Author: sangre antigua/TR4G1C [old penname].
Rating; Title; Pairing: R; Virgin Snow; Jack/Bobby.
Summary: The virgin, pure snow catches Jackie's tortured, frightened eyes and actually brings him happiness—but Bobby keeps them. Based when Jack first comes into the Mercer household. JackxBobby/Slash; R rating for later chapters.
Warning/Disclaimer: I do not own Four Brothers (sadly…), but the plot is mine and a lot of the extra information is mine, as well. The ages will be different in this story, just so they'll fit well with what I'm typing and how everything is going down. Also, I'm sorry if it's long—I ramble. ): Also, there will be mature themes so…yeah.
Enjoy!
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Out of all of the places that he had "lived", the snow in Detroit fell the hardest.
Not that he minded, though; how could he mind? The snow was so pretty in its pure (and blinding) white color, most of it virginal and untouched. The blankets of snow that were unaffected by playing children, quickly driving cars and running dogs, were his favorite, no doubt, just because they were so damn…mesmerizing. He could stare at it all day if given the opportunity, get lost in deep thought and stay there for a good while.
Winter, by far, was the best season in his eyes. Or, well, most of the time. Some of the time, the winter was his worst enemy. Being thrown outside in a pair of boxers and into the snow for no apparent reason was not his idea of "fun". But no one really paid attention to what Jack (now "Mercer", or so he had been told; he didn't really give a damn, he'd probably have that name revoked in a good month or so) thought was entertaining, or what was in his best interest. Most people simply did the opposite.
If he showed interest in something, they would take it away or simply break it right before his eyes; if he showed any element of hunger or if he acted like he was thirsty, they would taunt him with their own food and their own beverages; if he "acted out" (which usually meant he gave someone a "wrong look" or the like), he got bitched out—and then had the shit knocked out of him, just because.
The food taunts were among the worst, though. He could sneak water from the faucet in the bathroom or in the kitchen when no one was around, but everyone seemed to have hawk eyes when it came to the fridge and cabinets, and their contents. He seldom ate as it was, so the taunts just made his stomach turn on itself, angry because it could not have anything to quench the pain that he felt inside.
But that pain was better than most of the pain that he had felt in his lifetime.
At the thought, Jack "Mercer" shuddered. The frail boy wiggled in his seat beside Evelyn Mercer, the woman who had just adopted him. He refused to look at her unless she was speaking to him because one-too-many times he had given his foster parents a "wrong look" and had got punished for it. He couldn't really grasp that concept, giving someone a "wrong look" when he was simply looking at them, but Jackie took whatever was thrown at him because fighting a battle in which he was already doomed was just pointless. Angering his foster parents was not something that Jack liked to do, though he seemed to do it a lot.
"Are you excited to meet your brothers?" Evelyn asked softly, gradually coming to a stop at the freshly changed red light before them. She turned to look at Jack and offered the youth a gentle smile, which caused Jack's chest to hurt a little bit. No one smiled at him without a hidden agenda. Everyone in some way was going to get him, it was all just a matter of time.
Jack thought about her question for a moment. Under any normal circumstance, a thirteen-year-old boy would've been ecstatic to be told he was meeting his brothers, but Jack did not fall under that category. All of the other brothers that he had had were either severally messed up in the head, extremely violent or pedophiles, like the people that housed them. To please his new "mother", Jack would've liked to say "yes", but lying always got him into so much trouble. So he just nodded his head to her and put on a small, barely visible smile, because showing compliance usually got him away without too many marks.
"I've got three boys, they're all really sweet. I think you'll like them. Have I told you anything about them yet?" she continued, pushing on the gas as the light flickered from red to green. Her voice was so soft, so cautious—it made him want to trust her, but many a time had his trust been broken. It was best to continue playing the defensive. Everyone seemed nice at first.
He shook his head. Evelyn had told him the bare minimum about her boys, but when she did so Jack…just wasn't paying attention to her. His mind was somewhere else. Having her repeat what she said wouldn't hurt her, would it? No, it won't hurt her, Jackie thought. He shook his head again and then began to chew on his lower lip, while he cleaned under his nails. It wasn't that they were dirty (they were, though, oh they were), but cleaning under his nails was a nervous, time-occupying habit. His eyes shifted sheepishly from Evelyn to the dashboard, from the dashboard to the floor, and from the floor to the snow outside. Currently, it was layered on top of itself like pancakes or waffles in the morning, except for the snow was freezing cold and not steamy, nor delicious, like the flowery breakfast foods. Speaking of warm food…
Jack could eat half of his weight in practically anything at this moment in time. His stomach moaning and groaning just showed that. After his stomach had silenced itself, his cheeks adopted a rosy shade of pink.
If Evelyn heard his stomach talking, she ignored it, but her smile seemed to grow a little more, Jack noticed. Maybe she was just thinking about her children, or maybe she was enjoying his stomach pains. "You'll probably meet Jeremiah first. He's the second—well, third now—oldest of my boys at nineteen, and probably the friendliest—or easiest to make friends with right off the bat. Jerry's a true sweetheart, that boy is. Then, I'm almost certain you'll stumble upon Angel. Angel, he's almost eighteen. He's so eager to be legal, y'know how that is…but he'll have to wait a few more months. He's a little playful and sarcastic, but like his older brother, he's a sweetheart. And then there's Bobby." She stopped to laugh softly, turning a corner as she did so. "Bobby's the oldest—he's a firecracker. Almost twenty one, he is. Can't believe how he's aged…but, anyways. He can be rather sarcastic and brutish, but like his brothers, he's a sweetheart. Bobby means the best, he always does," she finished. "They're all eagerly waiting for you at home."
He twitched softly when she told him that they were waiting for him. Why were they waiting? No one ever waited for him to do anything unless they wanted something in return. Jackie prayed softly within himself, asking whoever above would listen to him to make this house a little nicer than the ones he usually went to. Not like the ones in Illinois, Ohio or Indiana, which were by-far the worst, but a little nicer. He was only asking for a little, too!
"Well, Jackie, we're here," Evelyn cooed as she pulled into the back driveway of her home. The building was gray from behind because of large slate bricks, but the front was a pastel, sunny yellow. Honestly, Jackie could've cared less if the house was just a normal brick building or if it was a gigantic purple dome. It was a house (one that he probably wouldn't be in for very long) and, more importantly, it was the final destination of their journey. Which, ultimately, meant he could get up and stretch his legs.
They had been driving from the adoption agency in Lansing, Michigan for about an hour and a half and it had been one of the most awkward experiences of his life. He had just wanted to sit there and enjoy the scenery, think to himself for a little bit, but Evelyn insisted on keeping a steady conversation going, though they died every now and then and had to be resurrected constantly. It was really uncomfortable, just sitting there, as he was too intimidated and scared to really speak.
Thus, he was left to his own devices: his thoughts, his paranoia, his fears. Was this place going to be like all of the others (the fact that Evelyn had "adopted" made him feel no better, what so ever)? What was the point in talking to this woman? Most of the time, he got smacked for whatever he said, if not worse. Hell, some of the time that he didn't talk, he got punished.
He hadn't answered a single question completely in about fifty-five minutes and Evelyn had yet to smack him. That was a good sign, right? Maybe it was because she was driving; maybe it was because he hadn't said anything to defy her authority; or maybe, just maybe, she genuinely was going to take care of him. Jack bit his lip hard once the last thought drifted through his mind.
Fat chance in hell for that to ever happen. No one wants me, he told himself, and sighed gently.
Oh well; at least they had stopped driving now. Jack's butt was going numb from sitting down for so long.
"Your bag is in the back, right?" she asked, and he nodded back to her. She then unbuckled her seatbelt, he following suit as well, and climbed out of the car slowly as she walked over to the trunk. Jackie stayed at his post beside the passenger's side door and continued fiddling with his nails, his feet occasionally shuffling over the snow-covered driveway. Slowly, he allowed himself to think and let his guard down as he leaned against the cold, metallic door.
Upon hearing a loud scream, though, Jack was snapped from his thoughts violently and abruptly. A loud, frightened squeak left his mouth as the sound echoed around him. Yelling and screaming freaked Jack out like no other, people simply projecting their voice scared him. A tense emotion coiled itself around his throat as his eyes flickered back and forth, his body standing up completely straight and his nails feverishly picking at each other. His middle right finger grazed against his thumb and sliced it a tad, but he didn't even notice it. It wasn't like it mattered; he had seen, and felt, worse.
"Ma! Is that you?" another person screamed, causing Jackie to whine gently. Were they trying to kill him? Jack scoffed softly, which escaped along with a whimper. A better question was: who wasn't trying to kill him? "You home? Or is it just you, Jeremiah? You know Ma' doesn't like you takin' that old piece'a shit that she leaves in the back garage! If that's you, I'm'a kick your ass!" Next Jack heard a door open (a screen door, judging by the general sound) and footsteps coming from the front of the house to the back garage.
Evelyn noticed Jack jump and sighed softly, tossing his bag over her shoulder after she slammed the trunk door down. At that particular sound Jack jumped as well, his eyes wide and his body pin straight. Evelyn sighed once more and lightly shook her head, blond curls bouncing. She walked to the boy's side and placed her hand on his shoulder. Jack nervously looked up at her, visibly trembling beside her, his mouth slightly ajar and his eyes filled with paranoia. "That's just Bobby, Jackie. He's a little rambunctious and, well...loud. I guess we're going against all odds and meeting him first today, eh?"
Then, almost on cue, a large, older teen came jogging out of the house. He was dressed in a large, fluffy, black winter jacket (unzipped and on top of a dark gray, long sleeve thermal shirt), a pair of loose-fitting acid-washed jeans hanging from his hips and a pair of mustard yellow Timberland work boots on his feet. He was well dressed compared to Jack, whom was simply clad in a pair of dark blue, really loose jeans, a white t-shirt, worn-out black trainers and a thin, dark gray hoodie. Jack felt another coil of tension lace itself around his throat as the boy before him, Bobby, approached. He walked like he was the oldest and had…an alpha-dog air about him. In fact, his body screamed, "Top Dog" to Jack. (Not to mention, "Thug".)
"Bobby," she said, smiling to the boy now before herself and Jack, "this is Jackie. Jackie, this is Bobby."
"Hey," Bobby replied, out of breath. "You'll like it here. Ma' really takes care of us." He smiled widely as Evelyn shushed him playfully.
Jack just nodded softly, biting at his lip as his eyes found the floor. Bobby made him…he couldn't place it. He had a hell of a smile, had a bad-boy appearance and was much taller than him, so intimidating fit the quota, but still. Jack listened as the air fell silent for a moment and continued gazing at the floor.
"Well…let's go introduce you Angel and Jerry, okay Jackie?" Evelyn proposed. Jackie nodded (as if he had a choice) and followed Evelyn slowly, whom seemed to be four or five paces in front of Jack—and Bobby. He lifted his head softly to inspect his surroundings and had his breath hitch in his throat upon seeing Bobby right beside him. Shouldn't he have been before him, with Evelyn...? Instantly, Jack looked back down, his nerves swimming in his eyes and his paranoia tinting his cheeks pink.
"Ma' takes good care of us. You'll like it here, trust me, little brother," Bobby insisted, placing a hand softly on Jack's right shoulder. He jumped—which made Bobby laugh softly, which he tried to hide and succeeded at least a little—and took a deep breath.
Trust…what a problematic thing that was.