"Did you enjoy your hot chocolate, guys?" Levi asks the children once the family are settled back into their hotel room; he's sat observing their tired eyes and sleepy mannerisms adoringly.

"It was good," Gemma answers, placing her empty mug on the table next to the drink machine; she has light chocolate staining around her mouth, which amuses her fathers. "Can we ask the lady at the desk for some more?"

"Tomorrow," George informs her. "I think it's time you went to sleep now, young lady."

"I'm not tired," she protests, in spite of the very obvious nodding off she's doing; and the slight fatigued slurring of her words.

"Of course you're not," Levi chuckles. "Well, it's eleven o'clock now. Let's see if you can make it to midnight without falling asleep."

"Easy peasy," Kieran chimes in, resting his cup next to Gemma's. "I could stay awake all night."

"Oh, absolutely," George agrees, simply playing along with his son's innocent bragging. "We'll see about that, won't we?" He then turns to his side, grabbing his overnight bag from the bed next to him; he rummages through it, producing some wipes. "Come on now — you're covered in chocolate, both of you. Clean yourselves up."

Gemma takes a single wipe from her father, and so does Kieran; they both then messily rub them over their mouths to rid the brown residue from their faces. George's eyes flit between the two of them in turn, paying attention to how successful they are with this task.

"Am I done?" Kieran interrogates, after a few seconds.

"Perfect," George praises, before his daughter catches his attention.

"Did I do it right, Daddy?" Gemma asks, presenting her head to George playfully. "Is it all clean?"

"You missed a spot," George chuckles, prising the wipe from her hand to finish the job for her. After a moment, he checks her over, to ensure all signs of the hot chocolate are gone. "There. Much nicer."

"Now that both of you are all clean," Levi begins, taking the TV remote from the desk, "We'll put something on the TV, and we'll see how long you can stay awake for."

• • •

"I knew they'd be asleep before midnight," Levi whispers, finding the fact somewhat funny. "They really thought they'd be pulling all-nighters."

"Yeah." George smiles mellowly at the sight of his two children sleeping in their twin beds opposite where he lays with his husband.

"Are you feeling okay?" Levi questions softly. "I know it's been a long day today."

"Fine, yeah," George dismisses quickly; he doesn't feel like having another lengthy conversation regarding the way he feels, for he has had numerous already today. "Yourself?"

"You know I'm fine," Levi answers, though with an expression of genuine concern. "Other than the fact I worry about you."

"You don't need to do that," George reassures him, pulling out his diary from the bedside drawer; he has kept it here so the kids don't find it. "Go to sleep. You look tired, my darling."

"Make sure you get some sleep too, though," Levi pleads considerately, as he leans in to give George a goodnight kiss. "Don't stay up all night writing in that silly book of yours."

"I won't. Promise." George nods, watching as Levi turns over to get into a more comfortable position to sleep in. "Goodnight, Levi."

Levi returns the farewell with a hushed tone. "Goodnight. I love you. Always."

"I love you too." George unlocks his diary with the key, being cautious not to make too much noise while the rest of the family are in their slumber. His fingers toy with his pen, as he thinks over what he wishes to say.

Dear Diary,

Things are difficult to keep up with, as of late. Levi and the kids very kindly surprised me with a trip to London for the weekend, which I've appreciated greatly. Mel babysat while Levi and I went out for a few drinks, but it ended up being gatecrashed by a total stranger. I think his name was Mack, or something. I know I shouldn't worry about a stranger, but he was so blatantly into Levi that it did make me incredibly uncomfortable. My marriage with Levi is incredibly strong, and our relationship is unbreakable. However, the encounter did remind me of just how inferior I feel I am to him.

Now, it is almost midnight, and I can't get to sleep. Everyone else has nodded off, but I'm here lost in my own thoughts. I've thankfully shared a few moments of brief laughter with my family today, but aside from this, everything feels just as numb as it has done since mum died. Will I ever feel any better about it? Or am I stuck like this for life, now? I blame myself every day for what happened, even though Levi drills it in to me, that it's not my fault.

It's funny how your mind can control itself. I want to be happy, rather than hurt all the time. But yet, no matter how much I want that, my mind just won't allow it to happen. I want to feel alive again ... I'm not choosing to be stuck in a rut of unhappiness. I suppose I should just be thankful for the people I have around me. I know I'm not the most unfortunate person in existence. I have a good life. But sometimes, my mind can fool me into believing otherwise.

I am unsure of what will happen tomorrow. I hope it'll be a nice day regardless, because I need some more positivity. When I'm feeling low, it's hard to find motivation for anything life throws at me — that's with having responsibilities too. It's so hard.

Until tomorrow, I guess ...

Yog x

With a gentle sigh, George concludes his entry, in favour of trying to get some rest. He closes the little book, before locking it with the padlock to keep it secure; he then slides it back into the bedside drawer so that it is hidden from Gemma and Kieran. After switching the bedside lamp off, he rolls onto his side, adjusting his pillow accordingly so that he is satisfied with his positioning. He shuffles himself a little closer to Levi; just close enough to be able to wrap an arm around him and bring his sleeping lover's back in to his chest. Though he finds difficulty in getting to sleep himself, he neither moves nor stirs for the remainder of the night, in order to help Levi rest uninterrupted.

• • •

"Rise and shine, sleepy head."

The sound of Levi's perky voice brings George aggressively out of his restless slumber. "What time is it?" he asks, his voice gravelly.

"It's nine o'clock," Levi answers. "Why do you look so tired? Did you stay awake all night?"

George groans, turning over to try and eliminate some of the bright light that has spilled into the room. He closes his eyes, shielding the top half of his face with his hand. "I didn't fall asleep until about seven. I tried."

"Oh, George." The inflection in Levi's tone suggests his sympathy for his partner. "What time did you turn the lights out?"

"About half past midnight," George states. "But I just couldn't ease my mind."

"I'm sorry." Levi rubs his hand to George's back, before patting a few times. "The kids are excited to spend the day with you and I, though. We've been awake since about half past seven. I assume you were in too deep of a sleep to hear us."

"I can feel every single minute of sleep I didn't get," George jeers, with little emphasis due to fatigue. "But I suppose, let's start the day." He forces himself to get out of bed, sacrificing the comfort of the mattress in order to bring smiles to his children's faces. He heads into the bathroom; he rests his hands against the sink as he comes face to face with his own reflection. With puffy eyes, adorned beneath with dark circles; and just a little less pigmentation in his skin than usual, he even earns a comment from his partner.

"You look exhausted."

George furrows his brows, the action of which he catches himself doing in the mirror; before he turns his head to look at Levi. "No shit," he whispers, as not to let the kids hear him curse. Realising that he'd never typically be so short-tempered, he lets his guard down a little. "Sorry. Yeah, I'm tired."

"It's alright. I'll take it easy on you today," Levi chuckles. "It was tempting to get you doing a parachute jump or a marathon. Guess I'll be scrapping those ideas."

"You're not quite as funny as you were when we were kids," George teases. "I guess you've had to tone it down since we had children."

"My humour is still flawless," Levi argues playfully. "You're just too tired to appreciate the level of wit I have."

"I'm sure." George shakes his head, amused to some degree, as he turns his attention back to what he was doing before the interruption. He lifts his toothbrush, holding it between his fingers, as he applies the toothpaste to the bristles; once he has begun brushing his teeth, the tingling sensation of the mint flavour admittedly wakes him up a touch. He evaluates in his head that, maybe, the day won't quite be as bad as he anticipated it to be — provided he progressively feels more awake as the day goes on.

George hears the sound of Gemma's voice interrogating Levi. "Daddy, when can we go for breakfast?"

"It won't be long," Levi assures her. "We're just waiting for Daddy to finish getting ready. We still have just under two hours before breakfast closes, don't worry."

The brief exchange spurs George on, to get ready just that little bit quicker. He finishes brushing his teeth, moving on to showering; then, he sprays some deodorant to conclude his routine. Having left his outfit on the radiator in the bathroom, he gets dressed in the cramped room for the sake of privacy; before stepping out looking fresher and more polished than previously.

"Is it breakfast time now?" Kieran presses. "I'm so hungry."

"Yes, yes." George takes a hold of the room keycard, then opens the door to exit.

• • •

"So, what's the plan for today?" George questions, as he butters some bread for Kieran. "Anything in mind?"

"Well, we thought today could be about exploring the sights. Tomorrow is reserved for seeing the family," Levi explains. "Does that sound okay with you?"

"Absolutely." George hands the bread to his son, flitting his focus to Gemma instead. "Gem, don't lean in that, sweet."

Gemma cautiously lifts her elbow from the table, spotting that she has been pressing her weight onto an open sachet of sugar; the tiny white granules cling to her shirt. "Oh. Sorry." She brushes them off, deeming her clothing salvaged.

A silence falls among the family as they all start to eat their food; the men share in nonverbal amusement at how quiet their children are being. Levi lifts up his knife to spread some strawberry jam onto his toast; because his hands are slightly greased from using his fingers to eat, the utensil slips from his grasp, and onto the floor.

"Are we sure it isn't me who's only had two hours' sleep today?" Levi quips to himself, as he leans his body down to grab the knife. Simultaneously, a fellow hotel-goer bends down to pick it up for him; Levi is startled by the presence of another person, glancing up to see who it is. "Thank y—" He halts his speech when he recognises the face. "Oh. Uh, hello, Mack."

George tries with all his might to hide the frustration he feels at seeing the stranger again; for the sake of his kids, he forces a smile. "Yes. Hello again."

"I didn't know you guys were staying here," Mack responds, his gaze shifting specifically to Levi. "But it's great seeing you again."

"Y-Yes," Levi stammers. "Well, we won't be here for long. It's just a weekend thing."

"Nice." Mack nods in approval. "So, what are you planning on doing today?"

"Seeing some family," George lies; his logic is that this concept would be far too intimate and personal for Mack to join them for. "Not seen them in a while."

"Sounds lovely," Mack compliments. "Well, maybe I'll see you around the hotel before you go. Who knows?"

"Maybe," Levi agrees. "Anyway, you should go and grab some breakfast before it closes. You haven't got long left now."

"Good point." He salutes, as he starts to walk away from the table. "Hope to see your pretty face around before the weekend is out."

Unsure on how to react to the latter comment, Levi chooses to ignore it; he averts his eyes to George, who is already looking to him with a serious expression. George need not give any kind of dialogue for Levi to get the picture of how he's feeling, so Levi resorts to shrugging as a means of dismissing the unease that has settled across the family.

"As long as he doesn't find out our room number," George comments lowly, with little context given.

"He wouldn't," Levi assures him.

"Wouldn't put it past him," George argues.

"You're just paranoid," Levi hits back.

"Paranoid, or I have a bad feeling?" George quizzes.

"He's just lonely," Levi reasons.

"And chasing after a married man," George spits.

"He's not interested," Levi states.

"That's why he only talks to you," George points out.

"You're being silly," Levi accuses.

"You're being manipulated," George retorts.

"Are you arguing?" Kieran asks, pulling the pair out of their heated debating. "Please don't argue with each other. You love each other lots."

"That's right, Kieran," Levi speaks, with a grin. "So Daddy needs to remember that, and stop being silly, doesn't he?"

"Yeah, Daddy," Gemma giggles, looking to George. "Stop being silly."

"Alright." George musters a smile with every fibre of strength he has; if the kids weren't around to bring him back down to the ground, he's fairly sure the discussion could have gone on far longer and far more intensely than it did. "Anyway, I think breakfast is done now. We should go back to the room and grab our bags so that we can go out and explore."

Without giving anybody else the chance to contribute their thoughts, George rises from his seat, heading back in the direction of the lifts in the corridor. Levi watches as he goes, silently hoping that things will look up for his husband sooner, rather than later.

• • •

Chapter ten! It's been a while, but I hope you're still enjoying. Happy New Year! xx