"We got ‘dopted? For real this time?” Tate asked, his eyes wide with excitement.

Theo scoffed, crossing his arms. “Yeah, Tate, why else would we be leaving?”

DJ grinned. “Yep, you two are comin’ with me and my little bro for a bit. Gotta pick him up from daycare first, though.”

“Wait, hold on. You got a brother in daycare?” Theo’s eyebrows shot up. “And you’re how old?”

“I’m twenty-eight, and my bro’s two,” DJ said with a chuckle as he pulled out his car keys. “It’s a long story, man.”

Tate’s face lit up with excitement. “We gonna have a little kid at home?”

DJ laughed as he pulled out his keys. “Yeah, he’s gonna love havin’ you two around. Now, let’s get goin’.”

“Shotgun!” Tate yelled, dashing for the front seat.

“Nuh-uh! Oldest gets the front,” Theo said, grabbing Tate’s shirt and pulling him back.

“That’s not fair, Theo!” Tate pouted, crossing his arms and stamping his foot.

DJ held up his hand, chuckling. “Alright, alright, let’s do this fair and square—Rock, Paper, Scissors. Winner gets the front seat.”

Tate’s pout turned into a determined grin. “I gonna win!”

The two brothers squared off, each one focused. They did their quick round, and—

“Yay! I won, I won!” Tate cheered, jumping up and down.

“Dammit,” Theo muttered, stomping to the back seat, looking annoyed.

“Hey, language, Theo,” DJ said as he opened the car door.

“Yeah, whatever,” Theo grumbled, slumping into the back.

DJ got in the driver’s seat but fumbled with his keys, dropping them. “Shit,” he muttered, bending down to pick them up.

Theo snorted, a grin spreading across his face. “Whatever happened to language?”

DJ’s cheeks flushed as he straightened up. “You didn’t hear that, alright?”

“Sure, sure…” Theo rolled his eyes, shifting around in the back. “Your car’s full of Cheerios, by the way.”

DJ glanced back in the rearview mirror and shrugged. “Yeah, Deonte loves those, but he’s kinda messy with ‘em.” He turned back to the boys, “Speaking of food, you guys hungry?”

“I can eat. Anything’s better than that gross stuff they give us at the orphanage,” Theo said with a shudder.

“Can we get somethin’ yummy?” Tate asked, eyes wide with excitement.

DJ chuckled. “Yep, as soon as we pick up Deonte, you guys get to pick the spot. Anywhere you want.”

“For real?” Tate’s eyes sparkled. “We get to choose?”

“Yep, anywhere.”

“Cool,” Theo muttered, his eyes back on the window.

After a short drive, they pulled into the daycare parking lot. DJ turned off the car and looked back at the boys. “You guys ready to meet your new, uh, technically two-year-old uncle?”

“I am not callin’ him that,” Theo said, folding his arms.

Tate giggled. “Yeah, that’s silly!”

DJ laughed. “I’m just messin’ with y’all. He’s shy at first but once he warms up, he’s a handful. Let’s go meet him.”

Here’s a revamped version of the scene:

---

They climbed out of the car, Tate bouncing with excitement, while Theo followed, brushing off a few stray Cheerios from his pants. Inside, DJ had a quick word with the receptionist, and within moments, a young woman walked out with a small boy in tow. As soon as Deonte spotted DJ, his face lit up, and he darted over, clinging tightly to DJ’s leg.

“Aww, he’s so little!” Tate exclaimed, staring in awe. “Hi, Deonte! I’m Tate, and that’s Theo. We gonna live with you!”

Theo gave a casual nod, hands in his pockets.  “Sup, kid?”

Deonte peeked out from behind DJ’s leg, eyes wide and nervous. DJ picked him up gently. “Sorry, guys. He’s just a bit shy around new faces.”

Tate reached out his hand, smiling. “It’s okay! You gonna be our little brother now. We gonna have lotsa fun!”

Deonte hesitated, then slowly reached out and touched Tate’s hand.

DJ smiled down at them. “How about we grab some food? That’ll help break the ice.”

“Yeah, let’s go!” Tate raced toward the door, Theo trailing behind with a sigh.

Once everyone was in the car, DJ buckled Deonte into his car seat. “Why don’t y’all get to know each other?”

Theo glanced at Deonte, who was clutching a small bag of Cheerios. “Hey, I’m Theo. Heard you like Cheerios?”

“Uh-huh, I wike chiwos,” Deonte mumbled.

“I like them too,” Theo said, giving a small smile. He watched as Deonte held out a handful of Cheerios to him.

“Wan’ some?” Deonte offered timidly.

“Sure, thanks,” Theo said, taking them and popping them in his mouth. “They’re good.”

DJ caught the exchange in the mirror and grinned. “See, I told you he’d warm up.”

Theo shot him a look. “I like him. You, not so much.”

“Can we still get somethin’ yummy to eat?” Tate asked, trying to change the subject.

DJ grinned. “A’ight, lil’ man. Where you wanna go?”

“McDonald’s! McDonald’s!” Tate chanted, bouncing in his seat. Theo rolled his eyes, feeling embarrassed by his little brother’s excitement.

DJ laughed. “McDonald’s, huh? We can do that.” He looked over at Theo. “That cool with you?”

Theo shrugged. “Yeah, it’s fine. Whatever.”

“Bet. Mickey D’s it is, then,” DJ said with a smile.

“Here’s the revised version:

---

DJ announced their destination as he turned the car around, heading towards McDonald’s.

“I wike McDonald’s! You wike it too, Theo?” Deonte asked, his small voice full of curiosity.

“Yeah, I do. Haven’t been there in a while,” Theo replied, giving his little brother a smile.

“When me an’ DJ go, I ged a toy… Can me have your toy too?” Deonte asked hopefully.

“Well, I’m kinda too old for a Happy Meal…” Theo started, then paused. “But if I get one and it’s a duplicate, then you can have it.”

“What’s ‘dupwicate’ mean?” Deonte asked, his face scrunching up in confusion.

“It’s when you get the same toy more than once,” Theo explained. “Like, if you have two of the same car. You don’t need two of the same, right? It’s better to have different ones to play with.”

“Ohhh, I geddit! So, I ged a new car when we go to McDon’ls?” Deonte asked excitedly.

“Yep, and if I get the same one, you can have it. No repeats,” Theo said with a grin.

“Yay!” Deonte cheered, already imagining his new toy.

“See, Theo’s a big softie!” Tate teased, earning a playful glare from Theo.

DJ chuckled. “I’m seein’ that.”

“Whatever,” Theo mumbled, his face a little red.

Here’s a revamped version with added dialogue of everyone picking what they want:

---

As DJ pulled up to the drive-thru, he turned to the boys. “Alright, what y’all want?”

Theo scanned the menu thoughtfully. “We should probably get three Happy Meals.”

DJ raised an eyebrow, smirking. “You want a Happy Meal too? Thought you were too old for those.”

Theo blushed slightly. “Well, I promised Deonte I’d give him my toy, and Tate’s still in the Happy Meal zone.”

DJ chuckled. “Aight, three Happy Meals it is.” He turned to Tate. “What you want in yours, lil’ man?”

“I want nuggets!” Tate said, bouncing in his seat.

DJ nodded. “Gotcha. And how ‘bout you, Deonte?”

“Nuggies too! And I ged a toy!” Deonte cheered, clearly excited.

DJ smiled and placed the order, adding a box of nuggets and fries for himself. After paying, he handed the boys their meals. “Alright, y’all, time to eat.”

Theo carefully opened his Happy Meal and started digging around for his cheeseburger, trying to avoid looking at the toy inside. Deonte, already curious, leaned over.

“What toy you ged, Theo?” Deonte asked eagerly.

Theo rummaged through the box and pulled out the toy, holding it up. “Looks like a car. This one’s yours.”

“Tank you!” Deonte squealed, already playing with the toy in his hands.

“Hold up, little man,” DJ said gently. “Make sure you eat your food before you play.”

“That goes for you too, Tate,” Theo added, taking a bite of his burger.

“Hmph,” Tate grumbled, but started munching on his nuggets anyway.

Meanwhile, Deonte was having fun with his nuggets, though most of his food seemed to end up on his shirt instead of in his mouth.

DJ glanced over and sighed with a smile. “Guess somebody’s gettin’ a bath tonight.”

Tate giggled. “Aww, he’s so messy!”

DJ nodded, looking back at the boys. “Alright, fellas, now that y’all ate, it’s time to head home.”

As DJ started the car and pulled away, the boys chattered away—Theo still cautious, Tate excited, and Deonte happily clutching his toy. DJ smiled to himself, knowing this was the start of something new, something that felt like family..