Sonny scowled at the brand new backpack resting in the corner of the room. As he sat upright in his bed scowling he could feel a lump forming in his throat. He glanced at the clock on his bedside table it was roughly six hours until he had to get up for his first day at school. He wasn't ready. Everything was about to change, he was about to be forced out of his little world where it was just him his dad and Kelly. He wasn't ready to be pushed into a world of chaos. He'd visited the high school with Matt and Kelly the previous week and he'd hated every moment of it. Even when everyone was in class it was still a loud building, he could hear people talking loudly as they walked through the long empty halls. They'd shown him the small classroom that he'd stay in and while it was quieter than the other rooms Sonny had instantly despised it. The other students stared at him and whispered among themselves while the teachers looked at him with sympathetic smiles. He nodded and hummed in response to any of their questions not trusting himself to speak, he'd plastered a smile on his face but Matt had seen straight through it. Ever since the visit the two men had been trying to assure him everything was going to be fine. But he knew he wasn't ready.
As well as visiting the high school there had also been plenty of visits to the firehouse and he had even visited the Hermann's, and that was a definitely visit he'd never forget. Unfortunately meeting the Hermann's hadn't eased his nerves over interacting with people around his age, if anything the boisterous children has pushed him even further on the edge. They'd also made a trip to the local supermarket late one night to buy school supplies. Given the late hour it was significantly quieter than when he'd visited during his first week with Matt and Kelly. His heart rested in his throat the entire time and his whole body had shook with Fear. But afterwards he'd been ecstatic, he'd felt like he'd conquered the world. However Sonny knew surviving one shopping trip didn't mean he could cope at school.
After a while he felt like his mind was spinning. He couldn't lay in his bed staring at his backpack any longer, he needed a distraction. He reached out for his sketchbook but instead of feeling the familiar worn cardboard cover he felt the cold wood of his bedside table. He let out a groan as he realised he must have left it downstairs. He pushed off the covers and shuffled towards his door carefully opening it. A light was coming from down stairs, it appeared he wasn't the only one still wide awake. After a few minutes of debating whether to return to bed he padded down the stairs, after all it wasn't like he was going to be getting to sleep anytime soon. He frowned softly to himself when he reached the kitchen, his dad was sat down at the kitchen table while Kelly stood by the counter making coffee. He stepped further into the room causing Matt to look up with a sympathetic look oh his face.
"You couldn't sleep either?" His father asked and Sonny shrugged before sitting himself down in one of the chairs.
"Dad I've been thinking why don't I-"
"No, Sonny you're going to school", Sonny felt his chest tighten at his fathers interruption, he had really hoped the man would see things his way.
"But-" this time he was cut off by Kelly gently placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Sonny we know you're ready, we wouldn't let you go if we didn't think you could handle it"
"I like our life the way it is" he admitted in a voice barely above a whisper. He liked the safety of their little bubble, he wasn't ready for things to change. When Kelly removed his hand Sonny turned towards Matt who's mouth was pressed in a tight line, the teen had a feeling the older blonde was as nervous as he was.
"Me too kid but school will be good for you". Good for him, right now Sonny thought the only good thing for him would be seclusion. He wasn't ready for school; he didn't understand why no one else could see that. The busiest place he could manage was the supermarket and that trip had drained him, he'd slept for eleven hours the night after. He was brought out of his thoughts by the sound of Kelly placing a mug in front of him.
"Drink this up then back to bed". Sonny nodded before tentatively placing his hands around the warm mug. He felt some of his nerves ease as the rich scent of hot chocolate reached his nose. As he drank Matt and Kelly told him stories about their time at the academy in an attempt to distract him. By the time Sonny found himself holding an empty mug his eyelids were beginning to droop. He muttered his thanks to Kelly and wished the two men good night before shuffling out of the room.
Kelly smiled softly to himself as he watched Sonny padding out of the kitchen. Seeing the teen appear in the kitchen door way had reminded him of when Sonny was little. A few months before his disappearance the little boy had started waking up in the middle of the night. He'd tiptoe into the living room when Kelly and Matt were talking and attempt to hide but the little boy was never very stealthy. There was one night that stood out in Kelly's head the most.
After a rough shift the day before Matt and Kelly found themselves relaxing on the couch watching an old film. Truck 81 had been called to what appeared to be a small house fire but it had quickly become apparent that it was more serious. Squad had been called for backup but by the time they arrived it had become a recovery instead of a rescue. Kelly didn't think he'd forget the faces of the victims any time soon. They'd been blocking out the events of the day since picking Sonny up from Hallie's house. The little boy stopped them from crawling into a bottle or retreating into themselves, he was their reminder that good still existed in the world. However remaining positive for the little boy after witnessing something so horrific left them feeling drained. When night had finally fallen Matt had allowed himself to fall apart and Kelly had held him tight. He'd rubbed the blondes back as the man released all the feelings he'd bottled up. Eventually the blondes sobs became quieter and quieter until they were replaced with pitiful sniffles.
Even after Matt calmed down Kelly continued to hold him tightly. The two men rested on the couch hugging each other tightly for what felt like hours, however as Kelly spared a glance at his watch he realised it was only ten pm. Matt was lying heavily on his chest but he could tell by the man's shaky breathing that he was wide awake. Kelly considered persuading Matt to go to bed but swiftly decided against it. After the rough day they had he doubted either of them would be getting any sleep. He tried to focus on the tv but his attention was caught by a creaking noise coming from down the turned his head and his eyes swept around the living room but he saw nothing out of the ordinary. He started to shift his gaze back to the television when a soft giggling rippled through the room. Instantly Kelly felt Matt shift at the sound. The blonde lifted his head and smiled knowingly at Kelly. The two men silently sat up and peered over the back of the couch. As they suspected little Sonny was curled up on the floor his blanket draped over his shoulders as he whispered mischievously to his plush bunny.
"Hi" greeted Sonny with a cheeky smile when realised he'd been caught. Both Kelly and Matt let out a chuckle at the little boy's antics. Kelly watched as Matt stood up and lifted Sonny up over his shoulder causing boy to let out a squeal.
"Sevy, help me Sevy" yelled Sonny as Matt carried him towards the his bedroom.
"It's ok Sonny I'll save you" joked Kelly before heading off after the two blondes with a wide grin. Even on the darkest of days the boy had always been able to make them smile, he truly was there sunshine.
Kelly still struggled with the fact they'd never have anymore moments like that with Sonny, they'd never tuck him into bed or read him a bedtime story. They lost their carefree mischievous little boy. Kelly wasn't sure how the boy would cope with school. They'd consulted Dr Charles, the therapist had been talking to Sonny weekly; he believed Sonny was as ready as he would ever be. But that did nothing to ease Matt and Kelly's worries. In fact Kelly knew Matt had been considering homeschooling the teen but he'd eventually come to his senses. It was time to let their boy back into the world.
"Do you think he's going to be ok?" Asked Matt once he was sure Sonny was upstairs out of ear shot.
"I don't know, but we can't keep him hidden away forever"