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Dirk's mind was still clinging to the hazy edges of sleep when he felt one of the warm bodies curled against him shift slightly, before pulling away from the group completely. Their movements were slow, as if they were trying to leave as quietly as they could so they didn't disturb anyone.
This was odd, Dirk noted, gradually drifting back into consciousness. The Hanks were normally pretty heavy sleepers, and after months of spending the night with them like this none of them had ever stirred in the night for long enough to wake Dirk. Whoever it was who got up probably just needed to piss, Dirk told himslef, trying not to let the thought of one of them getting up and leaving weigh on his mind.
Yet, curiosity got the better of him and as Dirk sleepily blinked his eye's open he could make out the distinct silhouette of Hank 5, despite the fact his vision was still slightly blurred from sleep. He was about to snuggle back down into the rest of the Hanks arm's, until he notices that Hank 5 is sniffling slightly, and as much as Dirk would like to remain where it was warm and comfortable, he couldn't ignore the nagging feeling in his gut thag something was wrong.
Dirk struggles out of Hank 3's grip (the man had fallen asleep with his arm's wrapped tightly around Dirk's waist making it hard for him to actually go anywhere) and pushes himself to his feet with a yawn. Hank 5 still hasn't noticed he's awake, and as the man moves to exit the closet, Dirk slips out right behind him.
"Hank?" Dirk whispers, voice rough with sleep
Hank 5 whirls round, and Dirk can immediately tell by the look on his face that he's been crying, the man still smiles when he sees Dirk however, and rubs his next bashfully, "You scared me, dude," he says with a weak chuckle.
Dirk had absolutely no idea what to do in this situation. Sex? He could do that. Extreme sports? Assure him that he won't die, then fuck yeah, why not? But comforting people? That really wasn't Dirk's strong point at all.
But this was Hank 5, a person who had shown him nothing but kindness, and Dirk couldn't just stand there while he was visibly upset and not do something, "Hank, is everything... alright?"
"What?" Hank 5 says, laughing nervously again as he perches on the end of the bed, "I'm fine! Totally fine, man," his voice was less than convincing, as he refused to meet Dirk's eye's.
Dirk sat next to Hank, resting his head on his shoulder, trying to make him as comfortable as possible by not looking at him, "You can talk to me, you know? I can be a dick about things sometimes but I'm pretty good at listening when it's needed," Dirk offered slightly awkwardly.
Hank 5 nuzzled his face into Dirk's hair, "You're so cute," He mumbled, "I should wake you up in the middle of the night more often, your bedhead is adorable".
Dirk blushed, "Stop deflecting," he said because he knew Hank 5 could very easily drive this conversation off route if he kept complementing him.
"You caught me," Hank said, rasing his hands in mock surrender, before going quiet and saying softly "I just had a dream, that's all".
"A nightmare?" Dirk questions, trying not to put too much pressure on Hank, but also wanting to spur on the conversation so he could find out what was wrong.
"No," Hank 5 replied, his voice still gentle, sounding more reserved than Dirk had ever heard him, "A dream, a really good dream".
Dirk tried to not let his confusion show at this statement, but the worry slowly infecting his brain made it hard. Instead he settled on a relatively neutral question that might help him understand the situation more, "Do you want to tell me about it? It might help?"
Hank 5 hesitated, before nodding slowly, "Okay".
Part of Dirk was taken aback by that, given Hank's earlier reluctant to share what was on his mind, but he was glad nonetheless. It made sense in a way, all the Hanks always stressed how important healthy communication was, even if it was at a time where speaking up about your emotions felt difficult.
Dirk nodded at Hank 5's response, waiting patiently for him to start talking, when he finally begins, Dirk gives his hand a comforting squeeze.
"We were waking up, all of us together, like we normally do. It was just like any other day, except..." Hank 5 pauses, taking a deep steadying breath, "Except we had a baby".
Now that, that hadn't been what Dirk was expecting at all. It's not like he didn't know Hank 5 wanted to be a father, he was pretty open about it, but he supposed he just didn't know that his feelings ran this deeply. He'd heard about people dreaming about having children before, he heard about the strange sense of grief that comes attached to that, and even though he wasn't equipped to deal with this situation at all, he would still help as much as he could.
"We had a son," Hank 5 continues, voice shaking slightly now, "I had a son, and I held him and spoke to him and I loved him..." Hank's breath caught in his throat, "And then I woke up".
"Maybe it's silly, but I feel like I've lost something now he's not here, even though he was never really there in the first place, it was just all in my head," Hank 5 explains sadly, "It was all just a stupid dream, and I miss a child I never even had!"
Hank 5 groans in frustration, as if he was angry at his own brain for making him feel this way, "That's not silly at all," Dirk reasures, because it truly wasn't. The mid is a funny thing, it has a hard time separating fiction from reality, especially when it comes to dreams, and Hank was completely valid in his feelings. Dirk just wished he was able to express that to the man better.
"You really want to be a dad, don't you?" He asks tenderly, already knowing the answer to the question.
"More than anything," Hank breathes, and there's so much honesty behind his words that it makes Dirks chest ache a little.
"There's still time for that, you know?" Dirk reminds him, placing a soft kiss to his temple.
Hank 5 shakes his head slightly, "Not for him, not for the child I had in my dream," Hank 5 states regretfully, "He- he looked like us, Dirk, all of us".
The man looked at him then, with wide, watery eyes, and Dirk finnaly understood, "He had my eyes and Hank 3's hair and Hank 2's nose, and Hank 4's stupid little pout-" Hank cut himself off with a choked sob.
"Oh love, come here," Dirk said empathically, taking Hank 5 into his arms and hugging him tightly. The man burried his face into the crook of Dirk's neck, despratley trying to regulate his breathing as he hiccuped slightly.
"And in real life it will never be like that!" Hank 4 exclaimed, "We can't have a child that looks like all of us, it's not biologically possible! I want a baby that's a part of all the people I love, not just a part of me! And in my dream I had that!" A tear runs slowly down Hank's cheek, and Dirk resists the overwhelming urge to kiss it off.
"And now I don't anymore," Hank trails off, staring at the wall as he wiped his eye's.
Dirk strokes Hank's hair soothingly, kissing his forhead and whispering comforts in his ear untill his breathing returned back to normal. Dirk felt oddly vulnerable, despite the fact he wasn't the one crying, it was scary to know Hank 5 trusted him enough to let Dirk see him like this.
"It is still possible, in a way" Dirk murmurs agaist Hanks skin.
"What do you mean?" Hank asks quietly.
"Maybe not physically," Dirk explained, "But your baby could have Hank 4's laugh, or Hank 3's stupid sense of humour, you know? You're child will still be part of all of you, because they'll be yours. You'll raise them, and they'll become a part of you, and if the kids lucky, one day he'll grow up to be just as kind hearted as you are".
Dirk averts his eye's after he finishes speaking, feeling overwhelmed by the awestruck way Hank 5 was staring at him. Dirk hopes that he said the right thing, he's still getting used to having people he actually wants to console, people he cared for with his whole heart.
Then Hank 5 kissed him, so apparently it was the completely right thing to say. It was simple press of lips that bled fondess into Dirk's soul, making him feel warm all over, "You're amazing, man" Hank pants into his mouth, "So amazing, thank you".
Hank begins peppering greatfull kisses all over Dirk's face, making him giggle, "You're right," Hank sighs happily, "I was just getting in my own head, and that dream really didn't help. Our child will still be ours, no matter who the biological parents are. They could pick up Hank 2's need to make sure everyone's safe all the time, or Hank 1's confidence, or you're nerdiness that you tried to hide at first, but I see you reading those batman comics-"
"Yes! Exactly! You get it!" Dirk exclaims happily, glad that it appeared he was able to cheer Hank 5 up, before the man's words dawned on him completely and Dirk froze, "Wait... me?"
Hank tilted his head to the side like a confused puppy, "Well yeah, like I said, I want all the people I love to be part of my child, well our child".
Dirk flushes red, eye's blown wide "You love me?" He asks quickly, wanting
"I-" Hank starts, eye's just as wide, blush spreading across his cheeks, "I did not mean to say that".
"But did you mean it?" Dirk implores, leaning closer to Hank, hoping wholeheartedly that the man's words had been spoken truthfully.
"Yes!" Hank 5 exclaims quickly, "Yes of course I did! But we were all supposed to tell you together and now I've ruined it!" Hank looks worried again, a small frown tugging at his mouth.
Dirk's heart was beating erratically, trying to get over the fact that not only was Hank 5 in love with him, but the other Hanks were too, "You haven't ruined anything!" He assured the man, "You were having an emotional night, and something emotional slipped out, it makes perfect sense".
"But-"
"And for the record," Dirk said softly, intrupting Hank 5 before he could finish speaking, "I love you too". Hank's anxiety seemed to shatter in that moment, as he melted into Dirk's touch, sighing softly as he hid his face back in Dirk's hair.
"If it makes you feel any better I won't tell the others you said anything," Dirk offers, not wanted to make Dirk stressed again after the emotional termoil he'd already felt tonight.
Hank 5 thought for a moment before nodding slowly, "Yeah, it would actually, I don't want to ruin their moment, they've been looking forward to it".
Dirks stomach flips at that, touched that they'd taken the time to plan this special moment out solely for him. Dirk gets up then, placing a small peck on Hanks cheek before tugging him into a standing position.
"We should go back to sleep," Dirk says, stifling a yawn as he laced their fingers together, "This can be our little secret, for now at least"
"Okay," Hank agrees with a light laugh, looking slightly amused although Dirk wasn't sure why, "Oh, and Dirk?"
"Hm?" Dirk hummed sleepily, pulling Hank back into the closet.
"Thank you, for everything," Hank 5 whispers, and Dirk gives his hand a final squeeze before they settle back into group, all haphazardly piled around eachother and snoring softly.
It was so late, but Dirk couldn't even find it in himself to care as he wiggled back into Hank 3's grip, placing the man's hands carefully back around his waist. Sure, he missed out on some sleep but the Hanks loved him. The Hanks wanted to raise a child with him one day. It was a lot to take it, but Dirk had all the time in the world to be ready, and when he was, he knew the Hanks would be waiting.