Fall From Grace
Chapter 6
By: Danielle and Tee
(C) by us. Standard warnings and disclaimers apply
****************************
 
The two weeks of Kevin's bed rest had gone by with Nick spoiling Kevin rotten and Kevin letting him.  He hadn't been out of the house in the entire time except for two days ago to go to the clinic to get some blood drawn for tests so the results would be ready for his doctor's appointment. Even then, Nick had him straight to the clinic and right back home again.
 
Kevin had started to get cabin fever as week and a half into his "sentence" as he called it.  Only with an extreme amount of whining, eyelash batting, puppy dog faces, tush wiggling and kissing of secret spots was Nick persuaded that the couch downstairs would be just as good as a bed and would save Nick from running up the stairs all the time.
 
Nick gave in with a sigh, telling Kevin it was lucky he was so cute and married to him, or there would be no way he would be falling for the eyelash batting.
 
Kevin just smiled and crawled into the blankets and pillows spread out on the couch and pulled Nick down with him so the two of them could snuggle up to watch the tv.
 
The day of Kevin's doctor's appointment came and as much as Kevin was glad that his doctor imposed bed rest was going to be over, he was going to miss it a little too. The two weeks reminded Kevin of the time the two of them spent in Nick's cabin in Georgia.  He had been so helpless there and dependant on Nick for everything from the food that he ate to the clothes that he wore.  Granted, he hated not being in charge, but somehow it was ok to surrender to Nick, because he knew that Nick would take care of him and never, ever make him feel helpless, even if that's what he really was.
 
His cough was almost gone now.  Not completely, but it was cleared enough that he could put up some pathetic semblance of a fight up in a game of Mortal Combat on the Nintendo with Dylan.  He sucked, mind you, but that wasn't the point. Seeing his Husband and his son sitting together on the floor, with Dylan sitting in Nick's lap and the his hand on Dylan's tiny ones helping him maneuver the controller was as close to complete happiness in his books as he was ever going to get. He didn't even mind that he was getting his ass kicked. 
 
Max the Dog was still following him everywhere. If he wasn't on the bed or couch with him, he was lying right beside it, only moving when Kevin did.  But when Dylan came, Max was more than happy to take a break from guarding Kevin and follow Dylan adoringly as he ran around the beach house.
 
"The great mystery is solved."
 
Kevin looked up from the Rolling Stone Magazine that he was thumbing through, "What?"
 
Nick snatched the magazine out of Kevin's hands and straddled Kevin's lap and placed Kev's hands on his sides, "Every time Dylan comes over, Fur Face follows him instead of you.  He misses Dylan, and you being his dad, you are the closest thing to Dylan in the house. So, he follows you instead when Dylan isn't here.  Mystery solved."
 
Kevin wrapped his arms more tightly around Nick and leaned his head up to kiss him lightly, "I knew I married you for a reason."
 
Nick grinned, "You married me for my brain? And here I thought that it was the mind blowing sex."
 
Kevin grinned back and slid his hands over Nick's hips and splayed his hands over his behind, holding Nick still while his hips lifted off the couch to rub softly against Nicks , "Oh the sex was part of it."
 
Nick's jaw dropped open and he went into Oscar worthy hurt indignation mode and gave the puppy dog eyes, "Is that all I am to you? A piece of tail?"
 
He managed a pretty passable whimper and sniffle before moving to get himself standing from kneeling there on the couch, straddling Kevin's lap.
 
Kevin rolled his eyes a little and put his hands on Nick's hips and held him right where he was, "You know me better than that.  I love you.  Everything about you.  Every…" He leaned up and kissed Nick's neck, "Single…" Then gently sucked his earlobe, "Thing."  His lips brushed against Nick's and they both sighed. 
 
Kevin felt Nick lean into the kiss and settle fully onto his legs, as their lips worked together, their tongues meeting.  Nick's arms wrapped around Kevin's shoulders and his fingers tangled in Kevin's thick, dark hair.
 
Nick closed his eyes and squeezed Kevin tighter, feeling so warm and safe and loved in his arms.
 
Kevin slid his fingers under the material of Nick's t-shirt and his palms touched the warm, soft skin that lay underneath and groaned at the way that Nick arched against his hands, a soft whimper heard before it was swallowed up in the kiss.
 
"Daddy!!"
 
The two of them pulled away from each other reluctantly. 
 
Kevin looked over Nick's shoulder as his husband laid his head down on Kevin's solid shoulder. "What is it, Little Man?"
 
Dylan stood there with Max sitting at his feet, "What'cha doing?"
 
Kevin smiled, "You know how you like it when Daddy cuddles with you and holds you nice and tight?  Well Daddy Nick likes the same thing sometimes. And I like to cuddle with Daddy Nick just as much as I like to cuddle with you."
 
Dylan thought about it and nodded, then ran over to his fathers and raised his arms, "Me cuddle too!"
 
Kevin chuckled as Nick raised his head and turned himself so he was sitting with his back to the arm of the couch and his legs spread over Kevin's lap.  Dylan climbed up on Nick's lap and the three of them cuddled close.  Max whimpered from the floor and Nick leaned over a little to scoop him up and place him on Dylan's lap, where he promptly curled up and dozed off to sleep.
 
Kevin reached behind Nick and took a look at the clock, they should have just enough time. His fingers felt on the coffee table until he  found what he was looking for.  He pulled it into his fingers and lifted it over Nick's head and in front of him. "What's this I found?"
 
Dylan looked at the book that was in his father's hand and clapped with a giggle, "Read! Read!"
 
Kevin grinned, if there was one thing his son absolutely loved beyond anything else, it was someone reading to him. "Are you sure you want me to?"
 
Nick smirked, Dylan was nodding his head so fast, that Nick was surprised that the little boy's head didn't tumble right off his shoulders. 
 
Kevin cleared his throat and made a big show of opening the book and turning to the first page.  It was Dylan's favorite book, Love You Forever by Robert Munch
 
"Once there was a mother and a baby....
 
And he grew and he grew and he grew until he was 8 years old....
 
And he grew and he grew and he grew until he was moving out of the house and going to college....
 
And he went into his brand new baby's room and took her from her crib and held her close rocking her back and forth, back and forth, back and forth and he sang
 
I'll love you forever
I'll like you for always
As long as I'm living
My baby you'll be."
 
As the last note of the lullaby in the book came from his lips, he looked down and saw the most adorable sight in the world.  Dylan was asleep, curled up on Nick's chest, with Max wedged between them, sound asleep as well and Nick with the most content smile on his face, watching the two sleeping figures on his chest.
 
Kevin met his smile and leaned down to kiss him lightly.  "Wouldn't give up this moment for he world, would you?"
Nick shook his head, "Not for a million dollars."
 
Kevin wrapped his arms around Nick, Dylan and the dog, "Me either. Everything I ever wanted, is right here in my arms."
 
Nick leaned up and kissed Kevin softly, nuzzling his face in Kevin's neck when he pulled away from the kiss, "Me too."
Kevin chuckled, "Does that include the dog?"
 
Nick pulled a face, "Well....I'm undecided on Mr. Bed-Hog-Tryin-To-Take-My-Man.  Talk to me after he's been fixed."
 
As if Max knew they were talking about him, he lifted his head sleepily and wobbled over closer to Kevin's arm and stuck his snout in the crook, letting out a sigh as he fell back asleep.
 
Nick rolled his eyes and looked at the way the dog was cuddled up to Kevin, "See what I mean?!  He's after you, man!"
 
Kevin shook his head with a laugh and reached his hand up Nick's back and used it to cup the back of Nick's neck and pull him up enough to kiss him soundly, "He doesn't have a chance."
 
Nick puckered his lips again and Kevin took the hind and leaned down for another kiss, a slow, deep one that held a lot of promise for later that evening.
 
"We should get him all buckled into the car, we need to be leaving soon."
 
Kevin nodded, "Yeah, if we leave now, we'll be just on time to get to the doctor's after we drop Dylan off."
 
Nick nodded and wrapped his arms tightly around Dylan and let Kevin push him up off the couch slowly so he wouldn't wake the sleeping child in his arms.
 
They managed to get the house closed up, Max gated in the kitchen and Dylan buckled in the car in under five minutes.  In another twenty, they were pulling up in front of Sam and Melinda's place. 
 
Kevin lifted his sleeping son in his arms and put a blanket over the small boy's head to block the light and carried him in the house with Nick following carrying his bag of toys and books. 
Kevin brought him right upstairs and laid him in bed while Nick gave Melinda Dylan's things and kissed Sam on the cheek, fearful of being slapped by her again. 
 
Sam smiled at him and gave him a hug, "The dog still trying to steal Kevin from you?"
 
Nick grinned and shook his head, "I'm wise to his game now.  We think it's because he misses Dylan when he's not there, so Kevin is like the substitute."
 
Melinda nodded, "That makes sense.  In a warped way. But, it makes sense."
 
Kevin laid Dylan on the bed and tucked him in. Kissing the little boy's forehead, he turned to leave the room.
 
"Daddy?"
"Yeah?"
 
"Love you."
 
Kevin turned around and smiled down at the sleepy little boy, crossing the room and lifting him up to hug him kiss his forehead, "Love you too, Jelly Bean"
 
Dylan giggled as Kevin put him back in the bed and stroked his son's forehead with his thumb like he would do for Nick when he was homesick. A few seconds later, Dylan was out like a light. Worked like a charm, still."
 
Kevin smiled and went down the stairs and kissed both Sam and Melinda, "We'd love to stay and talk, but we have to go if we are going to get there in time."
 
They both nodded and walked them out to the car, "Thanks for bringing him home sleeping, we were worried he wasn't going to get a nap today. He's going to Kasey's tonight with us for dinner, so we were having cranky anxiety."
 
Kevin shrugged, "We just read to him, put him out like a lightbulb."
 
Sam grinned, "Love You Forever?"
 
Kevin nodded, "Works every time."
 
With that they said their good-byes and were off to the Doctor's for Kevin's check up. 
 
The waiting room was empty when they came to the Doctor's office, but they weren't surprised. He was really good about looking out for them.  He seemed to know if they came to the doctor and someone was in the waiting room and spotted them, it could get rumored and spun that one of them was sick and pretty soon, the rumor mill would go into overdrive and someone would be on their death bed and millions of fans around the world would be all wound up for no reason.  It was just safer this way.
 
They both smiled at Kerry, his receptionist, and she smiled back.
 
"He's waiting for you in his office. Go right back."
 
They both nodded and headed back.
 
When they got to he office, Dr. Sullivan was there waiting for them.  He put down the chart he was reading and motioned for them both to sit down. 
 
"How is the cough, Kevin?"
 
Kevin smiled, "Better. Hardly bothered me the past few days. It's pretty much gone."
 
The doctor nodded and made a notation in the chart.
 
"Still having fevers?"
 
Kevin went to shake his head and Nick spoke up, "Yeah, he'll spike one and then it will go away as fast as it came. They don't seem to be lasting very long any more."
 
The doctor made another note and looked at Nick, knowing he was more likely to get an honest answer from him. "Anything else you can think of?"
 
Nick thought about it, being careful not to look at Kevin, knowing he was hating being talked about like he wasn't even there. But the doctor knew he wouldn't tell him if something was bothering him. He considered it whining, when the doctor considered it important information to have.
 
"He's been a little stiff and sore, achy and stuff.  But I think it's because I haven't let him out of bed for practically the whole two weeks. He needed his sleep, and from all the napping he did, I think I was right in not letting him try to be superman."
 
The doctor smiled, "Most definitely."
 
Nick shot Kevin an 'I told you so!' look and Kevin rolled his eyes and looked at the Doctor, "Oh great, now he's never gonna let me live this down.  Never, ever tell Nick he's right!"
 
The doctor smiled a little and closed the chart.  "Well, your blood tests came back and I'm afraid they didn't come back as well as I had hoped."
 
Kevin and Nick's hands found each other automatically, squeezing together for an assurance that the other was still there.
 
Kevin cleared his throat, it having suddenly dried out at those words, "What do you mean?"
 
The doctor stood up and went around the desk to sit on the edge of it, closer to Kevin and Nick, "I got the tests back and there were some irregularities that concerned me, so I had some other tests run.
 
Knowing your history, I asked for some very specific tests. And talking with you and Nick just now confirmed the results of these tests. You are showing the classic symptoms."
 
Kevin and Nick gripped their hands together so tightly that the doctor was afraid that someone was going to break a finger.
 
He hated moments like this. He hated the words he was about to say, but knowing he needed to say them.  He took a deep breath and looked at the two of them, knowing how hard they'd had to fight to get to where they were and now he was about to bring even more onto their shoulders with his words,
 
"The tests came back with irregularities in your blood. Cells that weren't fully developed and ones that didn't function at all.  Kevin, I've had these test rechecked three times."
 
The doctor paused and Nick looked over at Kevin and without a word went over into the chair with Kevin, pulling him close, like his arms could shield his husband from whatever was coming. 
 
Kevin clung to him and they both looked up at the doctor, "Tell us. What is it?"
 
The doctor rested his hands on the desk, and had Kevin and Nick been looking, they would have seen the Doctor's white knuckle hold on the wood, dreading the words he was about to say,
 
"Kevin, the tests show you have Leukemia.  You have cancer."