Standard disclaimer still applies. Tyler is mine and that is no lie.
This is an AU folks. By definition, an AU (alternate universe) is anything that deviates from normal cannon (what has been written by the powers that be for TV, books, movies, etc) and that includes giving characters family they might not have and different relationships with other established and original characters.
Now, on with the show... er, story.
Chp 2
Tyler was quiet for a few moments before he met his brother's eyes. "Was kinda scared you'd send me away."
Tommy sighed and placed a hand on the younger Oliver's uninjured shoulder. "Ty, I never wanted you to stay away nor would I send you away. If I'd had my way, the last 4 years you would have still been able to visit and involved with my life. At least more than the few small letters and cards we were able to slip you at the dojo. Not to mention that little unapproved visit you made to us over the summer. Keeping you away was Russell's decision, not mine. Although if I'd known what he was doing to you was this bad, I would have come to get you or stopped you from going back."
Ignoring the pain in his ribs, Tyler wrapped his arms around his brother, finally letting the tears fall that he'd held back for far too long.
As he held the crying teen, Tommy couldn't help but think back on the last time he'd really seen his little brother. When the teen had been unburdened, carefree and innocent.
4 years ago
Angel Grove
Tommy Oliver was nervous. Tonight, he and Jason were finally going to come out to his parents that they were a couple. His brother, Tyler, had known for over a year and treated them no differently. The only thing he did differently was to actually knock before coming into a room where he knew both of them were. Now, he was hoping that tonight would go smoothly and no one would die. Out of the two of them, it was his step-dad's reaction that he feared the most. Russell Johnson could be a pain in the ass about a lot of things, but none of the boys had ever heard him say anything, good or bad, about people in a same-sex relationship.
When he heard the knock at the door, he went over and opened it, relieved to find Jason on the other side. Nodding at him, they headed upstairs to wait until his mom called them down for dinner. Once in the bedroom, Tommy wrapped his arms around Jason, trembling slightly.
"Easy love," Jason said, running his hands up and down the toned back. "You don't need to make yourself so nervous that you get sick to your stomach. It's not going to help things."
He sighed. "I know Jase. Just can't help but wonder what he's going to say. Then again, I'm so tired of not being able to hug you in front of them every time you come over. And if we don't come out to them first, when they find out from someone else--" He was stopped by Jason kissing him, effectively cutting off his ramble.
As the need for air arose, Jason pulled back a bit and rested his forehead against Tommy's. "Relax. Whatever happens, we'll deal with. We've already told my parents and they're fine with it. If worse comes to worse, you can move in with me. We were already planning on you moving in, but if he throws you out, this will just move things up a bit."
"What about Tyler? Do you think he'd take anything out on him?"
"I don't know, but let's cross that bridge when we come to it. I mean, Tyler's a good kid, but even when he acts up a bit all Russell's done so far is yell at him. He hasn't raised a hand to him in the five years your mom's been married to him. So, he may not care, but until we actually talk with them, it's all guesswork."
Tommy nodded, then sighed as his mom called them all down for dinner. When they got downstairs, Tyler was already at the table along with Russell. Tommy sat down with Jason across from Tyler and grinned at his little brother. The 10 year old just grinned back and started filling his plate as dishes were passed around.
It wasn't until they were having dessert that Tommy finally brought up the reason Jason was there, not that it was unusual for him to come over for dinner. "I've got something I'd like to tell you two."
Russell looked over at the two boys, then nodded. "All right. What is it?"
Jason's hand squeezing his beneath the table gave him the courage to say what he needed to as he met his step-dad's eyes. "I know that you and mom have always wanted me to get married after college and all that, so you can have grankids, but that's not going to be possible."
"Why not?" Russell had started to frown at this statement, warning bells going off in his head.
"Because I'm gay and currently seeing someone."
Glaring at his oldest step-son, Russell Johnson stood up slowly. "Let me guess, your fag boyfriend is Jason?"
Tommy nodded his head before speaking. "Yes, Jason's my boyfriend. We've been seeing each other for almost 2 years now. And he's actually bi-sexual, not gay."
There was silence for several minutes, then Russell pointed at the door. "Get out of my house and don't come back."
Rebecca Oliver-Johnson looked at her husband. "Russell, please. Let's talk about this."
"There is nothing to talk about. I will not have something that unnatural in this house. Not when it could taint Tyler and make him think that kind of thing is acceptable."
Tyler chose that moment to speak up. "I'm fine with it. I've known for a while now. Besides, it doesn't change who they are as people."
Russell glared at his step-son. "You will have nothing to do with him, do you understand me Tyler? Now go to your room." He was practically yelling by the time he finished and watched as the boy practically ran up the stairs. Then he turned to the other two. "You are not to call him, send him letters or email. If I find out that you are, you will end up in jail on charges of child molestation so fast you won't know which way is up."
"I've never laid a hand on Tyler nor has Jason. He's my brother Russell."
"Not anymore he's not. As of today, you have no family. Now get out."
They left in silence. Only once they arrived back at Jason's did Tommy allow himself to cry. The next few days were spent making decisions about what to do. It helped that both he and Jason were in college with Jason having an apartment of his own. The restrictions Russell had given them about Tyler, however, required a few changes. Jason had been his karate instructor for the past 4 years, having gone to Geneva and returning after only a few months a little over 2 years ago. Now, he turned that job over to Rocky, taking over one of the other advanced classes instead.
One of the other changes made was asking the others to help them watch out for Tyler since they couldn't actively do it themselves. For a few months, things were okay. That all changed when Rocky was helping Tyler out with some extra sparring practice in preparation for a tournament. During one of Rocky's throws, Tyler landed on his side and didn't get back up. When Rocky was checking him out, he noticed several bruises that looked like someone had hit the boy. Tyler refused to tell him what had happened and left. It was almost two weeks before Tyler came back to the dojo and even then he refused to change in the locker rooms. Without Tyler talking, there was nothing they could do except be there for him when he needed them.
It was two years of hell before Jason finally convinced him to move to Reefside. Tommy had told Rocky to let it slip to Tyler where they were going to be living and what the address was in case something happened. They'd heard from a few people that some of the bruises that Tyler was getting were from him trying to convince Russell to let him see his brother.
The fact that Tyler had been getting beat for wanting to see him both angered Tommy and made him feel guilty. He knew, deep down, that the only person that was really to blame was their step-father. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly before easing Tyler back into a sitting position just before Jason came back into the room.
"Brought some stuff to clean the stitches with and something to wrap his hand and ribs along with some ointment for the welts." He set the items on the nightstand and looked at Tyler. "Did the doctors give you something for infection?"
Tyler snorted before he raised an eyebrow at Jason. "Check my jeans pocket?"
Leaving the room, Jason went to the bathroom and checked the pockets of Tyler's jeans. He came out with more than just antibiotics. Frowning, he read over the bottles and swallowed hard before he went back into the room.
"Why migraine meds Tyler?" He set the bottles on the nightstand, watching as Tommy read through the labels.
"Because I've had a total of four concussions in the past 18 months. Probably another one now thanks to that asshole. That and the stress of dealing with the crap at home built up until I collapsed one day at school. Didn't regain consciousness for almost 2 days and by then the doctors had determined why I collapsed and that I'd probably have migraines for the rest of my life." He nodded slightly at the remaining two bottles. "The other two are a painkiller and a muscle relaxer for the bruised ribs and pulled muscle in my lower back that I got the other day along with the stitches."
Shaking his head, Jason set about taking care of the teen's injuries. His years of treating his own injuries along with the first aid, EMT and Paramedic courses he'd taken plus his 2 years as a Paramedic were definitely of a benefit in situations like these. "Well, I don't think your ribs are just bruised any longer. From what I can tell you have a couple that are at the least cracked, probably broken. You should probably see a doctor Ty."
"They'll call Russell and I'm not going back to him. I'm only 14, over 6 months from being 15, Jase. He's still my guardian."
"What if he wasn't?" Tommy asked, helping his brother into a loose T-shirt, boxers and pair of sweatpants.
"Then I could die a happy person." He sighed as they helped him lay down. "I don't want to go home Tommy."
Jason looked over at his lover, then nodded his head slightly. "I'll call Rocky tomorrow. See if he can get the order of protection and emergency guardianship papers done as soon as possible." He handed Tyler a round of his meds along with some Tylenol and helped him sit up a bit. "Take these and get some rest little brother."
It had been a long while since Jason had called him that and it made him feel safe. Taking the meds, Tyler took hold of his brother's hand and gave him a soft smile. "Thank you for letting me stay."
Tommy leaned over and kissed his forehead softly. "I would never make you leave Tyler, not if I had a say in things. You know that." He pulled the covers into place. "Get some rest. We're just down the hall if you need us."
"Okay." He closed his eyes, the meds catching up to him quickly as he drifted off to sleep.
The two lovers were silent as they made their way down the hall and entered their own room. It wasn't until they were laying down, wrapped in each others arms, that Tommy started crying softly. "God Jase, what has that bastard done to my little brother?"
"It's over Tommy. Even if we have to ask Anton for help, we won't let Tyler go back to him. I promise." He laid a chaste kiss against his lover's mouth. "Now get some rest. I think we're both going to need it in the next few days."
Nodding his head slightly, Tommy closed his eyes, drifting off into the depths of sleep. Only once he was sure his boyfriend was asleep did Jason allow himself give in to his body's demands for sleep.
