Thomas stood frozen, watching his daughter and wife as though through a fog.

  He hadn’t been sure what to expect, but certainly not this—not for Daniel to react so strongly, so fiercely protective on one hand and yet so full of self-doubt on the other.

  Yet as the weight of Danny’s pain sank in, it hit him hard.

  Danny had sacrificed nearly everything for Emily.

  He had done something incredible—out of love—and yet he had kept it hidden because he didn’t want to burden those around him. Because he already felt like he was one.

  All this time, Thomas had tolerated Daniel—kept him at arm’s length, tried to look at the positives, even though deep down, he had felt threatened.

  At odds with this perceived intruder in his daughter’s life.

  Meanwhile, Danny had been carrying that same weight in reverse. Guilt. Doubt. The belief that he was just a complication.

  Thomas exhaled sharply, his chest tightening as he looked at Sarah, then back at Emily.

  He had been wrong. He had been so, so wrong.

  “Emily, I need to talk to him. I… please ask him to come back.”

  Emily looked up at him, eyes still red from tears, tilting her head slightly.

  “Huh?” she mumbled, wiping at her face with her sleeve. “Why?”

  Thomas gritted his teeth, feeling his own heartbeat like a drum as he processed his next words. They were obvious - yet somehow, they were still so difficult to say.

  He took a deep breath, summoned all his courage and said what needed to be said - "Because I want to say sorry. I’ve screwed up. This is… this is partly on me."

  Emily’s eyes widened as she studied him, searching his face. For a moment, she said nothing.

  Then, she nodded - "Okay, I’ll try… I’ll see if I can bring him back."

  —

  Emily closed her eyes and reached deep within their bond again.

  “Danny?” she called softly, her mind brushing the edges of his presence—distant, fragile, hurting, but still there.

  “Can you come out again for a minute? Please? Dad wants to talk to you.”

  At first, nothing. No stirring, no response—just a heavy silence.

  She wasn’t used to this. Normally, she could feel Daniel, his emotions like a quiet hum at the back of her mind—steady, present, safe. This time, all she felt was something hollow. Tired.

  She pressed further, her voice growing more insistent.

  “Danny, I know you’re upset. I know you’re hurting and don’t want to deal with this right now, but please... just come back. He really, really wants to talk to you.”

  A beat of silence. Then, a whisper, small and weary.

  “Why, Em?”

  The exhaustion in his voice nearly broke her.

  “What will it change? He looks at me like a threat, an intruder. What’s going to be different? I’m just... I’m just in the way. No matter what I do, I’m just—” His voice faded, drained.

  Emily’s heart clenched. She could feel his isotion, his exhaustion, his deep need to belong—and the fear that he never truly would.

  She swallowed, then spoke.

  “That’s not true, Danny. You’re not in the way. And I think someone needs to remind you of that.”

  Her voice softened.

  “You’ve always been there for me, big bro. Let me—let us—be there for you too. Please?”

  For a moment, there was nothing. Then suddenly, there Emily felt a shift, a flicker of curiosity, mixed with hesitation. There was another long pause, then Daniel gave a deep, weary sigh.

  “Fine… sure… why not?” he muttered, his voice ced with exhaustion but tinged with something else now—intrigue?

  Slowly, she felt the now-familiar shift as Danny took control again. Her body tensed for just a microsecond, her posture adjusting—just slightly—as they switched pces. Emily felt herself ease back, a bit more of an observer now.

  When her eyes opened again, it was Daniel looking through them once again. He shifted awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck, his gaze flicking around the room - guarded, present.

  “Uh… hey,” he muttered, voice uncertain.

  His eyes darted between Sarah and Thomas.

  “I’m… here. Again. Twice in one day.”

  —

  Thomas’s heart thrummed as he observed the switch again. Nevertheless, he focused, steadied himself, and began, his voice low and firm.

  “Danny, thanks for listening to me—again. I’ve been thinking about what you said.You’re right. You did what you had to do, there was no time, you couldn’t have spoken with us anyway, and we couldn’t have helped you—not then.”

  He saw Daniel’s face tighten again, emotions still clearly simmering beneath the surface, as though bracing himself for bad news.

  For inevitable “terms and conditions,” perhaps?

  Thomas swallowed, took another breath, and continued, his voice trembling slightly.

  “But please don’t think you’ve been in the way. Please… don’t… you… dare. I know I haven’t made it easy for you. I know that I’ve been hesitant, defensive.”

  He looked down at his feet, searching for the right words to describe what he felt, what he meant to say. Then, finally—he shook his head, looked up at Daniel, and simply said—

  “I’ve been a damn fool, and I’m sorry.”

  Danny—or perhaps Emily—it wasn’t clear which—shook their head, blinking in surprise.

  The blunt honesty clearly caught them off guard. Thomas gnced at Sarah, whose eyes were simirly wide in surprise.

  Still, Thomas persevered.

  “Danny, you’ve been protecting our family this whole time, and I was just too stubborn or too scared—or maybe I didn’t want to see it.”

  Danny blinked through Emily’s body again.

  Thomas meanwhile knew—really knew—that while he was looking at Emily, it wasn’t her eyes looking back at him.

  Not now - and for the first time, Thomas was okay with that.

  He saw the vulnerability, Daniel’s thoughts racing for something—perhaps anything—to say.

  Instead, he put his hands on Daniel’s shoulders.

  “I get why you didn’t tell her. Why you felt like you had to sweep it under the rug.”

  Another breath. His voice was steady but ced with emotion.

  “You’ve been feeling like you’re in the way this whole time, like you’re just a complication. Of course, you didn’t want to burden us more by talking about it.”

  Danny swallowed. His shoulders tensed slightly before he finally muttered, his voice barely above a whisper— “I didn’t ask for this.”

  He looked up, locking eyes with Thomas.

  “None of this. I didn’t want to be an interloper in your lives. I didn’t know what I was doing. I still don’t—half the time.”

  His voice cracked slightly, but he pushed forward.

  “I was just trying to do what I thought was right. To protect her. To protect this family. My family. That’s all I could think about.”

  Thomas stepped closer, his tone gentler now.

  “I know, Danny. But that doesn’t mean you should’ve had to carry this alone.”

  Sarah followed her husband’s lead and stepped forward, her eyes still shimmering.

  She gently rested a hand on Emily’s—no, their—shoulder, her gaze locked on Danny.

  “You’re part of this family, Danny. I’ve felt it for some time, but I didn’t see how much you were hurting,” she said softly, her voice warm yet tinged with sadness and regret.

  “I’m so sorry for not noticing sooner.”

  Thomas nodded.

  “Sarah—your mom—is right. You’re part of this family and I didn’t make it easy for you to talk about what you were going through, about—everything—but I’m asking you now... don’t hide this anymore.”

  Another breath. A quiet, steady resolve.

  “Not from Emily. Not from us.”

  —

  Daniel merely blinked again in surprise, as his jaw sckened, his posture slightly less tense. He’d never expected to hear this - not from Thomas who had rgely kept him at arm’s length.

  The defenses he’d built up were shaken to their core as Thomas’s raw honesty caught him off guard, his usual urge to deflect, to crack a sarcastic joke, nowhere to be found.

  “You know, Sarah saw it long before I did”- Thomas continued more softly in the meantime. “I didn’t understand at first why she treated you like her own, like family. I struggled to wrap my head around it.”

  Daniel saw him gnced briefly at Sarah, who nodded gently, then turn his gaze back to him - his eyes shining, his resolve firm.

  “But now, I get it. You’ve been acting like family from the start, like a son and a brother. Even though you had no choice in being brought here, no idea why, no control.”

  Thomas took a step forward, his voice filled with quiet emotion.

  “You look at Emily as your sister - you’ve stood by her through everything? Saved her life? Guided her, taught her, protected her?”

  He gnced at Sarah again - “And now, you see Sarah as your mom?”

  His lips twitched in amusement for a spell - “Even though, I hear, she scares the living daylights out of you when you curse?”

  Daniel couldn’t help it - a chuckle broke from him as he shook his head.

  “Yeah I love mom but - she can be scary” he replied softly, his eyes shining as he looked at Sarah.

  Thomas nodded, and paused - the momentary humor relieving some of the pressure.

  “Well Danny, I wasn’t there for you before - but I want to be. I’m ready to step up.”

  A breath.

  “If you feel that much a part of this family, is there a chance you could look at me as something too, one day? Maybe you can trust me to help you in this crazy, incredible reality we have found ourselves in?”

  Daniel blinked, his heart racing, not quite sure how to respond yet.

  “I know I haven’t always made it easy,” Thomas continued, his voice softer.

  “But we’re all connected, Danny. I can see that now. Maybe it doesn’t make sense all the time, but... family doesn’t always have to make sense. It’s your choice. I’m not pushing anything on you. But if it feels right, I’d like to be that for you. Whatever you need, whenever you’re ready.”

  —

  Daniel stayed quiet for a moment, his thoughts racing.

  He thought about Emily, who had become his sister in the most unusual of circumstances—his other half, his best friend, his soulmate.

  He thought about Sarah, how she had welcomed him into the fold and treated him like her own.

  And now, Thomas was standing here, offering him something he hadn’t thought he could have.

  A family—a complete family.

  For the first time in his life. Or his second one.

  Daniel’s chest tightened as he thought about Thomas - his personality, his words. He had struggled with him, cshed even, but deep down, he realized something.

  He respected Thomas. He looked up to him.

  Thomas helped run this family.

  Thomas was the foundation on which this entire household stood.

  Thomas was Emily’s dad - been there through thick and thin.

  Thomas had protected his family, even when his own parents had rejected them.

  Even if Thomas hadn’t been able to accept him fully before, he had been Daniel’s guardian—his dad—for the short time he had been their child. Those early days when his consciousness had arrived in this universe and inadvertently taken over Emily’s body.

  Yes, even if Thomas didn’t make waves, Daniel looked up to him—because Thomas stepped up when it mattered most.

  Just like Daniel.

  Daniel nodded. He knew what to say. It was time to move forward, time to accept this gift.

  He sighed, clenched and unclenched his hands, took another deep breath to steady himself, and looked up at Thomas, his eyes weary.

  "You should know something about me” he began, his voice was soft, almost contemptive, but each word carried weight.

  "It’s been a long time since I had parents."

  His gaze dropped, his mind pulling back—far, far back—to a different world, a different life.

  “My parents… they were gone. They’d been gone from my life for a long time. Not that they ever really wanted me.”

  The room fell into a sudden, stunned silence.

  He looked up with a small, sad smile.

  “There’s a reason I don’t like talking about my past. I didn’t have much of a past. I just… bounced around. Wasn’t really wanted anywhere, you know?”

  Through their bond, Daniel felt Emily’s emotions surge within him—shock, empathy, and something deeper, something raw.

  He had always kept this part of his life from her.

  Even now, he was only sharing cursory details—a part of his life he hadn’t wanted anyone to touch. Least of all his beloved sister.

  He could feel that she was all ears, stunned, her presence silent but intense, as though she were holding her breath, waiting.

  Sarah gripped her hands tightly, her eyes widening.

  Shock? Sympathy? Daniel couldn’t make out.

  Even Thomas seemed to lose his composure for a moment. His expression softened, the weight of Daniel’s quiet confession sinking in.

  All eyes felt their eyes on him, and for a moment,

  Daniel hesitated, rubbing the back of Emily’s neck—his trademark tic.

  “I got a taste of what family life could be like, what it could feel like to have parents again when I was driving Emily’s body st year. When…”

  He paused, his voice faltering as he looked at them with a mixture of longing and guilt.

  “When I was your kid for a bit. When I first arrived in this universe.”

  Quickly, he added, nervousness creeping into his tone, “Look, I don’t want to make it weird. I know the st thing you probably want is whatever I’m trying to pitch.”

  His voice got higher as he stumbled over the words, eliciting a soft giggle from Sarah. Even Emily, in their shared mindspace, radiated ughter at his awkwardness.

  “And now Shrimp is ughing inside?” he yelped, pointing at his temple.

  “Look, this isn’t easy, okay? Gimme a moment. I don’t even know what I’m trying to pitch. WHY DO I KEEP SAYING PITCH?”

  He nervously shifted from foot to foot, turning beet red—eliciting another giggle from Sarah and a smirk from Thomas.

  “Grr—I just... I don’t want to barge in or anything. But I was your kid. And I kinda already look up to you. I mean, I used to be in my mid-twenties, or maybe early, I don’t remember, but I’m not really anymore, and heck, I’m not even technically a guy—I just kind of roll with it.”

  Thomas exchanged an amused gnce with Sarah before stepping forward.

  “I mean, what is consciousness anyway?” Daniel began, waving a hand in the air while scratching his neck with the other. “What is gender? I mean... I mean…”

  And then it happened.

  Before Daniel knew what hit him, Thomas stepped forward and, in one swift motion, pulled him into a firm hug.

  Daniel—or rather, Emily’s body—froze.

  His mind stuttered, completely short-circuiting.

  His breath caught in his throat.

  For a moment, he did nothing—his body locked stiff, unresponsive, his arms hanging limply at his sides.

  Emily, still nestled inside their shared consciousness, felt something crack deep within him—a feeling so overwhelming, so raw that she barely knew what to do with it.

  She had felt Daniel’s emotions before—his pyfulness, his protectiveness, his exasperation, his love for her—but this?

  This was different - something buried, something old and aching swelled in him.

  Then, slowly, hesitantly, he exhaled. His shoulders rexed just a little. His arms moved—uncertain, cautious—before he finally leaned into the embrace.

  And for the first time in a long, long time, Daniel allowed himself to be held.

  A deep breath escaped him.

  "Hey, it’s okay,” Thomas said gently. “Emily warned us you overthink, and I get it now.”

  Daniel let out a small, breathless chuckle—a ghost of a ugh.

  Thomas pulled back just enough to meet his wide, uncertain eyes.

  “I think I know what you’re asking for,” he continued, voice steady. “If you’d like to have a mom and a dad again—I can be that to you.”

  The room fell silent, the ticking clock the only sound.

  Daniel blinked, his breath catching. His usual wit was nowhere to be found. His mind raced, trying to make sense of this moment—this offer—this thing he hadn’t let himself hope for.

  He wasn’t sure what he had expected when he started talking, but it certainly hadn’t been this.

  Thomas meanwhile continued, his voice unwavering.

  “Like I said, Danny, you’ve already been acting like a son. And you were my kid once. You’re part of my kid now. So… sure. If you want, I can be your dad. When you’re ready.”

  Daniel’s throat tightened.

  His fingers twitched at his sides, his heart hammering somewhere in his chest—wherever his chest was in this strange half-existence he lived in.

  He felt Emily’s presence beside him, warm and bursting with emotion.

  “Danny…” she whispered softly in their shared space. “Say something.”

  His lips parted slightly. A small, tentative smile formed. A real one.

  “Yeah… I will be ready…soon - I just need time to process, you know?”

  Thomas chuckled, ruffling Emily’s hair affectionately. “Fair enough. When you’re ready.”

  Daniel shifted awkwardly, his nerves still evident. “Right. Cool. So, uh… we good now?”

  “We’re good,” Thomas said warmly, stepping back.

  He smiled, his voice quieter, almost knowing - “I think we’ve always been good.”

  —

  The room was quiet again for a moment, everyone soaking in their emotions in their own way.

  Until Emily happened.

  Without warning, she switched back in, her entire posture changing as energy practically radiated from her body. A bright, almost mischievous grin spread across her face before she practically exploded with excitement—

  “I KNEW IT! I KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN!”

  Her voice was so loud and gleeful that Thomas visibly startled, while Sarah barely held back a snort of ughter at the sheer feral enthusiasm pouring out of their daughter.

  Thomas blinked, still trying to process the sudden shift. "So... Emily, you’ve switched back?" he asked slowly, scratching his beard as he tried to recalibrate everything that had just happened. "Sheesh—this is gonna take some getting used to. One second, you’re all nervous and moping around, and the next you’re practically vibrating out of existence."

  He gestured vaguely before shaking his head. "What does your brother call you? A... chaos gremlin? Or goblin? Or something like that?"

  Emily beamed, absolutely delighted.

  And then—just as suddenly as she arrived—her posture changed again.

  Daniel, now firmly back in control, groaned, rolling his shoulders in irritation.

  "For the love of—Shrimp! Could you give a guy a second to process this?!” he compined, voice dripping with exasperation.

  Sarah and Thomas watched the entire thing unfold in stunned silence, their eyes wide as they exchanged gnces.

  Daniel, catching their expressions, sighed dramatically before fshing them a small, sheepish smile, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, sorry about that. Sometimes her gremlin tendencies do take over. I mean, it is her body and all, but seriously, she could be more subtle about it.”

  His gaze flicked toward Thomas, and something in his expression softened - “You’ll get used to it. Took Mom what, a few days?”

  Sarah chuckled softly, wiping at her eyes. “A few very entertaining days.”

  Despite himself, Daniel found himself ughing, just a little. The sheer absurdity of it all—Emily’s infectious enthusiasm, Sarah’s warmth, even Thomas’s bewildered but well-meaning reaction—it was so all too much and somehow - just right.

  “Hey! I’m just happy for you, Danny!” Emily’s voice rang through their shared mindspace, radiating so much joy that he couldn’t help but smile. Yet beneath her joy, there was something else, something softer—something that reached right into the depths of his chest.

  She understood.

  She understood exactly how much this meant to him.

  How long he had wanted this.

  How hard it had been for him to accept this kind of love.

  And she wasn’t just happy for him—she was relieved. Because she knew. She had always known.

  “You deserve this, Danny,” she whispered.

  Just four simple words - but they carried the weight of well, everything.

  Sarah sniffled loudly, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue she had mysteriously procured, and then, out of absolutely nowhere, blew her nose with a loud, trumpet-like honk that made both Thomas and Daniel physically jump.

  Sarah, completely unbothered, looked at them both with a raised brow.

  "Oh, hush, you two," she teased, sniffling again.

  "It’s just a little sound. Meanwhile, you two took forever to get on the same page."

  She shook her head with a sigh, looking between Thomas and Daniel, her voice fond.

  "Boys. Always fumbling their way through emotions."

  Then, without any hesitation, she stepped forward and wrapped both of them in a full-body, no-escape, Mom-level hug.

  Before Thomas or Daniel knew she added softly - “I’m so happy and so proud of you right now. Both of you. No, all three of you.”

  She stepped back, blowing her nose again as Thomas and Daniel exchanged a brief, sheepish gnce. However, everyone knew, however—in that moment, something undeniable had shifted.

  The words spoken, the vulnerability shared—this was real.

  The weight of old hesitation, of unspoken fears, of everything unaddressed, finally birthing something new.

  Something that might finally stick.

  Something that might finally bring them together—for the first time—as a family.

  Thomas chuckled softly, then once again wrapped Daniel in an embrace.

  “Welcome home, Danny,” he whispered, his voice thick with emotion.

  “And thank you—for everything.”

  Sarah stepped in next, gently pcing a hand on his shoulder, her smile full of warmth and understanding. “We’re so gd you’re here,” she said softly. “Really, Danny. You’re family.”

  Danny swallowed hard, his throat tightening against the weight of it all.

  “Thanks, guys…thank you so much,” he mumbled, allowing himself to be vulnerable, allowing himself to accept that he had finally found his pce.

  That he was wanted here.

  That he was home.