He must have dozed off, because he was a bit startled by the small hand on his knee. He then smiled, lifted the boy to his chest and enjoyed how the child leaned against him. This was one of his favorite moments of the day. When the children were getting tired and found their safe haven in his arms.
“Sleepy?”
Danny nodded. “A bit.”
“It’s a long flight, but we’re almost there,” Reid whispered in the boy’s hair.
“What’s it like?”
“What…Vegas?”
Danny shook his head.
“A wedding. Nat and Ethan are all excited and know exactly what’s gonna happen…”
“They’ve seen some weddings by now,” Reid said as neutral as possible, “So I guess they are experts.”
Danny sighed softly. “I haven’t been to one. I feel stupid.”
It made Reid pull the boy a little closer.
“Just because you haven’t experienced something yet, doesn’t make you stupid, Tiger. I mean…you’ve never driven a car. Does that make you feel stupid?”
Danny chuckled. “Of course not. I’m too young to drive.”
“Exactly. And you being young means you didn’t experience much yet. That’s part of the game. I think it’s exciting. All that new stuff to discover. You’re like an explorer. Finding new territory.”
“Hmmm,” Danny obviously hadn’t looked at it that way and slowly nodded. “Have you been to a wedding?”
“I have,” Reid chuckled, thinking of the two weddings-that-didn’t-happen he attended, “but every wedding is unique. As it should be, because every couple is unique.”
“Hmmm,” Danny was in thought again. “You and Daddy never had a wedding, right?”
Although Reid could feel Luke’s eyes on him, he didn’t look at him. This subject was sensitive enough without seeing the look in those beautiful brown eyes.
“Nope. Some states don’t allow two men or two women to get married.”
Danny shrugged. “Stupid.”
“True,” Reid smiled, kissing the boy on his head. “But unfortunately their truth is different.”
“But Ethan says men can marry in Vegas.”
“He’s right. But then we would come home after the trip and our marriage wouldn’t be legal.”
“Maybe we should move then,” Danny suggested, turning a little so he could put his hand on Reid’s cheek. “Nat says it’s normal to have a wedding when you love each other. And you and Daddy love each other very much.”
“We do,” Reid assured him, “but we don’t need a wedding to prove that.” Reid lifted his hand and showed Danny the ring. “Luke and I made the conscious choice to be together. We are both wearing the same ring as a symbol of that choice.”
“But it’s not a wedding,” Danny shrugged.
“True,” Reid tried hard not to sigh. “But a wedding is basically just a party to show everybody you made that choice. We don’t have to. Everybody already knows Luke and I are together.”
Danny shrugged again. Obviously his father didn’t care much about weddings, but after hearing Ethan and Natalie raving about it, he felt left out.
“So you and Daddy will never have a wedding?”
Oh boy. Again Reid avoided looking at Luke, afraid of what he might see in his lover’s eyes.
“I can’t answer that,” he said truthfully. “A year ago I didn’t think I could be in a serious relationship with two kids…and look at me now…”
Danny looked hopeful. Apparently all was not lost. It made Reid’s heart twitch a bit.
“But why is that so important to you?”
The answer took a while and then made both Reid and Luke gasp.
“I want us to be normal.”
“There’s no one big normal for everybody. Every family has to create its own normal. And that’s what we’ve been doing. As we explained earlier, some people think two men loving each other isn’t normal…but to us it’s normal, right?”
Danny nodded. Watching his fathers interact and clearly loving each other felt very normal – and right – to him.
“So that’s what’s important…not to live up to someone else’s definition of normal, but to create your own normal. A normal that makes you feel comfortable.”
Danny didn’t answer, but stared through the small window of the plane. This time Reid did look at Luke and found his partner smiling lovingly, giving him a quick thumbs up while Zoë was nestled against his chest.
Reid felt relieved. The last thing he wanted to do was to upset Luke.
But seeing his son still confused wasn’t fun either, so he caressed the boy’s locks and then softly knocked on the child’s temple.
“Tell me what’s going on in here?”
Danny looked up and smiled. “I don’t know…It makes me sad…”
“I can see that. What’s making you sad exactly?”
“That you can’t have a wedding.”
“You don’t have to feel sad about that,” Luke interfered, “We’re both very happy with the life we have, Danny. Why waste our time on something that isn’t possible right now? I’d rather focus all my energy on the love we share.”
“I know,” Danny gave him a quick smile, “but a wedding sounds like fun…”
When Reid rolled his eyes, Luke laughed out loud.
“Your Daddy doesn’t think so,” he grinned, “but I agree. Weddings can be very romantic and special… when they happen for the right reason.”
He quickly looked at Holden and Molly. Their love for each other was evident and he understood their longing to marry. That was the Snyder’s Normal. If you loved someone, there had to be a marriage. But after several divorces and lots of drama, Luke had serious doubts about the credibility of the Snyder’s Normal. He understood Reid’s point of view.
And sure, legally it would have been much easier if they had the same rights as different sex marriages. It had taken them a lot of paperwork – and money – to achieve the ‘normal’ rights hetero couples had. But it was all settled and Luke was at a point where he felt married, even if he wasn’t legally and officially. It felt real. Very real.
He pulled Zoë a little closer and put a hand on Danny’s leg.
“We’re a family, Danny. A solid family. A loving family. No wedding could make that more real and no license could make that more official.”
For a moment Danny’s past flashed over his face, visibly remembering the family he had encountered before he met Luke and Reid and obviously counting his blessings for his current situation. He nodded and gave Luke a radiant smile.
“Best family ever.”
