Chapter 2

Bobby Mercer laughed and shook his head as his baby brother retched repeatedly into the trashcan. He had borrowed a trick from his mother's book and was frying eggs for breakfast. Something Evelyn did every time she found out that one of them had come home drunk.

After a few minutes of banging pots in the kitchen Bobby checked to verify that the living room was empty and that Jack had indeed gone upstairs.

It was barely after six and both of his younger pain in the ass siblings had school. Jo usually got herself up and could be expected to be downstairs at a reasonable time but considering the streak she'd been on lately, he didn't want to chance it.

Jo Mercer ran a hand over her face and groaned in pain as she sat up in her bed. Jack was asleep in his bed on the other side of the room. His head buried under a pillow. She hadn't even heard him come in last night.

There was a knock at the door before it opened allowing a very happy Bobby into the room. He was carrying a bucket of what Jo assumed was water and dumped it onto Jack's head.

"Jerk!" Jack yelled sitting up.

Bobby had removed the pillow and had dumped the water directly onto Jack's face.

Bobby smiled at him. "Move your ass fairy. Hung-over or not you're still going to school."

Jack flipped Bobby off as he moved his dripping hair out of his face.

"Love you too, fairy." Bobby said turning away from his soaked baby brother to face their little sister. He had a smart-ass comment ready for her too but stopped when he saw her face. His gaze instantly drawn to her split lip and the cut she had above her left eye.

"What the hell happened to you?" Bobby asked. His voice dropped an octave as he spoke. He made a motion of reaching out to touch her face and Jo instinctively flinched, shrinking back into her bed away from his touch.

Bobby stopped. Jo hadn't responded like that to him since back when she and Jack first arrived at the Mercer home. Both of them had shied away from even the faintest contact and walked around for months like scared little puppies afraid of everyone and everything. Jack especially. The only time he would speak up was when he was defending his younger sister and even then he looked like a scared little kid.

Bobby turned to look at Jack. Even he had caught Jo's reaction.

"You okay?" Bobby asked his tone considerably softer.

Jo nodded and forced a smile. "I'm fine Bobby."

Jo jumped out of bed ignoring the pain it caused her and moved to get ready for school.

Bobby frowned at his sister but was unsure of whether to press the issue considering her reaction to him just then. He wasn't going to drop it but he wouldn't stress it right now. Turning back to Jack he motioned at the bucket.

"Be in the shower and start getting ready for school or I'm returning in five minutes with a bucket of ice." Bobby warned.

Jack frowned at his brother and climbed out of bed as Bobby left his room shutting the door behind him.

He looked back at Jo. She had already made her bed and was getting her clothes ready for school.

"You sure you're okay?" Jack asked.

Jo nodded but didn't look Jack in the eye when she said, "I'm fine."

He knew she was lying. Jo was his baby sister, half-sister anyway. They shared the same mother but Jo's father, their step-dad, was black.

The two had had a good life up until Jo's dad died when she was five. Jack had been seven at the time. Everything had gone downhill from there.

Their mother started using drugs again and completely ignored her children. The woman would do anything for a fix, even prostituting herself and children. She had forced both Jack and Jo to sleep with countless men to support her habit. Jack had even resorted to turning tricks without his mother's knowledge just to make a little extra money so he and Jo could have decent clothes and something to eat. A habit he had kept long after being removed from her care when he was placed in some of the worse foster homes in Detroit.

He and Jo had both suffered through hell before being placed with the Mercers. At first they thought it would be like every other foster home. Most families wanted either a girl or a boy never both. Either he or Jo always got the worst end. They were shocked when Ms. Evelyn had agreed to let them share a room. The two hated being apart and Jack liked being able to protect his younger sister.

That was almost three years ago, back when Jo was eleven and he was thirteen. That sweet old lady had taken them in and given them a home, a mother, and three older brothers to protect them. They couldn't ask for better.

That entire life was behind them or so he thought.

Jack quickly showered, brushed his teeth and got dressed. There was a bottle of aspirin on the desk when he re-entered his bedroom and his bed was already made.

Jack smiled to himself as he poured three of the aspirin into his hand and grabbed his book bag off of his bed. Jo was the best baby sister in the world.

Bobby glared at Jack as he sat down at the table. Jack felt awful and wanted nothing else than to climb back into his bed and go back to sleep.

"What?" Jack yelled when Bobby continued to give him the death stare.

Bobby shrugged. "Let's go."

Jo grabbed her bookbag off the floor and headed to Bobby's car. She grabbed the front seat trying to avoid any further confrontations between her brothers.

The entire ride to school was in silence. Bobby pulled up to the school and Jack got out. Jo reached for her door but was stopped by Bobby grabbing her arm.

Jo turned to look at her older brother.

"Go to all of your classes today. You understand me?" Jo looked at her brother with fear in her eyes and nodded.

Bobby felt like an idiot. "I'm sorry, Joey." He released his grasp. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her. The look of fear in her eyes when he reached for her that morning flashed in his mind and he regretted touching her at all.

Bobby took a deep breath. "The school called yesterday. I know you ditched. You want to tell me what's going on? Joey, you never cut class."

Jo looked at her brother completely shocked. Bobby wasn't one for letting you explain yourself and having a heart to heart. Not really.

The warning bell sounded saving Jo from any further interrogation.

Jo opened her door and jumped out of the car. "Gotta get to class Bobby," Jo said slamming her brother's car door shut.

She ignored the string of curses Bobby yelled at her trying to get her attention. She couldn't deal with Bobby right now. After last night she was dreading a long day of school. She didn't have the focus.

Jo walked up to her locker and grabbed the two books she needed. She was thinking about leaving school and taking a mental health day when the door to her locker slammed shut snapping her out of her trance.

Jo almost screamed when a hand gripped her arm and spun her around slamming her back into her locker.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" The hand gripped tighter on her arm.

A/N: So, hate us. The next Chapter is a bit more Jack centric. Yeah we left Jo hanging there but we'll get back to her too. We promise. :) Review and let us know what you think.