Be Your Own Hero

Chase

Deep in the woods, surrounded by a bog. Rain poured outside but that was a normal occurrence. In Ireland, it rained just about every other day.

A log cabin set in these woods not far from another house that was long ago abandoned. He couldn't go in. It wasn't his old home. He lived in the cabin now.

Alone. Devoid of human contact. The only thing to ever keep him company was the internet.

Since Sean had left the cabin, the man that took it over installed better internet and phone service so he would never have to leave. He'd have everything delivered to him as needed.

It was so quiet there. Only the faint pitter of rain on the roof made any noise.

The man sat in a couch, a bottle in his hand. Once in a while, he'd take a swing of the contents.

Other times he'd glance over at some pictures he had in a shoe box that he never got to opening. But that was okay. In his wallet was the most precious picture of all.

He felt so . . . wrong. He had everything he needed. Food, water, toiletries, heat, internet, phone service, TV, games, alcohol. . . but it wasn't enough. It was never enough.

He took another swig. 

He was sure his brothers had searched for him at first. He guessed that Jackie probably almost went insane trying to find him. Sean knew he was alright though. He'd feel it if he was in trouble. He just wanted to be alone.

The only one he knew would understand was JJ and it wasn't hard for him to keep his silence.

He knew none of them would really understand why he left though. And it wasn't just one thing. It was multiple things crashing down on him all at once. His heart hurt so much from all the drama, the hatred and depression. First his wife left him taking the kids with her, then his job tanked and THEN he was evicted from his apartment. He moved in with the other egos again but that was clearly a mistake with Anti being the drama attention-seeker he was.

He didn't hate Anti but the glitch needed to learn to be responsible and good-mannered sometimes. 

He remembered the night they shared when they were plastered in the living room and he smiled slightly. Anti, although drunk off his ass, completely unveiled himself to Chase heart and soul. He showed his true emotions. They laughed together, hugged and cried and fell asleep together on the couch snuggled up against one another. But apparently Anti hadn't expected that waking up and went completely unhinged in his own embarrassment. It took both Marvin AND Jackie to take him down and even then Henrik had to sedate him.

He couldn't continue thinking about that day. It hurt too much.

The man took another swig.

He was about to turn on the TV and stare blankly at it when his phone buzzed.

It surprised him and he even flinched. No one had called him in so long. The only person now who even had his number was. . . . 

"JJ?"

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Jameson looked everywhere. It had to be here somewhere! He couldn't have lost it!

He was in his room searching for a piece of paper but even though his room was normally spotless, it was still a heavy task.

He clambered through his drawers and books. He had hidden the number for a reason. For him.

He hadn't wanted anyone to know where he was and only gave his new number to Jameson for emergencies. Even though he left the family, he still cared for them all.