Two Futures

"Are you on your way?"

"Yup. I'm about to start the car."

"I'll hang up then. Drive safely."

"I will. I'll see you in about 20 minutes."

"Hm. I'll be the one wearing a white tux."

"I know~ I'm going to start the car now. I love you."

"I love you too."

Ivo hangs up the phone with a smile on his face.

Today, he's going to marry the love of his life. The man he decided was the one for him after meeting him when he was only 19. It took a long time for Ivo to convince the older man that he was serious, that what he felt wasn't just a passing fancy, or puppy love, or something he'll grow out of. It was hard but worth it. Sean was worth it. And now, all of his efforts have paid off.

He was about to make his way to where his and his fiancée's parents were talking near the shore when his phone rang, his brows furrowing at the name flashing on the screen.

"Sean, what have I told you about using your phone while driving?"

"Sir."

Ivo's eyes narrowed, "Who is this? Why do you have my fiancée's phone?" he demanded, quite loudly judging from the surprised and curious look some people are giving him.

"Is this Mr. Ivo Pierce?"

"Yes."

"Mr. Pierce, I work at St. Luke's Hospital. There's been an accident. A car crashed into your fiancée—Mr. Sean Wood's—car......." 

Ivo could feel his whole being go numb as the person on the other side of the phone went on. He wanted to stop her, to tell her to shut up. He wanted to hang up because the whole conversation was starting to sound like a dialogue in the dramas his love likes to watch, the one with a cliché storyline where the main character receives the most horrible news they've ever heard, the kind of news that makes one's whole world feel like it's falling apart, all the while sad music plays in the background. Except, the conversation he's having wasn't part of a script. It was his reality.

"... Ivo... Ivo... Ivo... IVO!"

Ivo jerked in surprise. He blinked, shook his head, and looked around. I... I'm in my hotel room... I could've sworn I was—

"Ivo!"

"... Ma?"

"This kid," his mother sighed. "I've been calling your name for who knows how long!"

"S-Sorry... I was—" Ivo hesitated. "I was just lost in thought..."

A grin slowly stretched across his mother's face, a teasing glint in her eyes. "Are you nervous?"

"No," Ivo huffed.

His mother ignored him. "I don't think I've ever seen you nervous," she mused.

The sound of his mother's voice turned into background noise as Ivo tried to understand why a sudden wave of uneasiness crashed into him. He wants to cry, but he doesn't know why. He wants to scream until his throat is hoarse. He wants—he wants Sean to wrap him in his arms and make the unease he's feeling go away like his lover's embrace never failed to do. Sean—his first love, his best friend and lover, his future husband, the other father of the future children he's going to adopt, his partner in everything.

And suddenly, Ivo remembered.

"Ivo. Son, you're turning pale. Are you okay?" 

The worry was evident in his mother's tone, but Ivo doesn't know to tell her that no, no, he's not okay. He's not okay because Sean is... Sean is...

"Ivo!"

He felt hands cup his face and wipes away the tears he wasn't aware was falling down his cheeks

"Son, what's going on?! Why are you crying?"

Ivo shakes his head and pulls away from his mom's hold to look for his phone, almost throwing himself across the room after spotting it on the bed. He pressed speed dial 1, his heart pounding furiously against his ribs, hands trembling as he waited for Sean to pick up. His mother was still asking questions, but he paid her no mind.

"Ivo?"

"Sean!" Ivo choked out, the sound of his voice calming him instantly, albeit only slightly. The threat of something horrible happening to Sean hovering over him still.

"Ivo, what's wrong? You sound like you're crying..."

Ivo sobbed. "Sean... Sean..."

Ivo knows he's worrying both his mother and his fiancée, but he couldn't seem to say anything other than his lover's name.

"Ivo, what's going on?! You're scaring me!"

"Y-You..." Ivo swallowed, "you have to... you have to stay there. You can't—" he choked back a sob.

"... Ivo?"

"You can't come here."

His mother sputtered behind him.

"Sean? Did you hear me?" Ivo demanded, "You can't come here."

"Ivo... are you..."

Ivo felt a tight squeeze in his chest. He's hurting him. He knows he's hurting him. He can hear the other trying to hold himself back from crying, but he can't risk it. He can't risk anything happening to Sean.

"I'll explain everything to you later, but for now, you just have to trust me. You have to trust me," Ivo pleaded, "I promise. I promise I'll explain later. Please, please, Sean."

The silence on the other side is putting Ivo on edge.

"Okay."

Ivo breathed out a sigh of relief, the heaviness in his chest finally lifting. "Thank you."

"Hm."

Ivo bit his lip. He knows that tone. 

"Promise me you won't go anywhere until I get there." He's going to make him mad; if he isn't already—but he has to make sure that Sean is going to stay put. He'll face his ire head-on when he gets home.

"Got it."

Ivo flinched at the clipped tone. Sean hangs up before he could say anything else. 

He closed his eyes, assuring himself that he will have his chance to explain, that he didn't fuck anything up because Sean will believe him. They can move the wedding some other time—Ivo himself will personally apologize to everyone who came. Most importantly, Sean is safe in their home, most likely waiting to murder him, but safe nonetheless.

A sharp pinch on his arm reminded Ivo that there was someone else in the room.

"Ivo Pierce," his mother gritted out, "explain to me what's going on right this instance! Why did you tell Sean to stay home?! Your wedding is less than an hour!"

Ivo thanked every god and saints he could think of for managing to warn Sean in time.

He knew what he was going to say will sound ridiculous, regardless of how he explains it. Even he didn't fully believe his vision(?) premonition(?) clairvoyance(?) ESP(???). Whatever it was, though, he wasn't going to ignore it, especially since it's something to do with Sean. He wasn't in any way a religious person, but if something out there decided to warn him that something will happen to his love, he's going to believe it, no matter how far-fetched it is.

And as he expected, his mother didn't believe him.

"What nonsense are you saying?!" she shrieked, absolutely scandalized. "Are you out of your mind?! You want to cancel your wedding over some—some vision you had?!"

"Ma—"

"No!" his mother cut off. "You listen to me, young man. You call your fiancée right now and apologize to him! Tell him you were just having wedding jitters and that you very much still want to marry him!"

"I do want to marry him!" Ivo took a deep breath, "Just... not now... not after..."

His mother rubbed her temples, Ivo almost feels bad for causing her such headache, but he's not going to budge on this.

"We heard yelling. Is everything alright?"

Ivo turned and saw his father and future in-laws, the three entering the room wearing matching worried expressions. He was going to tell them what happened, but the sharp look his mother shot him put an end to that plan. Deciding to let her deal with the mess he's going to cause (reminding himself that he will owe her for this, possibly forever), he kissed his mother's cheek, whispered an apology, and ran out of the room, ignoring the shouts that followed after him. 

He's going to have to prostrate to Sean's parents for this stunt, and he's ready to do that and more. Later. Right now, he has to go home, see with his own eyes that the love of his life is very much still alive, and explain everything to him. He'll deal with the rest later.

6 years later...

There's a child next to the sandbox playing by himself, rolling his toy car on the ground while making the figure in his little hand fly before it crashes into the car, the car going boom on impact because nothing can beat Mario.

Ivo chuckled at the toddler's narration.

The child looked up at the sound, a gummy smile pulling on his face, his chubby cheeks puffing out.

Ivo smiled back and waved at him. 

The child waved back, more enthusiastic than Ivo's.

Ivo felt a familiar presence step beside him. "Hey, you."

Sean pouted. "That's it?" he asked, feigning offense, "That's all the greeting I'm getting?"

Ivo cackled.

Sean huffs, muttering something unintelligible before calling out, "Nico, time to go home."

Nico scrambled to get on his feet, clutching his toys to his chest as he ran to his father.

Sean pulled him in his arms and carried him in one swoop. 

Ivo's eyes softened when Nico turned to him. He raised a hand to caress a dumpling cheek. "Do you want to have dinner at The Palace Pizza?"

He watched in amusement as Sean fell prey to the puppy dog eyes.

Nico cheered when the older man predictably relents.

"You're driving," Sean told him before marching away, the child he's carrying still bouncing in excitement.

Ivo follows them with a resigned look.