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Chapter Text

Lewis and Nico aren't sure how it's possible that every single grid caregiver managed to have a different emergency at six in the morning all on the same day. They also don't understand how they were the first choice for everyone to ask for babysitting. Don't get them wrong they love these kids, but six is a very large number for two men and one dog.
Ollie makes sense why George would ask Lewis, he's watched the little on a number of occasions when Charles and Carlos got tied up, and Kimi they can rationalize, George and Lewis were teammates, Kimi used to race for Nico, and they know the big version of the kid fairly well. But the rest of them? That is a lot of littles.
So that is how Lewis finds himself in the kitchen before the sun is fully in the sky, cutting every piece of fruit they have into manageable pieces for later today. Nico is pulling out toys and blankets and pillows and anything else he can think of to make the living room little friendly before they arrive. Hopefully it will be appealing enough for a mid day nap. Roscoe is observing from the couch after giving up on hoping Lewis would drop him some strawberries or something.

"How's it going in there?" Lewis calls from the kitchen.

"Almost done!" Nico replies.

Lewis appears in the threshold to the living room, eyes tracking over the progress. It's a sea of blankets and pillows, toys scattered just about everywhere and the coffee table has been moved to the side of the room.

"Looks good." Lewis says.

"You think? I'm hoping it will be appealing for a nap this afternoon." Nico says.

"This afternoon is far out, but yes it looks good." Lewis smiles.

Nico let's out a sigh he didn't realize he was holding.

"Are you nervous?" Lewis frowns slightly.

"I don't know, maybe?" It's a statement but it sounds like a question.

"How come?" Lewis asks, dragging his husband over to the couch.

"I know Ollie, and I know Kimi, but I don't really know the others. I don't want them to not like me and have to dump all of the responsibilities of six littles onto you. That's not fair." Nico says.

Lewis kisses him softly. "I'm sure they will love you. I know I do."

Nico blushes and looks to Roscoe. The dog isn't very interested but gives a small head nod, probably not intentional but it makes him feel a bit better.

"I'm going to change, because once they're here we won't get the chance." Lewis says, patting Nicos knee.

"Good idea." Nico agrees, getting up and following Lewis to the bedroom to change.

They hardly set foot back in the living room before the first knock sounds on the door. Lewis smiles to Nico and goes to answer it, finding George, Carmen, and Kimi outside. Kimi looks less than impressed by life, tears in his eyes and his giraffe hugged tight to his chest.

"Thank you for taking him of such short notice." George says.

"It's not a problem, I'm happy to help." Lewis smiles, directed mostly at Kimi.

The little has shoved his head back into Carmen's shoulder, holding tighter to her, determined not to let them leave.

"He's a little upset we have to go." She explains.

"That's ok, has he had anything to eat?" Lewis asks.

"He had a bottle just before we left the house but he could probably have something else if it's being offered." George says.

"We'll get him something yummy, don't you worry." Lewis smiles.

"Thank you. Alright angel, go see your uncle Lewis." Carmen says softly, transferring Kimi from her to him.

"Mama!" Kimi cries, reaching back out to her.

"I love you sweetheart, we'll see you before you know it." George blows a kiss his way, hands over the diaper bag, and they leave Kimi with Lewis.

"Shh, shh, it's ok, they'll be back, love." Lewis bounces Kimi softly.

"Mama!" Kimi cries again, shoving his face in Lewis shoulder now.

Thats a good thing, isn't it? Nico, hearing the cries, comes to investigate, smiling sadly at the first little to arrive for the day.

"There has been a promise for something to eat." Lewis says over the cries.

"You are the better cook so give him to me and I'll calm him down." Nico says.

Lewis nods and they move Kimi over. Roscoe comes in whining at the noise, hoping one of his humans will make it stop. Nico turns his sad smile down to the dog.

"I know pup, we're working on it." Nico says. "Let's go see whats in your bag, sugar."

Kimi cries a little harder, praying his mama and dada will come get him, that this is a mean joke and they can all go home. Nico sits on the floor, pulling out his blanket and wrapping it securely around Kimi. It smells like his parents and slowly, slowly, his cries ebb away to noting.

"Such a good boy, let's go see whats in Lewis is making, hmm?" Nico coos.

Kimi nods and they head for the kitchen, but get stoped by another knock. Nico shifts Kimi to his hip and answers it, Mark, Oscar, Fernando, and Gabi stood outside. The littles look tired, the caregivers even more so.

"Good morning, come in." Nico ushers them in.

"Thank you guys for taking them." Mark says.

"Not a problem, always happy to help." Nico smiles at the pair.

Gabi shuffles in like a zombie, Nico notes he's not a morning person, and Oscar stumbles in after him. Nico lifts Oscar onto his other hip and Oscar drops his head, falling back to sleep in seconds.

"Have either of them eaten?" Nico asks.

"No not yet, we tried but they were not hungry." Fernando says.

"All good, Lewis is cooking now." Nico nods his head towards the kitchen.

"Thank you. Where should we put their bags?" Mark asks.

"Just in the living room is fine." He says.

The pair nod, heading in that direction.

"Why don't you come with me kiddo, we'll get you some breakfast." Nico says kindly to Gabi.

"Ok." Gabi nods and follows dutifully to the kitchen.

"Got two more for you." Nico says, pulling chairs out with his foot.

He sits Kimi in one, Gabi climbing into the other and Nico then shifts Oscar to hold him to his chest while he dozes some more.

"Perfect, I'm just about done here." Lewis looks over his shoulder.

Pancakes are on the menu this morning, something that bodes well with everyone. The two caregivers pop into the kitchen.

"We're going to head out, thank you again." Fernando says.

"Not a problem, we'll see you this evening." Lewis smiles to them.

Mark kisses Oscars sleeping head and Fernando kisses Gabis curls, giving him one final hug and they walk out just as Lando is walking in.

"Good morning. Hope you don't mind we walked in, the door was open." Lando announces himself.

"No, all good. Lewis is just getting breakfast ready." Nico responds.

"Morning Lando." The older Brit tosses over his shoulder.

"Good morning. Thanks for taking him, I see you have most of the crew." Lando observes.

"I think we have all of the crew today." Nico responds.

"Oof, good luck." Lando chuckles.

"Daddy have to go?" Franco asks.

He's not happy about this but he is the most awake of them all.

"I do sunshine, daddy's sorry. I'll be back this evening, and you're going to have so much fun you won't even miss me." Lando says.

"Franco, do you want to pancakes?" Lewis asks, hoping it's a worthy distraction.

"Yes!" Franco says excitedly.

"Alright, hug your daddy goodbye and they'll be right up." Lewis instructs.

"Bye-bye daddy!" Franco hugs Lando and slides into the seat next to Gabi.

"I'll just put his bag in the living room." Lando says to Nico.

"Sounds good." The German says.

Lando quickly goes to set it down, then comes back to let one of the caregivers in charge he's leaving.

"Have a good day." Nico smiles to him, unable to wave with Oscar in his arms.

"Thanks, good luck." Lando smiles and quickly takes off, a busy day ahead of him.

The door shuts behind him and that leaves the six of them for now, just waiting on Isack and Ollie.

"Alright, who's hungry?" Lewis asks, three plates balances in his hands.

Small tired mumbles go around the table, except Franco, he's probably been up for a while. Lewis sets plates down in front of them all, pancakes pre cut for them and a generous amount of syrup on each. They all say their thanks and start eating. Kimi is the messiest out of all of them, getting syrup on his hands and arms, giving up entirety on the fork and using his fingers. The couple try not to cringe at the sticky mess being made, and thankfully Lewis gets his out from watching it as the final knock arrives at the door. He rushes off before Nico can escape, chuckling to himself and pulling the door open. Isack, Max, Daniel, Ollie, Carlos, and Charles are all outside.

"Good morning." Lewis smiles, letting them all inside.

"Morning." Max and Charles say simultaneously.

The other two caregiver heard the littles inside, Isack looking shy and Ollie is probably the only one who is actually happy to be here.

"Have you guys eaten yet?" Lewis asks.

"No." Isack and Ollie say.

"Well we will fix that, I just made pancakes for the others." Lewis says.

Daniel and Carlos disappear to put bags in the living room, figuring thats the best place for them while Lewis leads the others to the kitchen.

"Have a seat kiddos, I'll get your breakfast." Lewis says, pulling out more chairs.

Nico has been a silent observer, swaying Oscar while he continues to sleep, and everyone else wakes up. Oscar is just starting to wake up while the caregivers are saying their final goodbyes, pushing against Nicos chest, looking around the room confused.

"Daddy?" He asks, his voice gravely with sleep.

"Sorry buddy, he had to go, remember? You're hanging out with us today." Nico says, rubbing Oscar's back.

Oscar whines somewhat pitifully and rests his head back down on Nicos shoulder.

"Oscar, how about some food, lovely. I made pancakes." Lewis says.

Lewis knows it's a bit early to ask for cheery littles, but a little less than grumpy would be nice. So when he agrees to pancakes, Lewis breathes out a small sigh of relief. Nico sets him down in the final chair and Lewis gets his pancakes.
Nico turns to make sure everyone is alright, a wet wash cloth in hand. Kimi is all sticky with syrup so he is the first victim of the cloth.

"Alright baby, hold still." Nico says, taking Kimis hands in his.

"No, no. Stop." Kimi whines, trying to wiggle away.

"I know, almost done, you're just all sticky." Nico says.

Kimi whines, trying to pull away while Nico finishes up.

"Ok, all done. Thank you." Nico let's go of his hands. "Who's next?"

None of the other littles say anything, determined to escape the same fate as Kimi, but Franco catches Nico's eye, his mouth shiny with syrup. He is the next victim to the cloth, wiggling and trying to push Nico away while having his mouth and hands wiped clean.

"All done. See not so hard." Nico says.

Franco is already pouting about it though, and the caregiver chuckles softly. Lewis has grabbed a cloth of his own joining Nico on clean up duty. Everyone makes a bit of a mess and so no one escapes having their hands and faces cleaned, which produces a hoard of pouting littles. This will have to be rectified.

"Alright, everyone to the living room, let's do something." Lewis declares.

Gabi takes Franco's hand and the two of them make their way to the living room, Ollie and Isack get up together as well, toddling behind. Kimi lifts his hands up to Nico, silently asking to be carried and Oscar does the same to Lewis.

"Ok, up we go." Nico smiles, lifting Kimi into his arms.

Lewis waits for Nico, Oscar resting on his hip, waiting to go but not quite awake enough to walk there by himself.

"Ready then?" Lewis asks.

"I sure hope so." Nico replies, followed by a small laugh.

They take the remaining littles out to the living room where everyone else has pulled out toys, sprawled on the thick blankets on the floor. Kimi slowly lets go of Nicos neck as he's lowered to the floor next to Ollie. The British little hands him a car right away, inviting him into the game he's playing with Isack. They're racing each other, a make shift track already printed in the blankets by little wheels.
Lewis does the same for Oscar, sitting him down with Franco and Gabi while they play with some Lego. It looks like they are trying to build a rocket ship.
First hurdle of the day done, everyone is fed. Roscoe saunters in after eating his breakfast and hops up on the couch, curling up next to Lewis for his first nap of the day.

"Francooo, stole my piece!" Oscar exclaims.

"Did not!" Franco insists. "You were too slow."

"No! You stole it!" Oscar says, getting upset.

"Ok, ok, kiddos, give me the piece." Nico gets up, crouching in front of the pair.

Gabi is staring wide eyed as Oscar and Franco have a stand off. They act like brothers sometimes, often together when Mark or Lando needs a sitter. Nico won't let this devolve too far as clearly neither of the two boys will admit they are wrong.

"Boys, piece please." Nico says again.

Without looking away from Oscar, Franco drops the piece into Nico's hand. The German curls his hand around it, Oscar and Franco still in a heated staring contest.

"Gabi, where was it supposed to go?" He asks.

Gabi points to an empty spot on the structure and Nico snaps the piece into place.

"There, no need to argue, right?" Nico says.

Oscar and Franco haven't blinked, not willing to be the first one to drop eye contact so Nico snaps his fingers in front of them both and they break away.

"Right?" He tries again.

"Right..." Oscar and Franco mutter simultaneously.

"Good, play nicely ok?" The German says.

Both littles nod and pick up different pieces, returning to their building without fighting this time.

"Problem solved." Nico says to Lewis as he sits back on the couch.

"Good job." Lewis chuckles softly, keeping an eye on the younger ones.

Things seem to settle for a bit, everyone is playing nice, no arguments, just happy laughters and playful banter until Ollie catches Lewis's eye. He looks uncomfortable, shifting where he's sat and the tips of his ears have gone red. Neither Isack or Kimi have noticed, they are very happy to drive their cars over each other while Ollie comes close to tears. Lewis leaves Roscoe and Nico on the couch to investigate.

"Hey bud, whats the trouble?" Lewis asks very quietly.

Ollie whines and shifts again, looking at Lewis too embarrassed to say anything while also hoping he will know and fix it. Lewis asses the situation and smiles softly.

"Do you need a change, love?" He asks.

"Yeah." Ollie quietly squeak out.

Lewis smiles and lifts him up, finding his bag and taking him down the hall to change him in private. Lewis understands it not always easy to ask for things like this, he has watched Ollie on a number of occasions but he's always been clean and freshly dry and it was never for more than an hour, so he's never had to change Ollie.
He softly kicks the bathroom door shut and grabs a towel, setting it on the floor and Ollie on it.

"I promise I'll be super quick." Lewis says.

Ollie nods and stares up at the ceiling. Lewis smiles sadly and wiggles Ollie's shorts off, ripping the tabs of his diaper and throwing it away. He wipes the little off then tapes a new diaper around his hips, finally pulling his shorts back over it.

"See, I told you I would be fast." Lewis says as he wipes his hands on a baby wipe.

"Done?" Ollie asks.

"All done." Lewis confirms.

Ollie lets out a relived sigh, he made it through. Lewis smiles then scoops him up, slinging his bag over his shoulder and heading back for the living room. He sets Ollie back down with his friends and he gets re-immersed in his game with Isack and Kimi. Just as Lewis is about to sit down Isack shrieks.

"Lew!" He yells, very distressed. "Broken!"

Lewis turns and sees a wheel has fallen off the car Isack is playing with. New problem it is.

"It's ok bud, let me see." Lewis says.

Isack hands the car and wheel over and Lewis sees the problem, the screw popped out.

"Nico can you grab the screwdriver kit?" Lewis asks.

"Yup, just a second." Nico says and hops off the couch.

"It's ok, we will fix it in no time." Lewis promises.

Nico comes and sits, taking a quick look and handing the proper head over to Lewis. The littles watch, fascinated as Lewis screws the little wheel back on.

"Voilà." Lewis declares, handing the toy back.

"Thanks Lew." Isack smiles.

"You're welcome kiddo, enjoy your game." Lewis says.

He hands the screw bit back to Nico who goes to put it away then joining Lewis on the couch. All crisis's done for now and hopefully until nap time.

Chapter Text

Nico made lunch, Mac and cheese for everyone because it's easy and everyone likes it. Bowls are stacked on the coffee table and Kimi is the first one to yawn. He tries to fight it, to keep playing with his friends but he is nothing if not a creature of habit and it is nap time.
Nico notices first and quietly gets on the floor with Kimi, pulling him into his lap and rocking softly. Kimi yawns again, finding it harder and harder to stay awake. Ollie and Isack are still playing and he wants to too, but it's so hard. Nico grabs Fiffi and his abandoned blanket, tucking him in with them. Lewis crouches down next to them, pushing a pacifier past Kimis lips and he looses, falling to sleep in Nicos arms.

"That wasn't so hard." Lewis says softly.

"No, it definitely wasn't." Nico agrees.

Kimi is probably the easiest to get to sleep though, he's the youngest, the baby, and he thrives on routine so he wasn't going to fuss much about a nap. It's the others that might be tricky. Fernando told the couple Gabi has been having a hard time adjusting to his new routine, and that the suggestion of a nap is enough for him to throw a tantrum. That one will be a delicate dance to get him down, and Franco is so go go go thats he's not going to want to stop and rest.
Oscar is the next one to crack, a yawn escaping him against his will and he lays down next to Franco. Lewis grabs his pacifier from his bag and wordlessly slips it in his mouth. Oscar coos, relaxing into the blanketed floor and blinking slowly. Then Franco flops down with Oscar, the two curling up together and Lewis covers them in a blanket. It goes like this one by one until everyone is asleep, Kimi still cuddled up with Nico because he whines and wakes up whenever he thinks he's going to be put down.
Except Gabi, Gabi pushes up on his hands, looking around at everyone else and his eyes water. He thought this was a fun game, like they lay down for a second and something exciting will happen, but no, they are actually asleep.

"Hey bud, why don't you come here for a bit?" Lewis suggests.

"'M not sleeping." Gabi says very firmly.

"No one said you had to." Lewis responds.

Skeptically, Gabi crawls over and once's he's close enough Lewis pulls him into his lap. They got a brief run down on the situation, how much Gabi is struggling and how everything has to be his idea right now. Lewis wraps him up tightly, rocking softly.

"Not napping." Gabi grumbles.

"I know." Lewis says, still rocking.

"Not... gonna sleep." Gabi says between a yawn.

Lewis just hums continuing to rock. Gabis eyes get heavy and he lays back down on Lewis chest.

"'M not tired." Gabi protests weakly, tears slipping out of his eyes.

"I know you're not." Lewis nods.

Gabi cries softly as he looses the battle with sleep and dozed off on Lewis's chest. The Brit grabs a blanket off the couch and wraps it around them, wiping away the tears that fell with the pad of his thumb.

"Poor thing." He coos softly.

Nico coos sympathetically, currently tied under a sleeping Kimi so he can't offer a comforting hand. Lewis has him though, he will be the comfort this little needs until he wakes up.

—

Gabi is also the last to wake up, a little confused as he looks around. Franco is crying, Oscar is hovering like he's not sure what to do while Nico tries to comfort him. He has a tiny cut on his hand from where he slammed it down on a Lego piece while trying to get up. He looks up and sees Lewis is still holding him and he quickly crawls off his lap. Lewis lets him go, not making a big deal out of it so he doesn't get upset. Kimi, Ollie, and Isack are watching the scene with Franco unfold and slowly stacking blocks so Gabi joins them.

“Lew, hon, now that you’re free can you grab the polysporin and a bandaid please.” Nico asks.

“Yup.” Lewis nods and quickly pushes himself up.

He can hear Nico trying to calm Franco down and reassure Oscar that Franco will be fine while he rummages for the requested items. They are tucked away in the medicine cabinet but he does find them and jogs back.

“Ok love, let me see.” Lewis says softly.

Franco holds his hand out for Lewis to see. Lego hurts but the cut itself isn’t too terrible, an easy fix for sure. Lewis puts a little bit of the gel on the cut then covers it with a bandaid, giving it a kiss for good measure.

“All better.” He says.

“Th-thanks Lew.” Franco sniffs.

“You’re welcome bud.” Lewis smiles.

Franco stays in Nicos lap for a few more minutes, calming himself down. While everyone settles a bit, Lewis gets an idea.

“What if we went down to the park?” He suggests to Nico.

“Yeah. That could work.” Nico agrees.

“Great, that should tire them out for when they get picked up.” Lewis says.

Nico nods, and so Lewis stands and packs their own bag. Snacks, water, bandaids, everything gets neatly organized while Nico tells the littles to clean up so they can get shoes on.

“Does anyone need a change or the bathroom before we leave?” Lewis asks as he helps get shoes on.

Either everyone is too excited or they actually don’t have to, but they all shake their heads no. Kimi lifts his arms up for Nico to carry him, and the German smiles, happily scooping him up.

“Is everyone ready to go?” He asks.

“Yes!” Franco says excitedly, the cut on his hand long forgotten.

“Great, out we go.” Lewis holds the door for everyone to step out side.

Nico is out first with Kimi, followed by Ollie, and Isack, then Franco holding hands with Oscar and finally Gabi staying close to Lewis, and Roscoe on his leash.
The park is a two minute walk, if that, from the house and very private. It’s not huge by any means which is probably why a lot of people don’t go there with their kids, but it’s still nice.
Isack and Ollie start skipping as soon as the park comes into view running ahead to go down the slides.

“Kimi! Come with!” Ollie calls over his shoulder as he runs up the structure.

“Down please.” Kimi requests.

Nico chuckles and sets him down, watching him toddle off after Isack and Ollie.

“What about you three, you guys going to go play?” Nico asks the three older ones.

“Duh, swings.” Franco points out, already dragging Oscar off.

“Lew?” The Australian asks.

“It’s ok, have fun buddy.” Lewis smiles to him.

“Why don’t you go join them, help Franco get Oscar on a swing.” Nico suggests to the final remaining little.

Gabi nods once looking at both caregivers quickly then running off. Oscar has hesitantly gotten on a swing and Franco is trying to push him. Oscar is not always fearless in headspace and he’s white knuckling the chains holding the swing up. Franco gets on his belly on the swing next to him, cackling as he pushes himself back and forth.

“I’m the king!” Isack cries from the top of the structure.

“Not fair!” Kimis shrill voice comes from somewhere inside.

“I wanna be king too!” Ollie agrees, popping up next to Isack.

“No! I was here first!” Isack scowls.

“Not fair!” Kimi exclaims again.

“Is fair!” Isack retorts.

“How about all of you are kings?” Lewis proposes.

“But I called it.” Isack pouts.

“Wouldn’t it be fun have king friends, it must be lonely to be the only one.” Lewis says, grasping at straws.

“Fine…” Isack concedes.

King friends is acceptable apparently so that’s great. Roscoe pulls Lewis along over to Nico who is pushing Franco on the swing as he so loudly requested.

“Gabi, darling, do you want to come run with Roscoe?” Lewis asks.

He’s been unsettled and quiet all day but especially since he woke up. Usually time with a dog helps and Roscoe, though he doesn’t love the crying, is good with kids.

“Sure.” Gabi nods.

He hops off his swing and Lewis unclips Roscoe, the two wandering over to the patch of grass and plopping themselves down.

“Lew! Come play!” Ollie calls for the Brit.

Lewis whips around to see the three littles at the top of the play structure, Ollie and Kimi poking out above it and Isack trying to climb onto the roof so he can see.

“Oh fuck. Ok coming!” Lewis says and quickly rushes over.

He sprints up as fast as he can, grabbing Isack around the waist before he can make it onto the slanted roof and potentially hurt himself.

“Alright, new rule, both feet on something solid at all times.” Lewis says.

“Was solid.” Isack points to the roof.

“Not solid enough.” Lewis says.

“What about the monkey bars?” Ollie asks.

“That’s fine.” Lewis says.

“But my feet are off the ground. Or the slide.” Kimi adds.

He’s trying to help his friend’s point, Lewis knows that but that is not what he meant.

“Ok, let me rephrase. No climbing onto the roof or something high with nothing to hold that you could fall from. Monkey bars are fine, roofs are not.” Lewis says.

He honestly never thought he would be having this conversation in his life. He supposes that littles like to poke sometimes though. And as they look back and forth between each other, deciding if that is acceptable, he realizes why he and Nico waited to do this.

“Lew says fuck.” Isack giggles.

“Oh good god.” Lewis groans.

“Fuck?” Kimi asks.

“Yeah, papa says it too.” Isack adds.

“I like it.” Ollie decides.

“No. No! Your parents are going to kill us, oh my god.” Lewis sighs. “You guys can’t say those words, those are big people words.”

“You say.” Kimi points out.

“Am I a big person?” Lewis asks.

“Yeah.” Ollie nods.

“Then I can say it, when you three are small you can’t, ok?” Lewis says.

The three nod at him and he sighs softly. This has been a very confusing and tiering two minutes.

“Ok, what are we playing?” Lewis asks.

“Pirates!” They all cheer.

Nico looks up from where he’s pushing both Oscar and Franco while watching Gabi and Roscoe roll around, play fighting, in the grass. Lewis looks like he’s aged ten years in ten minutes but smiles when he sees his partner watching him. Nico chuckles as Kimi tries to hop on his shoulders and he has to catch him before he goes toppling off and hits his head. George would keep his body as a household decoration if Kimi got hurt.

“How you doing, Osc?” Nico asks, gently pushing the boy.

“Good.” Oscar says, a small nod accompanying it.

“So awesome!” Franco cheers as he goes whizzing past on his swing, having taken over for Nico in pushing himself.

“Be careful though, we don’t need you getting hurt.” Nico warns.

“Best day ever!” Franco yells.

“Well that’s good.” The German chuckles.

“Nio, faster?” Oscar asks, not sure but willing to try.

“Yeah, we can go a little faster.” Nico responds, pushing Oscar just a little harder.

Swings are clearly not something he sees very often as he isn’t too sure how he’s supposed to feel about them. Nico doesn’t want to send him too far up, or go too fast to risk him taking a tumble as he’s clearly intimidated by the idea but wants to be like his older cousin. Franco has absolutely no fear, all guts, continuing to mount higher and higher until the structure starts to creak.

“No, no, no!” Oscar panics.

Nico grabs the chains when he comes back and lifts Oscar up as he starts to tremble.

“It’s ok, you’re safe. No one’s going to get hurt.” Nico promises.

“Gonna break!” Oscar cries.

“I promise it won’t bud, this is very sturdy.” Nico says, patting the metal, his ring clinking against it.

Franco seems none the wiser to the youngers concern, having the time of his life on the swing.

“Franco, bud, let’s calm down just a little bit.” Nico says.

Franco pouts just a bit but drags a foot on the rocks as he comes back to slow himself so the structure isn’t creaking anymore.

“Thank you.” Nico smiles and lets him carry on. “See, no one is hurt, we’re all safe.”

Oscar observes Franco, notes the lack of ominous sound that everything will collapse and relaxes. Then Gabi comes trotting over, Roscoe in toe looking chipper than he has been.

“Hey buddy.” Nico smiles.

“Osc ok?” Gabi asks.

“Yup, he just had a bit of a fright. Everyone’s alright though. How about you, are you doing ok?” Nico asks.

Gabi nods, watching Franco for a minute.

“Hungry though.” He says eventually.

“Hungry I can fix.” The caregiver says. “Franco do you want a snack?”

“Yes!” The little agrees enthusiastically and jumps off the moving swing.

“You boys are going to give me grey hairs.” Nico mutters. “Come on kiddos, snack time.”

“Snack?” Ollie pops up.

“Yeah, do you want a snack?” Nico asks as he and his three pass.

“Yeah.” Ollie says and quickly slides down to meet them.

“Ollie!” Kimi calls for him. “You left!”

“Getting a snack!” Ollie points to the cooler.

“Oh, snack.” Kimi says and slides down too.

Isack follows when he realizes they are going and so Lewis joins him down. Nico is pulling lids off containers on fruit and cheese, finding a picnic table and setting everything out like a buffet of sorts. Strawberries, watermelon, cantalope, blueberries, peaches, apples, cheese and more are all up for grabs, but unfortunately Lewis and Nico didn’t have the foresight to grab little paper plates.

“Anyone want water?” Lewis asks.

He brought water bottles and they all have sippy cups that can be filled. They are all thirsty and ask for some so Lewis and Nico fills sippy cups and pass them around. Kimi takes his water and shifts where he’s sitting in the grass.

“Hey buddy, do you need a change?” Nico asks softly.

Kimi makes a panicked little noise because there isn’t anywhere private they can go yet his diaper is soaked.

“No one will notice baby, I promise it will be alright.” The caregiver adds.

Reluctantly Kimi lets Nico lift him up, grabbing his diaper bag and heading behind the group so no one looks. He knows this is probably a huge step for him so he does his best to be fast, completely understanding the trepidation.

“You’re doing so well.” Nico praises. “I’m almost done, just keep breathing.”

Kimi listens to him, squeezing his eyes shut while he lays on the crinkly changing mat and lets Nico work. He opens his eyes when he feels himself being lifted up, shocked and relived they are done.

“Good job baby, you did so well.”

Kimi sighs and relaxes on his shoulder as he’s carried back to finish his snack. Lewis checks the time as Nico sets Kimi back down.

“What are you thinking my darling?” The German asks.

“Just that we should probably get them back soon, they’ll be getting picked up in about an hour.” Lewis says.

“Already? That went by sort of quickly.” Nico says, shocked they have almost made it to the end of the day.

“Yeah, I never thought I would have to argue that climbing a roof and climbing monkey bars are not equal in danger.” Lewis laughs and Nico snorts.

“Do you regret not doing this?” The blonde asks.

Lewis pauses, thinking it over. “Sometimes yes, sometimes no.”

Nico waits, letting him decide if he wants to say more.

“When Gabi was asleep on me, or seeing Kimi curled up with you, I think it would be nice, having a baby around, but when Isack nearly got on the roof I definitely don’t want to do that every day.” Lewis admits.

Nico hums. “I get it. And it’s pretty fun being just the uncles.”

“Yeah…” Lewis nods.

There is more there, Nico can feel it but he doesn’t push, letting it sit if Lewis wishes to bring it up later.

“Alright kiddos, go play a little longer then we will head home.” Lewis says.

All six of them go running off onto the grass, Franco tagging Isack and darting away. So a game of tag it is, the final game to wear them out.

—

Nico carries Ollie and Kimi in, one on each hip back home and Lewis carries Oscar and Isack, Franco and Gabi trudging in front with Roscoe. They went until they dropped, literally, from exhaustion. Kimi is dozing off on Nicos shoulder, pacifier in his mouth. He’ll sleep well for Carmen and George tonight.
And speak of the devil, just as they make their way up the driver way, George pulls in followed by Mark.

“Someone looks like they had fun.” Mark chuckles at the sight before them.

“He ran around all afternoon.” Lewis says, passing Oscar off.

“Kimi tried to keep up, he’s pretty tired now though.” Nico adds as Kimi goes to Carmen.

“Mama.” The little coos.

“I told you we would come back. Thank you guys for taking care of him.” Carmen says.

“Any time.” Lewis smiles, sliding Kimis bag off his shoulder.

George takes it, slinging it over his own shoulder.

“Thank you again, it was a huge help.” He says.

“Of course, we’re always here.” Lewis smiles.

They take Kimi home, Mark also takes Oscar’s bag and takes him home for bed. It doesn’t take much longer before everyone has been collected, very tired littles passed off to very grateful caregivers until it’s just Nico, Lewis, and Roscoe left in the house.

“I need a nap.” Lewis says with a smile.

“You and me both.” Nico agrees.

Roscoe hops up on the couch, curling between both his people, also exhausted from chasing the kids while they played all afternoon. Being the fun uncles definitely has its perks.