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“Dad?” Hanni Lecter poked his head into his fathers’ opened doorway, looking for any sign of the man.
“In here,” Will yelled from the walk-in closet, emerging a moment later, pulling a sweater over his head. “Are you cold?”
“No.” The thirteen year old rolled his eyes, annoyed that his parents were unable to grasp the concept that he was not a little kid and completely capable of putting on a hoodie with no prompting if the temperature called for it.
Will could read all that from his expression and when combined with the fact that those thoughts were not voiced, he quickly came to the only conclusion available. “What can I do for you?”
The sour look instantly disappeared and Hanni grinned, suddenly very excited. “Duncan and I want to go to the movies tomorrow. Can I get twenty bucks for the movies?”
“What happened to the allowance you were given on Monday?” The question came from Hannibal as he entered the room, unbuttoning his shirt as he made his way over to the closet only to return seconds later with a fresh shirt in hand. Will didn’t miss how his son’s face fell just a bit.
When it came to asking for something, Hanni knew that he would be far more successful when he asked his parents separately. Papa would be more likely to allow him stay out a little later if he knew where the boy would be and Daddy would be okay with him going out further on his own as long as he was always reachable. He thought they worried far more than any of his friends’ parents but failed, at that age, to make the connection between that and his dad’s job. For the moment, divide and conquer had a high success rate for the rare occasions that he thought they would deny his request.
“I’ll do extra chores next week,” he grumbled, no longer smiling. “It’s just twenty bucks.”
“Oh, well, just twenty.” Will shook his head and bit down on his lip to stop himself from sounding like his own father. He had grown up in near constant worry about their financial situation and did not want that for Hanni but that did not mean he wanted his son to think of money as a replenishable resource.
They were no strangers to spoiling the boy every once in a while but drew the line at handing over money upon request. They provided things that were needed and gifts when they were warranted, but allowance had to be earned. It was a lesson in reasonability that they felt would benefit him best if they started out at a young age.
“That does not answer the question,” Hannibal pointed out, leveling a suspicious look on the boy as he pulled on the fresh shirt. “What did you spend your allowance on?”
“Just stuff,” Hanni shrugged. He considered giving up but figured the integration might be worth it if it meant a chance to see the movie. He had been looking forward to it for a while but would have needed an adult to take him due to the rating. Fortunately, his friend’s much older brother had agreed to take the teens which meant he would not have to beg his fathers and risk being denied due to a few fight scenes.
“You’re going to have to do better than that,” Will told him, almost sure he saw a flicker guilt across Hanni’s face as he shrugged. “Hanni, we’re not going to keep giving you money if you cannot be responsible enough to save it or even keep track of what you’re given and where it goes.”
“But I’ll do extra chores!”
His parents exchanged a look and he felt the last of his hope fly out of the window. Nothing good ever came from their silent conversations.
“You would be doing those chores regardless of the allowance we give you.” Will tried to think of any special occasions coming up that would cause Hanni to keep his purchase a secret from them. There weren’t any and he could see the boy starting to get uneasy, which he tried to cover up with annoyance. “What could you have spent all your money on?”
“It’s my money,” the boy replied, scowling at them.
“Three times is far beyond the limit, kiddo,” Will told him, his voice losing all the patience and curiosity from earlier as it turned stern. “I’m not going to ask you again.”
“Lunch,” Hanni muttered finally after a long pause.
“Lunch?” Hannibal froze, surprisingly shocked. He wasn’t caught off guard often, and at the moment could do nothing to hide it. “Is there something wrong with the lunch I prepare for you?”
The teen frowned, glancing over at his dad for any sort of help, but the touch of sympathy there was not directed at him. He was on his own.
“No….” Hanni looked away again. “It’s just that no one brings lunch to school anymore.”
“I see,” Hannibal said, not fully convinced by the statement. “And what have you been doing with the lunches you were given?”
Neither man needed their son to confirm their suspicions when he turned a bright shade of red. “I just wanted to have a normal lunch, like a burger or something!” Hanni said defensively. Anger was easier to deal with than the mixture of guilt and resentment he had been feeling over the last few weeks. “It’s not like we can ever have that at home!”
“So neither my lunches nor dinners are to your liking?”
Will bit his lip from the side lines where he could see just how deeply Hannibal had been hurt by the revelation. He could also see how upset Hanni was getting. The boy was still in the midst of creating his own identity and unfortunately the road to independence usually took a detour through peer pressure.
“No, that’s not…” Hanni’s grumble was full of teenage angst. “It’s weird, okay? I want fish sticks and normal take-out pizza, not Focaccia di Recco or Fried Peaches and Pancetta Pizza.”
“I am truly sorry for such a deprived childhood I have forced on you,” Hannibal all but snapped at the boy.
“That’s not what I said!” Hanni protested angrily. If he was bothered by his father’s unusual tone, he was not showing it. “You’re just twisting it all around!”
“Well then, why don’t you enlighten us so there will be no further misunderstandings?”
“I think I heard the timer go off,” Will interrupts with a pointed glare at his husband.
“You must have imagined it.” Hannibal glanced at him, challenging Will to further intrude on what he felt was a personal issue the boy had with him. Will didn’t back down. It was not his intention to undermine the other man, but both Lecters needed a moment before one of them said something they could not take back.
“Speaking of chores,” Will said, focusing on Hanni instead. “Did you change the sheets in your bedroom? If it’s not in the laundry before dinner, you can wash them yourself.”
Hanni glanced at Papa, unsure if he could really just go and if that was what he really wanted. He had a point and he wanted them to acknowledge it but in the end he chose to leave with a rebellious huff and glare that neither father could take seriously.
“When did he become so spoiled?” Hannibal asked, taking less care than usual as he rolled up his sleeves. “So ungrateful?”
“He isn’t,” Will could not help but try to defend the boy even when he agreed up to a degree. He gave in with a bit of a shrug. “Maybe he is acting a bit ungrateful.”
“Which is the result of us spoiling that boy,” Hannibal said, voice sharp as he glared towards the doorway. “Where did we go wrong?”
Will laughed, a short, unexpected sound that escaped him and he quickly covered his mouth when the glare was turned on him. “Sorry, it’s just that’s what parents say when their kids end up addicted to drugs or arrested. We have a teenage brat on our hands, with a bit of an attitude problem, especially when he thinks we aren’t being fair and no knowledge of what it’s like to ever really be hungry.”
“And never will,” Hannibal said softly, sitting down on the bed and pulling Will to stand between his legs, arms slipping around his waist. “But I refuse to raise a spoiled brat.”
“He’s a teenager now,” Will said with a bit of defeat in his voice as he sat down on Hannibal’s lap. “He is going to be insufferable for the most part of the next few years. Everything is a crisis and no one can understand his very unique struggle.”
Hannibal gave a bit of an amused snort and rested his forehead against Will’s shoulder. “I am willing to allow him leeway as he discovers himself but I will not such tolerate rudeness.”
“Don’t think I don’t support you or not right there with you.” He ran his fingers through Hannibal’s hair and tugged his head back. “That wasn’t why I sent him away.”
“You were concerned about my feelings?” Hannibal raised a brow, arms tightening around Will, bringing him closer. “I assure you, I have thicker skin than that.”
Will bit back his retort. Hannibal’s cooking was an extension of himself, and insulting that was an insult to all that he had accomplished, despite the odds being against him. “I’ll talk to him.”
Hannibal shook his head. ”If you mean to reprimand him for his behavior, he will only learn to avoid honesty on the subject. I’m sure he feels that he had not done anything wrong and in truth, he has not.”
“And yet I’m still tempted to take away his allowance and send him off to school with bologna on Wonder Bread.”
“Beating him seems less cruel.”
Will laughed, leaning in to kiss the disgusted look off of Hannibal’s face, his hands slipping into his hair again.
“We just need to be patient. Hanni has always been a very reasonable child and group mentality will lose its appeal to him one day.”
Hannibal’s phone reminded them both that dinner would be ready soon and the chef left to finish, what he imagined, would be an unappreciated meal.
**^**
“I don’t want to talk about it!” Hanni said, putting a new pillowcase on the last of his pillows and throwing it on the bed with open hostility.
“All right,” Will said, hands held up in mock surrender. “We don’t have to talk about it.”
Hanni looked skeptical and a bit disappointed. He did want to talk about it. He wanted explain and argue and for his dad to take his side. He wanted his dad to tell Papa that it was a misunderstanding and he was overreacting. He wanted his dad to tell him that what he did wasn’t that bad and that Papa wasn’t upset or hurt or hated him.
“Am I in trouble?” Hanni muttered, eyes focusing on the laundry.
“No,” Will shook his head, quietly observing him. “You might have went about this in pretty much the worst way possible but…” He shrugged. “You didn’t break any laws, kid.” Hanni rolled his eyes, not in the mood for the dad jokes.
“He’s just twisting everything around,” he said, glaring up at his father. “I don’t see why he has to make a big deal out of it.”
“I thought you didn’t want to talk about it,” Will reminded him, knowing their conversation wouldn’t go far if his son was still upset and defensive. Hanni seemed surprised by the reply and slightly hurt but his dad just nodded at the bedding. “Bring that downstairs and then set the table.”
“Whatever,” Hanni grumbled and picked up the things before leaving the room, ignoring the frown his father shot him.
Will let out a breath and grabbed a pair of boxers and some socks that the teen had missed. Their son could be stubborn, which his dad could not hold against him, seeing as it was a trait that was found on both sides of his family tree. Stubborn, but not patient and he would come to one of them, probably before the night was over. Will could wait him out.
**^^**
Dinner was always quieter when Hanni was upset but it seemed that both of his parents decided to ignore how he glared down at his plate. He loved his father’s broiled gratin scallops but that was not the point. His friends had mac and cheese and rotisserie chicken from the store, green bean casseroles that were made with canned cream of mushroom soup and though it always ended up either blend or too salty, it was normal.
At school, he really didn’t need another reason for the kids to think of him as different. High school had proven to be a different world from what he had gotten used to and he was finding that there was little acceptance for originality, despite what the Disney Channel claimed.
“Eat your food,” Will said, snapping him out his thoughts with a hard look.
“I won’t force him to eat if he’s not hungry.” Hannibal was painfully aware that the food had not been touched but was doing an admirable job of not acknowledging it.
“And I’m not going to let him go hungry just to make a point,” Will said and nodded towards the plate. “Take a few bites and you can be excused.”
“I don’t want to,” Hanni grumbled though he was strangely satisfied that the attention was on him and his sulking.
“Fine,” Will said after staring him down for a few seconds, shaking his head, surprising his son twice in less than an hour.
“Fine?”
“Yes, fine.” Will said, sitting back slightly. “Your father and I are trying to enjoy our dinner and if you rather sit there and pout like a child than you may go, but it’ll be waiting for you when you get hungry in a few hours.”
“This?” Hanni frowned at his plate, knowing that reheated, it would not taste as good.
“Either you eat it now, or later, but those are your only choices.”
Hanni looked between them, his papa looked curious but either not concerned or hiding it well while his dad looked like he was past annoyed but still far from losing his tempter.
“But what if I don’t want to eat it at all?”
Will’s eyes narrowed. He had been trying to avoid an argument but the boy seemed set on making an issue out of something. “What if I make you sit there until your plate is clean?”
This time, Hanni weighed his options more carefully. “Can I be excused?”
“May,” Hannibal corrected, a touch disappointed but his son wasn’t sure if it was because of dinner or the grammar slip up. “And yes.”
Hanni left, still unsure if that was what he wanted. In an ideal situation, they would argue and he would be able to prove that they did indeed lacked normal meals and that there had been nothing wrong with how he discarded of his father’s meals in favor of the ones he purchased at school. And get a raise on his allowance.
He was willing to settle for a simple apology and dessert.
“An interesting approach,” Hannibal remarked quietly after Hanni had left.
Will shrugged, taking a bite of his food before continuing. “I’m not letting him ruin this beautiful dinner. Whatever this is, I’m sure your cooking is not at the center of it.”
Hannibal nodded quietly. He had been too upset by the boy’s nonchalant behavior towards food to consider that there might be more to it.
“As you had pointed out previously, at this age quite everything seems to be far more significant than it necessarily is.”
“Hope so,” Will said. “But for now, we get to have a quiet dinner together and I plan to enjoy it. No more teen angst until you finish the dishes.”
“I believe tonight is your turn.”
“Is it?” Will’s ankle slowly moved up Hannibal’s leg. “Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
Will grumbled but before he could pull his leg away, Hannibal gripped his ankle and settled it on his lap. His hand ran up Will’s calf and leaned forward. “I think the boy had it all wrong. I think our dinners have been a bit dull.”
Will glanced at the doorway, smiling. “Most parents would take this time to have an adult conversation, not fool around.”
“First my son, now you,” Hannibal’s sigh was playfully dramatic as he slapped the side of Will’s thigh. “One word about how others dress and you’ll-”
“I would never,” Will cut him off with an amused grin. He leaned back in his chairs, legs spreading as he played with his belt buckle. “Besides, I was only pointing out what most parents our age would do. Wouldn’t trade you for all the flannel in the world.”
Hannibal cringed. “I assuming that was meant as a compliment.”
Will rolled his eyes and backend him over with a finger. “Just shut up and come here.”
**^^^***
“I don’t know why Papa is upset,” Hanni muttered as he came to stand next to his dad by the sink.
“Is that a rhetorical question?” Will stopped humming, traces of a smirk still on his face but he continued to clean the dishes.
“No.” Hanni crossed his arms and leaned with his back against the counter. “I mean I get that he gets really into cooking but this had nothing to do with his food.”
“It didn’t?” Will glanced at him and then back at the plate in his hand. “If he threw out the gifts you’ve made him over the years, you wouldn’t take it personally?”
“No,” he answered too quickly, without even giving himself a chance to think about it. Will let the silence build until the teen’s shoulders slumped. “That would be different. It’s a gift.”
“So are these meals.” Will turned face his son. “Do you know anyone else who would put this much care into everything they do?”
Hanni frowned at him. “I just don’t get why everything has to be so …” he scrunched up his face. “… weird.”
“Try that again,” Will said, stern edge to his voice as his face hardened.
“Fancy?”
“Better,” Will’s mouth twitched but he didn’t smile. “Since when do you have a problem with what Papa cooks?”
“I don’t!” Hanni insisted. “It’s not ..... It’s just …” he shrugged, blushing. “He’s not like other fathers.”
“Am I?”
Hanni shrugged. “You at least look the part.”
“Is that so?” Will raised a brow, a bit disappointed. “I guess it’s normal to be embarrassed of your parents at your age.”
“I’m not!” Hanni quickly denied. “It’s not that at all....”
“It’s a little bit of that,” Will argued, but his voice was softer, more understanding. “It’s hard to be normal with two fathers and weird food.”
“Fancy,” Hanni corrected quietly.
Will moved closer to him, his smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Papa doesn’t talk about the orphanage often. It’s not something he likes to think about. It was a hard time for everyone but orphanages are usually hit harder. Too many children and inadequate resources. Sometimes there simply wasn’t enough food to go around. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
Hanni nodded uncomfortably, unable to look up from the floor. He didn’t like to think of his father like that, alone and hungry. He couldn’t imagine what he would do if something happened to his parents and he was left on his own like Papa had been. It was enough to make his heart twist painfully in his chest.
“And I’ve been throwing his food away. I feel like a jerk.”
“Come here,” Will said letting Hanni slip into his arms. He ran damp fingers through the curls and held him close. “Papa knows you weren’t trying to be a jerk and I know you were trying to spare his feelings in the beginning but you should have just come to him.”
“Is he mad at me?”
“No,” Will rubbed his back. “Are you still angry with us?”
Hanni groaned, burying his face in his father’s shirt. “Do I still have to eat the scallops if I’m hungry?”
“That’s what I said, right?”
“Yeah,” Hanni muttered but only held on tighter. “Then I’m still angry.”
“I can live with that,” Will smiled, burying a kiss in Hanni’s hair. “Go talk to him.”
**^^**
Hannibal had been reading in his armchair, feet outstretched on the ottoman, when he noticed his son in the doorway. He motioned him over but did not put his book away.
“I’m sorry?” Hanni tried, unsure of where to start.
“Was that a question?” Hannibal asked, looking over his book.
The teen pouted and shook his head. “No, I just … I am sorry. You know it’s not about your cooking.”
“The cold dinner in the refrigerator begs to differ.”
“Yeah, about that …” Hanni bit his lip. “I was just upset. I just wanted to have a normal family night, maybe eat some take out in front of the television.” He almost laughed at his father’s grimace. “Maybe not that normal.”
“Is that so important?” He finally set aside the book and set up.
“No,” Hanni quickly said because he knew that was the right answer but then sighed, and dropped his eyes. “Yeah, a little bit.”
“You will never be normal.” The boy looked up, frowning at the cruel words. “You are exceptional, as is your father. You cannot hide it any more than he could nor should you try.”
“No,” Hanni shook his head. “And even if I was….” He shrugged. “It’s easier not to be.”
“Is somebody giving you a hard time in school?”
“No,” he did his best to make it sound like the truth. “Just stupid stuff.”
“For instance, remarks about your lunch?”
“It’s nothing.”
Hannibal didn’t miss the way his son’s eyes dropped away or the way he forced his lips into a straight line. “If there was something, would you tell us?”
Hanni nodded quietly.
“Promise me.”
“Yes, Papa,” Hanni said, finally looking up. He wasn’t sure if he meant it.
“All right.” Hannibal sighed and tugged the boy closer, until he had a hip on the armrest. “I refuse to send you off to school with peanut butter sandwiches so what would be more appropriate?”
“Regular fancy sandwiches?” The boy suggested. “Disguised as regular sandwiches.”
“Every day?” Hannibal’s face twisted. “How mundane.”
“And maybe cafeteria pizza on Fridays?” He pleaded, leaning in close and trying to be charming.
“Absolutely not!”
“Every other week?” Hanni tried again without losing a beat.
“Only if I can pack something besides the sandwich at least once a week,” Hannibal countered.
“No fish! Or liver!”
Hannibal sighed and pulled him closer. “I should have homeschooled you.”
**^**
“You made a deal with him?” Will laughed, resting his head on Hannibal’s chest. “Can I get take out every other week?”
“Am I to pretend that the nights you spend with Jack do not include the local dives?” Hannibal asked, eyes closed and fingers playing gently among the curls.
“I plead the fifth.”
Hannibal hummed in reply, hand moving to the nap of Will’s neck. The pressure grew steadily harder as he massaged the area. It was only when Will hissed that he realized that he used more strength then he intended. His apology was a featherlike touch of his knuckles to the area he had harmed, before his hand disappeared once more into the curls.
“Do you believe he would tell us if he was being harassed at school?”
“I wouldn’t,” Will said softly. “Mostly because I know what my father would tell me.”
“I think he might have other reasons to keep it from us.”
“He wants to protect us.” Will pulled back until his head was on his husband’s shoulder. “And we can’t do the same for him.”
“I can,” Hannibal told him, voice low and words muffled as the pressed his lips against Will’s forehead.
“Don’t.” A yawn interrupted him briefly. “Not like that. We don’t even know if someone is giving him a hard time.”
“And if there is?”
Hannibal felt Will’s lips curl into smile before he heard the amused, sleepy chuckle. “God help them.”