I hope you liked the chapter one! I'm sorry it took this long to write this chapter, but I haven't even opened my laptop in a week. School, school, school.
Jack is 12-13, Bobby is 16, and Angel and Jerry somewhere between that.
Disclaimer: I don't own Four Brothers and I don't do money with this. Sad, but true.
Warnings: None
Rated: T, but just because I like to rate everything T ^^
Evelyn had all of us by the table in the kitchen. She was smiling but at the same time she was somehow serious, her face wasn't drawn into a smile like it usually was. We were all curious. What was so important ?
"I don't want to make things longer than necessary, so I'm just gonna drop the bomb. There is going to be a new boy in here."
Well, that was quick.
"What?" Jerry stuttered out. "Again?"
"Yes. Do you have problem with it, Jerry?" Evelyn asked, looking strictly at the young man.
Jerry seemed to choose his next words carefully. "No", he said slowly. "But there is already three of us. Where is he gonna-"
"We have enough rooms, and you know that, Jeremiah Mercer", Evelyn sighed and glared at him. "He'll be here the day after tomorrow. I'm going to make room for him, and your job is to make him feel like he's home."
I nodded, as well as Angel.
"Do you have something to ask?" Evelyn asked, smiling again. After thinking a little moment I dared to open my mouth, guessing that she wouldn't kill me.
"Why is he coming here?"
Evelyn looked at me, taking a few seconds before answering. Jerry leaned his forehead against his palms and Angel eyed everyone cautiously. I wondered if they had acted like that when Evelyn told them I was going to move in.
"He has had a rough time. He is very challenging, and he is most likely going to test our limits. But he is going to be Mercer, one of us, your brother", She told us, and everyone was quiet for a second.
So, another kid, huh? Maybe it wouldn't be too bad. Having two brothers was awesome, so what would three feel like?
"His name is Bobby, and he is 16, so that makes his the oldest of you all", Evelyn continued and her blue eyes were full of something... good. Happiness mixed with excitement.
Angel nodded. "Okay." Silence filled the room for a heartbeat. "Do you need help with the room?"
Evelyn let out a small laugh. "Yes, thank you. Thinking of it, Jack, would you mind running to the nearest market?"
"No, not at all", I quickly answered. I really wanted some fresh air. "What do I need to bring?"
"What would you like to eat tonight? Maybe ice-cream, some candy? Bring something for everyone. I'll take some ice cream. But don't eat too much goods, or your stomach will start hurting, okay?"
XXX
The next day went slowly. To kill time I decided to go out for a moment. I hadn't really gotten to know anybody in the neighborhood, so maybe I could meet some new people.
It was a bright, sunny day, but I didn't dare to use a t-shirt because of the bruises covering my arms. That's why I had a hoodie on. Jerry had given it to me few days earlier, because it was too small for him. Angel hadn't been an option, of course, since he was larger than Jerry was.
I heard someone yelling my name as I stood there, in the warm autumn air. I turned around to see Angel leaning out of his window.
"Going somewhere?" He asked. I shook my head;
"No, I just want to walk around a little bit. I'll be back soon, I promise."
Angel nodded, eyeing me. "Great, 'cause food will be ready in an hour."
"I'm back by then. See you", I told him and walked out of the yard.
It was funny how Evelyn trusted us. She had no fences, no locks anywhere, nothing to keep us there. She wasn't afraid that we might run away from there, like my few previous 'parents' had been afraid of.
Maybe she knew that we liked her. She was fair, nice and loving. She treated us like she would treat her own children..
thinking of it- Maybe we are like biological children to her. The though wasn't too bad. Having a mother didn't sound too bad. Having a real family didn't sound too bad.
I shrugged and turned right from the end of our street. It was a large neighborhood, and it reminded me of the neighborhood from the pretty new movie called Edward Scissorhands. I was sure there wouldn't be a day I had seen every corner of the area, it really seemed that big.
When I was walking down the bigger street I noticed some kids playing football on some yard. They were probably aged between ten and fifteen, and they were all boys. They seemed like they were having much fun; I didn't feel like interrupting them, so I just decided to keep walking instead of joining their match. But as I was walking past them, one of the players ran to me.
He was maybe thirteen, a bit older than me. He had blonde hair and big, green eyes and a bright smile.
"Hi", he said, shaking my hand. I smiled.
"Well hi." I took my hand from his.
"What's your name?" He asked, eyeing me.
"Jack", I answered. "You?"
"David", my new friend answered and shrugged, "but everyone calls me Dave."
I nodded.
David glanced at the others and then turned back to me. "Hey, would you like to play with us?"
"Uhm, why not", I breathed out in small surprise. "But I'm not very good, and my wrist is broken, so I think I wouldn't be too good goalkeeper."
"Don't worry about it", David laughed. "Sorry about your wrist, but you not being good? We all suck. Welcome to the club, Jack."
I laughed with him and nodded again. "Well alright. I'm coming."
"Great", David said with a small smile.
XXX
My first meeting with Bobby wasn't the greatest possible. I was in the living room when Evelyn returned with my new brother, and of course she called us all three to meet him. And since I was so close to them, I got there first.
"Hi", I said. Bobby looked frustrated and angry, so I decided I could stay as shut up as I could. I could talk to him after he had moved in better.
"Let's make one thing clear, kiddo", Bobby hissed. "I'm not one of you. You and your brothers. I'm not Mercer, and I will never be, so let's skip the polite chit-chat, thanks."
I looked a bit up to him in shock. Evelyn glared at Bobby, but didn't say anything. We heard Jerry and Angel coming down the stairs, and I turned around to see them.
"Hi, I'm Angel", Angel informed dryly and smiled an unhappy smile. He looked pissed for some reason, but I knew it hadn't anything to do with Bobby. Just yesterday he had told me how he actually looked forward meeting the new dude.
"Jerry", Jeremiah said and looked at Bobby. "Well, Jeremiah. But no-one uses it."
Bobby nodded, taking his bags and making his way upstairs. We all stared his back as he angrily walked up the stairs. Evelyn sighed when we could no longer see the new kid.
"I know he is a little bit hard", Evelyn said and smiled. "but that's why he is here. No one else would take him, and the orphanage does no good for him. He needs a normal home, and this is the best I can do for him."
Angel nodded, ducking his head.
"Remember me when I first came here? I was about the same", Jerry said and grinned. "Maybe even worse. I broke the tv, ahah. But I swear it was an accident!"
I let out a little laugh. "Nice", I said. "But hey, I think I'll go out. David said I could play with them today also."
"Play what?" Angel asked, laughing. "Board game?"
"No, idiot. Football", I replied with a smirk.
"Who's gonna play football?" I heard a new voice from upstairs. I spun around to see Bobby, who was sitting on the stairs, leaning on his knees.
"Me", I said and looked at him. He studied my face and nodded, not looking so angry anymore.
"Cool."
"Why you ask?"
"Just wonderin'."
I turned back to Evelyn, telling her I would be home in an hour or so. She nodded and smiled. "Have fun", Evelyn said with a warm smile and touched my shoulder as I walked past her. I let out a little laugh and closed the door behind me.
The game was alright. My team, which included me, David, Michael and Elia, won. Because of my broken wrist I couldn't be the goalkeeper, but instead of that I decided I could be a striker, and in all honesty, it was fine to me. I liked running after the ball.
As I returned back home -yes, it was definitely home-, I realized I still had my ten bucks. Maybe I could run to some thrift shop tomorrow? I wasn't allowed to go alone, but who would notice? I could always say I went with David and the others. Smiling, I opened the front door.
"Hi", I greeted Jerry as I saw him in the living room. He was once again fully concentrated on some match, and didn't even hear me.
I walked up the stairs and went straight to the bathroom. I closed and locked the door, took off my clothes and took a long, warm shower. The cast around my wrist was made of some plastic or something, so it didn't matter if it got wet. It felt good to wash off the sweat from the game. My sore muscles really enjoyed the warm water running down my body.
As I dried myself after shutting the shower, I looked into the big mirror on the wall. I could see my whole body from it; as well as all my bruises and cuts all over my body. I closed my eyes as few painful memories came back to my mind. I really had to tell myself that it was over now, that nobody would hurt me anymore.
A knock on the door brought me back on earth.
"Jack, is that you in there?" I heard Angel's voice echo through the wooden door.
"Yeah, what?" I called back.
"Are you gonna come out soon? I'll piss myself soon", Angel laughed. I let out a little laugh too.
"Yup, sorry. I'll be out in a few."
I quickly dressed and stepped out. Angel was still standing behind the door, and I almost hit him with it.
"Woah, thanks, better late than never", Angel quickly said and disappeared to the bathroom. I smiled and decided to go to my room.
As I passed Bobby's new room, -which was, by the way, next to mine- I saw him sitting on the floor. He sat his feet crossed, his shoulders down and head ducked. He had some papers in front of him, and looked like he was reading them. I slowed down, trying to see what he was reading with such interest.
Somehow he noticed me and looked up to me. His face was calm, and maybe even a little bit excited.
"Sorry", I quickly said, moving to continue my way to my room, but something told me to stop.
"Don't worry about it, kiddo", Bobby said and patted the floor next to him, inviting me to sit with him.
What the hell? I thought as I took step forward, entering his room. It was a bit bigger than mine, but not much. He didn't have much in there, only the basic furnitures, which was a bit surprising for me.
"Thanks", I said as I sat down. "What are you reading?"
I glanced at the papers, and saw notes for guitar.
"I think you can figure that out by yourself", he said and handed me one of the papers. I took it, starting to read the lyrics. It was a song by Elvis, called Where no-one stands alone. I read the lyrics, thinking if they meant something bigger for Bobby.
"But I don't know a thing, in this whole wide world, that's worse than being alone", I whispered as I read the lyrics forward. "Sounds cool."
"Yeah", Bobby replied and smirked. "I like that song. It's not my favorite one, tho."
"It's not? I don't think I've heard it", I mumbled, choosing my words carefully. I didn't want to upset Bobby now.
"You haven't, really?" Bobby almost shouted. "Man. You've missed alot. Well, can't help it now. I could play it for you, but that Evelyn downstairs doesn't have guitar."
I smirked, nodding. "Yeah. But she's doing her best with the little money she has. Maybe you could ask for a guitar?"
Bobby shook his head, glancing at me. "Nah, I can't. I was pretty rude to her during the drive here."
"Why would you be? She's awesome", I asked. I didn't want to be an asshole or anything, but if Bobby dared to say something about Evelyn, I'd nicely tell him to fuck off.
Bobby shrugged. "Uhh.. my previous parents haven't been exactly dream. I just thought-"
"-that she was the same?" I cut Bobby off. "I know the feeling."
His eyes drifted from my face to my broken wrist. He looked a little bis shocked as he opened his mouth to speak. "Your previous parents...?"
I nodded, sighing. "Yeah. They pushed me down a bit too hard and it broke."
Somebody was humming downstairs. I noticed it was Evelyn, and she always hummed when she was cooking or baking. I wondered what she was doing.
"Man, that sucks. My previous parents could never hurt me, I always hit them if they even tried. But they had other ways to keep me.. obeying, I think."
I was just about to ask him to tell me more, but then we heard Evelyn shouting us all downstairs. I got on my feet and looked at Bobby, who hadn't moved. "You coming?" I asked, and he answered by nodding.
"Mmh, maybe I could give this place a try."
Tbc ..
I hope you liked this chapter :) I'm very very very very sorry it took so long.
~fiia
