writingdreamdaddy

[writingdreamdaddy]

HEY

So yeah it’s been awhile, how is everyone, i know i made like 2 post and dipped BUT my love for the dads comes in waves and i’m in school so i’m busy busy busy; that is my excuse for never posting lol.

That being said it’s winter break and i’ve been thinking about Robert a lot so i might write some stuff who knows lets give this another go shall we?

[writingdreamdaddy]

Hey i’m not dead just really busy, feel free to keep sending stuff but don’t expect it to come out anytime soon. I get a burst of thirst for the dads every once and awhile and thats when i write so i’m sorry i havent written anything recently 

[writingdreamdaddy]

Oh! A new blog! Hello, im glad people are still producing ddadds content :) Id like to request maybe, like. How the dads spend a free day woth dadsona? Like. Theyre all busy and have their own things going on, but what happens when its just a random day, their kids are away for whatever reason (maybe a sleep over or something) and they suddenly find themselves with unexpected free time?

Ahhh i love this kinda stuff! I hope i did the ask some justice. (All the kids are out of it except River because she’s a baby and the best thing in the game)

Keep reading

[writingdreamdaddy]

panic at the party

[writingdreamdaddy]

the only reason robert doesnt like small talk is because its too easy to make puns about his last name

[writingdreamdaddy]

robert: do you guys dare me to make out with dadsona?

mat: no...? why would we do that?

robert: ug, i can't believe you're making me do this.

brian: but we're not...

robert: i guess you guys leave me with no other choice!

hugo: no one dared you to make out with-

dadsona: LET THE MAN SPEAK, HUGO!

[writingdreamdaddy]

Would it be ok to send in requests that only focus on one dad?

Yes of course!

[writingdreamdaddy]

🌅

[writingdreamdaddy]

I still love Dream Daddy and I have absolutely no shame. Robert is my soul animal. 🥃

Mood

[writingdreamdaddy]

just wanna say thank you for doing these!! i love how unique and sweet you write for each and every dad!! the fandom is not as active as it used to be so thank you for doing this for the few of us who still love this series, thank you for taking your time with this, we appreciate it very much 😭

Oh thank you so much! I just missed the dads a lot and there wasn’t any new content so i made my own damnit. I really appreciate the kind words and i’ll try my best to keep this train chugalugin along <3

[writingdreamdaddy]

Spending the ddadds anniversary imagining Joseph’s and Dadsona’s 1st anniversary

[writingdreamdaddy]

do you take nsfw prompts -3-

Yeah sure why not. They probably won’t be the best though homie ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[writingdreamdaddy]

Oh! A new blog! Hello, im glad people are still producing ddadds content :) Id like to request maybe, like. How the dads spend a free day woth dadsona? Like. Theyre all busy and have their own things going on, but what happens when its just a random day, their kids are away for whatever reason (maybe a sleep over or something) and they suddenly find themselves with unexpected free time?

Ahhh i love this kinda stuff! I hope i did the ask some justice. (All the kids are out of it except River because she’s a baby and the best thing in the game)

Robert—

               Theoverhang’s beauty never ceased to amaze you. Every season, any time of day, itwas the most beautiful spot. Usually Robert would take you here late at night whenhe couldn’t sleep or needed a distraction. Lately he took you up here just tospend time with you and recollect himself. As he recovered, you two came uphere earlier and earlier as his sleep schedule slowly started to get back in rhythm.You two hadn’t been able to spend much time together as of late with Amandacoming home for break and Robert making trips up to Val’s, but eventually youtwo found time; when you did, he took you to the overhang. Spending time withRobert was always cherished. It was simple, it was calm, and today it was 7pm.The days were shorter, and the sun was setting, covering the dying leaves in agolden hue. Many yellow and orange leaves still clung to trees, some mixed onthe ground with the brown leafs or floated in the bay below. Robert told youhis favorite season was fall because the dead wood was good for whittling andplentiful. Definitely not because he kinda liked the color yellow, thedrive up to the overhang was breathtaking with the color change, and watchingBetsy play in the leaf piles or eat them was the cutest thing in the world. Youtwo were sitting in the back of his pickup truck with an ugly thick wool red blanketcovering you two. He wanted to come up here to spend time with you, so he wasn’twhittling or broodily staring off into the distance. Instead you two had discussionsabout this, that, and the other thing, with long breaks of silence in between. Hewas healthier and happier and laughing. Nothing made you smile bigger. When thesun nearly disappeared into the bay, you scooted a little closer to him andrested your head on his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around you and pulled youthat much closer. “Sorry we haven’t spent a lot of time together,” your voicewas raspy and tired. When you looked up at Robert, he was watching thecity light up with a small smirk on his face. With that, the two of you sat in silenceonce more, enjoying the time together.

Matt –

               Matexited his kitchen with two steaming mugs and handed one to you. The roads werecovered in ice with an overnight snow storm and nearly every shop and everyschool was closed; that included the Coffee Spoon. Camensita wanted to spendher snow day playing outside with the other kids, and Mat wanted to spend hiswith you. Nothing special was planned since it was so last minute, but a Pixarmovie was picked out and he put extra marshmallows in your hot cocoa. It was aday spent on the couch wrapped in several blankets, eating left over Chinesefood, and laughing at the movies you two picked out. Spending time with you wasthe most relaxing thing Mat could do. He didn’t get many days off, and eventhough you visited him at the Coffee Spoon often, time like this was stillprecious. You couldn’t cuddle up on the couch the entire day at work. He couldn’tlaugh loudly and critique every movie that played at work, and he most definitely could not kiss you the way hedoes at home, at work.

Joseph—

               You andJoseph were on the dock. It was mother’s day weekend so the kids were with Marytoday. It was the first day Joseph had nothing to do in weeks. This Saturday was the only day he had off until Churchservice tomorrow. You both had your pants rolled up and your legs were hangingof the edge as you looked out into the water. He was exhausted and stressed outbeyond belief, which is why you dragged him out here. You were going to forcehim to relax damnit. Usually when youtwo had free time like this you would actually go on the boat, or go out fordinner, or just sit in his backyard and talk by a fire. Today was different. Atfirst it was nice and silent, just sitting next to each other and enjoying oneanother’s company. Then you scooted closer to him and you two exchanged a kissor two and you’d tell a fact about whales every now and then. You two startedgossiping about the neighbors and Joseph would start venting about everythingand everyone. You two talked the day away before retreating to the boat forsome drinks and much needed sleep. The free day wasn’t spent doing anythingextravagant, but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t perfect.

Hugo—

               Springbreak was a blessing to Hugo. He had nowhere to be and nothing to grade, andthis year was his ex-husbands turn to take Ernest on vacation. That left himwith a little over a week to do whateverhe wanted, within the legal system of course. That mostly meant watching old wrestling matches he had recorded or writing like he usually does, but this time he was only in hisunderwear, and he was only in his underwear all the time. He got boredimmediately though and anxiously waited for your day off to come. When it finally did,he wanted to do everything. He justwanted to get out of the house. So you two went to the movies, the museum, shopping,and ended it with a lovely dinner. It was an exhausting day for both of you.The two of you wound up at your house since Hugo was still a little stir-crazy.You had changed into pajama pants and a t-shirt, and Hugo changed into a shirtyou lent him. The two of you laid in bed, you were playing with his hair andlaughing at the comments he made, or the facts he told. You curled up next tohim and shut your eyes but continued to talk about why The Undertaker and JohnCena were overrated with him. And this was the part of the day he remembered.Sure, the movie was fun, and the amount of useless knowledge you had aboutrandom things was entertaining in the museum, and yeah the sunglasses youbought today were absolutely ridiculous and made him laugh on the ride home when you wore them proudly. But it was watching you tiredly smileup at him, attempting to braid his hair and failing horribly, and you gentlykissing him goodnight. That’s what he took away from today.

Damien—

               Tonightwas date night and Lucien had left to spend the night at some friend’s house;the stars were aligning. It had been weeks since you two had gotten together todo something stupidly romantic and he was going to make it special. He cleanedthe house, cooked your favorite meal, and set his table with the finest thingshe owned. The night went by smoothly; eating and drinking and enjoying theothers company as if no time had passed. He didn’t want it to end so quickly.Dinner was done, the dishes were done, and the closing hour of the date wascoming up. He dreaded the thought of you leaving. The animal shelter has beenbusy as of late, which is great! It just eats up any available time he has, andthe chance of your schedule lining up with his, on date night. It was a miracle that was going by too fast. You werechatting away on the couch, talking about Amanda, work, and everything thatcame into your conscious stream of thought. He missed this, missed you. So when you got up to leave, heimmediately asked if you wanted to spend the night, to which you gladlyaccepted. That’s when Damien realized he spent most of the date worrying aboutit ending rather than enjoying it, so he was going to soak in every momentforward. You two got ready for bed together and made it as extravagant aspossible. The two of you would take a bubble bath together with face-masks onand wine in hand. You laughed together and talked about life and how busy it hadgotten. When you got out the conversation would continue while laying on top ofthe bed. It was well past midnight by the time you two finally got in thecovers and went to sleep with smiles on your faces.

Craig—

               Heneeded a day off. Even after the talk you guys had about him working himselftoo hard and not doing enough for himself, he was still the busy workout dadwho did everything. Just a little less than he did before. You had convincedhim to take a day off the weekend the kids were going to softball camp. Theidea of another camping trip sounded fun but needed some time to prepare for itwhich neither of you did. Nothing was packed, and finding a babysitter forRiver on such short notice would be even more stressful. He needed to dosomething other than work at his house or work at the gym. It was nice outsideso the thought of going for a walk crossed you lips, going out for dinnercrossed his, and so on and so forth. You sat on the deck chairs in Craig’s backyard trying to come up with a plan. Craig had River bouncing on his knee whileshe played with her stuffed capybara and you watched from where you wereseated. You two were always on the move, always going somewhere or doingsomething. Granted, it was fun to go to softball games, to smugly tell the momsafterwards that Craig wasn’t single anymore, going out for dinner, all of that.It was rare to get free time together, but it was rarer to get free timetogether and use it doing nothing. Soyou laid back in your seat and talked with Craig and occasionally babbled withRiver. You two lounged in the backyard well past Craig’s/River’s usual naptimeas he would tell you over and over while taking another sip of his drink but never doing anything to further the protest.Stories were told, River was played with, and time was wasted perfectly.

Brian—

               Youwanted to give mini golf another shot. It was embarrassing how bad you did lasttime you went with Brian, Daisy, and Amanda. To redeem yourself, you droveBrian back to the Mini Golf Place while Daisy was at a sleepover and Amanda wasin school. The kids were the real reason you lost, they were a distraction iswhat you told Brian. You two spent hours at the golf course, you lined up everyshot you made and used extra precaution before doing anything. By the time thegame was over, Brian lost and it was definitely not because he let you win. Theride home was you reliving your highlights from the day and Brian smiling andcommenting how great you were. You were something else, but Brian wouldn’t haveit any other way. Seeing you proud of yourself was look he’d love to see youwear every day.

[writingdreamdaddy]

Can you have the dads calming down a crying dadsona from an anxiety attack?

Robert—

               He wasnever skilled in the comforting department, but he knew how to handlesituations. He walked in on you sitting on your floor, back pressed against thecouch, and your head in your hands. He didn’t ask what happened or what waswrong, he just sat next to you and was patient. He gave you some space for abit but eventually put his arm around your shoulders. He sat there with youeven when you said you wanted to be alone or it wasn’t a big deal, he stayed.After time had passed and everything had calmed down a bit he rubbed your armand pressed you a little closer to him and told you what you always told him,“It’s gonna be okay.” He helped you off the floor and took you to his house soyou two could walk Betsy together. And everything really was going to be okay.

Matt –

               He hadgoogled how to handle his anxiety attacks so he was well versed. He told you tokeep breathing, told you the attack was temporary and that everything was goingto be fine. He was there for you. He took you out of the place you werecurrently in and you two went for a walk. He sparked conversation about thelatest band you two had become fans of and talked about maybe seeing them live,he talked about Amanda and how proud he was that she was following her dreams,he even gossiped about the other neighbors. He didn’t stop talking until youstarted, and then he relaxed a little. He spent the rest of the day with you.He was happy to see you smile by the end of it.

Joseph—

               He wasincredibly worried but didn’t want to show it. He never dealt with thesesituations and never experienced them personally. He held your hand and satacross from you and stared you down with the most sincere face. He didn’t knowwhat words to say or what actions were appropriate at a time like this so hejust stayed like that for the time being. He would squeeze your hand, rub histhumb across it, and every now and then he’d kiss the knuckles so you knew hewas still there. Whether you were silent or told him everything he never moved.His eyes never left your face and he never let go of your hand. Things calmeddown eventually and he hugged you as soon as you seemed comfortable. He rubbedcircles in your back and kissed the temple of your head and told you how muchhe loved you. He said a little prayer for you and hoped to God that he’d bearound whenever something like this happened. He didn’t know how to handle thesituation, but he would learn to. He would do anything for you.

Hugo—

               He’shad to comfort Ernest and a few of his school kids through things like this,but the last thing he wanted to do was treat you like a child. He took yourhands in his and asked you if everything was alright and how he could help. Hewould work through the situation step by step how he knew how until the attackhad passed and everything was back on track again like he did with thestudents. The difference was once you were better, he hugged you as tight as hecould and didn’t let go for some time. He kissed your forehead and told you howmuch you meant to him, how much you’ve impacted his life, and how important youare to him and Ernest. How you made life easier. He was prepared to help youthrough this whenever you needed it, but after that he would do everything inhis power to prevent it from happening in the first place.

Damien—

               He gaveyou space to breath and think, but he never left you alone. He knows what it’slike to go through something like this, and knows what it’s like to go throughit alone; and he would do whatever it takes to make sure you never have to gothrough that. As some time passed he would move to hold your hand, then he’dhold you, eventually hugging you and kissing your cheek. He would tell you allthe interesting facts about the Victorian age he hadn’t gotten around totelling you yet, made you tea, he would ask you to help him do little tasksaround the house, anything to distract you at least a little bit. He gave youcomfort and space and anything else you needed. As long as you weren’t alone.

Craig—

               Hestarted talking and talking to distract you. Retelling stories, reminiscingabout the camping trip, or talking about all the great and fun things you guysare going to do together. He was just looking to make you smile, to get yourmind off of whatever was causing this. He would do everything in his power to dojust that. He would continue to talk, would convince you to go on a walk,anything. He would stay with you until everything blew over, and carefullytouch on the subject of seeking help if this got worse. He couldn’t stand thethought of you suffering like that multiple times and wanted to prevent it ifpossible.

Brian—

               He satdown with you and tried to sympathize. He would do the dad pat on the back orhe would rest his hand on your knee and listen to whatever you had to say ornot say. He had no experience in panic attacks, but he was the most comfortingperson in the cul-du-sac, just ask him. He did anything to make you comfortableand did whatever you asked him to. He just wanted you to be okay, he just wantedyou safe.

[writingdreamdaddy]

It's good to see somebody else not over the hype, and I already love this blog. How about the dads catching dadsona singing? It can be good or bad singing, your choice 💞

Dadsona’s a fuckinrockstar my dude. Also sorry this took so long, i didn’t realize how busy i was and how poor my writing skills are. I don’t know if this was what you were looking for exactly but i hope its okay!

Robert—

               He wasnever one to make plans in advancement, he would just show up and you two woulddo something. That’s how it’s always been between you, it’s not like walkinginto your house unannounced was a new occurrence. Robert made the short stretchto your house across the cul-du-sac and looked at his phone with a yawn. It wasonly 10pm and he was already tired; you were a bad influence to his rebelliouslifestyle and sleep schedule. He opened your front door, expecting you to belounged on the couch watching Paranormal Ice Road Truckers like you always were, but you weren’t. The house was dark except for the fluorescent lights inthe kitchen. His investigation lead him to you in an old off white t-shirt and boxers, softly singing along with the quiet radio, cooking eggs in a pan. Robert leaned against thedoorway, listening and watching to you. You were no Jon Bon Jovi, but yourvoice was soothing and a little raspy. He would watch for a second, enjoyingyour “Shit I Burned the Eggs” version of “Livin’ on a Prayer”. Your singing would switch between actual singing, to playful swears directed toward the eggs singing, but itwas amazing in every way. You may have been in an entirely different key alltogether and laughed at your own mistakes and jokes, but to Robert you were arock star.

Matt –

               You twowere in his living room when you had convinced him to sing to you. He playedthe guitar, and you contributed to the jam session by tapping your foot. Hestarted to play and sing a slow song he had shown you awhile back. You didn’tknow all the words, but you remembered the chorus and quietly sang along withhim. At first Mat kept doing what he was doing, he would smile at you and eventually singa little quieter to listen to your voice. It was the fact that it was your voice that made it so special tohim. He’d heard millions of singers, some made his ears bleed, and others wereastonishing. But nothing was like yours. It was you, and that was all it took for it to be perfect. Your voices filled the quiet house andsteadily went along with the guitar. You’d back out and let Mat take the verse,but joined back in whenever the chorus hit. Mat didn’t want the song to end asquickly as it did, singing with you was something so great to him. It had beensuch a long time since he could experience music like this, even longer sincehe could experience it with someone else. You had brought back such animportant thing into his life, and it was in the way you sang. You wereclose to him, eyes shut, quietly singing along to whatever tune he’d start toplay. This was something that had been missing from his life since his wifepassed, and it was something he never thought he would get back. He neverthought music would feel the same again. But you changed that. It was a momenthe’d cherish, a moment he would remember. It wasn’t just you’re beautifulsinging, it was that you made Mat feel complete.

Joseph—

               Youwere both on the Yacht enjoying a night out. As the day passed and the sunbegan to set you two ran out of wine, so Joseph went inside to grab anotherbottle. It had been a lovely day with just the two of you talking up a storm,and it was his wildest dream come true. He and Mary were on peaceful terms, thekids were better than ever, and you were here letting him be who he was. You were here making his dayscomfortable and busy in the laziest way possible. He smiled to himself at thethought and grabbed the wine he was looking for. It was your favorite wine thathe personally thought was too sweet, but he didn’t care. When he stepped backout onto the deck, you were laying down on your lounge chair, resting youreyes. Your chair was positioned away from the door Joseph was in so that youcould face the sun, and you were softly singing a song he had never heardbefore. He stepped a little closer to get a better listen and just stood therefor a second. You weren’t belting out any rifts or showing off incrediblerange, it was just a simple slow and gentle song and Joseph took every word in.To him, you were already the most heavenly thing on the earth; your voice addedto that. Eventually he sat back down next to you. It startled you a little bitwhich caused you to open your eyes. You continued to sing but it in a much morejoking and over dramatic manner now that Joseph was there. You gave him acheeky smile while you sang your heart out with hand motions and everything,drowning out Joseph’s small laughter. Your singing got louder the more wine youdrank, and Joseph would join you every time you sang a Jimmy Buffett song. Youhad a beautiful voice even when you were mockingly singing, and it just addedto your charm if that was even possible. It was night time by the time your concertended and Joseph gave you an applause. He took your empty wine glass and helpedyou up since you were a little wobbly. You laughed yourself to sleep, andJoseph laid right beside you with admiration and a smile on his face. You wereeverything to him and he couldn’t thank you enough.

Hugo—

               Therewas a choir concert at the school. Hugo cared about all of his students andtheir passions so he made an effort to go to sport games, band and choirconcerts, and theater productions. It was inspiring to watch his kids enjoythese things because lord knows theyaren’t this involved in his class. This choir concert happened to fall on atrivia date night at the restaurant you and him went to all the time. He didn’twant to cancel on you, but he wanted to support the students. Luckily for him,he had the best boyfriend in the world who offered to go with him to theconcert. The concert was a little over an hour, so you two decided to getdinner afterwards. But on the way to the restaurant, you were quietly singing some of thesongs from the concert which earned you a look from Hugo. “What? Choir wasrequired in Junior High. And everyone knows that song.” You said with the same look beforecontinuing to show your amazing choral skills, giving Hugo “School Concert Part2” in the car. As pitchy and off key as you were purposely being, Hugo had asmile on his face. How he ever got so lucky to have you in his life is amystery he never wants solved.

Damien—

                No one in the cul-du-sac knew you performed atMat’s open mic nights except for, well Mat. It was only once in a blue moonthat you actually did, but you were definitely a crowd favorite. Damien andHugo have had crazy schedules lately, so they didn’t get to see open mic nearlyas much as they used to. Word traveled around though about you performing.Damien didn’t believe it at first, but the idea of going to open mic couldn’tleave his mind. He missed going. Hugo had papers he needed to grade, Mary andRobert were at the bar, so he went by himself. When you really did get on stagehe was shocked. But when you started singing, he was blow away. You had sung before in the car with him, but he hadnever heard you sing like this. Youwere so in your element. You weren’t singing along with Bruce Springsteen, youwere up there by yourself, and Damien didn’t think there was a sweeter sound inthe world. It wasn’t a ‘sitting in a coffee shop at night with an open mic’sweet, it was like Lucien saying his first word when he was a baby, or thefirst time you said you loved him. It was the look on your face, and seeing thepeople adore you almost as much as he did. He loved you more than any words hecould string together in a poem could express. Hearing you sing was the mostbeautiful sound in the world to him, and he would do everything from that nightforward to get you to sing like that again.

Craig—

               “Dude Ifound your old band mix.” Craig said before poppin’ that baby in the recordplayer. You didn’t have time to protest before your beautiful Ska vocals filledthe room. Craig may have been standing there looking down at you with his mouthopen in disbelief and eyebrows furrowed in sadness, but damnit, you were good. You still knew the lyrics to thesong playing so you started to sing along. You got up from your spot on thecouch and walked over to Craig while singing to your old garage band recordtape. Grabbing his hands and forcing his disappointed body to dance with you.Halfway through the song Craig cracked a small smile at your antics. Yoursinging was awful, the lyrics were awful, and he was mad at himself forthinking you were cool in college for being in this band. But he loved you. Goddid he love you so much. So that made the singing bearable.

Brian—

               Youcouldn’t get a stupid commercial jingle out of your friggin head and you sangit ALL day and now it’s stuck in HIS head. So he doesn’t like your singing.

[writingdreamdaddy]

Working on the Prompts!

I’m not dead after one post i promise, i just really suck at writing and i’m trying to make that not obvious. But something should (hopefully) be up tomorrow and we’ll get this show on the road.

[writingdreamdaddy]

Thank you for making this blog bless 🙏 could you do the Dads saying “i love you” for the first time?

Of course! I went a little overboard on this one…

Robert—

               It washard for him to say it. Part of him felt that he didn’t deserve to love you andanother part of him was scared. Time had passed since Amanda’s “yay you’re offto college” party, meaning time had passed since the conversation Robert and youhad. A lot of time. Getting better was hard and was never enough, and it torehim up that he couldn’t drown all of that in whiskey. He needed to do it, forhimself, for Val, and for you. And it was youthat convinced him of his worth, that what he was doing was brave and good. Youdid that by repeatedly telling Robert that you loved him during his recovery,way before you were dating. It was an ‘I’m comforting you during yourwithdrawal and mental fatigue’ I love you,which was completely different than an ‘I have romantic feelings for you andcherish every waking moment with you’ Ilove you. When the relationship kicked into full gear and you guys werefinally together, it was the happiest he’d been in a long time. It wasn’tshocking when you said the words before he did; the ‘I love you’ words you hadbeen saying to him ever since he needed you. He didn’t say them back the firsttime. He didn’t want you to leave him like Marilyn. Like Val. He’d never admitit, but like Joseph. He didn’t want this‘I love you’ to turn into those ‘I loveyou’. Those I love you’s didn’t last,and he wanted to end that cycle. Soinstead he kissed you in response and hoped it would be enough to tell you hefelt the same way without actually saying it out loud for the world to count itand stab him in the back later. He wanted to say it several times, but neverquite got to it. Like when you two finished watching a God awful movie at thetheater, but you sat through it with him until the credits ended. When you wereboth awake at 3am just lying in bed with each other, listening to one anotherbreathe and feel one another’s touch. When you’d fall asleep in the back of histruck while he whittled. Every moment with you he remembered, not a second withyou felt like time was wasted. So the moment came unexpected to him. It wasn’ta dramatically romantic evening, it was just at the overhang. The days werelonger so the sun set later. Together you watched the sun sink into the bay andwatched the sky change. The air was crisp with a slight breeze and you hadnever looked so beautiful. The slight smile that rested on your face as youclosed your eyes, letting your head tip back to rest on Roberts truck. It wasan evening he had experienced before and smiled at before. The words just fellout of his mouth before he could really think of what he was saying. “I loveyou.” He said the words and expected the worst to immediately happen. Your eyeswere still shut in complete bliss and you reached for his hand, giving it alittle squeeze before returning the statement. He loved you. He really did.

Matt—

               It wasan early morning. Usually after a concert night, the two of you would stay uplate and wake up even later. The special part of this morning was just the factthat you never went to bed. Theconcert ended around midnight and the two of you talked about it on the wayhome, getting ready for bed, and when snuggled in bed. Laying on top of eachother, sneaking lazy kisses to the cheek and jaw while the other person talked,running fingertips over each other’s arms and just listening. The two of youwould laughed and then quickly shush the other as to not wake Carmensita, onlyto continue laughing at how stupid you felt. It was like you were teenagers andit brought such joy to Matt. To feel so young and free again. To love music andto love another person again. How he loved watching you talk and laugh withhim, he loved holding you, spending time with you, he just loved you. It was when the early sun startedto rise that he realized just how much you meant to him and how grateful he wasto have you in his and Carmensita’s life. Someone he didn’t feel pressured oranxious to be around, because being with you was like Mat’s personal ‘me’ time.The confidence you brought him, and how you were so willing to do things andenjoy them. So when the gold light seeped through the curtains and filled theroom, he just let it out in a breathy sigh. “God I love you.” He said it withsuch ease it surprised him, but he quickly back peddled “I mean like— if that’scool with you.” You laughing was what made his shoulders relax. He looked downat where your head rested on his chest and watched as you moved to look up athim. You smiled and whisper back to him ‘I love you too’ before kissing him forthe millionth time that night. He calmed down a little bit and finally fellasleep for a couple hours before Carmensita woke up.

Joseph—

               Hedidn’t mean to say it so soon, but he said it quickly in your relationship. Itwas something that just kind of slipped out, but he stood by it. You two hadbeen baking. Not for a church event, you just wanted to get better at bakingand Joseph wasn’t going to decline the compliment to his cooking when you askedfor help. The two of you settled on just making simple brownies. It was nothingmessy, it was nothing special, it wasn’t even a romcom moment. It was lookingacross the kitchen island and seeing you, that sent his heart racing. It was watchingyour focused face measure the ingredients. It was watching you dance to aSpotify 80s mix and knowing every song that played. It was seeing you smile at him. His life had been hectic with himand Mary getting divorced, dealing with the kids, and how much attention thechurch always needed. But you were always there regardless. You were there forhim when he thought no one would be. His thoughts brought him back to memoriesof you two; watching the first half of movies before falling asleep, loungingin the backyard with Jimmy Buffet playing softly in the background, justrelaxing. Actually relaxing. Actually being in his own little MapleBay Margaritaville. His “I love you” happened pretty soon in the relationship.But the kiss you gave him afterwards made that okay.

Hugo—

                It was a long and tiring test week. Hugo feltbad for his students but damnit, he hated this part of the job and he was sorryfor himself. Grading was the worst especially when he could physically feel thehatred from his students radiating off them into his body. Ernest and him wouldnormally drive home together, but he fell behind on grading one day and wouldrather not bring it home where a certain child of his might do something. Whenhe called you, you immediately answered and offered to drive Ernest home. Whenyou came to pick Ernest up you stopped by to see him with coffee in hisfavorite “#1 Dad” mug Ernest made him in 2nd grade. You kissed histemple before leaving and heading home. It was all these little gestures youdid that just meant the world to him. You were the one who always helpedwhether it was physically or mentally. Eventually, the grading got done and hemade his way home, almost giddy to get into bed but not too giddy because hewas too drained for that emotional commitment. He came home to you making toastand complaining about Ernest’s math homework more than Ernest was. And his son laughed. You made him laugh. When the front door shut behindHugo, you turned towards his direction and greeted him with a smile and wave. Afteran hour had passed, Ernest was in bed and both you and Hugo made your way to thebedroom. You hadn’t moved in, but you often spent the night since your housegot lonely during the school year. He kept glancing over to you smiling at yourphone, probably texting Amanda. He watched the screen light up your face. Theface he could stare at all day. He fell in love with you all over again whenyou smiled like that. When you won trivia night you smiled like that. Or whenyou got to see penguins up close, he blocked most of that day from his memorybut not the smile. You made every situation so much better, like stuffing himin your shirt to ignore kids at wrestling match. He smiled. You were perfect tohim. The two of you laid in bed and Hugo’s eyes could barely stay open thesecond his head hit the pillow. He felt your arm wrap around him and withoutreally thinking about it, he sleepily said “g’night. I love you.” He felt yousmile where your head was rested on his shoulder. He smiled too.

Damien—

               Hewanted it to be dramatic, a whole night dedicated to it. He wanted the first ‘Ilove you’ to be as important as a wedding proposal. He had a fancy dinnerplanned, he bought specific flowers for you, everything was going to be perfect. Until Mary called him, needingan extra hand at the animal shelter. He couldn’t say no to helping just becausehe wanted to confess his undying love you to. He apologized when youarrived at his house, explaining the situation and feeling utterly terrible. Heexpected you to be mad, or upset. He didn’t expect you to offer help andvolunteer at the shelter with him. Smiling, you two made your way to the animalshelter. It was watching you play with all the animals that made the hecticevening calm down. You had been slobbered on, stepped on, and you were coveredin cat and dog hair. But the giant smile on your face made him mirror theaction. You were so content and happy, and so was he. He had been since you twostarted dating. You were so kind and accepting. Always willing to help Damienwhen he needed it around the garden, in the kitchen, anywhere with anything.The time spent together made him content and happy. Whether it was an eveningout at the fanciest restaurant, or a movie night spent painting each other’snails and drinking wine. He was always happy, you always made him happy. Hedidn’t need to say it over a fancy dinner because that only added so muchemphasis to the phrase. He loved you. He loved you. He said it out loud during the car ride home. You returned itwith ease and a smile. He loved you. He loved that he could be himself around you.He loved that you brought that out in him.

Craig—

               Itstarted as a joke. “Dude I freakin’ love you.” You two were laughing aboutcollege and all the stories you had together; reminiscing about everything andnothing. You were at your house, both of you laying on the couch on oppositeends. A particular drinking story was the subject, it ended with Craig tryingto sneak back into the dorm room through the window and face planting in theprocess when his foot slipped off the desk. You told the story with tears inyour eyes, holding your stomach from laughing so much. It was crazy to thinkabout how much time had passed since college. Craig and you fell out of a looponce you guys graduated. Busy schedules eat time and relationships. It nevereven dawned on him how much he had missed out on with you. When you moved intothe cul-du-sac and ran into each other, it was like no time had passed and yourfriendship was as great as it had been all those years ago. Except now you bothhad kids, you both had gray hair, he was divorced, and he missed out onlaughing this hard for years because he didn’t keep in touch with you. Helooked over at you still crying from your story, wiping the tears away. Hesmiled at you, and when you calmed down from your fit enough to notice, youcocked an eyebrow. “Why are you looking at me like that bro.” And it was yoursmile and slight chuckle after you said that, it was the way your hair was alittle disheveled, it was how you were so relaxed and how relaxed you made him.It was how you had supported him through every business venture, helped withthe girls and their softball, and how you stepped out of your comfort zone tospend time with him. It was great having his old friend back. “I love you. Imean it.” It was better having a boyfriend now.

Brian—

               Youwere just fishing. It was an early morning, fog rolling over the lake. Brianlooked over at you every time you yawned and couldn’t help but smile a littlebit. To think you guys had such bad blood in the beginning that ended up beinga giant misunderstanding. Now the two of you were practically inseparable.Sure, there was still competition between you, but it wasn’t about who thebetter dad was, now it was just to make things that much more interesting. Thatcompetitive edge had simmered, the relationship was more about wanting to bewith each other all the time doing the most dad activities the cul-du-sac hadever seen. You were just fishing. Tiredly sitting in a boat and waiting forsomething to happen. “Maybe the fish aren’t up yet,” Brian joked. “Maybe I’mnot up yet,” you said while leaning closer to him. Your cheek flattened on hisshoulder while he chuckled. “You’re gonna tip the boat again,” he said whichcreated an animated conversation as to whose fault it really was that caused the boat to tip last time. It was obviouslyyou and everyone knew it but that’s beside the point. It was a lightconversation that had you both laughing by the end of it. He watched you laughand settle down before looking back at the lake with a smirk on your face andhe just said it. “I love you ya know.” You smooshed your cheek back into hisshoulder before returning the sentiment.