Two years later…

“Thank you all for coming today!” The grin that radiated from Bas’s face rang in his voice and echoed around the room. The crowd, which had been milling around the lovingly-designed community center and looking eagerly out the windows at the open field and play area in the back, hushed and turned their attention to the front of the room where a mismatched group of men stood.

Sebastian Seaver was well-known, of course. His face, along with his brother’s, had been plastered all over the tabloids when his poor parents had been killed a couple of years back. Rumors had abounded for a while after that he’d become depressed and reclusive, haunted by grief, but there was no shadow of grief on his face today, especially when he wrapped an arm around the waist of the man to his left. He was a beacon of optimism, something the crowd desperately needed.

“I know it’s a gorgeous day outside, and there is a mountain of cupcakes on those tables!” Bas continued, and the youngest members of the audience glanced at one another with ill-concealed excitement.

The man on Sebastian’s left rolled his eyes fondly, and his mouth turned up in a smile that softened the glossy perfection of his immaculate hair and serious brown eyes. Andrew McMann, the crowd whispered. Sebastian’s fiancé. Those in the front rows heard him sigh, “It’s always about the sweets with you,” just before Sebastian flashed him a sly smile.

“But before we get to that, I… we,” he corrected, squeezing Drew tighter. “Want to say a few words about what this day and this place mean to us.” Bas swallowed hard and gestured for his younger brother to step forward.

The crowd looked at Camden Seaver expectantly. After the crash, his shy manners and youthful features had roused instant sympathy in the media, but time and grief had clearly changed him. He was strong and confident, these days, the face of Seaver Technologies in the press and a force to be reckoned with. But watching him squeeze the hand of his husband, the long-haired, green-eyed man who looked like a surfer in a suit, the crowd had to wonder whether he’d been honed by sadness or strengthened with love.

“Like many of you, we’ve been through a lot over the past few years,” Cam said, searching the faces of the audience. “We understand how overwhelming life can sometimes be, how insurmountable problems can seem, and how difficult it is when well-meaning people suggest that you should somehow pull yourself up by your bootstraps. But we aren’t meant to go through life alone.” He gave his husband a rueful smile. “Isolation only compounds the problem. Each of us needs to know that there are people we can count on.”

The man on the far right stepped forward. He looked far younger than any of the others, with his slim body and model-perfect face, but his dark blue eyes glowed with vibrant intelligence. “That’s Senator Shaw’s son, Cain! The one who came out just before his father stepped down from the Senate,” someone said. He’s even cuter in real life!

Cain smiled shyly, and a blush crept over his cheeks. The man on his left, tall and broad-shouldered, seemed to choke on a laugh, and a strand of gray hair fell across his face. He elbowed Cort Seaver and rumbled, “Kid’s got a fan club.” But there was undisguised pride in his voice, and when Cain turned to glare at him and hiss, “Damon!”, the loving smile he provided in return spoke volumes about their relationship.

Cain shook his head, exasperated, and faced the audience once more.

“For many of us, including many of the kids here today, there is no perfect happy ending,” he told them in a low voice. “The truth is, losing a loved one, a home, or a livelihood isn’t a minor setback, it’s a life-changing event. Sometimes it isn’t possible to put the pieces back the way they were, or to go back the way we came. Instead, we need to define a new life for ourselves. We need to find a new way home. Our goal, with this Center is to make sure everyone in our community has the resources they need to do that.”

“Because the other truth is,” Bas said, stepping forward once again. “That although our tragedies change us, they don’t have to define us. We are more than the sum total of our losses, and there are powerful lessons that we can learn from the challenges we face that can help us shape the world for the better.” He looked at his brother and brother-in-law. “We learn to make the most of every day we’re given, and that sometimes we need to strip away our preconceptions of the way things should be.” He gave a warm smile to Cain and Damon. “We learn that we’re sometimes stronger than we believe ourselves to be, and that ultimately we have the power to forgive when anger is holding us back.” Then he glanced down at the man by his side. “And we learn that sometimes happiness is waiting in plain sight, if you open your eyes.”

Drew leaned his head on his fiancé’s shoulder for a brief moment, then took a breath and stepped forward himself. He looked at each of the men standing next to him as he spoke.

“We also learn that sometimes the best families are the ones you create for yourself.”

Damon wrapped an arm around Cain’s shoulder, and Cam grabbed Bas’s hand before leaning against Cort. It was clear to every eye in the room that these men were family, no matter their origin.

“And that’s why I’m so happy to be here today with my family to celebrate the opening of the McMann/Seaver Family Center. This organization is not only our way of honoring the people we’ve lost - namely, my sister Amy McMann, and Levi and Charlotte Seaver, who were all deeply committed to helping others - but of pledging our help to the community in gratitude for all that we have.”

Bas nodded, grabbing Drew to pull him back against his side. “And with all that said, I think it’s time for us to get out there and eat!” The crowd applauded wildly, and most of the kids rushed for the doors. “Hey! Someone save me a cupcake!” Bas called.

“You did good, Seaver,” Damon said. He moved around to clap Bas on the shoulder, Cain still tucked against his side. “Excellent speech.”

“Thank my speech-writer,” Bas said, ruffling Drew’s hair because that was his favorite pastime. “I’m becoming reconciled to having a lawyer in the family.”

Drew rolled his eyes. “The only reason you don’t like it is because I don’t let you change the rules of every game halfway through.”

“Preach,” Cam said wryly, darting a glance at his husband. “And this is our lives, Drew.” He flashed the titanium wedding band on his left hand and shook his head sadly at the black engagement band on Drew’s finger. “Think carefully, my friend.”

“Oh, please! Just because I have creative solutions to problems,” Cort sputtered, tickling Cam’s ribs.

“Thank you,” Bas said, throwing up a hand. “Someone understands. Sad that it’s you, Cortland, but still.”

“Hey, that’s Seaver now,” Cam reminded his brother. “Cort Seaver, henceforth and forever. So if you’re gonna mock him, do it correctly.”

“He’ll always be Kendrick to me,” Bas said, batting his eyes at his brother-in-law.

“And this is the shit I married into,” Cort said, eyes to the ceiling. “But does anyone pity me? Noooo. Somehow they think the sexy, intelligent husband makes up for it.”

“Could you stop your bitching?” Damon demanded. “You’re all giving Cain the wrong idea. He’s gonna change his mind.”

“Change his mind about what?” Cam asked. “You mean…”

“I asked him to marry me last weekend,” Damon said proudly. “Down at Eli’s cabin with Chelsea and Molly there. We went for a sunset picnic.”

“And you said yes?” Drew demanded. “To this guy?”

Cain laughed and wrapped both arms around Damon’s waist. “In my defense, there was beer involved. But nothing is going to change my mind,” he told Damon. “You’re stuck with me.”

Drew laughed.

Cam put a hand on Sebastian’s arm. “I think Mom and Dad would be proud of this place. Amy too.”

Bas nodded. “I think they’d be proud of us. All of us.”

“I do too. I sometimes feel bad, knowing that SILA is still out there… that the organization that was responsible for their deaths is still doing nasty shit.”

“Like my dad,” Cain said grimly. “He stepped down from the Senate when he turned over his evidence against Alexei, but the deal he made meant that he avoided prosecution.”

“Nobody blames you for that, baby,” Damon said in his rough voice. “And you know I’m never going to be a fan of your father’s, but he’s trying. In his own way.”

“I can’t quite forgive him,” Cam said honestly. “But I think… I think I can see that he was doing what he thought he had to do. I don’t hate him, though. He saved our lives, in the end. And God knows, I would never blame you.”

“Same,” Bas said. “Honestly, I don’t spend a single minute thinking about that shit anymore. Gary’s still in touch with Ilya, and I have as much faith as I can that he’ll honor his agreement.” He shrugged. “I meant what I said in that speech… it’s our choice whether we let anger hold us back. We could maybe have kept pursuing SILA, but at what cost? There was no objective right way to do things. Life doesn’t work like that. We did the best we could. We found the right way for us. We found love and kept it. We found ourselves a home.”

“Yeah, we did,” Drew agreed, lifting his hand to Bas’s cheek and loving the way Bas nuzzled into the caress. “And we’ll keep finding it. All of us. Together.”