Patterns of Blues

Chapter 29

Saturday was arguably the worst day Liam had experienced at the group home. Sully and Asher got into a huge fight, though neither of them explained what it was about, Parker had wet the bed again, Charlie got the news that his mother was doing poorly, and Silvio wasn't talking to anyone, spending most of the morning pacing the hallway, Liam decided to block out the background noise and focus on Harry. The news of Greg's parental rights being taken away finally caught up to him, and he looked close to tears,

"Niall won't have a dad now. He's probably so sad."

"Harry, Niall doesn't know what it's like to have a dad," Liam explained, half-annoyed as he studied his brother's face carefully, "Greg stopped caring for him before he could form proper memories. If anything, he's probably as excited as you were." He reckoned saying so didn't help, because Harry's frown only deepened,

"I remember when Greg did care," he murmured, "don't you? He loved us, and Niall adored him. Why'd he have to give up on us?" Liam sighed, glancing away. He never tried to dwell on Greg's spiral, it didn't make sense. How can a perfectly fit person completely lose themself over someone's death? Mama dying shook everyone up, but Liam learned to care for himself and his brothers. How could an adult man not manage to do the same?

His thoughts drifted back to the first time any of them got hurt. Niall had been crying for Mama, and Greg screamed at him to shut up, which only made it worse. Instead of stopping to try and soothe him, Greg had reached his hand back and, with a good portion of strength, slapped a four-year-old in the face. Liam would never forget that day, even if Niall had. It had clicked everything into place. Niall wasn't favored because he was biologically Greg's. The man hated them equally, and it was Liam's job to protect the younger two. He did his best, but sometimes it wasn't enough and Harry or Niall would get hurt. Especially after Liam had gotten his weekend job; he'd walk home and find the middle brother with bruises covering his arms and face. Niall received the least amount of beatings, and that was mostly due to Harry's resilience. Now, here he was, getting emotional because Niall wouldn't get the chance to have a dad. Liam wanted to say that he and Harry were closer to being Niall's parents than either their mom or stepdad had acted but figured that would help nothing.

"I don't know why he stopped caring, Haz, but he did. I promise you that Niall doesn't wish he were still around."

"Yeah?" He pressed, still dejected.

"Yeah," Liam affirmed, "What I do know is that Niall misses you more than anyone else, and if he had his way, you'd be in that house with him drawing Spiderman until your hand cramps up." Harry smiled weakly before shaking his head,

"He misses you too," he offered, "you're like a superhero to him. He always talked about how strong you are." Liam felt himself smile as well, but before he could respond, Peter's voice called up the stairs,

"Silvio! Come." The door to the older boys' room swung open, and Liam and Harry both looked out their door to see the dark-haired boy hurry down the stairs, breaths panicked. Sully and Asher quickly hurried after, and Liam took that to mean Charlie and Parker were already downstairs. 

"Should we go see...?" Harry's voice drifted off, and Liam nodded hesitantly. If everyone else was down there waiting, why couldn't they be?

In the living room, the whole household was gathered, aside from Parker, who was probably creeping around like normal. Liam saw that Silvio was paler than usual, dread embedded on his face like he was ready to accept the worst possible outcome. Peter held out a long silence, looking at his notebook before staring at him,

"Nathaniel said you did nothing non-consensual." Silvio looked like he was about to cry, breathing out a sigh of relief. Peter gave him a cold look before continuing, "This doesn't mean you will go without consequence. Relationships inside group homes are strictly forbidden, and once we find an availability who will take you, you will be removed."

"But Nate's not even here," Asher snapped, waving around the room, "what's the use?"

"This is an all-boys home, do you think there's a possibility he could do this with someone different?" Peter asked rhetorically, and Asher huffed in annoyance. 

"Not with me," Sully offered, giving Silvio a dirty look. The oldest boy didn't appear bothered, gaze distracted,

"Is he alright?"

"He's fine," Peter replied stiffly, "as I said he would be." Silvio's eyes narrowed, apparently displeased with that response, but didn't badger any further. Peter cleared his throat, gaze scanning everyone in the room, "Dinner's in half an hour, clean up." Then he stood and went for the kitchen, where discussion immediately broke out.

"I can't believe this," Asher complained, standing up, "Three people getting moved within a week? Wonder when my turn is." 

"Could be worse," Liam offered to Silvio, who was still staring at nothing in particular, his brain working on something. His gaze drifted over to Liam and he smiled, an expression Liam still found unsettling on his usually somber face,

"Yeah, you got that right."

"I knew Nate wouldn't trash on you," Liam tried to sound encouraging, but mentioning Nate seemed to be a bad move, instead of his spirits lifting, Silvio's face turned bleak, 

"He's an idiot." Not quite the reaction Liam had expected. 

"What do you mean?" Harry asked, frowning, "He said you weren't hurting him." Silvio gave him a slightly amused look like he was a cute puppy that barked for him,

"And that was dumb. If he said that he was a willing participant then that means his secret's out," His half-smile deteriorated into a grimace, "and now there's no one to protect him."

"Nate looks out for himself," Asher said with an empty laugh, "When he doesn't get in his own head, his fists work wonders." He touched his jaw as though saying so brought back some memories. Silvio's dark gaze rested on the shaggy-haired boy,

"You deserved that one."

"Yeah, well, I thought he knocked out all my teeth. He could have toned it down," Asher sniffed, then smiled, "Point is, he doesn't need any of us to babysit him. If someone gives him crap, he'll throw it back at them."

"Well, if he weren't weird, he wouldn't need to protect himself," Sully stated boldly, and Silvio seemed about ready to lock him in a closet,

"How about shut your stupid mouth before you say something you'll regret?"

"What? Like he's a f-a-g-g-o-t? You are too!" 

"Shut up, Sully," Harry scolded, looking like a disappointed parent, and Liam silently rejoiced that Silvio didn't slug the kid in the nose for that comment. He certainly did look upset though, but perhaps didn't consider Sully worthy of his time and fist, leaving for upstairs without audibly responding.

"Harry's got a great idea there. 'Shut up, Sully' should be the slogan of this household," Asher observed, eyes set on the grim-looking thirteen-year-old.

"Leave me alone," Sully puffed, frowning. Asher stuck his tongue out like Niall would have before darting up the stairs, shouting at Silvio to wait up. Sometimes Liam wondered if he was bipolar. 

Dinner was hamburger helper again, but he couldn't complain. At least they were getting three meals each day. Silvio didn't come down, Asher had said he 'looked like crap in a t-shirt,' and that he'd probably throw up if he tried to eat, though Liam took that as code for 'he's in a mood'. Johnny let it slide but made Parker take him up some medicine.

A few simple moments passed before a huge crash from upstairs, making everyone look up from their plates.