Hate
arkari: Sorry x the delay, but I gotta study a lot. Snif, professors are so cruel… ; . ;
red turtle: Yes, I think the same. I mean, Sean doesn't look tolerant at all, I bet he didn't change his believes. About the grammar, you're right. I need some backup…
Moonjava: I don't love him, neither. It's amazing Richie is his son…
Zizzy3: I appreciate your review a lot. I like slash, but I don't think this fic will contain it.
Guardiangirl1: Here is the new chap! I hope u like it
StarStar16: I hate that man. I don't know how Richie can bear him…
Kate Maxwell: Thanks x the review!
Shadow Star: Yeah, I admit it… my grammar really sucks.
Ebon's girl: Thank you so much x reviewing. I hope I don't have to study that much again, so the new chaps could be written and uploaded as soon as possible.
Chapter Two: We'll always be friends
-Virgil's POV-
Wind is messing my hair. It's cold. Horribly cold. I take my ShockBox, this act inaugurates my search. I start with the obvious and deliciously simple option.
"Richie?"
The word deliciously reminds me I didn't have a decent dinner. I know where did Sharon take it from. It's genetic, damn genetic.
"Richie? Come on, bro, I know you're listening"
Silence.
"Could you be gentle and stop scaring the hell on me?" I beg
"Fine..." his voice sounds tearful.
"Where are you?"
"Don't be mad, V. I need to be alone"
"Our Gas Station of Solitude, right?"
"Virg..."
"You don't expect that I obey you, do you?"
My ShockBox sighs
"I'm on my way. At least let me accompany you. I promise I will keep my mouth shut"
"You'd do such a huge effort for me?"
Good sign: his sense of humor is slowly returning.
"Friendship implies sacrifices. That's why I won't hit you because of your last comment"
"Okay. Besides... I bet you were going to come here, no matter how much I beg for peace and tranquility"
"Hah! You are so wrong..."
"Later, liar"
I lied, fine. I can't bear to know Richie is suffering. I meditated about my friendship with him, a lot of times. "Know yourself" Sharon told me, and I think it's a good advice. Actually... her real words were "Know yourself and try to find why are you so unbearable" but that's not the point.
Let's see, again:
What does Richie mean to me?
Years ago, I'd answer: "a good friend". Now, I realized it's more than friendship. He is my brother. The brother I always wanted... an "adoptive brother" if we want to talk appropriately. Yeah, I love Sharon too, that's why I criticize her cooking: I love her and I help her to improve. And... well, I know Sharon, deep in her soul, very deep in her soul, very, very, very deep in her soul... loves me back.
There are things I can't share with Sharon, but with Richie. When did he become another member of my family? It's hard to know...
Static Shock's businesses influenced; so did Pops holding him in great esteem. Ha, I even caught him calling Richie "son" a couple of times. Mmmm... isn't he wanting to replace me, is he? Let's get serious again, please...
We all know the way his parents treat him. Even Sharon. Believe it or not, she asked me to invite him home a lot of times. Of course, she will never admit she likes Richie too. But she can't fool me, no matter how many times she calls him "annoyance", or "bug", or "unwelcome guest", or "the plague of our fridge"...
Call me idiot, but I can't understand how a person like Richie has a... which word could describe him? Disagreeable? Egocentric? Asshole? Poor Pops, alone with him. What kind of idiotic reasons against our friendship is he saying, right now? Oh, I know: "different colors don't mix". Shit. He can cry all he wants, but I won't let him win this. Nothing will take me apart of Richie.
Here I am. Who would suspect that inside this dirty, infested with rats and cockroaches, and devastated Gas Station are the two famous superheroes of Dakota City? I slowly enter.
"Richie?"
"Here..." my brother is sit on the table, his hands are holding a zap-cap. He'd been crying, the skin near his eyes is stained with furious red. I can see some screwdrivers and wires, next to him.
I sit on the floor in front of Richie, who returned to his work. He can't concentrate on the zap-cap. And I wouldn't, neither, if my father was a dictator who doesn't care about his son's happiness but about himself. My partner leaves his unfinished work on the table, frustrated.
I don't wanna talk, because I respect his suffering. I hope my presence is enough to tell him he's not alone, that my family and I care about him, that we will always friend. He gave me a soft smile, in his eyes, the tears are trying to escape "Bored? I'm sorry for the silence, but..."
"It's okay, Richie. Talk when you are ready... and if you don't wanna talk, fine. I understand"
"Thanks..." sadness invaded his words "Although you'd never understand"
"Try me"
"I just... can't bear him! I hate him, Virgil... I hate him!"
"Richie..."
"You don't know how lucky you are... having a family that loves you. They never loved me, you know? I was... an damned accident. That was the words my mother used... damned accident. I fucked their careers... and I was the bound that linked two persons that barely bear each other. I founded my family, as an damned accident"
How could I stop this pain that invaded me? And what can I tell him? What can I do? How could I help him? I'm hypnotized by his pathetic monologue. I want to say something, but the words are stuck in my throat. Richie doesn't seem to look at me; he's lost in his thoughts. And I'm here, useless, sharing his miseries, listening revelations I didn't want to know. That nobody would want to know.
"No, I didn't have a good start. I wish I could say it turned better. I always got sick, my mother practically lived inside the Hospital. More nuisance. And what about my father? Well, he always had the hope I was like him: football player, winner, Casanova. Look at me. As for him, I am a living failure. The tolerance... because I think that's the only feeling he would have for me... his tolerance... vanished when I confessed him I am..."
I never saw Richie cry. His hands cover his face, while a hundred, a million sobs break the silence, hurting my ears. I feel infinity sadness, total desolation. I can't react, the psychic pain is uncontrollable.
MOVE! DO SOMETHING! NOW!
I rose up, walking towards him. My arms wrapped his chest. Slowly, I guided his forehead to my right shoulder. Richie is crying louder, while I am patting his back. My mother used to comfort me like this...
How could his parents be so merciless.
There's no logical reason/excuse for what they did.
I hate them.
My brother is calming down, he is separating from me "V... I'm... sorry... I didn't want... to bother you..."
"Damn, Richie! You're suffering a lot and you care about being annoying..."
His cheeks are completely red, his eyes are irritated "Thanks... for..."
"Don't" I shake my head, emphasizing my words "There is no thank between friends, remember that?"
He nods, a smile is forcing to reemerge. It's time to act, Virgil.
"Don't believe in... what you hear, Richie. Never. Promise me you will never repeat those words, again. You are not an accident, but a worthy person. Keep it in mind"
"But..."
"Promise me"
"Yeah"
"You are not alone, and you will never be alone. Not as long as my family and I live. You are important for us, got it? You... you are like... a brother to me"
Should I say it? Oh, shit, bad move... it was soooooo a bad move. He is moving away, his head is so low that it's gonna touch the floor. I stood quiet, his back is all I can see
"Ri..."
"I need to tell you something. The reason my father and I fought..."
Richie sighed loud "I... I am gay, Virgil"