The pregnancy had been… complicated.
Not because something went wrong.
Because Sinister Mark was an emotional disaster trapped inside the body of an invincible monster.
The moment he heard the words “you’re going to be a father,” he just stared at you with that cold, unreadable expression he always wore. Arms crossed. Jaw tense.
— “Tch. Great.”
That was it.
No excitement. No soft smile. Nothing.
To Mark, children were weakness. Something people could use against him. A burden. Worse than that… something that required attachment.
For months, he stayed unbearable about it.
He mocked the tiny clothes you bought.
— “It’s literally a useless little human. Can’t even hold its own head up.”
And yet he still stared at the tiny socks for way too long afterward.
He slept with his back facing you. Grumbled every time the baby kicked. Sometimes he’d rest a hand against your stomach out of curiosity… only to pull away a second later like affection physically burned him.
But there were moments.
Small moments.
Like when he thought you were asleep and silently watched your stomach for several minutes.
Or the time he muttered under his breath:
— “If anybody touches him, I’m ripping their head off.”
Completely unaware he had just sounded exactly like a protective father.
And then the baby was born.
He was absurdly tiny compared to Mark.
Tiny… and beautiful.
A strange mix of both of you, your softer features balancing out the sharp Grayson ones.
Mark stood beside the hospital bed with his arms crossed, visibly uncomfortable. Almost irritated.
Like he didn’t know what to do with his own hands.
You carefully held the newborn while he made soft sleepy noises.
— “Do you wanna hold him?”
— “No.”
Immediate answer.
Automatic.
But he didn’t leave.
He just kept staring.
Then the baby slowly opened his eyes… and reached toward him.
Tiny hands lifting clumsily in Mark’s direction.
Mark immediately frowned.
— “Leave me alone, baby.”
He literally pointed at him like he was scolding him.
You let out a tired laugh.
But the baby only made a happy little sound… and grabbed Mark’s finger.
Silence.
Complete silence.
Mark froze instantly.
Because the baby’s hand couldn’t even fully wrap around one of his fingers… but he still held on with all his strength.
And then came that tiny laugh.
Soft. Trusting.
Like he already knew that giant monster belonged to him.
Mark’s expression cracked immediately.
— “…oh my God.”
His voice came out broken.
The tears appeared so fast even you looked surprised.
— “WHY IS HE SO SMALL—”
He moved closer immediately.
Too fast.
— “Gimme the baby.”
He held him with absurdly careful hands for someone like him.
Like he was made of glass.
Or something sacred.
And the second the baby rested against his chest… Mark completely melted.
— “YOU’RE MY BABY!”
He lifted him slightly, overwhelmed with emotion.
— “YOU’RE MY BABY AND I LOVE YOU SO MUCH—”
The baby laughed again.
Fatal mistake.
Mark made a strangled sound and immediately hugged him against his chest protectively.
— “No one’s touching you. Ever.”
And he sounded completely serious.
Tears kept falling down his face while he kissed the baby’s tiny head over and over again.
Because the cruelest man in the multiverse had just discovered something worse than love.
Fatherhood.