Chapter Text
“Looking pretty homophobic with that outfit, dad.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
Jinx laughs at Silco's face, delighted by the confusion she finds there. Silco narrows his eyes at her, but can't be too bothered with further explanations when his daughter is looking so cheerful and careless. For a minute her face is devoid of worry, but he knows that is a well made mask worn to keep the anxiety at bay.
This is the first Pride since Jinx has come out as genderfluid, after all.
It has never been a problem for Silco to accept his child in whatever shape or form she decides to present herself. Silco made sure that, even in her teen moodiness and bad mental health days, Jinx knew 100% that she could always count on him for anything.
She never said it out loud on this occasion, though, but Silco knew anyway; she wanted him to be present on this important day, even when she rolled her eyes at him and said, “It’s not necessary! I’ll be meeting up with friends anyway!” Silco still cleared his schedule to go out with her.
Yes, she never said it out loud, but her strong grip on his hand is proof enough of her silent gratitude.
A quick look around makes Silco feel like he should've just settled with wearing only boxers and calling it a day, though. Maybe Jinx did have a point when she said he was overdressed for the event, with his pristine dark suit and vest. No such thing as backing out now, of course. Even if he does stick out like a sore thumb, he would rather be caught dead than wearing some twelve inch heels like most people around them.
He doesn’t speak his opinions out loud, for Jinx’s sake, but nothing prevents him from silently judging.
“Look!”
Jinx takes his attention again and points out a stand with lots of colorful merchandise. Flags, pins, plushies, and even bright-colored snacks on display.
The seller has rainbow stickers around his torso and on his nipples.
Jesus Christ.
“I want some pins! C'mon!” Jinx grabs his sleeve and Silco, sighing, doesn’t complain when she pulls him towards the stand.
When she takes a bit more time in deciding a perfect combination of accessories, Silco’s eyes divert to the crowd of people that are still arriving. Mostly young adults with their lovers, dressing in all sorts of fashion and looking practically radiant to be there, buzzing from anticipation and excitement. Full of life and hope for a brighter future where they could hold whoever they wanted and be whoever they wanted to be.
Silco is not, in any way, jealous. Of course not. Why would he be? He has made his life already, after years of fighting for it. A decent job as a lawyer, a fantastic child that continues to bring him endless happiness… A fish tank and a bald cat that wait for him at home whenever Jinx isn’t there, which is happening more often than not, nowadays…
It’s fine, really. Fulfilling. Not lonely at all.
Before Silco’s thoughts turn into bitter ones, something in the corner of his eye catches his attention.
He looks at the bunch of new people that arrived… And his eyes widen significantly.
Lots of men— bigger, older men wearing different types of leather garments that cling to their bodies like a second skin, shining under the sunlight and making them practically glow.
Silco’s mouth is probably open by now. He can’t stop staring. Large guys that are probably around his age, confident and shameless in their movements… Deep voices that seem to make the earth beneath his feet tremble… A pair of eyes that seem to stop his way, for a second—
“Whatcha looking at?”
Silco’s heart jumps and his body tenses up, surprised at Jinx’s sudden appearance. Ah. Was he staring too much? Maybe starting to dissociate in a sea of leather and bulky, manly bodies? He swallows imperceptibly and looks at his daughter. A mask of cool indifference hiding his shame.
“This event is not child friendly,” Silco informs her, putting a bit more distaste into his voice than usual.
“Lucky I’m not a child anymore, eh?” Jinx says, her smile too wide and eyes too full of mirth, like a cat who got the cream. Silco is immediately alerted. "This one's for you!” Jinx announces suddenly, changing the topic and showing Silco one of the largest pins she just bought.
It was a flag with stripes of black, white and blue, and a big red heart decorating the upper left corner. Silco furrows his brow, a bit perplexed. He doesn't recognize the pattern.
“And what's this one for?” Silco asks, a hint of suspicion in his tone.
Jinx gives him a well practiced smile, full of innocence that clearly meant trouble.
“This one's stands for supportive parents,” she replies, quickly putting it on his vest and rolling her eyes when Silco keeps on squinting at her. “I swear! Cross my heart and hope to die!”
“Don’t say that,” Silco scolds lightly with a sigh, knowing fully well that he can’t take the pin off his vest even if he wants to. The joyful environment is getting to him, apparently, and he has always been weak to his daughter's charms, even in their complete falseness.
Who knows? Maybe with this particular accessory he won’t stand out so much anymore.
Right?
Jinx makes a sound of triumph when she manages to click the pin in place, patting it twice and then grinning at Silco, impulsively hugging him. Silco grunts at the strength Jinx has with her affections, but he returns the gesture nonetheless.
“For the best supportive parent in the entire universe!” Jinx squeezes him, making Silco grunt once more. She looks up at him, mischief on her youthful face and Silco can't help but return the smile. She really is his daughter. “See? You don't look so homophobic anymore, old man.”
Silco scoffs, a bit indignant. “Just because I’m dressing better than ninety percent of the people around does not mean I’m homophobic.”
Jinx giggles, happy to be getting on her dad’s nerves. “It’s alright, pops. You kept staring at the naked men over there, it’s pretty obvious you didn’t come here just to support me.”
Silco glances sharply at her, embarrassment quickly coloring his cheeks. “I was not.”
“Sure you weren’t!” She giggles again, taking her phone out and tapping something rapidly while Silco keeps on frowning. “Ah, Viktor arrived already!” she chirps, her colored nails tapping loudly on the phone screen. “He’s a few blocks ahead, I should go and meet him there.”
Silco crosses his arms, still feeling a bit defensive after the previous exchange. “Will he be with you during the whole evening?” He had already met Viktor a bunch of times, enough to trust the older boy to take care of Jinx and himself.
“Dunno. Probably? He wanted me to meet his new boyfriend or something.” She rolls her eyes, still tapping away. “But yeah, that’s the plan. Wreaking queer havoc for a few hours and stuff.”
Havoc, huh? Silco gives her a tiny smirk of his own. “That’s my daughter,” he says, proudly. Jinx grins back, putting her phone away and giving him a loud kiss on the cheek. “Remember, 7 o'clock at the—“
“—The old lady statue, I know, I know. You’ve told me a million times already!”
“And don’t turn off your phone. And call me if you need anything, I’ll be around—“
“Yeah, yeah.” Jinx waves her hand dismissively, already turning around and walking away. “And don’t stay under the sun too much, and use your ear plugs if the noise gets too loud! Blah blah blah!” She imitates his voice cheekily, walking faster before Silco has the opportunity to scold her. “See ya!”
Her tiny figure and flowing braids disappear among the crowd, finally leaving Silco alone.
Should he follow the crowd? Maybe check up on Jinx from afar...? No. No, he promised her to keep his distance and let her have fun. It isn’t the first time she’s left alone and without his direct supervision, but it’ll be her first time being among such a huge amount of people. Silco knows it could easily overwhelm her, so he worries. But he also knows that she’s smart enough to not bite more than she can chew today. Besides, Viktor will be with her; he’s a sharp kid and he cares for her as well, she will be fine…
She has to be.
There’s nothing more for Silco to do than wait, now. Maybe he could walk towards the statue and stay there until 7. Sit in a café nearby and check his emails. It’s his day off, but that doesn’t mean that he can’t catch up on some work, right? It doesn’t make him a workaholic or anything…
“Are you joinin’ us, then?”
Silco nearly jumps, his eyes quickly focusing on the source of such deep, deep voice— and he stares. And stares.
Oh.
It was one of the guys he previously ogled at shamelessly. Probably one of the biggest men he has ever seen in his life, right in front of him, packed with the sort of muscle that comes not from crazy hours at the gym, but from raw power. Not even the softness in his middle can hide the absolute strength of his body. His tight pants glisten under the sunlight —how are they not ripping in half? His thighs are huge, gods— and straps of leather snuggle his torso as if they are part of his skin. Each leathery accessory looks like an extension of his body— it’s a costume, yes, but the aura of pure confidence that exudes from the man makes it look like this… persona is just second nature to him.
… Are those nipple piercings on his chest..?
Silco quickly schools his stunned expression into neutrality before the amusement on the vulgar man’s face grows any more bigger.
“Joining?” He lifts an eyebrow, purposefully ignoring the dryness of his throat.
The vulgar man’s smile seems to widen and he taps a pin on one of his leather straps. It’s the same flag that Silco is wearing; white, blue, black stripes and a red heart.
Silco can feel the thrum of a headache coming. He knew Jinx was tricking him, but that doesn’t make it any less humiliating. “I suppose you are not here as a supportive parent, are you?”
The vulgar man seems confused for a second, but his smile doesn’t disappear. “Well... I’ve been called all sorts of paternal figure names before—”
“That’s not what I meant,” Silco quickly interrupts, fingers working quickly on his vest to take the pin off. Fucking embarrassing. Was this the flag of big, hairy men that were probably into weird shit? God. The color on his cheeks increases when the vulgar man starts chuckling. A deep rumble that does not give Silco’s stomach a swoop.
“I take it as the blue girl didn’t tell you the meaning of it, eh?” Vulgar man asks, amusement in his voice.
“Were you watching us?” Silco asks sharply, still not looking at the man’s face. Goddammit, pins nowadays are impossible to take off! He is about to take his entire vest off instead when warm and big fingers touch his, making his whole body jolt.
“Sorry, may I?” Vulgar man says, a little bit softer now. Silco freezes on the spot, too thrown off by the sudden proximity that he stays completely still. His eyes, however, finally land on the face of the man, scrutinizing him. “It was hard not to,” he ends up replying, taking Silco’s silence as permission and dexterously taking the big pin off. “It’s kinda uncommon to see three-piece suits walking around at Pride. You stick out like a sore thumb, sweetheart.”
“Don’t call me that,” Silco hisses, his embarrassment off the charts by now. He takes the pin out of the man’s hand and quickly puts some distance between them. He is too close to his chest, he surely must feel the quick pace of his heart. Jesus.
“Well, I don’t have a name to go with that pretty face, have I?” Vulgar man says smoothly, openly checking him out and smirking.
Silco stares at him for a few seconds, too stunned to speak until one of the corners of his mouth involuntarily twitches. Who is this man? “That was an atrocious line. Did you learn it from a pretentious movie?” Silco inquires him at once, crossing his arms slowly and narrowing his eyes, assessing the man before him. “And your attire is absolutely vulgar,” he adds, just to be an ass.
The man chuckles, apparently unfazed by Silco’s sharpness. “I’m Vander,” he says, extending a hand.
“Good for you.” Silco quickly retorts, still staring at him even when he takes and shakes the offered hand once. The big, callused fingers engulf his entire hand in warmth.
“Aren’t you going to tell me your name?” the man –Vander– asks, deep blue eyes dancing with amusement.
“What for?” Silco lifts an eyebrow. “We are never seeing each other again.”
“Oh, but we could,” Vander says, a daring finger tracing lightly under his cuff and feeling up his pulse. Silco almost chokes, his heart jumping out of his ribcage. He opens his mouth to reply, maybe to tell him to fuck off, maybe to accept any proposal that would come out of his mouth, when—
“Vander!”
Both men jolt, letting go of their grip simultaneously as if it burned. Vander turns his head to see who is calling him while Silco puts more distance between them, combing his hair back with his hand and trying to get his senses under control. What the hell is he thinking, getting a conversation going with a half-naked stranger? It’s been a long, long time since he has felt this sort of… pleasant heat in his stomach. He must have got carried away with all this flirty bantering. The sort of banter he has always loved but very rarely got.
God, he has way more control than this. He is not a teenager anymore— very far from it.
Silco turns around and starts walking away, still chastising himself when his shoulder is grabbed.
“Wait.” It’s Vander again, letting go immediately when Silco jerks away from the touch. “Sorry, just…” His smile is a bit more sheepish, the flirtatious gaze turning into something more… earnest. “I meant it, what I said. Seeing each other again, that is. Would you like to grab something after this?” Vander asks, some of his fingers twitching as if he wanted to touch Silco again.
Silco takes a few seconds to reply, his brain still trying to figure out why this man was still talking to him. “I’m not staying. I’m not– I’m not a part of this. I’m only here for my daughter,” he explains, his tone just a tad apologetic. Vander’s expression deflates almost imperceptibly, but he quickly recovers, searching for something inside a leather pouch attached to his waist.
“That’s alright. Here.” He takes out a small card and offers it to Silco. “I frequent this place. You can always come by and we could share a couple of drinks, if you want. On me.”
The card is simple and straightforward. Black background, bright green letters saying The Last Drop and, below it, an address.
Silco hesitates for a bit, but takes the card from Vander’s hand and tucks it away inside his shirt pocket. The smug expression seems to come back to Vander’s face, and Silco rolls his eyes before turning away. “Goodbye, Vander.”
“Goodbye, sweetheart.”
Silco’s skin prickles with warmth and mild annoyance at the pet name. He doesn’t stop walking but he does say one last thing. “It’s Silco.”
He quickly disappears into the crowd, never noticing how Vander keeps staring his way for a couple of seconds more and mouthing his name.
—
“—exchanged Instagram handles with soooo many cool people! There was this chick— oh my god, dad, she was built like a truck! She was with this other tall girl– can’t remember her name, didn’t like her anyway, Viktor’s himbo-of-a-boyfriend apparently knew her from before—”
“What’s himbo again?” Silco asks with a frown, flipping a pancake. They arrived home twenty minutes ago and Jinx wanted something sweet to eat after walking for hours.
“Eh, like a harmless dumbass.” Jinx waves her hand, standing up from her chair and giving a few twirls around the kitchen. Silco hums, quickly lowering the stove’s flame when his daughter gets dangerously closer. “Anyway! It was pretty much the highlight of the entire year! Maybe even better than the 3D printer you’ll give me for Christmas,” she says cheerfully, hopping up onto the counter next to Silco.
“That is still very much in discussion,” Silco reminds her, taking the pancake out and putting the last of the batter inside the pan. Jinx sticks her tongue out at him. “Well, I’m glad you had fun, at least,” he says sincerely, moving the pan around to spread the mix evenly. Jinx smiles softly and nods, playing with one of her braids.
“Yeah… But I kinda wish you did, too,” she says, poking at Silco’s face.
Silco sighs. “I did, Jinx.”
“You waited for me in a boring café while working on your phone! That’s no fun,” she accuses, frowning at him for a second before freezing. Silco has only a moment to look at his daughter before her hand quickly snatches the forgotten card inside his shirt pocket. “Oooh, what is this?”
Silco is about to take the card out of her hand on pure instinct but she is too fast, quickly moving away from him and studying the paper on her hands with a widening grin.
“It’s nothing. Give it back.” Silco hisses, forgetting the task at hand and following Jinx around.
“You are a liar! Who gave you this? The Last Drop?” Jinx snorts. “Sounds like a freaking stripclub. Did you go there after dropping me off?” She laughs and doesn’t resist when Silco snatches the card out of her fingers, scoffing. “C’mon, pops, don’t be embarrassed! Spill the tea!”
“There’s no tea to be spilled.” Silco sniffs, ripping the card in half and throwing it into the trash can. “Just something that was given to me on the street.”
Jinx’s eyes gleam mischievously. “Aw man, did my pin actually work?” she asks, entirely too gleeful in Silco’s opinion.
“About that.” Silco’s eyes narrow, his hands framing his hips in a pose that exudes disapproval. “That was not nice, Jinx.”
Jinx gives another twirl, laughing openly at the ceiling. “Agh, fuck! I should have been there to see the look on your face!” she laments, clutching her chest in a dramatic way.
“Language,” Silco snaps, crossing his arms. “I could have been approached by the wrong kind of people. Did you even think about that?”
“I was hoping that, actually!” she admits, not feeling threatened by her dad’s anger in the slightest. “Maybe one of the big, half-naked fellas that you were absolutely drooling after.”
“I was not,” Silco says indignantly, his body tensing up while his mind fills up with the memory of Vander. Such a brief encounter, but significant enough that it still brought heat to his cheeks. Concentrating on his emails at the café was a challenge, after that. “It was not nice.” He repeats, almost as if he were trying to convince himself instead of Jinx.
Jinx sighs, closing the distance between them and hugging him. “Alright, alright, I’m sorry. Thought it could be funny.” She pouts, waiting for Silco to hug her back to squeeze his torso. “Next time I’ll put it on your back, so you won’t notice.”
Silco sighs, the corner of his mouth rising up despite everything. “So thoughtful.”
“Only for the best!” Jinx chirps, stepping back and grinning at her dad. She suddenly sniffs the air, frowning. “Hey, is that the pan—”
Silco immediately turns around in time for a huge cloud of smoke to engulf them, the unmistakable beeping sound of the smoke detector and the cold feel of the water spray on their bodies.
Silco’s heartfelt “fuck!” is instantly diminished by Jinx’s shrieking laughter.
The only proof of his encounter with Vander already forgotten in the trash can.