Hey Guys I'm back with Another Chapter! Enjoy!

Chapter 3

The Next Day.

Alphonce silently came downstairs and joined the band for breakfast. He barely touched his food, stirring his cereal around with his spoon. No one said much—Russel and Noodle were talking about band stuff, Ace was reading the newspaper, and 2D was just sipping his tea, not even looking at him.

After a few minutes, Alphonce quietly stood up and grabbed his hoodie.

"Hey, Alphonce. Where you going, little man?" Russel asked.

"To the park. I wanna be alone," Alphonce muttered, slipping on his shoes. Before anyone could respond, he was already out the door.

Later.

Alphonce was walking through town to the Park. He noticed several people looking at him as they passed him.

"Is that him?" One older girl whispered.

"Yeah that's him." Another girl answered. "He's probably no different than his Dad."

Alphonce pulled up his hood and Continued walking.

One guy spoke. "I think he heard you".

A few minutes later Alphonce was walking when he Saw a shop filled with the Bands Merch. Posters, CD's, T-Shirts. The usual stuff. His mismatched eyes landed on a larger poster in the Window. It was a Plastic Beach-era image of the band—2D, Noodle, Russel… and Murdoc.

Alphonce felt his chest tighten. His father looked so cool, standing there with his bass slung over his shoulder, his signature smirk in place. Even though Murdoc wasn't here, even though people talked badly about him, he was still part of the band's history.

Alphonce smiled, reaching out to press his hand against the glass.

"Oi!"

He jumped as a voice snapped at him. A man—probably the shopkeeper—stormed toward the window, eyes locked on Alphonce.

"What do you think you're doing, you little brat?!" the man spat.

Alphonce blinked, taken aback. "What? I wasn't—"

"Get out of here!"

The shopkeeper shoved him roughly, causing Alphonce to stumble back.

"Hey what's the big idea you jerk?!" Alphonce snapped back at the Shopkeeper.

"I don't want you here, you're nothing but a pest!" The shopkeeper said.

Meanwhile.

Ace was walking, trying to chill when he heard the commotion. He followed the noise and saw the scene unfolding before him.

"That's Alphonce." He watched as a small crowd began to form, and People whispered.

"It's that kid again." One guy said.

"That kid is no different than his father." One woman said.

"Nothing but trouble!" Another woman exclaimed.

"Bad seed." A man said.

"I wasn't doing anything!" Alphonce became upset. "I just like the poster with my Dad on it that you have."

The shopkeeper sneered and ripped the poster off the window.

"Here!" He threw it at Alphonce. The paper crumpled as it hit the ground. "Take it and get lost!"

Alphonce stared at the crumpled poster at his feet, his hands shaking. He clenched his jaw, blinking back tears.

"Fine. Be that way."

He snatched up the poster and turned away, walking off as the whispers followed him.

"Why do they all hate me? They don't even know me." Alphonce thought.

The stares, the hushed voices—it was too much. He broke into a run.

Ace, who had been watching from the sidelines, let out a deep sigh and shook his head. Adjusting his shades, he stepped forward, fixing the shopkeeper with a hard glare.

"Man, you really are a piece of work," Ace muttered.

The crowd went quiet as he turned to face them, his voice rising just enough to make sure they all heard.

"You oughta be ashamed—all of you. A bunch of grown folks picking on an eleven-year-old orphan. You ever stop to think how that feels? To lose your dad to prison and have every person you meet treat you like a criminal? No mom, no dad, no one to tuck you in at night or tell you things'll be okay. Just whispers and dirty looks everywhere you go."

The crowd shifted uneasily, some glancing away. But Ace wasn't done.

"Yeah, his old man's done some crazy stuff. We all know that. But does that mean the kid's gotta suffer for it? Especially when he's just tryin' to find his own way?"

Silence.

Ace let out a bitter chuckle, shaking his head. "And in case you didn't know, the band doesn't even care enough to take him to visit his dad. They act like he never even existed."

The words hung in the air like a weight. No one said a thing.

Ace clicked his tongue and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Thought so."

With that, he turned and walked off in the direction Alphonce had gone.

Meanwhile.

Alphonce was at the Park sitting on one of the swings, rocking back and forth. His sneakers scuffling against the dirt below. He didn't want to see or talk to anyone.

As he sat there He looked around.

He saw kids with their parents playing together. A couple of kids were with their parents getting ice cream. Watching them made Alphonce remember how His father Murdoc would take him to the park when he wasn't busy and get ice cream.

Alphonce felt sad and hung his head.

A burst of laughter made him glance up.

He looked and saw a father and his son around his age tossing a football on the grass nearby.

The boy, about his age, fumbled a catch and groaned in frustration. The father laughed and ruffled his son's hair. "You'll get it next time buddy!"

"Thanks Dad!" The boy giggled.

Alphonce clenched his hands tighter.

Suddenly, the ball landed at his feet and he picked it up.

The boy came over and Alphonce handed him the ball.

"Thanks, woah." The boy looked at him.

"What?" Alphonce looked back at the boy. "Is there something on my face?"

"Nothing, just, you look alot like someone I knew a few years back." Alphonce looked at the boy and finally noticed his hair was blue. He felt a sense of familiarity as he looked at the boy.

"What's your name?" Alphonce asked the boy.

"Stewart." The boy Answered.

"Stewart?! I haven't seen you since my step Dad Gregory was locked up!" Alphonce answered surprised.

"Alphonce...?" Stewart answered equally surprised.

"Yeah!" Alphonce excitedly hugged him.

Stewart was surprised but hugged back.

"Where have you been?" Alphonce asked.

"Oh, well shortly after Gregory was locked up I got adopted. My real Dad, 2D, thought it was best if I be raised by someone else." Stewart explained.

"Typical." Alphonce said.

"What's wrong?" Stewart asked.

"Uncle 2D is nothing but a big Jerk!" Alphonce stated.

"Why?" Stewart was surprised.

"Well, a few Months ago My Daddy Got arrested for smuggling, and a new guy named Ace took over as the Bass player. Then uncle 2D took over as the band's leader, and I mean at First it was fine, but then he started acting like a TOTAL Jerkface!"

Alphonce finally stopped to catch his breath and continued explaining.

"Not only that but Even the fans keep saying that I'm no different than my Dad." Alphonce said as voice began to break. "They all look at me with disgust and no one does anything about it." Tears streamed down his face.

"They all look at me like I'm some kinda criminal. Like I don't even belong here."

Stewart hesitated, then placed a hand on Alphonce's shoulder. "That's not fair…"

Alphonce sniffled, looking down. "Yeah, well. Nobody cares."

Stewart was quiet for a moment. Then he nudged Alphonce's arm.

"I care."

Alphonce blinked, looking up at him.

"And I'm pretty sure your dad does too."

For the first time that day, Alphonce didn't feel completely alone.

Stewart grinned, tossing the ball between his hands. "Hey, Alphonce, wanna play with us?"

Alphonce's face lit up. "Yeah!"

The two boys played for a while, laughing and running across the park as Stewart's adoptive father joined in. For the first time in a while, Alphonce felt like a normal kid—just having fun, no judgment, no whispers.

But eventually, the sun started to dip, and it was time for Stewart to go home.

"Here," Stewart said, pulling out his phone. "Let's exchange numbers. We gotta hang out again."

Alphonce nodded eagerly, quickly typing in his number before they said their goodbyes.

Now alone again, Alphonce sighed, kicking at the dirt beneath the swing. The joy from earlier faded, replaced by the familiar emptiness.

Then, a voice broke through his thoughts.

"Alphonce."

He looked up. Standing nearby was Ace.

"Yo, kid," Ace said, nodding toward the basketball court nearby. "You any good?"

Alphonce sniffled, wiping his eyes. "At what?"

Ace smirked and gestured to the court. "C'mon, let's shoot some hoops. I ain't lettin' you mope around here all day."

Alphonce hesitated but then shrugged. "Alright."

They walked over, and Ace grabbed a stray basketball, spinning it on his finger before passing it to Alphonce. "Alright, hotshot, let's see what you got."

Alphonce dribbled a bit before taking a shot. The ball bounced off the rim.

"Pfft, weak!" Ace teased, catching the rebound.

Alphonce glared. "Oh, yeah? Bet I can beat you!"

Ace chuckled. "Aight, first to ten."

The game started, and at first, Ace easily outmatched Alphonce, but as they played, the kid got more competitive, landing a few good shots. The laughter and banter helped loosen the tension.

At one point, Ace let Alphonce take an open shot. "Alright, don't choke, kid!"

Alphonce focused, jumped, and—swish! The ball went in.

"BOOM!" Alphonce cheered, arms up. "In your face, old man!"

Ace snorted. "Old man?! I oughta—" He lunged, playfully ruffling Alphonce's hair.

For the first time all day, Alphonce genuinely laughed.

After a while, they sat on the court, catching their breath. Ace leaned back on his hands. "Listen, kid… people are always gonna run their mouths. But you ain't your old man. You gotta prove 'em wrong your own way, y'know?"

Alphonce nodded, still holding the ball. "…Thanks, Ace."

"Yeah, yeah," Ace waved him off. "Now, come on, let's grab some grub before you start cryin' again."

Alphonce rolled his eyes but smiled as they left the park together.

Whew! Another chapter done! Tell me what you guys think! And if you have any suggestions for the next chapter feel free to leave them! See you soon!

Gorillazfan-102 ;)