Repairing hearts

[Tryss]

Lucien and Kate sat at the table sipping coffee. They were expecting a new arrival. Lucien had taken three days off. He almost never did that, but according to the file they'd gotten on Joel, he was going to be a tough one to work with. Maybe as tough as Ben had been.


In any case, it was Friday, and it would be the first full weekend off Lucien had had since he'd put in for vacation time last year when the family had gone camping for the week. Lucien and Kate weren't allowed to take children across state lines, and they certainly weren't allowed to leave the country with them. They still liked the idea of vacations, but hated the idea of leaving their foster children behind. So they began taking yearly camping trips with whomever they had in their care at the time.


The absence of a "real vacation" had taken some getting used to at first, but this was their eleventh year as foster parents. It was second nature at this point.


Benjamin stumbled into the kitchen. His backpack was slung over his shoulder. He poured a glass of orange juice and sat down. "You need to eat." Lucien reminded him.


Benjamin glanced up to him, entirely uninterested in doing so. In the mornings, his stomach was flippy and breakfast never agreed with him. Half the time he gave in and ate it, he wound up throwing up later in the day. "I have practice, and I don't want to puke." He answered, his eyes still droopy, his mind still numb.


"Yeah, but last time you passed out." Lucien reminded him. Ben sighed and buried his face in his palms. "Is it really that bad?" Lucien asked.


"It is when practice happens at six-thirty, and I don't like eating breakfast." Benjamin answered. To say that he was not a morning person was a vast understatement. "Why can't this happen at a reasonable time? Like noon." He grumbled as he grabbed a bagel. Lucien chuckled and shook his head.


"Why don't you just take it with you? By the time practice starts, you'll be more able to handle food, and then you won't have to worry about puking or passing out." Lucien suggested. Benjamin nodded, but the look on his face made it clear that he wasn't exactly thrilled.


"Hey Ben, did you remember to put a new comforter set in one of the spare bedrooms last night?" Kate asked, glancing up to the teenager.


Ben nodded. "Yeah." He answered past a yawn. "The blue bedroom is all ready." He said. "How old is this one?" He asked.


"Fifteen." Lucien answered absently as he turned the page of the newspaper. "Your age." Lucien commented.


Benjamin nodded. "Yep." He answered, before standing and slinging his back over his shoulder. He glanced at the clock on the wall, and through a yawn wished his family a good day. "I'll be back around four-thirty. I have drill after class." He informed his parents who both nodded in response.

 

[JoelHPIS]

Joel was a very quiet teenager. Most boys his age were confident and loved messing around and causing trouble. He personally preferred to keep to himself and write music. He didn't like sports like most boys, he preferred the arts. They were much more enjoyable to him.


The second reason he was so quiet was due to anxiety. He didn't like meeting new people or talking in front of crowds. He hated being the centre of attention, much preferring to listen to someone else. He kept away from others and found it hard to make friends. He was the weird shy kid, after all.


The final reason he was so quite was because he was really quite depressed. He had recently lost both his parents in a car crash. It had been a miracle he had survived himself. But he was broken, he didn't know what to do with himself anymore. Social services had gotten involved and had found him this new foster home. Which he didn't like the sound of.


New people.


He was driven to their house, he was silent the entire journey. The social worker kept trying to talk to him but he never spoke. The only thing he did was change the bandages around his head and his left forearm. They were still fairly badly injured from the crash.


As he got out of the car, he looked up at the house and seemed to shrink. He didn't want to do this. The social worker led him to the door, he quickly hid behind them. He was taking deep breaths, trying not to panic. He could get through this. He had to.

 

[Tryss]

Benjamin

​

Benjamin had been leaving the house as a car pulled up. He recognized the social worker that drove it. While she wasn't his social worker, she'd dropped off a few other kids in the past. He gave a wave and offered a half-hearted smile. It didn't reach his eyes, or look at all sincere. Not because he wasn't friendly, not because he didn't want the new kid to feel welcome, only because it was too early in the god damned morning to even consider smiling.


He walked down the street, heading toward the school that was only a few blocks south. It was true that Chicago was a mean city, it was true that many parts were dangerous, but here, where his adoptive parents lived, it was pretty safe. So he continued forward, until he caught up with Ari, a very pretty black teenager. Her hair was trapped in a million micro-braids. Her skin was dark, much darker than most of the black people around the are. She had the prettiest accent that she'd said came from Uganda, her home country. If Benjamin were being honest, he'd had a crush on her for months, but if his current girlfriend - Charlie - ever found out about it, she'd lose her damned mind.


Charlie.


Benjamin wasn't sure why he was still with her. Possibly because she was the only one that had known him both before and after he'd been placed with the Rowans. Maybe because she was so unstable that he feared what she might do if he were to leave. She had terrible mood swings, one moment she'd be fine, the next she'd throw a lamp, or something else heavy at him.


He never mentioned it to anyone because...well...why? Who would believe him anyway? He was a football player, a popular dude. She was tiny little girl who was sweet as candy on the outside when she talked to people. He didn't think anyone would believe him even if he told them.


"Hey." Benjamin said, pushing the thoughts of out his mind. "How are you, Najja?" He asked. It had taken him weeks to perfect saying her name properly, but he had, and Najja seemed to approve.


She turned to him, and smiled that heart-melting beautiful smile of hers. "Oh, I'm fine, Ben." She answered, her accent colored her words in the most tantalizing of ways.


"What are you doing coming to school so early?" He asked, moving just slightly closer to her. His blue sweater was growing warm already in the summer heat. Today's practice was going to suck ass.


Najja cast him a playful look. "Oh...I thought I might watch the practice." She answered.


Benjamin's heart fluttered, and he wondered for a moment how he'd gotten so lucky. His stomach knotted as he realized how excited he was to have Najja's attention, and how very not okay that was. Still, he couldn't help the upturn of his lips, even as he fell silent.

Lucien/Kate



​

The sound of a car pulling up, piqued Lucien's interest. He went to the window, and glanced outside. There, in the driveway, was the car that brought their newest charge to them. He gave a soft smile. "He looks a little like Ben." He commented, looking back to his wife, and hoping Ben and this one...Joel...he thought the name on the paperwork stated - got along better. Their last foster child, Brianna, who was still sleeping upstairs, had all but turned their world upside down.


She was mean. She was nasty. She was absolute hell to deal with.


Lucien and Kate had dealt with worse, but felt terrible for poor Benjamin. He'd never had to deal with such a thing, and they felt awful for him. She was so mean to him, and it was so uncalled for, no matter how many times she was reprimanded, it never ended.


Lucien and Kate made their way to the door, and stepped outside, to greet the new arrival. Lucien was tall - much taller than most men. Standing at 6'5, and weighing over 250lbs (without much in the way of fat), he was an absolute giant. Kate was his exact opposite. She was barely 5'1, and hadn't quite hit 110lbs yet. They were polar opposites as far as looks went, but they worked surprisingly well together.

 

[JoelHPIS]

The social worker smiled as she saw the two foster parents.


"Hello again. This is Joel I have here. He's really nervous and shy. Come on Joel, you need to at least say hello. They'll be looking after you for a while after all." She smiled as she tried to get him to stop hiding behind her.


Joel was shaking, not wanting to go. He shook his head and backed away a bit. He couldn't do this. Too many strangers all together, he couldn't keep a straight mind. He bit his lip a little too hard, blood spilling from it, not that he realised.


The social worker sighed and gently took his hand and led him back towards the door.


"Joel, these are Lucien and Kate. Say hello."


Joel went red and looked down shyly.


"H-Hi..." He mumbled almost silently.

 

[JoelHPIS]

( @Tryss...?)