“You don’t have to promise that, I know you will.” He glances over as he says it with a small smile. “I want you to take care of yourself, too. That’s also important.”
Patrick knows, after all, how important Allison is to Klaus. He remembers when she was put on bed rest while she was pregnant, and one time that she had gotten hurt on set when a stunt went wrong, how Klaus’s entire focus shifted to his sister to make sure she’d be okay. So, really, Patrick has no concerns when it comes to whether or not Klaus will look after Allison. He’s more worried he’ll forget about himself, especially with everything going on.
He’s about to take a sip of his coffee, when Klaus’s words stop him short and for a moment he doesn’t know what to say. He’s touched by them, but there’s something in his tone that makes him uneasy. He’s not sure if he’s looking too much into it, or if he’s more unsettled about this situation than he’s letting on, but it feels too much like a goodbye and he hates it.
“I’m really glad you came to live with us,” he answers after a moment, eyes on him whether or not Klaus wants to look. He wants him to know he means it. It’s not just him trying to appease him or he nice about it when it feels like they’re about to jump over a precipice with no way of knowing what’s below them. “And I’m very thankful for the fact that you decided to trust me, too. Things may have been hard in the beginning, but I can’t imagine our family anymore without you in it. I don’t want to. You’re a big part of it, and I really hope you know that.”
Both Allison and Patrick have been trying for years to show it by including him in family vacations, pictures, getting his input about improvements on the house, decisions about Claire... For all intents and purposes, Klaus has become like a third parent to Claire, and it’s something that Patrick hadn’t decided lightly. He trusts him. He loves him as if he was his own brother.
“You may have been a disaster in your twenties, but...if you weren’t so great I wouldn’t appreciate you and have you here in the way that you are. You’re my family, Klaus. I’m glad things worked out the way they did.”
It feels like a goodbye, but Klaus doesn't know if it should be. If he should let it settle between them like something that needs to be said before it's too late. He stares down into his coffee as he wrestles with the unease in his gut, with the nerves that rattle a few screws loose and make him feel a little bit more like the man from all those years ago.
"How could I not trust you, I mean look at that face," he gestures to Patrick, raising his eyes now to look the man in the face.
He's struck suddenly by how much he adores the man across from him, how much he adores the sweet little girl tucked into the bed down the hall, how much this life has restored the shattered, estranged pieces of his heart. He doesn't want to go. He knows for a fact that whatever waits for them back home will chew them up and spit them out, just like it always has. Nothing their father did ever came without a price.
"You and Claire and Allison are all I have," he says quietly, a fond smile on his face. "You're my family, and I'd very much like to keep it that way, thank you. I can't promise I won't make Claire into a miniature version of myself, but really I'd just be doing you both a favor."
It's easier to tease, to joke, to try and dismiss the welling pressure that points toward danger, that points toward something bad. "But we don't really say that stuff. You know, too busy being the good, old-fashioned men of the house," he swings an arm up in a flex, dropping his voice for dramatic effect. "Can't show those feelings around here. Sign'a weakness."
The energy rushes out of him on a sigh, however, and he brings the coffee cup to his lips, draining it. "So I just thought I should rip the band-aid off and say it."
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Patrick knows, after all, how important Allison is to Klaus. He remembers when she was put on bed rest while she was pregnant, and one time that she had gotten hurt on set when a stunt went wrong, how Klaus’s entire focus shifted to his sister to make sure she’d be okay. So, really, Patrick has no concerns when it comes to whether or not Klaus will look after Allison. He’s more worried he’ll forget about himself, especially with everything going on.
He’s about to take a sip of his coffee, when Klaus’s words stop him short and for a moment he doesn’t know what to say. He’s touched by them, but there’s something in his tone that makes him uneasy. He’s not sure if he’s looking too much into it, or if he’s more unsettled about this situation than he’s letting on, but it feels too much like a goodbye and he hates it.
“I’m really glad you came to live with us,” he answers after a moment, eyes on him whether or not Klaus wants to look. He wants him to know he means it. It’s not just him trying to appease him or he nice about it when it feels like they’re about to jump over a precipice with no way of knowing what’s below them. “And I’m very thankful for the fact that you decided to trust me, too. Things may have been hard in the beginning, but I can’t imagine our family anymore without you in it. I don’t want to. You’re a big part of it, and I really hope you know that.”
Both Allison and Patrick have been trying for years to show it by including him in family vacations, pictures, getting his input about improvements on the house, decisions about Claire... For all intents and purposes, Klaus has become like a third parent to Claire, and it’s something that Patrick hadn’t decided lightly. He trusts him. He loves him as if he was his own brother.
“You may have been a disaster in your twenties, but...if you weren’t so great I wouldn’t appreciate you and have you here in the way that you are. You’re my family, Klaus. I’m glad things worked out the way they did.”
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"How could I not trust you, I mean look at that face," he gestures to Patrick, raising his eyes now to look the man in the face.
He's struck suddenly by how much he adores the man across from him, how much he adores the sweet little girl tucked into the bed down the hall, how much this life has restored the shattered, estranged pieces of his heart. He doesn't want to go. He knows for a fact that whatever waits for them back home will chew them up and spit them out, just like it always has. Nothing their father did ever came without a price.
"You and Claire and Allison are all I have," he says quietly, a fond smile on his face. "You're my family, and I'd very much like to keep it that way, thank you. I can't promise I won't make Claire into a miniature version of myself, but really I'd just be doing you both a favor."
It's easier to tease, to joke, to try and dismiss the welling pressure that points toward danger, that points toward something bad. "But we don't really say that stuff. You know, too busy being the good, old-fashioned men of the house," he swings an arm up in a flex, dropping his voice for dramatic effect. "Can't show those feelings around here. Sign'a weakness."
The energy rushes out of him on a sigh, however, and he brings the coffee cup to his lips, draining it. "So I just thought I should rip the band-aid off and say it."