Warning -- Violence and Hate Speech
The floor rose up pretty quickly to meet Larry's head. His legs had given out in sympathy with the paralyzing fear that had gripped his brain, and sent his body plummeting to the ground without his consent. He didn't lose consciousness, however, but he paid particular attention to his hand, palm down on the plush carpet directly in front of his eyes. It took him a few seconds to figure out what was going on around him. Why was he on the floor ? Why was Chuck yelling obscenities like they were going out of fashion ? Why was Kayden crying ? Where were Laurent and Michaela ?
"Larry ..... Larry, are you OK ?" Leyla asked, a more than worried look on her face as it appeared in front of his.
Lau and Michaela, oh, my God ! He sat up then, pushing himself up from the floor, leaning on his knees for a second to stop the dizziness caused by too fast an ascent, trying to focus on the wooliness that was his brain. As he stood, he gathered Kayden into his arms,
"It's OK, baba, it's OK" he didn't know whether it was OK or not, but the words themselves grounded him, and it calmed his son to be in his daddy's arms. He looked at Chuck, still yelling at Dave on the phone. He then looked over at Jack, also on his phone, not yelling, but his voice was calm and measured, his eyes telling Larry an altogether different story.
"Someone TALK to me !" Larry yelled, making Kayden jump in his arms, suddenly not wanting to be in his daddy's arms any longer, but reaching for Leyla. .
Larry wasn't in any particular phase of grief, if grief was even the right word. There was no denial, no disbelief, no final acceptance, because there was no understanding. A person had to be able to understand what was going on, what had happened, and he didn't. He had heard the words -- Laurent, Michaela, Seb Cole, and hostage -- his heart had overridden his brain the instant he hit the floor, but his mind had yet to comprehend what those words actually meant.
Leyla took Kayden, and Jack took Larry, as they separated to opposite ends of the room. While Leyla kept Kayden occupied with watching cartoons, Jack looked stoically, directly into Larry's face. He'd always treated him with the respect, the honesty that he felt he deserved, that they both deserved, and he wasn't going to stop now, no matter how painful it would be for both of them.
"Dave .... well, Chucks sorting him out, anyway ...... Dave left the studio for a minute to take a phone call. Seb Cole and two other men, assumed to be his son and a friend, they had obviously been planning this, they took advantage of that opportunity and got into the studio, and secured it from the inside. There aren't many windows, so we can't see much of what's going on, but .....that's all we know at the moment Larry ...... but the police are there with their crisis negotiator, they have a chopper in the air, news crews are ..... Larry ? Breathe, buddy, breathe, OK ? Stop for a minute, ..... breathe"
It seemed Larry had been holding his breath, only letting a large exhale loose when Jack told him to. How ? How was this possible ? He realised then, that there were two ways this could go, two directions he could take. Either he dissolved into a puddle of goo because his heart gave out, being of no use to anyone, and a burden to everyone. Or he could approach the situation as he would approach a problem at work. Put emotion aside for the time being, and concentrate on the problem in hand. As just about as impossible as that would be right now, he knew he had to do it, at least until he could get to grips with what that situation was. He could fall apart later. Fall apart, as much as he wanted to at this moment, as if his shattered heart and besieged mind could bring them both back safe, and into his arms. But it would not help anyone or anything, least of all Laurent and Michaela. They needed him now, more than they ever had. Questions flooded his, now at least partially focused, mind.
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YOU PROMISED ME FOREVER -- Sequel to "DIFFERENT"
Fanfiction5 years later, Laurent and Larry Read-Bourgeois and their two children, are living a seemingly perfect life. An unexpected, and traumatic event leaves them lost and bewildered, their perfect life now a nightmare. They keep their life, but can they...
