Tunnels Series!AU where Will's parents are extremely neglecting (gasps) and he has to grow up and become the man of the house. In order to take care of Rebecca he starts doing things on the edge of the law, slowly spiralling into disgrace as the situation gets out of hand. Well, he has to get the money somehow, right?
All the characters are going to show up at some given moment.
And I really mean all of them.
Okay, maybe not the Brights, this is supposed to be realistic, after all.
Also, be prepared to fall under the weight of angst, fluff and neverending suffering.
Welcome aboard ;)
All the characters belong to Roderick Gordon and Brian Williams.
HOLLOW
CHAPTER 1. Fragments
Will's stomach growled. He clenched his teeth and tried not to think about how hungry he was. He shifted in bed remembering the past few days.
For a long while, his mind had been confused. He had convinced himself that it was normal... that maybe families were supposed to work like that.
But nevertheless, as he grew older he had gradually realized that his family was more dysfunctional than average.
It wasn't that his parents were abusive. They'd never hurt him or Rebecca, and he knew that. At least not on purpose. They were just… neglecting.
His father was never home. He only returned to sleep or eat sometimes, and those were the lucky days. He made "work trips" every month, occasionally leaving for weeks without a warning. Will knew his father had lost his job at the museum almost a year ago. He knew it the moment the checks had stopped coming, the moment the fridge had started to get empty. It was around the same time when his father had started to come home later than usual, smelling like alcohol and cigarettes. But he kept leaving for trips as if nothing had changed. Will had not the faintest idea about what his father did in those trips. He really hoped he was looking for a new job. As time went by, it became very clear for the boy that it wasn't the case. Maybe he had an affair, or maybe he left to gamble. That would explain a lot of things, like the reason he came back home with less money he had left with.
And his mother, well, she had problems. She was always sleeping and taking those pills. God, Will hated those pills. He couldn't blame her, though. It wasn't her fault. She needed some serious help but he was a fourteen year old boy with no money or adult guidance, what was he supposed to do?
Some primal instinct made him felt obliged to protect his sister as much as he could. She was only eleven years old, she didn't have to know all the stuff that was going on. Will could tell that she knew sometimes, though. She was a very clever girl, after all. But maybe if he kept sugarcoating things for her, maybe she could continue to enjoy her childhood for a little bit more. He didn't want her soul to be as broken as his was.
He had taken the habit of walking Rebecca to school every day as his mother was too gone in the mornings to take care of them. Sometimes he arrived a bit late to pick her up, making excuses about how his teacher wouldn't let them out on time.
He couldn't tell her that he had actually skipped class. That he had been looking for a job around the neighborhood. That his hands ached because he had been removing weeds of Mrs. Andrews' garden the whole morning.
Because he knew that he had just earned three pounds, and that his sister wouldn't be hungry for at least that night.
He shifted again, unable to find a comfortable position with his belly hurting so badly. But maybe hunger wasn't the only reason. Maybe he couldn't sleep because he knew that there were only 27 pennies left and nothing in the cupboard for her sister to eat in the morning. She shouldn't go to school with an empty stomach.
Will's throat ached from anguish and despair. He didn't know what to do. His father had left two weeks ago and he hadn't called ever since.
Tired of shifting in bed, he got up and went to see his mother. He didn't even thought about looking for her in the main bedroom, and he went straight into the living room.
She was sprawled over the couch with the TV on, as always. Her hair was a mess and the strong scent emerging from her could've positively belonged to a wild animal. He couldn't remember the last time his mother had left the couch to take a shower. As he approached more it didn't escaped him the bottle of pills barely supported by her bony hands, as well as the dried blood in her left nostril. Her body couldn't take it anymore. She was falling to pieces.
He took the bottle from her cold fingers and laid it on the coffee table. As he turned to her mother again he half expected to see her complaining about her pills being taken away. However, she had not even fazed. He coughed and tried to clear his sore throat. Once more, she didn't acknowledge him nor even moved.
He reached the couch and tugged at her sleeve.
"Mum," He pleaded, failing to recognize the hopelessness in his voice.
He cupped her face in his hands and shook it lightly.
"Oi, mum." Please.
She mumbled something and tried to get away from his grip. He let his hands fall to his sides and sighed in defeat.
His mother was drugged beyond hope, too numb to even care. She was not to wake up for at least another twelve hours.
He tried shakily to stop the tears forming in his eyes. He felt puny and most of all, alone.
Author notes: As English is not my natural language, my grammar can be a little rusty (or completely wrong). So if anyone wants to be my beta reader, I'd be more than happy. Thanks for reading!