By the time Theodore was cleared to leave the medical wing, Dean had begun to suspect that the neonatal team was keeping them there because everyone had become emotionally attached to his son.
He had said as much to Seven.
Seven had informed him that medical discharge was not decided by popularity.
Dean remained unconvinced.
Still, several weeks after Theodore's unexpectedly early arrival, the monitors had finally given the physicians nothing interesting enough to justify keeping him. His breathing was completely independent, he maintained his temperature without assistance, his weight had climbed steadily, and the developing pheromone profile everyone had watched with almost unreasonable attention remained stable.
His eyes continued to alternate.
Most of the time, when Theodore woke calmly beneath Dean or Arion's pheromones, they were gold.
