a quiet knack for languages, but he wasn't confident about that - he would attempt to learn Chinese. Right now, however, it was multiple syllables he just struggled to compute. Kodi was laughing a bit, and Gryphon wasn't sure why, so he just smiled awkwardly and looked in the same direction as everyone else, quietly.

He sat back at the little girl's appearance, smile becoming a lot more genuine (and opening, and friendly, and sweet - his dimple wasn't being shy today). She was so, so adorable. Oh god, he hadn't imagined her looking like this - he couldn't take his eyes off of her sweet face and tiny appearance, she was so cute, she was.... oh dear.

Gryphon couldn't help giggling awkwardly at her mistake, glancing up at Kodi apologetically. This.... nope, wasn't going to help his nerves. But it was cute! So cute. He made an awkward noise at the question, "Awh, sweetie... um.... no..." He continued to laugh awkwardly as her mother redirected the little thing towards her rightful sibling, but he petted her head affectionately and sent her a little kiss. And then... well, she seemed a bit reluctant, but Gryph wouldn't interfere. He'd done that enough already, just by being there. He pulled back a little, mostly keeping his eyes on Kodi to make sure he was doing alright, but.... he was fine... just fine, yup. That smile was a bright and happy one. Gryphon sighed quietly in relief, regarding Jiang for a moment as well. This moment probably meant a whole lot to her. He really hoped he wasn't intruding too much... hmm...

He remained quiet, so the pair could have a good meeting. He would speak with Belle properly when the siblings were done realising each others existence.

[Deleted]

Kodi should have known Belle would think that Gryph was her brother. He looked much more approachable to kids, after all, even if the dentokinetic had made some sort of attempt to make himself look like less of a punk than usual. He still had slightly mussy hair, and the snake bites, and a light bit of kohl around his eyes, and ear piercings, and… Yeah, it was hard to hide all of that, and he hoped she wasn’t frightened of him. But now that she was actually looking at him and paying attention, she seemed alright. “Uh…” What else was he supposed to say? He looked up at his mother and Gryph for help with a slightly panicked look on his face.

Fortunately Jiang seemed to go into mother mode and came closer to the two, scooping Belle up into her arms so Kodi could stand up and be in the girl’s level. “[This is your brother,”] she informed Belle, who was now looking at the dentokinetic with scarily intense eyes. He shifted awkwardly under her childlike gaze. “[Can you say hello?]”

Belle lifted her hand and waved it. “Ni hao…” she finally said. Kodi giggled stupidly. Her voice was so cute! He gave her a little wave back and looked around, trying to find a clue about what she might like to talk about. There was a puzzle on the table in the living room, so he turned back to her and asked,”Do you like puzzles? Can you, uh… can you show me?” Belle nodded excitedly and wiggled for Jiang to put her down, so she did and Kodi followed his sister as she skittered towards the table. The Chinese boy glanced behind himself at Gryph and chuckled in amazement. Maybe she is smart already. He tugged on his lover’s hand a moment until he settled down in front of the pieces and watched his sister start trying to put them together. “I don’t think I was doing puzzles at this age…” he chuckled as he watched, occasionally picking up a piece to try to put into place. He looked back at Gryphon. “What if we have a child prodigy on our hands? She’s gonna make me look bad…” Kodi snickered softly.

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

Even if he might not have seemed more approachable than Gryphon himself, Gryph supported Kodi in presenting himself in a way that made himself happy. He could wear what he wanted, how he wanted. It was his body after all! And maybe it would be a good thing for Annabelle, in a way. Teach her one of Gryphon’s favourite lessons - don’t judge a book by its cover. Or a booknerd, in Kodi’s case. A socially awkward booknerd who seemed to be struggling, but still, Gryph didn’t want to interfere, so he just smirked unhelpfully and folded his arms, waiting for something to happen.

He watched the family interact and… yeah, definitely felt awkward. Like he shouldn’t really be there, so he kept his head dipped slightly, still staying out of it as he heard the Chinese. He couldn’t help chuckling as well, at Belle’s voice and Kodi’s reaction to it. She was literally the living definition of adorable, really and truly, Jesus Christ…

Damn, Gryph wasn’t as intuitive as Kodi. He never would have noticed that puzzle. He watched as well as - oh, did she stop being cute for two seconds, holy hell - Belle wiggled to the ground, hesitating for a couple moments as everyone seemed to move, before catching eyes with Kodi and following the rest of them, a gentle smile on his face. He squeezed Kodi’s hand back and awed at her intelligence. Well, maybe he didn’t feel too surprised, but that was for obvious reasons. At Kodi’s speculations, he chuckled, “You’re intelligent in your own way, you nerd.” He smiled, “Besides, girls are better than boys anyway.” Trying to get on the little girl’s good side? Maybe. He wondered if she was any good at languages, but… she was only four. Trying to teach her a tiny bit of Korean too was going to confuse the poor thing. He was allowed to be curious, though.

And to give himself a reason to fiddle with something and be awkward, Gryph started searching around on his wheelchair for painkillers. He only had a quiet headache and a small pain in his legs, but he didn’t know what else to do. He silently wondered if Belle knew about his relationship to Kodi, but he wouldn’t talk about it unless someone else did. This meeting was more for Kodi to meet his sister than anything, and he couldn’t intrude on something so important.

[Deleted]

Thanks for the help, Gryph. Yeah, real helpful. Kodi made a face at his boyfriend and sent a mental message. You’re going to teach me some of your kid skills later. He should have asked more about how Gryphon interacted with the kids at the dance studio before now.

At least he wasn’t totally crashing and burning yet. He hadn’t cursed, which was good; he wondered how long that would last, especially since he’d only said about six words so far. Kodi was trying to include Gryph in this as much as he could, considering the winged boy was sort of his anchor, but it was difficult when the world’s cutest four-year-old was in your face.

He watched Belle playing with her puzzle; it didn’t seem to challenge her too much, which was even more amazing. Kodi shook his head and leaned back against the front of Gryph’s wheelchair. “It looks like she’s gonna be more visual than I am,” he mused. “Though that don’t mean she won’t be literate too…” Kodi scoffed at Gryph’s gender bias and nudged his leg (gently). “Yeah well… Only in this instance,” he grumbled. Girls still sucked in general, wehh. Just not Belle, so he wouldn’t say that in front of her. Jiang stood nearby, watching and smiling but not saying much. After a few more moments when she apparently deemed them alright, she went to the kitchen to make lunch.

Kodi cleared his throat, realizing he hadn’t actually introduced Gryph. “Uh, hey… Belle? This is Gryphon… Gryph.” He paused. “He’s my boyfriend. He’s very nice, and is probably goin’ t’spoil you rotten.” The dentokinetic looked over his shoulder knowingly. Belle looked up curiously. “Ni hao, ‘Ryph!” she smiled. Kodi was slightly taken aback, but relieved, by how easy that was; apparently her dad hadn’t had time to instill his beliefs into her.

But then – “Are you gonna get married?” his sister asked innocently. Kodi’s eyes widened, and then his cheeks blushed deeply. “I-I… Well, I mean… We uh… Uh….” He looked back in a panic at Gryphon. How was he supposed to answer that!?

[Gryphon Matsuoka]

That look Kodi was giving him was great. Gryphon smirked and stuck his tongue out. There was nothing wrong with suffering for now. He'd get there eventually, but before them, Gryph would enjoy basking in his awkward behaviour. He wasn't doing a bad job, after all; he was just a little stiff. He'd be fiiiiine~

For a four year old, Annabelle was an impressive little girl. Gryph wasn't anywhere near being able to do puzzle at her age. According to Fiona, he swallowed a jigsaw piece once. That can probably tell you enough about his intelligence at that age. But he wasn't exactly surprised by Belle's apparent intuition. As much as Kodi denied that he was smart and said he just liked reading books, he was smart. Academically. As a person, he was an idiot, but everyone was, really. Gryphon smiled, "I think she is gonna be a very intelligent girl. More than you." He said, teasingly. He rolled his eyes, "Sure." He agreed begrudgingly, though girls were a lot better than boys at many things. Gryph would know, he had lots of friends who were girls!

He blinked at the introduction before smiling down at Belle, and then giggled at Kodi's description of him, nudging his shoulder, "Aiiiish~" Though he wasn't most likely wasn't wrong. Gryphon almost squealed as Belle spoke to him - that was too cute, oh my gooosh! And he had noticed as well, how casual she was about being told about 'boyfriends'. He was relieved. "Ni hao, sweetie." He said softly, "It's nice to meet you."

At the question, he couldn't help laughing in place of Kodi's awkwardness, bending down enough to touch their foreheads together for a moment, before petting his hair, "Maaaybe~" He said childishly, "It depends. If he's a big meanie, then we won't. But... we'll see, darling." He winked at them both. Ah, he liked teasing. He looked at the puzzle being constructed, then at Kodi, "She's so precious." He looked at Belle, expression warm, "What do you want to be when you grow up, honey?"

[Deleted]

Sure, Gryph might not have been the brightest kid ever, then or now, but Kodi didn’t care. He was loving, and kind, and thoughtful, and that mattered more than intelligence in his mind. Not that he would admit it to anyone but his boyfriend himself. Yeah okay, maybe Kodi had booksmarts and did naturally well at school, but… Whatever, since it came to him so easily, he had a hard time thinking anything of it. He scoffed at Gryph’s words. “I won’t be surprised,” he replied with a thin smile. Especially if she won’t have to grow up around dad. “Hopefully she’ll do better than me at school too.” You know, like, if she actually tried, unlike him.

He snickered at Gryph’s response to his introduction. “What? I know you too well, I know you’re gonna spoil her more than y’do me,” Kodi retorted with a smirk. And he would likely be jealous as hell from it, but he figured he could deal with it. He smiled at the interaction between the two, already determining that Belle would get more attached to Gryph than she would to him. Hell, he would too, if he was in her position. Gryph exuded friendliness and optimism; Kodi looked like an awkward punk.

He was relieved that his boyfriend didn’t seem as awkward as he was about the question. Kodi smiled a little and nuzzled into the touches. “I won’t be a big meanie,” he promised softly, serious despite the childish wording. His heart was skipping, thinking about the possibility. “I don’t see myself with anyone else.” He wasn’t sure if he was speaking more for Belle or Gryph by this point. Kodi smiled and nodded in agreement with what the older boy said, then looked at his little sister. “I’m gonna be a doctor!” she announced, and Kodi couldn’t help but laugh a little. “Of course,” he muttered to himself. “I’m sure you will be,” he assured his little sister more loudly. No doubt their mother had planted those thoughts into her head. But the dentokinetic was happy, in this moment, to just sit with his lover and watch this sweet little girl that shared his genes work on her puzzle, while Jiang prepared lunch in the other room.