Chapter Text
The next morning, Alex woke up to a delicious aroma and the sound of light humming filling the apartment. He laid in bed, not wanting to get up, feeling the soft warmth of the blanket curling around him. He was laying peacefully, eyes closed, when he felt a stream of sunlight hit his face and he immediately groaned and rolled over to the side. For two more minutes, he laid there peaceful under the mass of blankets until his stomach rumbled loudly. He sighed in defeat knowing he had to get up. He groggily sat up, rubbing his eyes and kicked the blankets off. He looked down blushing, as he remembered how Burr let him borrow some of his clothes. They were slightly baggy but they still fit. He stood up and stretched before walking out of the room. He went to the bathroom and freshened up a bit before entering the kitchen. What he saw immediately made him stop in his tracks.
Standing in the middle of the kitchen mixing some ingredients in a bowl with an apron on was Aaron Burr. He was humming slightly as he danced around the kitchen a bit, eyes closed unaware of the pair of eyes watching him closely. Alexander felt another blush rise to his face as he observed Burr. He looked so happy, so content. Alex found himself staring at his lips, wondering how they would feel on his own. After a little while, Burr finally noticed him when he opened his eyes. He jumped, startled, almost dropping the bowl in his hands.
“H-How long were you standing there?”
Alex watched as Aaron’s face began to turn bright red. He suddenly felt a surge of confidence so he walked forward close to Aaron (he put the bowl back on the counter by now). He was so close that he could feel Aaron’s breath on his. He smirked slightly before saying:
“Long enough”
And then he leaned close, closing the gap between him and Aaron, kissing him softly. Aaron gasped slightly, and for a moment Alex worried that he had messed up. But just as he was about to pull away, Aaron kissed back. They both closed their eyes as Aaron’s arms circled Alex’s neck and Alex’s hands found their way to Aaron’s waist. It was a long sweet kiss before they broke away for air. They stared at each other for a moment lost, in each other’s eyes before Alex spoke up.
“Aaron I-”
But before he could continue they heard two sets of footsteps approaching and quickly separated. Aaron went back to mixing, looking down at the bowl while blushing furiously. Alex leaned against the counter trying to look casual as a sleepy Eliza and Angelica walked in. Aaron glanced at them for a moment.
“There’s some coffee in the pot, feel free to help yourselves.” Aaron pointed towards a coffee pot that did indeed have coffee in it. Gratefully, they all poured themselves a cup before sitting awkwardly at the dining table. It was a moment or two before Alex spoke up.
“Soooooooooooooooo, whatcha makin’?”
Aaron turned towards them and Alex noted he looked like he hadn’t slept last night.
“I’m making chocolate chip pancakes I hope you don’t mind, but Theo loves them”
Alex’s face actually brightened at the sound of chocolate chip pancakes and it seemed Angelica and Eliza had no complaints either. Aaron turned back to the stove, flipping the pancakes and it was silent once more. Aaron flipped another pancake. A little while later, all the pancakes were cooked and he began placing the plates down.
“Theo! It’s time to wake up. I made chocolate chip pancakes!” he yelled while placing the plates of pancakes on the table.
They heard a muffed excited yell that sounded like ‘pancakes’ before hearing a loud thud. A moment or two later and Theo was speeding into the kitchen, hair messed up from sleep. She sat in the seat at the end of the table next to the only empty seat and began to bounce excitedly. The minute Burr placed the plate of pancakes in front of her she soaked them in syrup and began to DEVOUR them. Aaron chuckled as he sat down, his plate of plain buttermilk pancakes in front of him.
“Slowly, Theo, before you choke”
“Sorry papa,” she said with a mouth full of pancakes and syrup.
“Try not to talk with your mouthful either” he chided gently.
Theo nodded and chewed slowly before noticing Angelica, Eliza, and Alex.
“Oh! My name is Theodosia, but you can call me Theo! Do you guys really work with daddy?”
Alex chuckled a little, “Yup you sure bet we do! Well except for Eliza” he gestured towards Eliza and she waved a bit. “here but she’s a good friend of mine. I’m Alexander Hamilton”
“It’s nice to meet you, Theo, my name is Eliza and the person sitting next to me is Angelica, my sister.”
Angelica smiled and waved. Theo looked thoughtful for a second before immediately brightening like she remembered something.
“Ohhhhhh, so you’re” Theo gestured towards Alex “the guy Uncle Tommy always complains about.” She giggled a bit before continuing “You’re a lot nicer than what he described you as”
“Well, Theo” Aaron interjected, “that’s because your Uncle Thomas is very dramatic.”
Alex suddenly realized who they were talking about and looked at Aaron surprised.
“You introduce Jefferson to your daughter and not me??”
“Don’t take it personally Alex. He was there when Theo was born and he and James helped me out a lot.”
Alex huffed before digging back into the pancakes. The conversation was pleasant. Theo was an energetic child who liked to tell stories about school. Most of it was her complaining about the “stupid boys” at her school. Apparently, when she revealed to the class she wanted to be a lawyer, like her dad, some of the boys made fun of her saying that she was a girl and therefore couldn’t be a lawyer. Angelica looked furious until Theo started to giggle.
“Daddy was furious,” Theo giggled, oblivious to the surprised look from Angelica. “I remember when I told him, he drove right back to school and demanded to speak to the principal.” Angelica looked at Aaron in surprise before feeling a new level of respect for the single father. Aaron looked down at his pancakes, his face bright red. All of a sudden he looked back up, smirking slightly.
“Of course, no one gets to make fun of my daughter. Especially when she is way smarter than everyone in her class.”
“Dad!” It was Theo’s turn to blush now.
“What, it’s true! I bet none of the kids at your school could speak French as well as you do! Or be as ahead as you are in writing and reading!” Aaron had a look of pure pride on his face as Theo hid her face in her hands, embarrassed. The three guests were looking on in amusement as Aaron reached over and ruffled Theo’s hair.
“You’re embaaaaarrassing meeeeee” She whined as she pouted at her father. “Plus it’s only because of you, Uncle Tommy, and Uncle James I know all that stuff.”
“That may be true, but you still learned it even when it was hard.”
“Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad”
The rest of breakfast went without a hitch and soon Aaron was cleaning up while they helped. After they finished they walked out into the living room preparing to leave. Aaron was still in the kitchen and truly they didn’t mean to eavesdrop but once they saw Theo re-enter the kitchen nervously, well their interest was piqued.
“Papa?”
Aaron finished drying a plate, placing it down on the counter, before turning around and giving his daughter his full attention.
“Yes?”
Theo fiddled with the hem of her pajama shirt. She opened her mouth, trying to find what to say. She knew it was a difficult subject for her dad but . . . she was just so curious. Plus he said she could ask him anything whenever she wanted.
“What was mama like?”
Her dad froze and for a minute she was scared he was mad. But eventually, he sighed and looked at her with loving eyes.
“What was she like? Hmmmm,” her father picked her up and she giggled, wrapping her arms around her neck. He placed her on the counter and looked thoughtful for a moment. “She was . . . well, amazing.” From where they stood, Alex, Angelica, and Eliza watched as Aaron’s eyes glassed over for a moment before he blinked. “She was one of the smartest women I have ever met in my life. She was beautiful, kind, and intelligent. Anything I could ever wish for really. She changed my life, made my life worthwhile” Theo stared at her dad in wonder.
“Really?”
Aaron chuckled, “Really.” Aaron looked back at Theo. “She loved you very much. She dedicated every day to you. When you smile I know a part of her lives on. If she were here, I know she would be immensely proud of you.” Theo looked down sadly, wishing her mother was here. Her dad seemed to notice and was silent for a minute before speaking up again.
“You know my mother died when I was 2 as well”
The three people listening, all froze staring at Aaron in shock. Theo was looking at her father in curiosity, hoping he’d continue. She never knew much about her grandparents and was eager to learn. Aaron was looking at the ceiling, hands tucked in his pockets. He didn’t seem to notice, in all honesty, he looked lost in his past. A beat of silence went by before he continued.
“My mother was a genius. She was always kind and patient, she taught me to be compassionate. She was laid back and always made everyone in the room laugh. My father was a great man, he was a bit more serious than my mother but kind nonetheless. When I was 2, my sister, Sally, and I were home alone. My sister was seven at the time and I remember her and I playing tag in the house. Our parents had gone out to the theatre and that night the police came to our door telling us our parents had passed away after a car accident. My sister and I were sent to our grandfather, your great-grandfather. We stayed with him for a year before being sent to our Uncle’s house. Our Uncle wasn’t very nice and because of that Sally ran away after a year of living there. I haven’t heard from her since.
I graduated from high school and entered college as soon as possible. I met your mother after college. I wasn’t in a good place at the time but your mother gave me strength.” He looked at Theo smiling, “When I look at you, I see her. I see the kind and compassionate women who would smack some sense into me when I was being unreasonable or stupid. Theo, I am so proud of you more than you can believe. I will make sure I am here for you and I know that your mother is looking after both of us.” Theo couldn’t take it anymore. She threw herself at her father, wrapping her arms around him. She felt a couple of tears roll down her face but she didn’t care. The hug lasted for a minute before Theo pulled back smiling at her father.
“Thank you” Was all she said before pulling him into a hug again, shorter this time. When she pulled back, she wiped some tears off her eyes. Aaron smiled at her again,” Now go run off and enjoy your weekend.” he said. She nodded and ran off passing a shocked Angelica, Eliza, and Alex on the way out.
Aaron was still unaware of their presence, thinking they already left. As soon as he heard Theo’s door close he broke down. Tears that he held back were now streaming down his face as he felt a sob crawl up his throat. He put a hand to his mouth, sliding down the wall, and let out a muffled sob. Years of pent up emotion was let out and he wished that Thomas and James were here. He pulled his knees to his chest, curling into a ball. He wanted to scream and cry and let all this pent up emotion out. But he knew if he did that Theo would hear him and he didn’t want her seeing him like this. He let out another muffled sob, burying his head into his knees. He heard footsteps but didn’t feel bothered to move. Suddenly he was pulled into a warm embrace, strong arms circling him. Someone was rubbing his back, whispering comforting things in his ear. He looked up to see Alex holding him close and saw no judgment on his face, only concern. And suddenly he couldn’t take it anymore.
He let out a sob and buried his head into Alex’s chest. Alex just rubbed his back comfortingly and continued to whisper soft words of encouragement and comfort in his ear.He continued to sob and sob until he succumbed to his exhaustion.
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Alex looked down at the sleeping man curled up against his chest. He felt a pang of sadness at the tear-stained face. Poor Aaron had been through so much and had no one to comfort him, until now. Alex may have had a rough past as well, but he was lucky to be adopted by the Washingtons who loved him unconditionally. Sighing, Alex got up with the man still in his arms, asleep. He looked at the shocked Schuyler sisters and said “You guys go ahead and go back to Eliza’s place, I am going to stay here a little longer. Wordlessly they nodded and began to leave when Angelica turned to face Alex, who was on his way to Aaron’s room.
“Alex, please tell him I said sorry for what I said at his doorstep.”
With that, she and Eliza walked out of the apartment leaving Alex alone with a sleeping Aaron. Alex continued to walk towards Aaron’s room, struggling with the door before managing to pop it open. He walked over to the bed and placed Aaron on it gently. He looked at his peaceful sleeping face for a second, unconsciously running a hand through the other's hair. When he went to pull his hand away, Aaron grabbed his wrist gently and said: “stay”. So stay he did.
Later that day (round’ noon) Aaron woke up and felt himself cuddled close to someone’s chest. Alarmed he tried to pull away but the unknown person just held him tighter. He opened his eyes to a mass of brown hair. He suddenly remembered all that had happened that day and looked up at Alex’s sleeping face. He smiled slightly and whispered “I love you” before closing his eyes again. Just before he fell asleep again, he felt the arms around him tighten and heard Alex whisper “I love you too” He fell back asleep with a smile on his face, maybe he can be happy again.
BONUS:
Theo walked out of her room, intending to find her dad and ask if he wanted to play a game. She walked into the kitchen expecting to see him there but saw it was deserted. He wasn’t in the living room so she assumed he was in his room. As she approached the door she heard light snoring.
Curious she opened the door quietly and tiptoed into the room. She looked at the bed in the middle of the room. Her papa was asleep, curled into Uncle Alex’s chest with a content smile on his face. Uncle Alex himself was awake on his phone. When he noticed her he smiled at her and put a finger against his lips gesturing to her sleeping father. She nodded and smiled back at him before exiting the room. She was happy, she was a smart kid and knew her dad had been overworking himself. Now though, he’s happy and that instantly makes her happy.