Title: My Salvation
Word Count: 395
Rating: G
Summary: She's completely shocked when she opens the front door to find her sons alone in the apartment, and completely covered head-to-toe in food.
Disclaimer: Paul Scheuring and a whole lot of other people who aren't me own Prison Break.
A/N: Sixth part of a series of pointless, semi-fluffy childhood drabbles/short ficlets.

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The thunk and thwap make her double her pace down the hall, and the sudden loud screech makes her break into a run, visions of fire, blood, murderers, child-molesters running through her head.

She's completely shocked when she opens the front door to find her sons alone in the apartment, and completely covered head-to-toe in food.

And there's food everywhere.

Broccoli adorns the windowsill, Spaghettios are stuck to the refrigerator, green Jell-O drips in huge globs from the kitchen table to the floor, and there's a trail of Cheerios leading from Lincoln's feet to the box that Michael has his hand stuffed down.

Both boys are frozen in their places, Lincoln looking shocked and Michael guilty, and the Jell-O that Lincoln was been holding, arm raised to throw, begins sliding down his arm.

She opens her mouth to berate them, but she can't get a word out before Lincoln jumps in with it was me, I started it, it wasn't his fault, glancing quickly at his brother's worried expression.

He's lying, Mom! Michael interrupts as the Cheerios fall heavily to the floor. I started it, I swear!

Don't listen to him, Lincoln tells her, moving around the table to push Michael out of the way and stand in front of her.

Mom, Michael whines, trying to shove his brother away.

Lincoln turns to Michael and tells him, shut up.

So she hits him in the back of the head with a spoonful of Jell-O.

Lincoln jumps in surprise and whirls around to give her a look of absolute astonishment while she crouches down to hide behind a chair and grab the box of Cheerios.

She hurls a handful at her sons as Lincoln pulls Michael around behind the table, grabbing at whatever they can reach to throw back at her.

She knows this is a huge waste, as a glob of butter hits her forehead, knows that she'll have to go shopping tomorrow because they'll soon be out of everything.

But Michael laughs and Lincoln grins, and Lincoln almost never grins anymore, and she hits her youngest with a handful of pepper, making him sneeze, and right now money's not such a big deal.

It's reassuring, especially after her latest visit to the doctor, to think that she doesn't have to worry too much about the two of them, because they'll always protect each other.