For @aarontwds.
Happy Birthday!!
Spaghetti dinners had become a norm again in the Raleigh household once Eric had mastered the art of making pasta from scratch. It was certainly way more work than just buying pasta from the store, but Eric considered it well worth the effort every time he looked around the table to see Aaron, Gracie, and occasionally Daryl and Jesus enjoying the supper.
Tonight’s dinner was a special occasion, and Eric was glad that Daryl and Jesus had made the trek from Hilltop to be here. Most people had stopped caring about birthdays years ago, but Eric--with his homemade calendar--still kept track of everyone’s birthday and made sure that they received some kind of gift.
As dinner was winding down, and Aaron, Daryl, and Jesus sat around talking about the structural integrity of the walls, Eric crooked his finger at Gracie and the two slipped away from the table. Gracie ran upstairs to retrieve a homemade card while Eric dug in a drawer for a birthday candle that had been used numerous times. He lit the wick just as Gracie came back down, then caught his daughter’s gaze with a small grin, giving a nod.
“Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you!” They began to sing the notorious song, drawing the attention of the three men as Eric carried a cake bearing the lit candle to the table. “Happy birthday, dear Aaron! Happy birthday to you!”
Eric placed the cake down in front of Aaron with a smug grin, knowing his partner hated this kind of attention on his birthday, but unable to keep himself from doing it. “Make a wish--and don’t waste it on wishing I would stop doing this every year.”
Aaron huffed a sigh, giving a feigned look of annoyance at Eric, before the corners of his mouth tugged upwards. He looked at Gracie for a minute, who was grinning ear to ear and clutching a piece of paper between her hands, then at the two men sitting opposite him. Daryl’s arm was casually draped across the back of Jesus’s chair, both looking amused. Wishing for only happiness, health, and a long life for everyone in the room, Aaron gently blew out the candle. Eric leaned down to kiss his lips, pulling the candle out of the frosting and licking it off as he went back to the kitchen to put it away and get a knife to cut the cake.
“Happy birthday, Daddy!!” Gracie exclaimed as she handed him the homemade card. In different colored crayons, she had drawn a picture of their house, her family, and the sun shining above them. In her child-like scrawl, she had written H-A-P-P-Y B-I-R-T-H-D-A-Y, D-A-D-D-Y.
“Thank you, baby,” Aaron pulled her into a hug, kissing her cheek. “This deserves a place on the fridge!”
Eric couldn’t help but glance at the fridge, completely covered in Gracie’s artwork, and wondering where exactly Aaron thought they’d find room for it, but deciding that would be Aaron’s problem. Bringing clean plates and forks along with the knife, Eric cut the cake and distributed it to everyone before taking his seat.
“I brought you a gift, too,” Jesus said. “Well, it’s less for you than for the safety and protection of Alexandria…” he clarified, eliciting a soft snort from Daryl.
“A mace hand,” Daryl announced, beating Jesus to it.
“A mace hand?” Eric asked, brows furrowed.
“Alden and Earl found some good, usable metal.” Jesus nodded. “Constructed it so you could change it out with the wooden hand when you need to clear walkers or…”
“Fight the Whisperers.” Aaron finished.
A hushed silence fell over the table. Gracie, sensing this was not a good thing, piped up. “What a mace?”
“It’s a kind of weapon--” Aaron started to say before receiving a sharp jab in the ribs by Eric.
“That you don’t need to worry about, pumpkin.”
Noting the tone, Aaron abruptly changed the subject. “So,” he looked pointedly between Daryl and Jesus with a smirk. “Things look like they’re starting to get a little more serious. Might there be wedding bells in your future?”
Eric turned his gaze to Aaron. “Subtle, babe.” He leaned over and kissed Aaron’s cheek. “Gracie, help me clean up?”
As the two started to clear up the dishes from dinner, Aaron listened as Daryl--of all people--admitted that there was just ‘somethin’ special’ about Paul. He couldn’t help but smile, noting that it was the first time Daryl hadn’t referred to the other man by his nickname.
Maybe his birthday wish would come true after all...
