By the second week, Gael had beco a strangely regular part of the Dunphy household.
Not intentionally.
It just… happened.
He'd stop by after etings.
Haley would text him randomly.
Phil would sohow convince him to stay for dinner.
Luke kept asking if millionaires got free pizza for life.
And Alex had started watching him with growing curiosity.
That last part concerned him slightly.
"You know," Alex said one afternoon from the dining table, "normal people don't co over this often after two weeks."
Gael looked up from his laptop.
"Normal people also don't analyze social behavior like FBI profilers."
"That's not a denial."
Haley threw a pillow at her sister from the couch.
"Oh my God, leave him alone."
"I'm observing."
"You're interrogating."
"There's a difference."
Gael hid a smile.
It was a Saturday afternoon, and the Dunphy house had fallen into one of its rare calr moods.
Phil was out showing houses.
Claire was upstairs organizing fundraiser paperwork.
Luke was in the backyard attempting sothing dangerous with a skateboard.
Which left:
Haley sprawled across the couch beside Gael,
Alex is pretending to study while clearly listening to everything,
and Gael is trying unsuccessfully to answer emails.
"You actually answer your emails." Haley asked suddenly.
Gael didn't look away from the screen.
"That's how businesses function."
"No, but like imdiately." Haley sat up slightly. "Even rich people's emails."
"Especially rich people's emails."
Alex glanced over her book.
"That's because investors panic if he disappears for more than six hours."
Gael raised an eyebrow.
"You researched ?"
Alex shrugged.
"You're dating my sister. Due diligence."
Haley pointed dramatically.
"See? She likes you."
"I respect him intellectually," Alex corrected.
"That's nerd flirting," Haley replied instantly.
Alex looked horrified.
"It absolutely is not."
Gael laughed quietly while Alex glared at both of them.
Honestly, this dynamic was becoming alarmingly comfortable.
That scared him more than awkwardness ever could.
Because every day spent here made it easier to forget these people once existed only behind a screen in another life.
Now they felt real in ways that caught him off guard constantly.
Phil's endless optimism.
Luke's chaotic energy.
Alex hiding sincerity behind sarcasm.
Haley curling against his side without thinking about it.
Real.
Dangerously real.
"You disappeared into your head again," Haley murmured.
"I'm multitasking."
"You always say that."
"Because it's true."
Haley rolled onto her side, facing him more directly now.
Gael tried to keep reading the email in front of him.
Tried being the important word.
"You know," Haley said softly, "I think my family likes you more than ."
"That can't possibly be true."
"My dad talks about you like you invented electricity."
"In fairness, your father sets a low bar for technological awe."
Alex snorted into her book.
Haley grinned triumphantly.
"See? That's why they like you. You're funny without trying."
Gael finally closed the laptop.
"That sounds backhanded."
"It was affectionate."
Before he could answer, footsteps descended the stairs.
Claire entered the living room carrying folders against her chest, reading sothing distractedly.
"Haley, did you ever send those RSVP emails for the fundraiser—"
She stopped briefly after noticing how close Haley sat beside Gael on the couch.
Not surprised.
Just registering it automatically now.
That realization alone said a lot.
"Never mind," Claire sighed. "I already know the answer."
"I was going to," Haley defended weakly.
"You said that three days ago."
Claire dropped the folders onto the dining table near Alex.
"Please tell one of my children inherited organizational skills."
Alex raised her hand imdiately.
"I did."
"You color-code emotional problems," Haley muttered.
"It's called structure."
Gael watched Claire move around the room while talking.
There was sothing fascinating about how naturally she managed chaos.
Not perfectly.
Not gracefully.
But constantly.
She noticed everything happening in the house at once.
Luke suddenly burst through the back door.
"I'm bleeding!"
Claire didn't even look up.
"Paper towels are under the sink."
"It's a lot of blood!"
"Then use two."
Gael laughed before he could stop himself.
Claire glanced toward him automatically.
For half a second, her expression softened with amusent, too.
Small mont.
Easy to ignore.
Still, sothing about it lingered slightly longer than it should have.
Just awareness growing quietly between two people who kept noticing each other.
Luke stumbled into the kitchen, dramatically holding a scraped elbow.
"I think I need stitches."
"You need supervision," Claire replied.
"That too."
Phil's voice suddenly echoed from outside.
"Honey, you will not believe what happened with the Henderson listing!"
Claire closed her eyes briefly.
"Oh no."
Phil entered carrying real estate folders and imdiate energy.
Then spotted Gael.
"Gael! Perfect timing."
"That sentence worries already."
Phil pointed enthusiastically.
"I need a younger male perspective."
Alex looked genuinely alard.
"That's the most dangerous sentence ever spoken."
Haley nodded seriously.
"You should run."
Too late.
Phil had already pulled a chair beside Gael.
"Question. Hypothetically speaking, would a firepit shaped like a dolphin increase or decrease property value?"
Silence.
Gael stared at him carefully.
"…How hypothetical is this?"
Claire pinched the bridge of her nose.
"Phil."
"It's modern coastal design!"
"It's a dolphin."
Gael leaned back slightly, fighting a smile.
And suddenly it hit him again.
This feeling.
The noise.
The conversations overlapping.
People moving constantly through the house.
He had spent years in his old life watching this family because they made loneliness feel quieter for thirty minutes at a ti.
Now sohow he was here.
Part of it.
The realization settled heavily in his chest.
Because the more connected he beca to them—
The harder it would be to stay detached later.
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