Disclaimer: I own nothing

Three days passed and Jamie and Shay were closer than ever, more like true brothers than just cousins that lived together due to unfortunate circumstances (Riley's words).

Until the fourth day when the two formed a connection that people rarely find and it was only because of Shay's bravery and loyalty to Jamie that it was made.

Sean came home drunk as hell with whiskey spilled down the front of his shirt and staining it the color of vegetable oil. His jeans were ripped from falling so much and his head had quite a few bruises from crashing into things. Jamie was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

He was sitting on the couch, reading his book, because he was the only one home. Shay had earned some money working at a fast food restaurant over the holidays and could afford to buy some groceries that he and Jamie would store in thier room. Since they'd be beaten if they ate anything Riley or Sean bought, it was best to keep the food they bought out of sight of their parents.

Meanwhile, Riley was working late as a waitress and Sean was out drinking at a bar down the street. James was alone in a huge house with nothing to do, being incredible bored as he read his book until...

BANG! "Boy, get-get your ass... in here n-now!"

James yelped and fell off the couch, his book thumping onto the floor and giving away his location.

Footsteps came stomping into the room, and Jamie curled into a small, trembling ball on the floor as a person came storming into the living room.

He was suddenly yanked up off the floor and was shaken, hard, by the strong hands of his uncle.

Sean looked beyond angry and beyond intoxicated. His face was purple with rage and the veins in his temples were ready to burst. His entire face and shirt were drenched with sweat and his breath smelled of booze. Slick with sweat but still strong, he was clenching James's shirt in his fists and shaking him until James was sure he'd puke.

"S-Sean," Jamie stammered in fear. "Please..."

Jamie shut his eyes tight as Sean wound his fist back, dreading the punch that was coming. But it never came.

"Dont you DARE touch him!" And then, Sean was being yanked off of James and thrown to the floor by what seemed to be inhuman strength. Seamus leaped on top of him, pinning his drunken father to the floor with his strength and the force of his glare.

"If you... bloody touch him... again, I will kill you. No regrets," Shay breathed and truth rang in each of his words, frightening both James and Sean.

Sean, getting over his shock, smacked Shay across the face so hard, he fell to the ground and Sean began to beat him, kicking and punching. Seamus had curled into fetal position on the floor in order to protect himself and he was clenching his eyes shut tight in an effort not to cry.

SNAP!

Shay screamed as Sean stepped on his wrist, putting pressure on it until it was bent at an odd angle- a very painful, odd angle.

Sean stumbled away towards his room after that and Shay was crying, tears pouring from his eyes as he cradled his without a doubt broken wrist.

"It-It hurts," Shay whimpered.

"I-I know, Shay, and I'm gonna get help," James told him, beginning to panic as he reached for the phone.

Shay's eyes grew wide in fear. "No, D-Dad, he- he'll hurt us if- if we tell."

"We won't tell, Shay. We'll just tell them you climbed the wrong tree, " James comforted, putting the phone up to his ear.

This did little to calm Seamus, but before the elder could protest, James dialed 911.

"911 operator, what is your emergency?" A cheery, female voice chirped.

"M-My... brother's injured," James stammered.

Seamus finally seemed to calm down and he even smiled when James called him brother.

"On a scale of one to ten, how badly is he hurt?" The operator asked.

"Probably... five, maybe six. His worst injury is a broken wrist and he's covered in bruises," James replied.

"Alright, an ambulance is on the way. Try to keep your brother calm until they arrive."

"Thank you, ma'am." James hung up and a few seconds later, sirens came wailing down their street towards them.

"They're here, Shay," James whispered as a team of paramedics came through the already opened door (Seamus had opened it, and hearing James's cries, had run to his brother's aid while leaving the door wide open).

A man with dark brown hair and a handsome face grabbed Shay's arms while a man with blonde curls and blue eyes grasped Seamus's legs. After the dark haired man counted to three, they heaved Shay (who really wasn't that heavy) onto a stretcher.

While Shay was carried out the door, another paramedic with black hair, about medium length, and kind brown eyes knelt before James.

"Hey, kiddo," he said with a nice smile. "I'm Ian Brown. What's your name?"

"James Finnigan."

"That's a nice name. Well, James, can you tell me how your brother, um-"

"Seamus, but we all call him Shay."

"Okay, then, can you tell me how Shay got injured?" Ian questioned, the smile still in place, but his eyes were serious.

"We were climbing trees in the backyard and Shay put his weight on the wrong branch," James lied, smoothly. Don't tell him about the abuse or Sean will just hurt Shay even more.

"Where are your parents?" Ian looked around the room as if expecting Sean and Riley to jump out from behind a couch or something.

"My mom's at work, and my dad went to party last night, so he's sleeping in his room. I tried to wake him up, but he's dead to the world," James spoke a little fast, but it still sounded believable. James had a talent for lying, no matter how horrible lying was, it was a talent nonetheless.

Ian nodded, not looking totally convinced but he didn't call James out on it. "Alright, we'll take you to the hospital with us and then, call your parents when we get there. Sound good?"

James nodded and he leaped into the ambulance to stand next to Shay, who had his arm in a temporary splint.

"You feeling okay, Shay?" James asked with a slight grin.

Shay nodded, albeit a little weakly. "Thanks to you. If you hadn't called 911, I would still be lying on the floor in pain."

"It was the least I could do since you saved my life today," James stated without thinking. Ian's head snapped up and James thought fast. "From those bullies that live down the street."

Ian didn't look convinced at the lie, but he looked away to talk with another paramedic.

The ambulance came to an abrupt halt and the paramedics opened the doors before hustling Shay off to see a doctor, leaving James to sit in the waiting room.

"Seamus?" A voice gasped from next to him and James looked up.

Standing next to him was a tall, lean boy with dark skin and curly hair cut short. His brown eyes were almost black and wide in suprise at seeing James there. He wore a gray winter jacket with a red and gold scarf and simple blue jeans. In his hand was a sketchbook with a silver cover and behind his ear was a drawing pencil.

"Oh, sorry, I thought you were someone else," the boy said with a somewhat disappointed smile. He turned to leave.

"Actually, my brother is named Seamus," James blurted.

The boy froze before slowly turning around. "Shay never mentioned a brother."

"Well, I'm not technically his brother. I'm his cousin, but my parents passed away last month, so I moved in with Shay and his family," James explained. Who was this person anyway? "I'm James, and you?"

"Dean." They shook hands with good natured smiles, but it did nothing to erase the worry in Dean's eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"Shay, um, broke his wrist," James said, deciding to try to stray from the explanation of how. No such luck.

"How?"

"We were climbing trees and Shay put his weight on the wrong branch. "

Dean nodded and James wondered why he hadn't asked where their parents had been. Had Shay told him about their abusive father and neglectful mother?

"Why are you here?" James asked.

"My mom works here, and sometimes I come to work with her."

James nodded.

"James, ready to- Dean?" A voice suddenly gasped and James looked over Dean's shoulder to see Seamus Finnigan himself standing there, his arm encased in a orange-red cast.

"Shay!" James ran up and hugged him, careful of his arm. "Are you alright?

"Of course I am; it's just a broken wrist. I've had worse, " Shay laughed. "But what are you doing here?" Shay asked, looking up at Dean.

"My mom works here," Dean said a little stiffly, but there was an undertone of concern when he glanced at Shay's arm.

"Oh, yeah. I forgot," Shay said and there was a moment of silence among the group.

"Um, well, I better get going," Dean said, quickly.

"Yeah, us too," Shay agreed hastily, taking James by the shoulders and leading him out the hospital doors.

"Who was that?" James asked. He knew his name was Dean, but who was he to Seamus?

For a moment, Shay said nothing. And then, he murmured in a trance like state, "Just an old friend, James. Just an old friend."