Requested by: ruff1258

"You called earlier and seemed uneasy? Yeah, no, it's alright. I have time to talk right now, uh I guess? I'll see you soon."

Hanging up the phone, Alexander groaned out loud to himself. He hadn't expected to get a call from his boss, much less invite him over in such a casual manner. Eyes flickering around his apartment, he realized how dirty it was. The coffee cups on his desk had been there for weeks and clothes were everywhere.

Dammit, he silently thought. Just as he picked up a shirt that hadn't been washed in at least a week, the phone rang again. "What now?!" He grabbed the device, fumbling to answer it, before shouting into the receiver, "What?"

On the other line, he heard a familiar sigh of disappointment. "Sorry, must have caught you at a bad time. Thought you might want to hang out later and work on-"

"Actually it's a very bad time to call, John! I'm expecting Mr.Washington over here any moment now. Says he's got something serious to talk about." Alexander made a sarcastic expression, even though his friend couldn't see through the phone.

"I'm probably getting fired. Last week you remember how I snapped at him? Well, that's definitely coming back to bite me in the ass."

There was a long silence on the other line. The man let out another enormous sigh. Sounded almost as if he hadn't gotten any sleep the night before. "Alex, calm down. I'm sure he's not firing you, maybe it's-"

The doorbell buzzed. Alexander almost dropped his phone, but gracefully grabbed it before it hit the floor. He couldn't afford to buy another phone, just as much as he couldn't afford to lose his job. "Well, there's no time to calm down. He's here. Got to go, bye," he hissed into the phone, before hanging up.

Another buzz at the door. Washington wasn't always the most patient man. Alexander glanced around his apartment. The place was still a mess and showed how broke he was, without any numbers. Swallowing down his pride, he hurried to answer the door.

And there he was on the door mat. Wearing a polished suit and tie, shoes shined, and a firm smile on his mouth. Alexander shoved his hands into his pockets and forced a cheerful greeting, "Sir, please come inside, but mind the mess. Haven't gotten around to really cleaning it and-"

What's the use? Shutting his mouth, the nervous man offered his boss a seat on the couch. Washington surveyed the room, from the papers scattered everywhere, to the stains on the carpet, and the various clothing items hanging on furniture. Definitely not his typical ideal for a home.

Alexander clambered over to an empty spot on his arm chair and exclaimed, "What do you need to talk with me about, sir?" He anxiously twisted his hands, like a child, in his lap.

Washington cleared his throat. "I appreciate the kindness you've given me upon arrival. You have always shown me your best, Alexander. I wanted to discuss that with you today, along with something else." Uncomfortably shifting on the couch, he smiled at his apprentice.

Forcing a smile, Alexander mumbled, "I do hope anything that may have happened in the recent history between us isn't the cause of you being here today. If I've every offended you-"

"Offended me?" He scoffed. "You've only made me a proud boss. Don't think negatively, son."

That made the situation stretch even further for the both of them. Firstly, Alexander didn't like being called son at all. He hoped maybe that could be clearly stated in their little conversation that was about to begin.

Clapping his hands together, he said, "Why are you here then?" Alexander had no idea what to expect out of his boss and himself.

"Well, I recall you mentioning how you're an orphan. You said something about your mother dying and not hearing from your father since then. It really got me thinking and- wait, are you alright?"

Across the room, the younger man looked like he had been shot in the heart. His eyes welled up with tears and the color of his cheeks were no longer pinkish. In fact, he almost looked like a corpse now. Washington opened his mouth to speak, but the boy cut him off.

"I-I'm fine. Sorry, what were you s-saying?"

That was a lie. Alexander was anything but fine. His head was throbbing and all he could hear was the repetitious sound of his mother's sobbing and then the shattering noise of a scream. He recalled the moment just like it was yesterday.

He also recalled seeing his father pack up his things and insist to the twelve year old how he would be back before they knew it. And then he remembered the feeling of wanting to throw himself over a cliff when he didn't come back.

Washington cleared his throat again. "Your family history had got me thinking. I know how much you value work, but you're alone. No one to run home to and-"

"I have a girlfriend." Shuddering into his hands, Alexander tried to erase the thoughts his dying mother from his head. Instead, he focused on his beautiful girlfriend.

"You have no family to run home to. Every night you come home to a messy apartment to work on something that you want to impress your boss with. Work comes before family in your mind, young man. I want to-"

"Work comes before family because there's no family for me. You said it yourself. And why does it matter so much to you? I'm fine on my own. That's just the way it ended up in life for this kid. Don't get involved in my personal affairs, sir."

"Do you want a family? If the option came up, would you leap forward?" Washington wasn't acting like his usual self. He had a look in his eyes that was unexplainable. The man was onto something, that was for sure.

Alexander wasn't dealing with his boss's new behavior. "I don't know! It's never come up, because no one wants a wrecked person like myself anyways." A sudden wave of terror came crashing down on him. What if no one ever loves me again?

Breaking down into tears on his chair, he let himself be free with his feelings. He didn't care if Washington fired him for inappropriate behavior or disrupting a conversation, or whatever other rules he had. He didn't care.

"I want to adopt you, Alexander."

The hunched over, shaking figure paused from crying. "Wh-what?" Wiping a strand of hair from his dampened forehead, Alexander perked up. So this was what his boss came to discuss. Adoption.

Washington calmly walked over to the boy, kneeling beside him. "You'll be able to have a normal life again. Won't have to live fearing life every day anymore. I'll be there to help you with paying rent, keeping your health in check, and mostly being the father you never had."

"Really?" All the pressure on his shoulders seemed to wash away. For the first time in years, Alexander felt ready for this new direction. He felt prepared to take a daring step. And he knew it would come back to mean so much in the long run.

"Really," Washington whispered back. Both of them leaned forward and held each other tight suddenly. As insane as the circumstances seemed, neither of them thought much about them. All they truly could think about was the fact they were becoming father and son.

Their relationship was finally taking a step in the fright direction after so many misunderstandings. And for the both of them, it felt like a huge relief.

. . . . . . . . . .
A/N: Thank you ruff1258 for the request! Sorry for the mixup the first time writing your request and thank you for being so understanding and patient about it. Anyways, I hope you enjoy the modern adoption scenario!