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"Brandan!" Emanuel heard Elias greet the person at the door and he spun around, to see his Son embrace his co-worker.

The Man Emanuel was secretly seeing, yet it wasn't as arduous as he'd want it to be and it was formidably grievous. Emanuel wasn't sure the relationship had gone far enough for him to tell Elias about Brandan, but he was absolutely sure about his feelings for the man.

"Hey kiddo, where's your Dad?"

"Kitchen," Elias answered as he beamed up at Brandan.

For a split second, a smile broke Emanuel's lips as he and Dr. Chasity's eyes met, and the man returned the smile. Though, the moment of awkward exchanges came to an abrupt end, as Emanuel averted his gaze whilst his cheeks seared rashly.

"I smell Bacon!" Brandan announced as he stepped into the Living Room, dressed casually in black Denims and a grey Pullover jacket.

"Turkey Bacon, it has 25% less calories but still has the same amount of protein." Elias said with a disappointed look and Brandan chuckled.

"Normal kids don't know that," Brandan said with a smirk, and Elias rose an eyebrow.

"Normal kids don't have a 174 IQ either, I've created a little genius." Emanuel said with a sigh and Elias peered up at him, a blank look on his face.

"Hi," Brandan greeted Emanuel, and for a second they both stood there, silent.

Elias watched the exchange from where he stood, a curious look on his face as both Emanuel and Brandan had a clairvoyant battle. Trying to figure out the next words to say to each other. Elias didn't know exactly what to decipher from it all, but his logical perception told him a million and one things that could explain it.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" Emanuel asked with a skeptical gaze and furrowed brows, making Brandan chuckle in amusement.

"Shouldn't you be resting?" Brandan asked as he trudged forward, with Elias closing the door behind him.

"Unlike you, I have responsibilities outside of work." Emanuel quipped and Brandan shrugged as he suppressed a deep shudder.

"That responsibility's getting really hungry," Elias stated and Emanuel's eyes widened.

"Shit, all these early morning umm, well, distractions." Emanuel blurted out and Elias sniggered cheekily at his Father cursing.

"Lengua, papá." Elias muttered in Spanish, with a big grin and Dr. Chasity gazed between both of them, confused.

"So, I'm a distraction now?" Brandan asked with a cocky smile as Emanuel rolled his eyes, turning his attention back to the Stove.

"Not the flattering type either," Emanuel deadpanned and Brandan feigned hurt, but soon smiled as he felt he was being teased.

"Pft," Brandan blew a raspberry and Emanuel gazed at him in utter confusion.

"Did you just pft me?!"

"Maybe," Brandan said in a higher octave than usual and Emanuel shook his head whilst rolling his eyes, conclusively miffed.

"So how's School Buddy?"

Elias climbed atop his Stool again, shrugging as Brandan peered down at him. "I'm not being bullied, yet. So I guess thats kinda good." Elias muttered sarcastically and Brandan rose an eyebrow.

"That's because you're a badass, like your Dad." Brandan added sincerely and Emanuel's cheeks warmed at the compliment.

"True, and they all know I'm kind of a genius, so I'm basically intimidating," Elias said cockily and Emanuel chuckled with a shake of his head.

While Elias and Brandan chatted away, Emanuel walked to the fridge and took out Grapes, a peeled orange, and an apple that he carefully cut into four wedges. He placed them on the plate, then walked to the Toaster where a Bagel awaited.

Popping it on the plate, Emanuel tilted his head as he scooped a generous amount of eggs atop the plate with Bacon and handed it to Elias who licked his lips hungrily.

"Well, that's not exactly comforting, but since you are so prestigious, you need to eat your proteins and your vitamins." Emanuel grinned down at Elias, who's eyes bulged while his mouth watered at the plate before him.

"Now that is what you call Breakfast." Brandan said with scrunched up eyebrows, passing a glance at Emanuel.

They exchanged odd looks, but Emanuel only rose an eyebrow as realization settled. "There's Coffee, so don't think for a second that I'm making you eggs." Emanuel motioned to the Coffee Machine, sitting beside the Microwave and Brandan frowned.

"Such a spoil sport," Brandan muttered musingly and Emanuel waved him off.

"Exactly, not your personal Chef." Emanuel smiled cheekily with a teasing gaze at a wary Brandan.

"I can't have Coffee anyway, I won't be able to sleep or function effectively when I go back to work later. Although I'm feeling the urge to play Hooky." Brandan stated with a frustrated sigh and Emanuel shrugged.

"I like that plan, but Gilberto Scary-ano will have my head and I need this Job." Emanuel stated, gaining a look of discontent from Elias, who only shifted his gaze back to his plate as he chewed on a strip of Bacon.

"Calling him Scary-ano won't help much either." Brandan cackled and Emanuel shot him a disgruntled gaze, which rendered him blank in a second.

"Scary-ano?" Elias asked with a raised eyebrow and Brandan snickered heartily.

"Yeah, he's the big bad Boss man. He's old, so he's very cranky." Brandan mused and Elias giggled.

"Sounds like Grandpa Lance," Elias shook his head as he went back to eating his breakfast.

"That man does not like a bone in my body." Emanuel scowled and Elias grinned in agreement.

"You're the reason he hates Doctors, but then again Doctors don't exactly like him either." Elias grumbled, and Emanuel shrugged marginally.

"Its two months until Summer, and I'm thinking about taking a trip, but work is so hectic these days I doubt they can afford giving me vacation days."

"Management is becoming puritanical since the rewrite of the Hospital's decade long infrastructure, I might get a new job somewhere else." Brandan grimaced and Emanuel pursed his lips, entirely in agreement with the plan.

"It pays well though, but it's becoming severe every day with all these cases. They're more gruesome than usual, and all these lucid injuries are becoming worse than the ones that appear detrimental." Emanuel's eyebrows twisted up as he frowned.

"Speaking of which, I have a Patient that needs brain surgery so unfortunately I can't miss work, I'm the diagnosis consult." Brandan gestured with his hands, and Emanuel regarded him. "I have to give the go ahead for the surgery, but I have to wait on a repeat CT and CAT scan to analyze every nook and cranny."

"What happened?" Emanuel asked.

"Blood is being collected between the dura mater and the skull,"

"Epidural Hematoma? That's awful, that could transcend to Subdural Hematoma."

Emanuel turned his attention to the Stove, whilst Brandan made his way over to the Refrigerator.

"She's losing sight in her eyes," Brandan grimaced as he grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge, spinning its cap off with a pop and crackle.

"Compression of the posterior cerebral artery. What are they waiting for?! This girl needs surgery right away!" Emanuel said with urgency and Brandan shrugged.

"She has time, it was discovered early, so they're taking care of it. The scans are vital to denounce whether or not we should perform a Craniotomy or just a do a surgical drain."

"That's still not comforting, if the hematoma expands, it will strip the dura from the interior cavity of the skull, causing intense headaches and possible brain damage." Elias said before heaving a forkful of eggs into his mouth.

Emanuel grimaced at the thought and Brandan pursed his lips, not feeling any level of emotional quotient since he had been given strict orders, despite his best efforts. What had him distracted however, was the fact that Elias knew that little fact and just blurted it out so nonchalantly.

"Ok, I know this Kid is smart as fudge but it still blows my mind when he does that!" Brandan said aghast, but Elias only shrugged flippantly.

Emanuel however, had grown accustomed to Elias' outbursts of knowledge, and welcomed it. Brandan never ceased to be amazed by it, even after he had taught Elias the wonderful game of Chess. Elias was a prodigy, and after mastering it Brandan never won a game after that faithful day. Though they both had formed a bond over a love for the rush, concentration and focus that was vital for success in a game of chess.

"He's right though, and if she suffers brain damage it will be on you." Brandan simply shrugged at Emanuel's words, which gained a skeptical look from him.

"There's no sign of intracranial pressure, and besides she's being monitored, but I agree."

"All done!" Elias announced as he hopped from the Stool, grabbing his Backpack.

"Ok, get in the Car, Monkey, I'll be out in a second, just let me grab my coat."

"Ok, Dad!" Elias swung his Backpack over his shoulders, and ambled off towards the front door.

The moment he disappeared, Emanuel turned towards Brandan who downed the remainder of his Water and walked towards him. A complacent yet judgmental look in his eyes, which told Emanuel exactly what was on the man's mind.

"What's with that fluky look on your face?" Emanuel queried and Brandan's shoulders rose in a shrug.

"I don't know, maybe it's because you still haven't told Elias about us." This time Brandan's gaze became blank with a mask of disapproval, but it only annoyed Emanuel.

"Brandan," Emanuel said warningly as he walked towards the Island, picking up the plate Elias had ate from. "We've talked about this, and it's just best if we make sure that this, thing between us is gonna last. I don't want to tell Elias, then something happens and he's left heartbroken." Emanuel discarded the dish in the sink, grimacing at the clink and clatter of the fork against the porcelain.

"That's not fair, Manny. Do you really think I'm capable of hurting you?" Brandan asked incredulous, and Emanuel sighed heavily.

"I don't know, Brandan." Emanuel let out with a huff of dry air that threatened to choke him.

Brandan frowned as he averted his gaze to the front yard where Elias skipped happily to the car, feeling an overwhelming surplus of rejection. He knew Emanuel could be stubborn, but some days things were so smooth between them. Other days, it was just irregular and overly idiosyncratic between them and it made Brandan constantly fear the worst.

"Have you at least thought about coming to meet my Parents?" He asked and Emanuel sighed as the distance between them got smaller.

"I need time, Brandan. Meeting your Parents is big and I want to be sure and prepared."

"Is this Emanuel Rosario worried about meeting my Parents?" Brandan asked as he held onto Emanuel, forcing him to face him as he coiled their hands together. "Thought you took risks and loved adventures,"

"Does that surprise you?"

"It kinda does, yes."

"Brandan, this is crazy and you know it. I've met your Sister, and trust me I want to gouge my eyes out every time she visits you at work." Emanuel rolled his eyes, a look of pure resentment on his face.

"Diane is well, a little over the top sometimes but she means well."

"A little?" Emanuel questioned with a raised eyebrow and Brandan frowned, but it turned into a flippantly reassuring stare.

"Ok she's a Bitch, but you shouldn't let her bother you and maybe she won't approve of us."

"Well it's there, and the insecurity is as real as it can get."

"Why should we even care about the opinions of others?"

"Well that's just the thing, Brandan. I'm not sure that we should even be doing this, I mean Elias should know and yet again I'm not sure that he'll approve of this." Emanuel sighed and Brandan raised his cheeks with his right index finger, gently forcing Emanuel to look up at him.

"Elias is a smart Kid Manny, odds are he already knows and besides, he likes me."

"Yeah, right." Emanuel scoffed but Brandan silenced him with a feathery kiss, weakening his knees as their mouths molded together.

Brandan pulled away for a second, his eyes piercing holes into Emanuel's as they stood there, embraced in the silence. Emanuel felt grateful for that moment, but was still plenarily unsure about permitting exclusivity. It was hard for him to imagine, knowing that just years before he was considered a Woman's man. He wasn't ashamed of coming out, nor letting his newfound sexuality be known but letting everyone around him know, was harder than anything he ever had to deal with.

"He wants you to be happy, Manny," Brandan said with a comforting smile. "We want you to be happy,"

It was the thought of keeping their relationship a secret that killed Emanuel, and he wasn't sure exclusivity was something that would be tolerated. The Hospital didn't have a say in who their Employees dated, but all eyes and ears would be focused on them and that's what had Emanuel insecure.

Emanuel peered up into Brandan's icy blue eyes. "Look, you're amazing! I've told you this countless times and I'm sure my Parents will be as crazy about you as I am."

Emanuel managed to smile but he was still on the fence about it, clearly not willing to move forward because of his own fears.

"I don't know, Brandan." Emanuel gazed away from him and Brandan sighed, releasing him.

"I won't force you, Manny, but I won't stop asking till you say yes." Brandan added cockily with a sheepish smirk and Emanuel rolled his eyes.

"You're relentless,"

"That's why I'm so irresistible, it's all part of the charm."

Emanuel turned away from Brandan, rolling his eyes in the process but smiled as his cheeks flushed wildly.

For Brandan was right after all and though he didn't have the best attitude, fortunately for him it wasn't what Emanuel saw that drew him to Brandan.

Emanuel Rosario had the habit of seeing the best in people, regardless of their background or whatever else others used to define them. But it was more than that which had drawn Emanuel to Brandan Chasity, and maybe it was the man's handsome, chiseled face and perfectly sculpted body; that begged to be mounted like a prized steed.

Maybe it was the passion that was set ablaze the first night they removed the covers from their eyes, and realized that they didn't completely detest each other. A staunching revelation, yet it took them both time to come to terms with it, and alas they did and it was slowly but surely heading somewhere that wasn't exactly anywhere.

For Emanuel wasn't sure what he wanted, and kept holding back knowing well that he had too much on his plate. Which had rendered the relationship grounded at one point, and it seemed to be moving forward but Emanuel had to admit that it hadn't made much headway after all.

"Well, I gotta get Elias to School."

"Ok," Brandan sighed in defeat, "But please consider at least coming for just an hour. We can leave and go anywhere you want to after that."

"Promise?"

"Pinky promise," Brandan smiled, and though it was with reluctance, Emanuel thought it couldn't hurt.

"Ok, but the first sign of pretentiousness I sense, I'm out that bitch faster than a free range turkey." Emanuel said firmly and Brandan chuckled, amused.

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