For Anatoly, Homeplot Party

[capable_of]

The party for Anatoly's birthday had been planned for that night, as if he'd been expected home. The island had to be behind this, the timing was too perfect and not surprisingly, this thought didn't comfort Lex one bit. There were dignitaries and other important people, anyone who needed to be seen at the celebration for the current country hero, much like the parties he'd had to attend back home so people could be seen with the Luthor heir. It was nothing like the quiet, humble birthday he'd had planned for Anatoly on the island. And at least then, he would have been able to be near the man he loved. Here...he was regulated to watching from a distance.

At least this was better then the small family gathering he'd had to endure before hand. Watching Anatoly with his family and not being allowed to leave the room by the Russian's request had been worse then any torture Lionel had ever devised. Anatoly may not have been the best father or husband but the happiness that radiated off of all of them during that moment of togetherness had just about broken Lex's heart.

So that's what he did, keeping to the walls and watching over Anatoly like the handler he was pretending to be. It was easier to think like a handler then think of anything else, as he was barely keeping it together as it was.

He wondered if Anatoly would even notice if he slipped back to the hotel for the night?

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[capable-of.livejournal.com]

Oddly enough, it was her mentioning her teddy bear by name that broke Lex's tension finally and he laughed in relief. "Well, I don't want to disappoint Kolya, now do I?" So he opened the book and started from the beginning.

An hour or so later, Lex was half way through the book, sitting against the head board of Ilona's bed with the little girl curled up half in his lap, half asleep but hanging on to wakefulness enough to keep the stories coming. And Lex didn't mind at all as he kept reading, trying to make then exciting by pitching his voice at key spots.

He was enjoying this, far more then he ever thought he would.

[chesspolitik]

Anatoly had done his best to be charming and sociable at the party, but eventually he could take no more of it and he excused himself for a bit, pleading the need to check on his children. Lex had disappeared sometime during this, he had noted, but he knew he couldn't ask without raising suspicion. First, the children then perhaps Lex would come back by the time he returned to the party.

Dmitri was sound asleep when he looked in on him, so he only stayed long enough to press a kiss to his forehead and tuck the covers in more closely around him.

When he peered into Ilona's room, he gaped in surprise. There Lex was, reading to his daughter, and it was possibly one of the most touching things he had ever seen. He quickly stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

He didn't want to interrupt so he waited until Lex had finished the story he was reading before coming over to sit on the other side of the bed, pressing a soft kiss to his daughter's forehead. "Now how many stories have you gotten from Sascha, hmm?"

[capable-of.livejournal.com]

When Lex heard the door open, his body went taunt as he prepared to defend himself and what he was doing. When he glanced up and saw the look on Anatoly's face, his voice broke for a moment. He honestly hadn't expected to be found like this but if he had...that's not the reaction he expected.

But the last thing Lex wanted to was disappoint Ilona so he finished the story and closed the book with a finger marking his place. He watched Anatoly carefully, just in case his true reaction was delayed and in part as retaliation for being ignored all day, even if it was part of his role.

And yet again, Anatoly managed to surprise him by calling him Sascha, which in reality could be dangerous in this situation...but touched Lex more then Anatoly could ever know, to the point he was speechless.

[danseuse-russe.livejournal.com]

Ilona had tried her hardest not to fall asleep though the sound of the man's voice was soothing. He was going through the book like she had hoped he would and if she fell asleep, he would leave.

Then her papa came in and made everything better just by being there. She scrambled over to hug him tightly, making Kolya fall off the bed in the process. "Not many," she claimed, her eyes wide. "He could still read some more, couldn't he, Papa? Please?"

[capable-of.livejournal.com]

As if to give father and daughter some privacy, Lex bent down to rescue the teddy bear. As he sat up to return the toy, he was about to make his excuse to leave so they could have this time together but stopped when Ilona asked Anatoly if he could stay. As reluctant as he was to give up spending time with the little girl, he asked softly, "Wouldn't you rather your father read to you now that he's here?"

[chesspolitik]

Anatoly kissed Ilona's forehead again, hugging her tightly. As much as he would have loved to say yes, he was afraid that their absence would be noticed if they stayed too long. Besides, it was certainly well past Ilona's bedtime and she needed to get some sleep, no matter how much she claimed otherwise.

"I think you should get some sleep, sweetheart. It's been a long day and you've been up far too late." Despite her protests, he firmly pulled the covers over her, making sure both she and Kolya were tucked in. "Perhaps tomorrow, if Sascha would like, he could read a little more."

He glanced over at Lex uncertainly, wondering if he had said the right thing.

[capable-of.livejournal.com]

As Anatoly began to tuck her in, Lex stood up and moved away from the bed. It looked like his time with Ilona was over and he was to regulated to the outside of the crowd. At least here...here someone had seemed to notice him.

Granted, Lex knew this line of thinking wasn't fair to Anatoly, so he hid it behind a firm facade as he moved towards the door, hands crossed over his chest. He almost misses what Anatoly says and he turns to give Ilona a soft smile. "Of course. It would be an honor." And it was the honest truth.