The Mother (Quinn, Flynn, Quinn's mother) RATING: PG-13 for a little bit!

[myeyesarehollow.livejournal.com]

"Try this." Quinn tilted Flynn's chin up and he held the spoon to Flynn's lips. Flynn smiled and he readily accepted the mouthful of soup Quinn was offering, licking his lips once he'd swallowed.

"That's amazing!" Flynn said, a wide grin overtaking his features. "How did you do that?!"

Quinn chuckled and he gave Flynn a quick kiss on the cheek before heading back to the stove. "It's called a 'recipe'." And he winked.

"Smartarse." Flynn said, but his voice was whimsical. He leaned back in his chair, glancing around the kitchen. "I suppose there would be tonnes of those in a chef's kitchen. Is it one of Autumn's?"

"Yep. She's a genius, isn't she?" Quinn stirred the soup and then he checked on the fish and potatoes. "It should be ready soon." Quinn made to walk back across the kitchen to get himself a drink, but Flynn's arm shot out and he caught Quinn, pulling the other man into his lap.

"You know what else is delicious? You." Flynn said, as he kissed Quinn's neck.

"Nice segue but aahhhhhh... Mal! An hour ago you said you were famished and you wanted dinner and now you're....well on the highway headed for stalling of said meal for good." Quinn hissed as Flynn's lips travelled up towards his earlobe. "My goodness you're a dirty, great tease." Quinn managed to breathe.

"It's been said." Flynn mumbled against Quinn's skin, continuing his kisses as he slid his hands inside Quinn's shirt. Dinner be damned, he and Quinn here going to do it on the kitchen floor, and they could eat after, dammit. It was decided. And this, Flynn started unbuttoning Quinn's shirt, never ceasing in his desperate kisses while his adept fingers made short work of the buttons without Flynn even looking. Quinn was well on the way of relieving Flynn of his shirt too, until the doorbell rang.

"Noooooo." Quinn protested, because despite calling Flynn a tease, he had been looking forward to the floor sex just as much as Flynn had. "Maybe they'll go away?" Quinn breathed against Flynn's chest.

"Mmmm. Maybe it's Jehovah's Witnesses?" Flynn mumbled. "Keep kissing me."

Quinn grinned and complied, but the doorbell rang again, twice. "For fuck's sake!" Quinn yelped, sliding off of Flynn's lap.

"You don't have to answer it!" Flynn protested, giving Quinn a little frown.

"It could be someone for Autumn." Quinn said with a sigh as he attempted to button his shirt back up. He found, however, that arousal made it hard to concentrate on buttons. Flynn raised his eyebrows and then he went to answer the door himself, his own shirt at least presentable.

Flynn pulled open the door and his mouth fell open, rather lamely. "Uh..."

"Hello, Malachy." Susanna Quinn said, sounding as if she was at least trying to keep the disdain out of her voice. "Is my son around?"

Quinn, upon hearing his mother's voice, stepped into view, his shirt still half unbuttoned. "Mum...?" He ran a hand through his messy hair and shook his head. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to talk." Susanna appraised the boy's disheveled appearance and she sighed. "I didn't mean to interrupt...anything."

"We were just going to have dinner." Flynn insisted, even though it was half a lie.

"I see." Susanna crossed her arms in front of her, uncomfortably.

"Mum. What are you here for?" Quinn asked, because he hadn't seen her for years and standing in front of her now after clearly getting caught in the middle of the thing she hated most about him was not making him want to prolong this encounter. Quinn made one more attempt to button up his shirt, but he was too distracted for it to do any good.

"Here...Bub..." Flynn walked to Quinn's side and he started to button Quinn's shirt, clearly taking the utmost care in doing so. And Susanna watched for a moment before she found herself able to say anything.

"Ahem. Uhm. I wanted to say thank you."

Both Quinn and Flynn immediately stared at her, looking slightly confused. She'd just thanked Quinn. Weird... "Erm...for what, Mum?" Quinn asked.

"For ringing us to tell us to get screened for haemachromatosis. Your father was clean, but I have it too. I'm a woman, so I'm lucky...but it would have been an issue later in life. And now it won't be. So...thank you."

"Oh." Quinn shifted a little and he nodded. "You're...you're welcome then." Had she honestly come all the way from Northern Ireland to tell him thank you?

"You're looking well." Susanna said with an uncomfortable smile. "You too, Malachy."

"I wasn't sick." Flynn said, needlessly.

"Mal takes care of me." Quinn explained. "Makes sure I take all the right pills and do all the right things. He's on top of everything. He's my hero." Quinn reached out for Flynn's hand and he smiled over at his lover.

"I see. Well. That's good. For you. To have that." Susanna was trying. She really was.

And Quinn seemed to notice. Susanna wouldn't have said anything like that years ago. She would have insisted that she could do the job better. It was obvious she didn't know what to say. But she was trying to find the right words. And that did mean something. "Mum...why did you come all the way down here to tell me thank you?"

"I...wanted to see you. It's been a long time." Susanna shrugged.

"Well...that's what happens when you send someone away. They generally stay away. You had your sister adopt me. You gave away your parental rights, and I didn't really see any obligation to go visit people who were so adamant to get rid of me that they fobbed me off on the first relatives who said yes."

"You ran away!" Susanna said, finally getting defensive. "You ran, and I was terrified, and then when you came back those people...those horrible people were going to hurt you because of him-" Susanna pointed at Mal who glowered. "What was I supposed to do? Let you stay with us until you ran away again, or they killed you!? I did what I had to do, Ardal!"

Quinn didn't have a retort for that, because it made sense. He just stared at his mother, looking slightly ashamed. "I made mistakes, Mum. I was a kid, it happens. But so did you. You didn't love me for me. Those people didn't come after me because of Mal. They came after me because of me. I was the one who dared lure away their Malachy. I'm grateful that you sent me to Bob and Maree's. I loved living there. So I guess...thank you. For that." Quinn let out a little sigh and he squeezed Flynn's hand again. "But I'm not sorry for disappointing you and Dad by falling in love with Mal. And I never will be."

Susanna looked up at the both of them again, and she bit her lip. It disgusted her. The idea of two men together...it really did. But Malachy was taking care of her boy. They weren't kids any more. Malachy was in University now. He had a home. He wasn't involved with the PIRA anymore. And he did up buttons when buttons needed doing up. She didn't have to be anywhere near them when they....ew. But perhaps...she could get over seeing them together if she tried. "Then don't be." She finally said with a little nod.

"Susanna, would you like some tea?" Flynn asked, because she looked like she wanted to stay. Quinn's parents weren't his parents. And she'd made an awful long trip to say some pretty important things. "And dinner's almost ready. Quinn cooked. He's brilliant."

"I just follow the recipe..." Quinn said, blushing bright red.

Susanna smiled a little and she nodded. "Alright. That sounds lovely. Thank you, Malachy."

Flynn nodded and he went back to the kitchen to set another place, leaving Quinn in the room alone with his mother. "You see? He's a great man and he-"

"Ardal...you don't have to..you shouldn't have to..." Susanna sighed and she shook her head. "Why don't you tell me about how you two found each other again?" She suggested, because that sounded like a happy story. She could use happiness. "And we'll just...go from there?"

Quinn smiled then and he gave a little nod. "I think we can manage that." And his heart was filled with hope. Maybe she could get past the whole 'gay' thing, after all.